Beach Blanket Homicide (Lucy McGuffin, Psychic Amateur Detective 1)

“Oh, okay, great. Thanks.”

I really hope I hear from The Cooking Channel soon. That ten-thousand-dollar prize money can’t come fast enough.

I put Paco in the car, and we head home. After everything that’s happened, I just want a quiet night in. My cell phone buzzes. It’s Will. I put him on my car speakerphone, then I take a deep breath and try to pretend that my little outburst from this morning never happened.

“Hey,” I say.

“Hey, yourself.”

“I went to see Brittany this afternoon.”

“She told me. You didn’t have to do that, Lucy.”

“Yes, I did. So…everything still on for tonight?”

“Yep.”

“Good.”

“What about you? How are you doing?”

I glance over at Paco, who’s watching me expectantly. It’s like he knows what’s at stake here with my answer. “I figure the town is going to have to forgive me or else find another way to get their muffin fix.”

He laughs, but it sounds off.

I gulp. Have I ruined our friendship forever?

“Seriously, Cunningham, I’m fine. I have Paco sitting next to me, and we’re going to order pizza and watch T.V.”

“Sounds like fun. I’ll swing by tomorrow morning and get him.”

“Or I can drop him off. Whatever works for you.”

“Sure. And, Lucy? Thanks for making things okay with Brittany.”

“Anytime. You know you’re like a brother to me.”

Chapter Twenty-Four

Paco and I swing by Tiny’s Pizza and get the anchovy and mushroom special. Will hates anchovies, but since I’m doing pizza night solo this week, I can get whatever I want.

I take a long hot bath, open a bottle of wine and settle in on my living room sofa with Paco and my pizza. I’ve reheated it in the oven, so it’s bubbly hot. This is another thing Will and I disagree on. He thinks nuking pizza is perfectly acceptable, but I prefer to take the extra time to heat it back up the right way (which is always the oven).

I flip through the channels.

I’ve watched just about everything on Netflix, and the Hallmark Channel has already begun it’s Christmas programming, which I’m totally into, but the movie they’re playing is one I’ve seen three times already.

I scroll back to the main channels and lo and behold, America’s Most Vicious Criminals is starting. It’s a new episode featuring all their unsolved cases, including Will’s favorite, The Angel of Death. He’s going to kick himself for missing this. I hit the record button on my DVR so that he can watch it later.

I wonder if Jim Fontaine knows about this special episode. I wish I had his number so I could call him. Maybe I should let Travis know so he can call his dad. Except Travis and I didn’t exactly part on the best of terms the other night. So, no. Bad idea.

The opening credits begin. I love the theme music to this show. It’s so wonderfully eerie that if the subject matter didn’t already spook you out, the music alone would do it.

I finish off my first slice of pizza and only give Paco the teeniest bit of the leftover crust. “Just this one time,” I say as he eagerly gobbles it down.

“Welcome to a special edition of America’s Most Vicious Criminals.” The male host’s deep somber voice adds another layer of creep to the experience. “Tonight, we’ll be revisiting cases involving our most notorious serial killers. The one thing they all have in common? They’ve never been caught.”

Oh, I can already tell this is going to be epic.