Death by Chocolate (The Davenports 2)

“I told her we’d go in before you, Carl.”

Carl nodded his head in understanding.

“If y

ou’re ready to let us inside of your place now we can get things started,” Micah told her, as he studied the curvy woman who stood a few inches shorter than him at about five foot nine or ten inches. A range of emotions crossed her face before she settled on determination. Her jaw twitched as she squared her shoulders and held her head high. Eyes flashing, she looked like a queen with her high cheekbones adding to her regal bearing.

“Let’s get this over with.”

“You heard the lady. Trish, will you join us please?”

“Yes, sir.” Trish saluted, and Micah mentally rolled his eyes. They were all silently cheering him on. It meant the world, but he had to keep things professional.

“After you, Daize.”

She closed and locked her door with the key fob before striding forward into the building. He studied the security measures. It took a code to open the front door. It buzzed when she entered the correct combination and clicked behind them. They walked down the well-lit hall to the third door on the left. The walls were thick, or her neighbors were quiet. Clean wood flooring covered with a runner of light blue carpet with wavy brown lines running through it helped create a peaceful environment.

A burlap wreath with light blue ribbon, sand dollars, sea stars, and teal ribbon with golden scales held a blue sign with ‘Life’s a Beach’ on it in white writing greeted them.

“I’m sensing a theme here,” Trish said.

“I don’t know what you mean, madam,” Daize deadpanned.

Micah smirked as he gently took the wreath off its hook. “We don’t want Carl to be influenced by anything.”

Daize unlocked the door and hesitated. He met Trish’s gaze over her head and shook his head slowly. She needed to do this herself. The first step was taking back ownership of her space. Taking a deep breath, Daize stepped across the threshold. A turquoise and light green area rug with a half circle design that mimicked scales and a bright blue sofa brightened up the bland beige carpet and eggshell white walls. Two blue armchairs with white starfish prints were angled on the opposite side of the room with a white cocktail table in the center. Beach themed paintings and photo frames with pictures of family and friends lined the walls.

“Welcome to mi casa.” She gave a weak smile.

“We’re going to take down the photos and place them face down on the table if that’s okay?” Trisha said.

“It’s fine.” The oceanic colors continued in the kitchen on potholders and tea towels that dangled off the handle of the stove. No religious items caught his eye as he moved into her space.

“Do you want to see the rest of the place?” Daize asked.

“Yeah, I think Trish has this room taken care of.” Micah followed her into the bathroom. An ombre blue shower curtain and light blue towels and rugs kept the light feeling flowing into the space. Nothing personal jumped out, and we moved to her room. Closed, the bedroom door loomed ahead ominously.

“Take your time. There’s no rush.” He stood a few feet behind her, allowing her to go at her own pace. She placed a shaking hand on the knob, turned, and pushed it in. The door opened easily.

“What?” Everything from the wave patterned bedspread to the bottles meticulously lined across the dresser were in their proper place. “This is not how I left it.”

I’ve heard of ghosts destroying a room while the owner was out but never cleaning it up. She stepped inside and spun around, shaking her head. “I swear I’m not crazy.”

“Hey, no one said you were,” he assured her.

“I feel like an idiot.” She covered her face with her hands.

“Let’s get all your photos taken down and get set up.”

She dropped her hands and nodded her head. Shoulders slumped, she moved as if she hurt physically. Together, they got the telling items stored away and moved to the living room.

“Are we all set here?” Micah asked Trish.

“I think we’re ready for Carl.”

“Excellent. I’m going to send you and Trish to go grab a coffee and give us about thirty minutes here. When you get back, everything will be set up.”

“If you think that’s best.” Daize glanced from him to Trish.