Chapter 3

Chapter

Three

M aggie Martin arrived at exactly one the next afternoon with three suitcases. Cat was downstairs, helping Shauna clean the dining room after brunch. She watched as the woman pulled up in an upscale SUV and opened the back to pull out the luggage. Grabbing her phone, Cat texted Seth to come and help check in the late arrival.

He was there before Cat could get her coat on. He held the door open. “I thought most everyone was already here. This can’t be the Covington student, right?”

“No, Alicia Thomas is coming at five. I doubt she’ll have much luggage, but it is Covington so no promises. This is the school president’s wife. She wants to write a book,” She looked at Seth who was grinning at her. “What? We were talking about the retreat, and I mentioned her coming someday. I didn’t say today. She just assumed. Anyway, she’s here. It will be fun.”

“Of course, it will,” Seth paused. “For some of us. You’re going to be on tiptoes all week trying not to offend her.”

“I will not,” Cat said to Seth’s back. She could tell he had heard her because now he was laughing so hard that she could see his shoulders shaking.

“Good morning, Mrs. Martin. I’m Seth Howard and I’ll be around all week in case you need something or if there’s something wrong with your room,” he reached for two of her suitcases. “I’m sure Cat can grab the third.”

“Oh, thank you. Call me Maggie, everyone does,” she tucked a folded bill into Seth’s shirt pocket and handed him her keys. “Can you park this somewhere too?”

“Of course,” he met Cat’s gaze. “I’ll run these up to your room first.”

“Shauna has the key at the front desk,” she told him. This was going to be a huge mistake. Maggie was treating the retreat like a hotel when in fact, they were less about the hospitality part and more about making sure the writers had a comfortable place to be and create. Hopefully, she didn’t think they had a spa or room service. She grabbed Maggie’s last bag. “So good to see you this morning. We just finished brunch. We provide breakfast and usually Shauna has coffee, drinks, and treats around most of the day. The attendees get together and go to one of the local restaurants for lunch and dinner. Tonight, we’ll start writing activities with an orientation session and a couple of write-ins.”

“I probably brought too much stuff, but I have my laptop and several notebooks where I’ve started a chapter or scene. I need to gather it all together. I brought some writing books too, in case I need inspiration,” Maggie chatted as they headed inside. “I would have had John drop me off, but he wants me at a dinner Wednesday night, so I have to have the car. He’s not happy about me being gone. But he’ll survive.”

Her phone rang as they arrived at the front desk.

“And that’s him, probably wondering where his robe is, I swear, the man is hopeless. Maude, our housekeeper will make sure he eats.” She glanced at the display and her face turned red. “I’ll call him back.”

So, not your husband . Cat smiled and introduced Maggie to Shauna. “While you’re dealing with this, I’ll take this up to your room. I’ll see you at five for the orientation.”

She rolled the suitcase up to the east stairs and then picked it up. It had to be the one with her books or maybe shoes because it weighed a ton. She got it up halfway to the second floor when Seth came down and grabbed it from her. She gasped as she tried to catch her breath, “I was fine.”

“You need to lift weights more. Just running isn’t building enough muscle. Then you sit at your desk most days. Are you even using those hand weights I gave you?” He turned and jogged up the rest of the stairs.

Cat rolled her eyes and went back to the lobby. Shauna and Maggie were still talking when a young woman with a duffel bag came in the front door. Her hair was long and blond, and she wore jeans and a Save the Whales tee shirt. Cat hurried over to greet her. “You must be Alicia. I’m happy you accepted the invitation.”

“You’re kidding, right? A week out of the dorms and I get to stay in this house? I run on this street and between this house and the one where you held the party last night, I’m always slowing down to imagine what it must be like inside.” Alica set down her duffel and shook Cat’s hand. “I write historical mysteries. Which is perfect for this part of Colorado right? All the ghost towns and bootleg alcohol. I’m working on a fictional account of the 1921 Tulsa massacre in Black Wall Street, Oklahoma.”

“That sounds interesting,” Mia always felt intimidated by historical authors. She made stuff up because she wrote paranormal. Writers like Alicia had to research. “I’m sure you’re already familiar with the library but Ms. Applebome will be giving the group a session tomorrow morning. You can stay here, come along, or attend the session. It’s up to you.”

“I love her. I’m always learning new ways to find and store information. She’s so knowledgeable. Oh, Maggie, I didn’t know you were coming,” Alicia hurried over and hugged Maggie Martin.

“I’m finally working on my book, can you believe it?” Maggie grinned and then grabbed Alicia by the shoulders, turning her to Shauna and Cat. “This is my goddaughter. Her mom and I were sorority sisters at Brown.”

“Oh, that’s special. Did you know she was coming?” Cat wondered if this was why Maggie had jumped on the idea of attending the retreat.

Maggie flushed. “Her mom had mentioned it, but I didn’t know it was this month.”

“Maggie, don’t lie. Did Mom send you to keep an eye on me?” Alicia put her hands on her hips and stared her godmother down.

“Maybe? She’s just concerned with all the chatter going around with the families. She worries.” Maggie glanced at Cat and Shauna who were just staring at them. “Oh, I know, I broke the seal of confidentiality, but Cat, you must have already known about Covington’s secret with your last marriage and now your relationship with Dante Cornelio. Right?”

Seth had just come back from parking Maggie’s car. His face turned to stone as he handed Maggie her key. “Luggage all delivered, your car is parked down by the barn. Now I need to take care of something.”

Cat watched him disappear. He knew she wasn’t dating Dante for real. But he didn’t like hearing about even her fake relationship with the mob boss.

“I hope I didn’t say anything wrong,” Maggie watched Seth walking away.

Before Cat could respond, Uncle Pete walked through the front door. He glanced at the almost clean dining room. “I hope you saved back some food. I’m starving.”

The house felt like Grand Central Station. Cat turned to Shauna. “I’ll handle getting Uncle Pete fed and you finish up here. It was great to see you both. See you at five in the living room. Bring your laptop for the write-ins!”

Then she grabbed her uncle’s arm and dragged him to the kitchen. “I’m so glad you got me out of that.”

“You invited these people to come stay in your house for a week. But you don’t want to talk to them? You might have the wrong business model.” Uncle Pete sat down at the table and took off his cap. His face looked pale, and he had dark circles under his eyes. “You don’t have coffee, do you?”

“Of course we have coffee. The retreat starts at five. We’ll have fresh coffee available almost twenty-four-seven until they leave next Sunday.” Cat poured her uncle a cup, then got a basket of muffins and set them and a plate on the table. “You’ll have to deal with this until Shauna gets done. Unless you want me to warm up some hashbrown casserole in the microwave?”

“That sounds perfect. After I formally interview Ms. Jennings, I’m going home and sleeping for eight hours. Dispatch has strict orders not to wake me unless there’s been another murder,” he unwrapped a muffin. “You will keep that from happening, right? Even if you find a body in your backyard, just wait to call 911. Please?”

“I’m not going to find a body in my backyard,” Cat laughed, but she looked out the kitchen window to make sure her words were true. At least for the moment. “You need to hire another deputy.”

“Tell that to the mayor. He thinks I should be able to do it all with the help of my three officers. I think he’s pocketing the money the college sends us for town law enforcement instead of hiring someone new.” He rolled his shoulders. “You and Dante find out who’s been stealing from the cookie jar at the college yet?”

“He thought it was the guy who got himself killed last night. So no, we haven’t. And like I told him, now I’ve got a retreat to run. I’m not going to have time to play Sherlock Holmes on this case.” Cat cut a square of the casserole and popped it into the microwave as she talked.

“You just keep telling yourself that and maybe you won’t get sucked into my murder investigation this time. Sometimes you don’t realize you’re a civilian, not a book character.” He sipped his coffee. “I can feel life pouring back into my body with every sip and every bite. You and your friends are good to have around.”

“You need to eat something besides the chips and candy bars in your desk drawer,” Cat poured herself another cup and sat down with her uncle. She opened a muffin and took a bite.

“I’ve told you I can make homemade granola and buy you cheese curds for your snacks,” Shauna said as she came into the kitchen. “You need to be eating better when you’re not getting your meals here. Otherwise, I’m going to have to insist that you eat all your meals here. Then I can track your nutrition.”

He waved at her. “Stop nagging. I have Shirley for that. How are you, Shauna? Sorry, I’m late for brunch. I can just eat whatever’s easiest.”

“I’ll make you some eggs and fruit to go with your hashbrowns and muffins. Eating dessert first isn’t a bad way to start a Sunday. You probably needed the sugar to keep you going.” Shauna took the plate out of the microwave and gave it to him. Then she started cooking. “Did you know about Maggie and Alicia?”

“No, I didn’t,” Cat filled her uncle in on the fact that Maggie Martin was a surprise guest and her relationship with Alicia. “I wonder how it will affect the retreat. We’ve had friends come together before. And even that one writing group that Deek ran. But this seems more intimate of a connection.”

“And there’s a connection between the missing money and President Martin,” Uncle Pete waved his fork at them, keeping his head low over his plate as he ate. “Martin has all the access to the financial pots as well as the codes for everyone, including Dante. He could have framed your friend with one hand tied behind his back. And he was at the party when Johnson was killed.”

“Dante doesn’t think he’d do that.” Cat chased a stray muffin crumb off her plate.

“Sometimes your friend is too nice,” Uncle Pete looked up as Shauna took the empty plate away and put a new filled plate in front of him.

“I never thought I’d hear those words come out of your mouth describing Dante,” Cat stood and took her plate back to the sink. “I’m running upstairs to write unless you need me.”

“As long as Shauna can set me up to talk to Ms. Jennings, I’m good,” He grabbed her hand as she walked by. “Just make sure you stay on the edge of this Dante thing. I don’t want someone thinking you’re good leverage to get him in line.”

Cat blinked as she thought about what her uncle had just said. “I hadn’t thought about it that way.”

“Please have Seth join you and the group on any outings. I’ve already briefed him early this morning on what was going on and asked him to watch out for you two. I’m so glad you have an ex-Army Ranger in the house. I don’t worry half as much as I used to during these retreat weeks.”

“Now you have me worried,” Cat kissed her uncle’s forehead. “Make sure you do get some sleep later. Are you okay to drive home? Seth could…”

He shook his head. “Seth’s not leaving your side until we find out who was embezzling and probably, who killed Johnson. I think Johnson was mixed up in this whole scheme. It’s too coincidental for him just to be randomly killed last night at Dante’s house. Usually, it’s all about the money.”

Cat left the kitchen after taking the water bottle that Shauna had just set out for her. Shauna was her best friend and had been since they’d met in a bar in California where Cat had moved after the divorce. She’d wanted to live someplace the opposite of Aspen Hills, so she accepted a teaching position just south of Los Angeles and lived in a condo by the shore. She walked on the beach every morning, taught her assigned classes, then wrote, and then she’d find herself in this little dive bar that served the best tacos. Shauna had been the bartender at the place and they’d become fast friends.

When Cat had learned that Michael had left her the Victorian they’d bought as a couple, she jokingly came up with the retreat idea. Shauna had jumped at the chance to be part of it. Now, they were living their best life, and Seth, Cat’s ex-boyfriend, now current boyfriend, was part of the family. Life was weird and the world smaller than you expected.

She settled into her desk, opened her writing program, and read the last few pages. She’d written yesterday so it didn’t take much for her to fall into the story. She was writing two series now – her original character Tori was in college that taught magic and more human-based degrees like finance and English. And her cousin was attending Tori’s old high school and learning about her own magical talents. She loved being in both of her imaginary worlds.

Her office and her words were her happy place. She could retreat here and just enjoy the silence of the morning. Many authors she knew wrote in crowded coffee shops or turned on music to soundtrack their writing. Some even lit candles. For her, the messy desk with a weekly calendar, a planner, a whiteboard with her most important deadlines, word counts, pens, and lots of paper in all different sizes was nirvana. She even had a framed picture of Sam that Seth had given her, well, Sam had given her for Christmas.

The chaos made her feel safe. As a professor, she’d been the same way. Her office at the college had class notes, student papers, and books all over. She’d had Michael install bookcases both at the college and here in her turret. She’d painted these white and they held all her college books as well as most of the fiction she’d collected as a child. Then she had her Tbr section of books she wanted to read, someday. She figured she’d be done by the time she was 536 or maybe 537. So many books, so little time.

As she fell into the writing, the worries of the last few days fell away. It wasn’t that she didn’t care that someone had died in the same house where she’d been making small talk with the upper crust of Covington College. She just needed to make sure Tori got her final paper done while she was fighting the rogue wizards who were trying to take over her sorority house as well as the world.

A girl has to have priorities, right?

A gentle knock on the door pulled her out of the wild magic that was flying around the dining room of the Beta Gamma Kappa house. Cat turned away from the computer, trying to bring herself back to reality. She called, “Come in.”

Shauna opened the door with a tray. A bowl of soup that smelled remarkable and a sandwich sat on the tray as well as two chocolate chip cookies. And a large bottle of water with a glass of ice. “I made you an early dinner since your writer thing starts at five. They’re all out to grab a meal now too so you can write until your meeting starts.”

“You don’t have to do this, I can come down and eat with you and Seth,” Cat’s stomach growled. Thank goodness someone thought about food or she would have eaten cookies during the write-in as dinner. “But thank you. It smells amazing.”

“Seth has already eaten and I’m going to a class on fall soups this evening so this works better for me,” she set the tray on the coffee table and then sat on the arm of the overstuffed couch in the room. “Seth’s still not happy, is he?”

“Oh, I’d say not happy is a mild description. If Uncle Pete hadn’t ordered him to watch out for us this week, I think he would be on a plane to Tahiti right now.” Cat stood and walked over to the sitting area. She poured the water into the glass and took a long drink. Then she set it down. “He has to know that I’m just helping Dante find this money guy, right?”

“Dante reminds him of Michael and that whole marriage thing. You need to be sensitive to him right now. He’s fragile.”

Cat snorted. “The one thing Seth has never been is fragile. He played football in high school. He took the hardest route in the Army and became a Ranger. He was courted by the top echelon contracting teams in the world. Well, until he got hurt.”

Shauna stared at her, “Exactly.”

“So he thinks all I want him for is his strength? His body?” Cat scrubbed at her face. “He must really think I’m shallow.”

“Dante’s not hurt. And he’s rich. And handsome,” Shauna stood and walked to the door. “Since I dated him, I won’t describe all his charming characteristics. A lady never kisses and tells. Anyway, be thoughtful.”

Cat devoured her early dinner alone. Sometimes being around people was impossible to figure out. She had a retreat to run. She couldn’t think about Seth’s feelings now. She’d have a long talk with him after the guests left.

She just hoped it would be enough.