Sun, Sand, and Suspects (Garden Girls Christian Cozy Mystery Series Book 11) Read online

  Sun, Sand, and Suspects

  Garden Girls

  Cozy Mystery Series Book 11

  Hope Callaghan

  http://hopecallaghan.com

  Copyright © 2016

  All rights reserved.

  This book is a work of fiction. Although places mentioned may be real, the characters, names and incidents and all other details are products of the author’s imagination and are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual events or actual persons, living or dead is purely coincidental.

  No part of this publication may be copied, reproduced in any format, by any means, electronic or otherwise, without prior consent from the copyright owner and publisher of this book. The only exception is brief quotations in printed reviews.

  ______________________________

  Visit my website for new releases and special offers: http://hopecallaghan.com

  Thank you, Peggy Hyndman, Wanda Downs and Jean Pilch for taking the time to preview Sun, Sand, and Suspects, for the extra sets of eyes and for catching all my mistakes.

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  TABLE OF CONTENTS

  Free Cozy Mysteries Newsletter

  About The Author

  Foreword

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Get Free Books and More!

  Pepperoni Pizza Pie Iron Recipe

  Campfire Banana Splits

  About The Author

  Hope Callaghan is an author who loves to write Christian books, especially Christian Mystery and Cozy Mystery books. Born and raised in a small town in West Michigan, she now lives in Florida with her husband.

  She is the proud mother of one daughter and a stepdaughter and stepson. When she's not doing the thing she loves best - writing books - she enjoys cooking, traveling and reading books.

  Hope loves to connect with her readers!

  Get Free Books and More!

  Sign up for my newsletter for special offers, Free Books, and soon-to-be-released books!

  Visit hopecallaghan.com for information on special offers and soon-to-be-released books!

  Email: [email protected]

  Facebook page: www.facebook.com/hopecallaghanauthor

  Other Series Books by Author, Hope Callaghan:

  DECEPTION CHRISTIAN MYSTERY SERIES: (Samantha Rite)

  Samantha Rite is in desperate need of a vacation. Her life is shattered when after 21 years of marriage her husband walks out on her, leaving her for another woman.

  As Sam is trying to pick up the pieces and start over, her family decides now would be the perfect time for her to take a relaxing vacation. Before she can change her mind, she and her older sister are booked on a Caribbean cruise.

  Just days before the trip, her sister is involved in a horrible accident and is unable to go. Persuaded to take this trip alone, Sam finds herself caught in the middle of a deadly adventure of a lifetime. Will she make it out alive?

  Waves of Deception is the first book in the Samantha Rite Adventure Series and offers a perfect blend of blossoming romance and action-packed adventure and suspense.

  GARDEN GIRLS CHRISTIAN COZY MYSTERIES SERIES: (Gloria Rutherford)

  Nothing exciting ever happens in the small town of Belhaven. Nothing that is, until a body is found in the woods behind the local elementary school.

  With the entire town in an uproar, "Garden Girl," Gloria Rutherford makes it her personal mission to find the killer or killers and solve the mystery with some help from her friends.

  With a little amateur detective work, Gloria is able to uncover enough clues that point right to the murderer. She's about to discover, however, things aren't always as clear-cut as they appear.

  CRUISE SHIP CHRISTIAN COZY MYSTERIES SERIES: (Millie Sanders)

  What do you get when you combine a recently divorced and heartbroken senior female, with the most exciting job on the high seas? Millie Sanders, of course! She is the new assistant cruise director for the mega cruise ship, "Siren of the Seas."

  Within minutes of stepping on board the ship, Millie finds herself right in the middle of a murder investigation.

  With a little help from her new friends, this amateur senior sleuth begins to discover clues and secrets that could possibly turn the ship upside down!

  Will the old saying..."Loose lips sink ships" hold true or will Millie survive her first week onboard?

  SWEET SOUTHERN SLEUTHS: (Short Stories) (Loretta and Lacy Sweet)

  Loretta Sweet and her identical twin sister, Lacy, have recently inherited a home in Misery, Mississippi, from their distant relative, (Aunt) Tess McCoy.

  Their aunt's attorney insists that the girls meet him at the property to discuss the specifics of the will. When the sisters arrive for the meeting, they discover that there is more...much more to the will than just inheriting a home.

  As the attorney prepares to go over the details of the will, one of the "stipulations" makes a dramatic appearance, along with a body that is discovered in the bathtub.

  Will the Sweet sisters turn tail and run or will they stick around to help solve the murder?

  Foreword

  Dear Reader,

  I would like to personally thank you for purchasing this book and also to let you know that a portion of all my book sales go to support missions which proclaim the Good News of Jesus Christ.

  My prayer is that you will be blessed by reading my stories and knowing that you are helping to spread the Gospel of the Lord.

  With more than thirty mystery books (and counting) in four series published, I hope you will have as much fun reading them as I have writing them!

  May God Bless You!

  Sincerely,

  Author Hope Callaghan

  “And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.”

  1 Corinthians 13:13 NIV

  Chapter 1

  “Where did you say you were taking me?” Gloria Rutherford-Kennedy asked her husband of less than twenty-four hours.

  Paul Kennedy grinned. “I didn’t, dear…and for good reason. I want you to promise me you’ll give our honeymoon location a fighting chance.”

  Paul had kept their honeymoon destination a secret and Gloria was beginning to understand why.

  They had landed at Orlando International Airport a short time ago, picked up a rental car and were now driving east and toward the ocean. It was somewhat of a relief they were heading away from the city…and away from Gloria’s sister, Liz, who lived in Central Florida.

  It wasn’t that Gloria didn’t love her sister, but the siblings tended to rub each other the wrong way and get on each other’s nerves.

  Liz and her friend, Frances, had moved to Florida several months earlier, right after Liz, Gloria’s friend, Margaret, and Gloria had received an unexpected windfall.

  Liz had promptly sold her apartment, located in Dreamwood Retirement Commun
ity, packed a U-Haul with all her earthly possessions and headed south with Frances in tow.

  Liz had planned to return to Michigan for Paul and Gloria’s Christmas wedding, but Liz’s son, Eric, and his fiancée, Casey, had already planned a trip to Florida to visit Liz and she couldn’t get away.

  Gloria stared out the window and wondered for the umpteenth time where they were going. She silently hoped they were staying at a luxurious oceanfront resort. That would be exciting. Gloria had never stayed right on the ocean…

  Paul exited the highway and turned left, heading east again, which meant they were getting close…close to the ocean.

  “You’re taking me to a swanky resort on the beach,” Gloria guessed. Visions of fruity, frozen concoctions with little umbrellas poking out of the top, poolside lounge chairs and ocean breezes filled her head.

  Paul grinned. “Close.” He made another turn, this time right. “We’re almost there.”

  Up ahead, Gloria could see the sprawling resorts, the towering condominiums and was even able to catch glimpses of the inviting blue water. She hoped they would have a balcony room with an ocean view so she could wake early in the morning, carry her cup of coffee out onto the balcony and watch the dolphins play in the water.

  The car sped past the luxurious resorts. The resorts, beachy gift shops, seafood restaurants and tourist attractions disappeared as they traveled on a remote stretch of road.

  Maybe the place was so luxurious, so over-the-top and exclusive, they would have an entire island to themselves.

  Gloria tugged on her seatbelt and peered out the window at the changing scenery. “This place looks desolate.” Teetering shacks, swampy ditches and entrepreneurs selling fruits and vegetables on the side of the road replaced the swanky resorts.

  When they reached the stop sign, she noticed a man sitting on the tailgate of his pick-up truck. She narrowed her eyes as she studied his crude cardboard sign. “Strawberries $3.49 a quart.”

  She turned to Paul. “Can you believe it? $3.49 for a quart of strawberries? Why that’s highway robbery!” Gloria sometimes sold her excess garden crops at her roadside stand. The most she had ever charged for a quart of strawberries was $1.99.

  “Maybe your prices are too low,” Paul commented as he made another left hand turn.

  Straight ahead and on the right was a large, wooden sign, Sun and Sand RV Park, ¼ mile.

  Gloria frowned. An RV park? She hadn’t camped in years. Paul was taking her camping? Did he plan to sleep in a tent?

  “We’re going camping?” Her visions of lounging by the pool and sipping coffee on her balcony as she watched the dolphins frolic in the water flew out the window.

  “Sort of,” Paul admitted. “You’ll see.”

  They rounded a bend. Up ahead was a log cabin with a large covered porch. Hanging from the front of the porch was a sign above the entrance, Registration.

  “We’re here,” he announced as he pulled into a parking spot, shifted the car into park and turned the engine off. “I guess this is where we check-in.”

  Paul noted the look of shock and disbelief on his bride’s face and hoped he hadn’t made a terrible mistake. “Please give it a chance, Gloria. This place came highly recommended.”

  Gloria reached for the door handle. By who? Grizzly Adams?

  Her steps dragged as she trailed behind Paul and they made their way inside the building and to the back.

  The interior was cozy, rustic and surprisingly large. The inside matched the outside, which reminded Gloria of a remote jungle forest, except thicker and, for lack of a better word, “bushier.”

  “Can I help you?” A young man, tall and wearing wire-rimmed glasses smiled at them from behind the counter.

  Paul slipped his arm through Gloria’s arm and tugged lightly. “Yes. Paul and Gloria Kennedy, checking in.”

  The man, whose name was Ben, according to his nametag, flipped open a large calendar book. He ran his index finger along the page as he searched for their reservation.

  Gloria’s eyes widened. Was this place so remote that it didn’t have internet? What if there was no electricity or running water? Visions of creeping to an outhouse in the middle of the night filled her head.

  What if they had bears in Florida or snakes? They had plenty of alligators. Not long ago, Liz had told her that a small gator had ended up in her pool and she’d had to call someone to fish the feller out. “I don’t…”

  Ben opened a drawer under the counter, pulled out a set of keys and placed them on top of the counter. “When you leave here, turn right. At the stop sign, turn left, circle around past the swamp and your camper will be on the right.”

  Swamp? There was a swamp? What about the ocean?

  She swallowed hard, forcing a smile for the young man and then followed Paul out of the office / store. At least the young man had mentioned a camper, which was some consolation. They wouldn’t be sleeping in a tent…on the ground.

  Gloria opened the passenger door and slid onto the seat. She should have packed bug spray instead of sunscreen!

  Paul tried to cheer her up. “Don’t look so glum. I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised.”

  Gloria tried to perk up but it was useless. This was not her idea of a dream honeymoon.

  He started the car and shifted into reverse. “If this place isn’t up to snuff, we’ll get a refund and head to one of those fancy resorts we passed on our way here,” he promised.

  “Okay.” Gloria didn’t want to be a party pooper. After all, this was supposed to be a special time, a time for making memories, not that she would ever forget camping on her honeymoon!

  “This is it,” Paul announced as he turned the car onto a narrow, gravel drive.

  Up ahead was a travel camper. From the front, it looked small and she hoped there was more to it than what she could see.

  The car coasted to a stop. Paul shifted into park and grabbed the door handle. “Let’s check it out before we unload.”

  It sounded like a great idea to Gloria as she swung the passenger door open and gingerly stepped on the gravel drive. As she got closer, she could see the camper looked new and larger than it first appeared.

  Attached to the front of the camper was a large, wooden deck. Overhead was an awning, a cover to protect the deck from the elements.

  The camper sat in a clearing. Off to one side were several lounge chairs that circled a concrete fire pit.

  “We can roast marshmallows,” Paul said excitedly.

  Gloria, not wanting to burst Paul’s bubble, pasted a smile on her face and vowed to give the place a chance. She followed him up the steps and waited while he unlocked the door.

  She stepped over to the edge of the deck where a wooden planter box, filled with an array of pink, yellow and blue flowers lined the edge. The flowers were beautiful and it struck her as odd, knowing that back home snow covered the ground.

  She gazed past the flowerbed and something caught her eye. It was a sneaker sticking out from the side of the camper, on the other side of the planter box. “What is that?”

  “What is what?” Paul asked.

  “A shoe,” she said. “Someone’s shoe.” She leaned to the side and peeked around the corner. It wasn’t just a shoe. “I think there’s someone behind the camper.”

  Chapter 2

  “You’re kidding.” Paul left the keys dangling in the lock and made his way over to Gloria, who was still peering around the corner. “Over there.” She pointed.

  Paul hopped off the deck, strode across the grass and came to an abrupt halt next to the still figure. He bent down on one knee and gently shook the man, who was face down. “Hello? Hey buddy - you okay?”

  There was no response, no movement.

  He glanced at Gloria. “I don’t want to touch anything. Can you run inside and look for a clean towel or rag?”

  She nodded as she darted across the deck, opened the camper door and stepped inside.

  The interior of the camper was dark, all of th
e blinds shut. Gloria ran her hand along the wall until her fingers touched the light switch and then flipped the light on.

  The inside of the camper was nicer than she envisioned and Gloria sighed in relief. It was spacious and clean. Off to the right, beyond the sofa and TV stand in the corner, was a doorway and beyond that another room. It looked like a bedroom.

  She shifted her gaze in the opposite direction, past the kitchen area where there was another door. The door was closed.

  Gloria tiptoed through the kitchen, placed her hand on the pocket door and then paused. What if there were more…bodies and some of them happened to be inside the camper?

  She sucked in a breath. “Dear God, please let this be a bathroom and let it be empty,” she whispered.

  Before she could change her mind, she slid the door open. It was a bathroom…a surprisingly spacious bathroom with a toilet, vanity and ample-sized mirror above the sink. It even boasted a shower/tub combo.

  Gloria stepped over to the sink and turned the handle on the faucet. Bonus! Running water!

  “Gloria?”

  She quickly turned the water off. “Just a sec. I’m still looking.”

  Gloria opened the cabinet under the bathroom sink. There was nothing inside but a four pack of toilet paper, several small bars of unopened soap and a travel-size bottle of shampoo.

  She backtracked into the kitchen, opening cabinets, drawers and closets. The kitchen was small with limited cabinets but was stocked with everything necessary to cook a gourmet meal.

  Inside the top drawer, Gloria found a pile of dishtowels and dishcloths. In the cupboard next to it was a stack of bath towels and washcloths.

  She grabbed a kitchen hand towel and stepped out onto the deck, towel in hand. Paul was standing near the edge of the deck, hands on his hips.

  “I think the man is dead. I left my cell phone in the car. Can you get one of our phones and call 911?”