Cozy Mysteries Women Sleuths Series: Box Set III: Books 9-12 Read online

  TABLE OF CONTENTS

  Sweet Southern Sleuths Short Stories Box Set III

  Free Cozy Mysteries Newsletter

  MAIN CONTENTS

  Meet The Author

  Foreword

  Book 9: Secrets of a Stranger

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Book 10: Library Lockdown

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Book 11: Vandals & Vigilantes

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Book 12: Fatal Frolic

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

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  Chapter 1

  Lacy Sweet leaned over her twin sister’s shoulder and stared at the newly minted flyer Loretta had created. “You’re not serious about throwing a party for the Breezy Point residents, are you?”

  Loretta tilted her head and looked at her sister. “Yes, I am. We need to show a little appreciation for not only our Breezy Point residents, but also our Take Two Teepee Rental tenants.”

  Loretta was certain Lacy’s main concern was that the party would involve work…manual labor…Lacy’s manual labor.

  “We have some great tenants and residents now. They all pay on time, keep their places tidy and I think it’s high time to thank them.” The cookout Loretta envisioned would be a way to both thank the residents and tenants, and to get important feedback on how they were doing.

  The sisters, along with Uncle Ichabod, had tossed around the idea of adding additional trailer park lots since they had plenty of land.

  Loretta had already approached the city to find out how much it would cost for a building permit. They were close to having a small business loan in place and had even saved up enough cash to pay for the majority of the construction – installing water lines and electrical poles to each of the new lots, along with pouring concrete pads and paved drives for each of the lots.

  Loretta was excited for the extra cash the new residents would bring in and they even had a waiting list. They would have all of the lots rented as soon as they were ready.

  Lacy snatched one of the flyers from the stack and studied it. “Horseshoe, shuffleboard contests with prizes. Bingo, trivia contests and relay races.” She slapped the flyer against the palm of her hand. “You really think those old fogies are gonna hop into a gunny sack or tie their legs together and race around the lawn?”

  “I think the guests will have fun playing the games. What about Jimmy Clay and Raylene Honeycutt?” Loretta asked. “I bet they’d jump into a gunny sack together.” Jimmy and Raylene were the hot topic of not only the trailer park but also the whole town of Misery.

  Jimmy was a longtime resident of Breezy Point. Raylene had moved in across the street from Jimmy a couple months back.

  Word – err - gossip had it that Raylene had lived in Misery most of her life up until the town’s Spring Splash festival a couple years back when a traveling carnival came to town, complete with tilt-a-whirls and a Ferris wheel, along with an arcade tent full of carnival games.

  Raylene hooked up with a “floater,” or a carnie, who traveled from town to town along with the carnivals.

  Loretta and Lacy met Raylene when she showed up in the office one day, asking if they had a vacancy. She was planning to move back to the area and her family had given her a mobile home. Raylene needed somewhere to put it.

  As luck would have it, they had had a sudden vacancy and after a little digging around and checking Raylene’s references, Loretta gave her the green light to move in.

  The rumors started a couple days later, how Jimmy and his neighbor across the street were a hot item. Not that Loretta cared. Jimmy Clay was a little rough around the edges and Uncle Ichabod said he had a temper, especially when he was losing at blackjack, but he paid his lot rent on time and she’d never had to call the cops on him.

  “I think it will be fun,” Loretta insisted. She was about to tell Lacy it didn’t matter if she didn’t like it, and that she was still obligated to help with the event.

  Her speech was interrupted by the sound of sirens. Loretta looked out the window at the late evening sky and caught a glimpse of flashing lights. She jumped out of the chair so fast, it fell back and hit the floor with a loud thud.

  Loretta, followed by Lacy, ran over to the kitchen window and peered out, making it just in time to see a fire truck turn down the second drive leading into the Breezy Point trailer park.

  “Now what?” Loretta gasped. She shoved her feet into her Crocs and darted out the back door. Lacy was hot on her heels and the women ran past the office as they raced down the street, following behind the fire truck.

  The fire truck came to an abrupt halt not far from the trailer park clubhouse.

  When Loretta rounded the corner, she could see the metal garbage can they kept next to the clubhouse, engulfed in flames.

  Chapter 2

  Not only was the garbage can ablaze, but flames had popped out of the can and a small patch of grass was burning.

  Firefighters burst out of the fire truck and leapt to the ground. Two of them raced to the back of the truck, grabbed the hose and proceeded to douse the flames.

  Lacy smoothed her hair and tugged on the bottom of her blouse.

  Loretta rolled her eyes. “Let me guess. Your smokin’ hot firefighter, Colton, is on the job.” Loretta had yet to meet her sister’s new love interest but had a feeling that was about to change.

  Lacy ignored her sister’s remark as she strutted along the edge of the gravel drive and hovered near the front of the fire truck.

  “What happened?” Uncle Ichabod, who had heard the commotion and spotted the lights, made his way over and stood next to Loretta. They watched as the firefighters checked the perimeter of the clubhouse to ensure there were no other fires burning.

  “The trash can was engulfed in flames and the flames had managed to hit the ground. A small patch of grass is toast.”

  A wave of fear washed over Loretta. This wasn’t an isolated incident. A few days earlier, Loretta had met their new part-time maintenance employee near the back of the clubhouse to talk to him about the weekly pool cleaning and they discovered someone had sprayed graffiti all over the back of the building. Not only were there strange symbols but also a painting of a small dog’s skeleton. The picture reminded Loretta of Barkley, Savannah Dogwood’s Chihuahua.

  Loretta had quickly painted over it before Savannah, their neighbor and Barkley’s owner, saw the graffiti. Loretta’s first thought was that the graffiti was some sort of veiled threat. After the incident, she told Savannah to keep a close eye on Barkley but avoided telling her why, not wanting to scare her friend.

  The last incident had been when Loretta had gone out front to the mailbox the previous morning to get the mail and discovered a rat. She had reached inside, not looking first and touched the dead creature. Even now, the thought of the rodent made her nauseous.

  Loretta smiled at one of the firefighters as he placed the hose back on the truck and closed the metal flap. After the door was secure, he turned to Uncle Ichabod and Loretta. “You the owner?”

  “Yes.” Loretta nodded. “I had no idea there was a fire. Someone in the park must have called it in.”

  The man nodded. “We got a 911 call.” He exten
ded his hand. “Otis Chalmers, Fire Chief. You must be Lacy’s twin sister, Loretta.”

  “Yes.” Loretta shook his hand and turned to her uncle. “This is my uncle, Ichabod McCoy.”

  The fire chief shook Uncle Ichabod’s hand. “Hello Ick. It’s been awhile.”

  “Sure has.” Uncle Ichabod smiled. “Thanks for getting out here so quick.”

  Otis Chalmers tipped his fire hat back as he watched his men poke around inside the smoldering metal can. “Good thing one of the residents with a sharp eye saw the flames and called it in.”

  “Who called it in?” Uncle Ichabod asked.

  Otis shrugged. “Not sure since the call went to the 911 dispatcher. They could probably tell ya.”

  He went on. “You got any idea who might have done this…any suspicious individuals spotted in the park? Any riff raff hanging around?”

  Loretta shook her head. “No. I haven’t noticed anyone.” She didn’t mentioned the graffiti or dead rodent.

  “We’ll write up a report and send it to you in a couple days,” the fire chief said before he made his way over to chat with his crew.

  Lacy, tugging on the arm of a reluctant firefighter, headed toward Uncle Ichabod and Loretta. Colton Sheffield, if Loretta had to guess.

  “Colton, this is my sister, Loretta. Loretta, this is Colton.” Lacy held the man’s arm as if he was some sort of trophy she was showing off. Loretta hadn’t seen Lacy so enamored by a guy since…Officer Phil Gatlin several months back.

  Loretta touched Uncle Ichabod’s arm. “And this is our Uncle Ichabod.”

  Lacy had a fixation for men in uniform, but this one had lasted longer than the others had, so maybe there was something to it. “I was telling Colton how someone has been vandalizing trailer park property.”

  Loretta frowned, wishing her sister had kept her mouth shut. The recent incidents were on a need to know basis, and right now Lacy’s new love did not need to know that. “It may be a coincidence.” She attempted to brush it off.

  “It may not,” Colton said and shifted his gaze to the smoldering trashcan. “It appears someone added an accelerant before setting the fire.”

  “Accelerant?”

  “You know, gasoline, flammable materials. The way the grass caught fire makes me think they planned to burn more than just the trashcan.”

  Loretta studied the can next to the clubhouse. If someone hadn’t spotted the fire and called it in when they had, there was a chance it could’ve made its way to the building. They had insurance, but if the insurance company deemed the fire arson, it could have been a long time before they paid the claim!

  “I would be curious to see what the report reveals,” Loretta said quietly.

  Colton promised they would complete the inspection and report, and he would personally deliver it to them.

  Lacy squeezed his arms and batted her eyes. “Colton, you are so sweet. Why, I think I should make you a home-cooked dinner for all your troubles.”

  Uncle Ichabod snorted. “Bring the Pepto-Bismol with you.”

  Loretta rolled her eyes but said nothing.

  Lacy gave her uncle a death look. “I am a culinary genius at making…”

  “Toast.” Loretta couldn’t help herself. The word slipped out of her mouth before she could stop it.

  “We’ll wait over there.” Loretta decided it was best to end the conversation before she said anything else and shuffled off to the side to wait for the fire crew to wrap things up.

  After the fire crew left, Lacy wandered over. “That wasn’t very nice.”

  “I’m sorry Lacy,” her sister apologized. “What are you going to make Colton for dinner?”

  “Well.” Lacy laced her fingers together. “I was hoping you could help me out. Can you please help me make your baked cream cheese spaghetti casserole? Please?” she begged.

  “When? I mean, you didn’t already invite him, did you?”

  “Tomorrow night. Seven-thirty,” Lacy said. “That’s when Colton gets off work.”

  “Tomorrow night? What if I have plans?” Loretta asked.

  “Like what? You never do anything,” Lacy argued.

  “What if Alex and I have plans?” “Alex” was Pastor Alex Jessup. He and Loretta had gone out a few times. She had promised to make him dinner and he had promised to take her fishing. So far, nothing had panned out.

  Church affairs kept the young pastor hopping, and it was rare he had free time in between visiting parishioners in the hospital, counseling engaged couples, performing wedding ceremonies, not to mention funerals, along with the other Sunday services, Wednesday night services and so on.

  “Tomorrow is Wednesday. Alex has a Wednesday night service,” Lacy said.

  True. Her sister had her on that one. “I’ll need to go grocery shopping in Glimmer to buy the stuff.” Loretta paused. “I take that back. You’ll have to go grocery shopping in Glimmer to purchase the ingredients.”

  “No problem. I’ll go first thing in the morning,” Lacy promised. First thing in the morning to Lacy was more like one-ish, after she crawled out of bed close to noon and then spent the next hour primping in their one and only bathroom.

  “You’ll need to be back from the store by three or four to make sure the meal is done in time.”

  Back inside the house, Lacy headed to the living room to watch television. Uncle Ichabod claimed he was tired and Loretta noticed he did look a little pale as he headed to bed.

  Loretta settled in at the desk in the corner of the kitchen to jot down the grocery list for Lacy. She still wasn’t sure how she’d managed to become involved in Lacy’s love life. Regardless, Lacy would be helping make the dinner so when Colton gushed all over the delicious food, her sister could honestly say that she’d made it.

  By the time she finished the list, checked her email, paid a few of the business bills online and balanced all of the checking accounts, her brain was fried. Not only that, but she was concerned about all of the incidents that had happened. It seemed each incident was more serious than the last.

  She had brushed the graffiti off as kids messing around. School was out for the summer and some of the local teenagers seemed to have a little too much time on their hands.

  The rat in the mailbox had been disgusting, but again, she could chalk it up to kids being kids. When she was younger, the thing to do was go out in the country and drive around the rural roads with a baseball bat, smashing peoples’ mailboxes.

  Setting the fire was a completely different story. As she climbed the stairs and made her way to her room, she had to wonder what was next.

  Loretta didn’t have to wonder long…

  Chapter 3

  Loretta was up early the next morning. She had spent the night tossing and turning, worrying about Lacy, and if her sister would make it to the store and back in time to fix the special meal for her new beau.

  She wondered why she bothered worrying about it. It wasn’t her problem.

  The other worry was the vandalism. Perhaps she should remind Savannah to keep Barkley close by lest he become the caricature the graffiti “artist” had drawn on the back of the clubhouse.

  The kitchen was dark and empty when Loretta stepped inside. She flipped the light switch and stood blinking for several moments at the bright light before shuffling over to the counter to brew a pot of coffee.

  She set a mug next to the coffee pot and reached inside the pantry for a box of pop tarts when she heard a light tap on the back porch door.

  “Wonder who that could be.” Loretta smoothed her wild and woolly hair, and peeked out through the windowpane.

  It was Dixie Theroux, one of the teepee renters. She was waving frantically and Loretta hurried to the door to let her in. “Good morning Dixie.”

  “Hi Loretta.” Dixie looked harried. “I hate to bother you this early in the morning but thought I should let you know the laundry room floor is flooded.”

  “You’re kidding.”

  Dixie shook her head. “No. I w
ish I were. I made it over to the faucets and shut off the water, which was turned on full blast, but there’s a big mess and water everywhere.”

  Loretta clutched her robe tighter and glanced at the kitchen doorway, torn between changing into clothes and running over to the laundry room in her pajamas.

  She opted for a quick change and Dixie hung out in the kitchen while Loretta darted upstairs to her room where she tossed on a pair of sweatpants and an old t-shirt she kept for yardwork.

  When she reached the back door, she slipped her feet into a pair of flip-flops and followed Dixie out the back door, across the drive and into the laundry room.

  Loretta’s heart sank as she stood in the doorway and stared at the flooded floor. “How on earth did this happen?” She waded through the water and over to the washing machine on the other side of the room.

  Dixie had also unplugged the appliances, and had draped the cords over the tops of the washer and dryer.

  Loretta tugged on the machine, sliding it forward to look behind it. There was a clean cut right through the almost new washer hose.

  “Someone did this on purpose,” Loretta said.

  Dixie hiked up her pant legs and tiptoed over to Loretta. “That sucks. Who would do such a crappy thing?”

  Loretta closed her eyes, her mind reeling. “Someone vindictive.” She opened them and gazed at Dixie. “You didn’t happen to see anyone lurking around here who may have snuck in and cut the hose?”

  “Nope.” Dixie shook her head.

  Loretta dropped the cut hose and wiped her hands on the front of her pants. “I’ll have the mess cleaned up this morning. I’m sorry if you were trying to get some laundry done.”

  “It’s okay,” Dixie said. “I’ll come back by later tonight and throw a couple loads in. Do you need any help?”

  “No. Thanks for the offer. I’ll get Lacy and Uncle Ichabod over here to help.” She followed Dixie out of the laundry room and the women parted ways.

  Uncle Ichabod was staring out the window sipping a cup of coffee as Loretta headed back inside. “Kinda early to be out and about.”