Not All That Glitters: Cloverleaf Cove Cozy Mystery, #4

By Annabel Allen

Ever since moving to Cloverleaf Cove, Arden has been aware that her friend, Savannah, has been mourning the death of her husband. From what little she knows about it, Shane Winchester was killed in the line of duty eighteen years ago and his murderer is sitting in prison. 

She quickly learns, however, that not all is as it seems. 

According to the newspaper reports surround the double homicide, Shane wasn't killed in the line of duty but was actually murdered by his own partner under rather unseemly circumstances . . . 

. . . and if that wasn't surprising enough, she soon learns that Savannah's been secretly trying to prove the confessed murderer's innocence ever since.

Now the real murderer is determined to stop her and it's up to Arden and her friends to reign in the determined widow before she joins her late husband.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Elisabeth Crabtree
• Release date: Dec 19, 2019
• ISBN: 9781393235835

Book preview

Chapter 1

S avannah’s up to something , Paige Graves said with a definitive shake of her head. She took a bite of her chocolate cupcake, and then brushed imaginary crumbs from her pink silk shirt. I haven’t seen her act this weird since she led that revolt against the Mayor’s office last summer.

Did she tell you why she wanted us to meet at the Cake Bar so late? Arden glanced down at her watch, then out the bay window at the clear night sky. They’ll be closing soon.

You won’t hear me complaining. Paige held up her cupcake. Who am I to turn down free cupcakes from the best baker in town?

Arden Lynn turned her attention away from the street just beyond the bay window of the bakery and back to Paige. I just hope she’s okay, she said, as she carefully unwrapped her cupcake. She’s been acting so mysterious lately.

You’ve noticed it too? Paige’s eyes lit up in excitement. Tucking her short black hair behind her ears, she leaned forward, her voice lowering as though she was about to share a deep dark secret. I think she might have a new beau. She’s showing all the signs. She’s overly preoccupied with something but pretends that she’s not. She keeps disappearing for long stretches of time. Sometimes, she doesn’t return home until the next day and she keeps getting these strange phone calls from some mystery man, but when I ask her about the call, she brushes me off. Then she goes running out the door a few minutes later, usually on some laughably obvious pretext. She took another bite of her cupcake. No doubt about it. She’s definitely in love.

Arden lifted an eyebrow, amazed at how Paige’s mind immediately leapt to thoughts of romance. Whereas, Arden’s mind turned to far more sinister and worrisome thoughts. Are you sure?

Paige licked the chocolate off her lips. Absolutely. You saw how quickly she ditched us to go running off after another mysterious phone call. She’s acting peculiar.

That was true, Arden thought, biting into her cupcake. No sooner had they sat down at one of the Cake Bar’s colorful bistro tables than Savannah sprang out of her seat and sped across the street as fast as her spiky high heels could take her.

Paige glanced back out the window. I wonder who she’s talking to now.

Arden followed her gaze. Savannah was standing under the street lamp on the other side of the street, batting her eyelashes and smiling seductively at a man Arden had never seen before. 

The object of her affection, a bald man with a large gut and questionable taste in clothes, leered back at her. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a necklace, which he dangled in front of Savannah’s face.

A movement behind them caught Arden’s attention and her gaze zeroed in on a man standing with his back to the couple, apparently, window-shopping. The only problem was that he had been window-shopping in front of the same window for the last fifteen minutes. She’s not the only one acting weird. 

Paige lifted her eyebrows questioningly. 

With a flick of her wrist, Arden gestured to their other neighbor, Max Ferris, hovering near Savannah. Arden felt her heart plummet as Max subtly turned his head towards the beautiful Savannah with an odd look on his face.

Was that jealousy that crossed his face just then?

Max turned back to the window as Savannah tipped her head back to laugh at something the other man had whispered in her ear.

Whatever flickered across his face in that instant certainly wasn’t a happy emotion that was for sure. Max suddenly looked angry, annoyed and distressed all at once.

Arden sighed in unhappiness as she set her cupcake to the side.

It wasn’t terribly surprising that Max would have developed an infatuation with Savannah. The former actress certainly had her fair share of admirers. Arden just wished Max wasn’t one of them.

When Arden had moved to Cloverleaf Cove, she had quickly developed a little crush on her handsome neighbor and he seemed just as interested in her. 

Lately though, his interest seemed to have shifted to Savannah Mae Winchester...

Arden tapped her fingers against the table as a thought occurred to her.

In fact, his interest in the actress had started right about the time Savannah had started acting peculiar, as Paige had put it. Perhaps that’s why she had been acting so secretive lately.

Max doesn’t seem to be overly enthused with what’s going on, Paige said.

He’s not the only one, Arden let slip before reluctantly adding, he was over at my house last night.

Do tell.

Nothing to tell. She tucked a lock of her dark brown hair behind her ears. He stopped by to borrow a cup of sugar.

Is that what the single folks are calling it today?

Funny. Emma was there, she said with a small note of irritation in her voice. While she liked having a housekeeper and cook, there were times she wished for a bit more privacy. Especially when Max stopped by for a visit. She handed him the sugar. They talked for a bit, or rather Emma talked, and then he left.

Perhaps you should run over to his place tonight and ask for some sugar too.

Arden turned back to the scene outside with a heavy heart. She was really starting to like Max and it pained her to see him paying so much attention to another woman. I barely know the man.

You’ve been here for at least a couple of months now. Time moves so slowly here that two months is like two years in Cloverleaf Cove time. Don’t wait for him to come to you. Go to him. Ask him to the Fourth of July party at the park.

Is that where you and Patrick are going?

No, we’re going to the fancy party at Price Mansion. If you want, I could see if I could get you an invitation.

Savannah held the necklace the man gave her in the air, her head tilted back with a giddy expression on her face. Max stepped away from the window, closer to the couple. He caught Savannah’s eyes and shrugged.

Arden grimaced. I hate going to parties alone.

You should ask Max to go with you.

Turning away from the window, she said, He might want to take Savannah.

Savannah? Our Savannah? Paige made a face. Don’t be silly. He’s clearly interested in you and she swore after her husband died in the line of duty that she’d never marry or date another cop again, and private eyes are practically the same thing.

Max is retired, Arden pointed out.

Paige waved aside that minor point. You’d never know it by the way he acts. Besides, she seems to have her sights on... She tilted her head and regarded Savannah and the funny looking man with a frown. ...Max’s exact opposite. She shook her head again. I’m telling you, something’s up.

Arden glanced back through the window just as Max stepped directly behind the man. He looked over the man’s shoulder at Savannah with an annoyed look on his face, then shook his head at her. Savannah immediately pulled back from the man, stepping back in order to hold the trinket up to the light shining down from the lamppost. With a brilliant smile on her face, she then turned her attention to the little man just as Max stepped back into the shadows.

Hope suddenly flared within Arden. Perhaps her initial instincts were right. Perhaps there was something other than romance going on between Max and Savannah after all.

Paige’s cell phone beeped and she reached into her bag. She did a little happy dance in her seat as she read her text messages. That new couple in town has decided to buy the green bungalow two blocks from here. She slung her purse over her shoulder and stood, her hand already pressing her cell phone to her ear. I better give my client the good news. Be back in a second, she said stepping away from the table toward an empty corner in the bakery.

Arden’s gaze drifted back to Max, who was still standing behind the man and making a cutting motion across his throat.

Savannah subtly nodded before changing her demeanor. She took a step back, crossed her arms, and gave the man a stern look. 

What in the world was going on over there?

Curious, Arden slipped out of her seat and out of the bakery.  She walked down the street past the line of colorful beach shops, mostly closed for the night, and towards the walkway at the end of the street. Every so often, her gaze drifted to the scene on the other side of the street, hoping to get a clue as to what her friends were up to.

The Cake Bar doorbells jingled behind her and she glanced over her shoulder just as Paige stepped out and waved her hand towards Savannah. Savannah, thanks for the cupcake but I’ve got to go, Paige called out as she crossed the street.

Arden reached the walkway and started to cross, but stopped as an old, beat up, dark blue sedan slowly turned the corner. A frown creased her brow as the car stopped in the middle of the walkway blocking her way. 

What’s he waiting for? 

Tilting her head, she tried peering into the dirty windows but couldn’t see much more than a dark shape behind the wheel. There was a relatively clean spot at the top of the window and she stood on her tiptoes in order to get a better look inside. 

The view wasn’t much better from that angle.

Whoever was behind the wheel had a cowboy hat pulled down low over his or her head, and a scarf and dark sunglasses covered the rest of their face. 

It was summer, so why would they be bundled up like that? Moreover, why would they be wearing sunglasses so late at night? An unsettling feeling washed over her and she took an involuntary step back. 

To her horror, the car lurched forward just then and headed straight for Savannah, Paige, Max, and the stranger. 

Horrified, Arden screamed out Max’s name as the car barreled towards her friends. 

Everything seemed to move in slow motion as Max glanced her way, saw the car, pivoted around and pulled Savannah and Paige out of the way, only seconds before the car jumped the curb. 

They all fell to the ground in a tangle of limbs, the car narrowly missing them by mere inches.

The stranger who had ducked behind the lamppost at the last possible second stared at the car, wide eyed with fear for a moment, before spinning around and running down the street towards Arden, and away from the car.

The car revved its engine. Its tires began to squeal.

Max, Paige, and Savannah only had seconds to scramble out of the way, as the car backed up off the curb.

Once it was back on the street, it spun around, then accelerated towards the helpless man.

Arden clamped her eyes shut just as the car struck the poor man down.

Chapter 2

Blue lights flashed all around them, bouncing off the empty store windows and filling the street with a blue glow, as police cordoned off the street and took everyone’s statements.

Having already given her statement, Arden was shuttled off to the side to stand next to Paige while Max and Savannah continued to talk to the police.  

It hadn’t taken very long to report what little Arden saw of the driver and she was sorry to say she had even less information about the car, only reporting that it was dirty and possibly blue. Max and Savannah on the other hand, had far much more to say. Considering how long it was taking the police to write down their statements, Arden had a feeling they either knew who the driver was, or at the very least, knew why the stranger had been mowed down right in front of them. 

I told you something strange was going on, Paige said fussing over the tear in her silk blouse.

Arden simply nodded as she looked around the scene of the crime. They say killers always come back to watch.

Paige lifted her gaze to the onlookers across the street. Do you see the driver?

Arden snorted. He or she could be standing right in front of me and I wouldn’t know it. I might be able to recognize the car, but that’s about it. Still, she kept her gaze on the dozen or so onlookers standing off to the side, searching for something in their faces, some hint of malice or glee, but she found nothing.

A woman with short blonde hair, thick glasses, and a notepad stood at the end of the line talking to a uniform police officer. Catching Arden’s stare, the woman forgot all about the police officer and ducked under the yellow tape they had strung between a couple of lampposts. She shouted at Arden as she strode forward. Ms. Lynn! I’m with the Cloverleaf Chronicle. Could I ask you a few questions?

All of a sudden, Arden felt like a thousand spotlights were on her and she cringed. Heads turned in her direction and before she could say anything, a couple of police officers caught the woman by her arms and directed her back to the curb.

That didn’t stop the woman from raising her voice even louder. Ms. Lynn, did you see the killer?

Arden sharply shook her head, annoyed by the attention.

What about you, Mrs. Graves?

Paige pulled out her phone and pretended to be busy.

What happened tonight? What did you two see?

Thankfully, another officer stepped in front of Arden, blessedly blocking the reporter’s view. 

Arden sighed in relief as silence returned. It wasn’t as if she could answer the reporter’s questions anyway. She had no other information to give.

She glanced over at Savannah as she paced in front of two large police officers, her blue eyes flashing as she spoke to them. 

Keeping her eyes on Savannah, Arden glanced over her shoulder at Paige. Can you hear what she’s saying?

Paige looked up from her phone in surprise. I think everyone in a five-mile radius can hear her.

Not the reporter. Arden stepped off the curb, drawn to the scene across the street. Savannah. 

Paige peered across the street. No, but—hey, she said hurrying to catch up with Arden, where are you going?

Savannah’s upset. I think we should go support her.

Paige snorted, her dark brown eyes lighting up in amusement. You want to snoop.

That’s so not true. Arden relented at the disbelieving look on Paige’s face. "Okay, maybe a little. Come on, you’re not a little curious as