Clambake Murder: A Rocky Cove Culinary Cozy - Book 2 by Summer Prescott Page B

door?” he asked, heading around the side of the house.
    “Of
course,” she agreed, trailing behind as he carefully surveyed every inch of the
home’s exterior on his way.
    She
let him in the front door, looking around nervously while he first checked out
the upstairs, then the basement, and finally, the main floor. Poppy wasn’t in
her typical spot, sunning on the window seat, so Becca searched high and low
before finding her tucked between the sofa and the wall. The detective came
back to the living room to report his findings.
    “Well,
there’s no evidence of a forced entry, and it didn’t look as though anything
had been disturbed, so you should be fine. I locked a couple of the windows
that I found that were unlocked, but they didn’t appear to have been opened
recently. I’m going to take some photos before I go – don’t hesitate to let me
know if anything else out of the ordinary happens,” Reynolds offered.
    “But,
why on earth would someone do this?” Becca worried.
    The
detective shrugged. “Hard to say. Could be kids who were bored now that school
is out. Have you had problems with anyone in particular lately who might be
angry with you?”
    She
shook her head, thinking. “No, it’s been pretty smooth sailing for quite a
while. I mean, I think the folks over at Foster Development aren’t terribly
happy with me and my neighbor, Sally right now, but grown men aren’t generally
into vandalism I wouldn’t think.” 
    “You
might be surprised.” Reynolds made a face and took out his notebook again.
“What’s your neighbor’s full name?” he asked.
    “Sally,
Sally Case. She’s a dear soul – she’s been widowed for years now.”
    “And
on the other side?”
    “Well,
the Marshall family owns the house, but there almost never home,” she
explained.
    “Renters?”
he persisted.
    “Sometimes
in the  season, but it’s early enough that I don’t think there’s anyone over
there right now, it’s been pretty quiet.”
    “Okay,”
he snapped his notebook shut and headed for the foyer. “I’ll make a report. I
don’t think this is anything to worry about, other than the inconvenience of
having to clean up the mess, but let me know if anything else comes up, and
just be a little extra vigilant, okay?” he directed, opening the door to let himself
out.
    “I
will,” she promised. “Thanks again for coming out.”
    “My
pleasure. Take care now,” he flashed another brief smile and trotted down the
front steps.
    Becca
was thankful that the detective had come over to ease her fears and make
certain that nothing sinister had happened, but she was still puzzled as to who
would do such a thing. She changed into cut-off shorts and a red tank top to go
clean up the mess that whomever had violated her garden left behind. Grabbing a
broom and a dustpan, Becca went out the front door so that she wouldn’t have to
walk through the dirt and plants scattered on the back steps. She swept the
soil and mulch from the driveway back into the flower beds, then went into the
back yard to tend to the mess there. She was nearly finished when she heard her
neighbor, Sally, call out to her.
    “Halloooo…Miss
Becca. That’s a fine mess you’re tackling,” her merry blue eyes were clouded
with concern. “Your handsome young detective friend came over to chat with me
for a bit. Wouldn’t stay for a cookie and some tea though,” she lamented.
    Becca
told the elderly woman what had happened and was surprised to find that she had
some stories of her own to share.
    “This
is a good neighborhood,” she shook her head sadly. “I can’t believe that
vandals and hooligans are coming in and harassing us. Just the other day I
found my flowerpots broken and the soil scattered all over my porch. The
strings on my windchimes had been cut, and my hummingbird feeders were nowhere
to be found. It’s a crying shame,” she clucked her tongue.
    “Did
you tell the detective about all of that?” Becca asked,