Cupid's Corpse: A Cozy Mystery (Gemma Stone Cozy Mystery Book 3) by Willow Monroe Page A
Authors: Willow Monroe
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were making money together. We just needed a little more.”
He fell silent.
Gemma spoke up at last. “What was Boris in jail for?”
The sheriff answered her. “Fraud and embezzlement.”
“So when he found out you were going to run away together, he decided to kill her,” Gemma said, summing up what she’d read.
Joel nodded. “I guess, thinking that he could control me with the money. The blackmailing scheme was getting out of hand. This was going to be our last attempt at it before Natasha and I ran away.”
Chapter Eleven
“I think I’d just like to go to my cabin if you’re finished with me,” Gemma said, standing up. She had all the confessions she could handle for one day, and her head was spinning at Joel’s story.
“Of course. Do you want someone to walk with you?” Sheriff Burton asked, her voice kind and gentle.
“No. I’ll be fine. The fresh air will do me good and I think I just need to lie down for a while.”
“Okay,” the sheriff said, helping Gemma to her feet. “If you need anything at all, please let us know.” She waggled the jar. “And thanks for this.”
“No problem,” Gemma said, standing. She passed through the lobby where Nick was talking to yet another reporter. Evidently this whole thing was big news and he seemed to be right at the center of it. She tried to get his attention to let him know that she was headed back to the cabin, but he never saw her. She watched him for a moment, definitely in his element and right where he wanted to be. He might get a job offer out of this with a bigger paper.
But she was too tired, too emotionally drained to even think about that.
The walk to her cabin was quiet, her boots barely making a sound on the frozen walkway. The solar lights lit her way and once she was inside, she had the feeling someone had been there again. It was difficult to tell with Nick’s clothes, shoes and papers strewn everywhere, but she thought she could tell they had removed cameras from various places around the room.
One had been right over the bed. And the bed had not been made. No housekeeping staff.
Someone had been watching her sleep. Yuck!
Gathering her warm flannel pajamas, the white ones with the red and black stiletto heels printed on them, she went into the bathroom. Thank goodness she’d hung her towel up to dry because housekeeping certainly hadn’t brought clean ones. She ran a tub full of hot water, undressed and sank down into it with a sigh. And then she cried again for Mr. Muzak, Natasha and Joel. Love triangles almost always ended tragically, but this one had been deadly. And poor Mr. Muzak had paid the price.
Once she finally got warm, she climbed from the tub, dressed, lit the gas logs in the fireplace and crawled into bed. Tomorrow was Valentine’s Day. Tomorrow they would go home.
She was more than ready to get back to the familiar safety of her little house, her little life. Nick’s gift was still there, sitting on her kitchen counter wrapped in red foil paper with a big bow. She’d bought something for Ross as well but it was out in the garage. She smiled for the first time in what seemed forever when she thought about how he was going to react to the set of tools she had purchased for him.
Gemma dozed. At one point she awoke to someone staggering around in the dark.
“Nick,” she said, sitting up and turning on the light.
“Sorry,” he said. “I was trying not to wake you.”
“It’s okay. How are you?” she asked as he finally settled on the foot of the bed and took off his shoes.
“Worn out and pumped at the same time,” he said and then winced when he smiled.
“Looks like you got roughed up pretty good,” she said, touching his lip, which was split and had begun to swell.
“Yeah, kind of embarrassed that Holland got the drop on me,” he confessed.
“You had no idea.”
“He didn’t believe for a minute we were who we said we were,” Nick told her. “Actually, he originally thought we
He fell silent.
Gemma spoke up at last. “What was Boris in jail for?”
The sheriff answered her. “Fraud and embezzlement.”
“So when he found out you were going to run away together, he decided to kill her,” Gemma said, summing up what she’d read.
Joel nodded. “I guess, thinking that he could control me with the money. The blackmailing scheme was getting out of hand. This was going to be our last attempt at it before Natasha and I ran away.”
Chapter Eleven
“I think I’d just like to go to my cabin if you’re finished with me,” Gemma said, standing up. She had all the confessions she could handle for one day, and her head was spinning at Joel’s story.
“Of course. Do you want someone to walk with you?” Sheriff Burton asked, her voice kind and gentle.
“No. I’ll be fine. The fresh air will do me good and I think I just need to lie down for a while.”
“Okay,” the sheriff said, helping Gemma to her feet. “If you need anything at all, please let us know.” She waggled the jar. “And thanks for this.”
“No problem,” Gemma said, standing. She passed through the lobby where Nick was talking to yet another reporter. Evidently this whole thing was big news and he seemed to be right at the center of it. She tried to get his attention to let him know that she was headed back to the cabin, but he never saw her. She watched him for a moment, definitely in his element and right where he wanted to be. He might get a job offer out of this with a bigger paper.
But she was too tired, too emotionally drained to even think about that.
The walk to her cabin was quiet, her boots barely making a sound on the frozen walkway. The solar lights lit her way and once she was inside, she had the feeling someone had been there again. It was difficult to tell with Nick’s clothes, shoes and papers strewn everywhere, but she thought she could tell they had removed cameras from various places around the room.
One had been right over the bed. And the bed had not been made. No housekeeping staff.
Someone had been watching her sleep. Yuck!
Gathering her warm flannel pajamas, the white ones with the red and black stiletto heels printed on them, she went into the bathroom. Thank goodness she’d hung her towel up to dry because housekeeping certainly hadn’t brought clean ones. She ran a tub full of hot water, undressed and sank down into it with a sigh. And then she cried again for Mr. Muzak, Natasha and Joel. Love triangles almost always ended tragically, but this one had been deadly. And poor Mr. Muzak had paid the price.
Once she finally got warm, she climbed from the tub, dressed, lit the gas logs in the fireplace and crawled into bed. Tomorrow was Valentine’s Day. Tomorrow they would go home.
She was more than ready to get back to the familiar safety of her little house, her little life. Nick’s gift was still there, sitting on her kitchen counter wrapped in red foil paper with a big bow. She’d bought something for Ross as well but it was out in the garage. She smiled for the first time in what seemed forever when she thought about how he was going to react to the set of tools she had purchased for him.
Gemma dozed. At one point she awoke to someone staggering around in the dark.
“Nick,” she said, sitting up and turning on the light.
“Sorry,” he said. “I was trying not to wake you.”
“It’s okay. How are you?” she asked as he finally settled on the foot of the bed and took off his shoes.
“Worn out and pumped at the same time,” he said and then winced when he smiled.
“Looks like you got roughed up pretty good,” she said, touching his lip, which was split and had begun to swell.
“Yeah, kind of embarrassed that Holland got the drop on me,” he confessed.
“You had no idea.”
“He didn’t believe for a minute we were who we said we were,” Nick told her. “Actually, he originally thought we
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