Peppermint Chocolate Murder (A Maple Hills Cozy Mystery Book 2) Read online

  Peppermint Chocolate Murder

  A Maple Hills Cozy Mystery #2

  Wendy Meadows

  Contents

  Copyright

  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

  Be the First to Know

  About the Author

  Copyright © 2016 by Wendy Meadows

  All rights reserved.

  No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed or transmitted in any form or by any means, without prior written permission.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are a product of the author’s imagination. Locales and public names are sometimes used for atmospheric purposes. Any resemblance to actual people, living or dead, or to businesses, companies, events, institutions, or locales is completely coincidental.

  Chapter One

  The Elk Horn Lodge stood sixteen miles northeast of town, sitting next to a lake, its shore lined with canoes, rowboats and paddle boats. Large, healthy and lush trees surrounded the lodge and lake like a loving mother holding her children tightly against her bosom. Having never been to the lodge before, Nikki couldn't believe how incredibly beautiful the landscape was; the trees were much more verdant and thick than those in her own yard. It seemed to her, as Hawk tugged his jeep off a narrow, two-lane back road onto a long dirt driveway leading down to the lodge, as if the entire world had changed right before her eyes. “It's so beautiful.”

  “The lodge sits only three miles from the Canadian border,” Hawk explained, easing the jeep down the driveway. “The lodge is owned by Mr. and Mrs. Snowfield. I don't know that much about them except that they built it in 1978 and have been here ever since.”

  Nikki spotted the lake, sparkling like diamonds through a set of thick trees. Then she noticed a lot of vehicles. It was tourist season, after all, and all of the hotels in town were booked solid. “Is this lodge very popular?” she asked Hawk.

  Hawk shrugged his shoulders. “I can't really say,” he answered, glancing at Nikki. “Listen, Pop isn't going to like you being here. You're not going to get first dibs on this case, okay? At best, you're going to get some leftovers. I'll give you whatever information I can.”

  Nikki understood. She appreciated Hawk being honest with her. Reaching her left hand out, she examined his damp shirt. “I won't be any trouble, partner.”

  Hawk sighed and then grinned. He liked Nikki, but having her partner with him on cases sure was going to cause him some grief. Spotting Chief Daily's car parked in front of a log cabin that served as a lobby, Hawk brought the jeep to a stop. “Okay,” he said, “get out and stay out of sight for now. Walk down to the lake. I'll come and get you when the coast is clear.”

  “In other words, when Chief Daily leaves,” Nikki told Hawk. “I understand.”

  “Listen,” Hawk turned to Nikki, “Pop and I, well, we're getting to know each other, but the ground we're on isn't exactly stable, you know. I admit I don't make it too easy on Pop, and he returns the favor often enough. If he sees you here, well, the sky just might fall. For now, you're my silent partner.”

  “You got it.” Nikki smiled at Hawk. Opening the door, she got out and quickly jogged between a set of trees and disappeared. Hawk watched her vanish into the trees and then drove up to the lobby.

  Peering out from behind a tree, Nikki watched Hawk park next to Chief Daily's car and then get out. She counted two police cars, a coroner’s car and a brown Wagoneer, all parked in front. Behind the lobby stood the lodge, sitting like a cozy dream waiting to be entered. The lodge was a large, long, two-story wooden building that suggested nights filled with cozy fires and hot chocolate. Even though the weather was warm, she envisioned the lodge covered with snow, people out on skis, kids ice skating on the lake. “But where are the people?” she asked herself, spotting only a single white BMW parked at the side of the lodge.

  Watching Hawk glance in her direction, Nikki stayed out of sight until he opened the front door of the lobby and vanished inside. Wanting to make a dash to the BMW in order to get the license plate number, Nikki bit down on her lower lip. If she was seen by anyone, that would be all she wrote for her. It seemed that everyone was in the lobby area. Nikki searched the lodge but couldn't see a single person. “If I'm fast…” she said, taking a daring chance.

  Exploding out from behind the tree she was hiding behind, Nikki ran at an angle across warm grass toward the white BMW. Feeling her feet leave the grass and hit gravel, she picked up her speed. Looking toward the lobby, she ran to the BMW, slid to a stop, read the license plate number, and then, like lightning, disappeared back into the trees just as Chief Daily walked out of the lobby. Breathing hard, she eased her head out from behind a tree and watched. A tall, thin, man with a plump belly followed Chief Daily out of the lobby. Nikki listened.

  “Take the body to the morgue,” Chief Daily told the man, “after my son takes a look around. I'll be back in town.”

  “Are you sure it was a heart attack?” the man asked Chief Daily.

  “You're the dang coroner,” Chief Daily snapped as two police officers walked out of the lobby with Hawk. Chief Daily motioned for them to drive back into town. “You two get back in town. Detective Hawk will take over from here. And you,” he said, pointing at the coroner, “I want an autopsy performed by tonight.”

  “I was going to take Alice out to dinner tonight,” the coroner objected, slapping at a bug. Nikki shook her head. The coroner was dressed like he’d never left the seventies.

  “By tonight,” Chief Daily grumbled, as he walked to his car, got in, and drove away like a mad hornet.

  Nikki watched the coroner scratch the back of his head and walk back into the lobby. When the coast was clear, Hawk walked to the white BMW and then waved his hand at Nikki, obviously knowing she was watching him instead of hanging out at the lake like he’d asked her to. Nikki smiled and ran to him. “The license plate is from Georgia, of all places,” Nikki told Hawk.

  Hawk bit the inside of his lip. “The tourist found dead is a man named Jack Johnson, age sixty-five,” Hawk said, pulling a driver's license from his front pocket and handing it to Nikki. “He's from Atlanta.”

  Nikki studied the driver's license. Wishing she had her reading glasses, she squinted down at the print. “Doesn't ring a bell,” she said and then focused on the address posted on the license. “Hey, I know where this address—well, the area is a real posh part of Atlanta.”

  “He was staying on the lower floor in room two, the Deep Woods room. Each room has a theme,” Hawk said, a little embarrassed.

  Nikki nodded her head. “I love theme rooms,” she said, focusing on the face on the driver's license. But then she suddenly looked up at Hawk. “Every room has a theme?” she asked.

  “Yeah, why?” Hawk asked.

  “Mr. Johnson was here by himself, I presume? I don't see anyone standing around crying. Plus, his car seats only two.”

  “Yeah, he checked in alone,” Hawk told Nikki, wishing he were down at the lake doing some fishing.

  “Theme rooms,” Nikki said feeling her gut tug at her. “Hawk, when did Mr. Johnson check in?”

  “Last night, late...about 12:40AM,” Hawk explained.
“He didn't have a reservation, if that's what you're getting at.”

  “Are there any other guests staying here?” Nikki asked looking around at the vacant parking spaces.

  “The lodge is reserved for a ladies’ club that's coming in a few days from now, so Mr. and Mrs. Snowfield have stopped renting rooms. They do all the cleaning themselves, from what they told me, and they didn't want the rooms they have ready to be messed up.”

  “Then why did they rent a room to Mr. Johnson?” Nikki asked.

  Hawk shrugged. “Mr. Snowfield said the man looked like he needed to rest.”

  “I wonder if Mr. Johnson was traveling toward Canada or coming back?” Nikki asked Hawk, handing him back the driver's license. “You said the border is three miles north of here. If he didn't have a reservation, it's obvious he was coming back or heading toward the border.”

  Hawk stuffed the driver's license back down into his pants pocket. “Come on,” he told Nikki, walking to the Deep Woods room. “The body is still inside, so don't get sick on me, okay?”

  “I'll...be okay,” Nikki promised in a quick but uncertain voice.

  Chapter Two

  Hawk studied Nikki's face and then pushed open a thick, wooden door. The smell of fresh pine shot out of the room and struck Nikki in the face. Taking in a deep breath, she followed Hawk in. Not knowing exactly what to expect, Nikki was amazed when she walked into a large room lined with a thick brown carpet that, to her delight, was very cozy. The walls were painted with murals that represented thick, deep, wilderness covered in snow. On the far back wall was a stone fireplace. Two rocking chairs sat in front of the fireplace, close to a king-sized bed. A brown couch sat in the corner next to a tan reading chair. In front of the couch and chair was a wooden coffee table. A small breakfast bar stood on the left wall, holding a microwave and mini-fridge. At the back of the room, Nikki saw a door that led into a comfortable-sized bathroom. But Nikki's delight in the room quickly dissipated when she saw the dead man lying on the bed.

  Hawk walked over to the body and bent over to examine it. “Nice suit...nails well-kept...mustache trimmed nicely...hair neatly cut...no signs of a struggle.”

  Bravely, in order to prove to Hawk that she wasn't squeamish, Nikki eased over to the bed. A man wearing a nice blue suit lay there. For all intents and purposes, the man looked very peaceful, as if he were simply sleeping and having a pleasant dream. “Hawk, I heard the coroner ask Chief Daily if this man died of a heart attack.”

  Hawk glanced at Nikki. “Does a man die of a heart attack lying in this position?” he asked. “He's lying on top of the bed covers, too. But look around the edges, the edges are smoothed. He was placed down onto the bed.”

  “I was about to tell you the same thing,” Nikki said, lowering her eyes down onto the body. “His arms are crossed over his chest. And look around this room, not a single item out of place. Phone is still on the hook. And,” Nikki said, pointing at a gray suitcase sitting next to the breakfast bar, “the suitcase isn't even opened.”

  “Pop insists this is a clear case of a man dying of a heart attack,” Hawk told Nikki.

  Nikki refocused her attention on the dead man’s face. “His face is a little blue. How long has he been dead, do you think?

  “Coroner examined the body earlier, if that's what you can call that guy. He claims the body has been dead for a while—maybe ten hours. It's almost lunchtime, so that puts his death somewhere after 1:00AM and before 3:00AM.”

  “You need to ask Mr. and Mrs. Snowfield how Mr. Johnson looked when he arrived,” Nikki told Hawk.

  “Good idea,” Hawk agreed. “I'll run this guy through the system and see what I can come up with. Right now all we can do is wait for the autopsy report.” Hawk walked away from the bed and went to the suitcase. Nikki followed. “Let's see what we have.”

  Nikki watched Hawk lift the suitcase up onto the breakfast bar and open it. “No clothes,” she said, shocked.

  “Empty,” Hawk said and then began to feel around the inside of the suitcase, hoping to find a hidden compartment. Coming up empty-handed, he closed it. “Now why would a man carry an empty suitcase into a room?”

  Nikki looked at Hawk. “To fill the suitcase with money.”

  “Bingo,” Hawk agreed, nodding his head.

  “Drug deal, maybe?” Nikki suggested.

  “I don't know. Each room is assigned a key instead of those plastic key cards. There wasn't any sign of forced entry, and the Snowfields didn't report seeing any strange vehicles on the property.” Motioning toward the bathroom, he walked to it. He opened the bathroom door, reached his hand into the darkness, flipped on a light, and stepped inside. Nikki followed. “Clean as a whistle.”

  Nikki studied the bathroom’s hardwood floor and wooden walls. It was indeed spotless. She watched Hawk examine the bathroom. “Mr. Johnson wasn't planning on staying the night,” she told Hawk.

  “That's my guess, too,” he said. Walking Nikki out of the bathroom, he checked around the bedroom again and then went outside. “Okay,” he said, “get behind the trees. After the body is carried away, we'll head back into town.”

  Nikki jogged to the trees. Patiently, she watched Hawk summon the coroner. The coroner hurried to his car and pulled out a black stretcher holding a body bag. Asking for Hawk's assistance, he pushed the stretcher to Mr. Johnson's room. Hawk opened the door to the room and moved aside. As the coroner pushed the stretcher through the door, Nikki saw a young man exit the front lobby, look around, and then walk back inside. “Curious,” she whispered.

  Thirty minutes later Nikki was sitting in the jeep heading back toward town. “Who was the young man I saw?” she asked Hawk, watching beautiful countryside pass by.

  “The grandson,” Hawk explained. “Zach Snowfield, age twenty-four.”

  “Why didn't you tell me about him?”

  “Because I knew you would immediately suspect him of killing Mr. Johnson,” Hawk answered frankly. “Nikki, the kid has a mental disorder, he can barely talk. He came to stay with his grandparents because his own parents got tired of dealing with him.”

  Nikki grew silent. In her mind she saw a young, handsome face covered with stringy blond hair. The face she saw was intelligent if not brilliant. “Maybe,” she said uncertainly. “Drop me off back at my cabin, okay?”

  “I was thinking maybe we could grab some lunch.”

  “Later,” Nikki smiled and patted Hawk’s arm. “I really need to get to my store and see how Lidia and Tori are doing.”

  Hawk understood. “You got it,” he promised Nikki. “But do me a favor, stay away from the lodge, okay? Don't go snooping around out there. The body is gone, you saw the room, the suitcase is in the back of my jeep, the BMW is being hauled in to the station, so keep away, okay?”

  Nikki hid her right hand and crossed her fingers. “I don't think I'll be going back to the lodge anymore today,” she said. But tomorrow I will, she thought.

  “Good. And remember, not a word about this case to anyone,” Hawk told Nikki, wondering if his new partner was telling him the truth.

  Chapter Three

  After dropping Nikki off at her cabin, Hawk waved goodbye. Nikki waved back, and then, waiting until he was out of sight, she ran to her SUV, jumped in, and zoomed into town. She rushed into her store, politely maneuvered between chocolate-hungry tourists, and made her way into the back office. Lidia told Tori to watch the store and followed Nikki.

  “Where have you been?” Lidia asked, watching Nikki set her purse down on the desk.

  “I was with Hawk,” Nikki said, sitting down.

  “Oh,” Lidia grinned, wiping some flour off of the green blouse she was wearing.

  Nikki sighed. “I'm not ready for a relationship,” she reminded Lidia. “Call Tori back here, okay?”

  “Not until you tell me what's going on,” Lidia demanded. Reading Nikki's face, she knew her boss was dealing with something secretive. Plopping down on the corner of the desk, she glared down at Nikki. />
  “Lidia,” Nikki asked easing her eyes toward the open office door, “what do you know about the Elk Horn Lodge?”

  “Oh,” Lidia said, thinking and following Nikki's eyes to the open office door, “not much. Herbert and I have never stayed there, if that's what you want to know. I wish I could be more help, but we only pass by the lodge when we drive up that way to take day-trips into Canada.”

  Disappointed that Lidia couldn't provide more detailed information about the lodge, Nikki tried to think. Even though she was planning to send Tori out to the lodge, she began to wonder if having Lidia accompany her might not be a bad idea. “What about Tori, would she know about the lodge?”

  Lidia shook her head. “I wouldn't think so. Besides, Tori isn't from here. She moved here when she was sixteen to live with her aunt.”

  Nikki noticed Lidia say 'Aunt' as if the word were poison in her mouth. Making a quick decision, she nodded her head. “Okay,” she said and motioned for Lidia to lean down, “here's what's going on. A man has been found dead in his room at the lodge and—”

  “Oh my!” Lidia gasped.

  “This information cannot leave this office,” Nikki warned. “This man is from Georgia...Atlanta, to be exact. I'm sure this fact is not sitting well with Chief Daily. I'm expecting a visit here at any time. That's why I rushed to the store. I was at the lodge with Hawk earlier. He's allowing me to help him on this case.”

  “Honey,” Lidia begged, “wasn't your last adventure enough? You helped bring down a corrupt mayor and expose the German mafia while solving the murder of a man who was lower than a skunk.”

  “You make it sound like I made national headlines,” Nikki told Lidia. “A small-town mayor was arrested, and a few criminals hiding in town were exposed for what they were, so what? That's small change, Lidia.”

  “You did solve a man's murder,” Lidia pointed out.