Snowy Misery (Alaska Cozy Mystery Book 7) Read online

  Copyright © 2018 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.

  Printed in the United States of America

  Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Thanks for reading

  Be the First to Know

  About the Author

  Also by Wendy Meadows

  Chapter One

  Sarah stood in front of the kitchen window and sighed. “Snow, snow, snow,” she whispered, watching a heavy snow fall outside. “Winter is here to stay.”

  “Don't fret about the snow, love,” Amanda told Sarah, sipping on a hot coffee. “It's December 27th. We had a wonderful holiday. And more than anything,” Amanda smiled happily, “we haven't encountered a single problem since we returned from Oregon. Well, other than painting the inside of your coffee shop, that is.”

  “I know,” Sarah replied in a heavy voice, feeling sad. She wrapped her arms around the pink sweater she was wearing over a thick brown dress and continued to look out at the snow. “It's been snowing heavily for five straight days without stopping.”

  “This is Alaska, love,” Amanda reminded Sarah. She put down the brown coffee mug she was holding, brushed a few wrinkles out of the blue sweater she had decided on for the day, and stood up. It was time to cheer up her gloomy friend. “Let's go watch a movie, okay? I'll make some popcorn and you can get the hot chocolate.”

  Sarah appreciated her best friend’s struggle to cheer her up, but the truth was...she didn't want to be cheered up. “No thank you, June Bug.”

  Amanda walked over to the kitchen window and put her hand on Sarah's shoulder. “What's the matter, love? You've been gloomy all morning.”

  Sarah looked into Amanda's concerned and caring eyes. Her best friend deserved an explanation. “My ex-husband called me last night.”

  “Oh,” Amanda replied and then made a pained face. “Was it bad, love?”

  Sarah's eyes welled up with sadness. “Yes,” she confessed and walked away from the kitchen window and sat down at the kitchen table. “June Bug,” she said and patted the table, “come and sit down.” Amanda hurried over to the table and sat down in her chair. Sarah picked up her coffee mug and took a sip of coffee. “My ex-husband called me because he wants to...try and...reconcile our relationship,” she told Amanda. “He's thinking about divorcing the woman he's married to.”

  Amanda sat in shock. “Love...I...don't know what to say.”

  Sarah listened to the winds howl through the evergreens outside. She was in for a very long winter. “I was very surprised.”

  “I'm sure you were,” Amanda said and turned her coffee mug in her hands, thinking. “My goodness, what a shock...But also,” Amanda added, “the nerve of that slug calling you the way he did! Who does he think he is anyway, Casanova? You have a life, love, right here in Snow Falls—a good life. A life filled with people who love you.”

  “I know,” Sarah promised Amanda.

  Amanda read Sarah's eyes. Her heart sunk. “But…” she prompted and waited for the bomb to drop.

  Sarah put down her coffee mug. “June Bug, Brad wants to come and see me. He...misses me, or so he claims. I told him...yes.”

  “You what?” Amanda exclaimed and shot to her feet. “Oh, Los Angeles, tell me you didn't,” she begged and began pacing around the kitchen, throwing her arms up and down as she argued. “You and Conrad, you two are a couple...well, not officially. But it's no secret that you two are meant to stand before a preacher someday.”

  “I thought about Conrad,” Sarah assured Amanda. “Conrad is in New York right now. He won't be back for two more weeks.”

  “So you sneak in a snake while the poor bloke is gone?” Amanda asked in a desperate voice. “The poor guy is in New York attending the funeral of a friend. The only reason he's being delayed is because he decided to help his friend's wife and two children relocate to another part of the state. And it isn't like he had the vacation time to do this, either.”

  “Andrew isn't docking Conrad for being gone,” Sarah pointed out. “This is a small town, June Bug. It's been very quiet lately. Andrew is managing the police station just fine. And he does have us to fall back on if something comes up.”

  Amanda stopped at the back door and put her hands on her hips. “Los Angeles, you know what I mean,” she said. “Conrad is out there in the cold, giving of himself, and you invite a snake into your warm den.”

  “The snake is my ex-husband,” Sarah told Amanda and bowed her head. “It...felt good to hear his voice, June Bug. Call me stupid if you will, but...I would like to see Brad. There are a lot of unresolved questions that I need to have answered.” Sarah’s eyes welled up with unshed tears.

  Amanda looked at her best friend and felt her heart break. “Oh, love,” she said and hurried over to Sarah. “I know, I know,” she promised and began rubbing Sarah's shoulders. “I'm only worried that this man might take you away from me...from Conrad...from Snow Falls.”

  Sarah raised her head and looked into Amanda's eyes. “June Bug, I want to see my ex-husband because I need closure...closure I thought I had until last night. That doesn't mean I'm going to let the man walk into my heart and take the keys. Sure, I thought about what it would be like to still be married to Brad, to be living in Los Angeles, working homicide cases with Pete...eating Chinese food at all hours of the night while chasing down a killer.” She gave a hint of a smile, remembering her former life. “And sure, a part of me misses that life...but that life is...asleep now. I'm living a new life now. A life that feels secure and protected.”

  “You say that now, love,” Amanda worried, “but what will you say when your ex-husband arrives and you see him face to face? What happens when he starts talking about old memories while sitting with you in front of the fireplace with the snow falling outside? What happens when he tries to romance you once you're softened up? What if he goes in for the kill, huh? This jerk isn't traveling to Snow Falls to argue about an unpaid bill, love.”

  Sarah focused on her coffee mug. “I've thought about things,” she confessed.

  Amanda hurried and sat down. “And?” she asked in an anxious voice.

  “I believe Brad might try and sprinkle a little old romance into the air,” Sarah continued. “Brad has a way of being very charming when he wants to be. I always fell for his charm...stupid me.” Sarah took a sip of her coffee and her mouth settled into a firm, determined line. “June Bug, when he arrives I'm going to need you to be my shadow at all times. I'm not stupid, and I hope I wouldn’t fall for Brad's charm all over again, but what if we find ourselves alone in front of the fireplace, like you said, and he starts talking about our old life together? Will I really have the strength to fight his sweet words?” Sarah looked at Amanda. “And it wouldn't be just Brad I would be falling victim to...it would be the desire to have my old life back...a life I don't want anymore.”

  “Yes, you do,” Amanda corrected Sarah. “Los Angeles, you're homesick for your old life and don't try and deny it. You're homesick for the polluted streets of Los Angeles, the traffic, the
stale coffee sitting in the police stations.” Amanda’s eyes danced with laughter, but then she turned sad again. “And the warm sun of Southern California, the beautiful Pacific, the strange canyons, the fuss and rush, the lights, everything that makes Los Angeles what it is.”

  Sarah wanted to claim that her best friend was wrong, but she couldn't. Deep down, she did miss her old life more than her heart wanted to admit. She missed her ex-husband. She missed Pete. She missed Los Angeles. She missed taking walks on the beach. She missed the traffic. She even missed the bad coffee Pete always brought her. But could she really return to Los Angeles and pick up where she had left off? Sure, Pete would have a fit and do black flips. And yeah, she would be happy to be married again and dive back into her old job and forget all about the pain she had experienced in between. But, Sarah thought, she would miss her best friend, her life in Snow Falls, her cabin...and yes, Conrad. “I feel torn,” she confessed. “A part of my heart yearns to get my old life back in Los Angeles,” she explained. “Even though a part of me would be very sad if I left Snow Falls. June Bug, I wasn't ready to leave Los Angeles. If Brad hadn’t filed for divorce, I would still be living in Los Angeles right now, working as a homicide detective. I left Los Angeles because I was suffering from a broken heart.”

  “I know, love,” Amanda assured Sarah.

  “I feel like I was uprooted against my will,” Sarah said in an upset voice. She stood up and walked back to the kitchen window. “Brad blamed me for the divorce and for a while I believed him. He claimed I chose my job over him...and maybe I did? Or so I thought. But then I realized that Brad was wrong. I began wondering why Brad was condemning me instead of supporting me. The truth is, Brad wanted out of our marriage and used my job as his escape hatch.” Sarah watched the heavy snow falling outside, turning the branches of the trees soft and white. “I love Brad...I always will...the man was my husband. I do fear I might fall victim to his old charms if he gets me alone. But I...I...”

  “What, love?” Amanda asked.

  Sarah stood still for a long time. “I want...I need...closure.”

  “Love,” Amanda said and stood up, “you're not going to find closure if your ex-husband is traveling to Snow Falls to romance you.”

  “I know,” Sarah said in a miserable voice. “When Brad called, it felt nice to hear his voice. And when he announced that he wanted to see me...I caved in.” Sarah turned and faced Amanda. “I want to see Brad, June Bug. I need to see him. I need for him to tell me why he stopped loving me, but I'm afraid I might believe his fake promises all over again. Please, you have to be my shadow.”

  “When is this bloke arriving?” Amanda asked Sarah.

  “Tomorrow.”

  Amanda settled her heart. “Okay, love,” she said in a calm voice, “here's the battle plan, so listen very carefully.” Amanda picked up her coffee and took a sip. “You're paper and I'm glue. From the minute that man arrives in Snow Falls until he leaves, I'm not leaving your side no matter how much you beg me to, are we clear?”

  “Clear,” Sarah replied in a grateful voice.

  “I'm going to monitor every word he speaks and throw it back in his face double-fold. I'm going to remind him of the pain he put you through and then present your new life in its fullness as a side dish of justice.”

  “I had a feeling you would.”

  Amanda nodded her head. “That bloke isn't going to take you away from me,” she continued. “I also doubt he's traveling to Snow Falls because he's sincere about wanting to repair the damage he's caused, too. That bloke has some kind of hidden agenda. I could be wrong, but my gut is telling me the man is up to no good.”

  “Do you really believe that?” Sarah asked in a worried voice. The thought had crossed her own mind.

  “Yes, I do.”

  “What, though?” Sarah asked in a desperate voice. “Brad has a new life. I don't have anything he wants. What could he possibly want from me?”

  “That's what we're going to find out,” Amanda promised and walked over to the refrigerator. “I'm going to warm us up some cinnamon buns. You better wake Mittens up and take her for a walk. Afterward, we'll sit down right here at this kitchen table, make another pot of coffee, and draw up a battle plan.”

  Sarah looked toward the living room where Mittens was cuddled up in a doggy bed in front of the fireplace. “June Bug,” she said in an upset voice, “what if I let Brad win me over? What if I let my emotions...defeat my common sense? I was always so powerless to resist Brad's charm….his warm promises. We did have a nice life together...once. And I would like to believe the man married me because he sincerely loved me. Maybe...Brad isn't coming to Snow Falls with a hidden agenda tucked under his arm. Maybe...maybe he does miss me?”

  “Or maybe he wants to hurt you all over again?” Amanda suggested. “Instead of allowing him to destroy you, love, you picked up the pieces and managed to create a new life for yourself. And that speaks volumes.”

  Sarah hadn't considered that her ex-husband wanted to hurt her even more than he already had. The thought sent a terrible pain to her heart. “I—”

  Amanda held up a loving hand. “Love, you said the man is considering divorcing the woman he's currently married to, right?”

  “Yes.”

  “Maybe that woman is giving him the old heave-ho? And maybe,” Amanda pointed out, “he's running back to you because of that? Maybe you're who he wants to blame? Right now we don't have all the answers, and there are many possibilities to consider. It's better if we eat some cinnamon rolls, sit down, and talk.”

  Sarah nodded her head. “You warm up the cinnamon rolls and I'll go wake Mittens up.”

  “You got it, love,” Amanda replied. She watched Sarah leave the living room and balled her hands into two tight fists. “Alright you ugly bloke, why are you up to? Why are you really traveling to Snow Falls, after all this time?” The howling, icy winds outside were the only answer for Amanda.

  In the living room, Sarah quickly laced up her snow boots, put on a heavy white parka, a pink ski cap, a pair of ear muffs, and her gloves, and then woke Mittens up. “Okay, princess, time to go for a walk,” she said, bending down next to Mittens and rubbing the puppy’s ears. Mittens opened her eyes, spotted Sarah, let out a loud yawn, and went back to sleep. “Oh,” Sarah pouted and tried to wake Mittens up again. Mittens didn't budge. “Oh dear,” Sarah said again and stood up. She looked at the front door, rolled her eyes and walked outside anyway. “Give me a holler if Mittens wakes up, Amanda. I’m going out anyway. I could use the fresh air,” she said.

  Once outside, Sarah struggled through the deep snow and walked to the side of her cabin to gaze at the back woods. The tree branches were now white, and the wooded slope of the hills was thick and dark. In her mind's eye, she saw creepy snowmen wearing black leather jackets lurking in the woods, hiding behind frozen trees, sneering at her with red glowing eyes while they chewed on peppermint candy canes. “Stop it,” Sarah demanded as she shielded her face from the icy winds. “Just stop it.” But Sarah's mind refused to stop. The memories of the time she had been terrorized by the creepy snowmen would not stop, but they did change. In the deep, dark, cold woods she instead saw her ex-husband appear. The man was growling. His face was half human and half snow. He was wearing a black leather jacket, too. I'm coming to finish you off Sarah...oh yes, I'm not through hurting you yet. I'm coming to destroy what's left of your heart.

  Sarah stood frozen, unable to speak, paralyzed by the awful thought.

  Brad Garland was a handsome man. He stood tall, dignified, and confident. His face was that of a brilliant lawyer who never lost a case in his life. His stylish gray hair was that of a man who rested in elegant lounges with an expensive cigar in one hand and a snifter of the finest brandy in the other.

  At least, that's how the world perceived the man. Amanda didn't think he looked too smart standing by a rented SUV wearing a fashionable but lightweight gray overcoat and pair of black gloves that were defenseless against
the weather. The winds were hissing against a hard falling snow that seemed bent on paralyzing any dummy crazy enough to be dressed like Brad Garland. He was a man ready for a winter in Southern California, but he had stepped into the howling snowfall of Alaska.

  Sarah, on the other hand, appeared beautiful, dazzling—if not breath-taking—in her white winter coat covering a soft pink wool dress. Amanda had helped dress her friend to display her best qualities. Sarah was a woman who still retained her beauty, heart, and full life even though she had experienced an ugly divorce; grace, character, and intelligence were her weapons of choice. “Brad,” Sarah said, walking up to the SUV, “I'm glad to see you found my store.”

  “The GPS is to thank,” Brad replied, fighting the desire to duck back into the SUV and warm his frozen face. He was determined to present himself with dignity, as he always had in the past. “You look…nice,” he told Sarah, and glanced at Amanda. Amanda glared at him with fierce eyes. “Could we step inside and speak privately?”

  Amanda tugged the thick brown coat she was wearing a little tighter, enjoying the warmth it provided her. She felt quite comfortable standing out in the cold wearing a brown knit winter hat, insulated gloves, and a warm green wool dress tucked under her coat. Of course, it wouldn't be long before the cold broke through her coat, but for the time being, she was fine. “My name is Amanda,” Amanda told Brad. “I'm Sarah's best friend. From this point forward she doesn't leave my sight.”

  “Excuse me?” Brad asked in a rude tone. “I'm here to speak to my wife—”

  “Ex-wife,” Amanda corrected Brad and locked arms with Sarah. “The woman you divorced.”

  Brad stared at Amanda angrily. “My business with Sarah is private.”