Merry Masquerade in Savannah: A Made in Savannah Cozy Mystery (Made in Savannah Cozy Mysteries Serie by Hope Callaghan (rosie project .TXT) 📗

“I feel sorry for Mrs. Montgomery,” Autumn said.  “The poor woman can’t seem to catch a break.”

Carlita didn’t have time to answer before Tori waved them over.  “They’re going to be here for some time.  I need to go back inside to attend to my guests.”

The women stopped when they reached the courtyard entrance. “I hate to impose, but would you mind sticking around after the party ends? I would ask Iris to stay with me, but as you can see that won’t be possible, not until the authorities clear her and all of my other staff.”

“Of course,” Carlita said.

“We’ll stay, too,” Autumn quickly added.  “Four heads are better than two.”

Tori drifted to the other side of the room to chat with Pirate Pete, and Carlita wondered if she was telling Pete what had happened.  The two were not only business associates, but also close friends.

“I haven’t had time to check out the desserts yet,” Autumn said.  “The table in the formal dining room is loaded with goodies.”

Mercedes and Autumn headed out of the drawing room and Carlita slowly trailed behind.  Someone at the party had attacked poor Ava and killed her…but who?  What if Tori was wrong and Iris had murdered the woman in a fit of rage?

Tori said Iris wouldn’t hurt a fly, but jealousy made people do crazy things.

Carlita meandered from room to room, stopping briefly to say hello to Glenda Fox and her husband.  She also chatted with Tony and Shelby, who were gushing over the grand gowns and gems. There had to be millions of dollars’ worth of gems inside Montgomery Hall.  No wonder Tori hired extra security - an armed robber would have a field day!

After circling the entire lower level of the home, Carlita decided to spend some time observing the employees.  Did they know about Ava’s death?  Surely, the rumors were swirling and most, if not all, knew what had happened.

She hadn’t heard much chatter from the other guests, wondering what was happening inside the pool house.  Would the police ask all the guests to stay until they were questioned? There were hundreds of guests.  It would take hours for the investigators to talk to every single person.

Carlita found herself in the kitchen, a beehive of activity as workers darted back and forth, loading trays with food and drinks and hurrying out of the kitchen. She made her way to Iris’ side.

“Hello Mrs. Garlucci.”

“Hello Iris. You’ve done a wonderful job helping Mrs. Montgomery with the party this evening.”

“Thank you.”

“I’m sorry to hear of the incident out back with Ava.”

Iris paused, a tomato-laden bruschetta hovering in mid-air.  “She was a nasty woman.” She slid the appetizer onto the tray.

“Mrs. Montgomery said you two didn’t get along.”

“That’s an understatement.  I prayed every night Mrs. Montgomery would fire the odious woman.” Iris set another goody on the tray.  “I didn’t kill her, if that’s what you’re wondering.”

“I believe you.” Carlita patted her arm.  “The police will be questioning all of the staff including you.”

“I have nothing to hide.  I wasn’t anywhere near the pool house this evening.” Iris carefully placed two more appetizers on the tray and then lifted it.  “Maybe they should question the security company too.”

“Why is that?”

“Because the security company had access to almost all of Montgomery Hall.  They were here yesterday, setting up the security perimeter and the one in charge…I can’t remember her name Bernice, Eloise, something like that.”

“Dernice,”’ Carlita corrected.  “What was Dernice doing?”

“She spent more of her time on her radio, yelling at the workers.  They were walking around here as if they owned the place, going into areas they shouldn’t have.  I finally told the woman to remind them that the upper floor was off limits and she needed to keep a closer eye on her staff.”

“And what did she say?”

“Her face turned bright red. I thought she was going to bite my head off and I’m pretty certain she was going to say something snappy, but instead she nodded her head and walked away.”

“Thanks for sharing what you know with me Iris.”

“You’re welcome.” Iris balanced the tray on her shoulder and carried the tray of food through the swinging kitchen door.

Dernice was a convicted felon although, according to Elvira, it wasn’t her fault.  But what if she wasn’t as innocent as Elvira insisted? What if someone from Elvira’s security company had murdered Ava?

Any of them would have had ample opportunities to catch a Montgomery employee in the pool house, but what was Ava doing in the pool house?  Had she planned a clandestine meeting with one of her co-workers?

She needed more information about Ava.  Carlita’s head spun as the list of possible suspects grew.

The soft strains of a violin echoed in the hall and she followed the sound into the sunroom where a dance floor had been set up.  Twinkling lights dotted the trees lining the walkway leading into the sunroom.

“Would you care for a dance?” A deep voice echoed in Carlita’s ear.

Carlita jumped, placing a hand on her chest as she spun on her heel and came face to face with John Alder. Her heart did a backflip.

“John,” she whispered breathlessly.  “I…of course. I didn’t know you were back in town.”

“I got in last night.” He reached for Carlita’s hand and they walked to the edge of the dance floor.  “I finally sold off the last of my Atlanta properties, which means that I’m here in Savannah for good.”

“I’m happy for you.  It’s hard being torn between two places.” Carlita thought of New York and her children, Paulie and Vinnie, Jr., who were still there.  “I believe you still owe me a dinner date,” she teased.

“You’re right.  Are you free next Saturday evening?  I heard the Savannah area troupe is doing a