SLAY PAIRS WITH ROSE (The Kelly's Deli Cozy Murder Mysteries Book 3) by Sophie Brent (books to read as a couple txt) 📗

“Hey! I love tea. But yes, coffee and cake are provided by the management. Matt is outside on the terrace enjoying the view. Why don’t you take my coffee and I’ll be out in a minute with the cake? You’re going to need it when we show you what we found in Emma’s room.”

Erin dashed into the kitchen and cut thick slices of the cherry and almond loaf that she had pulled from the freezer just before setting out to Abbotsdown Hall that morning.

After a couple of hours in a cool bag in the back of Erin’s car, the loaf had defrosted perfectly. A quick mouthful confirmed that it was moist and delicious, with an enticing aroma of ground almonds and added almond extract. The poached fresh Morello cherries had retained that fresh sweet tang. Perfect!

Erin quickly poured another coffee and carried her beaker and the cake out onto the terrace.

“Tuck in, everyone. Cherry and almond loaf today. I hope that … Zoe! You might wait until the rest of us had a chance to try some.”

“Sorry, but this is amazing, and I am starving,” Zoe muffled as she bit into her second slice of cake. “You were right,” she swallowed, “about Aunt Sarah not wanting to cook.  Every take-away restaurant around Kingsmede is on speed-dial in that house. Ethan and Adam were like ravenous wolves. They almost grabbed your lemon drizzle cakes out of my hands before anyone else saw them. It was a battle to save enough to take to Fiona and the girls.”

“How is Fiona?” Erin asked as she cut more slices of cake.

“Not good,” Zoe shook her head and focused on the overgrown flowerbeds. “She still blames herself for not going down with Emma to the kitchens. Nothing we can say seems to help, so she stays in her room sobbing all day, or worse, going over and over what happened and how it would all have been different if she had been there for her friend.”

Zoe took a slurp of coffee and gave a low groan of pleasure. “My cousin has a very short and selective memory. Very short indeed,” she murmured and took another long drink.

“What do you mean, Zoe?” Matt asked, stretching out to take another slice of cake.

Zoe opened her mouth to speak as though she had just slipped up and been caught out, then smiled and shook her head. “It was nothing. Forget I mentioned it.”

Erin looked across at Matt who raised his eyebrows and gave her a quizzical look.

“When I agreed to clear Emma’s room this morning, I had no idea what I would be getting into, Zoe. Matt was with me when we walked into that bedroom, and it was a mess. Except for one thing…”

Erin’s voice faltered and she looked across at Matt, who gave her a single slow nod of encouragement.

“It looks like Emma had been doing detailed background checks on all of the wedding party and especially the bridesmaids.” Erin reached out and startled Zoe by squeezing her hand. “She had whole dossiers of information inside the box marked ‘Hen Party’ and from what I saw, it was all designed to humiliate or embarrass that person if it came out. I’m really sorry.”

To Erin’s astonishment, Zoe reacted to the news by throwing back her head with her eyes closed.

“Oh, Erin, you have no idea what a relief that is. I was beginning to think that I had got it all wrong. This changes everything.”

Zoe leaped up, tugging Erin with her and looked from side to side. “Please tell me that you didn’t leave the box at the hotel!’

“No, Matt brought it into the living room with all the invoices and receipts that you were looking for, and… Zoe?”

Too late, her friend had already jumped into action, jogged back into the cottage and was tugging open the lids on the heavy plastic storage crates. Immediately her eyes scanned the contents until her gaze settled on the same wallet that Erin had been looking at in the hotel.

“Found it,” she cried out and held the wallet high in the air. “Erin, I am going to need another slice of cake and a lot more coffee. I have a lot of work to do!”

“Not a chance, Zoe Hanson,” Erin replied and folded her arms. “You have two friends here who have lugged this stuff all the way from the hotel.  You are not reading one word of those files until you tell us precisely what happened at that girls’ party on Friday night. Until you do, there is no chance of coffee or cake.”

“What! You can’t be serious,” Zoe cried out. “Matt, help me out here!”

“Sorry, Zoe.  You heard what Erin said. Report first, then refreshments. That’s how it works. Your decision.”

Zoe’s shoulders slumped and she rolled her eyes in submission. “You win. Pass that cake.”

Chapter Eight

Zoe sighed and slumped back in her chair. “I’m so sorry, Erin. I had no idea that it was as bad as this.”

They had moved inside and were sitting hunched together around the small kitchen table in the cottage with the back door open to let some fresh air in.

Zoe had taken the pages from the wallet and spread them out on the table so that they could all see the printouts, newspaper cuttings, and hand-written notes that Emma had collated on each of the bridesmaids.

“Don’t ask me why, but after the dinner on Friday evening, I had a horrible feeling that Emma had planned to ruin Fiona’s wedding from the start, but I had nothing to back it up with. Until now.”

Erin stared at her friend in astonishment, hardly able to believe what she was hearing. “Ruin the wedding?