Peppermint Fudge Killer: A Pumpkin Hollow Mystery, book 13 by Kathleen Suzette (universal ebook reader .TXT) 📗

mouth. When he recovered he looked at me and Christy. “Are you two crazy? Of course I didn’t kill Suzanne Wilson! What’s wrong with you two? I would never kill anyone!”

“Christy,” Katrina said slowly. “Of course Lawrence didn’t kill anyone.” She turned to him. “Right Lawrence? You didn’t kill anyone, did you?”

He shook his head and his face turned red. “Of course I didn’t kill anyone. Do you think I’m a murderer?”

Katrina looked at us, and I could see what looked like fear in her eyes. “I think that’s a ridiculous question.”

“Is it?” Christy asked. “Is it really? Because he was one of the last people that saw Suzanne alive. I don’t think it’s a ridiculous question at all.”

Karina sighed. “Honestly, if you want to talk to somebody, you need to talk to Suzanne’s cousin, Brittany. Those two hated each other, and I saw Brittany hanging out around the carousel that night. Mark my words, she killed her cousin.”

“What time did you see her hanging around the carousel?” I asked.

“I was there with my husband that night, and we left late. Probably after midnight. I know Brittany was still there because I saw her talking to Sam Connor.”

“Sam said he left at eleven o’clock,” I pointed out. “So it couldn’t have been after midnight when you saw them talking.”

“Maybe I don’t have the time right, but I saw Suzanne get on the carousel and walk around the deck. Then I saw Brittany standing on the side watching her. I think the elf might have had a little to drink because she was swaying when she walked.”

“Did you tell Ethan this?” I asked.

“I told Ethan everything I knew. He said he was looking into it.”

I nodded and glanced at Christy.

“I hope you didn’t kill her, Lawrence, but I’m going to keep my on you just in case,” she said.

“You had better stay away from me, Christy Jordan,” Lawrence spat out. “I’ll call the police and tell them you’re harassing me.”

“There’s no need for that,” I said and took Christy by the hand. “We're going to place an order for lunch now.”

Sometimes Christy went too far. We found a seat on the other side of the café.

“Did you see that?” Christy hissed. “My money’s on Lawrence. Why would he get so upset about it?”

“Might’ve been because you were accusing him of murder,” I said, picking up a menu. “You shouldn’t have done that. If he tells Ethan, we’re both going to hear about it.”

She nodded. “That’s fine. I’ll let him know that we’re just helping him out.”

She could pretend that it wouldn’t be a big deal, but to me, it would be a big deal if Ethan got upset with me for asking around. Again.

Chapter Nineteen

“How are we going to know which apartment?” Christy asked.

“I don’t know, but we’ll figure that out when we get there,” I said as I pulled into the parking lot for the Creekside apartment complex. I knew Suzanne had lived here, but I didn’t know which apartment was hers. These apartments were small, single-level triplex units that formed a square with a pool and courtyard in the middle of them. They were cute, and I had looked at them before renting my little house. “While we’re here, maybe you can take a look at one of the apartments. I think they’re cute.”

She nodded. “That’s not a bad idea. I think I can afford one of these units.”

Christy had been looking for her own place for a couple of months now without any luck. Her finances were limited, so she didn’t have a lot of choices. I didn’t blame her for not taking the first thing that came open. Until she found one she really liked, she may as well stay with our parents.

“I think that’s Brittany’s car,” I said pointing at the parking space that belonged to apartment number fifteen. A red Toyota was parked in the space.

“I think you’re right,” Christy said. “Let’s head over to apartment number fifteen.”

We went around the corner and saw that the door to the apartment was open. We stood at the open doorway and I knocked. Brittany was bent over a cardboard box in the living room and she turned and looked at us, then straightened up. “Hi Mia, hi Christy. Fancy meeting you two here. What’s up?”

“I’ve been looking for my own place for a while now,” Christy said as we stepped inside the apartment. “I know another one of these apartments is for rent, number three, if I remember right, so we decided to stop by and take a look at it. We saw your car parked here and thought maybe you were still working on Suzanne’s apartment.”

She nodded. “I lived in this complex a couple of years ago and it’s nice and quiet. The apartment manager really takes care of things. I think you’d be happy living here. I know Suzanne really liked it.”

“I think I might actually be able to afford one of these,” Christy said, looking around the room. “It’s not very big, but I don’t need anything big.”

“You can take a look around this apartment to get a feel for things, if you want to,” she said. “I think they’re all pretty much the same.”

“Thanks,” Christy said. “The manager is out of the office right now. I’ll have to make an appointment and come back to see the other one later.”

The apartment was small, with just one bedroom and one bathroom. We headed to the kitchen and looked around. It was tiny, but big enough for one person.

“I can handle this,” Christy said. “I don’t do that much cooking, and this is more than big enough for me.”

“I like it,” I said. “You can put up a cute curtain on the kitchen window and make it your