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  Trouble at TeaFest

  A Teaberry Farm Bed & Breakfast Cozy Mystery

  R. A. Wallace

  2018

  Author’s Note

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, dialogue, places, and events are either the product of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental. Material in this book is not intended as a substitute for legal or medical advice from qualified professionals. The author has no connection to any software or website mentioned.

  © 2018 R. A. Wallace. All rights reserved.

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  Chapter Twenty

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  Megan’s Recipes

  Books by R. A. Wallace

  Chapter One

  Madison Palmer walked away from the parking lot, locking her car with her key fob as she did. She tucked her keys away and mechanically executed her pre-run stretching while allowing her mind to blissfully wander. It too, was an exercise of sorts and one designed to relax. She spent much of her day focused on minute details. It was like a gift to allow herself the luxury of freeform thinking.

  She was dressed in shorts and a tee for her late afternoon run in the Teaberry Park. It was adjacent to a large lake and the trail around it was paved. She loved this park and spent time in it whenever she was in town. Lately, she had been travelling a lot for the consulting firm she worked for which was why she was enjoying her brief respite. The trail wrapped around the park then went through woods and fields surrounding a lake.

  Because her friend Courtney John was recently married, Madison had taken some time off to be available for several days before and after the event. They had been friends since grade school. Though, Madison thought, as the maid of honor she hadn’t really had to do much. Courtney’s mom had done most of the planning for the wedding. But Madison had enjoyed the time she’d been able to spend with Courtney without having to worry about her own work.

  Well, that is, up until one of the guests had been murdered immediately after the ceremony, Madison thought, as she straightened to her full five seven height. Courtney and her new husband, Austin, had just left for their honeymoon. It had been a difficult time for them after the wedding, but Courtney had dealt with it in her typical, logical fashion.

  Courtney and Madison had already planned to pack up the flowers from the wedding and donate them to a local retirement home directly following the wedding and Madison was happy to help her friend with that task. When the death had effectively cancelled the reception at the moment the bride and groom arrived, Courtney had immediately made plans to also have the food donated to the needy.

  Twisting to one side to relax her back, Madison felt it again. She’d convinced herself that she’d only imagined it previously because she hadn’t felt it since the wedding, but there it was again. The feeling that someone was watching her. She continued to twist slowly from side to side, examining her surroundings while she did. She couldn’t see anything out of the ordinary anywhere. But she felt it. She told herself it wasn’t going to help anything by just standing there, wondering.

  Madison began running the trail. She started slowly but then hit her pace. If anyone was following her, they were going to need to step it up. She felt herself begin to relax the farther she left the parking lot behind and headed into the woods. Although it was only seven thirty in the evening and still light enough at this time of the year, the heavy coverage of the old trees blocked much of the sun. It was cooler in the woods but also somewhat darker.

  As she continued to run the trail, it would sometimes take her deeper into the woods and at other times run nearer the water’s edge. Madison loved both views. The trees in the woods were amazing but the lake was beautiful. The water was calm and resembled a mirror showing the trees on the other side of the lake reflected into the water. There were boats on the lake and many of the occupants appeared to be enjoying the early evening fishing.

  She followed the trail as it wound deeper into the woods, moving to the right side of the path as a cyclist rang a bell to indicate their presence behind her before zipping past her. After a few minutes, the trail wound back toward the lake for a longer stretch and Madison watched an Osprey fishing from the sky, it wings flapping to hold its position just before taking a plunge into the water only to return a few moments later and lift back into the air, its precious catch in its claws. Madison watched it flying across the lake as the trail began curving back into the woods.

  And there it was again. Inexplicably, Madison felt as though she were being watched. She shook her head and looked around at the large lake. Impossible. She glanced behind her. No one in sight. She must be imagining it. She looked behind her again as she was rounding the bend on the trail headed back into the woods and was nearly knocked backwards when she hit a brick wall. Strong arms grabbed on to her and she fought to release them while struggling for her balance.

  “Whoa, hold on,” a male voice said.

  Madison frantically back peddled as she struggled to create distance between them. Looking around quickly, she realized there was no one else in sight and the trail had taken her away from the edge of the lake and returned her into the darkening woods.

  Recognizing the panic on the woman’s face, Jerry whipped out his badge and held up both hands in the air. “It’s okay, I’m a cop.”

  Madison took deep breaths to calm herself while she looked more closely at the man she had nearly run over. He was a few inches taller than Madison and looked muscular and fit. “I know you. You were at the wedding. The guest was murdered.”

  “Yes, that’s right,” Jerry said, lowering his hands and stashing his badge. “You were the maid of honor, right?”

  Madison nodded and made an effort to get her breathing back under control. “I’m sorry. I didn’t recognize you out of uniform at first.”

  “You looked like someone was chasing you. Are you alright?” Jerry asked as he watched her catch her breath.

  He searched his memory for the details of the recent case his department had just closed. He and his partner, Erica Bennet, had been the primary investigators on the case.

  “Madison, right?” he asked.

  “Madison, yes,” Madison smiled, her hands on her hips. “Good memory. Yes, I’m alright. I just thought...”

  Madison looked behind her again and shook her head. She had to be imagining it.

  “It’s nothing. I’m good. Sorry about running in to you,” she said.

  “Not a problem. I’m headed back to the parking lot. If you’re sure you’re alright?” Jerry asked again.

  Madison looked down the trail in the direction she had been running and made a decision.

  “I’m probably at my halfway mark. Mind if I head back to the parking lot with you?” she asked.

  Jerry smiled. “Let’s go.”

  Madison turned and headed back to the lot, taking a few moments to get back into her rhythm.

  “Do you run here often
?” She glanced over at Jerry as she asked. He looked like he ran somewhere often.

  Jerry dialed his pace back to stay with her. “My schedule is erratic so I don’t do it at the same time each day, but I do try to get here often.”

  They were in a stretch of the trail that ran next to the lake. They ran in a comfortable silence for some time enjoying the view. Madison no longer felt the sensation of being watched and was able to relax.

  “I’m sure you were happy to conclude the case from the wedding quickly,” she said.

  She knew from speaking with Courtney that the department may have received an assist on the case from Megan Bennet.

  “Yes. It had to be difficult for the wedding party and everyone else involved. Do you know if the bride and groom got off on their honeymoon yet?”

  “They left yesterday,” Madison said, dropping back to the side of the trail behind Jerry when she heard a bell behind her.

  She waited while another cyclist passed and then moved back to Jerry’s side. Several minutes later, the parking lot was in sight. They both slowed their pace to a walk. There were more people around the parking lot because it was located next to the marina and concession stand.

  Madison stopped walking when she reached her car and turned to Jerry. “Thanks for the company back.”

  Jerry’s serious dark eyes met Madison’s. “Are you sure everything is okay? You looked like someone or something had frightened you.”

  “I’m good, thanks.” Madison smiled to show him that she meant it.

  Jerry nodded, and waved goodbye then jogged off toward his own car on the other side of the parking lot.

  Madison watched Jerry quickly cover the distance to his car and then turned to walk the remaining distance toward her own car. For the second time that evening, she nearly knocked someone over.

  “Oh, I’m so sorry,” Madison said.

  She looked at the woman she had collided with. She had a couple of inches on Madison which put her around five nine and she was model thin. In fact, she looked like a model.

  “That’s okay,” the other woman responded. Looking over at Jerry, she asked, “Friend of yours?”

  Madison wondered if the woman was worried about her safety. She didn’t recognize her and didn’t think she was from the area.

  “He’s a Teaberry police officer. I just happened to run into him on the trail.”

  The other woman got a thoughtful look then turned back to Madison and smiled. “Well, you never know who you’re going to run into.”

  Madison smiled back and got into her car. She didn’t notice that the man on the boat moored at the dock was taking her picture.

  Chapter Two

  Megan Bennet took the Fruit Cocktail cake from the oven and set it on the cooling rack on the kitchen counter. She hadn’t made this particular cake in quite some time and wanted to refresh her memory on the recipe. She was planning to visit Caitlyn later and would bring some of the cake to give to her friend. Caitlyn had the enviable ability to consume large amounts of food and never gain an ounce on her five one frame.

  While she was waiting for the cake to cool, she took out the letter again and read it for the millionth time. The first few times Megan had read it, she’d thought it was telling her that Jason Malone had placed a lien on her property. It was written by a lawyer and was so convoluted, Megan had to call her own lawyer to ask her what the letter meant. Her lawyer, Jennifer Parker, had first asked her to email a copy of the letter to her so she could review it closely.

  From what Jennifer had explained to her after initially skimming the contents of the letter, Jason Malone’s lawyer was threatening to place a lien based on an old debt. Megan’s relief was short-lived when Jennifer had spouted a litany of legal words that made Megan’s head spin. The end result was, Megan still didn’t know if a lien could be placed on her property or not. Jennifer promised to look into it more and let her know.

  Megan hadn’t slept much since first reading the letter and her nerves were frazzled. She’d decided to keep herself busy to take her mind off the letter and, so far, had cleaned the entire house within an inch of its life. Realizing that she wasn’t going to divine anything new from the letter by reading it again now, she left the cake to cool and went outside to work in the garden.

  After crossing the backyard to get to the shed, she went inside to find her hoe. When she went back outside and closed the door, she turned and nearly tripped over Henry which caused him to startle, flap his wings, and run in circles while letting out a strangled crow. Henry had mastered the art of escaping the chicken coop but had yet to learn how to crow properly.

  Megan crouched down and spoke to Henry in soothing tones. “I’m sorry, I didn’t see you there. You probably didn’t see me either, did you?” When very young, Henry had lost an eye due to an injury. Megan had nursed him back to health.

  Since then, whenever Megan went outside to work, Henry managed to escape from the fencing around the chicken coop and stick to Megan like glue. Henry stopped moving and looked at Megan, turning his head to the good side.

  “There, you’re all better now. I didn’t really hurt you, I just scared you. Come on, Henry. We’ll go look for bugs in the garden.”

  Megan led the way with Henry following. He appeared to like it when Megan turned the dirt with her hoe. He would follow behind her closely and inspect every inch.

  As she worked down each row, hoeing around the plants, Henry followed while Megan thought about the lien. Her lawyer had called Jason Malone’s lawyer but hadn’t gotten many details yet. Jason was claiming that Megan’s husband had owed Jason money when he was alive. Jason was now calling in the debt. Because Josh had since died in a car accident, Jason claimed that Megan was responsible for repayment of the large debt.

  She shook her head. Even in death, Josh managed to cause her problems. When he was alive, their marriage had been strained to the breaking point because of his wandering eye. Megan didn’t doubt that he may have accrued debts in some form along the way. Toward the end of their marriage, they had spoken so infrequently she didn’t really know what he did with his time. She just knew that he was rarely home.

  Megan looked around her farm and wondered what she’d do without it. The house was an 1870s vintage farmhouse. Megan and Josh had bought it when they’d married. They had put everything into restoring and remodeling it with modern amenities into a bed and breakfast. Teaberry Farm Bed and Breakfast offered four rooms with private baths. One of the main selling points for Megan was that it was situated on the outskirts of town and Teaberry was conveniently located a few miles from the crossroads of two busy highways. She had hoped the location would work in her favor.

  There was a barn and a chicken coop in the back with a pond, a paddock, and grazing fields for sheep. Megan usually only kept around six sheep. She hired someone to come in and shear the sheep then sent the wool out for processing. She had several different groups of ladies who liked to stay at the bed and breakfast throughout the year and swap patterns and stories over a little girl-time getaway. In the winter, they would sit near the fire knitting and enjoying the company of their friends. Megan also taught knitting to those who wanted to learn.

  In addition to some acres of woods on the far edges of the property, the farm had an orchard closer to the house. Megan glanced over at the trees. There were around four dozen different fruit varieties. Many were apple but there were also cherry, peach, and plum trees. On the far side of the orchard, there were huckleberry bushes, grape vines, and red and black raspberries on either side of the huckleberries. The vegetable garden was closer to the house. Rhubarb grew on one side of it. Megan used some of the produce for herself and the bed and breakfast, sold some of it, and provided a pick-your-own option. Her cousin Lauren bought some of the fruit for her bakery. Although Megan thought she was as inventive as possible when it came to the bed and breakfast, none of her efforts had resulted in making her rich.

  It was true that at this point, much of Mega
n’s income actually came from her work as a web site designer. But this was her home. Megan shook her head. She wasn’t accomplishing anything by throwing herself a pity party. She glanced around looking for Henry and saw him inside the fence with his hens. How does he do that?

  Megan returned to the house just as her phone rang. “Hello?”

  “Is this the Teaberry Farm Bed and Breakfast?”

  “Yes, are you interested in making a reservation?” Megan asked the woman on the other end of the phone.

  “I was thinking about it but I’m not certain yet. I was just looking at your web site. Do you still have an opening for this coming weekend?”

  Megan currently had three rooms booked, leaving one free. It was the TeaFest weekend. She had hoped she’d be fully booked with guests. Maybe now she would be.

  “Yes, there is still one room left. Would you like me to take your reservation?” Megan asked.

  “No. I need to check on something first. I can use the web site, right?”

  “Yes, you can make reservations online. The site is secure for payment transactions,” Megan explained.

  “Okay, thanks.”

  Megan looked down at her phone. The call was disconnected. She felt something wrap around her ankles and smiled.

  “Hey, Emma.” She reached down and picked up her black cat. Green eyes stared intently back at her. “You have food, so I know that’s not what you want. It must be attention.”

  Megan rubbed Emma’s ears with one hand while she checked her email with the other. She’d just received a new email indicating that a reservation for a Tamara Hines had been entered into the web site with the payment information. That must have been the woman on the phone.

  “Looks like we are full up for the weekend, Emma. We could use some good news around here, eh?” Emma jumped lightly down to the floor and began smoothing her fur back down.

  Megan washed her hands and packaged up the Fruit Cocktail cake into two separate containers. She’d change out of her work clothes and head into town. Maybe speaking with Caitlyn would give her some insight into whatever Jason Malone was thinking. Even if it didn’t, Megan knew that spending time with a friend would still be preferable to brooding on her own. And then she’d take the other half of the Fruit Cocktail cake and give it to Dan. That should definitely put her in a better mood, Megan thought with a smile.