Murder With a Hint of Pumpkin Spice: Whisper Hollow Mysteries Book 1 by Drake Laura M

Author:Drake, Laura M.
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: anonymous
Published: 2024-09-26T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 12

Not All Dead Ends Lead to Disappointment

Iclosed the front door of Whispering Pages and leaned against it with a sigh. “I messed up.”

“What do you mean?” Grace’s voice was calming through my AirPod.

I told her about what happened next door versus how I’d planned for it to go, ending with, “and when I checked Nana’s office, the key was exactly where he said it would be.” My stomach twisted as I remembered the look on his face. Not that we had much of a relationship to ruin—even if I wanted one—but I was pretty sure that accusing an innocent person of murder counted as burning a bridge. “I think Tate ruined me.”

“He did not ruin you,” she said. “He doesn’t have that sort of power over you.”

I paced around the shop while Jiji meowed at me from the top of a romance shelf. “Yes, he does. I never would’ve been so quick to judge Sebastian if Tate hadn’t ruined my trust in the male species.”

“You didn’t doubt him because he’s a guy. You doubted him because he was a logical suspect based on clues you found.”

“I should probably give up on this whole amateur detective thing.” I sighed. “I suck at it.”

“That’s not true. You followed a lead, and it didn’t take you where you needed to go,” she said. “According to every detective novel I’ve ever read, that isn’t unusual.”

“Yes, because I’m sure my life is going to play out like a mystery novel.” I flipped my hair over my shoulder.

“You never know.”

“Maybe I’m better off leaving town.” I sank into a comfy armchair tucked between shelves and put my head in my hands. “I’m not sure why I thought I could do this anyway, with Nana’s shop or the murder and the money.”

Grace was silent for a moment. “You could come home.”

“But?” I asked. Because with that tone of voice, there was always a but.

“But I don’t think it’s a good idea.”

“Why not? You were ready to drag me back a few days ago.”

Her voice softened. “That was because I was worried about you, not because you were giving up.”

“I’m not giving up. I’m just . . .” Proving that the sheriff and Mr. James were right about me all along.

“Harp, listen to me,” Grace said. “I am all for you coming back and staying with us until they find whoever is responsible and put him or her behind bars. But that doesn’t mean I think you should give up on Whispering Pages.”

“But what if I fail?” I whispered.

“Then you fail.”

I blinked. That wasn’t exactly the answer, or comfort, I’d expected. “Gee, thanks.”

“You’re acting like failure is a bad thing.” She laughed. “Logan, can you tell Aunt Harp what we say about failure in our house?”

Static sounded through the phone as it changed hands, then a tiny three-year-old voice came through the speaker. “Thuccess ith built on a foundation of faiwures.”

“Thanks, Logan.” I couldn’t help but smile at his piece of wisdom and adorable lisp.

Noises sounded again, then Grace came back on.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.