Murder and Misfortune (A Claire Rollins Mystery Book 3) by J A Whiting

Author:J A Whiting [Whiting, J A & Whiting, J A]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Whitemark Publishing
Published: 2017-05-24T22:00:00+00:00

14

Claire had placed the platter of mini custard flans, each one decorated with a Florentine cookie, on the counter at the front of Tony’s market for the early morning customers to taste test and to make final comments and suggestions. Tony and Tessa stood with the people who were trying out the sweets, chatting and taking down remarks from them.

In her fifties, Tessa was a psychic who had been helping Claire learn about her abilities and no one in their circle of friends except Claire and Nicole knew that Tessa had certain paranormal skills. When Tony met Tessa for the first time, he was immediately smitten with the woman and the two had been spending lots of time together enjoying one another’s company.

Claire carried a few of the custard desserts to Augustus and she sat down across from him.

“Perfect.” The retired judge announced his favorable impression of the flan and the accompanying cookie. “You and Nicole will certainly win a prize at the festival.”

“That would be nice,” Claire said, “but a husband and wife team who own a Boston bakery win every year. Anyway, the real purpose of entering the contest is to bring attention to Nicole’s chocolate shop. I think we did a nice job with the flans. It’s just the right amount of chocolate swirl in the custard, it’s not overwhelming, and there’s not too little to make an impact, and they look pretty.”

“And this cookie is the crown of the dessert.” Augustus chewed and swallowed. “Delicate, but with a lovely flavor. You have a real winner here.”

Claire thanked the judge for his help in determining the food festival entry. “With everything going on, we’ve been distracted from making the final choice. We finally decided last night.”

Augustus looked up from his cup of tea. “You and Nicole were busy last night?”

Claire gave a little groan. “This case is a jumble of confusion. First, we were looking at Ashley Smith’s life trying to figure out who might have wanted her dead. Then we find out it was probably mistaken identity and the real target was Rose Smith.” Claire told the judge most of what happened the previous evening at the brownstone apartment.

“You get the impression that the young man, Michael Burton, may have been attracted to Rose?” Augustus asked.

“That’s what Nicole and I think. Of course, Michael didn’t come right out and say it. He seems full of guilt and sorrow over Ashley’s death. He also seems to feel awful that he was about to break up with her.”

“Could this young man be behind the murder?” the judge asked, one eyebrow lifting up.

“I don’t know what to think.” Claire spooned some custard into her mouth. “What motivation would there be? Why not just break off the relationship with Ashley if he wasn’t interested in continuing it? It’s not like there’s anything monetary to gain.”

“Be careful not to dismiss suspicion from the man too quickly,” Augustus said with a tone of seriousness.

“Really?” Claire questioned. “How would Michael benefit? Why have Ashley killed?”

“Let’s discuss a scenario.

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