Lyndsey Cole - Lily Bloom 03 - Roses are Dead (5 page)

Lily was happy to have some
time to spend at home, although she would prefer to sit outside in the sun with Rosie reading a good mystery instead of searching her computer for information about Carla. She had to make progress on her only day when Beautiful Blooms was closed or suffer Daisy’s wrath for being stranded on her own at the shop. First, she had to fill in Iris and Daisy about Adam and the Cozy Motel. Iris thought it sounded like a thrilling adventure, searching for information on prisoners, but Daisy was a bit apprehensive. She had always been the more timid female in the family.

Lily brought her laptop and got comfortable outside. It wasn’t going to be a relaxing day but she could, at least, enjoy the sunshine. Iris and Daisy pulled over chairs with their glasses of ice tea.

“First, Adam May. Let me see what I can find on him. He’s acting all cool and friendly but I still think he has a darn good reason to have killed Carla. And he’s staying right at the Cozy Motel where she was murdered. Too big of a coincidence in my mind. Here’s some information: Graduated from the Police Academy ten years ago; is currently a state detective; single; age 32. Nothing too interesting.”

Lily sipped her ice
d tea. “What are we even looking for?”

Iris grabbed the computer. “Connections between all these people. Who knows who
m and why. I’m going to search through Vinnie Stewart’s Facebook page.”

Lily took her computer back. “
You’re Facebook friends with him? Jeez, Mom, isn’t that a little stalkerish?”

“Just because I agreed to go out with him doesn’t mean I can’t do a little background check. It’s only smart in this day and age.”

Lily quickly scanned his personal information. “He’s only forty five? Isn’t that a little young for you?”

“Nope.
Haven’t you two heard about cougars yet? And besides, I don’t look a day over forty nine. Look through his friends.”

“The only names I recognize are Carla and
Adam. I wonder why Ryan isn’t friends with him.”

“Click on Carla’s name,
” Daisy suggested. “I wonder what happens with your account after you die.”

Lily clicked. “It should still be here unless someone else closed it. Here she is and it’s all public. Big ego or what? Here’s tons of photos of Carla with lots of different cops. I’m guessing she had a thing for that blue uniform.
And it still says she’s engaged to Ryan Steele. Ick. Creepy. I’m glad I never knew this before.”

Daisy added
, “Or maybe a daddy substitute since her father’s a cop. See if you can find anyone with Sullivan for a last name. We could start with her father.”

Lily scrolled through Carla’s friend list. “Ryan
Steele. Adam May. Vinnie Stewart. Here’s a Wade Sullivan, maybe that’s her father. And here’s another Sullivan, Ty Sullivan.” Lily looked up. “That could be a brother or cousin. Jennifer would know.”

Iris nodded. “Ryan would know too. After all, he was engaged to Carla.”

“I can’t ask him. He’d get suspicious. I bet we can do an online search. Ryan told me that Carla’s dad is in prison so let’s see if we can find him.”

Lily found the online offender locator which let
her do a search by state. “This will be easy. I’ll try Wade Sullivan first.” She typed in the information. “Look. Here he is. At the state prison.”

Iris sat forward. “Type in that other name, just for fun.”

“Ty Sullivan. Nothing.”

“Try Tyler Sullivan.”

“Nothing.”

Iris chewed on her lower lip. “I think we need to visit this Wade Sullivan and see what he’ll tell us.”

Lily shut her computer. “Are you crazy? We need to figure out another way to get information.”

Iris stood up excitedly. “I’ve got it. One of the options for a training session for Poppy is at the prison since some of the other foster parents are prisoners. Why don’t you come with me and maybe we can do some digging and find someone who has connections to Wade or Carla.”

“Are you sure about that?”

“Yeah. There should be guards. Maybe you can chat with them while you watch.”

“Is that allowed?”

“We’ll find out. Wear something sexy. That always helps.”

Iris stretched. “I’ll pick you up at five?”

“Okay.”

Daisy gathered her things too. “I’ll wait for a phone call in case I have to bail you two out of jail.”

They laughed. “Such an optimist.”

Lily leaned back in her zero gravity chair after Iris and Daisy left, soaking up the warmth of the sunshine. “What do ya think Rosie? Doesn’t this feel relaxing?” Rosie’s tail thumped. Lily took that as a sign that she agreed.

Lily jerked out of her sunshine coma and grabbed her computer.
Talking to herself she mumbled out loud, “I need to search through Carla’s Facebook photos before someone closes that account. I should start with the most recent ones to see who she had been hanging around with. If she had a passion for cops, there might be some jealous boyfriends out there.” Scrolling through Carla’s photos, Lily searched by date. “This looks interesting. Carla and two other guys she has tagged as Chris Pierce and Larry Burke. There are a lot with these two guys a few months ago, then just Chris recently. Oh, and look at this Rosie.” Rosie raised her head but wasn’t interested. “Vinnie is in some of these photos too. It looks like it’s some kind of police event so maybe that’s not strange. But these recent photos of Chris and Carla certainly look like there could be something going on between the two of them.”

Suddenly Carla’s
Facebook page disappeared. “Crap. Well, I got something at least. Someone must have closed her account. Come on Rosie. Let’s take a walk. I need to clear my head so I can organize all this information.” Rosie perked up when she heard walk, her favorite word, or maybe second favorite word after food.

Lily got Rosie’s leash and let Rosie decide which way they would go. Lily didn’t care, she was just walking and thinking and following behind Rosie’s meandering route. Ryan
startled her when he stopped next to her on his mountain bike.

“Where are you going? Want some company?”

Lily did but she didn’t at the same time. She hadn’t decided how much of these new developments she wanted to share with him.
Oh what the heck
, she thought,
he might know something about the two cops she saw in the photos with Carla
. “Sure. Aren’t you working?”

“I’ve got the rest of the day off. I just went to your house and couldn’t find you so I figured I’d take a bike ride.”

“Go ahead with your ride if you want.”
Problem solved
.

“No. I’d rather walk with you and Rosie. I’ll leave my bike here and get it when we come back around.” He leaned his bike against a tree, mostly out of sight. “You looked like you were deep in thought. Not thinking about Carla, are you?”

Lily hesitated. “Actually, I found some interesting photos on Facebook. It looked like she was involved with a lot of different cops and there were lots of photos of two in particular from not long ago. Also, Vinnie was in some of them.”

“That was a clever place to do some snooping. Want to show me when we get back?”

“I can’t. Her Facebook page disappeared. But I got two names. Chris Pierce and Larry Burke. Ring a bell?”

“Vaguely.
Adam might know them better.”

Lily stopped and turned toward Ryan. “About
Adam. Don’t you think it’s odd that he’s here in Misty Valley and was staying at the Cozy Motel?”

“He has a good explanation for all of it.
I believe him. For now.”

Rosie lurched forward, almost pulling Lily off her feet. Jennifer and Katie were walking toward them. “Are you already done at the café?”

“It was a fantastic first day. Marcia offered to close up so I could spend some time with Katie. We were heading to your house.”

Katie was bouncing around like an energetic five year old. “Is Poppy at your house?”

Lily crouched down to be at Katie’s level. “No, but I’m sure Rosie will be happy to play with you. How’s Posie doing?”

“She sleeps with me and purrs in my ear.”

Lily chuckled. “She’s a lucky kitty to have you in her life.”

They turned back toward Lily’s house, retrieved Ryan’s bike on the way and watched R
osie and Katie explore the backyard. Ryan went in to get some snacks and drinks for everyone.

Lily
had a few minutes alone with Jennifer to pick her brain about Carla. “Hey Jennifer, did Carla have any siblings?”

“Yeah, she has a brother, Ty, but they never got along. He was quite a bit younger, very quiet, kept to himself. Carla was the outgoing one. Always the center of attention, a bit of a daredevil.”

“What about her parents?”

“What’s all the interest in her family?”

“Oh, you know, just curious. Trying to understand the big picture.”

Rosie ran around the two women with Katie hot on her heels, laughing and screaming with delight.

Jennifer laughed at them, then turned her attention back to Lily. “Her father was not a nice guy. I was always scared of him when I was at their house. He was loud and kind of mean to Carla and to Carla’s mom. I heard he’s in jail, and as far as I’m concerned that’s where he belongs. Her mom was a sweet quiet woman but she died a few years ago. Cancer, I think. Ty took after the mom and Carla took after her dad.”

Ryan came out with a tray filled with cookies, dog bones and lemonade. “Anyone ready for a snack?”

Katie ran over. “Me. Me. Me.” She guzzled a glass of lemonade and took two chocolate chip cookies that Jennifer had made.

Ryan teased her. “Don’t tell your mom I let you take two. She’ll get mad at me for letting you ruin your dinner.”

“Okay, Uncle Ryan.” She held the cookies behind her back so Jennifer couldn’t see them. “Can I give Rosie a dog bone?”

“Definitely. Tell her to sit first.”

Lily and Jennifer sat at the table with Ryan and Katie. Jennifer poured herself some lemonade. “I’m a little nervous about how busy I’ll be at the café. Do you think Iris would mind watching Katie sometimes?”

Lily grinned. “I don’t think she’d mind at all. Katie can help train Poppy. I’
m going with Iris later to a training session in Waterfield.”

Ryan cocked his eyebrow. “
Waterfield?”

Lily mumbled sheepishly,
“At the prison.”

Ryan scowled. “I
sn’t that a coincidence?”

Iris arrived at Lily’s house at five on the dot
, raring to go. Lily hopped in the VW and said hello to Poppy who was in a crate on the back seat. “Let’s go. Are you sure I’m allowed in with you?”

“I checked. You can come but you’ll have to stay in an observation area. The woman I spoke with was thrilled
but surprised I wanted to come to this session. She said non prisoners rarely feel comfortable joining this group. She said there are usually other people watching so maybe you can get some information.”

The prison was unattractive
cinder blocks with barbed wire around the outside wall. They were directed to a building not attached to the main facility that looked a bit more inviting. Iris was babbling away about how excited she was to be participating in this program but Lily was only half listening. She was wondering if she was getting into something over her head. If there were cops involved in Carla’s death, she had to be careful not to stir that hornets’ nest.

Iris woke up Poppy, attached her red leash and they walked into the building, through a metal detector. There were six other women
waiting with puppies the same age as Poppy and Iris was directed to that group. Lily joined a handful of people sitting on chairs away from the training area. A quick survey and she decided to sit next to an attractive woman in her forties who actually made eye contact with Lily.

Lily sat down and introduced herself. She was rewarded with a warm smile.
“I’m Joanne Shaw. My daughter, Lana, is in the group. The one with the pigtails. How about you? Do you have someone in the group too?”

“My mom is here but she’s not a prisoner.”

Joanne looked shocked. “Why is she coming to this session?”

Lily had to think up an answer quickly.
“Convenience.”             

“Well, it might be interesting too. I come so I can see my daughter and she can see that I’
m still interested in her life. She was pretty depressed when she found out she’d be spending time in jail.”

Lily put her hand on Joanne’s arm. “Do you mind if I ask why she’s in jail?”

Joanne shrugged. “No. I’m past being embarrassed about it. She got arrested for drug possession. She said it wasn’t hers. She’s still adamant that someone planted it on her.”

Lily watched as the seven women walked around the training area with their puppies.

Joanne’s eyes followed the parade. “Your mom must be the one in jeans and a t-shirt. She kinda sticks out like a sore thumb.”

Lily laughed. “That pretty much sums up my mom.
What happened with your daughter?”

Joanne closed her eyes and her body sagged a little.
“Oh. The usual.” Her voice was choked with tears. “Lana’s young and impressionable, fell in with the wrong crowd. We all learn by making mistakes but she got caught and is learning a tougher lesson than most kids her age.”

Lily
slid her chair closer, softening her voice. “Does she have any idea who might have planted the drugs?”

Joanne laughed. “Definitely. She bumped into a dynamic girl, a little older than she is
, and they seemed to hit it off right from the start. Carla—”

Lily
felt her pulse quicken as she interrupted. “Carla? What’s her last name?”

“Sullivan. Do you know her?”

Lily’s heart was racing. She couldn’t believe her luck bumping into someone who knew Carla. “I only met her once, the morning before she was found dead.”

Joanne’s voice got excited. “I saw it on the news. She died from an allergic reaction to a bee sting?”

“That’s what I heard too, but also that it looks suspicious.”

Joanne chuckled. “Sorry for seeing humor in this but she got what she deserved. She pulled Lana into a sketchy group including a lot of cops. Most were nice but I think there were a few bad apples in the bunch. I wouldn’t be surprised if someone killed her and made it look like an accidental death.”

“The problem with that is someone seems to be trying to make me look guilty. I’m trying to find out more about Carla to figure out what happened.”

Joanne looked horrified. “Be careful. Really careful. If that’s true, you don’t know who you can trust.”

Lily scooched closer to Joanne so she could talk very quietly. “Do you know the names Adam May, Chris Pierce, Larry Burke or Vinnie Stewart?”

Joanne patted Lily’s leg. “Honey? We need to have a good chat but this isn’t the place for that. Want to get a bite to eat when this is over?”

Lily nodded and started counting the minutes until they could leave. She sat back and tried to relax but felt jittery and extremely lucky that she bumped into Joanne. Lily slyly looked at the others watching the training, trying to assess if they might be of help. One woman looked away quickly when Lily made eye contact. She decided to stick with Joanne for now. It was probably best not to let too many people know she was snooping around for information.

The forty five minute training looked like it was wrapping up. The puppies were allowed to play with each other, tumbling in fur balls around the rectangle. The
women watched and Lily noticed they also kept glancing at Iris. Iris was happily chatting to the woman standing close to her. She even managed to get a smile from the woman. Another activity for Iris—befriending these women and trying to help them. She was the perpetual fixer of anyone who came into her orbit.

Joanne tapped Lily’s shoulder. “It’s time to go.” She waved to her daughter and blew her a kiss. Iris and Poppy joined them as they walked out of the one story, windowless building.

Lily introduced Joanne and Iris. “We’re going with Joanne to get a bite to eat. Is that okay with you?”

“Of course. I’m starved. That was so much fun.” She scooped up Poppy. “Did you have fun too with all those new friends?” She put Poppy in the crate. “I’ll follow you Joanne.”

Joanne drove to a small diner about fifteen minutes away from the prison. It was Sunday evening, past the normal dinner hour, so it was mostly deserted.

Joanne led the way. “I hope this
is okay?”

Iris replied
, “If they have food, it’s perfect.”

Joanne smiled. She waved to the cook when they entered. “That’s my cousin. Let’
s sit at the end booth. It looks quiet there.”

Lily got Iris up to speed about Joanne and
Lana. Iris was bubbling with adrenaline. “I noticed your daughter. The one with pigtails, right? Lana?”

Joanne smiled and nodded.

“What a cute girl. I could tell she’s completely in love with her puppy. She stroked her and talk calmly and so quietly but the puppy was completely tuned into her already.”

Joanne’s
cousin came over and took their orders for fish sandwich baskets and iced tea.

Lily
absentmindedly tapped her water glass, anxious to hear what Joanne knew. “You were going to tell me about those cops.”

Joanne fiddled with the packs of sugar on the table. “I’m not sure where to start.”

“How did Lana meet Carla?”

“Lana signed up for a 5k charity run to benefit the families of injured or killed policemen. She got invited to a pre
-run dinner. Lots of cops participate in the run and they all go to the dinner. That’s where Carla got her talons in Lana; introduced her to those cops you asked me about, and a bunch more. Lana fell for one cop in particular, Chris Pierce. I met him, seemed like a decent guy.”

The smell of their dinner reached the table before the food did. Iris looked around. Her stomach was growling so loud s
he was afraid she might faint if it didn’t arrive soon. “Finally. Here comes dinner. I worked up quite an appetite.”

Each basket was overflowing with crispy fries and a roll stuffed with fried haddock, lettuce, tomato and mayo. Iris opened wide and took a big bite. “Delicious.”

Joanne took a bite, then continued. “Lana, Chris, Carla and Larry always seemed to be together. Lana was the happiest I’d ever seen her. It worried me a little, thinking if something happened to that relationship she would crash really hard.”

Lily asked Joanne, “What about
Adam May?”

“
Adam? Seemed okay. But he seemed to be on the outside looking in. I had the feeling he and Carla had something going on at one time and he wanted to get her back. Lana told me there were a few heated arguments and then she didn’t see much of Adam anymore.”

“Did you ever hear the name Ryan Steele mentioned?”

Joanne laughed. “That upset Lana a little. She told me that Carla joked about how she had been engaged to that guy and ran out on him. She was flippant about it and told Lana that she could get him back any time she wanted.”

Iris was almost finished with her food. She wiped her mouth. “Carla sounds like the kind of girl you shouldn’t turn your back on.”

Joanne agreed. “That’s exactly right. Lana started hanging out with Chris without telling Carla. That’s when everything got ugly. Carla started trying to make Lana try drugs. She said she wasn’t interested. At some big get together, with lots of cops around, Carla made a big scene. Screaming at Lana, accusing her of all kinds of stuff. Lana backed off and was trying to leave when a detective came over and said he needed to check her backpack.” Joanne took a deep breath. “This is when the nightmare started. That detective found, so he said, a bag of cocaine in Lana’s backpack. She insisted it wasn’t hers but her fingerprints were all over it. She remembered that when Carla tried to get her to try it, she handed the bag to Lana. For some reason, Carla’s prints weren’t on the bag. Everything just crashed around Lana, we couldn’t afford a good lawyer, and now she’s in jail for something she didn’t do.”

Lily was spellbound. “Who was that detective?”

“Adam May.”

Both Lily and Iris gasped. “Are you sure?”

“Sure as anything. It was Adam May. He wanted Carla back and Lana thinks Carla used him after she planted the drugs in Lana’s backpack.”

“Did they get back together?”

“That’s the funny part. Carla didn’t care about Adam anymore. She wanted Chris and she had to get Lana out of the way.”

Lily leaned back and started to breathe again. “What a love mess. Let me get this straight. Chris liked Lana.
Adam liked Carla. Larry liked Carla. But Carla wanted who she couldn’t have—Chris.”

“That pretty much sums it up.
It was all fun and games to Carla. She didn’t care who she hurt to get what she wanted. Everyone seemed to be disposable. So, yeah, I can completely see how someone might have murdered her and tried to make it look like an accident.”

“What about Vinnie Stewart? Did you ever meet him?”

“Once. He’s older than the others. Lana mentioned his name a few times. He was always at the big events they attended, flirting with the younger women. Lana said she tried to keep her distance from him. He was there when the drugs were found, stepped right in after Adam found the bag. I met him when Lana called me from the police station. He was kinda nasty to me. Wondered what kind of mother I was letting such a young girl get involved with drugs. He obviously doesn’t have kids.”

It was Lily’s turn to fill Joanne in on some details. “
Adam May is staying at the hotel where Carla was found dead and Vinnie Stewart is leading the investigation. I’ve wondered about Adam all along but no one else seems to think it’s odd.”

Iris took the bill and put money down to cover it all. “Joanne, it’s been a pleasure to meet you and I’m looking forward to seeing your daughter again. Now, Lily and I need to find out more about
Adam May.”

They chatted like they had known each other for longer than the last couple of hours. Lily said she would keep in touch and Iris said she was going to keep coming to this training session. Joanne headed north
as Iris opened her car door. She quickly checked in the back seat to make sure Poppy was okay and gasped as her hand flew to her chest. “Lily. The crate is gone. Poppy is gone.”