Cupid's Corpse: A Cozy Mystery (Gemma Stone Cozy Mystery Book 3) by Willow Monroe
Authors: Willow Monroe
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anyone else, he allowed them to leave.
Nick steered Gemma toward the door where they had originally entered the old theater. It was nearly empty now, the party over, everyone sadly going back to their rooms. At the last minute, she turned and looked back at the stage.
“Come on,” Nick said impatiently and pulled her out the door. He didn’t give her much time to do anything but follow along as he practically drug her through the restaurant and into the lobby, where they were stopped by yet another deputy.
“Mr. Vanderhaden, I just wanted to check to make sure you were staying in the same cabin that had been assigned to you,” the deputy said.
While Nick explained that they had been given a different cabin at the last minute and made sure the deputy had those details, Gemma gazed around the huge lobby. Much to her surprise, the crossbows that had held her attention when she first saw them were all in place. She tried to remember what she’d been told. It was Joel who was the avid bow hunter and collector, not Mr. Muzak. Although someone did mention that the two men went hunting from time to time.
And then they were outside. It had grown much colder in the past few hours and Gemma gasped as the frigid air filled her lungs. She hurried along behind Nick, who looked for all the world like he was running from something.
Chapter Six
“N ick, you lied to the police.”
They made it to the cabin in record time but even as cold as she was, Gemma refused to let him go inside. Catching his arm, she pulled him around to the side of the cabin in the darkness. She felt pretty sure they could talk out here without anyone overhearing their conversation. She was still surprised that this man she’d known all her life insisted that they carry on this charade.
“And I will continue to lie as long as I can,” he told her. Pacing back and forth in the darkness, he ran his hands through his hair. She heard his shoes crunching on the frozen grass.
“Well, that probably won’t be much longer. You know they’re going to run background checks on everyone,” Gemma reminded him.
“I know. I know. Damn, I was so close to blowing this wide open and then Muzak had to go get himself killed.”
“How sensitive of you,” Gemma muttered.
Nick grunted, stopped and placed one hand against the wall of the cabin. Moonlight filtered through the trees turning the familiar planes of his face into sharp edges.
“Who do you think did it?” Gemma asked after a few moments.
“Probably that snotty wife of his or his buddy, Joel,” Nick said, starting to pace again.
“They were both right there, front and center when it happened. Do you think they had the skill to rig that timer?” Gemma asked.
“Or they paid someone,” Nick suggested, his breath pluming out in front of him in the cold night air.
“Maybe,” Gemma said softly. “Howard? And Joel was very, very particular about where they stood on that little stage. He was also really worried about the timing,” Gemma said, going over the facts aloud. “But why? Unless he was the killer.”
“We’re pretty sure there was something going on between them. We know they had something planned. Maybe they just wanted that old goof ball out of the way.”
“He wasn’t an old goof ball,” Gemma snapped. “He was a sweet man who loved his wife, his friends and his home. And he went to a lot of trouble to make sure others shared in that joy as well.” Gemma’s sadness was quickly turning to anger, tears stinging her eyes.
“ And recorded video of unsuspecting couples in compromising situations. And blackmailed them to keep it off the internet,” Nick reminded her.
That brought Gemma up short. “Do you think his murder had anything to do with that?”
“I don’t know,” Nick growled, clearly unhappy with the turn of events.
“All the more reason for us to try to figure it out,” Gemma protested, those tears burning a hot, salty trail down her cheeks.
“No, we are
Nick steered Gemma toward the door where they had originally entered the old theater. It was nearly empty now, the party over, everyone sadly going back to their rooms. At the last minute, she turned and looked back at the stage.
“Come on,” Nick said impatiently and pulled her out the door. He didn’t give her much time to do anything but follow along as he practically drug her through the restaurant and into the lobby, where they were stopped by yet another deputy.
“Mr. Vanderhaden, I just wanted to check to make sure you were staying in the same cabin that had been assigned to you,” the deputy said.
While Nick explained that they had been given a different cabin at the last minute and made sure the deputy had those details, Gemma gazed around the huge lobby. Much to her surprise, the crossbows that had held her attention when she first saw them were all in place. She tried to remember what she’d been told. It was Joel who was the avid bow hunter and collector, not Mr. Muzak. Although someone did mention that the two men went hunting from time to time.
And then they were outside. It had grown much colder in the past few hours and Gemma gasped as the frigid air filled her lungs. She hurried along behind Nick, who looked for all the world like he was running from something.
Chapter Six
“N ick, you lied to the police.”
They made it to the cabin in record time but even as cold as she was, Gemma refused to let him go inside. Catching his arm, she pulled him around to the side of the cabin in the darkness. She felt pretty sure they could talk out here without anyone overhearing their conversation. She was still surprised that this man she’d known all her life insisted that they carry on this charade.
“And I will continue to lie as long as I can,” he told her. Pacing back and forth in the darkness, he ran his hands through his hair. She heard his shoes crunching on the frozen grass.
“Well, that probably won’t be much longer. You know they’re going to run background checks on everyone,” Gemma reminded him.
“I know. I know. Damn, I was so close to blowing this wide open and then Muzak had to go get himself killed.”
“How sensitive of you,” Gemma muttered.
Nick grunted, stopped and placed one hand against the wall of the cabin. Moonlight filtered through the trees turning the familiar planes of his face into sharp edges.
“Who do you think did it?” Gemma asked after a few moments.
“Probably that snotty wife of his or his buddy, Joel,” Nick said, starting to pace again.
“They were both right there, front and center when it happened. Do you think they had the skill to rig that timer?” Gemma asked.
“Or they paid someone,” Nick suggested, his breath pluming out in front of him in the cold night air.
“Maybe,” Gemma said softly. “Howard? And Joel was very, very particular about where they stood on that little stage. He was also really worried about the timing,” Gemma said, going over the facts aloud. “But why? Unless he was the killer.”
“We’re pretty sure there was something going on between them. We know they had something planned. Maybe they just wanted that old goof ball out of the way.”
“He wasn’t an old goof ball,” Gemma snapped. “He was a sweet man who loved his wife, his friends and his home. And he went to a lot of trouble to make sure others shared in that joy as well.” Gemma’s sadness was quickly turning to anger, tears stinging her eyes.
“ And recorded video of unsuspecting couples in compromising situations. And blackmailed them to keep it off the internet,” Nick reminded her.
That brought Gemma up short. “Do you think his murder had anything to do with that?”
“I don’t know,” Nick growled, clearly unhappy with the turn of events.
“All the more reason for us to try to figure it out,” Gemma protested, those tears burning a hot, salty trail down her cheeks.
“No, we are
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