Page 36 of Toxic Apple Turnovers
“She didn’t.” She slips a backpack over her shoulder, indicating she’s ready to leave. “That’s the strange part, don’t you think?”
“Are you’re implying Connie did this?”
“I don’t know. There are so many other things that were going wrong for poor Amanda. That whole drama with her parents dying. Slater wasn’t happy at all.”
“What drama was that? Who’s Slater?”
“Her brother. Apparently, there was some glitch in the will—or with some bank account? I’m not really up on the details, but Amanda thought she’d better lawyer up and Connie was going to set her up with her gal.”
I bet that’s Fiona.
“How about Hazel? Was she upset?”
“I don’t know. Amanda only ever complained about Slater. They weren’t too close at the end.”
“But he was there the night of my engagement party.” That still feels strange to say.
She nods. “He’s good friends with Chrissy. And, of course, Chrissy and Mark are inseparable.”
“So maybe Slater did this? Although, I can’t imagine a sibling being responsible for such a grisly death.”
“This is true. Something was definitely going on with her, though. Just a couple days before her death, she made mention of going to the police. Something to do with people getting ripped off. I don’t know. And I could never tell if she was afraid of her brother. It sure seemed that way at times.”
“Huh.” The picture seems to be filling in, but too bad it’s still fuzzy. “Is there anyone else she talked to? Another friend she might have confided in the last few days?”
She shakes her head as she looks to the ceiling. “Outside of Connie and me, I can’t think of—” She snaps her fingers. “There was that guy, the cute pastor? She said they were great friends. She spent a ton of time at that church up in Honey Hollow. You know, weddings and funerals every weekend. She said he was a great ear to bend. He might know something.”
“Pastor Gaines?” This flummoxes me.
“That’s the guy!” She claps her hands in my face for getting it right. “But you might be wasting your time speaking with him. You know, that whole confidentially thing those guys have. Anyway, whoever killed Amanda that night wasn’t thinking, if you ask me. Why kill her in a crowd when you could have done it in private?”
“The more suspects, I suppose?”
“I guess. But none of this makes sense. Despite her flaws, Amanda was well-liked. I used to tease her that even the people she hurt the most stilllikedher.” She shrugs.
“You mean Connie?”
“And me.” Her face turns an instant shade of crimson. “Make it Happen was my baby until Amanda thought she could make a few improvements. And before you know it, she was running the show. I stepped aside and eventually sold it to her for a couple hundred dollars. I guess I wasn’t cut out for that line of work.” Her lips press white. “But then, she’s not cut out for it now, is she?” She scoops up her boombox. “Excuse me.” She takes off, and a cold chill runs through me.
Owlbert flies right through my chest, but that doesn’t explain the icy shivers running up my spine.
Noah comes up along with my sister and Keelie.
“What did you glean, Lottie?” he asks, burying those evergreen eyes into mine.
“Nothing. And everything,” I say hypnotically. “Let’s get out of here.”
All the way home I think about what Janelle revealed.
Connie seems far too nice and forgiving. Not even mentioning a betrayal that big? Of course, she didn’t. She knew revenge was coming. And Slater? A will or a bank account? I smell greed. I know all about that drama intimately. And then, there’s Janelle herself. She could be deflecting me with all that talk about why the killer chose the engagement party as a venue for death. But that revelation toward the end?
Janelle Hastings had her company stolen right from underneath her.
It seems Amanda Wellington was well-versed in stealing boyfriends and companies.
And ultimately, it drove someone to steal the most precious thing of all—her life.
Chapter 12