Memories and Murder by Lynn Cahoon

Memories and Murder (A Tourist Trap Mystery)
by Lynn Cahoon

About Memories and Murder 

 

Memories and Murder (A Tourist Trap Mystery)
Cozy Mystery
10th in Series
Kensington Publishing Corporation (November 12, 2019)
Paperback: 182 pages
ISBN-10: 1516103076
ISBN-13: 978-1516103072
Digital ASIN: B07NTD5L7H

It’s October in South Cove, California, and the locals in the quaint resort seem to be happily pairing off in the lull before the holidays. Everyone, that is, except for Jill Gardner’s elderly aunt, who just dumped her besotted fiancé—and she won’t say why.

When Jill hosts a talk at Coffee, Books, and More on the topic of elder abuse, all that’s really on her mind is lunch. But the topic hits close to home when she discovers Aunt Jackie has been getting mysterious calls. Jill’s certain the caller is a con artist, of course, but her feisty aunt claims to understand this, though she’s still shaken—and Harrold’s still heartbroken. Who’s behind the scam and why was her aunt targeted? When a volunteer from the Senior Project is found murdered, Jill’s detective boyfriend is on the case—and it soon becomes clear no one is safe when a caller from beyond becomes a killer in their midst.

  Excerpt

After Sadie left, Deek finished setting the dining room back up, then leaned over the bar, looking out the window. “Your friend is crushing on the preacher dude.”

I smiled as I turned back around. Sadie was precisely crushing on Pastor Bill, but I had thought I was the only one who saw it. Deek was intuitive. His mom was a psychic and friends with South Cove’s only fortune-teller and my neighbor, Esmeralda. “And why do you say that?”

“Don’t play coy with me. She brightens up when she talks about spending time with him. And don’t tell me it’s because she loves serving God. I mean, yeah, there’s some of that, but she wants that guy. I watch

her every Sunday before, during, and after service. She’s by his side, at his beck and call. Personally, I think it sets a bad example. She should be a little less available.” He took Sadie’s cup and plate and rinsed them to put into the dishwasher.

“You have good instincts, Deek.” Of course, I agreed with him about Sadie and the preacher on all counts.

“Now, your aunt, on the other hand, plays it a little too cool. Man, that train guy is all bent out of shape.” Deek held out his hands. “I can see their auras and they are both hurting.”

“Is that true?”

Deek looked at me funny. “Is what true?”

“That you can see auras.” He’d told me before that he didn’t have any psychic ability, even though his mother was a practicing fortune-teller. And now he was throwing around words like auras?

“Don’t overthink it. It’s just a way of saying I can see they’re both miserable without each other. Why did your aunt break it off?” He leaned closer, hoping to learn the answer.

The bell over the door rang and a couple came into the store. He beelined to the coffee bar, but she stopped and scanned the bookshelves.

“That is the million-dollar question. Can you handle them? I’ve got some paperwork I need to get done.” I picked up my cup and plate and moved around to the back of the bar. As I refilled my cup with more caffeine than I knew was good for me, I heard Deek greet the man.

“So, what can I pour you while you’re shopping for your next great read? I bet you enjoy international thrillers. You have the look of a spy.” Smiling, I left Deek to his magic skill of reading people to know just

what they needed to hear to increase their purchases. He was so good at it that I caught myself being woven into his web when he wanted something and I knew I was being played. Maybe he did have a gift. I sat down at the desk and pulled out my aunt’s calendar. Flipping to the back, I found what I’d been looking for. Her doctor’s name and phone number. I just looked up my doctor online when I needed to call for an appointment. My aunt had a written name and phone number section in the back of a paper planner. And she’d had to paste pages she’d copied from an old address book she’d had for years.

Talk about old school. I dialed the number and when a receptionist answered, I asked for an appointment.

“What is this regarding?”

She didn’t seem surprised when I said I needed to talk about Jackie Ekroth. “Tell Dr. Stevens that I’m her niece and I need to find out what is going on with her.”

“You can come by tomorrow at one. He’ll be on his lunch break, so he’ll need to eat while you talk.”

I was surprised at the speed of getting the appointment. And that the woman hadn’t given me any grief about privacy laws. “I’ll be there. Thank you.”

“Don’t thank me. Dr. Stevens told me to bring you in last week. I just haven’t been able to find time to track down your number. As your aunt’s next of kin, you really should keep that information updated.” She paused. “Don’t forget to bring a copy of your health care POA. We’ll need to make a copy before you start talking.”

I thanked her again for the appointment, then sat looking at the phone. Something bad was going on. I could feel it. Why would her doctor want to talk to me? I rubbed my face and then realized only one thing could make me feel better. I picked up my cell and dialed a number from memory.

“Hi. Do you want to meet at Diamond Lille’s for lunch?”

About Lynn Cahoon

Lynn Cahoon is the award-winning author of several New York Times and USA Today bestselling cozy mystery series. The Tourist Trap series is set in central coastal California with six holiday novellas releasing in 2018–2019. She also pens the Cat Latimer series available in mass market paperback. Her newest series, the Farm to Fork mystery series, debuted in 2018. She lives in a small town like the ones she loves to write about with her husband and two fur babies. Sign up for her newsletter at www.lynncahoon.com.

Author Links
Website – https://www.lynncahoon.com/
Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/LynnCahoonAuthor
Twitter – https://twitter.com/LynnCahoon

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