Bed & Breakfast Bedlam - Abby L Vandiver Page 0,52

into Cat’s face, she ruffled the hair around her neck. Patting her on her head, Koryn said. “Good dog,” and looked at Miss Vivee. “What’s her name?”

“Cat.”

Koryn let out a gentle laugh and gave Cat one more pat.

“So what did you want to know?” She had a soft voice and easy demeanor. Dressed for a lazy summer afternoon, she was barefoot and had her brown hair, with its haphazard cut, pulled back in a ponytail. Strands of it fell down around her face and neck.

“Gemma Burke was murdered.” Miss Vivee said, taking off her sunglasses. No fanfare. No preamble. She announced it like she was reading the day’s menu at the Maypop.

When she goes for honesty, she turns it on full force.

“I know,” she said. “I heard talk at the Jellybean Café.” She pulled her knees up to her chest and put her feet on the chair. “I guess she was poisoned? Although when I asked the Sheriff about that he said he wasn’t at liberty to discuss it. He’d just come by because he heard there’d been a disturbance. I told him everything was okay and he left.”

“He’s right. He’d compromise the investigation if he discussed it,” Miss Vivee said. “But I can tell you this, Gemma wasn’t poisoned.”

“She wasn’t?” she asked. She put her feet down and leaned forward. “Then how was she killed?”

“We’re working on that.” Miss Vivee said matter-of-factly.

“You are?” Koryn had a surprised look on her face. She looked at me and then back to Miss Vivee. “Why?”

“The Sheriff asked us to help.”

Now the lies begin.

“He had to work with the coroner’s office up in Augusta to get the body autopsied,” Miss Vivee said without even flinching. “But because I know everyone in town, he asked me to think about who might have done it.” Miss Vivee patted her leg and Cat jumped up in her lap. Stroking him she said, “Me coming to talk to you is probably a little more than what the Sheriff had in mind when he asked me, but something Gemma Burke said to me right before she died got me thinking. I thought I’d come over and speak with you about it.”

I looked at Miss Vivee and just shook my head.

“I’ll do whatever I can to help find who did this,” Koryn said. “Gemma saved my life. I wish I could do more than just answer questions now.” She looked down at her hands. “After she’s gone.”

“How did Gemma save your life?” I asked. But as soon as I did, Miss Vivee furrowed her brows and gave me a scolding look that said “I’m asking the questions.”

“I was in an abusive relationship,” Koryn said seemingly unaware of Miss Vivee’s displeasure. “Very abusive.” She looked at me. “I feared for my life. And Gemma understood. She’d been in an abusive relationship, too. Not as bad a mine, but it made her understand what to do to help me. She brought me down here with her. Sort of let me hide out here.” A slight smiled crossed her face. “She’d said no one I knew would come to Yasamee. I’d be safe.”

“And that’s exactly what she said to me,” Miss Vivee said. “And then she told me about two men in her life. One breaking her heart, and the other trying to break the bones in her body.”

The lies were growing exponentially.

“She said that to you?” Koryn looked at Miss Vivee in disbelief. “She really didn’t like to talk about that kind of stuff.”

“She told me,” Miss Vivee said, gentleness showing in her voice. “People in this town often come to me.” She reached over and squeezed Koryn’s hand. “When they need someone to talk to. I’ve lived a long time. Seen a lot of things.” She looked Koryn in the eye. “Been through a lot of things myself.”

“Well. I know that Darius never broke any of her bones,” Koryn said.

Ah, his name is Darius.

Miss Vivee winked at me on the sly, then said, “I think she just used that word metaphorically.”

I had to try really hard not to roll my eyes.

Koryn nodded.

“But I know that Darius is who she was talking about when she said the part about breaking bones because she told me so,” Miss Vivee said. “And Jeffrey Beck is the one that broke her heart.”

Koryn lifted her eyebrows and sat back in the chair. “Gemma told you all of that?”

Miss Vivee nodded her head.

“I mean, I believe you because you know their names, and what happened –