Mountains, Marriage and Murder Read online

  TABLE OF CONTENTS

  MOUNTAINS, MARRIAGE, AND MURDER

  CHAPTER ONE

  CHAPTER TWO

  CHAPTER THREE

  CHAPTER FOUR

  CHAPTER FIVE

  CHAPTER SIX

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  CHAPTER NINE

  CHAPTER TEN

  CHAPTER ELEVEN

  CHAPTER TWELVE

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  Mountains,

  Marriage,

  and

  Murder

  Book Twenty-Three

  in

  The Darling Deli Series

  By

  Patti Benning

  Copyright 2017 Summer Prescott Books

  All Rights Reserved. No part of this publication nor any of the information herein may be quoted from, nor reproduced, in any form, including but not limited to: printing, scanning, photocopying or any other printed, digital, or audio formats, without prior express written consent of the copyright holder.

  **This book is a work of fiction. Any similarities to persons, living or dead, places of business, or situations past or present, is completely unintentional.

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  MOUNTAINS,

  MARRIAGE, AND

  MURDER

  Book Twenty-Three in The Darling Deli Series

  CHAPTER ONE

  *

  Moira Darling could count the number of times that she had been out of Michigan on one hand. As the plane began to slow and the pilot’s voice sounded over the intercom, she upped that number by one. They had made it. Denver, Colorado. Within just a couple of hours, she would lay eyes on the place where her daughter, Candice, would get married.

  “I can’t believe it. We’re really here. This is actually happening.”

  Moira glanced over at her daughter. The young woman looked shocked, as if the fact that she was going to get married was only now hitting her. Someone from the seat behind them leaned forward to speak.

  “I can’t wait to land. The photos of the retreat you showed me look amazing. Thanks so much for inviting me, Candice.”

  “Of course. You’re one of my best friends. How could I not?” Candice turned to look at the young woman behind her. Allison was the same age as her and shared the same long blonde hair and blue eyes. They could almost have been sisters. “Delia and Audrey are meeting us here tomorrow. It’s going to be wonderful to have just four of us up here – and you, of course, Mom. It was a great idea to have just the girls come up here first. I hope that Eli and David are doing okay back home all alone, though.”

  “I’m sure they will be fine,” Moira said, smiling. “Reggie and David are planning Eli’s bachelor party. They’re going to have a blast together. Just like we are. Right, ladies?”

  “Right,” Allison said, grinning. She leaned back in her seat. “This is going to be an awesome week.”

  Moira looked out the window as the plane drew nearer to the ground. When it hit a patch of turbulence, she leaned back in her seat. Last time she had been out of the state, the trip hadn’t gone exactly as planned. It had been almost a year ago exactly that she had left from Florida on a cruise. She hoped that this trip would go much more smoothly. It was her daughter’s wedding, after all — she was going to do everything in her power to make sure it was perfect.

  The reclusive cabin in the mountains that they had rented for the event was a two-hour drive from the Denver airport. Moira had seen plenty of photos online prior to making the reservation, but no number of photographs could do justice to the beautiful landscape surrounding it. She had never been to a real mountain range before, and the Rockies were stunning. The twisting, dipping, and rising road demanded more of her attention than she wanted to give it. It was difficult not to be distracted by the dramatic landscapes that they saw around every bend. I would not like to take this road in the winter, she thought.

  She heard laughter from the back and glanced at the rearview mirror, looking at her daughter. She looked so young. Candice was mature enough that it was easy to forget that she was only twenty-one – soon to be twenty-two. She was young to be getting married, but Moira had gotten married at around the same age herself, so she didn’t know if she was in a position to say anything. Besides, she knew that Eli was a good man and that he loved her daughter. What more could she ask for? Both of them were self-sufficient and successful business owners, and they already owned a house. Her daughter’s circumstances couldn’t have been more different than her own had been.

  The deli owner glanced at the gas gauge, wondering how much more fuel they would use. She was used to driving on the relatively flat roads of Michigan’s lower peninsula and wasn’t used to the fuel gauge dropping so alarmingly after so few miles. Hopefully the little town that they would be staying near would have a gas station.

  To distract herself from her worries over fuel, she said, “Do the two of you have any plans for this evening or tomorrow, besides what we’re doing in the evening?”

  “Well, Allison and I were thinking of going to the Waffle Diner in Haunted Falls tomorrow after we pick up Delia and Audrey. One of my friends back home mentioned it before we left. She ate there on vacation and said it was pretty good, and she thinks we would like it. It will give us a chance to see more of Colorado, too.”

  “That sounds like fun. What…”

  “Ooh, there it is,” Candice exclaimed, sitting up suddenly and startling her. They had reached the turnoff for the cabin that they were renting. She eased into the turn, and followed the steeply sloping driveway up through the trees. They finally came out into a clearing with a beautiful, log cabin that looked out across the valley. Other than the small town nestled a thousand feet below them between the towering mountains, there was not a single sign of civilization. Denver had long since been hidden from view. Moira couldn’t wait to see the stars that evening. She had a feeling that the view would be magnificent.

  She shut the car off and eyed the cabin. It had a huge, wraparound porch, and wide, clear windows so that they could fully take in the view. The website had promised eight bedrooms and three bathrooms, with a grand entrance, a living room, a kitchen with all new appliances, and a game room in the basement. There was a shed off to the left, and a few rocky paths leading off into the wilderness. It was like nothing Moira had ever seen before.

  The man from the rental agency was supposed to meet them there, but she didn’t see any sign of him. The cabin, magnificent though it was, was closed up and dark, and theirs was the only car parked in front of it. She checked her cell phone. No service; she had expected as much. A tingle of worry began to nibble at her. What if the travel agency had gotten the dates wrong? She had called and triple checked their rese
rvation the evening before, but it was possible that the woman she had spoken to had given them the wrong information.

  “What are we waiting for?” her daughter asked, getting out of the car. “Let’s go see what it’s like inside.”

  Moira followed the two younger women up the hill towards the cabin. She climbed the wooden stairs to the deck and waited in silence while her daughter knocked on the front door. There was no answer. Her daughter repeated the gesture, then turned around and frowned.

  “I guess he’s not here yet.”

  Moira was about to open her mouth to suggest that they head towards the tiny town to see if they could find a phone to use to call the travel agency when they heard the crunch of tires on gravel. She turned to see a somewhat beat-up black car coming up the driveway towards them. This must be him, she thought, feeling relieved.

  The three of them marched back down the steps to meet him. The man that got out of the car was wearing a rumpled shirt and too-short pants, and Moira noted that his socks were two different colors. He extended a hand to her and introduced himself as Mr. Desmond when they shook. “Sorry I’m late. I just got settled into a new apartment and forgot to unpack my alarm. I’m going through a divorce, you see. Anyway, you don’t want to hear all of that. I hope you haven’t been waiting for too long.”

  “We’ve only been here for a few minutes,” Candice said.

  “That’s good. Are you the bride?”

  “I am. How did you know?”

  “You’re the only one who has been beaming this entire time. I figured only someone who’s getting married in a couple of days could be this happy. Well, are you ready to go in and take the grand tour? This is quite a lovely place. You made an excellent choice. It’s one of our larger accommodations in the area. I was under the impression that more people would be in your party.”

  “Everyone else is flying in tomorrow,” Moira told him.

  “Good, good. If any of you need anything, I’m just a phone call away. I’m assuming you have everything sorted out for the wedding?”

  “Yes. One of the people my daughter sells orders of chocolates to runs a little restaurant in town, and they’re going to be doing the catering. One of their bartenders is a licensed marriage officiant, so that’s covered as well. We’ve got a reservation for the church, and we’ll be having the reception here. One of my friends has offered to do the photography for free. Everything came together just perfectly.”

  “That’s wonderful,” he said. “It sounds like you have everything under control. Here are your keys — I’m giving you two sets. I’ll just show you around the cabin, then I’ll get out of your hair.”

  He unlocked the door to the cabin with his own key, then pushed the door open and stepped aside, letting Candice go first. He reached in behind her and flipped the light switch. Moira gasped. The cabin had looked rustic on the outside, but inside it was luxurious. Hanging from the high, peaked ceiling was a chandelier, and dominating the back of the room was a sweeping staircase that led to the upper level. She could see now the why the price tag on this little getaway had been so high. It would make a wonderful backdrop to the biggest day of her daughter’s life so far.

  The ceremony would be taking place the day after tomorrow, and Candice and Eli would be leaving for their honeymoon two days after that. Moira remembered how rushed her own wedding had felt and wanted to be sure to give her daughter plenty of time to relax. It would be an enjoyable trip for the rest of them as well. Moira was looking forward to relaxing the day after the wedding. So many months of planning had gone into all of this; it would be nice to take a breather before packing up and going home.

  “We’ll start the tour on the ground floor,” Mr. Desmond said. “Through here, we have the kitchen. It has not one, but two gas powered ranges…”

  After the man from the travel company left, Candice and Allison went out to the car to bring in their bags. Moira went into the living room, which she had fallen in love with. The huge picture window looked down the mountain and into the valley, where the village’s lights were just beginning to come on for the evening. It was a scene worthy of any young woman’s dreams. Her daughter was going to have a fairytale wedding. She would make sure of it.

  CHAPTER TWO

  *

  Moira woke early the next morning. Normally, she didn’t set her alarm when she was on vacation, but this wasn’t just any vacation. This was the day before her daughter’s wedding. She closed her eyes as the realization hit her full force. Tomorrow, her daughter would be married. It was beginning to feel real, and it was a bittersweet moment for her.

  She sat up and smoothed the soft comforter on the four-poster bed with her hand. She wasn’t used to sleeping alone, and she was glad that David would be flying in tonight. She thought he would love the cabin every bit as much as she did, and she couldn’t wait to see his reaction to the stunning views. They hadn’t gotten much of a chance to travel together yet, other than their own honeymoon.

  She had been married to the private investigator for just over a year. They had celebrated their anniversary just a couple of weeks ago. It seemed like yesterday that she was walking down the aisle herself. So much had changed in the past few years, but she couldn’t deny that her life had improved steadily with every new addition to it. Candice’s marriage to Eli was another change that she knew would end up being a good one — once she got used to the idea, of course.

  She stood and walked over to the curtains, pulling them wide so she could look out the window. Her room had a view of the pine forest that clung to the lower parts of the mountains. While not as stunning as the view from the living room, it was beautiful in its own right. She cracked the window and let the fresh mountain air come in. It looked like it was going to be a clear, sunny day. She hoped that tomorrow was just as nice. No matter how well she planned things, one thing that she couldn’t control was the weather.

  After making use of one of the large showers and the seemingly endless supply of hot water, Moira got dressed and ventured downstairs to find the coffeemaker. They had gone shopping the night before after settling into their rooms. The grocery store in the village of Valley Haven was small, but was fully stocked. Besides coffee, Moira had bought enough ingredients for a few meals, as well as plenty of grab and go snacks.

  The kitchen’s coffee maker was nicer than anything they had at home. She waited in silence while it gurgled away, still feeling groggy. Traveling was always exhausting, and she could never figure out why. Sitting on a plane wasn’t exactly strenuous, but nonetheless she had been relieved to fall into bed the night before, and had drifted off to sleep almost immediately.

  The cabin was silent other than the sound of the coffee maker. Moira felt a sudden surge of homesickness. No matter how nice this getaway was, it wasn’t the same as being in her own house. She missed her husband, and their two dogs, Keeva and Maverick. She knew that Martha, who hadn’t been able to get the time off work, would take good care of the dogs, but it had still been hard to leave them behind. It had been the right thing to do, though, of that she was certain. Neither of them would have appreciated being stuck in a crate for the flight from Traverse City to Denver, and she heard horror stories about pets getting lost at airports. They were safer back in Maple Creek, even though they might not know it.

  Other than the dogs, the only thing that she really had to worry about back home was the deli, but it was also in good hands. The manager, Darrin, had proven multiple times that he was capable of handling anything that the small town could throw at him. He had done a phenomenal job when they had gone away for the fourth of July, and that had been the busiest week of the year. He would be able to handle a few days in the middle of August without her easily enough.

  When the coffee maker fell silent, she poured herself a mug, then walked out onto the front porch to drink it. It was early enough that the temperature was still brisk — or maybe that was the altitude. She had thought that her property back in Maple Creek was quie
t and peaceful, but it wasn’t anything compared to the silence she experienced now. There wasn’t any traffic noise at all, and not even the sound of a dog barking reached her ears. They really were all alone up there.

  She looked down the mountain to little village, which she was excited to go and explore. She loved unique little towns, which was one of the reasons that she enjoyed living in Maple Creek so much. She wasn’t as interested in exploring Denver — she had never been drawn to large cities, there was just too much noise and kerfuffle for her.

  By the time that she finished her coffee and went back inside, her daughter was up and walking around the house. There were dark bags under her eyes, and her hair was a mess.

  “Good morning, sweetie,” Moira said as she walked into the kitchen to rinse out her empty cup.

  “Morning, Mom,” her daughter said, pausing to cover up a yawn.

  “There’s more coffee in the pot for you,” the deli owner said. “Did you sleep well?”

  “Not really,” the younger woman admitted. “I’m so nervous and excited about tomorrow that I kept waking up. I just hope I can get better sleep tonight, or Eli is going to think that he’s marrying a zombie.”

  “I’m sure if you stay nice and active today, you’ll be tired enough that you’ll manage to get a few winks tonight. Do you still want to drive back to Denver with Allison to pick up the others, or do you want me to do it?”

  “I still want to do it. It will be nice for us to spend some girl time together. I want to do some shopping in the city, too. I’m sure there’s tons of stuff that we don’t have in Maple Creek.”

  Delia and Audrey, the other two bridesmaids, were flying in later that morning. The men wouldn’t be joining them until later that night, and the other guests would be staying at a hotel in town and meeting them at the church tomorrow. Only those closest to Candice and Eli were going to be staying at the cabin.