“This is the file,” I say under my breath. “The one that was sitting on Candace’s desk that day. Everett, Noah, and I all saw it when she was giving us a tour. She looked distressed when she noticed it and she kicked us all out.”

  “Don’t just stand there.” Cluck Norris flaps his ghostly feathers my way. “What does it say?”

  I open it up and gasp again.

  Staring back at me is an eight-by-ten picture of a man floating facedown in the ocean while a few vessels can be seen in the background. The words you did this to my family are scrawled across the picture with a black marker. It’s written in all capital letters and the A’s look triangular in nature. It all feels vaguely familiar as if I’ve seen this before.

  Footsteps head this way and I close the file, but before I can put it back where I found it, Kit steps into the room and the two of us stare at one another like a couple of deer in the headlights.

  “What are you doing?” she hisses as she glances to the file in my hand.

  “Buck-buck-buck!” Cluck Norris flaps back and forth from one end of the room to the other. “Make a run for it, Lottie! She’s ready for another fresh kill. I can see it in her eyes. Oh, this is bad. This is terrible. You’re trapped! You can’t get away. She’ll slaughter you right here and now.”

  “Gee, thanks,” I mutter.

  “What is that?” Kit steps over, her brows knitting tightly.

  “You know exactly what this is,” I say as she tries to reach for the file, but I pull it back.

  “Did you find that on my desk?” She glances to the file and her mouth rounds out. “Death of Zack Ross? That’s my brother.”

  I scoff over at her. “Yes, it’s your brother. The one you wanted to showcase and Candace refused.”

  “How do you know that?” She shakes her head my way, looking genuinely puzzled.

  I circle my way around the desk and she backs up toward the wall, leaving the exit wide open for me, and that fact alone emboldens me.

  “You were trying to get Candace to do a special on your brother,” I pant the words out. “And when she refused, you accused her of pushing your brother off the boat that day all those years ago, didn’t you? You did this that day she was killed. That’s what you were doing in her office.”

  Her head inches back and Cluck Norris is quick to sit on it as if he just found the comfiest nest.

  A croaking sound comes from her. “Yes, but—”

  I cut her off. “You asked her time and time again to do the special and she refused. That’s why you picked up one of her awards and bashed her over the head with it, isn’t it?”

  “What?” she squawks so loud, so sharp it almost sounds as if Cluck Norris joined her in the effort. “Lottie, you’re badly mistaken. That simply didn’t happen. At least not with me killing her.”

  “Then why did you change your shirt that day? You were wearing a white T-shirt when we got to the studio, but after the body was discovered you appeared in a blue one.”

  “My shirt?” Her head bobs forward and Cluck Norris nearly topples right off the top. “Oh my goodness, you really do think I did this, don’t you?”

  “Make me believe you didn’t.”

  “I don’t know if I can. It seems I’m being expertly framed.” Her voice hikes a notch. “Look, I did go to Candace’s office that day and things got heated once again when she refused to do a feature on safe swimming. All I wanted was for her to do something, anything to honor my brother. He loved her, although I don’t know why. She was a pretty awful person. And yes, things got physical. But Woody stepped in and broke it up. He took me over to the staff lounge and took off.”

  “And then?” I tip my ear her way even though I have a feeling I know exactly how this deadly story ends.

  “And then I went into the lounge. Fern bumped right into me. She said she was in a hurry because, ironically, she was trying to track me down to go over her segment. Anyway, she spilled some of her coffee on my shirt. You would think because this is basically my uniform that I’d have ten or twelve of these T-shirts squirreled away in here, but I don’t. Thankfully, Fern had one and it was just my size. A blue one. And that’s what you saw me wearing that day after Candace was murdered by your mother.”

  “My mother?” Now it’s me inching back. “Carlotta didn’t do this.”

  “And you think I did?”

  “Wait, did you say Fern just so happened to have the shirt to give to you?”

  “Yes, she brings half her wardrobe with her when she comes in.”

  “Kit, you mentioned before that Fern and Candace went to college together, that they had secrets. What kind of secrets do you think those were?”

  “I don’t know. I heard them arguing about someone named Ben. It was that boyfriend of Candace’s that ended up having an accident.”

  I nod. His name was Ben Jenson and that accident happened to be falling from the roof of a building. Noah told me all about it a week ago.

  I open the file once again and look at the handwriting. Something about the shape of that letter A has me unnerved. And then it hits me.

  “My apologies, Kit,” I say, backing out of the room with that file still in my hand. “I think I was wrong about you.”

  “Darn right you were. But don’t worry, Lottie. I can’t blame you. Noah and Everett look as if they’re about to burn this place to the ground. This is a huge day for the three of you. We’ll laugh this all off after we wrap it up today. Give me the file, and I’ll take it to Noah since he’s the lead detective.”

  “I’ll take it to Noah myself.” I rush out of the tiny office to do just that.

  Not only am I going to hand Noah this file, I’m going to hand him the name of the killer, too.

  Lottie

  “Noah?” I call out as I head out of the corridor and my mind swirls as I try to remember where the makeup room is in this labyrinth of a building.

  I glance to my right and I spot Fern Cranston heading out the large back door.

  “Fern?” I shout without meaning to, but it seems I’m sleep-deprived and I’ve been on autopilot now for more than a few weeks. My feet lead me in that direction and Cluck Norris flies into my path.

  “Lottie, wait!”

  But I don’t wait. I speed right through him.

  “Fern?” I call out again as I tuck that file behind my back.

  The woman turns around with a cigarette clipped between her fingers in one hand, still reaching into her purse for the lighter, I’m assuming.

  “Lottie”—she laughs—“fancy meeting you here. You’re not sneaking out for a quick smoke, too, are you?”

  “No, I don’t smoke,” I say, stepping out into the warmth of the spring sunshine as it does its best to heat my body. The alleyway is filled with debris from various sets being torn down, strips of wood lie around in piles, and there’s a large waste receptacle to our left that smells of sour milk. There’s not another soul around. A perfect place to have a private conversation, and I intend on doing just that.

  I head in her direction and end up standing right over a large drainage grate.

  “Well, good,” she muses as she flicks her fingers and the cigarette nearly dislodges. “You just had that chickadee of yours. Smoking is bad for the baby. Don’t you pick up any of my nasty habits.” She gives a little wink before lighting up.

  “You do have nasty habits, don’t you?” My voice shakes when I say the words, and as shocked as I am that I’ve said them, I can’t really blame myself for doing so.

  Cluck Norris lands neatly onto her head and shifts from side to side as if he were getting cozy for the show.

  “Go ahead, Lottie,” he says. “As soon as she admits to doing the deed, you can whack her over the head with one of those boards lying on the ground. Candace always said that turnabout is fair play.”

  “Candace would be right,” I mutter.

  “What’s that?” She squints my way as she takes a quick drag.

  “Oh, Fern. Why?” My voice comes out in a shell of a whisper. “Why did you feel the need to do it?”

  She chuckles and her entire chest bounces. “You finished that book I gave you, didn’t cha?”

  “Death of a Cheater? Death of a Talk Show Host? You really do write what you know.”

  She startles a bit. “I was just teasing about that last one. No need to get your panties in a wad. I’ll leave you and the boys out of it. I know how volatile things are about to get between the three of you. Why don’t you go get some of those delicious cookies you baked? Have some coffee to go along with it. You’ve got one heck of an emotional roller coaster ahead of you.”

  “That’s what happened to you, isn’t it? That’s why you killed Candace.”

  “BUGHAW!” Cluck Norris caws as his wings start flapping, but his talons have him very much tethered to the redhead’s scalp. “You could have finessed it a bit, Lottie. And where is Noah? I think we’ve done this backward.”

  “It wouldn’t be the first time,” I pant.

  “First time?” Fern shakes her head, her eyes still heavily squinted. “Wait a minute, what are you saying? Are you feeling all right?”

  “I’m saying you killed Candace Cottonwood that day, and I have the evidence to prove it.” I pinch the file tightly between my fingers but don’t dare produce it just yet.

  “Oh, this I gotta hear.” She tosses down her cigarette despite the fact it’s still as long as a finger and stomps it out.

  “Listen up and listen good,” I say. “Because I won’t hold a single detail back.”

  Her lips widen across her face, and it looks like an eerie smile of a circus clown.

  “Go ahead, give it your best shot.”

  “I will.” A smile of my own curves on my lips for the briefest of moments. “That day at the B&B during the Murder and Mayhem book signing when I mentioned that Kit told me that you and Candace went to college together, you grew cagey. You immediately threw Kit under the bus and pointed the finger at her because she was Zack Ross’ little sister.”

  “Who cares?” She tosses her hands up. “I’m always cagey at an author signing. Half the authors there felt the exact same way. Ask your mother.”

  “Yes, but they weren’t trying to pin a murder on someone else—you were. You were trying to pin this murder on Kit. In fact, you went the extra mile. You spilled coffee on her white T-shirt and just so happened to have a blue one on hand she could change into—a miraculous feat, considering you’re not nearly the same size. That was simply an example of you planting more evidence that didn’t point your way. And this file?” I produce it from behind my back and her body straightens at the sight of it. “This is what I’m most stumped about. You left it out on Candace’s desk. Noah, Everett, and I all saw it there when she gave us a tour of her office. But after you killed her, you moved it. Why? You could have planted more evidence against Kit. Why bury it under Kit’s desk calendar where no one would ever see it? Kit and I would both like to know the answer to that.”

  A dull laugh rattles her chest. “Lottie, you do think you’re a detective, don’t you? But you’re wrong. All arrows point to that mousy girl. Kit is the one who did this. And if I were you, I’d run to that boyfriend of yours before Kit runs away. Now that she knows you’re onto her, she won’t stick around long.” Her eyes flit to the parking lot.

  “Just like you don’t plan on sticking around long?”

  Cluck Norris digs his talons into her hair.

  “Ouch!” Fern does her best to inadvertently buck him right off, but she’s unsuccessful in the endeavor. “Geez. You’re really giving me a splitting headache with this nonsense, Lottie.”

  “It’s not nonsense. I have proof.”

  “All right, let’s hear the rest of it.” She folds her arms across her chest, her feet set in a defiant stance. “What in the world kind of proof do you have now?” She rolls her eyes to the sky as she says it.

  “The picture in this file? It has the words you did this to my family scrawled across it. Every word was written in capital letters. The A looks like a pyramid more than it does anything else. It was the exact same penmanship used to sign that copy of Death of a Cheater.”

  “Give me that!” She reaches for it and I drop it through the slotted grate I’m standing over and watch as it floats to the bottom before resting there, face up like the harbinger it is.

  She takes in a deep breath, eyes wide, mouth open with shock, and that’s all I need to confirm my theory.

  “She did it!” squawks Cluck Norris. “She’s the killer!”

  I nod. “The old boyfriend of Candace’s who died back in college? The case that was ruled an accident? It wasn’t one. That old boyfriend was cheating on Candace, wasn’t he?”

  “So what? She dated a cheat. We all have.”

  “Maybe so, but I’m willing to bet you were the other woman.”

  A laugh begins to initiate in her throat and then quickly dies down.

  “And who cares?” she says a touch too loud like maybe she does. “It was a million years ago.”

  “Candace cared. She cared so much she pushed him, didn’t she?”

  “Yes, she did.” Her words come out caustic, her eyes shooting daggers my way. “She killed Ben just like she killed Zack. She pushed them both. It was her forte, pushing people away emotionally and physically.”

  “She pushed Ben, and that’s what you held over her head all these years. That’s why she didn’t care for you. The only reason you were able to showcase your latest novels on her show was because you blackmailed your way there. And my guess is, she recently announced she was through with you. Is that the reason you killed her?”

  Fern Cranston stares at the ground a moment too long.

  “You don’t understand, Lottie.” Her gaze meets with mine as she takes a bold step forward. “I had to do it. She left me no choice. She was going to turn the tables and say it was me who pushed Ben off the rooftop all those years ago. There was no party. I heard voices from the game room in the frat house and I went up there because that was their special place. I knew she found out about Ben and me. It was late, and they were loud. They never noticed how close I had gotten. And that’s when I saw her push him. Yes, he was drinking, and using, and who knows what—but Ben did not want to die that day.”

  “Why didn’t you turn her in then? Zack Ross would have still been alive if you did.”

  “She said it was an accident and begged me not to ruin her life. She said that they both were. She said she’d find a way to make it up to me and she did. But she made no secret that she hated me after that. If it was one thing Candace couldn’t stand, it was feeling out of control. And I guess you could say after booking me one too many times, she felt she wanted to be back in the driver’s seat. She was going to start rumors, Lottie—that I killed Ben! She knew she didn’t need evidence to ruin me. A rumor would do just fine. She was going to ruin my career over something she did. You’re right, I should have turned her in ages ago. But I didn’t. And now it’s you who has the power to ruin me.”

  She bends over and comes up swinging a two-by-four in my direction, missing my midsection by a hair.

  “Lottie!” Cluck Norris rolls right off her head and hurtles my way.

  I jump back and she swings yet again, this time knocking Cluck Norris right into the sky like a rolling, feathered missile.

  “Lottttieee!” he calls as he floats ever so much higher, growing smaller than a baseball from my vantage point. A part of me wonders if he went along with the inertia just for fun. If he can walk through a wall, he could have let that board swing right on through him.

  “Lot Lot?” Carlotta calls from behind.

  “Carlotta!” I turn and that two-by-four comes just shy of whacking me over the nose. “A fine time the two of you choose to play a little softball. Now get on in there. Foxy and Sexy are just about losing their minds looking for you. Sheesh.”

  She turns around and heads back just as that board comes swinging my way once again.

  “Lottie Lemon!” Cluck Norris thunders, and I turn around to see that plank of wood zooming right at me. And then with a strong jerk, it’s pulled right back.

  Cluck Norris buries his talons over Fern’s scalp and she howls as if her hair was on fire. But that’s not the reason she’s staggering backward. A woman has grabbed her from behind, and soon enough, that woman tosses Fern to the ground as well.

  “Run!” the woman shouts as she takes off running herself down the alleyway and I recognize that hair, although a touch darker, and that profile of hers that I got a brief look at before she turned away—it belongs to me.

  “Hey! Wait!” I shout for her to stop, but it’s too late. The mystery woman has ducked around the corner, and I can’t risk losing the killer.

  Fern rolls over and does her best to grab that plank once again and Cluck Norris does his best to peck her hand to death.

  A horrible moan comes from her as she retracts her arm and Cluck Norris begins to float into the sky as he slowly dissipates.

  “I’m leaving now! I’m free again! No longer caged by this earth for a second time around. Goodbye, Lottie Lemon! Until we meet again. Oh, and could you bring some of those chocolate chip cookies when you show up? I’m afraid I can’t seem to get enough!” And with that, he disappears in a puff of red and yellow stars.

  Fern swipes for the plank once again, but I pick it up and hold it over her body like a baseball bat.

  “Freeze!” a deep voice shouts from behind as Noah and Everett bolt this way.

  “Lemon,” Everett growls as he takes me into his arms.

  “She did it!” I shout. “She confessed to killing Candace Cottonwood.” I bury my face into Everett’s chest. “It’s over,” I pant. “It’s finally over.” I look up at him with a forlorn smile. “But we’ve still got a way to go, haven’t we?”

  It seemed as if the entire Ashford Country Sheriff’s Department showed up. Of course, Detective Ivy Fairbanks showed up as well. But when the entourage of patrol cars took off with Fern in tow, Ivy decided to stick around.