Trouble with Horses Read online

  “If you’re the fixer, why does the company have your name on it?” Kurt asked.

  “I wanted in on this venture. Imagine my surprise when I found there was an inside threat to the company.” Pete glanced my way and I gulped. “River, who else should I fire?”

  My throat tightened. Pete couldn’t be serious. “I can’t.”

  “You heard the responses same as I did. Who do you believe?’

  “Truly, I barely know anyone here. You’re putting me on the spot.”

  “That’s what I do, and I hope you won’t hold it against me for long. Please, hon, humor me.”

  There he went with the “hon” again. “I’ll give it a shot, for whatever that’s worth. Ann Marie took a shortcut on a casino contract. She appears to be in a relationship with Kurt. He accepted full pay for hours he didn’t work—”

  “I can explain,” Kurt said, tugging on his suit coat. “I’d rather be humiliated than go to jail. I had community service hours I owed for speeding tickets. I didn’t want anyone to know I screwed up. I need this job.”

  Pete gave a terse nod. “Continue, River.”

  So I did. “Frank and Opal pulled extra shifts, and kept quiet about it. Ann Marie sabotaged security programs, which Frank claims he caught and fixed. But Ann Marie brought a gun to this meeting. In what appeared to be a falling out among thieves, she aimed it at Kurt. Both envy and perhaps want your CEO job. Now that I think about it, Kurt seems too obvious to be the embezzler. If he hid money from you, he would’ve done it better. Is there a chance he was framed?”

  “Good observations,” Pete said. “I admire how quickly you grasp the essentials.”

  “You do?” I blushed. “I mean, thanks.”

  “River’s right, Kurt. I’ll crosscheck computer logins against duty hours to follow the money trail. If things pan out, you’ve still got a job.” Pete tapped a few times on his phone. Four bulky men in dark suits stepped through the doorway and stood on either side of the table. He glanced the length of the table. “Ann Marie, you’re fired, and you’re being escorted to the police waiting outside. This entire conversation has been taped and streamed live to the officers.”

  “I want a lawyer,” Ann Marie said.

  “Tell it to the police,” Pete said.

  “You’re heartless,” Ann Marie shouted.

  “I’m adding assault and property damage to the theft charges against you.” Pete motioned his men forward. “You shot me and the sideboard.”

  “I need medical attention,” Ann Marie wailed. “That cat has rabies, and I demand you destroy it.”

  Trouble stretched on the sideboard, and his rabies tag dangled in plain view. The year stamped on it was current.

  “The cat doesn’t have rabies,” I crowed. “He’s up to date on his shots.”

  Ann Marie shrieked all the way out the door.

  “What about me, boss?” Kurt asked, clearing his throat as he stood.

  “You should’ve come to me about your community service requirement.”

  Kurt hung his head. “I was ashamed. I thought if I paid the late fees, I could get off but that judge made an example of me.”

  “I believe in second chances,” Pete said to Kurt, but he looked at me. “If you’re exonerated, you’ll be on probation at North Merrick and back on a time clock.”

  “Thank you,” Kurt said. “I’ll go upstairs to my room now.”

  After he left, I noticed Opal and Frank grinning. “Did y’all know about this ahead of time?” I asked.

  “Some of it,” Frank said. “Opal found the accounts under Kurt’s character’s names three weeks ago and told Pete. We’ve been tracking the deposits and waiting for the culprits to make a mistake. Opal and I burned the midnight oil to uncover the virtual fingerprints. We narrowed it down to Ann Marie or Kurt last week, but Pete waited to expose them at the retreat. Personal reasons, he said.”

  Personal reasons, I thought. That would be me and my love of mysteries. Hmm.

  Pete coughed. “I can take it from here. Thanks for going the distance with me. Take the night off and we’ll regroup in the morning.”

  When we were alone, Pete took my hand in his and gently tugged me to my feet. “We should get your arm looked at,” I said.

  “My arm is fine. I didn’t know about the gun,” Pete said. “I’m sorry I accidentally knocked you down when I dove for the gun. I never considered weapons would be involved. I don’t know how she got a gun between here and the airport, but somehow she did. Please forgive me for that security lapse. I’m glad your cat knew when to jump at the light switch. A target is much harder to hit in the dark.”

  “The cat was brilliant.” A thousand thoughts circled in my head. I latched onto the most distressing one. “Pete, what’s really going on with you? Why am I just hearing you took on a drug cartel? You could’ve been killed.”

  “I couldn’t tell you at the time. It was the only way I knew to protect you,” he said.

  Now that he was close, his familiar ocean fresh scent enveloped me. My pulse quickened as I struggled against a riptide of emotion. “You broke up with me.”

  “I did it to keep you safe. I could not have any personal ties at that time or they would’ve used them against me. Getting this company running smoothly has been a full-time job. I may have overestimated how good I was because I expected to come for you months ago. My plan was simple. Fix the company, get the girl. Righting the company took much longer than I intended.”

  “Get the girl,” I repeated slowly. “Me?”

  He gave my hand a reassuring squeeze. “You’ve always had my heart.”

  Actions spoke louder than words. He’d ignored me for months but he’d been grazed by a bullet because of me. His behavior confused me. I tugged my hand free. “I thought you abandoned me.”

  “I knew you were busy with your mom, and I heard your brother was in jail. I want to help you. I want to make us work. I did this for you.”

  I felt as if I’d stepped in the softest of mud and sunk up to my neck. “What are you talking about?”

  “The embezzlement mystery. The roses. The horses. I courted you with the things you love. I know how much you enjoy solving the crimes on those detective shows you watch. I booked this horse rescue farm for our retreat hoping it would make you smile. As soon as I saw you wrapped around the paint, I believed I had a fighting chance to win you back. Tell me it’s not too late.”

  Anger roiled inside me and bolted out, lightning-strong. “You should’ve told me you still cared for me. Why should I trust you now? You don’t know what I went through when you stopped calling. My mom kept getting sicker and I had to keep putting one foot in front of the other. I may have survived our physical breakup, but I’ve felt empty inside.” My voice hitched with emotion. “It’s been awful. I counted on you and you didn’t even care enough to say goodbye.”

  “I never meant to say goodbye, but I should’ve thought of a kinder way to temporarily let you go.” He hung his head. “I apologize with my heart and soul. You saw a fraction of what I’ve been dealing with. I’m sorry for any pain I caused you.”

  When he shut me out, I’d wanted to crawl into bed and let the world pass me by. Everything I did hurt because it wasn’t with him.

  “I’m counting on your big heart. I need you in my life, River.”

  I took a few calming breaths. “I learned a valuable lesson from getting dumped. I deserve a man who puts me first. That’s what it would take for us to try again.”

  Something akin to panic flashed across his face. “I’ve been counting on our reunion for so long. All those lonely nights I told myself, ‘Soon you can go to her.’ That became my mantra when I woke up and when I went to sleep.” He paused. “I hope you enjoyed solving the mystery. I had hopes it might help you begin to forgive me.”

  “You’re asking a lot. You expect me to erase all the hurt you caused and be your companion. I need guarantees.”

  “River, there are no guarantees in life, but I�
��ll do right by you. I will love you with every breath I take.”

  My bones felt warm for the first time in a year. “You love me?”

  “What do you think I’ve been saying?” Pete’s emerald eyes glittered with emotion. “You nearly gave me a heart attack because I didn’t mention the ‘L’ word?”

  “Yes.”

  “Let me be clear. I love you more than anything. I never want us to be apart again. This is long term.”

  “Marriage?”

  “Yep. We’ll pick out the rings together. Anything you want.”

  “An engagement ring would be lovely, but let’s try being a couple first.”

  His shoulders sagged. “You won’t marry me?”

  “I want to try again, and if all goes well, you can propose on a romantic night we’ll both remember, one that’s about us. One without guns or embezzlers.”

  “That’s a yes?”

  “It is, and I believe it’s traditional to seal a bargain between lovers with a kiss.”

  Pete drew me into his arms. He kissed my hair, my forehead, my nose, and then his lips touched mine and I couldn’t think anymore. I was right where I wanted to be, with the man I loved. Life was good.

  Finally! I thought I would have to nudge her into his arms. Not bad for a day’s work. The thieves were caught, the guy got his girl. I knew the lady in red was up to something as soon as I sniffed her bag. Thank goodness for my quick action. My mission ended successfully for all concerned. Time for Trouble the feline detective to take a well-deserved nap.

  About the Author

  Southern author Maggie Toussaint writes mystery, suspense, and dystopian fiction. Her work won three Silver Falchion Awards, the Readers’ Choice Award, and the EPIC Award. She has published twenty-two novels as well as several short stories and novellas. The first book in her new culinary cozy mystery series, Seas the Day, released April 21, 2020. Maggie served on the national board for Mystery Writers of America, was President of Southeast Mystery Writers of America, and is Co-VP of Low Country Sisters In Crime. Maggie and her husband live in coastal Georgia where live oaks and heritage cast long shadows. Visit her at www.maggietoussaint.com.

  More Books by Maggie Toussaint

  Thanks for reading “Trouble with Horses, a prequel to the Seafood Capers Mystery series. I hope you’ll try Seas the Day, a full length book in this culinary cozy mystery series. A list of my books follow.

  Seafood Caper Mystery series, culinary cozies

  Seas the Day, April 2020

  Spawning Suspicion, November 2020

  Shrimply Dead , 2021

  Dreamwalker Mystery series, paranormal mysteries

  Gone and Done It

  Bubba Done It

  Doggone It

  Dadgummit

  Confound It

  Dreamed It

  All Done With It (2020)

  Lindsey & Ike Romantic Mystery Novella series, cozy mysteries

  “Really, Truly Dead”

  “Turtle Tribbles”

  “Dead Men Tell No Tales”

  Cleopatra Jones Mystery series

  In for a Penny

  On the Nickel

  Dime If I Know

  “No Quarter” (novella)

  Single Title Mysteries

  Death, Island Style

  Murder in the Buff

  Mossy Bog Romantic Suspense series

  Muddy Waters

  Hot Water

  Rough Waters

  Single Title Romantic Suspense

  House of Lies

  No Second Chance

  Seeing Red

  The Guardian of Earth series

  G-1 (writing as Rigel Carson)

  G-2 (writing as Rigel Carson)

  G-3 (writing as Rigel Carson)

  Short Stories

  “High Noon at Dollar Central” (a Dreamwalker story)

  “Sand Dollar Secrets” (a Cleopatra Jones story)

  “Trouble with Horses” (a Seafood Caper Mystery)