Cottage on Gooseberry Bay: A Christmas Caper

Book 17: Cottage on Gooseberry Bay

by Kathi Daley

Genres: Holiday books; Private Investigators; Cozy Mystery; Animal Cozy Mysteries

Synopsis

A small-town Christmas, a local Scrooge, a Christmas ball, and a truck load of puppies in need of their own Christmas magic, make for a charming holiday caper.

Cottage on Gooseberry Bay is a heartwarming mystery series about finding answers and fostering hope while building friendships and embracing the magic of life by the sea and small town holidays.

Ainsley Holloway had come to Gooseberry Bay to find answers about her past. She’d come to find an explanation for the dreams that haunted her after the death of the cop who’d both rescued and raised her. And she’d come to identify the family she couldn’t remember but knew in her heart she’d once belonged to.

Ainsley hoped that by finding these answers, she’d also find healing. She hoped that once she’d resurrected the memories buried deep in her mind, she’d find peace.

The Cottage at Gooseberry Bay is a series about, not only finding answers, but finding hope.

It’s a series about family and friendship.

It’s a series about shared holidays, festivals, and celebrations.

It’s a series about shared heartbreak and hardship.

And it’s a series about the bond that can be forged amongst strangers when tragedy binds two or more individuals with a common goal.

In book 17 in the series, Ainsley is hired to put a stop to the plans recently announced by the local scrooge to evict twelve families from the apartment building he owns just two weeks before Christmas.

Meanwhile, Adam and Archie are working hard preparing for the annual Winter Ball, Remi finds the new deputy in town too captivating to ignore, Parker has been assigned her first big story since making the move to the Seattle News, and Bexley has a truck load of puppies to place with foster families so they don't have to spend Christmas behind bars.

 

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Release date: December 3, 2024

Publisher: Kathi Daley Books

Print pages: 142

Sample

Chapter 1

Snuggling under the pile of comforters layered on my bed, I watched the first real snow of
the season fall rhythmically outside my window. My boyfriend, Adam Winchester, snored softly
beside me as my Bernese Mountain Dogs, Kai and Kallie, began to stir. After carefully slipping
from my warm cocoon so I wouldn’t wake Adam, I pulled heavy jeans and a long-sleeve t-shirt
on and added a warm sweatshirt. Tip-toeing into the kitchen, I started a pot of coffee and headed
toward the living room, where I’d left my heavy boots next to the fireplace. After lacing up my
boots, I pulled a wool cap over my long blond hair and grabbed my winter jacket from the rack.
Once I was bundled up, I headed out into the winter wonderland.
The sky was heavy with dark clouds as the storm blew in from the north. The predicted snow
had made its way into the area, leaving several inches on the ground throughout the night. My
cottage was perched on the bank of Gooseberry Bay, one of the many inlets along the
northwestern corner of Washington State. Most mornings, the dogs enjoyed a dip in the bay
followed by a long run to the bluff where Adam and his brother, Archie, lived in the mansion
they’d inherited, but there was a chill in the air this morning that had my snow-loving dogs
heading back toward the cottage.
“You built a fire,” I said to Adam upon our return.
He smiled, looking tousled and adorable as he sipped his morning coffee. “It’s chilly this
morning.” He bent down to pet both dogs, who’d trotted over to say hello. Since Adam had just
returned the previous evening from a trip to visit family in England, I was sure he was missing
his dog, Hitchcock, who he hadn’t seen in a month. “I didn’t hear you get up. I guess I was tired
enough to sleep right through.”
I pulled my cap off and hung it on a rack next to the scarf and mittens I sometimes wore but
hadn’t bothered with this morning. “You were exhausted after your trip. I hope you’ll have time
to rest a bit today.”

Adam sat back on the sofa. “Taking a day to rest and relax sounds wonderful, but I should go
home and check on things. I have no doubts that Archie has been managing everything just fine
in my absence, but I’d like to check in with the boys who decided not to go home for the
holidays.” Adam and Archie ran a school for intellectually gifted yet underprivileged boys. Most
went home for the holiday break, which ran from the Wednesday before Thanksgiving to the
Sunday after New Year’s Day, but a few of the boys had nowhere to go, so they stayed to
celebrate the holidays with Adam and Archie. “If you aren’t busy today, perhaps you’d like to
come with me.”
Once I pulled my jacket off and hung it on the rack, I slipped my boots off and placed them
near the fire. “I actually have a pretty full day.” I headed toward the kitchen in my stocking feet
to grab a mug of coffee. “I have a meeting with a potential client this morning, and then I have a
volunteer shift at the Christmas tree lot later this afternoon beginning at four. I should have some
free time between the two, but not enough time to drive to your place and back. Any chance you
can check in with everyone and then come back here? We could grab a late lunch before my
Christmas tree gig.”
“Getting back in time to have lunch before four will be tough. I suppose I can meet you at the
Christmas tree lot during your shift, and then we can go to dinner once your shift’s over.”
“Dinner would be nice.” Resting my hip on the counter, I gazed at the colorful lights I’d
strung around every window in my cottage. “And maybe we can pick out a tree for the cottage.”
“I noticed that you didn’t have one.”
“I picked out and decorated a tree for my office right after Thanksgiving, but I waited to get a
tree for the cottage until you returned. If we pick out a tree tonight, we can decorate it tomorrow.
If you’d like to and have time, that is.”
Adam got up, crossed the room, plucked my coffee mug from my hand, set it on the counter,
and then pulled me into his arms for a long kiss. Eventually, he pulled away slightly. “How about
I call you. I love the thought of decorating a tree with you tomorrow, but since I haven’t been
home for a month, I really have no idea what I might walk into. I’d hate to make a promise that I
might not be able to keep.”
I laid my head on Adam’s chest. The reality was that Adam and I both led busy lives. It was a
factor that had influenced our relationship since the beginning, and we were committed to
allowing the other the space needed to take care of personal responsibilities, so I wasn’t going to
complain at this point. “If you do make it back, bring Hitchcock. Kai and Kallie will be with me
at the tree lot, so he’ll have someone to hang out with.”
“I’m sure Hitchcock would enjoy hanging out with Kai and Kallie. Who are you working
with tonight?”
“Jemma and Coop,” I referred to my best friend, Jemma Hawthorn, and her boyfriend,
Cooper Fairchild. “The town set the volunteer trailer up on the lot again this year, so the dogs
have been hanging out inside while we show customers the trees.”
“Okay,” Adam said, “if I can make it back, and trust me, I’m going to try to do just that, I’ll
bring Hitchcock and plan to stay a night or two.”

A night or two would be heaven. Adam and I had struggled to find quality time to spend
together, although I must admit that we did a good job making the most of the time we had. I
picked up my mug and topped it off. “So tell me about your trip. Was it fabulous?”
“It was fine.”
I raised a brow. “Fine seems like an odd choice of words after spending a month in England.
I was expecting magical or spectacular.”
He shrugged. “It was nice to see my family, but I’ve apparently outgrown my tolerance for
all the bickering. Archie thinks watching the cousins, aunts, and uncles go at each other over
each and every little thing is entertaining, but I must admit that I was ready to come home after
less than a week with the family.”
I wasn’t the sort of person who enjoyed drama, so I understood what Adam was saying. “At
least you got your duty to family out of the way and won’t have to deal with it for another year.”
“There is that.” He smiled. “It’s not that I don’t love my family, but I find it harder and
harder to be away for extended periods.”
I wrapped my hands around my warm mug. “Of course, it’s hard. You have a lot of
responsibilities.”
He reached out and touched my cheek. “I do have a lot of responsibilities, but it’s not my
responsibilities that make it so hard to be away.”
I leaned in and kissed him. There were occasions when I felt I could get lost in his kisses, but
then I glanced at the clock and groaned. “I really do need to jump in the shower. I have eggs and
other ingredients in the refrigerator to make breakfast if you’re hungry.”
“Actually, I think I’m going to go ahead and head home. As I said, I need to check in with
Archie and the boys, and I feel like I should confirm Skeet’s schedule. Archie told me he
wouldn’t be home until later in the month, but I want to confirm the details.”
“I spoke to Phoenix, who’s already home. She arrived in Gooseberry Bay just before
Thanksgiving but said that, so far, she was the only Geek Squad member who had made it home.
She wasn’t sure when the others would arrive.”
Skeet and Phoenix, along with Chip, Ape, and Cosmo, were members of the Geek Squad, a
group of geniuses Adam and I had met when they were still in high school. The teens had
matured into young adults who attended different colleges but remained friends. When they
came home for the summer or winter break, they all got together out at Adam’s place, where
Skeet lived when he was in the area.
Adam set his coffee mug down on the counter. “Archie seemed to think the others would be
here next week, but Skeet was the only one he’d spoken to. I’ll see if I can get an update while
I’m home.” He pulled me into his arms. “I really should get going. I’ll call you later with an
update on plans for the evening.”
“Okay,” I said as he headed toward the door. I hated to see him go, but I had a busy day, and I
knew he had many things to attend to.
It was time to leave for my meeting in town by the time I’d showered, dried my long hair,
and dressed in layers. While I frequently brought the dogs to work with me, I usually left them at

home during the first meeting with a client. I liked to have the opportunity to ensure that the
client wasn’t allergic or didn’t have a phobia. Once I knew a client was okay with dogs, I’d
usually bring them to future meetings.
As I headed toward my SUV, I texted Jemma to let her know I had a new client meeting and
the dogs were in the cottage. I liked for someone to know they were home alone in case of an
emergency, and Jemma, along with her roommate, Josie Wellington, lived in the cottage just
down the walkway from me. Jemma texted back to let me know that she was working from home
today, as she often did, and that she’d likely bring the dogs to her place to hang out with their
cats, Stefan and Damon.
I texted back to let her know that would be great and headed toward the boardwalk and little
downtown section of Gooseberry Bay, where my office was. I’d chosen the storefront on the
boardwalk since I figured it would provide exposure, but the best thing about my magical
location was the boardwalk itself. Not only did the boardwalk hug the bay for almost two miles,
but the ever-changing vendors that crowded the scenic space provided a festive element that Kai,
Kallie, and I enjoyed every single day.
“Peppermint latte, please,” I ordered my usual coffee from the seasonal vendor who had set
up just a few doors down from Ainsley Holloway Investigations.
“Where are the kids today?” Tracy, the perky barista, asked as she filled a snowman cup with
steamed milk.
“I have a client meeting this morning, so I left them with Jemma. I’ll pick them up when I’m
finished with the meeting.”
“So, have you heard the news?” she asked as she pumped the syrup into my cup.
“News?” I asked.
“The new deputy hired to take Deputy Todd’s place has arrived.”
After I reminded Tracy that I’d prefer nonfat milk to whole, and she confirmed that was what
she’d used, I asked about the new deputy who’d been hired after the deputy who’d served since
I’d lived here had been shot and killed this past summer. “Did you catch his name?”
“First off, the new deputy is a she and not he,” Tracy informed me as she slipped a plastic lid
on my peppermint latte.
“No kidding. I’m happy to hear that. It seems this department could use some shaking up.”
“Agreed, and from what I hear, Deputy Dixon might just be the sort to do the shaking.”
“Young, old, married, single?” I asked, knowing Tracy would likely have done some digging.
“Young, given her position with the department.” She looked me up and down. “I’d say your
age. Maybe a little older. From what I’ve been told, she’s currently single after going through a
messy divorce before applying for the job here.”
“Kids?”
“Not that I know of.” She handed me the cup of yummy peppermint goodness.
I smiled. “You really do seem to have all the scoop. I look forward to meeting the woman,
but I have a client meeting to prepare for.”

“We’ll talk later. Cindy, the girl working at the Christmas tree ornament cart, was chatting
with the new deputy earlier. I’m hoping she has new gossip to share. I’m particularly interested
in the messy divorce. I heard through the grapevine that she was married to her boss.”
“That must have been awkward.”
“Very awkward, which makes it interesting. If I find out anything else, I’ll fill you in the next
time I see you.”
“The dogs and I have a shift at the Christmas tree lot near the marina later this afternoon. Do
you have your tree yet?”
“Actually, I don’t. Maybe I’ll stop by when I get off. What time will you be there?”
“From four to eight.”
“Okay.” She accepted my stack of bills that included a generous tip. “I guess I’ll see you later
then.”
I wrapped my hands around the warm cup and headed toward my office. Nestled between the
local animal rescue’s adoption center and the yogurt shop, my office was in a prime location. I
enjoyed the company of my neighbors on both sides of my office, but I especially enjoyed my
relationship with Bexley Cosgrove, the founder of the rescue, who spent time here in Gooseberry
Bay as well as in Seattle and on Bainbridge Island.
After letting myself into my office, I turned the Christmas tree lights and the lights around
my window on. I hung my coat up, turned the heater on, and started a pot of coffee in case my
potential client wanted a warm beverage. I still had a few minutes before she would arrive for
our meeting, so I headed next door to check in with whoever was working in the rescue center.
I’d just reached the doorway leading to the common area at the back of the building when
Bexley walked into my office from that same common area.
“Hey, Bex. I thought you were in Seattle this week.”
“I was.” She wandered over to my pot of coffee and poured herself a mug. “But then Denver
found out about a kill shelter south of here that needs to unload a bunch of dogs today.” Bexley
referred to Denver Marshall, her good friend, the manager of the rescue’s primary facility on
Bainbridge Island, and the second in command for the rescue. “The shelter has agreed to
surrender them to us if I come and get them. The problem is that they have more than a dozen
dogs and two litters of puppies who need immediate relocation. I’m taking the panel truck with
the built-in crates to pick up as many as possible, and Denver will go for the others later in the
day.”
“Do you have room in the rescue facilities for so many new dogs?” I asked.
“We don’t have room, but we’ll make it work. Denver and I set a goal of getting all the dogs
we had at the rescue into homes by Christmas, but unless we pick up a lot of new foster families
in the next few days, I don’t see that happening.”
“If I can do anything to help, just let me know.”
“Thanks, Ainsley. I might call on you before this is over. Parker has been assigned a story
here in Gooseberry Bay, so she’ll be working from the cottage for the next couple of weeks, at
the very least. I plan to stop by her place on my way out of town and ask her if she’s willing to

do a write-up asking for foster families. The newspaper she’s working for now has a huge
circulation, so I’m hoping we’ll get a bunch of new applications.”
Parker Peterson was a good friend who worked for a newspaper based out of Seattle but had
been assigned the peninsula beat and planned to spend most of her time here in Gooseberry Bay.
When Parker got the job in Seattle, she’d decided to keep the cottage on the peninsula for those
times she was in Gooseberry Bay but also had a room in my sister’s penthouse apartment across
the Sound for those times she was on the east bank. Since Avery worked cooperatively for the
Seattle office of the FBI and a private crime fighter named Ezra Reinhold and was rarely home,
when Bexley needed a lodging solution, Avery had also invited her to move into the penthouse.
“I wasn’t aware she was at the cottage,” I said. “I didn’t see Parker or notice her car in the
lot.”
“I think she arrived last night. I’m not sure why you didn’t notice her car, but she may have
gone out for breakfast. Given all the training she’s been doing in Seattle, it’s been a while since
she’s spent any amount of time in the cottage, so she’ll likely need to buy groceries.”
“I guess that makes sense. The last time I spoke to Parker, she indicated she’d be happy when
the training was complete so she could settle into more of a regular schedule.”
“She has been busy,” Bexley agreed. “Even though she’s been training in Seattle, she hasn’t
been around the penthouse very much. In fact, with Avery on assignment, I’ve been alone in that
huge place for most of the past month.”
“I guess you could have invited Remi to hang out with you. The last time I spoke to him he
planned to spend more time in Seattle early in the month so that he could be here in Gooseberry
Bay over Christmas.”
Remington Beckett was a mutual friend who owned a string of video game arcades up and
down the West Coast. Since he liked to check in on all his properties, he tended to live a nomadic
lifestyle but seemed to enjoy spending time in Gooseberry Bay, so he’d bought a house here and
usually stayed in the area at least one week out of every month.
“If he’s been in Seattle, I haven’t seen him,” Bexley said. “Maybe his plans have changed.
He did mention something about LA at one point. If you happen to speak to him, could you
please ask him to call me? I’ve texted him a few times, but he hasn’t answered. Not that not
answering is all that odd for Remi, but the last time we spoke, he mentioned the two of us going
to the Winter Ball together, and I need to know if he still wants to do that. If not, I’ll need to
scrounge myself up another date.”
“If I talk to him, I’ll mention that you need to speak to him.” As far as I knew, Remi and
Bexley were just friends, but there did seem to be a spark that I suspected could eventually grow
into something more if either of them ever decided to open that door.
Shortly after Bexley left, my potential client showed up. She was a tall woman with a thin
face and long brown hair that she’d pulled back in a clip.
“You must be Emerson Hollyfield,” I said to the woman as I reached to shake her hand.
“And you must be Ainsley Holloway.”

The woman had a friendly smile, but I couldn’t help but notice the tension and fatigue on her
face. Based on the dark circles under her eyes, I was willing to bet that she hadn’t been sleeping
well.
“Please have a seat,” I offered. “Can I get you something? Coffee? Water? Tea?”
“No. I’m fine, thank you. I only have a short time before I need to get back to work, so I’ll
need to be brief.”
“Okay.” I sat behind my desk across from the chair I’d offered the woman. “How can I help
you?”
“Are you familiar with the Sixth Street Apartments?”
I nodded. “If you mean the low-income apartments near the little community park, I am.”
“Yes,” the woman confirmed. “That’s the complex I’m referring to. Apparently, the man who
owns the building has decided to sell it and has issued eviction notifications for all twelve units.”
I had heard something about an out-of-state developer buying property in the area for a new
condominium complex, but I hadn’t followed the project. I decided to wait for the woman to
continue.
“Now, I realize that the man who owns the building most likely has the right to do whatever
he wants with his property, but the fact that he has decided to kick twelve low-income families
out of their homes just before Christmas seems unusually cruel.” She took a deep breath and then
continued. “None of us has the cash that will be required to pay for the first and last month’s rent
and deposit at another complex. When we moved into the building, our deposits were waived,
and our rent was subsidized, so it’s not as if many of us can afford to live anywhere else in the
area. In fact, most of us in the building are single-income families who are struggling to get by
even with the subsidized housing.”
I sympathized with the woman, but I wasn’t sure what I could do to help her. “What exactly
would you like to hire me to do?”
“Talk to the owner of the apartment complex. Get him to extend our notice from thirty days
to at least ninety.”
“When do you need to be out?” I asked.
“December twentieth. That’s only two weeks away.” She leaned forward and rested her
elbows on the desk. “I know I said we were given thirty days, but I’m afraid we wasted the first
two weeks trying to convince the man who works for the building’s owner to allow us to stay
longer, so at this point, two weeks is all we have left.”
“Do those of you living in the complex have leases?” I wondered.
“Our leases are a month-to-month sort of thing. In case you’re wondering, one of the
residents asked a friend of his to have his neighbor, who is an attorney, look at the agreement we
all signed when we moved in, and it looks as if the owner is within his rights to ask us to vacate
with only a thirty-day notice.” She took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “Look, I realize this
most likely isn’t the sort of case you usually do. We aren’t asking you to investigate the man or
even find us a legal loophole, but rather to use your power of persuasion to convince him that the
decent thing to do would be to give us a bit longer to find other accommodations.”

I was having a hard time wondering why this woman, who I’d never met, would decide to
come to me if she didn’t want the complex’s owner investigated, so eventually, I asked her that
very question.
“A couple residents living in the complex claim to know who you are. These individuals said
that you sometimes take on pro bono cases. Not that we don’t think your services are worth
compensation, but none of us living in the complex have extra funds to spend on a private
investigator.”
I took a moment to think things over. I doubted that there was anything I could do to help this
woman, but I did feel for these twelve families. “I’ll set up a meeting to speak to the complex’s
owner, and I’ll do my best to buy you some time, but I can’t promise anything. I highly
recommend that you don’t wait for me to save the day. Each and every one of you should be
looking into alternatives. If you do need to leave in two weeks, you’re going to want to have a
place to go, even if all you’ve been able to find is a temporary situation.”
“I understand and appreciate that you are even willing to try to help us. At this point, we
seem to have exhausted all our options.”
I took a moment to come up with a plan in my mind. I wasn’t sure what I could do, but I was
willing to try. “The first thing I’ll need to do is look at the rental agreements. I can get copies
from the rental agency handling things. Once I have that information, I’ll call and set up a
meeting with the complex’s owner. Do you happen to know his name?”
“Ezekial Spalding.”
“I take it he isn’t a local.”
“He lives on a small private island just north of Port Townsend. There’s no ferry service to
the island, and Mr. Spalding, an elderly man, rarely leaves his island, so even if the man agrees
to speak to you, you’ll need to arrange for a boat or helicopter charter.”
“The transportation shouldn’t be a problem,” I said. Since Adam owned a boat and Coop had
a helicopter, I was confident about securing a ride. “Today is Friday. Let’s plan to meet again on
Tuesday. I may need that long to gather all the information I need. Before you leave, I’d like you
to complete a new client form. I’ll call you if I have any questions or news before Tuesday.”
“And the pro bono thing?” she asked.
“Not a problem. I’m happy to look into it and help if I can, but I want to be clear that I’m not
an attorney. I can speak to the man and hope that I can buy you a bit of extra time, but unless I
find that he’s acting outside of the law in some manner, there won’t be anything I can do to stop
the evictions if he doesn’t agree to a postponement.”
“I understand. We all do. Thank you for agreeing to assist us. I think what we need at this
point is hope and hope is what you’ve given us.”
In this case, I wasn’t sure that hope was a good thing. Hope might cause the group to become
overly content and neglect exploring alternative solutions. And the way it looked at this moment,
having options would likely be the only thing between having a home for Christmas and being
on the street.

Chapter 2

Once my client departed, I decided to head to Jemma and Josie’s cottage. I knew Josie had an
out-of-town catering job this weekend and wouldn’t be home until Sunday, so I figured that
Jemma might enjoy the company. Additionally, Jemma was a whiz on the computer, so if there
was information I needed to track down relating to my new case, I figured she’d likely know
how to obtain it. The snow had begun to come down harder during the past hour, which made it
necessary to pull my snowbrush out and scrape my windows before heading home. Generally
speaking, while I enjoyed the snow, especially when it was this close to Christmas, the snow
added an element of labor to the otherwise routine task of making the short trip between my
office and my home.
“Hey, guys,” I said to Kai and Kallie, who had trotted over to greet me the minute I walked
into Jemma’s cottage. They acted like I’d been gone for two days rather than two hours, but I
supposed it had felt like I’d been away for much longer in doggy time.
“It’s really starting to come down out there,” Jemma said as I peeled my coat off and hung it
on her rack.
“It seems to have picked up a lot in the past hour.” I slipped my boots off and placed them on
the boot rack to dry. “I hope it lets up a little before our shift at the tree lot. The prospect of
selling trees while the snow is coming down as hard as it is now isn’t appealing to me.”
“I think it’s supposed to let up by four,” Jemma responded. “There’s coffee in the pot if you
want some.”
I’d already had several cups of coffee today, but something hot did sound good, so I walked
into the kitchen to fill a mug with the hot brew. “I hope Josie doesn’t have a problem getting to
her job.” I returned to the living room with my coffee and stood by the fireplace.
“She was headed south, so she should be fine. Parker called and said she was heading toward
the peninsula today.”
“I ran into Bexley, who thought she would be here already.”

“Parker told me she planned to arrive yesterday but got tied up and missed the last ferry.
She’d decided to drive the long way around, but then she got a call from a friend who lives in
Tacoma and decided to stop and have dinner with her. She spent the night with her friend, but
when I spoke to Parker, she had just left Tacoma and was on her way north.”
“It will be good to see her. Bexley said she will be in Gooseberry Bay for at least a couple
weeks.”
“Parker seemed to think it would be longer. In fact, she was hoping to be here right up until
her Christmas leave begins on the twentieth. Even though she loves her new job, it sounded like
she’s really missed everyone here on the peninsula.”
“And we’ve missed her as well.” I wandered over to the sofa, taking in the beauty of the
festively decorated cottage as I did so. “Your tree looks nice. When I was here yesterday, you had
the lights on the tree but not the ornaments.”
“Josie, Hudson, Coop, and I decorated it last night.” Jemma smiled. “I think it turned out
nice. I wasn’t sure I wanted such a tall one, but it will likely be okay if I can prevent the cats
from climbing on it. Did you ever get one?”
“Not yet. I was waiting for Adam. I’m hoping he’ll be able to meet me at the tree lot tonight
and help me pick one out.”
“Did he head home this morning?”
I nodded. “Adam wanted to check in with Archie and the students who didn’t go home over
break.”
“Were there many who stayed behind?” Jemma asked.
“A few. Maybe four or five. In addition to the boys from the school, the Geek Squad will be
home for the holidays, so Adam and Archie should have a big gathering on Christmas Day.”
“Josie and I had a wonderful time at the mansion last Christmas,” Jemma said. “Will you be
able to join us this year, or do you plan to be at the vineyard again?”
Avery’s mother, Carmen, owned a vineyard on Whidbey Island, so the dogs and I had joined
Avery and Carmen on the island every Christmas since I’d found them. Of course, I was with
Adam now, so I wasn’t really sure what I would do. I said as much to Jemma.
“Since Avery lives in Seattle part-time now, I guess spending two full weeks with her mother
at Christmas won’t be as important.”
I agreed with that.
“Of course, Adam will likely be busy at the mansion for Christmas, so it isn’t as if you’ll be
able to have a romantic getaway.”
I agreed with that as well.
“Still, it would be fun if you were with us,” Jemma continued. “Hudson is going to be in
town, so Josie, Coop, and I plan to head out to the mansion as we did last year.”
Hudson Hanson was Jemma’s boyfriend and a teacher at Winchester Academy, the school
Adam and Archie ran.

“I guess I’ll need to talk to Adam and then give it some thought,” I answered. “I really should
speak to Avery when she returns from the assignment she’s been on for the last month.
Confirming her holiday plans seems like an excellent first step in creating a plan.”
“That would probably be a good idea. Maybe you can head to the island after Christmas.
Carmen will have Rose and Zoe this year, so she won’t be alone even if you don’t show up until
the day after.”
Rose Hubner and her daughter, Zoe, moved in with Carmen when they needed a safe and
secure hiding place. Once the danger had passed, Rose decided to stay. I knew Carmen loved
Rose and Zoe as if they were her own. I also knew she cherished the time she spent with Avery
and me.
Jemma got up from her computer and refreshed her coffee. She joined me on the sofa, where
Stefan and Damon competed for attention.
“So, tell me about your new client,” Jemma said. “Is the case an interesting one?”
I set my mug on the coffee table. “I think it might be more appropriate to classify it as
hopeless rather than interesting, but I agreed to look into things, and that’s what I’m going to
do.”
“Okay. So what exactly is the deal?”
I filled Jemma in on the basic situation and then offered my summary. “On the one hand,
twelve families are losing their homes just before Christmas, none of whom have anywhere to
go. On the other hand, we have the building’s owner, who, driven by a business decision, has
decided to sell the property. As far as I can tell, Ezekial Spalding has every right to sell a
property he owns.”
“So what are you going to do?” Jemma asked.
I shrugged. “I thought I’d simply enter the game and hope for a miracle. I haven’t had a
chance to dig into this yet, so maybe I’ll find something that isn’t obvious on the surface.”
“Has anyone looked at the leases?”
I nodded. “Emerson told me that one of the tenants has a connection to an attorney who
looked things over and told them that the owner seems to be operating within the parameters of
the law.”
“If public funding was used, even in part, to build the complex, I imagine that there may have
been additional conditions tacked onto the owner’s ability to sell.”
“I guess that’s one of the things I’ll look at.”
“It sounds like a tough case,” Jemma said. “And heart-wrenching. I feel for those families,
but I’m familiar with the company that owns that building. While the timing of the sale might be
unfortunate, I doubt this particular company is doing anything outside the law.”
“That’s what I figured. I was uncertain about taking the case, but I sympathized with the
woman who came to me and her neighbors. I had her fill out a questionnaire that outlines who
lives in each unit. All but four of the units are occupied by single parents with children.”
“And the other four?”

“Seniors.”
“Is there anything I can do to help?” Jemma asked.
“Not that I can think of, at least not at this moment, but I will likely ask for help if I run into
a dead end. The first thing I plan to do is gather everything I can related to the building’s
construction, funding, and ownership. I’ll need to look at the leases, and then once I have a
general idea of how things have been set up, I guess I’ll need to contact Mr. Spalding to see if
he’ll agree to meet with me. Apparently, the man has isolated himself on a private island, which
indicates he’s a bit of a recluse. I plan to attempt to get a face-to-face meeting with him, but I’m
not holding out a lot of hope that he’ll even agree to speak to me.”
“Spalding is famous in the business community for being almost impossible to get to. I’m not
sure why. He may just be protecting himself from suffering the fallout of some of his less
popular business decisions, but to isolate himself so completely leads me to believe there may be
more going on with the man than is evident on the surface.”
“Do others live on that island?” I asked.
Jemma shrugged. “I’m not sure who lives on the island, but the guy must have staff. A cook,
probably a maid, and likely a groundskeeper at a minimum.” She paused and then continued. “I
know Spalding has a business associate. I’m not sure what Eric Newlander’s title is, but he
seems to be the face of Spalding Holdings, which is the company that actually owns Spalding’s
assets. Chances are, if you can schedule an appointment to talk to anyone, it will be Newlander.”
“Is this Eric Newlander a reasonable guy?”
She shrugged again. “I’ve never dealt with the man personally, but I doubt Spalding would
allow him to speak for him unless he was a hard-hitting and rigid sort of guy who can get things
done.”
Great, I thought to myself. Dealing with someone who wasn’t easily persuaded or even
willing to listen to reason didn’t sound like the sort of interaction I’d choose had I not already
promised Emerson Hollyfield that I’d look into things.
“If you can get a face-to-face meeting with Spalding, you’ll need Coop to give you a lift,”
Jemma said. “There isn’t any ferry service to the island.”
“Emerson mentioned that. I figured I’d do some legwork over the next few days and then talk
to Coop about borrowing him and his chopper for a few hours next week.”
“I think he has a pretty slow week, so there should be a few options.”
“I’ll ask him about it when he comes by.”
Jemma got up and began gathering empty mugs. “I’m going to run upstairs and change into
warmer clothes. We should probably head to the Christmas tree lot once Coop arrives.”
“The dogs and I will meet you at the lot. I need to call and check in with Adam, and I want to
pop in and say hi to Parker if she’s here. It’s been a while since we chatted. I’m curious how her
new job is going. I’m also curious as to whether or not she’s met the new deputy in town.”
“There’s a new deputy in town?”

I shared the news Tracy had shared with me. As I had been, Jemma seemed pleased that the
new deputy was a woman. Not that being a woman guaranteed that she wasn’t equally as corrupt
as the man she was replacing, but a woman would be a nice change of pace.
“I’m anxious to meet the new deputy,” Jemma said. “As for Parker, she said she’d be here
right about now, but with the snow and all, we can probably assume that traffic might have been
bad.”
“If she isn’t in town yet, I’ll text her and suggest she meet us at the Christmas tree lot.”
Jemma agreed to my plan, so I called the dogs and headed out into the storm. ...