Secrets in the Stacks

Book 2: Survivors' Book Club Mystery

by Lynn Cahoon

Genres: Amateur Sleuth; Animal Cozy Mysteries

Synopsis

After an ominous Tarot reading, Sedona bookstore owner Rarity Cole must find a killer to keep her friend safe from harm—even if the cards are stacked against her . . .



Following her recovery from breast cancer, Rarity has embraced a life of healing and service in her Sedona, Arizona, community. She welcomes the opportunity to participate in the annual summer healing fair with her fittingly named new-age bookstore, The Next Chapter. The members of the Tuesday Night Survivors' Book Club are also volunteering, maintaining a cooling station for overheated festivalgoers, and hosting a Tarot card reader for entertainment.



But one member, Darby, is anything but entertained when the Tarot reader pulls a Death card. With a mammogram coming up, she's freaked out and goes home—only to walk into a crime scene where someone near and dear to her has been murdered. Despite the objections of Detective Drew Anderson, Rarity is determined to help her friend and protect her from being the killer's next victim . . .

Release date: November 1, 2022

Publisher: Lyrical Press

Print pages: 212

Reader says this book is...: entertaining story (1) witty (1)

Sample

Chapter 1

Rarity Cole stood beside the fireplace in her bookstore, surrounded by the chattering women of the Tuesday night Survivors’ Book Club. In only six months, the group had gone from Shirley, the lone member that first week, to a group of ten. Some members came off and on, but her sleuthers crew, they came every week. Darby Doyle was their newest member. She came weekly for the support and the friendships. Darby was a year out from treatment, but her first annual mammogram was coming up, and the girl was worried. She’d already put off college while she was healing, so now she was busy with school. And Darby was also Rarity’s newest part-time help for the bookstore.

“So next weekend is the fall festival. The Next Chapter—which means Darby and I—will be manning a Healing through Reading tent, and on the side will be our book club’s hydration and cooling station. That way, if someone buys a book, they can wander into the cooling station and do some reading.” Rarity handed out the schedule on a clipboard. “Now this is a volunteer opportunity, but if you can’t attend, I understand. Just give me a call if something comes up and you can’t keep your scheduled time.”

Malia Overstreet held up her hand. “I’m working at the Garnet Friday and Saturday nights, but I can do an early afternoon shift at the cooling station. I didn’t sign up last week because I didn’t know my work schedule.”

“There’s a couple of spots that only have one person Saturday afternoon, so you’re welcome to fill one or more of those.” Rarity glanced around the room. “I appreciate you all helping out with this. When the council rep came and asked me if I’d combine the cooling booth with the bookstore, I wasn’t sure I’d be able to pull it off.”

Holly Harper pointed to a place on the schedule for Malia to sign up. Probably the slot where Holly had been alone. Then she turned toward Rarity. “We’re a team, Rarity. If you need something, we’ll be there. It’s the code.”

And it was the code. When her last mammogram had turned into an unexpected callback for additional scans, the entire book club had gone with her. And then they’d had dinner in town to celebrate the negative results. Rarity had moved to Sedona knowing only one person who lived here. Now, less than a year later, she had a tribe. “You’re all the best. Thank you.”

Holly air-hugged Rarity from her chair. “Not a problem. So let’s talk about this book. Who thought the mystery was rushed?”

Malia sighed. “It pains me to say it, because I loved the first book by the author so much. But everything hinged on one clue. If she hadn’t found that diary, the mystery wouldn’t have been solved. I don’t like books like that.”

An hour later, they were breaking up and heading out the door. Darby cleaned up the coffee-and-lemonade area before stopping at the register, where Rarity was doing her closing checklist. “Hey, do you mind if I take a few cookies? I’m running home to see my grandmother for a few minutes to check on her. I’m sure she’d love the treat.”

“Of course. Take as many as you want. If not, they’ll be in the break room tempting me all day tomorrow. I appreciate the help today. Tomorrow’s a class day, right?” Rarity finished counting the money and put it into a bank bag. She leaned down to the floor and opened the safe, tucking it inside. She did a deposit midday, so usually, there wasn’t a lot of money in the bag. And the safe was secure. Drew Anderson, one of Sedona’s police detectives and a friend, had checked it out a few weeks ago when she’d mentioned leaving cash in the store overnight. She’d gotten the lecture about never letting anyone know there was money, but once he saw the safe, he had changed his mind. The prior owner had secured it in the floor, and there was a piece of flooring that went over it. If it was ever broken into, it was someone who knew the building.

“It’s Math for Business Decisions day. Seriously, I feel like I’m just an idiot every time I walk into that class. I just don’t get the theories. And now, it’s too late to drop it. I just hope I get a bump in my grade for my hard work and participation, because my tests are harsh.” She studied Rarity. “You run a business. How much math is there?”

“I run a retail business. There’s still a lot of math, but mostly accounting.” She started turning off lights. “Bring in your book the next time you work, and maybe I can help you with the concepts.”

“That would be cool.” Darby tucked the leftover cookies in her striped tote and then put it over her head and arm. “I’ll see you Thursday. Night, Killer.”

Killer, Rarity’s Pomeranian, walked over from his bed by the fireplace where he’d been sleeping. He eyed the water and food dish that had already been dumped out for the night. Rarity picked him up and rubbed his nose with hers. “You ready to head home for the night?”

He cuddled into her arms as she struggled to put her jacket on and her tote over her shoulder. She picked up her keys and headed to the door.

When she got outside, she turned around after locking the door. A man sat on the bench near the sidewalk. She focused on him as her eyes adjusted to the dim light. “You could have come inside.”

Archer stepped closer and took her tote from her. “I’m enjoying the night air. Mind if we walk to your house?”

“You’re the one who’ll have to walk back here after dinner.” She clipped Killer’s leash on, leaned into Archer Ender’s side, and put her free arm around him. Rarity wasn’t quite ready to use the label, boyfriend, but if they continued down this path, she could be convinced.

“I’ll survive. How was your book club?” He’d become a regular visitor on Tuesday nights after she closed her bookstore. She figured he didn’t like the fact that she was walking home alone so late. And he liked her company.

“Good. I knew Holly would trash the book we read because of its plot line, but even Malia saw the problem, and she loves this series. They’re becoming really solid reviewers.” She thought about tonight’s discussion and smiled.

“Proud mama moment.” Archer glanced up at the sky. “It’s going to be a clear night. If you’re planning on swimming, you probably should let me make dinner. Otherwise, it’s going to be too cold to swim later.”

She laughed. “Maybe I’m a polar bear. Too cold is kind of relative, but I won’t fight you if you want to cook tonight.”

“Done deal.”

They walked in silence for a while, and as they turned onto her street, he glanced at a text that had beeped. “I’m going to be shorthanded for the festival booth. Calliope has a conflict and can’t work Friday night.”

“Hot date?” Rarity didn’t like Archer’s receptionist, secretary, and accountant. Calliope was basically Archer’s administration staff, all rolled into one. And the feeling was mutual. Calliope saw Archer as her property, and Rarity was seen as the interloper.

“I don’t think she’d blow me off for a date.” He held his hands out for Rarity’s keys as the two of them stepped on the porch. “But you never know. She’s still acting strange. Like I betrayed her when we started dating.”

Rarity didn’t respond. She just took off Killer’s lead and turned on the lights in the living room.

“Come on, I’ve told you there was nothing going on between me and Calliope.” He moved to the kitchen and opened the fridge, getting out two chicken breasts.

Rarity paused before going into the bedroom to change into her swimsuit. “I know you did. But did you tell her?”

After she’d gotten in her laps, she changed into her yoga pants and a T-shirt and came back out to the kitchen. Killer was lying on the floor, watching Archer season the stir-fry. “What can I do to help?”

“You could pull me out a beer. Dinner has about ten more minutes, so we have time to sit for a while.” He nodded to the dining table. “Inside?”

“Please. I know I’ll probably have to give up my swimming time soon, at least until it warms up, but I love ending my day with the workout.” Rarity took out two beers from the fridge and walked over to the table, where she curled her legs under her as she sat. “I talked to Terrance about what it would cost to run the heater in the pool, and I guess I’ll just deal with the chill. I can’t afford the extra bill right now. Not after hiring Darby part-time.”

“How’s she doing? I was friends with her dad before he and her mom took off to live in Alaska. You think it’s cold here? Try Alaska in the winter. Darby said they already had a foot of snow at the house the last time she called them.” He opened her beer and then his own. “She’s a good kid.”

“I won’t argue with you on that. She’s a hard worker. I’m glad you sent her my way. I didn’t know that her parents had moved out of the area. She talks about her grandmother a lot, but not her folks.”

“Her grandmother is an amazing person. If you ever get a chance to visit with her, I think you’d have a lot in common. She volunteers at the women’s shelter in Flagstaff and just got some sort of award from the mayor. She’s always proposing new legislation to the state reps on women’s rights. And she comes to at least one of my group hikes every week. I finally sold her a senior card so she would stop paying me.” He sipped his beer. “She’s also a survivor. I’m surprised she’s not in your book group.”

“I don’t believe you really have a senior card, but let her think she was getting a deal,” Rarity guessed. “I don’t think all survivors want to be in a book club. We don’t all read.”

“Okay, you caught me. I created a fake card on the computer, then told her it was for locals only. If I had to honor that price for everyone, I’d go out of business. Anyway, it worked. She’s happy, and I don’t feel like a jerk taking her money.”

“You’re a good man.” She squeezed his hand. “No wonder Darby loves her grandmother so much. She sounds amazing.”

He sipped his beer before he responded. “It was hard on Darby when Jeff and Sara moved. She felt abandoned, especially since she’d just finished her cancer treatments. They just thought they were moving on with their lives. They still pay for her college. I think she was just planning on living at home a while longer. When they moved, they took that away from her. She hasn’t forgiven them yet, but it’s close.”

“Families are hard,” Rarity said, staring at the pool outside through the glass. She could see her own reflection in the window over the water, like she was still outside, swimming. She saw Archer’s face as he studied her. “What?”

“You just don’t talk about your own family much. It’s like you came fully formed and dropped into Sedona.” He held his hands up to the skies. “Of course, if that’s going to happen, it’s going to happen here.”

A timer went off in the kitchen.

Rarity stood, smiling. “Saved by the bell.”

“Okay, so you are an alien. Just don’t eat my face. I’ve been told I’m good-looking, and if I’m going to be dead, I’d like to have an open-casket service.” He checked the doneness of the rice and nodded his approval. He took one of the flat bowls that Rarity had retrieved from the cupboard and filled it, first with rice, then with the stir-fry mixture. He sprinkled some chives he’d snipped from her indoor herb garden and handed it to her. “Eat this instead.”

“Aliens don’t eat healthy Chinese food, do they?” She set her plate on the table as she got out a fork for her and chopsticks for Archer. He liked the full experience when he ate cultural foods. She still had half her beer, but she poured a couple of glasses of water to go with dinner. “Anyway, I’m just glad I have help at the bookstore now. Darby checks off all the boxes for a perfect employee.”

“Humph, maybe I should have hired her and replaced Calliope.” He sat at the table with his bowl.

“Maybe.” Rarity let the smell of ginger and garlic rise for a few seconds before she picked up her fork. “All I know is I need to keep you around. You’re an amazing chef.”

“And that’s not my best talent.”

The rest of the night was spent talking about little to nothing and watching a movie. Rarity liked nights like this where it was just the two of them. As they talked, the conversation bounced from one subject to the next. She enjoyed spending time with Archer, and not just because he was crazy good-looking. He was smart and funny, and he took care of her in little ways, even when she didn’t ask for help. Now, she didn’t want to be the helpless damsel in distress, but being watched after didn’t exactly hurt. Especially not after dating Kevin for so long. He barely noticed her existence, except when it affected one of his plans. She’d been stupid to think he really cared.

Killer was curled between them on the couch when the movie ended. Archer glanced at his watch. “I hate to cut the party short, but I’ve got a group hike tomorrow at six. Do you want to come along?”

“I’d love to, but with the festival coming up, I need to get the bookstore set up. I’ll be packing books and moving boxes over to the town square, then moving boxes back to the shop and putting books back on the shelves after the festival is over. At least I’ll get my workout in this weekend.” She turned off the television and went to let Killer outside. Then she went to the kitchen and started putting food away into plastic boxes. “Do you want some of the leftovers?”

“I’d love some, if you don’t mind. I’ll take it for lunch tomorrow.” He reached down and got another plastic container out of her bottom cabinet. “You’re very generous.”

“You cooked, dude. All I did was buy the raw ingredients.” She filled the container and snapped on the lid. Then she handed it to him. “You better get going, or it will be too cold for you to walk home.”

“Hmmmm, what on earth would we do then?” He laughed, and Rarity figured from the way her cheeks felt that the bright red coloring was the cause. He kissed her on the neck. “Sleep tight. We’re on for early dinner on Sunday, right? If you need me to, I can come early and help you unpack from the festival.”

“I’ll consider it. I think I’ll be fine, but then again, I don’t know how many of the books are actually going to sell. It would make me sad to box everything up for sale and then have to box it all back up to put away.”

He pulled her close to him and leaned into her neck. She could feel his breath on her skin. “That’s not going to happen. You need to be more positive.”

“I’m trying, but running my own business is harder than I thought it would be. Every time I think I see a light at the end of the tunnel, it turns out to be a train.” She leaned into him. “But if I continue to get hugs like this, I’m sure I can be ultra-positive.”

He kissed her gently on the lips, then stepped away. “Like you said, I need to get going. I’ll see you this weekend, if not before. Call me.”

And then he was gone. She let Killer inside the house and locked the back door. Then she went and stood near the entry and watched Archer out the side windows by the door. “You’re a keeper, Archer Ender. Now we just have to find out why you’re not already in someone else’s snare.”

Killer turned and ran to the couch once Archer had left and took his spot, a toy stuffed screwdriver hanging out of his mouth.

“We’re not watching another movie. It’s almost time for bed.” Rarity went to the kitchen to clean up the rest of the dishes. Archer was a neat cook. Anything he’d used was already rinsed and in the dishwasher. But there were a few things to finish up. Besides, it was a house rule: if he cooked, she cleaned.

She turned the radio on and finished washing up to a country song she loved. She had been surprised to find an old country station in Sedona, but maybe there were more cowboys out here than she’d imagined.

The announcer came on as she had just started the dishwasher. “If you’re looking for something fun to do this weekend, head down to Sedona’s town square and check out our local vendors. I hear there’s going to be some magic floating around town.”

Rarity turned off the radio and collected Killer before she turned off the rest of the lights. “I don’t know about magic, but I hope there’s some book buyers. We could use a good month, huh, buddy.”

Chapter 2

Friday’s festival arrived with a warmer than normal day for early November in Sedona, and the crowds were enjoying the gentle weather. In the bookstore tent, Rarity and Darby had been busy all day. Rarity had brought a variety of self-help, healing, and Sedona charm books, along with a few best-sellers and airport novels. And they were selling well, but now, with night approaching, the attendees were heading to the local restaurants and pubs to finish off the night. Rarity finished restocking the books on the shelves and tucked the empty boxes under the table. “If we have as good of a day tomorrow, I might send you to the store to get more stock before we run out.”

“We have been busy.” Darby glanced around the almost empty book tent. “Do you mind if I go grab some water from the reading tent? Do you want one?”

Rarity looked around at the grounds surrounding the tent. She glanced at her watch. “You go ahead. I’ll meet you there. I’m shutting up the tent for the night. I don’t think we’ll be seeing many more customers.”

“Are you sure? I can help.”

“There’s not much to do. I’ll tuck my laptop and change box into my tote, put up our sign, and close the tent doors. I’ll meet you in the hydration tent. I want to get a tarot card reading before Carson packs up for the night.” Rarity went around and finished her closing tasks, including waking up Killer for the walk home. He’d been asleep most of the day under the sale table. The heat was a little much for him. Rarity considered keeping him home tomorrow, but she wasn’t sure what would be worse. Staying home? Or being warm? At least here, he got to see everyone and be close to her.

Drew came by as she was pulling the tent doors down. “Hey, let me help with that.”

They got the canvas doors in place, and she tied the ribbons that served as closures for the tent. “I certainly hope no one tries to mess with my books.”

Drew patted the tent. “As long as you didn’t leave any money in there, you’ll be fine. We have people stationed in a van nearby, and they do walk-throughs every so often. In the ten years they’ve had festivals here in the square, we haven’t had a problem yet.”

Rarity pointed to the ties on the tent. “Why would you, with such amazing security?”

Drew didn’t answer. Instead, he picked up Killer and gave him a head pat. “I think Rarity’s teasing me. What do you think?”

Killer barked, and Drew laughed. “See, even your dog thinks you’re overreacting.”

Her dog. She loved those words. When she’d taken in Killer for Drew, it had been a temporary placement until his owner, Martha, would come back. But Martha never returned to get him. Even before they knew Martha had been murdered, Rarity had fallen in love with the little guy. Now the two of them were a family. Well, them and Archer, at times. “So are you just doing a walk-through, or did you have a reason to stop by?”

“I was just stopping in to see my favorite bookseller.” He glanced around. “Did Sam have a booth? I didn’t see one.”

Rarity smiled and pointed across the square. “She’s all the way over there, but I think she’s already gone. She had a date tonight in Flagstaff.”

Drew looked up sharply from his cuddle with Killer. “A date? I didn’t know she was seeing someone.”

“She’s. . .