Cozy Mystery Boxed Set: Rare Catch Cozy Mystery Read online

  She’ll reach that point in no time; Veronica thought as she worked on a pancake batter.

  Breakfast didn’t have to be as extravagant as dinner last night, but that didn’t mean Veronica cut corners in any way to make it the best meal she ever served. It was her regular goal that her next meal would be better than the last, and she had rarely failed in that in all her years of being a chef.

  This meal was a bit more like a buffet than a sit-down-and-eat meal she normally served at The Rare Catch, but this was easier for breakfast, and the Buckners clearly didn’t protest. If anything, they enjoyed it just as much as they had dinner.

  “Another wonderful meal!” Martin declared. “You’ll need to give me the recipe for this eggs benedict. It’s delicious!”

  “My apologies, Mister Buckner, but a chef never reveals her secrets until it’s on the table.”

  Martin laughed. “Well, everyone’s got their secrets.”

  “Some of us more than others,” David said with a small glare at his daughter, who was sitting next to Charles this morning.

  “It’s easy to keep secrets from someone who doesn’t listen,” Amber muttered, and Veronica had to strain her ears to hear it.

  “Amber,” Janet said, her voice flat. “Most of us are family here.”

  Veronica knew this was meant to be a stab at her since she was the only one in the private dining room that wasn’t a member of the Buckner family except for Anthony, who shifted his sausages around with his fork.

  “Those will clog your arteries and cause you to have a heart attack, you know,” Janet told him. “Studies have shown that—”

  “None of that, Miss Buckner,” Anthony warned her before turning to Martin. “Martin, I must protest this. You are spending so much on this catering. Is it worth it?”

  “My taste buds say it is,” Martin replied. “And besides, I can afford it.”

  “Just because you can afford it doesn’t mean you should spend your money willy-nilly like this.”

  “Why are you so concerned, Ant?” Martin inquired. “It’s not like I’m spending all your money. It’s my own.”

  “I told you, don’t call me Ant,” he insisted. “And I just want to make sure you don’t waste your money on something superfluous.”

  “Superfluous? This is my birthday. When else should I spend superfluously?” Martin took a drink of his juice and chuckled. “What kind of word is superfluous?”

  “The unnecessary kind,” Veronica joked, and Charles snorted into his coffee.

  “True enough, Chef Koche,” Martin agreed, still smiling. “Don’t worry about it Ant. I want this vacation to be special, even if it is small.”

  Anthony cringed at the nickname but said no more in response.

  Chapter 5

  Lunch ended up being just as successful as breakfast, and by the time the team was done cleaning up Veronica decided they needed a break. After sending Hannah back to The Rare Catch to restock their supplies, as she had originally planned, Veronica and Sakura decided to check out the pool. The season was perfect for taking a swim outside, and without a nearby lake, the pool was the ideal place.

  The two pools, the hot tub, and the surrounding area were strangely unoccupied, possibly because most of the other resort customers were having their lunch. Sandro had insisted that the Buckners be fed earlier because he wanted to minimize contact between Veronica’s cooks and the ones employed by the Starlight Resort.

  More likely he wanted to make sure the other customers didn’t see us, Veronica thought. Too late for that. Everyone knows we’re here. That little incident with the missing children playing hide and seek in my van didn’t help matters.

  Regardless, it was nice to have the pool to themselves, although neither Veronica nor Sakura brought a swimsuit. The ambiance of being near the pool, hearing the bubbling hot tub, and listening to the falling water between the two swimming pools, forming a sort of waterfall, was a joy in itself.

  The Buckners must have felt the same way since most of them were there as well. Martin and David both sat in the patio chairs, and Martin would occasionally go to dip his feet in the hot tub. David was sitting on the edge of his chair, watching as Amber would jump from the diving board, perform some trick involving a spin or twirl, and land in the water. She would come up moments later, swim to the edge of the pool, and get out to walk back to the high dive again.

  Charles was a little distance away from the rest of his family. He still used a patio chair, but he just watched from a distance. There was a large spiral notebook on his lap, and he continually looked up at Amber before looking back down.

  Strange, Veronica thought. Why’s he sitting all the way over there?

  From what she had seen, the Buckner family was pretty close. Father and sons, father and daughter, between brothers and sisters even if they had their occasional disagreements, they clearly cared about each other very much. Sometimes love was not always so recognizable, and many families deal with their issues.

  Veronica suddenly felt bad she didn’t help David more when he had been searching for Amber. He was just worried about his daughter; the way he watched her now as she swam was a clear indication of that. However, she was a full-grown adult and could take care of herself.

  Charles seemed to be the only oddball of the whole thing. He usually sat away from the others and was quieter whenever they were together. Veronica worried that he was the one to be concerned about, not David or Amber.

  “Does he always sit apart from the rest?” Sakura asked, pointing to the man in question.

  “Usually yeah, but he’s a nice guy. I’ll introduce you.” Veronica led her friend over to where Charles sat, and he looked up as he heard their approach. “Hi, Charlie. How’re you doing?”

  “I’m okay. Thanks for asking. You?”

  “Not bad myself.” Veronica turned to gesture to her companion. “This is Sakura Yamouchi. She’s my Executive Sous Chef, but also my good friend.”

  Charles smiled. “I was wondering about that. Amber mentioned hiking with you earlier. Nice to meet you.”

  “Nice to meet you too,” Sakura responded, giving him a handshake. “I don’t know about hiking, but it was a nice stroll before work.”

  “It was nice for Amber too. She likes you a lot.” Charlie looked down at his notebook. “But I’d keep an eye out for David. They got into another fight this morning.”

  “Oh really?” Sakura frowned. “Well, that shouldn’t keep us from being friends. I’m going to say hi. See you later, Charlie.”

  Charlie waved as Sakura walked by, and he then turned his attention back to Veronica.

  “Is that why you’re sitting over here?” she asked. “So you don’t have to deal with that drama?”

  “Well, partly,” he admitted. “I just need time to myself, so I like to sit away from lots of people.

  You think three people are considered ‘lots’? Guess Sandro’s cooks aren’t the only ones to think so. Instead, Veronica said: “That sounds like what Amber said this morning.”

  Charlie gave a small chuckle. “I guess we’re more alike than we ever knew.”

  Veronica looked down at his notebook. He had lowered it enough to see a small sketch made with a pencil, although with it being upside down she couldn’t distinguish what the sketch was supposed to represent.

  “What’s that?” she asked. Rather than answering, Charlie lifted the sketchbook to his chest, hiding it from the view of the world. Veronica took a step back. “Sorry. I don’t mean to pry.”

  “It’s okay,” he answered. “Sorry. I’m just not used to sharing before it's finished.”

  “No worries. Like I said, I don’t mean to pry. I’ll leave you to it.”

  Charlie gave her a grateful smile as she turned and walked away. She headed over to where she saw Sakura, who seemed to be in a bit of trouble. Amber had gotten out of the pool at this point, and was glaring at her father, who was standing straight and stiff as he lectured Veronica’s sous chef.
<
br />   “I don’t want you to come near my daughter, understand?” he sneered. “You are a bad influence on her, and I won’t have it.”

  “I went off on my own, Dad,” Amber protested. “Aren’t you always saying I’m disobeying you? Long before I met Sakura?”

  “That isn’t the point,” David argued. “I don’t want you getting worse.”

  “Getting worse?” Sakura repeated. “She doesn’t have an illness or anything.”

  Veronica watched the exchange, partly wanting to break it up and partly not wanting to argue with her client’s son. She was probably already on David’s bad side from that morning, and she didn’t want to make it worse.

  “You just don’t like the idea of me doing what I want,” Amber declared. “It’s either your way or the highway. Why can’t I just be myself?”

  “I let you do your own thing all the time,” David replied.

  “Letting me become a certified lifeguard doesn’t count. You only agreed to it because it involved learning CPR, which you say is important for being a doctor.”

  A doctor? Huh? Veronica felt like she lost the plot.

  “A doctor is a perfectly respectable position,” David insisted. “And we shouldn’t be discussing this in public.”

  “You’re the one who brought it up!” Sakura proclaimed.

  David spun to Veronica. “Will you take your sous chef out of here?!”

  “Why is it so hard to let me follow my dreams?” Amber demanded. “Why do you try to get me to live your life instead of my own?!”

  “That’s not what I’m doing!”

  Amber just groaned and took a deep breath, as if she was going to scream, and Veronica couldn’t help but think this was a little childish of her. Maybe she wasn’t as much of an adult as Veronica originally thought.

  David snarled. “Don’t you dare!”

  Maybe they’re both acting a little childish, Veronica thought.

  Amber released her breath before walking right past David to grab her towel. She then marched back to the main building. David looked like he was about to follow her when the sound of barking stopped him. A large golden retriever sped between them, howling the whole way. She rushed out of the pool area and ran towards the resort, but in a different direction from where Amber had gone.

  “Oh no! Angel!” David chased after the retriever, seemingly running faster than he would when he was chasing his daughter.

  Veronica and Sakura turned to see Martin sitting on his patio chair, laughing the whole time. He saw the two women staring at him, and he shrugged.

  “The best way to get David to leave Amber alone for a while is to have a canine emergency,” he explained. “Don’t worry. Angel won’t go anywhere.”

  “I didn’t even know dogs were allowed here,” Veronica said. “How do you know she’ll come back?”

  “This is a dog-friendly resort,” Martin replied. He glanced over to a large box sitting beside him. “As for Angel, she needs a break every once in a while, but she wouldn’t dare leave these little guys.”

  Little guys? Veronica looked in the box and saw a litter of yellow and white fuzz balls. They squeaked and wagged their tails in excitement, and Veronica couldn’t suppress her squeal. “They’re so cute; look at them!”

  “Can we pet them?” Sakura asked, stopping herself halfway from reaching into the box.

  “Of course. They could use the socialization.”

  Martin’s smile widened as the two chefs played with the puppies. One, in particular, seemed to take a shine to Veronica, as she sat in the woman’s lap and licked her face multiple times.

  “Ah! Puppy kisses!”

  “She likes you,” Martin said.

  “How old are they?” Sakura asked.

  “Just turned nine weeks. They were an accident.”

  “How can they be an accident?” Veronica asked.

  Martin flushed. “That’s my fault. I’ve never had a dog before, and when Amber bought her for me, I thought she was a boy. She would play with another friend’s dog, who was a boy, and he's not fixed. Some time later these little guys showed up.”

  “Didn’t you listen to Bob Parker?” Veronica teased. “Spay and neuter your pets?”

  “I know. I take full responsibility for it,” Martin confessed. “Once I find the puppies homes, I plan to have Angel spayed. Thankfully she was already called that, and Angel is a gender-neutral enough name to work.”

  “What breed is the dad?” Veronica inquired, more out of curiosity than anything.

  “He’s a golden too, so they’re purebred,” Martin answered. “I guess that’s a point in their favor since some people don’t like mixed breed dogs.”

  “For whatever silly reason,” Veronica said with a frown. “I’ve had dogs all my life, and mutts are just as great as purebred ones.”

  “What’s the saying? You’re preaching to the choir?” Martin joked.

  “You said Amber gave her to you?” Sakura asked.

  “For my sixty-fifth birthday, yes.”

  The young woman looked down at the puppies, her petting suddenly slowing. “I feel bad. I didn’t mean to have Amber get in trouble with her dad again.”

  “David and Amber have been on the rocks for years,” Martin informed her. “You being there had nothing to do with it. Don’t worry about it.”

  “I just wish there was something I could do.”

  “I think…being there for Amber is the best thing you can do.”

  Sakura smiled. “Thanks. Mister Buckner.”

  Veronica’s pocket began to tremble, and she dug into it to pull out her cell phone. She read the message on the screen and looked at Sakura.

  “It’s a text from Miranda. The van’s just arrived back.” Veronica picked up the puppy from her lap and put her back in the box. The puppy leaped up to place her front paws on the edge of the box, watching Veronica as she left. “We need to check the inventory. Make sure nothing was forgotten. Thank you for your time and the puppy hugs, Mister Buckner.”

  “Call me Martin,” he corrected playfully. “Will I see you again at dinner tonight?”

  “If you’d like, I’ll certainly come by.”

  The ladies said their goodbyes (trying and failing to ignore the crying of the puppies) and headed back to the resort. They decided to go to the kitchen via the lobby, just to see how Sandro would react should he spot them.

  Halfway there, Veronica spotted someone sitting in one of the plush couches in front of the unlit fireplace. It was Janet, her nose buried in a thick book that probably belonged in the hands of a medical school student, given the title “Cardiovascular Life Support and CPR.” Veronica tapped Sakura’s shoulder and pointed to the third woman. They made their way over to her seconds later.

  Strange that she was the only one of the Buckners not at the pool, she thought, but then paused. Or maybe not so surprising.

  “Hi Janet,” Veronica greeted. Janet looked up from her book and gave a small nod of acknowledgment. “I wanted to ask if all your meals have been to your satisfaction? I know you have certain needs, and I want to make sure everyone is happy.”

  “The food has been delightful, thank you.”

  The two chefs waited several minutes for her to elaborate, but Janet simply continued to stare at them. She didn’t even lower her eyes back to her book. She just stared and stared.

  “Did Amber go by here?” Veronica finally asked, just trying to make conversation. “She got into a fight with her father earlier, and we were wondering if she was doing okay.”

  “Amber’s been having problems for a while,” Janet responded. “She just doesn’t have the ambition to go to medical school like David wants her to.”

  This time, Janet returned to her book, clearly trying to indicate that the conversation was over. Veronica and Sakura looked at each other before Veronica shrugged and returned to the kitchens, Sakura a few steps behind her.

  “She didn’t want to talk about personal issues during breakfast this morning
, when I was in the room,” Veronica informed Sakura. “She probably thinks it isn’t our business.”

  “I can see why she would think that, but Amber and I are friends,” Sakura protested. “But I guess I should hear it from Amber herself, huh?”

  “Probably a good idea, but I wouldn’t be surprised if she doesn’t tell you immediately.”

  “I wouldn’t be surprised either. These things take time.”

  “In any case, we need to get those supplies inventoried. Let’s go.”

  Chapter 6

  “Day three huh?” Sakura said from the van’s passenger seat.

  “Yup. Just today and tomorrow,” Veronica confirmed. “This is going by really fast.”

  “Really?” Sakura replied. “I feel like this is taking forever.”

  “We’re already halfway through this job,” her employer reminded her. “It’s speeding by for me.”

  “Oh, yeah, that,” Sakura stuttered. “Yeah, it is going by fast. I thought you were talking about the drive.”

  “What?” No! Why would I be talking about the drive?”

  “Sorry. It’s on my mind. I want to get up there ASAP.”

  “Why’s that?” Veronica asked. “No, don’t answer that. You want an excuse to hang out with Amber again?”

  “Aw, you figured me out!” Sakura declared. “Can you blame me? I’m worried about how she’s doing.”

  “It's ironic that she’s getting so stressed out about something that’s clearly supposed to be a vacation, huh?” Veronica concluded.

  “I know, right?” Sakura uncrossed her arms as they arrived at the Starlight Resort. “Amber invited me to spend the night here tonight. She said we could go stargazing.”

  “That’s a once in a lifetime opportunity,” Veronica commented as she parked. “Going to take her up on it?”