Copper Beach

Brenda.

    “Don’t knock the coffee and doughnuts,” Abby said, in an equally soft voice. “High-profit items.”

    “Sure, for the boss. But people who only order coffee and doughnuts don’t leave much in the way of a tip.”

    “Yes, I know. I’ve done this kind of work. Sorry about that. Maybe I should put up a sign that says minimum order of a hamburger required if you’re here to see the stranger in town. And there will be an extra charge for viewing the dog out front.”

    Brenda snickered. Abby glanced around the crowded restaurant. Several pairs of eyes quickly slid away. The buzz of artificial conversation got louder. Most of it revolved around fishing and the state of the weather.

    “I realize you don’t get a lot of tourists here on the island,” she said to Brenda, “but are they such a rare species that everyone in town turns out to view a specimen?”

    Brenda giggled and leaned closer, on the pretext of collecting the menu. “It’s true, we aren’t exactly a destination stop in the San Juans. We’re not Friday Harbor, that’s for sure. Most folks don’t even know that Legacy exists, and that’s the way people around here like it. The biggest event here all year is coming up next week, that’s the annual Coppersmith technical summit. The employees of the R-and-D lab and their families fill up the lodge and the bed-and-breakfast places. There is always a big barbecue on the last night. The whole town is invited.”

    “What makes me so interesting?”

    Brenda winked. “The fact that you’re staying out at Sam Coppersmith’s place, of course.”

    “He doesn’t have a lot of guests, I take it.”

    “Are you kidding?” Brenda straightened and did an eye roll. “He hasn’t brought a lady friend here since his fiancée was murdered.”

    “The way I heard it, they were not engaged.”

    “Well, they weren’t. She got killed before they could make it official. But everyone on the island knew that Sam was going to marry her. Losing her like that just about broke his heart.”

    “I see.”

    “There was a lot of nasty talk after he found the body. Online, they were calling him Blackbeard. They said any smart woman should be scared to death of him.”

    “Bluebeard,” Abby said.

    “Huh?”

    “Bluebeard was the name of the seventeenth-century nobleman who was in the habit of murdering his wives, not Blackbeard.”

    “Oh, yeah. Whatever. Anyhow, the fact that he brought you here is a very big deal. Means his broken heart is mending.”

    Abby watched Sam walk down the street toward the diner. He had just come out of the post office, but he wasn’t carrying any mail. He nodded at the people he passed. They greeted him in a comfortable, relaxed manner.

    Newton, secured to a post by his leash, spotted Sam approaching and got to his feet to greet him.

    “No one from around here believed for a single minute that Sam had anything to do with that poor woman’s murder, you know,” Brenda whispered earnestly.

    Abby watched Sam pause to scratch Newton behind the ears. “I understand. They believed he was innocent because they knew him and knew the family. They couldn’t imagine him committing murder.”

    “Well, sure, everyone knows the Coppersmiths. They own most of the island. But that’s not the reason we all figured Sam didn’t kill his fiancée.”

    “What was the reason?” Abby asked politely. She braced for the answer she knew was coming.

    “Simple,” Brenda said, with an air of triumph. “Like my dad says, if one of the Coppersmith men decided to murder someone, you can bet there wouldn’t be anything left behind to tie him to the scene. Either it would look like an accident or else the body would just disappear. Not that hard to make that happen around here.” Brenda nodded in the direction of the small bay. “Lotta deep water out there.”

    “I’ve heard that theory,” Abby said.

    “Yeah, well, obviously you don’t think he killed that poor woman. You wouldn’t be here if you did, right? Oops, gotta go.” Brenda grimaced. “The boss is giving me one of his get-back–to–work looks.”

    She whisked herself off in the direction of the coffee machine.

    Sam opened the door and walked into the diner. Every head in the room swiveled in his direction. There were several rounds of cheerful greetings. Sam responded to the friendly gauntlet with the easy familiarity of someone who knows everyone in the room.

    He made his way to the booth