Whiskey Rebellion (Romantic Mystery/Comedy) Book 1 (Addison Holmes Mysteries)

asked.
    “Let’s just say things got complicated before we stumbled over the body.”
    “You’d better hope your mother never finds out you had sex in a church.”
    “We didn’t have sex,” I growled.
    “Which would explain why you’re in such a good mood.”
    “No, I’m pretty sure sexual frustration is the least of my problems. I’d say the biggest one is that I keep finding dead bodies.”
    “You don’t think the murders are related, do you?”
    “I don’t know. Mr. Butler didn’t have anything to do with me, but I feel responsible for Mr. Mooney. I guess I should confess that I asked Mr. Mooney to snoop around and keep track of who was going in and out of the Hyatt mansion. And now he’s dead. He said he had information for me, so I’m thinking whatever it was made someone nervous enough to kill him.”
    Kate closed her eyes and looked like she was counting.
    “Is there anything else you need to tell me?” she finally asked.
    I thought back through the last week and grimaced. There was probably a lot I needed to tell Kate, but none of it would make her feel better, so I decided to keep quiet and shook my head no.
    “Well, this is out of our hands now, Addison. It’s up to the police to find out who killed Mr. Mooney and if his death had anything to do with your principal’s. I guess it’s just our luck that Fanny Kimble withdrew her offer for us to investigate John Hyatt. We’ll let the police do their jobs and you can go back to your normal surveillance routine. At least you should be able to stay out of trouble without stumbling across any more bodies.”
    I sat and stared at Kate in shock. She’d gone back to reading the papers on her desk. “Kate, I feel responsible for Mr. Mooney’s death. I’m not just going to stop investigating things because you or Fanny Kimble says so. I’ve got a stake in this, and I’m going to see it through.”
    “Addison, listen to me,” Kate said deliberately enunciating each word, a sure sign she was about to lose her temper. “If you want to work for me then you will do what I say. Period. I’m worried about you, and this is not something you need to stick your nose into. Lord knows, somebody has to keep you out of trouble.”
    I was about to interrupt when she held up a hand to silence me.
    “I also have a business to worry about. A business with a good reputation. If you can’t follow my rules then I will fire you.”
    My mouth opened and closed like a guppy. “You’d really fire me?” I asked, incredulously.
    “In a heartbeat if it meant saving either your life or my business. Do we have an agreement?”
    I looked at Kate closely, but she wasn’t bluffing. She really would fire me.
    “Fine,” I said. “But I can’t promise that I can stay out of it completely. Nick’s already told me he thinks I’m somehow caught in the middle of this mess. All I can do is wait and see if he’s right.”
    “As long as you’re not actively seeking trouble out. Now t ell me about these pictures you’ve been getting.”
    “Geez, does Nick tell you everything? What a blabbermouth.”
    “He’s telling me things that I should have heard from you. I don’t like to hear about my employees being stalked, not to mention my best friend.”
    “ I don’t know. My gut tells me it’s probably Veronica. It wouldn’t be the first time she’s stooped to such a juvenile level. And the things she said at the Officer’s Gala keep replaying in my mind. She really thinks that I’ve screwed her over, and she’s out for revenge.”
    “Let me do some checking for you. If it’s Veronica I can find out, and believe me when I tell you I can put the fear of God into her.”
    “Thanks,” I said, grateful. “It’ll be nice to have one less thing to worry about.”
    “Just don’t let your guard down,” she warned. “I feel better that Nick told you to stay with me until he can take over. You can come hang out at my house until he gets done with the preliminary investigation. He’ll follow you back home and make sure your apartment is safe. But it could be a little while becaus e he said he was having trouble with Whiskey Bayou’s sheriff.”
    “What’s the problem?” I asked.
    “Jurisdiction. Nick just called in a Crime Scene Team from Savannah and overrode him in that patient way he has. The sheriff wasn’t too happy to have the city boys on his turf.”
    “Can’t blame him. It makes me uncomfortable to have Nick on my turf all the