A Watery Death (A Missing Pieces Mystery Book 7) by Joyce Lavene, Jim Lavene

and Sir Horace will be running the whole town soon.” Manfred rocked back on his heels and sneered at me. “Once you marry Kevin Brickman, the show will be all in the family.”
    “Excuse me.” I walked away from him but heard him questioning Cathi about our relationship.
    Since I really wanted to talk to Kevin, I headed for the Blue Whale instead of Missing Pieces. The mayor’s coat was steamy.
    Gramps went by in a police car. It was so odd seeing him in that capacity again. I waved, but he looked too deep in thought to notice me. I wondered if there was any new information about Captain Lucky’s death.
    Which brought me back to thinking about seafolk.
    I wasn’t sure why Tovi thought we’d even consider that someone who lived under water would have killed Captain Lucky. I supposed he didn’t realize that most people in Duck probably didn’t believe mermaids existed. They were fast to believe in pirate curses and ghosts, but I’d never met anyone talking about seafolk in casual conversation.
    For all his boasting about understanding humans, Tovi didn’t know as much about us as we knew about him.
    Cars and golf carts were hard pressed to get down any roads in Duck due to heavy pedestrian traffic. I walked on the side of the road, but almost everyone else walked right down the middle. There were so many strangers that I only saw a few familiar faces. I saw Althea Hinson, who was a librarian in Manteo, and Molly Black from the Curbside Bar and Grill.
    “Thank goodness Kevin keeps extras on hand.” Molly smiled as she hurried by me. “The day has barely started, and we’re out of butter. Can you imagine? See you later, Dae.”
    I reached the Blue Whale, which was also crowded since Kevin was holding open house all day. The double front doors were exposed to the strong breezes coming from the Atlantic. There was a wide circle drive in front of the inn with a large fountain in the middle green space. A mermaid smiled flirtatiously from her watery home as I walked by.
    Kevin had left the hitching post at the front of the building to keep the original feel to the old place. Dozens of visitors were sitting on the rocking chairs that graced the verandah, cold drinks in hand.
    I went quickly past them and headed to the kitchen where I knew Kevin would be. He had hired six high school students to walk around the inn and grounds giving out food samples and making sure everyone was happy. From what I could see, the idea was a huge success. I liked the inn better when it wasn’t so crowded that I could hardly move, but I was glad business was good.
    Kevin was in the kitchen with a staff of three cooks. They were getting ready for lunch that would be served in the big dining room to the back of the building, as well as on the verandah and in the back garden. The wonderful aromas, as Jamie had mentioned, were enough to make my stomach rumble.
    “Dae! I thought you’d be at Missing Pieces.” He kissed me quickly, his handsome face flushed from the heat from the kitchen. “Can you stay for lunch?”
    “I’m definitely staying until I have a chance to talk to you. Is there anything I can do?”
    “Not a thing.” His blue/gray eyes zeroed in on my face. “What’s wrong?”
    “We’ll talk when you have time. It can wait.”
    “I’ll set us up for lunch at the table over there.” He nodded to what I thought of as ‘our’ table in a corner of the big kitchen—the best seat in the house as far as I was concerned.
    “Great. I can’t wait.”
    I really couldn’t. The whole seafolk thing was about to explode out of me. I helped him get the small table set for us with plates and silverware. I snatched a few fresh rolls and smothered one with butter and honey while I was waiting.
    Finally it was time for all the high school students to serve the buffet lunch. Kevin dropped salads, bread, and his Shrimp Almandine off at our table and then went to make sure everything was running smoothly inside and out before he sat