Murder of a Bookstore Babe

“Did you go looking for her?” Skye had a sinking feeling. “Xenia, did you go to Tales and Treats trying to find her?”

“Yes,” Xenia whispered, then sobbed, “It’s my fault. Kayla’s dead because of me.”

“Shh.” Skye put her arms around the girl. “Tell me all about it.” Ay-yi-yi! What had Xenia done? Had her anger issues finally resulted in her killing someone?

“If only I had gone inside.” Xenia leaned into Skye and whimpered, “Why did I just drive away? Why do I always do the wrong thing?”

Phew! That was a relief. Xenia’s crime was one of omission, not commission. “When were you there?” Skye asked, pulling out a chair from the table and easing the girl into it. She didn’t know whether the ME had been able to pinpoint the time of death, but Xenia’s information might help narrow it down if he hadn’t.

“Around eleven.”

“Did you see anything or anyone?”

“No. The window was dark and no one was around, so I figured they were closed and Kayla had already left. So I did, too.” Xenia drew an unsteady breath. “What if she was still alive and if I had gone in I could have saved her?”

“You mustn’t beat yourself up for acting in a reasonable manner.” Skye felt her heart break for the girl. When she’d moved to Scumble River, Xenia had had difficulty fitting in, and Kayla was the first real friend she had made. “It was after hours, the lights were off, and there was no sign of trouble. Why would you try to go in?”

“Because Kayla was missing.” Xenia’s voice cracked. “I should have done a better job looking out for her.”

“In those circumstances, there was no reason to have gone inside.” Skye scooted her chair closer to Xenia and took her hand in both of hers. “Was Kayla really missing? Did she tell you that she was coming to your house for sure?” Chase had made it seem like Kayla often decided at the last minute where she was spending the night.

“Not exactly.” Xenia brushed a long black pigtail back over her shoulder. “I just figured she’d be over since she had a big project due Monday and I have better equipment than she does.”

“And did she always answer her cell phone?” Skye probed, determined to alleviate the girl’s guilt.

“Well . . .” It was clear from Xenia’s expression that she wasn’t sure whether to tell the truth. “No, not always.” She added grudgingly, “Especially when she was with Chase. Kayla liked to keep her love life separate from her school life.”

“So there’s no way you really could have known she was in trouble.”

“I guess not.” Xenia looked relieved for a moment, then stiffened. “But with Chase calling and calling, I should have known.”

“He’d never done that before?”

“Not in a long time.” Xenia stubbornly held on to her feelings of culpability. “He knows I don’t like him, so I should have realized that he’d only call me if he’d tried every other way to find Kayla.”

“I respect the fact that you’re taking responsibility for your actions, but in this instance, there is no way you could have guessed Kayla was in trouble unless you’re clairvoyant.” Skye stood. “The only guilty one in this case is the person who committed the crime.”

“I suppose.” Xenia slumped further in her seat and picked at a hole in her fishnet gloves.

The good hostess in Skye kicked in. “Would you like some tea or hot chocolate?”

“I’d rather have coffee.”

“Okay.” Skye shrugged mentally. Xenia was eighteen, and it wasn’t as if she was asking for a shot of bourbon. “I have some wonderful pumpkin cake. My mother made it. Would you like a piece?”

“Sure.” Xenia reached down to stroke Bingo, who was sniffing her Doc Martens. “I’m sorry to burst in on you like that, but I didn’t know who else to go to.”

“I’m happy to talk to you anytime, but”—Skye finished preparing the coffee maker and toggled the switch to the ON position—“how about your mom?”

Xenia thrust out her jaw. “You’ve met my mother. She can barely manage to focus on me long enough to order takeout for dinner. She usually just gives me a twenty and tells me to get what I want.”

Skye nodded reluctantly. Raette Craughwell was extremely young and, from what Skye had heard, maintained an active social life. Xenia was left pretty much on her own. The only time Raette paid attention was when Xenia got into trouble, which was one of the reasons Xenia got into trouble so often.

There was a moment of silence while Skye tried to think of something comforting to say, but Xenia was too sharp for platitudes, so after a second, Skye put a slice of cake and a cup in front of the girl and asked her, “Do you take cream or sugar?”

“I drink it black, one sugar.”

Which said a lot about Xenia, Skye thought as she took a sip of her heavily sweetened and lightened coffee. “Would you mind going over your experience at Tales and Treats? There might be a clue as to who attacked Kayla.”

“You mean killed her.” Xenia took a gulp of her coffee and stared coolly at Skye. Apparently, Xenia’s hard shell was back in place. “You don’t have to mince words with me.”