A Cup of Murder by Cam Larson Page B

Michael
Simms’ murder."
    He nodded in sympathy and told me he had heard
that. I hadn’t seen a newspaper but I was sure it was headline
news. Usually, over my coffee in the morning I read news online
before coming to work. Since undertaking the care of a dog I didn’t
always have time to do that, or maybe I just didn’t want to read
about Jacob’s arrest.
    "I want to tell you something I learned about
Michael Simms," said Daniel. "Did you know he had terminal
cancer?" The look on my face told him I did not. "He was in
stage four with lung cancer."
    "I wonder if whoever killed him knew that,"
I said.
    Daniel shrugged his shoulders. I doubted that,
since the murderer would have just waited for Michael to die of the
disease if he knew he was terminally ill. Daniel watched me in a way
that confused me.
    "Is there something else you know about all
of this?" I asked him.
    He shuffled in the chair and shook his head no. I
asked him if he had any ideas on where belladonna came from that was
found in Michael’s coffee cup. Again he indicated no idea. I
decided to tell him about my visit to see James Simms. Daniel voiced
surprised that I was getting so far into my quest to find the real
suspect.
    "I know the two brothers parted ways,"
he said, "but I have no idea if they ever contacted each other
again or not. When John Andrews, James' campaign manager, died I knew
some rift developed but never found out why."
    "How did John Andrews die?" I asked.
    "I believe he had a severe asthma attack. I
never knew the whole story."
    Could it be that whatever happened to John Andrews
caused the separation of the two brothers? If the Senator was to be
believed, they parted ways while John was still campaign manager.
There was no more time to discuss everything I wanted to talk about
with Daniel. Roasted Love was busier than ever as lunch time neared.
    The paramedic ordered a Frappe this time. I guess
he figured it was better to start with something cold than to let a
hot drink cool down before finishing it. Lily took it to him. I
wondered what was going on across the street. When I looked up I saw
a familiar BMW parked in front. Senator James Simms got out and
walked around to open the door for someone. I presumed it was his
wife Sarah until I saw a woman step from the passenger side I did not
recognize. They both walked to the front door and I noted a frown on
the Senator’s face when he peeked through before using a key to
unlock the door. Seeing Jen Perry inside as if she owned the place
must have been the cause of the deep furrow that crossed his forehead
when he turned toward the stranger with him.
    The door swung open. One of our customers opened
the door of Roasted Love at the same time when leaving and I heard a
loud voice that belonged to the woman across the street. The door to
Sunrise closed. A few minutes later I saw Jen Perry leaving. She
still wore an apron that belonged to Michael’s coffee house. She
left in a hurry and slung her purse strap over her shoulder, ignoring
the apron. At her car door contents from her purse spilled out and
she quickly bent to scoop them up before slamming her car door. I was
sure I would get a phone call from her later. After all, according to
Jen Perry I was her only friend.
    All eyes in Roasted Love were glued to the actions
going on at Sunrise, including those of Daniel Jenkins. His look
shifted to me. I edged closer to his table and sat down.
    "What was that all about?" he asked.
    "I don’t know any more than you do except
maybe you can tell me who that woman with the Senator is," I
said.
    "It’s Michael’s wife, Leticia Simms,"
he said. His voice was matter of fact. I stared at him.
    "Why are they over there?"
    Once again the paramedic gave his trademark shrug.
"James was Michael’s brother and Leticia was his wife. They
are probably in there to see about the shop."
    Finding Jen Perry there as if she owned the place
must have been a surprise to both of them. I strongly suspected Jen
Perry