Free Cloudy with a Chance of Ghosts (Destiny Bay Cozy Mysteries Book 4) by J.D. Winters Page A

it off. But I couldn’t. My mother running off and leaving me had twisted my entire life in ways I would always regret. I couldn’t ignore that. It was the truth.
    Bebe nodded, not trying to sugar coat it. “Yes, she did. Grandma Kalena took you in and raised you. I helped for a few years, but then I met Jimmy and we got married and I came back here to California with him.”
    I studied her for a moment. “So you turned out okay, despite losing your mother. Didn’t you?”
    She nodded. “I had hard times, but I also had Jimmy. He was worth everything.” She drew in a sharp breath and steadied herself. “If only I still had him today.”
    I turned away, not sure I could buy that as the answer to all our problems. There was no doubt that her husband Jimmy Miyaki had been a wonderful man and had made her very happy. But since he’d died a few years ago, she’d had periods of feeling lost and lonely. I knew, because I’d witnessed it. She didn’t have to tell me.  
    “Did you ever try to find her?” I asked, going back to talking about my mother.  
    “Many times. It seems as though she just melted away into the air. No one knows what happened to her.”
    There was a lump in my throat. I clenched my hands into fists, trying to keep from lashing out. It didn’t seem fair. Someone should have kept track of her. Someone should have known where she went. How could she just disappear like that? It was so wrong.  
    “How about that man?”
    “De Ponce? He was killed in a car accident about fifteen years ago. I never could find anyone who would even admit to knowing him.”
    I nodded. I’d done my own search during my freshman year at UCSB. I hadn’t found anything either.
    Reaching out, I took Bebe’s hand and held it tightly. I already knew most of what she’d just told me, but it had been a long time since I’d last heard it and I’d needed to hear it again, just to make sure I wasn’t making things up in my own mind. I had only heard vague rumors about the man she ran off with. I hadn’t been sure of his name. Now that I knew it, I could hate him with a little more intensity.  
    Emotions were clouding my brain and misting my eyes. I realized it was probably time to end this for now. I reached for Bebe.  
    “Thank you,” I said, tears in my eyes. “For telling me all this, and for all you did for me from the time I was born.”
    We hugged and cried together for a few minutes. Then we sniffed and got tissues and began to smile again.  
    “I’ve got a couple of photo albums from those days,” she told me. “They’re in the attic. I’ll go up and search them out. Maybe this weekend.”
    “Oh, I’d like that,” I said.  
    “Okay then.” She took a deep breath and shook her head. “Well, I’ve got to get over to the office. The foreman has some changes to the plans for the new orchid greenhouse that I have to okay before he can move on. Will I see you for dinner tonight?”
    I hesitated. “I’m not sure. Jill and I were thinking of trying to talk to some of the artists from the Carlton Group tonight.”
    She frowned. “You know, you really ought to leave it to the authorities. They’re the experts at these things. If there is a murderer out there, you could be asking for trouble getting involved like that.”
    I could almost hear Captain Stone’s voice in what she said.  
    “Oh don’t worry. We’ll be careful. And Jill is going crazy about Jagger being a suspect. You don’t think we can just sit home and let things play out like this, do you? Not when we might be able to see or find something the police might miss?”
    She sighed. “It’s like yelling at the wind,” she muttered, shaking her head. “I guess nothing I say is going to stop you.”
    “About dinner….”
    She held up her hand. “Okay. We’ll play it by ear.”  
    “Thanks.”
    And then I followed her to the door because I had another thought. “Bebe, I know you don’t see Aunty Jane much anymore.”
    She