A Sparkling Deceit: Clean Sweep Cozy Mysteries

Book 1: Clean Sweep Cozy Mysteries

by Dianne Harman

Genres: Amateur Sleuth; Craft & Hobby Cozy Mysteries

Synopsis

When Jane's husband left her and their children for greener pastures, she had no choice but to take as many housecleaning jobs as she could get to support them. Little did she know that during one of those jobs she would discover that a valuable ring her client owned had been stolen.

Even more unexpected is when her client asks her to investigate the theft and find out who stole the ring. Jane soon discovers she has a knack for solving crimes as well as locating a treasure that has been missing for over a hundred years.

When she looked at a long-lost map that a treasure seeker had discovered, she realized it gave directions to an old farmhouse that had been in her family for generations. Even more ironic, it’s the very same farmhouse Jane and her children are moving into, a farmhouse that’s been abandoned for decades.

Follow Jane on her journey of self-discovery as she solves the mystery of who stole her client’s ring, while at the same time she struggles to provide for her family.

If you enjoyed Nancy Drew or Agatha Christie, you'll love this cozy mystery from a USA Today Bestselling Author.

Release date: July 30, 2023

Print pages: 184

Sample

You never know what motivates a person to do what they do. It can be almost anything, from throwing a party to stealing someone else’s property. What are they looking to get from what they do? What’s the point? Did they even realize they needed to get something from it? People make all kinds of choices every day. Some are small and insignificant. Others only appear as though they are.

It was evening, and as the sun had begun to slip lower on the Northeast Kansas horizon, the nearby trees were blocking the backyard from its brilliance. It had been a warm but beautiful day with a bright blue sky and only small, puffy clouds to block its warmth. A breeze picked up as the sun slipped lower, cooling the outdoor temperature even more, making it a perfect evening to be outside.

A group of friends and a few family members had gathered for a small summertime party to eat, drink, and enjoy each other’s company. Some of them knew each other and a couple of them were newcomers, but everyone seemed to be having a good time. However, one of them seemed to be shifting uncomfortably in their chair.

Finally, even as one of the members of the group was telling the others about something that had happened earlier in the day, they leaned forward to excuse themselves, saying they needed to use the bathroom. They weren’t sure if anyone actually heard them, but it didn’t matter. They’d said it anyway. It was probably better if no one knew they’d gotten up, considering what they were planning to do. And it was much more than a mere trip to the bathroom that they wanted everyone else to believe. An excuse that had been used by many after the wine began to flow.

Rising from their chair, they crossed the well-maintained patio and continued past the gas firepit where everyone had gathered. Their feet made almost no sound on the tile floor as they walked across it. Once their hand was on the sliding door leading into the kitchen, they quietly pulled it open before slipping inside. They shut the door behind them as quietly as possible.

The laughter from the party in the backyard filtered through the house, despite the windows being closed and the air conditioning blasting away with a rattling sound. Someone must have told a joke, and it sounded like everyone was trying to compete with one another to see who could laugh the loudest.

They knew that’s all parties like this were, ways to suck up to your friends and neighbors so they’ll say nice things about you and tell everyone else how much money you must have to own all the “nice” things in the house.

They hated everything money stood for and everything it had made them into. It was a grim reality that you couldn’t live without it. Not anymore. Not in the world we live in today, but even so, they resented it.

They also resented the fact that some people seemed to have things just handed to them on a silver platter, and seldom, if ever, were things handed to those who needed it the most. It always ended up being those people who already had more than their fair share. Which, in the end, only gave them more of what they didn’t deserve.

Stepping lightly, they slipped through the kitchen and into the family room. They listened closely to see if anyone else might have come inside before them, but the house sounded empty. With no hesitation, they moved quickly down the hall looking for the master bedroom. They only paused once to make sure they were headed in the right direction.

When they stopped moving, they thought they heard something. They held their breath and waited, listening. Had the sound been inside the house, or had it come from outside? They could still hear the muffled voices of the partygoers outside. Maybe that was what they’d heard.

They slipped on a pair of thing cotton gloves taken from their pocked that they’d brought just for this purpose and opemed the door of the first room they’d come to. They peeked into the room, but quickly decided it had to be a guest room and not where the Hannings slept. The room was too simple for such an extravagant couple. They didn’t linger and continued to move on down the hall.

The next room they came to looked much more promising. The tall, dark oak four poster bed was intricately carved, and the linens looked plush and expensive. They had a feeling they’d found what they were looking for.

Their feet made no sound as they walked across the plush carpet of the master bedroom. It wasn’t hard to tell that they were in the right place. The room was just as spotless as the rest of the house, but it was much nicer than the other room they’d looked in.

They crept to the massive walk-in closet that belonged to Mrs. Hanning, hoping that no one had seen them enter the house. If they did, they’d probably wonder what was taking them so long, so they needed to hurry.

There were dresses and blouses of every color imaginable and not a t-shirt in sight. There were a couple of pairs of denim jeans, but they were certain that they were name brand jeans and looked as though they’d been taken to the dry cleaners. Just inside the closet was her jewelry collection, glittering under recessed lights.

They looked over the collection, wondering which piece would be the most expensive. If they were going to steal something, they might as well make it worthwhile. They had no intention of doing this again. One ring. One theft. Surely one ring wouldn’t be missed among so many others.

Their eyes landed on a white gold ring that featured a very large sapphire surrounded by diamonds and opals. In their opinion, it looked like it was almost too big to wear.

It wasn’t like they were born yesterday. That’s why they were wearing the cotton gloves. If someone noticed that the ring was missing, they didn’t want to leave behind fingerprints as evidence of their wrongdoing. They needed to make sure no one suspected them, or everything would be ruined. The very tenuous life they’d managed to cobble together would most likely crumble if anyone knew what they’d done.

Plucking the ring from the gray velvet holder it was on, they moved other rings around so that the absence of this one wouldn’t be noticed. And if it wasn’t noticed for a few days, it would be harder for Sharon Hanning to track down who might have taken her ring. In any event, they wanted to cover their tracks as best they could.

The longer it took before the missing ring was discovered, the better their odds were of not getting caught. People came and went from the house all the time, so it would be much easier to keep attention away from them if the window of time in which the ring went missing was wider.

Without another moment of hesitation, they tucked the ring in their pocket, slipped back out of the closet, and then into the hall. When they were in the hallway, they pulled off their gloves and shoved them deep into one of their pockets.

There was a sound coming from somewhere in the house. They were sure of it this time, which made them quicken their steps. There would be no easy way to explain away what they were doing if they were to get caught.

It wasn’t like they could pretend they’d gotten lost in the Hanning’s home, especially if the ring was discovered in their pocket. It wouldn’t take long for everyone at the party to put two and two together. That was the worst case scenario, and it been playing nonstop in their mind ever since they’d decided to go through with their plan.

They needed to draw as little attention to themselves as possible. That was the only way they saw this working out in their favor. And they badly needed it to work out, because everything was riding on this.

They hurried down the hall and quickly walked back to the kitchen, where the sliding door was located that would lead them back to the party. They felt their pulse racing as they approached the archway that led to the kitchen. They paused when they saw the kitchen island, taking a deep breath to steady their nerves.

They inhaled silently and deeply, trying to calm down as they began to walk at a much more leisurely pace. Maybe they hadn’t really heard anything? As they came around the corner, they almost ran into Sharon Hanning.

“Oh! What are you doing in here?” she asked, surprised. “I didn’t know anyone else was in the house.”

“I slipped away to use the bathroom,” they explained. It was the excuse they’d come up with in case someone saw them, and the excuse they’d used for slipping away. Now that they were using it, they realized how flimsy of an excuse it was.

Sharon rushed around the kitchen island to the wine fridge. She pointed toward the sliding door. “You better get back out there. Grace is telling the most hilarious story about a woman she saw at the store the other day.” She reached into the fridge and pulled out another bottle of wine. “And tell the others that I’ll be out in a moment with another bottle.”

They nodded and headed for the sliding door. They stepped outside, their heart pounding in their ears and tried to think of a reasonable excuse to leave. The sooner they could get away from here and back home, the better.

They knew that no one could know what they’d just done, and looking at them, no one would suspect that they’d just stolen something from their host. And no matter what they’d done before, that had been before. They were a changed person now, weren’t they?

The weight of the ring in their pocket seemed to laugh at them in response. Maybe they hadn’t changed after all. And who were they kidding? This was not the worst thing they’d ever done, by far. Maybe that was why they were feeling a pang of guilt.

It didn’t matter. No matter how they felt, this was what they needed to do to make things right. Because no matter what, they needed that money. They needed it like a fish needs water. Like a plant needed sun. And there was absolutely nothing that would change that.

When they got back outside, they sat back down and looked around at the others. No one seemed to have noticed that they’d left. Perfect. Now if only someone else would leave, so that they could excuse themselves as well, because they didn’t want to be the first one to leave. The one that always seemed to break the party bubble. After the first guest left, the others would soon follow. They just needed someone else to be the first.

Sitting back and sipping on their drink, they knew they had to be patient.