by Amber Crewes
“Good afternoon!” Meghan called out, her heart pounding quickly as she stared at the police officer. He looked to be about her age, and with his biceps nearly bursting out of his tight uniform, Meghan could feel herself blushing.
“Can I help you?” Meghan asked, slowly lowering her eyelids and then glancing back up, a flirtatious move she had been trying to perfect for years.
The policeman shook his head. “Ma’am, are you Meghan Truman, owner of this establishment?”
Meghan nodded. The officer’s voice was stern, and the smile disappeared from Meghan’s lips as she looked up into his serious face.
“Yes? I’m Meghan. Why do you ask?”
The officer nodded curtly. “I’m Jack Irvin. I’m with the Sandy Bay Police Department. Ms. Truman, do you know a Mr. Norman Butcher?”
Meghan nodded. “Yes, I know Mr. Butcher. He’s a nasty fellow. He came in here screaming at me this week! He’s the meanest person I’ve met in Sandy Bay. Why? Why do you ask?”
“He’s dead, Ms. Truman,” Officer Irvin stated brusquely as Meghan’s jaw dropped.
“What?” Meghan gasped, her hands flying to her cheeks as the shock set in. “He’s dead? He was just in here a few days ago. How horrible!”
The officer stared at Meghan, and she felt uncomfortable with his stony gaze. “Is there something else, Officer Irvin?” Meghan asked. “What can I help you with? I didn’t know Norman very well, but is there something you need?”
Officer Irvin nodded. “Ma’am,” he began. “Mr. Butcher was discovered dead in the tea shop by his daughter, Lori Butcher. Ms. Butcher says he was cold and stiff, leading us to believe that he had been dead a while before she arrived. The cause of death was unclear until some reports were run a few hours ago, and we have good reason to believe that he was poisoned.”
Meghan’s eyes widened. “Poison?” Meghan whispered. “That’s awful! Poor Lori. Poor Norman.”
Officer Irvin raised an eyebrow and stared into Meghan’s eyes. “We have good reason to believe that you may have poisoned Mr. Butcher, Ms. Truman.”
Meghan shrieked. “Me?” Meghan cried in disbelief. “Me? Poison? What?”
“Witnesses say that you and Mr. Butcher have had several heated confrontations, including one yesterday. We’ve also been informed that you were attempting to hire one of his current employees, Ms. Lori Butcher, and that you were quite upset when Mr. Butcher refused to allow Lori to work for you.”
Meghan shook her head vigorously. “I wasn’t happy with Norman, and we had an argument about Lori yesterday, but that doesn’t mean I would poison him! Where would you come up with that crazy idea?”
Officer Irvin jerked his chin at one of the fresh apple pies displayed on the counter. “The testing we’ve done on the body indicates that the only thing in Mr. Butcher’s stomach was one of your apple pies. A poisoned apple pie, Ms. Truman.”
Meghan gasped. “Poisoned? What? Officer, I had nothing to do with Norman’s death! I sent a perfectly fine apple pie home with Lori yesterday when she stopped by! Have you talked with Lori?”
Officer Irvin placed a hand on the set of handcuffs dangling from his belt and looked at Meghan’s trembling face. “Ms. Truman,” he said. “We’ve spoken to Ms. Butcher, and she’s confirmed that you expressed frustration with her father over the employment matter. I’m sorry to tell you, but you are our prime suspect behind Norman Butcher’s murder. I’m going to need you to come down to the station with me for some questions. You might want to give your lawyer a call.”
Now, three days after being interrogated, Meghan sat alone in the quiet aftermath of Sally Sheridan’s visit to Truly Sweet. Everyone in Sandy Bay thought that she had killed Norman Butcher; between the confrontation they had had the night before his death, to the poisoned apple pie, the court of public opinion had ruled Meghan guilty as charged, and life would never be the same.
5
MEGHAN HAD BEEN INCONSOLABLE on the drive over to the Sandy Bay Police Station; Officer Irvin had not placed her in handcuffs, but as he escorted her into the backseat of his locked police car, Meghan felt her stomach churn. Tears fell from her eyes, and she began making loud wheezing noises as she struggled to catch her breath.
“Are you okay back there?” Officer Irvin asked.
“Yes….yes Officer Irvin,” Meghan yelped, trying to contain herself.
“Just call me Jack, that’s easier,” he said.
“I’m fine, Jack,” Meghan responded.
When they reached the Sandy Bay Police Station, Jack led Meghan into a small, windowless white room. Two thin iron chairs sat facing each other in the middle of the room, and Jack beckoned toward the one farther from the door.
“Have a seat,” Jack ordered, and Meghan sank into the iron chair.
“I’m going to be asking you some questions regarding your relationship with Norman Butcher, as well as some general questions. You may have a lawyer present, if you wish. Would you like me to call your lawyer?”
Meghan shook her head, her body shaking in fear. “I’m innocent,” Meghan said quietly. “Innocent people don’t need lawyers. We can talk.”
Jack nodded. “Good. I’ll be recording you while we talk. Let’s get started.”
The questioning had gone late into the evening, and it was clear to Meghan that Jack believed she had killed Norman Butcher. He had been gentle at first during their interview, but afterwards, his tone became patronizing and rude.
“What do you mean, you just decided to open a bakery?” Jack had asked Meghan. “Who does that? You have no experience and you’ve never been to Sandy Bay, and you just happen to open a bakery? Doesn’t that sound strange to you, Ms. Truman?”
Meghan tried to be polite, but as the hours wore on, she became more annoyed with Jack’s attitude. She was innocent until proven guilty, and Jack was not treating her as though she were innocent.
“It all just doesn’t add up to me,” Jack said as Meghan stifled a yawn. “Why would some girl move up to Sandy Bay to start a bakery? With no experience and no family here, it just isn’t making sense. But, from everything we’ve discussed, along with the tests run today, there isn’t enough evidence to charge you with murder.”
Meghan had sighed in relief, but Jack continued, “you won’t be charged, but you will be watched. I will be stopping by with further questions as we continue to investigate, and I strongly encourage you not to even think of leaving this town until this mystery has been solved. Understood?”
Meghan frowned. Jack spoke to her as though she were a petulant child. “Understood,” Meghan replied. She rose from her chair, and Jack led her to the lobby.
“Sweetie!” Meghan heard Karen’s familiar voice as she stepped across the threshold. Karen rushed to Meghan and hugged her. “I cannot believe this is happening! You poor thing.”
Meghan leaned into Karen’s embrace, thankful to have a friendly face amidst the police officers who looked at her with disdain.
“Excuse me? Where is her attorney? Was she allowed to call an attorney?” Meghan looked up and saw Debbie chastising Jack, who was shrugging his shoulders at the blonde woman angrily shaking a finger at him.
“Debbie called and told me you were here! I was so upset that I had her drive me,” Karen admitted, pulling Meghan closer. “I thought it would be good to have someone else come with me to prove your innocence! It looks better to have more people around, and I’m so glad Debbie called.”
Debbie walked over and raised an eyebrow at Meghan. “The officer says you refused an attorney because you’re saying you’re innocent. Not sure that’s what I would have done, but I admire your thinking. Now, let’s get out of here. We should really get you home, Meghan.”
The next few days were the quietest Meghan had spent in Sandy Bay. While she had not been officially deemed a suspect, everyone knew that the police had taken her to the station, and Meghan did not have a single customer at Truly Sweet after Jack had shown up.
“I didn’t do it, K
aren,” Meghan lamented to Karen after Sally Sheridan had visited to demand her refund. “I couldn’t do that! I didn’t like the guy, but I would never kill anyone!”
Karen took Meghan’s hand. “I know, sweetie,” Karen said comfortingly. “You’re a fabulous young woman, and this is an injustice. This is a small town, Meghan, and people always talk about new people, no matter how wonderful the new folks are. I know you didn’t do it, and I would bet anything on your innocence!”
Meghan looked sadly at Karen. “I don’t know how I’m going to make it,” Meghan said, looking around the empty bakery. “I put all of my savings into this place, and now, I have no customers. Jack Irvin told me not to leave town, but if my name isn’t cleared soon and the killer isn’t found, then I’ll be worse off than what I was back in LA.”
Karen wrinkled her nose and adjusted her high ponytail. “Sweetie,” Karen said softly. “Could you go home to Texas if this all doesn’t work out? I would hate to see you go; you know how excited I am to have you here in Sandy Bay! I just don’t want you to lose everything over some stupid apple pie.”
Meghan thought for a moment. She feasibly could go home to Texas; her parents hadn’t wanted her to move to California in the first place, and they would be thrilled if she came home.
“There’s always Texas,” Meghan admitted. “But I never want to go back there. I finally got out! I lived in LA, and now, I’m in the Pacific Northwest. Texas is my past, not my future, Karen.”
Karen shrugged. “I just don’t know what to tell you, sweetie.”
Meghan shook her head. “I’ve been through too much and given too much to this dream to just let it die,” she said, her voice filled with determination and her hazel eyes sparkling. She flipped her dark hair behind her shoulder and held her head high. “I’m going to figure out who killed Norman Butcher. I’m going to clear my name and solve this mystery!”
Karen’s eyes widened, but she grinned at Meghan and pumped her fist enthusiastically, as though she were at a zumba class instead of discussing a murder case.
“Way to go, Sweetie,” Karen said. “That’s the spirit!”
Meghan nodded. “And I know just who to talk to first,” she said, biting her lower lip as she recounted her first and only visit to Norman’s tea shop. “Lori Butcher knows something, and I’m going to find out what it is.”
6
MEGHAN RETURNED TO TRULY SWEET with sagging shoulders and a knot in her stomach. She had spent the last two hours grilling Lori, and as she unlocked the yellow door of the bakery, Meghan knew it had been a mistake.
“I really don’t know anything!” Lori had cried as Meghan demanded information. “I found him, dead as a doornail, and that’s all, Meghan!”
Meghan had softened her tone upon seeing how upset Lori was, but the damage was done; Lori wept throughout their entire conversation, and the two hour chat had yielded no new information for Meghan to process.
As Meghan stepped inside her bakery, the telephone rang. Meghan ran to answer it, and she heard a familiar male voice on the other end of the line.
“Meghan,” Jack Irvin said in a business-like voice. “This is Jack Irvin with the Sandy Bay Police Department.”
“I remember who you are. We spent hours together this week, Jack,” Meghan replied.
“Yes. Well, I want to advise you to stay away from Mr. Butcher’s tea shop. It isn’t wise of you to be snooping around there, and I think you need to limit your activities as we continue our investigation.”
Meghan nearly dropped the phone, looking around the bakery. “How did you know I was at the tea shop?” Meghan asked, her voice shaking. “I just got home!”
“This is a small town, Meghan,” Jack answered. “People talk. Keep that in mind.”
The next morning, as Meghan dutifully prepared the kitchen, believing it best to proceed as normally as possible, she heard a knock at the front door.
“Please don’t let Mrs. Sheridan be back,” Meghan muttered to herself as she walked to the door. She peered out of the window and found Debbie, Karen’s niece, on her doorstep.
“What a surprise!” Meghan said, throwing open the door and hugging Debbie. “I’m happy to see a friendly face!”
Debbie smiled, stiff in Meghan’s arms.
“Can we chat?” Debbie asked, looking around the quiet bakery. “My aunt mentioned that you are looking into the case yourself, and I think I have some information you might want.”
Meghan’s eyes lit up. “Please! Have a seat. You can see we’re just so crowded here at Truly Sweet today.”
Debbie gave Meghan a tight-lipped smile and sat in one of the white chairs. “I have the name of a suspect in the case,” Debbie said quietly. “My lawyer, Vince Fisher? He and I were meeting to talk through some business, and he mentioned that he’s been wrangled in to being Lori Butcher’s attorney!”
Meghan paled at Lori’s name. “Lori Butcher?” Meghan whispered. “But I talked with her myself! She didn’t have anything to say about the case!”
Debbie pursed her lips. “That isn’t what Vince said. I may have pushed him a little; you know that I am interested in partnering in this business with you, and the financial gains from the bakery are in jeopardy if this murder doesn’t get solved! Anyway, I pressed Vince, and he told me that Lori was caught stealing from Norman before he died!”
Meghan leaned forward, engrossed in what Debbie was telling her. “Sweet Lori stole from Norman?”
Debbie nodded. “Apparently he hadn’t paid Lori in weeks, and she lost her senses and stole from him instead of getting a lawyer! She needed money for food and to pay the rent back to Norman that he charged her, his own daughter! Vince told me that when Norman found out, he scolded her so badly in front of customers, and he even threatened to kick her out of the house!”
Meghan gnashed her teeth, unsure of what to think about the new information.
“Anyway, Vince said to keep it under wraps, but I thought you should know.”
With that, Debbie stood from her chair, gave Meghan a stiff hug, and scuttled out of the bakery.
“Lori stole from Norman because he mistreated her at home and at work,” Meghan said slowly to herself, trying to make sense of what Debbie had told her. “Lori is a suspect, too.”
Later that day, the silver bells attached to the front door chimed, as Meghan’s jaw clenched as Lori Butcher walked through the front door of Truly Sweet.
“Hi, Meghan,” Lori said timidly, her hands pressed together in front of her waist. “Can we talk?”
Meghan nodded, and pointed to one of the dainty white tables. “Have a seat. I’ll get you something to eat.” A flush crept up Lori’s neck, and Meghan decided it would be unwise to give anything to another Butcher.
“What can I do for you, Lori?” Meghan asked, taking a seat across from the nervous girl. Lori rocked back and forth, and she nibbled on her upper lip as Meghan stared at her.
“Lori?”
Lori took a deep breath. “Is that job still available?”
Meghan nearly let out a laugh at the audacity of Lori’s question. “Lori,” Meghan answered with amusement. “I’m a suspect in your father’s murder case. The police think I poisoned him. I know I didn’t do it, and I hope you don’t think I did. But regardless, I don’t know if it’s best that we spend time together right now, let alone work together.”
Lori’s face crumpled. “I need the job, Meghan,” Lori whimpered. “My father is dead, and the funeral plans have been so expensive. I don’t have access to all of his accounts and information, and without some help, I can’t even afford to eat three meals a day.”
Meghan’s heart softened, and she saw the fear in Lori’s eyes. “Lori,” Meghan said, racking her brain for a solution. “I have to think about it, and I need to talk with the police. There’s so much going on right now, and I just don’t know….”
“Please,” Lori whispered, her eyes red and her shoulders sagging. “Please.”
When Lori left mom
ents later, Meghan immediately called Karen for advice. After explaining the odd visit from Lori, Karen offered Meghan some advice.
“The right thing to do would be to hire her,” Karen said as Meghan groaned. “If she is really in need, then you’ll be doing a good deed. And if she isn’t….well...perhaps it’s a good idea to keep her close by…”
“Don’t do it, Meghan!” Meghan heard Debbie in the background.
“Debbie’s here, let me put her on speakerphone,” Karen said as Meghan heard a click of buttons.
“Meghan, remember what we talked about when I visited? Lori stole from Norman! She’s a suspect! Keeping her around is a terrible idea. You can’t afford to hire her, either! As your self-appointed financial advisor, I am strongly encouraging you to disregard what my aunt is telling you and to not hire Lori!”