Chapter Ten
Margaret woke up early. She tried to get out of bed, but her leg would not move. After a brief moment of panic, she remembered what had happened the day before. How am I going to get my business running? I need to catch the killer, she thought, before he comes after me or my store again. Then she wondered how she was going to get downstairs. She thought about the ocean and sighed. She would get there someday, but not with a cast on. I should have gone when we moved in, before all this trouble started, she thought. She grabbed the crutches and hobbled to the bathroom. After that she went to the top of the stairs.
“What do you think you are doing?” asked a voice behind her. It was Zach. “You know the doctor said no pressure until the swelling goes down.”
“I know, but how am I going to get downstairs?” she asked Zach. “You can’t lift me.”
“But I can,” came a voice from the kitchen. Margaret looked baffled, but then she smiled. David appeared at the bottom of the steps.
“My hero,” she said.
“I asked Zach when you usually got up, and he told me. I’ve been here for about an hour now, waiting. You slept in today.”
Margaret laughed. David came up the steps, and Margaret gave her crutches to Zach. David scooped her up and took her downstairs.
“I could get used to this,” Margaret joked.
David took her into the kitchen and put her in a chair. Margaret thanked him. She smelled food.
“What did you make?” she asked David.
“I made a breakfast casserole. It’s baking right now in the oven. It should be ready any minute. Would you like some coffee?”
“You cook?” asked Margaret.
“Yes. I live by myself. I got tired of eating out all the time—but don’t tell Stacy that. I took some cooking lessons, and now I fend for myself,” smiled David.
“Wow, that is fantastic,” said Margaret. “I might need you to teach Zach and me sometime.”
“I would be happy to,” said David. “You don’t cook?”
“When we lived in the city there were many takeout options. We would just grab something from around the corner for dinner. I can make some things, and I love to bake, but evidently it is not that good,” said Margaret, eyeing Zach,
Zach held up his hands in surrender, and they all laughed.
“And, yes, I would love some coffee,” said Margaret.
David handed her a mug and grabbed one for himself.
“Have you come up with anything regarding the case?” asked Margaret.
“No. There were no fingerprints on the note. Whoever left it was being careful.”
“Darn it. I was hoping there would be prints,” said Margaret. “That would have made my life easier.”
“Yours and mine both,” David agreed. They sipped their coffee. David jumped up and opened the oven. “Breakfast is ready,” he said.
“Wonderful,” said Margaret. She could feel her mouth watering.
“I’ll get the plates,” said Zach, and soon David was serving up the casserole. Margaret and Zach ate like there was no tomorrow. Zach had seconds.
“I take it the casserole met with your approval,” said David.
“Oh yes,” said Margaret and Zach together.
Margaret laughed. “It was delicious.”
“I’ll have to give you the recipe sometime,” said David.
“Or, you could just make it again,” suggested Zach as he cleaned up the plates.
“Be sure to scrape the food into the trash. We don’t want critters in here,” said Margaret.
Zach carefully scraped the breakfast remains into the garbage. Margaret heard a noise. It was a beeping noise.
“Oh, the candy delivery,” she exclaimed, trying to get up. David put his hand on her shoulder.
“Don’t worry, we’ve got this,” he said. He and Zach went outside. A few minutes later Margaret heard them moving around.
“What’s going on?” she asked.
“We are bringing in the candy,” Zach yelled. “Kyle came over to help,”
“Thank you,” Margaret called.
“You’re welcome,” Kyle responded. The guys unloaded the truck. After they were done, David walked into the kitchen.
“The driver says he needs your signature. Is it okay if he comes in?”
“Sure,” said Margaret, “since you won’t let me go to him.”
David rolled his eyes. “Send him back,” he said.
The delivery man walked into the kitchen. He was a little younger than Margaret and looked tired.
“I appreciate the help unloading,” he said to David.
“Happy to do it,” David replied.
“Are you going to be selling the candy out of your house now?” the driver joked with Margaret.
“I hope not,” she said. “Where do you need me to sign?”
The driver pointed to a line. Margaret signed the receipt. As the driver was tearing off Margaret’s part of the receipt he looked at the table.
“Hey, that looks like my wife’s pie dish,” he said.
“The one on my table?” Margaret asked.
“Yes,” he said.
“That is my neighbor’s pie plate,” said Margaret. “Her name is Allie.”
“That is my wife,” the deliveryman said. “My name is Roger. It is a pleasure to meet you,” he said to Margaret, holding out his hand. She shook it.
“I’m working a lot right now so I haven’t had the chance to meet you,” he apologized.
“It’s okay. I have been busy myself,” Margaret said. “Thank you for being willing to bring the candy to my house.”
“Any time,” said Roger.
“Hopefully this will be the last time,” joked David. “I am sure Margaret will be on her feet, soon.”
“I hope so. Have a nice morning,” said Roger.
“Thank you,” Margaret said.
Roger left, and Kyle came into the kitchen.
“How are you feeling?” he asked Margaret.
“My head is better but my leg is still swollen.”
“I’m glad you are on the mend,” he said. “Well, I have to walk my dog. She is older and needs to be walked on a schedule.”
“I understand,” said Margaret. She thanked him for his help and Kyle left.
“Well, if there is nothing else you need, I guess I will go back to the station,” David said.
Margaret had been sitting on the chair. Now, her head was in the clouds.
“Margaret, did you hear me?” David asked.
Margaret snapped out of it. “Yes, I heard you. You don’t have to go back to work, though. I know who killed Dorothy.”
Chapter Eleven
“What do you mean, you know who killed Margaret?” asked David.
“The answer was right in front of me, I just had to put the pieces together.”
“Well, who do you think it was?” asked David.
“It was Roger,” said Margaret.
“The delivery guy? How do you know?” David asked.
“You might want to detain him before he decides to run away,” said Margaret. “I see he pulled his delivery truck up to his house.”
David looked out the window. “I need a good reason to arrest him,” he said.
“Well, there was a delivery truck outside of Margaret’s house. Roger lives here. He would know how to park the truck and drive it so the license plate would not be able to be read. Also, he was at my store yesterday. The deliveries are usually very early in the morning. He had time to break into my shop and cause that damage and then come back later after I was taken to the hospital.”
David thought for a minute. “That is good enough for me to bring him in for questioning. I’ll be right back.” David got on his phone. He called the unmarked car and told the officers to come into Margaret’s house. “I want them in here in case something goes wrong,” he told Margaret.
David went outside and walked over to Allie and Roger’s house. Margaret could see David approach
ing the front door. Suddenly the side door burst open. It was Roger with a gun. He was pointing it at David. Margaret could see David trying to talk to Roger but she could not hear them. She yelled for the officers, and one of them started running over to the house. Before he could get there, though, Margaret saw Kyle running toward Roger. Roger did not see him. Margaret held her breath. David kept Roger distracted, and Kyle tackled him. Margaret cheered, and so did Zach, who was also watching. Kyle disarmed Roger, and David arrested him. It was like watching a TV show through the window.
Margaret looked at Zach. “Please tell David I need to tell him something else.”
“Okay,” said Zach. He went out the front door. David came in soon afterward.
“Before you leave with Roger, you might want to make room in the car for someone else.”
“Who?” asked David.
“Mary,” said Margaret.
“Why?” asked David.
“Because she was poisoning her mother,” said Margaret. “I just realized it when I told Zach to be sure not to leave any crumbs. Dorothy kept an immaculate house. When I was in there I saw some pesticide in the basement. Rat poison. It didn’t dawn on me until now. Why do they need rat poison when they would never have rats? And isn’t arsenic used in rat poison?”
“It sure is. I will be right back.” He paused and gave Margaret a long look. Then he said, “I’m not even going to ask you how you happened to be in Dorothy’s basement.”
“Please don’t,” said Margaret.
David left, and Zach told Margaret he went to Mary’s house. David reappeared a minute later.
“She’s not there. She must be at work. I called the precinct, and they are sending a car over to pick her up. Nice detective work, Margaret.”
“Thank you, David,” she said. “How did Allie take Roger’s arrest?”
“She was stunned. She didn’t even know he had a gun in the house.”
“Wow,” said Margaret. She believed Allie. Allie seemed like a genuinely nice person, even if she was a little pushy. Margaret hoped Allie had the strength to get through what lay ahead.
“Well, I am going to the office to ask those two some questions.”
“I want to come with you,” Margaret said.
“I know you do, but doctor’s orders,” said David.
“Fine. Will you at least stop by later tonight and let me know what is happening?” asked Margaret.
“Of course,” said David. “I can’t keep the woman who broke this case hanging, now can I?”
“I can’t wait to hear what you find out,” said Margaret.
“Mom, I have to run into town too,” said Zach. “I told Patty I would help her with something. Will you be okay here?”
“She will be fine,” said Kyle, walking into the kitchen. “I have the day off, so I will keep an eye on her.”
Margaret smiled. “I’ll be in good hands, guys,” she said to David and Zach. “Kyle will take care of me.”
“Yeah, but can he cook?” asked David.
“No, but I can use my phone to order takeout,” said Kyle. Everyone laughed.
Later that night David stopped by. The word had gotten out about Roger’s and Mary’s arrests. Margaret had moved to the couch in the living room and was sitting talking to Patty, Mr. Stewart, Stacy, and Simone when David walked in.
“So, here is my detective squad,” he said, coming into the living room.
“Three cheers for Margaret solving the case,” said Mr. Stewart.
“I’ll drink to that,” said David. He took a sip of the tea Patty had brought him.
“So, what happened at the precinct?” Margaret asked. “We’ve been waiting all day to find out.”
“Well, Roger and Mary both confessed. Roger was fed up with Dorothy and her bullying ways,” he told Margaret. “The lien she had put on his house was the last straw. He did feel guilty though. That’s why he looked so tired this morning. The weight of what he had done was hanging over him.”
“So, how did he do it?” asked Mr. Stewart.
“He had been working late that night. He carried a gun in his truck in case he got robbed. Roger said he had to deliver to the city late at night, and he felt safer with a gun. He said he did not plan to shoot Dorothy—just scare her. He drove back here and parked outside of her house. You were right, Margaret, he knew just where and how to park to avoid the cameras. He got out of the truck on the passenger side and knocked on Dorothy’s door. Roger knew Mary would be working her double shift, so Dorothy would be alone. Dorothy answered the door, and Roger pointed the gun at her. He threatened her. Told her she needed to shape up and be nicer to everyone around here. Roger said Dorothy told him he wasn’t man enough to shoot her. Said he was worthless and that Allie could do better. Dorothy went on to tell him how ugly his house was and that she hoped the flowers in his greenhouse died. She went on and on and wouldn’t stop, and finally he had enough. He pulled the trigger, shut the door, and got his delivery truck away from the house before anyone could see him. Or so he thought.”
“Wow,” said Margaret. “What happened next?”
“Well, he went home and stashed the gun in a box in a closet. He didn’t intend to keep it there, because he knew we would be looking into Dorothy’s death. He didn’t want to have the gun on him, so he left it in the closet by the Christmas decorations. Also—he only thought he shut the door. Dorothy’s foot stopped it, and someone walking on the sidewalk saw her and called the police. That’s how we found her.”
“So then what happened?” asked Simone.
“Then he saw Kyle was arrested. He relaxed a bit until he saw Margaret snooping around asking questions about Dorothy. He put two and two together and realized she was doing her own investigating.”
“That’s why he broke into my shop,” said Margaret.
“Exactly,” said David. “He was up early that morning and got into town before anyone else. He broke in, knocked some things down, and left the note. He said he was trying to scare you.”
“Well, he just made me more determined,” said Margaret.
“After he broke in, he left. He came back around after the ambulance left and tried to deliver the boxes. That’s when he heard you were in the hospital.”
“I told him that,” said Patty. “Dumb idea in hindsight. I convinced you to let him deliver the candies here, too,” she said with a sigh.
“Actually, that worked out well,” said David. “Roger didn’t know that Kyle was out, so that was a surprise. The fact that you handled yourself so calmly, Margaret, convinced him that you were not on to him. He relaxed. It wasn’t until he saw me walking up to his house that he knew he was in trouble. I’m glad Kyle was walking his dog. That was a great tackle.”
“I’m glad, too. I saw the whole thing unfold outside my window,” said Margaret. “I thought he was going to shoot you.”
“I thought he might, too,” said David. “That’s why I distracted him while Kyle snuck up on him.”
“I could not believe he did that,” said Margaret. “We were talking this afternoon. He said his instincts kicked in, and he still keeps in the same shape he was in when he was in the Marines. He knew he could take Roger out as long as Roger didn’t see him. His timing was perfect.”
“Yes it was,” said David. “Where is Kyle anyway?”
“He had to go home, feed his dog, and take a hot soak,” said Margaret. “Just because he is still in shape doesn’t mean it didn’t hurt to take down Roger.”
“I believe that,” said David.
“What about Mary?” Patty asked. “What did she say?”
“She also confessed,” said David. “She said her mother treated her badly. Dorothy would mock and ridicule Mary all the time. She picked on her and made her clean the house constantly. Mary poisoned Dorothy over time. Mary knew that if Dorothy dropped dead suddenly she would not get any insurance money. Apparently Dorothy had a nice life insurance policy. Mary’s getting charged with attempted murder.”
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br /> “Guess she won’t get that insurance money,” said Margaret.
“Nope, she will not,” said David.
“Can you believe all that happened this week in this small quiet suburb?” said Margaret.
“Welcome to the neighborhood,” said Simone.
Margaret laughed. “Seriously, though. I came here to escape violence. I wanted a nice small town where I could retire. I wanted Zach to live a peaceful life. Now I am not so sure.”
“What are you unsure about?” asked David, sitting beside her holding her hand.
“I am not sure of my future,” said Margaret. “How can I protect Zach when someone got murdered right beside me? What am I going to do?” Margaret looked at David.
“Well, you know what you have here?” David asked.
“What?” asked Margaret.
“You have me. And you have everyone in this room,” he said.
“You have us, too,” said a voice from the doorway.
Margaret looked up. It was Greg and Frankie.
“We just heard what happened. Are you okay?” Greg asked Margaret.
“Yes. You know what? I am. I have friends and family around me. That is what will see me through.”
David gave her a hug.
“Wait a minute. This is the perfect time,” said Margaret suddenly.
“The perfect time for what?” David asked.
“The wine that Simone gave me, I never drank it. We should crack it open and enjoy it.”
“Great! I’ll get the bottle,” said Simone.
“Is there enough for all of us?” asked Mr. Stewart.
“Never fear, wine is here,” said Simone. She disappeared out the front door. She reappeared with two more bottles. Margaret laughed. “I always bring a supply of wine,” said Simone.
Mr. Stewart laughed too, and Margaret was happy to have seen so much of his non-grouchy side. Simone and Stacy passed out the wine and everyone toasted Margaret’s health. Margaret felt like she and Zach could be happy here. She sat back and sipped on her wine and enjoyed the company.
Chapter Twelve
Margaret was worried. She had not been back to the shop for a couple of days. The swelling had gone down in her leg, so she was limping around on crutches. David had been by every day to check on her and make her dinner. I could get used to that, Margaret thought.
Gumballs and Murder (Candy Store Mysteries Book 1) Page 8