I held a plate out to her. “I just wish we could clean it up as easily as we’re washing these dishes.”
“If only life were that simple.”
Ten minutes later, we had the kitchen respectable again, with clean dishes, plates, and flatware back where they belonged.
“Do we have time to do anything?” Maddy asked.
“Maybe take a quick nap,” I said.
She looked around the kitchen. “Unless we’re willing to stretch out on the counter, I don’t think there’s room for us.”
“It’s a health code violation, anyway,” I said.
“So, what’s the next best thing to sleeping?” Maddy asked.
“Pastries,” I said, and she laughed.
“I was going for something less specific, but I like the way you’re thinking. Do you think Paul is still open?”
“There’s only one way to find out. Let’s go see.”
As Maddy and I locked up, I saw Paul standing at his own door.
We rushed over to him, and I asked, “Are you closing?”
He nodded. “I’ve got a few things left, but I’m ready to go home and grab a shower.” He grinned at me as he added, “I’ve got another date.”
“What’s her schedule like?” I asked him.
“She works third shift, so we’ve got a window of opportunity to go out before she heads out to work and I go home and sleep. Who knows?”
“It’s worth a try, isn’t it?”
“That’s why I’m going.” He looked down at the box in his hands and asked, “You ladies wouldn’t care for a treat, on the house, would you? I’m getting tired of my own pastries, if you can believe it.”
Before I could answer, Maddy wrestled it out of his hands. “Absolutely. We’d be delighted.”
“Yes, we would,” I added, and grinned at Paul. “Thank you, kind sir.”
“You two are always good for me. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I don’t want to be late.”
“Thanks for the goodies,” I said as Paul left.
“You’re welcome.”
Maddy started to open the box, and I put a hand on hers. “What are you doing?”
She shrugged. “I just want to take a peek.”
“Let’s at least wait until we’re back inside the Slice.”
Maddy reluctantly agreed, and I let us back into the restaurant. “I’ll grab a table, and you get two mini-cartons of milk.”
“That sounds like a plan. One thing, though. No looking until I get back.”
“Spoilsport,” she said.
I raced back to the kitchen cooler, pulled out two small cartons of milk, and then rejoined her.
I studied the box for a second, and then asked, “Did you peek?”
“Not yet, but I am now,” she said as she threw the box lid backward.
Inside were nine stunning chocolate éclairs.
I looked down at the treats, glorious in their golden tones, glazed with shimmering chocolate, and said, “You know, I suddenly feel like having an éclair.”
“What a coincidence. I do, too,” Maddy said as she grabbed two and put them on napkins. “If it’s all the same to you, I’d rather not dirty another dish if I don’t have to.”
“You’re a woman after my own heart,” I said as I bit into one. The rich vanilla custard oozed out, and it was a treat for the nose, as well as the eyes and the palate.
We each had one, and then Maddy said, “My sweet tooth is satisfied. What do we do with the rest?”
“We could save them for Josh,” I suggested.
“Or take them home with us tonight.”
I looked at the treats, and then said, “You know what? They’re a little too rich for me as a steady diet. One was great, but two would be overkill.”
Maddy nodded. “I know exactly what you mean. It’s no wonder Paul gets tired of them now and then.”
“But we never get burned-out on pizza, do we?”
“At least we haven’t so far,” Maddy said.
Josh knocked on the door a good twenty minutes before he was due back at work. When I let him in, I asked, “What happened?”
“She stood me up. Can you believe it?”
“I’m really sorry,” I said, remembering that just because he was a teenager, it didn’t mean that he didn’t hurt as much as the rest of us did. “Did you try calling her?”
“Forget that. I’m not going to beg,” he said.
“Pride’s a dangerous thing,” I said, and I saw Maddy’s eyebrows shoot up. Before she managed to shift the conversation back to my life, I told Josh, “There are fresh éclairs from Paul, and we saved you some.”
“How many are there?” Josh asked as he looked longingly at the box.
“There’s only seven left,” Maddy said facetiously.
Josh shrugged. “I guess that will do, but don’t you two want a couple before I start in on them?”
“We’ve already had ours,” I said. “Help yourself.”
Josh dove into the box, and I started back toward the kitchen.
“Where are you going?” Maddy asked. Then she looked over at Josh, who was already on his second éclair, with no signs of slowing down. “It’s a little like a shark feeding on chum, isn’t it?”
“That doesn’t bother me,” I said, “I’ve been around teenage boys since we opened the pizzeria.” I lowered my voice as I added, “Thanks for not saying anything in front of Josh just now.”
“What, about how it’s easier to give advice than to take it? I’d never say anything like that, Eleanor.”
“You know what? I think you just did,” I said as I grabbed a couple of the small milk cartons for Josh.
Maddy smiled. “I guess you’re right. Here, I’ll take those out to him. You’ve got to get ready to open.”
“I do need to restock some of the toppings,” I said.
After Maddy was gone, I thought about what I’d told Josh. The advice applied to me as much as it did to him, but there was nothing I could do about David now. It was too late for my pride to matter one way or the other at this point.
But if I was being honest with myself, I had to admit that I hoped David decided to stay in Timber Ridge.
I just wasn’t ready to ask him to do it.
We were well into our dinner crowd, and the kitchen was hopping, when Maddy came back. “Eleanor, you need to take a break,” she said.
I looked at the orders piling up. “Yeah, and a long soak in a hot tub would be nice, too, but I’m not getting either one of them anytime soon.”
“Art Young is here, and he wants to talk to you. He says he may know something about what happened to Wade.”
“Send him back,” I said. “I’ll talk to him while I work.” I had three or four minutes I could squeeze out of my time, if I absolutely had to, and from the sound of it, that was exactly what I needed to do. I was a little nervous about being alone in my kitchen with a known hoodlum, but at least it was on my home turf. Before he came back, I hid knives and any heavy objects, which I could find, in places where I could get my hands on them in case I needed to defend myself.
Art was wearing another nice new suit when he came back into my kitchen.
“Sorry to interrupt you like this, Eleanor. I know you’re busy.”
“That’s fine. I’ve got a few minutes to talk, if you don’t mind me working. Maddy said you might know something that could help us.”
He nodded. “I’ve been asking around, and it turns out that Wade was dipping into the till at work.”
“How much could he have taken?” From what we’d seen of Roger Henderson’s office, I doubted it could be that much.
“It was nothing noticeable at first, just a little here and a little there, from what I understand. He was pretty careful not to take too much from any one client, but over time, it added up.”
“Could he have stolen enough for someone to kill him for?” I asked as I prepared another pan with pizza dough.
“From what my sources are sa
ying, his murder has gotten people curious, and none of them like what they’ve found. I doubt it would reach twenty grand all together, but it could be a great deal more. In some circles, that’s enough to kill for.”
“Are the police looking into it?” I asked.
Art Young shrugged. “While I’m not privy to what the police are doing, I understand that they’ve focused mostly on your deliveryman, so there are angles that aren’t being followed up on. I thought you should know.”
“Why are you helping us?” I asked, and then I realized that it was a pretty impertinent question.
“Honestly, I like your spunk,” he said, “and I enjoy your pizza, too. Isn’t that enough?”
“Excuse me if I’m being rude, but it hardly seems like it is, don’t you think?”
I was pushing it, and I knew it, but I had to know if he had an ulterior motive to helping Maddy and me in our unofficial investigation.
He paused longer than I was comfortable with, and then said, “Let’s just say someone deprived me of income, and I’d enjoy knowing who it is I should blame.”
“We’re not going to find out who killed Wade just so you can exact your revenge,” I said. I was nervous, but I hoped he couldn’t tell.
Art Young shook his head. “You underestimate me, Mrs. Swift. My motives might not be completely altruistic, but I’m not opposed to seeing someone punished by the courts instead of by more primitive methods.” He looked at me a second, then said, “I just thought you’d like to know.”
“You were right.” He was almost to the door when I called out abruptly, “Can I make you a pizza while you’re here? It’s on the house, as a sign of my appreciation.”
The thought amused him, for whatever reason, and a slight smile touched briefly on his lips. “Why don’t I take a rain check? Not that I don’t appreciate the offer.”
“Call it in any time,” I said. “Thank you for coming.”
He saluted me with two fingers, then left. I had a buzz of new thoughts circling around in my head, not the least of which was the fact that a known bad guy had decided to make our investigation a pet project of his. He’d given me food for thought, regardless of his true motive, and I knew Maddy and I needed to talk to Roger Henderson again, and sooner would be better than later.
Josh came bursting back into the kitchen half an hour before we were set to close. “Eleanor, is there any way that I can take off now?” he asked, nearly out of breath.
“Where’s the fire? Have all of the customers left?” I’d been filling orders steadily most of the night. It was good to see that most of my customers weren’t holding the homicide that had occurred in my kitchen against me.
“No, there are a few people still wandering in, but I talked to Maddy, and she said she could cover everything up front.”
“You still haven’t told me what the emergency is,” I said.
“Melissa came in.” He looked absolutely glowing as he said it.
“I’m sure that’s great news, but I don’t have a clue who Melissa is, and why we should all be so grateful for her arrival.”
Josh grinned. “You’re so funny—you know that, don’t you? Melissa is the girl I told you about earlier. She’s the one who stood me up.”
“And yet you seem to be remarkably happy to have her here now.”
“You don’t understand. She didn’t really stand me up today. She thought we were meeting tomorrow. Everything’s great. It was just a little misunderstanding. Please, Eleanor?”
How could I say no to him? “Go on, get out of here before I change my mind.”
He shocked me by kissing me on the cheek, and then he threw his apron at the hooks on the wall and jetted out of the kitchen. I could remember how it felt to be young, to be surging with emotions, and I wondered how any of us ever survived it.
After he was gone, Maddy came into the kitchen to place a late order. As I worked it up, I said, “Josh was practically floating when he left here, wasn’t he? That was awfully sweet of you to cover the rest of the night shift for him.”
Maddy smiled. “Admit it. You’re just as much a romantic as I am.”
“Why do you say that?” I asked as I layered sauce on the dough.
“He’s not here, is he?”
“That’s a point,” I replied. “This has been the longest day, hasn’t it?”
Maddy nodded in agreement. “I’m going home and soak in a hot tub. Then I’m going to crash on my bed until my alarm jars me out of it tomorrow.”
“That sounds like a good plan,” I said.
She left to cover the front again, and I started cleaning up early. I did that sometimes, working on the dishes and the prep area, doing all that I could ahead of time during slow periods at the restaurant. We weren’t a place that was constantly packed, which was something I was grateful for. I couldn’t stand being busy all of the time. For one thing, I’d have to hire help in the kitchen, something I was reluctant to do, and for another, it would mean losing the personal touches I liked to add to my creations. I was fully aware of the fact that my food was quickly consumed, and almost as quickly forgotten, but that didn’t mean I couldn’t add my own artistry to it.
When Maddy came into the kitchen to retrieve the last pizza order, I was elbow deep in hot, sudsy water.
She smiled as she said, “I see you’re getting your hot soak in early.”
“What can I say? I couldn’t wait.” As I finished washing another plate, I asked, “How’s it going out there?”
“This one changed his mind, so it’s a takeout now. That will clear us out.”
I glanced at the clock and saw we had less than fifteen minutes to stay open. “Let him have it, then let’s close up early tonight. We’re both tired, and I don’t see much more business coming our way tonight.”
Maddy frowned at me. “Are you all right?”
“I’m fine,” I said. “Why do you ask?”
She shook her head as she said, “I don’t know. You’re usually pretty set about staying open as long as the sign says.”
“If you’re that dead set against it, we can keep the place open.”
Maddy boxed the pizza quickly as she said, “Don’t get me wrong. I’m not complaining.”
“Good, then it’s settled.”
She came back in two minutes later after delivering the pizza. “That’s it. We’re locked up for the night.”
I kept working on the dishes. “Would you mind taking care of the dining room?”
“I’m on it,” she said. Before she went out front, Maddy propped open the door with a wedge so we could talk while we worked. I finished the dishes, then joined her out front so I could get started on the deposit. It felt good not having to go by the bank in the dark, and I was happy again that I’d taken the plunge and bought a safe, even if it did have an after-the-fact kind of feel to it. The drawer cash balanced out with the report, and I slid the money and receipts into the safe. I’d chosen Joe’s birthday for the combination, something that would remind me of him every night, and let me feel that, though he was gone, my late husband was still very much a part of this place.
“We’re finished,” I said. “Can you believe it?”
“I’m pinching myself right now,” Maddy said. “Why don’t we get out of here?”
“I’m right behind you,” I said.
We made it to our cars without event—something I was always thankful for, lately—and as I drove home, I wondered what tomorrow would bring. There seemed to be a lot of things swirling around in my life lately. Running the pizzeria was enough for anyone to deal with, but with a murder investigation added to the mix, I couldn’t believe how many directions I was being pulled in. I could shut the restaurant down for a week and track down clues, but if I did that, Kevin Hurley would be certain to notice. I doubted our chief of police would be all that thrilled about what Maddy and I were up to. Besides, I couldn’t afford to go without the income that long.
But even if I could, I wouldn’t do it.
I loved making pizzas too much, which probably helped explain why I hadn’t had a vacation since my husband had passed away.
I pulled into the driveway and parked. As I got out of the car and walked up to the front door, I saw a movement in the bushes that wasn’t from a gusty wind or a nosy cat.
Someone was hiding outside my house, and as I turned to run back to my car in the dark, a hand grabbed me from behind.
Chapter 10
“Greg Hatcher, you nearly gave me a heart attack.”
“I’m sorry,” he said. “I didn’t want you to run off on me.”
“What are you doing here? I thought we decided it wasn’t safe for you to just show up on my doorstep.”
“I’m not alone,” he said.
I peered into the darkness, but I couldn’t make out who was there. He looked back into the shadows, and said, “Come on. It’s all right.”
A figure hesitantly walked out of the bushes, and I could see that Greg had not only found Katy Johnson, he’d brought her with him to my house.
We couldn’t just stand out there all night; someone was bound to notice. “Come on in, and hurry.”
“Are you sure?” Greg asked.
“You’re already here, so I don’t have much choice, do I?” I hurriedly unlocked the front door, hoping that Kevin Hurley hadn’t staked out my house. If he had, I knew we could expect a visit from the police any minute.
Once they were both inside, I bolted the door and asked, “Did anyone see you come here?”
Greg shook his head. “Don’t worry. We were careful. I’ve been watching the cars on your street for the last hour, and not one of them has shown any signs of life. We’re safe.”
“If my neighbors haven’t been spying on you, then we should be okay.” I took a second to look at Katy, who had clearly had better days. “Where have you been?”
“Hiding in my aunt’s basement,” she said. “I almost came out when you were there, but I was afraid.”
“Of what, exactly?” I asked. “Maddy and I weren’t there to hurt you. We’re just trying to find out the truth.”
“So are we,” Greg said, speaking for her. “Katy didn’t kill my brother any more than I did.”
Pepperoni Pizza Can Be Murder Page 17