Killer Cravings

by Diana Orgain

  I’m pretty sure I was white-knuckling my steering wheel the entire way to the hospital. I was mad at Jim. Mostly hurt. And, I kept thinking about Sarah. About how blindsided she’d been.

  My phone beeped again when I arrived in the parking lot at the hospital. It was an email from Galigani. The autopsy report for Morgan had been sent his way by his buddy at the local station, and Galigani had been kind enough to forward it to me.

  I liked that he was willing to call his contact for me, but I knew I was eventually going to have to make some contacts of my own. I read through the report. Morgan had been poisoned via chloroform.

  The chloroform had been in some brownies that Cassandra’s shop had made – the ones coated in bright orange icing.

  Oh my goodness!

  Good thing it wasn’t the purple icing, I thought.

  Either way, I’d had some sort of aversion to the purple brownies that night, so it’s not like I would have been poisoned. That stuff made it in the trash can quick.

  But, I was glad I’d gotten that email from Galigani. That way, I had some information before I spoke with Cassandra. I headed into the hospital, and eventually found my way to her room.

  She was sitting up in bed, hooked up to an IV. She looked well enough, thankfully. Probably just waiting for some of the chloroform to get out of her system.

  “Kate,” she said and smiled at me. “How is the case going?”

  “Well I do have some information. I know Morgan was having an affair with a married man. Do you know anything about that?”

  “I knew she was dating a guy named Raymond,” Cassandra said as I made my way over. I pulled up a chair beside her hospital bed and pulled out the notebook I’d snagged from the house so I could take notes.

  “That would be him,” I said.

  “Yeah, he seemed kind of… sketchy,” Cassandra said. “But, I only met him once or twice. He would swing by the bakery every once in a while, and drop off some lunch for her. He picked her up for a date once. He seemed a little old for her, but she was kind of into that. She wanted a sugar daddy type thing.”

  “So obviously, I’m looking into Raymond. But, he was nowhere near the theater when Morgan was killed,” I said.

  “Yeah,” Cassandra said. “But, when I talked to my doctors and the police, they told me someone poisoned my brownies. I know Morgan and I both ate some. Raymond doesn’t have a key to the bakery or anything, but maybe he could have… I don’t know…”

  “Would Morgan have let him into the back?” I asked.

  “I guess she could have,” Cassandra said. “But, I don’t know why she would do that. I don’t let anyone into the back who isn’t a baker. Our cashiers aren’t even allowed back there. You know, I need to keep the kitchen hygienic. And Morgan had been working there for a while. She knew the rules.”

  It was interesting that Cassandra had brought up the poisoned brownies. I’d been wondering how to broach the subject, thinking she might get defensive of her employees. But it didn’t seem like she was trying to hide anything.

  “I need to ask about the incident between you and my husband,” I said, changing subjects. I once again decided to feel her out. Not let her know what I already knew just to see if she would be honest with me.

  She rolled her eyes. “It was stupid, really.”

  “I need to hear your side of things,” I said.

  She sighed. “Well, if I’m being honest, I’m not sure if Jim told you, but we dated briefly way back in high school.”

  “Yeah, he told me,” I said even though he hadn’t exactly. At least not recently.

  She nodded. “Jim had come in a few times getting those brownies for you,” Cassandra said. “He didn’t recognize me at first. It was probably about the second or third time, and I finally said something to him. Just told him who I was, thought we would have a good laugh about it – maybe chat about old times and see what each other had been up to since high school. That sort of thing. Well, he looks me up and down and makes this awful comment about how he had obviously dodged a bullet.”

  I frowned. “Oh?”

  “Yeah,” she said, a very annoyed pout on her face. “And, frankly, I didn’t care for what he said to me. I thought it was just so rude. I mean, we were kids when we dated, but I remembered ending on good terms, you know? I can’t imagine what I could have done for him to say that to me. It was just so mean and spiteful, and I probably overreacted. I snapped at him, he snapped back, and it just escalated, and I finally just called the police to end it.”

  I really didn’t want to believe a word she had just said to me. I couldn’t imagine Jim making a comment like that to someone.

  He was just so… sweet.

  She must have guessed that I didn’t believe her because she sat upright and looked at me. “It surprised me too,” she said. “Like I said, we dated back in high school. He was always such a gentleman. He was nice to women. Nice to everybody. To hear that come out of his mouth about me, well, it set me off. And, honestly, I’m sorry for my part in it. I overreacted, but that doesn’t mean it didn’t hurt my feelings.”

  I still wasn’t sure. I couldn’t imagine Jim making a comment like that to her face. But, I tried not to let her know I didn’t believe her.

  “Well, I’m very sorry to hear that,” I said. “But, thank you for talking with me. Is there anything else you can tell me about Morgan that might lead me in the right direction?” I asked.

  “I don’t know,” Cassandra admitted. “She kept to herself. We weren’t particularly close. She came into work and then headed off. She dated a lot, though. Raymond was just the latest of the older men she dated. I couldn’t tell you their names, though. Like I said, she wanted to find herself a sugar daddy. She didn’t like to work, but she was willing to do it until she found what she wanted in a guy. A guy with deep pockets.”

  “Thank you, Cassandra,” I said, getting up from my seat.

  I was very frustrated, but I tried my best not to show it. Cassandra thanked me again for looking into the case for her. She expressed her sympathy for what happened to Morgan, and admitted she was very worried about her business after having an employee killed by someone poisoning her brownies.

  She gave me a list of employees and anyone who would have access to the bakery for one reason or another.

  I headed out, my mind swimming once again. The fact that Jim didn’t tell me Cassandra was his ex-girlfriend was really bothering me.

  And, honestly, she was very pretty. Model pretty, not mommy pretty…

  I was… pregnant with babies number two and three.

  Laurie had certainly changed the way I looked – and this pregnancy was only going to do that even more.

  Was Jim still attracted to me?

  Had he been going to the bakery to fantasize about an ex-girlfriend?

  Was there something even more going on than that?

  I couldn’t think about it. It was making sick. Why wouldn’t Jim talk to me?

  Was Jim… was Jim cheating on me?

  Chapter Ten

  When I left the hospital, my frustrations were at an all time high.

  I knew my husband.

  I knew him well.

  We’d dated for a long time before we married, and we’d been married for a almost four years now. Plus, we had a good, healthy marriage.

  Or, at least, I believed we did...

  Jim was a nice, wonderful man. He was friendly. Loving. Caring. Smart. Funny. I loved him. He was not only my husband, but my best friend.

  And yet…

  I just couldn’t shake this feeling that something about this situation was wrong. First, he failed to mention to me about the police being called. Now, it turned out, the woman who’d called the police on him was an ex-girlfriend.

  And, according to her, he had made some rude comment to her. That just didn’t sound like Jim.

  Was Cassandra lying?

  Had the two of them been seeing each other and got into some sort of spat?<
br />
  I wasn’t sure what to think. I know one thing: I was very distracted on my drive home. Not that that would have mattered.

  It was dark, only a hint of light coming up from the distant horizon. A slight blush color covered half the sky while behind me it was still pitch black – stars still in the sky, and the moon only a sliver. It was a lovely juxtaposition that I really couldn’t appreciate with everything that was running through my mind.

  As I drove through an intersection, a flicker of light caught my eye. I saw the headlights, and I could hear the spinning of tires.

  My breath caught and I swerved.

  The car barreling toward me turned also—but not to get out of my way. Instead, they were swerving toward me as if to ensure they hit me.

  My heart lurched, and I braced for impact. The car hit the back driver’s side door, t-boning my car. My vehicle began to spin. The steering wheel jerked so abruptly that I had to throw my hands up to prevent my wrists from being jerked about. I felt the airbag smash into my face, and my mouth filling with blood.

  I was only vaguely aware that my car was flipping. I could see out my cracked window as the ground appeared to swoosh overhead. At last, my car came to a grinding halt as my vehicle slid off the road and into a parking meter. My back bumper crunched, and once I was at last still I took a deep breath.

  I’m alive, right?

  I touched my head, wiggled my toes, and checked over my arms. I knew when adrenaline was pumping, it could be difficult to ascertain if anything was broken or injured, so I remained fairly still until I could get my bearings together.

  And oh no.

  My babies!

  I glanced up, and I saw the car. A red Toyota Takoma with a bent fender. My entire body tensed, and I watched the vehicle bail. It drove away, tires shrieking. Down the street, red flashing police lights erupted, and I felt an instant sense of relief knowing that someone of authority had seen the accident.

  Accident?

  It was no accident. Raymond drove a Toyota Takoma with a bent fender. I’d recognized his truck as soon as my car stopped spinning. I’d been trailing the guy for over a month. I knew who he was. I knew what he drove. I could have spotted that truck a mile away.

  I stayed in my car, and I didn’t bother moving to search for my phone since a cop was already on the way. Being pregnant, I didn’t want to risk anything. I was already worried enough about my twin babies after being told I’d a higher chance of a miscarriage after the carbon monoxide poisoning incident.

  Less than two minutes went by, and then a flashlight shined in my eye. “Miss, are you all right?” he asked, and I could see him peering in the back seat.

  “Car seat is empty,” I said, thankful for my baby on board sticker. “Little one is at home with dad.”

  “Okay, good,” he said. “I just wanted to make sure. Ma’am, how is your neck? Is anything hurting?”

  “No, I think I’m okay, but I’m pregnant. Can you please call for an ambulance? I’d rather be safe than sorry,” I said. “And, I know who hit me. His name is Raymond Kent. I’m a PI, and his wife hired me to investigate him. I think he was trying to kill me.”

  “Do you know—”

  “License plate? Yup, I have it memorized,” I hissed.

  The officer smirked at me slightly – like he was proud of me, this complete stranger, for being so prepared. He called for an ambulance, put out a search for Raymond, and then came and waited by the car with me.

  “I’m definitely pressing charges against this creep,” I told the cop.

  “You should,” he agreed. “I’m happy to take your statement as soon as you get cleared by the medics.”

  The paramedics arrived almost immediately, but even so, I was already starting to feel really achy. I hoped nothing was broken, but I was pretty sure that I was going to at least be experiencing some whiplash.

  They put me on a stretcher, and when it was raised up, I could see just how destroyed my car was. I gritted my teeth. I’d definitely seen Raymond’s car – and I was pretty sure he had been driving. That bearded face of his was a dead giveaway.

  The paramedics spoke calmly to me like I was having some sort of panic attack, but I was more angry than frightened. It could have been a lot worse. It took less than ten minutes to get me to the hospital, and I was taken straight back to the ER.

  Since I was pregnant, they didn’t do any x-rays, especially since I wasn’t complaining too seriously except for what I’m sure would be a good bit of bruising. They then took me to get an ultrasound with the on-call gynecologist where they checked over my babies – mostly to check for any signs of placental abruption. Thankfully, the babies were fine, and so was I apart from a small line of stitches I had to get in my right eyebrow – thanks to the airbag.

  I’d asked the doctor to call Jim when I’d first arrived, but since Jim was already listed as my emergency contact, he had already been called. I assumed he would be there sooner or later, but I was starting to get anxious. They put me in a room while my doctor filled out some discharge paperwork, and that’s when Jim finally arrived.

  The man entered my hospital room, eyes blazing. “Kate!” he yelped, hurrying inside. He sat on the edge of the hospital bed and touched my face. My face was a bit bruised from the airbag, and I’m sure the fresh stitches made it look worse than it actually was. He looked completely panicked and shaky. I couldn’t believe that just an hour before I was stewing in the car wondering if this man could possibly be cheating on me.

  Maybe I could blame it on pregnancy hormones – I was acting nuts.

  “I’m fine, Jim,” I assured him and smiled. “Where’s Laurie?”

  “She’s with Kenny,” he said. “I’m so glad you’re all right. When they called me, I freaked out. They said your car was totaled and that it had been a hit and run?”

  “Yeah, but I was able to ID the driver. It was Creepy Raymond,” I said.

  “The same guy who beat up Kenny?” Jim questioned. “I’m going to kill him.”

  “You can’t kill him,” I said, groaning slightly. “Then you’d be in jail, and my babies need their daddy.”

  All the thoughts I’d been entertaining about Jim’s possible infidelity suddenly collided in my mind, and tears streamed down my face.

  Jim squeezed my hand, and panic clouded his features. “Babe! Does something hurt? Should I call the doctor?”

  I shook my head. “I’m fine. My hormones are out of whack. They’re making me all emotional and irrational.”

  “Nah, you’re always that way,” he joked.

  I dropped his hand. “That’s not funny.”

  He stroked my hair. “I’m kidding.” His phone vibrated in his pocket, and he pulled it out to glance at it. “Hey, your mom just texted me that she’s here. I called her on my way to let her know you’d been in an accident.” He set his phone down on the small table beside the hospital bed, and leaned in to kiss my forehead. “I’ll grab her from the ER waiting room so she doesn’t get lost.”

  “Thanks,” I said to him, trying to actually sound thankful instead of flustered. Despite how sweet and worried he was acting, I was still a little annoyed with him. I wouldn’t have felt the need to run out to the hospital if he’d just been straight with me about what had happened between him and Cassandra.

  Maybe a tiny part of me is blaming him for what happened.

  Normally, I’d never think that.

  It wasn’t Jim’s fault I was running out to talk to Cassandra, and it wasn’t Jim’s fault that Raymond had decided to go after me.

  None of it was Jim’s fault, yet somehow my brain was trying to encourage me to find something to be angry with him about. It was that nagging feeling in the back of my head – that feeling that something just wasn’t right.

  I watched Jim leave; he hurried out of the room to go meet Mom. My mom had a tendency to wander and get distracted easily, so it was definitely necessary to escort her. She was the type of woman who could inadvertently start talk
ing to a stranger and have a cruise to the Bahamas’ booked by the time she made it to my room.

  I leaned my head back, taking a moment to gather my bearings before my mom came in and started fussing over me. I smirked slightly, imagining that one day Laurie would moan and groan about how I needed to calm down and stop worrying about her.

  Like my mom, I knew I never would. Funny how you realize that sort of thing once you become a parent.

  Just as I was starting to relax a bit, something caught my eye.

  Jim had left his phone.

  There it was. Just sitting there within arm’s reach. My mind raced back to my meeting with Sarah and Galigani. She’d said that the first thing she noticed was how Raymond had started omitting things… like what Jim was doing with the incident with Cassandra.

  The second thing she’d said was that he had started getting strange emails and phones calls...

  Every neuron in my brain was telling me to leave it alone. To trust my husband. To not reach over there and start going through his phone.

  But, I didn’t listen.

  I snagged his phone. I don’t know what I was looking for, but I was looking for something. I checked first to see if he was logged into his email, but he wasn’t. I didn’t know Jim’s password for his email. I never really had a reason to go snooping through his emails before. I checked his messages. The first few texts that showed up were from me, Kenny, Mom, and a few guys from work. Okay, so he had least hadn’t been contacting anyone recently.

  Then it occurred to me that Cassandra had given me her number. Had Jim tried calling her? I typed her number into his phone to see if anything came up.

  It did.

  My breath caught.

  He had her contact – her personal cell number – saved in his phone.

  Not under her name, of course, but under the contact Bakery. I tried not to panic. I’d been having Jim go out for brownies for me quite often. It was certainly possible that Jim had asked for her number so he could call her whenever his wife, me, was having one of her pregnancy cravings.

  But… why would Cassandra give him her cell number? Why not her work number?