Sugar Coated Sins

by Jessica Beck

  “I buried a deed book for him so he could buy some property he desperately wanted,” she said. “He approached Jan first, but when she had a change of heart, I was more than happy to do it. A thousand dollars was a lot of money to me back then. I just didn’t realize that he’d use what I’d done against me. After I hid the deed book, he told me that from then on, everything I did for him was going to be for free, or he’d expose me for what I’d done. I had nothing but that job, Suzanne. I couldn’t let that happen. I knew that Benjamin had to die. It wasn’t until he was taking his last breath, twitching and shuddering and making all kinds of vile movements and ugly expressions, that he told me about the journal, hidden somewhere in the loft where no one would ever find it. After he was dead, I figured it would stay hidden forever, but when my confession was discovered, I knew that I had to start looking for it in earnest.”

  “Why write the confession in the first place?” I asked her. I was genuinely interested in her reply.

  “What harm could it do? That capsule wasn’t supposed to be opened until we were all long gone.”

  “I’m not buying it. You had to have been feeling at least some remorse, at least when you wrote it.”

  Hillary looked as though she were holding back her tears. “The truth is that I’d hoped that seeing him die would give me some kind of closure, but it was horrible. In novels and even movies, they make poisoning look so quick and relatively painless. It’s not like that in real life. I started having nightmares, so I thought if I wrote that note, it would give me some peace.”

  “And did it?” I asked. She was one step away now.

  “Yes, after awhile, I managed to convince myself that none of it had happened at all.”

  “The chicken was never poisoned, was it?”

  “No. I brought him a pie later that day, just like the one I dropped off at your house. His was doused with something a lot more lethal, though. The chicken gave me the idea, but it was the baked treat that ended up killing him.”

  “Why give Jake and me a pie soaked with ipecac?” I asked her. “Were we really getting that close?”

  “If certainly felt as though you were at the time. I figured that if I made you both sick, you’d give up.”

  “That just shows that you don’t know either one of us at all,” I said.

  It was time. Reaching around behind me, I grabbed the lamp and swung it at her head before she could lash out at me with the knife.

  Unfortunately, I missed.

  Hillary laughed at me, and I swung again.

  This time I hit her shoulder, sending the knife clattering to the floor.

  She wasn’t laughing that time.

  I started to go for the knife, but she got to it first. When she stood up, her back was to the door now, so that means of escape was gone. There was only one thing that I could think of doing, so I bolted past her and scurried up the metal-runged ladder to the roof. Maybe if I could get up there, I’d be able to shout for help. The blade sliced through the air below me, catching my tennis shoe but missing my foot. That had been close. If the skylight access was locked, I’d be dead before I got it open.

  After a hint of resistance, it opened, and I hurried out onto the roof.

  I knew that I didn’t have much time before Hillary followed me up.

  I searched around for some kind of weapon to use against her, but there was nothing there but a flat tarred and graveled roof.

  I was suddenly out of options.

  There was just one thing left for me to do. Racing for the side of the roof, I leaned over and began to shout for help from someone below.

  No one saw me at first, but when I screamed again, a man passing by looked up.

  “Help! Fire!” There weren’t any flames, but I guessed that I’d have more luck yelling out that there was a fire than if I’d said that someone was up there trying to kill me.

  Then I heard footsteps on the gravel behind me, much too close for comfort.

  As I turned, I saw Hillary running at me full steam, the knife extended toward me like a knight’s lance. All reason and logic were gone from her eyes. She was in some kind of killing frenzy, and I knew that if I didn’t do something, and fast, I’d be dead in the next instant.

  At the last possible moment, I threw myself down at her feet.

  Wrapping my arms around her legs, I tried my best to trip her at the last second.

  Unfortunately, I succeeded too well.

  I’d meant to throw her off balance and make her drop the knife, not send her plummeting over the edge of the building.

  Still, I remembered the boxes piled below.

  Maybe they’d cushion her fall enough to save her life. Even though she’d just tried to kill me, I didn’t want her to die, certainly not by my hand.

  Hillary hit the boxes, just as I’d hoped, but as I watched her, holding my breath as I waited for her to stand and run away, she didn’t move.

  I raced down the ladder, through the apartment, and down the stairs as fast as I could manage without killing myself.

  When I got around front, I saw Jake, and I collapsed in his arms.

  “Is she okay?” I asked him.

  My husband just shook his head, and then he took me in his arms. “The knife went into her chest. There’s nothing anybody can do for her now.”

  I was in shock the instant I heard the news.

  I’d just killed another human being, and the fact that it had been self-defense had nothing to do with it.

  Chapter 24

  “Suzanne, she was trying to kill you,” Jake said softly as sirens started screaming all around us. “You didn’t have any choice. There was nothing else that you could have done.”

  “I didn’t have to follow her up there, Jake,” I said as my sobbing began to take over. I was crying so hard I couldn’t breathe.

  They took me away in an ambulance and put me in the hospital.

  Shock, they said, but I barely heard them for twenty-four straight hours.

  It almost broke me.

  But as I lay there in bed, I began to realize that Jake had been right. There had been a choice to make, a decision that involved life and death.

  Once I was on that rooftop, I knew that either I would die that day or Hillary Mast would.

  And in the end, I couldn’t continue to punish myself for the fact that I’d done what I could to save my own life.

  Jake came in a little later, and he was clearly happy to see that I was feeling better. “Welcome back. I was worried about you,” he said as he stroked a little hair out of my eyes.

  “To be honest with you, I was, too.”

  “Are you okay?”

  “Jake, how do you deal with it? You’ve had to shoot people before.”

  “It’s never easy, but in the end, it comes down to a choice,” he said gravely. “Suzanne, I’ll do whatever I can to help you, but it’s something that you’re going to have to come to terms with by yourself.”

  “I understand that.”

  “I’m just sorry that I wasn’t there for you when you needed me,” he said, nearly breaking down himself. “I was off looking for Hilda.”

  “Did you ever find her?”

  “Yes, she was at a rest stop on the interstate, trying to figure out what to do next. She was afraid that I was convinced that she’d killed Benjamin Port, and she wasn’t going to wait around to be arrested. I really blew it, Suzanne.”

  “Nonsense. I wouldn’t have known anything myself if I hadn’t gotten that last photo from Ray. I should have waited for you, but I was afraid of what Hillary might do.”

  “You didn’t do anything wrong,” he said softly.

  “I wish that I could believe that. It would make dealing with what happened afterward so much easier.”

  “Give it a chance. In the meantime, you’ve got half the town waiting outside to see you. The doctor asked us all to step out, but Grace and your mom are clamoring to get back in.”

  “Go get them,” I said, eager to
see them as well. Before Jake got to the door, I added, “There’s one more thing first.”

  “Anything.”

  “I’m done, Jake. From now on, I’m leaving law enforcement up to you.”

  “You might feel differently about it later,” he said softly. “I almost quit myself every time it happened to me.”

  “I don’t think so. Go on. Let them in.”

  As Grace and my mother rushed to my side, I knew that I was finished. Grace had dropped out herself once not that long ago, but this time, I had a feeling that my exit was permanent. Barring the end of the world occurring or something happening to someone I loved deeply, I was going to stick to donut making and leave the criminal investigations to the pros.

  I had people all around who loved me, a husband I adored, and a job that I enjoyed, and I meant to savor every moment I had left with it all.

  I knew that once the shock of what had happened with Hillary Mast on that rooftop wore off, I could very easily change my mind at some point in the future, but as far as I was concerned, at that moment, I was officially retired from the amateur sleuthing business forever.

  SUGAR AND SPICE DONUTS

  These treats are praised by my niece for their sweet flavors. Whenever she comes to visit, making these donuts with me is one of the “must do” activities on her list, and as she’s gotten older, she has grown more and more involved in their creation, giving us both a fun bonding time together. These donuts are particularly good with some warm mulled cider on a cold winter day after being outside walking in the fresh snow, but even if it’s July and the sun is baking, these are still a welcome goodie that is great for sharing!

  Ingredients

  Dry

  2 1/2 cups flour, unbleached all purpose

  2 teaspoons baking powder

  1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

  1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

  1/4 teaspoon ground ginger

  1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

  1 dash salt

  Wet

  1/2 cup whole milk

  1 cup granulated sugar

  4 tablespoons butter, softened

  2 eggs, beaten

  1 teaspoon vanilla extract

  1/2 vanilla bean, scraped

  Canola oil for frying

  Topping

  1/2 cup granulated sugar

  1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

  1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

  1/4 teaspoon ground ginger

  Directions

  Heat the oil first to 375° F.

  Then, in a medium-sized mixing bowl, stir the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, cloves, and salt until it is all thoroughly incorporated. In another bowl, mix the whole milk, sugar, butter, eggs, vanilla, and the scraped vanilla bean seeds together. Mix well and then slowly add the dry ingredients to the wet until they are combined, being careful not to overmix, as this could cause denser donuts.

  Drop small balls of dough the size of walnuts into the hot oil for 2 to 3 minutes, then remove them to a cooling rack. While they are still warm, top with the sweet sugar mix and enjoy!

  Yields 15 to 20 donuts.

  CHOCOLATE GOODNESS DONUTS

  The two best flavors for donuts around our house lately are lemon and chocolate. My Significant Other loves chocolate the most, so I try to work some of these into my donut rotation! I’ve played with many recipes over the years for adding chocolate to my batter, but I’m still in search of that perfect ratio and combination of donut batter and chocolate. I haven’t found it yet, but it’s fun to keep trying, and besides, even if they aren’t perfect, they’re nearly always good enough to eat!

  Ingredients

  Dry

  3 to 4 cups flour, unbleached all purpose

  1/2 cup baking cocoa

  3 teaspoons baking powder

  1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

  1/4 teaspoon salt

  Wet

  2 eggs, beaten

  3/4 cup granulated sugar

  1/4 cup canola oil

  2 tablespoons butter, melted

  1 teaspoon vanilla extract

  1/2 vanilla bean, scraped

  3/4 cup whole milk

  Glaze

  2 cups confectioner’s sugar

  1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

  1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

  2 to 3 tablespoons water

  Canola oil for frying

  Directions

  Beat the eggs together in a large mixing bowl, then incorporate the sugar, oil, butter, vanilla extract, and vanilla bean until thoroughly mixed. In a separate bowl, mix the flour, baking cocoa, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt until thoroughly combined. Next, slowly add the dry mixture to the wet, stirring just enough to combine as you alternate between incorporating the dry mix and the milk. Chill this mixture for 15 to 20 minutes. Next, roll the dough out to 1/2 to 1/4 inch thick on a lightly floured surface and then, using a donut cutter or a glass, cut out the donut shapes. Heat the canola oil to 375° F, and then fry each donut for 2 1/2 to 3 minutes, turning halfway through. Remove from the oil and place them on paper towels. While they are cooling, mix the glaze, adding just enough water until the desired consistency is obtained. Ice the donuts, and then serve!

  Yields 8 to 10 donuts.

  DIPPING Rounds

  I fully realize that this might go against every recipe I’ve ever created for the Donut Mysteries, but sometimes the donut is more of a topping delivery device than a means to an end. When I don’t feel like messing with creating my own dough, I reach for a tube of premade biscuit or breadstick dough from my fridge, and as the oven or oil is preheating, I focus on the toppings to dip them in when they’re done.

  Some popular choices in my household are, in no particular order, slightly warmed hazelnut spread, chocolate fudge or butterscotch ice cream toppings, sugary glazes like one of the two listed above, simmered jams and other sweet fruit glazes, nuts, sprinkles, and anything else we happen to have on hand.

  Bake these treats according to the directions on their packages, and be ready when they come out of the oven. For an even more donutlike texture, deep fry the dough instead.

  I like to set the table like a buffet so each person can customize their very own treat!

  Ingredients

  1 canister breadstick or biscuit dough,

  Assorted toppings listed above

  Canola oil for frying, if desired (the amount depends on your pot or fryer)

  Instructions

  You can bake these different doughs in the oven (usually at 375° F) or do what I like to do. Add enough oil to your pot to fry the dough. As it is heating to 375° F, break open the containers and shape the dough, whether biscuit or bread, into small rounds a little larger than the size of walnuts. After they’re finished baking or frying, cool them until they are safe to touch and then distribute them and start dipping!

  Yields 12 to 16 small rounds.

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