Baked to Death (Cookies & Chance Mysteries Book 2)

by Catherine Bruns

  "And I love him." My lower lip trembled.

  She watched me in concern. "There is something wrong, and I think I know what it is. Your clown of an ex-husband."

  Grandma Rosa always seemed to have an uncanny sense of foreboding and events to come. But this prediction was downright eerie. "Are you psychic or something?"

  She laughed and smoothed the hair back from my face. "No, cara mia. He called here last night looking for you. He did not give his name when I asked, but I knew who it was. I remembered the voice." Her tone was cautionary. "He wants money, doesn't he?"

  My stomach convulsed as I nodded. "He's going to try to sue me for the business. I don't think he has any rights, but what should I do?"

  She put her arms around me. "You will go back into the dining room and have some cheesecake."

  It was an awesome yet strange suggestion. Still, I could never resist my grandmother's cheesecake. Then I thought of my dream last night and hesitated. "My thighs can't stand it."

  She frowned. "I do not understand. But you should never argue with an old lady. Now go in, and sit down with your young man before your father grills him to death. Then you go out with Josie and Robbie to celebrate her birthday. Life is not all hard work. You both need to have some fun, too."

  I sighed. "Maybe I'm stressing over nothing."

  She nodded. "That is what I think. Do not worry. These things have a way of working themselves out. Something tells me that Colin and his threats will not amount to anything. Trust your grandmother."

  * * *

  Mike grinned as we approached the front door of the bar. "Every time I walk through these doors, I think about that night when I kissed you for the very first time. Right in this spot." He gestured at the snow-covered wooden porch and then leaned down to brush his lips across mine as if reenacting the scene. "Just like that."

  "Well," I teased, "it's good that I've taught you a few things since then."

  Mike let out a roar of laughter as he held the door open for me. The place was packed, typical for a Saturday night. Since there wasn't much going on in the Buffalo region during the month of January, Ralph's served as the perfect diversion when you were bored with television on a wintry Saturday evening.

  Ralph's was more than a bar—it was a staple in our hometown of Colwestern. The building had been here for as long as I could remember. When we had first started dating, Mike had been too ashamed to bring me inside his house. With an alcoholic mother and an abusive stepfather, Mike was never sure what might be happening on the home front. So on our first date, we'd wandered down the street from his mother's house to Ralph's where he'd convinced him to give us a couple of sodas. We'd sat on the porch and talked. For hours. And then he had kissed me. I'm quite certain that was the moment I fell in love with him.

  There was a rustic feel to the place. Large beams covered the ceiling, and there was a television set up behind the bar that was tuned to an NFL playoff game. Mike liked sports and was a very athletic runner, but he didn't even glance at the screen as he held my hand tightly, and we crossed the crowded floor.

  We caught sight of Josie and Rob at a table near the wall, and I waved as we made our way over to them.

  Rob stood up to give me a hug and pumped Mike's hand. "Glad you guys could make it."

  Rob Sullivan was over six feet tall with brown hair in a buzz cut and a matching, well-trimmed beard. He was two years older than the rest of us, and Josie had started dating him on the sly when we were both in the tenth grade. Shortly after we'd graduated, she'd discovered she was pregnant. They'd married a few months later, and she'd quit culinary school just before the baby was born.

  Rob was the total opposite of his wife—quiet and reserved. Although their relationship had started off a bit tumultuously, they loved each other deeply and had now been married for ten years with four beautiful boys to show for it.

  A waitress approached our table with a round of beers.

  "We went ahead and ordered for you guys," Josie said as she grabbed one.

  Mike reached into his wallet and produced a couple of bills that he gave the waitress, despite Rob's protests. "Our treat. For Josie's birthday." He reached for my hand.

  Josie grinned and raised her beer in salute. "Thanks, dude." She took a long sip and then wiped her mouth with the back of her hand as her eyes searched my face. "Did you tell Mike about our little visitor today?"

  I nodded as Mike's hand tightened around mine. "We—uh, talked about it on the way over here."

  Talking was a bit of an understatement. Mike had muttered a few choice curse words while he'd gripped the steering wheel so tightly that his knuckles had turned white. He had then declared that if Colin ever came near me again, he'd have to answer to him.

  "Let's talk about something else. First things first, your birthday present." I reached into my purse and produced an envelope that included an e-ticket I had printed earlier in addition to two hundred dollars in cash. "An airline ticket for Florida this week and some spending money. Happy birthday."

  Josie clamped a hand over her mouth. "No way, Sal. I can't let you do that."

  I leaned my head against Mike's shoulder as he wrapped his arm around me. "It's already done. If it wasn't for you, we never would have gotten this far. I couldn't enter a competition like this by myself."

  Josie reached over to hug me. "I don't know how to thank you."

  Mike took a long swig of his beer and watched us with a bemused look upon his face. "What's this about Florida?"

  Shoot. With everything else going on, I'd forgotten to tell him. "Josie and I have been selected to be on Cookie Crusades this week. It's the baking competition I told you about. Remember? They film in Florida, so we need to fly down there."

  His arm tightened around me, and he kissed the top of my head. "That's great, baby. How long will you be gone?"

  "Only a couple of days." I watched his face for a reaction, but he didn't seem to have one. He acted genuinely happy for us. The insecure Mike I'd dated in high school would have been busy suggesting reasons why I shouldn't go. "Any chance you can come, too?"

  He shook his head sadly. "I wish. Laura Embree wants her kitchen done by the end of next week." He tweaked my nose. "That's going to mean a lot of late nights until then."

  "It's Laura Embree's kitchen you're remodeling?" My jaw dropped. Laura was the owner of the Paradise Motel and Bar. She was an extremely wealthy woman in her early forties and very attractive as well.

  He shrugged. "Yeah. I thought I told you."

  Josie and I exchanged glances. We'd heard of Laura's reputation with men before. She was like a queen spider that trapped unsuspecting flies in her web. She had a healthy appetite for young, good-looking men, and my boyfriend definitely fit the bill.

  Rob laughed. "I heard that chick has quite the reputation." He reached for his beer, but Josie nudged him so hard in the elbow that he almost dropped it.

  Mike caught my deer-in-the-headlights look and kissed my cheek. "It's a job. That's all. I have no interest in her. Besides the money she's throwing my way, that is."

  I knew I could trust Mike, but the thought of that woman trying to tempt him annoyed me to no end. "I can't wait till you're finished there."

  "Believe me, neither can I," he sighed.

  I pushed my chair back. "I need to use the ladies room. Be right back."

  I walked by the small dance floor where two couples were swaying to a song by Maroon Five blasting from the jukebox. I continued past the pool table in the dimly lit corner to the restrooms located directly across. Ralph had draped a sign across the table indicating it was out of order. There were a few cracks in the turf he obviously wanted repaired before anyone used it again.

  There was no one else in the small two-stall bathroom, so I took an extra minute to fix my hair and adjust the gold choker that had become entangled in my hair. I was looking forward to spending the entire day with Mike tomorrow. He'd mentioned that maybe we could go for a ride on his snowmobile, but
I thought spending the day in bed sounded so much better. I didn't think it would be difficult to convince him of that as well.

  I reached for the brass knob and pulled the door open. I had taken one step out of the room when someone grabbed my wrist and pushed me back inside the bathroom. My head hit the side of the hand dryer on the wall, and I let out a low moan. In shock, I stared at the face in front of me.

  Colin. His jacket was gone, and he stood there before me in a disheveled dress shirt rolled up at the sleeves. His eyes were red rimmed, and I could detect rage brimming beneath them. He reeked of alcohol so badly that I briefly wondered if he'd been asleep behind Ralph's bar all evening.

  He pinned both of my arms over my head with one hand and grabbed the chain around my neck with his other. He looked pleased as it constricted around my throat, and for the first time ever, I was genuinely terrified of what this man might do to me. Colin was a lot of things, but he'd never been physically abusive toward me while we were married.

  "Let go of me," I managed to choke out.

  "Who the hell do you think you are to belittle me like that in front of my brother? Huh?" He tightened his grip around the chain, and spots started to dance before my eyes.

  "I can't breathe." My voice came out as a whisper. "Please let go."

  Colin's face was right next to mine, and his sickening grin formed icicles between my shoulder blades. What had happened to the man I married? It was obvious he'd been replaced by a cold and calculating monster.

  "You think you're better than me, don't you? Well, you're not. And I never really loved you. You didn't mean anything to me."

  While the smell of him and the grip around my neck were more than enough to cause acute pain, it was his actual words that cut through me like a sharp-edged razor. The room was hot and close and starting to grow dark around me. "Don't—"

  Someone banged on the door, and Mike's worried voice drifted through the air. "Sal, are you okay in there?"

  Caught off guard, Colin turned his head for a split second and unconsciously relaxed his grip enough that I managed to get one hand free and promptly clawed him in the face with my nails.

  "Bitch!" he shrieked.

  The door burst open. Before I even knew what happened, Mike had picked Colin up like he was a rag doll and thrown him across the room where he landed in the center of the pool table. Colin lay there stunned in a temporary daze.

  The chatter from the bar area stopped immediately as everyone turned to stare. Rob and Josie rose from their seats and started toward us.

  "Call the police," Josie yelled to Ralph, who stood behind the bar.

  Mike examined my neck with care and then gathered me in his arms. "Are you okay? Did he hurt you?"

  From the corner of my eye, I saw Colin leap to his feet and run toward us with a pen knife in his hand. "Look out!" I screamed.

  Mike turned around but wasn't quick enough as Colin thrust the knife at him. Mike drew his arm back, and his fist connected with my ex-husband's jaw. Colin fell back against the wall, stunned for a moment. He turned and ran through the bar area then disappeared from my line of vision.

  Blood dripped from Mike's arm onto the wooden floor. For a moment, all I could do was stare, mesmerized. When I opened my mouth to speak, no sound came out.

  Josie came running with a hand towel she'd snagged from the bar area. She wrapped it around Mike's arm, despite his protests.

  "I'm okay." A muscle ticked in his jaw. "I'll be even better after I kill that son of a bitch."

  Josie examined my face. "Are you all right?"

  I glanced from her to Mike's arm and immediately burst into tears. "I should have given him some money. This is all my fault."

  Josie hugged me tightly as I sobbed.

  "Look at me," Mike said, the towel around his arm quickly changing to a deep shade of crimson. "This is not your fault. That guy is a loose cannon. Desperate people do desperate things. This is in no way or shape your fault. Understand?"

  I blew out a sharp breath and put my hand out for Mike's keys. "We need to drive you to a hospital to be checked out."

  "Let's see if we can stem the bleeding somewhat first." Rob walked over with Ralph's first aid kit. In a minute, he had Mike's arm bandaged, and the flow of blood had subsided. Josie grabbed another hand towel to wrap around the bandage.

  "Sal's right. You're probably going to need stitches." Josie glanced around the room. "Where'd scum of the earth go? Did he crawl under a rock somewhere?"

  Ralph, in his early sixties with silver hair and a large belly that slopped over his pants, hurried over to us. He'd been talking on the phone—to the cops, I hoped. "You kids okay?"

  "Fine." Mike gestured to the pool table. "Sorry about that. I'll pay for it."

  Ralph snorted. "You'll do nothing of the sort. I needed a new one anyhow. And when that loser turns up again, I'm holding him responsible."

  "How did he get out of here?" Josie asked.

  Ralph shrugged. "He ran out the front door like a madman. A couple of guys chased after him, but he had a good start and managed to lose them. No matter. The cops will find that lowlife eventually." He examined Mike's arm. "You better get over to the hospital and get that looked at, kiddo."

  We started for the front door while Josie ran back to the table to grab our coats and my purse. Everyone who had gathered on the bar floor moved aside to let us pass. I thought I saw Mitzi waving to us through the crowd, but I couldn't be sure. Plus, I didn't want to deal with her right now.

  "Sally?" I heard a voice call.

  Puzzled, I turned around. Luke Zibro stood there. He'd been a friend of Colin's since high school but now lived in Florida. We'd relocated there as well when Luke had found a bartending job for Colin. He was a good-looking guy with short light-brown hair and warm hazel eyes. He stared at me in confusion now.

  My mouth dropped open in surprise. "Luke, what are you doing here? Did you come with Colin?"

  He nodded. "I drove up yesterday to see my folks. Colin asked if he could bum a ride with me. Said he had business to attend to."

  The business meaning my bakery. "Was he stalking me tonight?"

  Luke's face reddened. "We were parked down the street from your parents' house, waiting for you to come out. He said he needed to see you, but when he saw you leave with Mike, he changed his mind and made me follow you guys here. Honest, Sally, he said he just wanted to talk. I had no idea he was going to pull a stunt like this. Guess I should have known better."

  "It's not your fault." I turned to Mike. "You remember Luke from high school, right?"

  "Where's Colin staying?" Mike growled as he put his face next to Luke's. "With you? If so, you'd better advise him to pack up and head back to Florida because if he comes anywhere near my girlfriend again, I swear to God I'll kill him."

  Luke's eyes widened. "Uh, I'm staying with my folks. Colin's at a hotel. I guess his family didn't want him in their homes. He was pretty sore about it, too. He's at the Hotel Six on Stanley Street." He cursed under his breath. "The guy's out of control. I got tired of waiting for him and figured I'd come in to see what was going on. He ran right past me without a word. Two men were chasing him."

  "Sorry. We really need to get Mike's arm checked out," I said. "Maybe we could talk tomorrow, okay?"

  He nodded and watched us pass. "Sally, if there's anything I can do—"

  "Thanks for the offer."

  Josie and Rob were waiting outside for us. She held my purse out to me.

  "It's not necessary for you guys to go to the hospital with us," I said. "Stay here and try to enjoy yourselves. We'll be fine."

  "Nothing doing," Rob said. "He can't drive himself, and you're in no shape to. Get in our car, and leave Mike's truck here. Then Josie and I will drive it over to you guys later."

  * * *

  It was about two o'clock in the morning when Josie and Rob finally dropped us off at Mike's house. He had ten stitches in his arm but other than that, was fine. He'd lost some blood but not
enough for a transfusion to be necessary. The doctor advised him to take a couple of days off work and rest. Mike had burst into laughter when he'd said that.

  As we got out of the backseat, I hurried around the vehicle to hug Josie.

  Mike shook Rob's hand then came up behind me to give Josie a peck on the cheek. "Sorry we ruined your birthday celebration. Sal and I will make it up to you."

  She laughed. "It's fine, really. I'm just glad you're okay." She turned to me. "Call me tomorrow?"

  "Sure," I smiled. "Thanks for everything. And please apologize to your sitter for us."

  They waved and sped off as Mike unlocked the front door.

  I watched my breath travel through the frigid air. "Are you sure you're all right? How bad is your arm?"

  "It hurts," he admitted, "but I've taken worse beatings."

  Mike undoubtedly referred to the way his mother and stepfather had treated him when he was younger. He didn't comment any further. There was no need to. His unspoken words hung heavily in the night, similar to the crystals of ice that covered the naked tree branches.

  Spike was at the front door to greet us. He was a black-and-white Shih Tzu that I had helped Mike pick out at the local shelter when we had first dated. Although Spike was almost twelve years old, he still acted like a puppy most of the time.

  He wasn't happy about our late arrival and had made a special effort to show us his displeasure. A throw pillow from the couch was lying on the floor with all the stuffing ripped out of it. Fortunately, there were no other messes since Mike had installed a doggie door for Spike that led into a small fenced yard. The dog looked at Mike now and wagged his tail hopefully. He wanted to go for a walk.

  "I'll take him." I reached for his red leash with the little black puppy paw design, which hung on the kitchen wall.

  Mike grabbed it out of my hands. "No. I'll take him. I'm not letting you out of my sight. Not while that psycho is still on the loose."