A Pinch of Sea Salt and a Dash of Murder (Outer Banks Baker Mystery Series Book 1)

by Phoebe T. Eggli

  After what she considered a thorough inspection of the back work area, Melissa moved to access her office. Using her shirt to cover her hand as she tried the knob, she was surprised to find her office was unlocked. She never left the shop without locking the office. After working for catering companies in Greensboro while Kevin pursued flying, she had learned that the number one way to protect your valuables, especially clients’ information and special recipes, was to keep everything locked in a safe that was locked behind a fake wall that was hidden behind a bookcase or picture that was in a locked office. Not just a simple push button or click lock found on most home or office doors. No, it had to be a cipher lock and the code must be changed every week if not more often. Melissa had even considered a digital lock that would only open after finger print scan but talked herself out of it. No, this office had been locked when she left the other night. Now it wasn’t. The question was…did the cops unlock the door somehow or did Linda or her killer unlock it?

  Again, that question kept popping back up…Why was Linda in HER bakery? Melissa didn’t have time to dwell on that as moments later they heard the sound of the front door to the bakery opening.

  Melissa motioned for Logan to get behind her. A lot of good that would do since he was almost as tall as she was. By next summer he would tower over his aunt. The light switch was too far away for her to reach to turn off so she grabbed his hand and moved them behind the office door as quietly as she could without alerting whoever may be around. Footsteps could be heard as whoever was inside the shop with them made their way around the front counter and through the swinging half-door to the area behind the counter. Melissa couldn’t recall if she’d closed the cash register. If it was an intruder wishing to rob them, perhaps once they saw the empty register, hopefully they would simply leave.

  Light footsteps continued towards the door leading to the back work area. When she heard the door swing open, Melissa pushed on the office door hoping to keep it shut in case the intruder tried to get into the office. Trying to enter the combination from inside the office would make too much noise and alert whoever was wandering the bakery to their presence. Feeling her heart pounding in her chest and hoping no one else could hear it, they waited. The footsteps came closer and closer. Someone was just outside the office door. “Dear Lord,” Melissa prayed, “make whoever it is go away, please.”

  The door knob rattled as someone tried turning it but Melissa held it still from her side of the door hoping to give the illusion the door was locked. Then someone began to push on the door. Melissa and Logan held the door in place as best they could. Luckily, the person on the other side wasn’t too determined to get into the office. A few moments later, the sound of footsteps on the hard concrete echoed as the person retreated back to the front of the shop. When they heard the front door latch shut, Melissa and Logan began to breathe again and let out simultaneous sighs of relief.

  Now that she could breathe again, she was left wishing she had been able to peek out of the office to see who had entered her shop during the waning hours of darkness just before dawn, Melissa silently cursed herself for not at least trying. Maybe it was the killer. She would never know because she had hid in the office. However, she realized she could never have risked Logan’s safety by doing so. Reluctantly, she admitted the field trip to the store to investigate had been a bust.

  Waiting a while longer, in case the intruder still lurked outside the store, Melissa quickly surveyed her office. Normally the office was neat with everything in its place. That was not the situation now. Her office was a wreck! The small desk had definitely been rifled through. All the drawers were open and papers were flung everywhere. Whether that was the work of the killer, Linda, or the cops, Melissa was afraid she would never know.

  The bookcase on the back wall was still standing but all the knick-knacks usually displayed there lay broken on the floor. Even her framed picture of Kevin when he graduated from college with his master’s degree in Aviation Science had been knocked over and the glass fractured. Stepping up on her tip toes, Melissa peered at the corner of the bookcase where she had installed a false backing that hid the safe. After close inspection she realized it had indeed been tampered with. The wood was splitting around one side where someone had tried to forcibly remove it. “How could anyone know to look there?” she wondered. Prying the slab away with a letter opener she found on the ground, Melissa was happy to discover that the safe appeared to be intact. The number dial was off though. She always left it on 22; the age she was when she married Kevin. The dial instead showed 18.

  Melissa dialed the correct combination to the lock. It popped open. She was shocked to find that the stash of cash she kept on hand was gone. Additionally, her secret recipe box was open with several cards littered about the safe. Looking around the office, she realized there were several recipe cards laying on the ground as well.

  Had someone meant to rob her of money and recipes? She could understand someone wanting to swipe her petty cash fund, but the recipe cards? That didn’t make sense. Perhaps Linda saw lights on in the shop and came in and disrupted the burglary so the person or persons killed her? Had Linda meant to steal from her? That just seemed odd. What could she have that the “wedding cake wonder” would want? Even so, how would Linda end up dead here? In the Kill Devil Delicacies?

  Melissa gathered up the recipe cards as well as the box. Realizing she was removing items from a crime scene, she hesitated before shoving the items into her jacket pocket. As Logan touched his wrist to indicate they were running out of time, she canvassed the office one last time for clues. A few minutes later they were back out the front door and on their way back to her house. The sun would be rising over the Atlantic Ocean in less than a half hour so they quickened their pace. Both were unaware that they were being watched closely. Neither were aware that the traffic camera at the corner of the street had captured their entrance and exit.

  Chapter 5

  After sneaking back into her own house to avoid the news crew camped outside, Melissa urged her nephew to get some rest. He lumbered off to his room without complaint. Contemplating her options, she started a pot of coffee brewing and sat down at her kitchen table with the recipe box she had just pilfered from her own shop. She didn’t really need the cards anymore. Every recipe was burned into her memory long ago but she liked to keep them around anyway. However, it was odd that some of the cards had been strewn around her office. “Why would anyone want my recipe cards?” she thought.

  After 1 ½ large mugs of strong coffee with a splash of French vanilla creamer, the cards were back in their original order. However, a couple were missing. The recipes for her scrumptious Cranberry-Orange bread and her Rosemary Sea Salt bread were not there. Both were big hits with her customers. Melissa even had orders for these breads from tourists that visited their quaint little seaside town during the summer months. The Murphy family was due in town next week and had pre-ordered enough of the Cranberry-Orange bread to feed a small army. The Lucas matriarch from Morgantown, WV paid a year in advance to have the Rosemary Sea Salt bread delivered every three months to her home. Yes, these two particular artisan breads earned her bakery the most profit, aside from the daily breadsticks and bread bowls for Cheryl’s restaurant. She had even planned to enter one of the breads into the first annual Outer Banks Regional Bake-Off to be held next month. The contest boasted that the winner of the artisan bread category would earn a guest spot on a nationally televised cooking show on the Food Network.

  Despite not needing the recipes in order to bake any of her breads, Melissa decided to call the police department, at a more reasonable hour, and ask if any recipe cards had been taken into evidence. She couldn’t imagine why, but it didn’t hurt to ask. Her curiosity was piqued. Mulling over everything that had transpired she wondered:

  Why was Linda in the Kill Devil Delicacies after hours in the first place?

  Was Linda the one that broke in or did she discover the intruder?

&n
bsp; If Linda did break into her shop, why?

  How had someone gotten past her office door security lock, as well as known the location of her safe?

  Who had been in the shop earlier that morning when she and Logan were hiding in the office?

  Melissa resolved to find out what information she could from the police but knew she would need to careful. It would not do her any good to let on that she had been in the shop snooping around even with the police tape still cordoning it off. That would certainly add to their suspicions that she was involved in Linda’s death. Rubbing her temples to sooth the migraine threatening to come on, she decided that a quick, hot, steamy shower followed by a short nap were in order.

  As she was exiting the shower with her hair wrapped up in a plush, pale yellow towel Melissa heard the shrill ring of the house phone. She tripped over a pile of clothes on the floor as she tried to get to the phone. Too late to answer it, the answering machine kicked on just as she made a grab for the handset. The message surprised her immensely. A deep but feminine voice introduces herself as Janice Littleton, an attorney with Dewitt, Pendleton, and Schwartz. The voice continued by stating that she was aware of the “incident” in the bakery and wished to inquire if Mrs. Maples was in need of legal representation. With a slight southern drawl, she ended the message by leaving her contact information.

  Melissa was shocked! She had not even considered the possibility that she would need a lawyer. However, following her treatment by the local police yesterday and the obvious interest in her as evidenced by the news van camped outside her home, perhaps obtaining a lawyer was a good idea.

  If she wasn’t already convinced, the knock on her front door would certainly lead her to that conclusion. Having difficulty getting her clothes on as her body was still damp from the shower, Melissa cursed to herself as she rushed to answer the door. Looking at the clock above the living room fireplace mantle, it was still quite early for visitors. When she opened the door she was greeted by a police badge shoved in her face. Detectives Payne and Reynolds were on her front stoop. The one looking apologetic for disturbing her so early the other looking even grumpier than he had the previous day. The knot in Melissa’s stomach became more pronounced as she greeted her guests.

  The nicer, and more attractive, gentleman immediately apologized for bothering her so early in the morning, while his partner scowled. Melissa asked what she could do for the officers and if they would like to come in for some coffee. She didn’t really want to entertain them but felt kindness would get her more points than outward signs of agitation at their presence. Detective Payne accepted and she moved aside to allow them entry into her home.

  Logan had been awakened by the phone ringing and came lumbering out to see who was now at the door. Rubbing his eyes, he was jolted further awake by the sight of the cops in the house. Melissa gave him a reassuring look and encouraged him to get his shower while she spoke with the detectives. She hoped her attempt to appear unflustered by their presence worked. Inside her stomach was in knots and the pain behind her eye increased dramatically.

  She offered them coffee and to have a seat at her kitchen table. “Grumpy”, as Melissa had decided to refer to him inwardly, took out a notebook and pen as he sat down with the wooden chair creaking underneath his weight. “Mrs. Maples, we have more questions regarding the murder of Mrs. Stevenson in your bakery,” he stated while giving her a stern look. “Particularly, we would like to know why you subverted a police barrier this very morning to enter your shop.”

  Trying to appear nonchalant about the matter, instead of horrified they knew about her visit to the bakery, Melissa smiled as she sat their coffee cups down on the table. Before answering she sat down too. Otherwise, she was afraid her quaking legs would give out from under her. “Detective,” she began, “I wasn’t trying to ‘subvert’ anything. I merely needed to retrieve something from my office since it doesn’t appear the police are going to allow me to return to my business anytime soon with all the tape around the shop and the place still a mess. I fully intended to call the precinct later to ask a few questions of my own, specifically to see when I can go in to clean up. It really is a disaster in there. There’s no way I can re-open anytime soon.”

  She continued talking, nervous at first but gaining her courage as she went along. “After everything yesterday, no one has told me anything. What happened? How? Why? Does anyone have any idea why Linda was in my bakery in the first place? Do you have any suspects?” Melissa immediately regretted that last question as Grumpy’s eyes lit up. Of course they have a suspect – her. Although why they would suspect her, she had no idea.

  The nicer one, Detective Payne, kindly answered, “Mrs. Maples, I’m sorry but the investigation is ongoing and we can’t release any information. However, we understand your concern since this did happen in your bakery. Of course, you would wish to check out your own shop afterwards to assess the damage and such.” With a small grimace he added, “Unfortunately, your place is the scene of a brutal crime that we are still investigating. You cannot cross a police line. By doing so you may have compromised evidence. That, in and of itself, is a crime. We cannot have potential evidence being tampered with, intentionally or unintentionally.”

  Melissa wondered how she was going to get herself out of this situation. She thought by going there so early that no one would find out. Of course, she hadn’t meant to compromise anything. She just needed to see her shop for herself.

  Still trying to appear undisturbed, she reassured the officers that she had not meant to jeopardize their investigation at all. Even playing a little dumb, Melissa stated that she hadn’t realized that was a possibility and had assumed the police had already obtained all the evidence they needed before they had left the place. She simply needed some of her personal items. If they had explained to her that she could not go back to her own shop before she left the precinct the previous day, Melissa would never have considered it. With a small smile, she looked up hoping to see them convinced she was just ignorant of police procedure and not trying to thwart their investigation. She really wanted them to succeed and find the real killer. However, the skeptical look she was getting from Detective Reynolds clearly said he did not believe her for a second. “This guy really is ready to throw the book at me and he hasn’t even tried to find the true culprit,” she thought with aggravation.

  Luckily, Detective Payne was more receptive of her explanation. He smiled back and calmly told her that they could overlook the trespass this time, since she was not explicitly informed she could not go back to her place of business until the department officially gave the approval. He even added, “We realize all this is upsetting and confusing. We are working relentlessly to determine what happened so justice can be served. Unfortunately, that means your life has be upturned since the crime did happen in your bakery. We are sorry for the disturbance to your business, but in the meantime we ask that you refrain from visiting there.” With that last statement, he made to leave.

  Melissa found she was sorry to see him go. He was nice and nice looking. Not to mention his voice had a soothing, velvety quality. However, his partner, was quite the other story. He didn’t appear nearly satisfied with her response about not knowing she wasn’t allowed to cross a police line. Melissa could hardly wait to see the door shut behind him. As they walked out, she decided to push her luck just a little. “Officers,” she inquired, “Could you at least tell me if anything was taken from my shop or if you have any idea when I may be allowed back in my shop? The bakery is my livelihood after all and there are bills to pay.” The tall, good-looking detective sadly shook his head.

  Chapter 6

  Well, if she wasn’t sure before she was now. The cops weren’t going to be helpful at all. The one had already made up his mind. Even if the surly Detective Reynolds hadn’t before, discovering that Melissa had essentially broke into her own bakery…well, that should’ve cinched it. Muttering under her breath at being so stupid, she didn’t hear Logan ret
urn to the living room. “That bad, huh?” he finally asked to get her attention. Nodding, she continued to pace the floor.

  She kept pondering the same question over and over in her mind. “What should she do now?” The victim was found dead in her bakery. There was known to be animosity between her and the victim. They were considered professional rivals even if they specialized in vastly different areas. She had violated the law by entering her own bakery. She knew money was missing from her safe and a couple recipe cards were now gone but nothing that would add to the death of Linda Stevenson. Of course the cops were going to suspect her. But how could she prove she was innocent and get them to focus on finding the real killer?

  Melissa concluded that “The good Lord helps those who help themselves”. She had an active interest in finding the real killer. Otherwise, she could end up in jail. She could lose everything. Well, she wasn’t going to be able to work for a while. At least not until the cops gave her “permission” to enter her own shop. So, she had the time and the motivation. Melissa was determined to resolve this mystery, with or without help from the actual cops.

  While she had been mulling over her options, Logan had fetched the morning paper from the front stoop. Just as he walked back in, a high-pitched female voice broke into Melissa’s concentration. “Oh dear!” she fretted, “I forgot all about Britney! The poor girl was probably just as confused as she was, and wouldn’t know that she wasn’t supposed to go to work.”

  With her strawberry blonde hair neatly pulled back in a ponytail and dressed for work, Britney waltzed into Melissa’s home. The young woman always seemed to be dancing or walking on air. Maybe it was from years practicing ballet or more likely from her recent interest in ball room dancing. Now that Britney was in a serious relationship with the son of one of the wealthiest men on the east coast, she had developed a keen interest in everything the country club set would do. It was starting to annoy Melissa as Britney’s practice around the bakery usually led to spilled ingredients all over the floor.