Hope Callaghan - Garden Girls 04 - Death by Dumplings

by Hope Callaghan

Gloria pulled into Gus’s garage, relieved to see the lights were on. She hurried from the car and walked to the front door. It was locked. Of course they weren’t open on a Sunday evening! She stuck her head against the overhead door window and peered inside. Gus’s head was buried deep under the hood of a car. She tapped lightly on the glass pane.

  He poked his head around the corner and waved when he spotted her. He motioned her to the front door.

  He unlocked the door and opened it wide. “Hi Gloria. What’s up? Anabelle giving you some problems?” he asked.

  She shook her head. “No, Gus. Anabelle’s fine.”

  “I’m sorry to bother you. I’ll make this quick.” She paused. “Jennifer. Jennifer Barrett’s car. She had it in here not long ago.”

  Gus nodded. “Yeah a couple times now.” He tapped the wrench in his hand against his other palm. “The first time for a tire blowout then not long after that she was having trouble with her brakes. They went out on her,” he explained.

  Gloria took a breath. She had another question, but Gus answered it without her even asking.

  “Suspicious, too. I’d almost bet money someone cut her brake lines.”

  “You think it was intentional?” she asked. “They were cut on purpose?”

  He nodded. “Without a doubt.” He made a cutting motion with his fingers. “A clean cut straight across.”

  “I appreciate your time, Gus. You’ve been very helpful. ” She turned to go.

  Gus started to shut the door and stopped. “Yeah, the police were in here a couple days ago asking about the car, too. You don’t think someone was trying to hurt Jennifer?”

  “I hope not, Gus. I hope not.”

  When Gloria got home, she dialed Dot’s number. Dot picked up right away. Gloria got right to the point. “The day of the poisoning - did Jennifer have her car or did Tony drop her off?”

  “Oh gosh, Gloria. That day is such a blur. Let me think.” There was a long pause on the other end. “No. I think her car was in the shop that day. She had a tire blowout.”

  “So Tony dropped her off that morning?”

  “Hmm. Yes, I believe he did,” Dot answered.

  Gloria’s mind was spinning. What if it was Tony? If it was Tony, what was the motive? Money? No, they certainly didn’t have a lot of money, especially since Tony’s hours at his job had been cut.

  “Thanks, Dot. I gotta run.” Before Dot could ask too many questions, Gloria hung up the phone.

  Gloria paced the kitchen floor. Where was the motive? Unless… unless there was a life insurance policy. But how could she find out?

  She couldn’t. But she knew someone else who maybe could.

  She dialed Andrea’s number. “Hi Gloria.”

  “Hi Andrea. Say, I have a favor to ask.”

  “Sure. Anything.”

  “Since you own an insurance agency, is there any way to find out if someone recently took out a life insurance policy on – say – their spouse?”

  “You mean if that Tony guy took a policy out on his wife?”

  “Exactly.”

  Andrea paused. “There’s no national database that I know of - but there are other ways to find out. I’ll need Tony and his wife’s full names and their address. Their date of birth would be helpful, too.”

  Gloria was doubtful she could get their birth dates without raising a lot of questions but she could easily figure out their address. “I’ll call you back in five minutes.”

  She raced to her computer, typed in Anthony Barrett, Belhaven, Michigan. Tony and Jennifer’s address popped up on the screen. She jotted it down before heading back to the phone. She thought about calling Dot, to ask what Jennifer’s birth date was but she didn’t want to send up any red flags. At least not yet.

  She called Andrea back and gave her the address.

  “I’ll call you back within the hour,” Andrea promised.

  Gloria hung up the phone and started to pace again. Maybe it wasn’t about money. Maybe he was seeing someone else and wanted to get Jennifer out of the way. Either way, the whole situation was tragic.

  She was still pacing when the phone jarred her back to reality. “What did you find out?”

  “What do you mean, “What did you find out?” It was Paul.

  Her phone beeped. Another call was coming in. “I’ll call you right back!”

  She disconnected and answered the ringing line. “Hello?”

  “You were right! Someone took out a life insurance policy. A large life insurance policy on Jennifer Barrett – to the tune of 850 grand not more than two months ago!”

  “I need to tell Paul,” Gloria blurted out.

  “Let me know if I can help in any other way,” Andrea replied before the line went dead.

  Gloria’s fingers trembled as she dialed Paul’s number. “What was that all about?” He sounded annoyed.

  “It was Jennifer’s husband, Tony. He cut her brake line right after he slashed her tires. When that didn’t work, he snuck in the back door of the restaurant and dropped poison in Dot’s pot of dumplings, thinking that Jennifer would be the first to try them. The only problem was, by the time he grabbed the cleaner and made it into the kitchen, Jennifer already tried a sample and was in the front waiting tables.”

  Paul confirmed her theory. “We’re working on his warrant now. As soon as the lab confirms the fingerprints first thing tomorrow morning, we’ll be on his doorstep.”

  Gloria wasn’t sure if she was relieved it wasn’t Ray or heartbroken that it was Tony. He seemed like such a nice guy. What a shame. Jennifer’s life was about to crumble around her…

  Gloria spent the rest of the evening in a state of distraction. She couldn’t even focus on her favorite detective show.

  She crawled into bed early but spent the night tossing and turning. Visions of Tony sneaking in Dot’s place played out in her mind over and over like a b-rated movie.

  She gave up trying to sleep and climbed out of bed just as the sun was coming up. She glanced in the bedroom mirror on the way to the kitchen. Her hair was pointing straight out at various angles. It reminded her of those models that get the crazy haircuts and everyone raves about it being cutting-edge fashion.

  She grinned at her reflection in spite of herself. I wonder what people would think if I left it like this all day, she wondered.

  Mally and Puddles met her in the kitchen. She fed them and then followed Mally onto the porch. Dark, ominous clouds filled the sky. Thunder rumbled in the distance. It was going to be a gloomy day. Fitting for Gloria’s mood and the events that were about to take place. And the lives that would soon be changed forever.

  She started a pot of coffee and headed to the bathroom. She paused in front of the bathroom mirror as she studied her reflection again. She turned her head this way and that. She reached up and raked her bangs forward with her fingers before she fluffed the back up. She nodded in satisfaction and decided she would leave her hair just like that.

  She turned the shower handle on high. The cool water brought her to life. It was amazing something so simple could improve her state-of-mind.

  With the shower over and her brand new hair-do in place, she poured a cup of coffee and reached for the morning paper. She set her coffee cup in the sink and turned around just in time to watch a car pull into her drive.

  It was Dot. She glanced up at the clock. Odd that Dot would be here this time of the morning. The breakfast crowd would be in full swing at the restaurant.

  Gloria waited at the door as Dot headed up the porch. From the look on her face, Gloria knew that Tony was already in custody.

  She flung the door open and stepped to the side to let Dot in. “You’ll never guess what,” Dot said.

  “They have a suspect in Mike Foley’s murder,” Gloria replied.

  Dot set her purse on the table and plopped down in a kitchen chair. “How did you know?”

  Gloria poured a cup of coffee for Dot and set it in front of her. “Paul told me he thought there would be a
n arrest this morning.” She wasn’t sure how much she should tell Dot she already knew.

  “Did you know it was Tony?” Dot asked. “Is that why you called last night to ask if Tony dropped Jennifer off the morning of the poisoning?”

  “I didn’t put the pieces together until last night,” Gloria confessed. “After I stopped by Gus’s shop and he told me Jennifer’s brake lines were intentionally cut.”

  Gloria wasn’t sure what else to say so she took a sip of her coffee instead. “You want a donut?” Without waiting for an answer, she pulled the box from the corner pantry and set them on the table. Chocolate made everything better.

  She opened the lid and picked out a chocolate éclair before sliding the box towards Dot.

  Dot plucked a glazed donut from the box and closed the lid. She absentmindedly nibbled on the edge.

  Gloria broke her éclair in two pieces and licked the creamy filling before continuing. “When Andrea told me she saw Tony the morning of the killing. That he tore out of the alley behind the restaurant so fast, he almost hit her.”

  “She just remembered that?” Dot asked.

  “Well, she didn’t know who Tony was until the cookout the other night.”

  Dot’s eyebrows furrowed. “So he snuck in the back door of the restaurant and dumped the cleaner in my dumplings…”

  “Yep. Thinking that his wife would be the first to try them like she always does…”

  Dot shook her head, as if to clear it. “Unbelievable.” She squinted down at the watch on her wrist. “I better get going. Ray’s holding down the fort by himself.”

  Dot was out the door and across the porch before she stopped. She whirled around. “By the way, I’m not sure what you did to your hair but I love it. It looks so…”

  “Trendy?” Gloria suggested.

  Dot slowly nodded. “Like something one of those fashion models in a magazine would wear.”

  Gloria grinned. “Thanks. I like to call it bed head.”

  “Ha!” Dot snorted. “Well, whatever it is, it’s working for you!”

  Gloria watched as Dot pulled out of the driveway and headed back into town.

  She eased the porch door shut. There was still something she couldn’t quite put her finger on. It was nagging at the back of her brain and it was just out of reach.

  Gardening always cleared her head. She pulled on an old pair of work shorts and t-shirt before she slid into her garden boots. “C’mon Mally.”

  Mally trotted over to the door and waited for Gloria to open it up. They headed to the barn first. Gloria grabbed packets of radishes, cauliflower and carrot seeds from the wooden shelf on the back wall. She pulled a metal trowel from a hook by the door on her way back out.

  The garden was already tilled. Something she had done a few days ago. She shoved the trowel in the black soil and tossed a clump aside. She dropped radish seeds in first, careful to sprinkle the seeds in a straight line. She covered them back up with a scoop of dirt and then finished her task with a gentle pat. She started on a row of carrots next, following the same methodical system. Dig. Drop. Scoop. Pat.

  Mally came over to investigate just as Gloria started on the cauliflower. She tromped right over the top of the freshly-planted radishes.

  Gloria stopped what she was doing and guided her off to the side. “Sorry girl. The garden is off limits from now until everything’s out in the fall.”

  She went back to work on the cauliflower while Mally sat on the grass at the edge of the garden staring at her. Her eyes begged to be allowed back in the garden.

  Gloria eased off her aching knees and pushed herself to her feet. She tiptoed past the tidy rows as she made her way over to Mally. “Good girl. No more garden until fall,” she reminded her.

  The gardening cleared her head but it didn’t help with the itty bitty nudge that was ping-ponging around in her brain. She was missing something. Something very important.

  The house phone started to ring as she leaned over the kitchen sink and scrubbed the dirt from her hands. She grabbed the nearest towel and wiped them dry. “Hello?”

  It was Paul. “We arrested Tony a couple hours ago.”

  “I heard.” Gloria hung the towel on the stove handle. “Dot stopped by a little while ago.”

  They talked for several long minutes. She didn’t mention the fog in her brain and the small something that was driving her crazy. It seemed like in every investigation so far, there was some little detail. Some small clue right under her nose that she was staring straight at, yet couldn’t put her finger on until the very last moment. Until it was almost too late.

  Maybe there wasn’t anything more this time. It just seemed so cut and dried. So open and shut. Perhaps, for once, she was making something out of nothing. At least that’s what she tried to convince herself.

  Her stomach protested in hunger. She walked over to the fridge and opened the door. One thing she was certain of. She was sick of cooking. A trip to Dot’s for lunch was in order.

  She changed out of her garden clothes, tossed them in the laundry basket and checked her hair one more time. The more she looked at it, the more she liked it. There was only one problem. How could she replicate what her pillow created overnight?

  Gloria grabbed her keys and headed for the door. And then she paused. She had a stop to make. To a special place she visited every couple of months. And a visit was long overdue. She reached inside the kitchen closet and pulled out a large plastic bag before heading to her car.

  Dot’s was jam-packed. The only parking spot she could find was at the end of Main Street, right in front of the Nails and Knobs Hardware Store. She peeked in the front window. She could see Brian way in the back of the store helping a customer.

  She passed the store before she turned around and headed inside. The door jingled as Gloria stepped inside. Brian leaned his head to the side as he caught a glimpse of the customer. He grinned when he saw who it was.

  Gloria wandered around the store as Brian finished helping his customer. After the man left, she made her way over to where he was standing behind the counter.

  “The murder’s been solved.” Brian tipped his head to the side, his eyes twinkling. “I guess it wasn’t me,” he teased.

  Gloria wasn’t going to let him ruffle her feathers. “A good detective needs to follow up on every single lead.”

  “True…” He leaned forward. “Did you figure out who it was?”

  “Barely,” she admitted. “It took me until late last night.”

  His expression grew grim. “Such a shame. They seemed like such a nice couple, too.”

  Gloria couldn’t agree more. And she felt guilty. Guilty that she was glad it wasn’t Ray. Or even Dot herself.

  Gloria had a sudden thought. “I’m heading down to Dot’s for lunch. Care to join me?” she asked.

  The dark look left his eyes and the twinkle was back. “Aren’t you afraid people will start talking? Dinner Saturday night and now lunch today?”

  Gloria chuckled, her face reddened a bit. “Hey, if they think I can hook someone almost young enough to be my grandson, then I say gossip away!”

  He grabbed his jacket and keys from the hook behind him. “I think you’re selling yourself short. You’re one hot lady.” He followed her out the front door and then locked it. “You did something to your hair,” he added. “I like it.”

  Gloria reached up and touched the stiff spikes. “You do? Really?”

  He grinned as he took her arm and they began walking. “Yeah. It gives you that “Cougar” look.”

  Gloria snorted. “You missed your calling. I think you should’ve been a comedian.”

  She changed the subject as she glanced at him from the corner of her eye. “Andrea told me you invited her to lunch.”

  That caught him off guard. “Yeah. We really hit it off the other night.” He had a sudden thought. “Say! You weren’t playing matchmaker…”

  It was Gloria’s turn to smirk. Her eyebrows lifted.

 
“You did!” He shook his head. “You’re a jack of all trades. Super sleuth, matchmaker, chef extraordinaire.”

  “Keep it coming,” she joked.

  They were in front of Dot’s now. He opened the door and Gloria stepped inside. The place was packed. The noise level at an almost deafening pitch. Gloria would bet money the buzz was about Tony’s arrest.

  Heads turned as the odd couple made their way to an empty table in the back. Ray spied them right away. He set two water glasses and two menus on the table. Gloria didn’t need to look at the menu. She knew every item on it by heart.

  “Coffee today?” Ray asked.

  Gloria shook her head. “I better stick with the water.”

  Brian looked up from his open menu. “What’s today’s special?”

  “Baked chicken with two sides,” Gloria answered.

  “I’ll have that,” Brian decided.

  “Make that two,” Gloria added. “I’ll have a salad and vegetable medley for my sides.”

  “Ditto,” Brian said. “I’ll make it easy on you.”

  Ray jotted down the order. He tapped his pen on the notepad. “That’s a shame about Tony.”

  Gloria’s expression grew grim. “I know. So hard to believe…” her voice trailed off. A tinge of guilt washed over her when she remembered for a brief time, she suspected Ray. What was she thinking??

  Gloria stared at Ray’s back as he walked away. She turned back to Brian who was studying her expression.

  He nodded at Ray. “You thought it was him at one point,” he observed.

  “How do you do that?” she asked.

  He answered her question with one of his own. “What? Figure out what’s going on in someone’s head?” He leaned back in the chair and crossed his arms. “Remember, I was a judge. You become somewhat of an expert at figuring out what makes people tick.”

  Gloria grabbed her straw and swirled the ice in her glass. “I guess that makes sense.”

  His expression darkened. “So you think Andrea and I are a good match?”

  Gloria rested her chin on her fist as she studied his face. She mentally ticked off all the reason she liked him. He was smart. He was funny. He was financially secure. He was single. He was a good looking guy. The more she knew, the more she liked.