Apple Pie and Arsenic

by C A Phipps

  The trial proved to be enlightening in many ways. Most of the town drove over the hills to Destiny to see the killer brought to justice, since there was no court in Maple Falls.

  On the day Virginia was due to begin testifying, Maddie had closed the shop and drove over with Angel, Suzy and Laura, although the three of them were still a little cool over her ditching them to catch Ralph. Especially Angel.

  Virginia sat in the witness box wearing a simple business suit and no makeup, looking haggard as she told her story. Everything she’d said in the room at the station was repeated, with the addition of a few more personal touches that gnawed at Maddie’s perception of the mean girl who’d turned into a mean woman.

  It seemed Virginia had a violent upbringing at the hands of her father, and when Denise, her best friend at the time, had found out and wanted to tell someone, that was when they had their falling out. She was barely fourteen.

  Virginia had been too scared to do anything until a few months later, when, after another beating, she had run her father off with a shotgun. He’d threatened to return, and she had lived with that fear all this time, keeping people at bay the only way she knew how, with a show of bravado and fierceness.

  “I wanted to handle the sale of the land. I admit that freely. It was for the reasons I’ve stated and nothing more. I did leave the letters, which were given to me by Ralph Willis, but had no idea of the content. When I realized what Ralph truly intended with regards to Madeline Flynn and Ethan Tanner, I alerted the Sheriff, offering to help them if they could protect my mother.” She took a drink of water with a shaky hand. “I didn’t have anything to do with killing the mayor. We weren’t friends, but I was okay with that, and so was she.”

  The last part was the lead in the newspaper the next day.

  Ralph did himself no favors with his snarling and threatening looks, mainly directed at Maddie.

  It was as clear as seafood bisque that there was a bigger fish than Ralph involved, but the creep wouldn’t admit to it. The lawyers went around in circles for far too long.

  Then it was Ethan’s turn to testify. In full uniform, he stepped into the witness stand. He was sworn in and the prosecutor began asking him questions revolving around his ability to testify and what he had witnessed. It was stuff they all knew until the prosecutor handed Ethan a book.

  “What the sheriff holds is our late mayor’s diary. Every event she went to over the last year is noted in this, and there are several more like it. There are also the day-to-day thoughts of a woman whose every intention was doing right by her town.”

  There were many gasps and the scraping of seats as if there was a way to get closer to hear this latest turn of events.

  “The mayor had several visitors in the week leading up to her death, and when we put the list next to the list of the people who felt ill at that time, we can see a direct correlation with the people who complained of stomach problems. We already know that the mayor had an admirer who left her gifts of cupcakes, supposedly from Maple Lane Bakeries, but we also know that isn’t the case. Please tell us what happened Sheriff.”

  Ethan looked across to where Ralph was sitting next to his lawyer whispering and he sat straighter. “During the course of this investigation, several letters of a threatening nature were sent to Madeline Flynn. The last one, and my car, have the accused’s fingerprints on them.”

  Maddie held her breath as Ethan answered questions about her being kidnapped. The prosecutor showed the jury photos of her bruised face, the factory, and Ralph’s hotel room, where all the necessary implements for kidnapping and car tampering were found.

  It was a long day and it was only the first of several as the trial progressed.

  Mickey Findlay was eventually put on the witness stand, his smug attitude not winning him any friends.

  “I have no idea what my Nephew, who I haven’t seen since he was a baby, has been up to. I did want to purchase the land that was my birthright and handed to my sister without my knowledge. When I was told no, I left it at that. If my nephew felt the need to return it to the family, that has nothing to do with me.”

  Maddie didn’t believe him for a second and was on the edge of her seat when the typewriter was brought out. The defense attorney who had been privy to the diary and the knowledge of the typewriter was quick to point out that it was used by Mickey’s secretary, but Anna Ramsey had been out of town when the last letter had been sent, and she stated that it was for show and she only used a computer.

  Unfortunately, it couldn’t be proved that it wasn’t written before by her, Ralph or someone else and Ralph wasn’t talking. With no other person deemed to be involved and no witnesses to prove otherwise, Mickey Findlay walked away with a swagger.

  A few days later, Ralph Willis was found guilty of murdering Denise and a list of other crimes leading up to the murder and afterwards, including the poisoning of several residents. The gallery gasped at the very idea, and Maddie was again reminded that Gran could have died too.

  Virginia, apart from posting the letters, had lured Maddie out to the warehouse with the Sheriff’s agreement. She was given a talking to by the judge about associating with criminals and set free.

  Considering everything she heard about her; Maddie’s heart softened. How a person was could often be attributed to an awful past. It was clear she would have done almost anything for her mother, but Virginia had no doubt suffered enough.

  In need of a way to celebrate, and also commiserate, the Girlz went back to Maddie’s with Gran, who insisted they have a drop of brandy in their tea.

  “Don’t drink it if you don’t like it, but I’m in need of a pick-me-up. I still feel bad that I didn’t share everything Denise had told me. If I had, this might never have happened.”

  Maddie gave her a hug. “Don’t blame yourself. He was a horrible little man who wanted what he couldn’t have and was going to stop at nothing to get it. All you did was try to be a good friend and keep a secret. None of us is responsible for Denise’s death.”

  “I’ll try.” Gran wiped a stray tear and took a big sip of her doctored brew.

  Suzy tried to change the subject. “I don’t suppose you can use Virginia now to sell the cottage. What will you do, Gran?”

  Maddie screwed her nose up at the concoction but drank it anyway. “Actually, we were never going to use her after how rude she was about buying this place. I contacted a few agents from Destiny, and we even made appointments for them to look at the house, but no one showed up.”

  Angel placed her empty cup on its matching saucer, decorated with a pink rose. “That’s not very professional.”

  Gran got up and poured herself another brandy, minus the tea, much to their astonishment, as she rarely drank. “About that.”

  Maddie groaned. “Not another secret, Gran?”

  Gran looked as guilty as a dog with a stolen bone, and while the others looked amused, Maddie truly was worried. They’d just finished with one mystery, and she had no idea what to expect from her grandmother. Lover of secrets and confidant to so many—it could be any darn thing. And since when did she need a drink to give her courage?

  “I’ve decided I don’t want to sell my house.”

  Maddie dropped her cup in her saucer. “Why not?”

  Gran came back to the table and sat close to her. “You were right. It’s my home, and I want to stay here.”

  “I don’t understand. You don’t want to go into a retirement community?”

  “No.”

  “Okay, then. How will you manage now you’ve given me all your savings?”

  If anything, Gran looked even guiltier. “I don’t actually need any money. It’s true I used all my savings helping you buy the bakery, but I still have your Granddad’s family money if I get desperate.”

  Maddie didn’t know a thing about family money, and she didn’t care right now. “If you have other money, why did you consider selling the house?”

  “In all honesty, I didn’t think it wo
uld get this far. I wanted to help you, and it seemed like the only way.”

  “I never wanted you to sell, either, and I can take care of myself.”

  “I never said you couldn’t, but you’re so stubborn, you wouldn’t have let me buy the bakery outright for you, so I had to think of another way.”

  “Gran, did you set this whole thing up with the sole purpose of me coming home?”

  “I did.”

  Despite her blush, Gran looked very pleased with herself, and the Girlz were all smothering grins. Maddie frowned at them.

  “Don’t encourage her, please. That isn’t cool, Gran. You can’t manipulate people like that.”

  “It is terrible,” Gran admitted. “But it worked out okay, don’t you think?”

  Maddie was exasperated. “Did you have any intention of selling?”

  Gran shrugged. “If that was the only way to convince you.”

  “I’ll take that as a no.”

  “Well, there is a difference, so it wasn’t an outright lie.”

  Maddie shook her head at Gran’s deviousness, then she had another realization. “Did you cancel those appointments I made with the other agents?”

  Gran folded her arms across her floral apron. “I had to. We couldn’t waste their time, coming all this way for nothing,” she said reasonably.

  Maddie sighed. “So, the place isn’t too big for you?”

  “Not now Laura’s moved in.”

  Laura beamed at Gran. “I’d love to stay, too, but only if you let me pay rent. Then you won’t have to touch your husband’s money.”

  “See?” Gran said to Maddie. “Things are all working out. Besides, if I can bake beside you every day, I can manage a house. I did it for years, managing a home, working around the farm, baking, and raising you. There’s a bit of life left in this old dog yet.”

  Big Red raised his head at the mention of the D-word, saw it was a false alarm, and curled back onto Maddie’s feet.

  Gran might be nearly seventy, but she was as sharp as a tack, and she worked as hard as Maddie did. And it was true that she had done all those things, plus, while Maddie was in school, she had cooked for people and made an extra living from it. Funny how she had done it despite not really needing the money.

  Maddie sighed and poured another cup of tea, minus the brandy, which she suspected was courage for Gran and a way to make Maddie more amenable to the story that unfolded.

  “You’re an old rascal.”

  Gran chuckled. “Now, now, there’s no need for name-calling. Are you happy with the bakery and your apartment?”

  “I love them both.”

  “Then my job is done.”

  Gran clinked her teacup against Maddie’s and, with a smug smile, downed the last of her brandy. Then she said, “Now that I’m back here, I can stop this foolish packing, and you can have plenty of room to entertain and get your cooking class up and running.”

  By now, the Girlz were laughing too, but they also had tears in their eyes.

  Maddie shook her head. “What’s wrong with all of you?”

  Angel wiped her cheeks with a tissue. “We want someone to love us like that.”

  Maddie was astonished. Then she looked at her Gran, and a love so strong it was almost overwhelming flowed through her. Tricking Maddie into coming home, pretending she was getting too old, was terrible, and yet so awesome. She had given Maddie what Maddie hadn’t been willing to take on her own. Everything, and then some.

  Now, this was a perfect day.

  Chapter Thirty

  The women gathered around Maddie’s kitchen counter at the back of the shop. It was huge, large enough for the four of them to have a space each.

  “Finally, we can get back to a normal life.” Angel sighed, then took a sip of wine.

  “Nearly normal. Ethan isn’t happy with us,” Laura added.

  Suzy grinned. “I wouldn’t have guessed. He’s been grumping all over town at the people who knew things but only told us.”

  Laura topped up their glasses. “Poor Ethan. I guess he was right—we were playing a dangerous game, even if that wasn’t our intention.”

  Maddie took exception to that. “It was no game to me. I know he was right about a lot of things, but we did do some good.”

  Gran, who’d come into the room, sniffed as she walked around them. “Big Red and I are going for a walk while you justify your behavior. I’ll be glad to get home to the cottage tomorrow and have things back to normal.”

  “Gran!”

  “Don’t ‘Gran’ me. You know you could have gotten yourself killed, Madeline Flynn. If that had been the case, I would have been very angry with you.”

  Knowing she was serious, Maddie hid a smile. “Like you said, it all worked out in the end.”

  “No thanks to you four,” Gran huffed as she went out the door.

  “I can understand how she feels,” Angel said so quietly that Maddie though she had misheard her.

  “Hang on a minute. You were all in this with me.”

  “We were until you went out on your own. Following Virginia could have been the worst decision you’d ever made in your life. Ralph could have killed you outright and not waited until later.”

  Maddie shuddered. It wasn’t as if she hadn’t given that some thought afterwards or had some nasty dreams. “I’m sorry. It won’t happen again.”

  “It’s not funny.”

  “No, Angel, it’s not. And, it’s not funny how Virginia’s childhood made her morph into a person full of hate and do things she knew were wrong.”

  Angel twirled her glass, staring into the pale liquid. “Loving the same man as another woman can do that. I should know.”

  “Are you talking about Ethan and Virginia, or you?”

  “Both.”

  “Oh, Angel, your husband was a pig!” Suzy exclaimed.

  “True, but just because you know something about someone doesn’t mean you can turn the love off. Don’t worry,” she said in response to their horrified looks. “Brad is someone in my past, and I see him for what he was—and still is. At the time, it wasn’t so easy to grasp. That’s why I had to start again, working at a job I hated, because he never let me be believe I was any better than that.”

  Laura patted her hand. “A man doesn’t have that power unless we give it to him.”

  “Hindsight is a good thing, but it’s always in the future, isn’t it?”

  Sometimes Angel saw the darkest things with the utmost clarity.

  Maddie nodded. “If I had it to do over, I would have told Ethan about the notes. I should have trusted him to keep us all safe, including himself. Hopefully he’ll get over being angry with us sometime soon.”

  Angel finally smiled. “And you can give him a second chance.”

  “Don’t even go there. I think there’re enough women in this town who think they’re in love with our sheriff, and I’m enjoying being a single woman, hanging out with my single friends.” Maddie meant every word, but she was sorry for making Laura so uncomfortable with discussing Ethan this way.

  Then her red-haired new friend held out her hand. “Have you got a pen and paper and the phone book?”

  Maddie moved to where her pad and pen sat, her curiosity piqued. “What do you need them for?”

  “To make the list, of course.”

  “What list?” Suzy asked.

  Laura laughed. “I know how much you love them, so I thought we’d make a list of all the women who’ve got an eye for Ethan. Then you won’t have to wonder anymore.”

  Maddie scooped a handful of flour out of the container and blew it over Laura while the rest of the women hooted. When her friend leaned over, threatening to do the same, Maddie held up her hands.

  “My kitchen, my rules. No food fights.”

  When they’d calmed down, Suzy raised her glass.

  “Let’s celebrate with another glass of wine. I feel like we missed celebrating the capture of Denise’s killer what with all of the aftermath of our
detective work and the trial.”

  Maddie nodded. “One more glass. Then we bake.”

  “Yes, o fearless leader.”

  Maddie went for the bowl of flour again, and Suzy stood behind Laura.

  While they sipped, Maddie checked that she had everything. “Okay, let’s get into this recipe. We’ll read it through once, then you can ask questions. After that, you can follow me step by step.”

  The women stepped back into their positions behind the counter and began to diligently read while Maddie watched, wondering how hard it would be to get them baking some basics. As soon as they’d finished, Suzy raised her hand as if she were still in school rather than its principal.

  “What’s the difference between baking powder and baking soda?”

  “Good question, Ms. Barnes.”

  Maddie answered the question in such detail that the other Girlz’ eyes began to glaze over.

  Suzy yawned. “I’m kind of sorry I asked.”

  “Okay, then. Let’s get started.”

  Each step needed repeating several times, and what should have taken twenty minutes took over an hour. They truly were bad at this, but what they lacked in technique they made up for it in enthusiasm.

  Gran slipped in and gave Maddie a wink before heading upstairs with Big Red, who skirted the noisy group and gave Maddie a disdainful flick of his tail for being unavailable once more.

  It took another two hours of tasting their successes and failures with more wine before Maddie could send the other Girlz home. They were so tipsy at that point Maddie had to call Bernie Davis to drive Suzy home while Angel and Laura sang themselves down Plum Place to Gran’s.

  With a smile on her face, Maddie made her way upstairs, where Big Red was waiting for her. She hefted him into her arms and carried him to her room, her face pressed to his fur.

  “What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger,” she whispered into his fur, not really sure if she meant the case or her friends’ attempts at baking.

  What a night. What a life.

  Want to read Maddie’s next mystery? Pick up your copy of Bagels and Blackmail now!