Betts tagged along. Kim led the way into the Chamber of Commerce. On the other side of the main foyer, they found the big convention hall empty except for folding tables and chairs set out in long rows. Betts’s eyes widened. “Are you catering this whole thing.”
Kim chuckled. “It’s just cookies and cake and tea and coffee. Sabrina Montgomery is doing the big formal dinner before me. That’s the advantage of making desserts. Everybody already has a full stomach and most of them have had a skinful of champagne and wine, so you can’t really go wrong.”
Betts brightened up. “Can I come?”
Kim gasped. “You’re really impossible, aren’t you? You can’t pass up a free meal to save your life. All right, you can come on one condition. You have to help me cook the stuff at the bakery, and you have to help me set up, and you have to help me serve at the dinner.”
Betts gave a little jump of delight. “It’s a deal.”
Kim started walking again. “Good. Come on. We can get started in the kitchen.”
Kim opened the kitchen behind the convention hall. She poked her nose into every cupboard and drawer. She opened the ovens and checked how many baking sheets each one contained. She made a list of everything she found.
“Charlotte Longdell told me they expect two hundred people,” Kim said.
“Two hundred!” Betts exclaimed. “How are we going to get all that food made by Wednesday?”
“We don’t make enough for two hundred people,” Kim replied. “We’ll make enough for one hundred. Some of the guests will be too stuffed for dessert, and some of them will be on gluten free diets or cutting their calories. Not everyone will eat cookies and cake. There’s always tons of food left over after these parties, and I won’t get paid for the excess. Better to run out than to throw away perfectly good food.”
“Won’t Charlotte Longdell be mad if you run out?” Betts asked.
“She’ll never notice,” Kim replied. “As long as the people who want dessert get it, that’s all that matters.”
She folded her list and stuffed it into her jacket pocket. She closed the ovens and set off for the door when Aaron strolled in. He smiled at Betts. “Hello, everybody. I hope you’re not too scared to talk to me today.”
Betts turned bright red, but Kim stepped forward. “We found out who killed Simon.”
Aaron cocked his head. “By all means, enlighten me.”
“It was Steve Delacourt, the janitor from the mall,” Kim replied. “There’s a back door into the men’s locker room at the mall where Simon was going to change into his Santa costume. Steve Delacourt could be the only person on the Eastern Seaboard who knew enough about the mall to know the door was there, and who had a key, and who knew Simon would be there that morning for the Christmas program. He snuck in when no one was looking and killed Simon.”
“And why do you say Steve killed him?” Aaron asked.
“He has a daughter our age,” Kim replied. “Simon must have preyed on her the same way he did on other girls. Steve must have found out and killed Simon in revenge.”
Aaron rubbed his chin. “It’s an interesting theory, except that you know about the door, too, so Steve can’t be the only person on the Eastern Seaboard who knows about it.”
“But we don’t have a key,” Kim pointed out. “He does.”
“He can’t be the only one,” Aaron countered. “The management of the mall will have keys, and floor plans, and schedules for events at the mall, too.”
Kim hesitated. “But Steve has his own personal locker in that locker room. He has a combination lock on it, so he must be in and out of that locker room all the time. He might not have planned to murder Simon. Maybe he just happened upon him changing into his costume and killed him on impulse.”
“But don’t forget, Kim,” Betts interrupted, “Simon wasn’t wearing his costume. He was still in his regular clothes, and we already decided he must have been killed in the bathroom, not in the locker room.”
Kim turned on her with a snarl. “Who’s side are you on? I’m trying to clear your name here, and you’re not helping at all.”
Betts’s mouth turned down at the corners. “I’m only saying....”
“Well, don’t say,” Kim snapped. “Just stand there and don’t say anything. I’m trying to think here.”
Betts clamped her mouth shut, but she couldn’t stop her lip from quivering. Kim stole a glance at Aaron. He stared at her with wide eyes.
Kim wilted. “I’m sorry, Betts. I shouldn’t have said that. I’m just on edge here. You’re right. Steve must have come upon Simon in the bathroom, not the locker room.”
“Steve could have gone to the bathroom before starting work,” Betts suggested. “He could have killed Simon there.”
Kim sighed. “You’re right. Thanks, Betts.”
Aaron cleared his throat and squared his shoulders. “Okay, I’m willing to accept this as a working hypothesis, but it still doesn’t give us any clear-cut proof that he did it. We’re no further along than we were.”
“But at least now we have another credible suspect,” Kim pointed out. “That must count for something.”
“But how are you going to prove he killed Simon?” Aaron asked.
Kim smacked her lips and stamped her foot so hard she strained her ankle. The pain made her more exasperated and peevish than she already was. She hopped around on the other foot and glared at Aaron. “How should I know how I’m going to prove he killed Simon? I’m a cookie cutter, not a detective. You’re the detective here. I should be asking you how you’re going to prove he killed Simon.”
Aaron help up one hand. “Now just hold on there a minute....”
Kim cut him off. “No, I will not hold on there a minute. I should be asking you how you’re going to prove Betts killed Simon. You don’t have one shred of evidence to convict her, except that she wasn’t in sight of anybody else at the time of the murder. But that could be anybody. You have nothing to place her at the scene, you have nothing to tie her to the victim, and you have nothing to connect her to the method of death, either. So what do you have to say about that, Mister Detective Sergeant?”
Aaron stared at her. Then his mouth twisted up into a wry grin. “I say you belong in the District Attorney’s office, or maybe the Public Defender’s office, not in a bakery. You’re right. I don’t have any more evidence to convict Betts than you do to convict Steven Delacourt.”
Kim fought to keep her emotions under control. When did she get so personally involved in this case that she would lose her cool like this? She didn’t trust herself to say anything else.
Aaron stepped toward her. “We’re probably both wrong about our chosen suspects, so why don’t we declare a truce and work together to solve this case? Who else could have killed him and gotten away from the scene without arousing suspicion?”
Kim humphed and moved away. “I don’t have time to work on this case anymore. I have a big catering gig to prepare for on Wednesday. I’ll be cooking at the bakery until then, so I won’t be able to help you.”
Aaron sighed. “All right. I’ll take over looking into Steve Delacourt, and I’ll let you know if I find anything.”
Kim softened a little bit. “All right. I guess that’s the best we can do for right now.”
Aaron paused, but when Kim didn’t respond, he smiled and squeezed her arm. Then he walked out. Betts rushed to her side. “Are you crazy? What is the matter with you?”
“What are you talking about?” Kim asked. “You heard what he said. He said he’s gonna look into Steven Delacourt for us. That’s a step in the right direction.”
“Why are you being so cold to him?” Betts asked. “Can’t you see he’s bending over backwards to make up with you? Why do you keep pushing him away?”
“You heard what I said,” Kim shot back. “He’s the detective here, not me. It’s his job to catch the killer, so why are we sneaking around the mall looking for clues? I have a job to do. I don’t have time to mess around
with this stupid murder mystery.”
“No one asked you to solve this mystery,” Betts told her. “You have a business to run. I’ve told you from the beginning you should concentrate on that.”
“What was I supposed to do—let you twist in the wind?” Kim chopped the air with her hand. “No. I started this case and I’m going to finish it. I won’t be able to sleep at night if I don’t. Besides, we’re closing in on the killer. We can’t let him get away now that we’ve found out who killed Simon.”
“But how are we going to catch him?” Betts asked. “You’ll be busy from now until Wednesday, and since I’m helping you, I won’t be able to do anything for the case, either.”
“Then we’ll just have to keep our eyes and ears open until then,” Kim replied. “We’ll pick up the case when we have a chance.”
Chapter 8
Kim unwrapped another block of butter and dropped it into the big stand mixer in the back kitchen of her bakery. She cracked two dozen eggs into the bowl and fitted the largest paddle to the shaft. Then she cranked the handle to raise the bowl into position.
Betts sat on the stool at Kim’s desk on the other side of the kitchen. She twirled a pencil between her fingers and cradled her chin in her hand. “So what kind of cake are making now?”
Kim flipped the switch and the paddle turned in the bowl. “Cherry chocolate cake. Your favorite.”
Betts smiled. “I can’t wait.”
“You’ll have to,” Kim replied. “You’re not getting any of it until Wednesday night.”
“If you run out of food,” Betts pointed out, “I won’t get any.”
“This is a catering job,” Kim told her, “not a feed-Betts job.”
Betts’s gasped. “I thought that was the whole point of this business. I thought you went into the cookie business just to make sure I had enough butter and sugar in my diet.”
Kim snorted. “Contrary to popular belief, Pembrooke Bakery is not a social service. Besides, you’ll probably get enough to eat at the dinner. If you’re lucky, you’ll get the whole cherry chocolate cake to yourself.”
Betts pointed her pencil at Kim. “Make sure I do. I’m counting on you.”
“Charlotte Longdell’s favorite cake is cherry chocolate, too,” Kim told her. “She requested it specially. You might have to share it.”
Betts cocked her head. “Charlotte Longdell is secretary for the legal firm of Bornian, Mitchell, and Pike. What’s she doing organizing a Christmas dinner for two hundred people?”
“Bornian, Mitchell, and Pike are putting on this Christmas bash to show their appreciation to all their loyal customers,” Kim replied.
Betts’s eyes widened. “So the guests could be anybody. I thought they would be upper crust.”
“I have no idea who the guests will be,” Kim replied. “I hope it’s not a free-for-all like the Tipple family reunion was.”
Betts giggled. “I don’t see how they could do any kind of hoe-down with all those big tables around.”
“If they try,” Kim replied, “they’ll be knee-deep in Pringles.”
Kim stopped the mixer and wound down the mixing bowl. She pulled her greased, parchment-lined cake pans closer and scooped batter into them. Betts sat up straight and paid close attention. “Where are the cherries?”
Kim scraped the batter off her spatula with her finger. “It’s in the frosting. I’m making that next.”
Betts hopped off her chair. “Goodie!”
“You’re not allowed anywhere near the frosting,” Kim told her. “You’d eat the whole bowl.”
Betts sank back into her seat in defeat. “What’s the point of me helping you if I don’t get to lick the bowl?”
“I wouldn’t get anything done if you weren’t here,” Kim replied. “I can’t have you running around town like a car without brakes. I’d have to chase you down and fix you up every time you crashed into something. You’re here to stay out of trouble, not to stuff yourself with frosting.”
Betts’s shoulders sagged. “This is terrible. I’m never getting accused of murder again if this is what happens.”
“Don’t tell me you don’t enjoy my company enough to hang out here while I work,” Kim countered. “I thought you liked spending time here at the bakery.”
“I only enjoy it if I can share the delicious things to eat,” Betts replied. “I come to this bakery to eat, not to socialize with you.”
“What about Winslow?” Kim asked. “You like socializing with him, don’t you?”
“Winslow comes here to eat, too,” Betts told her. “Don't kid yourself about that for a moment. But if I have to sit around watching you make all these scrumptious cookies and cakes and puddings and syrups and frostings without being able to eat any of it, then it’s really nothing more than an exquisite form of torture for me, isn’t it?”
“What about me?” Kim shot back. “I work with this food all day, every day. You don’t see me eating it all. I would be out of business if I did.”
“But that’s you,” Betts replied. “You’ve got some kind of mental disease that makes you uninterested in tasty food. That’s the only explanation.”
Kim laughed. She slid the cakes in the oven, and set the timer. “I’ll just finish frosting the Pumpkin Spice cookies. Then we can take a load over to the Chamber of Commerce.”
“But the dinner isn’t until tomorrow night,” Betts pointed out.
“I’m storing some of the cookies in the big walk-in fridge,” Kim replied. “I don’t have room to store everything here, and I couldn’t transport everything tomorrow anyway. There won’t be room in that kitchen tomorrow with Sabrina Montgomery making all her own food and running her own staff around the place for the dinner. Why don’t you come with me? I could use an extra set of hands fetching and carrying.”
“Do you mean you’re not going to leave me here alone to help myself to the rest of your desserts?” Betts asked.
Kim took out another clean spatula. “That’s exactly what I mean.”
By the time the cherry chocolate cakes came out of the oven and Kim set them aside to cool, she had the cookies frosted and packed. She commandeered Betts to cart the boxes out to the car. Then she stuffed Betts into the passenger seat and away they went to the Chamber of Commerce.
The place was already crawling with caterers, even though the dinner wasn’t until the next day. People stood on ladders hanging decorations and laid table clothes and napkins on the tables. One party hire person polished wine glasses with a towel.
Betts set down her first armload of cookie boxes and smiled. “Well, isn’t this champion.”
“Don’t get comfortable,” Kim told her. “Bring your cookies to the walk-in, and don’t touch anything else.”
“Who—me?” Betts gathered up her boxes and trotted after Kim. They found the walk-in and stacked the boxes on the shelves.
“Good thing we got here when we did,” Kim remarked. “There won’t be much room left soon.”
Betts was looking the other way. “Uh-oh.”
Kim glanced over. “What’s wrong?”
“It’s the dragon lady,” Betts murmured.
Kim spotted Tanya Morris heading their way. “Why is it that every time I turn around I find you two lurking around?”
“Hello again, Tanya,” Kim replied. “Why is it that every time I turn around I find you lurking around?”
“You can’t stop me from attending functions in this town,” Tanya replied. “I happen to be one of the organizers of this event.”
Kim frowned. “I thought Charlotte Longdell was the organizer.”
Tanya waved her hand. “I’m working with Charlotte, but I didn’t know she’d hired you. I would have said something to her about this if I had known.”
Kim narrowed her eyes. “Why do you have it in for us, Tanya? You were more than happy to get me involved in your Christmas program at the mall. You didn’t start getting nasty until you made up your mind Betts killed Simon Cox. You should know
I have a lot of catering gigs around town at this time of year, and you can’t stop me from doing them, either.”
Tanya fixed her with a withering glare. “If I had my way, I’d put you out of business. I can’t stand the sight of the pair of you. I should have known better than to hire you for the Christmas program, Betts. You’re the worst elf I ever had.” She stalked away to where two young men in baggy pants squeegeed down the windows.
“What’s the matter with her?” Betts asked. “I never knew her to be so nasty.”
Kim stared after her. “She’s acting very strangely. If I had any reason at all to suspect her, I would start to think she killed Simon herself, and that’s why she’s going out of her way to accuse you.”
Betts cocked her head to one side. “She can’t be the killer. She was nowhere near the locker room at the time of Simon’s death.”
“Don’t you remember, Betts?” Kim asked. “Someone put Simon’s costume in the locker room for him, and since Tanya put your elf costume in your locker, I think we can assume she put Simon’s costume in his locker, too. Maybe she bumped into him there and killed him.”
“Then how did she get him alone in the men’s bathroom?” Betts asked. “She would have had to disguise herself as a man to keep anyone from recognizing her.”
Kim shrugged. “Maybe she did. She’s the one who came up with the idea of you disguising yourself. Where else could she have gotten the idea?”
A rustle of nervous energy ran through the convention hall, and Kim caught sight of Aaron coming towards them. The caterers and cleaners and hire people whispered to themselves and pointed at him stopping in front of Kim and Betts. Kim’s heart sank.
“I have some good news,” he announced.
Kim’s eyes popped open. “Really? Did you pin the murder on Steve Delacourt?”
“I’m afraid not,” he replied. “But I did come up with an interesting piece of the puzzle.”
“Well, don’t keep us in suspense,” Kim shot back. “What was it?”
“I just got the Coroner’s Report,” he replied. “It seems our friends Timothy Hawkins and his mother made a small mistake in the shock of finding Simon dead. He wasn’t suffocated with a plastic bag tied over his head.”
Murder in the Elfth Degree: A Camellia Cove Cozy Mystery Book 2 (A Camellia Cove Mystery) Page 6