Death of an English Muffin
Page 28
A goldfinch flitted by and lit on a spike of some flower; it flitted away again, swooping over the tall grass. I’d have to get the boys to cut it soon, but maybe I’d leave some of it long. There was milkweed growing, and it apparently was a much-needed habitat for monarch butterflies, Shilo had informed me. I couldn’t think what to say, so I waited.
“She didn’t file charges, but it’s a sticky situation. Baxter despises me, and I can’t blame him. He’d like to see me lose my job.”
“Your ex needs to tell her dad the truth.”
“I think she feels stuck now, not sure what to do.”
“She needs to grow a pair and tell him the truth,” I repeated, indignant on Virgil’s behalf. “Does anyone else know about this?”
“Only Mom.”
Now I understood Gogi’s pleas for patience on my part, and her wish that we would talk and figure things out between us. I met his gaze; he liked me, I could tell. I hadn’t been wrong. This was holding him back, being afraid to tell the truth, afraid to go into something new not telling the truth.
“She’s going to tell him; she knows it’s the right thing to do. Read this,” he said, handing me the paper. It was a printout of an e-mail to him from Kelly.
She apologized to Virgil. She wanted to tell her dad the truth, she said, but she was so afraid her dad would turn against her if she admitted she’d lied. The only thing her father loved more than her, Kelly said, was the law, and if he knew she had jeopardized Virgil’s career he might never forgive her.
“You’ve got everything at stake,” I said to him, looking up from the letter. “If Sheriff Baxter spoke once about the allegations, you’d be sunk.”
He nodded, his mouth in a grim line. “I’d lose everything and I couldn’t even blame folks. I don’t know what else to do. False allegations of domestic abuse are extremely rare; I’ve been a cop long enough to know that. In this case they are false, but what would people think if they found out? What could I say that wouldn’t make it look like I was trying to blame her?”
“Where is she now?”
“She moved to Ohio two years ago, a while after we broke up. The divorce was final last spring. I think . . . I hope . . . that she’ll tell her dad the truth. I have to believe that!”
I reread the letter. She was terrified of losing her father’s love; that came through in every word she wrote. She said she intended to tell her father, but I wasn’t convinced.
I met Virgil’s gaze. He had come expressly to tell me about this, but why? I hoped I knew the answer. “I hope she does the right thing. Does she have reason to worry about her father?”
“I don’t know. Baxter is a tough nut . . . retired army. Honor is really important to him. That’s why he thinks I’m such a piece of crap and why I can’t blame him, given what he thinks he knows. I just don’t know if Kelly is ever going to tell him the truth.”
I touched his arm. “I’m sorry, Virgil. It must be tough to deal with Baxter given what he thinks.”
“Right now it’s more important to me what you think.”
“I think this has nothing to do with anything between us.”
We stared at each other, and he pulled me up to my knees as he knelt, too. We stared into each other’s eyes for what felt like an eternity, then he wrapped me in his arms and kissed me. I closed my eyes. This was the real deal, the heart-pounding, knee-buckling kind of chemistry I had experienced only once before. He paused briefly and I opened my eyes and stared up at him. Why was he stopping? He searched my eyes, and then again, he swept me into a kiss, deep, passionate, nice. I could feel his pulse where I touched his neck. I could feel the scruff of whiskers biting into my chin and the strength of his arm holding me firm against his body.
This kiss had been nine months coming, but it was worth every minute of the wait. If I needed another reason, here was a good one for staying put at Wynter Castle. We sank down onto the blanket, still entwined in each others’ arms.
And whatever else happened—if anything did—is no one’s business but mine and Virgil’s.
Recipes
Merry’s Chicken Spaghetti
Preparation and cooking time: 70 minutes
Serves 4–5 generously
3 chicken quarters (drumstick and thigh)
2–3 tablespoons oregano or Italian herbs or spaghetti spice
Fresh ground black pepper or peppercorn medley
28-ounce tin tomatoes
5½-fluid-ounce tin tomato paste
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 medium onion, diced
3 cloves of garlic, diced
8 ounces sliced mushrooms
¾ pound spaghetti or pasta of your preference
Season the 3 chicken quarters with 1 tablespoon of the Italian herbs and spices or equivalent, and freshly ground pepper or peppercorn medley, and place in small oil-sprayed roasting pan. Roast at 375 degrees for 40 minutes.
While the chicken is roasting, dice or chop canned tomatoes and put in saucepan with the liquid from the can, add tomato paste and 1 or 2 tablespoons of spaghetti spice or herbs. Start to simmer on low heat.
In frying pan, sauté diced onion, garlic, and sliced mushrooms in olive oil until onions are translucent, then add mixture to tomatoes. Simmer, stirring occasionally; add water if the sauce thickens too much.
After 40 minutes remove chicken from oven, but leave oven on at 375 F. Pour sauce over chicken in roasting pan, return to oven, and bake for another 20–30 minutes.
Remove roasting pan from oven, lift out chicken quarters, allow to cool slightly, remove meat from bones (discard skin and bones), dice or shred meat, then return it to the sauce. Taste, and add salt and pepper, if you like, at this point. Keep warm in low oven.
Cook pasta according to package directions and serve with the sauce, a green or Caesar salad on the side, and garlic toast.
Bacon and Peanut Butter Muffins
Preparation and cooking time: approximately 45 minutes
Makes 12 muffins
2 cups flour, sifted
1 tablespoon baking powder
2 tablespoons sugar (a little more, if you want it slightly sweeter)
2½ tablespoons bacon fat and/or melted butter to make up amount
1 egg
1 cup milk
⅓ cup natural unsweetened peanut butter, crunchy or smooth
3 bacon strips, finely chopped and partially cooked
Heat oven to 400 degrees.
Sift together flour, baking powder, and sugar in large bowl and set aside.
In separate bowl mix melted bacon fat and/or butter, well- beaten egg, milk, peanut butter, and bacon. Blend well, then stir gently into flour mixture, making sure all flour is incorporated, but do not beat! Mixture should be just moistened.
Fill muffin tins or tins with paper liners ¾ full.
Bake for 20–25 minutes, until toothpick comes out clean.
Enjoy! These muffins have just a hint of sweetness, but they are light as a feather and delicious warm, with or without butter!
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