Killer Crullers

by Jessica Beck

  “You can have it,” I said. “I like things plain and simple.”

  Grace laughed at me. “That’s my best friend, the technophobe. Could it have something to do with the fact that you still don’t know how to text on your cell phone?”

  “Hey, I can do it. It just takes me a while.”

  Grace shook her head. “It would be simpler if you’d just call.”

  I laughed triumphantly. “My point exactly. So, where do they work when they’re together?”

  “They are both on the staff at Duncan Construction,” George reported. “Katie works at a desk inside, and Davis is on one of the work crews.”

  I nodded. “How about Bill Rodgers? Were you able to find anything out about him?”

  George consulted his notebook again. “You bet. He hangs out some in Talbot’s Landing, but he’s got a business in Union Square, so that’s where he spends most of his time,” he said.

  “Those are on opposite ends of the county,” I said.

  George nodded his agreement. “That’s why we need to split them up. Why don’t you two ladies take Talbot’s Landing, and I’ll handle Union Square?”

  “What about our other three suspects?” I asked.

  That got Grace’s attention. “Three?”

  I ticked them off on my fingers as I explained, “We’ve got Jean Ray, her niece Jenny, and last but not least, Gabby Williams.”

  “When are we going to speak more with them?” Grace asked.

  I shrugged. “We’ll have to tackle them later. For now, it’s time to split up and approach the three suspects on our list we don’t know yet.”

  As George started to get out of Grace’s car, I asked him, “Would you like a box of donuts to use as a bribe?”

  “I don’t see how that would work,” he said. “I can’t exactly represent myself as a donut maker, can I?”

  “You can still use them to break the ice,” I said.

  He shrugged as he took a box, and then said, “I’ll be lucky if any of these make it to Union Square.”

  I laughed. “Hey, knock yourself out. Half a dozen might work just as well as a full dozen.”

  He smiled as he walked to his car. I slid the rest of the donuts on the seat in back, and then got up front with Grace.

  “So,” I asked. “Should we go to the construction place first, or the bowling alley?”

  “I vote the alley. By the time we get there, the construction company employees will most likely be at lunch.”

  “Strike Out it is,” I said. As we drove, I added, “I’m not going to ask you about your date last night, so I’d appreciate it if you didn’t share any details with me.”

  Grace laughed. “At least you’re being a good sport about my news blackout. How was your evening? Did anything interesting happen?”

  I hadn’t planned to tell her what had happened, honestly, I hadn’t. Speaking the words aloud would make them feel as though they were real in some way.

  But I couldn’t help myself.

  “Oh, yes,” I said, and then began to tell her all about my mother’s wedding proposal.

  * * *

  “I can’t believe it,” Grace said after I finished.

  “How do you think I feel?” I asked.

  She glanced over at me. “What are you going to do?”

  “I’m not sure there’s anything I can do,” I replied. “Momma’s going to have to do what’s best for her.”

  “If she accepts his proposal, you can move in with me,” Grace said. “I’d love to have you as a roommate, and there’s plenty of space at my house.”

  It was sweet of her to say it, but I knew how much Grace loved having her own space. “Thanks for the offer, but I’m not ready to make any plans just yet.”

  She drove a little farther down the road, and then glanced over at me. “Do you think there’s a chance she’s going to turn him down?”

  I thought about it, and then answered, “If you’d asked me two days ago, I would have been sure of my answer when I said there was no way she’d accept, but you should have seen the look in her eyes when she told me. It was pretty clear she wanted to say yes.”

  “So, what’s holding her back?” Grace asked. “It’s not out of respect for you, is it?”

  I shook my head. “Momma knows I’ll land on my feet if she decides to go through with it. I gave her my blessing to do whatever she thought would make her happy. I don’t know that there’s really anything else I can do.”

  Grace glanced over at me, and she must have seen the pain in my expression. I was glad that I’d unburdened my cares to my friend, and even happier that she hadn’t tried to joke me out of my sadness with quips about getting a new daddy.

  If she had, I wasn’t entirely sure what I would have done.

  “Can we talk about the case?” I asked. “I really need a change of subject right now.”

  “Sure thing,” Grace said, obliging me. “Let me ask you something. When’s the last time you went to a bowling alley?”

  I had to think about it before I answered. “It must have been when Max and I were dating before we got married. He thought it would be a hoot, but he wasn’t all that pleased when I beat him by twenty-seven pins.”

  Grace laughed. “His ego must have been pretty badly bruised. I’m glad you didn’t let him win to soothe his manly sensibilities.”

  “Are you kidding? Max’s ego was always the size of a tractor trailer. It was fun knocking him down a peg, even if it was just for a few minutes.”

  “He didn’t hold it against you?” Grace asked.

  “Oh, no, but he didn’t congratulate me, either. It didn’t take long before the excuses started flying. His shoes were too slick, his wrist was sore, and the lights were in his eyes. It was all I could do not to laugh in his face.” I paused, and then added, “I probably shouldn’t have married him after seeing the way he reacted sometimes, but Max had a way of blinding me to his faults that I still can’t figure out.”

  Grace patted my arm. “Suzanne, you weren’t the first woman he fooled, and we both know you were nowhere near the last. Max just has a gift.”

  “I’m glad I finally broke free, but I’m not sure I’d been able to do it if I hadn’t caught him with Darlene.” I said a silent thank-you to the dead woman in my mind. I’d never been a big fan of hers, but she’d deserved better than she’d gotten in the end.

  We were silent for a while, and then Grace pointed out the window. “There it is. Care to Strike Out?”

  “We don’t really have to bowl, do we?” I asked.

  “No, I think it might be better if we just pretend to be admirers.”

  We pulled up in front, and I grabbed a dozen donuts from the back. Grace looked at me and said, “I’m not sure those are going to work in there.”

  “Trust me, there aren’t many men who can turn down my donuts.”

  Grace shook her head. “You’re actually taking your treats into a place where they serve their own food?”

  I shrugged. “It’s a way to ask our questions. If anybody protests, I’ll give them a donut.”

  “That’s your answer to everything, isn’t it? Donuts make the world go round.”

  “I don’t know about that, but they do grease the wheels sometimes.”

  We walked into the bowling alley together, and though it was lunchtime, most of the lanes were empty. A group of senior citizens was bowling along one side of the thirty-six lanes, and a preschool group was bowling at the other, with bumper rails in place to keep their errant balls out of the gutters.

  In the middle, as though outcast from the rest of the world, were three singles playing on their own lanes, two men and one woman.

  “Which one is our man?” I asked Grace.

  “I’m not sure. Hang on a second.” She walked over to the bored girl in her early twenties sitting on a stool behind the cash register and asked her a question. The sullen girl pointed to one of the men, and Grace nodded. When she came back to me, I said, “So, she knows
Allen.”

  “She should. He comes here every weekend, and every day off. Do you want me to lead, or do you?”

  “I’ll do it,” I said. We approached him and sat in the seats just behind where the bowlers sat. Allen was older than I’d expected, tall and lanky, with a fierce glare of concentration as he approached the line.

  After a successful strike, he looked back and appeared to notice us.

  It was as good a time as any to break the ice with him. “Hi. Are you Allen?” I asked.

  Instead of answering, he just nodded. “If you want a free lane, there are plenty open.”

  “Actually,” I said, putting on my brightest smile, “we’re here to see you. We brought you donuts,” I added as I held the box up.

  He didn’t look at all pleased to see us there, with or without donuts. “Fine, but it will have to wait three frames until I’m finished.”

  “That’s okay with us,” I said, and Allen dismissed us.

  “Wow, he really responded to you, didn’t he?” Grace whispered. “I thought he was going to jump over the chairs to get to those donuts.”

  “Hey, I said they usually work, not always,” I said. “Besides, he’s focused on his game.”

  “I honestly believe that you could set his shoes on fire and he wouldn’t realize it,” Grace said.

  Allen bowled again and again and again, and after he got a strike on his last ball, he turned back to us. “I don’t believe we’ve met,” he said as he changed out of custom bowling shoes and slipped a colorful ball into its bag. It was pretty clear Allen was serious about his hobby.

  “I’m Suzanne, and this is Grace,” I said. “Here are your donuts.”

  I offered them to him, but he just stared at the box as though it were poisoned. “Why would you do that?”

  “We’re sorry for your loss,” Grace said.

  That earned us a scowl. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. I didn’t lose anything, or anybody.”

  “We’re talking about Desmond Ray,” I said.

  He turned away from us then. “Desmond being shot is not a great loss for me,” he said. “You’re wasting your time, and your donuts.”

  “I understand that you two were best friends once,” I said, trying my best to look confused and hurt at the same time. Turning down the donuts had stung a little, but I’d get over it. I wanted the man to feel obligated to talk with us.

  “That was a long time ago,” he said, perhaps a touch wistfully.

  “Until Katie came along?” I asked gently.

  He looked at me as though I’d slapped him hard across the mouth. “What do you know about Katie?”

  “We’re going to see her next,” Grace said.

  “Don’t bother her,” Allen said, his voice taking on a more ominous tone.

  “We might not have to, if you help us,” I answered. “It’s really entirely up to you.” That was a clear lie, as we had no intention of leaving town until we’d spoken to her as well, but Allen had no way of knowing that.

  “What do you want to know?” he asked as he sat down in his chair.

  “When’s the last time you saw Desmond Ray?” I asked.

  “It had to be months ago,” he replied. “He came around the office looking for her, and we ran into each other.”

  “Where were you the night before last?” I asked him.

  “I was home alone eating a pizza and watching a movie.”

  If I didn’t know any better, I could have sworn he was mocking me, since that was my own alibi for the time of the murder, but there was no way Allen could have known that.

  I wasn’t certain how he’d be able to prove anything he’d said one way or another, but it was something to file away. “Had you spoken to Desmond since he moved in with his aunt?”

  “No,” Allen said. “I didn’t have anything to say to him. We were finished.”

  “What caused the break?” Grace asked.

  “If you really must know, I didn’t like the way he treated Katie,” Allen replied. “He was never good enough for her, if you ask me.”

  “And you are?” Grace asked. Sometimes she got a little too pointed with her questions, but there were times when pressing got results.

  Not this time, but sometimes.

  “We’re done here,” Allen said as he stood and retrieved his shoes and bag.

  “That’s fine,” I said. “We’ll just take the rest up with Katie.”

  Allen stood very close to me, and then said in a growl, “Stay away from her, if you know what’s good for you.”

  “Is that a threat? We just want to talk.”

  “Think of it as fair warning,” Allen said.

  Grace piped in, “One more thing. Do you own a handgun?”

  He didn’t answer, which was no big surprise to either of us.

  As Allen walked to the door, I couldn’t help calling out, with humor in my voice, “Hang on a second. Don’t you want your donuts?”

  He didn’t even break stride as he walked off.

  “What do you make of that?” I asked Grace.

  “He’s clearly not a big fan of your donuts.”

  “I’m not talking about that, and you know it. He doesn’t have an alibi that can be checked, and he was pretty vague about everything but the way he feels about Katie.”

  “Sounds like Allen belongs right where he is on our list,” I said. “Shall we go find Katie, or is Allen warning her about us right now?”

  “There’s only one way to find out,” I said. “Let’s go see if we can track her down.”

  DONUT TOPPINGS

  There are lots of ways to finish up your donuts, and we are constantly experimenting with toppings. Some folks like it simple, while some go wild! Don’t be afraid to play!

  Some choices are:

  Confectioner’s sugar dusted over the top with a small sifter

  3 tablespoons sugar, white granulated, mixed with 3 teaspoons cinnamon

  Store-bought icing from a tub or tube

  Chocolate glaze, made over a double boiler by melting equal parts semisweet chocolate and heavy cream.

  A favorite candy with mint and chocolate melted and heavy cream

  A glaze made up of 1 cup confectioner’s sugar, ¼ cup of vanilla, and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract or 1 teaspoon orange extract combined until smooth.

  After icing, sprinkles can be added, or any commercial candy you like!

  CHAPTER 10

  We got to the construction company after one wrong turn, and as we pulled into a spot in front of the large corrugated blue building, Grace asked, “How should we approach her?”

  “We give her donuts,” I said as I spotted a lone woman on a bench to one side eating a takeout meal. “Unless I miss my guess, Katie’s right there.”

  “There may be more than one woman working here,” Grace said.

  I got out, grabbed the box of donuts that Allen had turned down, and said, “She looks just like the girl in the photograph, so unless she has a twin, that’s got to be Katie.” When I saw that Grace wasn’t making a move, I asked, “Aren’t you coming?”

  “I’d love to, but we don’t want her to feel like we’re ganging up on her. I’ll stay here and make some calls while you two talk.”

  I nodded, shut the door, and then approached Katie with my best smile.

  “Excuse me, but are you Katie Wilkes?”

  I could see that she was short even though she was sitting down, and petite enough to make me envious of her figure.

  “Who wants to know?”

  She was guarded, but not openly hostile. Maybe Allen hadn’t called her after all.

  I handed her the donuts, which she took without another thought. “I knew Desmond Ray, and I wanted to offer you my condolences.”

  If she was going to react badly, now would be the time. In a numb voice, she said, “I still can’t believe he’s gone.” The tough attitude was gone completely, and her features softened in an instant.

  I looked into her eyes a
nd saw that she’d been crying. “I’m so sorry,” I said. “I understand you two had just broken up.”

  Katie shook her head. “That’s not true at all,” she protested. “We were taking a little break to collect our thoughts about the future of our relationship, but Desmond and I both knew that we were destined to be together.”

  That wasn’t anywhere close to the way I’d heard it, but it didn’t seem the best time to contradict her. “I’m surprised you’re at work today.”

  She shrugged. “I probably wouldn’t be if I had a choice, but I need the money, and besides, staying home dressed in black isn’t going to help him. I had to get out of my tiny apartment, so I figured I might as well come here.”

  It was time to ask the big question. “Where were you when he died?”

  “I was taking a long walk,” she said wistfully. “I love it when it gets brisk. Desmond used to walk with me sometimes, and strolling through town made me feel closer to him somehow while we were on a break. It gave me time to think, and realize that we belonged together.”

  “Were you alone?” I asked.

  “It’s hard to collect your thoughts if someone’s talking to you,” she said.

  I couldn’t just let it go. “Did you see anyone, stop to chat, or anything?”

  The second I saw her reaction to my prodding, I realized that I’d pushed her too far. “Why do you want to know? Just who are you?”

  “I told you already. I’m just an old friend of Desmond’s,” I said.

  She looked at me suspiciously. “Are you one of the tarts he went out with sometimes?”

  “No, we never dated,” I said. It was an interesting fact to pick up that Katie had rivals for Desmond’s affection, and I added it to my mental file.

  “Do you have a name?”

  “I’m Suzanne. Suzanne Hart,” I admitted.

  “Funny, Desmond never mentioned you,” Katie said. “How good a friend were you?”

  “He came to my donut shop a couple of days ago,” I admitted.

  “You’re the cruller lady,” Katie replied, a look of illumination on her face.

  “I prefer to be known as a donut distributor,” I said, trying to get a smile and ease some of the tension between us.