BlackBuried Pie (Black Cat Cafe Cozy Mystery Series Book 3)

by Lyndsey Cole

  “I had to figure out another plan, and having Peter take the blame was almost as good as pinning it on Luke.” She ate a piece of her pie. “I got the ideas from your books, Mom. Always point the blame to someone you don’t like. Peter hurt you and I wanted him to suffer.”

  “But that’s fiction. It doesn’t work like that in real life.” Hazel looked at the phone hanging on the kitchen wall. “You didn’t really call the police, did you?”

  Jillian smiled.

  Annie’s heart fell into her stomach.

  “No one is coming. Luke is walking to town which will take him a long time. His fancy leather shoes are sure to give him blisters.” Jillian pushed the pie plates closer to Annie and Hazel. “So, go ahead, enjoy the pie. I have to figure out a new ending to the story. This wasn’t part of the original plot but I’ll come up with something.” She continued to eat her piece of pie.

  Annie thought about making a dash for her car. She could picture exactly where her phone was. If she could get to it before Jillian stopped her . . .

  “I know what you’re thinking, Annie.” Jillian reached into her pocket and pulled out Annie’s phone. “Just enjoy your last few minutes.”

  Chapter 23

  Tires crunched on the driveway, breaking the silence. Jillian ran to the window, giving Annie an opening to run.

  Outside, Annie hoped to see a friendly face. It was Peter’s car with Luke sitting next to him. Annie felt her blood run cold. Nothing made sense. Was she still in danger? Before any words were spoken, a siren cut through the darkening sky.

  Tyler’s car screeched to a dusty stop with Jason’s car right behind.

  Annie stood frozen, her brain unable to make her muscles move.

  Tyler took one look at Annie and asked, “Where is she?”

  “Inside.”

  Peter took both of Annie’s arms. “Are you all right?”

  “I don’t know. Why is Luke with you?”

  “Jillian stole his car and I found him walking to town. It’s a miracle I decided to stop. Don’t worry, he’s not going to hurt you.”

  Annie finally felt herself breathing again. In, out. The motion helped to calm her nerves. Jason was at her side, wrapping his arms around her. “I thought I would never see you again when you didn’t come back. I thought you ran off with Tyler.”

  Annie laughed. “That’s what you thought? You never considered that I had been kidnapped by a psycho killer?”

  “Is that what happened?”

  “Well, not exactly. I went willingly. Foolishly.” She sagged against Jason’s strong body, inhaling the delicious scent of food. “Did you save any for me?”

  He stood back to look into Annie’s face. “Any what?”

  “Cheesecake.”

  Jason laughed. A beautiful, deep, satisfied laugh. “If you’re thinking about food, I know you’ll be fine.”

  Tyler came outside with Hazel. “Jillian got away.”

  Hazel looked like her whole world had crashed in on her. She sighed. “I know where she’ll be. We had a secret meeting spot in the woods.”

  ***

  Jason brought Annie back to Cobblestone Cottage. Of course, Leona and Danny were still there, and once Mia heard about the drama, she was waiting for Annie too. Roxy ran in circles of excitement before sniffing Annie from head to foot until she was satisfied that all was well with her person.

  Jason poured Annie a glass of the blackberry wine and made her sit on the swing on the porch. Once she was comfortable with Roxy leaning against her legs, he brought a big piece of Leona’s cheesecake.

  “Since you didn’t have any dinner, you get a super-sized slice. Do you want extra berries on top?”

  “Not blueberries.” She shuddered at the thought of Jillian’s attempt to poison Annie and Hazel.

  Jason settled down next to Annie as she sipped her wine and enjoyed the cheesecake. He put his arm around her shoulders and pulled her close.

  “I really was in a panic when you didn’t come back and we discovered your car gone. I couldn’t have been happier when I saw you standing outside Hazel’s house in one piece,” he whispered in her ear, sending goosebumps up and down her neck.

  Suddenly, the sky burst with colors. The crowd in the center of town gasped as one and the sound carried across the water.

  Annie relaxed completely into Jason’s strong arms and sighed contentedly. “All’s well that ends well, right?”

  Jason kissed her.

  Behind the scenes with Lyndsey

  When I was younger—yes, many years ago—blackberries were never my favorite fruit because of the incredible thorns they have. Picking them was painful. Several years ago, some brilliant plant breeder figured out how to breed a thornless, or prickle-free, blackberry. Now, blackberries are special. You don’t usually see them for sale, so if you don’t grow them yourself, you won’t know their unique flavor.

  So, when July comes around, and my grandsons are visiting, we trek out to the blackberry patch to enjoy the juicy fruit. If I get behind on pruning the blackberry canes, it becomes a tangled jungle and the boys always find something special besides the berries hiding in the snarled canes. The most exciting discovery is when we spy a bird’s nest tucked in the brambles. The boys have learned to be respectful of the nest, but if it’s low enough, I pick them up so they can see the eggs. The most common nest we find is a sparrow nest with several pale blue eggs spotted with brown. Sometimes, we are even rewarded by seeing the baby birds with their yellow beaks raised hoping for a meal. I tell the boys that Momma Bird is nearby waiting for us to leave so she can get back to her job.

  Once our containers are filled, we go back inside to make our BlackBuried Pie.

  Mark and Danny climb on the chairs at the kitchen island knowing they’re in for one of Mimi’s treats. It’s hard to beat the chocolate covered strawberries they love, but making their own mini pies is probably their second favorite treat.

  The first step is to have a cool drink before we start. After we finish our lemonade, of course it’s time for a bathroom break, a good hand scrub and then it’s back to work.

  I have to admit that after years of making pie crusts from scratch using my mother’s recipe, I’ve gotten a bit lazy and I use premade crusts. So, whatever your choice is, make sure to use the best ingredients and use your own crust recipe or cheat like I do and take a short cut with a premade crust.

  I put my favorite pie dish, the one my father made when he was still able to make pottery, on the island. I cut one pie crust in half and give each boy one piece. They sprinkle some sugar and berries on one side and fold the other side over the filling. The part they like the best is pressing their little thumbs along the edge of the crust to seal in the fruit. They sprinkle a bit more sugar on top and I slide their creations onto a pan.

  While they are busy with their mini pies, I put my pie together. First, I preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. After I line the 9” pie dish with my store bought crust, I brush beaten egg over the crust which helps to keep it from getting soggy.

  Setting that aside, I get the filling ready. I combine 4 cups of fresh blackberries with ½ cup flour and ½ cup white sugar and spoon that into the prepared crust. Next, I spread another cup of blackberries on top of the sweetened berries. Finally, I squeeze half of a lemon and sprinkle two tablespoons of chopped butter over the berries.

  I cover the berries with the second pie crust and crimp the edges to seal in all the deliciousness. I brush the top with a little more egg and sprinkle another one or two teaspoons of sugar on top.

  The last step before popping everything into the oven is to poke vent holes in the crust. In my house, this is very important! My pie gets a big ‘B’. My husband wandered in and I had to explain to him that the ‘B’ is for blackberry. Danny’s mini pie gets a ‘D’ and Mark’s mini pie gets an ‘M’. They are always worried their pies will get mixed up, but once I put the letters on, they’re all smiles again.

  Bake the pie in the preheated oven fo
r 15 minutes, then reduce the temperature to 375 degrees F and bake for another 20 to 25 minutes, or until the filling is bubbly and the crust is a beautiful golden brown. The smaller pies take less time depending on how much fruit the boys put inside, so I keep an eye on them and take them out as soon as the crust is golden.

  After the pies cool down, it’s snack time and we sit in the shade of my flower garden enjoying BlackBuried Pie and vanilla ice cream. What could be better on a hot July day?

  ~Lyndsey

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  Lyndsey Cole lives in New England in a small rural town with her husband, dogs, cats and chickens. She has plenty of space to grow lots of beautiful perennials. Sitting in the garden with the scent of lilac, peonies, lily of the valley or whatever is in bloom, stimulates her imagination about mysteries and romance.

  ONE LAST THING . . .

  If you enjoyed this installment of The Black Cat Café Cozy Mystery Series, be sure to join my FREE COZY MYSTERY BOOK CLUB! Be in the know for new releases, promotions, sales, and the possibility to receive advanced reader copies. Join the club here—http://LyndseyColeBooks.com

  OTHER BOOKS BY LYNDSEY COLE

  The Black Cat Café Series

  BlueBuried Muffins

  Annie Fisher is scared. She’s scared of the mess her boyfriend, Max Parker, is in the middle of and she has to get out of his house. She puts a whole state between them and drives like a madwoman from Cooper, NY to her hometown of Catfish Cove, NH where she hopes she’ll be safe.

  She decides to start a new life, a life she ran away from two years ago but is finding herself missing as soon as she gets home. Annie immediately has a place to live, a job at her Aunt Leona’s new café—Black Cat Café—and plenty of boyfriend prospects. Unfortunately, she also has plenty of bad things follow her.

  Like Max Parker. Only the next time she sees him he’s dead. Suddenly everyone she runs into turns into a potential suspect. There are ghosts from her past and new neighbors that make her hair stand on end. And right in the middle of everything is Annie with Max’s last warning to her—Don’t trust anyone. Will those words prove to keep her safe or put too much distance between Annie and those trying to help her?

  StrawBuried in Chocolate

  Annie Fisher wakes up on Friday the thirteenth, but she reminds herself she’s not superstitious. The Black Cat Café is loaded up with special Valentine’s Day goodies, the most popular being Annie’s chocolate covered strawberries. She is so looking forward to a romantic weekend with current flame, landlord and neighbor, Jason Hunter.

  But when her Aunt Leona finds a body in Jason’s house, all plans for that romantic weekend are scrapped. All Annie, Leona, Mia and Jason can think about is who killed Lacy McGuire and why.

  With more and more clues pointing toward Leona as the killer, they need to work fast to figure out who the real killer is before Leona ends up in jail for good. To complicate matters for Annie, information surfaces about her birth parents, a mystery she’s been working on for the past few years. She thinks she wants to find the answers, but will it destroy her world?

  Now, Annie must struggle to save her aunt, but as she questions neighbors and relatives, will she put herself in danger with the real killer? Will she save her aunt but get herself killed in the process?

  BlackBuried Pie

  The Fourth of July weekend promises lots of excitement for the cozy town of Catfish Cove. A dog parade, bonfire, barbecue and fireworks are sure to bring in the crowds and give a boost to all businesses, including the Black Cat Café.

  To prepare for the onslaught of customers, Annie Fisher has to keep their supply up of blackberries from Hayworth Fruit Farms for everyone’s favorite, blackberry pie. But when she finds the berry farmer unconscious in his field, her mind immediately goes to the worst possible scenario. To make matters worse, the farmer’s neighbor turns up dead and anonymous messages drag Annie into the mystery when all she wants to do is spend time with her handsome boyfriend.

  With clues pointing in every direction, Annie needs to figure out who’s lying and who she can trust before she ends up as the next victim in the killer’s web of deceit.

  Very Buried Cheesecake

  This should be an exciting time for Annie with the opening of her new art gallery, but she’s stressed and distracted preparing for her first photography opening. With her friend Martha and her new employee, Camilla, working to get the gallery set up, everything seems to be on track.

  But when Annie stumbles on a body floating at the edge of Heron Lake, her worst fears are realized. Memories of her previous photography exhibit and the ensuing murder investigation come back to haunt her.

  To make matters worse, the new detective in town points her finger at Annie right from their first meeting at the crime scene. Is this an ominous sign of what’s in store for Annie? With mysterious money disappearing and stolen jewelry showing up from thin air, a pre wedding dinner cruise and Martha’s on again/off again wedding, all is not what it seems.

  Now Annie struggles to avoid being sucked into the mayhem. Will she be able to put her fears aside and figure out how to stay ahead of the killer?

  RaspBuried Torte

  When renovations on an old house in Catfish Cove take a turn for the worse, Annie finds herself at odds with the new detective in town. Again. Not only did Annie find the body, but Detective Christy Crank seems to have a chip on her shoulder that she takes out on Annie.

  Rumors of hidden fortunes in the walls of the old house bring out treasure hunters in droves. Could one of them have killed to secure their own fortune? And if so, who was it?

  As Annie digs deeper to clear the name of her friend, and Cranky’s top suspect, Danny Davis, she uncovers lies about alibis that only add more suspects to her list. Dreams of wealth make plenty of people look guilty, but who is the real murderer?

  Annie knows she has to figure it out with the help of her friends before Danny takes the fall for something he didn’t do. Will she make it in time before the killer comes back to cover their tracks?

  The Lily Bloom Series

  Begonias Mean Beware

  Misty Valley has a new flower shop in town, and as soon as Lily Bloom hangs the open sign, she lands the biggest wedding in town. Plus, the handsome new guy moves in right next door to Lily. She’s well on her way to a successful and exciting season.

  But when the groom is found dead in her kitchen just days before he’s supposed to be walking down the aisle, Lily has to arrange the trail of flowers to try to solve the mystery. With the help of her scooter-riding, pot-smoking mother, Iris, her sister, Daisy, and her dog, Rosie, Lily races from one disaster to another, all the while keeping herself out of the killer’s sight.

  Will she solve the cascade of events in time or get caught by the criminals running illegal gambling and selling drugs in Misty Valley? Will romance blossom between Lily and her new neighbor?

  Queen of Poison

  Business at Lily’s Beautiful Blooms Flower Shop is growing like weeds after a rainstorm. She’s been asked to do the main flower arrangement for the Arts in Bloom opening at the Misty Valley Museum. Everything seems to be coming up rosy and she’s even falling head over heels for the man of her dreams, Ryan Steele, her neighbor and the police chief of Misty Valley.

  Until she sees a sleek red convertible drive into his driveway. And an even sleeker red head climbs out of the car. She thought that was all she had to deal with until the founder of the museum drops dead in her arms and another body has all fingers pointing toward Lily.

  With help from her mom, Iris, her sister, Daisy and their friends Marigold and Tamara, Lily tries to arrange the clues to point to the real killer. Can she sort it out in time before a third body—maybe hers—ends up in the morgue? Can she get her romance growing again with the handsome police chief of Misty Valley? Or will she be left to sort through the clues alone?

  Roses are Dead

  Business is popping for Lily as wedding season is in full swing. The brid
es are all over the place from easy-to-please to last-minute-panics. But one in particular stands out—a leggy brunette who is looking for plenty of red roses for her wedding to Police Chief Ryan Steele.

  Lily is beside herself with betrayal that Ryan would lead her on like that, all the while engaged to this beauty. It’s almost too much to take until the bride is found dead, surrounded by none other than the very roses she’d been admiring.

  Lily shoots to the top of the suspect list, a place she’s been all too often lately. And as she starts to uncover more about the woman’s past, she’s thrown into another game of cat and mouse. Only she’s not sure if she’s the cat or the mouse. Will she be able to follow the clues to the real killer in time? Or is everyone connected to Ryan Steele in danger and Lily could be next?

  Drowning in Dahlias

  The business is heating up at Beautiful Blooms and Lily’s flower arrangements can be found all over Misty Valley at any type of event. And to add to the chaos, she’s lost the full time help of her sister, Daisy, who has started a specialty cake making business on the side. Together, they make the perfect team, especially when wealthy estate owner, Walter Nash, enlists both of them to cater and decorate for the 55th birthday party for his wife.

  But when they show up with their deliveries and find the love of his life, Harriet Nash, dead on the floor, the dynamic duo is suddenly threatened. With a house full of family and friends to celebrate her birthday, there are too many suspects to keep straight.

  Lily’s biggest challenge now is to find the killer before the killer finds her. But without a murder weapon at the crime scene, the questions continue to pile up without any answers. Who would have wanted Harriet dead the most? She had plenty of money, but would someone have been so greedy? As Lily and Daisy get closer to solving the murder, things take a turn for the worse with a threat on Lily’s life.