Raspberry Truffle Murder (A Maple Hills Cozy Mystery Book 1)

by Wendy Meadows

  "The body of the hit-and-run victim has been transferred to the state capital. Our medical facility isn't equipped to--"

  "This hospital doesn't have a morgue?" Nikki interrupted, throwing her arms together. She'd gone toe-to-toe with plenty of police officials in her past. The jerk standing before her wasn't someone she was prepared to back down from. "Oh come on, Chief, I've been fed better lines by street dealers trying to sell me stolen watches." Nikki felt the blood of the sleeping reporter in her begin to boil.

  "Listen, the body was transferred to the morgue in Montpelier."

  "Mighty quick," Nikki said. Before she could say another word, the sliding glass doors opened. A tall, handsome man with short blond hair walked in. He wore an open-collared blue button-up shirt over a white t-shirt, tucked into a pair of jeans. The man, Nikki guessed, was about her age.

  "You must be the thorn in my pop's side," the man told Nikki. Extending his hand, he introduced himself. "My name is Hawk Daily. And before you ask, yes, my first name is really Hawk. My pop was once a hippie."

  "I couldn't tell," Nikki said in a sarcastic tone, casting a hard eye at Chief Daily while she shook Hawk Daily's hand. "Maybe you can tell me why the body of the hit-and-run victim was rushed out of town?"

  "I was wondering that myself," Hawk answered honestly. "The guy eats the front of an SUV, and the next thing we know the Germans are ordering his body removed from town."

  "The Germans?" Nikki exclaimed. In her mind, she saw the old German couple in her store.

  "Yeah, really shook Pop up. That's why he's wearing his fancy suit," Hawk explained. "Some big shot from Washington is supposed to be paying us a visit in the next few hours."

  "Listen, big mouth, if you like your job as detective, keep your mouth shut," Chief Daily snapped at Hawk.

  "Detective," Nikki said impressed. "What do you investigate in Maple Hills? Who sneaks around in the middle of the night raising the flags on mailboxes?"

  "You have a sense of humor, I like that," Hawk smiled at Nikki. "Beautiful, witty, and a real pain in my pop's butt. Will you marry me?"

  Instead of tossing a witty comeback at Hawk, Nikki blushed. "I..."

  "My son worked for the NYPD. He retired three years ago. I hired him as the Senior Detective. His experience qualifies him, so if you--"

  "It's okay, Chief Daily," Nikki interrupted, feeling Hawk absorb her beauty into his eyes, "I have no doubt your son is fully qualified for the position he holds." Steadying herself, Nikki pushed herself out of the halls of high school and returned to adulthood. Looking Hawk in the eye, she pressed: "Any idea why the Germans wanted the body?"

  Hawk shrugged his shoulders. "The deceased didn't have any identification on him. After I ran his fingerprints, bam! Next thing I know the FBI is calling me. Some joker named Agent Ferguson claiming the man who had eaten a concrete dinner was being sought by the Germans."

  "You go writing this and I'll throw you in jail," Chief Daily threatened Nikki. "Look, you seem like a nice woman, and we here in Maple Hills are happy to have you as a part of our community. We're a quiet community, though, a community that respects its people. The deceased, as you know by now, wrote many horrible lies about some of the most upstanding members of our town. That man is dead now. We will heal from his lies and put this whole ugly mess behind us."

  "Nice speech," Nikki slipped before she could catch her mouth. "I'm sorry. I do understand. I began my own investigation because I feared suspicion of Denforth's murder might be cast on me. I am new in town. Denforth and I both worked for major newspapers. And Denforth was in my store that morning. After he left, he got run down."

  Hawk scratched the back of his head. "I can see why you were worried, but you were in your store when Denforth was creamed. I already spoke to your employees. You're in the clear."

  "Am I?" Nikki asked. "Suppose the murderer is a local? He or she could try to frame me for the murder."

  "Possibly," Hawk agreed, understanding Nikki's concern. "But I don't think this was a local job. The description of the SUV doesn't match up."

  "The SUV had no tag," Nikki pointed out.

  "Yes, but no vehicle in Maple Hills fits that description," Hawk explained. "My bet? This was a professional hit. Here we are flooded with tourists, hundreds of out-of-state tags, and out of nowhere explodes this black SUV with tinted windows and runs Denforth down. Now, Maple Hills does have quite a few black SUVs, but not a single one of them has tinted windows. Dark tinted windows--"

  "I know," Nikki sighed. "Listen, Detective Daily--"

  "Call me Hawk."

  "Okay, Hawk," Nikki smiled, suddenly feeling exhausted. "Earlier Dr. Mayton called my cell phone and told me to leave town. I traced the call back to this hospital. We had a chat. He was afraid I might smear his name again. Long story short, as soon as he can leave town without it seeming suspicious, well, he's outta here."

  Hawk rubbed his chin. "I never liked that weasel. Good riddance to him."

  "I agree," Nikki supported Hawk's statement, "but the fact of the matter is, he won't be the only one leaving. Listen, I'm suddenly feeling emotionally tapped out. Why don't you come over to my store tomorrow morning around nine? We'll have coffee and talk some more."

  "How about dinner tonight?" Hawk asked giving Nikki his most charming smile.

  "I can't. I'm having dinner with a friend," Nikki apologized. "My husband and I also divorced...the divorce was messy. Hawk, thank you for the offer, but right now--"

  "You need a friend," Hawk finished, nodding his head. "Hey, you want a friend, I can be a friend," he said and tipped Nikki a friendly smile. "My ex-wife didn't exactly say goodbye to me with her claws tucked into her paws. It took me some time, too. I completely understand."

  "Thank you," Nikki said gratefully. "Before I go, I want to remind you that everyone Denforth wrote about could be the person who ran him down. I learned that each person seems to have lots of money. Perhaps they themselves didn't kill Denforth, but they could have hired someone. I would contact each person directly and tell them to remain in town, including Dr. Mayton and Mr. Hyde."

  Chief Daily let out a loud groan. "Yeah, all right. Hawk, you start making the calls. I'll go tell Mayton to hang around."

  "I'll speak with Mayton," Hawk said and tipped Nikki another wink. "See you tomorrow morning for coffee." Hawk started for the door leading into the check-in area and then paused. Turning around, he focused on Nikki. "You said Denforth was in your store. Did he buy anything? Did he speak to anyone? Was he with anyone?"

  Nikki shook her head no. "I was at the register dealing with a customer when I heard the bells over the front door ring. I saw Denforth walk in, look around, and then leave."

  "Could be he was searching for someone?" Hawk suggested.

  "Yes, it could have been," Nikki agreed, keeping the information about the old German couple secret. "Well, I need to go to my store and check on a few items. I'll see you tomorrow morning."

  "Wait a minute," Chief Daily growled, "let me remind you that if you write one word about Denforth--even on the back of a piece of toilet paper--I'll have you behind bars quicker than you can say 'uh oh.' Am I making myself clear, Ms. Bates? This case is extremely confidential and very sensitive."

  "In other words, Pop doesn't want the FBI breathing down his neck because you busted this case open to the mainstream press," Hawk rolled his eyes. "Pop doesn't like the Feds. For some reason, the Feds make him nervous."

  "I just don't like having Washington looking into my corner of the world," Chief Daily exploded at his son. "Maple Hills is a--"

  "Yeah, I know," Hawk said, rolling his eyes again, "Maple Hills is a quiet community where the upstanding members sit around holding hands and watch Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood all day and forget that every word Denforth wrote about them was backed up with hard evidence."

  Nikki watched Hawk walk away, leaving Chief Daily fuming. Shrugging her shoulders, she excused herself and walked outside. "Day one...very interesting," she said,
walking to her SUV. "I can't wait to see what day two brings."

  Chapter Nine

  Startled, Nikki slowly closed the front door to her cabin. The old German couple who had visited her store stood in front of the fireplace, staring at her with calm, blue eyes. "How can I help you?" Nikki asked, forcing her voice to sound brave instead of alarmed. Dinner with Jane and her husband had been nice. Making new friends was always welcome. Coming home to strangers in her living room was not.

  "You are Nikki Bates, yes?" the old woman asked.

  "Yes," Nikki agreed, hanging her purse on a wooden coat rack standing next to the front door. Usually she would take her purse into the kitchen out of habit, but just in case she needed to make a hasty escape, she wanted her purse where she could reach it fast. "I'm Nikki Bates."

  The old woman glanced at the old man standing next to her. "My name is Adal Hochberg, and this is my husband Johan."

  Nikki noticed that Adal was wearing a dark gray dress that went all the way down to her feet, and Johan was wearing a dark gray suit. Their appearance immediately told Nikki what she had been secretly thinking. "I am sorry about your son. I know you must be very upset. Please, sit down."

  "We will stand," Johan said in his thick German accent, much thicker than that of his wife. "We have come to ask for your assistance."

  "Please," Nikki held out her hand to the couch, "sit down. You both look tired." Guessing that Adal and Johan had to be at least in their late seventies, Nikki felt compassion for them. Sure, she knew, people who have aged in years were still as dangerous as young street thugs, but the two elderly people standing in her living room were not dangerous.

  Adal nodded her head. "Yes, it has been a very tiring day. Johan, sit with me."

  Nikki watched Johan walked his wife to the couch, helped her sit down, and then--reluctantly--sat down himself. "How did you know the man killed today was our son?" he asked with eyes formed from years of brilliant thinking.

  "Your son came into my store, spotted you and your wife standing at the counter, and left. When I was informed that his body was taken to the state morgue at the request of the German government I just kinda put two and two together," Nikki explained, walking to the fireplace in order to face Adal and Johan.

  "Our son...he was no good," Adal confessed miserably. "Brilliant, clever, witty...charming...but vicious as a poison spider and heartless as a scorpion. But he was our son, and we grieve for a life that was lived in darkness."

  "We spent a fortune tracking our son. We almost caught him in New York, but he escaped," Johan explained, patting his wife's hand. "Our son was part of the German Mafia, I'm afraid. He escaped from New York without a trace, which made it very difficult for our people to continue searching for him."

  "What is his real name?" Nikki asked.

  "Hanz Hochberg," Adal confessed. "Ms. Bates, our son knew how to manipulate his environments to succeed in his criminal work. We are aware of the trouble he caused certain citizens of this town by publishing damaging facts about them in the local paper. That is like our Hanz...he was always a bully, but with his mind, not his hands."

  "Seems to me like he knew exactly how to manipulate Maple Hills," Nikki agreed. "He comes here to hide, starts investigating the people, comes up with some dirt, uses the paper as his muscle, and starts blackmailing people for money. And I'm guessing he never worked for the paper in New York--that was all a lie, a lie to threaten people with." Nikki thought about Dr. Mayton.

  "A criminal mind is like fire, never satisfied and always hungry and very clever at lies," Johan explained. "Our son was considered a genius. We had such high hopes for his future. Perhaps in medicine, like myself."

  "At a young age, he became involved in crime," Adal continued, "and soon the German Mafia consumed his soul. They used his mind, his brilliant mind, as a dangerous weapon. Our son cherished the excitement, the danger, the money..."

  "Hanz Hochberg was the mastermind behind a series of bank robberies which, in US currency, amounted to two hundred eighty-four million dollars. Eight people were murdered during the robberies," Johan explained.

  Nikki whistled to herself. "Two hundred and eighty-four million dollars."

  "Over the course of ten years," Johan pointed out. "Before the German authorities could arrest him, he fled to America."

  "Our son had a weakness," Adal told Nikki, "a woman named Fredricka Kraus." Adal paused as if a horrible taste had entered her mouth. "This woman, too, was no good. She had an empty soul, incapable of loving anyone but herself. When my son contacted her, she immediately went to the German Authorities hoping to obtain reward money."

  "I see," Nikki said, "she betrayed Hanz."

  Johan shook his head. "When he fled New York, we were informed he fled with an amount of money that to you and me would be quite substantial...but to Hanz, mere pennies. Hanz always hungered for more and more money. Money equaled power to him."

  "Hiding in a small town surely wouldn't be easy for a man like him..." Nikki said in a low voice, slowly putting Hanz Hochberg together in her mind. The man killed was no ordinary criminal. "How did you locate your son here in Maple Hills?" she asked.

  "The fire," Johan told Nikki exhausted. Shifting on the couch to find a more comfortable position he drew quietly into his own thoughts for a few minutes. "The building that housed the newspaper was burned down by our son."

  "How do you know that?" Nikki asked.

  "There is an arsonist in Germany who is spending the rest of his life in prison. This man knew my son. They both were in the German Mafia together. We saw this man many times with our son. They were, as you say here in America...pals," Adal explained in a sad tone. "But what could my husband and I do? The German Mafia...their power reaches everywhere. We attempted to save our son by every means--"

  "You don't have to explain anything to me," Nikki assured Adal, reading the misery in her eyes. "I've seen kids at the age of ten eaten alive by street gangs. I understand. Now, about this arsonist?"

  "The style in which the newspaper building was destroyed matched the style of the arsonist rotting in prison back in Germany," Johan told Nikki. "Our private investigators came across the story about the fire. We paid them to remain silent and not inform the German authorities. We wanted to locate Hanz ourselves, plead with him to return to Germany. Even in prison, our son would be alive. Can you understand, Ms. Bates?"

  "Yes. I have a son of my own," Nikki replied. Taking a deep breath she began to wonder why Hanz remained in town after burning down the newspaper building. "Mr. and Mrs. Hochberg, why would Hanz have remained in Maple Hills after the fire? For that matter, how did he even choose Maple Hills, unless..."

  Adal closed her eyes. "You are a very smart woman. Yes, what you are thinking is true. Hanz knew a woman in this village. We made inquiries, found out the name our son was hiding beneath, had our investigators search the company that provides internet service to your village along with all calls made by cell phones in this location."

  "As well as the mail," Johan continued. "It seems our son was saving the money mailed to a post office box in Boston. Our investigators took photos of a woman retrieving the money. After taking her fingerprints off the post office box, they researched her identity."

  "Impressive," Nikki said walking to one of her sitting chairs. "Mind if I sit down?"

  "Please," Adal urged Nikki. "We were given the woman's address. We watched the woman carefully but never once saw our son. We did see her husband," Adal finished feeling ashamed.

  "The time came to flush out our son, so we approached the woman and pressured her," Johan told Nikki watching her sit down. "We gave her no other choice but to assist us. Either she helped us or we would have words with her husband."

  "The woman agreed to help us. She went to our son and set up a meeting. We were supposed to meet in this town," Adal told Nikki.

  "In my store," Nikki said feeling her shoulders begin to ache.

  "Yes," Adal nodded.

  "Who is th
is woman?" Nikki gently pressed, having a sudden craving for hot coffee and chocolate.

  "A woman by the name of Wendy Phillips, an employee at the newspaper my son purchased," Johan informed Nikki.

  Nikki felt her mind connect a few dots. "And I bet this Wendy Philips helped your son dig up the dirt he used to blackmail the people he wrote about. I bet she even wrote the stories herself."

  "This woman claims she loved our son. Her husband, he is abusive, yes," Adal said, weakly defending the woman. "After the fire, she claimed our son remained in town because he loved her. I am not so certain, but why else would he have remained?"

  "Perhaps she was blackmailing him, yes?" Johan suggested.

  "Why are you speaking with me about this?" Nikki asked. Outside in the night, she heard the winds begin to pick up. "I'm assuming the matter is not over if you are here?"

  "Our son was murdered by someone in this village. My husband and I wish for you to locate the killer. We wish to return to Germany with peaceful minds. Today we heard gossip about you. We had you researched. The results of our research appealed to us," Adal told Nikki, slowly standing up. "I need to stand," she told her husband.

  "You are in a position to help us. The local authorities are of no use to us," Johan explained, watching his wife walk to the fireplace. "We will pay you very nicely."

  "I don't want your money," Nikki told Johan, now hearing the wind begin to howl outside. A storm was approaching. "I'll help you because you deserve the peace you hunger for. I'll also help you because if what you say is true, then there is a killer loose in this town." Standing up, Nikki studied the front door. "It's going to be storming soon. Please, remain here tonight. You can sleep in my guest room. Tomorrow we will talk more."

  Adal nodded her head at her husband. "Yes, I am tired, Johan. We need to rest."