Crimes and Chimichangas (A Mexican Cafe Cozy Mystery Series Book 5)

by Holly Plum

  CRIMES AND CHIMICHANGAS

  A Mexican Café Cozy Mystery

  Holly Plum

  TABLE OF CONTENTS

  Copyright

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Also by Holly Plum

  Thank You!

  Copyright © 2017 by Holly Plum

  All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of the copyright owner of this book.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, brands, media, and incidents are either the product of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

  CHAPTER ONE

  “Of course it’s only a start-up company, but you wouldn’t believe how many investors we’ve gotten since I started working here six months ago." Mari's childhood friend, Jemina Little, talked with her hands. "Turns out, there are a lot of wealthy Texans looking to throw money around.”

  Jemina led a group of visitors through the halls of a rented building on the east end of town. Among the visitors was thirty-something-year-old Mari Ramirez and her mother, Paula. Mari’s tiny bulldog, Tabasco, trotted at her feet.

  “Will the company keep making dog treats or will they be branching out into other things?” Mari asked casually. She ran her fingers through her brunette bob.

  Jemina, who was wearing a well-tailored skirt suit and heels, smiled and pointed at Mari as if she had been expecting her to ask the question.

  “It’s entirely possible that Woofles Snack Company might eventually branch out," Jemina stated. "But for now, we’re just having fun selling our signature maple bacon flavored dog treats shaped like miniature waffles. The response has been unbelievable.”

  She spoke every word in an incredulous tone as if even she couldn’t believe her good fortune. It reminded Mari of her uncle who had once won the lottery. He had spoken just like that until he lost all of his winnings buying wizard memorabilia.

  “But you don’t even like dogs, Jemina,” Mrs. Ramirez pointed out.

  Jemina raised a finger to her lips and winked conspiratorially.

  “My boss doesn't need to know that,” she whispered.

  Mari turned to look at her mother. She shook her head, and Tabasco barked. This was Jemina's first time leading a tour group, and Mari knew how much Jemina's job meant to her. By now the little group had reached the end of the hallway and stood in front of a pair of white double doors.

  "We're just here for support, remember?" Mari muttered.

  “Before we go in,” Jemina announced, “I would like to thank Mari, Paula, and the entire Ramirez family for offering to cater the opening of our new division. Y'all are our first official group to have a look at our local facilities. Lito Bueno’s Mexican Restaurant is the best Mexican restaurant in town—”

  “It is the only Mexican restaurant in town,” Mari and her mother said in unison.

  "Thank you," Jemina repeated.

  There was a smattering of applause, and the Ramirez women bowed modestly.

  Jemina pushed open the double doors and led them into the conference room. It was a large remodeled room with floor-to-ceiling windows looking out over the desolate remains of what had once been a thriving industrial center. Even from the opposite end of the room, Mari saw train tracks and an abandoned shopping center. It wasn't a pretty sight, but it was a reminder that the Woofles Snack Company was attempting to revive the surrounding area.

  Tables with appetizers and drinks had been set up along the empty walls. Together the small party made its way to the edge of the room, where a crowd of employees was already gathered and sampling Mari's bite-sized chimichangas.

  “Now, you made sure the menu was completely nut-free, right?” Mari asked as she poured lemon-lime soda into a clear plastic cup.

  “I did,” Mrs. Ramirez replied, sipping her drink with a distracted look on her face. “Mari, why did Jemina agree to work for this start-up if she hates dogs?”

  “She doesn’t hate them,” Mari said, placing the cap back on the bottle with a twist. “She just doesn’t like them.”

  “And yet she’s agreed to let Tabasco be a taste-tester.” Paula raised her eyebrows as she observed the food trays from a distance. "Looks like we're getting low on tortillas."

  “Which Tabasco is very glad to do.” Mari leaned back against the table and took a sip of her drink. It was cold and fizzy. “But the reason she took a job at Woofles is because she wanted to move back home and help take care of her mom.”

  Mari understood Jemina's decision because she too had recently left a full-time teaching job in Fort Worth to return home and work at Lito Bueno’s Mexican Restaurant, her family’s legacy.

  “Hey, pretty lady,” said a man who stood at the end of the buffet table carrying a plate full of chimichangas. He wore a navy blue three-piece suit, a pair of designer sunglasses atop his head, and an expensive looking watch. Mari was so distracted by his appearance that it took her a moment to realize he was talking to her.

  “Excuse me?” she said.

  “Yeah, you,” he said, biting into his food as he looked her up and down. “Now that I know this is the view at Lito Bueno’s, I will have to go there more often.”

  “Right,” Mari responded, grabbing her mother by the arm and moving toward the center of the room. "Enjoy your food, sir." But as they were walking, Mrs. Ramirez noticed her own mother standing near the doorway. Paula tugged at Mari’s sleeve.

  “What is your Abuela doing here?” Paula asked.

  “I didn’t even know she was coming.” Mari shrugged. “Did you invite her?”

  “Keep an eye on the drinks. I’m going to go find out what this is about.” Mrs. Ramirez left Mari standing there to monitor the entire buffet.

  Because Mari’s brothers had neglected to set out enough tables and chairs, people were forced to stand and eat. Mari wandered through the crowd, eyeing plate after plate of her Tex-Mex appetizers. To her great relief, the smarmy young man was gone. As she snatched a handful of chips from the buffet, Jemina came striding over accompanied by a man and woman who looked as if they were in their mid-twenties.

  “Well, I think he’s just awful,” the woman finished saying. She had on bubblegum pink heels but not the bubbly expression to match.

  “He is awful,” the man next to her agreed. “And also… charming?” He laughed and nudged her gently in the ribs, but she did not look entertained.

  “Mari, I’d like you to meet my friends Andre and Yvette,” Jemina introduced the pair. Andre shook her hand enthusiastically while Yvette gave a curt nod.

  Mari had a feeling she knew who they had been talking about.

  “Who was that man?” she whispered as she glanced over her shoulder. “The man in the three-piece suit?”

  “That’s my boss,” Jemina replied, looking worried.

  “Our boss,” Andre added, motioning to himself and Yvette and chuckling.

  “His name is Dale Roberts." Jemina
rolled her eyes. "Did he say anything to you? He has the tendency to make inappropriate comments at work. But no one ever says anything to him because…well, he is the boss.”

  Each of the three leaned forward with interest and listened as Mari recounted meeting him.

  “I got the distinct impression he was hitting on me,” Mari muttered.

  “Of course he was,” Andre said. “That’s just how he rolls. He doesn’t mean anything by it. I would be surprised if he’s even interested in you at all.”

  “It’s his way of asserting dominance,” Yvette commented. “But it’s still awful, and I wish he wouldn’t do it. One of these days he’s going to get sued.”

  Jemina gave a wary glance in Tabasco's direction, who was kneeling obediently at Mari’s heels. She folded her arms crossly. “I don’t care whether he means it or not. It’s creepy. I don't like being hit on when I'm working. I get my fair share of weirdos at the restaurant.”

  “I’ve never dared ask him, of course, but I have a feeling the only reason I got this job was because of my looks.” Jemina shrugged. She and her coworker Yvette were very pretty in Mari's opinion.

  Andre raised his eyebrows.

  “That couldn’t have been the only reason,” he said. “Surely, you had an excellent resume."

  “And a hot bod?” Jemina added jokingly. “Don't answer that, Andre.”

  The argument might have gone on for some time if Dale Roberts hadn’t chosen that moment to interrupt.

  “Can I have everyone’s attention?” Dale announced, hitting the side of a plastic cup with a plastic fork. It didn't make as much noise as he'd expected. “Darn. That didn’t work so well. Note to self. Next time, splurge for the glassware, am I right?”

  Mari rolled her eyes at his joke, but the rest of the room laughed.

  "Here he goes," Yvette muttered. "He loves to brag."

  “You might have thought you were all coming out here to celebrate the success of Woofles Snack Company,” he went on. “And it’s true that the last six months have been amazingly successful. We have satisfied the maple bacon-flavored dog treat needs of our customers with the press of a button.”

  Setting his plate down on the floor, Dale picked up the cup again and raised it into the air as if making a toast.

  “Someone just get him a champagne glass before he goes on whining again,” Yvette said lowly.

  Jemina nodded. “I already checked the break room.”

  “But that’s not the real reason I invited you all here today,” Dale added. “The truth is that I gathered you all here because I wanted to make a special announcement.”

  There was a murmur of surprise from the crowd gathered around him, and Dale waved his arms as if calling for silence. But it was only when Mari saw the panicked look on his face that she realized he was having trouble breathing.

  “What’s wrong with him?” Mrs. Ramirez asked, appearing beside her daughter.

  Dale didn't say another word. Instead, he fell to the floor.

  “He might be having an allergic reaction,” said Jemina. Despite what she had said about her boss earlier, she looked worried.

  “Is he the one who’s allergic to nuts?” Mari asked. Jemina had asked her to serve a nut-free menu for the sake of one person in the office, though she hadn’t specified who. “Does he have an epi-pen?”

  Jemina was about to answer when Yvette interrupted.

  “There should be one in his office,” Yvette stated. “Top drawer of his desk. Dale’s office is down the hall. It's the third door on the left.”

  Propelled by a sense of urgency, Mari raced down the hall toward Dale's office. She pulled out every drawer in his desk but found only a chaotic assembly of pens, sticky pads, safety pins, and loose staples.

  “It has to be in here somewhere,” she said aloud. “Come on.” After sifting twice through the pile on the floor, her heart sank. There was no epi-pen in Dale's office. And if there was, it had been moved or hidden somewhere out of sight.

  Mari panicked, not knowing what to do next.

  The door to Dale's office burst open, and Jemina entered looking deathly white. “There's no easy way to say this, but it's too late."

  "What do you mean?" Mari replied. "Is an ambulance here already?"

  "One is on the way," Jemina informed her. "But…"

  "What?" Mari's eyes went wide as she purposefully avoided the logic of the situation. She didn't want to admit to herself what had really happened. "Just say it, Jemina."

  "He's gone." Jemina gulped. "My boss is dead."

  CHAPTER TWO

  “Dead?” Mari said, finding the truth difficult to swallow. “Are you sure?”

  Jemina nodded gravely. “I went ahead and called the police.”

  She spoke these last words quietly and then paused as she silently stared at the floor. Mari felt cold all over. She sat down on the floor to prevent herself falling over from the shock.

  “I swear to you I didn't use nuts in any of the food," she said, breaking a silence that had threatened to go on indefinitely.

  “I believe you,” Jemina replied, joining her on the floor. "Unfortunately, I think this accident wasn't an accident at all."

  "You think Dale was—"

  "Murdered," Jemina finished. "Maybe. Let me ask you this. Where’s his epi-pen?”

  “I wasn’t able to find it,” Mari answered.

  Jemina leaned in close and whispered. “Exactly.”

  Mari was shaken, and her mind raced with theory after theory about what happened to Jemina's boss. Jemina shook her head. Mari hoped that she was wrong and that Dale's death was just a horrible accident. If Jemina were right, she and Mari would most likely be suspects in a murder investigation. Especially Mari since her family's restaurant had catered the food.

  “What happened after I left?” Mari asked. For the moment she thought it best not to let Jemina know of her worries.

  “Panic,” Jemina responded. “He fell face forward onto the carpet. Your dog ran over and tried to lick his face. Everyone was yelling and crowding around him.”

  “And you think this happened on purpose?”

  “The fact that you couldn’t find his epi-pen is suspicious. He always kept an epi-pen in his desk, along with a backup one. Always. With an allergy like his, he didn't take chances.”

  Jemina glanced shiftily around as she said this. Mari couldn’t help but feel that she might have been hiding something. “I see."

  “He was always prepared for an emergency like this one,” Jemina continued. “I mean, you saw what just happened. He used to say he couldn’t even be in the same room as a peanut. It was just a joke, but there was obviously some truth to it.”

  “Okay, but it couldn’t have been the food,” Mari assured her. “Mamá and I made the food, and we both knew somebody in your office had a bad nut allergy. We took extra caution.”

  “I know you did,” Jemina replied. “I'm not accusing you of anything, Mari. You're an old friend of mine. I think the food was tampered with.”

  "By who?" Mari's heart pounded as she considered the possibility.

  "The same person who stole Dale's epi-pen."

  Mari looked at her skeptically. “You seem to have thought this through quite a bit.”

  Jemina shrugged her thin shoulders. “I read a lot of Nancy Drew when I was younger. I guess I’ve always sort of imagined myself as a detective.”

  “Yes, I remember the notebook you carried around in grade school," Mari commented. "But that room was filled with people. How could someone have tampered with the food without anyone noticing? My eyes were on the food most of the day.”

  “I don't know.” Jemina sighed. “I know it’s a stretch, but someone clearly found a way. I’m going to need your help to figure this out.”

  “Why do you need my help?” Mari asked. She hesitated to get involved, but she couldn't say no to helping an old friend like Jemina.

  Jemina drew a deep breath as she began composing herself to rejoin the c
rowd.

  “Because,” she said, “my boss has just been murdered. I’m pretty sure someone local did it. Maybe even someone in my office."

  "I hope you are wrong," Mari replied.

  "I might be working with a killer, Mari. And I have no idea what the killer is after or what he, or she, might do next.”

  As the two women made their way back to the conference room, the body of Dale Roberts was being carried out on a stretcher. The rest of the assembled guests looked on in silence. Mrs. Ramirez had her arm around Mari’s grandmother. Lito Bueno’s Mexican Restaurant was about to be linked to another murder investigation.

  After a quick search, Mari found Tabasco lurking under a folding table. He whined as she tried to pull him out from under it.

  “You’re coming with me,” Mari whispered, grabbing him gently by the legs. “You’re going to help me interview witnesses.”

  ***

  The first witness Mari interviewed was Yvette, who stood at a window near the back of the conference room. She drew her jacket tight around herself when Mari approached as if wanting to be left alone to grieve in solitude.

  "Awful, isn't it?" Mari attempted a conversation, letting Tabasco break the ice by allowing him to sit at her feet.

  Yvette sniffed loudly. Mari was surprised to see a single tear trickling down her cheek.

  “I’ve never seen someone die before,” she said in a shaky voice. “I’ve been to funerals, but that's different. The person you are going to pay your respects to is already gone at that point."

  Yvette broke off as if hating herself for admitting that she had been moved by her boss's death. She tried to compose herself by straightening her shoulders and forcing a blank expression.

  "It was a shock to everyone," Mari commented.

  “He was such a jerk, especially to me,” Yvette blurted out. "And then he had to go on and die like he did. Now, I feel sorry for the guy. I hate that I feel sorry for him."

  Mari raised her eyebrows, a little confused. She quickly gave Yvette a reassuring pat on the shoulder as she processed her comments. Below them, a train rumbled as it passed the building. The sound of the engine was the perfect white noise to cover up the awkward silence. Mari thought carefully about what she should say next. Tabasco playfully licked Yvette's shoe.