That’s only part of the way that sayin’s supposed to go, sweetheart, but if it makes ya’ tell me what I need to know, I can do it.
Al crossed his heart and finished off by saying, “And hope to die. Your secret will be safe with me.”
“What about him?” Leslie jerked her thumb towards Luke.
Luke went through the same routine as Al.
“Now, darlin’, what’s the secret?” Al asked her.
Leslie was animated, her face beaming. “Les’ just say I made sure the old woman won’t be around anymore to bother us. Now Mac and I can get back together again. Isn’t that good news?” She turned to them both for approval.
Luke scratched his head. “You made her go away somewhere?”
“Yes, she’s away all right, for good. Mac’ll prolly’ be sorry she’s dead, but he’s only got himself to blame. And luckily, I’m the one alive to help him over his loss.” She lifted what was left of her drink and took a slug.
“Are ya’ sayin’ ya’ offed his ex?”
“Sure. I’m so glad I can tell you two since you made a promise you wouldn’t say anything to anyone. It was easy. I saw Mac leave her fancy condo place, and then I knocked on the door. Bim Bam. That was it. Pushed her inside far enough to close the door. I left and it was pretty troomatic’, believe me.” She sniffed again and raised the handkerchief to her face. “You prolly’ never killed anyone, but it freaked me out, so I’ve been getting a little liquid help to get me through the last coupla’ days. Figure I deserve it.”
“So, yer’ sayin’ ya’ killed her with a gun?”
“Yep, piece of cake. One of my roommates has a license to carry a concealed gun because her ex was hassling her all the time. I took it outta’ her nightstand. Cinchy. I’ll return it when I go back to the apartment.”
“Wow, that’s impressive.” Al gave her an admiring nod. “What did ya’ use?”
Leslie shrugged. “I’m not so sure. I think one time she said it was made by some company called Kahr, maybe? Then she said something about it being a 9mm Luger, whatever that is. Good for self-protection, apparently. And lucky me, it even had a thing on the end, so it wouldn’t make no noise when I pulled the trigger.”
Bingo, Al thought to himself. Leslie’s whatever that is, is the same as what the coroner thought was used to kill Maureen based on the two slugs recovered from her body.
“So, what’s next fer ya’?” he asked.
“Well, I’ve got to wait it out through the next few days. There’ll prolly be a funeral and all, then I’ll call Mac and tell him how sorry I am about Maureen. Should just naturally go from there.”
“Ya’ gonna tell him ya’ killed her?”
“Nah. Think it’d be better if he never found out I was the one who murdered her. That’s in the past, so I can forget all about it. I got my whole future ahead of me with Mac.” She reached out to Al with one hand and Luke with the other. “Just being able to talk about it has made me feel so much better. Good thing you two promised to keep the secret, because if you hadn’t, who knows what my future would be.”
“Got that right,” Al said as he jumped up and pinned her wrists together. “Luke, put the cuffs on her and then call Chief Hewson.”
“What the…what are you doing?” Tears started flowing down Leslie’s face as she thrashed around in bewilderment. “You promised,” she protested weakly.
“I did, and I never break a promise,” Al said. He lifted the silver-colored device from the seat and flipped the switch to turn it off. “But this little recorder that took down everything ya’ jes’ said, including your confession that you murdered Maureen Knight, didn’t make any promises, and I’m sure Chief Hewson will be more than happy to listen to it.”
After the police had arrived and Leslie and her recorded confession had been handed over to them, Al and Luke made their way back to the car.
“Good work, Luke, ya’ were great,” Al said.
“Thanks. Oh, and Al?”
“That’s ma’ name. Whatcha’ smirkin’ at?”
“Never call me Lukey again.”
Al grinned, adjusted his sunglasses, and stalked off ahead of him.
EPILOGUE
A few days later…
Al and Cassie sat on the patio of their home on Bainbridge Island, watching Red walk the perimeter of the garden. Every so often a bird would land on the grass, and Red would bark until it flew away.
Al laughed. “Ain’t nothin’ gets past Red. Best bodyguard a guy could wish for. He’s happy to be back home, don’tcha think?”
Cassie looked up from her magazine. “Sure. I don’t think condo living was for Red. He likes open spaces. How about you?”
Al made a face. “Nah, not for me either. It was fine for a coupla’ days, but I’ve got everything I could wish fer right here. You, Red, a great big pool in the yard, and my sailboat tied up down at the dock.”
“Your sailboat? I thought you bought it for me?”
“Yeah, ya’ know whadda’ mean. What time are Briana and Luke comin’ over? Ima gonna’ light the grill. You wanna’ glass of wine while I grab a beer?”
“Yes, please.”
Al came back out of the house a few minutes later with drinks and a bag of potato chips. Settling into a soft patio chair, he opened the bag and stuffed a handful of chips into his mouth.
“Ima sgscshsgsg cchgff hhsgssh.”
“Al, don’t talk with your mouth full. I have no idea what you just said.”
“I said, Ima glad I married you and not Kitten.” He washed down the chips with some of his beer.
“That’s good to know, Al, thanks. I’m kind of happy about that too.”
“Her and Mario are cute together, though. Now that Mario’s got Joe Li out of his hair, he’s promised not to spend so much time at work. I was speakin’ to them at Maureen’s funeral, and they’re takin’ some time off to go on a trip. That’ll do Kitty some good. It’ll take her a while to get over what happened to Maureen.”
Cassie took a sip of her wine. “Let’s invite them over for dinner when they get back. I miss having company over with DeeDee and Jake away. And I’m sure Briana and Luke aren’t going to want to spend all their time hanging around with us old folks.”
Al raised an eyebrow. “Ya’ sure about that?”
Cassie reached for a handful of chips and began loudly chewing on them. “Shdhdhdgh chuffgh scmmmsh.”
“Cute,” Al said. “Tell ya’ what, I felt bad for Jack Monroe as well. Chef Chastain, not so much. Mac was a nice guy. I’m glad it wasn’t him. And what about poor ol’ Angelo? That was some news his housekeeper got when she found out she inherited all his money. I hope she enjoys it.” He roughly wiped a tear from his eye. “Sorry, Ima goin’ soft. Choked me up, it did, when I heard that.”
Cassie reached out and held his hand. “Ssh. You can tell me. You miss Balto as well, don’t you?”
Al nodded. “Jes’ a bit, I guess. Not that I don’t love that guy over there,” he pointed over at Red, “but Balto was like having a kid around the place. He made me feel young again.”
“Hold that thought,” Cassie said. “I have an idea. But speaking of kids…”
They both waved as Briana and Luke appeared around the side of the house, carrying freshly cut flowers, wine and a pack of beer.
“Let’s eat.”
RECIPES
BATTER-FRIED SHRIMP
Ingredients:
1 ½ lbs. shrimp, peeled and deveined
½ cup cooking oil
1 jumbo egg, lightly beaten
1 cup all-purpose flour
½ cup milk
¾ tsp. seasoning salt (I use Johnny’s Dock, but use whatever you have.)
¼ tsp. salt
½ tsp. baking powder
4 cups cooking oil (This is for deep frying.)
Directions:
Preheat the 4 cups of cooking oil to 350 degrees for deep frying. Combine the ½ cup oil and the egg. Beat well. Add the remaining ingre
dients and stir until well-blended. Dip the shrimp into the batter to coat. Drop the shrimp into the hot oil and fry for 30 to 60 seconds or until golden brown. Remove with a slotted spoon and place on a paper towel to drain. Serve and enjoy!
PANCETTA, PARMESAN, AND PEPPER MINI QUICHES
Ingredients:
1 tbsp. olive oil
¼ lb. sliced pancetta, cut into ¼ inch pieces
1 small red bell pepper, chopped into ¼ inch pieces
3 tbsp. finely chopped jalapeno peppers, seeds removed
½ tsp. kosher salt, plus additional to taste
3 jumbo eggs
¾ cup crème fraiche (If your store doesn’t have it, you can use sour cream.)
1 cup Parmesan cheese, freshly grated
1 cup extra-sharp cheddar cheese, freshly grated
1/8 tsp. cayenne pepper
2 sheets frozen puff pastry, thawed
Cooking spray
Mini muffin pans
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Heat the oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add pancetta and cook until the pieces are browned, approximately 6 to 8 minutes. Transfer to a paper towel. Remove all but 1 tablespoon of the fat. Add the red bell pepper and a pinch of salt. Cook until soft, approximately 8 to 10 minutes. Add the jalapeno peppers and cook for another two minutes or until tender. Remove from heat. In a bowl, whisk the eggs and cream together. Stir in the peppers, Parmesan, cheddar cheese, and pancetta. Season with ½ tsp. salt and cayenne.
Lightly grease the insides of 2 to 3 mini muffin pans. On a lightly floured surface, roll out the pastry into a 10 x 18 inch rectangle. Using a 3 inch pastry cutter (if you don’t have one, use a glass or something that is approximately 3 inches in diameter). Press the cut rounds into the muffin cups and fill each one with about 1 tbsp. of the filling. Repeat with the second sheet of pastry and the remaining filling.
Bake approximately 17 to 20 minutes or until the filling is puffed and the crust is a golden brown. Let the quiches cool a few minutes and then remove from the pans. Serve and enjoy!
NOTE: Unbaked quiches may be frozen for up to one month. Freeze in muffin pans and then put them in a large plastic bag. To cook, place the frozen quiches in the muffin pans and bake at 400 degrees for 20 to 25 minutes.
STUFFED TOMATOES
Ingredients:
8 medium size tomatoes
Salt, to taste
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1 cup bread crumbs from a rustic style loaf
2 garlic cloves, smashed to a paste (A little scattered salt makes it easy to chop or smash them.)
2 tbsp. chopped parsley
2 tbsp. chopped basil
1 tsp. chopped thyme
1 oz. grated Parmesan cheese
Optional – pinch of red pepper flakes if you want to add a little heat
Directions:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Core the tomatoes with a paring knife. Use a teaspoon to scoop out the centers of the tomatoes and discard. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Place in a baking dish.
Mix the bread crumbs, parsley, basil, thyme, cheese, and red pepper flakes, if being used, together. Put 2 to 3 tablespoons of the bread crumb mixture into each tomato. Bake for 30 minutes or until the bread crumb mixture is browned and the tomatoes are soft. Cool slightly before serving.
PORK TENDERLOIN WITH PLUM BOURBON SAUCE
Ingredients:
1 pork tenderloin (1 pound)
1 clove garlic, minced
½ tsp. ground sage
¼ tsp. freshly ground pepper
½ tsp. salt
½ tbsp. olive oil
Plum Sauce:
¼ cup plum jam or preserves (I’ve also used raspberry.)
¾ tbsp. red wine vinegar
1 tbsp. soy sauce
1 tbsp. bourbon
¼ tsp. dry mustard
Directions:
Combine garlic, sage, peppers, salt, and olive oil and rub all of it over pork tenderloin. Place in refrigerator for at least two hours to let the rub penetrate the meat.
Grill to desired degree of doneness (I like mine medium rare, so I cook it for 12 minutes, 3 minutes on each side, or until it reaches at a temperature of 140 degrees on a meat thermometer.)
Make the sauce while the meat is cooking. Combine the sauce ingredients in a pan and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and cook for two minutes. Brush the sauce on the pork the last few minutes it’s grilling. Serve the remainder of the warm sauce with the meat. Enjoy!
SALMON AND CAVIAR BLINI
Ingredients:
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup whole milk
¼ cup butter, melted (plus extra for buttering griddle
Pinch of salt
1 oz. caviar
4 oz. smoked salmon
½ cup crème fraiche (If your store doesn’t have it, you can use sour cream.)
Optional: Chopped dill for garnish
Directions:
Combine flour, milk, ½ cup melted butter, and a pinch of salt. Whisk to combine. Preheat a large skillet or griddle over medium high heat and brush with melted butter. Pour about 1 tbsp. batter onto hot skillet. When brown on the bottom, flip and brown the other side. Repeat with the remaining batter. When ready to serve evenly distribute salmon, caviar, and crème fraiche over the blinis and garnish with a pinch of dill, if desired. Enjoy!
NOTE: This can be made 1 day ahead. Refrigerate until about half an hour before serving.
*****
I'm giving away FREE paperbacks. Find out more at www.dianneharman.com/freepaperback.html
ABOUT DIANNE
I live in Huntington Beach, California, with my husband, Tom, a former California State Senator, and my boxer dog, Kelly. My passions are cooking, reading, and dogs, so whenever I have a little free time, I am either in the kitchen, playing with Kelly in the back yard, or curled up with the latest book I'm reading.
Her other books are available below:
Amazon: Blue Coyote Motel
Amazon: Coyote in Provence
Amazon: Cornered Coyote
Amazon: Coyote Series
Amazon: Kelly’s Koffee Shop
Amazon: Murder at Jade Cove
Amazon: White Cloud Retreat
Amazon: Marriage and Murder
Amazon: Murder in Cottage #6
Amazon: Murder in the Pearl District
Amazon: Murder and Brandy Boy
Amazon: Murder in Calico Gold
Amazon: The Death Card
Amazon: Murder at The Cooking School
Amazon: Murder & The Monkey Band
Amazon: Murder at The Bed & Breakfast
Amazon: Murder at The Secret Cave
Amazon: Murder in Cuba
Amazon: The Blue Butterfly
Amazon: Trouble at the Kennel
Amazon: Murdered by Words
Amazon: Murdered by Country Music
Amazon: Murder at the Big T Lodge
Amazon: Murdered in Argentina
Amazon: Murder on the East Coast
Amazon: Murder at the Clinic
Amazon: Murder at the Polo Club
Amazon: Alexis
Amazon: Trouble at the Animal Shelter
Amazon: Murder in Calistoga
Amazon: Murder on Bainbridge Island
Amazon: Murder & The Movie Star
Amazon: Murder in Whistler
Amazon: Murdered by Plastic Surgery
Amazon: Murder in Seattle
Amazon: Murder after Midnight
Amazon: Murder in San Francisco
Amazon: Murder at Le Bijou Bistro
Amazon: Murder at The Courthouse
Amazon: Murder at The Gallery
Amazon: Murder at The Waterfront
Please feel free to follow me on these social media sites:
Website: http://www.DianneHarman.com
Blog: http://www.DianneHarman.com/blog
Email: [email protected]
Twitter: @DianneDHarman
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SURPRISE!
Murder at the Gearhart
Fourteenth Book in the Cedar Bay Cozy Mystery Series
Pre-order and save $1.00
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Dead chefs can’t cook!
From a USA Today and Amazon #1 Chart Bestselling Author comes the fourteenth book in the popular Cedar Bay Cozy Mystery series. Free with Kindle Unlimited.
When Kelly finds the murdered body of Chef Jessup in the walk-in refrigerator at the historic Gearhart Hotel, she has no choice but to fill in as the head chef for the prestigious James Beard Dinner honoring the legendary champion of American cuisine. She was only planning on being the sous-chef.
But who would have a motive for killing the renowned chef? The well-known food critic of The Oregonian? The owner of The Rotunda Hotel who owed money to men in Las Vegas? The masseur who was having an affair with the hotel owner’s wife? The chef’s ex-husband, who resented her success? The San Francisco chef who wanted the recipes she’d been given by James Beard’s protégé? Or the man who decided he was the reincarnation of James Beard?
Join Kelly, Sheriff Mike, and their dog, Rebel, on a vacation that turns into a hunt for a killer.
Murder at the Waterfront: A Northwest Cozy Mystery (Northwest Cozy Mystery Series Book 7) Page 13