by Jessica Beck
“Suzanne—” Jake started to say before I cut him off.
“Why don’t you and George go over to the Boxcar and have some pie? I won’t be long.”
“I’m not sure I’d promise him that,” the chief said. “Max and I have a great deal to discuss.”
Jake nodded after he saw my pleading glance. “Fine. George, are you up for a late snack?”
“Do you even have to ask?” the mayor asked him with a grin as he patted his belly soundly.
After they were gone, I took the chair farthest from the chief’s desk, while Max sat in the one that was front and center.
“Let’s get started,” the chief said, ignoring my presence completely. “When is the last time you saw Dusty Baxter alive?”
“Last night,” Max said.
Chief Grant nodded, as though he already had that information. “Under what circumstances did you see him?”
Max glanced at me, but before I could give him the go-ahead to tell the chief everything, the police chief added, “I’m asking the questions here. Look at me.”
Max did as he was told, and after a few seconds, in a cowed voice, he admitted, “I saw him at Two Cows and a Moose when I unexpectedly got back into town. I’d been in LA filming a commercial, but I came home early to surprise Emily.”
“And Dusty was there with her?”
“Yes,” Max said.
There was something about the way he said that one word that caught the chief’s attention. Max was great when he was delivering lines that someone else had written for him, but when it came to improvising on his own, he was a lot less adept.
“What were they doing?” the chief asked him, staring intently at my ex-husband.
“It looked like he was whispering something in her ear,” Max choked out the words.
“You said that’s what it looked like,” the chief said. “What was really happening?”
Max had a choice at that moment. He could tell the police the truth and possibly play a part in hurting his fiancée, or he could lie and set himself up for all kinds of trouble. I was afraid I knew exactly which option he was going to choose.
“Tell him the truth, Max,” I urged him.
“That’s it, Suzanne. It’s time for you to go,” the chief said as he stood.
“I was trying to help you!” I couldn’t believe that I was getting thrown out for that.
“You knew the rules when we started,” he said. “You need to leave, and I mean right now.”
“It’s okay,” Max told me. “I’m going to tell him everything. That’s what Emily would want me to do.”
It still amazed me how much influence she had over him, when I had managed to garner so little over all of the time that we’d been together.
“Fine. I’m going,” I said. Ignoring the chief, I said, “When you finish up, come by the cottage and touch base with us.”
“Suzanne, you are already way past your bedtime as it is,” Max said.
“I don’t care,” I said, and then I walked out without even a second glance back at the police chief.
“Wow, that took longer than I thought it would,” Jake said as he slid a piece of apple crisp pie in front of me. He and George were halfway finished with theirs.
“Should I resent the fact that you already ordered this for me?” I asked.
“You don’t have to eat it,” Jake said as he started to reach for the plate.
“I wouldn’t do that if I were you,” I said as I handled my fork like a weapon.
“What happened?” George asked. “What did you say that got you thrown out?”
“I was trying to urge Max to tell the truth, and I got tossed out for it. Can you believe that?” Jake was suspiciously silent, so I asked him, “You don’t think he was right to do it, do you?” All my husband would do was shrug, which was enough of a reply for me. “Suddenly I don’t much feel like having pie.”
“I’ll eat it if you don’t want it,” George said as he reached for it.
“Okay. You called my bluff,” I said as I grabbed it tightly.
“You know I’m right, don’t you?” Jake asked me softly.
“Why do you think I’m angry about it? Of course you’re right. I just thought he’d make an exception if I was trying to help him.”
“Do you think Max will really incriminate Emily?” George asked.
“He was about to do just that when I left,” I replied.
“Why would he do something like that?” George asked.
“If I were in his shoes, I would have done the exact same thing,” Jake said, surprising George but not me.
“You’re kidding. Why?” George asked, honestly curious about my husband’s answer.
“Because that’s exactly what Emily would have expected him to do, and I knew if we were in the same position, Suzanne would accept nothing less herself.”
I patted his hand and smiled at him. “You’re forgiven.”
“I didn’t realize I needed it, but I’ll take it anyway. Thanks.”
“You’re welcome,” I said as I took my first bite of pie. Just as I did, I heard my mother’s voice behind my chair.
“Suzanne, are you sure you should be eating this late? Why aren’t you in bed? Don’t you have a donut shop to run in the morning?”
I looked at my mother and smiled. “Gee, Mom, Jake asked me out on a date, so how could I say no? I know it’s a school night, but all of my homework’s done, and besides, he’s so cute I couldn’t bring myself to say no. Please don’t ground me.”
Momma stared hard at me for a full two seconds, and then she laughed loudly enough to garner the attention of the other patrons at the Boxcar Grill. “Your humor is extremely odd. You know that, don’t you?”
“Know it? I relish it,” I said. “Why don’t you and Phillip pull up two chairs and join us? We’ll be glad to scooch over and make room for you.”
“Dot, you can have my spot. I was just about to leave anyway,” George said.
“Nonsense, Mr. Mayor. I wouldn’t dream of it.”
George grinned at her. “Well, I outrank you, though I wouldn’t if you’d taken the job instead of me. Good night, folks.” He added as an aside to Jake, “Let me know if anything comes up.”
“Will do,” Jake said.
“How are you going to get your truck?” I asked him.
“I won’t have any trouble getting another ride,” he said, and I knew that it was true. Since he’d become our mayor, George had become a popular figure around town. I thought it was because he was a politician who actually meant what he said and acted accordingly.
As Momma and Phillip joined us, Trish came by and made the dirty dishes vanish. “What can I get for you folks tonight?”
“Everyone else has pie, so I’d like some myself,” Phillip said.
“Don’t you get enough of that at home?” Momma asked me.
Her husband looked shocked by the suggestion. “Enough pie? Is there even such a thing? Jake, back me up here.”
I knew that my husband didn’t want to cross my mother even in fun, but he took a deep breath, grinned, and then said, “That’s always been my attitude.”
Momma shook her head, but I could see her trying her best to hide her smile. “Men.”
“Does that mean that you don’t want pie, Mrs. Hart?”
She raised an eyebrow in Trish’s direction. “Whatever gave you that impression? We’ll have two slices, please.”
“Any particular kind?” Trish asked her with a grin.
“Surprise us,” Momma said, answering it.
“Consider it done,” Trish said.
Momma looked at her husband. “Are you okay with me ordering for the both of us?”
“Are you kidding? I’m getting pie! There’s no way I’m going to be disappointed, no matter wh
at kind she brings me.” Phillip turned to look at me as he added, “That must have been tough finding Dusty’s body like that.”
“Jake was there, too,” I said. I didn’t even have to ask how he knew. Word, especially when it involved murder, spread through our little town faster than a brush fire in August.
“Sure, but he’s used to it, I’m sure.” Addressing Jake directly, he added, “As much as you can get used to that kind of thing, that is.”
“I take your point,” Jake said.
“So, who do you think did it?” Momma asked me.
“I don’t know,” I replied. It was true enough. I had my suspicions and more than a couple of suspects, but I didn’t know anything definitively at that point.
“But you’re investigating, right?” Momma asked.
“What makes you ask that?”
“Suzanne, are you honestly going to keep up this charade?”
“No,” I said, suddenly too tired to banter with her. “Jake and I are looking into it.”
I was expecting a scolding, but instead, Momma simply nodded. “Good. I’m glad.”
“Hang on a second,” I said. “Since when are you happy that I’m digging into murder?”
“You and Jake found the poor man. Of course you’ve got a reason to investigate the crime. Just promise me one thing.”
“I’ll be careful,” I said.
“Good, but that’s not what I wanted you to promise,” Momma answered.
“Sorry. I didn’t mean to jump the gun. What do you want me to promise you?”
“That no matter who killed that unfortunate man, you’ll do your best to see them punished for the crime,” Momma said.
It was an odd thing for her to say. “What are you getting at, Momma?”
“I know how close you are to Emily, and for reasons that defy all explanation, that ex-husband of yours as well, but if the signs point to either one of them as being guilty, you can’t let that sway your judgment or your actions.”
“I’m willing to admit that it would be hard on me, but I wouldn’t handle things any other way,” I answered. “And just in case I was ever tempted, which I wouldn’t be, I’ve got Jake. He’ll make sure I do the right thing if I start to waver.”
“You won’t need me,” my husband said as he patted my hand. “You almost always do the right thing, Suzanne.”
“Almost?” I asked him with a grin.
“Man, that’s good pie. I may have another piece,” Jake said as Trish brought slices of cherry crumble pie to Momma and Phillip, completely ignoring my question. That was fine by me.
“I think we’ve had enough,” I said as I stood. “As everyone keeps pointing out, I have an early day tomorrow, so I’m afraid I have to say good night.” I leaned over and kissed my mother’s cheek. “I love you, Momma.”
“I love you, too, Suzanne. Sleep well.”
“I’ll do my best,” I said.
After Jake paid our bill, we walked to my Jeep together in the glow from a streetlight. “It would be simpler to walk home than to drive back,” I said.
“Sure, but then you won’t have me to escort you back through the park in the middle of the night when you go to work in a few hours,” he replied.
“It’s April Springs, for goodness sake,” I said. “What could happen?”
“You really don’t expect me to answer that, do you?” Jake asked me.
“No, I suppose not. With a murderer on the loose, nobody can be too careful.”
“Agreed,” Jake replied. I drove the short distance around the block to our cottage, slowing down at Grace’s place. I could see she was home, and the flashing images from the television told me that she was watching something. I’d have to let her know what I was up to, but then again, I was pretty sure her boyfriend, Chief Grant, would do that for me.
As I parked in my spot beside Jake’s truck, I glanced over at our front porch.
Someone was sitting there in the dark, waiting for us.
Was it a benign visit, or was the killer paying us a call?
Chapter 16
“Jake, do you see that? Someone’s on our porch. Do you think it’s Max?”
“I don’t see how it could be. There’s no way the chief is finished with him yet,” my husband said as he drew out his weapon. I’d nearly forgotten that he’d been carrying it, even after we’d been shot at not two hours earlier. That was the way my mind worked sometimes, compartmentalizing things to the point where one day seemed like several all strung together in a row. After all, we’d just found Dusty’s body that afternoon, as hard as that was for me to believe.
A great deal had happened since then, almost none of it good.
“Max? Is that you?” I called out before Jake could approach the porch.
“No. It’s Emily,” she said as she stepped out of the shadows. “Why did you ask me that? Is Max coming?”
“As soon as he’s finished at the police station,” I said. “Come on in.”
“I know it’s late for you. I shouldn’t have come,” Emily said as she stepped off the porch and started toward the park.
“Nonsense,” I said as I turned the light on. “I’ll be up for a while yet. Come on in. I was just about to make some hot chocolate. I could brew up some coffee for you, if you prefer.” I’d had no intention of doing either, but if my friend was there, I was guessing she had a good reason, and I wasn’t about to turn her away just to get a little sleep.
“If you’re sure,” she said a little reluctantly.
“Of course we’re sure,” Jake said.
“Thanks. I appreciate that,” Emily said as she followed us inside the cottage.
“Let’s go into the kitchen so we can all chat,” I suggested as we took our jackets off. The days were definitely getting warmer, but the nights could still have a bite to them.
As Jake and Emily took up chairs at the kitchen table, I got busy making hot chocolate. I had a mix I loved, and Jake had instantly become a fan, too. We sold it at Donut Hearts when Emma wasn’t being wildly experimental with our beverage offerings, which was a great deal of the time lately. For the most part, I handled the donuts while she came up with new drink combinations. The range and scope of coffee flavors she found truly amazed me, but in the cold months, she’d started playing around with our hot chocolate recipes, too.
I could have microwaved the milk and started serving drinks in less than two minutes, but this occasion seemed to call for using a teakettle on the range to heat the liquid. While it was warming up, it would give us a chance to chat.
“It will just be a few minutes,” I said as I got three carrot-cake cupcakes out of the fridge and plated them. They were Jake’s favorites, so I’d made him a batch the day before. In all honesty, it kind of surprised me that there were still three left. “Would anyone like a cupcake?”
“I’ll take one,” Jake volunteered, even though he’d just polished off a large slab of pie at the Boxcar Grill.
“I’d love one, too. I’m starving, actually,” Emily said as she took one.
“I can make you a proper meal in no time at all if you’re hungry,” I said. For a moment, I sounded just like my mother, something that caused me to frown but would have probably amused her to no end.
“Thanks anyway, but this is perfect,” she said as she took a bite. “Wow, that’s delicious. Did you make it from scratch?”
“No, it’s just a mix,” I admitted.
“One that she embellishes in her own way,” Jake said proudly.
I didn’t have the heart to tell him that I just added a pinch of cinnamon, a dash of nutmeg, and the slightest whisper of vanilla paste. If he chose to think that made me a master baker, then who was I to dissuade him? “What’s going on, Emily? How are the guys? What’s going on with them?”
“The truth is, I have a feeling that t
hey’re more than a bit traumatized by what’s happened,” she said.
“Does the police chief still have custody of them?” I asked.
To Jake’s credit, he didn’t look at either one of us as though we were crazy, which in retrospect he had every right to do.
“No, I got them back fifteen minutes ago after Chief Grant questioned me at the station. I couldn’t bear to leave them alone at the newsstand, so I took them home and tucked them into my bed before I came over here to speak with you.”
“How did your interview with the police go?” I asked tentatively.
“As you suggested, I told Chief Grant everything, including Dusty’s behavior last night,” Emily admitted. “It wasn’t easy to do, but what choice did I have? I had to tell the truth.”
“Did you ever find out who came into the newsstand last night?” Jake asked her.
I shot him a reproachful look, but it was too late to do anything about it now.
“No, but that wasn’t even a factor in my decision. I learned a long time ago that the truth was always the best option, no matter how bad a light it might shine on me,” Emily said. “Why? Do you know who it was?”
I looked at Jake, wondering if I should tell her, but he merely shrugged. No doubt he wanted to avoid another nonverbal scolding from me if he could. Maybe if I told her now, it would give her time to accept it when she finally saw her fiancé. “It was Max,” I said, watching her carefully.
I’d expected her to be angry for a number of reasons, but she merely looked confused. “Max? That’s not possible. He’s back in town? What about his commercial?”
“Evidently it fell through, so he came back early,” I said, not wanting to muddy the water with news of his abrupt termination. “He said he wanted to surprise you.”
“Then why didn’t he come in when he saw me with Dusty?”
Jake answered softly, “He wasn’t sure what he was interrupting.”
Instead of being angry that Max hadn’t come to her rescue, Emily was suddenly stricken by another thought. “Oh, no. I can’t imagine what it must have looked like to him. The poor dear must have thought I was carrying on with Dusty. He must have been heartbroken! No wonder he ran away.” She looked genuinely distraught by the thought as she suddenly stood. “I’ve got to find him this instant and explain it to him.”