by Joyce Tremel
Mitch had written down the names as I rattled them off and he did the same with the phone number. “Did it seem like they got along? Was there any tension among them?”
“I didn’t notice anything unusual, but I really didn’t know them. I’d only met them the one time at the fire hall on Friday night.”
He asked if I’d noticed anything unusual when we arrived tonight or any suspicious activity in the neighborhood. I told him I hadn’t. After a few more questions Mitch said I could go and if I thought of anything else, to let him know.
I got up and crossed to where Jake was standing by the door. He pulled me into his arms and kissed my forehead. “Are you all right?” he asked.
“I will be.” I looked around. “Where’s Candy?”
“She’s waiting outside for us. She had to make a phone call.”
When we reached the sidewalk, however, Candy was nowhere to be seen.
• • •
I tossed and turned all night. I couldn’t get the image of Doodle with his head stuck in his sousaphone out of my mind. And then there was Candy. I alternated between being mad at her and worrying about her. Something was terribly wrong and I couldn’t figure out what it was. I had been so annoyed with her on the way home that Jake had really gotten an earful. I was pretty sure he learned a few German swear words before he dropped me off at my apartment. I finally gave up on sleeping at four a.m. I played with Hops for a while and fed her before I got showered and dressed. I was at the brew house by five thirty, and the first thing I did was go into the kitchen to make a pot of strong coffee. Once the caffeine kicked in, I headed into the brewery.
One of the brown ales was ready for kegging so I figured I may as well get that out of the way since I was here so early. I readied the sterilized stainless steel half-barrel kegs and moved them over to the tank. I connected the fill tube to the tank and the first keg, then attached a tube with a valve to the top of the keg. As it filled and the CO2 in the keg was gassed off, I got the next one ready. When the valve started releasing foam and then beer, it was full. It was a nice, mindless task, and when I was done, I felt a lot better.
Jake came in just as I finished cleaning up. “Looks like I missed all the fun.” He kissed me on the cheek and looked around. “You kegged all these this morning? What time did you get here?”
“Around five thirty. But I was up at four. I couldn’t sleep. I couldn’t stop thinking about last night.”
He put his arm around me and we walked through the pub to the kitchen. “I didn’t sleep that great either so I went to the rink and skated. There was a high school hockey team practicing and I gave them some pointers.”
I smiled. “You must have loved that.” He’d never come out and said so, but I knew he missed playing hockey. He still skated every chance he got even though he couldn’t play professionally anymore.
“It was fun.” He grinned and his brown eyes lit up. “I even got to autograph a few sticks.” He opened the refrigerator and got out eggs and cheddar cheese.
“What are you doing with those?” I asked.
“Making you breakfast, what else?”
“That’s the best offer I’ve had all week.”
He grinned again. “I aim to please, ma’am.”
• • •
After Jake and I ate breakfast, he started prepping for lunch and I took a walk next door to Cupcakes N’at. I half expected Candy to have taken another day off just to avoid me, but she was behind the counter by herself, waiting on a handful of customers. She was cheerful as ever to the customers, but she looked like she hadn’t gotten much sleep, either. She caught my eye and waved.
I waited until everyone had been served. When the bakery was finally empty, she apologized for leaving so suddenly last night.
“I’m sure you had a good reason,” I said, hoping she really did. “I’m worried about you, though. You haven’t been yourself since Friday night.” When she opened her mouth to protest, I said, “Don’t try to deny it. There’s something wrong and I want to help.”
“I know you do.” She glanced at the door as another customer came in. “And I know we need to talk. I’ll be here late tonight to get caught up on some things. Can you stop over around nine or so?”
I agreed and went back to the brew house. I had fifteen minutes before we opened for the day, so I thought this might be a good time to make a phone call or two. I sat down at my desk and called Bruce Hoffman. He picked up on the second ring. After I identified myself, I offered my condolences.
“Thank you, Max,” he said. “It’s such a shock to all of us.”
“It was to me as well.”
“I don’t know why Doodle was even at the rehearsal hall. I told the detective that we didn’t have a rehearsal scheduled last night. We played at a party earlier in the day and I assumed everyone went home after that.”
“I don’t know if the police told you this, but I was supposed to meet Doodle at the rehearsal hall last night and I was the one who found him.”
“No, he never mentioned that. Thank goodness you didn’t arrive earlier. You might have been attacked, too.”
“Maybe if we’d gotten there earlier, Doodle wouldn’t have been killed.”
“We?”
“I had friends with me.”
“The same friends as the other night?”
“Only one of them, and my boyfriend.” I always felt strange using the word boyfriend, but I didn’t have a substitute for it.
“If you don’t mind me asking, why were you meeting with Doodle anyway?”
I shifted in my seat. “I really don’t know why he wanted to see me. He didn’t want to discuss whatever it was over the phone. He wanted to do it in person.”
“He didn’t give you any idea?” Bruce asked. “Not even a hint?”
“Not really. I was kind of hoping you might have some idea what he wanted.”
“I wish I could help you,” he said. He paused. “If he wouldn’t tell you what he wanted, it couldn’t be very important. I wouldn’t worry about it if I were you.” Before I had a chance to ask him if he thought it could be about Felix thinking he recognized Candy, I heard his phone beep.
“I have to go,” he said. “I have another call coming in. Thanks for calling. And don’t worry—we still plan on playing for your party.”
I pressed the End Call button but he’d already disconnected. It was just as well. He seemed to be as much in the dark as to what Doodle had wanted as I was. He certainly was curious to know, though. Maybe he’d call me if he figured it out. I didn’t have time to think about it any further. It was time to open for the day, so I headed out to the pub.
• • •
The lunch rush was over, and since the pub was empty for the moment, I was polishing the bar top. I looked up when I heard the door open. It was my dad. That could only mean one thing.
He kissed me on the cheek and slid onto a bar stool. “Mitch called me.”
“I figured he would.” I folded the polishing cloth and placed it under the bar.
“Are you all right?” he asked. “You should have called me.”
“I’m okay.” I didn’t address the not calling him part because I knew he was right. “Can I get you something to eat or drink?”
“Just some water.” Dad rested his elbows on the bar. “Tell me what happened. Mitch said you were supposed to meet with the victim. Who was this person?”
I filled a glass with ice and water and placed it in front of him. “He’s—was—a member of the band I hired for Oktoberfest.” I told him about going to see the band on Friday night and that Doodle had called twice and wanted to talk to me but didn’t want to do it over the phone. “I only agreed because I thought it was about Candy.”
“Why would you think it was about Candy? Did he know her?” Dad asked.
“No, but Felix
Holt, one of the other band members, thought he recognized her from somewhere. Candy denied it but I thought maybe Felix was interested in her and that he had put Doodle up to it.”
“But he never mentioned any of that over the phone?”
“Not in so many words.”
I tried to think of a way to bring up the fact that the first time I went to meet Doodle, Candy had been at his house. I knew if I told Dad, she’d immediately be a “person of interest,” even though she was a friend and she’d been with Jake and me when we found Doodle.
Dad was quiet for a minute, then he said, “You’re not telling me something.”
I didn’t have to find a way to tell him after all. I should have known he’d see it on my face like he always did. I’d never make a living playing poker. “I don’t want you getting all bent out of shape about it. It’s really nothing.”
“Why don’t you let me be the judge of that?”
I hoped he wouldn’t be judge, jury, and executioner. “The first time I was supposed to meet with Doodle, Candy was there.”
“Did she go with you?”
“Not exactly.”
“Not exactly.” There was a touch of sarcasm in his voice.
“You’re not going to like it,” I said. “When I got to the house, Candy was already there.”
“What do you mean by that? She was waiting outside for you?”
I almost said “Not exactly” again but thought better of it. “She was inside Doodle’s house.”
“Mitch didn’t mention that.”
“That’s because he didn’t know. I thought it would be better if Candy told him, so I didn’t say anything.”
“Maybe you’d better start at the beginning. And don’t leave anything out this time.”
So I filled him in, giving him all the details of our night out to see the band perform, Candy looking for something at Doodle’s house, and the three of us finding Doodle’s body. I didn’t specifically mention Candy’s odd behavior lately, but I didn’t have to. It was fairly obvious. When I’d finished, Dad pulled his cell phone from his pocket. “What are you doing?” I asked.
“Calling Mitch. You’re going to have some explaining to do, young lady.”
• • •
“Why didn’t you tell me all this last night?” Mitch Raines asked. He’d arrived twenty minutes after Dad called him, and the three of us were sitting in my office.
“I didn’t want to just blurt it out and get Candy in trouble. I thought it best to leave it up to her to tell you. Besides, she was with Jake and me when we found Doodle. There’s no way she had anything to do with it.”
Mitch sighed. “That’s not the point. You may be right that your friend didn’t have anything to do with the murder, but she should have told us everything. And you should have, too.”
I knew he was right but I still hated that telling him could get Candy in trouble.
“Tell me again the chain of events—when you arrived, when Ms. Sczypinski arrived.”
I told him Jake and I got there around seven forty-five and Candy arrived not long after that.
“Is there a chance Ms. Sczypinski arrived before you, then doubled back and met up with you?” Mitch asked.
“No way.” I shook my head. “Absolutely not.”
“I know Ms. Sczypinski is your friend, but sometimes we don’t know our friends as well as we think we do. You said yourself that she wanted to talk to the victim. She was upset. She got angry. Maybe she didn’t mean to kill him—”
“No! Absolutely not! Candy did not kill Doodle. She wouldn’t hurt a fly, let alone another human being.”
Dad had been silent so far, but now he spoke up. “Then she won’t mind talking to the detectives again.”
“Of course she won’t,” I said. I felt like I should be crossing my fingers behind my back. “Just because she was in Doodle’s house doesn’t mean she had anything to do with his murder. I’m sure she’ll be happy to clear this up.”
Mitch stood. “You could be right that she had nothing to do with it, but you know we have to look into everything, Max. We can’t just assume someone didn’t commit a crime. This whole thing could be as simple as a burglary gone wrong. We just don’t know yet. Not until we have all the facts.”
I appreciated the fact that Mitch wasn’t trying to railroad anyone, unlike what Vincent Falk had tried to do back in July when he was sure Jake and I had committed murder. He’d been my dad’s new partner at the time and was a little too intent on making a name for himself. We’d called a somewhat uneasy truce since then.
Dad stood, too. “Don’t worry, sweetie. It will all work out.”
“I hope you’re right.”
As soon as they left, I picked up the phone and dialed the bakery. Candy must have been busy because the voice mail picked up. I left a message. “Detective Raines will be getting in touch with you. It’s a long story, but my dad knew I was holding something back and I ended up telling them about you being at Doodle’s house.” I paused, wondering what else I could say. “I’ll talk to you tonight.”
But for now I had to get back to work.
CHAPTER SIX
The late afternoon and dinner hours were busy. From what I could gather from going table to table and drawing drafts at the bar, no one felt like cooking the day after a holiday. I was thrilled—it was great for business. Things were winding down a bit around seven, so I was taking the opportunity to stack some clean pint glasses behind the bar when I heard a familiar voice.
“It’s nice to see someone in this neighborhood is working.”
“Hi, Elmer,” I said.
Elmer Fairbanks was ninety-two years old and still going strong. To say he was colorful would be an understatement. He was very opinionated and never hesitated to let anyone know what he was thinking. I’d met him through the library book club that Candy and Kristie also belonged to. Somehow he’d become part of the group. At least we always knew his book choice would have something to do with the Old West or World War Two. He wore his 101st Airborne ball cap today instead of his Stetson, which meant he was in a feisty mood. When he wore the Stetson, he was more likely to be the laid-back cowboy sort. He definitely wore the ball cap more often.
Elmer slid onto a bar stool. “I want to know what’s going on, young lady. And don’t argue with me and give me any of this ‘I don’t know what you’re talking about’ crap.”
An argument was exactly what he wanted. He loved verbally sparring with anyone and everyone, so I obliged. “But I don’t know. Can you be a little more specific?”
“For a smart girl, you act kind of dumb sometimes.”
“Is that meant to be a compliment? If it is—”
“Oh, for heaven’s sake.” He slapped a five-dollar bill down on the bar. “Pour me one of those lagers and I’ll spell it out for you.” He took a long drink after I placed the beer in front of him. “Ahh.” He wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. “Just like the ones we had after we crossed the border into Germany back in forty-five. Best beer in the world.”
“Now that’s definitely a compliment. Thank you.”
“Did I ever tell you about the time me and the boys raided the beer and wine cellar of some Kraut muckety-muck?”
He had. More than once. “I think so,” I said. “But you can tell me again.”
“You just want me to change the subject, don’t you?”
I smiled. “I wasn’t the one who changed the subject.”
“Don’t get smart with me or I’ll tell your mother.”
He had a twinkle in his eye so I knew he was enjoying the verbal sparring. I was, too.
Elmer pushed his glass to the side and leaned on the bar top. “What was that cop doing here before? I was over in the coffee shop and I saw your pop come in, which is no surprise. I figured he was just visiting. Then that other de
tective showed up. What gives?”
“How did you know that was a detective?”
“I didn’t fall off the turnip truck yesterday, you know. I can spot a gumshoe a mile away.”
“So, what do you want to know?”
“Everything. And while you’re at it, why wasn’t Candy at the bakery yesterday? Mary Louise didn’t have my donut with extra jimmies set aside.”
“I didn’t know Candy did that for you. With all your bickering, I didn’t even think you liked each other.”
“Just because we like to argue only means we like to argue,” he said. “Now quit beating around the bush and fill me in.”
I began with the party at the fire hall on Friday night and ended with my discussion with Detective Raines. I had to pause once to fill a growler for a customer, and a couple of times to draw drafts.
“You’ve had a busy weekend,” Elmer said when I’d finished. “What’s the plan?”
“I don’t have one, other than talking to Candy.”
“Want to know what I think?”
Even if I didn’t, I knew he’d tell me anyway. “Sure.”
“That Howdy Doody character—”
“Doodle. His name was Doodle.”
Elmer shook his head. “What the heck kind of name is that for a grown man? Anyway, Doodle knew something about that Felix fellow that he wanted you to know. And I think it’s pretty strange that Candy was afraid of what he knew.”
“I don’t think she’s afraid,” I said.
“Maybe not, but she sure as shooting wants to know what he knew. We have to find out exactly what it was. And mark my words, she’s met that Felix fellow before; otherwise she wouldn’t care what Howdy Doody had to say.”
I didn’t correct the name again and agreed with him that Candy knew Felix from somewhere. “Candy promised to tell me everything.”
“That’s a start,” Elmer said. “While you talk to her, I’ll ask my buddies at the VFW what they know about that band. I’m pretty sure they played a party or two there.”