Powdered Peril

by Jessica Beck

  I looked up to see that we were parked in front of the cottage I shared with Momma. “When did we get back into town?” I asked as I unbuckled my seat belt. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to fall asleep on you.”

  “You were snoring,” Grace said with a smile. “You really are beat.”

  “You know what? I’m suddenly refreshed. Would you like to come in for a bit? You shouldn’t be alone tonight.”

  “I’m fine by myself,” Grace said firmly, and I knew not to push it.

  “Call me if you need me, then,” I insisted.

  “I appreciate the offer, but I’ll be all right. See you tomorrow.”

  “Good night, Grace.”

  I stood there watching her until she drove away. She wasn’t that far up the road from me, but it might as well have been a thousand miles. I could tell that Grace needed to be alone, and I would respect that unless she called me. She’d been great with me when I’d needed time alone after my marriage to Max fell apart, and I was going to do the same for her now.

  I thought Momma might still be out on her date, but I was surprised to find her in the living room when I walked in, reading her latest mystery. She was a huge fan of cozies, and was now ripping her way through a series of culinary mysteries.

  “What happened, did you finally run out of crafting mysteries?” I asked with a smile when I walked in.

  “No, but I thought I’d pick one of these up and see what all the fuss was about.”

  “And what’s the verdict?” I asked as I sat down with her.

  “I like it, but there’s just one problem.”

  “What’s that?” I asked.

  “They all make me hungry,” she admitted. “If I keep reading them, I’m going to gain a hundred pounds.”

  We both knew that my mother was exaggerating, since that would mean that she’d have to double her weight. Momma was slight in stature, but what she lacked in bulk, she more than made up for in sass. “I thought you had a date tonight.”

  “I did, but Phillip was so preoccupied with Peter Morgan’s murder, I cut it short so he could get back to the office.”

  “Has he found any leads yet?” I asked, trying to sound as nonchalant as I could.

  Momma laughed loudly. “Suzanne, you know the rules. If he wants you to know something, he’ll tell you himself.”

  I had to smile. “Sorry. Old habits die hard.”

  “How is Jacob these days?”

  “Busy solving crimes,” I said as I reached for the light blanket we kept on the back of the couch. It wasn’t the least bit chilly, but I still liked having a little weight on me.

  “Such is our lot,” Momma said. She glanced at the clock, and then asked, “Shouldn’t you be asleep by now?”

  “Normally, yes,” I said as I stretched a little. “But I just had a nap, so I’m good.”

  “Where on earth did you take a nap?”

  “I didn’t plan on it, but Grace drove us back from Union Square, and I just nodded off.”

  Momma smiled. “Did you manage to visit Napoli’s while you were there?”

  I looked down at my shirt, but couldn’t see any evidence. “How did you know?”

  “Don’t worry, I’m not psychic. I knew you had to eat somewhere, since you’re clearly not hungry right now.”

  I shook my head. “How do you know I’m not hungry?”

  She laughed again. “Because there’s a pie in the fridge from yesterday, and you haven’t made a move toward it since you walked in the door.”

  “Guilty as charged,” I said. “Grace and I both had spaghetti.”

  “How is she holding up?” Momma asked as she finally put her book down.

  “I don’t know,” I answered after a moment’s thought. “She’s keeping everything together a little too well, to be honest with you. We asked some pretty tough questions today that had to have killed her inside, but she didn’t even blink. I’m a little worried about her.”

  “Should you go see her right now? Being in that house alone can’t be easy for her right now.”

  “I offered, but she declined,” I admitted.

  Momma’s left eyebrow arched, but she didn’t say a word. She knew that Grace and I would work it out between us, and she wisely stayed out of it.

  “Would you like to tell me about what you discovered today?” Momma volunteered. “I’m an excellent listener, and it might help you crystallize your thoughts.”

  I usually bounced ideas off Grace, but that was clearly not the best idea right now. “You don’t mind? We uncovered some unsavory behavior today.”

  “I believe I can take it,” she said, hiding her light smile.

  “There’s just one more item to discuss, then. This thing between me and the chief of police works both ways. If I want him to know something, he’ll hear it from me and not you. Agreed?”

  “Of course,” she said. “I respect your privacy, Suzanne.”

  I nodded. My mother’s word was golden, an unbreakable vow, and I knew that I could trust her with anything. “Well, it turns out that Peter was more of a snake than we realized. He was seeing two other women on the side besides Grace, and those were just the ones we’ve found so far.”

  “Who are these ladies?”

  “I don’t know that I’d call them ladies,” I said. “They’re more like girls that Peter took advantage of. Leah Gentry and Kaye Belson are both barely out of their teens, and Peter used them, then tried to throw them away.”

  “Emotions run deep in the young,” Momma said. “And passions can be stronger than reason. Do they have alibis?”

  “We’re working on that,” I admitted.

  “Who else is on your list, then?”

  I thought about it, and then said, “Well, his brother is a bully who hated his brother for his own reasons, and we’ve also heard rumors that Peter and his business partner were having troubles.”

  That piqued her interest even more. “Name, please?”

  “Henry Lincoln,” I admitted.

  She nodded. “I thought so. I happen to know Henry.”

  That was news to me, but then again, my mother was known for keeping her business life one big secret. She owned buildings and businesses in town that even I didn’t know about. “What do you know about him?”

  Momma shook her head. “He tried to coerce me into a business relationship a few years ago that I wasn’t interested in.”

  It was my turn to look surprised. “Do you mean that he actually tried to bully you?”

  “I know, it would have been amusing if it weren’t so completely delusional. I’d watch him if I were you, Suzanne. Even when he smiles, you still can’t see his teeth. The man’s a shark. Would you like me to question him for you?”

  Momma had not really gotten directly involved in my investigations in the past, and I was reluctant to start now. “Let’s see how it goes first when Grace and I talk to him,” I said.

  She nodded her agreement. “If you need me, just remember, I’m here. So, who else are you considering?”

  “That’s the thing. There’s a handful of folks who are on the perimeter, and I don’t know what to make of them yet. So far, we’ve got his landlady, Rose White, though I find her an unlikely murderer, and one more even stronger suspect.”

  My mother sat there patiently, and I finally managed to speak. “Momma, it looks like my new assistant is thick in the middle of this murder case. Every time Grace and I look somewhere, the woman turns up.”

  That got her attention. “Nan Winters? Are you serious?”

  “I know, it sounds crazy, right? But there’s no denying it. I saw her in a photograph on Rose White’s end table, but that could be written off to coincidence. What’s really incriminating is that her name was on the list we found in Peter’s apartment.”

  She looked concerned when she heard that. “Hold on. When were you in his apartment?”

  “That’s right, I haven’t gotten to that part yet. We were at Rose’s place asking some questions, and ther
e was an opening when we had a chance to volunteer to help clean out Peter’s apartment.”

  “And you couldn’t say no, of course,” my mother said with a smile.

  “You bet we couldn’t,” I said. “Anyway, Grace and I were in the kitchen while Rose was fetching more boxes, and we happened to find his secret stash, or at least, one of them.”

  “Drugs?” Momma asked, a frown on her face.

  “No, nothing like that. We found three grand in hundreds, a key to a personal safe, and a well-worn list of names. All of them had been crossed out at least once, and some of them had been struck through a number of times.”

  “And Nan’s name was on his list?”

  “Yes, along with his brother, his business partner, his landlady, and three women.”

  “Including Grace, I’m willing to wager.”

  “Hers was the last one written there,” I admitted.

  “Well, you’ve certainly been busy today, haven’t you, Suzanne?”

  “Funny, when I recap it for you like that, it sounds as though we’ve made some real progress, but I’m not all that sure. It seems as though we’ve just been spinning our wheels all day.”

  “Be patient,” she said. “You know how these things work. You collect as much information as you can, and then you evaluate it.”

  “You don’t mind me investigating this murder?” I asked. Sometimes my mother had a tendency to be overprotective when it came to me and my safety.

  She shook her head. “I’m willing to make an exception in this case. This is for Grace. You’re obligated to dig into the man’s murder. Just be careful.”

  I was about to answer when my telephone rang.

  “It’s Jake,” I said, not able to keep the happiness out of my voice.

  “Take it upstairs, and then have sweet dreams,” Momma said.

  “Hey, Jake,” I said as I answered, climbing the stairs to my bedroom two at a time, winking at Momma before I disappeared. “I’m so glad that you called.”

  “I hated leaving you today like that without even getting a kiss good-bye,” he admitted. “Sorry about that.”

  “There’s no need to apologize,” I said. “You had business you needed to take care of. How did the interview go?”

  “Honestly? I might as well have skipped it, for all the good it did me. The guy clammed up, and now I’m going to have to find some kind of a lever to pry him open.”

  “You’re good at that,” I said. “I’m sure you’ll figure something out.”

  “I just wish I had as much faith in myself as you do. How’s your investigation going? Did you ever catch up with Leah Gentry?”

  “We did. Do you really want to hear about it right now?” I knew how Jake could be when he was working a case. He didn’t like to have too much information about anything that didn’t relate directly to his own investigation.

  “Could we postpone the recap until tomorrow night?” he asked sheepishly. “I’ve got a bone I’m chewing on, and I’m close to figuring it out. I just know it.”

  “I’m happy to wait until then. I just went through it all with Momma, so I don’t need to rehash it with you.”

  He laughed. “Have I been replaced?”

  “Not a chance,” I said. It was so good hearing his voice. “Any possibility we can get together soon?”

  “Why do you think I’m working so hard on this case? The second I’m finished, I’m on my way to April Springs.”

  “Then start detecting, sir,” I said, not able to check my grin.

  “I’m doing my best. Good night, Suzanne. I love you.”

  “I love you, too.” As we hung up, I knew that I’d never get tired of saying it.

  CHAPTER 11

  When I got to the donut shop the next morning, something looked out of place as I drove past the converted railroad station. Once again, I backed my Jeep up and put the headlights onto the front of the building in order to get a better look. The paint was gone, both from the window and the bricks! How had that happened? Had Jake taken care of it, or maybe even Momma? Whoever had commissioned the work deserved a great deal of thanks from me. I’d been dreading hiring someone to clean up the mess, and some mysterious benefactor had taken care of it for me.

  A little later, I had a conversation that I wasn’t looking forward to, but had to have nonetheless. “Can we talk?” I asked Nan when she came into the shop five minutes before her shift was due to start. I hadn’t been able to sleep very well knowing that we’d be having this conversation, so I’d come in early and made the cake donuts already. It gave us half an hour before we needed to start the yeast donuts, and I was ready for her.

  “I’ve got coffee,” I said as I handed her a mug.

  “Is something wrong?” Nan asked worriedly. “You’re upset about the front, aren’t you?”

  “What are you talking about?” I asked.

  “I have a nephew who does building restorations,” she confessed, “so I asked him to take care of the shop front as a favor to me. I know I should have asked you first, but I didn’t know where you were, and I don’t have your cell phone number. I’m sorry. I should have asked permission first.”

  “No, it’s not that at all. I love that the mess is gone. Thank you for handling that for me.”

  Nan didn’t look all that pleased by the praise, though. “If I’m doing something I shouldn’t, just tell me so I can fix it. I don’t want to lose my job, Suzanne.”

  “Take it easy,” I said. “This isn’t about work.”

  She looked confused. “What’s it about, then?”

  “Peter Morgan,” I said.

  Her face went pale at the sound of his name. “What a terrible thing.”

  At least she wasn’t denying knowing the man. “I’m not trying to interfere with your personal life, but there are some things I need to know. If you don’t want to answer my questions, you don’t have to, but you should know that it’s important to me that we have a bond of trust between us, since we’re going to be working so closely together. Is that reasonable?”

  “I suppose so,” she said. It was clear that she wasn’t all that comfortable with the situation, but then again, neither was I. There was no way around it, though.

  “Let’s get this over with then, shall we?”

  “I’d appreciate that,” she said.

  “First, I saw your photo when I was at Rose White’s place yesterday. I didn’t realize that you two knew each other.”

  “We used to be friends,” she admitted.

  “Did you have a fight recently?”

  “No, nothing so dramatic as all that,” she said. “We just drifted apart. It happens sometimes to the best of friends.”

  Okay, I suppose I could buy that. “Then let’s talk about Peter.”

  “What about him?”

  Was she really going to make me ask? “How did you two know each other?”

  “I used to babysit him when he was just a boy,” she admitted. “We stayed in touch over the years. It’s as simple as that.”

  If I hadn’t seen Peter’s Rat List, I would have believed it. Nan was that good.

  There was only one problem, though.

  I had seen her name stricken boldly through in Peter’s hand.

  “From what I’ve heard, I’m inclined to believe that there’s more to it than that,” I said, a little more forcefully.

  “Why would you say that? Who’s been talking about me behind my back?”

  There was no way to dance around it now. No one knew that we’d found Peter’s hidden list, but there was no way I could push Nan any more without disclosing the fact that we’d found something that the police had missed in their own search. “Your name was on a list of his, and there was a rather bold line struck through it, as though he were angry with you when he did it.”

  Nan looked a little flustered by this information. “I admit that we had words the last time we spoke, but it wasn’t serious. Peter and I had an honest and direct relationship. It wasn’t u
nusual for us to disagree, but in the end, we were important to each other, and we’d grown to value each other’s opinions. At least I believed that we had.”

  It was certainly a spin I hadn’t expected. The only other person who could confirm it was now dead. If Nan was telling me the truth, it was impossible to prove, but if she was lying to me, it was the perfect strategy. What it all boiled down to was simple.

  Did I trust Nan, or not?

  I didn’t have an answer, at least not at the moment.

  Nan started to stand as she asked, “Are we finished here? We both have donuts to make before we open.”

  I made no move to stand myself. “There’s no need. I came in early, so the cake donuts are all finished.”

  She looked surprised. “Surely there are dishes to be done, though.”

  “I finished the first round,” I said.

  “Suzanne, I realize you don’t know me all that well, but I’m a good person. I had nothing to do with Peter’s murder. In my own way, I’m mourning him nearly as much as your friend Grace is right now.”

  I kind of doubted that, but I didn’t feel I could call her on it. For all I knew, she could be telling the truth.

  She stood and looked down at me. “Was there anything else?”

  “Just one thing,” I said. “How long have you known the police chief?”

  Nan just shook her head, refusing to answer my simple question, and she went into the kitchen. Evidently, I’d finally pushed her too hard. My first instinct was to go into the kitchen and apologize immediately, but I didn’t give in to it. I didn’t want to assure her that everything was all right, mostly because I didn’t believe it. I found myself wishing yet again that Emma had never left, but that was pointless. My life had moved forward, and I had to do the best I could with the way things were now.

  When I went back into the kitchen, I saw Nan take something from her purse. To make matters worse, she looked guilty when I spotted her.

  “What’s that in your hand?” I asked. Could it be a gun? Was she about to punish me for my nosiness? I braced myself for what might come next, and was relieved when Nan held up a cookie cutter in the shape of a heart.

  “I couldn’t resist when I saw it yesterday. It’s for you,” she said as she offered it to me.