Pumpkin Pleas (The Donut Mysteries Book 26)

by Beck,Jessica

  There was a rapid knock at the door, and before I even looked up, I said loudly, “Sorry, we’re closed.”

  “I certainly hope so,” Momma said from the outside. “Let me in, Suzanne. It’s getting chilly out here, and I didn’t wear a proper winter coat.”

  It was only October, just the beginning of our chilly weather in April Springs, but it seemed as though the older my mother got, the less she liked cold weather. I’d worried recently that she might leave April Springs for good for warmer climes, but she’d assured me that she and her relatively new husband were there to stay. As Momma had put it, she was going to play out her hand and stay in the place where she’d been born, raised a family, buried a husband, and reset her life with Phillip Martin. It gave me great comfort knowing that she’d be around if I needed her, even if she did have the capacity to be overprotective of me at times.

  “What brings you by the donut shop?” I asked her, trying to hide the now-empty plate where the last donut had so recently resided. “I can offer you coffee or hot chocolate, but I’m afraid that we’re all out of treats.”

  “It’s just as well,” she said as she looked around the dining area. “Suzanne, this place looks dreadful.”

  I looked around at the dirty tables and nodded in agreement. “Emma was out looking for her father all morning, so I’ve been running the shop by myself today. Things kind of got away from me.”

  My mother’s dour expression lightened immediately. “I’m sorry. I should have realized that.” After taking off her light jacket, she grabbed the nearest plastic tub we used to transport dirty dishes to the back.

  As she reached over me and retrieved my empty plate, I asked, “What are you doing?”

  “What does it look like? I’m pitching in,” she said cheerfully. “I’ll take care of the tables; you go get started on the dishes. I presume there are dishes in back that need to be washed as well. Am I right about that?”

  “Yes, but you don’t have to help.”

  My mother put the tub down and patted my cheek. “I know that, but it would please me to do it. Now let’s get busy. Don’t you worry. Between the two of us, we’ll knock this out in no time.”

  I never would have called my mother for help, and I hadn’t been that thrilled at first when she’d decided to pitch in, but as I began washing dishes in the kitchen sink, I realized that I was glad that she was there with me. Since she’d moved out of the cottage we’d shared after getting married, Momma was less a part of my daily life than I liked. There didn’t seem to be a happy balance in our situation. We were either tripping all over each other, or we didn’t see one another at all for days.

  As I added another clean dish to the drying rack, Momma put another tub down and grabbed a towel. “Why don’t I get started drying these so you’ll have more space?”

  “Sounds good to me,” I said.

  “Suzanne, if you’ll tell me where to put things, I’ll try not to rearrange anything if I can help it,” she answered with a grin.

  “It’s a deal. So, what brings you by Donut Hearts? Not that I’m not happy to see you.”

  “I wanted to tell you that Phillip and I are going to Sarasota.”

  “Florida? For good? You’re moving?” I asked her incredulously. She’d already talked about leaving town once. Had she revisited the prospect again and decided to go through with it this time?

  “No, not for good; just for a few weeks. My friend, Ruby Hall, made it into a galleried art show down there, so Phillip and I are going down to celebrate with her. It will be nice seeing her again, but we’ll be back before you know it. April Springs is home, Suzanne.”

  “I’m glad to hear it,” I said. “If you need to go get ready, I can handle the rest from here.”

  “Nonsense. We aren’t leaving until morning. I wanted to fly, but Phillip likes driving, so we’re going by car. It’s going to take us quite a bit longer, but as he pointed out, we have the time, so why not?”

  My mother had definitely mellowed out since marrying the retired chief of police. In years past, she would have never given in that easily. “Have you heard about Tom Thorndike?” I asked her.

  Her lips pressed into two simple lines. “Yes. It’s tragic, isn’t it? He was always sweet on you, you know.”

  “Mother,” I said. “That was a long time ago.”

  “Perhaps, but a boy never forgets his first love,” Momma said. She added with a slight smile, “I remember when he used to hang around the park just hoping to catch a glimpse of you.”

  “Until Cindy Bottoms hit puberty, anyway,” I mumbled softly to myself, forgetting for a moment that when it came to me, my mother could hear things that most normal humans would miss completely.

  “Poor, sweet Cindy. It must be difficult when middle school is your finest hour. Don’t pout about it, Suzanne. It was a very long time ago.”

  “So it was,” I said. I knew she was right, but sometimes it was hard to let past transgressions go, no matter how long ago they should have faded into memory. “What a horrid way to die.”

  “Falling off a waterfall must have been terrifying. Can you imagine what must have been going through his mind as he plummeted to the rocks below him?”

  “It would be even worse if he were pushed,” I said without thinking about the ramifications of what I was saying.

  Momma stopped drying for a second and stared at me. “Suzanne Hart, are you going to investigate this? I understand the police chief believes that it was an accident.”

  “Maybe so, but the mayor and Jake aren’t so sure. George has asked me to look into it, and I’ve agreed.”

  “But what if it was truly an accident?” Momma asked.

  “Then it will be a short investigation, and no one would mind that.”

  “What does Jake say about you getting involved? Surely he’s not keen on you possibly endangering yourself if the mayor is correct in his assumption.” Momma glanced at me quickly and somehow read the truth in my expression. “He doesn’t know yet, does he? My dear child, you have to tell him.”

  “I will,” I said. “I just haven’t had the chance yet. How do you do that?”

  “Do what?”

  “Read my mind. Stop it, could you? It’s really creepy.”

  Momma smiled at me for a moment before she spoke. “Suzanne, I’m your mother. It’s what I do.”

  “If you say so.”

  “So, are you going to speak with Jake?”

  “I promise to just as soon as he gets back from the hospital,” I said as I turned back to my dishes.

  She abruptly dropped a small plate onto the floor. It shattered, and the noise it made on impact sounded like an explosion. “Jake’s in the hospital? What happened to him?”

  As I retrieved the dustpan and broom to clean up the mess, I said, “There’s nothing wrong with him. He’s visiting Ray Blake.”

  As I swept up the shards of the broken plate, Momma asked, “Why on earth would he do that?”

  “You heard that Ray was missing, didn’t you?”

  “Yes, but I was told that he was all right.”

  After I finished cleaning up the broken plate and stored the broom and dustpan back where they belonged, I went back to my dishes. “He’s been asking for Jake since they first found him. Evidently he’s missing fifteen or sixteen hours of his memory due to a blow to the back of the head.”

  “That’s not good, but what does he expect your husband to do about it? Did he go to medical school at some point in his life, and I wasn’t made aware of it?”

  “No, he’s always been a cop, one form or another, all of his adult working life. I’m not sure why Ray is being so insistent on seeing him. I haven’t spoken with Jake since he went to see him,” I said as I finished washing yet another mug in the warm, soapy water. I’d con
sidered getting a dishwasher once when I’d been temporarily flush with cash, but ultimately I’d decided against it. There was something tactile about the process of washing dishes, and besides, I couldn’t afford one big enough to clean most of my hardware, anyway. It was a good thing I hadn’t done it; I’d unexpectedly needed a new roof, and I’d just been able to pay for it with the cash I’d had on hand. It was funny how things worked out that way sometimes.

  “But you are going to tell him about George’s request as soon as you do, right?”

  “Yes, mother,” I said obediently.

  She dried another dish before she asked, “Suzanne, should I cancel my trip? I’m sure Ruby would understand.”

  “Why would you do that?” I asked her.

  “What if you need me, and I’m in Florida?”

  I laughed. “Momma, I’m a grown woman. I’ll be fine.”

  She didn’t join my laughter, though. “You may be an adult, but I will still worry about you as long as I’m alive. It’s a parent’s prerogative. So, do I need to cancel my trip and stay?”

  “Thanks for the offer, but between George, Jake, and Grace, I’ll be well watched over. Besides, you deserve a vacation. You work much too hard.”

  “Said the kettle to the pot,” she answered, finally smiling. “Are you certain?”

  “I am positive. Besides, the police chief is probably right. Tom most likely went for a hike at the top of the falls, it started to get dark, he slipped and fell, and that’s going to be the end of that.”

  She looked at me carefully for a full four seconds before she addressed my comment. “You don’t believe it for an instant, do you?”

  I wanted to deny it, but there was no way that I could; she was right. “I told you to stop that.”

  After the dishes were finished, all that was left was sweeping up the front and doing the deposit for the day. I could still manage that, even on my own, and have a few minutes left over before George arrived. “Thanks so much for the help, Momma. You were a real lifesaver.”

  “Let me just finish up the front and I’ll be on my way,” she said as she grabbed the broom I’d used on the broken plate earlier.

  “I can manage,” I insisted.

  “I’m sure that you can, but I mean to see this to the end,” she answered, even as she began sweeping under the upturned chairs. At least I’d prepped the areas I could beforehand.

  I knew better than anyone that there was no use arguing with her, so I let her sweep as I ran the reports on the register and cashed out for the day. Happily, all of the totals matched, and I still had ten minutes to spare.

  “Shall I walk you out?” Momma asked me.

  I wasn’t leaving Donut Hearts, at least not straightaway, and certainly not alone, but I didn’t want to tell her that. After all, why give her more reason to worry than I already had? I was saved from answering when there was a new tap on the door. This place was getting busier than when I was open for business.

  I hoped it wasn’t George, being early as was his custom, and for once, things worked out in my favor. Phillip Martin, my stepfather and the former police chief of April Springs, was standing outside, pointing at his watch. “We need to go, Dot. Bob agreed to look my car over at the shop, but if we don’t get over there right now, he won’t be able to hold our spot.”

  “You could always go on without me,” Momma said with a laugh.

  “Go,” I urged her. “You were a tremendous help, but I’ve got it from here. If I don’t talk to you before you leave, have a safe trip. Send me a postcard when you get there.”

  “Or I could just call,” she said with a wry smile.

  “I’m sure you could, but when’s the last time you sent anyone a postcard?”

  “I’m not sure, but I know that it’s been donkey years,” she said as I unlocked the front door and ushered her out.

  Momma wasn’t quite ready to go yet, though. After she put her jacket on, she hugged me and whispered in my ear, “Be careful, young lady.”

  “You, too,” I said.

  “I’m serious,” Momma insisted.

  “So am I. Don’t fall in love with the area while you’re down there, you hear?”

  “Loud and clear,” my mother replied, and then she kissed my cheek soundly before she and her husband left.

  I locked the door as soon as they were gone, only to see George striding up the sidewalk toward Donut Hearts.

  It looked as though I’d managed to get everything finished just in the nick of time, and I hoped that my luck would hold for the rest of the day.

  Somehow I had a hunch that it wouldn’t, though.

  Chapter 7

  “Am I early?” the mayor asked as I unlocked the door for him and let him in.

  “Not by much. Do you mind if we stop off at the bank on the way to the cottage?”

  “How do you know it’s on the way?” George asked me with a smile. He looked happy to be investigating something again instead of riding herd on the town of April Springs.

  “Since the bank is just down the road, I figure we can make it on the way to wherever we’re going.” I grabbed the deposit bag, flipped off the lights, and then unlocked the door for us. “I’m ready if you are. You didn’t go over there without me, did you?”

  “A promise is a promise, Suzanne.”

  “But you were still tempted, right?” I asked him with a grin.

  “Sure I was, but you can’t fault me for that, since I managed to resist the temptation. What do you think we’ll find there?”

  “I have no idea, but I hope we uncover something that at least gives us a place to start.” After we were outside, I asked, “Am I riding with you, or should I follow in my Jeep?”

  “Why don’t you come with me? It will give me a chance to show off my brand-new vehicle.”

  “You broke down and bought a new car? This I’ve got to see.”

  “Well, it’s new to me, anyway,” George said with a grin as he led me to a battered old truck that someone had tried to camouflage himself. Brown and green splotches of spray paint covered the truck so completely that I couldn’t be sure what the original paint color had been. Leaves had been held against the body in quite a few sections before the spray cans were used, giving it an artificial woodsy vibe. “Isn’t it nice?”

  I had to laugh. “Maybe, but I’m not sure that it’s appropriate for the mayor of April Springs.”

  “Are you kidding? This thing will get me more votes than my policy on zoning ever could.”

  “You’re probably right at that,” I said. “When did you get to be such a politician?” I asked as I slid in on the bench seat beside him.

  “Don’t blame me. I like to think that it’s your mother’s fault.”

  “She may have set you up to be elected the first time, but since then, it’s all been on you.”

  George started up the engine, and I half expected it to cough a few times before stalling out, but to my surprise, it roared into action instantly. As he patted the dashboard, he said, “It’s got good bones, regardless of the paint job.”

  “I don’t have any trouble believing it.”

  After we stopped off at the bank to drop off my day’s receipts, we headed to the outskirts of town in the direction of Maple Hollow. “So, it was on the way after all,” I said with satisfaction, since we had to pass the bank to get to our destination.

  “I never said that it wasn’t,” he answered.

  “How did you happen to acquire a cottage?” I asked him.

  “Believe it or not, I inherited it,” George explained.

  That was news to me. “Funny, I hadn’t heard anything about it.”

  The mayor grinned before he spoke. “Not everything of note happens at your donut shop, young lady.”

  “I
t feels as though nobody’s called me young in years, and now it’s happened twice in the past half hour,” I answered with a smile. “I didn’t know you had any family left in these parts.”

  “She wasn’t family; well, not strictly speaking, anyway. We’re going to Megan Gravely’s old place.”

  I’d known Megan vaguely, but she’d kept to herself for so long that most folks had been surprised to find out that she’d died the year before and not well before that. “How were you two connected?” I asked him. “If you don’t mind me asking.”

  “I normally don’t tell the story, but I’ll share it with you,” George said after a few moments of silence.

  “I don’t want you to say something you’ll regret later.”

  “Suzanne, if I can’t tell you, then who can I tell? You’re just about the best friend I’ve got.” It was touching to hear him say that, especially coming from a man who usually didn’t share his feelings all that often. “Megan always claimed that I saved her life, and she promised to reward me for it, no matter how much I protested that I had just been doing my job.”

  “Seriously? What happened?”

  George’s voice lowered and softened a bit, and there was no playfulness in his manner as he related the story to me. “Back when I was on the force, I was on duty one night when we were shorthanded. I was out patrolling alone, and I saw a black Blazer pulled up in Megan’s front yard, the headlights blazing into the house. As I got closer, I heard shouting coming from inside. Megan’s ex-husband, Clarence, was a mean drunk from way back, and he’d decided to get a little retribution for Megan kicking him out after his last stint in jail. I walked in on them and saw that he had her by the throat, pinned against a wall. Her heels were off the ground, Suzanne. I gave him a pretty good lick from behind with my nightstick, and he went down fast, dropping Megan in the process. She was pretty distraught, so I called Doc Vincent—he was our town doctor back then—to check her out. Megan was shaken up pretty good, but overall she was okay, at least physically. The bruises on her neck took a while to fade, and she had to wear high collars until they did. The marks he left on the inside were another matter entirely.”