by Peg Cochran
Adora’s bullet had grazed Winston’s arm, tearing through the expensive fabric of his suit jacket and the custom-made shirt beneath. Blood tinged the edges of the fabric a bright red.
“What the bloody hell!” he shouted. “That was supposed to be a prop, not a real gun. Bloody stagehands can’t do anything right.” He stared at the blood welling up from the deep grove in his left arm. His face was pasty, and prickles of sweat broke out on his forehead.
He lurched forward, and Adora began to scream. “Don’t you come any closer, or I’ll shoot again.” She waved the gun around wildly.
She was equally pale, and Gigi could see the sheen of perspiration on her upper lip.
Winston looked to be in shock, and Adora didn’t look much better. Gigi wondered if she could slip away unnoticed and summon help before either of them actually succeeded in shooting the other…or her.
Winston tried to aim the gun again, but he swayed violently, grasping at the air for balance. Adora dropped her gun and ran toward him, one arm outstretched. He sagged heavily onto her shoulder.
Somehow Gigi struggled to her feet. Her legs quivered but she managed to put one foot in front of the other. She didn’t look back. She didn’t want to know if either Adora or Winston were aiming at her.
She ran straight into the folds of the curtain, stifling a sneeze as dust went into her nose and mouth. She couldn’t see and batted her arms around uselessly trying to find the opening. The velvet fabric weighed heavily on her arms and molded to her face. She could barely breathe.
Finally, one arm sliced through the opening, and she was able to push the cloying fabric to one side. She plunged through it into shadowy darkness.
She stopped for a minute to get her bearings. As her eyes adjusted, dark, looming shapes came into slow focus. One of the shapes suddenly detached itself from the others and moved toward her. Before she could utter the scream that rose in her throat, arms were thrown around her, and she was held roughly against someone’s chest.
“Are you okay?”
Gigi looked up into the blazing blue eyes of Detective Mertz.
“I…I…think so,” she stammered. “How did you…what…?”
“Never mind that now. If you go through that door”—he pointed behind him—“it will take you outside. Wait out there for me.”
Gigi nodded. “Okay.” She noticed his gun was drawn and held loosely, but confidently, in his right hand.
She started to turn away, but he put a hand on her shoulder.
“Oh, and Gigi?”
“Yes?”
“That was my niece I was with tonight.”
Gigi couldn’t be sure in the gloom, but she thought he was blushing.
“Oh” was all she said before breaking into a big smile.
Several police officers brushed past her as she made her way toward the open door. She thought she heard the sounds of a scuffle, but she didn’t linger long enough to find out. She was more than happy to take Mertz’s advice and wait outside.
Chapter 21
“Oh, thank goodness,” Carlo declared, clapping his hands together, as Gigi pushed open the door to Al Forno. He rushed forward to greet her. “We were so worried.” He took both her hands in his and held them for a moment.
Gigi felt a warm glow that started in the pit of her stomach and spread in both directions until she tingled from her head to her toes.
“Come in, come in.” Carlo whisked her into the room, his arm tucked protectively through one of hers. “We’ve been so worried. We heard the sirens and saw the police cars speeding past but had no idea…and then when you didn’t show up, we…”
“Feared the worst,” interjected Alice, who was perched on a bar stool nursing a small glass of chardonnay.
“Let me get you something to drink.” Carlo turned toward the bar, where Lara was sorting through the day’s receipts. “Lara, if you please, pour Gigi a glass of the white port that just came in.”
Lara nodded and reached for a bottle on the shelf.
“If you don’t mind,” Gigi began, “just this once I think I’d actually rather have a whiskey.”
“Dio mio, it must be really bad.” Emilio motioned to Lara. “A whiskey, Lara, please.” He turned toward Gigi. “You must tell us what happened, cara. Do you know?”
“Let her have something to drink first.” Carlo pulled out a stool and motioned for Gigi to sit. Emilio handed him two plates of fried calamari, and he put one in front of Gigi and another on the table where Oliver and Sienna were sitting. “Pizza is coming. Emilio just put it in the oven.”
Gigi glanced at Sienna. “Was it you—?”
Sienna nodded. “We ran into Carlo in the parking lot, and when I saw you weren’t with him, I suspected you were up to something. So I called the station just in case, and they got hold of Mertz. He insisted on going back to the theater himself.”
“Really?” Gigi felt a huge grin erupt across her face.
Sienna nodded.
Gigi looked around. The small group had gathered to celebrate the opening night of Truth or Dare. Carlo and Emilio had invited all the shopkeepers on High Street, and she recognized Evelyn from Bon Appétit sitting with an older gentleman clutching an unlit pipe. Yvette from the Silver Lining was at another table, a periwinkle blue pashmina draped around her bare shoulders. Deirdre, the saleswoman from Abigail’s, sat across from her sipping a tiny glass of sherry.
All eyes were on Gigi. Gigi could see the concern on their faces.
Emilio spun around suddenly. “And where is our star? Where is Adora? She’s not with you?”
Gigi didn’t know what to say. “I’m sorry,” she began.
Emilio put a hand to his chest. “Something’s happened?”
“And where are Winston and Barbie?” Alice said.
“We thought we heard shots, too,” Evelyn’s husband said around the pipe stem clenched in his teeth.
Gigi opened her mouth, but everyone around her began to talk at once.
Carlo clapped his hands. “Quiet, please, let’s hear what Gigi has to say.”
Suddenly the room was hushed, save for the faint hum of machinery from the kitchen. All eyes were on Gigi. She took a gulp of her whiskey for courage. She wasn’t sure where to begin.
“Were those really shots we heard?” Yvette shivered and pulled her shawl more closely around her shoulders.
“Yes. Adora was trying to shoot me, but she shot Winston instead.”
“Mama mia!” Emilio exclaimed.
Gigi noticed that Alice had slipped off her stool and was behind the counter helping him cut the pizza. She put a hand on his arm.
“Why was Adora trying to shoot you?” Evelyn peered at Gigi over the tops of her glasses.
“She realized that I’d guessed that she was the one who killed Martha.”
“Mama mia!” Emilio exclaimed again.
“Gigi has been investigating all along, even though the police gave up on the case long ago,” Sienna said.
“I know Martha and Adora had their little arguments, but murder?” Evelyn shuddered.
“It goes back a lot further than their recent arguments,” Gigi assured her. “They knew each other in New York. Martha was reviewing theater back then as ‘Sarah Bernhardt,’ and Adora was appearing in her first play.”
“Oh dear, was Martha a naughty girl? Did she pan Adora’s play?” Evelyn looked around the room.
Gigi nodded. “She did. And not just the play, but Adora’s performance specifically.”
“Why would she do that?” Yvette held her hands out, palms up. “I didn’t think Adora was really so bad.”
“No, but Adora was having an affair with Winston. Martha found a very clever way to exact her revenge.”
A low murmur went around the room.
“How ever did you figure it out?” Deirdre plucked an olive ring from her slice of pizza and nibbled it.
“It wasn’t easy,” Gigi admitted. “At first I thought Barbie or Winston was responsible.
They seemed to have the most to gain. As a matter of fact”—she paused and took a sip of her whiskey—“Winston did see Adora outside the day Martha was killed, but he chose not to say anything. Her death was actually a windfall for him.”
She cradled her glass in her hands. She had decided not to mention her suspicions about Carlo.
“It’s still hard to believe something like that would happen here…in Woodstone.” Alice shuddered and sidled closer to Emilio.
Emilio looked to be in shock, his eyes glassy and slightly out of focus. Gigi watched the way Alice kept her hand protectively on his arm. She had the feeling that Emilio would be over Adora in no time.
“Who’s going to take over Adora’s part? Or, will the play just shut down, do you think?” Evelyn blotted her mouth with her napkin and began to rummage in her purse. She pulled out a tube of lip balm, uncapped it and smoothed it across her lips.
“I’m her understudy,” Alice admitted. Gigi thought she blushed. “I’m ready to take over the role. And, thanks to Gigi’s wonderful diet, I think I almost look the part.” She blushed again, and Emilio patted her arm absentmindedly.
Evelyn took her napkin from her lap, crumpled it and put it on the table alongside her purse. “When is the big wedding?”
“It’s next week. Friday. We got a better deal not having it on the Saturday.”
“You’re going to look beautiful.” Gigi nibbled on a crispy bit of calamari, surprised to discover she was suddenly hungry.
Alice sighed. “I hope so. Did I tell you the groom’s mother went out and bought the same dress as mine?”
“No!” Several people exclaimed.
Alice nodded. “Exactly the same. Only hers is a size six, and mine’s a size ten.”
Gigi felt so bad for Alice. She knew how much it meant to her to look good for her daughter’s wedding.
Deirdre snapped her fingers. “First thing Monday morning, meet me at Abigail’s—early, before we open to the public. I have just the dress for you. And I am sure I can give you a special discount.” She smiled.
Alice brightened. “But what will I do with my other dress? It’s not something you would wear just any old day of the week.”
Deirdre smiled, a slightly wicked smile. “You can wear it for the rehearsal dinner the night before the wedding. That will put that miserable future mother-in-law in her place once and for all.”
The party broke up shortly before midnight. Oliver and Sienna drove Gigi home. She could hear Reg barking as they pulled into the driveway. At least she didn’t have to worry about him anymore.
But she did have to worry about finding a new place to live. The cottage looked so snug—white against the dark night with a shaft of moonlight spilling over the front. The lilacs were starting to flower, and the rosebushes were thick with heavy, fragrant blooms. Gigi felt a deep ache settle in her heart. She’d felt more at home in her little cottage than she’d ever felt before. How was she going to give it up?
She waved to Sienna and Oliver and watched as they backed down the driveway. She opened the door, and Reg came flying down the hall, slipping on the spill of mail on the foyer floor. After giving Reg his due, Gigi gathered up the envelopes and took them out to the kitchen.
She ought to have been tired but felt restless instead. The shock of nearly being shot at was starting to set in, and she was surprised to discover that her hands were shaking slightly. She filled the teakettle and put it on the stove to heat, then took a box of Calming Karma tea from the cupboard. Maybe a hot drink would soothe her enough to let her sleep.
As she waited for the water to boil, she flipped through the letters that had been pushed through her mail slot. Three pieces of junk, a postcard from a local tanning parlor and an envelope from Simpson and West. Gigi was tempted to leave the last until morning, but instead slid her finger under the flap and pulled out several pieces of expensive vellum. It probably had something to do with the sale of the cottage. She’d better find out now when they expected her to move out.
She was unfolding the letter when the kettle boiled. She put the letter to one side and made her tea, dipping the tea bag again and again into the hot water until it had become a deep, rich honey color.
She picked up the letter from Simpson and West again and began to read. When she got to the third paragraph her hand jerked, and hot tea spilled onto her arm. Had she really read what she thought she’d read? Maybe she was tired, and her mind was playing tricks on her.
She sat down at the table and smoothed the letter out in front of her. Carefully, tracing the words with her finger, she went back over the contents again. Yes, she had read what she thought she’d read. Her heartbeat ratcheted up several notches until it felt as if it would burst out her ears.
According to the letter from Simpson and West, Martha Bernhardt had left a substantial sum of money to whoever took over the care of her precious dog, Reg. That person happened to be Gigi. And the money just happened to be enough to buy Martha’s cottage. She’d have to outbid City Girl and City Boy, but she hadn’t gotten the impression that they were so keen they couldn’t be bought off.
The cottage was going to be hers. Reg was hers.
She felt a warm glow that had nothing to do with the hot tea she’d been sipping. And everything to do with her wonderful new life in Woodstone.
Gigi’s De-Liteful Diet Tips
Presentation is one of the keys to satisfaction. Arrange your meal on attractive plates, set a place at the table and use a linen napkin. Everything is more satisfying when it looks good! If you’re brown-bagging it to work, take along a real fork, knife and spoon. Nothing tastes good when eaten with plastic utensils!
Buy good ingredients. Use the money you would have spent on chips, cookies and other snack foods and treat yourself to the best meats and produce you can find. Better to enjoy a sliver of the finest French cheese than to devour an entire frozen cheesecake that tastes like the cardboard wrapping it came in.
Two words: portion size! No food is truly off-limits if you are careful about portion size. Eat slowly, pay attention and when you are approaching full…stop eating! If you don’t trust yourself when it comes to serving size, consider measuring and/or weighing your food for a period of time.
Serve yourself half of what you think will be a satisfying portion, but promise yourself that you can go back for seconds. Then take only half again as much as you think you want. You might be surprised to find yourself very satisfied after the first helping.
Take your lunch to work or school. It’s much easier to create a satisfying but low-calorie lunch if you make it yourself. And you’ll avoid the temptation of the usual lunchtime fare of burgers and pizza. And think outside the sandwich box. Leftovers make great lunches, as do soups and salads. You’ll also save money. Use your savings to purchase yourself an outfit in your new size and splurge on an attractive insulated lunch bag.
Be prepared. Carry low-calorie snacks in case you are caught waiting for a meal or are suddenly starving. Apples, string cheese, almonds and baby carrots are all great to keep on hand.
Recipes
Shepherd’s Pie De-Lite
Shepherd’s pie was originally created to use up leftovers and to expand the traditional Sunday roast. It is tasty enough, however, to make in its own right! It can be loaded with fat and calories or lightened up, as this version is. It’s perfect for that meal when you’re craving comfort food!
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, pressed
1.25 lbs. lean ground turkey
1 cup sliced mushrooms
1 cup frozen peas
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
1 10.5-ounce can fat-free turkey gravy
¼ cup ketchup
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
Mashed potatoes (see recipe below)
3 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
Heat oven to 350°.
Heat olive oil in saut�
� pan over medium heat. Add chopped onion and pressed garlic, and cook until soft. Add ground turkey and cook, stirring occasionally, until meat is cooked through. Add sliced mushrooms and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Stir in frozen peas and add salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste.
Mix turkey gravy, ketchup and Worcestershire sauce and pour over turkey mixture. Mix thoroughly and transfer to a casserole dish. Spread mashed potatoes (see below) evenly on top and sprinkle with grated Parmesan cheese.
Bake until bubbly, approximately 30 minutes.
Makes 6 servings. 376 calories/serving.
Mashed Potatoes
4 to 5 medium-sized potatoes, peeled and cut into quarters
Skim or low-fat milk
Place potatoes in saucepan and cover with cold water. Bring to a boil and cook until tender when pierced with a knife. Drain potatoes, add milk as needed and mash. (Quantity of milk will depend on density and age of potatoes.)
Pork Tenderloin Stuffed with Spinach and Feta
Pork tenderloins, usually packaged in pairs, are very lean, rivaling even chicken breasts. This stuffing provides enough for a pair of tenderloins, or around 2.5 pounds of meat. Both pieces can be filled and cooked, or one can be frozen for future use. Use 1 tablespoon of oil per tenderloin for browning.
1 package pork tenderloin, approximately 2.5 lbs.
1 5-ounce package baby spinach
3 garlic cloves, pressed
1 pinch nutmeg
1 cup crumbled fat-free feta cheese
1–2 tablespoons olive oil
Fat-free cooking spray
Heat oven to 350°.
Spray sauté pan with cooking spray and heat over medium heat. Add pressed garlic cloves and sauté for a minute or two, stirring and making sure the garlic doesn’t burn. Add spinach and a pinch of nutmeg and sauté until spinach is wilted but still bright green, approximately 3 minutes.