Thanksgiving Deli Murder

by Patti Benning

  She went inside and found herself in an envelope of warm air that smelled like food and cleaner. Thanksgiving and Christmas were the two busiest days of the year for the assisted living home, when people came to visit their families and eat dinner with them. She looked around, but didn’t see Reggie. She tracked down one of the staff, and found out that he was in his room.

  A few minutes later, she knocked on his door. He called out to her to come in, which she did. “Oh, you’re here already? I must have lost track of the time. I’m just about ready to go, I just need to put my shoes and jacket on.”

  “Here, let me help you with that,” she said, grabbing his jacket for him. “It’s chilly outside.”

  “I know. I saw the snow last night. It all melted this morning, but it won’t be long until it sticks around.”

  “I’m glad you’re coming to dinner, Reggie,” she said. “It will be nice to have you there.”

  “Thank you for inviting me. I’m looking forward to your food. You’re such a wonderful cook. Nothing compares to a homemade turkey dinner.”

  “I hope it’s good,” she said. “I still have a lot of work to do, so we should get going.”

  She helped him down the hall to the office, where he checked out. She was glad to see him smile and joke around with the staff member. It seemed like a good place for him to be, and he had never complained about the people there. She still felt bad that he hadn’t been able to move in with Candice and Eli like he had been planning to, but he had taken it all in stride.

  “Are you ready?” she asked.

  “Let’s get out of here.”

  She helped him into the car, then pulled out of the parking lot. It felt good to be on the road again, and out of the busy building. She drove back to town, slowing slightly in front of the diner. It was closed, and she wondered whether it would ever reopen. Would Lance really buy it? Even if he did, would he have what it took to keep it from failing?

  She hesitated as she saw the woman who lived next door to the diner raking leaves outside. She recognized Jeanie, the waitress that had served her and David on Saturday. If anyone knew what was going on with the restaurant, it would be her. The older woman had worked there for thirty years, and would have all the answers that Moira wanted.

  “Do you mind if I stop and talk to this woman for a second?” she asked Reggie. “I’ll be quick, I promise.”

  “You do whatever you want,” he said. “I’m just going to enjoy the scenery. It’s been a while since I’ve gotten out of there.”

  She pulled up along the curb and rolled down the window. “Hi,” she called out. “Sorry to bother you, but I was wondering if I could talk to you for a second?”

  The other woman squinted at her. “You own the deli, don’t you?”

  “Yes. It’s me, Moira Darling. I just want to ask you something about the diner. I know it’s a holiday, so if you want me to go away, just say so. I don’t want to disturb you.”

  “I’m not doing anything today. My family is all out of state, and doesn’t make sense to make a big dinner for myself. If you want to come in for a minute, that’s fine.”

  Moira told Reggie she would be right out. Leaving the keys with him, she went inside. It was time to finally get some answers.

  CHAPTER TWELVE

  * * *

  “Come on in, I was just about to take a break anyway,” the other woman said. “My fingers are getting cold. I really should be wearing gloves.”

  “I don’t need to talk long. I feel bad for interrupting you, but I didn’t know when I would see you again. I just wanted to ask you about the diner.”

  “It’s already sold, if that’s what you’re thinking,” the other woman said, making a face. “Old Mr. Maines sold it before he kicked the bucket.” Moira winced. The way she referred to the other man’s death made her uncomfortable.

  “I know. I was just wondering if you knew if there was anyone who might have had it out for him?”

  The other woman raised her eyebrows. “Everyone liked him,” she said. “The diner’s been here for decades. If you’re getting at someone killing him, I think that’s pretty unlikely.”

  “How was his relationship with Lance Vespers?”

  “The buyer? As far as I know, the two of them hit it off well. He didn’t try to short him on the price at all, and paid what he was asking. The sale took all of two meetings before they finalized things.”

  Moira frowned. The more she heard about him, the less likely she thought it was that Lance had killed the other man. He would simply have had no motive… unless he had decided to back out of the sale, and couldn’t. Was that why he had hired David? To find out if there was anything about the diner’s history that might void the sale?

  “Is there any reason you can think of that Lance might have wanted to back out of buying it?”

  “I don’t think so,” the other woman said. “He seemed pretty happy with it.”

  “I see.” She felt deflated. Every theory she had seemed to be wrong.

  “I get why you’re asking these questions,” the other woman said. “You know Lance, don’t you? I didn’t like him much either. There’s just something about him that rubs you wrong, isn’t there?”

  The deli owner nodded. “He stopped into Darling’s Delicious Delights last week, and was snooping around, taking pictures and trying to look into the kitchen. He made my employees uncomfortable, and he made me uncomfortable too.”

  “I heard about the break-in at your place. It was in the newspaper. It’s so odd, isn’t it? I wonder what he’s playing at.”

  Moira blinked. Jeanie seemed to have come full circle; just moments before, she had been saying how she didn’t think Lance had any reason to kill Norman Maines, but now it sounded like she thought he might have had something to do with the break-in at the deli.

  “Are you saying he had something to do with what happened at my restaurant?”

  “I don’t know. What do you think?” The woman’s eyes seemed to brighten as she continued. “You know, now that you think about it, I did find him pretty suspicious. I sure hope the police consider him a suspect.”

  “They do,” Moira said. “I know he has a lawyer, but I’m not sure how the case is going.”

  “I wonder what will happen to the diner if he gets convicted,” the other woman said.

  “I have no idea,” Moira said. “I don’t know enough about legal stuff to know whether or not the sale would be canceled, or anything like that. From what I heard, he had done everything except pick up the keys. It sounded like finishing the process would be quite a mess either way.”

  “I hope he doesn’t get the diner,” the other woman said heatedly.

  Surprised that the emotion her voice, Moira said, “Why?”

  “I know Lance liked him, but I think he was just glad for the quick sale. I don’t think he would be the kind of owner that the diner would need. He wants to change almost everything right away, when he takes control of the place. He said that he would be hiring a whole new team of employees.” She gave a bitter laugh. “As if it’s our fault that the diner is going downhill. We were the only ones keeping it afloat. Now, I’ve been working there for thirty years. You would think he would listen to me, but no.” Looking embarrassed at her own outburst, the other woman began to backpedal. “Of course, he probably wouldn’t really fire all of us. He would need some people to show him how it’s done, and besides, I should retire anyway. I really wish I could start my own restaurant. I wanted to try to get the money together to buy the diner, but Mr. Maines didn’t want to wait.”

  “I’m sorry. It sounds like a difficult situation for everyone. Thank you for answering my questions. I’m sorry for taking up so much of your time. I’ve got a Thanksgiving dinner to cook now, so I should be getting home.”

  “I was glad to talk to someone. There’s not much that gets me angry, but the diner is like my second home, and I would hate to see it driven into the ground.”

  The other woman
walked her out, leading her toward the front door. Moira’s gaze wandered as she tried to process everything she had just learned. It sounded like lots of people had good reason to want to kill Lance, but no one had a good reason to want to kill Norman. If Lance was innocent, then who had done it? Who had pulled the trigger?

  As if on cue, her eyes landed on a rifle in the corner by the front door. Hanging next to it was a camouflage jacket. It looked like Jeanie was a hunter.

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  * * *

  “Is everything all right?” the other woman asked.

  Moira tore her gaze away from the gun, but saw that it was already too late. Jeanie was looking between the rifle and her, an expression of dawning realization on her face. The look was unmistakable. She had been caught.

  Stiffly, she reached for the gun. “I should have put that away, but I didn’t know I would be having a visitor.”

  “There’s nothing wrong with hunting,” Moira said, trying to sound casual.

  The other woman stared at her for a long moment. Moira stared back, trying to keep her face neutral, but knew she was failing. Her heart was pounding at what felt like a million beats per minute in her chest.

  “You’re going to call the police, aren’t you? You’re a smart woman. I said too much. You made the connection.”

  The deli owner closed her eyes. It was true. They were at an impasse. “Did you kill him?” she asked.

  “Why would I tell you?” the other woman said coldly.

  “I never once considered you,” she said, taking the woman’s lack of denial as an affirmation. “I guess, looking back, I should have. Are you the one that tried to break into the deli, too, or was that really Lance?”

  The other woman hesitated. Moira continued, “Look, I already know you killed someone. I just want to know that my employees won’t be in danger anymore.”

  “I was trying to send a message,” Jeanie said. “I didn’t want to hurt anyone. Right after I shot my boss, I saw you and your husband through the trees, and I realized who you were. You have a reputation around town. I thought that by frightening you, I might make you think twice about nosing into this case.”

  “How far were you going to take it?” Moira asked. “How far would you go to cover up your crime?”

  “As soon as I heard that Lance was a suspect, I stopped,” the other woman said. “I didn’t want to hurt anyone other than Mr. Maines, and maybe Lance, that’s all. All I wanted was to stop the sale of the diner.”

  “By committing murder?” the deli owner asked. “That’s not the answer.”

  “I didn’t plan it, if that’s what you’re thinking,” the other woman said. “I was out in the woods, looking for a good spot to sit for a couple of hours, and I saw him sitting on a log talking on his cell phone. He was talking about the sale, for goodness sake. Not only was he selling the place I had worked at for thirty years to someone who was planning on firing the entire staff, but he was also scaring away my deer. Something inside me just snapped. I figured no one would ever know.”

  The deli owner shivered. She could understand how upset the other woman must have been, but the fact that she would actually take that step to become a killer was frightening. No matter how much Moira loved the deli, she would never kill to protect it. People were always so much more important than business and money.

  “I’m sure you wish you could go back and undo it,” she said. “Now, are you going to put the gun down?”

  “I… I don’t want to go to jail,” the woman said. She hesitated, and Moira saw the gun’s barrel drop. Then it rose again, this time pointing decisively at her chest. “I already killed to protect my job. I think I will be okay with killing to protect my freedom.”

  She clicked the safety off. The deli owner put her hands up, taking a step back.

  “Please, just think before you…”

  The gun went off. Moira’s ears rang and she heard the sound of breaking glass faintly. She stumbled backward, waiting for the pain to hit her, but it never came.

  Moira opened her eyes, wondering how the woman had missed such a close shot. She saw that she was shaking like a leaf, and was barely able to hold the gun straight. No matter what she had said, committing a second murder seemed to be harder than she had expected.

  While she struggled to rack another round into the chamber, Moira realized that this was her chance. If she was going to save herself, it had to be now. She turned and took off down the hallway, not pausing to look behind her. She skidded to a halt in the kitchen, looking around for a back exit, but not finding one. She took the only door she could see. It led to the basement.

  Leaving the lights off, she went downstairs and shut the door behind her quietly, hearing the other woman’s footsteps rushing down the hall. She inched down the stairs, feeling around herself in the dark. She managed to squeeze into a small spot beneath the staircase, but without any source of light, it was difficult to tell how hidden she was.

  The basement light clicked on. Jeanie took the stairs slowly. There was just enough light for Moira to see the outlines of the boxes surrounding her. If the other woman came around far enough, she would be able to see her easily. Even worse, she was trapped. There was no way out without exposing herself to the woman’s rifle.

  Holding her breath and trying her best to be silent, Moira looked into the closest open box. There was nothing she could use as a weapon, other than a small bowl with some loose marbles in it. That gave her an idea. She took a few into her hand, then settled back into her nook under the staircase.

  Her heart hammering, she waited as the other woman came even closer. One more step, and she would see Moira. Taking careful aim, Moira tossed one of the marbles between the steps. It hit a box on the other side of the basement. The other woman spun around and hurried back in that direction. Moira breathed a sigh of relief, knowing that she had only bought herself a few seconds, but it was better than nothing.

  If only she could make it upstairs before the other woman got a chance to get a shot off, and she might be able to lock her in the basement. She began to inch her way out of the hiding spot. Her foot bumped a box that was lighter than she expected, and she froze as it shifted. However, at that exact moment, sirens began to wail in the distance. The sound covered up any noise she might have made, and the other woman rushed upstairs.

  Moira waited only a few seconds before going up the stairs herself. She heard shouting at the front door, and another gunshot went off. She wanted desperately to help, but didn’t know if the sudden appearance of another woman would confuse matters, and she also didn’t want to put herself in the path of any stray bullets.

  In the next room, she found the back door that she had been looking for. She went outside and hurried around the side of the house, coming face to face with a young police officer.

  “Don’t shoot,” she said, throwing her hands up. “That woman tried to kill me. My name is Moira Darling. I own the deli in Maple Creek.”

  “Moira?” the officer said. She recognized him as the one who had driven her home from the park. She breathed a sigh of relief.

  “Yes, it’s me. She’s the one that tried to break into the deli, and she’s the one that shot the man in the woods.”

  “All right, come with me. I’ll keep you safe. Your friend Reggie is the one who called us. He might’ve saved your life.”

  Relieved, she followed him around to the front of the building, where she saw Jeanie in handcuffs. Somehow, the police had managed to subdue her without any casualties, and as the deli owner watched, she was loaded into the back of a police car. Moira breathed a sigh of relief. She knew that it was only thanks to Reggie that she had managed to narrowly escape with her life.

  EPILOGUE

  * * *

  It was nearly dark out by the time Moira finally pulled into her driveway. She had spent hours at the police station with Reggie, getting everything straightened out and giving her statement. It was only thanks to David, who after some co
nvincing had agreed to stay home and finish the dinner, that they had a Thanksgiving meal at all.

  “I’m sorry it’s so late,” she said. “I made such a big deal of inviting everyone over, and I almost wrecked everything.”

  “You have nothing to apologize for,” Thelma said. “After what you went through today, we’re just glad to see you alive.”

  Allison nodded. “I was so worried when my aunt called me. I can’t believe someone shot at you.”