The Sweet Baked Mystery Series - Books 1-6

by Katherine Hayton

  “Can I see a doctor? Did he say what was wrong with her?” Holly asked the nurse as she escorted her back to the waiting room.

  “He’ll be along in a few minutes,” the nurse reassured her. “Since there’s a few of you here, it’s better that he talks to all of you at once.”

  Holly gazed around the waiting room and was surprised to see that it was packed with anxious faces. Her head had been in such a whirl, she hadn’t even noticed. Amongst them, she spotted Meggie and hurried over to sit back down beside her friend.

  “The doctor’s going to come along soon and tell us what’s happening,” she said. “Crystal just appeared the same way she always does when she’s asleep.”

  “Looking the same as always is a good thing.” Meggie took Holly’s hands and squeezed them. “And so is the doctor talking to the whole room at once. I don’t think he’d do that if the prognosis was poor.”

  The he turned out to be a she. Doctor Allende. As she strode into the room, her white coat caught everyone’s attention, and all conversation stopped.

  “Is everyone here a relative?” the doctor asked.

  One man hesitated, then held up his hand, shaking his head. “I’m a friend of Zach’s,” he said. “An old work colleague. He doesn’t have any family nearby.”

  “I’m going to have to ask you to leave,” the doctor said. Her voice was kind, but her eyes were firm. “I can only talk to relatives.”

  Meggie started to gather up her bag as well, and Holly turned to her in astonishment. No. This wasn’t right.

  “Excuse me.” Holly stood up, feeling the eyes of the room turn to her but battling against stage fright to continue. “These are our closest friends and relatives, and as soon as you say what you’ve got to say to us here, we’re just going to go outside and tell them. Might as well save everyone the bother and just go ahead.”

  A few of the assembled family members murmured their agreement, while others nodded.

  “Fine,” the doctor said, holding her hands up in surrender. “I suppose there’s nothing too privileged in what I have to say.”

  The man shot a grateful look at Holly, who nodded back at him. For herself, she was just thankful that Meggie settled back into her chair and squeezed her hands again.

  “There appears to have been a mass poisoning event,” Dr. Allende said. Her voice was measured and slow, parceling out each word with exact precision. “The police will be investigating in case of foul play, but at the very least we can pinpoint that cyanide appears to be the toxic substance that was used.”

  The doctor paused while there was a short burst of concerned queries and exclamations. “I’ve treated the patients with an injection of Hydroxocobalamin. The good news is that when treated quickly, there are no long-lasting harmful effects. You relatives and loved ones are very sick and will continue to exhibit severe reactions to the toxin as it flushes from their systems, but once they’re through the next few days, it’s expected they’ll make a full recovery.”

  There was a short period of silence, then the man who’d been about to leave spoke up. His voice sounded apologetic before he’d even begun. “You said if they make it through the next few days. Does that mean they’re still in trouble?”

  The doctor sighed and nodded. “They are very sick people. If there are complications, such as pre-existing conditions or lags in concurrent medication reactions, then it might become severe. I can’t foresee that, I can only tell you what the likeliest scenario is at this time.”

  “But they could still die?” the man insisted.

  Doctor Allende met his gaze and offered another small nod. “We will be monitoring all of the patients very closely until they’re in the clear. You have my word on that.”

  A couple at the side of the room put their hands up. For a dizzying second, Holly had a flashback to primary school. “Can we move our daughter to Christchurch hospital? We’d feel better if she were being taken care of in a bigger facility.”

  Again, the doctor gave a small nod of recognition. “I understand your concerns, and you’re correct that this center is not used to caring for this many patients at once. However, I’d advise against moving any of the affected until we’ve made it to the all-clear. Even though it’s crowded here, we’ll still offer premium medical care, I can promise you that.”

  Although the couple still seemed unsettled, they didn’t say anything further. From their ages, and what they’d said, Holly judged that they must be the parents of the waitress. When she turned to glance at some of the others waiting there, her eyes locked with a small girl, sucking her thumb as though it was a lollipop. That must be Susan’s daughter.

  She’d look great in a tutu and ballet slippers.

  The man behind her, with his hands on her shoulders must be Susan’s husband and the elderly couples nearby would almost certainly be their parents.

  The only loved ones missing were those belonging to the German couple. Holly felt a rush of sadness that the two tourists didn’t have anybody to sit outside, worrying themselves sick.

  Susan’s husband raised his head and stared straight at her. Holly was about to raise her hand in a wave when she realized that his expression had turned into one of anger. She shrank back in her chair, wanting to get away from the ferocity of his appearance.

  What have I done to upset him? In distress, she faced Meggie, then saw someone familiar walking in through the door.

  “Sergeant Matthewson,” Holly called out. When heads turned in her direction again, she blushed, unsure of why she’d drawn attention to herself again. Of course, the police would be here. It was evident that there was either a deliberate crime here or an accident that might amount to criminal indifference.

  “I’m sorry to hear about your sister, Miss Waterston,” the officer said, walking over to her side. He nodded briefly to Meggie, then continued across the room to speak to the doctor and nurse in a whisper.

  “Surely, he can’t believe they’d be in a suitable state to give an interview tonight,” Meggie said, so quietly that only Holly could hear. “Doesn’t that man ever think?”

  “Well, he could hardly know that until the doctor told him.” Holly didn’t want to leap to judgment—the sergeant had been kind to her in all their encounters. She also knew that Meggie was grumbling so that Holly didn’t have to and laid a grateful hand on her friend’s arm.

  “I wonder if they’ll let me visit with Crystal again if I stay,” Holly mused aloud. “I suppose the only way I’ll find out will be to wait and see.”

  “If you do want to go on home, just let me know. I can drive you there and back in a jiffy. Your sister won’t even know you were gone.”

  The thought of showering this day off her was very enticing. Having been able to check in on Crystal once, Holly felt the most pressing weight had lifted.

  “Okay,” she said. “Oh!” Holly slapped a hand across her mouth.

  “What is it?” Meggie asked, her face creasing with concern.

  “I’ll just be a moment.” Holly leaped to her feet and walked across to the sergeant. She waited by his side until he turned a puzzled glance her way, his conversation with the nurse stumbling to a halt.

  “Was there something you wanted, Miss Waterston?”

  “Yes,” Holly said. “Or, rather, there’s something I have that you might want. When I stopped by the restaurant earlier today, Zach—the chef—gave me a pottle of soup to take back to the bakery. I never got around to having it, so it should still be sitting on the bench.”

  “Excuse me, one moment,” Sergeant Matthewson said to the nurse and took Holly’s arm by the elbow. He walked her out the door, waving Meggie to sit back down when she stood ready to run after them.

  When they were outside in the freezing cold, Matthewson pulled Holly just a bit clear of the door. “I didn’t want to say anything in front of everyone inside, but we’re fairly sure that it wasn’t the soup that caused the poisoning.”

  “Oh?” Holly said, frowning. She t
hought of Crystal’s words, just before she fell unconscious. “He poisoned the soup.”

  Matthewson sighed. “Crystal brought some cupcakes into the restaurant after the meal. The assumption at the moment is that she inadvertently used some rat poison from the cupboard rather than baking soda. I’m afraid that your sister is most probably to blame.”

  Holly stared at the sergeant with wide eyes, struggling to take in his words. “But why?” she finally managed. “Why on earth would you think that, rather than Zach being responsible?”

  “Because the German woman is barely sick,” Matthewson said. “We have a witness who says she only took a bite of the cupcake before saying she was full. She did, however, eat an entire bowl of soup, just like the others.”

  Holly wanted to leap to her sister’s defense and say how ridiculous his assertion was. In no world could Holly imagine Crystal mixing up rat poison and baking soda. She wasn’t a complete dimwit.

  Instead of leaping to her sister’s defense, Holly closed her mouth with a snap—just in time. It would be a mistake to protest that part of the accusation too vehemently. Then the natural assumption would go to her actions being deliberate, and nobody needed to poke around there. Then another awful thought occurred to her.

  “Oh, no. No. No!” Holly said, hitting Matthewson’s shoulder in time with her denials. Her mind froze on the words she needed, imparting urgency instead of explanations. She turned and started to run.

  “Where are you going?” Sergeant Matthewson called out, pausing only for a second before running after her. “Holly? Stop!”

  “I can’t,” Holly called over her shoulder. “The cupcakes! I gave one of them to Ben at the tavern. We have to get to him and check he’s okay.”

  Chapter Five

  Holly didn’t bother to slow down at the front door of the tavern. She charged through, throwing the door open so quickly that it banged against the stopper.

  Mrs. Hendrickson—the owner—looked up, startled. “Holly? What’s the matter?”

  “Ben,” Holly said between pants, out of breath after her run. Sergeant Matthewson’s footsteps thumping through the open door signaled his arrival. “He might be in trouble.”

  “Trouble?” Mrs. Hendrickson’s voice grew sharp. “What kind of trouble?”

  She held a towel from the bar and now began to wring it in her hands. The dull gray of her hair leaked down into her face. The woman leaned forward, frowning with concern. “He hasn’t been getting into houses again, has he?”

  The shock on Holly’s face appeared to tell her that was the wrong path. Mrs. Hendrickson jerked back and gazed at the sergeant. Where her expression had been leery, it now turned to worry. “What is it, then?”

  “We’re just checking to see he’s okay, Mrs. Hendrickson. Ben hasn’t done anything wrong. You saw there was an incident over the street?”

  The woman’s eyes widened, and she took a step back. “Ben’s been poisoned?”

  The woman whirled around and ran through the back door into the staff-only rooms. After a second of hesitation, Matthewson chased after her and Holly followed along behind. The run in the cold weather was still making itself known to her lungs, so she walked where the others skipped ahead.

  “Ben?” Mrs. Hendrickson called out. “Are you back here?”

  The boy came out of a side room, his hair tousled like he’d been sleeping and his face worried. “I’m here, Mom. What is it?”

  “Oh, thank goodness.” Mrs. Hendrickson encompassed her son in an enormous bear hug, lifting him off his feet.

  Ben turned a bright shade of pink, casting worried glances over his mother’s shoulder.

  “What’s the matter? Have I done something wrong?”

  “Not at all,” Holly called out as Ben’s mother slowly let him go. Mrs. Hendrickson clicked her tongue as she brushed her son’s fringe out of his face. “It’s about that cupcake I gave you earlier.”

  Ben’s frown deepened, and he pushed his mother’s fiddling hands away from his face. “It’s gone. I ate it.” He glanced from Holly to the sergeant, shuffling his feet in agitation. “Wasn’t I meant to?”

  “There’s just a small chance there’s something wrong with it,” Holly said, shooting a glance at Matthewson and hoping he wouldn’t contradict her. “If it’s okay, could we take Ben over to the surgery center for observation?”

  “He’s doing nothing here if that’s what you mean,” Mrs. Hendrickson replied. “Should I come with him? Harry’s still out in town on his break, and it’s only me serving until six o’clock.”

  “Chances are, there’s nothing to worry about,” Holly said. “Why don’t you stay here? If that changes, then I’ll come over to fetch you, and I’ll take over serving the bar. Ben’s certainly stood in for Crystal and me enough times lately.”

  Mrs. Hendrickson nodded, giving Ben’s arm one last worried squeeze as he slipped by her.

  “What’s meant to be wrong with the cupcake?” Ben asked as they walked back through the tavern and out the door. “Is there something in there I might be allergic to, like Mr. Masters?”

  Holly winced at the question. On her first arrival back in town, Crystal’s cupcake had fingered as the weapon in an attempted murder—by peanut allergy. Even though the two sisters had been proven innocent, their baking vindicated, the lingering memory was still vivid enough to cause distress.

  “It’s probably nothing,” Holly said firmly. She turned to Sergeant Matthewson. “Did you want to pick up that soup while you were here? It’s just next door.”

  The sergeant sighed, but followed along, maybe just to humor her or perhaps doubting the evidence now that Ben was stood there, right as rain. “Sure, I’ll bag it and drop it down to the station after we get this one—” he gave Ben a friendly push on the shoulder “—into the surgery.”

  “What do I have to do there?” Ben asked after they picked up the forlorn container. Even cold, there was still a lovely scent clinging to the polystyrene, making Holly’s stomach rumble.

  “You’ll just sit there, hopefully,” Matthewson answered. “But if something does go wrong, we want medical staff on hand to ensure your safety. They might also want to examine you when we arrive, just to check that you’re okay.”

  “Is this what happened with them folks over the road?”

  Sergeant Matthewson nodded. “Looking at you, I have to say that I don’t think you have anything to worry about. From what we’ve learned so far, whatever happened struck pretty quickly.”

  “So, I could’ve been dead in the back room when you arrived?” Ben asked his voice angling upward. “That cupcake could have poisoned me?”

  “You weren’t, and it appears that it didn’t,” the sergeant said firmly, holding open the surgery center door for Ben to go on through. “Which puts us back to square one,” he muttered, just loud enough for Holly to hear.

  Meggie appeared relieved when Holly sat back down beside her. “Where did you and the sergeant hurry off to?”

  “I just remembered that Ben might be in trouble, too. Until the police can work out what happened, I didn’t want to take a chance. Sorry for just leaving like that.”

  “Did you want to leave for real, this time?” Meggie stretched out her legs. The nurse has already told the families that there won’t be any more visiting tonight.

  For the first time, Holly noticed that the room had emptied out. “Sure. I wouldn’t mind going back to the pools complex shop and just having a nosy if they’ll let us.”

  “They almost certainly will not,” Meggie said, gathering her purse and coat. “But why not try? We’ll see if the police are on top of everything.”

  They walked back over to the complex but were too late. Bright yellow police tape boldly told the pair it was a no-go.

  “I wonder what the folks visiting the pools think of all of this,” Meggie said. “I’m not sure that I’d appreciate a crime scene right by the place I came to relax and enjoy myself.”

  “Hopefully, they’ll s
ort everything out quickly and get it down.” Holly stood back, one hand on her hip. Even though the hour wasn’t late, the winter sun had already set, and the pall of steam hanging over the hot pools made everything appear gloomy. “It would be a real pain if we made the decision to move into this store, just to find out that all the foot traffic had been scared away.”

  Meggie hooked her arm through Holly’s and turned her away from the row of shops. “I wouldn’t worry about that just yet. It’s not as though anybody has died.”

  Closing her eyes for a brief second, Holly sent up a quick prayer to ask that the facts of Meggie’s sentence didn’t change.

  As they walked along, headed back to the center to pick up Meggie’s car, Holly noticed a figure standing on the other side of the road. He wasn’t outside the bakery, he was several doors down from that—where the shops turned back into residential housing. Just a guy who’d gone outside to smoke, she thought at first, then frowned and checked again.

  The man was dressed in a long coat and must have a hoodie underneath because material curved up to cover his hair. The loose fabric created a giant shadow that swallowed up the details of his face.

  Even without that, Holly could see that he was staring across the road at the Hanmer Springs complex. The stillness of his posture gave a fixed intensity to the gaze.

  Holly stared for a moment, then shook herself and turned away. Of course, he’s staring. There’s police tape everywhere. Who wouldn’t look?

  After a few steps more, she couldn’t loosen the feeling of disquiet that the dark figure evoked. Holly spun on her heel, peering back through the steam and the darkness. The man wasn’t staring at the complex, he was gazing straight at the shop. The one that she and her sister were thinking of renting. Not the tape, not the restaurant, not the entrance to the pools.

  As Holly took a step back toward him, the man turned and ran away down the street.