Dying to Cook

by Patti Benning

  “I'm glad to know that you didn't make this decision just because someone held a gun to your face,” he said.

  “Actually, she didn't have a gun,” Autumn said, “When I gave my statement to the officer who arrested her, he told me that she had been looking for a pen. She told him when she confessed that she was going to have me sign a statement that I was the one who had killed Leo. That way if I ever tried to blackmail her with my knowledge, she would have been able to control me with that.”

  “That's actually a pretty good solution,” Nick said, sounding surprised. “It does make my mind rest easier to know that you weren't about to be shot or stabbed.”

  “Mine too,” Autumn said. “I feel terrible about what I did to Beatrice, though. She might not have been exactly innocent, but she didn't deserve to go to jail for a crime she didn't commit. Once she gets released and everything is straightened out, she's going to hate me.”

  “Maybe not. She was probably safer there than she would have been out in the world with Audrey on her tail. I doubt Audrey would have left it at only one attempt to kill her.”

  “You might be right,” Autumn said. “Either way, I think I'm going to watch my back from here on out.”

  “That's no way to live,” Nick said. “We will all watch out for you here. Like you said, you're like family. Your aunt and uncle and I aren't the only ones who would've missed you. I know Emily would have been crushed if you left. That young woman looks up to you.”

  “Well, I'm not going anywhere,” Autumn said. “I've learned my lesson. I think I am happier here than I ever would be in a five-star restaurant. Sometimes dreams do change, and I guess it just took me a while to realize that.”