That was about the time that Mitch let go of Angela and took a swing at me. I saw it coming though, and ducked. He didn't hit me but I did lose my balance. I stumbled into the wall and very narrowly avoided smashing my face against the bricks.
"Stop," Susan yelled. "I've had enough."
"What?" Mitch, Angela, and I all said at the same time, but most likely for different reasons.
"I can't keep doing this. I killed Doug. I didn't mean to,” she said and started sobbing again.
"How do you accidentally kill someone with a rock?" I asked incredulously.
"He told me he was divorcing me. He wouldn't listen to reason. Every time I tried to rebut something he said, he'd just talk louder. I was so angry and desperate. It was like I saw red, and I wasn't really thinking. I picked up a rock and hit him with it, but I only meant to hurt him and get his attention. In my rage, I hit him harder than I meant too, and I was shocked when he dropped to the ground. You have to believe that I didn't mean to kill him. He was worth more to me alive than dead. His life insurance was nothing compared to the inheritance we would have gotten when his parents passed. When I saw what I had done, I threw the rock in the lake. It had his blood on it, and I knew I needed to get rid of it,” she said and sighed. "I walked out of the park as fast as I could. I didn't realize that Mitch had been following me. I was lucky he was there, though, because he gave me a quick getaway. But Mitch wasn't involved in killing Doug."
"I have to call the police,” I said.
Susan nodded her head and I dialed Tom. Mitch took off running, but I found out that the police got him a few blocks away. Angela and I had to go into the station to give our statements.
When I was done, Tom drove me back to work. I'd called Camille and she told me to go home, but I wanted to be at work. I still had orders to get ready, and moping around my apartment wasn't going to do anyone any good. Plus, I didn't want to be alone.
I had almost forgotten that I had an interview with Crystal that afternoon. I was too shaken up to do a real interview, so instead I told her about Susan's confession. Then I hired her on the spot and sent her back to the kitchen to help with the wedding cake roses. Who else would I have hired? I wanted my bakery to be a place full of friendship, and only Crystal could add to that.
Chapter Fifteen
Friday morning, Gracie woke me up a few minutes before four. I made sure to take my phone with me when I walked her. I usually didn't worry about it, but I was still shaken up after what had happened the day before.
I felt a little more relaxed once I was in the shop getting my soup of the day, lobster bisque, going and preparing dough for cheddar biscuits.
As soon as I unlocked the door, tons of customers came in. They were there not only for the pastries and coffee, but to share in the town gossip as well. After a major event, my business always increased noticeably.
People were also ordering donuts and cheddar biscuits by the dozen to take into work with them. Fortunately, I knew that would be the case, and I’d prepared.
Listening to Camille and Ginny talk about their dates the night before helped me relax even more. It was good to be around my friends and doing what I loved the most.
After a busy morning, I went home at lunch to take Gracie out. When we got back from our walk, Tom was there. He’d dropped in to surprise me. It was a good thing too because something was moving in one of the traps he’d set.
“I got the little guy,” he said proudly.
Tom took the trap out to his car with promises to release the mouse at the lake. He’d actually come by to let me know that they had charged Susan with second-degree murder. No one would bail her out, and she wouldn’t get the life insurance money.
The laws against profiting from an inheritance based on a crime you’d committed prevented that. She was going to be there for a long time.
Mitch had been charged with being an accessory after the fact and with attacking Angela and myself. He was denied bail entirely because the judge felt he was a danger to the community.
For that, I was more than thankful. I could rest easy knowing that Mitch wouldn’t be getting out and coming for revenge. Tom assured me that he’d get a long prison sentence for his crimes even if he wasn’t charged with murder.
“Are you still up for dinner tonight?” he asked. “I can cancel if you’re not.”
“No, don’t cancel. I want to go. I think it will be fun and hopefully relaxing,” I said with a smile.
I went back to the bakery to finish working on the wedding cake for the next day. I still had layers to frost and decorate, so there’d be no slacking for me.
While the girls and I worked on the rest of the roses, I told them about Susan and Mitch being in jail. They were as relieved as I was that neither one of them would be getting out any time soon.
That night, Tom picked me up for dinner right on time. We were seated in a cozy corner table, but I could still see the main dining area somewhat.
Interestingly enough, Carl and Camille came in right after us. “Did you know they would be here?” I asked Tom.
“Yeah, but I couldn’t tell you because you would have told Camille. It’s all a setup. Carl is going to propose to Camille, and I’m going to film the whole thing for him.”
“No way!”
“Yes way,” he said with a big smile. “But, shhh, if she sees you, she’ll know something is up.”
“This is so cool,” I whispered.
Carl got up from his table and walked to the bathroom. When he came back, Camille saw me. She looked confused for a second, but Carl immediately dropped to one knee.
He pulled out a ring box and proposed to her while Tom filmed the whole thing. Camille said yes without hesitating, and happy tears streamed down her face.
When she started to cry, I started to cry. We all hugged, and since it was no longer a secret that we were there, Carl and Camille joined us at our cozy corner table. A good meal and celebratory champagne were had by all.
Thank you for reading!
Don’t forget to check out the next book in the series here:
A Cupcake Cruelty
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© Sara Bourgeois 2019
This story is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to persons alive or dead is a coincidence.
Cover by: Mariah Sinclair
The Cupcake Conspiracy Page 8