"I admit that I heard something like that. Is it true? Don't get me wrong, I'm not judging you. You certainly wouldn't be the first woman who was taken advantage of by her boss, and then thrown away. The same thing happened to my cousin Kim, and it nearly ruined her." Okay, I've never had a cousin named Kim, but I could have, and I was doing everything I could to get Vicki to open up.
"I feel bad for her, but it never happened to me. We worked together, and that was all it was. I was loyal to him, but when he died, my loyalty to the bank did, as well. I need a fresh start in a new town, and I'm determined to get it."
"Can you afford to just pick up and leave?" I asked delicately.
"I can't afford not to. That's the point, isn't it?"
I shook my head. "How can you leave town with
folks talking about you like they are? Don't you want to set the record straight before you go?" I needed more from her, especially before she left town forever.
"You're more involved in this than you claim, aren't you?" Her gaze had gone cold all of a sudden, and for some reason, I felt I was treading on dangerous ground.
"Don't forget, I saw him out there on the street," I said. "In my opinion, that gives me a stake in all of this."
"I'd be careful, if I were you," she said as I poured her a cup of coffee.
"Vicki, is that a threat?"
She hesitated, then said, "Not from me, but there are dangerous people involved in this, folks who don't care who gets hurt."
"Is that experience talking? Has someone threatened you?"
She took a sip of coffee, then said, "Nothing that blatant, but things were hinted at, and I didn't need any extra incentive to leave."
"Who's been pushing you? Someone from the banking business, or is it something more personal?"
She sighed. "Despite how Mr. Blaine's ex-wife and his mistress might feel, I'm not the least bit afraid of either one of them."
"So it's business," I said.
Vicki pushed the coffee mug away. "I really do need to get on the road. I've got a long drive ahead of me."
"Where are you going?"
She started to answer, then said, "You know what? If you don't mind, I think I'll keep that knowledge to myself. I'd hate for anybody in April Springs to find out where I am. About that envelope, may I have it before I go?"
I couldn't stall her any longer, and there was no earthly reason I could keep the money I'd promised her, even if it did really belong to me.
"It's out in the car," I said.
She followed me out, and I felt a tingling on the back of my neck as I opened the car door and bent down to get it from under the seat. It would have been simplicity itself for her to hit me over the head or stab me in the back, but fortunately, neither one of those things happened, and I straightened back up with the envelope clutched in my hands.
"It's not his handwriting," she said as she took it from me.
"No, it's not." I wasn't about to admit that it was mine.
Vicki tore the envelope open, did a quick count, then said, "I don't even know why he bothered."
It was all I'd had, and I guess I wanted her to be a little more grateful for it, since the money had come straight from my own pocket and not her boss's. "I'm sorry. Were you expecting more?"
"I guess that's been my problem from the start. I've always expected more than I've gotten."
On what was clearly an impulse, she leaned forward and hugged me.
"Thank you," she said as we broke apart.
"What for?"
"You're the only one in this town who was ever
straight with me, and I want you to know how much I appreciate it."
I'd lied to her from the first moment we'd met, and if I had to find a kernel of truth in anything I'd said to her since, it would be a tough battle. I wasn't about to tell her that, though. All I could manage was to say, "You're welcome."
I hoped my face didn't burn with my shame from one more lie.
I'd just finished locking the front door when Emma pulled up.
I unlocked the door again and let her in.
"What's so important?" she said as she shed her jacket. "I got here as soon as I could."
"You just missed it," I said.
"Sorry, I must have hit the snooze button without realizing it. What happened?"
I thought about it a second. "I'm not sure yet."
"What does that mean?"
"I'll tell you as soon as I know. Are you ready to make some donuts?"
"Lead the way," she said.
As we worked on preparing the day's donut offerings, different scenarios kept playing through my mind. The first thing I had to consider was that someone was lying to me. They all couldn't have been telling the truth, but who should I believe? Blaine's secretary, Vicki, had a motive if the mistress, Deb Jenkins, was telling the truth, while Deb had plenty of reasons to want Patrick Blaine dead if his ex-wife, Rita, was right. Then again, if Vicki was telling the truth, her insinuation was that none of the women had killed her boss. Instead, she'd pointed
the finger in a direction I'd already started exploring, the construction company and the financial advisor. Maybe it was time to look a little more closely at them.
"Are we seriously making three batches of pumpkin donuts today? I know some of our customers like them, but isn't that overkill?"
I hadn't realized I'd made the same cake donut mix three times while I'd been lost in my thoughts, but I wasn't about to admit that to Emma. "I wanted some extras for this afternoon."
"What's going on, are you having a Halloween party in March?"
"No, but I thought I might use them around town. You know me, I'm always trying to drum up new business."
"Is that really all it is?" she asked.
"That's all I'm willing to admit," I said. I'd have to pay more attention to what I was doing.
By the time we were ready to open our doors at five-thirty, Emma and I had somehow managed to make the donuts yet again.
But I wasn't any closer to figuring out who had killed Patrick Blaine.
I needed help--even I could see that--and I knew just who to ask.
As George came in a little before 6 A.M., I said, "Today's donuts are on the house, but there's a catch."
He pushed the plate of donuts away. "No, thanks, Suzanne. I'd rather pay my way as I go."
"Is that any way to be? I know there's no chance
you're not going to help me, so why not take an offering that's meant to be a thank-you for caring?"
George said, "Sorry, you're right. I guess I'm a little too stiff-necked these days for my own good. It comes from getting older."
"Now about that catch."
George said, "Whatever you need. I'm sorry I said anything."
I took a deep breath, then said, "I'm afraid things have gotten a little too out of hand for me. It's tough running this donut shop ten hours a day, and then spending the rest of my time snooping into Patrick Blaine's life. Plus, Chief Martin's watching me pretty closely, not to mention the inspector from the state police who's been called in to work on the case. George, I need you to see if there are any new developments at the police station. Don't get yourself in trouble with the chief, but it would be helpful for me to know what they're up to."
"I'm a trained investigator, Suzanne, you know that, don't you? I can do a lot more than sit around the station listening to idle gossip. Why don't you let me help you on the case itself?"
"I may take you up on that a little later, George, but for now, I need you to do this for me."
"Fine. I'll do it, but you're not taking full advantage of your resources here, that's all I'm saying. You shouldn't hold it against me that I turned down your donut offer at first."
I patted his hand. "You know I'm not doing that. As to your offer, I thank you kindly, and I promise that I'll keep it in mind." Another thought crossed my
mind. "I suppose there is something else you could do, but I need you to be discreet."
"Whatever it is, I can handle it," George said.
"I need to find out anything you can learn about Allied Construction and BR Investments, but I don't want them to know that I'm looking into their businesses."
"Consider it done," George said, looking happy with the expanded assignment.
I frowned, then said, "I'd like to dig into Patrick's home life, but I'm not exactly sure how I should go about it."
George thought about it a few moments, then said, "I've got an idea, but I need to make a phone call first."
He stepped outside the shop, whether for privacy or better reception, I didn't know. After a few minutes, George came back in, smiling.
"Good news?" I asked him.
"I have a way of getting you inside Patrick Blaine's house, and once you're in there, you'll be able to snoop around to your heart's content."
"You've got my attention. How am I going to manage all of that?"
"It's easy. We have the same cleaning lady, and I've managed to get you hired on for a few hours as an apprentice to Mary Paris for the day. She was planning to clean the place anyway, and she said she'd love an extra set of hands."
"That's brilliant," I said. "When is she going to clean his place?"
"It's today, or it's no deal," he said. "Can Emma manage the shop while you're gone?"
"She can handle things," I said. "Most of the work is done. Now all she has to do is wait on customers. I hate to do it to her, but I really don't have much choice, do I?"
"Not if you want to see inside his house before Mary cleans it out." He glanced at his watch, then said, "Meet her at Blaine's place in an hour. She starts at seven sharp, and you don't want to be late. I can't promise you'll be there all day, but it's a way to get your foot in the door. Now if you'll excuse me, I've got to be on my way."
"Thanks for doing this, George."
He grinned at me. "You know me. I'm always happy to help. Enjoy your new cleaning job."
"It's what I live for," I said as he walked out.
I called Emma to the front and said, "How do you feel about running the place by yourself this morning?"
She didn't look exactly thrilled by the prospect. "Why? What's going on?"
"George has managed to get me inside Patrick Blaine's house, but it has to be today. If you aren't comfortable doing this, I'll get him back in here and tell him no."
"I can't do that to you. I know how important this is." She bit her lip, then Emma added, "If things get too crazy, I could always call my mother."
"Call her anyway. I'll pay her for her time, and she can keep you company while I'm gone."
"If you're sure you don't mind," Emma said.
"She's doing me a favor, of course I don't mind. I just don't see how I can say no after George went to so much trouble to do me this favor."
Emma said, "You have some great friends here, don't you?"
"That's one of the best parts of owning this business," I said. "And it doesn't hurt that I've been living in April Springs my entire life."
"Don't you ever get the yearning to live someplace else, though?" she said as she wiped down the counter. "It's a big world out there, and we're in a little tiny piece of it. I feel like I'm missing something every day I stay."
"I love it here," I admitted. "I can walk outside and see the mountains in the background, and we're less than an hour away from the Blue Ridge Parkway if I want to see some beautiful scenery. Then again, if I get the yen to go to the beach and see the ocean, that's less than five hours away."
"But there's more out there, don't you think?" She brushed an errant strand of red hair from her face.
I thought about it. "I guess so, but this is home for me. I don't know anybody out there," I said as I gestured to the outside world. "Here, I know who I can count on, and who I can't. There are people I can call at midnight, and they won't even ask why, and there others I wouldn't turn my back on under any circumstances. There might be dangers here, as well as pleasures, but they're things I know, and can count on. I guess what it comes down to is that I've got everything I need right here in April Springs."
"Not me," she said. "I can't wait to get out of this town for good."
I smiled at her. "And you just might find that you miss this place more than you ever could imagine once you're gone."
"I doubt that," she said.
I laughed. "Let's talk again in ten years and see." I looked at a few empty tables with remnants from earlier customers. "I don't have to leave for another half hour, so why don't you call your mother while I start getting this place cleaned up?"
"You've got yourself a deal."
After Emma's mother showed up, it was time for me to leave. Sadly, I didn't even have to go home and change clothes for the cleaning job. My jeans and T-shirt would be just fine for the work I was about to do.
I arrived at Patrick Blaine's house three minutes before seven. A car was in the driveway with a metallic sign on its side that said MERRY CLEANERS. That had to be Mary's Subaru.
"You're late," she said as she opened the house door. As she sized me up, I did the same to her. Mary was a tall, thin woman with graying hair pulled back in a no-nonsense bun. She wore a maid's uniform straight from the movies, and I wondered if that was her preferred attire, or if she did it as good public relations with her clients.
I definitely looked shabby standing in front of her.
I looked at my watch as I protested, "I've got two minutes."
"Anything short of five minutes early is too late in my book. Come on in, I don't have time to do a thorough job here and stand around talking all morning." She glanced at her watch, and added, "I've got to be across town at 10 A.M., so we need to get moving. You take the master bedroom, and I'll start on the kitchen and bath. Dust, vacuum, and straighten the