Pepperoni Pizza Can Be Murder (17 page)

“Spoilsport,” she said.

I raced back to the kitchen cooler, pulled out two small cartons of milk, and then rejoined her.

I studied the box for a second, and then asked, “Did you peek?”

“Not yet, but I am now,” she said as she threw the box lid backward.

Inside were nine stunning chocolate éclairs.

I looked down at the treats, glorious in their golden tones, glazed with shimmering chocolate, and said, “You know, I suddenly feel like having an éclair.”

“What a coincidence. I do, too,” Maddy said as she grabbed two and put them on napkins. “If it’s all the same to you, I’d rather not dirty another dish if I don’t have to.”

“You’re a woman after my own heart,” I said as I bit into one. The rich vanilla custard oozed out, and it was a treat for the nose, as well as the eyes and the palate.

We each had one, and then Maddy said, “My sweet tooth is satisfied. What do we do with the rest?”

“We could save them for Josh,” I suggested.

“Or take them home with us tonight.”

I looked at the treats, and then said, “You know what? They’re a little too rich for me as a steady diet. One was great, but two would be overkill.”

Maddy nodded. “I know exactly what you mean. It’s no wonder Paul gets tired of them now and then.”

“But we never get burned-out on pizza, do we?”

“At least we haven’t so far,” Maddy said.

Josh knocked on the door a good twenty minutes before he was due back at work. When I let him in, I asked, “What happened?”

“She stood me up. Can you believe it?”

“I’m really sorry,” I said, remembering that just because he was a teenager, it didn’t mean that he didn’t hurt as much as the rest of us did. “Did you try calling her?”

“Forget that. I’m not going to beg,” he said.

“Pride’s a dangerous thing,” I said, and I saw Maddy’s eyebrows shoot up. Before she managed to shift the conversation back to my life, I told Josh, “There are fresh éclairs from Paul, and we saved you some.”

“How many are there?” Josh asked as he looked longingly at the box.

“There’s only seven left,” Maddy said facetiously.

Josh shrugged. “I guess that will do, but don’t you two want a couple before I start in on them?”

“We’ve already had ours,” I said. “Help yourself.”

Josh dove into the box, and I started back toward the kitchen.

“Where are you going?” Maddy asked. Then she looked over at Josh, who was already on his second éclair, with no signs of slowing down. “It’s a little like a shark feeding on chum, isn’t it?”

“That doesn’t bother me,” I said, “I’ve been around teenage boys since we opened the pizzeria.” I lowered my voice as I added, “Thanks for not saying anything in front of Josh just now.”

“What, about how it’s easier to give advice than to take it? I’d never say anything like that, Eleanor.”

“You know what? I think you just did,” I said as I grabbed a couple of the small milk cartons for Josh.

Maddy smiled. “I guess you’re right. Here, I’ll take those out to him. You’ve got to get ready to open.”

“I do need to restock some of the toppings,” I said.

After Maddy was gone, I thought about what I’d told Josh. The advice applied to me as much as it did to him, but there was nothing I could do about David now. It was too late for my pride to matter one way or the other at this point.

But if I was being honest with myself, I had to admit that I hoped David decided to stay in Timber Ridge.

I just wasn’t ready to ask him to do it.

We were well into our dinner crowd, and the kitchen was hopping, when Maddy came back. “Eleanor, you need to take a break,” she said.

I looked at the orders piling up. “Yeah, and a long soak in a hot tub would be nice, too, but I’m not getting either one of them anytime soon.”

“Art Young is here, and he wants to talk to you. He says he may know something about what happened to Wade.”

“Send him back,” I said. “I’ll talk to him while I work.” I had three or four minutes I could squeeze out of my time, if I absolutely had to, and from the sound of it, that was exactly what I needed to do. I was a little nervous about being alone in my kitchen with a known hoodlum, but at least it was on my home turf. Before he came back, I hid knives and any heavy objects, which I could find, in places where I could get my hands on them in case I needed to defend myself.

Art was wearing another nice new suit when he came back into my kitchen.

“Sorry to interrupt you like this, Eleanor. I know you’re busy.”

“That’s fine. I’ve got a few minutes to talk, if you don’t mind me working. Maddy said you might know something that could help us.”

He nodded. “I’ve been asking around, and it turns out that Wade was dipping into the till at work.”

“How much could he have taken?” From what we’d seen of Roger Henderson’s office, I doubted it could be that much.

“It was nothing noticeable at first, just a little here and a little there, from what I understand. He was pretty careful not to take too much from any one client, but over time, it added up.”

“Could he have stolen enough for someone to kill him for?” I asked as I prepared another pan with pizza dough.

“From what my sources are saying, his murder has gotten people curious, and none of them like what they’ve found. I doubt it would reach twenty grand all together, but it could be a great deal more. In some circles, that’s enough to kill for.”

“Are the police looking into it?” I asked.

Art Young shrugged. “While I’m not privy to what the police are doing, I understand that they’ve focused mostly on your deliveryman, so there are angles that aren’t being followed up on. I thought you should know.”

“Why are you helping us?” I asked, and then I realized that it was a pretty impertinent question.

“Honestly, I like your spunk,” he said, “and I enjoy your pizza, too. Isn’t that enough?”

“Excuse me if I’m being rude, but it hardly seems like it is, don’t you think?”

I was pushing it, and I knew it, but I had to know if he had an ulterior motive to helping Maddy and me in our unofficial investigation.

He paused longer than I was comfortable with, and then said, “Let’s just say someone deprived me of income, and I’d enjoy knowing who it is I should blame.”

“We’re not going to find out who killed Wade just so you can exact your revenge,” I said. I was nervous, but I hoped he couldn’t tell.

Art Young shook his head. “You underestimate me, Mrs. Swift. My motives might not be completely altruistic, but I’m not opposed to seeing someone punished by the courts instead of by more primitive methods.” He looked at me a second, then said, “I just thought you’d like to know.”

“You were right.” He was almost to the door when I called out abruptly, “Can I make you a pizza while you’re here? It’s on the house, as a sign of my appreciation.”

The thought amused him, for whatever reason, and a slight smile touched briefly on his lips. “Why don’t I take a rain check? Not that I don’t appreciate the offer.”

“Call it in any time,” I said. “Thank you for coming.”

He saluted me with two fingers, then left. I had a buzz of new thoughts circling around in my head, not the least of which was the fact that a known bad guy had decided to make our investigation a pet project of his. He’d given me food for thought, regardless of his true motive, and I knew Maddy and I needed to talk to Roger Henderson again, and sooner would be better than later.

Josh came bursting back into the kitchen half an hour before we were set to close. “Eleanor, is there any way that I can take off now?” he asked, nearly out of breath.

“Where’s the fire? Have all of the customers left?” I’d been filling orders steadily most of the night. It was good to see that most of my customers weren’t holding the homicide that had occurred in my kitchen against me.

“No, there are a few people still wandering in, but I talked to Maddy, and she said she could cover everything up front.”

“You still haven’t told me what the emergency is,” I said.

“Melissa came in.” He looked absolutely glowing as he said it.

“I’m sure that’s great news, but I don’t have a clue who Melissa is, and why we should all be so grateful for her arrival.”

Josh grinned. “You’re so funny—you know that, don’t you? Melissa is the girl I told you about earlier. She’s the one who stood me up.”

“And yet you seem to be remarkably happy to have her here now.”

“You don’t understand. She didn’t really stand me up today. She thought we were meeting tomorrow. Everything’s great. It was just a little misunderstanding. Please, Eleanor?”

How could I say no to him? “Go on, get out of here before I change my mind.”

He shocked me by kissing me on the cheek, and then he threw his apron at the hooks on the wall and jetted out of the kitchen. I could remember how it felt to be young, to be surging with emotions, and I wondered how any of us ever survived it.

After he was gone, Maddy came into the kitchen to place a late order. As I worked it up, I said, “Josh was practically floating when he left here, wasn’t he? That was awfully sweet of you to cover the rest of the night shift for him.”

Maddy smiled. “Admit it. You’re just as much a romantic as I am.”

“Why do you say that?” I asked as I layered sauce on the dough.

“He’s not here, is he?”

“That’s a point,” I replied. “This has been the longest day, hasn’t it?”

Maddy nodded in agreement. “I’m going home and soak in a hot tub. Then I’m going to crash on my bed until my alarm jars me out of it tomorrow.”

“That sounds like a good plan,” I said.

She left to cover the front again, and I started cleaning up early. I did that sometimes, working on the dishes and the prep area, doing all that I could ahead of time during slow periods at the restaurant. We weren’t a place that was constantly packed, which was something I was grateful for. I couldn’t stand being busy all of the time. For one thing, I’d have to hire help in the kitchen, something I was reluctant to do, and for another, it would mean losing the personal touches I liked to add to my creations. I was fully aware of the fact that my food was quickly consumed, and almost as quickly forgotten, but that didn’t mean I couldn’t add my own artistry to it.

When Maddy came into the kitchen to retrieve the last pizza order, I was elbow deep in hot, sudsy water.

She smiled as she said, “I see you’re getting your hot soak in early.”

“What can I say? I couldn’t wait.” As I finished washing another plate, I asked, “How’s it going out there?”

“This one changed his mind, so it’s a takeout now. That will clear us out.”

I glanced at the clock and saw we had less than fifteen minutes to stay open. “Let him have it, then let’s close up early tonight. We’re both tired, and I don’t see much more business coming our way tonight.”

Maddy frowned at me. “Are you all right?”

“I’m fine,” I said. “Why do you ask?”

She shook her head as she said, “I don’t know. You’re usually pretty set about staying open as long as the sign says.”

“If you’re that dead set against it, we can keep the place open.”

Maddy boxed the pizza quickly as she said, “Don’t get me wrong. I’m not complaining.”

“Good, then it’s settled.”

She came back in two minutes later after delivering the pizza. “That’s it. We’re locked up for the night.”

I kept working on the dishes. “Would you mind taking care of the dining room?”

“I’m on it,” she said. Before she went out front, Maddy propped open the door with a wedge so we could talk while we worked. I finished the dishes, then joined her out front so I could get started on the deposit. It felt good not having to go by the bank in the dark, and I was happy again that I’d taken the plunge and bought a safe, even if it did have an after-the-fact kind of feel to it. The drawer cash balanced out with the report, and I slid the money and receipts into the safe. I’d chosen Joe’s birthday for the combination, something that would remind me of him every night, and let me feel that, though he was gone, my late husband was still very much a part of this place.

“We’re finished,” I said. “Can you believe it?”

“I’m pinching myself right now,” Maddy said. “Why don’t we get out of here?”

“I’m right behind you,” I said.

We made it to our cars without event—something I was always thankful for, lately—and as I drove home, I wondered what tomorrow would bring. There seemed to be a lot of things swirling around in my life lately. Running the pizzeria was enough for anyone to deal with, but with a murder investigation added to the mix, I couldn’t believe how many directions I was being pulled in. I could shut the restaurant down for a week and track down clues, but if I did that, Kevin Hurley would be certain to notice. I doubted our chief of police would be all that thrilled about what Maddy and I were up to. Besides, I couldn’t afford to go without the income that long.

But even if I could, I wouldn’t do it. I loved making pizzas too much, which probably helped explain why I hadn’t had a vacation since my husband had passed away.

I pulled into the driveway and parked. As I got out of the car and walked up to the front door, I saw a movement in the bushes that wasn’t from a gusty wind or a nosy cat.

Someone was hiding outside my house, and as I turned to run back to my car in the dark, a hand grabbed me from behind.

“G
reg Hatcher, you nearly gave me a heart attack.”

“I’m sorry,” he said. “I didn’t want you to run off on me.”

“What are you doing here? I thought we decided it wasn’t safe for you to just show up on my doorstep.”

“I’m not alone,” he said.

I peered into the darkness, but I couldn’t make out who was there. He looked back into the shadows, and said, “Come on. It’s all right.”

A figure hesitantly walked out of the bushes, and I could see that Greg had not only found Katy Johnson, he’d brought her with him to my house.

We couldn’t just stand out there all night; someone was bound to notice. “Come on in, and hurry.”

“Are you sure?” Greg asked.

“You’re already here, so I don’t have much choice, do I?” I hurriedly unlocked the front door, hoping that Kevin Hurley hadn’t staked out my house. If he had, I knew we could expect a visit from the police any minute.

Once they were both inside, I bolted the door and asked, “Did anyone see you come here?”

Greg shook his head. “Don’t worry. We were careful. I’ve been watching the cars on your street for the last hour, and not one of them has shown any signs of life. We’re safe.”

“If my neighbors haven’t been spying on you, then we should be okay.” I took a second to look at Katy, who had clearly had better days. “Where have you been?”

“Hiding in my aunt’s basement,” she said. “I almost came out when you were there, but I was afraid.”

“Of what, exactly?” I asked. “Maddy and I weren’t there to hurt you. We’re just trying to find out the truth.”

“So are we,” Greg said, speaking for her. “Katy didn’t kill my brother any more than I did.”

I was surprised that he believed her, but I wasn’t so sure myself. I was going to make it a point not to turn my back on her, though at the moment she looked nothing like a killer to me.

Greg said, “Eleanor, I hate to ask, but could we possibly get something to eat? The money you loaned me is just about gone.”

I looked hard at Greg as I said, “I don’t know what you’re talking about. I never loaned you any money.”

He nodded. “That’s right. I meant to tell you. I took some money from your cookie jar without you knowing it.” Greg grabbed a pad I kept by the phone and scrawled something on it. When he handed it to me, I read it.
I owe you $200. Greg Hatcher.

“Thanks for that,” I said. I dove into my refrigerator after making sure Katy was at least ten steps away, and then I started pulling out ingredients. “Sorry, the best I can do are sandwiches and cold drinks. I haven’t been shopping in a week, what with everything going on around here lately. Oh, wait. I could make eggs, if you don’t mind a skinny omelet to share.”

“Sandwiches would be great,” Greg said. He looked at his former girlfriend and said, “Come on, Katy, you can trust her. She won’t bite.”

Katy didn’t look like she believed that, but it was clear she was hungry, and not above accepting handouts.

As I slapped a couple of sandwiches together for them, I asked, “Doesn’t your aunt feed you?”

Greg shook his head in obvious disgust as Katy said, “After you left her house, she threw me out. All my stuff’s still in her basement, but she said if I was going to cause her trouble, she didn’t want any part of me anymore.”

I felt bad for her, even though I still realized that she could be a murderer. “Where are you two going to stay tonight?” With the words barely out of my mouth, I quickly added, “Not that the question is an invitation. I’m sorry, but you can’t stay with me.” Kevin Hurley would have a field day with that arrangement if he ever found out. As a matter of fact, he wouldn’t be too pleased knowing that I was feeding them both in my kitchen, though as far as I knew, neither one was actually being sought for arrest.

Greg smiled. “Don’t sweat it, I’ve made other arrangements. I just needed to talk to you before we took off.”

“Why? What’s going on?” I asked.

“I’ve been thinking about what you said, and something occurred to me—”

He never got to finish the thought. There was a loud knock at the front door, and someone yelled, “Open up. It’s the police.”

Without a word, Greg dropped his sandwich, grabbed Katy’s hand, and headed for the back window he’d come in through the last time he’d visited me.

A powerful beam of light snapped on outside, and I could hear Kevin Hurley’s voice shout, “Not this time. Stay right there, and don’t move a muscle until I get inside.”

After I let Kevin in, he scowled at me. “You were supposed to call me.”

“They just showed up two seconds ago,” I said.

“You were going to turn me in?” Greg asked me, the disbelief thick in his voice.

I wasn’t about to answer that question. “Kevin, how did you know they were here?”

“We got a tip,” he said.

I glanced over at Mr. Harpold’s house, and could see that he was watching my place through his window. I waved at him, though what I wanted to do was shake my fist in his direction. He didn’t wave back, but at least he had the decency to duck away from my gaze.

“Great, our one-man Neighborhood Watch is in action,” I said dryly.

“He was just doing his civic duty,” Kevin said, “which is more than I can say for you at the moment.”

“We haven’t done anything,” Greg said. “You can’t arrest us.”

“Don’t try to tell me that you don’t know I’ve been looking all over town for you,” Kevin said. “You haven’t made it easy on me.” He nodded toward one of his officers. “Cuff him, then put him in the back of my squad car.”

“I didn’t kill my brother,” Greg shouted as he was being handcuffed.

“I don’t have an opinion on that yet, one way or the other,” Kevin said as Katy started to cry. Everyone ignored her, though.

“Then why are you arresting him?” I asked.

“It’s true that he’s a person of interest in a murder case, but that’s not why he’s under arrest.” The police chief frowned as he added, “You know, you should be thanking me instead of yelling at me, Eleanor.”

“I can’t imagine how that’s possible, even in your mind.”

Kevin shook his head. “I don’t understand you. I thought you’d be thrilled that we caught the guy who robbed you at gunpoint the other night.”

“That’s a lie,” Greg shouted. “Eleanor, I’d never steal anything from you. You’ve got to believe me!”

“I believe you, Greg. Wade did it,” I said loudly. “I heard his voice on his answering machine, and the second I heard him, I knew he was the one who robbed me.”

“They sounded an awful lot alike to me,” Kevin said.

“It wasn’t Greg.” I knew in my heart that was true.

Kevin was untouched by the display. “Then why did we find your deposit bag and some of the credit card receipts in his apartment?”

Greg looked shocked by the allegation. “Someone planted them there.”

“Gee, I’ve never heard that before.” He looked at Katy Johnson, and then said, “We’ve been looking for you, too, young lady.”

“I didn’t rob anyone,” Katy said.

Kevin said, “I’m not arresting you for that, so that works out great. But I need you to come down to the station with us so I can interview you about your relationship with Wade Hatcher.”

“She didn’t have one,” Greg shouted.

“Get him out of here, would you?” Kevin said to one of his officers.

“Don’t say anything else, Greg,” I ordered him. “I’ll call Bob Lemon.”

After Greg was gone, and another policeman was escorting Katy Johnson out of my house, Kevin lingered. “You can’t be serious about getting a lawyer for the guy who stuck a gun in your face.”

“He didn’t do it,” I said.

“How do you know that? You said you didn’t get a good look at the perp, and his voice was disguised.”

“Wade had to have done it. I know Greg,” I said.

“You just think you do. I have half a mind to drag you down to my office with the other two.”

I offered him my wrists. “That would make my night. I’ve been thinking about adding onto the house, and with the money I’d get from the settlement for false arrest, I might be able to afford a swimming pool, too.”

Kevin let that slide. “Were you ever going to call me, Ellie?”

I hated it when he used that nickname. It was an unfair advantage most days, and he knew it. Today wasn’t one of those, though. I wasn’t thrilled about having the police storm into my house and forcibly remove two people from there.

“I guess we’ll never know, will we? Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have a telephone call to make.”

Kevin shook his head sadly, and then he walked out alone.

Bob Lemon answered on the fourth ring, and when I glanced at the clock, I saw that it was nearing eleven.

“I woke you, didn’t I?” I asked.

“No, not at all,” he said, the sleepiness thick in his voice.

“Liar,” I said. “I’m sorry, but I need help.”

“Then I’m your man. What can I do for you?”

“Kevin Hurley just arrested Greg Hatcher for robbing me the other night, and I want you to defend him.”

He paused, and then said, “I’ve got to say, that’s really turning the other cheek, Eleanor.”

“He didn’t do it,” I said. “I’m pretty sure his brother did, and then he tried to frame Greg.”

“Did Kevin give you any reason he jumped to that particular conclusion?”

I admitted, “He found my deposit bag and some receipts in Greg’s apartment.”

Bob paused, and then said, “I suppose we could say Wade planted them there.”

“Because it’s the truth,” I said, snapping a little more than I’d meant to. Just because it was late and I was tired and upset, there was no reason to take it out on Bob, especially when I was asking him for a favor.

“Hey, take it easy. I’m on your side, remember? Let me get dressed, and I’ll head down to the police station.”

“I’ll meet you there,” I said.

“I’d really rather you didn’t,” Bob said. “Sometimes you seem to bring out the worst in our chief of police.”

“It’s mutual, trust me,” I said.

“Be that as it may, we don’t need to complicate matters any further than we already have.”

I could see the sense in that, even if it didn’t make me all that happy. “You’ll call me as soon as anything happens, promise?”

“It could be several hours before I can get him released,” Bob said.

“If you’re not going to call me, then I’m going to have to meet you there.”

Bob sighed. “I could just lie to you—you know that, don’t you?”

“You know better than that,” I said.

“You’re right, I do. I’ll be in touch.”

After he hung up, I dialed Maddy’s number to bring her up to speed.

She answered brightly, her capacity for late nights continually surprising me. I heard some odd form of music in the background.

“What is that playing?” I asked.

“What did you say?” Maddy replied.

“Turn your stereo down!” I shouted.

There was a pause, and the music suddenly died.

When Maddy came back on the line, I said, “What was that you were listening to?”

“Tomorrow’s Sorrow,” she said. “They’re great, aren’t they?”

“I’m just glad I’m not one of your neighbors.”

Maddy laughed. “That’s why I have a unit on the top floor and on the end. There’s no one above me, and the apartment beside me is empty.”

“How about the unit below you?”

“Mr. Jenkins is as deaf as a post,” she said. “Surely you’re not calling to check up on me, are you?”

“The police just left my house, so I wanted to let you know what was happening.”

“They aren’t arresting you, are they?”

“Of course not,” I said. “They handcuffed Greg Hatcher, though.”

“Greg’s been staying with you all along, and you never told me?” Maddy’s voice was nearly shrieking as she spoke.

“He came by tonight with Katy Johnson to tell me something. Come to think of it, he never had a chance. Kevin Hurley arrested him before he could say anything.”

“Does he honestly think Greg killed his own brother?”

“I don’t know what he thinks about that. He arrested him for robbing me the other night at gunpoint.”

“That’s ridiculous,” Maddy said. “We both know that Wade did it.”

“That’s what I told him.”

“Then we have to call Bob.”

“I already did,” I said. “He’s on his way now to get Greg out of there.”

Maddy paused, then asked, “What happened to Katy? She’s not still there with you, is she?”

“No, the police took her in for questioning about the murder. Trust me, it was quite a scene.”

“I can’t believe I missed it,” Maddy said, pouting as if I’d arranged to have her excluded from the action.

“Honestly, it wasn’t all that great. Anyway, I’ll let you get back to your jam session. I need some sleep if I’m going to be able to face tomorrow.”

“Is Bob calling you later?” Maddy asked.

“I told him to, but who knows?”

“He’ll call. Trust me. When he does, call me as soon as you hang up. I don’t care what time it is, do you hear me?”

“Loud and clear. I’ll talk to you later.”

After we finished our conversation, I went around the house and made sure that all the doors and windows were locked up tight, and then I cleaned up the remnants of the impromptu meal. Katy had devoured half her sandwich, but Greg had only had time for a few bites before Kevin burst in. I hoped they gave him something to eat at the station.

The thought that he had robbed me was a ridiculous one. I knew Greg would never do that. If he needed money, he’d come to me, and if I had any to give him, I would. It was just that simple.

Sure, Wade and Greg had similar voices, and it would be even harder to tell them apart if they were both whispering, but I knew Greg was innocent, no matter what the evidence might look like. But how in the world could I convince anyone else of it?

There was nothing more to do than go to sleep and hope that Bob Lemon called me soon with some good news.

After the time I’d been having lately, I could use some.

In what felt like a lifetime later, I was jarred awake from a sound sleep by my telephone.

It was my turn to be groggy when I answered, though Bob Lemon sounded almost chipper. “I didn’t wake you, did I?”