Raspberry Mojito Murder: A Donut Hole Cozy Mystery - Book 20 (5 page)

“Thanks for meeting with us on such
short notice,” Colleen said and sat down on the sofa. The same spot Lilly sat
whenever she came for slumber parties and movie nights.

Bill slid in beside his wife and
placed his palms on his knees. “We think it’s important to keep you in the loop
with regards to our plans for the future.”

“And we appreciate that,” Ryan
replied.

Heather sat down beside him on her
favorite spot, then patted the space beside her. Ryan joined her and placed his
arm around her shoulders. He squeezed once and gave her a tight smile, concern
etched into the lines around his mouth and eyes.

“So, what do you need to discuss with
us?” Heather asked.

Bill and Colleen exchanged a glance.
“Lilly,” they said, together.

Ryan shifted and released his grip on
Heather. He placed his palms together and leaned forward. “What about her?”

“Well, you know we’ve been thinking
about leaving Hillside,” Colleen replied. “That’s a consideration we’ve been
taking seriously.”

“Yeah, we’ve gone over all the options
multiple times. We warned you beforehand for a reason.”

“Warned us,” Heather said, and she
bristled instantly. She calmed herself and shut her mouth. Anger wouldn’t help
in this situation. They had to hear the ‘foster folks’ out.

“We’ve made our decision with regards
to moving away from Hillside,” Colleen said, after a minute.

Heather chewed the insides of her
cheeks. Fear screamed around in her stomach and twisted up her throat. She
couldn’t lose Lilly. Heather glanced at the side of her husband’s face. They
couldn’t lose Lilly.

“We’ve decided we’re going to move
away from Hillside.” Bill’s tone spoke of finality.

“But,” Colleen said, and raised her
finger. “We know that Lilly doesn’t want to leave and that she’s attached to
you two.”

“And Dave,” Heather said. “And Amy.
And everyone at Donut Delights. You can’t do this to her.” She snapped her
mouth shut to keep from saying more, but the damage was done.

It was Bill’s turn to bristle. His
neck reddened and he cleared his throat. “We’re not trying to harm Lilly. Quite
the opposite. We’ve felt for a long time that Hillside is not the right place
to raise a child.”

Colleen bobbed her chin up and down.
“The murders –”

“Let me assure you that the murder
rate in Hillside is no higher than any other town its size across the country,”
Ryan replied, smoothly. He hadn’t broken a sweat.

Heather swallowed and tried to ease
her nerves. She practiced her yoga breathing.

“Whatever the case may be,” Colleen
said. “We’ve come to talk about a few things with you. Options.”

“What kind of options?” Heather asked.

Bill sighed and scraped his palms down
the sides of his face.

“Bill doesn’t agree with me on this.
He doesn’t want to lose Lilly or stand to lose her, whatever happens, but I convinced
him otherwise.”

“I’ll change my mind if you don’t
hurry this up,” Bill replied, in a low grunt. He stared at a point on the wall
and tapped the heels of his shoes on the floor boards.

“Lilly is a foster child. I believe
she deserves a choice,” Colleen said. “She should be able to choose who she
wants to live with in this case.”

It would take too long to find Lilly
another loving home in Hillside. She’d be in the system again and pushed
through to who knew which family. Panic set in and Heather shifted to the edge
of the sofa. “She needs to be in a good home.”

“We have a good home,” Bill snapped.

“Please,” Colleen said and raised her
palm. “Everyone just calm down and let me get to the point, for goodness sake.”

The room fell silent, except for Dave,
who sat in the corner and scratched beneath his collar. He wouldn’t miss this
meeting for the world, of course.

“Would you two be willing to foster
Lilly if she chose to live with you?” Colleen asked.

Heather’s insides exploded into a
state of hope, joy, confusions and every other emotion in the book. Thoughts
collided in her mind and rushed through her soul. Lilly, with them?

She turned to Ryan and grasped his
arm. She dug her fingernails into his skin. “Please,” she said. That was all
she had to say.

“Yeah, we would be interested in
fostering Lilly,” Ryan replied.

Tears pricked the corners of Heather’s
eyes.

“Ridiculous,” Bill muttered.

They ignored him.

“All right,” Colleen replied. “I want
to do what’s best for Lilly, and I don’t think that ripping her out of the town
she was born in, and the school she knows will help her in the long run.
However, it’s not my decision.”

Heather nodded. This was fair – she
certainly hadn’t expected it from Colleen and Bill.

“This is Lilly’s decision. So, I’m
going to tell her all about it this evening and ask her if she wants me to
organize a meeting with Pamela and you guys, to set this up.” Colleen took a
handkerchief out of her pocket and dabbed at her eyes. “I love that girl, but
if this is what’s best for her, then this is what we have to do.”

Bill rose and stormed from the room.
The front door slammed a moment later.

“Thank you for talking to us about
this,” Heather said, and her voice cracked. “I can understand this is hard for
you two.”

Colleen gulped and nodded. “We made
this choice, and we knew that we might have to do something like this. I just
want to make sure that whatever happens is right for Lilly.”

Ryan pulled Heather into an embrace,
and she rested her head on his shoulder.

Colleen rose from the sofa. “I’ll be
in touch,” she said, then waved once and walked out of the room. Dave jogged
out into the hall after her, probably to make sure she found the way out.

“Is this really happening?” Heather
asked.

Ryan swallowed. His voice hummed in
his chest and throat. “Boy, I sure hope so. It’s all up to Lilly, now.”

Amy squealed and gripped her knees.
“Are you serious?” She bobbled around on the sofa and faced Heather. “And you
waited this long to tell me?”

Heather paused the documentary on
Emperor Penguins. “Nothing is set in stone, Ames. Colleen still has to talk to
Lilly about this, and there’s the chance that she won’t want to stay – ”

“Oh please,” Amy said and rolled her
eyes. “There’s no way Lilly will choose them over you guys.”

Heather rose from her seat and grabbed
a donut off the coffee table. “It’s not about them or us. It’s about what’s
best for Lilly.”

“Yeah, of course.” Amy snatched up a
donut too and bit into it. A drop of raspberry jelly slid from the corner of
her mouth and landed in her lap. “But she’s going to pick you guys, anyway.”

“Don’t jinx it,” Heather replied.

She took a bite of her donut and the
raspberry, and mint flavors melded together. Perfection. Her stomach still
turned. Nerves had wrecked her thoughts. She couldn’t concentrate on the case,
the opening next week or anything else.

“Don’t freak out about it. That’s all
I’m saying. What will be, will be,” Amy said. “Oh gosh, now I sound like my
mother.”

Heather snorted and slurped a blob of
raspberry jelly off her fingertips.

A knock rattled her front door, and
she frowned. She checked her watch and readjusted it on her arm. “It’s past 9
pm.”

“Mystery knows no time limit,” Amy
replied, and raised her fist like Superwoman.

The knock came again, and Dave bounded
off the sofa in a flurry of barks and howls. He scrabbled into the hall and
bumped right into the front door.

“Shepherd, you in there?” A man
yelled.

“That’s always a good sign,” Amy
muttered.

Heather strode out of the living room
and into the entrance hall. She nudged Dave aside with her toes, then unlocked
the front door. She paused and narrowed her eyes. “Who’s there?” She called
out.

“It’s Peter Hill.”

Amy appeared in the hall and opened
Heather’s handbag. She reached in, then brought out the Taser and raised it.
“I’ve got this.”

Heather stifled a chuckle. She pulled
the door open and met Peter Hill’s gaze.

And boy did that gaze brim with anger.
“Heather Shepherd,” he said.

“You say that like it’s bad thing.”
Amy lifted the Taser and waggled it. “This had better be a polite visit, Mr.
Hill. I’ve got a donut in the other room with my name on it, and I don’t have
time to waste on rude people.”

Peter Hill’s shoulders sagged a
little, and he flapped his mouth open and closed.

“Do you need something, Mr. Hill?”
Heather asked. She hadn’t seen this guy in days. What could she have done to
anger him?

Peter regained his composure. He
sniffed and glared at her again. “Yeah, I heard you’ve been messing around with
my family.”

“Pardon me?” Heather scratched her
hairline and inhaled to grant herself patience.

She had a family of her own to worry
about. A potential new family member. Dave growled at Peter and barked, once.

Peter Hill puffed his chest out. “You
have been harassing my family members, and I’ve come here to tell you to leave
them alone.”

“I haven’t harassed anyone, Mr. Hill.
I have, however, been investigating on behalf of the Hillside Police Department.
Is that a problem for you?” Heather asked.

Peter’s eyes widened. “I, you, what?”

“Yeah, that’s right. She’s a
consultant. An investigator,” Amy replied, and waggled the Taser. “Isn’t this
interfering with the course of justice? Maybe we should call the police.”

“No,” Heather said, swiftly. “No, we
won’t do that.” Heather twitched the door open a bit more. “Mr. Hill, I
understand you’re protective over your family, believe me. I know what that’s
like. But I’m not harassing them nor would I ever.”

“But Katie said –”

“Katie Hill screamed at me and tore up
crucial evidence in the murder case of Quick Paul Jackson. She’s lucky she
didn’t get arrested,” Heather replied, smoothly.

Peter’s jaw worked, but no sound came
from his mouth. He didn’t have a retort for that.

Amy folded her arms and made a noise
in her throat. “Maybe check your facts next time before you bang down someone’s
door.”

Peter fluffed the tufts of gray hair
which encircled his head, then nodded once. “All right. Just, you stay away
from them, you hear? I don’t want to get a call like that again. Katie was in
tears and Jeremy, well he wouldn’t complain even if he was under torture. Just,
be good to them.”

Peter Hill turned and shuffled off the
porch, then down Heather’s short from the pathway and to his car.

“Wow,” Amy said. “Is everyone in
Hillside crazy?”

Heather swung the door shut, then
locked it. “I dunno. You tell me. We live here too.” She glanced down, and ice
dropped into her stomach. “Uh oh.”

“What is it?”

“Where did Dave go?” Heather asked.

“No,” Amy whispered. “No, no, no.
Dave! You get away from those donuts.” She turned dropped, the Taser in
Heather’s bag, then sprinted down the hall and into the living room.

“Here we go,” Heather muttered. 

“Dave, you total pig! Heather, you’ve
got to get in here. It’s carnage. There’s raspberry jam everywhere. And mint
glaze. And, wait a second, when did we make chocolate – oh. That’s not
chocolate.”

Heather grimaced. “I’ll get the
towels.”

“Never mind the towels, bring a
shovel. Bring detergent. Heck, bring a cleaning service.” Amy’s voice broke
from the pressure of holding back her mirth.

“Are there any donuts left?”

“How could you even ask that
question?” Amy retorted.

Heather sighed and set off toward the
kitchen. At least she’d only left two of them on the coffee table.

Peter Hill’s suburb was quiet on a
Friday morning, apart from the distant laughter of a couple of kids. The sun
had come out in full force and chased off the remains of the clouds.

Heather adjusted her handbag on her
shoulder and strode down the sidewalk. Amy scuttled along beside her and
glanced up and down the road.

“This is like a secret operation,” she
whispered.

“Not really. We’re just going to pay
the old man a visit and ask him a couple of questions. It’s hardly espionage.”
Heather tucked her hair behind her ear.

Last night’s outburst from Peter Hill
had set her sleuthin’ cogs in motion again. He’d been so out there, so crazed
to confront her about interviewing his daughter-in-law.

And that made her wonder what other
crazy feats he’d achieved.

“Ryan got me the address,” Heather
said and checked the number she’d scrawled on the back of her palm on her way
out of the house that morning. “So, it should be good.”

They hurried along for another minute,
then took a sharp left and entered another street. Trees dotted the sidewalk
and sprawling suburban homes peered out from behind fences and verdant gardens.

“Boy, somebody has money,” Amy
whispered.

Heather pressed a finger to her lips,
then pointed to the house across the road. “That’s his place.”

“His car is in the drive. I bet he’s
home, plotting his next verbal attack,” Amy replied.

Heather beckoned for her bestie to
follow, then strode across the road. She opened the low, white picket gate and
stormed up the garden path.

“She’s a woman on a mission,” Amy
said.

“Yeah, but I don’t need commentary to
get the mission done,” Heather replied, and stuck out her tongue.

Amy chuckled, and they took the stairs
together, two at a time. They halted in front of the door, and Heather raised
her fist. Amy placed her hand over it.

“What –?”

“At the end of the porch. Look,” Amy
whispered.

Heather turned her head and sucked in
a breath.

A man in a shabby coat, his back
toward her, bent over a box on the end of the porch. Scratching noises and the
shuffle of fabric filled the space between them and him.

“I swear, every time we go places
together, something weird happens,” Amy whispered. “I’m starting to think we’re
the weird ones.”

Heather patted her handbag, then
reached inside and brought out her Taser. She clicked off the safety and raised
it.

“Hello,” she said.

The man froze mid-rustle. His
shoulders stiffened beneath the shabby coat. He shifted his feet.

“Turn around, please.”

Amy grasped Heather’s free arm and
stared at the man’s back. “Creepy,” she breathed.

Heather resisted the urge to hum a
tune. Thriller by Michael Jackson, perhaps.

The man rose and rotated on the spot.
His beard appeared first, and then his beady eyes.

“Geoff.” Heather exhaled.

“This is becoming a regular
occurrence,” Amy said and rolled her eyes. She released Heather’s arm and
strode toward the beast of a man. “What on earth are you doing here?”

Geoff’s gaze shifted from the women to
his left.

Heather peered past him at the box on
the corner of the porch. Diapers poked out of the top of it, at odd angles.
“You expecting a child, Geoff?” Heather asked.

Amy snorted and pressed her fist to
her nose.

“I know he’s up to something. The
father. I bet it was him. He’s up to something, and I’m going to find out
what.” Geoff’s beard wobbled up and down.

Heather scratched the back of her
neck, then walked to Amy’s side. “I’m confused, Geoff. Is copying me your life’s
pursuit? You mirrored my store, and now you’re trying to take a hand in my
investigations.”

“Just trying to help.”

Heather arched an eyebrow. “By rifling
through another man’s possessions?”

“They aren’t his,” Geoff hissed. “They
belong to the guy who wants to sell them. There’s something weird –” He cut off
and cocked his head in the direction of the window directly across from them.
“Go!”

He sprinted to the end of the porch,
then vaulted over the railing and careened into a rose bush. Geoff Lawless
groaned and twitched on the ground. He scrambled around in the dirt for a
second, then righted himself and loped off to the fence.

Heather turned her attention to the
box of diapers and bent over it. She lifted one and ran her forefinger over the
tab on the front. “Diaper Pop,” she said.

“Wait, why does Jeremy’s father have
Diaper Pops on his front porch?” Amy asked.

Heather bit her bottom lip and turned
the box around. A delivery notice hung skew on the cardboard, flapping in the
wind. Heather tore it off and read it. “Yeah, these were ordered by Peter Hill.
He bought the diapers, all right. But why?”

“I don’t know, but maybe we’d better
leave. I think he’s probably home and if Geoff’s rose-squishing incident didn’t
get his attention then –”

“Yeah, all right.” Heather said. She
dropped the delivery notice on top of the box, then walked to the front stairs.
“I don’t think we’ll get anything new out of Peter. I’m not sure we need to.”

“I bet he bought those diapers to
support his son’s business.” Amy hurried ahead and opened the gate for them.
“He seems like that kind of guy.”

Heather hit the sidewalk and turned
left. Her brow wrinkled, and she clicked her tongue. “But that begs the question,
why did he need to support his son’s business in that way?”

“What do you mean?”

“Surely, he could’ve helped out in
another way. Maybe, things were so bad at Diaper Pop that Peter tried to inject
some money to help his son,” Heather said.

Amy looped her arm through Heather’s.
“Yeah, maybe Jeremy didn’t want a handout from his dad, and that was the only
way for Peter to help. Nice guy.”

“I need to speak to Ryan about this,”
Heather said and set her jaw.

She had evidence against Katie and
motive for Jeremy, but nothing solid. Nothing that would confirm who had
murdered Quick Paul.

“Something missing,” she mumbled under
her breath. “Always something missing.”

Amy clapped her on the back. “You’ll
get to the bottom of it, Shepherd. You always do.”

“I guess. This week has just been
weird. No Donut Delights, no Eva. Ugh, I miss Angelica, Maricela, Ken and
Jung.”

“So, let’s get together and do
something on Sunday. How does that sound?” Amy asked.

Heather grinned. “Like the best idea
I’ve ever heard.”