Deadly Donuts (7 page)

“That sounds great,” I said.
 
“Who should we talk to first?”

“Suzanne, I’m not at all certain that my sources will be forthcoming if you’re with me.
 
Some of the officers I need to speak with may be a little reticent to share what they know around a civilian.”

“Let me get this straight,” I said, being sure to keep my voice calm and level as I spoke.
 
“The first thing you’re going to do on our joint investigation is leave me behind, is that right?
 
I’m not sure that I like the way this is headed.”

My boyfriend took my hands in his as he said, “Suzanne, you’ve told me on more than one occasion that folks around here will tell you things that they won’t tell law enforcement.
 
Well, that cuts both ways.
 
A great many cops will tell me things that they would never dream of sharing with you.”

“So then we’re going our separate ways after all?”
 
I didn’t like the sound of that at all.

“Don’t look at it that way.
 
We’re both trying to solve a murder.
 
We’ll compare notes at the end of every day, and if there’s something I can bring you in on my end of it, I promise you that I’ll do it.”

I thought about what Jake had just said, and though it made sense on one level, I hated the idea of being shut out of my own investigation.
 
Still, what choice did I have?
 

“Okay.
 
You work the proper police angles, and Grace and I will snoop on our own.”

“Have you even asked her to help you yet?” Jake asked.

“No, but I doubt that she’ll protest the idea.
 
Grace’s hours are pretty flexible, and she hasn’t turned me down yet.
 
Knowing that my father is involved, I’d be amazed if she didn’t drop everything to lend a hand with the investigation.
 
She was a big fan of my dad’s, and the feeling was mutual.
 
Grace wouldn’t like to see my dad’s reputation tarnished in any way, and I know that she wouldn’t want to see Momma accused of murder.
 
She’ll help.”

Jake nodded, and then he asked me, “Will you check in with me every hour so we aren’t working at cross purposes?”

His look of sincerity was so cute that it was almost hard to tell him the truth.
 
“Of course not,” I answered with a grin.
 
“When Grace and I are investigating a case, we almost
never
seem to know where our leads end up, and we have to follow them wherever they go.”

“All that I’m asking is that you keep me informed,” he said a little sullenly.
 
“It’s not like you have to ask me for permission or anything before you do something.”

A full and throaty laugh escaped my lips before I could stop it.

“What’s so funny?” Jake asked me.

“I find it amusing that particular thought would even enter your mind.”
 
I kissed his cheek, and then I said, “Go do your digging, and Grace and I will start with ours.
 
I promise that I’ll call you if we find anything significant, and I’d appreciate it if you’d do the same.
 
We can meet back up at the cottage for dinner tonight and discuss what we’ve been up to.
 
Does that sound good to you?”

“It does.
 
Are you sure you don’t mind if we handle things this way?”

“Jake, whatever clears my mother of suspicion and saves my father’s reputation is a-okay with me.”

He didn’t return my smile.
 
Instead, after a full ten seconds, he asked, “Suzanne, there’s something else that we need to discuss.”

“I’m listening,” I said.

With great reluctance, he asked me, “What if I discover that what Morgan Briar claimed was true in the course of my investigation?
 
Do you really
want
to know what happened?”

“I do,” I said without a moment’s hesitation.
 
“I’m not saying that it’s not going to be painful to hear, but I have to know the truth about my father, Jake.
 
I’m a grown woman; I can take it.”

“And your mother as well?”

“She can handle it, too.”

“That’s not what I meant,” Jake said.

“I know that, but I’m pretending to believe that it was.
 
There’s no doubt in my mind that my mother loved my father, but there’s no way she would kill to protect his memory.”

“I hope you’re right,” Jake answered solemnly.

“You can count on it.”
 
Things were strained between us at the moment, and I hated the feeling.
 
I kissed him soundly, and then added, “Now go do some unofficial police work.
 
And Jake?”

“Yes?”

“Thanks for helping.
 
It means a lot to me.”

“There’s nothing else I’d rather be doing in the world,” he said, and then he headed for his car.

As he did, I grabbed my telephone and called Grace.

She answered on the first ring.
 
“That’s spooky, Suzanne.
 
I was just about to call you,” she said.

“I’ve told you before, we have some kind of eerie psychic bond.
 
Are you free right now?”

“For you?
 
Absolutely,” Grace said.
 
That was one of the things I loved about her; she was always ready to throw herself into my cases.

“How would you feel about doing a little investigating with me?
 
Is there room in your schedule by any chance?”

“After I fell asleep on you this morning and left you holding the bag alone?
 
You’d better believe that I can make time for you,” she said.
 
“I just got back in, so I’ll do
whatever
you ask me to.
 
I
still
can’t believe that I wasn’t there for you when you needed me.”

“Grace, stop apologizing, okay?
 
If it had been me, I would have probably fallen asleep myself.
 
We’re good.”

“No way.
 
You wouldn’t have dozed off like I did, no matter how much you protest otherwise.
 
Where should we start?”

“I was thinking that a drive to Union Square might be in order.
 
We need to find out all we can about the Briar brothers, and we’ve got the best resource there is in town to tap into.”

“We’re going to go see the DeAngelis ladies, aren’t we?”

“I can’t think of a better place to start, and while we’re there, maybe we can get a bite to eat, too.”

“You don’t have to sell me on Napoli’s,” she said.
 
“I’ll pick you up in three minutes.”

“You’d better make it ten,” I said as I glanced at my watch.
 
I had to help Emma finish closing up for the day.

“Ten it is.
 
See you soon.”

I’d have to tell her about Jake joining our team on the way to Union Square, but at the moment, I had cleaning to do.

The only problem was that someone else had her own agenda.

I looked down the street, and Gabby Williams was walking toward me with a stride that told me that she wasn’t approaching me for a social visit.

“Suzanne, do you have any fans?”

“I’d like to think that some folks love my donuts enough to call themselves fans,” I said.
 
“I’m sure that you have admirers yourself, Gabby.”
 
She ran a gently used clothing store called ReNEWed, and her business was the closest to my donut shop.
 
That made us de facto neighbors, but it didn’t mean that I still didn’t have to watch my step around her.
 
Gabby had the fastest, and the sharpest, tongue in all of April Springs, and it was
never
a good idea to cross her.

“Not that kind of fan, you nit,” she said with a hint of aggravation in her voice.
 
“My air conditioning went out at the shop and I’m roasting.”

That was serious indeed.
 
With the heat wave we were experiencing, there was no way a customer would stay in an unairconditioned spot any longer than they had to.
 
“Have you called someone about it?”

“Yes, for all the good that it will do me.
 
Since Tim died, I’ve had a devil of a time finding a decent repairman.”

I knew too well what she meant.
 
Tim had met an untimely fate near my cottage, and every time I walked past the Patriot’s Tree, I glanced up at it with trepidation, remembering seeing his body swaying in the breeze.
 
“Come on in.
 
I think I have a few box fans stored in back, and you’re welcome to use them as long as you’d like.”

“I appreciate that,” she said as she followed me into Donut Hearts.

Emma was just finished cleaning up the display cases, and she was about to say something when she saw that Gabby was with me.
 
“Good morning, Gabby,” she said.
 
“May I get you something?
 
Coffee, perhaps?”

“It’s a thousand degrees in my store.
 
Coffee is the last thing I need right now, young lady,” Gabby replied.

“How about some ice water, then?” I asked.

“That would be more appropriate,” Gabby said.
 
“Emma can get the water for me while you’re retrieving those fans.”

I winked at my assistant as I headed for the back and found the fans in short order.
 
As I carried them back to the front, I heard Emma say, “I belong right here, at least for now.”

Leave it to Gabby to poke and prod, no matter how little time she had for being nosy.

“Here you go,” I said as I grabbed a clean rag.
 
“Let me just dust these off for you.”

“I can do it myself,” Gabby said as she reached for the fans.
 
“Why exactly do you have these on hand?”

“Don’t you remember my last summer experiment?”
 
I knew that she did, since her complaints had been the main reason I’d stopped.
 
The year before, in a summer that was much milder than the one we were going through at the moment, I’d propped the fans near the counter and opened the front door, hoping that the smell of donuts would be enough to draw customers inside.
 
I didn’t know if it would have worked one way or the other, because Gabby had insisted that I was contributing to the growing air pollution that only she seemed to be able to sense.

“Ah yes, how could I forget when all of April Springs smelled as though a donut factory had just blown up.”

I decided to take the high road and let that one go, mainly because Grace would be on her way soon, and I had work to do before she arrived.
 
“Here you go.
 
I hope they help.”

Gabby seemed to take my capitulation with more curiosity than grace, but in a moment, she was gone, along with the box fans, and I got back to business.
 

As Emma and I cleaned, I asked, “It didn’t take her long to take a jab at you, did it?”

Emma just grinned.
 
“I didn’t mind.
 
I’ve kind of come to expect it from folks around here, to be honest with you.”

I hadn’t realized that Emma had been taking such a beating around town about her decision to come back home to April Springs.
 
“Has it really been that bad?”

“Don’t worry about it. It’s nothing I can’t handle,” Emma said.
 
It was clear she didn’t want to discuss it.
 
Fine.
 
If she changed her mind, she knew that I was always there for her.

“How do things stand in back?” I asked as I wiped down the last stretch of counter.

“We’re nearly ready to close.
 
If you balance the register, I can finish everything else up.”

“That’s a deal,” I said.

I ran the reports I needed, counted the money in the till, and when I was finished, I was happy to have everything balance out perfectly.
 
It wasn’t that unusual to be off a nickel or so every now and then, but I loved it when everything worked out.
 
It so rarely did in the life of a small businesswoman.

I was just finishing up the deposit slip when there was a knock at the front door.
 
I looked up to see that Grace was standing there with a smile.

As I let her in, Emma came out from the back.
 
“Suzanne, what should I do with the extra donuts today?
 
Oh, hi, Grace.”

“Hi right back at you,” Grace said.

“How many are we talking about, Emma?” I asked.

“Two baker’s dozens,” she said.
 

I figured that twenty-six extra donuts wasn’t that bad.
 
“Do you have any use for them yourself?”

“Sorry,” she said.
 
“My mother’s got Dad on a diet, and if I slip him any more goodies, I’m going to be in some serious trouble with her.”