Death of a Kitchen Diva (Hayley Powell Food and Cocktail Mysteries) (24 page)

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Authors: Lee Hollis

BOOK: Death of a Kitchen Diva (Hayley Powell Food and Cocktail Mysteries)
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Chapter 38
 
The throbbing in her head made Hayley want to slip back into unconsciousness, but there was an imminent sense of danger, and she forced herself to open her eyes.
Everything was blurry, and it was hard for her to focus, and she felt nauseous, almost as if she were seasick.
There was an incessant chugging sound and the smell of gasoline.
Her head was resting against what she thought was an orange pillow, but as she tried to sit up, she realized it was a life jacket.
She was on the floor of a boat.
It was the Sundancer, which had been tied to the dock back at the Hollingsworth estate.
Hayley lifted her head. She was out at sea, Mount Desert Island a tiny speck in the distance fading away to nothing as they continued their journey. When she turned around to see who was driving the boat, she shuddered.
There he was. A sick, satisfied smile on his face.
Travis Hollingsworth. Edgar’s grandson.
“Time to get up, sleepy head,” he said, smirking.
Hayley rubbed her head. She was in a lot of pain. She noticed next to her feet a tire iron. It didn’t belong on a boat, so she surmised that was probably what he’d used to knock her out.
She tried to stand up but it was impossible. Her feet were tied to sandbags.
Hayley looked ahead at the dark and foreboding vast ocean. The boat kept cutting through the choppy waves, heading farther and farther out. Travis’s plan was suddenly clear. He had no intention of ever letting her see shore again. He was going to dump her overboard, the bags dragging her down, and she would never be heard from again.
“Got it all figured out finally?”
“Yes,” Hayley said, practically spitting out the word. She was kicking herself for not putting all the pieces together earlier. She might have saved herself from this fate. “Your parents died in a plane crash years ago. I remember reading about it when I was in high school.”
“I was a little kid. I don’t even remember them.”
“It made you Edgar’s sole heir. He’s been spoiling you for years. You’ve never even had a real job. Basically you’ve just been biding your time waiting for him to die. Because when he does, you will become one of the richest men in Bar Harbor overnight. For doing nothing.”
“That’s right. And everything was going according to plan until Granddaddy started sneaking around seeing that ridiculous Anna Nicole Smith–wannabe, Karen Applebaum! I couldn’t believe it! I mean, what did he see in her? She wasn’t even a stripper with platinum dyed hair and silicone enhancements! She was a mousy nothing with a stupid cooking column!”
“Some men look a little deeper,” Hayley said. “But not you. Your grandfather falling in love wasn’t something you had counted on. Your entire future was in jeopardy. You were scared as hell you would lose everything, so you had to act,” Hayley said.
“That’s right. And then you came along. Perfect timing,” he said.
“You knew Karen and I were feuding. It was all over town. So you showed up at Karen’s house, I’m guessing on the pretense of making peace with her and to toast her upcoming nuptials to Edgar.”
“Good guess.”
“Karen’s Kitty Cam was set up in the living room so it didn’t catch you two in the kitchen where you spiked her clam chowder with cyanide.”
“She was so happy for me to try it. I pretended to have a spoonful when her back was turned. I raved about it. In her mind we were suddenly allies. She had no idea. And then she dove into her own bowl, gulping it down while I watched. And after a few minutes, she started having convulsions and her face turned white, and she clawed at her throat, and I’d be lying if I didn’t say I enjoyed watching every damn minute of it, watching as she sank to the floor and stopped breathing. I felt so relieved she was finally out of the picture.”
“And then you sent me an e-mail, presumably from Karen, asking me to come over,” Hayley said. “That was your way to get me to the crime scene so I would automatically fall under suspicion.”
Travis smiled. “Worked like a charm.”
“You wiped your prints off Karen’s computer to cover your tracks. And later, you managed to quietly slip a vial of the poison in my bag to further implicate me. It was at the funeral! You bumped into me on purpose! It gave you the opportunity to plant the cyanide on me!”
“All the fingers were pointing at you. Nobody knew Granddaddy and Karen were dating except for a few of the employees at the estate, Lex included, but they weren’t going to talk if they wanted to keep their jobs. The cops would never make any kind of connection.”
“But then Edgar got sentimental and sent flowers to Karen’s funeral, and he had Lex place the order,” Hayley said.
“Yes,” Travis said, clenching his fists angrily. “Stupid, stupid, stupid! I knew you were hell-bent on clearing your name and that you were running all over town asking questions and it made me nervous. I was afraid you would trace those flowers back to Lex and then to Granddaddy and then to me and I couldn’t let that happen.”
“So you followed me into the park that night when I was jogging with my dog and took a few potshots at me hoping to scare me off,” Hayley said.
“Yeah, I wasn’t really trying to kill you. Honestly, I didn’t think you would put it all together. But now you have. And so it’s time for you to disappear.”
Travis cut the engine. The boat floated aimlessly in the water, bobbing up and down.
Hayley’s stomach was doing flip-flops.
She was dizzy. Her head still ached. Her throat was dry and she felt weak.
She didn’t have a lot of fight left in her.
Travis stepped away from the wheel and stomped over to her, towering over her, staring down, his smile gone, his face now a reflection of brutal determination. He reached down and grabbed Hayley.
She screamed.
Chapter 39
 
Travis was young and muscled and strong. Hayley was no match for him. She went to scratch at his eyes, but he anticipated the move and grabbed her by the wrists. Then he spun her around, and locked his arms around her, pinning her. He dragged her closer to the edge of the boat. Hayley leaned forward and then threw her head back as hard as she could.
The back of her head slammed into Travis’s face. She heard a crunching sound like Travis’s nose breaking and he growled in pain. He was sniffling, like his nose was bleeding, but Hayley couldn’t be sure.
Then she heard his low scratchy voice whispering in her ear.
“Don’t fight it. You’re already dead.”
This only made Hayley fight harder. She kicked up her feet and pressed them against the side of the boat as he tried to get her close enough to hurl her body overboard. He gripped her tighter, like a sack of potatoes, and leaned his weight forward, trying to force her legs to give out so he could manage her more easily.
But this proved impossible, and finally he released her.
Hayley stumbled, and fell back down to the deck. She got on her hands and knees and scurried away from him, trying to drag the sandbags along behind her.
When she spun around to see where Travis was, he was fast approaching, the tire iron clenched in his fist. He had decided she would be easier to dispose of if she was unconscious. Or already dead.
He raised the iron, ready to crash it down upon
her
head.
Hayley covered the top of her head with her arms in a desperate attempt to protect herself.
Suddenly she heard the sound of an engine. It was faint at first, but with each passing second it got louder and louder.
Travis heard it, too. He lowered the tire iron and strained to hear where it was coming from.
Hayley pushed away from Travis, and scrambled to her feet in time to see a lobster boat cut through the thick fog. She recognized it immediately.
It was Mona’s boat!
And she could make out Captain Mona, behind the wheel, with one of her kids strapped to her chest in a moss-colored baby carrier. Liddy was onboard, too, hunched over the side, throwing up, horribly seasick.
Travis wasn’t about to give up. He raised the tire iron again, in one last attempt to crush Hayley’s skull.
Mona saw what was happening and threw forward the throttle, and her lobster boat barreled into the side of Travis’s Sundancer.
Both he and Hayley lost their balance and toppled over from the impact.
Travis still held onto the tire iron, and wasn’t about to be stopped by a couple of soccer moms. He crawled back to his feet, trying to get a solid foothold, brandishing his weapon, his eyes filled with fury, ready to cause some serious damage.
But Mona was having none of it. By now, she had unstrapped her kid and handed him off to Liddy, and was leaping onto the Sundancer with a lobster buoy. Before Travis had a chance to turn his head to face her, she brought the buoy down on his skull so hard, he dropped the tire iron and it clanged to the deck of the boat.
Before Hayley had a chance to take a breath, Travis Hollingsworth pitched forward and collapsed facedown, unconscious.
“You all right?” Mona asked, dropping the buoy and helping Hayley back to her feet.
“Yes. Am I glad to see you guys.”
Liddy was still in the midst of projectile vomiting into the sea while holding Mona’s kid under one arm.
“I told her to stay ashore but you know how she is,” Mona said, smiling. “Can’t miss anything.”
“How did you find me?”
“We got worried after you sent that text and we didn’t want you going over to the Hollingsworth estate alone,” Mona said. “So we drove over in my truck just in time to see Travis pulling away from the dock in his boat. Mr. Hollingsworth told us you had left, but your car was still there, so we put two and two together. The only way we could have missed you leaving was if you left by boat, so we figured you were with Travis. So we drove over to the town pier where my boat was anchored and set out to cut him off.”
“You were just in time, believe me,” Hayley said, hugging her.
More boats approached. Coast Guard boats. Sergio stood at the bow of one of them, clutching a bullhorn.
“Hayley, are you all right?” he called.
Hayley gave Sergio a thumbs-up.
“We called him, too, and he decided you were important enough to bring in his Coast Guard buddies,” Mona said.
“Wow, I feel so special.”
“It isn’t every day a local celebrity gets kidnapped.”
“I just have one question,” Hayley said.
“Shoot,” Mona said.
“Why on earth did you bring little Reese with you?” Hayley said, pointing to Mona’s youngest—at least for another few months—boy.
“Do you know how hard it is getting a babysitter on such short notice? If I took the time to call around, you’d already be fish food.”
“Can somebody please take him? I think he just took a dump in his diaper and I’m already sick enough,” Liddy wailed as she held the crying baby out as far from her nose as she possibly could.
Hayley was more than happy to climb aboard Mona’s lobster boat and take Mona’s youngest away from Liddy, who leaned over the side again to wretch some more.
Hayley watched as Sergio and a few Coast Guard officers boarded the Sundancer and handcuffed a still-unconscious Travis before carrying him to the side and handing him over to some sailors who hauled him aboard the Coast Guard vessel.
Hayley bounced baby Reese in her arms, relieved and happy, and secure in the knowledge that this whole nightmare was finally over.
Chapter 40
 
Hayley was front page news in the next issue of the
Island Times.
Actually, she was front page news in the
Bar Harbor Herald,
and in most of the state of Maine’s other major newspapers as well. The sordid details of Karen Applebaum’s murder and the fact that the perpetrator had such a famous last name as Hollingsworth drew a lot of attention to the case.
And Hayley’s role in unmasking the killer was played up to the hilt.
Her phone rang off the hook with requests for interviews, but Hayley declined all of them, even her own paper’s, which didn’t quite sit well with Sal. But he understood she wanted to try and maintain as low a profile as she possibly could.
Gemma and Dustin, on the other hand, relished their roles as the offspring of such a famed kitchen-loving crime solver. Gemma made no secret of the fact that she had accompanied her mother to the flower shop and was instrumental in helping her crack the case, while Dustin had begun work on a new comic book hero who was a mother by day and caped crusader by night. His drawings of the fearless heroine bore an uncanny resemblance to Hayley, who, according to the author, “Saved the world to put food on the table!” He was counting on his mother’s newfound notoriety to help him get his first comic book published. Hayley admired her son’s ingenuity.
Liddy was another one who played up her role as part of the investigative team. Unlike Hayley, she gave interview after interview, detailing her suspicions about Travis Hollingsworth all along, and how she was ever present and gently pushed Hayley in the right direction.
Mona, on the other hand, had no use for publicity of any kind, and hung up the phone on anyone who dared to call and interrupt her watching repeats of Discovery Channel’s
Deadliest Catch.
She had no interest in the hysteria surrounding the solution to Karen’s murder and refused to speak about her thrilling rescue of Hayley on the high seas.
Sal was over the moon because thanks to Hayley’s connection to the murder and the fact that she was a regular columnist, sales of the
Island Times
shot through the roof. He was absolutely giddy that he had lucked into such a coup, but that still wasn’t enough for him to cough up more money for Hayley’s extra workload and newfound star status.
Like Mona, Bruce Linney chose to ignore all the hullabaloo, but for an entirely different reason. Everyone knew he was dying inside, being the town’s self-proclaimed “premier crime reporter” and not having cracked the case himself. It was a blow to his reputation, though he tried to cover his devastation by trumpeting his latest scoop, snagging an interview with the juvenile delinquent who broke into Razor Rick’s Barber Shop.
And then there was Lex Bansfield.
Poor Lex had vanished after all the speculation about his involvement in the Karen Applebaum case. He was extremely embarrassed about the details of his past criminal record in Vermont making the rounds in town, so he stuck to his chores on the Hollingsworth estate, and spent much of his free time comforting his boss, Edgar Hollingsworth, who was heartbroken over his grandson’s betrayal, and whose poor health got even worse over the stress.
So that long talked-about date was probably out of the question.
But Hayley had been wrong about a lot of things during the course of her amateur investigation and, as it turned out, she was wrong about Lex, too.
Her heart skipped a beat when he strolled into the front office of the
Island Times
a few days later, and marched right up to Hayley’s desk.
“So when are we finally going out?” he asked.
Hayley just sat there, trying to get over the shock of seeing him hover over her, his arms folded, waiting for her to answer him.
“You mean on a date?”
“Of course I mean on a date. Don’t you think you’ve kept me waiting long enough?”
“Well, I ... it’s just that I thought ...”
Hayley noticed Bruce standing in the doorway to the back offices, watching her intently, waiting expectantly for her to turn Lex down flat.
She almost did, because she was still a little uncomfortable with his checkered past in Vermont.
But here was this guy, this handsome and low-key man, who was putting himself out there, taking the risk of getting shot down yet again, and she asked herself why.
Maybe it was because Lex Bansfield really did like her. Maybe he sensed something special could develop between them, which was why he was so persistent. And if she wasn’t smart enough to see it herself, she might as well put her trust in him.
“You think you can get us a table at Havana tonight, say around seven?”
“Already done.”
“My, you’re awfully confident.”
“That’s because I figure what are the odds you’ll get arrested again before we have a chance to drive to the restaurant?”
Touché.
Hayley glanced at Bruce, who glowered, as the blood drained from his face.
“Pick you up at six forty-five,” Lex said, and then he bounded out the door.
“Please don’t say a word, Bruce,” Hayley said.
“I’m sorry, Hayley, but like I said, I don’t trust the guy.”
“I know. And I appreciate your concern. But after thinking it over, I believe everybody deserves a second chance.”
“Fine. I get it. So when are you going to give me one?”
Before she could ask Bruce what he was talking about, he was gone. He had disappeared into the back.
Hayley had no intention of getting involved in an office romance. She had just lived through enough drama for the entire year, what with being accused of murder and nearly being dumped into the ocean by a murderous heir.
No, she needed to indulge in her favorite pastime—lounging on the couch watching the Lifetime Movie Network, with Leroy snoring softly into her oversize sweatshirt as she taste-tested a variety of dessert recipes for the column’s seventh course.
Oh, no. Her column.
She still hadn’t written her column.
The Karen Applebaum tribute.
But now, with all the questions answered, it didn’t seem so hard. It was true Karen had resented her for being fresh competition and had made her life miserable by accusing her of stealing recipes, but had Karen lived, Hayley was sure they would have settled into a healthy rivalry, all the brouhaha would have calmed down, and perhaps in time, the two of them might have even become friends.
Stranger things have happened.
Hayley began typing. And she was happy to be focusing on her column. Her days as an amateur sleuth were officially over.
Really.
What were the odds of her stumbling across another dead body?
Island Food & Spirits
 
by Hayley Powell
 
 
Well, we’ve finally reached the last course of our seven course meal, which, as I’m sure is no surprise to you, dear reader, happens to be my absolute favorite. The dessert course. I am so grateful you have stayed with me through these rather action packed weeks, and I appreciate your unwavering support during this very trying time.
This all began with a huge misunderstanding between me and the late Karen Applebaum. It was bound to happen with both of us being at different newspapers and thrown together as competitors in a town where having two newspapers can stir up quite a spirit of competition among folks.
But I know in my heart if Karen were still with us, we would have eventually resolved our differences and coexisted with mutual admiration and respect.
Because at the end of the day, we shared a common passion.
Food.
It was what drove us apart, and it was what I am convinced would have brought us together as friends. There are so many reasons we cook. To calm our nerves after a hectic day at the office. To serve our community, like with the recent library bake sale. But most importantly, and I think Karen would agree, we cook to show our love. To our family. To our loved ones. To our neighbors at a time of need. For those of us who love to cook, it’s a bond we share forever.
Some may believe that since Karen is physically no longer with us, her voice has been silenced. Well, I couldn’t disagree more. Karen will always be with us. And she will be speaking to us for generations through her recipes. The ones we all couldn’t wait to read every time the
Bar Harbor Herald
hit the stands.
So for our final course, I would like to share one of Karen’s favorites, her cherries jubilee pie. I’m sure her many loyal fans out there remember this one as a true Applebaum classic.
And speaking of loyal fans, I received a letter today from one of Karen’s most devoted readers. He suggested this particular recipe close out our seven course meal. He didn’t want his name mentioned, but you know me, I can’t keep a secret. So I dedicate this column to Karen’s ex-husband, Martin, who, despite what you may have heard, felt blessed to have known her. And I share with you his closing words about Karen, a fitting tribute if you ask me: “To know Karen was to love her, but to love her cooking was one step from worshipping something special from above.”
Karen’s Cherries Jubilee Pie
 
1 9-inch baked pie crust (your favorite pie crust will do)
1 quart pitted sweet cherries
½ cup white sugar
3 teaspoons cornstarch
dash of salt
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
 
Place sweet cherries in medium-size bowl. With a spoon, push at the cherries to extract the juice, and drain juice into a saucepan.
Reserve your cherries. Add sugar, cornstarch, and salt to the cherry juice in saucepan. Stir to blend.
Cook and stir over medium heat until clear and thickened. Remove from heat and stir in lemon juice. Cool to lukewarm.
Fold your cherries in to a cooled glaze. Chill to rethicken mixture. Transfer to baked pie shell.
Chill until firm. Top with homemade whipped cream.

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