Vanilla Baked Murder: Cozy Mystery Book 3 (Kim’s Cozy Mystery series) (3 page)

A well-adjusted Sam returned to work after an intimate fun family trip. It was a rewarding experience, minus no-show Steven.

“Hello Mr. Hamilton,” Lisa said.

“How was your trip with your family?”

“It went quite well. My mother did well, I must admit.”

“How about yourself? What did you do?”

“Nothing much - church on Sunday and a nice family picnic right after.” Sam gave Lisa a broad smile.

“You had a great weekend too. I am glad… you deserved it.”

After the swapping of weekend stories,  Lisa returned to her secretarial duties.

“Mr. Hamilton,” she called out, “ooh I almost forgot, there is an important emergency meeting on your schedule.”

 Sam sighed. “Okay; thanks for letting me know.”  Lisa quickly walked out.

What could this be about? I really don’t like playing games
, Sam thought.

He started to feel like a pawn in a chess game.
I hate their emergency election strategy. At least
I can make some great changes for Huntington from the inside and besides, “Mayor Hamilton” has grown on me.

                     When Sam sat down in the conference room, none of the council members had shown up. Then, after five minutes more, he was surprised to see Guttman and Harold stumbling in.

“Where is everyone else?” Sam asked.

“Well, this is a special session for the big dogs,” Guttman said ominously.

He handed Sam a 25- page proposal for the new commercial properties.

“Don’t worry, Sam, the paperwork is already vetted by the city legal team,” Guttman assured him. Sam retorted, “No matter; one more glance won’t hurt.”

Slowly, he skimmed over the legal documents, while Guttman and Harold waited impatiently.  

On the last page, Sam couldn’t stall any longer and he signed his name and placed the city seal on the proposal.

After the paperwork, Guttman stood up and shook Sam's hand. “Great job, Mr. Mayor.”

Harold  smiled crookedly. “Keep up the great work, Sir,” he said mockingly.  Sam stared Harold down as he stepped out of the conference room, suspecting  something was fishy.

When both Guttman and Harold had left the conference room, Sam earnestly wanted to revisit the documents without the pressure of two senior council members rushing him.

“Lisa, get legal on the phone; let them forward me the documents I just signed.”

Lisa found the request weird: the moment the seal stamped the document, it was legally binding. Lisa, wanting to impress Sam, walked personally to the eighth floor and made the copies herself.

“Here is the document.” Lisa handed Sam the paperwork and watched him lock himself in his chamber to reread the new legal contract.

His eyes zoomed over the contract.

“ Since both Bert Harold and David Guttman are the primary executives of the proposal, these men are in charge of tens of millions dollars' worth of property.” Sam's eyes widened as he thought about what this meant.

Now I see why it was so important for them to secure a mayoral candidate; they need a patsy to sign these kinds of proposals,
  Sam thought.
I wish I had known what was going on
before. No worries - this proposal expires in 3 years. By then, I will make sure I elect new executives instead of these crooks. These guys are like a virus sucking the life out of Huntington.

A small banquet was held in honor of the newly-signed proposal. Even though the document was laced with financial gain for a few crooked men, it still marked a big step for Huntington’s future. A banquet would celebrate the momentous occasion. Sam felt the banquet was altogether silly, but as the mayor he was required to attend and play his role. The Convention Hall was the prime venue for the event.

Red and white wine were the drinks of choice as light piano music set the ambience. Squared fruit tart arrangements were served on tiny china dishes thanks to “Cream Fusion.”

One bright spark for Sam was that Kim was possibly somewhere at the banquet; after all, her business had catered the food..

The blonde beauty was indeed present, wearing a backless blue dress. His face lit up when he laid eyes on her.

Before he made a quick stride over to her table, he remembered Sharon's warning. He sighed and heeded Sharon’s wishes; but  in a furious moment of petty rebellion, he grabbed a raspberry tart from a tray a waiter was passing around. He gulped it down to alleviate the pain of staying away from his beloved, only feet away from him.

To save Sam from himself, Mulling came over.

“Yeah,” Mulling said. “I feel so out of place here.”

The political pinnacles of Huntington society was a new world for Mulling. He was greatly relieved when he saw Sam.

“At least you have a friend.” Mulling pointed to Kim who was mingling with other guests.

“Sadly, I wish, but that is not the case,” Sam said, feeling worse than before.

Sam and Mulling continued their conversation, bonding over their unwillingness to interact with the other guests.

Surprisingly, after a few minutes, Kim proceeded towards Mulling and Sam.

“Hey, Gentlemen,” Kim said. Sam was so overwhelmed, he couldn’t believe that Kim had actually spoken to him. He looked at her, but words would not exit his mouth.

“Hi,” he said finally. “Great job on the fruit tarts.” It was an awkward exchange, but before it became even more so, a crisis disrupted the banquet.

“Is there a doctor in the room?” a man yelled.  The other guests all stopped their own personal interactions and a hush fell over the Convention Hall.

“Please call 911; Mr. Guttman is having a heart attack.”

The room was temporarily silenced in confusion, but soon people started to murmur in panic. The guests were appalled and gasped their concern. Many were frightened. A lady in a pink slim- fitting dress clutched her pearl necklace in fear.

That lady was not alone; Sam was in a state of disbelief.
How could a festive moment turn so
fatal?
He thought.

Luckily, Mulling was on the scene and he jumped into action.  He hightailed over to a collapsed Guttman and held up his head, then stood guard over him until emergency personnel came.  After twelve minutes, the Convention Hall was flooded with police officers. Once Mr. Guttman had been put into the ambulance, out of nowhere Mulling materialized his notepad. He started to reassure the guests, while asking questions about Guttman's conduct that night. After a while, the guests exited the Convention Hall somberly, wondering whether Guttman would live.

Guttman passed away that night and left everyone on edge, especially the council members and Sam.  Five days passed. Sam personally asked Mulling to give him updates as the case slowly unfolded.

“Preliminary report from the coroner is leaning towards death by natural causes, but it will take some time to get the official cause of death.”

Sam raised an eye brow. “I see.”

“I will announce to the press once more concrete evidence comes in, but right now, I don’t suspect foul play or anything sinister,” Mulling told Sam, embracing his sheriff's duties.

Sam gasped with relief. “The last thing we need right now is a murder! Thanks for giving me updates.”

Sam hung up the phone, eased back in his big comfy chair and reflected on Guttman’s life.  He remembered the first time he was asked to meet the council. He had very little experience in governing or dealing with legislative affairs. All he had were his architecture clients and his business connections in New York.
Guttman saw something in me and it forever changed my life
, Sam thought.

…

Sam's mind flashed back to the first day at city council. He had worn a dark blue suit as he'd entered City Hall. It was a calmer environment back then. Most of the senior staff from the previous mayoral term was running for the exits. They all wrote off Huntington as a lost cause. People quit in droves.  

“Hi, I am David Guttman.”
The large man gazed at my suit with a hint of disapproval.

“Well, son, I called you here because I have a proposition for you. Lets sit and chat. Since the last mayor passed away and the deputy mayor turned down the position, you are on a very short list for the position.”

“Is that so?” Sam had listened cautiously to Guttman, fixing his ears on every word.

“Well, you have excellent connections in New York and your family helped found the town. You have a thriving business, plus you’re a fresh face; you represent a new start for this town.”

“I am very flattered, but my experience is slim,” Sam had stated honestly.

“Nonsense. Mayor Johnson told me about your fund-raising abilities for his campaign, and the deep pockets you were able to dip into.”

“How, did you know about that?” Sam had rubbed his chin, both impressed and a little suspicious of Guttman’s ability to know so much about him.

“I have eyes everywhere, son,” Guttman had said with a funny expression.

“Look, I'm going to be frank. You’re a young ambitious man, with a little success under your belt. As mayor, you will be a man who can turn Huntington around. See the dream, son, see the dream!”

Sam got up, ending his walk down memory lane. Instead, he walked over to his liquor bar and raised a glass.

“To Guttman.”

It was Wednesday morning, and Sam arrived early in anticipation of the scheduled council meeting. Lisa also came in a bit early; she stopped at “Cream Fusion” to pick up chocolate cream-filled cupcakes to serve with black roasted coffee.  
Sam will be pleased
, Lisa thought as she set up the cupcakes in the conference room.

Sam was indeed happy; he walked into the office and the scent of the roasted coffee greeted him.  He wasted no time spotting the cupcakes.

“This is what a happy morning looks like,” he joked with Lisa.

After happily devouring the treats, Sam and Lisa drafted a brief for the scheduled midday meeting.

Finally, meeting time arrived.  Sam was the last person to enter the room.

He was finally getting into his own skin, getting a handle on his interim position.

“Good morning, ladies and gentlemen,” Sam said. When everyone was seated, it was clear that Guttman’s giant presence was missed.

“While I know that we can all agree that one seat is empty and I will say that he will be greatly missed, I am going to lead the agenda for this meeting,” Harold said, asserting himself as the council’s spokesperson.

“Let's take a quick moment to remember Guttman,” Sam added.

During the quick reflection, some members  closed their eyes tightly as if in prayer mode; some bowed their heads respectfully. Sam looked up and waited until the silence passed.

“First thing on the agenda is the empty council seat,” said Harold.  The remaining council members seemed to allow Harold to run the meeting.

“I have already talked it over with the council and they think that my wife would make an excellent choice for a new council member.”

Sam looked outraged.

“I was never consulted on the matter. Can I at least hear more thoughts on the matter?” he requested.

The council members looked at each other in silence as if they had lost their resolve. “So that's that. We are all ready and set to go!” Harold said confidently.

Sam was the only person not throwing caution to the wind.

“Well, that decision doesn’t sit easy with me,” he said.

“What are her qualifications?”

Harold's face contorted. “Let’s just say she has thirty years of Huntington pride, she has served on election committees in the past, organized many parades, and ran the town bakeoff last year.”

“Mrs. Harold has been quite busy,” Sam responded,  feeling a bit more willing to give the proposal some consideration.

“Yes, my Mary is quite impressive,” Harold gloated.

The council members were exceptionally quiet and it started to bother Sam. It was an abnormal tone, not accounted for by Guttman's absence.

After Harold managed to score a point for his wife, he was ready to announce his next topic for discussion.

“Sam, this pertains to your current role as mayor. I am afraid the council will no longer back your candidacy in the upcoming election. The council has decided to look elsewhere for future leadership.” Sam's heart dropped. He was now pissed.

“That's not what we discussed in the last meeting; who are you backing for mayor?” he demanded.

“I am afraid that information is a 'need to know' right now,” Harold snapped.

Sam stood up in rage and managed somehow to bottle his fury.

Harold realized he had offended Sam, so he took a softer approach.

“I understand your concern, but that’s the decision,” Harold said.

Sam couldn’t take it anymore; he looked at the other council members, purposely ignoring Harold.

“Bob, how do you feel about me not being mayor? You were one of the main advocates cheering me on!”

The short middle-aged man explained, “Sam! It's not like that; we just want a little different approach to things.”

“This is crazy. When were these decisions made?” Sam wanted to know.

Harold quickly tried to chime in. “They were recent and necessary.”

Sam had his own theory about what was going on, and he was in no mood to dance around the coup. He just blurted it out.

“Guttman's body is barely cold and this town is turned into 'Haroldville.' The same council members that told me how great I was a few weeks ago, now decide that they need a new direction.  Well, I am sorry, but I'm running in the upcoming election and I intend to remain in this office!” After Sam finished speaking, none of the council members dare to make eye contact.

He felt like he now had a more passionate cause. It was clear to Sam that the power structure in the council has radically shifted and he felt its fury. Sam held his tongue for the remaining nine minutes of the heated council meeting.

At the end of the grueling session, Sam walked disappointedly to his office, planning to go home and regroup after such combat. When he entered his office, however, he realized he had a guest waiting.

Plastering on a welcoming attitude, he said, “Hello, can I help you?”

“I am Amy, Guttman’s fiancée. I was waiting outside, but your assistant said I could come in.”

“I am so sorry for your loss; I was unaware that Guttman had a fiancée,” Sam said, noticing that the  petite cropped-hair brunette was no older than he.

“I get that,” Amy said. “David was in the process of divorcing Catherine. And now I don’t even know if I will be able to attend the funeral.”

“That's so unfortunate,” Sam said sympathetically.  “I'm sorry to hear that.”

“I know that you are a good man, and I hope you might help my cause. I want to get some answers about David’s death. The police don’t want to help, and the Guttman family refused to talk to me. Everyone is willing to sweep the entire matter under the rug, but I cannot do that; I just don’t fell right about the whole thing.”

Sam looked puzzled. He explained gently,

“I know this is hard for you to accept, but I spoke to the sheriff and he personally told me the preliminary result from the coroner office… It appears Guttman died of a heart attack. The police suspect no foul play. That’s the latest information on the case.”

“That's the thing, Mayor: Guttman's heart was in perfect health over a month ago when I went with him to the hospital.”

Hospital?
Sam thought.

Amy's emotions boiled out as she went on. “I wanted to make sure he had a clean bill of health before our trip to the Bahamas. The doctors assured me he had an amazing heart and he was as healthy as a 25-year old. I refuse to accept him dying of natural causes. His death came right when he was going to leave that vindictive witch Catherine.”

Sam gave the woman a pitiful glance.

“Amy, I know you don’t want to hear this, but I was there that night he passed away. I watched as he fell to the floor; it was of natural causes.”

“Think, Mayor -  so many people had to gain from Guttman’s demise; it wouldn’t hurt just to provide more due diligence.”

“No it wouldn’t,” Sam admitted.

Amy smiled to finally get some support.

“I was thinking; would you please consider doing a public inquiry that allows a second, more thorough autopsy?”

Sam raised an eyebrow
.
“I'm sorry, Amy, what you are asking for is too much. The only way to get a public inquiry for a more intrusive autopsy is to get the family's permission or a court order from a judge. I am not putting the Guttman family through that.”

Amy dropped to the ground and begged, “Please, if there is the slight possibility of foul play, shouldn’t we explore it?”

“I would, but there is no evidence at all by the police or anyone that Guttman's death is not from natural causes.”

“Please, at least promise me you will think about it.”

To give Amy peace of mind, Sam agreed.

“I will.”

…

After Amy left, Sam took a moment to decide if her statements made any sense.

I saw him fall to the floor. He clearly had a heart attack, but a new fiancée does seem very random
, he thought.

What was also puzzling was that Guttman was getting a divorce. Sam started to feel discomfort in the pit of his stomach. He decided to visit Catherine, just to pay respect to the family.