A Baked Ham Read online

  “I don’t see why not,” he said. “Follow me.” After a few steps, he hesitated, and then the sheriff turned to look back at us. “One thing, though. I don’t want either one of you calling them to warn them that I’m coming.”

  “We promise not to do that, but you can’t keep us from tagging along with you,” Greg said. “I owe them at least that after I told you where they might be.”

  The sheriff just shook his head, but he didn’t say no, so I was going to take that as a strong yes. Once we were outside and in our car following the police cruiser to the diner, Greg asked, “Are you sure that you’re not upset with me for giving the sheriff an idea where he might look for your grandparents?”

  “Don’t beat yourself up about it, Greg. He would have thought of it himself in another five minutes,” I said as I patted his hand. “No one’s going to be upset.”

  Greg laughed. “Have you even met your grandfather, Victoria?”

  I smiled slightly. “Well, he won’t be upset about just that,” I said. “I figure tonight he’s going to have enough mad to go around for everyone.”

  “True,” my husband said.

  We pulled into the diner’s parking lot just as the sheriff got out of his cruiser. The place was supposed to be dark and closed down at that time of night, but instead, we found that the lights were all on. Inside, Martha was on a barstool, and Moose was standing on the other side of the counter, sipping a cup of coffee. They looked for all the world like a pair without a trouble between them, but I knew better. Things were about to happen pretty quickly, and I hated that we were about to interrupt the last moment of peace either one of them was going to have for awhile.

  “Let me handle this,” the sheriff said as we approached the door together.

  “Hang on one second. I’ll unlock the door for you,” I said as I reached for my keys.

  “There’s no need to do that,” Greg said. “Moose is coming.”

  My grandfather opened the door, and there was a quizzical expression on his face. “What’s going on? Is the play over already?”

  “Somebody killed Benny in his dressing room at the theater,” I said, not meaning to just blurt out the news like that.

  “What happened to letting me handle it?” the sheriff asked softly. It was pretty clear that he was angry about my outburst, but I couldn’t just let Moose and Martha be ambushed like that without at least knowing what had happened. “You need to leave, Victoria.”

  “She’s not going anywhere,” Greg said, “and neither am I.” He then turned to my grandfather and said, “Moose, I told the sheriff that you’d probably be here. I figured the sooner we got this foolishness over with, the better. I’m sorry if I let you down.”

  My grandfather put a friendly hand on Greg’s shoulders. “Nothing to apologize for, Son. You did the right thing.”

  I could see the relief flood through Greg. Moose’s opinion meant a great deal to him.

  My grandfather pulled his hand away, and then he turned to Sheriff. “Now, what’s this about Benny, Sheriff? Surely you don’t think that I killed the man.”

  “I’m just gathering information right now. Do either one of you happen to have an alibi for the past forty-five minutes?” Sheriff Croft asked.

  Moose laughed, which was not the reaction I’d been expecting. “Are you accusing Martha now? You’re kidding, right?”

  “I don’t know why that’s so hard to believe. I’m just as capable of doing it as you are, Moose,” my grandmother said. “Why shouldn’t I be a suspect?”

  “Is that really a list that you want to be on, Martha?” he asked her as though the rest of us weren’t even there.

  “Of course not. I just don’t want to be taken for granted, that’s all.”

  Moose just shook his head as he looked at the sheriff. “The only alibis we have are each other. I’ve got a hunch that’s not going to be good enough for you, is it?”

  “What about when you first stormed off?” the sheriff asked. “Martha, you didn’t leave for at least three minutes after your husband off, and who knows how long it took you to find him.”

  Martha nodded. “I suppose our alibis aren’t as good as I’d hoped they be. Sorry, but I can’t help you. I admit that it took me fifteen minutes to find Moose back here at the diner.”

  “Martha,” Moose snapped. “You didn’t have to tell him that.”

  “I want him to know the truth,” she said. “A lack of a solid alibi does not make either one of us guilty of murder, Moose.”

  “Maybe not, but it can’t help your causes,” I said.

  The sheriff looked at me and frowned, but at least he’d dropped that bit of nonsense about Greg and me leaving. This was our diner, and it was where we belonged.

  “Are you going to arrest either one of them right now?” Greg asked.

  “Of course not.”

  “But they’re both on your list of suspects, aren’t they?” I asked.

  “Victoria, even you’d have to admit that I’d be a fool not to at least include them,” the sheriff answered.

  Moose surprised me by patting the sheriff’s arm. “You would indeed. Sheriff, nobody here is blaming you for doing your job, but I’m afraid this is a dead end for your investigation.”

  “Martha said that she was looking for you,” the sheriff said. “You never told me what you were doing.”

  “I was driving around,” Moose said. “I hate it when my temper gets the best of me, and I didn’t want to be around anybody. After ten minutes, I decided that what I really needed was a cup of coffee, so I came here and made myself one.”

  “There’s an awful lot of time that you can’t account for,” the sheriff said.

  “That’s not strictly true. I can account for every second of it,” Moose said. “What I can’t do is offer you any proof that I’m telling the truth. I guess we’re at a stalemate, aren’t we?”

  “For now,” the sheriff said as he headed for the door. He hesitated before he left, though, and turned back to look at my grandparents. “You two aren’t going out of town anytime soon, are you?”

  “To be honest with you, we had thought about going to the fishing cabin tomorrow for a few weeks,” Moose said.

  “Well, I can’t make you, but I’d appreciate it if you’d both hang around town, at least for now,” Sheriff Croft said.

  “We can do that, can’t we, Martha?” he asked his wife.

  “You were the one with a burning desire to go fishing,” my grandmother said. “If it were up to me, we’d have stayed here all along.”

  “There you go, Sheriff. Can I pour you a cup of coffee to go?”

  “Sure, why not,” Sheriff Croft said, the weight of another murder clearly pounding down on him. Moose poured him a paper-cup full, and the sheriff put a dollar on the counter.

  “Don’t worry about it. It’s on the house,” Moose said.

  “You know me. I always pay my way as I go.”

  “Suit yourself,” Moose said as he folded the bill up and tucked it into his shirt pocket.

  After the sheriff was gone, I looked at my grandfather and asked, “Would you mind explaining what that was all about?”

  “What are you talking about, Victoria?”

  “You haven’t been that nice to the sheriff since you were selling raffle tickets for your lodge,” I said.

  “You were awfully nice to him,” Martha said.

  “What can I say? I’m trying to turn over a new leaf,” Moose said. “To be frank, I’ve been losing my temper too much lately, and I’m trying to change.”

  “You?” I asked incredulously. “There’s got to be more to it than that.”

  “Granddaughter, are you questioning my truthfulness?”

  “Absolutely.”

  Moose grinned. “Okay, I can’t really blame you for that. Part of it is that I didn’t want to antagonize the sheriff any sooner than I had to. I figure that as soon as he finds out that we’re digging into Benny’s murder, he’ll have reason eno
ugh to be upset with the two of us.”

  I felt a sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach. “So, we’re going to try to solve Benny’s murder ourselves. You’re right about one thing. The sheriff isn’t going to be too happy about that.”

  “You’re with me, though, aren’t you?” Moose asked as he studied me carefully.

  “You shouldn’t even have to ask. Why don’t you pour us all more coffee so we can get started?”

  “None for me,” Martha said. “I’ll never get to sleep if I start drinking caffeine this late in the day. Honestly, I’m just going to be in the way here. I think I’ll go home, if you don’t mind.”

  “I’d be happy to drive you,” Greg said.

  “I don’t want to put you out,” Martha said.

  “It’s no trouble, believe me. I’ve found that it works out better for me if I stay our of their way when they’re sleuthing. All I need is my grill and my family to be happy.”

  I kissed Greg’s cheek. “Are you sure you don’t mind?”

  “I’m happy to do it. Just don’t stay out too late. Remember, you’ve got an early start tomorrow.”

  “Thanks,” I said.

  “I could always come in and work your opening shift tomorrow,” Martha offered. My grandmother used to have my job until she’d retired, and she still filled in for me every now and then. Even though she’d gotten a little careless with making change over the years, it was still wonderful having her there.

  “Thanks, but until we have some kind of plan, I’m not sure when I’ll need you. I plan on taking you up on your offer eventually. I’m just not sure when yet.”

  “There’s no rush. I’m here if you need me.”

  “I won’t be long,” Moose said as he kissed my grandmother soundly.

  “Don’t make promises you can’t keep, you old fool,” she said with a laugh.

  After they were gone, Moose looked at me, grinned, and rubbed his hands together. “Let’s get started, shall we?”

  “You’re enjoying this just a little too much for my taste,” I said. “A man died tonight, remember? And you’re one of the sheriff’s chief suspects. It’s not exactly a cause for celebration. I know you weren’t all that fond of Benny, but it’s still no reason to smile about what happened to him.”

  “That wasn’t why I was smiling, and you know it. You’re right. Benny was a rat, but he still deserved better than to get whacked with his own trophy. The reason I smiled is because I live for these puzzles of ours. Retirement isn’t all that it’s cracked up to be, and a little excitement every now and then is a welcome thing.”

  “Funny, I could do just fine without too much of it myself. Now, should I get our Specials board out so we can make a list of who might have clobbered Benny from behind? I mean besides you and Martha.”

  “That’s not a bad idea. Thanks for not including our names on it. I can’t imagine having too much trouble making a list. Benny wasn’t exactly beloved around here, was he?”

  I shook my head. “Sure, he could be annoying at times, but that’s not enough reason to kill a man, is it?”

  “It depends on how irritating he is,” Moose said, and I swear that I couldn’t tell if he was kidding or not. I decided to leave that one alone as I got the whiteboard out from behind the counter. After erasing the daily specials, I headed up the list with the word Suspect, and then I added another section and titled it Motive. It was as good as anyplace else to start, but I had a hunch that Moose and I were in for a long night.

  Moose took the pen from me and started to write. “The first name on the list has to be Benny’s understudy in the play. Do you have any idea who that might be?”

  “Surely you’re not suggesting that someone killed him just so they could play a role in a community theater production.”

  “People have killed for less, Victoria. Let’s at least put the man’s name on the board. All of this is just a starting point, remember?”

  I shrugged as I pulled a playbill from my purse and scanned the names. “It says here that Fred Hitchings is playing the bartender, third man in crowd, and he’s also acting as Benny’s understudy. That’s a lot to ask from one man, isn’t it?”

  “I doubt the other roles are all that large, since they don’t even merit their own names,” Moose said. “Fred’s been a frustrated actor for years. He sells cars to earn a living, but countless times he’s told me that he nearly went to Hollywood when he was younger. It had to be to take a tour, because he’s never been any good as an actor. As bad as Benny was, at least the man could remember his lines.” Moose wrote Jealousy beside Fred’s name, and then asked, “Who’s next?”

  “How about Vern Jeffries?” I suggested. “He and Benny were on the outs over their insurance business, weren’t they? From what I heard here at the diner last month, Vern nearly choked the life out of Benny right there in their office.”

  “That sounds like reason enough to me,” Moose said as he wrote Vern’s name down.

  “Were there any women in Benny’s life?” I asked.

  “I doubt that any sane lady in town would go out with the guy,” Moose said.

  “Don’t sell Benny short,” I said. “Whether you liked the man or not, he could be quite charming when he wanted to be. It wouldn’t surprise me a bit if he had something going with his costar.”

  Moose looked surprised by the suggestion. “I suppose it’s worth a shot. Who’s his current leading lady?”

  I didn’t have to get the playbill out this time. “It’s Sandra Hall. The reason I know that is because she was in the diner three days ago with a brooding young man. He was pretty solicitous towards her, and to be honest with you, she seemed a little uncomfortable with the intensity of his attention. I’m sorry, but I have no idea what the man’s name was.”

  “Give me a second and I’ll find out,” Moose said. “I need to make a few telephone calls. Maybe I can find out.” My grandfather moved to a far booth as he pulled out his cell phone.

  While he was gone, I took the time to wipe down the counter again. It didn’t really need it, but it was something to do, a nervous tic of mine that helped pass the time.

  “I got it,” Moose said with a grin as he grabbed the pen and wrote down the name Marcus Jackson. After it, he wrote Jealousy again. “He’s a personal trainer at the same gym where Sandra works.”

  “I fully realize that the meanings are different, but you used the same word to describe two completely different situations.”

  “I can fix that,” Moose said as he added the word Romantic next to Marcus’s name. “Is that better?”

  “Much. Who else do we have?”

  We both thought about it, and then Moose said, “I have a hunch this list isn’t going to be our final one. I’m pretty sure we’ll add a few more names as we keep digging.”

  “And hopefully strike a few out along the way as well,” I said. “I think we’re both tapped out for tonight. What do you think?”

  “Let me record our list on a sheet of paper, and then we can go,” Moose said as he got out an order pad and started jotting the names down.

  I took out my cell phone and snapped a quick picture of the board.

  “What did you just do?” Moose asked me.

  “You take your notes your way, and I’ll do mine my way,” I said. “Tell me when you’re finished and I’ll erase the board.”

  “Let’s just stow it away in back until we need it again,” Moose said. “You’re not planning on running any new specials this week, are you?”

  “With Greg, I never know. If he gets an itch to make something new, I’ve given him my blessing to do it.”

  “Well, until you need it, let’s keep recording our thoughts here.” Moose picked up the board and walked into the kitchen with it.

  I called out, “I’m dumping the coffee pot. Do you want the last bit?”

  “No, thanks. I probably shouldn’t drink what I have left in my cup. It’s going to be a long night, all in all.”

  “Be
cause of the caffeine?” I asked.

  “That’s the least of it. I know that I may have sounded cavalier when I talked to the sheriff about Benny’s murder, but there’s a lot about it that bothers me.”

  “Could it be based on the fact that you and Martha are the sheriff’s key suspects?” I asked as I rinsed out the cups as well and put them in the nearest dish tub.

  “That’s just part of it.” Moose looked at me earnestly as he asked, “Victoria, what if Benny was killed as a direct result of something I said or did?”

  The suggestion caught me completely off guard. “Moose, how could that even be possible?” I asked.

  “Think about it. What if someone wanted to kill Benny, but they were afraid that they would be too obvious a suspect in the murder investigation? I might have given them a golden invitation to kill Benny by threatening the man like that in public tonight. If you look at it from that perspective, it might all be my fault.”

  I could see that the very idea of that was troubling my grandfather greatly. I kissed his cheek gently, and then I said, “Moose, if someone wanted to get rid of Benny, they didn’t need your outburst as cover for their crime. It’s not your fault.”

  “Maybe not, but I still don’t like it,” Moose said.

  “Then help me find Benny’s killer so we can at least bring the murderer to justice.”

  “I can do that,” Moose said, his mood lightening slightly. “Now, let’s get out of here. You’ve got an early morning tomorrow, and I’m getting up a bit before my usual time as well.”

  After Moose dropped me off at the house, the porch light flickered once, twice, and then three times. Greg was waiting by the door for me, and I welcomed his embrace as I walked in.

  Marrying that man had been one of the best decisions I’d ever made in my life, and while I didn’t tell Greg that an awful lot, he knew how I felt.

  Chapter 3

  “Hey, Mom,” I said sleepily the next morning a little before six when I got to the diner. Just as Moose had predicted for himself, I’d had trouble getting to sleep the night before, though I doubted that the coffee had played too much of a role in it. Though my mother had already been there for quite some time getting prepared for that morning’s session in the kitchen, she looked wide awake, something I envied greatly at the moment.