Drop Dead Chocolate: A Donut Shop Mystery Read online

  “Anything else?” I asked.

  “Do you know about Harvey Hunt?”

  “The contractor?” I asked. I’d heard about him around town, but to my knowledge, he’d never stepped one foot into the donut shop. Plenty of his men had, though, and if they were any indication of their boss’s disposition, he wouldn’t be an easy man to deal with.

  “That’s the one. Dad found out that Harvey owed Cam a tidy sum of cash, and the mayor was pressing him hard for it.”

  “What was the money for?”

  “Dad has two theories, but he’s not sure which one is true. One is that Harvey still owed the mayor for a payoff for getting the bid on the city hall renovation three months ago.”

  Sadly, I had no trouble believing that. “What’s his other theory?”

  She grinned. “I shouldn’t smile, but I find it ironic that despite his crooked business practices, Harvey’s construction company was in financial trouble.”

  “Why should that make you happy?”

  “Dad thinks that Harvey had to borrow money from Cam to pay off some creditors, cash that Harvey had originally paid our mayor for bids that he’d gotten in the past. Either way, it was a tidy sum of money.”

  “How did your father find out about the loan in the first place?”

  “It was supposedly from a call-in tip from an anonymous source. At least, that’s what Dad said.”

  I could see that she was holding something back. “But you’re not sure you believe him, do you?”

  Emma shrugged. “My father is the poster child for not telling anyone everything he knows, including my mom. I’ve got a feeling that he’s got an inside source at the construction company. He gets this particular smile when he knows he’s onto something solid, and when Dad told me about this, he was grinning like the Cheshire cat.”

  “I can’t wait to hear what else you’ve got for me.”

  “That’s it, but I’ll keep paying attention to what’s going on, and if there are any new developments, I’ll let you know.”

  “Thanks,” I said as I stood. “I appreciate that.”

  “Just trying to help where I can, boss,” she said with a smile.

  “Then maybe we can start making donuts,” I said with a grin of my own.

  * * *

  Just before six a.m., I picked up my phone and called Grace’s answering machine. I knew she left her ringer on silent mode on her home telephone, so I didn’t have to worry about waking her up. I left her a brief message about Kelly and then told her that I’d see her after work. It was time to open. I left the kitchen to turn on the lights out front and unlock the door. Sometimes I had early risers waiting for me, and other times I didn’t, but I’d noticed that since we’d pushed our hours back some, we had more customers the first thing.

  To my delight, Jake was standing outside, and better yet, he was alone.

  “Hey there,” I said, wanting to hug him, but afraid someone might see. My boyfriend was a stickler for how things looked, and I was going to respect that.

  “Hi, Suzanne. You look great.” His smile nearly melted me.

  I glanced down at my jeans, an old T-shirt, and my apron. “You’ve been out to sea too long, sailor. I’m a wreck, and I know it.”

  He shook his head and grinned. “I don’t think so. Can we chat for a second?”

  “What happened to keeping a low profile?” I asked.

  Jake looked around. “I made sure no one else was around when I waited for you to open. Nobody’s here yet, but if Emma could watch the front, we could talk in the kitchen, if you’re interested.”

  “You bet I am.” I smiled as I called out, “Emma.”

  “What’s up, boss?” she asked as she came out drying her hands on a dish towel. The second she saw Jake, she started grinning. “Hey there, stranger. It’s good to see you.”

  “Hey yourself,” Jake said.

  I took Jake’s hand and told Emma to watch the front. She gave me a mock salute, and I led my boyfriend back into the kitchen, away from prying eyes. The second the door was closed, I kissed him and then gave him a huge hug.

  “I missed you so much,” I said, the words spilling out of me. “I can’t believe we have to hide like a couple of teenagers.”

  “I can’t, either,” Jake admitted. “I’m sorry, Suzanne. I shouldn’t even be here right now. I know what I said earlier, but I can’t just ignore you. You mean too much to me.”

  “I’m glad,” I said as I finally released him. “I can’t believe you’re staying in town and I can’t even see you.”

  “Well, if we can pull off a few more of these early-morning visits, I’m game.”

  “I’ve got an even better idea,” I said. “Instead of waiting out front, why don’t you come in the back way around fifteen till six. I can have Emma stock the cases, and we can have a few minutes alone every morning away. What do you say?”

  “If anyone sees us, it’s going to kill my ability to investigate this case,” Jake said reluctantly.

  “I understand,” I said, and then hugged him again. “You’re right, of course.”

  As I pulled away, he asked, “What was that for?”

  “I’m putting a few hugs in the bank before you have to go,” I said.

  “I can only stay a few minutes,” he answered. “I’m going to have to sneak out the back as it is.”

  “Give me a second and I’ll get you some breakfast,” I said.

  “I don’t want to waste my time with you by eating,” he answered.

  “Boy, you really must be in love,” I replied with a grin. “You have to want coffee, though.”

  “That would be good,” he admitted.

  “Hang on then, I’ll be right back.” I ducked up front and found Emma waiting on an older couple, with three more folks behind them.

  “Sorry to do this to you,” I said as I poured Jake a cup of coffee and bagged a few donuts for him. I knew how much Emma didn’t care for working the front, and I tried to spare her every time I could.

  “Take your time,” Emma said. “It’s all good out here.”

  “Yes, by all means,” a well-dressed man in the back of the line said sarcastically. “Take your time. We have all morning.”

  I smiled at him and then told Emma, “Give them each one free donut, courtesy of Donut Hearts.” I turned to the man and asked with a grin, “Better?”

  He nodded, and after a moment, added a fleeting smile.

  Jake was waiting for me when I rejoined him.

  “Thanks,” he said, and then put the donuts and coffee down on the prep table.

  He kissed me again, and then said, “I hate to do it, but I’ve got to go.”

  “You need to hear something first.” It didn’t take much of an internal debate to decide that I was going to tell him what Emma had told me earlier. He was the official police investigator on the case, and he deserved to have all of the information that I’d acquired. “There are two more suspects that need to go on your list.”

  “And you’re just handing them over to me?” he asked. “What’s the catch?”

  “I’m going to keep digging myself,” I admitted.

  He shrugged. “What have I got to lose? You’ll do that whether I get the names or not.”

  “True, but at least this way I won’t feel so guilty about it.”

  He laughed and said, “Fine. What have you got?”

  I told him about Kelly Davis, Harvey Hunt, and William Benson, and as he jotted their names down in his notebook, he asked, “Care to tell me who your sources are?”

  “Sorry, it’s confidential,” I replied. “What’s mentioned in the land of donuts stays in the land of donuts.”

  “Suzanne,” he said, drawing my name out.

  “I mean it. I can give you the scoop, but I’m not at liberty to tell you where I heard it. Take it or leave it.”

  “I’ll take it,” he said. “Thanks, for breakfast, and the information.”

  “Just act surprised when you hear th
ose names from another source,” I answered.

  “I can do that. Now, will you let me out the back way so I don’t have to deal with any of your customers?”

  “I’d be glad to. Just pay the toll first and you’re free.”

  “What’s the toll?” he asked.

  “One kiss, however long you’d like it be,” I answered with a smile.

  After he more than paid for his passage, I opened the back door, peeked outside to make sure no one was out there, and then said, “Scram. The coast is clear.”

  Jake left and I bolted the door again. I was thrilled that he’d come by. I didn’t need to have a man in my life, but it could make my life more interesting when there was one I cared about. Now maybe I’d be able to enjoy the rest of my day and keep digging into Cam’s murder. I didn’t care which one of us found the killer first. I just wanted my family’s name cleared, and my boyfriend back.

  When I walked back up front to take over, Emma said softly, “You let him out the back way, right?”

  “He’s gone,” I confirmed. There were a few customers in line, new ones since I’d been in the dining room last.

  “We’re here for our free donuts,” one of the guys said.

  “What are you talking about?”

  “I just got a text on my phone that you were giving food away,” he admitted.

  “Sorry, you had to be here in line at the time to qualify, but come back tomorrow. You never know,” I said, pretty certain that I wouldn’t be giving any food away then.

  “Aw man, that stinks.”

  There weren’t many people there, so I said impulsively, “Okay, my offer of one free donut stands.”

  Instead of thanking me, he pulled out his telephone instantly and started typing, so I added, “But you have to be here right now to get it, and if you call, text, tweet, or tell anyone else what I’m doing in any way, you have to pay double from now on.”

  He dropped his phone back into his pocket and shrugged. “I give up. No harm, no foul.”

  It cost me three more donuts, so it wasn’t all that bad. I knew how fast people, especially young ones, communicated with their phones, but I was an old-fashioned kind of gal myself. I might be a dying breed, but I didn’t feel the need to communicate with everyone I knew around the clock and tell them whatever I was doing, no matter how mundane. I honestly didn’t know how people had time to even think these days, the interruptions seemed to come so fast and furious.

  * * *

  I couldn’t wait to close the donut shop at eleven, but it wasn’t because I was tired of offering my treats to the world. A dozen folks who’d come into Donut Hearts had been more interested in my take on the mayor’s murder than they were about what I had to sell, and I wasn’t about to say anything that might get my mother in any deeper with her fellow townsfolk. The worst of the lot were the pair who’d just left, congratulating Momma and hinting that she’d done the town a favor by getting rid of Cam, something I would never have imagined before then. A man was dead, and all they could focus on was their unhappiness with the way he’d done his job.

  I felt sorry for the late mayor, never believing that particular emotion would be possible for me to experience.

  Emma came out as I was running the report.

  “We had a good day, didn’t we?” she asked.

  “In some ways, I suppose we did,” I said, still in a touchy mood from my last bloodthirsty customers. I’d been so frustrated by the last exchange that I couldn’t even focus on writing out the deposit slip for the day’s receipts.

  “Okay, maybe we didn’t do as well as I thought,” she said. There were a scant dozen donuts left from our day, so I understood her confusion about my reaction. Then again, she hadn’t stood out front with me dealing with the questions, comments, and innuendos I had all morning. “I’m sorry,” I said. “I had a tough time with some of our customers today, but that doesn’t give me any right to take it out on you.”

  “Hey, you’re the one on the front lines. I like being in the kitchen. By the time we’re ready to close, I like to have the dishes done and the floor swept. When I leave here, the donut shop stays right here. As the owner, though, I’m sure you have a lot of it on your shoulders even when you’re not working.”

  I tapped the pen on the counter. “You know, mostly I love everyone who comes in here, and I’ve made more friends than I ever could have imagined running the shop, but there’s one day in a hundred when I wish I worked for someone else in a nine-to-five job I can leave at the end of my day.”

  “It’s got its perks,” she said with a grin. Emma pointed to the deposit and asked, “Want me to do that?”

  “I think I can handle it. Go on, you can take off.”

  “Thanks, I think I will.”

  There was something about her light attitude that made me wonder about something. “There’s not a new man in your life, is there?”

  “No, not yet, but you never know, do you? Why do you ask?”

  “You seem happier than usual,” I admitted.

  “Suzanne, I know better than anyone how often my good moods are tied into the new men in my life, but I’m just happy to be alive right now. Have you ever had one of those days when everything just feels right?”

  I nodded. “I’m sure I have, but they’re hard to come up with at the moment.”

  Emma touched my arm gently. “The mayor’s murder has you on edge. It’s perfectly understandable. Don’t worry, I know that between you and Jake, one of you will find the killer and clear your mother’s name.”

  “Thanks for the vote of confidence,” I said. “Have a nice afternoon.”

  “Right back at you,” she said as I let her out of the donut shop.

  I finally managed to make out the deposit slip without messing up and tucked it into my bank bag, along with the cash and receipts for the day.

  I was about to head out when there was a tap at the door. Grace was there, dressed in jeans but still managing to look elegant somehow. I waved the bag in the air, shut off the lights, and at the last second grabbed the remaining box of donuts before I headed out.

  “For me?” she asked with a grin when she saw the box.

  “Sure, why not?” I said.

  She looked tempted but shook her head. “I’d better not.”

  “Don’t tell me you’re back on another health kick.”

  Grace frowned a little, and then said, “Honestly? I’m trying to drop a few pounds.”

  I studied my friend, trying to see where she could afford to lose an ounce. “Why in the world would you want to do that?”

  “Peter told me before he left how nice it would be if I could fit into a dress he just bought me. I don’t know if he realized it, but it was a size too small, and I can’t take it back and exchange it, since he bought it in Atlanta.”

  That was going too far, and I wasn’t about to let this guy get away with so egregious a foul. “Seriously? He thinks you’re overweight? What does he say about me?”

  Grace shook her head. “It’s not like that, Suzanne. I’m sure he didn’t mean anything by it.”

  I wasn’t about to argue the point with her. Maybe it was just the fact that I was having a rotten day, but I didn’t want to add any problems with Grace to it. It was her life, anyway, and maybe I should start keeping what I thought to myself. Maybe it was an innocent error, but then again, maybe it wasn’t. Either way, it wasn’t my battle, so I decided to drop it. “Are you ready to do some crime fighting?” I asked.

  “I’m all yours. I have to admit, I loved sleeping in this morning.” She must have realized how that sounded, knowing when I had to get up every day. “Sorry, I shouldn’t be rubbing it in.”

  “Are you kidding? With my new hours, I’m getting all kinds of sleep.”

  Grace laughed. “Oh yes, I’m sure of it. Two thirty in the morning is a lazy girl’s wake-up time.”

  “It is, compared to one thirty,” I said. “Do you mind if we drop by the bank before we talk to our fir
st suspect today?”

  “I figured we were heading there anyway,” Grace said.

  “Because of the bank deposit?” I asked.

  “No, I found out before I came over here that Kelly Davis just got transferred to our bank branch in town.”

  “Where was she before?” I asked as Grace and I got into my Jeep.

  “She was at the Union Square branch, but she wanted to be closer to Cam, and by the time the transfer finally came through, she couldn’t say no, so she had to come here despite their split.”

  It was my turn to be impressed. “Grace, how’d you happen to find all of that out? I just left you that message this morning.”

  “I have a friend who works in Union Square, and I knew Kelly lived there, so I gave her a call after I checked my machine.”

  “Did you find anything else out?” I asked as I drove to the bank.

  “Apparently Kelly was telling anyone who would listen that Cam was The One. She already bought her wedding dress, if you can believe that.”

  That was news. “Did Cam know that?”

  Grace grinned. “That’s why he dumped her, from what Annie said. He came over to her house early to pick her up for a date, and she was trying it on. Can you imagine how that must have looked?”

  “That must have been a shock for both of them,” I said as I pulled into the bank parking lot.

  “You’d better believe it.” She put a hand on my arm and turned to me before I could get out of the Jeep. “Before we go inside, there’s something you should know. Annie said that Kelly has the meanest temper she’s ever seen, and that’s saying something. We need to tread lightly here if we’re going to learn anything.”

  “I’ll do my best to watch my step, but I can’t make any promises. We need to get an alibi for her and then figure out if she could have done it.”

  “Lead on. Just don’t say you weren’t warned.”

  We walked into the bank, and though one teller was free, it wasn’t Kelly. When Jackson waved me over to his window, I smiled but shook my head. He looked puzzled by my behavior, and maybe even a little bit hurt, but I couldn’t explain it at the moment. I decided I’d give him the box of donuts in my Jeep to make up for my slight, but it was important to speak with Kelly.