Blackberry Pie Murder (5 page)

“That makes sense to me.”

“And then I came around the bend and there was a fallen tree branch in the middle of the road. I swerved to avoid it, but the truck skidded and headed for the side of the road and . . .

and before I could straighten it out, I hit him.”

“You didn’t see him standing there?”

“No. It all happened so fast and all I could do was react when I saw the branch. I had no idea he was standing on the shoulder of the road.”

Norman looked thoughtful. “I wonder why he was standing there. If he saw you coming, he should have jumped out of the way. Were you going fast?”

“No. I slowed way down because it was raining so hard that I couldn’t see well.”

“You did the right thing then.”

Hannah thought about that for a moment. “Maybe. But if I did the right thing, why did I hit him?”

“Because you couldn’t help it. It was an accident, Hannah.

It’s not like you set out to hit him on purpose.”

“I know that, but I still feel awful. I wonder who he was.”

“You didn’t recognize him?”

“No. I wonder if Doc Knight knows.”

Norman shrugged. “If he ever lived around here, Doc would know. He’s lived here for years. And if Doc doesn’t know, he was probably a stranger.”

32

Joanne Fluke

“I’d feel better if I knew who he was,” Hannah said, and then she paused. “At least I
think
I’d feel better.”

“Then call Doc and ask.”

Hannah glanced up at the clock. Delores had said Doc’s lunch was at one and it was only eleven-thirty. “Good idea,”

she said. “I think I will.”

A moment later, Hannah was standing by the kitchen phone, talking to her mother in Doc Knight’s office.

“Sorry, dear,” Delores told her. “Doc’s not here right now.”

“That’s okay. I just wanted to know if he knew the man I hit. I didn’t recognize him.”

“Neither did Doc. I asked him about that. I do know there wasn’t any identification on him so he could have been a transient.”

“You’ve been in Lake Eden longer than Doc. Did you recognize him?”

“I didn’t see him, dear.”

Of course her mother hadn’t seen him! Hannah kicked herself mentally for asking the question in the first place. Delores wasn’t the type to pull off a sheet in the morgue to view a dead body.

“I can look at the photos if you really want me to,” Delores offered and Hannah knew she was making a huge con-cession for her daughter.

“No, that’s okay. But would you ask Doc if anybody else who saw him recognized him? And would you call me and let me know what he says?”

“I’ll do that, dear. I’ll call you right after the lunch with the board members is over.” There was a long pause and then Delores sighed. “You’re still at The Cookie Jar, aren’t you?”

“Yes, Mother.”

“And you’re not alone?”

“No. Norman’s with me right now and Andrea and Michelle are in the coffee shop. I gave Lisa the rest of the day off to be with Herb. She’s pretty upset over this whole thing.”

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33

“Of course she is. You should probably take the afternoon off, too. Why don’t you go home and take a little nap?”

Hannah shuddered slightly. She knew exactly what would happen if she went home and attempted to nap. She’d dream about the stranger she’d hit and it would be even more frightening than it had been when it actually happened.

“I think I’ll stay here, Mother. I’m better off doing some work. Maybe I’ll bake. That always calms me down.”

“Good idea. Has Michelle told you about Winnie Henderson’s party yet?”

“No, but I haven’t really seen her. She’s been really busy in the coffee shop.”

“I’ll tell you then. Winnie called while I was here and she ordered six dozen pirate cookies for her grandson’s birthday party. She said they were having a pirate party and she was hoping you could make something that fit into that theme.”

“Pirate cookies,” Hannah repeated, frowning slightly.

“I’ve never made a pirate cookie before.”

“I didn’t think you had and that’s why I wanted to give you plenty of advance warning. What are you going to do?

Put skulls and crossbones on them?”

“Winnie’s grandson might like that, but I’m not sure Winnie would. Thanks for telling me about it, Mother. It’ll give me something to think about here in the kitchen. And please don’t forget to call after the lunch is over.”

“I won’t, dear. I doubt lunch will take that long. Doc ordered poached salmon from the hospital kitchen and you know how I feel about salmon. I’ll probably just push it around my plate and eat two of the lime bars for dessert.”

When they’d said their goodbyes and hung up, Hannah headed back to the workstation and Norman. “Mother said Doc doesn’t know who the man was. She’s going to ask Doc if anybody else recognized him when they brought him into the hospital. She’ll call me when Doc gets back to the office after his meeting.”

34

Joanne Fluke

“What was that about pirates?” Norman asked and then he looked a little sheepish. “Sorry, but I couldn’t help but hearing your end of the conversation.”

“That’s okay. Winnie Henderson is giving a pirate party for her grandson’s birthday and she ordered some designer cookies.”

“Cookies that look like pirates?”

Hannah shook her head. “That would be much too hard unless I had a pirate cookie cutter and Lisa frosted them. And I don’t. I think all it has to do is remind him of pirates.”

Norman drained his coffee cup and stood up. “Sorry, Hannah. I’m not going to be much help on this one. I can stay for another few minutes if you need me, but I have a noon appointment at the clinic. Rose McDermott’s coming in for an impression. She has a couple of bridges that need to be replaced.”

“Would you like to take a couple of cookies with you?”

Hannah asked, noticing that he’d eaten everything she’d placed on the plate.

“No thanks. I don’t want to spoil my dinner. And that reminds me . . . would you like to go out to the Lake Eden Inn for dinner tonight?”

Hannah’s mouth watered even though she wasn’t a bit hungry. It was an instinctive thing. Sally Laughlin, the chef at the restaurant in the Lake Eden Inn, was one of the best cooks she’d ever met.

“It might do you some good to get out,” Norman said, noticing her hesitation. “How about if I bring Cuddles out to play with Moishe when I come to pick you up?”

“Great!” Hannah agreed and it wasn’t just the thought of Sally’s cuisine that prompted her decision. She had to tell Sally that Delores hated poached salmon and they’d better start thinking of other choices for the menu at the wedding reception.

“Six-thirty?” Norman asked.

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35

“Perfect.” Hannah crossed the kitchen floor to open the door for him. “I’ll be ready and so will Moishe.”

Norman stopped, turned in the doorway and pulled Hannah into his arms. “It wasn’t your fault and no one will blame you. Remember that.”

“I’ll try,” Hannah promised as he kissed her good-bye. She always felt safe and cherished in Norman’s arms, and after he’d gone out the door, she closed it behind him and gave a contented sigh. She really ought to marry Norman. He made her feel wonderful and he was perfect for her.

Less than five minutes later, Hannah was talking to Winnie on the phone. After the initial pleasantries were exchanged, Hannah waited for Winnie to ask about the accident. Since there were no questions forthcoming, either, Winnie was exercising uncharacteristic restraint or she’d been busy on the farm and hadn’t answered her call from the Lake Eden Gossip Hotline.

“Good to hear from you, Hannah, but why did you call?”

Winnie asked in her forthright way.

“I wanted to find out more about the party you’re giving for your grandson. Mother said it was this weekend?”

“That’s right.”

“And you want six dozen pirate cookies?”

“That’s exactly what I want.”

“Why pirate cookies?”

“Because Little Matt’s favorite movie series is
Pirates of
the Caribbean
and he says he wants to grow up to be Jack Sparrow. That’s why we’re having a pirate party. It’s going to be a real big deal. Connor drew a treasure map and all the kids are dressing up like pirates. They’re going to follow the clues and dig up the treasure we buried in the pasture.”

“That sounds like fun.”

“Oh, it will be. Connor makes a great pirate leader and all of my kids just love him.”

36

Joanne Fluke

Hannah heard the warmth in Winnie’s voice and she smiled. After several bad marriages, perhaps Winnie’s horse trainer was going to be the perfect man for her. “How old is Matt?” she asked, pen poised over the stenographer’s book she kept by the kitchen phone.

“He’ll be six this weekend, and he’s a real pistol. That kid’s got more energy than the new stallion that Connor’s trying to break. He went to Janice Cox’s preschool last year and she told me he was inquisitive and extremely verbal. I think he’s going to grow up to be a lawyer.”

“Do you know what else you’re going to serve at the party?”

“I sure do. Little Matt told his mother and me exactly what he wanted. We’re having pepperoni pizza from Bertanelli’s, root beer, and potato chips. It’s not exactly a healthy meal, but it
is
his birthday and we promised him he could choose.”

Hannah jotted another note,
potato chips, pizza, and root
beer
. “Are you having a cake?”

“We’re having a cake
and
pie. Little Matt just loves my Blackberry Pie. He calls it Blackbeard Pie.”

“That’s funny. You’ll have to give me the recipe sometime.” Hannah stopped and realized that she was asking for a family recipe. “If you want to, that is,” she added.

“It’s no secret and it’s real simple. I’ll give you some blackberries, too. I’m the only one who grows them around here. I stake ’em so they’re easy to pick and I’ve got a big patch on the edge of the north field. And that reminds me. When Connor comes in for lunch, I have to ask him to pick me some more. I baked the pies for Little Matt’s birthday party real early this morning and would you believe? Somebody stole one right off my kitchen window ledge when they were cooling! I guess that’ll teach me not to leave my kitchen window open.”

Hannah smiled. The “thief” was probably one of the hired BLACKBERRY PIE MURDER

37

hands Winnie hired for the summer. “You said you’re having a cake, too?”

“You betcha. Those six-year-olds can really eat.”

“What kind of cake?”

“I don’t know. I was thinking of ordering a cake from the place at the mall that puts pictures on top. I figured I’d take in a picture of Johnny Depp as Jack Sparrow so they could put it on the icing, but Connor was worried that Little Matt would be upset when we cut the cake.”

“Upset?”

“Yes. He idolizes Jack Sparrow as being the best pirate ever. Connor didn’t think he’d like it when he saw us cut Jack Sparrow into little pieces.”

“Connor’s probably right.”

“I know he’s right. I thought about it and decided not to buy that cake. But now I don’t know what we’re going to serve with the Blackbeard Pie and the clock is ticking as loud as that crocodile in
Peter Pan.
”

“How about a Rummy Tum Tum Cake?” Hannah asked her. “Pirates drink rum, don’t they?”

“They sure do. Do you make it?”

“No, but Sally does out at the Lake Eden Inn. She puts real rum in hers, but I bet she could make it with rum flavoring.”

“That’s a great idea, Hannah. I’ll call her right after I get off the phone with you. Do you want to know what I got Little Matt for his birthday present?”

“Definitely. What did you get?”

“I found one of those standup cutouts of Johnny Depp as Jack Sparrow and I hired a photographer from Holdingford to take a picture of Little Matt standing right next to it. That photographer did a real good job. I’m going to give Little Matt the standup cutout and the photographer made a big print of that picture. I had it framed so that Little Matt can hang it in his bedroom.”

“That’s a wonderful present, Winnie.”

38

Joanne Fluke

“I thought so, too. And I checked with his mother since she’ll probably be the one to hang the picture and she thought it was a real good present, too.” Winnie was silent for a moment. “Do you think you can make a pirate cookie, Hannah?”

“Absolutely. You don’t have to worry about that. Lisa and I will have them ready to go tomorrow in time for the party.”

When she hung up the phone Hannah had another cup of coffee at the workstation and thought about what Winnie had said. “A pirate cookie,” she said with a sigh, attempting to think of what type of cookies she could bake. Nothing came to mind so she thought about pirates and what they did. They made enemies walk the plank, some of them wore gold earrings and had parrots on their shoulders, and they said
Ho, ho, ho
, and
Arggggh
. None of those things brought any particular type of cookie to mind. What else did pirates do?

Hannah got up to get one of the Cocoa Snap Cookies she’d baked early this morning. Perhaps the chocolate would jump start her thought process. She took a bite of the cookie and imagined she was on a pirate ship, watching the crew.

What would they do next? They would board a merchant ship and steal bounty, or perhaps they would wait until the captain had turned over his payload and collected from the buyer. Then they would steal the gold pieces that had been given in payment. Gold pieces. Was there anything she could do in gold pieces? Hannah thought about it for a minute and drew a blank. Perhaps she should concentrate on the pirates themselves, rather than their lifestyle.

A mental image of a pirate, even though it was fueled by movies and Halloween costumes, was easily forthcoming. Pirates wore eye patches, and brandished black powder pistols.

They had jeweled or hoop earrings, tight pants, and shirts unbuttoned practically to their waists. Sometimes they were missing a tooth or had a gold cap over one of their front teeth. If the pirate was Captain Hook, he had a hook for a hand.