“Trust me, you’re not the only one!”
CHAPTER 29
It was after six when Mike and Lady walked through the front door that evening. “Kelly, I’m home. Where are you?” he called out.
“I’m in the great room looking out at the bay. No matter how many times I look at it, I’m still in awe that boats can float and maneuver their way on something so vast and not sink. I know all the engineers in the world cringe when I say that, but it’s kind of like airplanes. I’ll never figure out what makes them stay in the air. It’s all quite amazing.”
“And that’s one of the reasons I love you. You still look at the world with childlike eyes and find wonder in it. How are you doing after the excitement of today?”
“I’m fine. At least Doc says I’m fine.”
“So I was right? He did come here to examine you?”
“Yes. Roxie called and told me he left half his lunch uneaten he was in such a hurry to get here. That’s quite a compliment, because that man loves his lunch. Anyway, he examined me, and said I was probably still somewhat in shock, but it would wear off pretty soon. Now that you’ve caught the bad guy, is anything else happening?”
“I went to the Reston’s home and personally told Sandy I’d arrested her husband for the murder of Mary Barnes. I asked if I could call anyone for her. She told me she had a sister who lived in Portland, and that she could probably come and stay with her for a few days. Even though Hank had told her he’d murdered Mary, she was still pretty shaken up when she realized that the father of her unborn child would likely be going to prison for a long time. She asked if you would call her tomorrow, so she could get the name and telephone number of the psychologist you’d recommended.”
“I feel really sorry for her, but I’m so happy it sounds like she’s going to address the spousal abuse issues. Of course Hank won’t be able to participate in spousal abuse for a long time, but if she felt she deserved to be hit, it seems like she needs some counseling. Can she file a complaint against him for spousal abuse now that he’s been arrested for murder?”
“She could, but what would be the point? It might add a little time to his sentence, but not much, and she probably needs to conserve her strength for her pregnancy. Murder and attempted murder is enough to put him away for a long, long time. He’ll probably have great-grandchildren by the time he ever gets out of prison.”
“I was thinking about what Ricky Anderson said about her – that things weren’t always what they appeared to be. I wonder if he noticed the bruises, and that’s why he said it.”
“I don’t know. I talked to Noelle, Mary’s daughter, and told her that her mother’s killer had been arrested. She was relieved that the criminal investigation part of her mother’s death was out of the way. She told me she and her husband had made a decision to sell the property to a developer who had offered to buy it. He tried to buy the adjacent property that belongs to Susan Yates, but she wouldn’t sell it to him. He told Noelle they were going to build a block wall fence so future owners wouldn’t have to look at her run-down house and property.”
“Did Noelle have anything else to say?”
“Yes. She asked how we were doing with Skyy. I told her Skyy was adapting to our family very well, other than a few incidences involving eyeglasses and toilet paper. Noelle said she hoped we’d keep her. I told her we were definitely not giving her up. Matter of fact, I’ve gotten to like that little bundle of fur. Speaking of which, where is she?”
“Oh, Mike. Other than you arriving at the shack just in the nick of time, that’s the best news I’ve had all day, however, I haven’t seen her for a while, and that makes me nervous.”
“Stay where you are,” Mike said, “I’ll see if I can find her.” He came back a moment later and motioned for Kelly to follow him. He put his finger to his lips, cautioning her not to say anything. She followed him down the hall to their bedroom and there on the floor was Rebel, sound asleep, with Skyy, at about one-quarter of his size, curled up next to him. Rebel sensed they were there, lazily opened one eye, and then closed it as if he was winking at them.
When they got back to the great room, Mike put his arms around Kelly and whispered in her ear, “It’s all good, Kelly. It’s all good.”
Recipes!
BRIE AND EGG STRATA
Ingredients:
2 tsp. olive oil
2 cups chopped onion
1 large Yukon gold potato, diced
1 cup chopped red bell pepper
1 cup halved grape tomatoes
1 tsp. salt, divided in half
¼ lb. ciabatta bread, cut in 1 inch cubes and toasted (You may also use a French baguette or sourdough bread)
Cooking spray
4 oz. Brie cheese, rind removed and chopped
1 cup egg substitute (usually comes in a cardboard container like cream)
2 large eggs
1 tsp. dried Herbes de Provence or an Italian herb mixture
¼ tsp. freshly ground pepper
3 cups milk
2 tbsp. chopped fresh parsley
Directions:
NOTE: The beauty of this recipe is that you can prepare it the night before. If you’re going to do that, combine the ingredients as directed below but without the egg mixture, then cover that mixture with plastic wrap and refrigerate. Combine the ingredients for the egg mixture and refrigerate in a separate container. Thirty minutes before you’re ready to bake it pour the egg mixture over the bread mixture, and let it stand at room temperature.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and lightly spray a 9 x 13-inch glass dish. Heat the oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onion, potato, and red bell pepper. Sauté about 4 minutes or until tender. Stir in ½ teaspoon salt. Combine onion mixture and bread.
Place half of the bread, onion, potato, and pepper mixture in the prepared baking dish and sprinkle with half of the Brie. Top with the remaining bread mixture and the remaining Brie.
Put the egg substitute and the eggs in a medium size bowl. Add the remaining ½ teaspoon salt, herbs de Provence, and pepper. Add the milk, whisking until well blended. Pour egg mixture over bread mixture and let stand for 30 minutes.
Bake at 350 degrees for 50 minutes or until set. Sprinkle with parsley and serve. Enjoy!
CORNISH GAME HENS WITH APRICOT STUFFING & ORANGE SAUCE
Ingredients for stuffing hens:
4 Cornish game hens
1 cup orange juice
½ cup apricot brandy or regular brandy
8 oz. package cornbread stuffing mix
¾ cup chopped dried apricots (I use scissors to chop them. It seems to work well)
¼ cup butter
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Heat the orange juice in a medium size saucepan. Add the brandy and butter and stir until the butter is melted. Add the apricots and simmer 2-3 minutes until they’re tender. Add the stuffing mix and stir to blend. Remove from heat and use mixture to stuff game hens. (I know it’s messy, but whenever I’m stuffing something like a turkey, I use my hands. Naturally, you’re going to want to wash your hands before you ever start cooking!) Bake about 1 hour uncovered or until the hens are browned. Baste the hens when you first put them in the oven and again after 30 minutes.
Ingredients for Basting:
½ cup orange juice
2 tbsp. soy sauce
Directions:
Combine and set aside.
Ingredients for Orange Sauce:
2/3 cup brown sugar
2/3 cup granulated white sugar
3 tbsp. cornstarch
2 tbsp. grated orange peel
1 ½ cups orange juice
1/8 tsp. salt
½ cup apricot brandy or orange flavored liqueur
Directions:
Combine the sugars in a saucepan over medium heat. Add the cornstarch, orange peel, orange juice, salt, and liqueur. Stir while simmering until slightly thickened. Spoon the warm sauce over the game
hens after they’re removed from the oven and serve. Put the remaining sauce in a dish on the table. Enjoy!
EASY PEASY BAKED BEANS
Ingredients:
1 can M & M baked beans
½ cup brown sugar
2 tbsp. chopped onions, lightly sautéed
½ cup catsup
Directions:
Put all of the ingredients in a saucepan over medium heat. Stir to combine and when warm, serve. Enjoy!
KILLER DOUBLE/DOUBLE CHEESEBURGERS (MAKES TWO)
Ingredients:
¼ cup catsup
½ cup mayonnaise
1 tsp yellow mustard (use the prepared, not the powder)
2 ¼ tsp. sweet pickle relish
2 ¼ tsp. dill pickle relish
1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp. white wine vinegar
½ tsp. salt
¼ tsp. sugar
Directions:
Stir the ingredients together in a medium bowl and set aside. Sauce can be kept refrigerated up to two weeks. (I use it on all kinds of sandwiches.)
Cheeseburgers and Topping Ingredients:
½ lb. ground beef (try to get as close to 80/20 ratio as possible. I sometimes have to mix two different packages of ground beef together to get the right ratio)
8 iceberg lettuce leaves
4 large tomato slices
½ yellow onion, thinly sliced (separate them into rings)
4 slices American or Swiss cheese
4 soft white hamburger buns (I use the cheap plain ones - no sesame seeds, onion, etc.)
¼ tsp. salt
Directions:
Heat a griddle or a heavy skillet over medium heat until very hot. Measure out 4 two ounce patties and flatten to about ¼ inch thick. Toast the cut sides of the buns on the griddle. Cook the burgers on one side for about 45 seconds. Flip them and put a slice of cheese on each one, frying them for an additional 45 seconds. Remove from the heat.
Assembly:
Put a tablespoon of sauce on the bottom and top sections of the bun. On the bottom of each bun, put two lettuce leaves, a cheeseburger, a slice of tomato, onion rings, and then the second burger. Enjoy!
FISHERMAN’S FRIED RICE
Ingredients:
1 cup white rice
2 cups water
8 strips bacon
8 green onions, chopped
8 eggs, whisked in small bowl
3 tbs. soy sauce
4 pats of butter
Salt and pepper to taste
Directions:
Place the rice and water in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer and cover for 20 minutes. After 20 minutes remove the cover and continue to cook 6-8 minutes to reduce moisture content in rice.
Fry the bacon in a 12-inch frying pan until crisp. Remove, drain on a paper towel, cool, and crumble. Put the crumbled bacon in a small dish and set aside. Drain half of the bacon grease into a separate bowl, add the cooked rice to frying pan and fry the rice on medium high heat for 10-12 minutes, stirring occasionally so that the rice gets evenly browned.
Add additional bacon grease as needed. Add chopped onions and bacon pieces and gently combine into rice. With a spatula, push the rice mixture to one side of the frying pan, add the butter to the empty side of the pan. Once the butter is melted pour in the egg mixture and cook on medium heat, as if making soft scrambled eggs.
When the eggs are slightly firm, flip them and using the edge of the spatula cut the cooked eggs into small bite size strips 1-2 inches long and ½ inch wide. Combine the rice mixture with the cooked egg strips and add soy sauce, stirring gently. Add salt and pepper to taste. Spoon equal portions of cooked mixture onto serving plates and place soy sauce on the table. Serves four. Enjoy early in the morning before the sun comes up and then go fishing!
*****
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ABOUT DIANNE
Dianne lives in Huntington Beach, California, with her husband, Tom, a former California State Senator, and her boxer dog, Kelly. Her passions are cooking, reading, and dogs, so whenever she has a little free time, you can either find her in the kitchen, playing with Kelly in the back yard, or curled up with the latest book she’s reading.
Her other books are available below:
Amazon: Blue Coyote Motel
Amazon: Coyote in Provence
Amazon: Cornered Coyote
Amazon: Coyote Series
Amazon: Kelly’s Koffee Shop
Amazon: Murder at Jade Cove
Amazon: White Cloud Retreat
Amazon: Marriage and Murder
Amazon: Murder in Cottage #6
Amazon: Murder in the Pearl District
Amazon: Murder and Brandy Boy
Amazon: Murder in Calico Gold
Amazon: The Death Card
Amazon: Murder at The Cooking School
Amazon: Murder & The Monkey Band
Amazon: Murder at The Bed & Breakfast
Amazon: Murder at The Secret Cave
Amazon: Murder in Cuba
Amazon: The Blue Butterfly
Amazon: Trouble at the Kennel
Please feel free to follow her on these social media sites:
Website: http://www.DianneHarman.com
Blog: http://www.DianneHarman.com/blog
Email: [email protected]
Twitter: @DianneDHarman
Google+
Facebook Author Page (Thriller)
Facebook Author Page Cozy Mystery
Amazon Author Page
Blue Coyote Motel, an Amazon Kindle Best Seller, was a quarterfinalist in Amazon’s Breakthrough Novel Award Contest and was also a Goodreads Psychological Thriller of the Month Book.
Trouble at the Kennel Page 12
