Tastes Like Murder (Cookies & Chance Mysteries Book 1)

by Catherine Bruns

  "Do not worry, my sweet. I will always watch over you and your sister. If not here," she jerked her finger to the ceiling, "then, God willing, when I am up there."

  CHAPTER SIX

  "Come on, tell me what really happened, Sally. I promise not to tell anyone."

  I raised an eyebrow at Wendy O'Brien, one of the most notorious gossips in Colwestern. Josie and I had graduated high school with her only son, Jake. He was my mother's latest attempt at getting me hitched again.

  I shook my head as I placed six sugar cookies in a bag for her, along with a fortune cookie. "I already told you what happened. I found her lying on the porch."

  Mrs. O'Brien frowned, her gray eyes appraising me with skepticism. "That's not what I heard. Everyone says you two were fighting."

  My jaw almost hit the floor. I glanced sideways at Josie, involved in her own battle of wills with elderly Jeannie Peterson. The eccentric woman was quite particular about her cookies. She pointed at the glass, impatience written all over her face. "No, not that one. The one behind it. Can't you see, Josie? That one clearly has more chocolate chips."

  Josie cursed under her breath. "Only one cookie, Mrs. Peterson?"

  "That's all." She placed her hands on her large girth of a stomach. "And don't forget my fortune cookie either."

  Josie gave me a death stare. I flinched as I handed Mrs. O'Brien her change.

  "That's it?" Mrs. O'Brien frowned. "You're not going to tell me what the fight was about?"

  "There was no fight, Mrs. O'Brien."

  She snorted and sat down at a table. Her piercing eyes never left my face as she brought a cookie to her lips, afraid to miss any of the ongoing chatter.

  "Yeah, right." Jeannie's loud cackle startled me. "I heard Amanda was taunting you about Colin. Everyone said you were ticked off and tried to rip her hair out of her head, and then you pushed her down on the porch."

  I opened my mouth in astonishment. "That's ridiculous. I'd never do something like that."

  "It's all over town." Mrs. Peterson nodded, as if that explained everything. She snatched her bag from Josie. "Hey, I'm not blaming you, honey. If you ask me, it's just desserts for that evil thing." She shook the bag and grinned. "No pun intended. Do you know what that rotten little snot did to me? She told me last week I couldn't have a facial at her salon because I might break the chair. Can you believe the gall of some people?"

  She turned and fiddled with her umbrella as she waddled out the door, munching away on her cookie.

  "Thank God she's gone." Josie slammed the register drawer shut. "Next time you get to wait on her."

  Since we were children, Jeannie Peterson had managed to terrify the both of us, but Josie always maintained an extreme dislike for the woman. Jeannie was a widow with no children and mannerisms that resembled those of a witch. Gap-toothed and always dressed in black, rumor had it she also trapped and cooked small animals. As youngsters, we'd avoided her house on Halloween.

  "Next." Josie motioned to a slender woman with long, dark hair.

  The woman was about the same age as Josie and me. She glanced at the two little girls running around her in circles and caught each one by the hand. "Tell the lady what kind of cookies you want. One apiece."

  Josie gave me another knowing look. Yes, it wasn't one of our more prosperous days.

  The younger child, about age five, wore her hair in two neat blonde pigtails tied with red ribbons. She peered out at me from behind her mother, fingers in mouth. I melted at the sight of her and smiled as her enormous cornflower-blue eyes watched me with interest. She took her fingers out of her mouth and grinned, revealing a huge space where two front teeth used to be.

  "Oh, Mommy, sugar cookie." She jumped up and down.

  "I want the one with the jelly on top, Mommy." Her older sister had dark hair like the mother. She touched the glass with her fingertips, unable to contain her excitement.

  "Paws off," Josie snapped. The little girl looked up at her, startled.

  "It's all right," I reassured her while frowning at Josie. I reached for a piece of waxed paper and held out two fortune cookies. "Would you little ladies like one?"

  "Yummy." The blonde licked her lips and reached for the cookie while her mother smiled at me.

  "I don't know." The dark-haired girl held out her hand, but watched me thoughtfully. "I heard you made some lady eat one, and she choked to death."

  "Molly." Her mother's eyes widened in alarm. "That's not true." She turned to me and blushed. "Right?"

  What was with these people? "We're not sure what happened to her, but it wasn't from the cookies."

  Mrs. O'Brien rose to her feet. "Sally, no one would blame you if you shoved one down her throat. Not after what she did to you."

  I was mortified the children were hearing this. "Please, Mrs. O'Brien. I don't think this kind of talk is, um, appropriate right now."

  She ignored me and stared down at her fortune cookie. "Well, what the heck."

  "What does it say?" Josie asked. "Wait, let me guess. Don't ever assume because you'll make an ass—"

  I cleared my throat loudly, and Josie closed her mouth.

  Mrs. O'Brien read her fortune aloud. "Your intense personality can leave quite an impression on people."

  Josie choked back a laugh then turned it into a cough.

  "Well, I never." Mrs. O'Brien made a face. "That's the thanks I get for trying to defend you." She glowered at me. "Nice attitude. By the way, stop calling Jake and asking him to come for dinner."

  My mouth opened in surprise. "I don't know what you're talking about. I haven't even seen Jake since I've been back." Recognition slowly dawned on me. Uh-oh. Dear old Mom.

  "Well, then tell your mother to stop calling and pretending she's you." She held the piece of paper up. "And get some real fortunes." She pushed the door open with force, and the bells jingled merrily.

  The dark-haired woman handed Josie money. "Come on girls, let's go. What do you say to the nice lady?"

  "Thank you," they both chimed together.

  Molly glared at Josie. "You're mean."

  "I've been called worse, kid." Josie walked into the back room, unperturbed.

  Molly watched her retreating figure and looked to me for assistance. "You should fire her, lady."

  When I bit my lip to hide a smile, her mother met my gaze and grinned. "How many kids does she have?"

  "Four," I said.

  She nodded with sudden understanding. "That explains it."

  "Bye!" The little blonde danced out the door while I waved at her.

  "You come back whenever you want another fortune cookie, okay?" I told them.

  "Bye, now!" Josie hollered from behind me.

  I put my hands on my hips and turned to face her. "Would it have hurt you to be nice to those sweet, little girls?"

  Josie waved a hand dismissively. "Please. The oldest one is in Danny's class at school. She's always kissing the boys on the playground. I don't trust her."

  "Why, does she happen to remind you of someone?" I teased.

  She tossed her hair in defiance and ignored my comment. "You're such a sucker for kids. Wait till you have some, you'll learn."

  My heart ached at the words, but I said nothing. Josie sighed and put her arm around my shoulders. "I'm sorry, Sal. That was stupid of me."

  "No worries."

  "You never should have married that asshole."

  I couldn't argue with that statement. From the beginning, the one thing Colin had always been honest about with me was children. He didn't want them. Ever. Sadly, I had been young and foolish enough to think I could get him to change his mind with time.

  "Live and learn, right?" My eyes were growing moist. I blinked a few times and went into the back room to check the inventory.

  Josie followed. "Hey, for whatever it's worth, you don't need a husband to have one."

  I held back a laugh. "Are you suggesting I visit a sperm bank or something?"

  "Why not? Lots of people do i
t these days."

  I opened the freezer to check on the pre-made dough. "Hel-lo, have you met my family? That is so not happening. My father would have a stroke."

  "Oh, you Italians." Josie chuckled. "Always so old-fashioned."

  The bells on the door announced we had another customer. We walked back into the storefront together, curious as to whom our next patron might be.

  Josie let out a sigh. "I swear, if one more person asks about Amanda—"

  "What about Amanda?" a woman asked.

  My jaw dropped. Standing there, in an expensive, beige raincoat, was Amanda's mother, Kate Gregorio.

  Josie's face was frozen, her eyes bugging out of her head.

  "Oh, dear, look what I've done." Kate stared at the puddle on the floor and shuffled her feet. "I'm sorry to have made such a mess."

  I walked toward her. "That's okay, Mrs. Gregorio. Don't worry about it." I hesitated for a minute. "What can I do for you?"

  Her amber-colored eyes were full of pain. "I'd like to talk to you if you have a moment."

  Oh, boy. "Of course. Please sit down." I pulled out a chair for her and sat down in one next to her.

  "Thank you." She placed her Louis Vuitton handbag on the empty chair between us and removed her coat. I didn't know Mrs. Gregorio well, but from what I'd been told, she wasn't like her daughter. A wealthy woman, whose husband had died two years ago, she was always willing to lend a hand when it came time for a donation or anything else to help the town.

  Josie reached for her coat. "Let me hang that up for you. Can I get you a cup of coffee?"

  "That would be lovely. Do you have decaf?" Kate sat down.

  I turned to my friend. "I picked up a huge box of K-cups the other day. They're in the back room, top shelf."

  Josie nodded and disappeared with Kate's coat.

  My hands shook so hard in my lap that I prayed she wouldn't notice. I lifted my head to meet Kate's gaze. Her black hair was perfectly coiffed and pulled back from her gaunt face. Dark circles of weariness shone under her eyes.

  She sat there, her mournful face watching me until I couldn't stand it anymore. "I'm really sorry about Amanda, Mrs. Gregorio."

  A lone tear rolled down her cheek. "Please call me Kate. And thank you."

  Another awkward silence. I kept praying Josie would return and hoped she wasn't staying away on purpose.

  Kate cleared her throat. "Sally, I know you and Amanda weren't friends. I also know about the incident with your husband. I mean, ex-husband."

  "Mrs. Gregorio, er, Kate." I clasped my hands together. "I didn't have anything to do with Amanda's death. I hope you'll believe me."

  She reached out to grab my hand in between her two fragile, ice cold ones. "I didn't come here to accuse you. I thought maybe you might remember something about that night. Anything at all would help."

  I was ashamed my first thought had been about protecting my own hide. "I don't know what would help. Amanda came in, bought some cookies, then went outside to eat them. I closed the shop, went upstairs for a few minutes, came downstairs, and found—her."

  Kate sighed. "Yes. Officer Jenkins has been to my house twice already about the investigation. I hoped there was something you might have forgotten. You know, that might help the police catch the person."

  I looked up to see Josie standing beside Kate, placing coffee and a small pitcher of cream in front of her. Alarm registered in her blue eyes.

  Confused, I stared at Kate. "Catch them? I don't understand. Do you know what caused her death?"

  "Amanda was highly allergic to bees. Her lips and eyes were swollen, along with her tongue. The doctor said all signs of death pointed to an anaphylactic reaction." She hesitated. "But—"

  Josie's nostrils flared. "You think it was something else?"

  Kate exhaled sharply. "A lot of things just don't add up. They could find no visible signs of a bee sting on Amanda. Also, she carried an EpiPen everywhere she went, but there wasn't one in her purse. The police said the contents were spilled out all over your porch, as if she might have been searching for it."

  I nodded. "I noticed that too."

  Her mouth tightened into a thin, hard line. "I believe someone is responsible for my daughter's death."

  Sheer panic spread through my body. "I swear to you, there was nothing wrong with the cookies she ate."

  Kate's eyes filled with unshed tears, and she dabbed at them with her napkin. "I'm sorry. I didn't come here to upset you."

  "So if it wasn't an actual bee sting, how did she die?' Josie asked.

  Kate twisted her napkin between her hands. "The doctor said it's possible she ingested bee venom somehow."

  "Do you know what else she had to eat before she came here?" I asked.

  Amanda's mother released my hand and reached into the center of the table for a packet of Equal. She poured it into her cup and added a drop of cream. "That's the strange part. Amanda had an upset stomach earlier that day and told me she hadn't eaten anything. When I spoke to her on the phone, she said she had a craving for cookies and was going to stop by your shop."

  This was getting worse by the minute, and I struggled to make sense of it all. "She had to have eaten something else."

  Kate shrugged. "I don't know. I've been thinking about this over and over. She was at my house earlier in the day and didn't eat then. About four o'clock, Amanda announced she was going over to her apartment to change. She called me a little while later. It was right before she left for your shop." She paused. "Amanda almost died once before from a bee sting, you know."

  My stomach lurched. "I didn't know. What happened?"

  "A pool party two summers ago." Kate stirred her coffee in an absentminded way. "She got stung and immediately went into shock. Fortunately, one of the hosts located the EpiPen in her purse and applied it." She looked at me sorrowfully.

  Guilt crept over me. If I'd stayed downstairs, I would have heard the commotion on the porch. Perhaps Amanda had banged on my door repeatedly, but I never heard anything since I was in the shower. I shut my eyes tight. How helpless and frightened she must have felt when she went to search for her EpiPen and didn't find it. And then to die all alone like that. "If only I'd never gone upstairs to change."

  I didn't realize I'd spoken the words aloud, until Kate patted my hand. "I'm sure you would have done your best to help her."

  Josie paced back and forth in front of our table. "You really think someone might have done this deliberately?"

  I held my breath and waited.

  She paused a long moment before answering. "Yes. I think someone wanted Amanda dead."

  A shiver crept down my spine.

  Kate took a sip of her coffee. "Let's be honest, shall we? God knows I loved my daughter more than anything, but there were many people who didn't. She said and did hurtful things." Her eyes were full of pity as she looked at me, and I flinched. "I once overheard her telling Charlotte about your ex-husband. She sounded as if she was proud of wrecking your marriage. I'm sorry for all the pain she caused you."

  As much as I appreciated her apology, I felt I had to be fair about the situation. "She didn't wreck it by herself. Colin had a little something to do with it as well."

  She sighed. "I'm afraid my daughter made many enemies during her short life. We spoiled her terribly. You see, we couldn't have children. When Amanda's father and I adopted her at the age of four, she brought us such joy."

  This was news to me and apparently to Josie as well who stood there, her mouth hanging wide open.

  I shifted in my seat. "I didn't know Amanda was adopted."

  "I think we tried to prove our love for her by giving her material things." Kate sighed. "What a mistake that was. We certainly didn't do her any favors. I did so hope that you could help me."

  "I'll do whatever I can," I volunteered.

  She hesitated as she glanced at both of us. "Amanda didn't have many friends. I was wondering if the two of you might consider coming to the wake Sunday afternoon. It'
s being held at Phibbins Mortuary."

  "Of course." My insides filled with dread as I worried about the attention my presence would attract. Almost everyone in our gossip-rampant town knew about her and Colin. "We'd be glad to go." When Josie raised her eyebrows at me, I ignored her silent protest. "You're sure she had nothing to eat or drink before she came here?"

  "The only thing she might have had was a fruit smoothie they stock in the waiting room of her spa. She told me they helped settle her stomach." Kate paused. "Have either of you been there?"

  Josie and I both shook our heads.

  "Amanda kept a supply in her fridge at home. She was crazy about them and sometimes brought one along in her car too." A sudden gleam came into her eyes, and her mouth dropped open. "Dear God, do you think someone could have put something in her drink?"

  I pursed my lips. "I guess it's possible. Smoothies are thick, and she might not have noticed a difference in the taste right away."

  "Oh, how stupid of me. Why didn't I tell the police about it when they asked if she'd eaten anything else?" Kate's lower lip trembled.

  "I'm sure it just slipped your mind. I'd like to help you find out who did this." What I didn't add out loud was that until the person responsible was found, it was likely people would believe I had something to do with Amanda's death. My nemesis just happens to drop dead outside my cookie shop? Yeah, Sal, nothing to worry about there. A light bulb went on in my head. "I could call Officer Jenkins and tell him about the smoothie, if you want. Maybe they found one in her car." I tried to remember if there'd been a cup on the porch, but I was drawing a blank.

  Relief filled Kate's voice. "That would be wonderful. He also has a key to Amanda's apartment if they need to search it again. I have relatives coming from out of town for the service, and I really must get home." She stood and handed me a business card, then smiled at the both of us. "Thank you for the coffee. If you happen to think of anything else, please call me, day or night."

  "Of course." I nodded as Josie went to retrieve her coat.

  Kate's somber eyes rested on my face. "Amanda used to come over and spend the night a couple of times a week. We were so close. Thank goodness I still have Charlotte living there, but it's lonely for me without my baby."