by Lynn Cahoon
As she was shutting down the site, she noticed an alert for visits. She clicked on the link and was taken to a page with a few phone numbers. And this message: Don’t waste your time visiting the wrong facility. Prisoners are housed in multiple locations, including out-of-state facilities. Call the prisoner visitation line listed below for current updates.
Space issues. She’d read articles about the overcrowding at prisons. Had Denny spent his time in a Florida facility or somewhere else? Did it even matter?
Glancing at the clock, she groaned. It was already almost midnight. And she had a big cooking day ahead of her to get ready for the next catering job. Time to put this hobby, as Baldwin would call it, away and get ready for her own life.
Still, something bothered her about Denny, and now Cindy. The pieces didn’t fit together as they should. Cindy was a piece of work, but killing just seemed a little too much effort for the woman.
At least Mia hoped so, because if not, she’d brought a killer into her house. With Grans right here. She was some sort of amazing protector, wasn’t she?
She turned off all the lights and locked the doors. She checked the lock on the front door before she went upstairs. No use giving someone easy access to a place that used to be abandoned, a known teen hookup site. She patted the wall. “It’s okay, now you’re under my watch. Things will be better.”
The house groaned in response. Mia got a positive feeling from the response. Hopefully, she could keep her promise.
Chapter 10
“What’s on the schedule today?” Christina sipped at her coffee. She pulled her jet-black hair away from her eyes. It didn’t matter what color her hair was, she looked beautiful.
“I need to make a quick run to the hardware store, then we need to do prep for tomorrow’s cooking. Shopping, making sure we have what we need, maybe making a test dessert to make sure it’s going to be what I wanted.” Mia sat with Mr. Darcy on her lap. Her cup of coffee had been sitting on the table for the last thirty minutes and the coffee inside it was still piping hot. Dorian was playing with his magic. Letting her know he was still around. “What are your plans? Having you with me will cut my work time in half, but you usually take Wednesdays off.”
“No plans,” Christina said quickly. A little too quickly, and Mia glanced at her from the end of the table.
“Are you sure? I bet Levi missed seeing you while you were in Bermuda. Maybe you should invite him out for a hike and a picnic. It’s going to be a lovely day.” Mia wished she was outside today, but it was her business. She was responsible for making sure the Roths’ baby gender reveal party was a success. When—or if, she corrected herself—she had a baby, she wasn’t going to find out the gender until the baby was born. That way she’d be surprised too. Of course, the sonogram might reveal the gender accidentally, but still, she definitely wasn’t going to hold a party and watch some pink or blue smoke come out of the cake when it was cut open.
“I’d rather work with you. If we get done early, I’ve got a book I’ve been dying to finish. I’ll take it out to the park and read the lazy afternoon away. At least until Baldwin kicks me out for being a bad influence on the kids in the playground.” She peeled a banana.
“You shouldn’t let him get to you. He teases you because you react. Didn’t Isaac do that when you were growing up?” Mia sipped her coffee and wondered how Cindy was doing.
“No, he was in high school when I was five, so he just kind of ignored me. Like the rest of the family.” Christina finished her coffee and took the cup to the sink. “Let me know when you’re ready. I want to check in with some guys from school to see when they’re coming back to Twin. I’ll probably take a day then to go see everyone.”
“I’m going to wait for Grans for breakfast, then I’ll run my errand.” Mia hated that Christina wasn’t close to her family. However, on the other hand, Mia knew what a pain the Adams family could be. At least she’d dodged that bullet.
Christina paused. “She’s already gone. One of her friends came to pick her up this morning. They were going to visit the jail to see Cindy. I think they were stopping for doughnuts from Majors to take with them.”
“She always has to be taking care of people.” Mia sighed and glanced at the clock. “Okay, then, I’m going down at nine. I’ll see you then.”
“Perfect.” Christina disappeared down the hallway.
Mia glanced at Mr. Darcy. “That grandmother of mine can get into trouble in a blink of an eye.”
Mr. Darcy—or had it been Dorian?—snorted in reply, then jumped over to the window box, laid his head on the sill, and fell asleep.
Mia grabbed her purse and headed out to talk to Dick Hodges. He owed her an explanation. Her instincts said John was behind it. If she could prove it, maybe Baldwin would take her seriously and look into John for the murder as well.
Dick Hodges had just brought a snowblower out to the sidewalk to entice walk-ins. He turned to greet her, but his salesman’s smile fell off his face when he saw who it was. “I can’t talk to you.”
Mia followed him into the store and back to the storage room. “Look, you either talk to me or I’m calling Mark Baldwin right now and telling him to charge you with trespassing, and maybe even participating in murdering that guy in my backyard.”
“I didn’t kill anyone. And I didn’t trespass. I knocked on the door.” He focused on a box of screws that looked like it had many different sizes dumped in. “Just leave before he sees you.”
“You’re talking about John, aren’t you?” Mia leaned over to get into Dick’s line of sight. “What does he have on you that you’re willing to be his messenger boy?”
Now Dick sighed and lifted his head. “I was behind on my bank payments for the business. He offered to buy me out. When I said no, he told me he’d put in a good word for me at the bank to get me more time. All I had to do was deliver a message to you.”
“So you told me to leave town.”
He nodded. “I still think it’s a good idea. When John Louis has it in for you, you’re probably leaving sooner or later. I went to school with the guy and he still scares the crap out of me. I can’t prove it, but I’m pretty sure he beat up Jimmy Marks freshman year because the guy wouldn’t write a term paper for him. Jimmy was in the hospital for a month. John Louis is bad news.”
“So that’s all that happened? You didn’t kill Denny?” Mia believed his story. Dick looked nervous even now, telling the old story from high school.
He held up his hands. “I don’t know a Denny and I would never have hurt another soul. I’m a Methodist.”
Mia wasn’t quite sure what his religious affiliation had to do with the topic at hand, but she could see that Dick was being honest. “Please tell John Louis if he wants to talk to me, he can call, and I’ll give him the name and number of my attorney.”
Walking back home, she thought of the encounter. She was still shaking, but not from confronting Dick. No, her anger was at John Louis and his ability to get everyone to do his bidding. The guy was a bully. Plain and simple.
Mia was late getting back to the work kitchen. Christina sat on the bench outside the kitchen, reading a book. “I didn’t hear you leaving. I hope you didn’t have to wait long.”
“I headed out about an hour ago. Trent called and told me one of the books he’d ordered for me had come in, so I went down and got it.” She held up the cookbook. It was written by a late travel writer, about different foods in the world. “It’s really interesting. One of my professors last semester studied him for her final paper.”
Mia had never felt comfortable cooking with unusual proteins. She’d even shied away from sweetbreads and other organ meats.
She grinned as she thought about the typical witch potion lore. Eye of newt, blood of a snake caught under a full moon. Luckily, real witches didn’t use those things in their potions. Herbs and tonics were more her style. “I like that he opened up other culture’s foods to the US market, but honestly, I’m not sure I could e
at or work with the recipes.”
“So you don’t have to cook everything?” Christina eyed her warily.
Mia unlocked the door and opened the kitchen, her gaze still focused on Christina. “Not when you’re out of school. You can choose what area you’re going to focus on. And if a customer wants something you don’t want to do, well, it’s out of your expertise. They can go elsewhere.”
Mia stopped in the middle of the room. What looked like every pot, pan, dish, and utensil was out on the floor. The pantry had suffered the same fate. She heard Christina, next to her, whistle.
“Man, someone went to town on your stuff.”
Mia stepped out of the room and closed the door. She pulled out her cell phone and called Baldwin. “You need to come see this.”
“Mia, I’m a little busy. Are you hurt?” Baldwin’s exasperated tone told her he wasn’t open to helping, but she pushed on.
“Just come. I need you to tell me if this is a crime. Oh, and don’t let me forget to tell you about my talk with Dick Hodges.” She hung up, hoping her lack of specifics would bring him to the school sooner rather than later. She focused on Christina. “No one was here or near the kitchen when you came down or went out to the store?”
“I haven’t seen anyone. Who in the world would do something like this?” Christina glanced around the empty lobby. “You don’t think they’re still in the building, do you?”
Mia glanced at the door and lock. “No, I locked the door from this side to double protect the rest of the building from the back door in the kitchen. That way, if we ever have a time where we rent out the kitchen, I don’t have to worry about people wandering the other floors if I’m not here.”
“Smart idea.” Christina stared at the kitchen door. “But I don’t get why someone would break in.”
“Could have been kids. This was a hangout when the place was empty. Maybe they wanted one last party?” Mia sank into one of the chairs. “All I know is I need to get a better lock on that back door, and maybe a camera system on it too. Although that’s going to take a big bite out of this month’s budget.”
“I’m still getting paid, right? Mom’s been kind of iffy about the living allowance since I’m taking classes in Twin instead of going to BSU or U of I. I guess I should be glad she’s paying my tuition. Of course, she’s paying it out of my trust fund from my grandmother, so it’s not like she’s hurting for the money.” Christina let her shoulders sink. “It’s never going to be easy with her unless I follow the life plan she made for me, is it?”
“Yes, I’ll pay you for the hours. But life with your mom probably isn’t going to be easy. The thing is, life isn’t meant to be easy. If you’re enjoying what you’re doing and moving forward, learning new things, that’s all you can ask for. Besides, you have people here who care about you.” Mia gave Christina an encouraging smile. “Right?”
“I thought I had a few more.” Christina waved away the look on Mia’s face. “Don’t worry about it. I’m handling the drama.”
Mia wanted to ask her about Levi and what was happening, but she decided Christina was right. If she could handle the drama, Mia needed to stay out of it. Besides, before long, Grans would figure out what was going on and try to insert herself into their relationship to fix things. There didn’t need to be two meddlers in one family. “Sounds good. Baldwin should be here soon. Hopefully, we can get back to work by noon. I really want to make sure this party goes off without a hitch.”
“Since this is just the gender reveal party, do you think we’ll get the baby shower as well?”
Mia nodded. “That’s my hope.”
A knock sounded at the front door. Mia hurried over and found Baldwin on the porch.
“This better be good,” he snarled. “You realize you could have called 9-1-1 if this was an emergency.”
Mia smiled sweetly, or at least she hoped that was what it looked like. “I wanted the best. I don’t think this will take long. Besides, you always get snippy if I don’t tell you things. So I called you.”
“Fine, where is it?” Baldwin came inside and looked around the lobby. “Everything looks fine here.”
“Christina, open the kitchen door for our guest.” Mia nodded in that direction. “I’m assuming they got in from the back door.”
Baldwin went through the doorway and whistled. “Man, someone hates you.” He picked up his cell. When someone answered, he said, “Get an evidence team over to the old school. There’s been a break-in.”
Mia sank into the sofa and watched her plans for the day get delayed. Luckily, she’d built in two prep days for the event. She waited for him to come out of the kitchen. “How bad is it?”
“Someone jimmied your back lock. You need to call Dick over at the hardware store and he should be able to get it fixed. Or you could call Trey and get a camera system for the back too. This building is too big just to have the one at the front door.”
“Dick and I have been having issues. I’ll call Trey. It’s on my list for today. When will I be allowed back in the kitchen? I have an event this weekend.” Mia held her breath for the answer. She didn’t want to try to find a kitchen and repurchase all the food. That would really hurt this month’s bottom line.
Baldwin glanced back toward the kitchen doorway. “I’ll get everything done before nightfall, but you really need to have that lock replaced as soon as I release the scene.”
“I’ll call Trent to see if he can come over tonight.” Mia hated calling in favors, but Trent had construction experience. And besides, she’d feed him his favorite meal and throw in some treats to take home with him. The man loved her cooking. “Look, this might not be a big issue, but Dick Hodges came over the other day and said I was in danger. He said I should sell.”
“Dick has had his own run-ins with John Louis. Maybe he was just sharing some neighborly advice.” Baldwin watched her reaction.
“Yeah, he told me about that today. Maybe he came to destroy my kitchen so I would leave.” Mia swept out her hand in an inclusive gesture. “Like this.”
“Nothing’s really destroyed. Except the lock. It looks like someone was looking for something.”
“What? A can opener?” Mia couldn’t keep the sarcasm from her voice.
“I get it. I’ll talk to Dick. But I know you’re barking up the wrong tree there. The guy’s just getting a little old. He gets ideas in his head and can’t get them out.” He tapped his temple. “His wife needs to keep a closer eye on him. He’s got the dementia disease.”
“Oh. I didn’t realize.”
“We go to the same church. You learn a lot about the community when you attend a house of worship.” He studied her. “Are you connected with a good church?”
“No, and I’m fine. Thank you.”
“Okay. Now that we have that settled, I need to interview everyone who was in the house last night after we picked up Miss Alexander. Can I use your office for interviews?” Baldwin grinned at Christina. “You can be first, Miss Adams. I’d love to hear about your Bermuda trip. And I hear there was an incident this week down at one of the bars? Someone messing with what you think of as yours?”
“Totally off topic.” Mia stood and opened the office door. “Christina, don’t answer anything except where you were today and last night. Baldwin can get his gossip from the rumor mill.”
It was almost four before Baldwin released the kitchen. Trent waited with her downstairs while the evidence techs collected their samples and packed their bags. Mia followed the last one out of the building and locked the door after them. Grans and Christina were upstairs. Mia leaned against the wall, studying the kitchen door.
“Maybe I bit off more than I wanted here.” She glanced at Trent. “I need you to tell me the truth. Do you think I should sell the school?”
He pulled her into his arms. “No way. This will pass. We’re ninety percent sure of who’s behind this, and once he realizes you aren’t going away, he’ll give up and start annoying someone else to sell hi
m their property. He’s responding to pride right now. You won the bid on the sale. Then you got him arrested.”
“For trying to force me to sell.” Mia stepped back.
Trent patted down the air in front of him. “Calm down, slugger, we all know why John Louis was arrested and convicted. Except for maybe one man—John Louis. That man has such an ego on him, it’s pathetic.”
“I just hate to put Grans and Christina in danger.” Mia glanced up at the apartment. “If it was just me, I’d ride it out to the end.”
“You’re not alone in this situation. You have friends who care about what’s happening to you. I swear, everyone in town is buying your home-cooked meals. My grocery receipts have decreased each week, and I’m assuming your orders are increasing.” He studied her, watching for the tell.
She shrugged. “Okay, so yeah, business is picking up. Sorry it’s affecting your sales.”
He laughed and picked up the bag that had the new lock and a small toolbox he’d gotten from the back of his Blazer. “It will even out, eventually. If not, I’ll just have to raise my prices. Then they’ll appreciate what a service Majors is to the community.”
Mia worried about that as she followed him through the kitchen. Or at least as she walked through the door. Then, looking at the mess, the only thing she was worried about was getting the kitchen in order so they could cook tomorrow. She frowned at the mess. “I don’t think this is random.”
“The break-in?” Trent looked around. “Or the mess?”
She turned in a small circle and walked over to the bookcase, where she’d stored a lifetime of cookbooks. “The mess. It looks like they were looking for something. See how my cookbooks are all stacked neatly in a pile? Then everything else is just thrown out of cupboards, like they were looking for something specific.”
