CHRISTMAS PIZZA MURDER

by Patti Benning

  At least she had her friend with her. Emily knew what she was going through. Emily –

  Ann gasped. She didn’t know how it had taken her so long to make the connection. Emily’s husband had died a couple of years ago, and now Darlene’s husband was dead. The two of them had been neighbors, and surely Emily would’ve had plenty of opportunity to find out about Paul’s affair. What if she had decided to take matters into her own hands?

  Don’t be ridiculous, she thought. Emily might be Darlene’s best friend, but it was something of a stretch to imagine that she might have killed Darlene’s husband just because he was cheating on his wife. Surely if she had found out, she would have told Darlene about it. A best friend was someone who you helped through rough times and laughed with during good times, not someone you killed for.

  For all she knew, Emily’s husband might have died in a horrible accident. Just because it was something of a coincidence didn’t mean that there was a crime. When had she let herself become so cynical? She was going to worry away her entire visit with her granddaughter, and for what? The killer was out there somewhere, and he or she would be caught in time. Until then, there was nothing that she could do, other than be a good grandmother and support Darlene however she needed.

  Chapter Nine

  * * *

  “Darlene is innocent,” Ellie said. Marlowe stared at her. The bird’s blank look made her sigh. Marlowe didn’t look convinced, and she didn’t feel convinced herself. After thinking about what the private investigator had said yesterday all day today, she had finally broken down and called the number he had left her. She wasn’t going to tell him where to find her cousin, but she was going to learn more about what he knew.

  The fact that she hadn’t told Russell was making her feel guilty. He was always so concerned about her, and she didn’t want to give him anything else to worry about. Or, at least, that’s what she told herself. The truth was, part of her felt that agreeing to meet with the private investigator was the same as admitting that she thought that Darlene was guilty. She knew that she had a bad habit of letting her imagination run away from her, and she didn’t want Russell to get more involved until she was sure.

  As it got closer to the time that the private investigator was supposed to arrive, she was beginning to regret not telling her fiancé anything. She hadn’t thought about it when she had called him, but having a strange man over late in the evening when she was alone at home was suddenly beginning to feel like a poor idea on her part. Glenn hadn’t seemed threatening when she had spoken to him, but she knew that appearances could be deceiving.

  As a safety measure, she had made sure that her phone was fully charged and tucked away safely in her pocket. Russell’s number was already on speed dial, so if anything felt wrong, she could call him in an instant. She hoped that she didn’t have anything to worry about, but in today’s world, she knew that it was important to be careful.

  While she waited, she worked on making little party favor bags. Tomorrow was the very first meeting of the small business club, and she had put together fun little packets for everyone. Only a few local store owners would be coming, but that was okay by her. She wasn’t prepared for a large meeting. She hadn’t been planning to do it until after the holidays were over, but Joanna had been so excited, and when her friend had insisted, she had been unable to say no.

  Even though it was going to make the days leading up to Christmas even more busy, Ellie was looking forward to it. It would be nice to get to know some of the other local business owners better, and it would be a very welcome distraction from everything that Darlene was going through.

  A knock sounded at the door. Ellie stood up, the gift bags forgotten. He was there. It was time to finally uncover the truth about what had happened to her cousin’s husband.

  “Thank you for having me over,” Glenn said as he came inside. “Your house is very nice.”

  “Thank you. It’s actually my grandmother’s house. I’m just caring for it while she’s out of state.”

  She mentally kicked herself. Here she was, meeting a strange guy alone in her house, and the very first thing that she had done was mention that she was alone. Smart, Ellie, she told herself. Really smart.

  “It must be older. You don’t see this style very much anymore. Anyway, you said on the phone that you had some questions for me.”

  “I do,” she said. “Come on in and sit down. Would you like a drink?”

  “No thanks,” he said. “Let’s just get to the heart of the matter. I charge my client by the hour, and I’ve already been working on this case for quite a while.”

  Ellie led him to the living room, where they took seats across from each other, him in an armchair, and her on the sofa. Marlowe, whose cage was still next to the fireplace, made an unhappy sound at the sight of the intruder.

  “Ignore her,” she said. “She’s not used to having guests over.” Bunny hopped up on the couch beside her, and Ellie patted the dog. Even though Bunny wouldn’t be much of a physical deterrent if something were to happen, she felt more comfortable with her there.

  “All right, what is it that you wanted to know?”

  “How did Paul die?” she asked, deciding to skip on the small talk.

  “He was shot,” Glenn said. “Point-blank, with a shotgun. It’s untraceable, or nearly so. Shotguns don’t have any rifling in the barrel that could be used to match the slug to the weapon that fired it.”

  “Oh dear,” Ellie said. Hearing about how he had died was surprising. Somehow, she had envisioned him suffering a more natural death, or maybe she had simply held out hope that the police had been wrong, and he hadn’t been murdered after all. “Was it… self-inflicted?”

  “From the little I’ve managed to gather from the people who found him, the placement of the wound on his body would have made it almost impossible to be self-inflicted. He was shot in the chest, and it would’ve been very difficult for him to hold the shotgun at a right angle to shoot himself.”

  “And how does all this lead back to Darlene?”

  “She and her husband owned a shotgun for hunting. I’m lucky enough to have a friend on the local police force, who told me that their gun had been fired recently. Of course, it’s hunting season, and her husband was an avid hunter, so that may not be too incriminating on its own. However, time of death puts his passing at just a couple of hours after Darlene found him at the hotel with his mistress.”

  “You know about that?”

  He nodded. “Like I said, I’ve been doing some digging.”

  Ellie leaned back in her seat, sighing. She could see how Darlene would be a suspect in all of this. Her husband died just after she found out about his affair, shot in the chest by the same type of shotgun that they owned. But if that was the case, then why hadn’t the police kept her longer? What could she have told them to make them stop treating her like a suspect?

  “Will you tell me how to find her now?” the man asked.

  “Who is your client?” Ellie asked, ignoring his question. She still wasn’t ready to make that sort of decision.

  “That, I can’t tell you,” he said. “Everything I do is completely confidential. I’m sure you understand that.”

  “I just don’t understand why you need to find her. If she’s guilty, and I’m not saying that she is, I’m sure the police would be able to do something. If what you said is true, then all the evidence points toward her. The police have already spoken with her, and for some reason, they let her go. No offense, but I trust their judgment more than yours.”

  He gave a dry chuckle. “I don’t blame you. I know I’m asking you to turn against your family here. But please, just think about it. I know that she and her husband had a rocky relationship, but what she did isn’t right. If she was anyone else, wouldn’t you want her to face justice?”

  Ellie bit her lip. He was certainly convincing. She would give him that. She knew that he was right; the only reason that she was protecting Darlene was becau
se she was family. However, it still didn’t feel right to tell this stranger where her cousin was. She felt torn, and wished that she had told Russell about this meeting after all, because if he was there, he would know what to do.

  “I’ll keep your card,” she told him. “That’s all I will promise right now. I just need to know first, before you go, are there any other suspects at all?”

  Glenn hesitated, then took his head. “Not that I’ve been able to think of,” he said. “She’s the only one that had the motive, the means, and then afterwards, the guilt. When she fled town, that was when my client’s suspicions were really raised.”

  Ellie still didn’t want to believe it, but it was getting hard to deny. Darlene had fled town, she just had never phrased it like that to herself before. Everything pointed towards her cousin’s guilt, but still, she was hesitant to reveal anything about her. It’s not like she’s going anywhere. If I decide to help this man in the week, or month, she’ll still be around. As far as she knew, Darlene was coming back to Kittiport after visiting with their grandmother. Then she and Ellie planned to work together to create a plan for Darlene’s future.

  “Thank you for answering my questions,” she said to the man. “I’m sorry I couldn’t be more helpful. I just… well, I want to be sure before doing something like this.”

  “I understand,” he said. “If you change your mind, you know how to reach me.”

  Chapter Ten

  * * *

  “Are you sure you don't need help with anything?” Russell asked her.

  “I'm sure,” she said, leaning over to give him a kiss on the cheek. “This will be good for me. I could use something to take my mind off everything that's going on with Darlene.”

  She was looking forward to the small business club’s first meeting. Everything was ready at the Pacelli house. She had washed the tablecloth and set the table for the snacks that she had made. The little gift bags that she had set up were waiting on the kitchen counter to be handed out.

  She looked at the time on the car’s clock. “I should get going in. I want to put Bunny out and make sure Marlowe has plenty to keep her occupied before people get here.”

  “Okay,” her fiancé said. “Have a nice time. Call me if you need anything.”

  “I will,” she promised. She got out of the car, clutching her shopping bags to herself. Russell had picked her up a couple of hours ago, and the two of them had gone shopping for James and Shannon’s Christmas presents. They had bought them each a large present as a combined gift, but Ellie had also picked up a little something extra for her best friend.

  She went inside, taking care not to track snow on the floor, and led will Bunny directly to the back door, where she slipped on her other pair of boots, and went outside with the little dog. She had stomped a half circle in the snow off the porch, which Bunny had been using for her potty breaks. It was certainly easier to clean up when the dog stayed close to the house, but it didn’t look very nice.

  “Hurry up,” she said to the dog. “I’m cold, and people will be here soon.”

  Bunny took one last sniff in the snow, then hurried back to the porch. Ellie went inside, took off her boots, and grabbed the bag of nuts from the pantry. These she took to Marlowe’s cage, which was still in the living room. She opened the birdcage and gave her a generous handful of nuts that were still in their shells. It should take her a while to get through them, and would hopefully keep her quiet when people arrived.

  Just in time, Ellie remembered to stash Shannon’s Christmas gift in the pantry. Even though her friend wasn’t a small business owner, she was coming over to give Ellie moral support. She and Joanna, the owner of Hot Diggity Dog, were riding together, and they showed up just a few minutes later.

  “Come on in,” she said when she answered the door. “I have some snacks laid out on the dining room table, but feel free to sit wherever you would like. No one else is here yet.”

  “The house looks wonderful,” Shannon said. “And it smells like Christmas cookies.”

  Ellie smiled. “That’s because there are Christmas cookies,” she said.

  “I’ve got to try those,” said Joanna.

  The two women took off their coats, and vanished into the house, Shannon leading the way. Ellie waited by the door, eager for everyone else to arrive. When she saw another set of headlights pull into the driveway, she pulled the door open, and stood there waiting in the cold until the person inside the vehicle walked out the door.

  “Hello,” the man said. “I am Fredrick White. I own the bait store that’s right in between Kittiport and Benton Harbor.”

  “It’s nice to meet you,” she said. “I’m Eleanora Pacelli, but you can call me Ellie. I own…”

  “The pizzeria,” he said, grinning. “Everyone knows you.”

  She laughed. “I don’t know about everyone, but thanks. Go on in, there are couple of people already here.”

  She welcomed the next few people, then did a mental headcount and realized that was everyone that would be coming tonight. It was a small group, but the perfect size for the first meeting. Ellie locked the door, then joined everyone in the dining room. They all seemed to be enjoying the Christmas cookies, cheese and crackers, and barbecue meatballs that she had made. Ellie looked around the room, feeling a warm glow in her heart. She was glad that she had decided to do this. It had taken her a while to actually take the plunge, but she thought it was a wonderful idea, and she couldn’t wait to get to know her fellow small business owners better.

  “Hello,” she said, clearing her throat. “I’m Ellie, as all of you know. Before we begin, I thought we could all go around and say who we are and what we do. I’ll start. I own Papa Pacelli’s Pizzeria here in Kittiport.”

  “I’m Fredrick White and I own the bait shop.”

  “Leslie Adams and I own the Pizza Boat in Benton Harbor.”

  “Joanna, and I own Hot Diggity Dog here in Kittiport.”

  “Frannie Miller. I own Stunning Style, the hair salon here in town.”

  “I own the Lobster Pot, and my name is Lincoln Hall.”

  They all greeted each other, and spent a few minutes talking about their experiences with each other’s businesses. When she had seen that the owner of the competing pizza shop had showed up, she had been a little bit concerned that the woman might hold a grudge against her, but Leslie was surprisingly nice.

  “This is such a wonderful idea,” she said, approaching Ellie. “It’s so neat to meet everyone. I’ve gone to most of these places at some point, and have met a couple of these people before, but this is such a wonderful way to really get to know each other. How often do you think we will meet?”

  “I have no idea,” Ellie said truthfully. “I was thinking either once or twice a month. But that’s something that we can talk about while we’re here.”

  After a few minutes, she cleared her throat again. “Let’s get this meeting started,” she said. “Now that we all know each other, we might as well begin. First, I’d like to ask what everyone’s hopes for this club are. When you heard about it, what were you thinking it would be like?”

  “A place where we can get together and talk about our problems and successes,” the owner of the bait shop said. “I figured you guys would know better than anyone what it’s like to try to keep a business running.”

  “I was hoping that we could share some of our suppliers, and maybe go in together on some deliveries if we are ordering from the same people. Delivery costs are high up here, especially in the winter. We’re so far away from everything, so it would probably save a lot of money if we could partner up to get some deliveries in.” That was from the owner of the Pizza Boat.

  “I just wanted to meet everyone, and maybe start being a little bit more active around town. I know you are at your pizzeria almost every day, Ellie. I haven’t been as involved with the Lobster Pot since I hired my newest manager, and I want to change that.”

  They continued around the table. Ellie made
notes of everyone’s ideas.

  “Those are all wonderful thoughts,” she said when they were done. “I think we can do all of those things, at least to an extent. Those of us in the food industry can almost certainly combine some orders. I agree the shipping would be a lot less if we all paid for it together.”

  “There’s one more thing,” said the woman who owned the hair salon. “Recently, a man has been coming around trying to buy my business from me. I know he’s been doing it to a couple of other people as well. I thought it would be nice if we all got together and agreed not to sell out.”