“They told their family, but no one else knew. It’s all so exciting.”
I finished packing the third box of donuts and slid them across the counter to her. After I quoted her the price, she paid gladly with a fifty-dollar bill, and as I gave her the change, she was beaming with delight. “Tell them that Suzanne from Donut Hearts said congratulations,” I said.
“I will,” she said. “You should see the teacher’s lounge. Becky, Tonya, and I have been decorating it since five this morning. Everything’s just perfect.”
“It sounds lovely,” I said as she left the shop.
I probably should have given her the donuts free of charge, since she’d just unwittingly eliminated two of my strongest suspects. There were a lot of reasons to believe that either Henry or Helen could have done it, but none of that mattered now. I’d tell the police chief so he could confirm their story, but I had a hunch that it was true. That meant striking their names off our list of suspects. That still left Tom, Janet, Billy, and Candy, but at least it had cleared up a little room for us. Having six suspects was a bit overwhelming, while four was a little more manageable. Grace and I had to narrow the list of names down even further if we were hoping to solve Zane’s murder before the rumors started flying about Grace as a possible suspect. So far, no one had pointed any fingers at her, but that might have had more to do with the friendship that Grace and I shared than the town’s belief that she was innocent of murder. Either way, we were in a rush to track down the killer, and as soon as I closed the donut shop for the day, we’d renew our hunt.
“Suzanne, do you have a second?” I was shocked to see Tom Hancock in my donut shop asking me for my time.
“Sure, Tom. Would you like a donut?”
“Sorry, but I don’t have time for that,” Tom said as he waved a hand in the air. He looked around the shop at the dozen folks enjoying their treats and added, “Is there someplace a little more private we can talk?”
He was a suspect high on my list, so when I heard him say “private,” red flags appeared. “How private are we talking about?”
“I’m not trying to get you alone in a dark room,” he snapped, and then, in a nicer voice, he added, “I just don’t want anyone listening in on our conversation. Please?”
“Okay,” I said. “Give me one minute.”
“Thanks. I appreciate that. I’ll be outside waiting for you,” he said.
I went in the back and found Emma washing dishes. “Emma?” I shouted, since she never washed them without her music blasted high.
“Hey, take it easy, Suzanne. You don’t have to shout,” Emma said.
“What happened to your music?”
“Can you believe it? I forgot it at home,” she admitted. “I wasn’t used to sleeping in, so I got up later than I should have, and then I was rushing around to make it here in time. Funny, isn’t it?”
“Hilarious. Listen, I need you to cover the front.”
“That’s fair,” she said as she pulled her hands out of the soapy water. “Will you be back in time to close, or should I take care of it myself?”
“I’ll only be gone five minutes,” I said. “Listen, if my book club shows up, tell them that I’ll be right back, but that they can go ahead and get started without me if they want to.”
“I can do that,” she said as she rinsed her hands and dried them off.
Emma followed me out front, and I left her at the counter while I went off in search of Tom.
He was standing edgily across the street, and he waved to me to join him the moment he saw me.
When I reached him, I asked, “What’s up?”
“Suzanne, I’m in some serious trouble,” he said, and one look at the expression on his face told me that he was dead serious. “Can we walk around the park while we talk? I feel kind of exposed just standing here.”
“That’s fine,” I said, knowing that I’d only go so far into the trees with this man before I’d stop. I’d fought killers there before who’d wanted to hurt me, and I knew how dangerous being alone with someone could be.
“What can I do?”
“For starters, you can help me figure out what to do,” he said.
“I’ll try, but I’m going to need a little more than that.”
Tom ran a hand through his hair. “Honestly, I don’t even know where to start.”
“I’ve always found that if all else fails, the beginning is as good a place as any.”
He shook his head. “Neither one of us has that much time. First things first. I didn’t kill Zane.”
“Okay,” I said, keeping my voice neutral.
“You don’t believe me, do you?” he asked.
“I’m willing to accept it for now,” I said.
He was angry now. “Are you serious?”
“Hey, I’m not going to lie to you. You either want my help or you don’t.”
“I want it.”
“Then tell me what’s got you so spooked,” I suggested.
“I’m the one who stole the spear from the gym the night Zane was murdered.”
“You what!”
“Keep your voice down, would you?” Tom asked. “I don’t want the world to know how stupid I was.”
“Sorry,” I said, lowering my voice to a more normal tone. “Why did you take it?”
“I wanted a souvenir, if you can believe that. As the reunion broke up, I grabbed one of the spears and took it outside. I admit that I was more than a little drunk when I took it.”
“You would have had to be, wouldn’t you?” I asked.
“Are you judging me, Suzanne?”
“Tom, this would go a lot faster if you’d just tell me what you did with the spear after you left the gym.”
He nodded. “Fine. The second I got it outside, I realized how stupid I’d look carrying it to my car, so I dumped it.”
“Where exactly did you leave it?”
“In the dumpster outside of the gymnasium,” he said. “I’ve been trying to figure out what to do since I found out how Zane was murdered, but I can’t come up with any scenario that doesn’t end with me being tried for murder. My fingerprints were all over that thing, and as soon as the police figure it out, I’m dead.”
“Not necessarily,” I said. “Maybe the killer smudged them when he grabbed it.”
“Don’t you get it? Whoever did it had to have seen me dump it. I’m pretty sure they’d be smart enough not to wipe my prints off. It would kind of defeat the purpose, wouldn’t it?”
I thought about it, and then I said, “You still might be okay for now. If your prints aren’t in the system, they won’t know it’s you right away.”
He looked instantly miserable. “I was in the ROTC in college. I’m in the system.”
“Then why hasn’t the chief come looking for you yet?”
Tom shrugged. “For all I know, he has. I haven’t been home since the murder. I’ve been staying on a friend’s couch.”
“Tom, if you’re innocent, you’ve got to tell Chief Martin what happened.”
He looked at me as though I’d lost my mind. “That’s your suggestion? I’ll be in jail before lunch if I do anything that stupid.”
“What do you want from me?” I asked.
“I don’t know,” he said angrily. “Everybody talks about how you’re this great detective. You’ve got to do something.”
“There’s only one thing I can tell you at this point. Call Chief Martin.”
“You’re no help at all!”
“I’m sorry, but it’s the only thing that might help.”
He looked around, and that’s when he must have realized how close we were to Grace’s house. “Forget I even asked. I’ll get help from someone else.”
As he started toward Grace’s place, I said loudly, “Leave her alone, Tom. She can’t help you, either.”
“We’ll just see about that,” he said, walking faster.
I couldn’t stop him, but there was one thing that I could do.
/> I pulled my cellphone out of my pocket and called her. I had to warn Grace that trouble was on its way.
She didn’t pick up.
Of course not. That would have been too easy.
I couldn’t go back for my Jeep; I didn’t have time.
Instead, I started running, hoping to head him off before he got there.
I stopped before I reached him, though.
Grace must not have seen either one of us in the park as she drove past us on her way out of town.
I called again, and this time she picked up.
“Grace,” I rasped as I tried to catch my breath.
“If this is someone’s attempt to get a cheap thrill, you’re wasting your time. Heavy breathing on a phone is for twelve-year-olds.”
“Grace, it’s Suzanne,” I said as I turned and hurried back to the donut shop. At least I’d caught my breath.
“Suzanne, what are you doing, trying to prank me?”
“No, this is serious. Stay away from your house.”
“Now you sound like one of those teen horror movies,” Grace said.
“I mean it. Tom Hancock is looking for you.”
“Why exactly am I avoiding him?” she asked.
“He’s the one who stole the spear from the gym, but he claims he didn’t use it to kill Zane,” I replied, and then I gave her the full story he had just shared with me.
“What does he want from me?” Grace asked, all of the humor now gone from her voice.
“I couldn’t help him, so he decided that only you could.”
“If there’s nothing that you can do for him, I’m certainly at a loss. He should probably call the police chief. That’s what I would tell him. Running away isn’t going to solve anything.”
“I told him that, but it’s not going to be that easy.”
“What are you going to do?” Grace asked me.
“What can I do? I’m calling Chief Martin.”
She paused for a few moments, and then she asked, “You really don’t have any choice, do you?”
“I don’t think so, either. If there’s a chance that the police chief doesn’t know about this already, he has every right to know as soon as possible.”
“Hang up and call him, then.”
“You aren’t going back home anytime soon, are you?” I asked her.
“No, I couldn’t get any work done there, so I’m going to the library.”
“That’s a good idea. He’ll never look for you there,” I said.
“Hey, is that a crack, Suzanne? I might not read as much as you or your mother, but I like a good book as much as the next gal, particularly if it’s a mystery.”
“I didn’t mean anything by it, I promise,” I said. “I just think that you should be safe there.”
“Okay then. I’ll see you at noon. You know what? Make it eleven. I’m going to need a break from paperwork by then anyway.”
“See you then,” I said, and then I dialed Chief Martin’s number before I could change my mind. I might just be giving a murderer a reason to come after me, but I couldn’t let that stop me.
This was too important.
Chapter 15
“Thanks, but I already know about Tom Hancock’s prints on the spear,” the chief said. “Do you happen to know where he is right now?”
“The last time I saw him, he was on foot making his way to Grace’s place. That was about five minutes ago, so he still should be close by.”
“And you didn’t warn her?” he barked at me.
“She was already gone,” I said.
“I’ve been looking for Tom Hancock all day. Thanks for calling, Suzanne,” the chief said.
I was about to tell him that Tom had proclaimed his innocence to me, but I would have been talking to a dead phone.
He’d already hung up on me.
Well, I’d done my civic duty. Now it was up to him. After all, the police had resources that I could only dream about, and enough manpower to conduct their own manhunt.
All I could do was ask around and hope that someone I spoke to knew something that might help me solve the crime.
It wasn’t exactly a fair fight between the two of us.
I walked back into the donut shop to find Hazel, Jennifer, and Elizabeth already there, sipping on their coffees. My book club was occupying our best sofa and chairs, but their books weren’t out yet.
“I’m sorry I’m late,” I said. “You could have gotten started without me.”
Jennifer, a bright redhead who was the leader of our little group, smiled at me. “We weren’t about to do that. What fun would that be?”
“Can I get you all something to snack on?” I asked. “I made some wonderful apple fritters this morning with fresh apples.”
“How many calories does each one have?” Hazel asked. The woman was always on a diet, and I felt a bit devilish whenever we met, since I had so many tasty temptations in my shop.
“I don’t have a clue,” I admitted.
Elizabeth, the member of our group who prided herself on corresponding with several authors, said, “Hazel, they’re practically health food.”
“What makes you say that?” Hazel asked her.
“You heard the woman. They have apples in them. I’ll take one, Suzanne.”
“How about you two?” I asked.
“Count me in,” Jennifer said.
Hazel was still on the fence as she asked, “Are you having one, Suzanne?”
My jeans were getting a little tighter every day, but those fritters looked delicious, and I wasn’t immune to my own wares. “I will if you do. We could always split one,” I suggested.
“No, if you’re willing to risk it, then so am I,” she said. “I’ll take a whole one.”
I wasn’t quite sure how to take that, but I smiled anyway. “Coming right up.”
Emma had been listening to us chat, so she plated four fritters for us. “Take your time, Suzanne. It’s kind of nice being up here where all of the action is.”
I smiled at her. “Thanks. Emma, are you coming out of your shell?” She hadn’t always been a fan of waiting on folks at the front counter.
“Maybe a little bit,” she said. “Who knows? In a few years, you might be able to actually take a week off and have a real vacation.”
“I live to dream,” I said with a smile as I grabbed the plates.
After I passed them out to my group, I said, “Thanks again for waiting.”
“We were happy to do it,” Jennifer said. “Now, let’s talk about Murder for the Birds. How did you all like it?”
“I have to admit that I wasn’t a fan of the idea of reading a bird lovers mystery, but it was mostly good,” Hazel said as she nibbled around the edges of her fritter as though it was the only thing she was going to be eating that day. I sincerely hoped that wasn’t true.
“The character development was good, but the murder method was a little too outlandish for my taste,” I said, and then I took a hearty bite of my fritter. There was an explosion of apple, cinnamon, and rich dense bread in my mouth. Every component complemented the whole, and I marveled sometimes at just how good I was in the kitchen. I decided to keep that last observation to myself.
“Every one of her plots are outlandish,” Elizabeth said. “That’s her niche.”
“What, crazy ways to kill people?” Jennifer asked.
“I didn’t think that it was that outlandish,” Elizabeth said, always trying to take up for the authors of the books that we discussed.
I couldn’t help it. “Who could even come up with a murder committed that way?” I asked. “I mean, seriously. She had the killer put birdseed on a steel plate that led to the trigger of a gun aimed at the victim’s chair. When that bird pecked at the seed and killed Mary Lou, I nearly dropped the book from laughing so hard.”
“It could have happened that way,” Elizabeth said a little weakly. “Mary Lou loved watching the birds eat as she sat in her special chair. The whole town knew it, includi
ng the killer. It wouldn’t have been hard to rig the entire thing up that way.”
“I don’t know,” I said. “Give me a good old-fashioned steel pipe any day.”
Sweet Suspects (The Donut Mysteries) Page 16
