A Freshly Baked Cozy Mystery Box Set

by Kate Bell

  Ida Crawford stood at the head of his casket, sobbing into a white lace hanky. Her orange hair was done up in a bouffant and her red lipstick had rubbed off on her hanky. Mama hung back, talking to some of the ladies she knew from church and I figured she was waiting for Ida to move on. But Ida looked intent on staying put. She had a grip on the edge of the casket.

  “Ida,” I said in greeting.

  She looked up, her black eyeliner smudged under her eyes. She gave me a half-hearted smile. “Allie, how are you, honey?” she said and moved over closer to me and pulled me in close for a hug. Her perfume made breathing nearly impossible as I patiently waited until she had had her fill of hugging.

  “There, there,” I said when I couldn’t find anything else to say. I patted her on the back and turned my head a little so I could get some fresh air.

  Finally, she pulled away and held me at arms’ length. “You are a sight for sore eyes, girl. Still just as pretty as you ever were. It’s a shame we have to see each other under such sad terms.”

  I smiled sympathetically. “Oh, it’s good to see you too, Ida. I can’t believe this happened to poor Tom. Gosh, I can’t imagine who would do such a thing, can you?” I was here, I figured I better make the best of it and see if I could get some information.

  She nodded and moved in close again and I was regretting my decision to ask her about the murder when I got another mouthful of that perfume.

  “I think it was Anne Beale,” she said, nodding knowingly. “You know that woman was at his house at least once a week, trying to get him to pay attention to her. It was probably more than once a week. Wouldn’t surprise me if it were nearly every day. You’d think she would have gotten the hint and left him alone.”

  “Really? I can’t imagine why a woman would lower herself that way,” I said, shaking my head. “Did she tell you about her going over there?”

  “Oh no, Tom did. He said he could hardly stand it when she came around. Said she was a nuisance, and he had no interest in her,” she whispered.

  Two other ladies stepped up to the casket, and Ida and I took a few steps back.

  “That’s odd she would persist,” I said. “You’d think she would get the hint.”

  She nodded again. “She was always an odd one, if you ask me. I think she finally had enough of his rejecting her, although knowing Tom, he was sweet as he could be about it, and then she killed him,” she said, her voice cracking on the last part.

  I clucked my tongue and shook my head. “It’s a terrible shame,” I said.

  More people began streaming toward the casket, so I excused myself and headed back to the back row of pews where Alec sat, waiting. When Mama saw Ida leave the casket area for her own pew, she got in line to see Tom.

  I leaned over toward Alec and whispered. “Guess who just fingered Mrs. Beale for the murder?”

  He chuckled. “I can only guess.”

  “Seems Tom told Ida that he couldn’t stand Anne Beale coming around every week. Said she was a nuisance.”

  He sighed. “Either some ladies are telling some tall tales, or Tom was quite the man about town.”

  “My money’s on Tom,” I said.

  “Mine might be, too.”

  I scanned the room and recognized most of the faces from my youth, but there were a number of people I didn’t recognize at all. The landscape of Goose Bay was changing, and I was missing it. For a few moments, I wondered what it would be like to move back home. It filled me with happiness until I considered what I would miss in Sandy Harbor. Lucy and Ed for two. And everything else I had known over the past twenty-plus years. I sighed. I would be homesick no matter where I lived.

  “Do you think his daughter will show?” I asked, looking around again.

  “I don’t know. People behave peculiarly during grief. She may say she doesn’t care about him, but it most likely isn’t true. He was her father, after all,” he said.

  Mama made her way back to our pew, dabbing at her eyes with a tissue, and I felt badly for her. She stopped and hugged someone and then continued back to where we were and sat next to me. I put my arm around her shoulders and she leaned over and laid her head on my shoulder. I didn’t say anything. There was nothing to say.

  Alec nudged me a few minutes before the service was scheduled to begin, and I looked over at the door just as Leslie Warren walked through. Staggered was more like it. The red floral dress she wore was two sizes too big for her and she wore purple shoes with it that had seen much better days. She was a mess, and I felt bad for her, too. I hoped she would be okay. She appeared to be alone, and I wondered who the people were on the front row pew. I couldn’t remember if Tom had more family in town and Mama hadn’t mentioned any.

  “Mama, who are those people in the first row? Tom’s kin? I don’t recognize them,” I whispered.

  She sat up and dabbed at her eyes again. “Yes, that’s his sister Pamela, I think you met her years ago, and his brother Steven. The younger ones are nieces and nephews, I think. I think they live in Mobile.”

  I couldn’t remember Pamela, but I could see a family resemblance in one of the young ladies. She had to be Leslie’s cousin. Leslie continued down the aisle and people stepped aside.

  I felt myself cringe as she stood at the casket looking at her dead father. I could imagine all the pain and regrets going through her mind right then. She held onto the side of the casket, and leaned in toward him and my stomach dropped. She wouldn’t kiss him, would she?

  I glanced at Alec, who was intently watching Leslie. Leslie leaned in even closer and whispered something to Tom and then stood up straight.

  “I hate you,” she said very clearly and loud enough to be heard back where we sat.

  The room went silent. Leslie’s hands still gripped the side of the casket, and her face turned red, as she leaned over again and spit on her father.

  Alec was on his feet and at her side before anyone else could get to her. I trailed behind him, to help. The buzz in the room grew louder, and I hoped we wouldn’t have a riot on our hands.

  “Leslie, why don’t you come sit with Allie and I?” he said in a low, calm tone.

  A big burly looking cousin stepped toward Leslie, and Alec held a hand up to stop him. Leslie didn’t turn toward Alec, but continued staring at her father.

  “She needs to leave,” the cousin said in a low voice.

  “You need to sit down,” Alec warned.

  Alec had one arm protectively around Leslie’s shoulders and asked her to come sit with us again. I stood nearby, not knowing what to do. I went to the cousin and said, “It’s okay. It will be fine.”

  He looked at me, anger burning in his eyes, but he took several steps back. I had no idea how the family dynamic had been before Leslie had a falling out with her father, but clearly things hadn’t been good for a while, and this wasn’t helping things.

  “Come on, Leslie,” Alec murmured. Leslie swayed on her feet and then let go of the side of the casket and Alec led her back to the back pew.

  I followed behind them and went around to the other side and Alec sat her between us. Mama sat on my other side. I took Leslie’s hand as she began to sob, then put my arm around her shoulders.

  Mama looked at me, then turned her attention to the pastor as he began the service. Tears streamed down my cheeks as I held Leslie. My heart was breaking, but I didn’t know how to help her. Sometimes things were too complicated to fix for someone else.

  Chapter Fourteen

  December 18th was the night of the annual Christmas carnival. It was held at the high school gym and nearly the whole town turned out for it. My sister Shelby and my brother Jake had arrived earlier, and we had spent time catching up.

  There would be raffles at the carnival, and I had volunteered to make a contribution. I had baked a fresh batch of gingerbread men and a small gingerbread house and arranged them in a gift basket and wrapped them in clear cellophane. All funds went to the high school sports teams to buy new equipment. The city
had had to make cutbacks, and this was a great opportunity to contribute to the kids.

  At 6:00 we headed out to the carnival.

  The gym was lit up with floodlights on the outside and Christmas lights on the inside. People milled about, hot chocolate or coffee in hand, catching up with friends and neighbors they hadn’t seen in a while. The gym was filled with booths where for a dollar, you could play games and win a prize. There were tables of baked goods for sale as well as crafts. Christmas cheer was in the air and it felt good to be here.

  “Let’s get a hot cocoa, Allie,” Shelby said. Shelby was twelve years younger than I was. An oops child, and she had been my pride and joy growing up. She was the best gift my parents could have given me. My twelve-year-old self had taken her as my own, when mama would allow it.

  “Sounds good,” I said, and we went and got in line.

  Shelby had strawberry blond hair and other than the fact that mine was a darker red and I was older, we could have passed as twins. She lived a couple of hours away in Gaston and worked at a café.

  Jake was three years older and newly divorced. His wife had been unable to have children, and he had been fine with being childless, but one day his ex-wife had told him she wanted to be with a younger man. One who had three motherless children, and she left. He had time on his hands and he visited Mama as frequently as he could. Earlier he had mentioned moving back to Goose Bay, and I hoped he would. It would be good for Mama, and probably for him as well. I could tell he was lonely being out on his own after twenty years of marriage.

  “So is it true, what happened at Tom’s funeral?” Shelby whispered, looking over her shoulder.

  I nodded. “I’m afraid so. It’s sad. I wish they could have made up before he died.”

  “It really is sad. But you have to admit, Leslie brought some of it on herself,” she said, and we scooted up as the line got shorter.

  “What do you mean?” I asked.

  “Oh, you know. She has a history of drug use. Her father wanted her to go into rehab, but she didn’t want to. He had to bail her out of jail a time or two. Her mind isn’t always very clear, I don’t think, and she tells some tall tales about what happened between them,” she said.

  “Yes but, I think the real issue was that Tom dated other women while her mother was in the nursing home,” I said.

  She looked at me. “Case in point. No, he didn’t date other women while his wife was in a nursing home. His wife died about a week after she went into the nursing home, and he was by her side.”

  I looked at her wide-eyed. “Are you sure?”

  She nodded. “Yes, my friend Christa worked at the nursing home when she was there. Said she died within a week of arriving. Natural causes.”

  I stared at her. “Then why did Leslie say he had dated other women? Why has she been angry all these years?”

  She shrugged. “I told you. She’s had a drug problem for years.”

  That was something to ponder. I had been sure she was telling us the truth. We got our hot cocoa, as well as some for Jake, Mama, and Alec. The kids had wandered off to look at things on their own, so they were out of luck.

  “Mama, did Tom date women while his wife was in the nursing home?” I whispered when we got back.

  Alec looked at me, and then at Mama. “No, why would he do that? He loved his wife.”

  “She died right after she went into the nursing home,” Shelby repeated and Mama nodded her head in agreement.

  I looked at Alec.

  “Maybe we should go talk to Leslie again,” he said.

  “I guess so,” I agreed.

  “Hi, y’all,” John McGinty said, walking up with his wife, Cara.

  “Cara!” I screeched and hugged her tightly to me. “How are you?”

  “Oh, Allie, it’s so good to see you! I’m good. You look great!” she exclaimed.

  “Oh my goodness, I’ve missed you!” I said releasing her to take a good look at her. “You haven’t aged a bit!” And she hadn’t. She was still cute as ever, with her long brown hair and green eyes that sparkled.

  “Oh, please! But you do look the same,” she said. “I can’t believe we didn’t just graduate high school. I don’t know where the time goes!”

  “Me either. I have kids around here somewhere. I need to introduce you to them,” I said.

  “Mine are coming in on the twenty-third for Christmas. We’ll have to get together before you leave. I left that hippie back on the farm in Idaho. It’s good to be back home and of course, I found or rather, rediscovered, a certain John McGinty,” she said, looking at her husband.

  John blushed and looked away. He was still that shy math nerd.

  I introduced Cara to Alec, and he gave her a smile and shook her hand.

  “John told me you were helping out in Tom Turner’s murder,” she said. “I just can’t believe that happened.”

  “It is a shame,” Alec agreed. He looked at John. “Did you know Leslie Warren is saying that her father Tom Turner abandoned her mother at a nursing home and was dating other women? She said that’s why they were estranged.”

  “I’ve heard different things. Sometimes it’s hard to sort out fact from fiction in a small town,” John said.

  Alec looked at me. “That’s the truth.”

  I narrowed my eyes at him.

  We stood and talked for a few minutes when Jennifer walked up to us. She took my arm and pulled me aside.

  “Hey, Jen, I want to introduce you to someone,” I said, before noticing the wild-eyed look on her face. “What’s up, sis?”

  “Mom, there’s this woman following me,” she said, and glanced over her shoulder.

  I looked in the direction she was looking, but only saw people enjoying the carnival. “Who?” I asked.

  “I don’t know, I don’t see her now,” she said, searching the crowd.

  “How do you know she was following you? There are a lot of people here. Maybe she was just looking at the same booths you were,” I said.

  “No, I swear, every time I turn around, she’s there,” she said, still looking.

  “What did she look like?” I asked.

  “She was wearing a black trench coat and had dark curly hair. I think she was older, but she didn’t get that close to me so I could see. Mom, it’s creepy,” she whined.

  “Where’s your brother and Sarah? You should stay with them, or stay here with us,” I said.

  “I don’t know, I lost track of them when I played the hoop game over there,” she said, pointing to a booth.

  I continued scanning the crowd, but didn’t see anyone in a black trench coat. I didn’t want to say that Jennifer was being paranoid because she was my sensitive child, but I didn’t see anyone behaving the least bit odd. She could have seen something, but I couldn’t imagine how she could tell with all the people moving around. Whoever she had seen could easily have been moving from booth to booth, playing games and visiting with people and just happened to be following behind her.

  “It’ll be all right,” I said and gave her a hug. “Come over here and meet my best friend from high school.”

  I introduced Cara to Jennifer, and we walked around the carnival, with Jennifer sticking close. She looked over her shoulder frequently while Alec looked at me questioningly.

  “I’ll tell you later,” I whispered.

  Chapter Fifteen

  “All right, I’m depending on you to win that Rudolph for me,” I told Alec as we stood in front of the ring toss. Small goldfish bowls sat on Styrofoam rings that floated in a large pool of water. Alec needed to toss a ring onto five of them to win the Rudolph for me. Otherwise, we were taking a goldfish home with us.

  “All right, I’ve got this,” he said, warming up his arm.

  “I want Bambi,” Jennifer said, looking at the stuffed animal hanging from the top of the booth.

  “You hear that? You’ve got two stuffed animals to win,” I told him. “That arm better be strong.”

  He grinned, keep
ing his eyes on the goldfish bowls. “No problem,” he said and let a ring go. It landed perfectly over the bowl and he laughed. “See?”

  “I see,” I said. “Now don’t miss this one,” I said as he let another loose.

  It landed squarely around another bowl.

  “Wow, look at that,” I said. I kept an eye out for the woman in a black trench coat, but couldn’t find her. Jennifer would look at the crowd every few minutes, scanning nervously. I still wondered if she had imagined things, but she seemed so sure some woman had been following her.

  Alec tossed the next two rings, and they sank perfectly around the fishbowls. “One more and you’ve got a Rudolph,” he said and let the last one go. It hit the top of a fishbowl and bounced off, sinking sadly into the pool of water.

  “Oh, no!” Jennifer and I howled together. “You missed!”

  “You get one of the smaller animals for four rings around the bowls,” the man behind the booth said.

  “Which one do you want?” Alec asked me.

  “Oh, no. I want Rudolph. You’ll have to try again,” I said, leaning on the front of the booth.

  The man running the booth handed Alec a small stuffed cat. “You still get a prize anyway,” he said.

  “What do we do with the cat?” he asked me. “It’s awful cute. Are you sure you don’t want it instead of Rudolph?”

  I grabbed the kitty from the man and handed it to a little girl walking by. Her eyes lit up and her mother reminded her to say thank you.

  Ten minutes and thirty dollars later, we had our stuffed animals. Alec looked at me as the man behind the booth handed us our prizes. “We could have gone to Walmart and spent half that amount.”

  “Yes, but where’s the fun in that?” I asked him.

  He sighed and rolled his eyes. The man had no clue about fun.

  I looked up just as Elmer walked in with Ann Marie, and I groaned.

  “Who’s that?” Jennifer asked, looking in the direction I was.