“No,” said the chief, “we didn’t find anything like that at the scene.”
After the chief and Ginger left the medical examiner’s office and walked to his car, it suddenly hit him. “The glove box. That’s what Navy was frantically searching for—his Epi-Pen.”
They got into the car.
He continued. “So, what do we know so far? Somebody baked Navy a special cake with fish oil in it. Then they stole the Epi-Pen from his glove box. And Lacey Greendale’s panties were under his car seat.”
Ginger didn’t speak.
“So, just what was Lacey’s relationship with Navy?”
Ginger wished she didn’t know. But she did. “They used to date.”
“They usedto date. And now he has that new girlfriend. What’s her name?”
“Kayla Hanker.”
The chief smiled slyly. “So, that’s it. Lacey was mad at Navy for dumping her, and she just happens to work at your bakery. So, she baked him a nice little fish oil cake and stole the Epi-Pen out of his glove box. Oh, what sweet revenge. I bet we’ll find her fingerprints on the glove box.”
“No, Chief, I really think you’re on the wrong track. I know Lacey well. And I can tell you that she would never do anything like this. I’m sure of it.” It was a lie. She wasn’t sure—she just hoped.
“Sometimes you don’t know people as well as you think you do. Jealousy can make people do horrible things.”
The chief started the engine and drove out of the parking lot, and headed back to Coreyville.
“Time to pay a visit to Miss Greendale,” said the chief. “You want to come along?”
Ginger figured the chief was planning to use her again. He probably thought Lacey would be more open to answering questions if her friend and employer were in the room. But still—she wanted to be there to support Lacey in whatever way she could. “I guess so.”
“Good. I thank you for your help, Mrs. Lightley. Navy’s family and the City of Coreyville thank you too.”
What had she done? This could destroy Lacey’s life—and she probably wasn’t even guilty. If Ginger had not gone out to the nursing home to satisfy her own curiosity, would Lacey’s freedom now be in jeopardy?
The chief was wrong about Lacey, Ginger reassured herself. Lacey had truth on her side, and truthwould win the day.
Then she thought about a story she had recently read in the newspaper. A man had spent twenty years in prison, and then been released after some new evidence finally proved his innocence.
Could that happen to a sweet, trusting young woman like Lacey?
Chapter 11
Lacey had slept for nearly three hours after making love to Danny. She didn’t know how long he had been awake or what he had been doing. But now he wanted to drive down to Longview and party at his favorite dance club. Lacey would have preferred to sleep until morning. But she wanted to please Danny, so she got up.
The warm spray of the shower and the lathery soap refreshed her skin. But it couldn’t erase bad memories or wash away guilt.
Was she making another mistake? Did Danny really love her, or was he just using her like Navy did?
She had been so in love with Navy. They would be together forever. That was the plan. So, when she realized he was on a path to self-destruction, she tried to save him. But Navy didn’t want to be saved. Who did she think she was, telling him what to do? He didn’t need her. There were plenty of other women ready to jump in his bed. So, that’s all she was to him?
Danny might prove no more reliable than Navy, she thought. And this time she couldn’t run home to Grandma Greendale. Her grandmother had been the one person she could always count on in times of trouble.
Lacey and her parents had lived with her grandmother from the time Lacey was fifteen. They had moved in shortly after Lacey’s grandfather died. Lacey’s father said he didn’t want his mother living all alone. They would take care of her.
The truth was that Gabe Greendale was a bum. Lacey finally understood that. Her dad was not a good father, or a good husband, or even a good son. And her mother, Marika, was no better. All either of them ever thought about was themselves. Somehow that was their bond. They enabled each other’s selfishness.
When Lacey told her parents she was moving to Dallas with Navy during her senior year in high school, they did nothing to stop her—probably because they didn’t care about her. She was just a bother to them, just another responsibility—like a collection agency nagging you every month. You just want it to go away.
By the time Lacey’s grandmother found out what was going on, Lacey was already in Dallas. This led to a huge fight between her grandmother and her parents, resulting in an ultimatum: either Lacey’s parents would drive to Dallas and bring Lacey back home, or they could find somewhere else to live.
They moved out.
Gabe and Marika had been planning to relocate to California. They both wanted to make it in the movie industry: Marika as an actress, Gabe as a screenwriter. They would never fulfill their dreams unless they moved to L.A. So, Gabe figured that being thrown out of his mother’s house was just the ‘kick in the butt’ they needed.
Lacey’s grandmother had gladly welcomed her back into her home when Lacey left Navy in Dallas and returned to Coreyville. Lacey had not heard from either of her parents since her mother called over a year ago begging for money. She sounded like she was either drunk or doped up. Lacey didn’t have any money to send. And her grandmother refused to help. Lacey understood why.
After Grandma Greendale’s funeral, Lacey was more lost than ever before. She went home to her grandmother’s house and curled up in bed to die.
But Ginger Lightley had been a long-time friend of her grandmother, and must have been keeping an eye on Lacey to make sure she was okay. Ginger dropped by the house with a home-cooked meal the day after the funeral. She knocked on the door and then on Lacey’s bedroom window to get her attention. Lacey dragged herself to the door and let Ginger in with the tray of food.
Lacey would not have eaten the meal. She would have gone back to bed as soon as Ginger left. But Ginger wouldn’t leave. She insisted on staying until Lacey had eaten every bite. And she offered Lacey a job at her bakery. Lacey didn’t think she was up to it. She needed more time to get over her grandmother’s death. But Ginger told her that she knew Lacey’s grandmother would agree that Lacey should get out and get to work right away—be out there among other people. It would do her a world of good.
Lacey knew Ginger was right. It was exactly what her grandmother would have told her. And besides, Ginger had just lost her Baker Trainee. Lacey was doing her a favor by agreeing to start on Monday.
That was five weeks ago. And things had been going well. She loved the people she was working with—especially Ginger—even though at times Ginger could be such a perfectionist that it got on Lacey’s nerves. She sometimes reminded her of her grandmother—who was more of a mom than her than her real mother had ever been.
Two weeks ago, she had hooked up with Danny. She was drawn to his sense of humor. Then she had discovered his temper. But they were in love, weren’t they?
She turned off the water, stepped out of the shower, and began to towel off.
The doorbell rang. Who could that be? she wondered. Pizza. Danny must gotten too hungry to wait until they got to the club.
“Danny, can you get that?” she yelled to the living room over the blaring TV.
The TV sound went dead.
“Yeah, I’ve got it.”
She could barely hear the conversation at the door.
“Good evening, Sir. I’m Chief of Police Daniel Foenapper, and this is Mrs. Virginia Lightley. I’m sorry to disturb you at this hour, but I need to speak to Lacey Greendale. Is she here?”
“Uh, yes,” said Danny. “Come in.”
Lacey wrapped a towel around her wet hair and quickly put on her underwear. She could only imagine the look on Ginger’s face. This wasn’t the way she had wanted Ginger to find out that she and Danny wer
e dating. She slipped into her bathrobe and walked out to the living room.
“Hi, Lacey,” said Ginger.
“Please, y’all have a seat,” said Lacey.
The chief and Ginger sat down in the chairs on opposite sides of the TV.
Lacey and Danny sat on the couch.
“What’s this about?” said Lacey.
“Well, as I’m sure you know,” said the chief, “Navy Newcomb died this morning.”
“Yes,” said Lacey.
“And the medical examiner has finished his autopsy,” said the chief. “We just came from his office.”
Lacey felt sick at the thought of Navy’s body stretched out across a cold, metal table, being butchered like a slab of beef.
“And he has determined that Navy was poisoned. That’s what killed him—anaphylactic shock.”
“So, it was murder?” said Danny.
“More than likely,” said the chief. “He was apparently allergic to fish oil.”
“Shell fish,” offered Lacey. “He was highlyallergic to it.”
“The chief thinks somebody put it in his food,” said Ginger.
“Specifically,” said the chief, “a coffee cake.”
“One of ourcoffee cakes?” said Danny.
“I’m afraid so,” said Ginger.
“He loved Ginger’s coffee cakes, didn’t he, Lacey?” said the chief.
“Well…,” she glanced at Danny. She didn’t like being the expert on Navy’s likes and dislikes. “…yes, he did.”
“Did he have a favorite?” said the chief.
“Sweet Ginger Cake,” said Lacey. “That was his favorite.”
“I see,” said the chief. “Okay, thanks.” He stood up. “That’s it for now. But I may some more questions for you later.”
“Sure,” said Lacey, “no problem.”
Ginger stood up, and she and the chief walked toward the door. Lacey and Danny followed them.
Then the chief turned around. “Oh, yes—I knew I was forgetting something. And you might find this particularly interesting, Lacey.”
“What’s that?”
“He didn’t have an Epi-Pen with him,” said the chief. “Wonder why?”
“Uh, I don’t know. He used to carry one around in his car.”
“In the glove compartment?” said the chief.
“Yes, that’s right.”
“We didn’t find it. And obviously he didn’t find it either—otherwise he’d still be alive.”
Lacey didn’t know what to say.
“No Epi-Pen,” said the chief. “But we did find something interesting under the front seat of his car.”
Lacey felt her face quickly turning red, but she couldn’t stop it. “What?”
“A pair of panties,” said the chief.
Lacey could feel Danny staring at her, waiting to hear her response.
The chief added, “They’re kind of unusual. They lace up on the sides.”
Lacey hoped Ginger would tell the chief to stop making these ridiculous innuendos.
The chief went on. “And there were two words printed on the front of them—‘Unlace Me.’
“I’ve never seen any like that,” said Lacey. Then she saw the disappointment in Ginger’s eyes—as though she didn’t believe her.
“Well, I guess that’s it,” said the chief, opening the door. “Thanks again. Goodnight.”
Ginger said goodnight to Danny and Lacey as she followed the chief out the door.
Danny locked the door and then spun around. “What was thatabout?”
“Navy was murdered,” said Lacey.
“I know that—but why did they want to talk to you?”
“Probably just wanted to talk to somebody who knew about his allergy.”
“Yeah, but what’s this about the panties?”
“How should I know? I guess they belong to his girlfriend. Who knows?”
“I saw those exact panties in your little lingerie catalog.”
“What are doing looking through my catalog—checking out all the half-naked women?”
“They were just like the ones the chief was talking about.”
“The panties they found in Navy’s car are not mine.” She wondered whether she had stated it forcefully enough.
Danny didn’t say a word. He just stormed off into the bedroom.
She waited a minute and then went after him.
He was sitting on the other side of the bed, with his back to her. She walked around to face him—and wished she hadn’t.
“What are you doing with that thing?”
He held up the pistol. “This thing?”
“Be careful.”
“I think you’re lying about the panties.”
Lacey was about to start telling him he had it all wrong and to beg him to get rid of the gun. But then something snapped.
She snatched the pistol out of his hands. He was so surprised that he didn’t have time to react.
Lacey stepped back with the gun and pointed at him. “Get out of my home. Now!”
“I’m sorry, Lacey. I should have believed you. I dobelieve you, Honeypie.”
“No, you don’t! Get out of here nowbefore I do something we’re both gonna regret.”
He eased his hands into the air. “Okay. Take it easy. I’m going.”
She followed him to the door. Once he had closed it and walked away, she locked it.
Lacey didn’t need a man in her life. Not one who didn’t trust her. But on the other hand—why should he? Especially since…she was lying.
Chapter 12
Cash and Carry Donuts was a very popular shop, sitting just around the corner from town square. Cash Crawley, 34, was determined to make his business more successful than his older brother’s restaurant, Bull Crawley’s Bar and Grill. Bull had the advantage of a prime location on The Square. Plus, Bull’s full-service restaurant could pull in heavy traffic at all three mealtimes.
Cash had always conceded the lunch and dinner crowd to his brother. And Bull knew that Cash’s donuts were preferred over his apple pie for coffee breaks. But breakfast was war. Sure, everybody knew donuts were a poor nutritional choice. But it was difficult to drive by Cash and Carry Donuts without stopping—especially early in the morning. And particularly since Cash had installed the fan.
He had discovered that on mild weather days when he could turn off the air conditioning and leave the front door open he got a lot more business—particularly in the morning. Then he realized it wasn’t the fresh air dining that brought in the people. It was the fragrance of fresh, hot donuts wafting out into the street, creating an invisible wall of temptation, diverting Bull’s bacon and egg eaters into Cash’s sticky-sweet den of donuts.
Cash wished he could leave the door open year-round. But that would make the temperature very uncomfortable inside on most days. So, he removed one of his front windows and installed a huge exhaust fan. His electric bill went up a bit—but not near as much as his profit.
Then a couple of months ago he had another idea: What would happen if he extended his hours until 10:00 p.m.? And instead of offering donuts that had been made that morning, what if he fried up a fresh batch at around 7:00 p.m. He knew he would still get almost no business at dinner time. But what about right after dinner, and then close to bedtime when people got the munchies? What did those folks normally do—go out for ice cream? Why not a box of hot, fresh donuts? It was worth a try.
Once the word got out, his evening traffic began to grow. Now his second-busiest time of day was between 9:30 and 10:00 p.m. His store was becoming the destinationfor a late night sugar fix.
And he had learned to have the coffee brewing right up until closing. His coffee was always fresh—anytime of the day or night. But you paid for it. A cup of Cash and Carry coffee cost fifty percent more than anywhere else in town—but the cups were twice as big. And his coffee cups were not the environmentally-friendly ones made out of recycled paper. Cash hated those things. He served piping hot,
I-dare-you-to-sue-me-for-burning-yourself, coffee in heavy duty Styrofoam cups.
A drive-through window would have brought in even more business. But because his shop was located between two other stores, there was no way to add one. Cash had briefly wondered about the possibility of a drive-through window at the back of the building. But the City Council never would have approved it. His neighboring shop owners would have thrown a fit over the idea of Cash’s customers driving through theiralley all day long.
Silvy Knox had only been working at the donut shop for a few weeks. The young blonde had landed the job soon after moving to Coreyville. She had lied about being nineteen, calculating that Cash would be more likely to sleep with a twenty-one year-old.
“It’s almost closing time, Boys.”
The two young cops looked up from their coffee and donuts. Silvy could tell they wanted her body. Otherwise, one or both of them would have made some remark about how she should show more respect to the police. A young woman like her had no right to refer to Coreyville’s Finest as ‘boys.’ She knew how hot she was, and enjoyed using it to the max.
“We need nourishment so we’ll have plenty of energy to serve and protect,” said Officer #1.
“Yeah,” said Officer #2, “without us out there to protect you, you’d feel…naked.” He did a slow scan of her body—as though he had X-ray vision.
“Ooh,” said Silvy, “I guess I would.” She covered herself with both hands, as though she were naked. The cops seemed to lose their appetite—for donuts. She loved it. “So, what’s happening around town—anything new?”
“Well, I guess you heard about Navy Newcomb,” said Officer #1.”
“Sure,” said Silvy. “Everybody’s heard about that.”
“Yeah,” said Officer #2, “but I’ll bet you didn’t know…,” lowering his voice, “…that it was murder.”
“Really?” said Silvy. “I thought he just tripped and hit his head.”
“He was poisoned,” said Officer #2.
“You’re kidding,” said Silvy.
She pumped them for more details, but soon realized they didn’t have any.
After the cops left and the dining area had been cleaned up for the next day, the other workers took off and Silvy locked the front door.
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