Deep Fried Revenge

by Lynn Cahoon

  “Hey there, calm down.” Ian’s face filled her view. She took a deep breath and smelled his cologne. She was safe. He wasn’t here. He hadn’t killed them.

  “I stunned him.” Her eyes widened as she remembered what had happened. “Oh, no, I stunned him. Is he dead?”

  “Not dead yet. But if I ever get the chance to talk to him about how he treats my girlfriend, he might be.” He smiled at her. “He is in jail and will stay there. He admitted that he was ordered to take you out, but then he stopped talking when they asked him who did the ordering.”

  “His sister. He said she was in charge. Of course, he’s crazy. I could see it in his eyes. For all we know, he could be taking his orders from one of the chickens in the poultry barn.” She reached up to her aching head. “I don’t understand. Why am I in the hospital? Did he hurt me?”

  “Apparently he used some sort of topical drug on your neck. Allen saw it when he took you out and wiped it off. If he hadn’t, the doctors say you would have had quite an interesting afternoon.” He took his hand in hers. “But you’re here and you’re safe now.”

  “He said he had to kill me. But he had decided to play with me for a while. He was going to take me out of town.” She rubbed her temple with her free hand. “He sounded smug about it. Like he’d done it before.”

  “Allen thought he’d put poison in the drug stuff, but they tested it and thought it was just the drug. He was probably using it to get you to his car.” Ian squeezed her hand. “Don’t worry about it. It’s over now.”

  “For me. It’s over for me. The sister might be doing something like this to someone else. Maybe if you run his fingerprints you can find out who he is. He told me his name was Ted.” She brushed off his hand and struggled to sit up.

  Ian handed her the bed adjustment. “Here, but you’re not getting up, so don’t try anything.”

  “Glad to see you’re putting your foot down.” Sheriff Brown came into the room. “Ms. Turner, you have to be the most unlucky person I know. Even when you’re not investigating, the idiots can’t help putting you into their crosshairs. You’re going to get seriously hurt one of these days.”

  “I didn’t do anything. I was sitting, waiting for Ian to come back, and I heard a knock on my trailer door. I wanted to go to the hospital to be with Bleak.” She looked around the room. “Not be stuck here in my own room and bed. Someone needs to feed Dom and the others. I don’t think I’ll be home tonight.”

  “I already called and talked to Mrs. Potter. She’s having Erica go over before dinner tonight. And she knows where you keep your extra key.” Ian looked up at Sheriff Brown. “Any word on the guy who did this?”

  “His name’s Ted.” Angie rubbed her eyes.

  “He’s not talking, but his prints came back and we know who he is. Funny thing, he used to be a chef. Had his own restaurant and everything in Shreveport. Lost it in a flood. He’d let his insurance expire and then, wham, natural disaster. Some people just don’t learn. And his name’s not Ted.” The sheriff glanced at his watch. “Maggie’s taking Bleak home in a few minutes. Once she woke up, she was fine. The ER is busy enough without us hanging around. Are you going to be all right?”

  She glanced at Ian, who was sitting next to her. “Looks like I’m going to be fine. Sorry about stunning him. I’m not going to be in trouble, am I?”

  “Looked to me like self-defense. He was holding you against your will, correct?” Sheriff Brown adjusted his hat. “We don’t put people in jail when they’re just trying to save themselves. Although, if I thought it would teach you a lesson and keep you safe, I might try it.”

  “Hey now, I was being good. I was sitting in my trailer, waiting for Ian to get back. I didn’t ask for a crazy guy to come knocking at my door.” She repeated her story. She knew he was kidding, sort of, but still, she wanted to make her case.

  “And yet, they always do. We need to figure out why these people are attracted to you in the first place. You either have the worst luck, or you’re pushing out bad karma into the world.” Sheriff Brown held up his hand. “No explanations needed. I’m just going to have to keep expecting things like this to happen to you. Honestly, I know you did the right thing in both cases today, but you’re scaring me just a little.”

  “Thanks, Allen. We appreciate all you do.” Ian stood and walked his uncle to the door.

  Sheriff Brown turned and looked back at Angie. “She’s your problem now. Try to stay out of trouble. I hope to have this case closed soon. We still need to figure out who and where his sister is located. From what I heard of his rantings, she’s got to be the brains of this outfit.”

  Angie watched as Ian and Sheriff Brown walked out into the hallway. In just a few minutes, he was back inside her room, pouring her some ice water. “You may be dehydrated.”

  “So, you think I put myself in danger too?” she asked.

  Ian set the glass down on the table and moved it closer to her. “I think sometimes you take risks that make my heart hurt. I just want you to be safe. Sometimes what you do doesn’t keep you safe. What if you’d missed when you’d tried to tackle Martha? What if you’d missed trying to stun this guy? You’re taking chances.”

  “If I hadn’t stunned him, he would have tried to take me out of the trailer. You would have tried to stop him and might have gotten hurt. I don’t want you to get hurt because of me,” Angie explained her reasoning. “Besides, from what you’ve said, I might not have had a second chance the way he drugged me.”

  “I’m not going to get into this argument. You’re safe now, that’s all that matters.” He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. “You scare me sometimes. And today, you scared me twice.”

  She knew how he felt. She’d thought she was dead. That the man would mess with her for a while, then kill her. She tried one more time to explain her side. “If I hadn’t known what he was planning, I wouldn’t have tried to get away.”

  “Don’t second-guess yourself.” He leaned forward, hands on his knees. “As much as it pains me to say it, you did what you needed to do.”

  They were quiet for a minute. Ian picked up the remote, then set it down. “Something’s bothering me, though.”

  “Why I had the stun gun?”

  He shook his head. “We’d just gone through chaos, I can see you forgetting to hand it over to the authorities.”

  “Then what?” Angie’s head was hurting. Whatever Ted had tried to drug her with hadn’t reacted well with her system. Or maybe she had some kind of drug hangover? She hadn’t had any experience with illegals. This could just be a side effect.

  “He looked familiar. I know we saw him at the fairgrounds our first night, but he looks like someone. I just can’t put my finger on it. His eyes, they remind me of someone.”

  Angie sighed and leaned her head back on the pillow. “I know. I had the same feeling when I was talking to him. Like it was on the tip of my tongue, but then, poof, it was gone.”

  “Maybe if we both stop thinking about it, we’ll remember.” He picked up the remote. “They’re letting you go home tonight. We’re just waiting on your doctor to check you one more time. Then I’ll drive you home.”

  “What about my car?”

  “Estebe and Felicia are heading over there before service to pick it up. It will be waiting at home when we get there.” He turned on the television, then flipped through the channels until he found a chef cooking some sort of beef. “You just relax. You’ve had a busy day fighting crime, Super Chef.”

  She smiled at the nickname. “I love this recipe. I was going to change it up and see if the crew wanted to make it next summer when our tomatoes are fresh.”

  He picked up the remote. “You’ve seen this before? Do you want me to change the channel?”

  “No. I like watching reruns. It’s more relaxing when you know how the recipe is going to turn out.” She reached for his hand. />
  “Not many people turn a cooking show into a fiction story. You’re a strange girl, Angie Turner.”

  She squeezed his hand. “And that’s why you love me, right?”

  “Definitely.”

  By the time they pulled into the driveway, it was almost nine. Angie had tried to talk Ian into stopping by the County Seat. She hadn’t been in the place for a couple of days, and she was feeling restless. He’d driven on past, not even slowing down when she’d pointed out an on-street parking spot.

  When she almost fell out of the truck getting out at home, she’d knew he’d been right. She was so tired. Ian hurried to her side and walked with her to the porch. “You want some soup or something to eat?”

  She studied him. “I don’t have any instant ramen or canned pasta to heat up.”

  “You do have soup in the freezer, and I know perfectly well how to warm up soup on the stove.” He didn’t let her stop in the kitchen, but instead, led her to the couch and handed her the remote. “Dom, watch her and keep her from doing anything.”

  Dom woofed in answer. But Angie thought it was just a greeting rather than an answer to Ian’s command. “You weren’t expecting us so soon, were you, boy?”

  Dom sniffed her hands and her bare forearms. She wondered if it was the hospital smell or if somehow he could smell the residuals from the drugs she’d been given. He gave out a small woof, apparently confident that she was all in one piece and okay. Then he laid his head on her lap.

  “Television it is, then. Let’s see what’s on now.” They hadn’t watched Saturday night shows since she’d opened the restaurant. “Look, it’s Guy. We love his shows.”

  She settled into the couch and with Dom next to her, quickly fell asleep.

  The smell of spicy tomato soup woke her a while later. Ian stood next to the couch, a tray in hand. “I love that soup. Keeping the tomatoes in bigger pieces rather than straining it and adding onions and peppers made it almost like a beanless chili recipe.”

  “You’re good. Of course, you did make it, but your freezer is filled with all kinds of soups. You don’t have to cook for years, from what I saw.” He set the tray on the coffee table and sat down next to her.

  Dom must have moved over to his bed near the fireplace sometime while she’d been asleep. She broke open a roll and spread butter on it. “I wouldn’t say years, but yeah, I have a good supply. I probably need to slow down since Mrs. Potter isn’t in residence next door year-round now.”

  “I can take some home and put it in my freezer, if you want. I’m always looking for quick meals for lunch and dinners.” He grinned. “Besides, when your girlfriend is a chef, you’re not supposed to know how to cook. I’m fine living on leftovers and scraps from the restaurant.”

  “You sound like you’re eating out of the trash cans.” Angie laughed as she turned down the volume on the television. “All you have to do is show up at the restaurant and Felicia will seat you at the bar. We’ll make you dinner.”

  “I don’t like to bother you at work.” He sipped his soup. “This is so much better than canned.”

  “I should hope so.” She leaned back and watched him eat for a minute. “Did you hear from Allen?”

  “I did. He’s at the station with the DA figuring out what charges to file. Bleak’s home with Maggie. They’re watching some fashion contest.” He squeezed her hand. “She’s fine. And she’s made a formal request to be removed from her home. I guess her aunt Martha was correct. Her folks had promised her in marriage to some forty-year-old guy in the cult. I can’t believe that still happens in this day and age.”

  “At least she’s safe.” Angie curled her legs underneath her. “If I fall asleep, wake me up before you leave.”

  “What, you don’t think I can carry you upstairs?” He nodded to the soup bowl. “Do you want more?”

  “I’m good.” And for the first time in days, she actually believed in her own words.

  Chapter 22

  When Angie awoke Sunday morning, Dom was already gone from the bedroom. “Thank God for doggie doors,” she muttered as she made her way into the bathroom to get ready for her day.

  By the time she got out of the shower, she smelled bacon cooking. Quickly dressing, she wondered who was in her kitchen cooking. She paused at the doorway and smiled. The better question would have been who wasn’t in her kitchen this morning.

  Ian was sitting at the table in the same clothes he’d worn yesterday. Apparently, he’d stayed over on the couch last night, even though she’d assured him before she went to bed that she was fine. Estebe was at the stove frying the bacon, and Felicia was coming in the door with Dom on her heels.

  “Precious and Mabel are fed. I swear, that goat has such a huge personality. It was like she was asking where Angie was and why I was feeding her,” Felicia announced to the room, then laughed when she saw Angie at the same time Dom realized she was at the doorway and trotted over to say good morning. “Good morning, sunshine. I was going to give you a few more minutes to sleep while Estebe finishes up breakfast.”

  “What are you guys doing here?” Angie walked over and gave Ian a kiss.

  “Ian called and said he needed clothes from his apartment and asked if I would drop them off before heading into town for the Restaurant Wars announcement. I talked to Estebe, and we decided to come over and have breakfast together. Especially since you single-handedly caught the killer yesterday.” She grabbed a slice of bacon, then slipped into one of the kitchen chairs. “Tell me all about it.”

  “Coffee first. And I didn’t single-handedly catch him. I just defended myself when he came after me.” She went over and pour a cup. “There’s a big difference. One I’m sure Sheriff Brown will be lecturing me on as soon as he thinks I’m well enough to be yelled at.”

  “Allen won’t yell at you.” Ian glanced at her over the rim of his coffee cup. “Much.”

  “Besides, I’m sure Angie doesn’t want to go over such a traumatic experience before she has eaten.” Estebe put a plate in front of her. Hash browns with cubed potatoes, onions, peppers, and sausage covered half the plate. A couple of eggs over easy with three slices of bacon filled the other side. “We should have brought bread. You don’t have any.”

  “Yes, I do.” Angie nodded to the fridge. “I keep it in there because it’s homemade. I don’t want it to go bad so fast. There’s a sourdough loaf and rosemary focaccia.”

  Felicia jumped up. “I’ll make you toast. Sourdough?”

  “Please.” She didn’t pick up her fork. “I’ll wait for you all.”

  “Don’t wait, your food will get cold. Ian, you’re next. How do you like your eggs?” Estebe moved back to the stove while he was waiting on the answer.

  It took less than ten minutes, and everyone was finally seated at the table eating. Felicia looked up at Angie, then wiped her mouth. “I totally forgot to tell you.”

  “The County Seat burned down last night.” Angie really couldn’t handle any more bad news.

  “What? No, the restaurant is fine. Although we were totally booked, including the bar seats, last night. Everyone wanted to talk to you about what happened. It was great for business.” Felicia shrugged off Estebe’s look of surprise. “Anyway, we won yesterday’s competition. Even before you went all hero-mode to stop a child abduction and apprehend a murderer. Totally based on our food. We won a second segment.”

  “Not a surprise here. That must have been why he targeted me. Which means he knows who wins before it’s announced.” Angie spread strawberry jam on her toast. “He wasn’t one of the judges, we know that.”

  “But maybe he was related to one of the judges.” Ian nodded, thoughtful. “I get where you’re going with this. Maybe his sister was on the panel.”

  Angie shook her head. “Ann Cole’s the only female on the judging panel. And according to her bio at the City Hall website, she’s an only
child. So, unless she lied, she can’t be our man’s sister. Ian, your uncle said they already knew who it was. Do we have a name?”

  “Jamie Jeremiah Johnson.” Ian picked up a slice of bacon. “I’d kill, too, if I had to live with a name like that. It sounds like a race car driver’s, not a chef’s.”

  “So, let’s see what Google has to say about Triple J.” Angie took her empty plate to the sink and ran water over it. Then she grabbed the laptop she kept in a kitchen desk. She let the computer boot up while she poured another cup of coffee.

  “I’m pretty sure Allen’s search engines are way more powerful and he hasn’t found anything on the guy.” Ian finished off his plate and mirrored Angie’s movements, sitting down with fresh coffee. Angie knew he typically liked tea more, but she guessed he was needing the caffeine hit.

  “Sometimes easy works better,” Angie said, ignoring the jab at her primitive investigation skills. “Here we go. Ten pages of results. A lot about some fire at his restaurant. So he wasn’t lying about that. He had been a chef.”

  The room got quiet as she skimmed the news reports.

  “According to this, the reporter tried to contact him on the five-year anniversary of the fire where five people died, by the way, but couldn’t find him. Off the grid, totally.” Angie met Ian’s gaze. “So, he must have hit rock bottom and joined the carnival. That way, he could make everyone pay for what he’s doing. I bet if we track his carnival’s stops for the last five years, we’d find several missing or dead girls.”

  “Looks like Allen has a slam dunk.” Ian let out a breath. “I was worried that the guy might actually get out on bail. If that had happened, you’d be spending some quality time across the pond with my mother until he was back behind bars.”

  “That’s so sweet.” Angie’s eyes widened as she took in Ian’s threat. “But honey, I have a business to run. I’m needed here.”

  “Not if someone’s trying to kill you, you’re not.” Felicia sipped her orange juice. “We’ve built a perfectly adequate staff so that you could be gone for a while and not have it affect the business.”