“No, she’s not. You know…” she tipped her head and looked at me like I was a specimen under a microscope. Her voice was hard and cold. “Sometimes I think you’re brilliant and other times I can’t believe how incredibly stupid you are.”
“Stupid,” she repeated for emphasis as she twisted my wrist, her eyes gleaming.
I furtively slipped my free hand into my jacket pocket, grasping for my phone. I tried to hit a button without looking hoping against hope that I dialed someone. Someone who could help.
I heard Dixie’s voice.
“What was that?” Minnie’d heard it too.
“Just the auto-assistant on my phone.” I tried to cover the phone hoping to muffle the sound. “I must have bumped it.”
“Nice try. Hand me the phone.” She reached out her hand. The hand that didn’t have a death grip on my wrist.
“Minnie, let me go,” I said loudly, hoping the phone would pick it up as I pulled it from my pocket and handed it to her.
She tossed it across the room where it fell with a clatter.
“What are you going to do?” I asked. “Another poisoning death? One where your presence might actually tip the scales and make you a suspect?”
“I’d hoped this wouldn’t be necessary. Hoped when they zeroed in on Tina you’d give up.” Her voice was hard. “But you were so persistent, and I realized you were never going to give up.”
Do you know what that feels like when your own words come back to haunt you in the worst possible way? Yeah.
“The authorities will think it’s either Elsie’s relative JoJo or Tina and personally I’m hoping for Tina. What an immoral bitch.”
I was shocked at her language and wanted to point out that Kenny was as much, if not more, at fault than Tina. After all, he’d been the married one. I decided this was not the time to point out Kenny’s fault in the whole mess. Not with her still gripping my wrist.
“Why kill Kenny?” I asked. If I could keep her talking there was at least a small chance Dixie had heard and would send help. “I thought you cared for Kenny. It seemed like you did.”
“I loved him.” Her eyes filled with tears.
Good grief, the cold-hearted killer was going to cry.
Maybe if I could get her thinking about Kenny I could rip my wrist loose.
“Then why? Why kill the man you loved?”
“He wasn’t supposed to drink stupid Tina’s energy drink. She never shared it with anyone. Her secret recipe.” Minnie wiped at her eyes.
A new realization hit me. “It was Tina you intended to kill.”
“Yes, never my Kenny. She’d led him astray. He would have come to his senses.”
“So, Elsie and then Tina, clearing the way for you?”
“We were meant to be together.” She heaved a big sigh.
“And now me? Three murders on your conscience.” I hoped to appeal to whatever moral sense she had.
“I have no choice.” Her face suddenly went chillingly blank.
“But if they find me here.” My hand had started to go numb from her grip.
“I’ll say that you told me you were just at Tina’s and that you came by and then started feeling sick. They’ll think you ingested something like Elsie and Kenny did. It will seal her fate.”
What did she think? That I would drink something? That she was strong enough to force me?
I made up my mind at that moment to fight.
The others hadn’t seen it coming, but I had the advantage of knowing I was about to die. The police would find scratches on Minnie and bruises on me that wouldn’t support Minnie’s story of me stopping by Tina’s house. Dixie would know differently. She would force Sheriff Terry to investigate. He would force the DCI to find the truth.
I yanked on my arm and at the same time kicked out toward Minnie. Minnie dropped to her knees, letting go of my arm. I was loose.
Get out. Get out. Get out. My mind screamed.
I made a dash for the door but Minnie grabbed my ankle and pulled.
I went down hard. My cheek slammed against hardwood floor. Pain exploded in my head and the room began to spin.
I blinked a couple of time trying to focus. Then I noticed the syringe in her hand.
No, no, not this time. It wasn’t going to be that easy. I bucked and kicked ignoring the pain.
There was a loud pounding on the front door as Minnie brought the syringe down, aiming for me. I rolled away and it just barely missed.
“Help!” I tasted blood as I screamed.
Sheriff Terry burst through the door followed by Dixie. Dixie stomped on Minnie’s wrist and she let go of the syringe with a cry.
Minnie scrambled to her feet and lunged for the syringe.
I raised my leg and with force that came from somewhere deep, I planted my foot right in Minnie’s backside and pushed. She sprawled forward on her face. Stunned, she hesitated for a moment and then staggered to her feet and ran toward the kitchen.
Sheriff Terry ran after her and I heard a scuffle. Then silence. Suddenly we could hear the sheriff booming voice ordering Minnie to the floor.
“Dixie,” I sat up.
“What?” She looked at me.
“It was Minnie all along.”
“I know, sweetie.” She sat down beside me on the floor and put her arm around me.
In a matter of minutes, the house was swarmed with lights and sirens. The medics insisted on checking me over, though I was certain nothing was broken.
“I’m fine.” I was sure when the adrenaline stopped pumping that I would be sore, but all in all I was fine.
The paramedics had moved me to the couch. From there I could see through the open doorway that a crowd of neighbors had already collected outside and their numbers were growing.
Dixie and I waited to see if it was okay for us to go. The sheriff was still in the kitchen and had Minnie secured. The DCI Special Agent pushed through the crowd and headed that way.
In a few moments, Sheriff Terry joined us.
“Are you okay?” He crouched down so he could see my face. “Did they check you over?
“They did and I’m fine.”
“I think someone should take Sugar home,” he said to Dixie. “Special Agent Bell says we can get her statement later.”
“I’m right here.” I waved a weak hand.
“Sorry about that, Sugar.” He and Dixie shared a look. “Do you want to go home?”
“I do.” I didn’t want to be there when they took Minnie away.
You might think it would be good to see the perpetrator of so much awfulness taken away in handcuffs. She’d killed two people. She needed to be held accountable for what she’d done. I had no problem with that.
But at the moment, my heart hurt and my mind felt numb.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
The day of the Founders’ Day celebration dawned bright and steamy as only a July day in Iowa can.
Dixie’s Aunt Bertie was on shift at the Founders’ Day Cookbook table when Max and I arrived. She’d wanted an early shift because the Jefferson Street B & B was at full capacity and she needed to take care of her guests. Folks who had pre-ordered the book stopped by to pick up their copies, and those who had not were subject to Bertie Sparks’s high-pressure sales tactics.
The committee had the idea to provide some samples from recipes in the book to entice people to approach the table. Then they pounced. A brilliant tactic I thought, and if my former employer had been as creative and engaged on their marketing, perhaps they’d still be in business.
The cookbook was absolutely stunning, if I do say so myself. It was a team effort and I was proud of how it had turned out. The pictures and the recipes told a story. Dixie’s brilliance on the recipe choices, Max’s amazing photos, and even Jimmie LeBlanc’s pieces of history had been stirred
together in just the right amounts.
The whopper of a bruise on my cheek had begun to fade. It would be a long while before the memory of Minnie’s death grip on me and the gleam in her eyes would do the same.
JoJo and her boyfriend Robbie had been arrested for extortion based on information recovered from Minnie’s computer. Minnie had proudly confessed to the murder of Elsie Farmer, but continued to insist that Kenny’s death had been accidental. Her court-appointed attorney had a tough road ahead of him.
Greer had insisted that Spiff apologize to me. He’d not only filed a complaint with the police after getting a call from Mrs. Pickett and finding the items online, he’d also been in the house. He had a key and had gone in and taken the strawberry cruets. He’d probably also been the reason Ernest was outside, but I didn’t tell her that. He was in enough trouble with his mother. I accepted his apology.
The Founders’ Day Festival was in full swing. The sights and sounds swirled around us. Max snapped photos as we stood watching. People were beginning to jockey for places to view the parade.
The marching band, in their St. Ignatius Saints uniforms, lined up, waiting for the go. They had to be cooking in those long-sleeved uniforms.
Sheriff Terry looked exasperated as the crowd refused to part for the red convertible that carried the newly crowned Miss Iggy. He and his deputy would move people and clear a path and then others would move in.
I saw Dixie and Moto across the way and waved frantically. She spotted me and headed over.
A sea of silver heads and pink T-shirts waved from the next float in line. Greer and the group of ladies from the retirement center rode on a flat-bed decorated with miles of foil that had The Good Life plastered in big cut-out letters on the side.
Dixie made it across the street and we hugged.
We’d made it. No words were needed. I reached in my pocket for a treat and slipped it to Moto.
I looked around at the familiar faces.
People who, though we didn’t share any bloodlines, felt like family to me. My family of the heart.
I leaned my head on Max’s shoulder.
It was a good life.
Recipes
Bertie Sparks’s Proper English Scones
Ingredients
2 cups and 13 tablespoons of self-rising flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon of baking powder
3 tablespoons of caster or regular sugar
3 ounces of cubed butter
3/4 cup of milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Squeeze of lemon juice
One beaten egg, to glaze
1 cup of raisins or craisins or dried fruit of your choice
Instructions
1. Preheat your oven to 425̊ F. (Bertie recommends also preheating your baking tray.)
2. In a mixing bowl, add the sifted flour, salt, baking powder, and combine.
3. Add the butter and rub in with your fingers until the mixture looks like fine crumbs.
4. Using a knife, stir in the sugar.
5. Put the milk into a cup and heat in the microwave for about 30 seconds. Add the vanilla and lemon juice, then set aside for 2 minutes.
6. Make a well in the dry mix, then add the liquid and combine it quickly with a knife. Dust some flour onto the work surface and place the dough on the surface. Shake some more flour on the dough and your hands, then fold the dough over 2-3 times until it’s slightly smoother. Gently pat it into a round about 1 1/2 inches deep.
7. Take a 2-inch cutter and dip it into some flour. Cut into the dough, then repeat until you have four scones. Then press what’s left of the dough back into a round to cut out another four. Try not to over work the dough, be light with your hands when reshaping.
8. Brush the tops with beaten egg, then carefully place onto the hot baking tray.
9. Bake for 10 minutes until risen and golden on the top.
Elsie Farmer’s Irish Scones
Ingredients
3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
5 teaspoons baking powder
Pinch of salt
1/4 of a cup of white sugar
1 stick butter
1 egg
2 ounces of cream
7 ounces of whole milk
Milk to glaze
Instructions
1. In a large bowl mix the dry ingredients together.
2. Rub in the cold butter with your fingers until it resembles breadcrumbs.
3. If you want to add dried fruit such as raisins or berries, add them now before you add liquid.
4. Mix your egg with the milk and cream and pour into your flour mixture.
5. With an open hand mix your scone mix until a dough forms.
6. Turn your dough onto a floured work surface.
7. Knead lightly to give your dough a smooth surface.
8. Pat your dough down with your hand until it’s about an inch thick.
9. With a round scone cutter, cut out your scones. You should have about twelve.
10. Put on a baking tray, glaze the tops of your scones with some milk to give them a golden top when baked.
11. Bake at 350̊ F for 35 minutes.
Enjoy with Irish butter, jam and freshly whipped cream.
Scones are best the day they are baked.
Betty Bailey’s Broccoli Gratin
Ingredients
Kosher salt, to taste
2 lb. broccoli
2 tablespoons of unsalted butter
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 cups milk
1/2 small yellow onion, thinly sliced
1 bay leaf
1 cup grated Gruyère cheese
Freshly ground pepper
1 cup panko
1/4 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
2 tablespoons of olive oil
Instructions
1. Bring a large saucepan of well salted water to a boil over high heat. Cut the heads from the broccoli stalks and cut the heads into small florets. Add the broccoli to the boiling water and cook for 2 minutes. Transfer the broccoli to a bowl filled with ice water, then drain well.
2. In a 10-inch fry pan over medium heat, melt the butter. Add the flour and stir well.
3. Slowly whisk in the milk and bring to a boil.
4. Reduce the heat to low, add the onion and bay leaf and simmer, stirring frequently, until the mixture thickens.
5. Remove and discard the bay leaf and add the Gruyère, stirring until the cheese is melted.
6. Carefully fold in the broccoli and spread in an even layer.
7. In a small bowl, stir together the panko, Parmigiano-Reggiano and olive oil, and season with salt and pepper.
8. Sprinkle the panko mixture over the broccoli mixture.
9. Transfer the pan to the oven and bake at 350̊ F for 40 to 45 minutes.
You can make this in a stove-top to oven pan as Dixie does.
Or if you don’t have that type of pan this recipe works just as well in a casserole dish.
About the Author
Mary Lee Ashford is the “Sparkle” half of the mystery writer Sparkle Abbey, author of the Pampered Pet mysteries from Belle Bridge Books. She is the founding president of Sisters in Crime – Iowa and a member of Mystery Writers of America, Romance Writers of America, Kiss of Death, the RWA Mystery Suspense chapter, Sisters in Crime, and the SinC internet group Guppies. Prior to publishing the Pampered Pet Mystery series with Bell Bridge Books, Mary Lee won first place in the Daphne du Maurier contest, sponsored by the Kiss of Death chapter of RWA, and was a finalist in Murder in the Grove’s mystery contest, as well as Killer Nashville’s Claymore Dagger contest. Mary Lee is an avid reader and supporter of public libraries. She lives in Central Iowa with
her husband, Tim, and Sparkle the rescue cat namesake of Sparkle Abbey. In her day job she is an Information Technology manager. Any spare time she spends reading and enjoying her sons and daughter-in-laws, and six grandchildren.
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