Lemon Larceny (The Donut Mysteries)

by Jessica Beck

  “I admire your confidence in our abilities,” Momma said.

  “I admit that it helps that this isn’t my first time investigating murder. After a while, you learn to trust your instincts and you don’t give up until you’ve found the truth.”

  “And what if that never happens?”

  I shrugged. “Then we take solace in the fact that we did our best, and at the very least, we managed to put the fear of retribution in someone’s heart. Worse case scenario, even if we don’t find the killer, at least we’ll make sure that whoever did it spends the next twenty years looking over their shoulder, waiting for someone to arrest them for what they’ve done.”

  “Do you honestly believe that will be enough?” Momma asked sadly.

  “It is what is, so if that’s all that we get, then it will have to do,” I said. “But let’s not even think about throwing in the towel yet. We have more suspects to interview, and I know in my heart that there are more clues just waiting for us to expose them to the bright light of day.”

  “Then let’s tackle the next name on our list by all means,” Momma said.

  I didn’t know if my pep talk helped her, but oddly enough, it did wonders for me.

  Saying how I felt aloud helped me believe every word I’d told Momma.

  If there was a way to find the killer, we were going to do it.

  To my surprise, Momma and I were spared calling on our next suspect when she showed up on our doorstep unannounced. The bell rang, and as I answered it, I was surprised to see Greta Miles, my aunt’s former housekeeper, standing on the porch.

  “Greta, what brings you here?” I asked her.

  “I came to clean, just like I always do, only my key won’t work anymore,” she said with a pouty expression.

  “We changed the locks,” Momma explained as she joined us out on the porch.

  “Why on earth would you do that? How am I supposed to get in now?” The woman was absolutely clueless about what we’d done.

  I was about to explain to her that she wasn’t going to be cleaning ever again when I realized that this was a perfect opportunity to interview her. “Won’t you come in so we can discuss the situation?” I asked as I stepped aside.

  Momma looked at me oddly, something that was happening more and more lately, but she stepped back as well to allow the cleaning lady inside.

  “I came to clean, not talk,” Greta said matter-of-factly.

  “It won’t take long. I promise,” I said as I steered her into the living room. Pulling back the curtains, I instructed, “Have a seat. Would you like some tea?”

  “Like I said, I didn’t come here to socialize,” she repeated stubbornly.

  “Then what a nice bonus this must be for you,” Momma said, getting into the spirit of things. “Sit. We insist.”

  There aren’t many folks who can back down from one of my mother’s strongly worded suggestions, and clearly Greta wasn’t one of them. “I suppose it couldn’t hurt, at least not for a minute or two,” the housekeeper said as she sat on the edge of the couch, her oversized handbag clutched in her arms and propped up proudly on her lap. I had to wonder if she’d brought her own vacuum cleaner with her, it was so large.

  “I’ll make the tea,” Momma said, and then she quickly exited the room. I had to believe that she would listen in to our conversation as soon as the kettle was on. At least that’s what I would have done.

  “It’s good of you to come by today,” I said as I settled into one of the other chairs.

  “I should have been here earlier,” she said, “but I got distracted.”

  “What happened?” I asked.

  “It was nothing. It was probably just my imagination.”

  Now I was honestly curious about what she was talking about. “What happened? I really want to know.”

  Greta frowned, and then she explained, “I thought I saw someone prowling around outside this house when I drove up a little bit ago. I got out and looked around, but I didn’t see anyone. It was probably just a trick the morning shadows were playing on my eyes.”

  Given what had been happening lately, I doubted it. “Did you get a clear look at who it might have been?”

  “Like I said, after I started looking harder, I wasn’t even sure that I’d really seen anything all. It was probably nothing. I don’t want to talk about it.”

  It was clear that the housekeeper was finished discussing it, so I decided to drop it. “After what my mother told you yesterday, I’m surprised that you came back at all.”

  “I didn’t pay any attention to her. She was just distraught. She probably didn’t even know what she was saying,” Greta said. “I figured she’d change her mind after a good night’s sleep, so here I am, bright and early. Shall I go on and get started?”

  “Hang on a second,” I said. “We’re not finished having our little chat.”

  Greta had started to stand, but that put her back in her seat. After all, what could she do at that point? “I don’t know what we have worth discussing.”

  “Let’s talk about my aunt for a minute,” I said.

  “It was a terrible thing, what happened to her,” she answered automatically.

  “I couldn’t agree with you more,” I replied. “You shouldn’t feel guilty, you know.”

  That caught her completely by surprise. “Guilty? Why should I feel guilty?”

  “Well, if you’d been here working, she might not have fallen,” I said, watching her carefully.

  “I don’t see how. From what I heard, it happened while I was having my oatmeal,” she said, as if defying me to contradict her. “How could it have been my fault?”

  “That’s my point,” I said smoothly. “It wasn’t. Do you eat breakfast at the diner in town we saw on our drive in yesterday?”

  She scoffed. “I’m not paying anyone three dollars and ninety five cents to make my breakfast, especially when it costs me thirty-eight cents to make it at home for myself.”

  “You’ve actually calculated what it costs you?” I asked.

  “Why wouldn’t I? I’m a woman on a budget, after all,” she said defensively.

  “So, money’s tight then?”

  My aunt had suspected that Greta had been stealing from her, and this might feed into that theory.

  “It always is,” Greta said haughtily, “but there’s nothing wrong with that. My father always used to say that thriftiness built character.”

  If she had been stealing, then the lesson hadn’t been learned very well after all.

  “That’s a lovely ring you have there,” I said as she shifted one hand holding her bag to the other.

  “I inherited it from my mother. It might look like it’s worth something, but it’s nothing but fake stones and cheap metal,” Greta said, acting as though she were surprised to even find it on her finger. Sliding it off, she put it in her bag and then latched the clasp shut with a great deal of force. Had she stolen it from my aunt, or perhaps one of her other cleaning clients? It might bear looking into. Finally, it appeared that she’d had enough. “I’m through waiting for that tea,” she said as she stood. “Am I cleaning today, or not?”

  “I’m afraid not,” Momma said as she came out of the kitchen. “As I said yesterday, as much as we appreciate your offer, my daughter and I can manage fine without your services now.”

  “If I go now, I won’t be coming back,” Greta said huffily.

  “I’m sure that your other clients will welcome your increased attention to their needs,” Momma said sweetly, though it was clear that there was iron behind it.

  I doubted that we’d see Greta again this time.

  Once the housekeeper was gone, Momma said, “I know that I probably ruined your investigation, but I wasn’t about to have that woman in this house for another second.”

  “What happened?” I asked her.

  “Did you see the ring she was wearing when she came in?”

  I nodded. “I did, and I wondered about how she could afford it.
She claimed that it was a fake, but it looked pretty real to me.”

  “It belonged to my sister, as a matter of fact,” Momma said.

  “Was it valuable? We need to call the police chief if it was,” I said as I reached for my cellphone.

  “Don’t bother. It wasn’t worth more than fifty dollars, so it’s hardly worth the trouble. Besides, Greta will probably just claim that Jean gave it to her.”

  “Fifty dollars? Really?”

  “I know. It’s quite good, for what it is. I was surprised how real it looked myself, so I bought it for Jean as a gag gift last Christmas.”

  “When I asked Greta about it, she told me that it had belonged to her mother.”

  “I doubt that,” Momma said with a frown.

  “The funny thing is that Greta claimed it was fake,” I said, “but I got the impression that she didn’t believe it for one second.”

  Momma smiled. “Then I’m just sorry that I won’t be there when she tries to pawn it after she’s finished with it. What a lovely surprise that will be.”

  “What else might she have stolen if she took Aunt Jean’s ring?” I asked my mother.

  “I haven’t a clue, but right now, we’re looking for a murderer, not a thief, correct?”

  I shrugged. “It’s not that hard to believe that she might be both.”

  “Explain.”

  “Well, what if Aunt Jean caught her stealing, so Greta killed her to keep from being exposed and going to jail? It’s possible, don’t you think?”

  Momma’s face fell. “So, I let my anger get the best of me, and I’ve closed off access to a woman who might have killed my sister. I’m so sorry, Suzanne.”

  I rubbed her shoulder gently. “You don’t have to apologize to me. Besides, you might have done me a favor without even realizing it.”

  “How so?”

  “The next time I approach Greta, I can commiserate with her over your treatment of her. You wouldn’t mind if I disparaged your character a little while I did it, would you?” I asked her with a grin.

  Momma answered in kind as she said, “Say whatever you please about me. If it helps find Jean’s killer, then I’m on board.”

  “Don’t worry. I’ll try not to be too rough on you,” I said with a hint of laughter in my voice.

  “Suzanne, there’s no need to spare my feelings,” Momma said. “I’ve been called some bad things over the years by people who have meant every word they said. A few slings and arrows from you will be a walk in the park for me.”

  “Understood,” I said. “Now, that just leaves us with three folks we need to speak with before we decide what to do next. Do you have a preference between the attorney, the chief of police, and the next door neighbor?”

  “I’d be happy if we left Anna Albright until the end,” Momma said.

  “Let me get this straight. You’d rather interview a cop and a lawyer than a pushy woman?”

  “Let’s just say I can deal rationally with rational people. It’s the other type that perplexes me sometimes.”

  “I get that,” I said. “Care to take a ride into town, then?”

  “That’s one idea,” Momma said.

  “Do you have a better one?” I asked. “I’m always open to suggestions.”

  Momma didn’t reply; she just raised an eyebrow and stared at me.

  “Okay, usually, then.”

  She still didn’t respond.

  “Well, will you at least give me sometimes?” I asked with a slight smile.

  “I will,” she said magnanimously.

  “Then what’s your idea?”

  “I know how to get the police chief here,” she said. “Let’s just report the actual break-in that we had last night.”

  “That would work,” I said, “but that begs a question.”

  “Which is?”

  “What do we tell him when he asks why we didn’t report it last night when it happened?” I asked.

  “We can say that we were too tired to deal with an investigation at that hour, and that we were both still too much in shock over my sister’s death. Surely he’ll understand those excuses.”

  “You know what? He probably will.”

  “So then, you’ll call him?” Momma asked.

  “Just as fast as I can dial the numbers,” I said as I pulled out my cellphone.

  “Thank you, Suzanne,” she said before I finished dialing.

  “You’re welcome. What exactly are you thanking me for?”

  “For embracing my idea and not discounting it,” she said.

  “Why wouldn’t I use it? It’s a good one. Momma, just because I’m running this investigation, there’s no reason for you not to speak up whenever you’ve got an idea. We’re partners here.”

  “Equal partners?” she asked, smiling slightly.

  “Well, let’s say fairly equal and leave it at that.”

  “It’s a deal,” she said.

  “Can I finish dialing now?” I asked her.

  “Be my guest.”

  “Good.”

  I got the police chief on the line, explained what had happened, and he promised to come right over. After I hung up, I said, “He’s on his way.”

  “Should we take down your barricade before he gets here?”

  “No, I think it lends a certain credence to our story. Besides, it happens to be true, so at least there’s something corroborating our story.”

  “Why would we lie about what happened?” Momma asked me.

  “Well, if we hadn’t had a real break-in, staging one might be a good way to get him out here without arousing his suspicions.”

  Momma considered that for a moment, and then she asked, “Have you ever done that in the past yourself?”

  I whistled a little as I looked anywhere but into her gaze.

  After a moment, Momma asked, “You’d rather not answer that, is that correct?”

  “Let’s just say that the information is on a need-to-know basis.”

  “And I don’t need to know, is that it?” she asked.

  I nodded. “Now you’ve got it.”

  Chapter 12

  “That’s a nice patch job you did there,” the police chief said a little sarcastically as he studied my makeshift repair.

  “Hey, it might not be pretty, but it works,” I replied.

  “No doubt about that,” Chief Kessler said as he pushed against the bulkhead door. “It’s solid enough.” He turned back to us and added, “I wouldn’t worry too much about it. It was probably just some kids that thought the house was empty.”

  “That’s your reaction to a crime committed in your jurisdiction? Honestly?” Momma asked. “Chief, someone broke in and trespassed on my sister’s property. Aren’t you going to do anything about it?” She sounded outraged, and I was sure that it was sincere enough. My mother was not a big fan of lawbreakers.

  “Well, I might have been able to do something a little more productive about it if I’d been called right away,” he said pointedly, his smile locking itself firmly in place.

  “We already told you why we didn’t call you right when it happened,” I said. “Do you have any idea who might want to break in? I’m not talking about juvenile delinquents. I don’t buy that for one second. I think someone was after something.”

  The chief shrugged as he looked around. “What is there here that could possibly be of any value to a thief?”

  “That’s a good question,” I said. “Do you have a lot of break-ins around here?”

  “I won’t lie to you; every now and then they run in spells. We usually catch them, but since they are mostly underage, there’s not much that’s done to them. I’ll write up a report, but since nothing of note was stolen, it won’t do any good contacting your insurance agency. That door hasp is about the only thing you lost, and it wasn’t worth much to begin with.”

  “That is completely unsatisfactory,” Momma said sternly, and then she marched upstairs. I knew that it was part of the ploy that we’d come up wi
th earlier to give me time alone with the police chief, but I was still stunned by how real it seemed.

  “I’m sorry about that,” I said sympathetically.

  “Don’t apologize. It’s not necessary. Your mother went through a lot yesterday losing her sister so suddenly like that.”

  “Thanks for understanding,” I said. “I’m not accusing you of falling down on the job or anything, but where were you when she had her accident?” I hated calling it that, but since Momma and I were the only ones who believed that it was murder at this point, I didn’t have much choice.

  The police chief scratched his chin, and then he said, “I was probably at Burt’s Diner. I’m there before work most mornings nursing a cup of coffee before I tackle my day.”

  That was going to be something I needed to check out, but not at the moment. I had other, more pressing issues with Chief Kessler than his alibi. Aunt Jean had been suspicious of his activities, and that’s what I needed to focus on at the moment. “Is that where you generally do business?”

  “You’d be surprised how much I find out by keeping my ears open and my mouth shut,” he said as he filled out his paperwork. Chief Kessler frowned, and then he put his pen back in his pocket. “Want some free advice, worth more than it’s going to cost you? Don’t do it, Ms. Hart.”

  “It’s Suzanne,” I said automatically. “What exactly is it that I’m not supposed to do?”

  “It’s not going to do you any good being coy with me. I have friends all over this state. Do you think that there’s the slightest chance I didn’t check up on you and your mother when I heard that you and your mother were both in town? I understand that you’re quite the amateur sleuth, but there’s no crime that needs to be investigated here. Your aunt fell down the stairs, plain and simple. There’s nothing here for you to do.”

  I shook my head. “I don’t know who your sources are, but they couldn’t be further from the truth.” I thought there might be a chance that he was bluffing, going on rumors and innuendos instead of facts.