Doughnuts & Deadly Schemes (Culinary Competition Mysteries Book 3)

by Janel Gradowski

  Thane paced back and forth in front of the locked door. "What did I do to you to deserve this?" He pointed the tip of the knife at Amy. "Why are you screwing with me like this?"

  He was the one pacing around with a sure to be razor-sharp butcher's knife pilfered from Bridget's kitchen. How exactly was obeying his order and sitting on the end of the bed messing with him? "I don't know what you're talking about."

  "You got that comic geek to plant the virus on my computer that's ruining everything." Thane slashed the knife through the air. "Then you had me called here so you and the cop could watch me suffer while my world falls apart."

  "I had nothing to do with either one of those things!" Amy squeezed her hands together in her lap. She talked with her hands, especially when she was excited, but sudden movements could spook the already freaked-out murderer. "You pissed off Chuck so he came up with the virus all on his own with no encouragement from me. I guess you should've studied your victims a little bit before hitting them up for money. If I knew you were the murderer before now, I certainly wouldn't have called you here to ruin my friend's wedding."

  He stopped pacing and stared at her as if she had spoken to him in Latin. "I don't believe you."

  Holy guacamole. Did she have resting bad liar face? Did she always look as if she was fibbing, whether she was or not?

  "I'm…telling…the…truth. Why don't you take a turn at it? I know you murdered Luke and are behind the extortions. What I don't understand is why."

  Thane adopted Carla's standard cold, detached expression. "Uncle Matt doesn't pay me squat. I can't afford to live in any place better than a mouse-infested studio apartment. He said living frugally builds character. What a bunch of bullshit."

  "If your problem is with Matt, why did you kill Luke?"

  "Because he figured out it was me sending the messages. I don't know how. He just told me I couldn't play a player."

  So Luke's family had gotten him killed, but only because they had given him the knowledge to recognize a scam artist. Amy snorted. "Just like you shouldn't have tried hacking into the computer of a hacker."

  "Whatever." He extended his arm until the tip of the knife was inches away from Carla's nose. "You are going to be my ticket out of here."

  Anger pumped out of Amy's heart. Her big mouth had started this. "Leave her alone. It's her wedding day. She has nothing to do with your problems."

  "Shut up!" Thane hissed as he swung the blade toward Amy's face.

  Carla ran her hand down the silk robe that was still covering her wedding dress. "You know, half of the wedding guests are going to be cops. I'm sure they've started to arrive already. Holding their friend's pregnant bride hostage is only going to piss them off."

  Pregnant? Carla…Was…Pregnant! Forget about Shepler's buddies not letting Thane get away with threatening Carla. Amy was done with his spoiled brat routine too. She formulated a plan in three seconds. It wasn't great, but it would have to do.

  Thane hopped back as Amy kicked out her feet, bounced twice on the springy mattress, then slid off the slippery bedspread. She grabbed Carla's hands and tugged her off the bed too. After taking hold of her friend's other hand, she initiated an awkward "Ring Around the Rosie" dance, hopping up and down while spinning both of them in a circle and chanting, "You're pregnant! You're pregnant!"

  "Stop it! Sit back down!" Thane yelled.

  Amy ignored the command and shifted their orbit closer to the mirrored vanity table that sat against the wall. As they spun by, Amy grabbed a big antique silver hairbrush. She let go of Carla's other hand and smashed the improvised weapon into Thane's knife. There was a sword fight clank followed by a thud when the dislodged knife hit the door behind him.

  He stumbled backward as Amy landed another blow on his shoulder. She let out a growl and tackled him like a desperate single woman at a wedding bouquet toss. Thane yowled when Amy smacked his already-injured eye. There wasn't going to be any makeup in the jail for him to cover up the bruises from being attacked by his victims. Twice. Chuck had doled out the punishment in the back room of The Inkwell, which tipped Amy off to Thane's unscrupulous side venture.

  "Stay back, Carla. I don't want you to get hurt," Amy said as she dug her fingernails into the flesh of Thane's shoulder.

  "Help!" Carla's scream made Amy's eardrums throb. Underneath her, Thane twisted onto his stomach. He clawed at the carpet trying to drag both of them toward the knife. No way. Not going to happen, dude. The toe of her shoe bumped the side of his leg. Target located. Thane bellowed as she dug the spike-like heel of her shoe into his calf. She grabbed a handful of his hair and yanked his head back.

  "Carla!" Shepler yelled in the hallway.

  Thane thrashed his head from side to side, trying to break free from Amy's grip. She yanked back harder. His fashionably long on top hairstyle was working against him. The door exploded open, smashing into his face with a fleshy thud. He went limp as Shepler vaulted over them to reach Carla.

  "I guess I should've given you the handcuffs when you asked for them," Harry said as he entered the room. He offered Amy a hand. "Are you okay?"

  She let him help her to her feet. Her knees were so wobbly she could barely stand. She looked at the silver brush she still clutched in her hand and said, "I think so."

  He bent and pulled Thane's arms behind his back. There was a loud click as the handcuffs locked on the criminal's wrists. "You look like you held your own pretty well against this guy."

  Amy gingerly stepped over Thane's sprawled legs and replaced the brush on its tray. "He should've known better than to mess with an angry former hairdresser."

  CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN

  Carla leaned back onto Bruce. He hugged her a bit more tightly as they gently swayed to the slow rhythm of the music. She watched Amy and Alex on the dance floor. Amy laid her head on her husband's shoulder and closed her eyes as they rocked back and forth. A sweet moment for the woman who had single-handedly saved Carla's life and the wedding. Nobody deserved a romantic slow dance with her true love more than Amy.

  "What are you thinking about?" Bruce asked as he laced his fingers together over the row of buttons lined up on her stomach. A loving embrace for her and their baby.

  "Everything turned out better than my wildest dreams. It got a little sketchy there for a while, but the trade-off was that gorgeous sunset."

  After Harry hauled the little blonde hairbrush samurai off Thane, half of the Kellerton police force invaded the room to help. They already knew Matt's nephew was the extortionist. The officers just didn't know he was waving a knife around at her and Amy when they arrived for the wedding. The computer virus the guy from the comic book shop set loose on Thane's computer had been brilliant. First, it turned everything Thane typed into a nonsensical mantra of I Am A Moron, effectively nullifying his threats. Then the genius second phase kicked in. It mined the data on his computer until it unearthed his identity and relayed the information to the good hacker, who promptly called the police department. Carla didn't know Chuck, but she loved his cyber Robin Hood style. And she really loved his wife's artistic style. The drawing Amy had commissioned was a breathtaking keepsake.

  After the mess with Thane was sorted out, a fashion emergency took center stage. In the process of beating the would-be hostage taker, Amy also ravaged her delicate bridesmaid outfit. One particularly energetic hairbrush whack ripped out the seam down the side of her white cotton shirt. Who would've guessed that Mrs. Mahoney, the woman who could afford one-of-a-kind couture dresses from world famous clothing designers, liked to sew as a hobby? With the help of her sewing machine, Amy's shirt was good as new within a few minutes.

  The wedding started an hour and a half late. A Mrs. Mahoney-provided open bar and fancy snacks kept the guests who weren't police officers happy during the wait. When Carla and Bruce finally made it to the altar, under the arch covered in white roses and tiny twinkling lights, a vibrant orange and pink sunset cast a rosy glow over everything and everybody in the atrium. Th
e light show only lasted for a few minutes, but the magical sunset appeared at the perfect time, as they were saying their vows.

  Amy whispered something into Alex's ear then skipped across the dance floor toward Carla. "You two look cozy," she said as she snagged a flute of champagne from a passing waitress's tray. "How's it going, Mr. and Mrs. Shepler?"

  "Fabulously, thanks to you," Carla replied. "I had no idea you could fight dirty like that. The heel in the calf move is going to leave a mark."

  Bruce chuckled. "Between the run-ins with the guy from the comic book store and you, Thane will be lucky if he can move a muscle tomorrow."

  "Hopefully, the cots at the police station will make him feel even worse." Amy sniffed. "He deserves to be miserable. I guess spending time at the comic book store did some good. I must've subconsciously picked up some fighting moves by paging through the books there."

  Carla wiggled out of Bruce's arms and wrapped Amy in a hug. "Thank you for everything you've done. Having the wedding here is a dream. The doughnut tower is exactly what I wanted. You solved the murder and saved both of us. You're my hero."

  Amy grinned. "I am the Hairbrush Avenger." The tempo of the music picked up. "Oh, I love this song. I need to dance with Alex! Excuse me."

  Her pink-flowered skirt flared out into a circle as she spun around. Amy zeroed in on her husband on the other side of the dance floor. Within seconds she was gone again. Carla looked up at Bruce. "I'd say she's having a good night."

  When she looked back at the dance floor, Carla saw Bridget weaving through the round tables along the periphery of the parquet floor. The best wedding hostess in the world handed Bruce two sets of keys. "Your car has been moved to the guesthouse. When you're ready to leave here I'll have someone drive you over. Feel free to stay at the guesthouse as long as you like, even the whole week if you want."

  When they had arrived at the mansion earlier that day, the first thing Mrs. Mahoney had done was offer to let them spend the night in the guest cottage tucked away in the woods along the river. They had planned to spend the night at Carla's loft then start a leisurely drive south in the morning.

  Bruce draped his arm over Carla's shoulders. "Thank you for the offer to stay longer, but we need to leave tomorrow. We booked a cabin near Asheville, North Carolina for the week. Staying in your guesthouse tonight is an unexpected treat that we greatly appreciate along with everything else you've done. We can't thank you enough."

  "You helped stop a murderer's frightening attacks on many business owners who are my friends. I wish I could thank you with more than hosting your wedding." Mrs. Mahoney plucked a brownie off a tray sitting on a nearby table. She broke it in half. "In the morning, call the kitchen when you get up. The number is on speed dial on the phone. You'll need a hearty breakfast to start out your honeymoon trip."

  "Thank you." Carla looked at the sparkling diamond rings stacked on her finger. "You have made this the best day of our lives."

  Bridget smiled and took a step closer. "I'm glad you've enjoyed the day, but from what I hear, you'll be having an even more exciting one this fall. Congratulations."

  CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT

  "There are reheating instructions on all of these," Amy said as she stacked the aluminum pans in Carla's freezer. The food care packages were filled with entrees like pulled pork enchiladas, three-meat lasagna, and chicken Alfredo. Her homemade versions of the heat and eat meals from Columbo's Market that Carla loved. "You can use your toaster oven to heat up one meal or the stove's oven if you're both eating one."

  "You didn't have to do this, but you know I appreciate it. Especially these cookies. They taste exactly like cherry cheesecake. I love them. One of your best cookie creations ever." Carla slipped her second cookie out from under the plastic wrap covering the plate. "Thanks for bringing them and restocking our kitchen. You've extended our honeymoon by another day. Now we don't need to leave the loft to find food."

  Shepler walked into the galley kitchen and grabbed one of the cookies. "Yes. Thank you. After having every meal delivered to our door at the cabin, returning home to an empty refrigerator sucked."

  "Sounds like you enjoyed yourselves." Amy placed bottles of milk, orange juice and freshly made limeade in the refrigerator because they would want something other than water or, off-limits for Carla, beer to drink with the meals. "I'm glad you two finally got the chance to relax after everything leading up to the wedding."

  "The honeymoon wouldn't have been anywhere near as relaxing if you hadn't helped catch Thane." Carla nodded her head at Shepler. "Even though the psychopath was hanging out behind bars, somebody still had to call his buddies at the police department."

  He shrugged. "What can I say? Curiosity almost killed the new husband. That case really had me stumped, so I wanted to know what was happening and make sure he didn't get out on some technicality. I only called the station a couple times."

  Amy didn't blame him. If it weren't for Chuck, she wouldn't have figured out who the killer was either. Thane had hidden his greedy side very well whenever she'd talked to him. Offering to help design her blog, just for references, had really thrown her off track. It was such a generous gesture—totally the opposite of what he was doing in his spare time.

  Thane had picked up more than marketing skills at college, thanks to some unsavory computer-savvy roommates. Word of his arrest spread like hot oil through the downtown businesses, and over twenty owners began coming forward, relaying their stories to the police. There was a lot of evidence against him, including a message on Sophie's laptop that revealed the threat was sent from Finley & Crowe's computer network. There didn't appear to be any way he could evade being sent to prison.

  "Did you hear that Matt was moved out of ICU?" Amy asked as she flipped shut the lid of the empty cooler she had used to transport the frozen meals. "He's going to be starting physical therapy next week."

  Once Matt was awakened from the controlled coma, he finally explained to Sophie what his cryptic dream statement was about. A few days after Luke was killed, Matt began receiving messages saying that Sophie would be harmed if he didn't pay. He went against Shepler's advice and transferred $10,000 into the extortionist's MoneyMover account. Since Sophie had hidden the threats against her from Matt, he didn't know the money wasn't protecting her.

  After the murder, Thane bought a new wardrobe, cell phone, and computer with the swindled money. Matt noticed the lifestyle upgrade and asked his nephew how he could suddenly afford the expensive items, despite not receiving a pay raise. The question unnerved Thane. So he decided to make sure his uncle couldn't point out the sudden influx of money to the police. Supplies to make the trash-can bomb, along with the knife that killed Luke, were found in the luxury high-rise apartment Thane had secretly moved into a few days after he committed the heartless murder.

  "Good to know that Finley's doing better. I hadn't heard that." Shepler poured himself a glass of milk and grabbed two more cookies. "It will take a long time to heal the mental scars, too. He was trying to help the kid out by giving him a job. It's going to be difficult for him to come to terms with all of the damage that was done by someone in his own family."

  "Sophie will be there for Matt. She's already started making changes at Riverbend so she can spend more time with him, to help with his recovery." The smaller menu at the café was still in place. Sophie had also decided to cut out dinner service several evenings a week on days that had historically seen fewer customers anyway. "Before this happened, she was really afraid of the relationship getting too serious. Now she's totally committed to Matt. Kind of reminds me of another formerly commitment-phobic friend."

  Carla blinked her eyes rapidly as she shrugged. "I in no way resemble that remark. You can't get much more committed to a man beyond having his baby."

  "I said former." Amy laughed. The changes in Carla's life brought on by the relationship with Shepler were astounding, in a very good way. She had never believed that Carla was truly happy keeping her very infr
equent relationships carefree and casual. "At least you had an excellent reason for the quickie wedding, even if you didn't let me in on the secret."

  "If it makes you feel better, nobody knew except Bruce. I wanted to make it through the first trimester, just to make sure everything was going okay with the pregnancy. My plan was to tell you over a nice lunch this week, not in the middle of a hostage crisis."

  Amy gently patted Carla's stomach. "I'm just happy everything worked out the way it did. I hope you realize that since there wasn't time for me to give you a bridal shower, I'm already planning a fabulous baby shower."

  Canned Tuna Ceviche

  2-5 oz. cans of water packed tuna, drained

  1 tbsp. minced onion

  ¼ c. diced cucumber

  ¼ c. diced radishes

  ¼ c. diced bell pepper

  1 tbsp. chopped cilantro leaves

  2 tbsp. fresh lime juice (or more, to taste)

  Hot sauce, to taste

  Flake the tuna in a medium-sized bowl. Add all of the vegetables and cilantro. Pour lime juice over top and add hot sauce to make as mild or hot as you would like. Stir, cover, and refrigerate for at least half an hour. Serve with tortilla chips, crackers, or as a topping for tostadas or tacos.

  Mexican Orzo Salad

  Salad:

  1 c. orzo, cooked according to directions & cooled

  1 c. frozen corn kernels, thawed

  4 green onions, green parts only, thinly sliced

  ½ c. diced tomato

  ½ c. diced red or orange bell pepper

  ½ c. diced cucumber

  ¼ c. roughly chopped cilantro leaves

  1 Tbsp. finely chopped pickled jalapenos

  4 oz. queso fresco cheese, crumbled