by Jessica Beck
The First Time Ever Published!
The 16th Donut Mystery
From New York Times Bestselling Author
Jessica Beck
BAD BITES
Other Books by Jessica Beck
The Donut Shop Mysteries
Glazed Murder
Fatally Frosted
Sinister Sprinkles
Evil Éclairs
Tragic Toppings
Killer Crullers
Drop Dead Chocolate
Powdered Peril
Illegally Iced
Deadly Donuts
Assault and Batter
Sweet Suspects
Cinnamon Sins
Deep Fried Homicide
Custard Crime
Lemon Larceny
Bad Bites
The Classic Diner Mysteries
A Chili Death
A Deadly Beef
A Killer Cake
A Baked Ham
A Bad Egg
A Real Pickle
A Burned Out Baker
The Ghost Cat Cozy Mysteries
Ghost Cat: Midnight Paws
Ghost Cat 2: Bid for Midnight
Jessica Beck is the New York Times Bestselling Author of the Donut Shop Mysteries, the Classic Diner Mysteries, and the Ghost Cat Cozy Mysteries.
To P and E,
For always and forever!
BAD BITES by Jessica Beck; Copyright © 2014
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without permission. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author’s rights. This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
Recipes included in this book are to be recreated at the reader’s own risk. The author is not responsible for any damage, medical or otherwise, created as a result of reproducing these recipes. It is the responsibility of the reader to ensure that none of the ingredients are detrimental to their health, and the author will not be held liable in any way for any problems that might arise from following the included recipes.
Chapter 1
While there is rarely any true dignity to be found in murder, this homicide offered less than most.
In many ways, it was unfortunate that the victim had been slain dressed from head to toe in a clown outfit, from his floppy shoes to his bright-orange fright wig; the scene was surreal enough without the oversized kitchen knife protruding from his chest. At first glance, it almost appeared to be just another costume prop, but the blood surrounding the wound was brown and uneven, dampening some of the vividly bright colors of the costume, and certainly not the fake bright-red stuff normally expected from a staged scene.
This was where the reality of it all became apparent.
Clearly, this clown had breathed his last, and little did I know at the time how much one death would change my life in so many ways, good and bad, forever.
“Come on, Jake. We need to go right now, or we’re going to be late for the party,” I told my state policeman/boyfriend as he finished tying his shoes.
It still felt silly to me thinking of this grown man before me as my boyfriend. Somehow that term felt better suited to teenagers, and while neither Jake nor I were exactly old, it had been a few decades since either one of us had attended a high-school dance. Did they even hold them anymore these days?
“Hang on a second. I’m coming,” Jake said as he stood up and straightened his tie. “Suzanne, I still can’t believe that I’m wasting my one free weekend a month going to a party instead of taking you someplace nice for dinner.”
“The library basement is nice enough,” I said, “and don’t forget, they’ve got a buffet, too.”
Jake looked at me skeptically. “Maybe so, but I’m willing to bet that it isn’t as nice as Napoli’s, no matter how much money they’ve shelled out for this party.”
We both loved the Italian food the DeAngelis clan served at Napoli’s Italian Restaurant, and it was our custom to go there every chance we got, but these were unusual circumstances. “Jake, you know that the police chief’s brother is retiring after thirty years spent working at the library. We really have to go.” Ever since Momma had married the April Springs chief of police, his life had become intertwined with ours, and my mother and I had always believed that in the end, family was the most important thing of all.
“Fine, but you still owe me a dinner at Napoli’s, and I mean sooner rather than later,” Jake cautioned.
“I promise,” I said as I finally herded him out the front door. Jake had put up a smidgeon of resistance when I’d insisted that he stay with me at the cottage on his first visit back to April Springs after he’d spent so much time recovering there, but I’d quickly nixed the idea of him staying anywhere else. After all, we were two consenting adults, and quite frankly, it was nobody’s business where he stayed when he visited me. What we did or didn’t do while he was there was equally off the table, and I pitied anybody who ever found the nerve to ask me directly about our arrangements when my boyfriend was in town.
“It’s a nice evening. Should we walk?” Jake asked me as we stood on the porch.
“You’re not fooling me, mister. It’s clear that you’re just stalling.”
“Are you saying that you don’t think it’s nice out?” he asked me with a ready smile.
I took a deep breath, grinned back at him, and then I said, “On any other evening, I’d love nothing better than take a stroll with you through the park to the library, but we’re going to be late as it is. We’d better take my Jeep.”
Jake grumbled a little, but he got in the passenger side, and I drove us the short distance from the cottage to the library.
“What’s this man’s name again?” he asked me. When he was on a case, he could remember the slightest bit of minutiae, but outside of that, his capacity for recalling names wasn’t everything that it should be.
“It’s Chester Martin,” I said. “I’ve known him for years, and all in all, he’s a pretty good guy. I should warn you about something, though.”
“What’s that? Does he have a lazy eye, maybe a slight lisp, or is there something else that I need to be aware of?”
“It’s nothing quite as subtle as any of that,” I said. “Chester loves kids, mostly because he’s always been one at heart. I suppose there’s a possibility that he might be wearing a suit tonight, but chances are, he’ll be dressed as a cowboy or an astronaut instead.”
“You’re kidding me, right?” Jake asked me as I pulled into the crowded library parking lot.
“Unfortunately, no. Let’s just say that Chester’s a little eccentric and leave it at that.”
“Okay, let’s just say that,” Jake replied in that calm, measured tone he used when he was processing new information. I’d had the privilege to see him at work a few times in the past, and they had really been eye-opening experiences for me. Jake was awfully good at what he did, though I had a feeling that lately he’d been growing tired of the high pressure of his job as a state police inspector. It was totally understandable, as far as I was concerned. The cases he got were the tough ones that no one else could crack, and it definitely wore on him at times.
“I suppose we should go wish Chester well,” Jake said as he got out of the Jeep and waited for me before we both walked toward the basement door.
“It will be fun. You’ll see.” I was
afraid that we were going to be late, but that turned out not to be an issue after all.
Once we were inside, it appeared that the guest of honor was even later than we were.
“What’s going on?” I asked Momma as I spotted her standing near her new husband just inside the library basement door. It was still hard for me to believe that she was married again, but since the wedding, she hadn’t seemed so happy in years, so I decided to do my best to embrace the chief as enthusiastically as I could.
“Chester is late, as usual,” Momma said with a smile after she kissed my cheek and smiled brightly at Jake.
“No worries. I’m going to go get him in a second,” the chief said as he glanced at his watch. “Hey, Jake. Glad to see you. It’s really good of you to come,” he said as the two men shook hands formally.
“Are you kidding? I wouldn’t have missed this for the world,” Jake said, and to my surprise, he actually sounded sincere. “Would you like some company rounding him up?” Jake asked the chief.
“Tell you what. Why don’t Momma and I go check on him, and you two can catch up,” I offered. “He’s probably just off in some corner canoodling with Shelly Graham. If he is, then we’ll find them both.” The chief had been wanting to talk to Jake about something for quite some time, and when he found out that my boyfriend would be visiting again soon, he’d made me promise to make it happen.
The things we do for family, right?
Anyway, this was an easy request to comply with, though the flickering moment of the hurt feelings in Jake’s eyes when I’d suggested it told me that I’d have a few fences to mend once this was over. That was okay. I never minded making up with Jake. As a matter of fact, quite often it was half the fun of arguing.
“Who’s this ‘Shelly’?” Jake asked Chief Martin before Momma and I could get away.
“She’s been Chester’s girlfriend for quite a while now. She owns a lodge in the mountains, but she’s here a lot, especially since she started seeing my brother,” the chief explained. “Frankly, I don’t see the appeal of it for either one of them, but who knows? Anyway, Shelly’s not here yet, either. She called me ten minutes ago and told me to tell Chester that she was running late. Evidently she’s having a problem with one of her guests at the lodge.”
“Why didn’t she call Chester and tell him herself?” Momma asked.
Chief Martin just shrugged. “She claims that she did, but that he’s not answering his phone. I can attest to that much myself. I called him two minutes ago, but he wouldn’t pick up for me, either.”
“Don’t worry. We’ll track him down. Come on, Momma,” I said as I tugged on my mother’s arm. I was a good fifty pounds heavier and at least seven inches taller than my mother was, but moving her was going to require some cooperation on her part. What the woman lacked in stature she more than made up for with a solid presence that could stop a bull in mid-charge, not that any sane bull would ever be foolish enough to challenge her.
“We’ll be right back,” my mother said to her husband, and then she turned to me. “Suzanne, we don’t have far to go. Chester must be upstairs in the main part of the library. At least that’s where he’s supposed to be.”
Momma and I walked up the steps together and entered the main floor of the building. I’d expected it to be well lit, but only the emergency lights were on upstairs.
“Chester, it’s Dot and Suzanne,” my mother called out. “Are you decent?”
There was no response.
“Chester!” Momma repeated, quite a bit louder this time.
“Maybe he’s not here,” I told her.
“Perhaps,” Momma answered, but instead of going back to rejoin the others in the basement, she headed up the narrow staircase to the second-floor offices that overlooked the rest of the library.
“I’ve never been up here before,” I told Momma as we climbed the steps.
“We have our board meetings in the conference room here every month,” Momma said. I’d forgotten that she served on the library board, since she participated in so many civic activities around town.
“How do you find the time to do so many different things in April Springs?” I asked her as we approached a closed door at the landing on the top floor. “I run the donut shop seven days a week, and I barely have time for a life outside of that at all.”
“The secret is that I never promise too much to any one group,” Momma said with a smile, and then she turned and rapped loudly on the door. “Chester! You’re missing your own party!”
It would have awakened anyone but the deepest sleeper, but there was still no response.
“I’m telling you, I don’t think he’s here,” I said as I tried the door handle and found that it was locked.
“Nonsense. Where else would he be tonight of all nights?”
Momma reached into her purse and pulled out a key.
“They actually gave you a key to the place?” I asked her as she started to unlock the door.
“Why else do you think I’d ever agree to serve on their board?” she asked with the hint of a smile. “What if I want something to read and it’s late at night when the library is closed?”
“You could always just download a book on your e-reader, like most normal folks do,” I said.
“I could, but think of what fun I’d miss out on here if I did that. Suzanne, you haven’t lived until you’ve browsed through these stacks alone long after everyone else has gone home.”
It sounded like fun at that. “The next time you do it, call me so I can come, too,” I said.
“It would be my pleasure,” Momma said, and then she turned the key and opened the door.
The room was quite dark, but that ended the moment I reached out and flicked on the light switch.
There is still a part of me that wished I’d left that switch turned off.
Looking down at the floor, we saw Chester Martin, the never-to-fully-retire librarian, replete in his clown outfit, a knife sticking straight up from his chest, and without a doubt, most sincerely and positively dead.
Chapter 2
“Go get Jake and Phillip,” Momma said as she knelt down and felt for a pulse despite the obvious state of the murder victim.
“Shouldn’t I stay with you?” I asked, unable to tear my gaze away from the brightly clad body and the knife plunged into it.
“Go, Suzanne! We might not be too late!”
I realized beyond all shadow of doubt that we were, but Momma didn’t have to tell me again. I rushed down both sets of stairs in record time, though I tried to look calm when I reached the milling guests waiting in vain for the guest of honor to appear. There must have been something in my expression, though, because Jake and the chief both hurried toward me the second they saw me.
“Momma needs you upstairs,” I said firmly.
“I’m on my way,” Chief Martin said.
“She wants both of you,” I explained.
Jake raised an eyebrow, but he didn’t say a word, and in less than a second, the two men complied by hurrying up the stairs.
I was about to join them when Gabby Williams cornered me before I could get away, too.
“What’s going on, Suzanne? Where on earth is Chester? Is he upstairs waiting to make some kind of grand entrance? What’s the fool dressed up as this time, a snake charmer?”
“Hi, Gabby,” I said, ignoring every question she’d just pummeled me with. “How’s your evening going?”
Gabby snorted. “I doubt you care to hear my honest answer, and we both know it, so let’s dispense with the formalities, shall we? Why am I not surprised that you’re defending this kind of behavior?”
“What do you mean by that?”
She snorted a little. “It’s clear, isn’t it? You two are family now. If there’s one thing I know about the Harts, it’s their blind loyalty to each other, even when it flies in the face of all reason.”
I smiled at her, an act that clearly puzzled her. “Why, Gabby, that’s the sweetest t
hing you’ve ever said to me.”
“Suzanne, it wasn’t meant to be a compliment,” she snapped.
“And yet that’s exactly how I’m going to choose to take it,” I said as I finally managed to free myself from her and head up the stairs.
“Hold on a second,” someone else commanded before I could escape, but this was a person I would be more than happy to speak with in normal circumstances.
“Hi, Mr. Mayor. I’d love to stay and chat, but something’s going on upstairs,” I said in a low voice.
“You don’t have to tell me that; I knew it the second I saw your face. Don’t forget, I was a police officer a lot longer than I’ve been mayor. Now, what exactly is going on?”
I knew that I might be okay avoiding Gabby’s questions, but I couldn’t just duck George’s. “It’s Chester,” I said softly.
“What happened to him?” George asked, his voice kept low in return.
“I’m afraid that he’s been murdered,” I said quietly.
“What?” George asked, loud enough for several people to stop talking and turn to stare at the two of us.
“Easy, there, Mr. Mayor,” I said calmly as I tried to smile to reassure everyone that nothing was wrong.
“Sorry,” George said, much more softly this time. “What happened to him?”
“All I know for sure is that he was stabbed in the chest with a mighty big knife,” I said. “Jake and the police chief are up there right now, along with my mother.”
“Then the situation is in capable hands,” he said. “I should probably say something to everyone gathered here to honor him,” George added as he glanced around the room. “Chester’s absence is already starting to raise some questions.”
“I know. Gabby just about tackled me to keep me from going back upstairs.”
