Eggs in a Casket (A Cackleberry Club Mystery)

by Childs, Laura

  Suzanne made a small gesture at Mocha, who had wandered over and poked his nose halfway into the car where Sam was sitting. “My horse. He’s . . .”

  “Don’t worry about him, ma’am,” said Jake. “I’ll take care of him, too. There’s a barn over yonder that belongs to a farmer named Drucker. I’ve done odd jobs for him in the past and I’m sure he won’t mind sheltering your horse for a day or two.”

  “You’re sure?” said Suzanne.

  “You just take care of the doc,” said Jake, nodding his head. “He still looks a little unsteady, like he might need some medical attention.” He reached out and tugged gently at one of Mocha’s reins. “We’ll be okay, won’t we, boy? We’ll wait here for Deputy Driscoll, then get you settled in a nice, dry stall.”

  As if in response, Mocha let loose a loud snort.

  “I can’t thank you enough,” Suzanne told Jake, as she climbed into the driver’s seat of Sam’s car. She was trying to remain brave but felt emotionally wrought, nearly on the verge of collapse.

  “That’s okay,” said Jake. “Just trying to be helpful.”

  Sam shifted around in his seat until he was practically facing Suzanne. Then he reached out and clasped her hand. “Are you okay?”

  Suzanne blew out a breath and nodded. “I think so. As long as you’re back with us.”

  “I’m good,” said Sam. “I am now, anyway.”

  “That Jake,” continued Suzanne. She watched as he jiggled Mocha’s reins and gave him a pat. “What a lifesaver he turned out to be.”

  Sam gripped her hand tighter. “I think you have that mixed up, my dear. It seems to me you’re the one who did the lifesaving.”

  CHAPTER 27

  IF everyone hadn’t been so dinged up, it could have been old home week back at the hospital. As it was, Sam was checked out in the ER, given a quick EKG and a few toots of oxygen, and pronounced good as new by a third-year resident.

  Then Sheriff Doogie, who’d heard about Suzanne’s daring rescue via the hospital grapevine, was wheeled down to join them. He’d made excellent strides in the last twelve hours, regaining his color as well as his feistiness.

  “Reiker was the one who waylaid me!” proclaimed Doogie. “Here I thought she had car trouble—and it turned out she wanted to clobber me with a tire iron! Tried to run me over, too, I guess.”

  Suzanne gazed at Doogie. “So you knew it was Reiker who assaulted you?”

  “Oh yeah,” said Doogie nodding. “I knew it. Trouble was, my poor muddled brain couldn’t get the words out to tell anyone. I tried to tell Driscoll . . . and then when you came to see me yesterday morning, I tried to tell you . . .”

  “You did try!” exclaimed Suzanne. “You mumbled something about drugs. Only I thought you were referring to the drugs the doctors had given you.”

  “Naw,” said Doogie. “Once Reiker attacked me I had this weird . . . whadyacallit? . . . flash of insight that she might have been involved with Drummond that way. Just because he’d gotten so big and burly lately. Trouble was, I couldn’t spit out any words.”

  “The whole thing’s just crazy,” said Suzanne, shaking her head. “And I can’t wait to call Missy and tell her she’s off the hook!”

  “Yes, she is,” agreed Doogie.

  Suzanne was ready to go home, but Sam was busy recounting his rescue to a few more members of the ER staff, embroidering his tale here and there, tossing in a few extra smatters of excitement. Suzanne wasn’t sure whether to bask in his praise or be profoundly embarrassed.

  Fortunately, Doogie interrupted.

  “Excuse me,” he said, puffing out his chest and addressing Suzanne directly. “But weren’t you warned to stay clear of this matter? To not step on law enforcement’s toes?” His words sounded harsh but his delivery was rendered with a merry twinkle in his eye.

  “I don’t remember anything about toes,” said Suzanne, trying to keep a straight face. “My recollection was you asked me to step in and handle things.”

  Doogie shook his head and let out a relieved wheeze. “Carla Reiker dealing drugs. Holy baloney. Who would have pegged her for a drug dealer? Or a killer?”

  “None of us did,” said Suzanne. “Until I went looking for Sam, that is, and found her trying to kill him, too!”

  “She came charging in on a white horse,” whooped Sam. “You should have seen her! Like something out of Indiana Jones!”

  “Really,” said Suzanne. “Mocha is a distinct chestnut color.”

  * * *

  BUT the surprises didn’t end there. Because ten minutes later—after Doogie threatened to do a wheelie in his wheelchair and was finally taken back upstairs by one of the nurses—the rest of the gang showed up!

  “Oh my gosh!” Suzanne exclaimed as Toni and Petra piled into the exam room to embrace her and cluck over Sam. “How on earth did you . . . ?”

  “Jake brought us,” said Petra.

  “That’s right,” Toni piped up. “Jake stopped by the Cackleberry Club and filled us in but good.” She shook an index finger at Suzanne. “It seems you’ve been a busy girl!” Then she turned toward Sam. “And you, you’ve got to be a lot more careful when you make house calls!”

  Sam grinned. “If you say so.”

  “But what did you do about all the injured people at the Cackleberry Club?” asked Suzanne. “Dan and Sonja and whoever else?”

  “Oh, we brought them with us,” said Petra. “They’re down the hall in the ER right now. Getting patched up.”

  “What about all the trees that were blocking the driveway?” said Suzanne.

  “Junior came through with his chainsaw gang,” said Toni proudly. “His guys are over there right now, working on the downed trees. But first he cleared a kind of pathway, so the customers could get out.”

  Suzanne was stunned. “So they’re all . . .”

  “Gone home,” said Petra. “They just sort of carpooled their way home.”

  “So,” said Toni, shuffling closer to Suzanne and Sam, “Carla Reiker was seriously dealing drugs, huh?”

  “Not recreational drugs,” said Sam. “Performance-enhancing drugs. Sad to say, there’s a big market for that kind of thing.”

  “You mean like steroids?” said Toni.

  “Afraid so,” said Sam. “They’re wildly popular.”

  “Wow,” said Petra. “Who would have thought?”

  But Toni didn’t want to let it go. “So you guys think Reiker was dealing drugs to Drummond and that things went bad between them?”

  “It certainly looks that way,” said Suzanne.

  “It was that way,” said a voice suddenly from the doorway.

  They all turned to see Jake Gantz standing there.

  “Jake!” said Suzanne.

  “When Deputy Driscoll showed up to haul that lady away,” said Gantz, “he popped the lid on her trunk and discovered all kinds of vials in there. Some of it was like that stuff you found in her pocket, but there were other things, too. Maybe . . . Oxantho-something?”

  “Oxandrolone?” said Sam.

  “Yeah,” said Jake.

  Sam let loose a low whistle. “There you go.”

  “What I still don’t get,” said Toni, “is why Reiker went after Sam?”

  “Because Reiker thought Sam was in charge of Drummond’s autopsy,” Suzanne explained. “I suppose she just got nervous. She figured Sam was eventually going to find drugs on board. Drugs that were used to increase muscle mass and performance. And that it would all lead back to her.”

  “Jeez, Suzanne,” said Toni. “If you’d have kept on investigating, you might have been next on her hit list!”

  “There’s a happy thought,” said Petra.

  “Toni always looks for the silver lining,” joked Sam.

  “I’m just glad it all ended well,” said Petra. She turned and beamed happil
y at Jake. “And you! From now on you’re cordially invited to dine at the Cackleberry Club for free. And to order whatever your little heart desires!”

  Jake looked stunned. “Me? What’d I do?”

  Suzanne reached out and grabbed his hand. “You turned out to be a true friend.”

  “That’s for sure,” declared Petra. “And in the recipe of life, friends are the most important ingredient!”

  But Jake just ducked his head. “Looked to me like that horse of yours was the real saving grace.”

  “Mocha was absolutely . . . terrific,” said Suzanne, fighting back tears.

  “I’m going to paint a fine portrait of him,” said Jake. “To enter in the Hearts and . . .”

  “Sold!” said Sam.

  He squeezed Suzanne’s hand. “And I’m giving it to you.”

  “Thank you,” said Suzanne, with love in her eyes. And then, whispering so no one else could hear her, said, “I love you, Sam.”

  “I love you, too,” he whispered back. “I love you, too.”

  Recipes from the Cackleberry Club

  White Bean Breakfast Hash

  4 slices bacon

  1/4 cup chopped onions

  1/2 red bell pepper, chopped

  1 tbsp. butter

  1 can cannellini beans (15 oz.), drained and rinsed

  2 eggs

  Salt and pepper to taste

  Cook bacon in frying pan until crisp, then remove. Add onion, red pepper, and butter to pan and sizzle for 5 minutes. Add beans to mixture and stir. Crumble bacon into bean mixture and stir. Push bean mixture to side of pan. Drop in eggs and fry. Scoop bean mixture onto 2 breakfast plates and top each with a fried egg. Makes 2 servings.

  Chocolate Chip Quinoa Breakfast Cookies

  4 large ripe bananas

  1 tsp. vanilla extract

  2 tbsp. almond butter

  1/2 cup coconut sugar

  1 cup cooked quinoa

  1 cup uncooked quinoa flakes (or oatmeal flakes)

  1 cup unsweetened, shredded coconut

  Pinch sea salt

  1/2 cup chocolate chips

  Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In a large mixing bowl, mash bananas with a fork and add vanilla, almond butter, and coconut sugar. Add quinoa, oatmeal, coconut, and pinch of salt. Mix until well combined. Stir in chocolate chips. Line baking sheet with parchment paper and drop batter onto baking sheet. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes.

  Stuffed Green Pepper Soup

  1 lb. ground beef

  1 envelope dry onion soup mix

  1 can diced tomatoes (14.5 oz.)

  1 can tomato sauce (15 oz.)

  2 large green peppers, chopped

  1 beef bouillon cube

  1⁄8 cup brown sugar, packed

  1 cup cooked white rice

  mozzarella cheese

  In a large pot, brown ground beef thoroughly. Stir in soup mix and heat. Add all remaining ingredients, except rice, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for about 35 minutes or until peppers are soft. Add rice and heat for another 5 minutes. Spoon into bowls and sprinkle with mozzarella cheese. Makes 4 servings.

  Chicken Meatloaf (Chicken Chickenloaf?)

  2 lb. ground chicken

  1 cup soft bread crumbs

  1/2 cup onion, finely chopped

  2 eggs

  1 cup tomato sauce

  Salt and pepper to taste

  1/4 cup melted butter for basting

  Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In large bowl, mix together chicken, bread crumbs, and onion. In small bowl, beat eggs. Add tomato sauce to eggs and mix. Pour egg mixture into ground chicken mixture, add salt and pepper, and mix well. Pat chicken mixture into 9" × 5" loaf pan and bake for approximately 1 hour, basting occasionally with melted butter. Remove loaf from oven and pour off liquid. Let loaf rest for a few minutes, then turn out onto a serving platter.

  Suzanne’s Breakfast BLT

  Toast a slice of French baguette. Stack with slice of bacon, lettuce, and tomato. Spread on a little bit of spicy mayo. Add a fried egg and serve open-faced!

  Bacon Cornbread

  1 cup flour, sifted

  1 cup cornmeal, yellow or white

  31/2 tsp. baking powder

  1 tsp. salt

  3 tbsp. sugar

  1 egg

  1 cup milk

  1/4 cup butter

  1/2 cup crisp bacon, chopped

  Preheat oven to 425 degrees. In large bowl combine flour, cornmeal, baking powder, salt, and sugar. In separate bowl combine egg, milk, butter, and bacon. Pour egg/bacon mixture into flour mixture and mix just enough to moisten dry ingredients. Pour into greased 8" × 8" × 2" pan and bake for 35 to 40 minutes.

  Crazy Quilt Bread

  11/2 cups sugar

  1 egg

  11/4 cups milk

  3 cups packaged biscuit mix

  1/2 cup candied fruit (mixed)

  1 cup walnuts, chopped

  Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix sugar, egg, milk, and biscuit mix together by hand. Add in the candied fruit and chopped walnuts. Pour batter into a well-greased 9" × 5" loaf pan. Bake for 45 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool before slicing. Spread with regular butter or honey butter and enjoy.

  Petra’s Cranberry Muffins

  13/4 cups all-purpose flour

  1/3 cup sugar

  1/2 tsp. salt

  2 tsp. baking powder

  2 eggs

  3/4 cup milk

  1/4 cup melted butter

  1 cup dried cranberries, chopped

  1 tsp. grated orange rind

  Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Sift together flour, sugar, salt, and baking powder in large bowl. In a separate bowl, mix together eggs, milk, and melted butter. Make a center well in the dry ingredients and pour in the wet ingredients. Mix until moistened. Fold in cranberries and grated orange rind. Spoon batter into greased muffin tin and bake for 20 to 25 minutes.

  Petra’s Goat Cheese and Pimento Tea Sandwiches

  10 oz. goat cheese, softened

  1/4 cup heavy cream

  1/4 cup pimentos, drained and chopped

  1 tsp. Tabasco sauce

  Salt and pepper to taste

  8 slices of bread

  Using a spoon, mash goat cheese, then blend with cream, pimento, Tabasco sauce, and salt and pepper. Spread cheese mixture on your favorite white or wheat bread and cut into tea sandwiches. Makes 16 tea sandwiches. (Note: If you’re unsure about goat cheese, you can use cream cheese or any other soft white cheese.)

  Easy Cream Scones

  2 cups all-purpose flour

  1 tbsp. baking powder

  4 tbsp. sugar

  1/2 tsp. salt

  1/3 cup butter, chilled and chopped into bits

  1 cup heavy cream

  Heat oven to 425 degrees. In a large bowl, mix together flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt. Cut butter into mixture until mixture is coarse and crumbly. Stir in heavy cream until dough begins to form—this should take about 45 seconds. Place dough on floured work surface and knead for 10 seconds until it forms a ball. Flatten dough gently and cut into 8 wedges. Placed wedges on ungreased baking sheet and bake on center rack for 12 to 15 minutes. (Note: You could also add 1/2 cup of dried cranberries, 1/2 cup of raisins, or 1/2 cup of chopped currants if you like.)

  Petra’s No-Bake Peanut Butter Fudge

  2 cups sugar

  1/2 cup milk

  3/4 cup peanut butter

  1 tsp. vanilla

  1/2 cup chocolate chips

  Place sugar and milk in pan and bring to a boil. Boil for about 21/2 minutes. Remove from heat and add peanut butter, vanilla, and chocolate chips. Stir until well mixed. Pour into greased pan. Cool and eat!

  Toni’s Pineapple D
ump Cake

  1 box angel food cake mix (16 oz.)

  1 can pineapple chunks (20 oz.), not drained

  Whipped topping

  Heat oven to 350 degrees. Dump cake mix and pineapple chunks into an ungreased 9" × 12" baking pan. Stir together until well mixed. Bake for 25 minutes. Cool in pan. Scoop out and serve with a dollop of whipped topping. Easy!

  Beer-Battered Chicken

  13/4 cups all-purpose flour, sifted

  11/2 tsp. salt

  1/2 tsp. pepper

  12 oz. beer

  Vegetable oil

  1 chicken, cut in pieces

  Combine flour, salt, and pepper in bowl. Beat in beer using a wire whisk, then let stand for 30 minutes. Add about 1 inch of oil to frying pan and heat to 375 degrees (medium-high heat). Dip each piece of chicken in beer batter and place in hot oil. Fry chicken, turning only once, for about 30 minutes or until done. (Note: Chicken can also be fried for less time—10 minutes—to create a crust, then baked in oven at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.)

  Resources

  BOOKS AND MAGAZINES

  The Good Egg—Author Marie Simmons offers two hundred fresh approaches to preparing eggs—everything from breakfast to dessert.

  The Fresh Egg Cookbook—Jennifer Trainer Thompson explores recipes for using eggs sourced from farmers’ markets, local farms, and your own backyard.

  Home-Made Vintage—Christina Strutt provides a guide to giving your home a vintage air and a country cottage appeal.

  Modern Country—Nancy Ingram and Jenifer Jordan show how to add a clean, modernist edge to classic country decor.

  Country Living—Magazine devoted to home and decorating, food and entertaining, antiques and collectibles. (countryliving.com)

  Country Sampler—Magazine with country decorating and lifestyle articles. (countrysampler.com)

  Living the Country Life—Homes, gardening, and the country life. (livingthecountrylife.com)

  Mary Janes Farm—Charming magazine about crafts, decor, and organic living. (maryjanesfarm.org)

  WEBSITES AND INTERESTING BLOGS

  Cottagehomedecorating.com—How to turn secondhand and rescued furniture and objects into charming, comfortable cottage style.