Death on Tap

by Ellie Alexander

  I didn’t say anything to Garrett, but one solution would have been to offer a guest tap. I knew that Der Keller and Bruin’s Brewing had ample reserves. It wasn’t ideal, but in a pinch, we could purchase some of their beer to keep our doors open—at least temporarily.

  As I handed a beer across the bar, I noticed Bruin attempting to climb on top of one of the bar tables. Between his weight and impaired coordination, he slipped. A loud crash thundered through the room. Everyone stopped and turned to see what had caused it.

  Bruin brushed himself off and stood. He reminded me of a matryoshka nesting doll as he rocked from side to side. “I want a minute of your attention. We’re here tonight to celebrate the memory of one damn fine brewer—Eddie.” He sloshed a pint glass that someone handed him. “Raise your glasses to Eddie.”

  “To Eddie.” Everyone toasted. Then silence spread through the bar; it felt heavy and necessary. I watched a woman dab her eyes with a cocktail napkin and one of Bruin’s staff members place his arm around the burly owner. The silence lasted for a few moments and was finally broken when Bruin cleared his throat. “Enough. Eddie wouldn’t want us to be sad. You know what he would want? He would want us to drink up! So go get yourself another pint and get drinking!”

  He was the last person who needed encouragement to drink more, but everyone clapped and cheered in Eddie’s honor once more before returning to their normal conversations. Unfortunately I knew I was going to have to cut him off soon, and I had a feeling that might not go over well given Bruin’s grieving state.

  Garrett returned from the back. “We’ve gone through four kegs. Can you believe that?”

  “You can thank Bruin.” I told him what he’d missed, and explained that I would tell Bruin that he had hit his limit.

  “I anticipated that we’d maybe go through two kegs, but double? Wow.”

  “People like your beer.”

  “Sloan, you know as well as I do that everyone is here tonight for the wake. Not my beer.”

  “True, but if your beer were bad, they wouldn’t be drinking this much of it.”

  Garrett didn’t look convinced. I was about to suggest ordering kegs from Der Keller when I looked up to see Otto and Ursula walking in the front door. Their hands were clasped together as if in a show of solidarity. They were both wearing black and matching somber expressions.

  “Hey, do you have this covered for a second?” I asked. The line had thinned at the bar. There was only one customer studying the menu. “I want to talk to the Krauses for a minute.”

  “Yeah, go ahead.”

  I weaved through the crowd and greeted Ursula and Otto, who returned my welcome with warm hugs and kisses on both my cheeks.

  “Sloan, you have heard about Mac, ja?” The lines in Ursula’s forehead appeared more pronounced as she frowned. She had a scalloped triangle shawl around her shoulders that I was sure she had crocheted herself.

  “Yes. It’s crazy.” I pointed to the table where Alex was studying. “Come with me.”

  They followed me to the table. Alex moved his books and gave his seat to Ursula. “Hi, Oma, hi, Opa,” he said, giving them long hugs. Watching Alex’s relationship with the Krauses always filled me with a deep sense of pride and relief. I’d been able to give him a solid family foundation, something I had longed for my entire life. Alex would never have to know the feeling of being unwanted—thank goodness.

  “Do you want something to drink or a bite to eat?” I asked as the Krauses took a seat.

  “No, no, Sloan. Do not go to any trouble.” Otto smiled, but his expression was strained. His aging eyes had lost their usual merriment.

  “It’s no trouble. How about a pint of Garrett’s IPA?”

  “Ja, Sloan, that would be nice,” Ursula said, wrapping her shawl tighter.

  I left to get them pints. When I returned to the table, Alex was loading an app onto Ursula’s smartphone. “See, Oma, you just click here, and the word pops up in English.”

  Ursula took the pint that I offered her and met my eyes from under her reading glasses. “He is so smart, like his mother.”

  “What are you doing?” I asked, as I scooted an empty chair up to the table.

  “It’s an app that translates German to English.”

  “But your English is flawless,” I said to Ursula.

  “You are too nice.” She smiled. “But I do need help to remember words in English sometimes.”

  I was surprised to hear that. Ursula and Otto had been in Leavenworth for nearly four decades. I’d never noticed her having any difficulty mastering English.

  “Have you talked to Mac?” I asked, changing the subject.

  Otto nodded. “Ja, he is out on bail.”

  “He is? That’s great news.” I looked at Alex and squeezed his hand.

  “But he is not free. He is to stay in town, and the police will have many more questions for him.” Otto’s voice sounded shaky.

  “Has Chief Meyers officially charged him with Eddie’s murder?” I bit my fingernail.

  Ursula cradled her beer in her aging hands. “I think it sounds that way, but I do not exactly know.”

  “So now what?”

  “He is meeting with ze lawyer now,” Otto replied. He ran a wrinkled finger around the rim of his pint glass.

  “That’s good, right?”

  “Ja, but the police they said he cannot go anywhere and must stay in touch for now.” Ursula sighed. “I cannot believe they think that Mac could do anything so terrible.”

  “He didn’t.” I placed my hand over hers. “We all know that, and I think I know a way that he can prove it.”

  “How?” Otto’s eyes widened.

  I didn’t want to say anything about the beer wench in front of Alex. It was important to make sure that he maintained a healthy relationship with his father even if things were quickly going downhill between us. “I think there’s a witness who will come forward.”

  “Zis is wonderful news, Sloan.” Ursula clapped her hand over her heart. “Wonderful.”

  “Yeah, as soon as we close tonight, I’ll go see Mac.”

  “Thank you.” Otto’s eyes revealed his understanding. “Zis must be difficult for you.”

  “I’m fine.” I gave him a nod and stood. “On that note, I should get back to work.”

  “Ze beer is good, Sloan. Please tell Garrett how much we enjoy it,” Ursula said.

  “He’ll be thrilled to hear that.” I thought for a second and then forged ahead with my question. “Hey, have either of you met Van, the new hop farmer in town?”

  “Hop farmer?” Otto narrowed his eyes. “What is zis hop farmer? I do not know zis name.”

  “He’s new. He said something about working with Mac.”

  Otto thought for a moment. “No, I am sure I do not know of a new hop farmer.”

  I shrugged. “Well, Garrett’s talking about signing a five-year contract with him and has a few questions. Would you be willing to talk to him about your suppliers? Maybe even take a quick look at the contract?” I knew that Garrett had said he had brewer friends in Seattle, but the Krauses were the best in the business. Hopefully, he hadn’t already signed the contract. I never saw Van come back by, but then again I’d been in the kitchen most of the afternoon.

  “Ja, of course, Sloan,” Ursula replied. “We would love to help.”

  “Thanks.” I stood and kissed her and Otto on the cheek. Then I turned to Alex. “Are you going to hang out longer?”

  “We will take him home. Do not worry about it,” Otto said, resting his hand on Alex’s shoulder.

  “Are you sure?”

  “Sloan, we will do zis for our girl.” Otto winked.

  I swallowed back my emotion as I thanked them and walked away. Otto had called me his girl ever since I married Mac.

  Mac hadn’t only ruined our marriage by cheating on me, but he was taking away the only family I’d ever known. I didn’t know what I would do without Otto and Ursula in my life. The thought of losing th
em made me even angrier at Mac.

  CHAPTER

  TWENTY-ONE

  BY THE TIME WE CLOSED two hours later, we’d gone through every pint glass in the pub. I took a crate of glasses to the kitchen and started the industrial dishwasher. Garrett wiped down the tables and bar. The town had polished off every last crumb of cracker and slice of cheese. Good thing I had gone overboard on the appetizers.

  “Well, that was rough, but I think it was exactly what we all needed,” I said to Garrett as he brought in the last of the pint glasses.

  “Agreed, but do you think I should hire more help?”

  “Can you afford more help?”

  “Not really, but I don’t know about you—I’m beat.”

  I rubbed the base of my neck. The last two days had taken a toll on my muscles and my mental health. “It’s been busy, that’s for sure, but I don’t think you need to rush out and hire extra help. This is an anomaly. Two back-to-back big nights like this don’t happen in Leavenworth. I expected opening to be busy, and of course everyone came out for Eddie tonight, but I’m sure it’s going to slow down.”

  “You think?”

  “Trust me, Leavenworth isn’t that big. When the crowds begin to come in for Oktoberfest, we’ll definitely have to have a plan and more help, but I think things are going to settle down.”

  “You haven’t steered me wrong yet.” He wiped his hands on a dish towel. “In that case, I’m going to start brewing.”

  “Now?” I glanced at the kitchen cuckoo clock. It was after ten o’clock.

  “Yeah. When I was working in the corporate world, me and a few of my buddies would have midnight brewing clubs.”

  “I’m familiar with midnight brewing.” Like Garrett, Mac was more inclined to sleep until lunchtime and brew into the wee hours of the night.

  “I’m not a morning person. I tend to hit my stride after the sun goes down. Brewing at night is the best.” He ran his hands through his hair and arched his back. I couldn’t help but notice how muscular his chest was.

  “Cool,” I said, turning away. What was I doing staring at his chest? “Speaking of your friends. Did you have a chance to talk to them about Van’s contract?”

  Garrett tossed the towel in the sink. “No, not yet, and luckily Van never came back by. Thanks for reminding me. I’ll call them now. They’re probably brewing as we speak—you want to stick around and help?”

  I considered it, as like Garrett, I was antsy to get back to brewing, but I had to go confront Mac. “Thanks, but I’ll take a rain check.”

  “See you tomorrow, then.”

  “What time do you want me here?”

  He shrugged. “Whenever. I probably won’t be up and moving until after ten or eleven, but you can let yourself in.”

  “Sounds good.” I gathered my coat and bag, and headed for the front door. The air was crisp and smelled like fall outside. I took a second to inhale and shake off the craziness of the evening. I had learned from Alex that Mac was staying at The Rheinlander, a hotel across the street from the village square. Mac had complained to Hans about being cooped up in a hotel room. Hans, like me, had no sympathy for him and told him to suck it up.

  The Rheinlander was a stunning display of German architecture and looked like it belonged tucked in the Alps, with its wrought-iron balconies and striking white plaster walls with contrasting dark wood trim.

  I cut through the square, meandering past the gazebo, and climbed a set of steps. The hotel was lit up with softly glowing antique lights and strands of twinkle lights wrapped around a row of potted plants that lined the entrance. I didn’t bother to check in at the reception desk, but rather walked straight to the elevator and punched the button for the fifth floor. When I’d kicked him out of the farmhouse, Mac had rented a suite on the hotel’s top floor.

  You can do this, Sloan. I gave myself a pep talk as the elevator dinged and stopped on Mac’s floor. Think about Alex.

  The thought of my son’s father going to jail was enough to spur me to move forward and knock on his door.

  My hands felt tingly as I waited for him to answer. Why did it have to be me? He had gotten himself into this predicament, and I was the person who had to bail him out. It wasn’t fair. I was about to turn around when the door opened a crack and the beer wench, wearing nothing but a plush bathrobe, gasped at the sight of me.

  Classic. Keep it in control, Sloan. I dug my fingernails into my thigh and forced myself to speak. “Where’s Mac?”

  Her face turned as white as her robe. “Uh, um…” She stuffed her hands into the front pockets of the robe and called behind her. “Mac, uh…”

  Obviously, she’s extremely bright and articulate, I thought as I watched her squirm. I didn’t typically think of myself as catty, but she brought out the worst and most insecure parts of me.

  “Who’s that?” Mac called. “Room service? Send them on in.”

  Hayley looked like she might be sick. “Uh, Mac, come out here.”

  I hated how much I was enjoying watching her look so miserable, and I was also surprised by her shift in attitude. When I had run into her at the grocery store, she had seemed so smug, and now she was acting like she was terrified of me.

  “Uh, um, uh, do you want to come in?” she mumbled, and opened the door wider.

  “Just put it on my tab,” Mac called.

  Irritation flashed on her tanned face. “Mac, come out here!”

  I almost felt sorry for her, but as I got a closer look at her youthful skin, I realized she was closer to Alex’s age than mine. God, he was such an idiot.

  Mac huffed as he entered the living room area of the large suite. “What is it?” Then he froze in midstride when he met my eyes. “Sloan, what are you doing here?” He strolled over and tried to kiss my cheek. I moved my head to the side just in time. I also caught sight of Hayley’s envious gaze.

  For a minute, Mac didn’t know what to do. He looked at the beer wench and then me. “Hey, give us a minute,” he said to Hayley, and nodded to the bedroom.

  She slunk away and shut the bedroom door with gusto. Apparently, Mac was going to have some making up to do after I left.

  “Baby, this isn’t what you think,” Mac said, sitting on the leather couch and patting the spot next to him.

  “It never is, is it?” I sat in the chair farthest away from him with a glass coffee table blocking the space between us.

  “No, really. She came over because she’s upset. That’s all. I swear.”

  “I don’t care.” I folded my arms across my chest.

  “Baby, Sloan, you have to believe me. It’s over. She’s upset about Eddie, and I was consoling her—that’s all.”

  “Consoling her by taking off her clothes?”

  “What? No! No, it’s not like that. She’s upset, like I said, about Eddie. She wouldn’t stop crying, and I didn’t know what to do, so I told her to take a bath. You always liked baths when you were upset. I thought maybe it would calm her down. Baby, I swear I didn’t touch her.”

  “Don’t talk to me about what I like and don’t like, and stop calling me baby! I never liked it when we were together, and I certainly don’t like it now.”

  “Sorry. Sloan, you have to believe me.”

  “I know this is going to be a shocker, but I don’t believe much of what comes out of your mouth right now.”

  He hung his head. “I know. I’m sorry.”

  “Look, I didn’t come to fight. I came to talk to you about Eddie’s murder.”

  “What about it?”

  “You.” I sat up and squared my shoulders. “Mac, you’re in a lot of trouble, and I know that you’re lying to protect me.”

  He didn’t respond. He kept his eyes on his expensive argyle socks.

  “I know that you were with her when Eddie was killed. Garrett told me. I just don’t understand why you didn’t tell Chief Meyers the truth. Everyone is worried about you—your parents, Hans, Alex. You can’t lie about being with her. This is a murder inve
stigation, Mac.”

  His voice was almost inaudible as he whispered, “I know.”

  “Then tell the chief. If not for me, then for Alex. You could end up going to jail for something you didn’t do.”

  “I know.”

  Mac was never this subdued.

  “You know, in a strange way, I guess I appreciate that you’re trying to keep your affair secret from me, but you’ve gone too far this time. This is serious stuff.”

  “I know.”

  “Is that all you’re going to say?”

  He started to speak, but Hayley opened the bedroom door. She was fully clothed and looked like she was fuming. “I’m outta here,” she said, power walking to the door. I expected Mac to jump up and chase after her, but instead he sat unmoving and let her leave.

  After she had slammed the door, I studied his face. “Mac, what is going on? You’re not acting like yourself.”

  He cracked his knuckles. “I know. I messed up in this, and I don’t know what to do.”

  “What’s the question? You tell Chief Meyers that you were with your girlfriend last night. End of story.”

  “No, no, not the end of the story, and Hayley is not my girlfriend. I made a stupid mistake, once—one time, Sloan. I’m an idiot. I don’t know what I was thinking, and I know you don’t believe me, and I get it, but she’s nothing to me.”

  “You don’t have to lie to protect me, Mac.”

  He sighed. “That’s not the only reason.”

  “What?”

  “I was with Hayley last night. After the scene at Nitro, we left and I brought her to Der Keller. I thought we could have a beer and talk like rational adults.”

  “Ha! Adults?” I couldn’t contain my anger.

  “Right. That became apparent. She’s not exactly mature.”

  “Because she’s a child.”

  “She’s not a child, Sloan. She’s twenty-four.”

  “Oh, and that’s supposed to make me feel better? You could almost be her dad.”

  “I know.” He got up and started pacing. “I admit it. I’m an idiot. She seduced me, and I should have said no. I screwed up, and I’m going to do everything I can to prove that to you and win you back.”