A Thin Crust of Murder

by Patti Benning

  In Russell’s office, she handed him the coffee and then dove right into her conversation with Gina, wanting to tell him their theory while it was still fresh in her mind.

  “As far as motives go, I suppose it’s reasonable,” he said. “I’m still waiting on forensics to get back to me with the specifics of the killing blow. The angle that the man was struck at might be able to tell us the physical build of the killer.”

  “I hope you track down the killer quickly. Poor Joanna is a wreck, and she’s convinced that everyone in town thinks she’s guilty.”

  “When did you see her?”

  “She stopped in at the pizzeria yesterday. It can’t be easy being a new person here, especially with all this drama. She says that the man had worked for her husband for years. She seemed really upset about the thought of his wife and children being alone. I don’t know, Russell. I just can’t see her being the one to do it. She doesn’t seem like the sort of person that could stay cool and collected after killing someone, and when I stopped by to drop off the gift basket, she acted perfectly normal.”

  “People aren’t always what they seem, Ellie,” Russell said. “But I agree that Joanna doesn’t seem like the ideal suspect. Something about this doesn’t feel right. I’m sure I’ll get to the bottom of this case eventually, but right now it just feels like a waiting game. I need forensics to get back to me, and until they do, there isn’t much I can do unless someone comes forward and confesses.”

  “I’m sorry,” she said. “It must be frustrating.”

  “It is,” he admitted. “I’ve learned to live with it over the years, though. How are you doing?”

  “Fine,” she said. “Tired. There’s a lot to do. When I made plans to open the second pizzeria, I hadn’t realized just how involved I would have to be. I don’t regret it, though. There is something I wanted to talk to you about.”

  “I’ll help if I can, but I don’t know much about business,” he said.

  “It’s not about business, it’s about us,” she said. “Everyone keeps asking me where we’re going to live, if we’re going to buy a new house, all of that. The truth is, I don’t have a good answer for them. I need to talk to Nonna about it, but wanted to see what you think first.”

  “We’ve got a while to decide all of that, don’t we?” he asked.

  “That’s true, but if we’re going to buy a house, that’s something that we need to start thinking about now. Those sorts of things take time, don’t they?”

  She had never actually bought a house before. Back in Chicago, she had lived in a series of apartments, and now of course, she was living with her grandmother in the house her family had owned for decades.

  “Well, I was thinking maybe we could find a duplex of some sort,” he said. “Or something that has an apartment connected to it. That way your grandmother could live within shouting distance, but still have her own space. We would be close by if anything happened.”

  “I’m not sure she’s going to want to leave the house,” Ellie admitted. “She loves that place. My thought was I could maybe hire someone to be a live-in caretaker for her. I don’t know how much she would like that idea either, but it would probably be easier than trying to get her to move.”

  “The final decision should be up to you and her. I know how important family is, and I want you to do what is best for her,” he said.

  Ellie sighed. She had hoped that Russell would have more input. This affected him too, after all. It looked like it was time to bring some ideas up with her grandmother, and see if there could possibly be a solution that would work for all of them.

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  * * *

  Her conversation with Russell still in her mind, Ellie returned home, stopping on the way for a pizza. At home, she was greeted at the door by Bunny, who was beside herself with excitement. She wasn’t sure which thrilled the dog more: her presence or the fact that she was carrying a box of food.

  “Don’t dance around on that leg too much,” she warned. Bunny had been on crate rest for the first couple of weeks after her surgery, and now that she was able to move around the house more freely, it was impossible to keep her down. As far as the little dog was concerned, she was ready to resume her normal life, but the vet was insistent that she had a couple of more weeks of taking it easy in front of her. Ellie wished that she could explain to the little dog the reason for her activity restriction. Bunny just didn’t understand why they couldn’t do all the things that they normally did, and she felt terrible leaving the dog behind whenever she went out.

  “Is that you, dear?” her grandmother called out. A moment later, the elderly woman appeared in the doorway to the living room. “Bunny and I were just talking about you.”

  “Oh, really?” Ellie said, taking off her shoes as she balanced the pizza box in one hand. “Did she have anything interesting to say?”

  “No, but she’s a good listener. We both think you’re working too hard. Even when you’re home, you’re busy doing things for the pizzeria down in Florida. We both think that you deserve some time off. How about you see when that sheriff of yours is free and you let me take the two of you out to the White Pine Kitchen sometime? It will be my treat, as an engagement gift for the two of you.”

  “That sounds wonderful, Nonna,” Ellie said. “Thank you. I’ll have to see what Russell’s schedule is like.”

  With Bunny and her grandmother both trailing after her, Ellie walked through the house to the kitchen, where she set the pizza box down the counter and began to set the table. She wanted to eat quickly so that she would have time to make a few calls to finalize some things for the other pizzeria before she had to go in to work. Her grandmother was right, she had been unusually busy lately. Normally, when she left Papa Pacelli’s, that was it. It wasn’t the sort of job where she normally brought much work home with her. Now, however, she spent hours each day figuring things out for the second pizzeria. Sometimes she wondered what she had been thinking when she had agreed to open a restaurant 1,800 miles away.

  She had just sat down and opened her laptop when her cellphone rang. She didn’t recognize the number, but it was local, so she answered it.

  “Ellie?” someone asked. She thought she recognized the voice, but couldn’t place it.

  “This is she,” she said. “Who am I speaking to?”

  “This is Joanna Winfield,” she said. “You gave me your number the other day at the pizzeria.”

  “Of course. Is everything alright?”

  “Honestly, no. My only employee told me today that he’s quitting. I still want to try to open later this week, and I only have a couple of days left and I can’t do it on my own. I know it’s a lot to ask, but would you be able to come in and help me? I promise you’ll get free hotdogs for life.”

  Ellie hesitated. Normally she would have said yes right away, free hotdogs or not. She didn’t mind helping another fellow business owner out. However, this woman was the only person that was even remotely the suspect in a murder case. How could Ellie help someone who might be a killer?

  At the same time, what if the woman wasn’t the killer? If she was innocent, it would be cruel to refuse to help at a time like this. She sighed. Maybe there wasn’t one easy answer, and she would just have to do what felt right to her.

  “I can come by for a little bit,” she said. “It will have to be later this evening, after the pizzeria closes. What all do you need?”

  “Nothing too hard, but I got a delivery of some knick-knacks and decorations today, and I’d love another pair of eyes while I set everything up. And honestly, I just don’t want to be alone there. Not after what happened.”

  “Okay. I’ll be there soon after the pizzeria closes. We’ll get everything ready for the grand opening, don’t worry.”

  She hung up and rested her head against the cool wood of the desk. What had she gotten herself into? She knew that she had to tell Russell what she was doing. He would want to know if she was going to be spending time
with one of the suspects in his case. He wouldn’t be happy, but her gut told her that Joanna wasn’t a danger to her.

  The sheriff answered her call on the second ring. “Hey, Ellie,” he said.

  “Hi, Russ. I thought I should let you know, I just got a call from Joanna, and I’m going to go over there after work this evening to help her set up. She still wants to open on Saturday, and her employee just quit. She can’t do it on her own.”

  “You shouldn’t be going over there alone,” he said immediately. “It’s not safe.”

  “I know,” she said. “But I really don’t think that she did it. I know what it’s like to be on the receiving end of the rumor mill that this town can be, and I wouldn’t feel right to just leave her hanging.”

  She heard Russell sigh. “I know I can’t stop you. I’ll be a block away the entire time. Keep your phone on you, okay?”

  “Of course. I’m glad you understand. I love you.”

  “I love you too. Be careful.”

  “I always am.”

  CHAPTER NINE

  * * *

  This isn’t a smart idea. This isn’t smart at all. Even though she knew that she probably shouldn’t be doing it, Ellie got into the car nonetheless. Two things drove her desire to help the hotdog shop owner. The first was simple curiosity. If she wanted to learn more about the murder and maybe even help Russell solve the case, what better way was there than to be there and talk to Joanna herself?

  Second, of course, was the desire to be nice to a newcomer, someone who was already having a tough time even without the dead body that had been found in her kitchen. Ellie knew from experience that being a newcomer in such a small town wasn’t exactly easy. It was hard to imagine Joanna as a cold-blooded killer. She didn’t know the woman well, but she thought that she was a pretty good judge of character. Even on the off chance that the woman was the killer, she wouldn’t have any reason to want to hurt Ellie.

  After closing the pizzeria, she drove straight to the coffee shop and picked up her usual order and a vanilla latte for Joanna, since she didn’t know what the other woman liked.

  “Are you going to feel safe there?” Gina asked as she put the lids on the coffee cups. “I keep hearing people say that she’s the one who murdered that poor man.”

  “I don’t think she did,” Ellie said. “And even if she did, well, I’m no electrician, am I? I don’t think that she has any reason to hurt me.”

  “You never know. Oh, did I tell you? Her husband came around again and tried to get me to sell. He had almost doubled his offer from last time. I heard that he’s convinced that second-hand shop a few doors down to sell.”

  “Really? That’s surprising. What does he plan on doing with the space?”

  “I don’t know. What I do know is that he wants a few buildings, all in a row. If he’s planning on doing something like apartments or a shopping center, he would have to get it cleared with the city commission first, wouldn’t he?”

  The conversation gave Ellie a lot to think about as she journeyed the short distance back to her car. If Joanna’s husband was dead set on whatever development he had planned for Kittiport, then maybe he had motive to kill the electrician. If the electrician had found something in the building that might delay or put his plans on hold, he might have done what he could to prevent the man from talking. If I can find a way to do it without seeming like I’m suspicious, I should try to ask Joanna some questions about what her husband’s plans are, she thought.

  She drove the short distance down the block to the hotdog shop and parked across the street. Joanna saw her crossing the street and was holding the door open by the time she reached the sidewalk. In the few days since Ellie had been there, the place had continued to improve. It looked more like a finished restaurant—other than for the pile of clutter in the center of the room. Ellie spotted everything: fake plants, napkin holders, garbage cans. Joanna really did have a lot of decor to set up.

  “Here’s your coffee,” she said, handing the hot cup over to the other woman. “It’s from the little coffee shop just a few doors down. They make the best drinks in town. I wasn’t sure what you’d like, so I just got you a vanilla latte.”

  “Thank you,” Joanna said. “Both for the coffee, and for being so nice. Hardly anyone else will even look me in the eye.”

  “Just remember that it won’t last forever. They’re just frightened. Once the murder is solved, things will go back to normal.”

  “I can understand that. I’m frightened too.”

  Ellie realized that she hadn’t thought much about how Joanna must be feeling with the knowledge that someone was killed in her restaurant. If she really wasn’t the killer, then it must be terrifying. Someone unknown had committed a murder in the kitchen. The woman was braver than Ellie was—she wouldn’t have been caught dead in the pizzeria alone just days after someone had mysteriously died in it.

  The two women got to work, Ellie being Joanna’s eyes as she set up the fake plants and hung pictures on the wall. She walked around the room, filling the napkin dispensers as the other woman set them on the tables, then grabbing the broom and dustpan to sweep the floor while Joanna vanished into the bathroom to freshen up. She came out a few minutes later with her hair pulled back and new makeup applied.

  “Will you take my picture?” she asked, handing Ellie her cellphone. “I want to remember this moment forever.”

  “Of course.”

  Joanna stood by the register and smiled while the pizzeria owner snapped her photo, then Ellie handed her phone back to her. “This place looks amazing,” she said. “You should print that photo out and hang it up on the wall. I have a similar one in the pizzeria—there’s a photo of when the pizzeria first opened twenty years ago, and then another one we took a few months ago on its twentieth anniversary.”

  “I can only dream of this place being open for twenty years,” Joanna said. “It would be wonderful.”

  “Once all of this blows over, I think you’ll do just fine,” Ellie said. “People are going to love this place.”

  “Thank you, for saying that. It means a lot. I hope they catch the killer soon. I hate not knowing who it was.”

  “Well, who else had access to this building, other than you?”

  “A lot of people,” Joanna said. “Mark had a key—other than me and Steve, my husband, he was the only person that did—but I left the doors unlocked quite often so that the delivery people, electricians, and the plumber could come in and out as they needed. It really could have been anyone.”

  “How long have you known Mark?” Ellie asked.

  “Not more than a couple of weeks. He answered the ad that I put up when I was looking for someone to hire. He seemed like a nice kid. I don’t think that he could’ve killed anyone, if that’s what you’re getting at.”

  “Why did he quit?” Ellie asked, sitting down on one of the stools and sipping her now room temperature coffee.

  “He said that an opportunity for a job with better pay came up. I think he was worried that this place would fail and he’d be out of a job. I can’t really blame him for getting out when he did.”

  The pizzeria owner nodded. She couldn’t see what possible motive the teen would have had to kill the electrician, but she supposed it was possible that he had done it, no matter how unlikely it seemed.

  “So, tell me more about your husband,” she said. “What’s he like?”

  “Steve? He’s such a great guy. He’s busy. He still has a place in Portland, where he’s staying for now, although he usually manages to visit every couple of days. He’s hoping to move here full-time once his project down in the city is complete. He has big plans for this town, and he’s already got the go-ahead for some of them from the city commission.”

  “What sort of plans?” Ellie asked.

  “Well, he wants to modernize some of the older buildings, to start with, and he has a client that wants to put a hotel downtown with some shops underneath it. He thinks that this to
wn has a lot of potential, and he wants to make it more attractive to tourists.”

  “I’m not sure how the people in town will feel about that,” Ellie said. “I know a lot of the buildings are older, but there is a lot of historical value. People love Kittiport, and I think a lot of us don’t want to see it change.”

  “I’m positive that most people will feel otherwise once they see his plans. He’s great at his job, and he’ll be able to help this town grow.”

  Ellie nodded, forcing herself to bite her tongue. She thought that no matter how modern or neat Steve’s ideas were, many of the residents of Kittiport wouldn’t go for them. She herself liked the town as it was. She didn’t want it to be just like every other town out there. It was unique, and it should stay that way.

  “Thank you so much for helping,” Joanna said after a moment. “I think this is enough for tonight. Just a few more days until the grand opening. I can hardly believe it. If you know of anyone that’s looking for a job, just send them my way.”

  “I will,” Ellie promised. “Thanks, I actually had a wonderful time tonight. It’s been nice to get to know you better. If you need any more help, just let me know.”

  She rose to go, still chewing on the idea of someone building a giant hotel in town. With a chuckle, she shook her head. It was ridiculous. Kittiport was perfect as it was, and no one in their right mind would want to change it.

  CHAPTER TEN

  * * *

  “Both of you look stunning,” Russell said when Ellie opened the door to greet him the next evening. He looked pretty good himself, she thought, in dress slacks and a nice button-down shirt. She was so used to seeing him in his sheriff’s uniform that sometimes she forgot just how nicely he cleaned up.

  “Thanks,” Ellie said. “I figured that celebrating our engagement is a good reason to get dressed up.”