Mabel, Murder, & Muffins

by Sharon Mierke

  “Flori,” I said. “For goodness sakes, what’s wrong? Why are you panting like that? Why aren’t you dressed? Where’s our breakfast?”

  “Mabel,” she screamed between pants. “There’s been a murder.”

  “What do you mean, there’s been a murder?”

  She finally caught her breath. “Just that. Jake went over to have breakfast at the Main Street Café because he didn’t want to wait for me to cook up our breakfasts and I told him I wasn’t cooking breakfast twice so he left (a pause to inhale) and when he came back, that’s what he told me.”

  “So, who? Who was murdered?”

  “I don’t know. Jake said it was a stranger.”

  “Flori, we don’t have any strangers in town, do we? Did some move in while I was gone? Or, is it one of the renters? Maybe someone renting a cabin on the lake?”

  Flori walked over and plunked down in my wicker chair. She wiped the perspiration off her forehead and tried running her fingers through her unruly hair. She sighed.

  “I have no idea. I told you all that I know.”

  “Where’s the body?”

  Flori gave me a look of dismay. “Who cares where the body is, Mabel? Someone visiting Parson’s Cove has been murdered and that’s all you can think about?”

  “I want to know who it was. Don’t you?”

  “Mabel, if it’s a stranger, it doesn’t matter if I know her name or not. I would just like to know if the killer is still in Parson’s Cove so I know if I need to lock my doors. Or, should Jake get out his hunting rifle for protection?”

  “What did you just say?”

  “I said I want to know if I have to keep my doors locked or should Jake get out his hunting rifle for protection." She made another feeble attempt at patting her hair down. "Is that the part that shocks you, Mabel? The gun part? You know I don’t believe in violence of any kind but this is something entirely different.”

  “No, I thought you said, ‘it doesn’t matter if I know her name or not.’”

  She nodded. “That’s what I said.”

  “You mean a woman was murdered?”

  “Yes, didn’t I just say that?”

  “No, you said it was a stranger.”

  “Okay, so it was a woman stranger. What difference does it make?”

  “I don’t know but somehow it does.”

  Flori’s eyes bulged; she gasped, clutched her chest again, and jumped up. “Oh, Mabel, I’m so sorry. Here you’ve been waiting for breakfast and I came empty-handed. You must be starving. I’ll run home and make it right away.” She hurried to the door, her housecoat floating behind.

  “Don’t rush,” I called out. “You have time to get showered and dressed and put your make-up on. I’ll give you a whole hour.” I smiled at her. “I was getting used to having late lazy breakfasts by the pool anyway. I’ll just pretend I’m back in Las Vegas, that’s all.”

  "You had lazy breakfasts by the pool?"

  "No, but I could have if I'd wanted them."

  She came back, hugged me, and left. As soon as I knew she would be out of sight, I went out the same door, locked it, and walked in the opposite direction. I knew where the body would be.

  I edged along the wall of our small brick county courthouse and peeked around the corner. The parking lot for the Parson’s Cove hospital was directly across the street. If I wanted to get into the county morgue, I’d have to somehow get across that wide parking lot and enter the back door of the hospital. I certainly didn’t want the sheriff or Reg to see me. They’d not only send me home, they’d make sure I never found out anything about the murder. That is, Jim and Reg wouldn't. I could usually squeeze info from Scully but sometimes it wasn't too reliable.

  The patrol car with its cherry red light turning, sat at the front entrance. That meant Scully had either forgotten to shut it off or he wanted to let everyone know that he was working a case. The ambulance was already in its normal parking spot.

  I had to not only get past Jim and Scully, or Reg if he was there, I also had to avoid Nurse Grappley. She ran the hospital with an iron fist. Even Doc Fritz makes a wide swath around her when he sees her coming down the aisle. Fritzy took over as head doctor when Lorna’s husband died. Lorna Grappley, however, feels the hospital is still in the family and she’s now the owner. Nothing goes on in that building without her knowledge or permission. Would she give Mabel Wickles permission to go and check out a dead body in the morgue? Not in her lifetime.

  I looked up and down the street. There was definitely no hustle and bustle here. In fact, it was so quiet the only sound I could hear was a large bumblebee zinging around my head. The only person who might notice me was Charlie Thompson. He was sitting on a town bench in front of the library. It was quite a distance away but you never knew with Charlie. He’s the type of person who is blind one time and has x-ray vision the next. I guess it’s what you call selective sight. I didn’t worry about him anyway. Charlie has very few friends in town but I happen to be one of them.

  I sprinted across the street and hid behind a lilac bush. Now all I had to do was get across the parking lot without anyone seeing me. This wasn’t going to be easy. There were four cars altogether and they were spaced as far apart as you could get. At least, none of them had to worry about getting their doors pinged. It just meant I’d have to make a mad dash for it and hope no one was watching. I took off running.

  I would have made it clear into the morgue too except the moment I reached the door, it flew open. I let out a shriek. Bob Crackers stood there, staring at me. Bob is the town’s electrician, plumber, and gravedigger.

  “Hey, Mabel. Boy, you gave me a start for a second.” He shook his head and laughed. “By the way, good to see you got home from your trip okay. Myrtle says you had a real good time.” He switched his toothpick to the other side of his mouth. “Guess you heard the excitin’ news here in old Parson’s Cove? Been a murder in town. Probably nothin’ to you, seein’ you just come from the big city. Don’t think Jim’s found out who the woman is yet. Even brought in Reg this mornin'. Probably bringin’ in some of those city cops too. That’s what I figure.” He shook his head again. “What’s that now? First murder here in about three or four years? Gettin’ almost as bad as Vegas, ain’t it?” He stepped to the side. “Sorry. Here I am chattin’ away and takin’ up your time. Were you wantin’ to come in the back door?”

  “Actually, I was. Faster than walking all the way around to the front.”

  “Well, old Grappely always insists I come in the backdoor when I’m workin’ on the plumbing. Toilets plugged up agin.” He sighed a frustrating sigh and moved out of my way. “Here you go then.” He paused. “You visitin’ somebody this mornin’?”

  “You might say that.”

  He held the door open and I went in. There was no need to tell me he’d been working on the plumbing - one whiff and I knew.

  The thing that hits me smack in the face when I walk into a hospital, unless I run into Bob first, is the smell. I immediately start to breathe through my mouth and if I’m not careful, hyperventilate. The hallway leading to the morgue smelled even worse. Or, maybe it was just my imagination.

  I looked to the right and the left but could see no one. Was Jim or Reg in with the body? Knowing Reg, he wouldn’t be there any longer than he had to be.

  I wasn't surprised when Bob said Jim had called in Reg. Settling traffic disputes or neighbors fighting over garbage lids is one thing but murder is something else and this would be a new experience for Sheriff Jim.

  The hallway was narrow, bleak, and appeared never-ending. To my right, at the end of that passage was a gray steel door. On the other side of that door was the morgue. Everything in the hallway was gray: the walls, the floor, and even the light fixtures. The most depressing color in the world.

  I tried walking on my tiptoes but still my rubber-soled runners squeaked and echoed with each step. When I came to the steel door, I stopped to listen. Silence. I held my breath and pressed the door o
pen. The room was empty; as least, of people who could still talk and breathe. I stuck my head back out; all was clear. Maybe Reg was going back to the police station with Jim and Scully now.

  I stood just inside the door and looked around. It was not a large room. The one florescent light in the middle of the ceiling, along with the white cupboards and the steel table, made the room look colorless and lifeless - like the body, covered by a white sheet, stretched out on a gurney a few feet in front of me. Cold sweat formed on my forehead and my heart pounded in my ears. One thing, I couldn’t do - I couldn’t faint and have Nurse Grappley find me. Just imagining her wrath brought oxygen shooting to my brain. I tiptoed over to the motionless white mound, instinctively watching for any slight movement.

  My hand trembled as I lifted the cloth from the woman’s face. I didn’t realize I’d gasped until I heard my own echo. It sounded deafening, alien. I lowered the sheet.

  This was a stranger to Parson’s Cove but not to me.

  Grace Hobbs looked exactly the same as I’d seen her only a few days before. The only difference was the small reddish-purple bullet hole between her eyes.

  Chapter Four

  Sheriff Jim, Scully, and Reg Smee stood staring at me as I burst into the police station.

  Reg held up his hand. “Mabel, we don’t have time for you this morning. Sheriff Jim has asked me to help him with something and Captain Maxymowich will be here any minute. If you’re still concerned about that silly phone message, you’ll have to wait. We have a much more serious crime to solve.” Tiny beads of sweat covered his forehead and it looked as though he’d applied Flori’s rouge to his whole face. “Why aren’t you in your shop anyway?” he snipped at me.

  I’d barely gotten my body inside the door and there Reg stood, glaring at me, judging me, and looking like he was stopping traffic in the middle of a busy intersection in New York city.

  “Reg,” I said, looking him right in the eyes and putting my hands on my hips. “I think you might want to hear what I have to say.”

  He shook his head. “No, Mabel, you have absolutely nothing that we want to hear. Scully,” he said, as he turned towards the other side of the room, “show Miss Wickles the way out.” With that, he turned, motioned to the sheriff, and they both walked into Jim's office.

  “I know where the door is, Reg,” I yelled. “I just walked through it.” I waited a moment and then yelled louder, “I also know who the dead woman in the morgue is.”

  Slowly, ever so slowly, the office door squeaked open. He and Jim peered around the corner.

  “What did you say?” the two men uttered in unison. (Now I know what writers mean when they say a person’s face is as black as thunder.)

  “I said I know who the dead woman is. You know, there was a woman murdered right here in Parson’s Cove?”

  “Of course I know a woman was murdered right here in Parson’s Cove.” Reg stepped up to me and placed his finger on my chest. Well, perhaps, I should say just below my neck. “What I would like to know is how do you know who was murdered, right here in Parson’s Cove?”

  Sheriff Jim moved up beside Reg and out of the corner of my eye I saw Scully move closer too. I could swear there was a smirk on Scully’s lips. Reg, on the other hand, was not smiling and still looking thunderous. His lips were set in a straight line and his breathing was not what I would consider normal. No wonder the man has high blood pressure.

  “What’s going on here, Mabel?” he growled. “If you think this is some kind of joke, you know I won’t hesitate for one moment to lock you up for mischief. You know that, don’t you? I’ve done it in the past and I’ll do it again.” And then realizing he really wasn't sheriff anymore, he removed his finger from my chest and placed his hands on his hips.

  Sometimes Reg forgets he can't threaten anyone with jail time anymore.

  He can be quite intimidating when he wants to be. After all, I’m barely over five feet tall and he’s over six. He’s also hefty. For a man who's almost three score year and ten, I imagine he could still throw a mean punch. With that thought in mind, I backed up against the door.

  He continued, “I know your heart is in the right place; however, this woman is not from Parson’s Cove. Trust me, Mabel, you do not know her. You have never seen her before in your life. Jim has asked me to help with this case and we don't have time for anything else right now. Understand?”

  “But that’s what I’ve been trying to tell you. Yes, I have seen her before. You just won’t let me get a word in. I do know that woman. I went to the morgue and had a look.”

  I thought his eyes would pop out of his head. Sheriff Jim and Deputy Scully, on the other hand, replaced their smirks with unadulterated adoration.

  “You what?” he bellowed. His face turned a brighter shade of red and a vein in his neck started to pulsate.

  “I went to the morgue and had a look.”

  “I know what you said.” He closed his eyes and ran his hand over his balding head. “All right,” he said with a sigh. “Who is this woman? And, I suppose while I’m at it, I should ask if you already know who killed her?” The last sentence he said wearing a mordant smirk on his lips.

  “Of course, I don’t know who killed her. How would I know that? I can tell you her name though - it’s Grace Hobbs. She won a trip to Las Vegas too. The same one I was on.”

  The three stood and gaped at me.

  “Now, Reg,” I said. “Do you believe that my life might be in danger too? That the message on my machine is threatening? That perhaps, there’s a madman out there, killing everyone who won that trip?” My legs felt wobbly. “Do you think I’ll be the next one to have a bullet through the brain?”

  Chapter Five

  When I opened my eyes, I was lying on the cot in the cell. Reg stood over me, looking very concerned and waving a magazine in front of my face.

  “Would you stop that, Reg?” I said. “You almost hit me with that thing.”

  Jim pushed in front of Reg with a glass of water. “Here, Mabel, take a drink.” He lifted the back of my head with one hand and put the glass to my lips.

  I grabbed the glass and struggled to sit up. “I can drink by myself, Jim. What do you want to do? Drown me?”

  Water was exactly what I needed. I took my time and emptied the glass. The three stood watching, not saying a word.

  “What happened?” I asked.

  All three started talking at once.

  “Shut up, you two,” Reg snapped. He turned to me. “You passed out, Mabel, but don’t worry; we called Dr. Fritz and he’ll be here any minute.”

  I stood up, feeling a bit shaky but not shaky enough to let Fritzy prod me.

  “I’m not waiting for him,” I said. “Flori will be at the shop with breakfast. She’ll be worried sick about me. I’m fine.”

  Reg clasped his hand around my wrist. “I'm sorry, Mabel, but you aren’t going anywhere. Sit right down there. Scully, you get hold of Flori and tell her where Mabel is.”

  “Sure thing, Reg. I’ll head over to the shop right now.”

  “You don’t drive over there - you phone.”

  “But I haven’t had breakfast yet either.”

  “Never mind breakfast. We’ve got a murder to solve. I’ll tell you when you can eat.”

  By the time Doctor Fritz arrived five minutes later, I was feeling much better. All he did was feel my forehead, look into my eyes, check my pulse and blood pressure, and then pronounce, “You’ll live, Mabel. All you need is some food in your stomach.” He then turned to Reg and said, “Next time, don’t call unless it’s an emergency. You know, blood and guts.” With that, he whipped out of the room and disappeared. No doubt in search of blood and guts.

  “Okay, Mabel,” Reg said. “Let’s talk about this woman now. Who is Grace Hobbs and what do you know about her?”

  “Like I said, she was one of the women who won a trip to Las Vegas. I don’t know much about her but she always carried a big brown leather bag. She never let it out of he
r sight. All her ID should be in that.”

  “There was no bag or purse. We searched the whole area. I guess the killer figured she wouldn't need it anymore.”

  “Where was the body found anyway?”

  “You know I don’t have to tell you things like that but I’m sure everyone in Parson’s Cove knows by now so I guess it’s no secret. I don’t know where she was murdered but her body was dumped in the bush behind the nursing home.”

  “Parson’s Cove’s nursing home? I wonder what she would be doing behind it?”

  “We don’t know where she was murdered. I said we found the body there. It looks like someone killed her and then tried to hide the victim’s body. Guess they thought it would take awhile before she’d be discovered. The autopsy report will tell us the time of death.” He reached into his pocket, pulled out his worn black book, and flipped it open. There wasn’t much written in it but it was old.

  "I thought you threw that old book out when you retired, Reg."

  He gave me a hard look. I was beginning to get used to this soft kind retired Reg Smee and now I was back to battling with the old Sheriff Reg Smee.

  "Shouldn't Sheriff Jim be writing this down?"

  Jim, who was standing behind Reg, shook his head as if trying to tell me to be quiet.

  "It's okay, Mabel, we're working together and Reg knows more about murder cases than I do. Scully and I can use his expertise."

  “If you're finished now, Miss Wickles, may I continue?" Reg wet the end of the pencil with his tongue. "Now, what more can you tell me about this? What was her name? Grace Hobbs you said?”