The Cupcake Conspiracy

by Sara Bourgeois

  "We can head out now,” Camille said. "Wait, first we have to pick dessert."

  Camille and I made our way into the walk-in to see what dessert struck our fancy. It didn't take us long. We both reached for the same thing at the same time.

  "Turtle cheesecake it is,” I said as Camille moved her hands so I could grab it. "Let me just box it up and we can head to the store."

  "That was easy,” Camille chuckled.

  "I mean, how can you go wrong with turtle cheesecake?"

  After a quick trip to the store, we were back at my apartment. Camille got started chopping the green pepper and onions I needed for the spaghetti sauce while I took Gracie out for a quick break. Once around the block was enough for her because she wanted to get back inside and see Camille.

  Camille was happy because I got back just in time to chop the onions myself. I didn't know if it made any real difference or not, but my grandmother had taught me to stuff some bread in my cheek while I chopped onions, so I always did that. Either way, I'd gotten really good at getting that particular part done fast.

  When the peppers and onions were chopped, I poured some olive oil into my Dutch oven and lit the burner. I cooked the veggies for a couple of minutes before adding the pound and a half of ground beef to the pot. After it was browned, I skimmed off the excess fat and then added the tomato puree and a can of tomato paste followed by the fresh herbs we'd picked up from the store. Last to go in was the bay leaf, and then I put the lid on the pot and turned the heat down to low.

  I immediately started to laugh.

  "What is it?" Camille asked.

  "What did we forget?" I asked with one eyebrow raised.

  "We got everything we needed for the sauce, right?" Camille asked. "What could we have forgotten?"

  "What are we going to put the sauce on?" I asked with a chuckle.

  "Oh, no,” she said and laughed too. "We forgot the spaghetti. Do you have any?"

  "I don't,” I said. "Somehow I don't have any pasta at all."

  "I'll go back and get it,” Camille said. "You can stay here with Gracie and keep an eye on the sauce."

  "Are you sure you don't mind?" I asked. "I can always text Tom and see if he'll pick some up on the way here."

  "No, that's okay. He might not see the message. I'll be right back. The Walgreen's right up the street should have boxed spaghetti. I won't need to go all the way to the store."

  While she was gone, Gracie and I played fetch. The hallway was long enough for her to get a pretty good workout, and I knew the people who lived downstairs weren't home yet.

  By the time Camille got back, Gracie was ready for another nap. We decided to watch the news while we waited for the guys. It was sad watching the coverage of the fires in Australia. There was something about a koala stopping someone on a bike to get water.

  "I'm going to bake some koala-shaped sugar cookies. Would it be all right if I sold them on Monday and donated the proceeds to help the koalas?" Camille asked.

  "Sure, I think that sounds like a great idea. You should put out a sign about it too. You might get some donations."

  About that time, Tom and Carl showed up. As soon as they walked in, Camille and I headed to the kitchen to boil the pasta. While we finished up dinner, Tom and Carl took Gracie out for a walk.

  We all sat on the floor around the coffee table and ate the spaghetti while watching the game. At first Tom and Carl had been skeptical of eating spaghetti while watching football, but in the end, everyone agreed it was a great idea. Mostly because they loved the pasta sauce.

  During a break, I told Tom, Carl, and Camille about my niece coming to spend the week with me. "I'm really excited about her visit. She's one of my favorite people, but I don't get to spend nearly enough time with her,” I said.

  "This is an interesting time of year for a visit like that,” Tom said. "Doesn't she have school?"

  "Well, she was supposed to be spending the week with my mom, but mom sprained her ankle. My sister is going on a cruise for her anniversary, so she asked me if I could watch Hannah,” I said. "She's going to bring all of her schoolwork and do it here. I guess they can miss if it's pre-planned."

  Tom and Carl laughed.

  "What?" I asked.

  "Oh, you're just really cute,” Tom said.

  "What? What are you two on about?"

  "A teenager doing all of that schoolwork while she's away from home on Halloween week?" Tom asked.

  "Yeah,” I said.

  "Oh, honey, you're going to have your work cut out for you."

  Chapter Three

  The next day was Sunday, and I didn't have to open the shop. Gracie and I spent a lazy morning in bed before making a quick trip outside. Once we were back in, she sprawled out on the sofa, and I decided to make pancakes.

  I decided to at least try to make something healthy, so I started making buckwheat batter. In the end, I added chocolate chips, though. "What?" I asked no one in particular. "Life is all about balance."

  When my pancakes were done, I put them on a plate and went over to the sofa to sit next to Gracie. She put her head on my lap but didn't beg for food. Her floppy ears made her look especially adorable as she closed her eyes.

  I knew it was a fake-out though. She figured if she was a good enough girl, I'd give her a bite. She was begging by not begging. I did give her one little bite of pancake that didn't have any chocolate chips or syrup on them. She knew that was the only bite she was getting and curled up against my leg. I ate and watched cartoons while she snoozed.

  Once I was done with breakfast, and much to Gracie's chagrin, I got out the vacuum and went over the carpets in the entire apartment. Gracie moved out of the living room until I was done in there and then moved grumpily back to the sofa as I went into the bedrooms.

  After vacuuming, I did a quick job dusting and then cleaned the guest bathroom. I thought about doing my bathroom too, but I needed to get ready. So, I just did a quick touch-up. Once I was satisfied that the apartment was ready for a guest, I took a shower and got dressed. I figured a Henley and jeans was good enough. There wasn't much need to get dressed up, but I did put my hair up and use a little makeup too.

  Around noon, Gracie and I went out on the balcony to listen for my sister and her family. I heard them pull up and start walking toward the building, so Gracie and I rushed out to meet them. We met Paul, Karrie, and Hannah on the sidewalk between the parking area and the building. There were hugs and kisses all around. Hannah and Gracie were immediately best friends, and Gracie gave Hannah a ton of kisses.

  I helped Paul get Hannah's things from the car while Karrie and Hannah took Gracie back upstairs. Karrie wanted Hannah to carry her own bags up, but I told her it was fine. There was no way she was going to separate Gracie from Hannah long enough for her to help.

  Paul and I took the bags to the guest bedroom and set them down. Hannah and Gracie came down the hall and looked in at the room she'd be staying in for the week.

  "Nice room," Hannah said appreciatively. "I was worried you'd have me on an air mattress in your storage room. Not that I would have minded really."

  "I'm glad you like it,” I said.

  "I'm starving," Hannah said just as her stomach rumbled loudly. "I had breakfast at dawn."

  "Oh, sorry, guys. I would have had lunch ready, but I wanted to see what you were in the mood for first,” I said.

  "Don't be silly," Karrie said. "Paul and I are buying lunch. I love your cooking, sis, but you're doing enough."

  "Yeah, we saw a place on the way here. The Shiny Diner. It looked good. Lots of chrome," Paul said with a chuckle.

  "It's new,” I said. "I hear it's got great food. We can go there if you like."

  It was agreed and we headed out. Hannah gave Gracie one more hug and promised that we'd be back soon.

  The diner was busy because it was the lunch rush, but there was an open table for us. We took our seat and grabbed menus from a chrome holder on the table. True to the diner's name, i
t was shiny. There was a chrome rail that ran all the way around the tables and separated the dining room into sections as well. The tables were polished metal, and the walls were covered in mirrors. I wasn't quite sure what to think of the decor, but the smells coming from the kitchen were heavenly.

  While we were reading the menus, I couldn't help but pick up on the conversation going on at the table behind us. I wasn't trying to eavesdrop, but the woman was speaking quite loudly. The woman said she was a friend of Doug's wife, Susan.

  "It's just so terrible what happened today,” the woman said. "Susan is so broken up. I mean in my opinion, Susan is so much better off. She didn't want a divorce from Doug, but she should have. He was not a good husband. Constantly going over their finances the way he was. Accusing Susan of spending too much money. He even threatened to put her on an allowance once. It was so ridiculous because they had plenty of money. Susan told me he would get so upset about the silliest things. She'd buy a new purse or a new outfit, and he'd flip out. Now mind you, Susan has expensive taste, but they could afford it. That man could just be completely ridiculous."

  Someone else at the table said something, but they were on the other side and I couldn't quite make it out.

  The woman spoke again. "Yeah, Susan was a really great wife. I mean, she liked to shop but she never spent more than they had. She swore that to me, and she always made sure there was dinner on the table when Doug came home. Even if she wasn't there to greet him, she made sure he had a meal."

  The other person at the table said something and all I could make out was something about Chinese food.

  "Yep. Susan said Doug loved Chinese food. That's why she was always ordering it for him. She would have preferred something healthier, but she was just so devoted to him. He was always so ungrateful for everything she did for him. Always suspicious of her every move and never, ever said thank you for anything."

  I was pretty shocked that the woman was so brazenly airing Doug and Susan's dirty laundry in public the way she was. It seemed really uncouth. Also, something about the things she was saying didn't sound quite right to me. I couldn't put my finger on it, but I thought that perhaps it was something I'd heard in my shop.

  I didn't have any time to dwell on it more because the waitress came to take our order. I'd been listening in on the conversation at the other table instead of looking at the menu, but I looked down and saw they had a patty melt and fries. That sounded great to me, so that's what I ordered.

  The food came fast, and the table behind us left. New people were seated right away, but they didn't gossip about the murder. All in all, we had an enjoyable lunch. The patty melt was amazing, and the fries were crispy on the outside and tender on the inside with just the right amount of salt.

  When we were done eating, Karrie and Paul dropped Hannah and me back off at my apartment. They said they would have stayed longer but they still had a lot to do before their cruise left the next day.

  "Don't worry about it,” I said. "We'll catch up later. I'm so excited that you're finally going on your dream trip."

  My sister and her husband were flying out the next day to Seattle and from there, they were taking an Alaskan Cruise. They'd been on cruises in the Caribbean before, but Karrie had always wanted to do one of the Alaskan Cruises.

  When her parents were gone, Hannah retreated to her room to unpack and text with her friends. I figured she needed to unwind and get acclimated to her surroundings, so I left her alone until it was nearly time for dinner. I had a book that I really wanted to dive back into, so Gracie and I spent the rest of the afternoon on the couch.

  An hour before dinner, I knocked on Hannah's door.

  "Come in,” she called out.

  When I went in, she was on her laptop at the small desk in the room. She had a massive textbook open and appeared to be typing something into Word.

  "I figured you'd be chatting with your friends,” I said.

  "Oh, I did for a while. I've got a big essay due, and I don't want to save it all for the last minute,” she said. "Plus, I figure if I get ahead, we can have more fun this week."

  "That's very grown up of you,” I said.

  "Well, I am nearly eighteen,” she said and turned the chair around to face me. "I guess I could have just stayed home this week, but I'm glad to be here with you. Don't get me wrong, I love Grandma, but I'm happy it worked out this way."

  "Me too,” I said. "Hey, I was just getting ready to start dinner. I was wondering if you were okay with chicken stir fry?"

  "Do you have any rice?"

  "I've got jasmine and basmati,” I said. "I might also have a container of brown in the pantry if you want to go healthy."

  "I love basmati," Hannah said. "Can we have that?"

  "Sure,” I said. "How about I do the stir fry and you boil the water for the rice?"

  "I can do that," Hannah said cheerfully.

  Stir fry was an easy meal to prepare, and it was even easier with Hannah handling the rice. By the time it was done, Tom was knocking at the door.

  I went to let him in, and Hannah started setting the table.

  "What smells so good?" Tom asked when he walked in.

  "We made stir fry," Hannah said proudly. "I'm Hannah."

  "Hello, Hannah,” Tom said. "I'm Tom."

  "Good to meet you. My mom said you're a police officer?"

  "That's correct. Now, what can I do to help?"

  Tom helped Hannah finish setting the table, and we had a relaxing dinner. Hannah told us all about her schoolwork and some of her plans for college. I couldn't believe she was already making college plans. Time really flew by when it came to the kids in your life.

  After dinner, Hannah loaded the dishwasher without being asked and then volunteered to take Gracie out on a walk. While she was outside, Tom took the opportunity to tell me about Mack going to see Doug's parents.

  "Ted and Martha were quite distraught when Mack broke the news of their son's murder,” Tom said. "Ted told Mack that Doug was always trying to impress him with new money-making schemes. He wished that Doug would have just put all of that energy into running his regular business. He also said he should have told Doug how proud he was more often so that maybe Doug didn't have to feel like he had to try so hard to impress his father. Tom said that Doug's business partner, David Malm, was the one always proposing the crazy schemes, and Doug went along with them all."

  "That's too bad,” I said. "It's sad that his father feels that way."

  Shortly after that, Hannah came back in with Gracie. "Wow, Aunt Cathy, you did not tell me your neighbor was such a hunk."

  "What?" I asked, but I had a feeling I knew what she was talking about.

  "A man came up to me and Gracie outside. He said his name was Mark, and he wanted to know why I had Gracie. I wouldn't normally talk to a strange man, even one has handsome as him, but Gracie seemed to know and love him,” she said.

  "Yeah, that's my neighbor across the hall. His name is Mark Moran. He helps me take care of Gracie sometimes." I wasn't about to comment on her saying Mark was a hunk.

  "Wow, he is just something else. So good-looking and funny. If I was just a little bit older." Hannah practically swooned. "I'll have to come back and visit the minute I'm eighteen. Do you think he'll still be single?" Hannah asked completely sincerely.

  I had to chuckle. Hannah was definitely smitten with Mark. I could understand. He was completely gorgeous and so sweet, but I wasn't sure that he'd be interested in someone so young, even when she turned eighteen. But what was I to do? I didn't have the heart to destroy her hopes, and what harm came from a little crush? I trusted Mark completely.

  "I'm not sure,” I said. "But I do think you should worry about your studies and not my neighbor." There, that was better. I could be motherly when I tried.

  After that, Hannah dropped the topic, but I could tell she was still thinking about it. Every once in a while, she'd look over at the front door. We were all settled in watching television. I fig
ured at some point, Hannah would go to her room to talk with friends or just get away from the adults. She didn't, though. Instead she stayed out in the living room and hung out with Tom and I. I didn't mind at all. I was glad she was spending time with me.

  After a couple of hours, Tom had to go.

  "I know you ladies have an early morning, and I do as well,” he said as he stood up.

  I walked him to the door, and he kissed me quickly goodbye. Hannah wasn't actually watching us, but I appreciated his discretion around her.

  When he was gone, I told Hannah we should probably get to bed. "We have to get up at four,” I said.

  "I have to get up at four too? Are you sure about that? That's crazy early. I could walk over to the shop later or something."

  "Nope, we're both getting up and going into work,” I said. "You'll be fine."

  Chapter Four

  The next morning, someone was shaking me awake. Immediately after, I felt Gracie's cold, wet nose smoosh against my face. It was Hannah shaking me. Apparently, Gracie had woken her up first. Even if I'd said she could sleep in, Gracie wouldn't have allowed it.

  I looked at the clock and it was just after four. "I guess this means we're getting up,” I said and pushed myself up onto my elbows.

  "Hey, you made the rules," Hannah said groggily. "And apparently, you've trained Gracie to follow them."

  "I've got to take Gracie out for her first walk,” I said.

  "Okay, well, I'm going to shuffle into the kitchen and work on making some coffee," Hannah said.

  "You drink coffee?" I asked as I got out of bed.

  "Come on, Aunt Cathy. I have since I was ten."

  "Okay then."

  When Hannah left the room, I threw on my sweatpants and hoodie for Gracie's walk. Hannah was in the kitchen putting coffee in the maker, so Gracie and I headed out.

  We walked around the block, and Gracie did her sniffing and also her business. When we got back, the coffee was done.

  "I've got some pecan caramel buns I can heat up for breakfast,” I said.

  "That sounds amazing," Hannah said. "It's almost worth getting up at four in the morning for breakfast like that."