Bad Bites: Donut Mystery #16 (The Donut Mysteries) (4 page)

I’d planned on driving over to her place in my Jeep, but Grace’s
suggestion made sense.
 
It might put
Zelda more at ease if we all rode over together, and I could always pick my
Jeep up later.
 
“That sounds great.”

“Let’s go then, shall we?”

“There’s just one problem,” Zelda said, and I wondered what was about to
go wrong.
 
As I waited to hear her
complaint, the new head librarian surprised me by saying, “I don’t drink
coffee.”

I felt the relief flow through me that it was something so simple.
 
“How about hot chocolate instead?
 
There’s a nip in the air this evening,
so it might be a nice change of pace.”

“That would be lovely,” Zelda said.
 
“Are you certain that you don’t mind?”

“Not at all.
 
It would be our
pleasure,” Grace said.

I just hoped that my best friend had some hot chocolate at her place, but
if she didn’t, it was a short walk up the road to my cottage to retrieve
some.
 
When Momma and I had lived
there together up until lately, we’d been known to make up a batch of hot cocoa
and sit outside, no matter how chilly it might be.
 
I missed those special times that I’d spent
with her, but I knew that she was much happier living across town with her new
husband now.

When we got to Grace’s house, she walked through the place flipping on
lights on her way to the kitchen.
 
“I’ll start some milk warming on the stove.”

“Excellent,” I said.
 
“In the
meantime, may I take your coat, Zelda?”

“That would be lovely,” the new head librarian said as she handed it to
me.
 

After we both sat in the living room, I said, “You reacted oddly when I
asked you who might have wanted to harm Chester.”

“I’m sure that I don’t know what you are talking about,” Zelda said,
refusing to make eye contact with me as she spoke.

“It’s okay to talk to us,” I said in a calm, reassuring voice.
 
“You’re among friends.
 
Besides, Grace and I have done this kind
of thing before.
 
We can honestly help,
if you’ll just let us.”

“Oh, you don’t have to tell me.
 
I’ve heard the rumors about your exploits,” Zelda said.
 
“After all, folks in April Springs do
tend to talk.
 
There’s nothing
official about your investigation, though, is there?”

“Well, it might help you to know that the interim police chief has
approved of us conducting our own investigation, as long as it doesn’t
interfere with what he’s doing.”

Zelda looked a little unsure about that.
 
“Does that mean that you’ll run and tell
him everything that I say?”

“That depends,” I answered truthfully.
 
“If that possibility is a problem for
you, then maybe you shouldn’t talk to us after all.”

Grace chose that moment to walk in and join us, and I had to wonder if
she’d been listening in from the kitchen all along.
 
And why wouldn’t she be eavesdropping?
 
I would have done the same thing myself
if our roles had been reversed.
 
“Zelda,” she asked, “what if we promise to talk to you before we share
what you tell us with anyone else, including Jake?
 
You can trust us to be discreet.”

“How can I be sure of that?” the librarian asked.

“Well, have you ever heard
anyone
claim that we weren’t?” Grace asked her.
 
“Surely in your official capacity you hear a great deal of gossip.”

“People do like to talk, even in libraries,” she said.

“There you go.
 
You must know
that you can trust us.”

“Very well,” she said after letting out a sigh of breath.
 
“Besides, I have to tell someone.
 
Maybe it would be better if I just share
all that I know with you, and then let you two decide what the best course of
action is for me.
 
I’ve read a
thousand mysteries in my life, but this is real, and I’m beside myself as to
what I should do next.”

The timer in the kitchen went off, and Grace stood quickly.
 
“Don’t start without me.
 
I need one minute.”

“May we give you a hand?” I asked.

“No, I’ve got it.”

Zelda and I tried to make a little small talk about the weather while we
waited for Grace, but it quickly fizzled out.
 
I wanted to get started with the
interview, but one minute hadn’t seemed that long to wait.

Apparently, I was wrong.
 
It
was taking forever.

Finally, Grace appeared with a tray.
 
It held three cups and saucers, along with plates and a nice selection
of cookies.
 
“I thought that we all
might be able to use a bite, since the buffet was canceled.”

Zelda nodded her thanks as Grace handed her a cup.
 
She took a sip before I could get mine,
and she made a contented little sound.
 
“That’s absolutely wonderful.”

“It’s Suzanne’s special blend,” Grace admitted.
 
“I don’t know what she puts in it, but
it beats anything you can find in a grocery store.”

“We can trade recipes later,” I said impatiently.
 
“Let’s talk about Chester.”
 
I turned to Zelda as I continued, “Now,
do you know anyone who might want to see Chester dead?”

“Actually, I know of three people.
 
It’s shocking when I say it out loud, isn’t it?
 
Who could imagine that a small-town
librarian could raise such malevolence in some folks?”

“It
always
surprises me when
anyone commits murder,” I said, “and yet they continue to do it.
 
Would you mind telling us the names of
the three people you’re talking about, and why exactly they might want to kill
your former boss?”

Chapter 4

“I feel like some kind of informant telling you both this, but someone
needs to know the truth,” Zelda said as she looked earnestly from me to Grace and
then back again.
 
“Ladies, it’s
important to me that you know that I’m not a gossip.
 
I don’t believe in spreading rumors.”

“They aren’t rumors if we don’t tell anyone else,” I said, doing my best
to reassure her.
 
“Zelda, you could
be the only link between Chester and whoever killed him.
 
If you keep silent, the murderer might
get away with it, and I know that you don’t want that.”

“Of course I don’t,” she said forcefully.

“Then tell us what you saw, and leave the rest of it up to us,” I said.

It was touch and go for a second, but finally, she agreed.
 
“Just because I know that you’re right
doesn’t make it any easier for me, but I understand that I can’t keep it to
myself any longer.
 
Okay, here
goes.
 
First thing this morning when
we opened, Vince Dade was there waiting for us.
 
Well, more specifically, he was lying in
wait for Chester.
 
Vince started in
on him the second I unlocked the door, but Chester insisted that they wait to speak
in his office.
 
Vince wasn’t happy
about it, but Chester insisted.
 
I
started restocking books, but I’d been concerned about the tone of their
conversation, so I decided to check on them upstairs a little later.
 
As I reached Chester’s door, Vince came
out, clearly upset about something.
 
Before he left, he paused and turned back to Chester, and then he said
in a cold and calculating voice, ‘I told you that it’s over.
 
I’m done with you, once and for all.’
 
After Vince was gone, I asked Chester if
everything was all right, but it was almost as though he didn’t hear me at
first.
 
The expression on his face
was really puzzling, and I had to wonder just what their argument had been
about.”

“Did you hear anything at all of what it might have been about?” Grace
asked her.

“Not a word.
 
As you probably
know, the offices are all upstairs, and they are well soundproofed.
 
I was on the main floor below in the
stacks, but even if I’d been in the conference room next to Chester’s office, I
wouldn’t have been able to hear a thing.
 
Somebody needs to find out what Vince and Chester were talking about and
why Vince was through with him.”

“We will, or the new chief of police will take care of that himself,” I
said.
 
“Who else did you have in
mind as a potential killer?”

Zelda bit her lip for a moment, and then she said, “This is rather
delicate, so I’m not exactly sure how to say it.”

“Just give us the basics, then, and we’ll fill in the blanks,” Grace
said.

Zelda nodded.
 
“Lately, Maggie
Hoff has been coming by the library two or three times a week to see my boss.
 
She even came by early this afternoon,
and without so much as a wave to me, she went straight to Chester’s office with
a rather determined look on her face.”

“How long did she usually stay when she visited in the past?” I asked
her.

“I have no idea.
 
Chester
always sent me home as soon as she arrived.”

“Maggie’s still married to Nathan Hoff, isn’t she?” Grace asked.

“She is, but I’ve heard that he works some nights and weekends now.
 
I’m not saying that Maggie and Chester
were having an affair.
 
I want to
make that crystal clear.”

“Got it,” I said, filing that particular little tidbit away for
later.
 
I wanted to discuss what it
might mean with Grace, but not in front of Zelda.

“That’s three,” I said.

Zelda looked surprised.
 
“I’ve
just mentioned two people so far.”

“Actually, you’ve talked about three of them.
 
If Maggie and Chester were up to
something, it might give Nathan a motive as well.”

Zelda frowned.
 
“I never even
considered that as a possibility.”

“Sorry, but that’s just the way my mind works sometimes,” I said.
 
“What’s the last name on your list?”

“This one I’m sure that you’re really not going to like,” she said.
 
“I hesitate even telling you now.”

“Remember, you don’t have anything to be afraid of from us,” Grace said.

“Well, if you’re sure that it won’t be a black mark against me, I suppose
that I have to tell you.”

I was beginning to wonder if she was ever going to say the name after all
when she finally admitted, “Just after Maggie left, Chester had one last
visitor, and the two men had a heated argument before my boss actually threw
his visitor out.”

That sounded like a real possibility to me.
 
“This might be important.
 
Who was it?”

“It was the mayor,” Zelda said softly.

“Hang on a second,” I said.
 
“Are you telling us that George Morris had a fight with Chester today?
 
What could the two of them have possibly
been arguing about?”

“I don’t know, but it was pretty intense.
 
I thought for a second that the mayor
was going to snap, and it wasn’t pretty.”

I knew that George had a temper, but I couldn’t imagine him killing
anyone.
 
He’d been injured once
helping me in one of my past investigations, and it had nearly destroyed me
knowing that he’d been hurt because of me.
 
Maybe I was biased, but there was no way that I could see the man as a
cold-blooded killer.
 
Still, I had
to talk to him, no matter what my personal feelings might be.

“What about Shelly Graham?” I asked her, wanting to see what she had to
say about the woman her boss had been dating.

“What about her?” Zelda asked, keeping her gaze on her hot chocolate.

“Would she have had any reason to kill Chester?”

Zelda looked surprised by my question.
 
“I can’t imagine it.
 
Why would she?”

“Think about it,” Grace said.
 
“If Chester
was
fooling around
with Maggie on the side, some folks might say that was motive enough.”

“Maybe if Maggie was the one who was murdered, I’d agree with you, but
Shelly would never have hurt Chester.
 
I refuse to believe that.”

The librarian sounded so sure of that fact that I decided not to push her
any further about it just yet.
 
I
was about to ask another question when Zelda took one last sip of her cocoa and
put the cup back on the tray.
 
“I’m
sorry, but that’s all I’ve got for you.
 
It’s getting late, and I’m quite tired.
 
Would you mind taking me home now?”

“We’d be happy to,” I said as Grace frowned a little.
 
Clearly she wasn’t finished questioning
the woman, either, but we couldn’t exactly hold her there against her
will.
 
“Grace, would you mind
dropping me off at my Jeep on the way?”

“I’d be happy to, or we could go get it together after we take Zelda
home.”
 
The implication was clear.
 
Grace knew that I was up to something,
and she wanted to be a part of it.
 
Ordinarily, I would have welcomed her presence, but for my talk with
George, I knew that I needed to be alone.

“Thanks, but there’s something I need to do on my own,” I said.

Grace seemed to understand, even if she clearly didn’t like it.
 
“Let’s all go, then.”

“Thanks for the lift,” I said as Grace parked near my Jeep.
 
The crowd had finally dispersed, though
it was clear that there was still a heavy police presence at the library, even
at that late an hour.

“Any time.
 
Call me when you
get in tonight, no matter how late it might be.”

I glanced at my watch.
 
It was
just past eight, but I knew what she meant.
 
It might not be late for most folks, but
I was seriously cutting into my sleep.
 
After all, I’d have to be up too soon to start making donuts again, but
I was just going to have to deal with being a little sleep deprived tomorrow.

I still had something important to do tonight.

“May I come in?” I asked George as he answered the door.

“Suzanne, isn’t this kind of late for you to still be up?”

“Ordinarily it’s true, but there’s something that we need to talk about,
and it can’t wait another minute,” I said as I stepped past him inside.
 
The mayor lived alone, and it showed, with
books and magazines spread out on nearly every horizontal space in the
place.
 
I was surprised it wasn’t
tidier than it was, though, given the fact that he had a girlfriend he saw on a
regular basis.

“Excuse the mess, but Polly’s out of town again visiting family,” George
explained.

I knew that his secretary, and his love interest as well, had been
spending quite a bit of time out of town with her grandchildren lately.
 
“I’m sure that you miss her when she’s
gone.”

“It’s true.
 
Now, what can I
do for you?” he asked as he shuffled a few magazines off two chairs and
motioned for me to sit down.

There was no use beating around the bush.
 
“I heard that you and Chester Martin had
a huge argument this afternoon.”

George looked angry when I mentioned it, and it was clear in his tone
that he wasn’t all that happy about me bringing it up now.
 
“That blasted Zelda Marks couldn’t keep
her mouth shut if her life depended on it.”

“I didn’t say that Zelda told me anything,” I said.

He looked at me sharply.
 
“If
it wasn’t her, then who could it possibly have been?”

“George, is that really what’s important right now?
 
What I need to know is if it’s true.”

“It’s true,” the mayor admitted, clearly disgusted about something.

“What were you two fighting about?” I asked.

“Suzanne, sorry for being rude, but I don’t see how that’s any of your
business.”

George could be abrupt to the point of insolence, but I wasn’t going to
let that stop me from getting an answer to my question.
 
“Maybe not, but even if you don’t tell
me, what do you think the odds are of me not saying something to Jake?”

“You’d actually betray our friendship that way?” he asked me.

“Hey, if you don’t have anything to hide, you’re the one who is out of
line here.
 
If it’s innocent, tell
me and I’ll drop it, but if it’s not, then it’s fair game as far as I’m
concerned.”

“Should I regret hiring Jake as our interim chief?” he asked me with a
hint of steel in his voice.

“Not if you want the murderer caught,” I said.
 
“Now, are you just being stubborn, or do
you have something to hide?”

“Stubborn, I guess,” George said as he melted a little.
 
I knew the man well enough to know that
it was important to keep my mouth shut at that point.
 
He’d tell me what I wanted to know
now.
 
It was just a matter of giving
him a little time to come to grips with it.
 
After a full minute, my instincts paid
off and George began to explain.
 
“I
don’t know if you realize it, but Chester and I go way back,” he began.
 
“We’d been friends long enough that when
he was making a fool of himself, I took it upon myself to call him on it.”

“What was he doing that you didn’t approve of?” I asked the mayor.

“That was between the two of us,” George said stubbornly.

“Need I remind you that you were a cop once upon a time?” I asked
him.
 
“Do you think for one second
that excuse is going to work with me?”

“Suzanne, you’re not a cop,” George said.
 
There was a hint of a grin hiding behind
his mask, but I chose to ignore it.

“No, but Jake is, and we both know that you aren’t going to be able to
stonewall him.
 
You might be able to
fire him, but there’s no way that you’re going to tell him what to do.”

“That’s true enough,” George said, and then let out a sigh.
 
“I might as well tell you, then, but
it’s not going to look good on Chester or me.”

“I can deal with that if you can,” I said.
 
“All I want is the truth.”

“That might be harder to come by than you think,” George said.

“Are you seriously trying to stall me?
 
Just tell me,” I urged him.

“Fine,” George said.
 
“I was
there to tell him that he needed to straighten up and get his act together
before something bad happened to him.”

“I’m guessing that he didn’t like you interfering in his life, did he?”

“He lost it, Suzanne.
 
It was
bad enough when I told him that he needed to quit cheating on Shelly, but when
I said that pushing Vince Dade was going to be the end of him, he started
yelling at me to mind my own business.”

“So you were just looking out for his best interests, is that it?” I
asked the mayor.
 
Knowing George, it
was easy enough to imagine that what he was telling me was true.
 
Unfortunately, Zelda had heard the
confrontation, and she’d taken something very different from it.
 
True or not, Jake needed to know about it.
 
“I have to tell Jake.
 
You realize that, don’t you?”