Chapter 1 Read online

  Table of Contents

  Title Page

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Get Early Access to My Books For FREE!

  Every two weeks you’ll get a new Cozy Novella from me absolutely FREE.

  Sign up now! http://bit.ly/SusanDGillard

  Disclaimer: This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.

  Copyright 2017 by Guardian Publishing Group - All rights reserved.

  All rights Reserved. No part of this publication or the information in it may be quoted from or reproduced in any form by means such as printing, scanning, photocopying or otherwise without prior written permission of the copyright holder.

  Table of Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 1

  “It’s a regular chip off the old block,” Eva said with an impish grin. Her eyes twinkled behind her wrinkles.

  Heather was so focused on preparing the coffee order at breakneck speed that it took a moment for her to understand what her favorite customer was referring to. Heather let out a noise that was half laugh and half groan as she plated up her newest confectionary creation: a Chocolate Chip Custard Donut.

  “With a joke like that, I’m going to have to accuse you of spending too much time with Amy.” Heather joked back.

  She looked around to see if her bestie had arrived at Donut Delights yet, but it looked like Amy was running late from her errand. It wasn’t unlike her if there were fast cars to admire on the way back, or if there was a new tasty treat to try. In fact, sugary sampling could lead to the inspiration for a new donut, so that might even be considered work related. Luckily the two P.I.s weren’t involved in a current ongoing investigation, so Heather didn’t have to worry about anything case-related happening to her friend. Unless Lyle Clarke was up to something...

  Heather shook her head and pushed those thoughts away from it. She wasn’t going to let that Mafioso-esque contractor make her paranoid, or to spoil her morning. Instead, she listened to Eva laugh about her Amy-like joke.

  Heather put her hand on her hip in mock annoyance and said “And in this donut old block scenario, am I the old block? Or are you suggesting I have a gooey center?”

  “I’m suggesting that, like chocolate, you are sweet, can give a boost of joy, and are a necessary part of this morning.”

  That made Heather smile.

  Leila joined them at the counter and took her usual spot - attached to her best friend Eva’s hip. She balanced a pile of magazines in her arms and asked, “Did I miss it?”

  “Miss what?”

  “The grand introduction of this week’s donut.”

  Heather assured her she had only missed some silly jokes. She wasn’t sure that her donut descriptions were “grand,” but the taste of the donut should speak for itself and she could add a little flavor about how she made it.

  “The Chocolate Chip Custard Donut starts with a chocolate donut base and then inside is vanilla custard with tiny chocolate chips mixed inside. The custard is thick enough that you would consider it custard, but not so much that it makes this treat feel heavy.”

  “Good. Because I think we’ll want to eat several.” Eva said, licking her lips.

  “It’s drizzled with vanilla and chocolate icing, and is of course covered with more chocolate chips.”

  “It sounds so delicious that I want to throw these magazines away to get my hands on those donuts quicker,” Leila said, threatening to do so.

  “How about I just bring your order to your table?” Heather said, picking up the plates and leading the way to their usual spot.

  The ladies tried the Chocolate Chip Custard Donuts and gushed about its deliciousness. They also agreed it was the perfect donut to accompany their rebuilding and redecorating discussion. They flipped through the pages of the home décor magazines in between chocolatey bites.

  “We might as well look at what the ideal rebuild would look like,” Eva explained. “We can be more realistic when we see how much the insurance will pay.”

  “Excellent idea.” Leila nodded. “I think we should install a tower!”

  “What? With our knees!”

  Heather admired their resilience. Eva and Leila’s home had unluckily been the scene of a crime and had been set on fire in an attempt to cover up evidence. It made Heather’s blood boil just to think about it. While her two friends were obviously bothered by what had happened, they weren’t letting it get them down. Instead, they were focusing on fixing the damage and moving forward. They were an inspiration.

  She wished there was more she could do for the ladies. True, she was letting them stay at her house until things were settled, but her daughter Lilly had so much fun with these sleepovers that it often seemed more like a party than a favor.

  Heather wandered back to the counter and away from her friends who were discussing the benefits of installing a moat around a house. She added a note to her mental to-do list about helping them bring the house back to its former glory. It was on the list right next to “put Lyle Clarke behind bars” and “use caramel in a new creation.”

  She was pulled out of planning mode when she saw her bestie entering. Amy had the bag of assorted office supplies they needed and a bounce in her step.

  “You know, I think I’m really getting the hang of this investigator stuff,” Amy said, grinning from ear to ear. “But before you say it – no, it wasn’t that I found the store and solved the case of finding the paper clips we needed.”

  “I would never make a joke like that,” Heather assured her.

  “I solved a mystery all by myself.”

  Heather’s face must have shown a mixture of pride and shock at this announcement. Was her bestie putting herself in harm’s way when she was alone? Heather might have to run her own store errands from now on.

  “Just a mini mystery. Not a murder. I wouldn’t leave you behind for that.”

  Heather chuckled and then listened to Ames describe her mini case. Heather was always amazed how easily Amy could befriend people, and it seemed it happened at the office supply store that morning.

  “The manager’s lunch kept getting stolen from the fridge. Not a call-the-police sort of crime, but it was a prank that was getting annoying. So the manager installed one of their cameras from the store in the break room to see who was taking it. That’s when it got weird because nothing was appearing on the video. That’s when I made the genius deduction that it had to be an employee who was trained to use the video equipment.”

  “That was smart.”

  “I know. I’m a smart cookie. Or maybe a smart donut by this point. Well, there are only a few people at the store who know the video equipment. So then it was just a process of elimination—�
�

  Her story was interrupted by something even more dramatic. The shop door made a loud bang as it was pushed open with force. An irate man barged in yelling. Then he pointed directly at Amy.

  “Thief!”

  Chapter 2

  Amy looked as confused as Heather did. The man kept screaming at Amy and calling her a thief, but he added some distraught pacing in for good measure in between insults.

  “Sir,” Heather said, taking action and a step forward. “Please calm down.”

  “Calm down.” He said, throwing his arms up. “The Hillside Private Eye wants me to calm down.”

  His entrance had been such a confusing moment that Heather didn’t realize she had met this man before, but when he called her the “Hillside Private Eye” the memory jogged up to meet her.

  “Kelly Lemon?”

  “Inspector Lemon.” He corrected. “Or at least it was until she stuck her nose in where it didn’t belong.”

  “You need to stop pointing at me,” Amy said. “Didn’t your mother teach you that it’s rude?”

  Heather was not only concerned about her bestie but about her customers in the store. Some were looking pointedly at their donuts, trying to seem invisible. Others were scooting their chairs away while watching this gossip-worthy scene unfold. Eva and Leila had put their magazines away and were waiting to be called in to help. Heather knew she needed to contain this situation.

  “Inspector Lemon, you’re causing a disturbance. We can either sit down and discuss whatever is troubling you rationally or you’re going to have to leave. I’ll call the police if I have to.”

  “Yes, the police. You’re such good friends with the police. Tell me that isn’t an unfair advantage for an investigator.” He did sit down but made no effort to lower his voice as he continued to rage his grievances. “No one tows your car just because you were parked in a no-parking-zone for ten hours. It was a stake out! Police should understand a stakeout. It’s not fair!”

  Heather and Amy joined him at the table, as a wary assistant took control of the counter. Heather was confident that Maricela would phone for help if things escalated, but she has hopeful that she and Amy could calm Inspector Lemon down.

  Heather thought back to the last time she had encountered Kelly Lemon and fully appreciated how much had changed since then. Inspector Lemon had put her and her sleuthing skills on a pedestal back then, but now he was willing to sling insults in her place of business. He looked even worse for wear than the last time they had seen him too. His coat was more patches than a coat, and his shoes looked like they were falling apart. The angry mutterings coming from his mouth at the moment weren’t helping the look either.

  “Inspector Lemon, what is the matter?”

  “You’re the great detective, why don’t you figure it out?” He scoffed. But before they had a chance to answer, he started yelling again. “She stole my case!”

  “What are you talking about?” Amy said.

  “Inspector, we work on our cases with the Hillside Police Department. We’re their consultants. There shouldn’t be any overlap between our jobs.”

  “Not with the police. With the refrigerator! At the office supply store.”

  If Amy and Heather had been drinking at the moment, it would have been the perfect opportunity for a spit-take. Their mouths opened involuntarily in surprise, and they looked at each other. Was he serious? Amy had been proud of discovering who the lunch-bandit was, but that wasn’t a real case. She was just helping a neighbor with his small annoyance. It wasn’t something that a serious investigator should be investigating.

  “You were looking into the missing lunches?” Heather finally got the words out.

  “Well, I was about to. I heard there was a case that needed to be cracked, and I was the one who was going to crack it. I talked to the manager that morning, and he was considering hiring me. Just as long as my fees didn’t cost more than the lunch that was disappearing.”

  Heather felt a wave of pity. If Inspector Lemon was willing to work for the price of a sandwich, then he must have fallen on tough times indeed. Her pity disappeared as he started insulting her best friend again.

  “But then this nosy irritation stole it from me. She was just your Gal Pal. Now she’s parading around as an investigator.”

  “I am a real private investigator. And a real good one if I could solve in two minutes what you couldn’t.”

  “I could have solved it!” He said jumping up from his chair. “If I had the resources, you did.”

  “What? A brain?” Amy said, losing patience.

  “That attitude is going to get you into trouble one of these days.”

  “Is that a threat?”

  “If I wanted to threaten you, I’d tell you to stay out of my way. I’ll prove what a good investigator I am. I’ll go after the big fish. The biggest fish in the sea. The great white of them. Shark.”

  He struggled to complete his metaphor, and Amy used the opportunity for another snarky retort. “What? The case of where the missing hotel towels went?”

  “Listen, if you get in my way—“

  “No, you listen!” Amy said, matching his volume. “I’m done with these false accusations and dealing with your jealousy. We’re the real investigators here. You stay out of our way. If you don’t, if you come near our loved ones or us again, you’re going to be sorry.”

  Inspector Lemon narrowed his eyes, but couldn’t come up with a witty retort. He left the donut shop but did kick the door on his way out for good measure.

  Donut Delights returned to normal, and the customers resumed their munching with more enthusiasm. Amy took a deep breath to calm herself back to normal too. Then she turned to face Heather who had crossed her arms, and a look of worry had crossed her brow.

  “What?”

  “I don’t think you did anything wrong this morning, but do you really think it was a good idea to instigate him like that just now?”

  “Whatever. After all we’ve been through? Lyle Clarke’s threats to your family. The arson at Eva’s house. The constant murder cases. I’m not taking any guff from anyone anymore. Lemon might as well know it too.”

  “Did you say guff to lighten the mood?”

  “I did.”

  “I think it’s working.” Heather conceded. She went with Amy to join Eva and Leila so they could assure them that they were all right, and to enjoy some well-deserved chocolate.

  However Heather couldn’t shake the feeling that this wasn’t the last that they were going to hear about this altercation, and that something bad might happen. She hated that these feelings were normally accurate.

  Chapter 3

  “What’s wrong?” Amy asked. “You’re unusually quiet for not having a case to obsess over.”

  Heather sighed. She hadn’t realized she had been zoning out during their walk. Dave and Cupcake hadn’t noticed her distraction either. The dog and cat had happily been sniffing a patch of grass. What made that spot so interesting was a mystery that Heather didn’t feel like investigating.

  They continued walking the contented animals, while Heather struggled to put words to her feelings. “I am happy we had a little lull from murder investigations. Last night was another wonderful sleepover with Lils, Eva, and Leila.”

  She didn’t voice it, but she was also happy that screaming match with Inspector Lemon yesterday hadn’t resulted in any unpleasant consequences. Perhaps that worried feeling before was just the result of dealing with so many stressful events recently. No, that wasn’t the cause for the distraction.

  “I wish I could fix things for Eva and Leila.” She said finally. “They don’t complain, but I know that what happened to their house is upsetting them. I love them and they’re so good with Lilly. Yesterday they helped enact one of her dinosaur detective stories. Eva’s raptor impression is one of the best things I’ve seen. Possibly only topped by Leila’s pterodactyl.”

  “I wish I could have seen that! Did she fly around the room?”
r />   “Jumped from cushion to cushion with more spryness that I would have expected.” She basked in the glow of the memory, and then reluctantly came back to reality. “I wish I had a magic wand that I could wave and fix their house instantaneously.”

  “I don’t know what we can do about a wand, but I know that we’ll come up with something that we can do to help.”

  Those words coming from someone she trusted made her believe that they would solve this situation with the skill they use in solving every case. First, though, she wanted to give her bestie some well-deserved attention that she had denied with her distracted thoughts.

  “How was your Jamie date night yesterday?”

  “Delicious food. And while I couldn’t convince him to watch Beaches, we did something just as exciting and started looking online for an apartment.”

  “Any leads?” She chortled thinking about how the investigative term also related to house hunting. However, she was more than excited to hear details about Ames and Jamie’s move in plans.