A Chili Death: A Classic Diner Mystery (16 page)

“It’s Francie Humphries.”

I stopped before I got to the door.  “Greg, she’s on my list of suspects.  There is no way I’m going out there.”

“Sorry, I didn’t even think of that.  Don’t worry, I’ll handle it.”

I had second thoughts about having Greg do my dirty work.  What if she did something to him, and I’d been the one to send him out there?  “That’s okay. I’ll talk to her.”

“No, you’re right.  This is crazy.  If she wants to talk to you, she can do it out in the open in broad daylight.”

I couldn’t stop him from going outside, but that didn’t mean that I wasn’t going to follow him.

“Where is she?” I asked as I looked around our porch and yard.

“She was here a second ago,” Greg said, and then louder, he called out, “Francie?  We’re right here.  It’s okay.  Come on out.”

There was no reply.

“What do we do now?” Greg asked.

“I don’t know about you, but I’m not going to go out searching the streets looking for her.  If she wants to talk to me, she can call, or better yet, come by the diner when we’re open.  Come on back inside; it’s freezing out here.”

Greg followed me back in, rubbing his hands together.  “The temperature’s really falling.  How about a fire?”

“That sounds wonderful.”

He got out the matches as he said, “Coming right up.  I love having a stack of kindling waiting for us.”  As Greg lit the fire, our home phone rang. 

“Hello?” I asked.

“Why wouldn’t you come out?” Francie asked plaintively. 

“Why did you take off all of a sudden like that?” I countered.

“A car drove by, and I was afraid that it was someone out looking for me.”

“Francie, why are you acting so paranoid?” I asked, even though what I should have asked was why she was being even more paranoid than was usual for her.  “Do you know something that we don’t?”

She paused, and then said, “Honestly?  I’m not sure.”

“What does that mean?” I asked.  There was a hitch in Francie’s breathing as she spoke, and I wondered if she was having some kind of panic attack.

“It’s too complicated to discuss over the phone,” she said.

“Then come back here,” I said, making a snap decision.  “I’ll let you in the house this time.  I promise.”

“No, it’s not safe.”

That was a switch.  Was it possible that she didn’t trust us?  “We aren’t going to hurt you, Francie.”

“Sorry.  I’ve got to go,” she said, and then she hung up on me.

“What was that all about?” Greg asked.

“I hate to ask, but can you kill that fire?”

My husband looked at the growing blaze, and then he frowned.  “I guess I could.  Is there a good reason to?”

“I think Francie might be in trouble.  She could need our help.”

Greg nodded, got up and grabbed a pitcher of ice water we kept in the fridge.  After judiciously pouring it on the growing flames, I grabbed a towel and mopped up a little water that had escaped the fireplace.  “I’m sorry we can’t stay here and enjoy that.”

“We’ll do it soon,” he said.  “Now, I know that you and Moose are investigating this together, but I’m free right now.  Can I go with you instead of your grandfather?”

I made an executive decision on the spot, and hoped that my grandfather would understand.  “I’d like that a lot,” I answered.

I didn’t think there’d been any hesitation in my voice, but Greg must have sensed some.  “Call Moose and get his blessing.  It’s the only way we’re going to ever hear the end of it.”

“You’re right,” I said and dialed my grandfather’s number.

“Moose, Francie Humphries came by the house, but she took off before she’d tell us anything.  Greg and I are going to go try to track her down.  Are you okay with that?”

“Are you sure that you don’t need me?” he asked.

“We can handle it,” I assured him.

“Then give me a call after you’ve talked to her.”

For some reason, that had just been too easy.  “What’s going on?”

“What do you mean?” he asked.

“I know you.  There’s no way in the world that you’re okay with this, unless you know something that I don’t.”

“I don’t think Francie did it,” Moose admitted.

“What makes you so sure of that?”

Moose kept hesitating, and then finally, he said, “I happened to run into Pete Hampton on my way home from the diner.”  Pete was the one who’d been holding the birthday party for his daughter, the one Francie had been working on in the back of Iced alone.

“We’ll talk about that particular odd coincidence in a second,” I said.  “What did Pete have to say?”

“He came by the bakery early to pick up the cupcakes, but it was clear that Francie wasn’t done.  Pete was afraid to go home, you know how his wife can be, so he stood outside and waited until they were finished.”

“But she was in the back, working alone,” I said.

“Yeah, but she must have left the door between the sales counter and the back open because Pete swears he saw her the entire time.”

“So, she couldn’t have killed Howard Lance,” I said.

“No way.  She’s got a solid alibi, even if she doesn’t realize it yet.”

“And when exactly were you planning to tell me this, Moose?  If I’d known that earlier, I wouldn’t have been so cautious about letting Francie inside my house, and she wouldn’t be out there right now feeling as though she were in serious danger before she could even tell me what was going on.”

There was a long pause, and then my grandfather said, “To tell you the truth, I was saving it for morning.  I messed up, didn’t I, Victoria?”

He had indeed, but I wasn’t about to rub it in.  “Don’t worry, Greg and I will find her.”

“I’m going to go out looking, too.  After all, it’s kind of my fault that she might be in trouble right now.  Should I come pick you two up, or should we split up and look separately?”

There was real merit in dividing our forces, but I hated to think that Moose might be out there somewhere by himself.  “Why don’t you call Dad and have him join you?”

“I don’t need your father to keep me company.  I’m a grown man, remember?”

“Fine, have it your way, but if your pride keeps us from finding Francie in time, it’s going to be squarely on your shoulders, Moose.”

He took a deep breath, and then reluctantly said, “I’ll go get him.”

“Good, that’s settled.  And Moose, one more thing.”

“What’s that?”

“If you hear the slightest whisper about where Francie might be, you need to call me, and I mean immediately.  Is that understood?”

“Yes, of course.  I’m sorry, Victoria.”

“Don’t be sorry,” I said, “Just don’t do it again.”

Greg was smiling when I got off the phone. 

“What is it?” I asked him.

“Nothing at all,” he said, stifling his grin.  “Let’s go.”

Whatever it was, I decided to let it slide.  “I’m ready.  The only problem is that I don’t know where to look.”

Greg nodded as we walked out, and he locked the door behind us.  I hated leaving our snug little nest for the chilly autumn air, but I didn’t feel as though we had any real choice. 

As Greg started the car, he said, “I’ve got a thought, but I’m afraid that it doesn’t make any sense.”

“Go on.  Tell me anyway.”

“Where do you think Francie feels safest in all of the world?”

“Do you think that she went home?”

Greg shook his head.  “No, I’m talking about the bakery.”

“Isn’t that the first place someone would look for her if they really are after her?”

“Maybe, but would Francie realize that?  What do we have to lose?”

“Not a thing in the world,” I said.  “Given that logic, let’s check out her place first, since it’s on the way.”

“Sounds good to me.”

“I hope you’re right, Greg,” I said, remembering how frightened Francie had sounded.

“You and me both.”

Francie’s place was dark when we got there, but Greg and I got out and checked anyway.  After knocking on the front door repeatedly and ringing the bell, it was clear that if she were there, she wasn’t coming out.

“Let’s go to the bakery, then,” Greg said.

The results there were different, much to my relief.  As we parked down the block and walked toward her shop, I could see a hint of light coming from inside.  As we neared the bakery, it was clear that Francie was in back.  The door was cracked open just enough to see her sitting in one corner, slumped down in a chair.  I banged on the door with my fist, but she didn’t move. 

Something was wrong.

“Greg, what should we do?”

“Don’t panic,” he said as he tried the front door, only to find it locked.

“I’m calling Sheriff Croft,” I said as I grabbed my cell phone.

“Hold on a second,” Greg said. “Let’s go around back and try that door first.”

I kept my phone in my hand as we made our way to the back of the shop.  Guilt flooded through me for turning her away, and I knew that later I’d feel a flood of regret for my part in it, but for the moment, I just wanted to get to Francie to see what had happened to her.

“It’s open,” Greg said in surprise when he tried the door.  We both rushed in to where Francie sat, and I called her name again as I reached out and touched her shoulder.

She jerked at the touch of my hand, and as her eyes opened wide, I saw the twin tracings of thin wire coming from the speakers in her ears.  She had an iPod in, and had evidently cranked it up to its highest volume. 

“What are you two doing here?” she asked as she pulled the speaker bud out of her ears.

“What were you listening to?” I asked her.

“I had my Beethoven cranked all the way up,” she said.  “It soothes my nerves, but any good I got out of that is gone now.  You nearly scared me blind just now.”

“Sorry, but it was the only way to get your attention.”

Francie looked around, and then asked, “How did you two even get in here?”

“The back door was unlocked,” I said.  “I thought you didn’t feel safe.”

“I have to latch it from inside, and sometimes it doesn’t catch all the way,” she said. 

“What has you so spooked, Francie?” my husband asked her.

“I was reading a scary mystery novel, and all of a sudden, I had the feeling that someone was after me.  I panicked, and that’s when I came by your place.”

“Why would someone be after you?”

She looked distressed as she admitted, “Come on, everyone in town thinks I might have killed that evil man.”

“You shouldn’t have to worry about that anymore,” I said.  “It turns out that you have an alibi after all.”

“How is that possible?” she asked, clearly confused by my statement.

“Pete Hampton was out front watching you work.  Let me guess, that latch doesn’t work too well either, does it?”

She nodded.  “Boy, am I ever glad I never got that fixed.  So, is it true?  I’m really in the clear?”

“That’s how it sounds to us,” Greg said.

“Does the sheriff know?” she asked.

“I don’t know, but I’ll find out right now.”  I called Moose, and he picked up on the second ring.  Answering it, he said, “Your father is driving me crazy with questions.  You talk to him.”

Before I could protest, my dad was on the other end of the line.  “Victoria, your grandfather is exasperating beyond belief.”

“Join the club,” I said.  “Do me a favor and put him back on, Dad.”

“She wants to talk to you, but only Heaven above knows why,” I heard my dad say as he handed the phone back to his father.

“What is it?” Moose asked, the irritation plain to hear in his voice.

“We found Francie.”

“Is she okay?” Moose asked quickly.

“She’s fine, but she wants to know if Sheriff Croft knows about her alibi yet.”

“I told Pete to call him,” Moose said.

“Well, it might not be a bad idea to call the sheriff and make sure he got the message,” I said.

“How am I going to explain to him how I knew about it?” Moose asked.

“That’s your problem, isn’t it?  Call me as soon as you find out.  We’re staying with Francie until we know that it’s all clear.”

“I’ll handle it,” Moose said.

After I hung up, I asked, “Why don’t we all stay right here together until we know for sure?”

“Thanks.  I’d appreciate that,” Francie said.

My husband spoke up a few minutes later as he pointed to a tray of iced cupcakes.  “How much are those apiece?” he asked her.

“Greg, are you really that hungry?” I asked.

“Hey, I never had dessert tonight.”

“Don’t tell me that, I saw you sneaking a piece of apple pie as I was closing out the register report.”

“It’s not nice to spy on your husband,” Greg said with a grin.  “Besides, that was a new recipe I was trying out.  Trust me, it was entirely work-related.”