A Slice of Murder (18 page)

“Is it David Quinton?” I asked without really thinking the question through.

“No,” Maddy said as she looked at me oddly. “Why, was he supposed to come by tonight?”

“Not that I know of,” I said, trying to bury my question to her.

Of course, she wasn’t about to let that go. “He really shook you up coming here with a date, didn’t he?”

“No,” I said a little louder than I should have. “He’s free to see whoever he wants to. It’s not like it’s any of my business.”

“If that’s true, then why are you so worked up over it?”

“I’m not,” I snapped, then took a few deep breaths before speaking again. In a calmer voice, I repeated, “I’m not. I was just asking. Who wants to see me?”

At that moment, the kitchen door opened and Bob Pickering came through, dangling a set of keys in front of him. “Did anyone here order a car with a brand new driver’s-side window?”

“That’s me,” I said. “But you’d better keep your key. I might need you to bail me out again.”

“No time soon, I hope. My supplier told me it would take him at least four days to get another window in stock. I won’t even tell you the snide comments he made about my workmanship.”

“It wasn’t your fault,” I said.

“I told him, but he didn’t believe me.”

“I’m sorry your reputation’s taking a hit on my account,” I said.

“Are you kidding? I have more customers than I can handle now. Maybe a little bad-news spread will get me home before ten o’clock at night.”

“I owe you a pizza,” I said as I dug into the refrigerator for the last of the dough I’d made that morning.

“Can I take a rain check?” he asked.

“Don’t tell me you’re tired of my pizzas after one night,” I said, halfway joking with him.

“It’s not that.” He looked around, but Maddy had taken off the second we’d started talking, no doubt because she knew there wouldn’t be anything discussed about the murder we were trying to solve. “It’s just that I have a hard time eating cheese after nine o’clock. I must be getting old. I’ve got hair growing where it never did before, and I’m developing the digestive tract my grandmother had.”

“My dad always used to say getting old wasn’t for sissies,” I said. “Not that I think you’re old.”

“It is amazing, isn’t it? When I was your age, I used to think sixty was ancient. Now that I’m approaching it, though, I still feel like the pup I used to be.” He smiled, then added, “Not that I haven’t lost some of my bark.”

“And bite as well, I’d wager,” I said. “The next time you’re in the mood for pizza, call me. If I haven’t heard from you in a week, I’ll make one and take it to your shop, so don’t try to get out of it.”

“No worries there.” He frowned, then asked, “How are you, Eleanor?”

I shrugged. “Being accused of murder and shot at in the same week has made this a pretty tough week to take, but I’ve had worse ones.”

He patted my shoulder, and I saw a tender side of him he normally never showed the world. “I know you have. I’m here if you need me, you understand that, don’t you?”

“I do,” I said, fighting the sudden urge to cry. It was amazing how being accused of murder could show me who my true friends really were, separating them from the ones who liked me only during the best of times.

“Then I’m off,” he said. As he walked out the door, he waved good-bye. “As much as I enjoy these little chats, let’s try to put the next one off for a while. At least over a car window. What do you say?”

“I’ll do my best, but I can’t make any promises.”

He left laughing, and I suddenly felt better myself. Sometimes all it took was a kind word to pull me out of my funk, and at the moment, I could use every one of them I could get. It was late, and I was worn out, but at least I had my Subaru back, and that meant a modicum of independence. I loved my sister with all my heart, but being with her around the clock was starting to wear on me, and I knew it was getting to her, too. We enjoyed our time together, but we needed some apart as well.

After we finished cleaning up, Maddy and I locked up, then walked through the powdery snow to our cars. Less than an inch had fallen, and none of it had stuck to the roads. Still, it was pretty where it lay, and I enjoyed seeing the gray reflections of it on my drive home.

As I walked up the steps, I felt my breath quicken a little.

Someone was sitting on my front porch, and the person had either cut the power to my house or disabled the motion-detecting light.

Either way, it was all I could do not to scream.

“You should really get that light fixed,” a voice said.

I felt my pulse start to slow when I realized that it was David Quinton.

“It was working last night,” I said. “What are you doing here, David?”

“I need to talk to you,” he said.

It was dark enough so that I could make out his basic shape, but I still wasn’t able to see his face, or his expression. “Can’t it wait until morning?”

“I doubt I’d get much sleep. Would you indulge me for one minute, if I promise to leave after I’ve had my say?”

I rubbed my hands together. “Fine. But at least come inside. I can make us some coffee so we can have a civilized conversation.”

“I’d rather we didn’t,” he said.

“What, be civilized?”

“No, go inside. What I have to say is best said in the shadows.”

I peered into the gloom, but though my eyesight had adjusted a little, it still wasn’t as sharp as I hoped. “You’re being awfully mysterious.”

“I don’t mean to be. What happened last night was a mistake. I never should have come to the Slice with a date.”

“Is that what this is about? David, you’re free to do whatever you like. You certainly don’t owe me any explanations.”

He stood and approached me, and I could smell his cologne. “I’d like to, though, don’t you see? Eleanor, if you just gave me one chance, I could convince you, but you won’t let me in.”

“It’s too soon,” I said, taking a step back.

He reached out and took my arm. “Don’t walk away from me. It’s not fair.”

I broke his grasp. “To who? You? I never gave you the slightest bit of encouragement, and you know it.”

His slight laugh held no amusement in it. “Trust me, you don’t have to convince me of that. I’m talking about you.” He tried to lighten his tone as he added, “All I’m asking for is one dinner out. If you have a terrible time, I’ll leave you alone. Think about it, Eleanor. Isn’t it worth that, just to get me out of your hair once and for all?”

I thought about the offer for a few seconds, then said, “Let me get this straight. If I have dinner with you, you’ll drop this pursuit for good. Are you willing to give me your word on that?”

“I am,” he said.

“Okay, then. After this mess with Richard Olsen is over, I’ll have dinner with you.”

“I was thinking more along the lines of tomorrow night.”

“Do you really think you should push your luck?”

His laugh this time was genuine. “If I hadn’t, you never would have agreed to go out with me in the first place.”

“It’s one date, David. Make no mistake about it.”

“Agreed. One date. Tomorrow night.”

“Fine,” I said as I brushed past him and started to put my key in the lock. The phone began to ring inside, and, of course, my haste made it twice as hard to fit my key into the lock. I finally got it open and turned to David. “You don’t have to wait here, you know.”

“I just want to make sure you get in safely.”

I shook my head, darted inside, and flipped on the light. From the light of the hallway filtering out onto the porch, I could see his smile as I closed the door.

I got to the phone just as it died. That was okay with me. If they didn’t want to leave a message, I felt no obligation to hit *69 and call them back.

The phone rang again as I hung it back up, and I snatched it from its cradle before it could ring again.

“Hello,” I said, perhaps with a bit more impatience than I should have.

“Where have you been?” my sister asked over the line.

“I just got home,” I said.

“You should have been inside five minutes ago.”

Was she kidding me? “Sorry I missed curfew, ‘Mom.’ Does that mean I can’t go to the spring dance?”

“Why were you late?”

So, for once, Maddy wasn’t in the mood to play. “Someone was waiting for me on the porch when I walked up to the house.”

“Are you all right?”

“Of course I am. It was David Quinton.”

Maddy asked, “At this time of night? What did he want?”

“He asked me out on a date,” I said.

“Poor guy, he must have skin as thick as a rhino’s.”

“I said yes.”

There was a pause on the other end, then I could hear her gasp. Agreeing to go out with David was just about worth that reaction alone. “You said what?”

“We’re having dinner together tomorrow night.” I said it as matter-of-factly as I could manage.

“Just like that? He finally wore you down, did he?”

“It’s not that at all,” I said as I collected the day’s mail that had been shoved through the slot in the door. Joe had installed a basket to catch it, a handy feature that wasn’t in keeping with the house’s history, not that I minded. Thinking of Joe made me wonder why I’d agreed to go out with someone else. “David promised me if I’d have dinner with him one time, he’d stop asking me out.”

“You’re going to give him a fair chance, aren’t you?” Maddy asked guardedly.

“At what, winning my heart? Be serious. That part of my life is over. This was just the most expedient way to get him off my back.”

“Well, as long as you’re going into this with an open mind, it should be fine.”

“It’s too late for sarcasm,” I said. “Now, unless there’s something besides a bed check going on here, I’m saying good night.”

“Night,” Maddy said. “And, Eleanor?”

“Yes?”

“I’m proud of you. It’s a big step.”

“It’s just dinner,” I said.

“It’s more than that, and you know it as well as I do, no matter how much you might protest otherwise.”

“I’m hanging up now,” I said, and then did exactly that.

Was Maddy right? Was I opening myself up to a new experience? No, I’d meant what I’d said. One dinner, and then David could move on to someone else.

That was all there was to it, and nothing more.

At least I thought so.

Well, maybe.

I guess I’d honestly just have to wait and see.

Without meaning to, I slept in the next morning. After tossing and turning most of the night, it ended up being one of those sleeps that I didn’t enjoy so much as endure. When I looked out the window, I saw that the snow was nearly all gone, leaving a dark and gray day behind in its wake.

I had breakfast, then decided to take a long shower to wash some of the cobwebs out of my mind. It wouldn’t do to be anything but 100 percent, especially since Maddy and I were going to redouble our efforts at solving the murder.

As I was drying off, I heard a large truck outside. When I peeked outside the bathroom window, I saw the recycling truck pulling away from in front of my house. Blast it all, not only had I forgotten to put my own trash and recycling out, but I still had those bundled newspapers from Richard Olsen’s place cluttering up my garage. Now I’d have to dodge the stacks another week. Throwing them out wasn’t an option, and we didn’t have a drive-up recycling center in our county, so I was stuck with them, at least for seven more days.

If the morning so far was any indication, I was in for a long and frustrating day. Boy, oh boy, David would certainly be getting a real treat tonight if the trends so far continued. I should be in rare form by dinnertime.

Maddy was getting ready to ring my bell as I opened the door to get the paper.

I spotted her empty hands. “What, you didn’t bring breakfast today?”

“There wasn’t really time,” she said. “Why didn’t you call me earlier? I can’t believe I overslept. Have you been waiting for me long?”

I shrugged. I wasn’t about to admit that I hadn’t been up all that long myself. “I didn’t mind. It gave me a chance to do a few things around the house.”

“Do you have any ideas where we should start?”

“I’ve got one,” I said. “I think we should try Penny Olsen’s place again.”

Maddy scowled slightly. “I still think we’re wasting our time. He was her ex-husband, Eleanor.”

“That gives her more reason than most folks to want him dead then, doesn’t it?”

Maddy shrugged. “We can try her shop, but I doubt she’s back from her trip.”

I grabbed my coat and locked the front door on our way out. “If she’s ever coming back.”

“What do you mean by that?”

“Think about it,” I said. “It’s a real possibility that she’s gone for good.”

“That would make her look guilty, don’t you think?”

“I do,” I said.

“Let’s go see.”

I headed for the garage when Maddy tapped my shoulder. “Why don’t we leave your car here and take mine? It deserves a rest after the last few days it’s been having.”

“I suppose so,” I said. “I was kind of looking forward to driving today, though.”

She tossed me her keys. “Then you can chauffeur me around for a change.”

I flipped the keys right back to her. “I don’t think so.”

“Then it’s settled—I’ll drive us in my car.”

It wasn’t an argument I cared about one way or the other, so I got in the passenger side and waited for my sister. She was probably right. The Subaru deserved a break, and maybe if I left it parked in my garage, the driver’s-side window would make it twenty-four hours before anything else happened to it.

As we neared Penny’s antique shop, Maddy said, “We need a backup plan in case she’s not there.”

“We can always talk to Sheila again.”

“If she’s still in town,” Maddy said.

“Everyone seems to be leaving, don’t they?”

“It looks like Timber Ridge isn’t the haven folks once thought it was,” Maddy said.

“It’s the reality of the world we live in these days,” I said. “No one’s really safe, are they? Sometimes I think it’s all just an illusion.”

“My, that’s a rather grim outlook. You’d better lose that attitude before your big date tonight. Want to talk about it?”