Lemon Meringue Pie Murder (Hannah Swensen Mysteries) (4 page)

A
ndrea pointed to a line marked with a blue checkmark. “You’re next, Hannah. Sign here.”

Hannah signed her name where Andrea indicated, right under the lines with the green, red, and purple checkmarks. Andrea had explained the color-coded system when they had first taken their seats at the tables in the rear of the cookie shop. Norman was green, Rhonda Scharf was red, Andrea was purple, and Hannah was blue. It seemed that Norman’s first step into the world of home ownership began with a polychromatic autograph assembly line, but he didn’t seem to mind. Hannah watched him smile as he signed his name on the next paper and when he looked up at her, she smiled back.

Howie Levine held his hand out for the paper she’d just signed and Hannah handed it over. Howie notarized the signatures and placed the paper on the stack of completed pages by his left elbow. The pile was growing with each passing minute. Hannah wondered how long it would take to top the one-inch mark.

Hannah glanced over at Rhonda Scharf and caught her checking her watch. It was clear Rhonda was pleased at selling her great-aunt’s property, but they’d been signing papers for the past fifteen minutes and the novelty had worn off. Rhonda had dressed for the occasion in a pink knit pantsuit with a cloud of iridescent butterflies appliquéd on the front. The largest and most colorful butterfly was perched just below the vee of her low-cut neckline and called attention to her considerable cleavage. Rhonda, at fifty, still had a voluptuous figure and she liked to show it off. The only jarring note was her shoes, lime green tennis shoes that had been dyed to match the smock Rhonda wore behind the cosmetic counter at Lake Eden Neighborhood Drugs.

“Only ten left.” Andrea signed and passed another document to Rhonda. Rhonda signed and handed it to Norman. When Norman had signed with the Rhodes Dental Clinic pen that Hannah had located, he handed the paper to her. From Hannah it went to Howie, who notarized it and placed it on the top of the stack.

It seemed to take forever, but at last they were almost finished. The only thing left was for Rhonda to sign the deed.

“Excuse me…Howie?” Rhonda hesitated, her pen poised over the deed. “Before I agreed to the sale, I asked Norman if I could go out there over the weekend to pick up a few family mementos. Do we need a separate agreement for that?”

Howie turned to Norman. “Is that all right with you?”

“Sure. I already told Rhonda that she could.”

“Then it shouldn’t be a problem. A verbal agreement is fine for something like that.”

“Okay. I just wanted to make sure,” Rhonda said and signed the deed.

Once the deed had joined the stack of completed papers and Rhonda was in possession of Norman’s cashier’s check, Howie pushed back his chair and stood up to shake hands with Rhonda and then with Norman. “I’ll file these papers today, but since it’s a Friday, you’ll have to wait until Monday morning to take possession.”

When Howie had left, Hannah turned to her sister. “Is that all?”

“That’s it.” Andrea looked relieved. “Congratulations on the sale, Rhonda. And congratulations to you, Norman. You bought a great piece of property.”

Hannah started to get up from the table, but Norman beat her to her feet. “The cookies are on me,” he announced, grinning at all the patrons in the shop. “I just bought my first house.”

“And I just sold my first house.” Rhonda stood up next to Norman. “I’ll pay for the cookies. Thanks to Norman, I’m the one with all his money.”

There was a burst of laughter from her customers and Hannah headed off to the counter, leaving Norman and Rhonda to hammer out the details. The Cookie Jar was packed with dozens of people who’d already paid, but Hannah didn’t know of a single one who would turn down the chance to have a free cookie. She called that phenomenon “buffet mentality.” You could be full to bursting, but if the food was all-you-can-eat, you’d pig out way past the point of comfort. It was the same mind set that caused women to fill their purses with free perfume samples they’d never try, and that gave guests at fixed-price New Year’s Eve parties champagne hangovers for the bowl games the next day.

Lisa was carrying coffee refills from table to table when Rhonda came up to the counter. “I won,” she said, looking pleased. “I’m paying for the first free cookie and Norman’s going to pay for the second.”

Hannah added up Rhonda’s bill. Once it had been settled, she expected Rhonda to leave, but Rhonda slid onto a stool at the counter.

“The house isn’t much,” she confided. “I don’t blame Norman for wanting to tear it down. It’d cost more to remodel than it’d ever be worth. It’s a nice piece of property though, and you’ll love the view. I hope you and Norman will be very happy in your new home.”

Warning bells rang in Hannah’s head. She knew she had to tread carefully. Rhonda wasn’t the biggest gossip in town, but she was definitely a contender. “It won’t be my home, Rhonda. All I did was design it with Norman.”

“But I thought…” Rhonda stopped speaking and began to frown. “When Norman told me he was building the house you designed for the contest, I just naturally assumed that…You aren’t going to marry him?”

“No.”

“But you’ll never find anybody nicer!”

“That’s probably true.”

“Then why won’t you marry him?”

Hannah sighed. Rhonda had the persistence of a door-to-door salesman. “Norman hasn’t asked me.”

“He
hasn’t?”
Rhonda looked shocked, but she covered it quickly and reached out to pat Hannah’s hand. “Don’t lose heart, dear. I know you’re nearly thirty and all of your friends are married, but I’m sure Norman’s just waiting until the house is built. As a matter of fact, I’m
sure
that’s what he’s doing.”

Hannah decided that it was best to change the subject. She was tired of being on the defensive about Norman’s failure to pop the question. “Congratulations on the sale, Rhonda. Are you planning to do something special with the money?”

“Yes. I’m taking a real vacation for the first time in my life and it’s a dream come true. Thanks to Norman I can afford it now and I booked the ticket last night. I leave Monday morning for Rome!”

Rhonda’s eyes lit up and Hannah caught some of her excitement. “That sounds wonderful. How long are you staying?”

“Two glorious weeks! That should give me enough time to see everything I’ve always wanted to see.” Rhonda reached for her purse and slung it over her shoulder. “I’ve got to run or I’ll be late to work. If I don’t see you before I leave,
bon voyage.”

Hannah bit back a grin as Rhonda slid off the stood and walked toward the door.
Bon voyage
meant “good voyage” and she should have said it to Rhonda, not the other way around.

Once Norman and Andrea had left, Hannah manned the counter in the cookie shop while Lisa went back to the kitchen to work on their Independence Day cookies. When the predictable lull came at eleven-thirty, Hannah stepped back to the kitchen to see the results.

“What do you think?” Lisa asked, putting the finishing touches on the last tray of cookies.

“They’re perfect. No one would ever know they’re recycled.”

“I gave a couple of my mistakes to Freddy and Jed.” Lisa motioned toward the pantry where Freddy and his cousin were hanging the new shelves that Hannah had bought. “I’ll deliver our cookie orders if you want to stay here.”

“That’s fine with me. Did you mention that ceiling fan?”

Lisa shook her head. “No, I forgot all about it.”

“I’ll tell them. This would be a good time to fix it.”

A few minutes later, the ladder had been set up in the cookie shop and Freddy steadied it while Jed climbed up to look at the defective fan. He yanked the pull cord, but the blades didn’t move. Then he loosened the screws on the hub and peered inside.

Freddy looked anxious as he watched Jed overhead and Hannah put her hand on his arm to reassure him. “Don’t worry, Freddy. I’m sure Jed can fix it.”

“But I’m the one that did that fan,” Freddy sounded every bit as upset as he looked. “I must have done it wrong.”

Jed looked down at his cousin. “No, you did it right. The wires came loose, that’s all. It could have happened to anyone. I’ll fix it and it’ll work just fine.”

“But I should fix it,” Freddy insisted. “It’s my fan and a man’s got to stand behind his work.”

Jed smiled and Hannah could tell that he approved of what Freddy had said. “You’re right, buddy. I’ll come down and you can fix it. Hold the ladder like I taught you, okay?”

“Okay. I’m holding it, Jed.”

As Freddy gripped the ladder tightly, Hannah realized that he looked different. His hair was shorter and his clothes were clean, but there was another change. Freddy was dressing better now that Jed had moved in with him. Instead of donning the baggy green trousers and old work shirts that had belonged to his father, Freddy now had jeans that fit him and cotton knit shirts with a pocket in the front. He even had new work boots that had replaced his battered old tennis shoes.

“Good job, Freddy.” Jed stepped off the ladder and patted Freddy on the back. “That ladder didn’t move an inch.”

“Nope. I held it real tight, just the way you taught me.”

Jed walked over to his toolbox and removed a rubber-handled screwdriver and a roll of black electrical tape. “Where’s your tool belt, Freddy?”

“Gotta think…” Freddy stared up at the ceiling for a moment. “It’s in the pantry, Jed. You told me to take it off when it bumped you.”

“Right. Go get it, then. You’re going to need it to carry tools up the ladder.”

Hannah waited until Freddy had gone back to the kitchen and then turned to Jed with concern. “Are you sure Freddy should be working with electricity? It’s pretty dangerous.”

“As long as I’m here, he’ll be fine. Freddy knows better than to try it alone.”

Hannah studied the young man standing in front of her. He was like a savvier, more animated version of Freddy and no one would doubt that they were cousins. They had the same athletic build, the same sandy hair, and the same blue-gray eyes. They were both just under six feet tall and they were dressed the same, whether it was planned or by accident. The only difference was that Freddy’s face was fuller, more childish, and Jed’s features were sharply defined.

“Look, Hannah…” Jed reached out to place his hand on her arm. “It’s good for Freddy to learn new things. Everyone in Lake Eden protects him just like his mother did and that holds him back. I know you do it out of kindness, but that’s not really helping Freddy in the long run.”

Hannah sighed. Jed had a point. “Maybe you’re right. We’re just concerned, that’s all.”

“Well, you can relax now. I’m here and I’m going to take care of Freddy. He’s my buddy. We played together when we were kids and I’ve always liked him. I want to see him lead a good life and do all that he can do.”

“I got it, Jed.” Freddy came through the door with a smile on his face. His tool belt was buckled around his waist and he looked determined to tackle the defective ceiling fan.

“Good.” Jed handed him the screwdriver and the tape. “Find a place for this on your belt. Do you remember what to do when you get to the top of the ladder?”

“I remember. First you turn off the power.”

“That’s right. Hold on a second and I’ll throw the circuit.”

Once Jed had turned off the power, Hannah stood to the side and watched as Freddy climbed the ladder. He was a bit more hesitant than Jed had been, watching every step to make sure his feet were in place, but he climbed up steadily.

“Do you see those two wires hanging down from the hub on the fan?”

“I see ’em, Jed.”

“Wind the black one around the base of the black screw and tighten it down. When you’re through with that, put a strip of tape over it so it doesn’t come loose. Do the same with the red wire and the red screw.”

“Okay. I can do that.”

Hannah watched as Freddy tackled the job. It took him a while, but he was wearing a big smile when he’d finished. “I did it, Jed.”

“Yes, you did. Come on down, Freddy.”

“Okay. I’ll take it real slow, Jed. Getting down is a lot harder than getting up. My head’s up so high I can’t see where my feet are going.”

“Can you get down on your own? Or should I help you with your feet?”

Freddy looked confused and Hannah could understand why. Jed had asked two conflicting questions and now Freddy had to decide which one to answer first.

“Yes, I can get down,” Freddy answered at last. “And no, I don’t need you to help. Here I come, Jed.”

Both Hannah and Jed watched as Freddy climbed down the ladder. There was a proud smile on his face, but he gave a big sigh of relief when his feet touched the ground. “Can I be the one to test it?”

“Sure,” Jed said. “Let me turn on the juice and then you can try the wall switch.”

Once Jed had given him the okay, Freddy flicked the switch and the blades started to revolve in perfect tandem with the other ceiling fans. “Look at that. I did it! Was that good, Jed?”