A Pizza to Die For (16 page)

“Okay, we’ll go,” I said.

“That’s the spirit. Now, the only thing left to decide is whether we’re going to kill him with kindness, or confront him the second we walk through the door.”

I thought about it for a few seconds. “As much as I’d love to blast him, I think we should wait and hear what he has to say,” I said. “We can play it by ear from there.”

“Agreed,” Maddy said.

As I got the dough out of the covered bowl and started to work it on the countertop, she said, “While you’re doing that, I’m going to make up a list of questions for him. There’s no sense going in there unprepared.”

“I agree,” I said. After a moment’s thought, I added, “I think we should take him a pizza, maybe one of those deep dish ones I made, just to show Gina what she’s up against.”

“Maybe you should take him a regular garbage one, instead,” Maddy said softly.

“Are you saying you don’t like my new pizza?”

She shook her head. “I’m not insane. I would never say that. All I’m saying is that it might be risky taking something you haven’t thoroughly tested.”

She had a point there. “Then I’ll make a few before we go, and we can see how they taste,” I said. “I actually have time now to let the dough rise, so we should be fine on that count.”

When Maddy couldn’t find any flaws with that argument, I got my old recipe book out again and leafed back to the deep dish section. Maybe I’d take one of each kind of pizza I made: a thin crust, a regular one, and a deep dish.

That, more than anything I could say, would show him that we meant business.

After the dough was ready, I made up the first batch of deep dish pizzas. “Maddy, ask anybody who comes in if they’d like to try a slice of deep dish,” I said as the pizzas started piling up in back. I’d made enough dough early on to make a dozen pizzas, and so far I had eight made.

“You’ve officially lost your mind, Eleanor,” she said as she looked at the pizzas stacked in the kitchen. The first five had been questionable in one way or another, and I’d decided not to serve them, but the last three were looking good.

“Come on, think of it as a public relations campaign for good will. We’re going to need every last customer we can get when Gina starts showing off that flashy new pizza oven and a chef who can spin dough in the air.”

“Okay, you might not be so crazy after all,” she said.

Another deep dish came out of the oven on its second trip through when Maddy came back in.

“Do you have any more orders for me?” I asked.

“Are you kidding? Did you honestly think people were going to buy pizza when we’re giving it away? Give me a hand, will you?”

I nodded as I cut the last pizza. “Come on. This will be fun.”

I started carrying pizzas out front, and Maddy and I delivered slices until everyone there had sampled some. There were nods and smiles all around, and I embraced the warmth of my customers.

Karen took hers with a smile. “Wow, you really have the gift,” she told me as I served her.

“It’s just pizza,” I said.

“Don’t ever say that. What you do transcends that.”

Her earnestness was a little too much for me. “How are your classes going at the college?” I asked.

“I’m learning something new every day,” she said with a grin. “It’s amazing how fascinating the world can be.”

“Any ideas on what classes you’ll be taking next semester?”

She smiled at me as she said, “Money management and investment sounds like fun.”

“If you say so,” I said as I moved to another table.

By the time we were out of pizza, several customers asked about ordering entire pies.

Maddy approached me back in the kitchen with a handful of orders. “You’ve created a monster out there. I hope you like making these things, because I’ve got a feeling they’re going on the menu for good.”

“Whatever keeps folks eating here is fine with me,” I said. Not that long ago, I’d been intimidated by the thick and gooey pizzas, but now that I’d mastered them, they were actually fun to make. I looked at the list of orders and realized that I might just have enough dough left and still have a new style of pizza to take to Nathan’s, but it was going to be close.

“Don’t take any more deep dish orders,” I told Maddy before I started working on the first one in line.

My sister frowned at me. “Do you think that’s wise? You’ve got them wanting it, and now you’re not going to deliver?”

I smiled at her. “In a way, their rarity will probably make them more desirable, don’t you think? If our customers can’t get them every day, they might order more when they know they’re available on a limited basis.”

Maddy shook her head as she heard my rationale. “I long ago gave up trying to figure out your reasoning.”

I lowered my voice. “Besides, the real reason is that I don’t have much dough left. Play along with me, okay?”

She nodded. “Got it. Sis, are you still intent on taking three pizzas to Nathan’s house?”

“Why? Do you think it’s a bad idea?”

Maddy laughed. “Believe it or not, I’ve come around to your way of thinking. That’s exactly the right move to make with him, bold and audacious.”

I went back to cranking out deep dish pizzas again. I owed my mystery customer from yesterday a debt. This new menu item might be enough to see us through some tough times ahead, and even if it didn’t, it had reignited my desire to keep the Slice open regardless of what was going on outside the pizzeria’s doors. Opening A Slice of Delight had been Joe’s idea, but I’d grown to love it over the years as something of my very own. It was just one more debt I owed Joe’s memory in a long line of things I was thankful for.

As our lunchtime closing neared, I made my last deep dish, and then added a thin crust and a regular pizza to the conveyor. I wanted everything to be fresh, hot, and ready to roll when we left.

Unfortunately, what I wasn’t counting on was another visit from our chief of police.

Chapter 14

“K
evin, I’d love to chat, but there’s someplace I need to be soon,” I said as he came back into my kitchen.

He looked at the oven and saw the deep dish pizza appear on its first pass through the oven. “It looks like you’re still busy.”

“Those are to go,” I said. “I’m leaving in eight minutes.”

“Then you have time to talk after all.”

I could tell he wasn’t about to leave until we had this conversation. “Fine. We can talk while I clean up.” I threw him a dish towel and smiled. “Would you like to dry?”

“Sure,” he said, surprising me.

“I was just kidding,” I said.

“I wasn’t.”

I started washing dishes, and after I rinsed them, I handed them to our chief of police, which he dutifully dried and stacked.

“You’re doing it again, aren’t you?” he said with an edge to his voice.

“Sorry, did I leave some soap on that one?”

“Eleanor, you know full well what I’m talking about. You just can’t keep your nose out of this case. Are you ever going to learn how dangerous that can be?”

I didn’t like the sound of that. “You’re not threatening me, are you?”

He snorted. “Of course not. But someone killed Judson Sizemore, and you’re taking too many risks with your life to try to find out who did it.”

That was an interesting twist on things. “So, you don’t think I did it anymore, is that what you’re saying?”

He shook his head. “Would I be standing here helping you with the dishes if I did? I’ve known you my entire life. I can’t imagine you killing him, at least not over pizza.”

“Don’t kid yourself. I take it pretty seriously,” I said as I handed him another plate to dry.

“Are you really trying to talk me into believing you did it?” he asked as he dried it and added it to the growing stack.

“No, I’m just saying this isn’t some kind of hobby for me. It’s become my life.”

“I know that,” he said. “But it wouldn’t make you a murderer.”

“What would?” I asked him.

“I can think of a few reasons. If someone threatened Maddy or Greg or even Josh, I could see you doing it.”

I nodded. “You’re right. They’re my family.” It was an odd thing to say to Josh’s father, but he understood exactly what I meant.

Kevin smiled as he said, “Trust me, my kid would walk through fire for you, and we both know it. That’s one reason I’d hate to see you get hurt.”

“Then why don’t we compare notes about the case? I might have uncovered some things you don’t know about yet,” I said. It was a crazy thing to say, and I knew it the second it left my mouth, but unfortunately, I couldn’t take it back.

He shook his head and dropped the dish towel on the counter. “You never know when to stop, do you?”

“I’ve had that problem in the past,” I said.

So much for the good mood that had existed between us, however briefly. As Kevin left, I wondered what had brought him to my kitchen in the first place. Had there been something he’d wanted to tell me, or was he fishing for something else? My comment had been out of line, and I’d known it, so now I would probably never find out why he’d visited.

At least the dishes were nearly done.

As the pizzas were ready, I moved them to boxes, and then to warming sleeves. Maddy came back just as I had them stacked and ready to go.

“What did our illustrious chief of police want?” she asked.

“He came by to help me do dishes,” I said.

Maddy frowned at me. “Be that way. Eleanor, if you don’t want to tell me, just say so.”

I told her what had happened, and she whistled softly. “Sometimes you’ve got the guts of a cat burglar.”

“That’s what it takes in this world, don’t you think?”

“If you say so.” She picked up the stack of pizzas and asked, “Are you ready to go see why Nathan summoned us to his home?”

I took a deep breath, pulled off my apron, and then dropped it onto the stool. “I suppose I’m as ready as I’ll ever be.”

“Then let’s go.”

When Maddy pulled up in front of Nathan’s house, it was clear that he’d decided to begin his renovation without my guidance. There was a crew of three men working on the front of the house, removing vines and prepping the entire place for painting. A carpenter was working on replacing one of the rotting porch posts, and I could already start to see the bones of the place show themselves. No matter how I felt about Nathan, it was good seeing that he was making a start at restoring his bungalow.

We made our way through the workers, and Maddy rang the bell as I held the pizzas.

Gina answered the door, but she seemed reluctant to let us inside. “What have you got there?” she asked as she pointed to the bright red sleeves.

“We thought you might be hungry,” I said.

“We already had lunch,” she said. In a lowered voice, she added, “This was my uncle’s idea, not mine.”

“I suspected as much,” I said.

Maddy said loudly, “Why aren’t you inviting us in, Gina?”

She shot my sister a nasty look as Nathan appeared at the door. I was shocked by the difference I saw in him. Where he’d been vigorous and full of life earlier, it appeared as though the past few days had aged him years. His face was pale and gaunt, and there was a nervous tic to his forced smile that made me wonder what had happened to him since he’d invited Gina and Nancy into his life.

“Come in,” he said.

“We brought lunch,” I said brightly.

He managed a weak smile. “Thanks all the same, but I’ve been a bit under the weather lately. I don’t have much of an appetite these days.”

Maddy and I stepped inside, and I could see that the changes were taking place there as well. There were painters working in the living room stripping the woodworking, and I was happy to see that they were trying to restore the quarter sawn oak to its original splendor. At some point in the house’s lifetime, some idiot had decided to paint it, and as the garish yellow shade was stripped away, the true beauty of the wood underneath it was beginning to come out.

“I like what you’re doing with the place,” I said as I looked around.

“You know how it is, more than most. It’s a work in progress,” Nathan said. “Why don’t we go out onto the back porch? No work’s started there yet, so we’ll have some peace and quiet.”

We moved through the house to the back, and it was no wonder that Nathan had been losing sleep. I knew from experience how difficult it was to live on-site when a remodel was taking place. Dust seemed to get everywhere, and there was a constant level of noise that quickly became unsettling.

Nancy was already outside waiting for us. There was a nice sun-deck on the back of the porch, with enough seating for all of us.

She smiled apologetically at us as she said, “I needed some peace and quiet, for the baby, you know.”

Gina glared at her as though she were covered in boils, but Nathan’s smile brightened somewhat when he looked at her. “It’s perfectly understandable, my dear,” he said as he patted her shoulder paternally. She sat tall, and Nathan took his place beside her, with Gina barely finding enough room on the other side of her uncle.

Maddy and I took the remaining chairs facing the three of them, and Nathan began to talk.

“First of all, thank you both for coming. I know it’s been difficult, but I’ve decided to put the past behind us and clear the air.”

“Then you don’t actually believe that we killed Judson anymore?” Maddy asked him.

Nathan shook his head. “No, of course not. I never did, not really. Sometimes it just helps to blame someone for the troubles you endure in your life, you know?”

“We appreciate that,” I said. “It means a great deal to both of us. Was that all?”

“No, there’s another reason I’ve asked you here,” Nathan said.

“What is it?”

“I want to apologize again for this situation with Italia’s. I know it’s not fair to you both, and I want to say that I’m sorry.”

“Sorry enough not to open the restaurant up after all?” Maddy asked.

As Gina glared at my sister, Nathan said, “No, I’m afraid that’s out of the question. Gina needs the work to take her mind off her grief, so as far as I’m concerned, it’s a done deal.”

At least I was right about one thing; it was clear from her reaction that Gina had no desire to run that pizzeria. Her expression told the truth no matter how much she tried to hide it.

Nathan took a deep breath, and then he said, “I don’t know if you’ve heard about my recent accident, but it’s changed my entire perspective on things.”

“I’m so happy that you weren’t hurt,” I said, meaning every word of it. Despite everything, I liked Nathan, and I hated seeing him like this.

“It could have been tragic,” he agreed. “It’s made me reevaluate some of the decisions I’ve made in the past, and I’ve decided to rectify as many of my sins as I can, while there’s still time.”

“Nathan, you’re still a young man,” I said, though it was clearly a lie to all of us sitting there.

“Not in any way, shape, or form,” he said with a smile, “but I appreciate you saying it.” He took a heavy breath, and then said, “Putting things in order before I go is the most important thing in the world to me right now.”

“Have you decided on what you’re going to do yet?” Maddy asked innocently.

“That’s no concern of yours,” Gina snapped.

Nathan patted her knee. “Now, Gina, be civil. We invited these folks here, remember?”

“Sorry,” she said, though it was clear from her expression that she wasn’t remorseful at all.

“It’s accepted,” Maddy said with just as much guile. “We’re curious about your plans. It’s a fair question, Nathan.”

“I’m not sure that’s entirely true, and though my niece shouldn’t have snapped at you, she was right about one thing; it’s family business,” he said.

After Nathan spoke, he turned to Nancy and smiled.

She looked at him so adoringly that I felt myself growing uncomfortable from the warmth. If I had to guess, I’d have to say that Nancy was going to figure prominently into the new plan. From the expression on Gina’s face, it was pretty clear that she was beginning to realize it as well.

“You might as well go on and tell them what you have in mind, Uncle Nathan,” Gina said. “Everyone is going to know soon enough, and you’ve kept all of us in the dark long enough.”

He frowned at her, and then asked the other woman beside him, “Nancy, do you mind? This concerns you as well.”

“Whatever you want to do is fine with me,
Uncle
Nathan,” she said.

Gina cringed visibly as Nancy called him uncle.

He nodded. “Very well. As I said before, I decided that it was time to set things right, so I’m going to tear up my old will and write a new one.”

“Who was the beneficiary before?” I asked, more out of curiosity than anything else. There was a fortune at stake, and I couldn’t help wondering who was going to miss out on it.

He shrugged. “I don’t suppose it hurts to tell you now, since it was written before Gina and Judson came into my life, not to mention Nancy. I left everything to my relative in Timber Ridge.”

“I didn’t think you knew who that was?” I asked.

“I didn’t, and I still don’t, but I left a provision in my will for Bob Lemon to track my heir down and give them everything I own.”

“But that’s all changed now,” Maddy said.

“Indeed it has,” Nathan said. “As soon as Bob and I have hammered out the details of an exact listing of my assets, I’ve decided to divide my estate into three equal shares.” He turned to Gina and said, “You’ll get a third,” and then he looked at Nancy and added, “You’ll get a third, and your baby will get the remaining third.”

That struck like a slap in the face to Gina. “She gets more than me, and she’s not even blood family?” Gina shouted, clearly blindsided by the new order of things.

“She’s carrying Judson’s child,” Nathan said, clearly hurt by her reaction. “I thought you’d be pleased.”

“Have you lost your mind? In what world would I be happy with that?” She looked harshly at Nancy. “We don’t even know if that’s Judson’s kid she’s carrying.”

“I’ve never been with anyone but him, not that way,” Nancy said, the level of her voice increasing to match her accuser’s.

“Save it, lady, nobody here believes you.”

Nathan said calmly, “I do.”

I wouldn’t have been surprised if Nancy had stuck her tongue out at Gina at that moment.

“Then you’re nothing but an old fool,” she shouted as she stood and stomped off the porch and into the house, “and I’m going to prove that she’s lying.”

“I’d better go talk to her,” Nancy said as she started to get up.

“Do you think that’s the wisest course of action at the moment?” I asked her.

Nancy stood and looked at the door as she spoke. “We may not agree about everything, but these two people are the only family I have in the world, and I can’t stand the thought of something like money coming between us.”

She smiled once more at Nathan, and then disappeared inside.

“Should you leave them alone like that?” Maddy asked.

“Perhaps you’re right,” he said as he stood as well. “I’m sorry you had to see that. I’m sure that once I explain it to Gina, she’ll accept it as the right thing to do. I want to get this settled so I can destroy the current will and replace it with something that means more to me.” He looked at the pizza sleeves at my feet. “I hate that we didn’t touch those. I’d be happy to pay you for your trouble.”

“Nonsense,” I said. “They were a gift.”

“Then I want to thank you for the thought,” he said. “Can you two see yourselves out? I’d better go inside and make sure everything’s okay.”

After he was gone, I started for the back steps when Maddy grabbed my arm.

“We should go out through the house,” my sister said.

I couldn’t believe that my sister was suggesting that we intrude on their family’s difficulties. “Are you insane? He wants us to leave them alone. That much was pretty clear.”

Maddy’s eyes were gleaming as she asked, “Aren’t you the least bit curious what they’re saying right now to each other?”

I shook my head. “We’re not doing it, so forget it. Now come on. We have three pizzas we need to get rid of.”