Key Lime Pie Murder (28 page)

“The Cookie Nook. Mayor Bascomb’s staff makes a mean cup of coffee.”

Once Norman had headed off to fetch their coffee, Hannah glanced around at the other tables. There was no one she knew except…“Mary?” she called out, spotting Mary Adamczak several tables away.

“Yes?” several women chorused, and Hannah felt like a fool. Mary was a very popular name in the Tri-County area.

“Sorry,” Hannah apologized to all the women who were staring at her. “I thought I saw Mary Adamczak.”

“Here I am,” Mary Adamczak called out.

“And here I am,” her younger companion added.

Hannah felt her mind clutch as she walked over to their table. “What’s going on? Both of you are Mary Adamczak?”

“That’s right,” the older woman, the Mary Adamczak Hannah knew, answered her. “I’m Mary Lou Adamczak, and I’d like you to meet Mary Kay Adamczak, my son Ronnie’s wife.”

Hannah laughed. “You really had me going there. Glad to meet you, Mary Kay.” And then she noticed that Mary Lou’s right arm was in a sling. “What happened to your arm?”

“I pulled a tendon last week. That’s why Mary Kay had to make my cinnamon bread this year.”

“That was you?” Hannah turned to Mary Kay.

“Yes, and it’s the first time in my life I’ve ever baked anything. I couldn’t believe I won a ribbon!”

“And she did it without any help from me,” Mary Lou said, sounding very proud. “Ronnie took me in to see Doc Knight, and when we came home, she’d baked two loaves.”

“Are you moving here to Lake Eden?” Hannah asked Mary Kay.

“No, we’re just visiting until the end of the month. That’s when Ronnie goes back to work. He’s an assistant basketball coach for the Badgers.”

University of Wisconsin Badgers, Hannah recited to herself, remembering how she’d once memorized all the university team names in a five-state area to impress a college baseball player she’d wanted to date. That had never happened, but she still remembered the team names.

“I think that man over there wants to get your attention,” Mary Kay said, gesturing in Norman’s direction.

“You’re right. He went to get us some coffee, and he’s back. Nice seeing you Mary Lou. And nice meeting you Mary Kay. Congratulations on your success in the competition.”

As Hannah hurried back to the table and the hot cup of coffee that awaited her, she mentally crossed Mary Lou Adamczak off her suspect list. And then she mentally congratulated herself for giving Mary Kay’s cinnamon bread a high enough score to win an honorable mention.

“I’m not surprised Michelle won tonight,” Norman said as they made their way out of the auditorium. “She gave an excellent answer to the question about world hunger, and it was a tough question.

“I know. She’s always been good at thinking on her feet, and she’s well informed about social issues. I thought it helped a lot when she interjected a little humor into the question about nutrition.”

“It cracked everybody up, including the judges.” Norman gave a little chuckle. “And I know where she got that answer.”

Hannah assumed a guileless expression. “Can I help it if she picks things up from me?”

Norman stopped at the steps to the Creative Arts Building and put his arm around Hannah’s shoulders. “Do you mind if I wait for you to get through with tonight’s judging? I’d like to follow you home and check in with Moishe.”

“With Moishe?”

“Yeah. I’m still worried about the Big Guy. I thought I’d run over to the mall while you’re judging and pick up some treats from the pet store.”

“That’s really nice of you, Norman.” Hannah smiled. Norman really was a great guy. “Moishe always loves to see you. But I do have to make it an early night. I’ve been up late three nights in a row, and I need to turn in early and sweat myself to sleep.”

Norman laughed appreciatively. “I know what you mean,” he said, “but the weatherman said it’s going to cool down by midnight.”

“Which weatherman?”

“Rayne Phillips on KCOW.”

“Then it’s going to be hot all night. Rayne Phillips is always wrong. I’m really glad the former owners put a window air conditioner in my bedroom.”

“And I’m really glad you thought to put central air in our dream house.”

“It’s your dream house, Norman.”

“Whatever. I’m glad you suggested it.”

“You mean you actually installed it?”

“Of course. You’re surprised?”

Hannah nodded. Air-conditioning had been a part of the plans they’d submitted for the contest. But when Norman had decided to build the house they’d designed together, she hadn’t expected him to actually install it for the week or two it was needed every year. “It was a big expense.”

“I know, but it’s like you said when we drew up the plans. You don’t need air-conditioning very often in Minnesota, but when you do, a fan blowing over a bowl of ice cubes just won’t cut it.”

When Hannah walked out of the judging room with Lisa and Pam, she was in a marvelous mood. They’d made quick work of sampling everything, and an incredible orange cake, entered by Sue Plotnik, Hannah’s downstairs neighbor, had taken first place.

“So did you learn any more about poor Willa?” Pam asked, her voice breaking slightly.

“A couple of things. She sold Luanne a box of silver that supposedly belonged to her parents.”

“Supposedly?” Pam picked up on the word right away.

“Most of it probably did, but there was a pair of silver champagne glasses that were only a couple of years old.”

“You mean the type they use at weddings?” Lisa asked.

“Exactly. Mother thinks that maybe Willa was married.”

“That doesn’t make sense,” Pam said. “She never said anything about a husband, and she didn’t wear a ring. And her name is the same as it was on her high school records. There’s got to be another explanation.”

“Maybe her parents got the champagne glasses as a gift for a special occasion,” Lisa suggested. “Or maybe they bought them intending to give them to a bride and groom, but the wedding was called off or something like that.”

“Possible,” Hannah said, filing the suggestions away for further consideration. “One of the 4-H kids said he saw Willa with one of the rodeo cowboys on Monday and Tuesday nights.”

“Which one?” Lisa asked.

“I don’t know yet.”

Pam sighed as she locked the door behind her. “That could explain the new hairdo and dress, especially if she was really interested in him. And it’s entirely possible she was. After she broke up with Gordon, Willa was lonely. Of course she never told me that. Willa kept pretty much to herself. But she’d been seeing Gordon every night, since they were on the same campus and all. Even if she didn’t love him, she was bound to miss the time they’d spent together.”

Hannah made a mental note to follow up on Gordon Tate. Even if he wasn’t directly involved in her death, he might know something about Willa’s background that could point them in the right direction.

“Did Willa have a best friend at college?” Lisa asked Pam. “Or maybe someone on the staff at Jordon High that she confided in?”

“Not really. I think I was probably closer to her than anyone else, but I really didn’t know that much about her. She never talked about herself.”

“Do you know if Willa had a safe deposit box? Or a storage locker somewhere?” Hannah asked.

“I’m almost sure she didn’t. The only other place she kept things was…”

“Where?” Hannah asked, as Pam stopped speaking.

“Her desk at school. I forgot all about it! Do you want to search it?”

“Absolutely. Something could be there.”

Pam opened her purse and pulled out a key ring. She snapped off a key and handed it to Hannah. “This opens the delivery door in my classroom. I always go in that way, so I don’t have to carry two keys. You know where it is, don’t you?”

“Yes. I used it when I taught that night class for you.”

“Right. Willa’s desk is the one in the back of the room between the windows. You might have to break the lock. She was always careful about locking it before she left, and she had the only key.”

“And they didn’t find her keys?” Lisa asked.

“No. Mike warned us to re-key the locks to the apartment, and George did that right away. But I never even thought about the key to my classroom and the one to her desk.”

They parted company at the end of the corridor. Pam went out the back door to turn in their results at the judging office, and Hannah and Lisa went out the front.

“See you tomorrow, Hannah,” Lisa said. “I’m meeting Herb at the food court.”

“Tell him congratulations again for me.”

“I will. And thanks again. You were just wonderful.”

When Lisa left, Hannah glanced at her watch. It was only eight forty-five, and Norman wasn’t picking her up until nine. She had fifteen minutes to kill, and she was going to spend them right here.

It was a good vantage point, and Hannah sat down on the top step to watch the crowd pass by. Three teenage girls sauntered past, eating snow cones and giggling. Right behind them were three teenage boys, swaggering a bit and talking loudly. It was clear that the boys were interested in the girls, and Hannah wondered if any of them would work up the courage to actually say anything directly to them.

A young mother pushing a stroller stopped outside the 4-H building. She glanced at her watch and then she leaned down to wipe her baby’s face with a washcloth she removed from her diaper bag. Hannah heard the baby start to whimper, but the mother took out a bottle of water, gave the baby a drink, and then plugged in a pacifier. A moment or two later, five stair-step kids came rushing up. They were called stair-step kids because if you lined them up from shortest to tallest and looked at the tops of their heads, they’d rise upward like a staircase.

The oldest girl, around twelve Hannah thought, handed her mother something in a cup, and then she moved behind the stroller. She said something to her older brother, but Hannah was too far away to hear, and he shouldered the diaper bag. The three younger children held hands, and the family set off for the exit with the young mother looking much less tired than she had only moments before.

The little slice of life unfolding before her eyes made Hannah think about her own family and how she’d helped to take care of Michelle. She’d helped with Andrea too, although there were only four years between them. Maybe she was cut out to be a mother. Or maybe she didn’t have to be a mother because she’d already been a stand-in for her own mother. There were times when Michelle seemed like her own child. And then there was Andrea, and…here she was!

“Hi, Andrea,” Hannah said as her sister climbed up the steps. “What are you doing here?”

“I came to report on the house. And I’ve only got a couple of minutes because I have to drive home to put Tracey to bed. She hates to go to bed without her stories.”

“That’s good, Andrea. What book are you reading to her?”

“Oh, I’m not. I tell her stories. Tracey just loves the ones about Tracey and the Widget.”

“The Widget?” Hannah started to grin. She’d told Andrea stories about Andrea and the Widget when Andrea was about Tracey’s age.

“It’s your Widget. I still remember the stories. And if I forget something, I just make it up. I thought it would be good if we continued the family tradition, you know? Anyway, Willa got next to nothing for the house. It was mortgaged to the hilt, and the agent I talked to thought the money went to pay lawyer’s fees.”

“Willa’s parents were being sued?”

“I asked him. He didn’t know. But all Willa cleared on the estate auction and the sale of the house was about six thousand dollars.”

Hannah filed that information away to write down later in her notebook. “When did Willa sell the house?”

“Over two years ago, right before she started college at Tri-County. Bill accessed her records for me. She transferred in from another college, but I don’t remember which one.”

“I can find out. Pam probably knows.” Hannah patted the top step. “Sit down for a minute and I’ll tell you what I learned today.”

“I can’t.”

“You don’t have a couple of minutes?”

“It’s not that. I can’t sit.”

“Why not?”

“My pants are too tight.”

“Too tight?” Hannah asked, grinning at her sister.

“Yes. When you have two children, you add an inch or two to your waist. And that’s not funny!” Andrea stopped and looked at Hannah intently. “You don’t think I’m getting fat, do you?”

“I should be so fat!”

“Oh. Okay. I just worry about it sometimes, you know? I mean, look at our family history.”

“Mother’s been a size six all of her life. She could probably get into the clothes she wore in high school.”

“I know, but I still worry. Dad wasn’t exactly a lightweight. I don’t want to get fat, Hannah. Bill might leave me if I get fat.”

“Bill will never leave you. He loves you.”

“He might not love me so much if I’m fat. The only thing I’ve got going for me is my looks, and they’re going to fade when I get older. I’ve got a good figure, but I’ve got to work to keep myself in shape. It’s different with you.”

“How so?” Hannah asked, expecting a massive blow to her ego.

“You’ve got so much more than I have. You’re smart, you’re funny, and you’re just plain good. I…well…the only thing I’ve got going for myself is that I look good.”

Hannah had the urge to run down the steps and out into the crowd. She really didn’t know what to say. But Andrea was reaching out to her and she had to respond. So she decided to wing it and hope for the best.

“You’re an idiot, Andrea,” Hannah said. “You’re putting yourself down, and I don’t like it.”

“No, I’m not.”

“Yes, you are! I don’t have anything more going for me than you do. You’re right about being good-looking, but you’re also smart. And you’re a good wife and mother, and you’re creative, and you’re the best sister in the world. And I love you.”

“Oh, Hannah! That’s so nice of you to say!”

“Well…don’t take it seriously. I might change my mind tomorrow. Now hurry home to Tracey and Bethie, and I’ll tell you everything I found out later.”

After Andrea left, Hannah watched the crowds for a few moments, and then she glanced at her watch again. Norman should be arriving in five minutes or less. It couldn’t be soon enough to suit her. She wanted to go to the school to search Willa’s desk, and there was no way she wanted to go alone, especially since Willa’s keys hadn’t been recovered. She was just wondering if she had time to walk over to the 4-H building and take a look at Kenny’s calf when she saw Mike round the corner.