Sugar Coated Sins (3 page)

“To answer your second question
first, all I can say with any degree of certainty is that it was some kind of
poison.
 
I just didn’t think that it was
botulism.
 
As to who might have done it,
you’re talking to the wrong person.
 
Like
I said, we really weren’t that close.”

“Is your former housekeeper still
around, by any chance?” Jake asked him.

“No, the last I heard she moved to
Sarasota to be near her grandchildren.
 
If you really want to know anything about Benjamin Port, my advice would
be to speak with Gabby Williams.”

Gabby owned the business beside mine,
a gently used clothing store named ReNEWed with only the most upscale offerings
for her clientele.
 
“Gabby?
 
Why would she know anything about him?”

Doc Nance looked a little
uncomfortable with my question.
 
He
shrugged without speaking, but Jake wasn’t going to let him get away with that.

“It might be important, so we
really do need to know,” Jake said.

After a few moments of hesitation,
the doctor said, “Well, I hate to spread rumors about her, but the scuttlebutt
around town was that they were keeping company.
 
You know, romantically.”

So Gabby Williams was once again
connected to a possible murder victim.
 
From past experience, I knew that she wouldn’t be an easy person to
interview, but I had the feeling that if there was any information behind the
scenes, Gabby would have been privy to it.

“Is there anything else you’d like
to add?” Phillip asked the doctor.

“Just make this right if you
can.
 
I don’t have many regrets from my
career as a physician, but the way I handled Benjamin Port’s death is surely
one of them.”

“We’ll do our best,” Jake said as
he offered a comforting pat on the man’s shoulder.

Once we left the doctor to his
birds, chipmunks, and squirrels, I asked Jake, “Would you like me to speak with
Gabby for you?”

“Thanks, but I can handle her by
myself,” he said.

I wasn’t at all sure that was
true, but I wasn’t going to challenge him on it.
 
“Fair enough.
 
Do we have to rush straight back to town, though?”

“Why do you ask?”

“Well, Napoli’s is just down the
street, and I haven’t had any of the DeAngelis girls’ food for ages.”

“What are you talking about,
Suzanne?
 
We ate there last month,” Jake
protested.

“Are you trying to make my point
for me?” I asked him with a smile.
 
“A
month feels like forever for going without some of their pasta.
 
Come on, it won’t take long, and we have to
eat, anyway.”

“What do you think, Phillip?” Jake
asked, deferring to my stepfather.

“I could eat,” he said with a
smile.
 
“There’s one condition, though.”

“What’s that?” Jake asked him.

“Nobody reports back to Dot about
what I plan to have for lunch.”

“Sorry, but you know that’s a
promise I can’t make,” I said.
 
Even in
jest, I wasn’t about to swear to keep anything from my mother, no matter how
nicely someone might ask.

“Fine.
 
Tell her.
 
I’m still going to eat like there’s no tomorrow.”

“I’ll be right there with you,” I
agreed.
 
“What about you, Jake?”

“I can see that protesting isn’t
going to do me any good, so I might as well give in and enjoy myself.
 
Sure, why not.”

“You could always wait for us out
in the car if you’d rather not go in,” I said with a grin of my own.

“No, I’d better not do that.
 
After all, somebody needs to keep an eye on
the two of you,” he said with a hint of laughter in his voice.

Just because we were on an
investigation didn’t mean that we couldn’t eat well, and I for one was looking
forward to sampling more of Napoli’s fine Italian cuisine.

Chapter
4

“What a nice surprise,” Maria
DeAngelis, one of Anita’s beautiful daughters, said when we walked into
Napoli’s.
 
It was where Jake and I had
had our first date, though I’d been there a ton before he came into my
life.
 
Anita and her daughters offered
the best Italian food I’d ever eaten, and it was always a temptation to overeat
whenever I was there.
 
“Momma’s going to
be so pleased you came.”

“Not half as happy as I am to be
here,” I said.
 
“You know my stepfather.”

“Of course.
 
Phillip, Jake, it’s nice to see you both as
well.
 
Let me show you to a table.”

We entered the dining area, and I
marveled again at how the family had taken a location in a strip mall and made
it into such a nice restaurant.
 
The
décor was upscale, but it could have been a shack for all I cared.
 
The food was what mattered, and it was the
best.

After we placed our orders, Maria
disappeared into the kitchen, and not twenty seconds later, the matriarch of
the clan came bustling out.
 
While all of
her daughters were lovely, Anita was hands down the most beautiful of all.
 
I saw Jake and Phillip both grin when they
saw her approaching, and honestly, who could blame them?
 
The important thing to me was that she was as
beautiful on the inside as she was on the outside, and I liked to think that it
showed.
 
With a figure that was
voluptuous and a mane of black hair that seemed to shimmer in the light, Anita
was truly a vision.
 
She leaned down to
hug me the moment she got to our table, and I felt myself overwhelmed.
 
I laughed a little when I noticed that the
two men I was with look disappointed when Anita failed to extend the same
greeting to them.

“How is life in April Springs?”
she asked.

“It’s fine, but there’s just one
thing wrong with it.”

Anita frowned before she
spoke.
 
“What’s that?”

“There’s no Napoli’s there,” I
answered with a smile.

She laughed heartily.
 
“I’d need more daughters to manage that.
 
If there’s anything you need special, even if
it’s not on the menu, don’t be afraid to ask.”

With that, she vanished back into
the kitchen.

Jake looked at me and smiled after
she was gone.
 
“I thought she was going
to smother you there for a second.”

“Either one of you would have
gladly traded places with me, so don’t bother denying it.”

Phillip smiled.
 
“Who’s denying it?
 
I love it here.”

“Should we talk about our game
plan for when we get back home?” Jake asked.

“I don’t see why not,” Phillip
answered.

Personally, I wanted to focus on
my upcoming meal, but it appeared that I was being outvoted.
 
“Go on.”

“What’s wrong, Suzanne?” he asked
me.

“I wasn’t sure that I was going to
be involved in this case,” I said.

“I don’t see how it would hurt if
you and Phillip worked around the edges of my official investigation.
 
You both have resources that I lack, and I’m
not ashamed to admit it.”
 
He turned to
the former sheriff and asked, “What do you say?
 
Do you want to help?”

Phillip said with a frown, “I’ll do
whatever I can with background and research, but Dot doesn’t like me actively
investigating crime.”

“Don’t you miss it, even just a
little?” Jake asked him.

“Not usually,” he said.
 
“Anyway, digging into the past is a lot
safer.”

“Maybe not this time,” Jake
said.
 
“If a murder was really committed,
the killer might try to cover their tracks in the present to keep everything
they’ve done from coming to light now.”

“I think I’ll be safe enough
taking my chances at least that much,” Phillip said.

“Excellent,” Jake said with a
smile.
 
“When we get back, I’d love it if
you could dig around and see who exactly was supposed to put notes into that
time capsule originally.
 
Also, any other
information about it, including newspaper articles and photos, would be
helpful.”

“I can gladly handle that,”
Phillip said.

“What would you like me to do?” I
asked.

Jake frowned for a moment before
he spoke.
 
“Suzanne, once Phillip gets me
a list of names, you can help fill in any background information you have on
our potential suspects.”

It wasn’t much of a request at
all.
 
“Are you sure you don’t want me to
approach Gabby for you?”

He looked startled by my
suggestion.
 
“I’m sure.
 
Like I said before, I can handle the
interview myself.”

Knowing Gabby, I doubted that he
could.
 
It wasn’t a reflection on Jake’s
abilities, but more about Gabby’s reluctance to talk to anyone she didn’t know
extremely well.
 
I had a hunch that he’d
need my help with her, but I didn’t think it was polite to mention it.
 
“Good enough.”

Phillip looked over at me, the
surprise clear in his expression.
 
“Really, Suzanne?”

“I can take orders when I’m asked
to.”

“Since when?” he asked softly.

I smiled at him.
 
“We may have had a few run-ins in our past,
but there’s a new sheriff in town now, and I plan on cooperating with him as
much as I can.”

The retired sheriff just chuckled,
and I decided to let it go myself.
 
“So,
what’s Momma going to do with her newfound riches?”
 
A cache of wealth had been uncovered at one
of her renovation projects, and I was wondering what my mother had in mind for
the windfall.

“She’s going to sit on it for
now,” Phillip said.
 
“At least that’s
what she keeps telling me.
 
Knowing your
mother, I have the feeling that she already has plans for it.”

“It wouldn’t surprise me in the
least,” I said.

Jake was about to say something
when Maria came back carrying a tray full of delightful goodies.
 
She slid the ravioli in front of me, and I
took in the beauty of the dish before I took my first bite.
 
A bountiful portion of pasta squares was
bathed in the richest tomato and meat sauce that could be imagined.
 
“I’m sorry, but I think there’s been some
kind of mistake.
 
I asked for the
luncheon-size plate,” I told Maria.

“According to my mother, that’s
what this is,” she answered with a smile.

My companions had equally full
plates, Jake’s with spaghetti and meatballs, Phillip’s with chicken
Parmesan.
 
I had no idea how anyone could
manage to investigate after the meals we were about to consume, but since I
didn’t have an immediate assignment, that wasn’t my problem.

After Maria had refilled our
glasses, she said, “Momma said that you should all save room for dessert.”

“She’s kidding, right?” Phillip
asked as he studied his plate.

“My mother
never
kids about food,” Maria said.
 
“Enjoy.”

The first bite was even better
than I remembered, a mean feat since I adored Napoli’s offerings.
 
The pasta had been prepared perfectly,
splitting open with my first bite and spilling the multicheese filling into my
mouth as a touch of the sauce added the perfect counternote to the
sampling.
 
I didn’t think I’d be able to
handle my serving size, though, no matter how delicious it might be, but to my
surprise, I somehow managed to nearly clean my plate, and the two men with me
had performed beyond their own expectations as well.
 
However, the mere thought of having dessert
was out of the question.
 
So, how was I
going to break it to Anita?
 
Fortunately,
I didn’t have to.

The matriarch came out with three
boxes as Maria brought the check.
 
Anita
said, “I understand that I may have been a little too enthusiastic with your
portions today,” she said, and added as she glanced at our plates, “though
you’ve all done admirably in spite of it.
 
We’re trying a new recipe for a caramel fudge pie that I’d love your
opinion of when you get the chance to sample it.
 
You’d be doing me a favor just by giving me
your opinions.”

Jake studied the bill for a
moment, and then he frowned.
 
“The
desserts aren’t listed here.”

Anita looked at him with
reproach.
 
“I’m asking you all for a favor.
 
Do you really expect me to charge you for the
privilege?”

“You should,” Phillip said.
 
“If this is like everything else you serve,
it’s worth twice whatever it costs.”

Anita studied him for a moment,
and then she turned to me.
 
“Suzanne, do
me a favor and explain it to them, would you?”

“It would be my pleasure.”
 
I looked at both men, each in his own turn,
as I said, “Say thank you, and nothing else.
 
Both of you.”

They looked at each other, and
then, in almost perfect unison, they said, “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome,” Anita said with
a broad smile.

After Jake paid the bill, leaving
a generous tip for Maria as well, we walked back out into the sunlight,
carrying our treats.

“I need a nap now,” Phillip said
as he patted his belly.
 
He was still on the
lean side, but living with my mother and her cooking, not to mention the Napoli
offerings, had added a few pounds back to his frame, weight he’d struggled
mightily to lose in the first place when he’d been courting my mother.

“You can sleep on the drive back,”
Jake offered.
 
“But what am I going to
do?”

“I could always drive us home,” I
volunteered.

“No, I was just kidding.
 
I’m fine.
 
Let’s go.”

Back in April Springs, Jake
dropped me off at Donut Hearts so I could pick up my Jeep.
 
“What are your plans for the rest of the
afternoon?” he asked me.

“I thought I’d drop by and see
Grace on the way home, if she’s there,” I said.

“Good.
 
You two need to spend more time
together.
 
I’ll touch base with you
later.”

“Bye,” I said, waving my dessert
in the air.
 
Both men had claimed to be
too full from lunch to care about their desserts, but the half-hour trip had
evidently changed their minds, since neither one of them had asked me to
transport their pie slices for them.

After Jake drove off with Phillip
still in the backseat, I got into my Jeep and headed for Grace’s place.
 
She was my best friend, but we hadn’t been
spending as much time together as I would have liked, and I was about to change
that if I could.
 
Let Phillip tackle the
archives of our town while Jake spoke with Gabby.
 
Unless I missed my guess, sooner rather than
later, I’d be called in for backup, so I planned to make the most of my time
until then.