Chocolate Cream Pie Murder (Hannah Swensen #24)(56)

“You’ve got a point,” Lonnie said. “It’s cold at night out here, and there’s a shelter in town at the Bible Church.”

Michelle nodded agreement. “Reverend Strandberg provides three meals a day in the church kitchen for anyone who comes in hungry.”

“And don’t forget about the Helping Hands Thrift Store in town,” Hannah reminded them. “They give all sorts of warm clothing and boots to everyone who can’t afford them.”

“Are you and Mike going out to look for the man in the woods?” Hannah asked Lonnie.

“Not tonight. Mike said it could wait until morning. It would be different if Clara had gotten hurt, but she’s okay physically. The snow was deep and it cushioned her. She told us that her elbow’s a little sore because she tried to catch herself, but Mike checked it out and it looked okay to him. He called Doc Knight to be sure, and Clara promised to go into the hospital for an X-ray in the morning.”

“Stealing her phone is a crime, isn’t it?” Michelle asked him.

“You bet! If it had happened in the middle of the day, we would have gone after him, but Mike decided that tracking him at night would be close to impossible. It’s not supposed to snow tonight, so his tracks won’t be covered with new snow.”

“That makes sense,” Hannah agreed. “Why don’t you run back over there, Lonnie, and invite Mike here for dinner. And of course you’re invited, too. I’d invite Marguerite, but I don’t think she’ll leave Clara.”

“We can always dish it up and I can run over with their dinner,” Michelle offered.

“Great idea!” Hannah complimented her.

“I’ll go over there right now.” Lonnie finished the last of his coffee, pushed back his chair, and headed for the door again. “I’ll let them know that you’ll deliver their dinner, and be back in a minute or two.”

When the door had closed behind Lonnie, Michelle turned to Hannah. “Do we have anything to serve with your main dish?”

“The meat has carrots, onions, and red potatoes around it, but we may need something else.”

“How about a cooked vegetable salad?” Michelle suggested. “You have a package of mixed vegetables in the freezer. I was going to make them during the blizzard, but we didn’t need them.”

“Vegetable salad would be good. There’ll be a gravy with the brisket and we can always put that in a gravy boat. I think I’ll try to make Savory Tortilla Cups to fill with the vegetable salad.”

“Savory Tortilla Cups? What are those?”

“I’ve got a package of tortillas that I can dip in Italian dressing, coat with finely grated Parmesan cheese, and press into muffin cups. I’ll bake them, cool them, and then we can fill them with the salad.”

“Sounds great! I don’t remember having Savory Tortilla Cups before.”

“That’s because I’ve never baked them before. The recipe for Tortilla Snickerdoodle Cookies popped into my mind when I was baking them the last time. And I’ll make Sweet Tortilla Cups dipped in cinnamon and sugar, too. There’s ice cream in the freezer and we can have those for dessert.”

Michelle looked slightly concerned. “I’m always a little nervous about trying out new recipes on company,” she confessed.

“Normally, I’d agree with you. It’s always risky without a trial run, but I’ve had more successes than failures. Besides, this time these recipes are foolproof.”

“Foolproof? What do you mean?”

“I mean there’s everything to gain and nothing to lose. If the Savory Tortilla Cups don’t work, we’ll just toss them in the trash, put the vegetable salad in a bowl, and let everyone serve themselves at the table. And if the Sweet Tortilla Cups don’t work, we’ll serve the ice cream in dessert dishes.”

Michelle thought about that for a moment, and then she started to smile. “You’re right. They are foolproof. I just wish . . .”

Michelle’s voice trailed off and Hannah noticed that her sister looked thoughtful. “What do you wish, Michelle?”

“I was just wishing that love could be as foolproof as trying your recipes for Savory Tortilla Cups and Sweet Tortilla Cups. Wouldn’t that be wonderful?”

Hannah gave a little laugh. “It certainly would! If love were as easy as trying out new recipes, I’d be a lot happier today!”

“Because you never would have married Ross?”

“You got it! If I’d tried out love with Ross back in college, I wouldn’t have even considered marrying him later. Instead, I would have taken him to the airport and let him fly off without getting engaged.”

“Really?” Michelle looked surprised at her sister’s admission.

“It could have happened that way. And right now, I wish it had happened that way. I would have saved myself a lot of grief.”

Michelle nodded. “That’s true. But maybe your heart would have won out and you would have married him anyway.”

“I guess that’s possible. Baking is a lot easier than love, isn’t it!”

It was a statement rather than a question and Michelle laughed. “You said it!” she said, and then she hurried off to the freezer to get the package of mixed vegetables.