Chocolate Cream Pie Murder (Hannah Swensen #24)(70)

“Yes, but I’d rather not say. It’s . . . really bad.”

“You have to tell us, Doug,” Mike said, giving him a hard look. “It’s important.”

“I know.” Doug sighed, and it was clear to everyone that he didn’t want to go on.

“Go ahead,” Hannah encouraged him. “We have to know what to expect from him, Doug.”

“Okay.” Doug swallowed again. “Ross gave that really nasty laugh again and said it wouldn’t do any good, that he was going to get his money back from Hannah even if he had to . . .”

“If he had to . . . what?” Mike leaned forward.

Doug looked more troubled than Hannah had ever seen before. “Ross said he was going to get his money back from Hannah even if he had to kill her to get it!”





Chapter Nineteen


“Are you okay, Hannah?” Norman asked, when Hannah came back to her stool at the work station.

“I think so. I just got a little sick to my stomach when Doug told us about . . . what Ross said.”

“I know. You looked as if you were about to faint.”

“Maybe you’re right. I did feel really dizzy and horribly sick to my stomach.” Hannah took a sip of the orange juice she’d poured for herself. “Where did everybody go?”

“Mike assigned Rick and Lonnie to stay with Doug,” Norman told her. “He thought that when Ross found out that you didn’t have his money, he might blame Doug and try to hurt him.”

“So Rick and Lonnie are at the bank with Doug again?”

“Not exactly. Lonnie is sticking with Doug at the bank, but Mike assigned Rick to guard Doug’s family.”

“Then Mike thinks that Doug and his family may be in danger from Ross?”

“That’s what he said. And he also said that he didn’t want to take any chances. He went back to the sheriff’s station to assign some other deputies to various places, and then he’s going to drive out to your condo to make sure that Ross isn’t there. He left me here to protect you, but he doesn’t think that you’ll be in any danger as long as The Cookie Jar is open.”

Hannah gave a little nod. “Because there are too many people around for Ross to risk doing anything to . . .” she paused, feeling a bit sick to her stomach again, “to hurt me?”

“That’s right. Do you have much more work to do here, Hannah?”

Hannah thought about that for a moment. “Well . . . yes, I do. We have to mix up the cookie dough for tomorrow’s baking and take care of the customers out in the coffee shop. Lisa and Aunt Nancy are out there now, but Aunt Nancy has to leave at four because she has a dinner date with Heiti.”

Norman smiled. “How is their engagement going?”

“Really well. They’re going to get married in June. It’ll be a small wedding and I promised to cater it. Lisa’s baking their wedding cake and it’s going to be chocolate because Heiti loves chocolate.”

“Sounds wonderful. Do you think I’ll be invited?”

“I’m sure you will. And even though Aunt Nancy seems to think the wedding will be small, they’re going to invite the whole sheriff’s department since Heiti is working for them now.”

Norman laughed. “Don’t forget about Lisa’s family. She has lots of aunts, and uncles, and cousins.”

“True. Aunt Nancy and Heiti say they’re going to keep the wedding small, but I have a feeling they won’t be able to do it without risking some hurt feelings. Everyone here in Lake Eden is going to want to be invited.”

“You’re right. Weddings tend to grow larger every time you make out a revised guest list.”

Hannah thought back to Norman’s initial question. “Why did you want to know how much longer I have to be here, Norman?”

“Because I’ve got a few errands I want to run.”

“Why don’t you go and do what you need to do right now? I’m fine here by myself because I’m not really by myself. I’ll lock the back kitchen door behind you, and I promise I won’t let anyone in unless I know who it is.”

“Okay, but don’t open the door without checking the peephole,” Norman reminded her. “I’ll be back around four or so. Can we leave then?”

“I’m sure we can. I’ll mix up tomorrow’s cookie dough, and we can invite Mike and Lonnie to have dinner with us tonight. We’ll pick up pizza at Bertanelli’s on the way and I have the Chocolate Cream Pie for dessert.”

“Sounds great! And we can get salad and garlic bread, too. Do you think you have enough pie?”

“I know I do. After you left, I made another pie. We’ll have enough, Norman. And if there’s any left over, we can take pieces to Clara and Marguerite.”

“There may not be any leftovers if we invite Mike,” Norman reminded her, heading for the hook where he’d hung his parka. “Come with me, Hannah. I want you to lock the door behind me and promise that you won’t open it without checking the peephole.”

“I promise,” Hannah said, standing up and walking to the door with him. She waited until Norman had dressed in his parka and slipped into his boots.

“I’ll see you then,” Norman said, opening the door and stepping out. “Remember, Hannah. Don’t let anyone in unless you are sure you know who it is.”