Cinnamon Roll Murder (Hannah Swensen, #15)(12)

Hannah got to her feet. “I’ll go with you. I want to make sure your wrist is okay.”

They walked in pairs, Buddy and the nurse in the lead, and Hannah and Devin following behind them. As they passed by Norman and Doctor Bev, Norman’s fiancée stepped behind him quickly, almost as if she didn’t want Hannah to see her.

Bev’s maneuver couldn’t have suited Hannah better. She gave a little wave as she passed them, said a quick “Hi, Norman.” And then they were on their way to see Doctor Ben Matson.

“Hello, Hannah.” Ben greeted her. “You weren’t injured, were you?”

“Not me. Your patient is Buddy Neiman. He’s with Cinnamon Roll Six.”

Ben glanced down at the chart. He took the time to read it through, and then he turned to Buddy. “So you’re the keyboard player. Let’s see what’s going on with that wrist of yours.”

As Ben began to examine Buddy’s wrist, Hannah glanced at her watch. Almost fifteen minutes had passed since she’d left her mother, and it was time to get the cinnamon rolls, meet Delores, warm the rolls, and then pass them out. “Is it okay if I leave you here, Buddy?” she asked him. “The lady who ordered the cinnamon rolls said to bring them inside and pass them out.”

“Sure, if you bring me one. No problem.”

“I’ll catch up with you,” Hannah promised, and with that said, she was off, hurrying across the floor to Michelle and the rest of their group of patients. When she got there, she saw that Bertie Straub, one of the Rainbow Ladies, was sitting in the chair that she had vacated.

“Your mother sent me to take over your group,” Bertie told her. “She wants all three of you to help her pass out the cinnamon rolls.”

“All three?” Michelle asked.

“Andrea must be here,” Hannah said, drawing the obvious conclusion.

“That’s right. She’s in the kitchen with your mother and they’re making the coffee.”

Hannah drew a sigh of relief. At least they weren’t trying to cook anything! Both Delores and Andrea were culinarily challenged in the kitchen.

“She said to tell you to drop everything else and bring her the cinnamon rolls,” Bertie added. “And she said to do it right away.”

“Right,” Hannah said, exchanging glances with Michelle. That was a command, and commands from Delores were not to be ignored. They thanked Bertie for taking over their duties, said goodbye to their charges, grabbed an unused hospital cart, and rushed outside to retrieve the pans of rolls.

Less than five minutes later, they were pushing the cart down the hospital corridor with ten dozen Special Cinnamon Rolls on the top shelf, and every bag of leftover cookies that Hannah had loaded into her truck on the bottom shelf.

“What’s in the box?” Michelle asked, eyeing the distinctive bakery box that Hannah had set on top of a pan of rolls.

“Sinco de Cocoa Cookies. They’re chocolate and avocado drop cookies.”

“Chocolate and avocado? That’s a strange combination.” Michelle opened the box and peered inside. “They smell really great. Are they good?”

“Would you like to taste one?”

Michelle gave a little laugh. “I thought you’d never ask! Do you want me to get one out for you?”

“Absolutely. We’re running late, and Mother’s probably beside herself. It’ll be easier to deal with her if we have a little chocolate. You taste first and I’ll push the cart. And then you push the cart and I’ll taste.”

“Sounds like a plan to me.” Michelle took a big bite of her cookie and an expression of total bliss crossed her face.

“Good?” Hannah asked.

“So good I could live on these for the rest of my life. Now I’ll push and you taste.” Michelle popped the rest of the cookie into her mouth, handed the second cookie to Hannah, and grabbed the cart.

Hannah took a bite and savored it for a moment. Then she chewed, swallowed, and smiled, accomplishing all three almost simultaneously.

“You like it as much as I do?”

“You bet I do! This is a great combination! I don’t know why, but the avocado seems to makes the chocolate taste more intense.”

“I think it does something to the texture, too.”

“You’re right. The texture is smooth and almost creamy.”

Michelle looked a bit puzzled. “I didn’t actually taste the avocado the same way I would in guacamole.”

“I didn’t taste it either, but it’s clear it’s influencing the other ingredients. I’m not really sure why it works that way, but it does.”

“And how!” Michelle agreed as they turned the corner and arrived at the double-wide kitchen doors. “Do you think we should give Mother one to sweeten her up?”

“Not yet. Just move the box to the bottom shelf. If she asks what it is, we’ll tell her it’s a special order.”

“But it’s not a special order ... is it?”

“Yes, it is. It’s a special order for the whole Swensen family.”

“I get it.” Michelle looked pleased. “It’s for later, when we’re through with the patients, and everything’s nice and calm, and we can relax with a cup of coffee and something yummy.”