Cinnamon Roll Murder (Hannah Swensen, #15)(65)

Yield: 3 to 4 dozen delicious cookies, depending on cookie size.



Hannah’s 4th Note: Andrea says these are Bill’s favorite cookies. He likes to have two with a cup of hot chocolate when he’s watching the Vikings play.





Chapter Twenty-One


They’d almost finished their entrees when Andrea turned to Doc. “The samples I got are in my car.”

“Samples?” Doc gave her a questioning look.

“I wasn’t sure exactly what to get, so I collected Diana’s hair, saliva, and blood. And I got some of Doctor Bev’s hair. Is that all right?”

“That’s fine, Andrea. Better too much than too little.” Doc turned to Delores. “Right, Lori?”

That was when something happened that shocked all three Swensen sisters. Their mother giggled. Hannah stared at Delores as if she’d suddenly grown wings and a tail, and she knew that Michelle and Andrea were staring at Delores in the very same way. No one had ever made their mother giggle like a schoolgirl before!

“I was, of course, referring to this incredible salmon,” Doc explained, popping the last bite in his mouth.

“I knew that,” Delores said. And then, to Michelle’s, Andrea’s, and Hannah’s surprise, she giggled again.

All this was a bit much for Hannah. She didn’t really mind that Delores and Doc had shared a private joke, but it was a little embarrassing to see her mother so giddy, especially since they hadn’t had anything except bottled water to drink. “Are you going to submit the sample you took from Buddy ... .” She stopped, rephrasing what she’d said in her mind. “Are you going to submit the sample that you took from the man we thought was Buddy to the lab at the same time?”

“Yes.” Doc was suddenly all business. “Unless he was in the military in the last couple of years, his DNA won’t be on file. But I think it’s worth a try. Some of our government agencies are building up DNA banks, and perhaps he was involved with one of them. I’ve got to tell you, I’m curious. I want to know why he was using a fake name and what he was doing here in Minnesota. But it’s not just a matter of simple curiosity. He may have family looking for him, or someone else who’d like to know what became of him.”

“What did his driver’s license say?” Michelle asked.

“It was a Minnesota license issued to Bernard Alan Neiman. It was Buddy’s picture and the physical description matched the man we thought was Buddy Neiman.”

“But not his blood type,” Hannah pointed out.

“That’s true. We got that from a Red Cross blood donor card. The name on the card was Bernard Alan Neiman, and it was stamped on the back with the name of a Seattle, Washington blood bank.”

Seattle again! Hannah filed the information away for future reference. Cammy had said Buddy mentioned some trouble in Seattle at one of the breakfasts they’d shared. She had to remember to ask Norman if he’d ever come into contact with Buddy Neiman, since Norman had lived in Seattle when he’d gone to dental school.

“I have a question for you, Hannah,” Doc said, leaning forward to garner her attention. “Is there any way to make a good bran cookie?”

It was so far removed from their discussion about the murder that Hannah was startled. “Do you mean a bran cookie that tastes good?”

“That’s exactly what I mean. I have quite a few patients who need to have more whole grain in their diets. I asked my hospital cooks to make bran cookies, but the ones they made were so awful, nobody would eat them.”

“I told Doc that if anybody could make a bran cookie taste good, you could,” Delores told her.

“I can try. What ingredients do I have to use?”

“Bran, oatmeal, and that’s it. You can put in anything else you want.”

“How about eggs?”

“Eggs are fine.”

“Butter?”

“Certainly. Just don’t use margarine.”

“Can they have some raisins?” Michelle asked.

“Raisins.” Doc looked thoughtful. “Yes. Raisins would be good. And you can put in any spices you like. Those are fine.”

“I think we can do it,” Michelle said, smiling at Hannah. “What do you think?”

“I agree. I think we can do it if we can have a couple of days to experiment.”

“Great!” Doc turned to Delores. “I wonder if those awful bran cookies are one of the reasons Ben is leaving.”

“I doubt that.”

“Did you ever taste one of those bran cookies?” Doc asked her.

“No.”

“Then you don’t know how bad they were.”

“Are you talking about Ben Matson?” Hannah asked, very surprised when Delores and Doc nodded. The last time she’d seen Ben, only two nights ago at the hospital, he’d seemed content with his job.

“Ben landed a much better internship,” Doc explained. “He wants to make plastic surgery his specialty, and something opened up at one of the most prestigious hospitals in Los Angeles. I can understand why he felt he had to jump at the chance.”

Hannah knew when it was time to keep silent, and when it was time to speak up This was one of those times to speak up. “What hospital is he going to?” she asked.