Red Velvet Cupcake Murder (Hannah Swensen, #16)(27)

“Okay,” Mike said, turning to Norman. “I know you went to consult with Doc about Barbara’s teeth. Tell me what you learned.”

To Hannah’s eyes, Norman looked sad and she hoped it wasn’t bad news. “Five broken teeth, one sheared off at the gum line. Doc and I had to do surgery to extract it.”

“Will she be all right?” Hannah was more concerned about Barbara than she was about the teeth.

“She’ll recover. The good part is that I took X-rays of Barbara’s teeth less than a month ago and that made it simple to extract them. The other good news is that I’ll be able to fill in the gaps with bridges just as soon as her gums heal.”

Mike looked confused. “I’m glad for Barbara, but why did you need to tell me this?”

“Because Barbara’s dental injuries weren’t entirely consistent with her fall. When we finished treating Barbara, Doc Knight and I went back to the Albion to examine the area where she landed.”

“And you found . . . ?” Hannah held her breath, waiting for Norman’s answer.

“We found nothing on the ground where she landed to account for the full extent of her dental injuries. The ground was soft and there was only one rock large enough to break a tooth.”

Hannah frowned. “If Barbara didn’t break her teeth when she landed, how did they get broken?”

“I know where you’re going with this,” Mike said. “You and Doc think that Barbara suffered a blow to the face right there on the roof.”

“More than one blow, if we’re right. Neither one of us believes that the dental trauma could have been accomplished by one blow.”

“How many blows?” Hannah asked, and just asking made her feel slightly sick. The thought of someone hitting Barbara in the face was horrible.

“We believe that there were at least three blows. That’s consistent with her facial damage and bruising, and also consistent with her dental trauma.”

“You mean . . .” Hannah stopped and took a deep breath. “You mean someone attacked Barbara while she was on the roof?”

“That’s exactly what we think. Everything stacks up that way. It was a big party and people were all over the hotel. It would have been relatively easy for someone to follow Barbara up to the rooftop garden without being noticed.”

“That’s true,” Mike said. “When we interviewed the guests, only one person remembers seeing Barbara and that was in one of the two-bedroom condos.”

“There’s only one elevator that goes up to the penthouse,” Hannah added. “Did anyone in the lobby see her getting into that?”

Mike shook his head, and then he turned to Norman. “Okay. I’m buying that theory except for one thing. We don’t think Barbara fell. We found some scuff marks at the point where she left the roof. But the trajectory of a fall puts her at a different spot than the one where she landed.”

“Then the person who attacked her also pushed her off the roof?” Hannah asked.

“No. That doesn’t add up either. The crime scene boys think Barbara jumped off the roof all by herself and now we know the reason why.”

Chapter Nine


“Hannah. Before you say a word, there’s something I have to say to you.”

Hannah stood in the open doorway at The Cookie Jar and stared at her partner in surprise. She’d never heard Lisa sound so serious before. There were frown lines on her normally smooth brow, high spots of color dotted her cheeks, and her eyes were blazing with determination. Her glossy brown hair was tousled, as if she’d run her fingers through it in frustration, and her hands were clasped so tightly together that her knuckles were white with the pressure. It was clear that something was horribly wrong, and Hannah drew in her breath sharply as her mind settled on the obvious conclusion. There was only one thing that could catapult her normally calm and cheerful partner into this highly agitated state. “You’re not quitting, are you?”

“Quitting?” Lisa looked shocked. “No!”

“What is it then?”

“I absolutely positively will not tell the story of Barbara’s fall. I refuse, Hannah! I know it brings in business when I tell the stories of murders, but this isn’t murder. Barbara’s fall was a horrible, awful accident!”

“Not exactly,” Hannah said, and then she wished she hadn’t. Lisa’s face had gone dangerously pale, and as Hannah watched, she reached out to grab the edge of the counter.

“Don’t tell me that Barbara is . . . is . . .”

“No, Barbara’s fine. Or at least Barbara’s as fine as she can be with her injuries. I saw her yesterday and Doc Knight is almost certain she’ll recover.”

“Oh, thank goodness! I’ve been so worried about her I couldn’t sleep at all last night. And Herb was gone, helping Mike and Bill at the hotel. Sammy was so scared, he slept with me. And he’d rather sleep in that great bed your mother bought for him.”

“Or maybe it was the other way around,” Hannah said, taking Lisa’s arm and leading her to a stool at the stainless steel work island. “Sit down before you fall down, Lisa.”

Lisa sat. And then she looked up at Hannah. “What did you mean, that maybe it was the other way around?”

“I meant, maybe Sammy slept with you because you were the one who was scared.”