Susan Gillard - Creme Brulee Murder

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Disclaimer: This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events and incidents are either the products of the authors imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.

Copyright 2017 by Guardian Publishing Group - All rights reserved.

All rights Reserved. No part of this publication or the information in it may be quoted from or reproduced in any form by means such as printing, scanning, photocopying or otherwise without prior written permission of the copyright holder.

Table of Contents

The donuts glistened like amber jewels beneath the down lights in the Donut Delights counter. The burnished caramel tops drew the eye of every customer in the store.

Oh my goodness, Eva Schneider said, and placed her clutch bag on top of the glass counter. What are they, dear?

Heather tucked her hands into the front pouch of her apron and rocked on her heels. She was particularly proud of this weeks creation. The Crme Brulee Donut. A vanilla baked base injected with custard and topped with caramel. We sprinkled sugar on top of that and then used the blow torch to crisp it up. What do you think?

Eva licked her lips. I think Ill take two with my coffee this morning.

Coming right up, Heather said, and bent to retrieve a plate from underneath the register, then fed two of this weeks donuts onto it. She slid the plate across the counter, then set to work pushing buttons on the coffee machine.

Wheres Amy this morning, dear? Eva asked.

Shes on kitchen duty. Shes taken a shine to the Crme Brulees, to say the least, and has taken upon herself to oversee everything.

Does that mean shes a taste tester? Evas eyes twinkled with humor.

That sounds about right. Heather placed a mug on the grate.

And how are you feeling? Eva shifted the plate toward herself. After last week and the article this morning, I mean.

The past week had seen a slew of defamatory articles published in the Hillside Reporter, all about Heather Shepherd and how unethical her methods of investigation were. This mornings had been vitriolic.

You know what, Eva? Im not going to let Kates underhanded tactics get to me. Im totally fine. I couldnt be happier. One of Lillys stories is going to be published in her school paper this week, Heather said and handed over the full coffee cup. Business is booming in spite of those articles, I think.

Hillside stands behind you, a man spoke up, behind Eva.

The next customer in line bent around Eva and grinned at her. His long, brown locks curled at his shoulders, and his skin wrinkled around his smile.

Eva grabbed her clutch and moved out of his path.

Pardon? Heather asked.

Oh, sorry. I didnt mean to interrupt. I just couldnt help overhearing your conversation. The guy shuffled forward and admired the donut. Wow, those look great.

Heather tapped the touchscreen beside her old bronzed out register and entered Evas order into the system.

Emily swept up beside the old woman and took her order to the table for her, while Eva whipped out some cash and handed it over.

The till clicked and rolled open.

What can I get you today? Heather asked. She handed Eva her change, then smiled at her friend.

Eva winked and hurried off to her table without a word.

Shoot, that was rude of me. I broke up your conversation, the man said.

She wasnt about to deny that.

I just meant that everyone in Hillside knows the real you, Mrs. Shepherd, he said. And Ill have one of those Crme Brulee Donuts to go, please.

Sure thing, she replied and shut the till. She bent and brought out a pale pink cardboard sheet, then popped it into a box. And thank you for the vote of confidence.

I know good writing, and that article wasnt it, the customer said.

So youre a writer? Heather fed a donut into the box, then shut the lid. She tapped the screen again and entered the order.

Yeah, I write crime novels, he said. You might have read some of them, actually.

Doubtful. Heather got enough of real crime in daily life. Oh yeah?

Yeah, Im Grayson Stark, he said.

Heathers eyes widened. She had heard of him before. Goodness, youre a regular celebrity, she said and slid the box across the counter. Id better start reading your books.

Grayson laughed, drew out his wallet, then handed over the money. Keep the change. He picked up his donut. Yeah, Id better get back to writing my latest before my agent bans me from buying treats ever again. He flicked the top of the box. These babies are my downfall. Ill tell ya, Ive got a sweet tooth to rival your best customer.

She definitely hadnt seen him in the store before. Well, thanks for your patronage, Heather said. And good luck with the book!

Grayson saluted her with the donut box, then turned and hurried off toward the door.

Ames bustled over from the kitchen, another tray of donuts in her grasp. Was that Grayson Stark? She asked.

Yeah, Heather replied. There he goes. Nice guy.

Hes a brilliant author. Ive read all of his books. They get a little violent sometimes, though. Ames grimaced and slipped open the back portion of the glass counter.

Heather watched Grayson open the glass front door and stride out into the bright, Monday morning sunlight.

He made his way to the edge of the sidewalk, but stopped and turned back again. A woman appeared in front of the windows of the store, fists on her hips. She lifted one and pointed at him.

Cars rushed by in the street, tracking through puddles from last nights rain storm.

Whats going on? Amy asked, and lowered the tray into its place inside the counter. She narrowed her eyes at the woman. Wait a second, is that ?

Kate Laverne, Heather said.

Her arch-nemesis strode up to the author and waved her fist at him. She shoved him in the chest.

What is she doing? Amy gripped the edge of the counter.

Grayson stumbled into the road. A car careened toward him.

No! Heather cried out.

Grayson lurched back onto the sidewalk, and the vehicle sped by, honking its horn.

What on earth has gotten into her? The color drained from Amys cheeks. Shes lost her mind.

Grayson strode out of sight, but Kate didnt follow him. She yelled, instead, and threw her arms above her head, then dropped them with every other word.

Thats it, Heather said. That is it. Ames, you stay here and serve the customers. Ill be right back. Kate had gone one step too far this time. She could say what she wanted about Heather, try her sabotage tricks daily if she wanted to, but physically assaulting a customer in front of her store?

No dice.

Be careful, Amy whispered.

Heather rolled up the sleeves of her long cotton shirt and marched to the exit.

Heather tapped two fingers on Kates shoulder. What do you think youre doing? She asked.

Laverne spun to face her, her short, black bob hair swishing to keep up. Ha, you think youve won, dont you? You dont even understand what winning is. This isnt the end, Shepherd, I guarantee you that.

What on earth are you talking about? Heather asked. And why are you pushing my customers around?

Your customer? Really? Kate arched her perfectly penciled eyebrow. You stole Grayson from me, and you know it.

As usual, Laverne had hopped off the sanity train and taken the long dip into the crazy lake beside it. The woman was determined to blame Heather for every little thing that went wrong in her business.

Nothing to say about it? Kate asked, and folded her arms over her fancy suit jacket. Thats what I thought. Her outfit made her look more like a stock broker than a small town baker.