Part 22 (2/2)
”It's like Thanksgiving,” declared Zoe, when they were all sitting at the table.
”We have a lot to be thankful for,” said Lucy.
”You can say that again,” said Barney, with a nod to Eddie.
He was fresh out of rehab and looked great, thought Lucy. He was letting his military brush cut grow in and the slightly longer, curly hair softened his appearance. He smiled often, paying special attention to Elizabeth. Lily, he said in answer to Lucy's pointed inquiry, was away in Switzerland, apprenticing with a master chocolatier.
Elizabeth seemed to be enjoying herself, which was a big change from her returns home during college breaks, when she complained about there being nothing to do and couldn't wait to get back to Boston. Now that she was working and fending for herself she had a new appreciation for home, where Mom took care of the cooking and cleaning and even did her laundry.
When they'd polished off the shrimp c.o.c.ktail and turkey with stuffing and gravy and all the fixings-Bill's payment for fixing the door at the Pennysaver-Lucy suggested moving into the living room for coffee. Sara and Zoe were delegated to clear the table and load the dishwasher; Elizabeth and Eddie went off together to hear a local band and catch up with high school friends at the Irish pub down by the harbor.
”Eddie looks terrific,” said Lucy, pouring a cup of decaf for Marge.
Bill lit the fire he had laid earlier. When he was satisfied that it had caught, he produced a bottle of brandy and, receiving a nod from Barney, poured two gla.s.ses. ”What's his legal situation?” he asked.
Barney took the snifter and raised it to the light, admiring the golden liquid, then took a sip. ”Mmmm,” he said. ”Well, he took my advice for once and agreed to cooperate with the DA. He got a good deal, no jail time, probation for a year with random drug and alcohol tests, and of course rehab. You never know, but it looks like he's staying clean.”
”He's thinking about going to college,” said Marge, holding her saucer with one hand and lifting the cup with the other. ”He's looking into physical therapy. Maybe because of the guys he knew who got wounded. He says he wants to help people.”
”I guess he already has,” said Lucy, sitting down on the couch with her coffee. ”He's named some of the dealers Meacham was supplying The drug task force is finally making real progress.” She paused. ”I didn't realize that they'd been working on making a case against Meacham for months.”
Barney nodded. ”n.o.body did. Those guys work undercover, way undercover. Even Horowitz didn't know what they were doing. He was convinced Dora was the killer, and there was a lot of circ.u.mstantial evidence. But when Graves showed up with his story about Tamzin discovering the drugs, he contacted the task force and they set up the raid.” He took a sip of brandy. ”Meacham had quite an operation, bringing the stuff in from Mexico with the cocoa beans and using the factory to distribute it. It turned out that Chanticleer Chocolate's most popular flavors were heroin and OxyContin, along with pot, c.o.ke, and ecstasy. He had something for everyone, whatever their preference and budget.”
”Who knew?” mused Marge, biting into a cookie. ”He seemed so nice. I never would have guessed. And the scope-I couldn't believe the amount of drugs they found in his warehouse.”
Lucy nodded, remembering the photo Ted ran in the Pennysaver showing huge bottles of pills and hundreds of plastic bags of marijuana and cocaine, laid out so they completely covered the big conference table at the police station. ”Ted said Trey was going to be the Chamber of Commerce's Businessman of the Year.”
”Some businessman,” snorted Bill. ”It was all a big lie.”
”What's happening to all his drug customers?” asked Lucy. ”They can't all be in rehab.”
”They've found other dealers,” said Barney, draining his gla.s.s. ”Or they steal. There was a pharmacy break-in last night, over in Gilead.”
Lucy shook her head. ”What's the solution? How do we stop this?”
Barney set his empty gla.s.s on the mantel and stood studying the flames dancing in the fireplace. ”I wish I knew,” he said. ”I wish I knew.”
ISBN: 978-0-7582-7819-7.
Books by Leslie Meier.
MISTLETOE MURDER.
TIPPY TOE MURDER.
TRICK OR TREAT MURDER.
BACK TO SCHOOL MURDER.
VALENTINE MURDER.
CHRISTMAS COOKIE MURDER.
TURKEY DAY MURDER.
WEDDING DAY MURDER.
BIRTHDAY PARTY MURDER.
FATHER'S DAY MURDER STAR SPANGLED MURDER.
NEW YEAR'S EVE MURDER BAKE SALE MURDER.
CANDY CANE MURDER.
ST. PATRICK'S DAY MURDER MOTHER'S DAY MURDER WICKED WITCH MURDER.
GINGERBREAD COOKIE MURDER.
ENGLISH TEA MURDER.
CHOCOLATE COVERED MURDER.
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