Part 12 (2/2)
Moishe made a sound, a cross between a yowl and a purr, and Hannah nodded, just as if he'd suggested another possibility. He was a social being and he liked to be included in the conversation. ”You're right, Moishe. The only other possibility is that Rhonda's car was at the Voelker place and her killer stole it to make his getaway.”
Hannah flipped to a blank page in her notebook and jotted a reminder to check Rhonda's apartment building for her car. If she found it parked in its a.s.signed spot, her next step would be to canva.s.s the neighbors to see if anyone had seen Rhonda leave.
The phone rang again, just as Hannah finished making her notes. She reached out to answer it and smiled when she recognized Lisa's voice. ”Hi, Lisa. Did you find that list of pie buyers?”
”I've got it right here. I'm sorry it's so late, but I just got home.”
”That's okay. Did you have a good time?”
”Yes. We went out to the Corner Tavern for a steak and then we dropped in at the bowling alley. They were short a couple of people on one of the teams, so Herb and I filled in.”
”How did you do?”
”Not bad. I averaged one-twenty a game and that's good for me. When we finished, it was time for Herb's night rounds and I rode along.”
Hannah knew all about Herb's night rounds. Unlike Bill and Mike, who were with the county sheriff's department, Herb Beeseman was on the Lake Eden city payroll. During the day he enforced parking regulations and ticketed drivers who committed driving infractions within the city limits. Two months ago the city council had asked Herb to patrol the business district every evening. Local business owners had given Herb keys to use in case of emergency, and the 112.
extra precaution had worked out well. In the two months that Herb had been patrolling at night, he'd spotted a broken faucet in the cafe that had saved Hal and Rose a ma.s.sive cleanup, and he'd turned off a smoldering halogen lamp in Stan Kramer's office.
”It's usually boring, but tonight we had some excitement,” Lisa went on. ”The alarm went off just as we were driving past Granny's Attic.”
”Mother had a break-in?”
”No. Herb used his key to check out the inside and everything was fine.”
Hannah was puzzled. ”Why did the alarm go off if no one broke in?”
”It was the electricity. Remember that pole the owner put up between The Cookie Jar and Granny's Attic?”
”Of course,” Hannah said. The pole was an eyesore, but the owner had a.s.sured them he'd take it down just as soon as Granny's Attic was rewired.
”The problem is with the circuits. The same circuit that runs your mother's alarm is the one that runs our freezer and our walk-in cooler. If our cooler and freezer happen to kick in together, there's a sudden drop in power that triggers the alarm at Granny's Attic.”
”That doesn't sound good. Does Herb think it could happen again?”
”It could, but your mother's taking care of it. Herb just spoke to her and she's going to call the alarm company in the morning. They'll send a man out to move her alarm system to a circuit that's not so heavily loaded.”
”Good. How about our freezer and walk-in cooler? Are they okay?”
”They are now, thanks to Herb. It didn't affect our freezer at all, but our cooler's got some kind of internal circuit breaker that shuts it off during a brownout. Herb hit the reset b.u.t.ton and it started right up.”
”Tell Herb he's a doll.”
LEMON MERINGUE PIE MURDER 113.
Lisa laughed. ”I'll tell him. Do you want those names of pie buyers now?”
”Sure.” Hannah reached for her steno pad and a pen. ”Okay, I'm ready.”
Lisa read off the names and Hannah wrote them down. No one on the list seemed likely to have given Rhonda a pie, but she thanked Lisa, told her she'd see her in the morning, and hung up the phone. It was past bedtime and morning would come much too soon.
Hannah performed her nightly ritual, making sure the doors were locked and preparing the coffeemaker for its automatic timed brew in the morning. She washed her face, brushed her teeth, and got into the oversized s.h.i.+rt that she wore for a nightgown. She was just about to crawl into bed when the phone rang again.
”h.e.l.lo?” Hannah answered at bedside, using the shocking-pink Princess phone she'd picked up at the thrift shop. The little light no longer worked, but the phone was still operational.
”Hi, Hannah. It's me.” Andrea's voice floated out of the tiny holes in the receiver. ”I'm sorry it's so late, but I didn't get a chance to call earlier.”
”That's okay. I wasn't in bed yet.”
”Good. I made some calls right after I talked to you, but the finer restaurants weren't open yet. I hit pay dirt about an hour ago, but Bill came home and I didn't want to call you until he went to bed.”
”What did you find out?”
”It's Alfredo's Ristorante. That's the new place out at the lake. They served os...o...b..co for takeout on Friday night.”
”Good job!” Hannah said, jotting down the name. ”Thanks, Andrea.”
”No problem. It was easy. What do you want me to do next?”
Hannah thought about the leads she had to follow. ”Do you know where Rhonda's apartment building is?”
114.
”Sure. I've got her address in my client file. She lives at the apartment building that Beatrice and Ted Koester bought last year.”
”Could you run over there in the morning and check to see if her car is still in the garage? It would save me a trip.”
”I can do that. What do you want me to do if it's there?”
”Nothing. Just drop by The Cookie Jar and tell me. We'll decide what to do about it then.”
”Okay. I'd better get to bed before Bill starts wondering what I'm doing out here. I'll see you in the morning, Hannah.”
Hannah hung up and opened the bedroom window to catch any night breezes that might blow her way. Then she doused the light to stop the moths from trying to commit suicide against her screen and crawled under the sheet she used as a quilt in the summer. There was a thump, resembling a mini-earthquake, and a furry shape crept up in the near darkness. Hannah grabbed her pillow protectively and glared in his direction. ”This pillow is mine. I won't let you have it until my new one comes.”
There was a rustle and then another thump as Moishe settled down on the other pillow, the foam one she'd designated for his use. Silence filled her bedroom for several moments and then Hannah heard a rumbling purr. She reached out and stroked Moishe's soft fur three times and pulled her hand back. Experience had taught her that four strokes would cause him to move to the bottom of her bed. Hannah checked to make sure her alarm clock was set correctly and then she seized her pillow in a death grip and closed her eyes, hoping that her arms wouldn't loosen as she slept so that Moishe could steal it again.
Chapter Ten.
Hannah awoke to an inky black bedroom and the infernal electronic beeping of her alarm clock. It took her a minute to sit up and shut it off, but when she did, she realized that her head had been lying on the mattress. She flicked on the light and turned to eye her goose-down pillow. Moishe had commandeered it once again.
Even though she wanted to settle back down for another few minutes of rest, Hannah tossed back the sheet, placed her feet firmly on the floor, and got out of bed. It was a psychological trick she'd learned in college and it worked for those mornings when she was tired and wanted nothing more than to go back to sleep. Once she'd thrown back the covers and was standing by the side of the bed, the task of straightening the bedding to climb back in seemed like more work than starting the day.
Hannah stuffed her feet into her slippers and walked down the hallway to the kitchen. Once she got there, she switched on the light and headed straight for the coffeepot. There was coffee in the carafe and the little red light was glowing. She sent up a short, thankful prayer for modern conveniences and poured her first cup of the day.
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