Crepes and Crimes Read online

  All I could hear was the frantic beating of my own heart as I stood there clutching the pots, but as the seconds passed and no burst of light, followed by angry shouting, I breathed a sigh of relief.

  I righted the pots and grabbed the rolling pin again, sneaking the last few steps to the door to the back room. It was ajar and I pushed at it gently, hoping that it wouldn’t creak. Finally, my luck was in as it opened noiselessly and I peeked inside.

  My eyes grew wide as I saw Logan and Scooter pressed up against the back of the room. Logan didn’t seem to have his gun, and as I crept closer and moved past a pillar, I saw it lying on the floor in a corner. Logan was talking to someone, trying to reason with them, and as I inched further around the pillar I saw that it was Rodney Wilcox.

  He was standing in front of Logan and Scooter, waving a gun at them angrily. I paused for a second, trying to think about what to do, but when I saw him raise the gun again and point it at Logan my feet acted of their own accord.

  I started sneaking up behind Rodney, hoping desperately that he wouldn’t turn around and see me. I saw Scooter’s eyes get a fraction wider as he met my gaze and gestured to him to keep Rodney talking.

  “So, Rodney, my dude. Come on man...you want to explain what you’re doing here?” Scooter said nervously, trying to keep Rodney’s attention. “You've had me in here for hours and now Logan. Surely you can see this isn't right.”

  Rodney laughed. “What’s happening? Why don’t you ask my stupid sister what’s happening? Why don’t you ask her what was happening when she decided to try and jeopardize everything I’ve ever worked for so that she could have a quick fling with a pretty boy?”

  “Yeah... women, right? What are we going to do with them? But surely you didn't kill Derrick.”

  I rolled my eyes at Scooter’s attempts to relate with Rodney, but Rodney seemed to be on a roll now.

  “Of course I killed Derrick! There was my sister running around saying that she wanted to run away with the man when she was supposed to be marrying Mr. Rich-But-Dim. The scandal would have ruined my family, ruined everything, so I did exactly what I had to do to protect us. And I’d do it again.”

  “I mean yeah, family first bro. I get you.”

  Rodney’s smile widened. “Oh, I’m so glad you understand, Scooter. Because I’m going to pin all of this on you with your weird comments and your creepy murder cakes and I’m out of this joint.”

  He paused and seemed to deliberate before adding, “Besides, Derrick was always the more popular one. Someone would have killed him eventually.”

  I’d heard enough. With my hands shaking I run the last few steps and raise my rolling pin, bringing it down into the back of his head.

  He grunted and slowly crumpled to the floor as I knocked him out cold. Rolling pin 1 Rodney 0.

  Chapter 28

  We stood staring at Rodney for a while before anyone said anything. My rolling pin was still lifted high in the air and my eyes were wide. I couldn’t believe what I’d just done.

  It was Scooter who broke the silence. “Jeez Coco cabana, remind me never to get on your bad side. Or I at least hide the kitchenware before I do!”

  I stared at him for a second before I burst out laughing. I started shaking with hysterical mirth and dropped the rolling pin to wipe tears from my eyes.

  Logan jumped into action, kicking Rodney’s gun away from his unconscious body and quickly whipping out his phone to call for backup.

  I ran to Scooter and hugged him hard. As I pulled away, I saw blood on my palm and gasped.

  “Logan! Scooter’s hurt” I screeched, and Logan turned quickly.

  “Yeah, and send an ambulance too, okay?” He ordered into his phone, before he hung up and walked quickly over to us to examine Scooter.

  Scooter tried to brush off the attention, not wanting to make a fuss. “I’m fine, it’s all fine,” he mumbled, but Logan frowned at him.

  “Sure kid, it’s all fine,” he repeated back to Scooter, rolling his eyes and pulling him forwards to examine his head.

  I stared at Rodney again, suddenly feeling exhausted. I thought to myself whether anyone would notice if I took a quick nap on the floor before the cops showed up. As I was getting ready to subtly slide down onto the floor to enact this plan, Logan finished checking up on Scooter and turned his attention to me.

  I groaned inwardly and closed my eyes as I readied myself for Logan’s admonishments.

  “What were you thinking?” I winced at the tone of Logan’s voice, cold with worry and anger.

  “I was thinking that I didn’t want either of you to die so-”

  “No you weren’t thinking, Coco! You never think about things, you just run in and haphazardly try out half-baked plans as though there are no consequences. You’re always so reckless and it’s not okay,” he cut me off and I feel a surge of anger at his ungratefulness.

  “Excuse me? In case you didn’t notice, Logan, you were being held at gunpoint by a literal murderer. How lucky were you that I decided you were taking too long and came in here to see if you needed help?”

  He was taken aback by my outburst and so I continued, fueled by the adrenaline still coursing through my veins.

  “Sure, call me reckless all you want but you’d be dead if I followed your orders, and so would Scooter! So maybe, I don’t know, a thank you wouldn’t go amiss? As in ‘thank you for saving my life, Coco, you are a wonderful person and surprisingly good at the whole tracking down killers deal?”

  We stared at each other for a long moment until I shifted uncomfortably. I was about to open my big mouth again and apologize when Logan threw his arms around my neck and pulled me in for a hug.

  “You’re right, you’re so right. I’m sorry, and I’m very grateful that you were here for us so thank you. I was just so worried that you would get yourself killed and then what would we all do without you.”

  I squeezed him back, his hair tickling my nose. “So how about telling me I’m wonderful and a great detective?” I asked playfully to break the mood.

  He laughed. “Not a chance. You broke every detective rule in the book.”

  I pulled away and slapped his arm, and he caught my hands in his. I coughed slightly as the air between us turned thick and awkward. We stared at each other, and I was surprised to find that I was nervous.

  He swallowed audibly and I smiled. He gave a little chuckle too and reached up to brush a strand of hair out of my face. There was a charged atmosphere between us, and I wondered if maybe we could become something more.

  As I looked into his eyes, I knew he hoped we would too. We leaned in towards each other, breath hitched, but before we could connect the door burst open and we sprang apart.

  Police and paramedics swarmed into the room, heading for Rodney, and Scooter, who was sitting on a box looking dazed and confused.

  “Scooter!” I cried, feeling guilty for forgetting the most pressing matter right now, his head wound.

  “He’s in shock and might have a concussion. We’ll take him to the hospital to check him over,” a paramedic assured me as they helped him to stand. I turned around and saw the police cuffing Rodney before hitching him up onto a stretcher too.

  As they wheeled our patient and murderer out of the room, I inched closer to Logan again. Our eyes met and I swallowed, hoping the moment wasn’t ruined. I reached out for him again but before I could take another step my phone rang in my pocket.

  I stifled a groan, but the moment was already broken. I checked my phone to see a text from Masie, asking if everything was okay and if I’d heard from Scooter. I sent her a quick reply, letting her and the rest of the Mad Batter family know what had happened and telling them to meet me at the hospital.

  “So how did you know who the killer was?” Logan asked finally, trying to break the awkwardness that had descended on us.

  I smiled and shrugged at him. “I remembered something that Rodney said, it was a tiny detail but I realized it was the one that mattered the mo
st. When I discovered Derrick’s body, I told the guests that someone had been killed with a wine bottle to keep them out of the room, but when I spoke to Rodney later he knew it was champagne. How would he have known that unless he had been there?”

  Logan laughed and pulled me in for another hug. “You blow my mind, Coco. Now go on, get to the hospital and stay with Scooter. I have a lot of paperwork to file and an interview to conduct, but I’ll stop off at the bakery tomorrow for a blueberry muffin.”

  “I’ll make sure we have some in stock,” I teased, before kissing him on the cheek and hurrying away before I could analyze the butterflies in my stomach.

  I had barely gotten into the hospital when I heard my name shouted from behind me. Turning, I saw Rose and Masie and my heart leapt. I ran to them and hugged them tightly.

  Vivian and Stella sidled up behind them and I pulled them into the group hug too. It had been a rough day, but I was just so happy that everyone was here, safe and sound.

  Everything was finally going to be okay.

  Chapter 29

  I ran around like a headless chicken trying to find the fresh roses we were supposed to put around the base of the cake. I know I brought them into the hall, so the only explanation is that Scooter or Masie moved them somewhere for safekeeping or to be helpful. It’d be much more helpful if they had let me know where.

  I couldn’t hide all of my surprise when Jordan and Maribelle came by the shop a few days after my run in with Rodney, to let us know that the wedding was going forward and to make sure we would still be okay making the wedding cake. They seemed as close and happy as they ever had, and despite my confusion as to how on earth it was still happening. But I was happy as I really needed the money from this wedding.

  After Jordan left, Maribelle took me aside to explain. “I don’t know Coco, but when Jordan finally stood up for me to his father, it was as if I was seeing him in a whole new light. I thought about everything for a long time, but I really do think I could be happy with him.”

  “I’m happy for you Maribelle, I really am.” I was sincere as I hugged her and promised her the mother of all wedding cakes. It might not have been a choice I’d have made, but Maribelle seemed more than happy with the path she chose.

  We had worked hard to make the wedding cake and now it was finally time to see our hard work alongside all the other parts of the wedding. I had left Scooter and Masie to get the cake onto the table while I tracked down the roses, and I finally found them mixed in with the floral table arrangements.

  I shook my head and smiled as I extracted them, glad I had waited until I found them to blame Scooter and Masie. It looked like, for once, they weren’t the ones to blame!

  I hurried back to the cake and put the roses into position, just in time. The doors opened and the guests spilled into the room followed by the laughing couple. Maribelle caught my eye and gave me a little wave, and I returned it with a smile and a thumbs up.

  As the new happy couple reached the dance floor and started to dance, the guests began trickling over to the cake table. I spotted Masie across the room at the beverages stand, and touched Scooter’s arm to get his attention away from the pretty young girl he was talking to.

  “Will you be okay manning the stand while I disappear over there for a second?” I motioned towards Masie but Scooter was already nodding his head.

  “Go, I’ve got this.”

  I smiled gratefully at him and leave him to it. He made a full recovery in no time and I had finally stopped instinctively checking him for concussion symptoms whenever I saw him, much to his relief.

  “Hey you,” I said when I reached Masie and grabbed a cocktail from her stand. She whirled round and beamed at me, making me suspect that she might have been helping herself to as many cocktails as she’s helped serve tonight.

  “Did you know that Derrick had been stealing money here and there? He was a regular little con artist apparently, and he was saving it all up to take Maribelle off into the sunset, away from this town and everyone they knew. And now he’s popped it and she’s only gone and married someone else.”

  I laughed at Masie’s frank, and probably drink-fueled, assessment of the situation. “Yeah, crazy huh? According to Maribelle, Warner was actually pretty pleased about that.”

  Masie turned to squint at me, not following. I threw my arm around her shoulders and explain what Maribelle had told me earlier.

  “Apparently Warner thinks it’s better to be betrayed for love than for greed. So he was actually relieved at what was happening. I can see his point, you know?”

  Masie elbowed me and nodded to the other side of the room where Logan was chatting to Scooter. “Yeah, love is great!” she exclaimed.

  I rolled my eyes and shoved her. “Oh, behave. Or I’ll leave you all alone over here and go back to Scooter.” I threatened her teasingly.

  She laughed and linked her arm through mine. I helped myself to another cocktail while also trying to angle Masie away from the drinks table so that she couldn’t grab her third in ten minutes.

  We watched the crowd dancing and laughing together, swarming around the bride and groom and away again. In the middle, Jordan and Maribelle never stopped dancing, smiling and laughing with each other.

  My eyes strayed away from the dancers and locked onto Logan’s. He grinned and raised his glass to me, and I did the same. I ignored the smile that slipped across my face and Masie’s rather pathetic attempts at a drunken wolf whistle.

  All I knew was that I was lucky to have Logan, and my Mad Batter family. We’ve stuck together through thick and thin, and now hopefully all the bad luck is over and done with.

  I took a deep breath and exhaled slowly as the DJ switched over to a slow song and everyone on the dance floor partnered up. Everyone seemed to be having a good time, even Oliver, the angry guy who frequented Rose’s groomers. His bright pink poodle was in attendance and getting lots of attention from everyone in the room, and I could see him bristling with pride.

  I drained my cocktail and shook myself slightly as I felt myself getting maudlin. This whole thing had been an ordeal, and one that I’m glad is over and done with. I felt somehow stronger after everything we’ve been through, and I knew the others felt the same.

  I squeezed Masie tighter and laughed as she staggered slightly. I knew that if any more trouble ever comes our way, we’d be able to handle it no problem.

  Hopefully though, there wouldn’t be any trouble for a long, long time. Well, we at least had a few good months.

  Don’t miss the next book in the Mad Batter Cozy Mystery Series:

  Pastries and Puzzles

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  Catalog of Books

  The Happy Blendings Cozy Witch Mystery Series

  The Potion Commotion

  A Pumpkin Potion Explosion

  A Drop in the Potion

  A Notion of a Potion

  A Deceptive Potion

  CALAMITY CORNERS COZY Witch Mystery Series

  Calm Before the Witch Storm

  The Witch is in the Details

  Better the Witch You Know

  A Witch Axe to Grind

  A Cauldron of Witch Tricks

  TRIPLET WITCH SISTERS Mystery Series

  Two’s Company, Three’s a Coven

  Resting Witch Face

  Bewitched and Bewildered

  Triple Toil and Trouble

  THE WITCH SISTERS OF Stillwater

  Hoodoo and Just Desser
ts

  A Shade of Murder

  That Ol’ Black Magic

  A Whole Lotta Witchin Goin On

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