Cream Puff Murder (19 page)

Once the mixture has cooled to room temperature, stir in the softened butter until smooth.

Whisk in the powdered sugar, and stir until the mixture is of spreading consistency. If it’s too thick, add the remaining 2 teaspoons of coffee. If it’s too thin, stir in a little more powdered sugar.

Frost the cookies and sprinkle on shredded coconut before the frosting has fully set, if you desire.

Hannah’s 4 th Note: Lisa just confessed that if she’s too tired to frost these cookies, she just dusts them with powdered sugar, plunks half of a maraschino cherry on top, and serves them that way.

“S o Ronni was really hard on Betty Jackson?” Hannah repeated what Charlotte Roscoe, Jordan High’s head secretary and a member of Ronni’s Swim to Slim class, had told her. It was another interrogator’s trick she’d picked up from Mike. You repeated the last comment and then you were silent, waiting to see if the person you were interviewing would fill that silence by elaborating.

“That’s right. Betty’s feelings were really hurt. You know how sensitive she is about her weight. When I saw her the next morning she was okay, but she told me she was going to think of some way to get even with Ronni.”

“Do you think that…”

“No!” Charlotte jumped in before Hannah could finish her question. “Don’t even think it, Hannah. There’s no way she had anything to do with Ronni’s death. Betty’s too squeamish to do anything like that. She won’t even swat a fly. When she said get even, she was probably talking about getting Ronni fired, or something like that. Besides, she isn’t even in town.”

“You’re sure of that?”

“I’m positive. We’re in the same night class at Lake Eden Community College, and I’m taking notes for her while she’s gone. Betty left early Tuesday morning. She drove up to Duluth for her cousin’s wedding, and she won’t be back until Sunday night.”

“Okay. Thanks, Charlotte.”

“You’re welcome. Is there anything more I can do to help? I didn’t like Ronni personally. She was a real slave driver in class, but I’ll miss her. I managed to lose an inch around my waist in the first two weeks of her class, and now I can fit into my skinny pantsuit for work.”

“Really!” Hannah was glad to hear that. She’d been dreading the swimming class, but perhaps it would help her get into the Regency-style dress even faster.

“Can you find out when they’ll open the pool again?” Charlotte asked her.

“Tomorrow. I asked Roger when I signed up for your class. They’re keeping the Jacuzzi off-limits, but we’ll be allowed in the pool.”

“That’s definitely good news. I hate doing the exercises on dry land. It’s so much easier in the water. The impact is lower and water provides its own resistance.” Charlotte glanced at her watch. “Do you need a ride back to town?”

“Thanks, but no. Michelle and Andrea are meeting me out here, and we’re going to talk to the security guard who was on duty the night Ronni was killed.”

“That’s a good idea. You can probably get more information than those rookies at the sheriff’s station.” Charlotte leaned a little closer and lowered her voice, even though they were alone at a table in the Snack Shack. “I understand they pulled the seasoned detectives off the investigation because they were personally involved.”

Hannah remembered the good spin Andrea had put on the situation and decided to do some spinning of her own. “That’s true. Ronni taught physical fitness classes out at the sheriff’s station gym, you know. They saw her every day, and she was well liked. You know how cops are. They depend on each other, and there’s a real bond between them, just like soldiers or fraternity brothers. They considered Ronni one of their own, and losing one of their own is always hard. I think Bill’s afraid that some of his detectives might get a little too zealous if they got their hands on her killer…if you know what I mean.”

“I certainly do! And then they’d be in trouble. That was a wise move on Bill’s part.”

Hannah silently congratulated herself on a job well done. What she’d said wasn’t a mere rotation, or an ordinary revolution of the facts. She’d created an out-and-out whirling Moebius strip that outspun Andrea and then some!

“It’s a good thing you’re helping them out, Hannah. They’ll never catch the killer without the best minds on the force.”

“I’m not helping them officially, but I do want to do my part,” Hannah continued to spin. “And you don’t have to worry about rookie detectives, Charlotte. Bill’s brought in a really good detective from the Minneapolis Police Force. Her name is Stella Parks.”

“That’s good. Well, good luck with the security…” Charlotte stopped speaking and looked worried again.

“What is it?”

“That security guard you’re going to interview…it’s not Frank Hurley, is it?”

“No, his name is Tad Newberg. He was the guard on duty when Ronni was killed. Does Frank Hurley work out here at the mall?”

“Yes. He’s a really nice guy, Hannah. He used to work for a private security firm up north, and he moved here to be closer to his relatives. I’m glad he wasn’t on duty when it happened.”

“How do you know him?” Hannah was curious.

“He works for us at the school whenever there’s a big basketball or football game, and we wouldn’t even think of holding a prom without him.”

“The prom I can understand. That tends to get a little wild. But there’s that much trouble on big game nights?”

“Oh, it’s not real trouble. It’s just kids acting up and causing an inconvenience. Sometimes they think it’s funny to let the air out of the opposing team’s bus tires. Frank patrols outside, and he gives them a lecture about how the Jordan High Gulls practice better sportsmanship than that. The kids think he’s pretty strict and old-fashioned, but they respect him.”

Hannah knew she must have been tired, because it took several seconds for the next question to occur to her. “You said Frank works out here. Does he know Tad Newberg?”

“I’m sure he does. The security staff out here isn’t that large, and they must have worked together at one time or another.”

Hannah flipped her shorthand notebook open and wrote Frank’s name inside. “He could be a valuable resource. Could I have his number?”

“Of course.” Charlotte gave it to her, but she looked puzzled. “Why do you need it if Frank wasn’t on duty when it happened?”

“Because he works here,” Hannah thought fast, “and he knows how the mall security works. I probably won’t need him, but I’ll keep his name handy in case Tad’s not available and I’ve got questions about scheduling, or procedure, or something like that.”

“Oh. Well, he’d probably know all about that. If you need him, call me and I’ll introduce you.”

“Thanks,” Hannah said. And her mind said, Disaster averted. Good work.

“So who do you think killed her, Hannah?” Charlotte leaned closer again. “I probably shouldn’t say this, but I overheard her on her cell phone one day, and she told someone that she was going to turn her ex-fiancé in for tax evasion. Of course I don’t know if she did it or not, but the federal government’s nobody to fool around with. If Ronni actually called their tip line and he found out about it, he might have been so mad at her that he killed her.”

“Not possible,” Hannah said, watching Charlotte’s face fall. “Wade Hoffman was in an auto accident, and he was still at Lake Eden Memorial under Doc Knight’s care when Ronni was murdered.”

“Oh. Well…it was just a theory.”

“And it was a good one. It’s the first thing I checked out.”

“Really?” Charlotte looked pleased. “Well, how about Serena Roste? Did you check her out, too?”

“Who’s Serena Roste?”

“She’s Wade Hoffman’s former fiancée. He was engaged to Serena before he got engaged to Ronni.”

“I didn’t know that.”

“That’s because it’s Elk River gossip, not Lake Eden gossip. We use a substitute teacher from Elk River every once in a while, and she told me that it was a really nasty breakup. Serena and Ronni used to be close friends until Ronni stole Serena’s fiancé.”

“Serena Roste.” Hannah flipped to her suspect page and added the name. “Do you think Serena was upset enough with Ronni to kill her?”

Charlotte gave a little shrug. “I don’t know. Maybe. Did you just add her to your suspect list?”

“Yes. Mike says that more murders are committed by spouses or jealous lovers than by any other group of people.”

“I didn’t know that.” Charlotte gave a little grin. “That almost, but not quite, makes me glad I never got married.”

“Did you bring the cookies?” Hannah asked, when Andrea met her in the Snack Shack.

“Of course. Michelle’s got them. She’s getting a guest pass from Roger so she can come in anytime she likes.”

“Does the owner know about this?”

“Oh, yes. Roger’s handling it for him. He’s very worried that Heavenly Bodies will get a reputation for not being safe, and he wants Roger to do all he can to prove that they aren’t liable in any way for Ronni’s death.”

“That figures. And it explains why Roger is being so generous with the guest passes.”

“That’s only one reason. The other reason is that he wants us to hurry and catch Ronni’s killer because Stella interviewed him today.”

“Roger didn’t like Stella?”

“It’s not that. It’s just that he told her he was at home with his girlfriend the night that Ronni was killed, and she demanded proof.”

“Can Roger prove that he was with his girlfriend all night?”

“He told me he can if it comes to that, but he’s really hoping it won’t.”

“Let me guess…Roger’s girlfriend wasn’t supposed to be staying with him, and she’ll get into trouble if she has to swear she was with him, for the whole night?”

“You got it.”

“She’s underage?” Hannah asked, crossing her fingers and hoping that wasn’t the case.

“No, it’s just that she’s got a scholarship and she lives in the dorms at Lake Eden Community College. Resident students, regardless of age, aren’t supposed to be out all night.”

“I understand,” Hannah said, and she did. “Roger doesn’t want to rat on his girlfriend unless it’s absolutely necessary to keep him from being arrested for a crime he didn’t commit.”

“That’s exactly right. It won’t come to that, will it?” Andrea looked worried.

“Not if I have anything to say about it.” Hannah pushed back her chair and got up as Michelle waved to them from the doorway. “Roger must have told you his impression of Stella Parks. What did he say about her?”

Andrea rose and they began to walk toward their younger sister. “Roger said that she was as tough as nails.”

“There’s that same cliché again.” Hannah gave a little laugh. “Stella seems to attract them. I’m actually looking forward to meeting her. It sounds as if she plays hardball. And there goes another cliché.”

“T hat’s Tad Newberg?” Michelle asked as she spotted the short, heavyset young man in the perfectly pressed uniform standing by the mall security station.

“Yes, that’s Tad. Why do you look so surprised?”

“I think I know him from somewhere, but I’m not sure where.”

“You probably saw him out here when you were shopping,” Andrea told her. “He’s been here for about two years.”

“Maybe,” Michelle said, but she sounded doubtful.

“Tell him you think you met him before,” Hannah suggested. “Maybe he’ll remember where it was. Even if the two of you can’t figure it out, it’ll keep him distracted so that Andrea can take pictures of the security monitors.”

“Hi, Hannah,” Tad greeted her as they stepped up to the station.

“Hello, Tad. I just wanted to drop by and thank you for your help the other night.”

“No thanks needed. That’s my job.”

“Both Andrea and I are grateful that you waited with us until the sheriff’s department arrived.”

“That’s right. We felt a lot safer with you there,” Andrea chimed in.

“They brought you some cookies,” Michelle held out the box. “They’re chocolate with mocha frosting.”

Tad looked genuinely pleased as he accepted the box. “Wow, thanks! I’m crazy about chocolate cookies.”

“Do you like chocolate sauerkraut cake?” Hannah asked him.

“I like it a lot. My sister-in-law makes one almost every Sunday for dinner. It’s my brother’s favorite cake.”

“These cookies are based on that cake. I call them Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell Cookies.”

“Because of the sauerkraut? Or because of the military?”

“The sauerkraut.”

“That’s funny. I like the name.” Tad turned to Michelle with a contemplative look. “You look familiar. Do I know you from somewhere?”

That was Andrea’s cue to take her phone out of her pocket. “Sorry,” she said to Tad, after glancing at the display. “It’s my babysitter. I’ve got to take the call.”

“I was just thinking the same thing,” Michelle said, stepping a bit closer to completely capture Tad’s attention. “I mean, I was thinking I know you from somewhere.”

“How about high school?” Tad asked her. “I’m a couple of years older than you are, but what school did you go to?”

“Jordan High. How about you?”

As the conversation went on between Michelle and Tad, Hannah glanced in Andrea’s direction. She’d managed to walk all the way back to the wall of security monitors and she was pacing back and forth, pretending to hold an imaginary conversation with Grandma McCann. And all the time she was talking, Hannah knew she was using her in-phone camera to take photos of everything inside the security station.

“I don’t think I know anybody from Elmdale,” Michelle said, “but maybe we met at some kind of statewide school contest. Were you in the band? Or the chorus?”

“Not me, but I was always in line at the Dairy Queen in Little Falls when they opened in the spring. How about you?”

Hannah tuned out for a moment and stepped away slightly so that she could examine the rest of the station. It was fairly large, the size of someone’s living room, and other than two small cubicles in the back that were walled off into offices, everything was open to view.

“Maybe I saw you out here when you were on duty,” Michelle suggested.

“I don’t think that’s it. I know I saw you somewhere, but I don’t think it was out here.”

Hannah tuned out again. She moved back slightly so that she could see what appeared to be bookshelves on the far wall. They were filled with tapes, clearly labeled with the day and date, and there was an obvious gap for the night of Ronni’s murder.