Eggs Benedict Arnold (28 page)

“
Only if you buy the book. Otherwise the price is nine ninety-five,
”
Suzanne pointed out.

“
I wouldn
’
t mind having one of those tea plates myself,
”
said Carmen. She batted her eyelashes.
“
Is it too early?
”

“
Not really,
”
said Suzanne.
“
But your fans are starting to line up, so you might want to hold off.
”
Two women
had already sidled up to the table, wanting an autographed
book, and Suzanne could see a couple more fans headed toward the Book Nook.

Carmen waved a manicured hand.
“
No problem. I
’
ll just make it all work. I
’
m an expert at multitasking, you
’
ll see.
”

“
Okay,
”
said Suzanne.
“
Sure.
”

Turns
out, having Carmen
was
worth the trouble. A long line snaked from the Book Nook out into the cafe. Dozens
of romance fans showed up to meet Carmen in person, as well as other book lovers who were naturally curious and
wanted the chance to rub shoulders with a top-selling, local
author. Surprisingly, to Suzanne anyway, Carmen conducted herself like a total pro. She signed books, chatted with her fans, and even posed for pictures.

And, of course, there was a huge spillover into the cafe.
Which kept everyone hopping.

When there was a slight break in the action, Carmen murmured to Suzanne, out of the corner of her mouth,
“
I understand you were first on the scene last night.
”

“
How did you hear about that?
”
asked Suzanne. Carmen
seemed to have a direct pipeline for current infor
m
at
ion.

It was as if she
’
d bugged Doogie
’
s phone down at the law enforcement center.

Carmen crinkled her eyes, trying to look mysterious.
“
I
have my ways,
”
she purred.

“
Thinking about getting into the mystery writing busi
ness?
”
asked Suzanne.

“
You never know,
”
was Carmen
’
s cryptic reply.
“
I have
quite a few irons in the fire right now.
”

Suzanne wondered if Carmen knew she was modeling at
Alchemy this Friday.
“
You must be excited over the open
ing of your boutique,
”
she said to Carmen.

“
Absolutely,
”
purred Carmen.
“
I
’
m all about high style,
which, until now, has been sadly lacking in Kindred and the surrounding communities.
”

Suzanne
smoothed
her white blouse, which she knew wasn
’
t remotely high style.
“
Missy seems to be handling opening plans nicely.
”

Carmen touched the end of her pen to the tip of her nose.
“
She
’
s doing a passable job.
”

“
Like I mentioned last night,
”
said Suzanne, perturbed,
“
Missy
’
s still pretty upset about Ozzie.
”

Carmen waved a hand in an imperious grand duchess gesture.
“
And like
I
said, she
’
ll get over it soon enough.
”

“
Carmen Copeland!
”
called an energetic male voice.

Suzanne and Carmen both looked up to find Gene Gandle of the
Bugle
loping toward them. Tall and gangly, his
squarish head seemed to bob on his thin stalk of a neck.

Gene didn
’
t wait for an introduction, just grabbed Carmen
’
s hand in a gesture of sheer delight.
“
I
’
m so glad to finally meet you!
”
he simpered.

Carmen narrowed her eyes.
“
And you are ... ?
”

“
Of course, introductions,
”
murmured Gene. He flashed
her a large, hopeful smile.

“
I
’
m Gene Gandle from the
Bugle.
”

“
Charmed,
”
said Carmen.

“
Come to do a little write-up, if you don
’
t mind, Miss Copeland,
”
said Gene.

“
Publicity,
”
cooed Carmen.
“
Another one of the neces
sary evils of my profession.
”

“
The oldest?
”
murmured Suzanne.

“
I promise, Miss Copeland, this little interview will be a breeze,
”
said Gene, as he pulled out pad and pencil and juggled his camera.

Suzanne could only watch in amusement. She
’
d never seen Gene simper over anyone quite so much.

In between signing books, nibbling scones, and sipping
tea, Carmen managed to give Gene the semblance of an interview. She yapped on about herself, her writing style, her
rule of thumb for plotting, and her meteoric rise to fame.

“
According to the
information
on your Web site,
”
said Gene,
“
you
’
ve inked yet another book contract with Pennington Publishing.
”

Carmen dimpled prettily.
“
A three-book contract.
”

“
For six figures?
”
asked Gene, his pencil poised eagerly
above his notepad.

“
Seven,
”
corrected Carmen.

Gene made a few quick scratches, then looked up and said,
“
A little bird told me you
’
ve got a few other projects going, as well.
”

“
Whatever are you referring to?
”
asked Carmen.

“
I hear you might be opening a fine dining establishment,
”
said Gene.

At this Suzanne almost choked. A fine dining establish
ment? That was
her
dream! How could Carmen Copeland just waltz in and usurp her special dream!

“
That
’
s still in the early planning stage,
”
said Carmen,
trying to sound mysterious.
“
Very sketchy.
”

“
My understanding,
”
said Gene,
“
was that you made an offer to George Draper on his funeral home.
”

“
What!
”
exclaimed Suzanne.

“
At this point it
’
s a
competing offer,
”
said Carmen.
“
Since
Mr. Draper
’
s already entertaining another possibility.
”

“
Are you serious?
”
shrilled Suzanne.
Information
seemed to be flying at her left and right.
“
You mean from
the Roth Funeral Home Consortium?
”

Both Carmen and Gene glanced at her with curiosity.

“
Yes,
”
said Carmen,
“
I believe it was from that particu
lar company.
”

Gene bent closer to Carmen.
“
You
’
re a woman who
deals in rather sensational story lines and plot twists. What do you make of all that
’
s going on in Kindred right now?
”

“
Strange times,
”
murmured Carmen.

“
And you,
”
said Gene, suddenly focusing on Suzanne for the first time.
“
Discovering a
second
murder victim.
”
He seemed to relish his words.
“
How do you feel about
that? Better yet, what quirk of fate made you the harbinger
of all this bad news?
”

Suzanne sighed heavily. Gene may as well have dubbed
her the angel of death.
“
I take it you
’
re writing a story on Bo Becker
’
s murder?
”
she asked in a dry tone.

“
How could the double murder of Ozzie Driesden and Bo Becker be anything but front-page news!
”
exclaimed Gene.

“
It wasn
’
t technically a double murder,
”
Suzanne pointed out.

“
Whatever,
”
said Gene.
“
Two homicides in Kindred all
within a
matter
of days? That constitutes high drama.
”

“
And you
’
re just the one to write the story, aren
’
t you?
”

said Suzanne. She was suddenly disliking Gene Gandle
more and more.

As a late influx of fans suddenly pushed their way in
to meet Carmen, Suzanne grabbed Gene
’
s arm and pulled
him away from Carmen
’
s table.

“
Do you have to put such a grisly perspective on things?
”
Suzanne asked.
“
Have a heart and consider the victims
’
families, will you?
”

“
You must know something,
”
pushed Gene.

“
Nada,
”
said Suzanne.

“
You know anything about this mysterious homeless
guy?
”
he asked.

“
No,
”
said Suzanne.
And if I did, I wouldn
’
t tell you.

“
Notice anything unusual last night when you found the
body?
”

“
Nope,
”
said Suzanne. That was her story and she was
sticking to it.

“
What about Toni?
”
asked Gene.
“
I know she was out
there with you.
”

“
We just took a wrong turn,
”
said Suzanne.
“
Ended up
in the thick of things by mistake.
”