Green Velvet Murder: A Donut Hole Cozy Mystery - Book 16 (3 page)

“I vote hot cocoa,” Amy said and stuck
her hand up.

“I second that.” Lilly’s arm shot up,
and she joggled up and down on the spot. The ten-year-old had taken up
residence next to Amy. She pulled her fluffy pink robe closed and snuggled into
it.

“Right, hot chocolate,” Heather
replied. “I’m sure Bill and Colleen would approve of me getting you hopped up
on sugar.”

“What they don’t know won’t hurt
them.” Lilly tapped the side of her nose and wiggled her eyebrows. “Come on, Au
– Heather. It’s not like have to go home or anything.”

“Live a little.” Amy bent and grabbed
Dave off the floor, then tucked him into the blanket in the middle of the sofa.

True, Bill and Colleen had permitted a
late night girl’s sleepover. Lilly hated being away from Dave, these days, and
she saw Amy and Heather as her family. Her ‘real’ family.

“All right,” Heather said, and a smile
glimmered on her lips. “You’ve twisted my rubber arm.”

“Yeah! And let’s have some Green
Velvets while we’re at it.” Amy shimmied off the sofa, then dashed out of the
room.

“She’s incorrigible,” Heather said. She
scraped her fingers through her hair, then traipsed to her favorite sofa, right
next to the front window and directly across from her wide screen TV.

She grabbed the stack of DVDs beside
her, then cycled through them, the plastic covers knocking against each other,
clack, clack, clack. “What are we going to watch?”

“Not a romance, please,” Lilly said.
“Blegh. Colleen is obsessed with romance movies. You know, like Kate and
Leopold, and that other one with the mail.”

“You’ve Got Mail?”

“That one, ew.” Lilly fake-gagged,
then choked herself. “Boring.”

“Okay, what about The Croods?” Heather
lifted the case and waved it at her girl.

“Cool, I’ve never seen that one
before.”

“You’ve never seen The Croods?”
Heather got up and walked to the DVD player.

“Yeah, my, uh, dad didn’t let me watch
a lot of TV.” Lilly turned away and focused on Dave instead. She stroked his
soft ears and kissed the center of his head.

Heather buried her guilt by sticking
the DVD in the player.

“I come bearing gifts,” Amy sang from
the hall. She hurried into the living room and plopped a Donut Delights box on
the coffee table. She opened it up, then grabbed a Green Velvet donut. The
glaze glistened beneath Heather’s living room lights. Ken would’ve had a field
day taking photos of this particular creation.

“Yum!” Lilly said, and hopped up.

“I’ll go make the hot chocolate,” Amy
replied, gesturing with her donut and then taking a bite. Her lips turned
green, instantly.

Lilly grabbed a donut and scooted back
to the sofa. She held it out of Dave’s reach, just in case. The dog’s nose
snuffled left and right. Oh, he’d picked up the scent of those donuts, already.

“No, Davey,” Lilly whispered. “You’ve
had two this week already.”

“What?!” Heather gasped. “Lilly, you’d
better not feed that dog fat. He’s been working hard to lose weight.”

Lilly flashed her a green-toothed
grin. “I won’t. I promise. I never give him the chocolate ones.”

Heather pursed her lips but didn’t
lecture further. This was the last island of calm and happiness before the
storm. Soon, everything would revolve around work – and solving the new case.

Ronald Tombs had called Heather to
arrange a business meeting. Her tummy bubbled, and she pressed her palm to it
and put up a grin.

Amy bustled into the living room,
whistling a tune. She placed three mugs on the table. Marshmallows floated on
the surface of the brown liquid, bobbing in the waves of delicious cocoa.

“ – my bike is gone.”

“What was that, Lils?” Heather asked.
She’d tuned out the conversation for a sec.

“Someone stole my bike,” Lilly
replied. She bit into her donut and chomped mechanically. “Happened like two
days ago?”

“You’re kidding,” Amy said.

“Uh-uh. They tried to break into Bill
and Colleen’s too. The police guy said that they took the bike because they
couldn’t get it.”

“No,” Heather said, and her brow
pinched into a frown.

“It doesn’t matter. Like I said,
Colleen wouldn’t let me ride it anyway. It’s not a big deal.” Lilly shrugged and
eyed the mugs of steaming cocoa.

“It is a big deal. Did the police tell
you anything else? Did you see anything else?” Heather asked.

Amy sat down on the sofa beside the
girl and settled back. She drew a blanket across her lap. “Heather’s on another
case?”

“Not really,” Lilly said, then her
eyes widened. “Oh! There were these weird, small footprints in the mud outside
the back door. The cops said that it might’ve been a kid my age who took it.”

“A kid your age,” Amy muttered. She
met Heather’s gaze. “You thinkin’, what I’m thinkin’?”

Heather tapped her bottom lip. Tiny
Tim? Could it be that the man had stolen a kid’s bike? Maybe that was a bit of
a stretch.

“I think so.”

“What are you thinking?” Lilly asked,
then lifted Dave and put him in her lap.

Heather opened her mouth, then paused.
She shook her head. “I think it’s time we watch The Croods. You’re gonna love
it.”

“But Heather –”

“No arguments!” Heather held up a
palm.

Lilly moaned some more, then quieted
and picked up her hot cocoa instead. Trust the prospect of sugary goodness to
distract her. She was practically a mini-Amy in the making.

Heather walked to her sofa, mind
whirring around the murder and the theft. What did it all mean?

Tomorrow, she’d hunt down Mr. Tiny Tim
Belushi and find out for herself.

Heather placed her fingers on the
wrought iron table and winked at Eva. “How are you today, Mrs. Schneider?”

“Mrs. Schneider? You haven’t called me
that in ages, dear. What’s gotten into you?”

“Nothing,” Heather replied, then
chuckled. “I’ve got a lot on my mind, though. Another test in a couple of
weeks. A potential investor, and, of course –”

“Bernadette Belushi’s murder case. Oh,
I knew you’d take it up the minute it happened.” Eva lifted the mug of bitter
coffee to her lips and took a sip. “This town needs your investigative mind,
Heather.”

“Did you know her? Bernie, I mean? Did
you ever meet her?” She couldn’t shake the memory of the woman’s kind smile.
And that of her sister’s sneer.

“Why, yes, I did. She volunteered at
Hillside Manor. I went to visit Leila last week, and I found them chatting and
playing poker in the room. No bets, of course. Nobody likes a gambler.”

“Did you see anything interesting?”
Heather asked.

“Not really. Oh yes, Leila mentioned
Bernie’s son and then she grew morose.” Eva put her mug on the glass tabletop,
then patted her plum-colored do. “I left shortly after that.”

Another prod from the Universe. Tiny
Tim. “Thanks, Eva.”

The bell above the door tinkled, and
Amy rushed inside. “There you are,” she said and drew in three deep gasping
breaths.

“It’s your day off, Ames. You’re
forbidden from entering the store.” Amy had a terrible habit of working herself
to the bone.

“You’ve got to come with me, right
now.” Amy puffed out her red cheeks, then blew a blast of air upwards and
fluffed the hair from her eyes. “Oh hey, Eva. How are you?”

“Mildly alarmed, dear. Are you all
right?” Eva shifted around in her seat.

“Yeah, I’m good. I just have to show
Heather something,” Amy said, then grabbed Heather by the arm and dragged her
off to the door. “Maricela can watch the front, right?”

“Boss?” Maricela called. “You okay?”

“I’m fine,” Heather said and waved at
her over the heads of their customers. “Keep an eye on the store for me, will
you?”

Maricela gave her two thumbs up.

“Amy, what on earth has gotten into
you?” Heather wrenched her arm from her bestie’s grip. “You’re acting crazed.”

“Sorry, not sorry. Guess who I found
in the park? Or who I saw, I mean?”

“Who?”

“You’re supposed to guess, but
whatever. Tiny Tim. The Belushi guy,” Amy said. “If you want to meet him, now’s
your chance.”

Heather’s guts twisted into a knot.
Her chance to interview the mysterious Tiny. “All right,” she said. “Let’s go.”

Heather and Amy waved goodbye to Eva,
then burst out of the front door and onto the street.

“We’ve got to get there quick. I don’t
know how long he’ll stay there,” Amy said. “He was reading a book.”

Heather and Amy darted across the
road, then ran down the sidewalk to the corner. The park was only a street away
– not worth the gas. People jumped out of their path. A mom herded her kids to
one side of the sidewalk, then flicked her hair back and glared at them.

“You’re going to knock someone over,”
she yelled.

They ignored her.

“What did he look like?” Heather
asked, in between breaths.

“Small,” Amy replied. “Real small.”

Heather rolled her eyes at the
lackluster description. They turned the corner, then slowed their pace to a
brisk walk. The park appeared in the distance, trees still beneath the bright,
blue morning sky. No breezes, today. Just muggy heat, the last of the summer’s
hot days before the nip of Fall.

“There,” Amy said and made eyes at the
park bench.

Tim Belushi sat, legs crossed beneath
him, and a book lay open on his lap. The bald spot on top of his head glinted,
and his nose twisted at an angle, which told of bar fights and hospital stays.

“Oh boy.” He didn’t look like the
friendliest dude on the planet. “Here we go.”

“I’ll be back here, smelling the, uh,
leaves?” Amy glanced around, but the park’s flowers beds had withered in the
heat.

Heather strode to the bench. She
stopped in front of Belushi and cleared her throat.

He closed the book on his finger and
squinted up at her. “Yeah?”

“Are you Tim Belushi?”

“Tiny,” he said, then gestured to his
body. “Can’t you tell?”

What a way to own a nickname. “Yeah,
I’m Heather Shepherd. I’m doing your Aunt a favor, by investigating your mother’s
murder. My condolences, by the way.” That was the official party line.

If Karly new she was Heather’s main
suspect, she’d have kicked her off the front porch and called the cops,
immediately.

Tiny rolled his head on his shoulders.
“And?” Tiny picked up a Donut Delights box from the bench beside him, opened
it, then took out a Green Velvet donut.

Heather blinked. She’d never seen this
guy in her life. He’d never bought a donut from the store. Where’d he gotten it?

“And, I wondered if you’d mind answering
a couple questions for me.”

“Yeah, I would mind. Any friend of
Karly’s is an enemy of mine,” Tine said, then took a bite of the donut. He
chewed with his mouth open, the green mush sloshing behind his teeth.

Heather restrained a shudder. “Why is that?
You don’t like your Aunt.”

“It’s none of your business who I do
and don’t like. Get lost before I call the cops.”

“Tiny,” Heather said. “I’m just trying
to bring your mother’s killer to justice. That’s all.”

“You want my mother’s killer? Maybe
you should ask my dear Aunt why she hated her so bad.” Tiny extended his little
legs, then hopped off the bench.

The top of his head peeked just above
Heather’s navel. He glared up at her and ground his teeth. He mulched the donut
into green crumbs and sprinkled it on the ground.

“Stay out of my way,” Tiny said. He
pushed past her and marched off down the road, without a backward glance.

“I guess it’s true.” Amy stepped up
beside her. “Dynamite does come in small packages.”

“Maybe. Wonder how big the package is
for a murderer?” Heather’s sleuth sense tingled in the back of her brain. Tiny
Tim gave her the worst kind of creeps.

Heather sat on the top stair of her
porch and held her knees. Sunset spread across the horizon – an orange glaze
coating the end of a vanilla-flavored day. Though, Tiny Tim couldn’t be called
vanilla.

“You okay?” Ryan sat down and leaned
against her. He handed her a cool glass of soda and the ice blocks clinked
against the rim of the glass.

“I guess,” Heather said. “Just a very
strange day. I’m glad to be home.”

“Why?”

“You know I love it at Donut Delights.
I love the staff, the people, the donuts,” she said, “But things are getting
heated. I guess you could put it that way. The new investor, the diploma, and
now Tiny Tim –

“Tiny Tim?” Ryan froze mid-sip of his
drink. “What do you know about Mr. Belushi?”

“Oh boy, judging by your reaction,
I’ve stumbled into the donut tray, and the oven is too hot.” Heather slurped
some soda and relished the fizzle on her tongue. It slipped down her throat,
cooling her from the inside out.

Ryan glanced at the quiet road, then
at Heather’s car in the drive. “No, not the oven. More like the volcano.”

“What? How so?”

Ryan sighed and put his glass on the
porch. “He’s a suspect in the Bernie Belushi case,” he replied.

“Yeah, I figured. If he’s my suspect,
he’s got to be yours too.” Heather met her hubby’s gaze. “But that’s not what
you’re talking about, is it?”

“I didn’t want to tell you this
because I know you’re going to freak out. I have it under control.” Ryan broke
eye contact and stared out at the sunset instead.

“What are you talking about?” Heather
asked.

Ryan sucked in a breath and closed one
eye. “Don’t freak out. Promise me?”

“Ryan Shepherd, you’d better tell me
what’s going on right this second,” she said and lifted her fingers in a
pincer. “Don’t make me pinch you.”

“I carry a gun and arrest criminals
all day, but that truly terrifies me,” Ryan said, the corners of his mouth
twitching upwards.

She swatted him on the arm. “Spill
it.”

“Tim Belushi is a suspect in another
case. You heard that Bill and Colleen’s place was broken into, right?”

Ice dropped into Heather’s stomach and
swam through her core. “What? Lilly mentioned her bike was stolen, but not that
someone got in.”

“Yeah, well the thief went back and
got in the second time around. Lilly called me from her bedroom in a state of
panic. She’d locked herself in.”

Heather’s hands shook. Soda plopped
over the rim of the glass and onto her jeans. Ryan took the drink from her and
put it next to his.

“Calm down. She’s fine. She got a good
scare, but the thief wasn’t interested in her. Bill’s widescreen TV, however,
was a hot topic. He cleared out the downstairs and got out before we reached
the place.”

“When did this happen?” Heather asked,
through gritted teeth.

“Yesterday evening, just before
Lilly’s foster parents got home from work.”

“I can’t believe it,” Heather replied.
“I have to call her and check she’s all right.” She rose, but Ryan grabbed her
hand and squeezed to stop her.

“She’s fine, love. She’s with Colleen
and Bill. She’d have called you if she needed help,” Ryan said.

Heather twitched from his grasp. “It
doesn’t matter. Wait, Tiny is a suspect?”

“That’s right. He’s the main suspect.
It turns out he’s got a quite a few priors. Aggravated assault, armed
burglary.”

Heather stumbled back and hit the
railing. “No.”

“Stop. Relax. She’s fine.”

“She’s fine now, but what would’ve
happened if he’d seen her? What if he had a gun?” Heather asked.

“You can’t live in what-if land.”
Ryan’s fingertips brushed the grays at his temples.

Heather dug her phone out of her
pocket and wiped it off on her shirt – some of that soda had leaked through her
jeans. She swiped the screen to unlock, then scrolled through her contacts and
selected Bill and Colleen’s home number.

It rang twice and then clicked.
“Hello?” Lilly’s voice. Thank goodness.

Relief washed through Heather, and she
sagged against the railing. “Lilly. Ryan told me about the burglary. How are
you feeling?”

“I’m fine,” she said. “It was scary at
the time, but now it’s kind of, like, a cool story to tell my friends. This one
popular kid at school wouldn’t stop asking me questions about what happened.”

“That’s not something to be excited
about. You did the right thing, though. I’m glad you didn’t try to confront the
guy,” she said. “Or woman.”

“It was a guy,” Lilly replied. “I
heard him grunting around down there. Sounded like he could hardly lift the TV.
He broke the coffee table. I think he cut his knee because Colleen wouldn’t let
me come downstairs afterward.”

“Blood?”

“I guess.” Lilly sighed. “Au – ugh,
Heather, I’ve gotta go. Colleen says I have to do my homework before I get to
play games on the computer.”

“Right,” Heather said. “Well, I’m glad
you’re safe.”

“Thanks for calling,” Lilly sang, then
hung up.

Heather chuckled and dropped her arm
to her side. She met her husband’s gaze. “Totally unfazed,” she said. “Kids. Go
figure.”

“She’s a resilient girl. She’s been
through so much already. This was nothing to her.” Ryan rose and pecked Heather
on the forehead. “Don’t worry. I’ve got this under control. We’ve got a DNA
sample. All we’ve got to do is bring Tiny in and swab him, compare the profiles
and we’ll have our answer.”

“True. Wait, this happened yesterday.
You haven’t brought him in yet?” Heather asked.

“Nope. We can’t find him,” Ryan
replied. “We’ve got people out looking.”

Heather sighed. Even if Tiny Belushi
hadn’t been part of her current investigation, she would’ve looked into this.
Lilly had been in danger, for heaven’s sakes!

“You’ve got that look in your eyes,”
Ryan said.

Heather pinched the apple of his
cheek, gently. “Don’t I always?”

“Good point.”