Deadly Independence (EBOOK)

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Chapter 1

Holly piped the last of the red frosting onto her cake design. The magnificent colors exploded. A special design she’d worked on for weeks. Something never done with cheesecake—not that she’d seen.
With a satisfied smile, she snapped a picture of these last few cakes. The base was a solid piece of strawberry cheesecake. Above it were the fireworks, pieces of white cake with red, white, and blue frosting. They resembled the explosion of color that would light up the sky tomorrow night.
Weeks before the Fourth of July, she’d woken in the middle of the night. A dream had sparked the idea. Immediately, she’d worked in her kitchen until dawn broke. She’d made the first one. Now, after several weeks of filling custom orders, exhaustion settled on her.
It was a good feeling, a sense of accomplishment.
The fireworks celebration was in less than twenty-four hours, and to complement her cake design, she planned on hand selling mini-cheesecakes, each decorated with their own explosion of color made up of raspberries, blueberries, strawberries, and kiwi.
Her business, Just Cheesecake, just might make it. Even after Millicent, the daughter of the owner of her competition, The Tasty Bite, had done everything possible to ruin her cheesecake business after the murder in the small town of Fairview.
Muffins whimpered at her feet.
“Don’t worry. I haven’t forgotten about you.” She held her fingers down to the small gray dog and let him lick off the frosting. “You’ve been so patient.” She’d been busy filling and delivering orders. Muffins had often been left behind. “I’ll make it up to you. Promise.”
Someone knocked on the door.
Holly smiled. “Come on in.” She grabbed two tall glasses and filled them with iced tea. The ice cubes clinked, reminding Holly of the searing temperatures lately.
Charlene entered, eyed the glasses, then glared suspiciously at Holly.
“What?” Holly asked.
Charlene seemed surprised whenever Holly knew her friend was coming. But Charlene had proven to be a good friend, despite her crankiness, and stopped by enough that Holly stayed permanently prepared for company. The older woman shuffled across the floor. Today, her usual flyaway hair was damp from a shower. Her rumpled shirt was untucked, and she still wore her yellow rain boots.
“How do you do it?”
“What?” Charlene snapped. “Don’t you dare mention a thing about my boots.”
Holly held up her hands. “Fine. Fine.” She’d heard the explanation before. Charlene claimed her feet stayed cooler in the insulated boots than wearing sandals. “Iced tea?”
“I suppose it would be rude to say no.” Charlene sat at the small kitchen table and sipped. “A little sweet. But it’ll do.” She drummed her fingers on the table, then ran them up and down the side of the glass.
“Okay. Spill it,” Holly ordered.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about. Can’t a woman be tired after being worked like a dog for days?”
“Definitely.” Holly understood. After they solved a murder together and Holly had been invited into Charlene’s secret society of amateur sleuths, Holly had returned the favor and recruited her friend to help through busy seasons. “I’m near exhaustion too.”
“Pfft. How old are you—fifteen? You should have an endless supply of energy.”
“Try twenty-two.” Holly pulled out a tray of chilled mini-cheesecakes from the fridge. Maybe something sweet would lighten Charlene’s mood. The past week she’d been extra cranky.
“Fifteen. Twenty-two. Same thing.” Charlene nibbled on one of the tasty cakes then grumped some more. She finished it off, then eyed Holly. “I see what you’re trying to do and it’s not going to work.”
“Oh, really. And what’s that?”
Charlene tapped the side of her nose. “Old Charlene knows everything.” She fell silent, then added, “If you wanted me to put in a good word with my son, all you had to do was ask.”
Holly gasped. Charlene had been teasing her about Trent since they’d met. “That is not why I offered you iced tea and your favorite cheesecake.”
“Then why?” Charlene asked.
How could Holly tell her that she knew why her friend had been unusually cranky, other than being overworked, as she claimed? Instead of what she felt was the truth, Holly said, “It’s because you’re my friend. And I appreciate you.”
“Stop right there. No mushy stuff. I don’t even like you. Very much.”
Holly pushed another tiny cake toward her. “Sure. Don’t worry. I know you like me. I know your life was completely boring until I came to town.” A different realization hit Holly. Maybe Charlene was lonely? Maybe she used the secret society as a crutch? Her husband had passed away years ago. Holly would have to think about that—and look around for a suitable beau.
“I stopped by to see if you’d solved the problem we’re going to have tomorrow night.”
“Sure did.” Holly brightened. “You’ll find out tomorrow night. That’s all I’m going to say for now.”
Charlene grabbed another mini-cheesecake. “Well, if that mystery is solved, I’ll be going. Don’t want to wear out my welcome.” She shuffled back to the door but paused, her hand on the knob.
Holly waited, allowing time. She’d figured out a few days ago the reason behind Charlene’s restlessness.
“Fine. I’ll admit.” Charlene kept her back to Holly. “We need a good mystery to solve. I’m bored.”
“We could go shoe shopping,” Holly offered.
“Absolutely not.” Charlene moved on through the door.
“I found a pair of flip-flops you’d love. All sparkles and glitter.”
Charlene responded by slamming the door, then yelling, “Keep up that nonsense and you’ll have to hire new help.”
“See you tonight!”
***
“What’s the big surprise?” Kitty asked, her eyes alight with excitement.
Kitty was one of Charlene’s closest friends, along with Ann. Together the four of them solved mysteries together, or talked about mysteries.
In the factory-style production line Holly had organized, Charlene mixed the pre-made cheesecake filling and poured the batter into the tins. Holly pulled them out of the oven, and she and Ann were in charge of topping them with berries. The final touch was a drizzle of sugar glaze. Kitty’s job was to place the cooled mini-cheesecake tortes into plastic containers, and then place those in boxes.
Holly smiled and flashed her a look that said, you’ll have to wait and see. She couldn’t wait to reveal her big secret. Plus, she had a bonus surprise for all of them.
“Don’t bother,” Charlene said, elbow-deep in the next bowl of batter. “Not only is she keeping us up at all hours of the night, but she’s not saying a word.”
“Soon. Soon,” Holly teased. “Let’s get this last batch done, first.”
“Slave driver,” Charlene muttered.
Kitty closed another box of cakes. “Oh, you just stop it. Holly’s been the best thing to happen to us and this town since the summer we cracked the mystery of the exploding trashcans.”
“What?” Holly placed the last of the strawberries on this batch of cakes. “Exploding trashcans? Please, tell. Sounds mysterious.”
Ann opened another package of fresh berries. “It was Officer Trinket’s first job, his first year on the police force, and he was bound and determined to figure out why the trashcans down at the lake were tipped over every week, trash strewn everywhere.”
Holly giggled. “Sounds like a tough one.”
“It might not have been murder, but it was more exciting than being stuck in the kitchen.”
This cutting remark made Holly fall silent. Normally, her feelings would be hurt, but she could tell something was bothering Charlene. If her theory of Charlene needing a little love or male companionship was right, then she’d have to talk to Trent first before she tried to match make.
Ann offered her an apologetic smile for Charlene’s rude comment.
When they put the last of the containers in the box, Holly couldn’t stop the smile from spreading at the sight of the packed boxes, filled with tortes to sell the next night at the fireworks. From what she’d heard, no company, not even The Tasty Bite had ever attempted hand selling. And why not? Holly thought it was brilliant. One more way to boost her business and get her product out there.
“Okay, wait here.” Holly headed to the back storage room. Earlier, she’d stored a special batch of chocolate chip cheesecake bars, just for this moment. She also had a small cooler filled with chilled fruity wine.
Her friends’ eyes grew wide at the treats.
Holly poured the wine into plastic wineglasses and passed them out. “My way of saying thank you. I don’t know what I would’ve done without the support and friendship of you three.”
They toasted and cheered and polished off the food. When the last drop of wine disappeared, Holly cleaned up. “Ready for the big secret?”
“Finally,” Charlene stated.
“I thought you liked a good mystery,” Holly teased, hoping to lighten Charlene’s mood and erase the scowl.
Charlene chose not to respond but deepened her scowl.
With a sigh, Holly said, “Follow me.” She led her friends out to the back parking lot, behind Oodles, the charming restaurant next door, and Gotcha, the boutique gift store. Just Cheesecake, her shop, was nestled between them.
A warm breeze cooled the dried sweat from hours of baking. The stars twinkled, tiny lights across the heavenly canvas. Holly loved it. She hadn’t told anyone, but her favorite activity lately, was sneaking out at midnight and lying in the grass to stare up at the sky. Just her and Muffins.
The parking lot was empty except for their cars and a white van. Her friends looked around, wondering.
Holly stifled a laugh. “What do you think?”
“Um, it’s great, Holly,” Ann said.
Kitty scratched her head. “Wonderful.”
Charlene gave her a suspicious look. “I want to know where you got the money for it? I’ve been helping you with the books. Remember? So what bank did you knock off to buy this beauty?”
Holly shrugged. She’d still had her secret savings account from her previous life, and she hadn’t yet shared her past with Charlene. Not that she didn’t trust her, but she had been waiting for the right time.
“Okay, fine.” Kitty gasped. “I have no idea what you two are talking about.”
Holly led them to the van and around to the other side. In bright colors, Just Cheesecake was printed across the side, along with the graphic of a cheesecake. “It’s refrigerated.”
For days, they’d debated how to transport the Fourth of July tortes over to the celebration, while keeping them fresh. Holly had taken an afternoon off after finding an ad for the truck online.
After congratulations and talk of the next night, Holly shooed her friends home to catch some sleep.
“Nothing can go wrong tomorrow night.” Kitty patted her shoulder before they piled into Charlene’s car.
Alone in the parking lot, Holly leaned against the van and stared up at the sky. She was doing it. Living her dream. Only when she was alone, away from prying eyes and caring friends, did Holly allow the pang of grief. Her dreams had come at a high price.
Goosebumps rippled across her arm. Even without Muffins, Holly sensed something wasn’t right. She wasn’t alone.
She straightened and peered into the darkness. Maybe she should have left with her friends.
Again. The sound of shoes scraping the pavement.