Fudgy Fatality: A Pumpkin Hollow Mystery, book 10 by Kathleen Suzette (good books for high schoolers .txt) 📗

I didn’t know what was going on, but I suddenly felt like there was something I didn’t know about the situation. Maybe it was just the fact that she had had breakfast with John when I knew that she had been hurt so badly by him that bothered me. Certainly she wasn’t considering getting back together with him, was she? And what about the murder? Would John have had enough time to slip away and kill Olivia and then get back to the parade? I didn’t know, but I wanted Ethan to know all the details.

“Maybe you should talk to Ethan about all of this,” I repeated.

She looked at me steadily. “Okay. I’ll do that. But there’s no way John could have killed anyone. He doesn’t have it in him.”

I sighed softly. “I know. It’s just good to tell Ethan everything you know. If someone points a finger at John, that information may be what keeps him from being suspected of murder.”

She nodded. “Of course.”

Chapter Nineteen

I didn’t feel like I had gotten anywhere with Christy. I had to wonder if she was over John. Did I have a right to say she shouldn’t feel that way? Of course not. I just wanted better for my sister.

I saw Ethan drive up across the street and I walked out onto my front step and waited for him to get out of his truck. When he did, he turned in my direction and waved wildly, as if there was more than a simple two-lane street that separated us. I chuckled and waved back.

“I’ve got chicken taco casserole if you’re hungry,” I called.

“When am I not hungry?” he called back.

I shrugged. “Never.”

“Exactly. Let me wash up and I’ll be right over.”

“See you in a minute,” I said and went back inside my house. He didn’t need to wash up. He wanted to let Licorice out of the house so she could come with him. He wasn’t fooling me. He had fallen completely in love with that cat.

“Boo, we are having company and I want you to be on your best behavior,” I said, stooping down and running my hand along his back. Boo purred and arched his back. “Good boy.”

I headed into the kitchen and took the casserole out of the oven. I had been keeping it warm for Ethan until he got home. I set it on the table and then got the salad I had made from the refrigerator.

“Hey,” Ethan said from behind me.

“Hey.” I gave him a kiss before he headed to the table. “That was fast.” I leaned over and looked behind him for Licorice, who was trailing him and cautiously looking around for Boo. The two cats were adjusting to one another, but there was still some hissing and fighting occasionally.

“I brought a friend. I hope you don’t mind.”

“I don’t mind at all,” I said. “Christy brought over a chicken taco casserole, and I made a salad to go with it.”

“Sounds great. I’ll get the iced tea.”

He went to the refrigerator and got the pitcher and poured us both a glass. “How was your day?”

“Sticky and sweet. What about you? Anything new?”

He sat down. “It was good. I did some interviews.”

“Oh? Do tell.”

He shrugged. “No. I’ve got to have some secrets.” He grinned at me.

I sighed. “Fine.” I filled him in on what Christy had told me. I was hesitant to do it, but he needed to know.

He looked at me, his forehead wrinkled in thought. “John already told me most of this. I don’t know why Christy didn’t tell me all of it.”

“Do you suspect John of killing Olivia?”

“Do you really want to know?”

I looked at him a moment before answering. “I think I do.”

“Even with Christy having breakfast with him, I still think there’s a possibility he had time to kill her. Everyone had their attention on the parade. The door to Storage Inc was unlocked. He could have killed her and dragged her body out onto the sidewalk. But I’m not saying he’s the killer. Not yet, anyway.”

I took this in. “If that’s what happened, why drag her body out onto the sidewalk? Why not leave it in the office for someone to discover Tuesday morning?”

“That is an excellent question and it’s one we don’t have an answer for yet. We may not get that answer until we make an arrest.” He took another sip of his tea. “That smells really good.”

“It does, help yourself.”

“I thought you’d never ask.” He picked up the serving spoon and helped himself to the taco casserole.

 I put some salad on my plate and then followed it up with a large helping of the casserole. Casseroles are the manna of the working girl. Quick to put together, and both tasty and filling. It’s even quicker when your sister makes it.

“I’m starving,” I said.

“I don’t want you investigating anymore. Don’t ask anyone any more questions.” He looked at me steadily when he said it.

There was a sharpness in his voice that I wasn’t used to. “What? Why do you say it like that?”

“Because I don’t know what’s going on here. Christy seems to be withholding something that may or may not be important to the case, and since she’s your sister, I don’t want you involved. Please, Mia. I don’t want any trouble from the chief asking me about my girlfriend’s family’s involvement.”

“You think she knows more about what happened? That she’s hiding something?” As much as I hated to admit it, I felt like she could be, but I wanted to know what he thought.

“I don’t know, and that’s the problem. I don’t have all the details. Please, Mia, leave this case alone.”

He said it softly this time, but it