Joanne Fluke - Apple Turnover Murder

Slip the pan in the refrigerator to chill.

When the pan has chilled, peel the foil from the cookies and break them into random-sized pieces.

“Nothing succeeds like excess,” Hannah said, looking up from her position behind the counter at The Cookie Jar as Mayor Richard Bascomb and his wife, Stephanie, came in the door.

Hannah’s partner, Lisa, took one look at the female half of Lake Eden’s first couple and burst out laughing, a gaffe she quickly covered by pretending to cough. Stephanie Bascomb was resplendent in a bright blue suit of raw silk with a stylish blue hat. Her frilly blouse matched the blooms on her hat, which Hannah identified as slightly more purple than the cornflowers growing wild in Winnie Henderson’s back forty. The first lady’s gloves were bright-blue leather and her chic leather pumps were of the same hue. A large sapphire surrounded with diamonds graced her right hand and she wore a matching set of necklace and earrings.

“Hannah! And Lisa!” Mrs. Bascomb greeted them with the same surprised tone she might have used if she were traveling and happened to run into them at a Buddhist monastery in Sri Lanka.

Hannah exchanged puzzled glances with Lisa. Where else would they be during the hours The Cookie Jar was open for business?

“Good to see you, Mayor,” Hannah said, and then she turned to the woman who spared no expense buying herself a stunning new outfit every time she found out about one of her husband’s dalliances. The mayor’s last peccadillo must have been particularly flagrant to warrant a suit, hat, gloves, shoes, and a fortune in gemstones. “You’re a vision in blue, Stephanie.”

“Do you like it?” Stephanie asked, twirling around so that Hannah could see the flared skirt below the impeccably tailored jacket.

“I just love that color,” Hannah answered truthfully, neglecting to mention that it was indeed possible to get too much of a good thing. Stephanie was living proof that the concept of overkill could be applied to fashion.

Stephanie turned to Lisa. “How about you, Lisa? Do you like my new outfit?”

Hannah waited breathlessly for Lisa’s answer. Her partner, well known for hating to hurt anyone’s feelings, would have to think fast on this one.

“It’s stunning,” Lisa said, and Hannah mentally congratulated her young partner for choosing a word with several shades of meaning. “Wherever did you get it?” Lisa continued breathlessly. “Unless, of course, you’re keeping that secret to yourself.”

“Well…” Stephanie considered it for a moment. “It’s a new, very exclusive shop at the mall. You have to know someone to get in. Everything they have is incredibly expensive…” Stephanie turned to her husband. “But I do think it’s worth it, don’t you, Richard?”

“Yes, definitely worth it,” the mayor pronounced, smiling at his wife. “Aren’t you going to tell them the secret about your charity gala, my sweetness?”

My sweetness?! Hannah stared hard at their town’s most indiscreet Romeo. Although she didn’t usually place much credence in gossip, she might have to ask her mother about the mayor’s most recent transgression. Delores was the founding member of what Hannah called The Lake Eden Gossip Hotline, and in a town the size of Lake Eden, everyone knew everything about everybody. It was possible to keep a three-way secret, but only if two of the three people were permanently billeted at Spring Brook Cemetery.

“I might just tell them,” Stephanie answered playfully, “but only if we can have some of their fabulous cookies and coffee.”

Hannah poured the coffee while Lisa took cookie orders from Lake Eden’s first couple. When they’d seated themselves at a table near the back of the coffee shop, Hannah opened the discussion with a question. “What’s all this about your gala, Stephanie?”

“I’ll tell you, but only if you promise to keep the details a secret.” She turned to Lisa and Hannah. “Girls?”

Although Hannah hadn’t been called a girl in a month of Sundays, perhaps even much longer, she nodded. It was what Stephanie expected. Lisa did the same. and both the mayor and his wife gave them smiles of approval.

“I’m sure you’ve heard that I agreed to chair the Lake Eden Combined Charities Drive this year,” Stephanie said.

“We knew that,” Hannah told her. “It was in the Lake Eden Journal last week.”

“But here’s something that wasn’t in the papers.” Stephanie leaned across the table. “I managed to book Samantha Summerfield as the guest speaker at the opening luncheon.”

“The same Samantha Summerfield who’s on Hello Handsome ?” Lisa asked.

“That’s right. She’s in Minneapolis visiting her family while the show’s on hiatus. Isn’t that exciting?”

“Very exciting!” Lisa’s eyes were like saucers. “But why would she come here? To Lake Eden?”

“Because she wants to help our charities.” Stephanie looked smug. “She believes she can help us raise money for a worthy cause.”

How much of a cut are you giving her? Hannah wanted to ask. And if that wasn’t it, her second question would be, What bargaining chip do you have to hang over her head? But she asked nothing. Stephanie and the mayor wouldn’t tell them anyway. Instead, Hannah locked eyes with Lisa. Her glance said, Watch out! She wants something! And Lisa’s return glance replied, Thanks for warning me. I’ll be careful.

“Now, not a word to anyone,” Stephanie went on, “not until the news breaks on KCOW television tonight. Agreed?”

“Agreed,” Lisa breathed.

“Fine,” Hannah said, not particularly impressed with the sitcom actress who was gracing their charity luncheon with her presence.

“The charity drive is incredibly important this year,” Stephanie went on. “We need to raise more money than we’ve ever raised before. We have six projects that are red-flagged and we simply have to find the money to fund them!”

Hannah and Lisa listened as Stephanie gave them an overview. It seemed that the Children’s Home needed a new roof; Jordan High had to update their computer equipment; The Senior Center had a budget that was much too small for their needs; and the Piggy Bank, a fund that provided clothing and school supplies for underprivileged children, had completely run out of money. Marge Beeseman, their volunteer librarian, had requested several reference works and a microfiche reader, and although Janice Cox’s preschool, Kiddie Korner, was self-sufficient, she’d asked the combined charity for the money to put in a small kitchen so that she could serve a hot lunch to her students.

“And that’s just the tip of the iceberg,” Stephanie told them, ending her recital with a dramatic sigh. “I know times are tough right now, but my goal is to present a truly gala event, a three-day happening that everyone in the Tri-County Area will want to attend.”

“Attend and pledge to the cause,” Mayor Bascomb added.

“Exactly right. Of course we can’t use the Lake Eden Community Center as a venue. It’s just too small, especially with the crowd that Samantha is bound to draw. Richard and I considered holding it at the Lake Eden Inn, but Dick and Sally are completely booked. I’m just so lucky my Richard came through for me. He spoke to Ken Purvis and since summer school doesn’t start for another two weeks, he’s agreed to let us use the Jordan High auditorium, all the grounds including the football field and the baseball stadium, and the entire parking lot.”

“Do you really think there’ll be that many people?” Hannah asked.

“I know there will be. I’ve already received over five hundred reservations for the opening day luncheon, and more are pouring in every day. And this is before I told anyone about Samantha Summerfield.”