Joanne Fluke - Apple Turnover Murder

“So how many are you expecting?” Hannah asked.

“At least a thousand. I arranged for party tents to be set up on the football field, and the Lake Eden Nursery on Old Lake Road has agreed to bring live plants and flowers to decorate the area. It’ll be like a garden party. And after the luncheon is over?”

Stephanie turned to her husband and the mayor continued. “Personnel from the nursery are going to sell the plants and give fifty percent of the profits to Stephanie.”

“Well, not to me personally,” Stephanie gave a tinkling little laugh. “It’s for the Lake Eden Combined Charities.”

“That’s very nice,” Hannah said, still waiting for the second shoe to drop. Stephanie wanted something from them and she hadn’t asked for it yet.

“This is going to be a spectacular party.” Stephanie looked from Hannah to Lisa and then back again. “That’s why I wanted to talk to you today, before you got too busy. I’m going to need over a thousand sugar cookies.”

“When do you need them?” Hannah asked, knowing that Stephanie’s answer would dictate theirs. June was their busy month with bridal showers, weddings, graduation parties, family reunions, and barbecues galore. Everyone wanted cookies, and Hannah and Lisa provided them. It was also a busy month for non-work obligations. Both Hannah and Lisa were invited to a series of parties and barbecues to celebrate the beginning of summer.

“The luncheon is on Wednesday afternoon. We’re having raspberry sorbet for dessert and we were planning to serve it with a chocolate leaf garnish. Isn’t that clever?”

“Chocolate and raspberry go well together,” Hannah said, wondering what was so clever about the combination that had been around for years.

“I’m talking about the leaf design. The theme of my charity event is Turn Over a New Leaf. I want everyone who attends to turn over a new leaf and pledge twice the amount they pledged last year.”

“Oh. Of course,” Hannah said, although she hadn’t known about the theme. She wasn’t about to admit that she’d received information about Stephanie’s charity event and it was still sitting on her desk at home, waiting to be opened.

“I contracted with the little chocolate shop I frequent when I’m in Minneapolis. They assured me that they could make the leaves, but the owner called this morning to say they couldn’t fill the order. It was something about not being able to get supplies. And that’s why I’m here. I need twelve hundred sugar cookies by noon on Wednesday for the luncheon. You can decorate them with a leaf made out of chocolate frosting, can’t you? I know it’s late in the day, but just an outline of a leaf would be all right.”

Hannah began to frown. The cookies themselves were no problem, but Lisa would have to decorate each cookie and that would take time. It was time they didn’t have, not with all their other orders. And Stephanie probably expected them to donate the cookies for free!

She must have sensed Hannah’s reluctance because Stephanie held up her hand. “I know you probably won’t charge me since it’s for such a worthy cause, but I insist on paying you for the ingredients. That way you won’t have any out of pocket expenses.”

But you won’t pay us for our time, and that’s the most expensive variable in the equation. Any time we spend on your order is less time we can spend on the customers who actually pay! Hannah didn’t voice her thoughts. It wasn’t politic to alienate the female half of Lake Eden’s first couple. But before she could tell Stephanie that they couldn’t possibly take on a project that large with such short notice, Lisa spoke up.

“We can’t fill your order, Mrs. Bascomb. There just isn’t enough time to decorate all those cookies. It’s very labor intensive. But we can give you chocolate sugar cookies to go with your raspberry sorbet.”

“I’ve never heard of chocolate sugar cookies,” Mayor Bascomb commented.

Neither have I, Hannah added silently, hoping that Lisa had a recipe for the treat she’d just promised to bake.

“And I have another dessert idea for you,” Lisa continued. “It’s something that fits right in with your theme, Turn Over a New Leaf . Hannah and I could bake apple turnovers for you to sell during the events. Everyone loves apple turnovers.”

“Perfect!” Stephanie breathed. “You’re a genius, Lisa!”

“Thank you. You can set up a booth, man it with volunteers, and heat the turnovers in a toaster oven so they’re warm and smell divine.”

“We could do that,” Stephanie agreed, nodding quickly.

“Hannah and I will provide the turnovers and we’ll follow Lake Eden Nursery’s example. We’ll donate fifty percent of our profits to your charity drive.”

“Wonderful! But how about coffee? Could we have your coffee for sale, too?” Stephanie glanced down at her cup. “This is simply marvelous coffee.”

“Thank you.” Hannah took the hint and reached out to refill Stephanie’s cup. “It’s a new kind of coffee from my high school friend, Pat Vota.”

“Vota…” the mayor repeated, looking thoughtful. “If I’m remembering right, he was a heck of a basketball player. Maybe I should give him a jingle and see if he’ll donate some of this coffee to the cause.”

“That’s a wonderful idea, dear!” Stephanie praised him. And then she turned to Hannah. “Do you think he might send us a case or two?”

“I don’t know,” Hannah said. There was no way she’d make any sort of commitment for a classmate she hadn’t seen since the summer after they’d graduated.

“Well, look who’s here,” a voice called out and Hannah turned to glance at the customer who’d come in the door and was headed straight for their table. There was no way she could mistake his lean, well-muscled body, his glossy brown hair worn slightly longer in front, and his remarkable brown eyes with sprinkles of gold in their depths. It was Bradford Ramsey and he’d clearly impressed Lake Eden’s first couple with his handsome, talented, sensitive and caring professor act. What was he doing here in her cookie shop?

“Bradford!” Stephanie turned to greet him. “You know my husband, of course.”

“Of course. It’s a pleasure to see you again, Mr. Mayor.”

“This is Lisa Beeseman,” Stephanie went on with the introductions. “She’s married to our town marshal. And this is Hannah Swensen.”

Bradford turned his thousand-watt smile in Hannah’s direction. “Hannah and I have met…haven’t we, Hannah?”

Hannah’s mouth went suddenly dry, as parched as a nomad caught in a desert sandstorm without benefit of water. She managed to nod, but all the while her mind was screaming out a warning. He knows! It took him a while, but he remembered me! And now he’s going to tell everyone here about us!

“You know Hannah?” Stephanie asked him, completely oblivious to Hannah’s inner distress.

“I certainly do! And I’ll tell you a little secret about her.”

Hannah prayed for a loud clap of thunder to drown out his words. Or a tornado to touch down and whirl her away to another land, like Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz. Any sort of major disaster would do as long as it would keep him from revealing her painful secret.

Bradford leaned closer and gave her a little wink. “You might not know this, but Hannah makes the best plum pudding I’ve ever tasted. I’m her sister’s faculty advisor and I had the pleasure of joining the whole Swensen family for dessert on Christmas Eve.”

He didn’t remember! Hannah felt weak with relief. He hadn’t remembered on Christmas Eve and he still didn’t remember. She was safe! He had no idea she was the naive graduate student who’d fallen under his spell while they were in college. But he would remember…eventually. That knowledge was like the sword of Damocles suspended over her head.