Salami Murder: Book 8 in The Darling Deli Series Read online

  TABLE OF CONTENTS

  SALAMI MURDER

  CHAPTER ONE

  CHAPTER TWO

  CHAPTER THREE

  CHAPTER FOUR

  CHAPTER FIVE

  CHAPTER SIX

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  CHAPTER NINE

  CHAPTER TEN

  CHAPTER ELEVEN

  CHAPTER TWELVE

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN

  CHAPTER SIXTEEN

  CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

  CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

  Salami Murder

  Book Eight in the Darling Deli Series

  By

  Patti Benning

  Copyright 2016 Summer Prescott Books

  All Rights Reserved. No part of this publication nor any of the information herein may be quoted from, nor reproduced, in any form, including but not limited to: printing, scanning, photocopying or any other printed, digital, or audio formats, without prior express written consent of the copyright holder.

  **This book is a work of fiction. Any similarities to persons, living or dead, places of business, or situations past or present, is completely unintentional.

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  SALAMI MURDER

  Book eight of The Darling Deli Series

  CHAPTER ONE

  “This is it, boy,” Moira said to her German shepherd, Maverick. “Our new house.” She paused on the doorstep, savoring the moment. Just twenty minutes ago she had turned in the keys to the tiny apartment she’d been living in since her home had been destroyed in a fire. Now her new home, a beautiful two-story stone house on five wooded acres, was ready for her. She had spent the last few weeks buying new furniture, signing off on a few repairs, and updating some of the appliances in the kitchen. Buying and repairing the home had been a long process, though it had been made easier thanks to the sizable payment from her recently deceased ex-husband’s life insurance policy. She was relieved that everything was complete now and the house was hers. All she had to do was walk through the door, and she would be home.

  She turned the key and pushed the front door open, letting the dog dash in front of her. He was eager to explore the house; this was the first time he had been inside. She was sure the large, energetic dog would appreciate the fenced-in portion of the backyard, where he would be free to run without supervision. He can go on walks with me in the woods, too, she thought. We’ll just have to work on his training a little bit more first.

  Her furniture was already all in place, and she had taken the last load of dishes and clothes over earlier this morning. I can finally relax, she told herself. I won’t have to worry about moving again for years, if I’m lucky. Smiling to herself, she did a quick walk through to make sure that everything was as it should be, then let an eager Maverick into the backyard to run around while she made herself a cup of coffee. She had less than an hour to get settled and relax before it would be time to head back in town for her shift at Darling’s DELIcious Delights. The deli was her pride and joy, and many weeks she spent more time there than she did at home.

  She was relaxing on a lounge chair out back, watching Maverick zoom around the yard while she sipped her coffee, when her cell phone buzzed. Glancing down at it, she saw a text from her daughter pop up on the screen.

  Going to be in town soon… lunch at the deli?

  Moira smiled, eager to see her daughter. She texted back a quick affirmative, then drained the rest of her coffee and pushed herself out of the chair, calling Maverick inside. Lunch with Candice sounded like the perfect start to her work day.

  “Hey, Ms. D,” her newest employee, Allison Byrd said when Moira walked into the deli a few minutes later. “Are you settled into your new house yet?”

  “Well, everything is moved in, but I’ve still got some unpacking to do,” she told the smiling girl. She had hired Allison originally because she had inadvertently been responsible for getting the girl fired from her last job, but it turned out that hiring the young woman had been one of the best decisions that she had made lately. Allison was focused, hardworking, and thoughtful, and picked up new skills quickly. She also got along with the other employees quite well, not that Moira was surprised. She knew that she had gotten lucky when it came to finding good employees.

  “That’s great. Darrin’s just finishing cleaning up the kitchen; breakfast was pretty busy, and we had to make more quiches in the middle of the rush. We haven’t started on today’s soup yet,” the young woman said.

  “That’s fine, I’m a bit early anyway, I don’t mind doing it. Will you just tell me when Candice gets here?”

  “Of course,” Allison promised. “Is she still planning on having the grand opening next week?”

  “Yep. I’m even closing the deli for a few hours so we can all attend,” Moira told her with a smile.

  “Awesome, I can’t wait,” the young woman said.

  Candice, Moira’s twenty-year-old daughter, was on the verge of opening her very own business: a candy shop. Moira was both excited and anxious for her daughter. Most small businesses failed within the first few years, so it was a risky path, but she couldn’t help but feel proud that her daughter was achieving so much so young.

  When Moira slipped through the door to the kitchen, she found herself face to face with the lanky form of Darrin, the very first person that she had hired to work at the deli. Darrin had been her loyal employee for nearly three years, and would likely be able to run the deli nearly as well as she did if the need ever arose.

  They chatted for a few minutes while she started the soup of the day simmering on the stove and began washing the leaves for the side salads that were a popular lunchtime option in the summer. Moira prided herself on the fact that everything she sold in the deli was locally grown and made, and was almost always fresh from the weekend’s farmer’s market. Only during the off-season did she use frozen fruits and vegetables, and she was convinced that her customers could taste the difference.

  It wasn’t long before Allison poked her head through the doorway to tell her that Candice had arrived. Moira asked Darrin to finish washing the vegetables when he had a chance, then she went out to greet her daughter.

  “Hey Mom, how did the rest of the move go?” Candice asked after they had greeted each other with a hug. Her straight blonde hair was pulled back in a ponytail, and she was wearing a pale green tee shirt with the words Candice’s Cand
ies printed on the front. “Sorry I couldn’t help more.”

  “Don’t worry about it, honey. I know you’ve been busy. I managed to get the last of my things moved over before I had to turn in my keys,” the deli owner replied. “I’ll invite you and David over for dinner soon, once I get everything unpacked. I’m so glad that everything is finally settled. Moving isn’t any fun. But we should be talking about you… it looks like the shirts for the candy shop came in. I love the color.”

  “Thanks. I got some pale blue and pink ones too. I should have brought you one. Sorry, I forgot,” her daughter said. She looked down at her shirt and grinned. “I can’t believe that this is actually happening.”

  “Me either,” Moira said, returning her daughter’s smile. “What else do you have to do before the big day?”

  “I’ve got a guy coming in a few days to double-check all of the plumbing and gas lines before the stove and refrigerator racks get installed. Then of course I’ve got to have the inspector make sure everything is up to code.” She fiddled with the hem of her shirt. “I hope everything goes smoothly. I know all of this is part of owning a business, but it isn’t very fun.”

  “I’m sure everything will be fine. Everything went smoothly when I first opened the deli, even though I was working with secondhand appliances and didn’t have anyone to help me.” She looked around at the deli as it was now, feeling a swell of warmth at the thought of just how far she had come.

  “If everything goes as well for me as it did for you, then I’ll be happy,” Candice said. “It’s going to be so hard to wait, though. I’ve been making candy constantly for the last few days, and have been giving business cards out to everyone I meet.” She groaned. “I need to de-stress.”

  “Here, sit down. I’ll go make us some salads and see if the soup’s ready. Or we can have sandwiches—your choice,” Moira said.

  “A sandwich sounds good,” Candice said as she took a seat at one of the bistro tables. “Thanks, Mom.”

  A few minutes later, Moira was back at the table and both women were silent as they ate their sandwiches. She had opted for a toasted rye sandwich with lettuce, salami, bean sprouts, tomatoes, and a drizzle of Italian dressing. As far as she was concerned, one of the biggest pluses of owning a deli was being surrounded by healthy, fresh foods on a daily basis. Sometimes I may eat too much, she thought, but at least I stay away from processed foods and preservatives… for the most part.

  They chatted for a while more, staying on light topics and avoiding stressful ones until Darrin left with a wave and Moira’s shift officially started. Even though she owned the deli, she insisted on pulling her weight just the same as any of her employees when she was on the clock. She enjoyed being a part of the deli’s day-to-day affairs, and had no desire to give that up just yet.

  “I should get to the kitchen and start planning for tomorrow’s special,” she told her daughter apologetically. “Plus, the lunch rush will be starting soon.”

  “Okay, that’s fine. I’m meeting Adrian at the store soon anyway,” Candice said. She wrinkled her nose. “He wants to go over finances for the store again. I keep telling him not to worry about the money, but he won’t listen.”

  Moira pursed her lips, but said nothing. She didn’t really like her daughter’s on-again, off-again boyfriend; on the surface, Adrian was polite and intelligent, but he didn’t seem to respect Candice’s ideas and wishes. She knew her daughter was old enough to make her own choices—she was staring a business, after all—but she sometimes found herself wishing that her daughter would bow to her mother’s greater years of experience. Moira knew a lot about being in a relationship with the wrong person, and was certain she could sense trouble brewing between her daughter and the young man.

  “Just do what you feel is best, sweetie,” she managed. She gave her daughter a hug. “I love you.”

  “Love you too, Mom. Oh, I almost forgot, I wanted to pick up some summer sausage before I left.” She hurried over to the refrigerated case where rolls of sausage and packages of cold cuts were stacked and chose a roll of summer sausage. Placing it by the register, she opened her wallet and frowned. “That’s odd…” She unzipped a second compartment and her frown deepened.

  “What is it?” Moira asked, concerned.

  “I had almost a hundred dollars in here, but it’s missing.”

  “That’s not good.” Moira rounded the counter to stand next to her daughter. Candice’s wallet was small; the money was definitely not in it anywhere. “Do you have any idea what could have happened to it?”

  “No…” her daughter bit her lip. “Well, I did leave it on the counter in the back while some repairmen were there installing the shelves. Do you really think they would have stolen from me?”

  “It’s possible,” the deli owner said, feeling a rush of anger at whoever had taken advantage of her daughter’s trust. “I hope it turns up, honey.”

  “Me too.” Candice sighed. “Well, I better go. I don’t want to use my card for such a small purchase, I’ll put this back for now.”

  “Just take the sausage, I’ll cover it,” Moira told her. “Also… what would you think about getting a set of security cameras like mine?” She had been meaning to broach the subject with her daughter for a while, and the possible theft of the money seemed like a good reason to bring it up.

  “I don’t know if I’ll need them,” Candice said. “I probably won’t be hiring any employees for a while. But I guess it doesn’t hurt, if I can find a good deal on some.”

  “I’ll ask David,” her mother promised, handing her daughter a bag with the summer sausage in it. “Have a nice day, sweetheart.”

  Moira watched her daughter go, her brows drawn together in concern. Had one of the men that Candice hired to work on the candy shop stolen from her? And if so, would he stop at stealing the bills out of her wallet, or would he move on to something bigger?

  CHAPTER TWO

  “This place looks great,” David Morris said, looking around the nearly finished candy shop, impressed by the transformation. The store had been bare bones the last time he had seen it, and now the front room was warm and welcoming with fresh coats of pastel blue and pink paint on alternating walls, and shelves stacked high with candy—some of it brand-name, and some of it made by Candice herself.

  “Thanks,” Candice said. “It’s been a lot of work, but I’m finally almost there. Oh, and thanks for bringing the security cameras so quickly. I probably won’t need them, but…”

  “Better safe than sorry,” Moira finished for her daughter. She still bristled at the thought of someone stealing from her daughter, and wanted to do everything in her power to ensure that it didn’t happen again.

  “Where do you want me to install them?” David asked.

  “Can we put one kind of in plain view over the register, like the one at the deli is?” Candice asked. “And I’d like the other one to be in the back, near the door so I can see who comes in and out. I don’t think I need one in the kitchen; if someone does break in, they’ll have to go through the back or front door anyway, and one of the cameras would catch them.”

  David nodded and hoisted his stepladder, ready to get to work. Moira pulled a stool up to the counter and sat next to her daughter, watching the private investigator as he began unpacking the first camera. She would offer to help, but he knew what he was doing, and she knew she would only get in the way.

  “So, how are things going?” she asked her daughter quietly instead. “Did you ever find out what happened to the money?”

  “No,” Candice said with a sigh. “But luckily nothing else seems to have gone wrong. Except...” She paused, reluctantly meeting her mother’s gaze. “Well, Adrian and I broke up again.”

  “How come?” Moira asked gently. Even though she didn’t like Adrian, she knew her daughter must be upset. The one area where her daughter’s judgment seemed to be off was when it came to men. Just like her mother, she thought. Then her eyes found David. Well, I guess my ju
dgment isn’t all bad—it’s certainly improving—David has been nothing short of amazing. She had known the private investigator for less than a year, but already he had become a big part of her life. He was steady and strong, and seemed to sense when she needed him most. He couldn’t be more unlike Mike if he tried, she thought, then shook her head. She refused to think negatively of the dead. Her ex-husband might have had a lot of flaws, but he had loved their daughter, and that made up for a lot.

  “We got into another argument,” her daughter said, snapping Moira back to the present. “He keeps trying to tell me how to run the store. I mean, I know I told him he could help—and he definitely has been a lot of help, so I’m not trying to be ungrateful—but I want this store to be mine.” She sighed and tapped her fingers on her phone’s screen. “I told him we’re going to go a while without seeing each other.”

  “How did he take it?” her mother asked.

  “He was upset, of course. But I’ve got enough to worry about right now without trying to make up with him also.” Candice groaned. “I’m never going to meet The One, am I? Why is it so hard to find a decent boyfriend?”

  “Candice, sweetie, you’re only twenty. You’ve got plenty of time left,” Moira told her. “Look at me—I’m over twice your age, and haven’t quite given up hope yet.”

  “I’m almost twenty-one,” Candice pointed out. “Plus, you’ve got David.” Both women glanced over to see if he was listening, but if he was, his face didn’t reveal anything. He was focused solely on the camera in his hands.

  “My point is, you’re still very young,” the deli owner continued in a quieter voice. “I’m glad you haven’t decided to settle down with anyone yet. You have many more years in front of you to find your perfect match. For now, just focus on getting the shop up and running. I think that’s enough for anyone to worry about; you don’t need to be stressed about a relationship as well.”