Gourmet Holiday Murder: Book 6 in Papa Pacelli's Pizzeria Series Page 2

  “This will be good for both of us,” she told her dog as they got out of the car. She paused to straighten her scarf. With no wind, it wasn’t as bitingly cold as it had been the last couple of days, but it was still far below freezing. “We haven’t been getting out enough, now that it’s dark whenever I come home from work.”

  She began walking briskly down the nearest path, the frozen leaves under the snow crunching with each step. There were a few other vehicles in the parking lot, and she could hear children laughing off in the distance. It was reassuring to know that she wasn’t alone in the forest. She was a city girl; all of this nature was far more intimidating than busy urban streets ever were.

  After a good half hour of following the path, Ellie was feeling decidedly toasty. Her breath steamed out in front of her, and she even unzipped her coat partway to let cool air in as she watched her dog romp through the snow.

  Bunny was having the time of her life. Ellie had bought her a sweater for the cold weather, but the papillon hardly seemed to need it. As she watched, the little dog buried her face in a snow drift, then gave a big snort and jumped back. They had rarely gone on excursions like this back when they had lived in Chicago; most of their walks had taken place along busy streets.

  “We’ll have to do this more often, girl,” she said aloud to the dog. Her voice sounded strangely loud. She realized that she couldn’t hear the children shouting and laughing in the distance any more. How were the woods so quiet? Where was the birdsong? There was no sound but for the occasional creak of one of the tall pines in the breeze and the crunch of snow under her feet and Bunny’s paws.

  Beginning to feel uncomfortable at just how alone she was out there, she cleared her throat and tightened her grip on Bunny’s leash. “It’s time to go back, girl. Maybe we can come out again later this week. I’ll see if Russell wants to join us, too. He likes all of this nature stuff.”

  She got them turned around and let Bunny run out in front of her again. The little dog proved just as enthusiastic about retracing their steps, and zig-zagged across the path, sniffing everything she could reach. Ellie let her mind wander, thinking about her plans for the pizzeria. It was doing well now, there was no denying that, but the competitive streak in her wanted it to do even better. In her far-off fantasies, she imagined Papa Pacelli’s as a nationwide chain, serving the best pizza in the country.

  They weren’t quite at that point yet, but she was still extremely proud of how far they had come. When she had first arrived in Kittiport and had taken over the pizzeria, it had been struggling along on its last legs. Just as she had gotten her own fresh start, Papa Pacelli’s had gotten a second chance as well. She knew, however, that she couldn’t take responsibility for all of their recent success. A lot of the restaurant’s new image had to do with how dedicated her employees were. She had given them each a chance to leave after she had fired Xavier, and they had all decided not just to stay, but to work hard to improve the restaurant’s image. That meant a lot to her.

  “I should do something nice for them for Christmas,” she said to Bunny, who ignored her. “What sorts of gifts would it be okay to give my employees?”

  She was still considering that question as she returned to the parking lot and got into her car. Bunny spun around once, then lay down on the passenger seat. Ellie started the engine and let it warm up while she thought. She could get them gift cards, but that seemed too impersonal. Of course, they probably wouldn’t want gifts that were too personal from her; she was their boss, after all.

  “I’ve got to find something for Shannon, Russell, and Nonna too,” she sighed. “I wish you could talk, Bunny. You’d probably have some good ideas.”

  The little dog’s tail thumped against the seat at the sound of her name, then the papillon yawned and tucked her nose under a paw. It was time for a nap.

  At home, Ellie warmed up with a glass of vanilla tea before tackling the job of putting up the Christmas lights. Nonna had boxes of the things in the basement, and probably even more in the attic, though no one had been up there in years. The big pine tree out front was just begging to be done up. Ellie had been prepared to start the project the day after she got home from the hospital, but Russell had talked her into waiting until he could help her… or at the very least, until her headache went away. She agreed with him that tall ladders and concussions didn’t go well together, but she wasn’t prepared to wait for his help. While she was grateful that he had offered, she knew it could be days until he was able to get away from the sheriff’s department for long enough to get the lights up. Patience wasn’t her foremost virtue, and since she had been blessedly headache free for the past two days, she decided to go ahead with the project on her own.

  After dragging the dusty boxes up from the basement, she pulled out and untangled the strands of lights. There was a good variety, and while she was tempted to use the flashing red and green lights on the outdoor tree, she decided to go with the pale blue lights instead. She could leave them up all winter, since the color wasn’t strictly holiday themed.

  Ellie carried the lights outside and set them on a tarp in the snow, then unlocked the garage and pushed her way inside. She didn’t know how long it had been since the building had been used for cars. Right now, it was full to the brim of old tools and appliances, cardboard boxes, and antique furniture. I need to talk to Nonna about getting this place cleaned out, she said. We can probably sell a lot of this to an antique shop. She pushed past an old rocking chair and took a heavy extension cord off the workbench. Her eyes landed on an extendible ladder on the other side of the garage. That would be perfect, if she could ever get it out.

  Half an hour later, Ellie was at the top of the big pine tree out front, slowly winding the lights around the branches while her grandmother and a neighbor, who had been kind enough to come help when he had seen what they were doing, held onto the ladder from below. She was beginning to realize that this job would be a lot easier for two people to do—one on each side of the tree. She was making do, though, and she could already tell that when she was finished, the effect would be gorgeous.

  “There, it’s finished,” Ellie said, stepping off the ladder for the final time. Her hands were sticky with tree sap, but she didn’t mind the sharp pine scent that clung to them. “Where’s the end of the extension cord?”

  Nonna handed her the cord, and Ellie pulled the end of the last strand of lights down from the lowest branch and plugged it in. She had already tested all of the lights before putting them on the tree, but she still felt a tingle of relief when the entire tree lit up with no issues.

  “Look at that,” Nonna said, taking a step back so she could admire the entire image. “You did a wonderful job, Ellie.”

  “Thanks, Nonna.” It had been hard work, but she was glad it was done. She couldn’t wait until it got dark. The tree would really stand out then.

  “I’m really looking forward to Christmas this year,” her grandmother said. “With you in the house, it will be just like old times.”

  CHAPTER THREE

  * * *

  Dating a sheriff wasn’t easy, especially when that sheriff was Russell Ward. One of the things that had originally drawn Ellie to him was the fact that he took his job so seriously. He never cut corners and never overlooked a suspect, even if he knew them personally. Sometimes that meant he had to make hard choices, like arresting his best friend for murder. Other times that meant cancelling dates at the last minute because of emergency calls. Between his job and hers, it was rare to have a whole uninterrupted evening together.

  Luckily, they were both happy to take their relationship slowly. Their dates remained casual, and they talked about all manner of things from work to their families. Ellie was beginning to feel for the first time in her life like she was building a relationship with a man that was based solidly in friendship and respect. It was hard to think now of her years putting up with her ex-fiancé’s antics. Kittiport had changed her a lot in the months since she ha
d moved back, and most of those changes were for the better.

  Even though there was the risk of one of them having to leave to deal with one emergency or another at their jobs, Ellie always looked forward to going out with Russell. When he called the next day to tell her he had the evening off, she jumped at the chance to have him over. Putting the lights on the tree had been one thing, but she wasn’t prepared to begin putting the icicle lights along the gutters without an able-bodied someone there to help.

  A few hours after his phone call, Russell’s arrival was announced by a smattering of happy yaps from Bunny, who could recognize the sound of his truck from a block away. Ellie spared one last glance in the hall mirror on her way to answer the door and gave herself an encouraging smile. Her hair, which was straight and dark and refused to do anything more than just hang there, was up in a ponytail and out of the way. She was wearing her favorite blouse and jeans combo, and had a gorgeous handknit wool scarf hanging on the coat hook by the door along with her jacket.

  Of course, she doubted that Russell cared what she wore. He had seen her tear-streaked and covered in someone else’s blood—nearly anything would be an improvement to that. Still, it mattered to her. She had always believed that if something was important to her, she should put her best foot forward. And she did care about her relationship with Russell, despite the fact that she wasn’t quite sure how she had managed to end up in the relationship in the first place. All of her promises to herself that she wouldn’t let a man distract her from her career goals again had seemed to just float away when she’d started spending more time with him.

  “Back up,” Ellie said, nudging Bunny out of the way with her leg as she reached for the door. “You’re not allowed out front without a leash anymore.”

  Just a few days ago, the dog had dashed out the door and into the road when Ellie was getting home from work. It had been snowing, so the road wasn’t as easy to see as it normally was. The incident still frightened her, and she didn’t want to chance it happening again until she had time to work with Bunny a little more on recall training.

  She got the door open and, blocking Bunny with her legs, greeted Russell with a smile. He looked more relaxed than usual when he smiled back.

  “I brought you a coffee,” he said, holding up two steaming paper cups.

  “Not from the sheriff’s department?”

  “Nope.” He grinned. The sheriff’s department had notoriously bad coffee. Ellie didn’t know what it was; she had even tried her hand at making some herself once, and it had turned out just as bad as always. Maybe I should get them a new coffee maker for Christmas, she thought. Though come to think of it, that might put the coffee shop around the block out of business.

  “My favorite,” she laughed. She took the cup that he offered her, and stepped back, inviting him in while keeping Bunny firmly blocked from the door.

  The little dog was thrilled to see the sheriff. Once Ellie released her, the papillon bounced around the two of them, her tail a blur. Russell crouched down to her level and withdrew a bag of treats from his pocket. He kept them there in case he had to deal with dogs in the course of his work, but they worked very well for bribing Bunny as well.

  “I didn’t forget about you, little girl,” he said. “I’ve got your cookies. Here you go.”

  Ellie smiled as she watched the two of them interact. Russell seemed more like a German shepherd guy to her, but he always made a point to do something nice for the little papillon. She was struck, not for the first time, by what a genuinely good man he was.

  “I see you put the lights up on the tree already,” he said when he straightened up. He raised an eyebrow. “I know you don’t have to listen to me when I tell you to be careful, but even the doctor said you should avoid heights for a while.”

  “I felt fine, and Nonna and a neighbor spotted me,” she told him. “The lights got up without a hitch.”

  “You could have just waited for me,” he said. “You know I worry about you. You’re a bit… accident prone.”

  “I don’t usually fall off roofs,” she remarked. “It was a one-time thing. Anyway, I didn’t know when you’d have time to stop by and help.”

  He shrugged in concession. “Fair enough, things at the department these past few months have been crazier than usual. I don’t want to jinx it, but things have really slowed down this week. I’m hoping everything stays nice and calm through the holidays.”

  “I hope so too,” Ellie said. “I really do. You need a break from the insanity.”

  “Well, I knew what I was getting into when I ran for sheriff. I can’t complain.” He rubbed the back of his neck and looked around. “Where’s your grandmother?” Russell had known the elder Pacellis for years, and never failed to greet Ellie’s nonna if she was around.

  “One of her friends picked her up an hour ago. They’re going Christmas shopping. I was strictly forbidden from going with them.”

  Russell chuckled. “I wonder what she’s getting you?”

  “I have no idea,” Ellie said. “She already gave me the pizzeria. As far as I’m concerned, I’ve already got everything I could ever want.”

  “How’s that going, anyway? Did you start the renovations yet?”

  “The work starts Tuesday evening. We’re closing early that day, and opening late on Thursday, which is when the contractor said they should be finished.”

  “That’s quick,” he said.

  “Well, it’s a pretty simple project,” she said. “They’re just going to knock a hole through the wall and put a window in. Maybe it’s not as simple as that, but it’s the gist of it. Putting in the outdoor eating area next summer will take a lot longer, but we shouldn’t need to close down for that.”

  “I can’t wait for that,” he said. “Nothing beats eating outside on a nice summer day with a steady breeze from the ocean coming in.”

  They both looked outside to where the ground was white and the ocean was visible as a steely grey line in the distance. Summer was a long way off.

  Taking advantage of Russell’s help while she could, Ellie pulled on her scarf and jacket and they got to work on the rest of the outdoor decorations. Gradually, the house began to look more festive. While the sheriff put up the icicle lights along the gutter, she put a wreath on the door and sorted out the rest of the decorations that she planned to use.

  By the time they had finished putting up the outdoor decorations, Ellie’s fingers and toes were freezing. She and Russell took a few moments to admire their work, then went inside to warm up. The sheriff was still in an unusually good mood, and she wondered whether it was just the fact that things had been slower at the department lately, or if there was something else. She got her answer as they sat at the kitchen table and sipped some of the butterscotch cocoa that she’d made.

  “You know, I forgot how much I missed all of this,” he said.

  “All of this…? You mean Christmas stuff?”

  He nodded. “I haven’t really done anything for the holidays for the past few years, besides whatever meals James and Shannon invite me to. It’s good to get away from work for a bit and do normal Christmas things.”

  Ellie wondered if he had stopped doing stuff for Christmas after his wife had died. He never spoke much about her, and she never asked. Maybe it was just hard to get into the holidays when most of your time was spent dealing with criminals and emergencies.

  “I’m glad you enjoy this,” she told him. “You know, if you want more Christmassy stuff to do, you could come with Nonna and me when we go get a tree. I’m sure we could use the manpower when it comes to setting the thing up.”

  “Just give me a day and a time, and I’ll be there,” he said. “As long as this calm streak at the department keeps up, my schedule is looking pretty clear.”

  She smiled her thanks and blew on her mug of hot cocoa. It seemed like things were finally settling down in Kittiport, and she couldn’t be happier. A nice, calm holiday season was just what they all needed befor
e the new year came in with whatever adventures awaited them.

  CHAPTER FOUR

  * * *

  A howling snowstorm ushered in the next week. Ellie decided it was better to be safe than sorry, and shut down all deliveries during the storm. They missed quite a bit of business, but when she saw how many cars there were in the ditch when she drove into work Tuesday morning, she didn’t regret her decision in the slightest. The pizzeria could survive a couple of days with fewer sales. Her employees’ lives were worth a lot more than the few hundred dollars she would have made if she’d kept deliveries going.

  It was still snowing when Papa Pacelli’s opened that afternoon, but it had slowed down enough that the plows were able to keep the roads clear, and the entire crew at the pizzeria was kept busy as hungry guests popped in to pick up their orders. Ellie had printed off a large poster reminding everyone of the change in their hours for the next few days, and had also gotten a few hundred flyers advertising their new drive-up window, which she taped to the top of the pizza boxes as they went out. As the time for their early closing and the beginning of construction drew nearer, there was an air of excitement throughout the pizzeria. Everyone was looking forward to the new window. It would make things a lot easier for both her guests and her employees, especially during the cold season.

  It would also be a significant move towards one of Ellie’s long-term goals; she wanted to begin making the pizzeria’s dining area more like a real sit-down restaurant. She planned on expanding the menu throughout the coming year, and with more options on the board such as pasta, salads, and desserts, she hoped they would begin attracting a wider range of people.

  Right now, most of her guests picked up their pizza and left; only a handful of people ate inside. With the new pickup window in the back, she could begin making more changes to the dining area, focusing less on keeping an easy path from the door to the register, and more on decorating and creating a comfortable atmosphere.