Lobster Pizza Murder (Papa Pacelli's Pizzeria Series Book 22) Read online

  “I don’t know… she might change her mind once the shock wears off,” Ellie said. “Besides, he’s grown on me. I don’t mind taking care of him for a while longer. I’ll get him to the vet, and see if his leg’s okay, and he’ll have somewhere comfy to sleep in the meantime.”

  Bethany chuckled. “You’re going to fall in love with him, I can tell. Well, that’s really all I had to call about. I’m sorry the news wasn’t better.”

  “I guess I should have expected it.” She remembered the man she had seen in her yard, and added, “Do you know if the wrecking company would have sent someone out to look at the scene of the accident, for insurance purposes or something?”

  “That’s not the wrecker’s job. Why?”

  “Someone was in my yard earlier, looking at the tree. He left before I could get outside and ask him what he was doing there.”

  “That’s odd. Liam’s out on patrol; I’ll send him by your house tonight. Call if you see anyone else acting strangely.”

  “I will. Do you know how the accident happened yet?”

  “No. It will probably be a week or two until forensics can finish going over the car.”

  “That long? If someone killed him, they could be in another country by then.”

  “Look, Ellie, between me and you, I don’t think someone killed him.” She lowered her voice. “Don’t tell anyone about this yet, but the paramedics found open containers of alcohol in his car. It looks like he was drinking and driving. It’s sad that he died, but it’s lucky that he didn’t hurt anyone else.”

  “Why would he say someone tried to kill him if it wasn’t true?”

  “I don’t know. Shock, or maybe he was trying to deflect the blame. We’ll keep investigating, but you might have to let this one go, Ellie. Let us do our jobs, okay? I’ll let you know if anything changes about the puppy. Right now, I’ve got to get back to work.”

  Bethany said goodbye and ended the call. Ellie sighed and let her hand fall to her side. The deputy hadn’t been there. She hadn’t heard Noah’s last words. No matter what she said, Ellie remained convinced that Noah’s accident had been more than it appeared to be.

  CHAPTER FIVE

  *

  “This is Sawyer,” Ellie said. She lifted the puppy onto the exam table and supported him to make sure he wouldn’t fall off.

  “He’s a big boy, isn’t he?” the vet tech said. “You said when you called that you weren’t sure how old he was?”

  “No. I got him… well the story of how I got him is a bit complicated, but I don’t know much about him, other than that he’s a boy, and his name is Sawyer.”

  “Well, let’s see.” The vet tech opened the puppy’s mouth and looked inside, then stood him up and ran her hands over his body. “I think your guess was right. He’s somewhere between three and four months of age. He’s not neutered, so you’ll probably want to schedule that within a couple of months. He’ll be a big boy, but he’s a little chunkier right now than I’d like to see. Too much weight while they’re growing can be bad for their joints. What are you feeding him?”

  “I’ve only had him since yesterday, but so far he’s just been eating my other dog’s food. She gets diet kibble, with canned food over the top of it in the evenings. She loves eating, a bit too much.”

  “I’d suggest picking up some all life stages food when you get the chance. Even though he’s a bit chunky, I don’t want him on diet food, because it may not have all of the nutrients a growing puppy needs. You mentioned an injury?”

  “His leg. It’s a little better today, but yesterday he wasn’t walking on it.”

  “Okay. I’ll make sure to remind the vet to look at it. I’ll just finish up doing his physical, then the vet will be right in.”

  Ellie watched as the vet tech listened to the puppy’s heartbeat and checked his eyes and ears. She was glad when, besides his leg, he was given a clean bill of health. The young woman left the room after a few minutes, promising that the vet would be in soon.

  While they waited, she lowered the puppy to the floor and let him sniff around. Last night hadn’t been easy. Sawyer had cried for hours when she left him down in the study. It wasn’t until she went and brought him upstairs to sleep next to her — with Bunny pouting at the foot of the bed — that he had settled down and she had finally been able to get some sleep. Then she had woken up to an unpleasant present on her bedroom floor. It had been years since Bunny had been a puppy, and then she had been prepared for the new addition with a crate and playpen, toys, and a week off of work. She would have felt bad knowing that the puppy was staying alone in a kennel, though, especially after all he had been through.

  It wasn’t long before the vet came in and began to examine Sawyer’s leg. After some poking and prodding, he announced that the puppy’s shoulder was likely bruised.

  “I think he’ll be perfectly fine in a few days. The fact that there has already been an improvement is great. I’ll send you home with some pain medication for him if he seems uncomfortable tonight. Will we be doing any shots today?”

  “I don’t know,” Ellie admitted. “I’m not sure if his owner got them done or not. I might be able to find that out, though. I’ll make another appointment if he needs them.”

  “All right. Well, thank you for bringing him in. It’s always better to be safe rather than sorry when it comes to injuries like these. You two are all set.”

  Ellie paid Sawyer’s bill at the reception desk, and then left with the puppy tucked under her arm. It was still unusually cold out, Sawyer still had tender puppy paws. It was hard not to baby him; he was an adorable little dog, and seemed happiest when he was as close to her as possible.

  “What are we going to do with you?” she asked, settling the puppy onto the passenger seat. She had to be at work in an hour, and would be there for longer than was fair to expect the puppy to hold his bladder. She would have to run home halfway through the day to let him out, but even so, she was nervous about leaving him alone in the study for so long. Before going to bed the night before, she had unplugged all the cords and put them on top of the desk, and had made sure there wasn’t anything dangerous in the room, but that morning she had noticed chew marks on the desk’s legs. She really needed to go out and buy some sort of pen to keep him in for the time being, but just didn’t have time.

  She wasn’t quite sure what she was going to do with the puppy in the long term. When she had offered to keep him at her house, she had thought that his owner’s wife might change her mind about not keeping him. But what if she didn’t? Ellie didn’t know anyone who wanted a dog. She didn’t have the time to raise him herself, especially not right before her wedding and honeymoon. She couldn’t bring him to work with her, and it wasn’t fair to him to be home alone for half the day every day during the week.

  For now, they would just have to do their best. She put the car into gear and pulled out of the parking lot, glad that the roads were clear. It had snowed again the night before, but only about half an inch. It had been just enough to make the mess in front of the pine tree in the front yard look a bit better. Hopefully it would draw less attention now. She was still not sure who had stopped in front of her house the night before, and had concluded that it had probably just been a gawker; someone who hadn’t been able to pass by the scene of an accident without getting a closer look.

  “If it wasn’t for you, I’d be eating lunch with my friends right about now,” she said to Sawyer as they drove through downtown Kittiport. “But I suppose it was worth it to get you into the vet. At least we know your leg isn’t broken. You’re one lucky puppy.”

  At home, she took both dogs into the backyard so they could do their business before she went to work. She kept Sawyer on a leash, but let Bunny run around free. The papillon seemed to be warming up to the puppy, and had begun approaching him to sniff at him for a few seconds before darting away again. Maybe it will be good for her to have another dog around, she thought. The only other animals she ever sees are
a parrot and a cat. No wonder she doesn’t know how to deal with a puppy.

  She got Sawyer settled in the study, gave Marlowe a walnut to crack open, and tossed Bunny a treat, then put her coat back on and left. Her eyes slid automatically toward the spot where Noah had crashed in her yard, but she forced herself to look away. She hadn’t heard any more from Bethany, and knew that the deputy was right. It wasn’t her job to figure out what had happened. She had plenty else to keep her busy, and she knew Kittiport’s law enforcement would do everything they could to give Noah justice if his death had been something other than an accident.

  It felt good to walk into the pizzeria. The restaurant was a comfort zone, and was one of the places that always made her feel better. She got to work right away, turning on the ovens, checking their stock of dough, and checking the answering machine for any calls that had come in while they were closed. While Papa Pacelli’s came up with a new featured pizza every week, it had been a while since they had done something unique. This week, their special would be lobster pizza. With locally caught lobster, white sauce, and scallions on a thin crust pizza, she knew it would be a hit with the locals. It was the middle of winter, and they all needed something to boost their spirits.

  She was halfway through making the first pizza — this one would be a test, just to see if she had it perfect, and of course for her to snack on throughout the day — when Jacob arrived. He was one of the employees that had been there the longest. In fact, he and Rose had both begun working there before she did. They knew the pizzeria like the back of their hands, and she trusted them completely when it came to running the restaurant. She liked them both a lot, which made the decision that she had been agonizing over ever since she and Russell had set aside time for their honeymoon even more difficult.

  “Jacob,” she said. “Once you clock in, can you come see me? There’s something I’ve been wanting to talk to you about.”

  He looked nervous when he came back into the kitchen. She smiled. “So, as you know, I’m going to be gone for two weeks after my wedding. I’ll also be traveling back and forth from here to Florida throughout the year. I think it’s high time I officially name someone the manager of this pizzeria. How would you like the job?”

  He blinked. “Really? You mean it? You want me to be the manager?”

  “Yes. You know this place as well as I do. All of the other employees trust you. You’ve trained most of them. What do you think? The position would come with a raise, of course, but also some extra hours and responsibilities.”

  “I’d love to,” he said. “But what about Rose? She’s been here as long as I have.”

  “It was a hard decision to make. She’ll be my next choice if you don’t want the extra work.”

  “No, I’ll take it,” he said. “This is amazing. Thank you, Ms. P. I’ll make you proud, I promise.”

  “I know you will,” she said with a smile. “Now go on, get to work. I have the feeling it will be a busy day.”

  CHAPTER SIX

  *

  Ellie spent all of Tuesday and most of Wednesday juggling work and the puppy. She managed letting Sawyer out to go potty during the day by taking on some of the deliveries, which she didn’t normally do. While she was out, she made quick pit stops at her house.

  Wednesday evening was busy, with calls coming in left and right. An hour before close, Ellie switched places with Rose, and took over at the register. She didn’t know if she was imagining it or not, but Rose seemed to be acting coldly toward her since she had made Jacob the pizzeria’s official manager. She felt bad, but didn’t know what else she could have done. Jacob worked more hours, and he was more of a leader figure than Rose was. He had just seemed more ideal for the job, but she could understand why Rose might feel hurt.

  There was nothing she could do about it now. She wanted to talk to the young woman, but she didn’t know what she could say to make it better. She would just have to go out of her way to be extra nice to her for the next few weeks. Maybe I’ll bump everyone’s pay up a bit, she thought. With the second pizzeria bringing money in, we can definitely afford it. That should make everyone a bit happier, and it was fair that her employees should benefit from the extra profits too. She wouldn’t have been able to do this without them, after all.

  There was an actual line at the register, something that rarely happened. Ellie took orders as quickly as she could. The woman at the back of the line looked annoyed by the time she reached the front. “I’ve never had to wait this long before,” she said.

  “I’m sorry. I don’t know why it’s so busy,” Ellie said. “The wait for your pizza will probably be a little bit longer than usual too.”

  “I figured,” she said with a sigh. “I don’t really have a choice, though. The power’s out in about half the town, and I have no way to make dinner.”

  Well, that explains why it’s so busy, she thought. She felt a moment of panic. Was the power out at her house? Would it get too cold for Marlowe before she got home? She had been there just a couple of hours before, and everything had been fine. It would probably be okay until she got back that evening.

  “If you’re sure you want to wait, go ahead and place your order. We’ll get it in as quickly as possible.”

  She took the woman’s order — two large cheese pizzas — then looked for her next customer. There was no one else in line, but there was one person standing by the door. He was wearing a grey hoodie, with the hood pulled up over his head. His hands were in his pockets. Something about the way he was staring at her made her uncomfortable.

  “Excuse me, sir?” she called. “Can I help you?”

  Instead of answering, he turned and slipped out the door. Ellie stared after him for a moment, then shook herself. She had work to do. Rose couldn’t be expected to make all of those pizzas on her own.

  Ellie drove straight for home after the pizzeria closed for the evening. She didn’t see any swathes of dark houses on her way out of town, and she relaxed a little bit. The outage must be on the other side of town.

  Sure enough, her outside lights were still on when she got home. She let herself inside, and Bunny greeted her at the door, just as much of a whirlwind as always. Ellie petted her, then went to go grab Sawyer from the study. On her way by Marlowe’s cage, she greeted the bird and promised to take her out in a few minutes.

  As she stood outside, waiting for the dogs to finish up, she checked the time on her phone and felt a tingle of anticipation. Russell would be there soon. He was on his way back from the conference, and would be going straight to her house. She hadn’t seen him since Friday night, but it felt like much longer. It would be good to have him back, and of course she couldn’t wait for him to meet Sawyer.

  She went back inside, brushing the snow off of the dogs’ paws while they stood on the mat in front of the door. After a moment’s hesitation, she unclipped Sawyer’s leash. She didn’t quite trust the puppy not to get in to something he wasn’t supposed to, but at least she knew he wouldn’t have an accident so soon after he came inside. She would just have to keep an eye on him.

  Once the coffee maker was gurgling and a pan of brownie batter was in the oven, she went upstairs to change, the dogs following her like a pair of clumsy shadows. Bunny had mostly gotten used to Sawyer by then, and she had even caught the two of them playing a couple of times. She kept telling herself that the dog probably wouldn’t stay with her — she didn’t even know if she wanted a second dog right now — but she couldn’t help getting attached.

  She changed into something that didn’t smell like pizza, touched up her makeup, and returned downstairs just as a knock sounded at her door. Her heart leapt. She opened it to find her fiancé standing on the stoop.

  “Come on in,” she said after giving him a quick kiss on the cheek. “I hope you can stay long enough for brownies and coffee, because both of those are being made as we speak.”

  “I think I can manage that,” he said with a grin. “I’m glad your power’s on. The so
uth side of town is all dark, and I was worried while I was driving through.” He stepped inside and shut the door behind him, then crouched down to pet Sawyer, who was wriggling with joy at his feet. “This must be the little guy I’ve heard so much about. He’s as cute as you said he was. His leg doesn’t seem to be bothering him much.”

  “He’s gotten a lot better since Sunday,” she said. “It’s been fun having him around, but it’s also been hard to juggle taking care of him with work. I’ve been running home during the day a lot.”

  “Too bad you can’t bring him with you. Everyone would love him.” Sawyer rolled over and Russell began to scratch his belly. “Any word from his owner?”

  “No. Bethany hasn’t heard back since the wife said she didn’t want him. I can’t say I blame her; even though he’s cute, a puppy is a lot of work when you have other things on your plate, and she’s going through a lot right now.”

  “Do you want to keep him?” Russell asked. The puppy was now tugging on his shoelaces.

  “I don’t know,” she admitted. “What do you think? I wasn’t planning on getting another dog, but I do like him. He’s so cute that he would probably be easy to find a home for, if we don’t keep him.”

  “If you want to keep him, I’d be happy to see what we can figure out. I know we both work a lot, but I wouldn’t mind having a big dog around. No offense, to Bunny, of course. I’ve always loved labs. We had a couple growing up.”

  “I don’t want to get all attached to him, and then have the wife change her mind,” she said. “And it’s such a big commitment. I want to think about it for a while.”

  “All right. You know my vote, but if you decide that this isn’t the time, we can always get another puppy once we’re more settled.” He stood up and pulled her to him for a hug. “How have you been? I’ve missed you.”

  “I’ve missed you too. Other than the accident, things have been okay. I just can’t stop thinking about it. That poor man never woke up again after he passed out in the car. I was the last person that he ever saw.”