Lobster Pizza Murder (Papa Pacelli's Pizzeria Series Book 22) Page 4

  “I’m sorry,” he said, squeezing her more tightly. “I wish I hadn’t been so far away when it happened. Do you still think someone killed him?”

  “I don’t know. Bethany doesn’t seem to think so. But there was that guy who was snooping around the tree the evening after the accident happened.” She frowned, remembering the person who had been watching her in the pizzeria earlier that day. “And I don’t know if it’s related, but someone who stopped into the pizzeria today made me uncomfortable. He didn’t order anything, and when I addressed him, he left without saying anything.”

  Russell released her and shrugged out of his coat, frowning. “Was it the same person?”

  “I’m not sure. It was already almost dark out on Sunday when he was in my yard, so I didn’t get a good look at him then.”

  “I’ll have Bethany catch me up on the case when I get in tomorrow morning,” he said. “Did you tell her about any of this?”

  “No. It didn’t seem very important at the time, I guess. I probably should have.”

  “Well, I’ll see what I can come up with, and if anything Noah Spencer was involved in jumps out at me. For now, just let me know if you see this guy again, okay?”

  “I will,” she promised. “I’m sure it was just my imagination acting up. Let’s talk about something happier. How was your trip? Tell me all about it.”

  He followed her into the kitchen, telling her about the conference with Sawyer at his heels.

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  *

  “No, Sawyer, this way. Let’s go,” Ellie said, tugging on the dog’s leash. The lab puppy gave one last tug toward the garbage bin, then relented and followed her down the path. Bunny kept close to Ellie’s feet, as if determined to show her owner that she was the better dog.

  “He seems pretty well behaved for a puppy,” Shannon said. She was bundled up, with her hands in her pockets and a scarf around the lower half of her face. The two of them had decided to brave the snow and take a walk in the park; it was warmer than it had been for the past few days, which meant that many other people had had the same idea as them. It was Saturday, so Ellie had had Sawyer for nearly a week.

  “He’s great,” Ellie said. “I’m glad it’s the weekend, though. It’s a pain to drive home while I’m working to let him out.”

  “I’m guessing you’re going to keep him,” Shannon said. “You should see if you can hire a dog walker.”

  “I don’t know. I wish I knew if Noah’s wife is going to change her mind or not. I shouldn’t have told Bethany I’d hold him for a while in case she did. It’s hard, because I really like him and so does Russell, but if she wants him back… well, I’ll have to give him up.”

  “Why don’t you ask her yourself? Just tell her you’re the one that took him in after Noah’s accident, and tell her you’re falling in love with him and you’d like to keep him if she’s sure she doesn’t want him back.”

  “I don’t know how I would get her number, and it might not be appropriate to call her out of the blue with something like that.”

  “I know where she works,” Shannon said. “I recognized her name in Noah’s obituary. She works at the library. She’s one of the people I interviewed back when they were doing their renovations.”

  “Really? Do you think it would be okay to stop in and ask her?”

  “I don’t see why not. Otherwise, you’re going to be on edge for who knows how long. I’m sure she’d like to know that the puppy has a good home. We could go there after we’re done with our walk, after you drop the dogs off at home.”

  “Okay,” Ellie said. “I’ll feel much better once I know one way or the other whether we’ll be able to keep him.”

  An hour later, she and Shannon were in her car, driving towards town. She had dropped the dogs off and picked up her grocery list for the small business club meeting the next evening, figuring that she might as well do the shopping then since she would be in town anyway. It would be the club’s second meeting, and she still wasn’t sure exactly what they would be talking about. It would be good to see everyone again, though. It was wonderful to get to know more of the small business owners around town, and she was glad that she had gone ahead with the idea.

  She pulled into the library’s parking lot and they got out. “I’m not sure if she’s working today, of course. It’s only been what, a week, since her husband’s death,” Shannon said. “It’s worth a try, though.”

  They went in. Ellie didn’t go to the library often; she didn’t have much time for reading, and when she did, she had decades worth of her grandmother’s old novels to go through. It was a small building, with crowded rows of shelves and a couple of ancient computers for public use. She found the hush inside the building comforting; everyone was quietly going about their business with nothing more than an occasional whispered conversation.

  “That’s her,” Shannon said softly, nodding toward a woman standing behind the checkout desk. She had her coat on and her purse over her shoulder, and was speaking with one of the younger employees who was sitting at the desk.

  Ellie waited until she was done with her conversation before approaching her. “Excuse me, Ms. Spencer?”

  “Yes?”

  “My name is Eleanora Pacelli. I’m the one who —”

  “You found my husband,” she interrupted. She held out her hand. “I’ve been wanting to meet you. I’m Darla Spencer.”

  Ellie shook hands with her. “Sorry, I didn’t know the best way to approach you. I hope this is okay.”

  “Of course. In fact, I just got done here. Would you mind coming to my house for tea? I want to talk to you, but not in such a public place. It’s been hard, and I don’t know if I could hold myself together.”

  Ellie exchanged a glance with Shannon, who shrugged. “I’d love to. Is it okay if my friend comes along? We drove here together.”

  “That’s fine. I think I know you. You work at the paper, right?”

  “Yes. I interviewed you last year. None of this will be in the paper, though.”

  “Okay. Well, it’s nice to meet you again. You two can just follow me. I only live about a block away from here.”

  They followed Darla outside and got into their car. While they were waiting for her to pull out of the parking lot, Ellie said to Shannon, “Is this weird?”

  “A little bit. But she’s grieving, and I don’t blame her for wanting to talk to you. You’re the person who heard his final words, after all.”

  Ellie winced. What would she say when Darla asked her about Noah’s last words? His claim that he had been killed wouldn’t do anything to make the other woman feel better. She had asked Russell about the case the evening before, and he had told her that there were no indications of foul play so far, although the forensics team hadn’t finished going over the car yet. She didn’t know if she should bring it up to his wife, but at the same time, she didn’t know how she could keep it from her. If someone killed him, she might know who, she thought.

  They followed Darla around the block and down a side street, pulling into a driveway behind her. It was a small house, with a swinging bench on the porch and a neatly shoveled walkway. There was a cable tether and a dog bowl with water that had frozen over next to the bench, which reminded her why she was there.

  “Come on in,” Darla said. “I’ll get the water for the tea started.”

  Inside, they were met with a perfectly clean house that looked as if it could have been on the cover of a magazine. The living room was to their left, and the couch and chairs looked as if they were for show rather than for sitting on, with overstuffed pillows lined up on the cushions. Ellie slipped her boots off, not wanting to track snow on the nice, cream colored carpet. Shannon followed suit, and then the two of them walked toward the sound of a running faucet, where they found Darla filling up a kettle with water.

  “Your house is wonderful,” Ellie said.

  “Thank you,” the other woman said, giving her a tight smile. “I clean when
I’m upset, and as you can see… well, it’s been a hard week.”

  “I’m so sorry about what happened. I can’t even begin to imagine what you’re going through.”

  “It’s not something any of us is ever prepared for,” Darla said. She put the kettle down on one of the gas burners and turned the flame on. Her kitchen was also perfectly clean. The island was crowded with vases of flowers and condolence cards. “Let’s sit down at the table while we wait for the tea. Do either of you want water?”

  Ellie and Shannon both politely declined. They sat next to each other at the table and Darla sat across from them. The three of them were silent for a moment, before Shannon finally cleared her throat.

  “I’m sure you’ve heard this a lot, but you have my condolences. How are you holding up? Is there anything you need?”

  “I’m doing about as well as could be expected,” she replied. “And no, my neighbors and friends have been taking care of me. You should see the inside of the fridge. I have enough casseroles to last me a month. I swear, I’ll go insane if one more person walks through my door with food.” She shook her head, then refocused on Ellie. “Eleanora, I just have to ask, could you tell me what happened? You saw the accident, right?”

  “I did,” Ellie said. “I was outside when it happened, and I saw the whole thing. Are you sure you want to hear about it?”

  “I do,” she said. “I know it will be hard, but I feel like if I don’t, I’ll always be wondering.”

  Ellie nodded. She exchanged a glance with Shannon, then started to talk. She hesitated when she reached the part where Noah told her that it hadn’t been an accident, but then forged ahead. She knew that if their positions had been switched, and this had happened to Russell, she would want to know.

  Darla had covered her mouth with her hand partway through, and remained silent for a few moments after Ellie was done. “Thank you,” she said at last. “That was… hard. But I know I had to hear it. When he told you it wasn’t an accident… that someone had done that to him… did he seem aware? Like he knew what he was saying?”

  “Yes,” Ellie said. “At least, I think so. He was aware enough to tell me about Sawyer, so he must have had some grasp on his thoughts. Do you have any idea who might have wanted to hurt him?”

  “None at all. Well…” she hesitated, biting her lip. “He did have some issues with his brother, Jackson. They used to be business partners, but it went poorly. I thought I saw him in town the other day, but I must have been imagining things. He moved south years ago.”

  Ellie inhaled. She remembered the man who had been outside her house shortly after the accident. Could that have been Noah’s brother?

  “Are you all right?” Darla asked. “I’m sorry, this must be horrible for you too. I can’t imagine how traumatized you must be. Here, I’ll go and pour the tea.”

  She sat back down a moment later with three steaming teacups on a tray. Ellie waited for her to restart the conversation, but she remained silent. Sensing that their visit might be almost at its end, she decided to get to the topic that had been her whole reason for confronting Darla in the first place.

  “As I’m sure you know, your puppy was in the car when the accident happened. He’s perfectly fine, and I’ve even taken him to the vet. The thing is, my fiancé and I are falling in love with him. We’d like to adopt him, but I wanted to check with you to make sure you didn’t change your mind about wanting him back first.”

  “Oh, you have Sawyer? I think I remember that deputy saying something about that. I’m not really a dog person myself; he was always supposed to be my husband’s dog. I certainly don’t need to be trying to raise a puppy now. I’m happy he’s found a nice home. You’re welcome to keep him. I’ll get you his stuff on your way out.”

  Ellie felt something loosen in her chest. They were going to keep Sawyer. It was a big commitment, but she knew she wouldn’t have it any other way.

  After a few more minutes, Darla became more withdrawn and Ellie sensed that it was time to take their leave. The other woman followed them to the door, gathering Sawyer’s things from a closet. Ellie took the bag after she put her boots on, and almost ran into a large man carrying a casserole dish and a bouquet of flowers.

  “Oops,” he said, stumbling backward. “Sorry for running into you. I’m the neighbor. Gary. Has Darla mentioned me? Of course she hasn’t. Why would she? I’m just bringing over some more food. Sorry for almost trampling you. I already said that, didn’t I?”

  “It’s my fault,” she said, once he finished with his bumbling explanation. He seemed sweet and nervous, and she had a feeling that there were a lot more casseroles in Darla’s future. “I need to watch where I’m going.”

  She stepped back and let the man pass, smiling faintly as she heard Darla say, “Oh, Gary, another casserole? I’m never going to eat them all.” She and Shannon exchanged a look, and both of them had to fight back laughter on the way out.

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  *

  Ellie hummed to herself as she prepared the snacks for that evening’s meeting. On her way home yesterday, she had bought Sawyer a tag with her and Russell’s numbers on it. She had yet to tell her fiancé the good news; she wanted to do it in person. The little black lab was laying under the table, watching her as she moved about the kitchen. Bunny followed her more closely, waiting for a tidbit of food to drop. The papillon had an appetite more suited to a dog five times her size.

  She heard a knock on the door. Bunny was so focused on the platter of deli meats and cheeses that she didn’t even bark. Ellie put the platter on the kitchen table, then pushed the chairs in all the way for good measure. The papillon had been getting far fewer table scraps since Nonna had moved to Florida, and she wouldn’t put it past her to try stealing some. I’ll have to train Sawyer better, she thought. Bunny’s so small, it’s easy to let her get away with stuff that a bigger dog can’t do.

  With the lab puppy following at her heels, she walked toward the front door. She didn’t bother to look out the window to see who had arrived — she just assumed that it was either Shannon or Joanna, both of whom had promised to arrive early to help her set up.

  She pulled the door open and froze. It wasn’t either of her friends, or any of the other guests; it was the man in the grey hoodie from the pizzeria. She stared at him for a moment, then her brain kicked into gear and she slammed the door shut just as he reached out.

  She leaned against it, breathing heavily as her heart raced, waiting for him to try the handle or to knock again. Neither happened, and as the seconds ticked by, she began to calm down. Suddenly she felt foolish. She had just slammed a door in a man’s face for no reason. She had just been thinking so much about Noah’s death recently, that her mind had jumped straight to the worst conclusion when she saw the man outside her door. Taking a deep breath, she straightened up and turned around. She looked down at Sawyer for moral support, then unlocked the door.

  The front stoop was empty. Puzzled, she looked to either side of the door, then poked her head out and peered at the driveway. It was empty as well, but not for long; someone was turning into it. She recognized Shannon’s car, and saw two forms in the front seat; she must have carpooled with Joanna.

  Ellie waved as they got out of the car. “Are you all right? You look pale,” Shannon said once they reached the door.

  “Did you see anyone drive away when you pulled up?” she asked.

  “We saw taillights ahead of us when we came around the corner,” her friend said with a frown. “Why?”

  She told them about the man who had been at her door, and then vanished. “I admit that I might have overreacted, but don’t you think it’s weird of him to just drive away like that?”

  “It kind of is,” Shannon said as she and Joanna came inside. “Maybe it was just somebody who had the wrong house.”

  “Maybe,” Ellie said doubtfully. She had thought it was the same person she had seen before, but she could have been wrong. She hadn’t gotten mu
ch of a look at his face either time. I’ll tell Russell tomorrow, she thought.

  “Thanks so much for coming,” she said a couple of hours later. “I’m sorry I won’t be available next month, but with my honeymoon and everything, it will just be too busy.”

  “We understand,” said Lincoln Hall, the owner of the Lobster Pot. “Congratulations, by the way.”

  “Thank you,” she said, beaming.

  “I’ll email everyone about possibly using my restaurant next month if you still want to get together,” Joanna said. “Maybe we can do a potluck or something.”

  She and Shannon were the last two to leave. They stayed for a good half an hour after, helping Ellie clean up. It had been a fun evening, even though the group hadn’t been very focused. They had spent most of the evening talking to each other, sharing funny stories, and complaining about customers they all knew. Ellie was glad that everyone was coming together, though she wasn’t sure what everyone expected of her. She had started the club, but did she really know where it was going?

  She was saying goodbye to her two friends at the door when her phone rang. The screen showed her Russell’s name. “I’d better get this,” she said. “I’ll see you guys later. Drive safely.”

  Russell sounded tired when she answered the phone. “How was your club meeting?” he asked.

  “Good. Everyone just left. Did you have a busy day?”

  “We did. I’m still catching up on everything since I’ve been back. The forensics team finally got around to the car yesterday, and I only read their report today. I thought you’d like to know what they found.”

  Ellie’s breath caught. “Tell me.”

  “Nothing.” He sighed. “The brake lines weren’t cut, nothing was wrong with the power steering… in short, they didn’t find any evidence that the car had been tampered with at all. I’m sorry, Ellie. I know you think someone caused his accident, but it looks like he really was just driving recklessly.”