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  A crash sounded behind her, and she broke off midsentence, spinning around. The waitress, who had been on her way back out of the kitchen with a pad of paper and a tray with pancakes on it, had dropped everything on the floor.

  “Richard?” The other woman’s eyes were wide, and her face was pale. “Are you talking about what happened at the hotel last night? Richard was stabbed?”

  Puzzled, Ellie nodded. She was distracted when Russell said something into her ear. “I’m going to have to call you back,” she told him. “I just realized that the waitress here knew the victim, and might not know what happened. I’ll call you as soon as I know what’s going on.”

  She had time for a quick “I love you,” then hung up the phone. The waitress was leaning against the wall, her face pale.

  “Richard, he’s the one that was hurt? I saw the police vehicles, but I was already on my way home and didn’t stop to see what was going on.”

  Ellie nodded again. “I take it you knew him well?”

  “I’ve been… Seeing him… On and off for the past couple of years,” the woman explained. “I never would have guessed that the police were there for him, though. Is he okay?”

  “He passed away,” Ellie said softly, not sure how else to break the news. “I’m so sorry.”

  The other woman just stared at her, her breath hitching in her throat. “I think I need to sit down,” she said at last.

  Even as she led the waitress into the dining area and helped her sit down at the table with her and Nonna, she couldn’t help but wonder why no one had told Sarah what had happened. If she worked at the motel part-time, certainly either Annie or Charles Maple would have mentioned his death. Was it possible that neither of them knew of her relationship with the health inspector? If that was the case, then the police might not know about it either. With any luck, Sarah would have information that might help with the case. She would just have to convince the other woman to talk with the police first.

  Chapter Eight

  It took a while for the woman to calm down enough to speak. Ellie felt a surge of guilt. She had known that Sarah and Richard had been involved, but it hadn’t even occurred to her that the waitress might not know about what had happened to the health inspector. It hadn’t so much as crossed her mind to be careful about what she said on the phone to Russell.

  “I’m sorry,” the waitress managed to choke out at last.

  “Don’t worry about it,” she told the other woman. “I’m just sorry that you had to find out this way. Will you be okay? Can you take the day off of work? You shouldn’t have to stay here after all of this.”

  The other woman nodded her head. “I should be able to get the rest of the day off. I will just have to go and talk to my boss. We might need to call someone else in, but I can’t… I just can’t be here today.” Ellie nodded her understanding. To lose someone close, unexpectedly like this, would be world shattering.

  “Would you like to sit with us for a while longer, dear?” Nonna asked. “You shouldn’t have to be alone right now.”

  Sarah shook her head. “I’ll be fine. I just need some time. Thank you. I think it’s better that I found out this way than if I heard on the news. I – I’ll be all right.”

  She got up then, giving Ellie and Nonna tremulous smile, and vanished into the kitchen. A short while later, she reappeared, her purse in hand. She said nothing on her way out, but nodded at them. Ellie and Nonna set mostly in silence, both of them too stunned and saddened by the sudden turn of events to say much at all.

  It wasn’t long after that that a subdued looking waitress brought out their food. Even though Ellie had to admit that the French toast was fantastic, she could hardly concentrate on it. She wished that they had never chosen this motel to stop at. If they had only driven a few more miles down the freeway, they might have avoided all of this. But Richard would have still died, she thought. Everyone else would still be going through this, and it’s so much worse for them.

  After finishing their meal and leaving a sizable tip, the two of them walked back to the motel. Ellie, who’s conversation with Russell had been cut short, made a beeline for the lobby after making sure her grandmother was comfortable in their room. She asked Mr. Maple if she could use the landline in the lobby to dial a long-distance number. He agreed after a moment’s hesitation, then left her alone to call her husband.

  She gave Russell a hurried explanation of what had happened. “I can try to call you this evening,” she said. “I just wanted to get you caught up. Right now, I’ve really got to take care of the car. The sooner we get it into the shop, the sooner we can head home.”

  “Okay,” her husband said reluctantly. “Just be careful, Ellie. I know that you might feel like you have some sort of responsibility to help these people, but just remember that the police can handle whatever comes up. All I want is for you and your grandmother to get home safely.”

  After saying her goodbyes to her husband, she grabbed the paper with the auto shop’s number on it from her pocket and dialed the unfamiliar digits.

  “Rob’s Vehicle Repair,” a man’s voice said in answer.

  “Hi,” Ellie said, trying to pull her thoughts away from the murder and focus on the incident with the car. “I’m from out of state on a road trip, and someone ran into my car in a parking lot. We need to get it fixed before we can go home. I think it’s mostly body damage. Do you think that’s something that your shop can fix?”

  “We do it all,” the man on the other line said. “We can get it towed in and give you an estimate. Where are you?”

  “We’re at Maple’s Motel. Do you know where that is?”

  “I know the place,” he said. “I’ll bring a truck out to get it. What is the make, model, and color of the vehicle?”

  She gave him the information, and he promised to be there soon. It should give Ellie some time to get the vehicle’s insurance information prepared and for her grandmother to call the car’s owner and let him know that they were taking it to the shop. She thought, not for the first time, about how much easier this would all be if only her cell phone worked. She had a feeling that she was going to be running back and forth from her room to the motel lobby quite a bit over the next couple of days.

  The tow truck arrived not quite twenty minutes later. Ellie watched as the vehicle was loaded up, feeling a pang. It really was a beautiful car, and she hoped that they could fix it, so it looked as good as new.

  She had a feeling that some parts might need to be special ordered, but they could always do that back in Kittiport as long as it was simply a cosmetic fix. All she wanted right now was for the car to be safe to drive back to Maine.

  “Would the two of you like a ride into town?” Rob asked once he was finished. He had introduced himself to her as the owner of the auto shop, and she had taken an immediate liking to the friendly man. He had admired the car, and had seemed confident that he could get it fixed. “The shop is about fifteen minutes from here in another small town. It’s not much bigger than this, but there are a few more shops. There is a bus that runs between the towns, so you can always get a ride back here later. The stop is right in front of the hotel.”

  Ellie exchanged a look with her grandmother. The older woman nodded, seeming to have regained her energy. Ellie was eager to get out of the motel. The idea of being stuck there without a vehicle for the next couple of days made her feel frustrated.

  “That sounds nice,” she said. “If you really don’t mind giving us a ride.”

  “Not at all,” he said. “Hop on in.”

  The drive to the next town didn’t take long. Rob was chatty, telling them both stories about the area, which was where he had grown up. On their way into town, Ellie saw a rusted old sign that read Pottersville, population eight hundred. She felt a twinge of homesickness. Kittiport was nowhere near as small as this place, but there were still enough similarities that it made her miss home fiercely.

  “Well, here we are,” Rob said as he pulled
into a parking lot. “The town is pretty small, you can walk just about anywhere. If you come back in an hour or so, I should have an estimate for you. It’s a nice vehicle, and it’s a real shame that it got damaged. What exactly happened?”

  “Someone wasn’t paying attention to where they were going and ran into it while it was parked,” Ellie said, not wanting to go into details. If Rob hadn’t heard about the man’s death, she wasn’t going to be the one to bring it up.

  “Unlucky,” Rob said, shaking his head. “A nice car like this, you really should park it out of the way. Vehicles get damaged in parking lots quite often. Anyway, I hope the two of you have a nice time.”

  With that, he hopped out of the truck and began to unload the vehicle. Ellie and her grandmother walked toward the sidewalk, looking up and down the street which was lined with small shops.

  “Where do you want to go first?” Ellie asked her grandmother. The older woman was looking around the small town. There were a few tiny shops, a library, and what looked like a little park further down the road.

  “Let’s go shopping,” the older woman said. “Maybe I’ll pick up a souvenir. Not that I’ll ever forget this trip, of course. I couldn’t even if I tried.”

  Chapter Nine

  Walking around Pottersville was pleasant, but tiring. It was a hot day, and Ellie hadn’t thought to put on sunscreen before leaving the motel room. The bus didn’t leave until three in the afternoon, which gave them plenty of time to explore the town, grab a quick lunch at the small café, and stop by Rob’s repair shop to check on the car.

  “Well, I can get it drivable if you give me a day or two. It won’t look perfect, but once you get back to wherever you’re going, you can do more expensive repairs. I’m guessing the two of you don’t want to wait here for a couple of weeks while we order the parts, am I right?”

  Ellie shook her head. “Just make it so we can get back to Maine safely. We can do the rest there.”

  The bus ride back to the motel was quick, and she could tell when they got off that her grandmother was tired. She didn’t mind; she could really use a nap herself.

  After spending the day outside under the hot sun, it felt wonderful to sprawl across the hotel bed with the blinds drawn and the air conditioner running at full blast. Ellie closed her eyes and her thoughts began to wander, still on the wrong side of sleep.

  It sounded like the car would be fixed soon enough, then they would be headed home, and she would see Russell again. With her grandmother back home, things would be just like they had been the summer before. Well, not quite the same, she amended. She and Russell would be living in the house next door, which would be an interesting change for all of them. Still, it would feel as though things were back to normal.

  She knew that she had managed to doze off, because when she opened her eyes again, the border of light around the curtains had darkened. She fumbled for her cell phone, which she kept close by out of habit, and checked the time. It was a little past six. She sat up, blinking the sleep out of her eyes. Somehow, she had managed to sleep for almost three hours.

  She heard a soft snore from her grandmother’s bed and knew that the older woman was still asleep. Even though her grandmother had been in mostly good spirits for the trip, Ellie knew that it must be taking a lot out of her. Considering how tired she was herself, she wasn’t surprised. There was just something about traveling that seemed to suck all of the energy out of her.

  Careful not to make too much noise, she slipped out of bed and went into the bathroom to refresh herself. She wanted to call Russell again and update him, which meant going back to the motel lobby. Inside, she rang the bell at the desk, and Mr. Maple came out of the backroom.

  “What can I do for you?”

  She wanted to ask after his wife, but decided not to. She knew firsthand just how private people who lived in small towns could be. She didn’t want him to think that she was going to spread any rumors.

  “Can I use your landline again? I need to make another call.”

  “Can’t you just send an email?” He asked with exasperation. “Long-distance calls are expensive.”

  “I don’t have any cell phone service here,” she explained. “I don’t have any way to send an email.”

  “Didn’t you get a Wi-Fi code when you checked in?”

  Ellie blinked. They had Wi-Fi here? “No, I didn’t know that there was Internet here at all.”

  “Annie should have given you the code,” he said, sounding exasperated. He scribbled something on a piece of paper. “Here it is. I’m afraid it’s not the fastest Internet around, but it should do.”

  “Thanks.” She smiled at him and took the piece of paper, feeling relieved. She hadn’t realized how much she had hated being unable to communicate with her friends back home. At least this way, she would be able to send emails and check in with everyone. When she got back to the motel room, Nonna was still asleep, so she took her laptop out of her suitcase as quietly as possible and sat on her bed, opening the machine and laying it on her lap. It took her a couple of tries to get the code right, but at last she was connected to the Wi-Fi. Smiling, she pulled up her email service and sent a message to her husband, telling him that the car should be ready to go in a day or two, and promising that they would be back to Maine as quickly as possible. After that, she read the emails from Linda and Shannon, both of whom had sent her a couple of messages since she had last checked.

  She replied to Linda’s first, answering a couple of questions about her ideas for weekly specials. After that, she read through Shannon’s email. She smiled when she heard how happy her best friend was. It sounded like her nephew was doing wonderfully, and Shannon had even begun going back to work part-time. It still felt strange to think that there was a tiny little baby back home that was related to her – if only by marriage. She had never had children herself, and was surprised at just how quickly she had fallen in love with the baby. She would do just about anything for him, and knew that Russell felt the same way.

  “What time is it?” her grandmother asked from the other bed, her words froggy. Ellie finished sending her email and shut the laptop.

  “Almost six-thirty,” she said. “We slept about three hours. I can hardly believe it. We must have been really exhausted.”

  “I didn’t expect a road trip to be this tiring,” her grandmother admitted. “We should have just flown home. It’s my fault that we are stuck here right now. I’m sure you want to get home and see your husband.”

  “Hey, I was already planning on spending the entire week with you,” Ellie said. “Granted, this isn’t what I had in mind, but I’m still enjoying our time together.”

  The older woman smiled at her, then slowly sat up. “Well, hopefully we will be able to continue our trip soon enough. What do you want to do for dinner? Should we go back to the diner?”

  “I was thinking about ordering a pizza and seeing what’s on the television,” Ellie said. “Unless you feel like walking around more.”

  Nonna chuckled. “I definitely don’t,” she said. “Pizza it is.”

  Ellie smiled. Pizza held a special place in both of their hearts, thanks to Papa Pacelli’s. She picked up the Yellow Pages and began flipping through the book, hoping to find a local pizza place that wasn’t part of a chain. She always loved trying new pizza, and sometimes even found inspiration for her own restaurant.

  “There’s a place in here that looks like it might be good. I think it’s nearby. The area code for the telephone number is the same, at least. It’s called Brent’s Pizza.”

  “They’ll have to deliver,” Nonna reminded her. “We don’t have a car to go and pick it up.”

  “I’ll give them a call and see if they do deliveries,” Ellie said. “If they do, what toppings do you want?” Her grandmother thought for a moment, then shrugged. “I’ll let you decide that. I trust you when it comes to pizza.”

  Ellie chuckled, then picked up the landline that was in the motel room, the one that t
hey could only use for local calls. It didn’t take her long to confirm that Brent’s Pizza made local deliveries. Ellie place an order for a classic round pizza with sausage, tomatoes, and olives on it. As an afterthought, she ordered a couple of sodas for them as well. If they were going to have an evening in, they might as well live it up.

  Chapter Ten

  An hour later, she and her grandmother were seated on their respective beds, laughing together as they watched a sitcom on the television, both of them with slices of pizza on napkins in front of them. Ellie had managed to almost forget about Richard’s death and the mystery of who had killed him, and was simply enjoying the time spent with her grandmother. If it wasn’t for the niggling reminder that they were essentially trapped there, hundreds of miles away from home, with no way back unless the auto shop managed to fix the car, she might have almost been able to pretend that the vacation had gone as planned.

  After finishing their pizza, which had been good, but not as good as Papa Pacelli’s pizza, her grandmother made a speculative noise and frowned at the television.

  “This is about when I would make tea or hot chocolate to drink before bed,” the older woman said. “But all this room has is coffee, and I don’t want to drink caffeine right now.”

  “I’m sure the diner next door serves something,” Ellie said. “I could walk over and see if you’d like.”

  “I’ll join you,” Nonna said, moving stiffly to get out of bed. Ellie, remembering how tired the older woman had been when they had finished with their walk around Pottersville earlier in the day, shook her head.

  “I'm happy to go myself,” she said. “I want to call Russell anyway, so I might take a little while.”

  “Of course,” Nonna said, relaxing back into her bed with a smile on her face. “Young love…”