Brownies and Broomsticks: A Magical Bakery Mystery Read Online Free PDF

plates, I felt Steve Dawes looking at me. Against my will, I raised my eyes and met his.
    His smile revealed perfect white teeth. Damn.
    The front door flew open, and a tall bald man yelled, “Call 911! We need an ambulance out here!”
    Steve ran out the door, followed by everyone left in the Honeybee except Lucy and me. Her eyes were wide as she made the call to emergency services.
    A heavy, icky feeling weighed my steps as I moved to the door, opened it, and joined the people on the sidewalk. A gawker knot had formed around the dark green Cadillac parked a few spaces down the block. The milling crowd parted briefly to reveal Mavis Templeton sitting behind the wheel.
    Her hair was perfect and her red lipstick flawless.But her head lay against the seat back at a strange angle, and those snapping hawk’s eyes no longer glittered.
    It seemed pretty obvious that they never would again.
    I raised a trembling hand to cover my mouth. She’d been shaking her finger at us only minutes before, and now she was … dead?
    “Where’s Ben?” The voice startled me, and I spun around to find that Steve Dawes had approached from my other side.
    “Um—um—he went out back,” I stuttered. “What happened?”
    He grimaced, then leaned closer. “Someone broke her neck.” The way he said it sounded almost like an apology.
    “On purpose?” I asked without thinking.
    Dawes nodded. “Most definitely on purpose.”
    We heard the sirens first, and then saw the flashing lights. Soon the street was crawling with uniforms—police officers, firefighters and paramedics. Two officers quickly cordoned off the area around the Cadillac and asked the crowd to move back. Another two began to question the closest onlookers.
    I craned my neck, searching the throng.
    “I doubt the murderer is still here,” he said.
    Murderer
. There was the word I’d been avoiding. I turned and hurried back inside the bakery just as Lucy reached the door. “Where’s Uncle Ben?”
    She looked blank.
    Grabbing her shoulders, I gave her a little shake. “Do you know where he went?”
    She winced, and I dropped my hands. “Oh, Lucy. I’m sorry,” I said.
    The sound of the back door opening was followed by Ben’s voice. “What on God’s green earth is going on out front?” He came through the kitchen to find Lucy and me staring at him.
    “What?”
    “Someone broke Mrs. Templeton’s neck,” I said. “At least that’s what that reporter told me.”
    Lucy sucked air in through her teeth. “Oh, that poor woman!”
    Bewilderment settled on Ben’s face. He opened his mouth, then closed it without saying anything.
    I knew exactly what he meant.
    The door opened behind me, the bell above it tinkling merrily as two uniformed police officers entered the Honeybee.
    “Benjamin Eagel.” The shorter one made it a statement, not a question.
    My uncle nodded anyway.
    “We need you to come down to the precinct.”
    “Whatever for?” Lucy asked.
    “A woman’s been murdered.” This from the second policeman. His freckled face reddened as he spoke.
    “We just heard.” She moved closer to Ben. “It’s terrible, absolutely terrible. But it doesn’t have anything to do with my husband.”
    Freckles shuffled his feet. “Sorry, Ben. We heard you had an argument with her right before it happened. Detective Quinn wants to talk to you.”
    The short one looked stoic. No doubt Ben knew them from his tenure in the fire department.
    Then the words sank in. An argument right before a murder. The police couldn’t help but see it as a possible motive.
    The same thought obviously occurred to Lucy, because she vehemently shook her head. “Don’t be ridiculous!”
    My uncle stepped forward. “It’s all right, Luce. I’ll go talk to Quinn and find out what’s going on.” He began to move toward the door.
    “Ben,” I said, “do you want us to call a lawyer?”
    He hesitated. “I suppose that might be a good idea.”
    “Who—”
    “I’ll call Jaida.”