Pepperoni Pizza Can Be Murder Read online

“Be my guest,” I said. “Did you leave Greg out there all alone?”

  “Are you kidding me? He’s having the time of his life. Who knew he was such an Elvis fan?”

  “It appears there’s a great deal we don’t know about him,” I said.

  Maddy transferred the first pizza to a serving platter and cut it into eight slices. “Keep them coming,” she called out to me as she disappeared back into the dining room.

  I stopped chopping peppers and took her place at the far end of the conveyor. By the time I delivered the pizzas, I had three new orders for dessert pizzas from the traveling impersonators, so I started on those so they’d be ready in time. It was a different kind of pizza altogether, featuring cookie dough crust with melted chocolate on top and drizzled with icing to finish it off. I also made an apple cinnamon dessert pizza some days, but I was fresh out of ingredients for that one.

  As I delivered the desserts, my efforts were met with an appreciative audience. A few of my regulars had wandered in, and I was afraid they’d be put off by the dining Elvis group. Instead, they seemed to act as though I was providing them with entertainment along with their meal. My husband and I had talked about putting a jukebox in as soon as we could afford one, but the dream had died with Joe. As it was, I couldn’t see how the investment would pay for itself, and I had to keep a close eye on the bottom line, or I wouldn’t be able to afford luxuries like electricity and water.

  I moved to the cash register, and nearly without exception, as they paid for their meals, every member of the Elvis entourage said, “Thank you, thank you very much.”

  By the time they were gone, I needed a break, and from the expression on the charter bus driver’s face, so did he.

  Neither one of us was going to get one, though.

  I helped Maddy and Greg clean up; then I returned to the kitchen to finish prepping more toppings.

  We had a brisk business for the rest of the day, and I kept busy making orders as they came in. We could handle the crowds most of the time with just two or three of us, but there were times when I could have used an extra set of hands. Josh Hurley, the chief of police’s son, had supplied that help at one time, but the chief wasn’t all that eager to have his only son return to work for me.

  I decided that particular foolishness had gone on long enough.

  I called the police station, and wasn’t surprised when Helen Murphy answered. She was the receptionist and dispatcher for our local law enforcement, and I didn’t think I’d ever called there when she didn’t answer the telephone herself.

  “Helen, it’s Eleanor Swift,” I said.

  “Hello, Eleanor. What can I do for you?”

  “I was wondering if I could talk to the chief.”

  She hesitated, then asked softly, “Do you mean he’s not there yet?”

  “No, why would he come here?”

  Helen was about to tell me when the kitchen door opened, and the chief himself stepped in. “Never mind, he just walked through the door.”

  “Were you looking for me?” he asked. Kevin Hurley was tall and lanky, and I could see a smattering of gray creeping into his temples, which didn’t make me feel any younger, since I was a year older.

  “That can wait. What brings you to my pizzeria?”

  He frowned at me as he admitted, “It’s Josh. He’s been hounding me for months to talk to you, and I hate to say it, but my son has finally worn me down. He wants to know if he can come back to work.”

  “That’s always been your decision, not mine,” I said. Kevin had forbidden his son to work for me during a recent bad time, and I was beginning to believe that the ban had become permanent.

  “Well, he’s driving me nuts, and I don’t care what his mother says, I think you should hire him back. He’s only got a month left until he leaves for his summer college classes, but it would be great if he could spend some of that time working here for you.”

  “I don’t want to cause trouble at home for you,” I said. Kevin’s wife, Marybeth, wasn’t a big fan of mine, and if I was being honest about it, the feeling was pretty much mutual.

  “Don’t worry about that, I can handle it.” He stared at his hands as he asked, “So, what do you say? Can he come back to work?”

  “Are you sure you’re okay with it?” I asked softly.

  “I’m tired of his attitude,” Kevin said. “I’d consider it a personal favor.”

  “Then it’s done. Tell him he can start this evening.”

  “How about tomorrow?” Kevin asked. “He’s got a big test tomorrow he needs to study for.”

  “Why don’t you have him call me and we’ll work a schedule out.”

  “He’ll call you within the hour.” Kevin moved toward the door; then he paused for a second. “What was it that you wanted to talk to me about?”

  I wasn’t about to admit that it was the same topic of his son’s employment. The way things had worked out, the chief of police was going to feel obligated to me, and it might be leverage I would need sooner or later. “I was just wondering if you’d heard anything about the rezoned parking in back. Are they really going to get rid of it to widen the alley?”

  “It’s not up to me,” he said, “but I honestly doubt it. The town council has it on the agenda once a year, but it never passes. If you’re worried about it, you could always talk to the mayor.”

  “I have been, but he’s not exactly my biggest fan. I thought you might know something. Thanks, anyway. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got work to do.”

  “Thanks again, Ellie,” he said, and before I could voice my displeasure at the ancient pet name, he was gone. Only a handful of people had ever called me “Ellie,” and just two men ever got away with it. I loved the way my name sounded when my husband, Joe, had said it, but Kevin’s intonation just brought back the hurt he had caused me in school. Maybe he wasn’t the only one holding a grudge about what had happened all those years ago. I’d caught him with the woman he eventually married. The only problem had been that he’d been dating me at the time, too.

  “Get over it, Eleanor,” I scolded myself aloud. “That was a lifetime ago.”

  Maddy came into the kitchen and looked around. “Who were you just talking to?”

  “I was giving myself a little pep talk,” I admitted.

  Her eyes widened for a second, and then she said, “All right, that’s good to know. When you’re finished cheering yourself on, I’ve got another order for you. Come on, Eleanor, you can do it. Make that pizza. Make that pizza. Rah, rah, rah.”

  “I love it when you’re funny,” I said as I took the order from her. “I don’t mean now. I mean when you’re actually amusing.”

  I started working the crust into the pan when I realized she was still lingering by the kitchen door.

  “Was there something else?”

  “Aren’t you going to tell me what he said?” Maddy asked.

  “Who are we talking about?” I responded, playing as dumb as I dared, and fighting to keep a straight face as I did it.

  “Don’t give me that. What did the police chief want? And don’t tell me he was ordering a pizza. I saw the look on his face when he came into the Slice.”

  I thought about stringing her along, but I had work to do, and so did she. “He wanted to know if Josh could come back to work.”

  “It’s about time,” she said.

  “Better late than never.”

  “Is he coming tonight?” Maddy asked as she looked around at the disarray my kitchen had become.

  “No such luck. Maybe tomorrow, though. Do you think you can handle things until then?”

  “Are you kidding? Greg and I are acting like a well-oiled machine out there.”

  “Then I suggest you get back to it,” I said as I added the layer of cheese that went down on top of the sauce, and just before the pepperoni.

  “Slave driver,” my sister said as she darted through the door before I could respond.

  All I could do was laugh. It would be good g
etting my best staff back together, though it was about to change again soon. Josh would be going away before long, and I’d have to hire his replacement. I liked the way a student kept the Slice tied in with the local school, and besides, an eager teenager properly motivated was a blessing to my business. I’d hired a few duds over the years, but they’d quickly quit once they saw how hard the work was. When I found someone I could count on, a hard worker who didn’t complain and generally showed up on time, I always figured out a way to bump their pay to keep them happy.

  Now I’d have to start interviewing again, a job I dearly dreaded.

  But not today.

  At the moment, I had a full dining room, two hard workers serving out front, and a plentiful supply of dough and toppings.

  It was all I could ask for.

  A little later, there was a knock at the pizzeria’s back door, but I ignored it. We used it to take in supplies during regular business hours, and sometimes we even got to our cars that way, but mostly having a door there was more of a nuisance than anything else.

  The knocking became a pounding, and I got a little aggravated.

  “Come around to the front,” I yelled through the door.

  “Eleanor, it’s Paul.”

  I recognized my favorite baker’s voice instantly. I glanced at the clock and saw that it was almost nine o’clock. For a baker, that was like three A.M. for anyone else.

  “Paul, aren’t you out a little past your bedtime?”

  “Tell me about it,” he said as I let him in. He was a tall and handsome young man in his late twenties, with a black goatee and big brown eyes. “I’d normally be asleep by now, but I was on a date.”

  “I don’t need to know any more. From the look on your face, it didn’t turn out too well, did it?”

  He nodded. “Since I’m up anyway, could you make me a small cheese pizza? I can’t deal with people out front right now.”

  As I got out some dough and started kneading it into the pan, I said, “Pull up a stool. Tell you what, I won’t even charge you for this, if you keep me company and tell me what was so bad with this woman.”

  He did as I asked, and as I added sauce and cheese, Paul said, “She’s a night owl. In fact, she said she doesn’t start coming alive until ten at night. Not exactly a perfect match, is she? Why do I let my mom fix me up with these girls? I’m never going to learn.”

  “Come on, there’s no harm in being a hopeless romantic,” I said.

  “Well, I’ve got the first part down pat, I’m hopeless, all right. I need to find a girl who works the same hours I do, but how am I going to do that?”

  “It can be a cold world out there, but you can’t give up.”

  He looked sadder than I’d ever seen him. Then he mumbled something so softly, I couldn’t quite make it out.

  “What did you say?”

  “Nothing,” Paul said, just a little louder.

  “I know better than that. Now tell me, or I’ll eat your pizza myself.”

  “I was out of line, Eleanor. I’ll pay for the pizza, if I can get it to go. I’m not fit to be around anyone tonight.”

  I stood in front of him. “That wasn’t our deal. I want to know what you said.”

  He looked at me steadily, silently pleading for me to drop it, but I couldn’t do it. I’d just figured out what he’d said.

  “I’m not going to tell you.”

  “Then I’ll tell you. You said that I’ve given up on romance.”

  He hung his head even lower. “So you heard me after all.”

  “It took a minute to figure it out.” I took his hands in mine. “Paul, look at me.”

  He was reluctant to at first, but finally he lifted his head.

  When he did, I said, “I found my one true love with Joe. That’s what’s different about my situation.”

  He held my stare. “Eleanor, do you really believe we just get one love in our lives?”

  “If we’re lucky,” I said, releasing his hands. I glanced at the conveyor and saw that his pizza was ready. After I sliced it and boxed it up, I handed it to him.

  “I still think I should pay for this,” he said as he took it.

  “Tell you what. Next time I want to indulge in one of your éclairs, you can look the other way when it comes time to pay.”

  That brought out a smile. “That’s what I love, the barter system. Still, one éclair isn’t worth as much as one of your pizzas.”

  “That’s a matter of opinion,” I said. “But if you insist, I’m sure Maddy wouldn’t say no to one, too.”

  “It’s a deal.” He took the box, and then as I let him back out through the rear door, he said, “I’m sorry if I ruined your evening. I shouldn’t have bothered you on a night when I feel so sad.”

  “Nonsense. Friends are for rainy days, and sunny ones, too. Anytime you need to talk, you know where I am.”

  “Thanks.”

  I let him out, and then locked the door behind him. Paul was a good man with a strong and caring heart, and I hoped that one day he’d find his own true love.

  I’d meant what I’d said about mine. For me, it had been Joe, and would always be Joe.

  I had a great life, and for the most part, I enjoyed every minute of it.

  It was good being me.

  At least it was until later that night when someone stuck a gun in my face.

  Chapter 2

  “Don’t do anything stupid and I won’t hurt you,” the masked man said as he poked the handgun toward me.

  “Why don’t you rob a bank like everyone else does?” I asked, still clutching the deposit bag with the night’s receipts. Maddy and Greg had worked so hard during the rush that I’d sent them both home early. Ordinarily, my sister never would have taken me up on my offer, but she’d had a headache and had leapt at the chance to escape.

  The funny thing was that I hadn’t even been nervous walking at night to my car through the breezeway between two buildings to the alley behind the pizzeria, where I parked my Subaru.

  Apparently, I’d been wrong not to expect something.

  “Don’t make me shoot you, lady,” the robber said, his voice muffled by the mask he was wearing. I tried to figure out how I could describe him to the police after this was over, but he was so average in height and build that it was almost painful. It didn’t help matters that he was covered from head to toe in black, including the ski mask that had to have obscured his vision. I couldn’t even see the color of his eyes through the mask, though I kept trying to ignore the gun shoved in my face. It was tougher to do than it sounded.

  “Last warning,” he said, and I saw a gloved finger start to move toward the trigger.

  “Take it,” I said as I tried to give the deposit bag to him in a rush.

  The problem was that my hand was shaking so much that I dropped it before he could grab it. He swore as the bag hit the ground and sprang open. I’d been meaning to replace it since the zipper had busted two months ago, but I hadn’t gotten around to it.

  He knelt down in front of me to scoop up the cash and receipts, and for a second, I thought about hitting him over the head with my purse. It wasn’t as bad a choice of weapons as it might have appeared, since it was loaded down with lots of nice, heavy things, but before I could act on my impulse, he looked up at me, gestured with the gun, and then just shook his head.

  No words needed to be spoken. He was warning me, and I was going to go along with his silent demand. After all, it was only money, and I could always make more, though tonight’s take wouldn’t be that easy to replace.

  Still, it wasn’t worth dying over.

  He stood again, then quickly ran down the alley toward a cluster of other buildings before I could even get my breath back.

  I called the police dispatcher on my cell phone as I leaned against my car, still shaking from the potentially deadly encounter.

  “I need to speak with Kevin Hurley,” I said.

  “He’s clocked out for the day,” Helen Murphy expl
ained. “I thought you said he already came by your restaurant tonight.”

  “Then send someone else,” I screamed, not meaning to raise my voice, but having no real control over it. “I’ve just been robbed.”

  Helen’s voice softened immediately. “Are you all right, Eleanor?”

  I took a second to get my breath, and then said, “No, but I will be.”

  “He didn’t hurt you, did he?”

  “Not physically, but my nerves are jumping all over the place,” I said as I slumped even lower against the driver’s-side door. “Just send someone over to the alley behind the Slice as soon as you can, Helen, would you?”

  “It won’t be a minute,” she said. “Stay on the line until someone shows up.” I could hear her making a call on the police radio, and she was as good as her word. It couldn’t have been sixty seconds before I saw a squad car rushing toward me.

  I felt a little bit of relief when I realized it wasn’t the police chief. I didn’t want to deal with Kevin Hurley, especially not yet, but my joy was short-lived when I saw another squad car closely following the first one.

  It appeared that our chief of police wasn’t about to leave this for one of his employees.

  It somehow made a very bad situation even worse.

  “You just can’t stay out of trouble, can you?” Kevin asked me after he determined that I was okay.

  “Come on, Chief, it’s not like it was her fault,” the policeman who’d first answered the call said.

  Kevin iced him with a deadly glare, then said, “Garvin, you’re new, so I’m going to give you one chance to question my judgment. And guess what? You just used yours up. Now get back on patrol.”

  The new officer turned slightly green as he made his way back to his cruiser.

  “You didn’t have to be so hard on him,” I said after Officer Garvin was gone, “especially when he was right.”

  “Don’t you start on me,” he said.

  “What are you going to do, punish me, too?”

  “Eleanor, you don’t understand. He’s got the chance to become a good cop someday, but he needs to learn his place in the pecking order of things, or he’ll never make it.”