“Hey, Lydia?” she said, walking back to the kitchen. “Do you have that note?”
“Your dad put it on the fridge,” Lydia said. “Why?”
“My friend Maggie wanted to see it. Do you mind if I send her a picture?”
She thought Lydia hesitated for a fraction of a second before agreeing. Her heart pounding, Angie walked over to the fridge and removed the note that her father had pinned up under a magnet, as if it was a child’s drawing and not a death threat.
“Thanks,” she called as she left the room again, note in one hand and a glass of milk in the other. She stepped into the living room and carefully opened Lydia’s purse, feeling as though she might jump out of her skin at any second. She grabbed the notebook and hurried to her bedroom, Petunia on her heels.
“You might as well come in,” she said, holding the door open for the dog. Once Petunia was in the room, Angie shut and locked the door, put her glass of milk on her nightstand, and sat down on the bed. The note had been written on lined paper that had been torn jaggedly from its source. As soon as she opened the notebook, she had the feeling she was on the right track. The paper was identical to what the notebook had inside of it. Still, she flipped through the little notebook until she came to a page that had been torn out. She held the note up to the torn page and felt the breath whoosh out of her. It was a match. She stared at the notebook and the page for a second, then stood up. Anger was beginning to make her palms prickle. This might not be evidence that Lydia killed someone, but it is evidence that she made up a death threat just because she wanted to go home sooner.
Her hands shaking, she left her bedroom and strode back toward the kitchen. Not pausing for an instant, not even to think, she dropped the paper and the notebook in front of Jason.
“She wrote it,” she spit out, glancing at Lydia. “She lied to all of us.”
She saw the gears turning in Jason’s head as he looked between the note and the ripped page it had obviously come from. Lydia made a grab for the paper, but he yanked it away in time.
“Is this true?” he asked his fiancée.
“Jason, sweetie —”
“Is it?”
Her lower lip quivered. “I just wanted to get out of this horrible cold and go home. I miss my beaches and good food. Remember our favorite pizza place? Those slices we got here don’t even start to compare.”
“So you faked a death threat?” Jason asked, his voice deadly calm as he stared at her.
She bit her lower lip. “Can’t you forgive me?”
Her brother opened his mouth to respond, but Angie cut in. “Did you kill him?” she asked, her voice just above a whisper.
“Of course not. Don’t be silly,” she said, glancing toward the floor.
The breath whooshed out of Jason. “You’re lying.”
“You don’t have any right to accuse me of —”
“Stop,” he said, holding up a hand. Angie’s heart broke at the expression on his face. “I know you well enough to tell when you’re lying. What happened, Lydia? And think before you start talking. If you lie to me about this, I will drive you personally to the police station and after I drop you off you will never see me again.”
“I… I… It was an accident.” Lydia’s voice broke and she buried her face in her arms. Her voice came out muffled. “After I dragged you away from him, I marched back out to the balcony and told him to withdraw the job offer, because there was no way we were moving here. He told me you had a right to decide for yourself and then he grabbed my shoulder and tried to guide me back inside, but I was mad that he thought he could shove me around, so I pushed him. I wasn’t even thinking, I swear I didn’t mean for him to fall. It all happened so fast. He went over the edge of the balcony and I heard a crack when he landed and I looked over the railing and he wasn’t moving and… and…” She took a deep breath and raised her head. “And I went back inside and pretended nothing happened even though I was falling apart inside.”
The kitchen fell silent after that. Angie put her hand on her brother’s shoulder. He didn’t seem to know what to say, and she didn’t blame him. There were no words for something like this. Lydia started crying again and Petunia walked over to her. The dog nudged her hand with her muzzle, not understanding what was happening.
Angie heard her father’s heavy tread as he approached the kitchen. He paused in the doorway, taking in the scene in front of him.
“What’s going on?”
Epilogue
Angie gripped her mother’s arm tightly as they watched Jason walk through security at the airport. He turned to wave at them, and all three of them waved back. A moment later, he was gone, lost in the crowd that was headed for the gates. Angie’s father let out a slow sigh.
“That was some visit.”
Angie gave him a weak smile. “Well, on the bright side he’s talking to you two again after ten years.”
“We’ll be lucky if he ever visits again, after what happened here,” he grumbled.
Privately, Angie disagreed. She had her doubts that Jason would want to stay in Florida. He had broken things off with Lydia while she was still in the holding cell at the police station. According to him, it had been a long, emotional conversation, one which they were only allowed because Maggie had stepped in and convinced her father to let them meet. With nothing holding him to the sunshine state, she thought he would probably take the job in Anchorage if it was still available after everything settled down.
“Let’s head home,” Angie’s mother said. “I’m exhausted. These past two weeks took a lot out of me.”
They walked through the airport in silence. In the parking lot, Angie squeezed into the back seat in the cab of the truck, while her father and mother sat in the front. After they hit the highway outside of town, Angie spoke up again.
“Did you and Jason ever get a chance to talk, Dad?”
He met her eyes in the rearview mirror, and she wondered if he knew what she was talking about. Jason probably hadn’t told him that he told her about what their father said after Katy’s funeral.
“We did,” he said. “We both had some stuff to apologize for. It’s all cleared up now.”
She nodded, satisfied with that answer. She was still reeling emotionally from the visit, and imagined that everyone involved was feeling the same way. It would be nice for things to get back to normal for a while. With luck, Jason would continue nourishing the renewed relationship he had with their family, and if he took the job in Anchorage, they might be able to start having something like regular visits. Even after Percy’s death and Lydia’s mess of lies, Angie felt as if their family had managed to heal most of its wounds. She was glad. It was never more important to have people you could rely on than when times were tough, and Jason was probably going through the toughest time imaginable right now.
She leaned her forehead against the window and gazed out at the passing terrain, glad to be going home.
Also by Patti Benning
Papa Pacelli’s Series
Book 1: Pall Bearers and Pepperoni
Book 2: Bacon Cheddar Murder
Book 3: Very Veggie Murder
Book 4: Italian Wedding Murder
Book 5: Smoked Gouda Murder
Book 6: Gourmet Holiday Murder
Book 7: Four Cheese Murder
Book 8: Hand Tossed Murder
Book 9: Exotic Pizza Murder
Book 10: Fiesta Pizza Murder
Book 11: Garlic Artichoke Murder
Book 12: On the Wings of Murder
Book 13: Mozzarella and Murder
Book 14: A Thin Crust of Murder
Book 15: Pretzel Pizza Murder
Book 16: Parmesan Pizza Murder
Book 17: Breakfast Pizza Murder
Book 18: Halloween Pizza Murder
Book 19: Thanksgiving Pizza Murder
Book 20: Christmas Pizza Murder
Book 21: A Crispy Slice of Murder
Book 22: Lobster Pizza Murder
Book 23: Pizza, Weddings, and Murder
Book 24: Pizza, Paradise, and Murder
Book 25: Meat Lovers and Murder
Book 26: Classic Crust Murder
Book 27: Hot, Spicy Murder
Book 28: Pork, Pizza, and Murder
Book 29: Chicken Alfredo Murder
Book 30: Jalapeño Pizza Murder
Book 31: Pesto Pizza Murder
Book 32: Sweet Chili Murder
Darling Deli Series
Book 1: Pastrami Murder
Book 2: Corned Beef Murder
Book 3: Cold Cut Murder
Book 4: Grilled Cheese Murder
Book 5: Chicken Pesto Murder
Book 6: Thai Coconut Murder
Book 7: Tomato Basil Murder
Book 8: Salami Murder
Book 9: Hearty Homestyle Murder
Book 10: Honey BBQ Murder
Book 11: Beef Brisket Murder
Book 12: Garden Vegetable Murder
Book 13: Spicy Lasagna Murder
Book 14: Curried Lobster Murder
Book 15: Creamy Casserole Murder
Book 16: Grilled Rye Murder
Book 17: A Quiche to Die For
Book 18: A Side of Murder
Book 19: Wrapped in Murder
Book 20: Glazed Ham Murder
Book 21: Chicken Club Murder
Book 22: Pies, Lies and Murder
Book 23: Mountains, Marriage and Murder
Book 24: Shrimply Murder
Book 25: Gazpacho Murder
Book 26: Peppered with Murder
Book 27: Ravioli Soup Murder
Book 28: Thanksgiving Deli Murder
Book 29: A Season of Murder
Book 30: Valentines and Murder
Book 31: Shamrocks and Murder
Book 33: Murder, My Darling
Killer Cookie Series
Book 1: Killer Caramel Cookies
Book 2: Killer Halloween Cookies
Book 3: Killer Maple Cookies
Book 4: Crunchy Christmas Murder
Book 5: Killer Valentine Cookies
Asheville Meadows Series
Book 1: Small Town Murder
Book 2: Murder on Aisle Three
Book 3: The Heart of Murder
Book 4: Dating is Murder
Book 5: Dying to Cook
Book 6: Food, Family and Murder
Book 7: Fish, Chips and Murder
Book 8: Deathly Ever After
Cozy Tails of Alaska
Book 1: Mushing is Murder
Author’s Note
I’d love to hear your thoughts on my books, the storylines, and anything else that you’d like to comment on—reader feedback is very important to me. My contact information, along with some other helpful links, is listed below. If you’d like to be on my list of “folks to contact” with updates, release and sales notifications, etc.… just shoot me an email and let me know. Thanks for reading!
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