Deep Fried Homicide (The Donut Shop Mysteries) (9 page)

My boyfriend looked a little uncomfortable when I said that, and I knew that there was more to the story than I knew.  “Why would he do that?” I asked.  “What is it that you’re not telling me?”

“It’s probably because he’s under the mistaken impression that I saved his life once,” Jake finally admitted.

“Did you?” I asked.

“Shouldn’t you be delivering that coffee to George before it gets cold?” Jake asked.

“Sure, I’ll do it in a second.  First, I want to hear what happened.”

Jake rubbed his face with his good hand, and then he stared at me.  “You’re not going to let up until I tell you, are you?”

I grinned at him.  “You know me too well.”

“Fine.  We were on a stakeout together, and he went to check on our suspect, against my advice.  When he didn’t come back right away, I decided to see what was going on.  I snuck around and saw that our guy had a gun to Terry’s head.  I managed to distract him a little, and Terry got out of it okay after all.”

“How exactly did you distract him, Jake?”

He mumbled something, but I couldn’t make it out.

“We both know that I didn’t quite catch that.  I’m not sure that I was meant to.”

“I shot the bad guy in the rear end, okay?” Jake asked.  “He dropped the gun, and Terry grabbed him.”

“Weren’t you risking shooting your partner instead?” I asked him.

“Well, I decided that it was worth a shot, you know?”  He smiled a little at that.  “No pun intended.”

“Was your suspect really a bad guy?”

“Oh, yes.  We found drugs and guns out in plain sight.  This man needed to be off the streets, and we took care of him.  I keep telling Terry that it was nothing, but he still won’t let me forget it.”

“Jake, he’s right.  You kind of did save his life.”

“I guess if you look at it one way you could say that,” he said.  “Now will you take that to George?”

“I will, and then I’ll be back with yours,” I said.

Jake pretended to frown at me.  “So you’re saying that I’m the one who got shot, and I get served last?  That doesn’t quite seem fair, does it?”

“Life’s not fair, or haven’t you heard?  Learn to live with it, hero,” I said with a smile.

That made him laugh.  “Suzanne, I wasn’t sure about this arrangement when you first suggested it, but I’ve got to say, it’s good to have you around.”

“Right back at you,” I said.  “I’ll just be a second.”

I delivered the pie and coffee, which George took gladly as he leaned his shotgun against the house beside him.  I noticed that it was still close enough to reach in case he needed it in a hurry.

“Sorry for the delay,” I said.

“No worries.  How’s he feeling?”

“He’s pretending to be grumpy, but I know better,” I said.

“That’s a good sign, then.”

“How’s that, George?”

“If Jake’s overly polite, that’s when you need to start worrying.  He’s going to be fine.  I just know it.”

“I think so, too,” I said.  “I’m sure he’ll be out here himself soon to thank you for watching out for us.”

“Do me a favor and make him stay on the couch.  None of us are doing this for a pat on the back.  Tell him I said that, and if he tries to come out here anyway, remind him that I’m the one with the gun.” George grinned.

“He’s armed, too, you know,” I said.  It had unsettled me a little when I’d seen Jake’s gun on the couch beside him, but it wasn’t like a weapon for him.  That gun was an extension of who he was, and I was certain that it helped him sleep so comfortably.  It was part of who he was, so I was going to have to learn to get over having it around.

“Just tell him not to shoot the messenger, then,” George said.  “Was he upset when you told him that we were going to be out here all night?”

“I thought he might be, but to be honest with you, he seemed kind of pleased more than anything.”  I leaned forward and kissed the mayor’s cheek, which got a smile from him.

“What was that for?”

“For caring enough to give up what little sleep you get these days,” I said.

“Like I said, we’re all happy to do it.”

When I got back inside the cottage, Jake had shifted around on the couch, sitting up now and resting his slinged arm on a pillow.  “Are you comfortable?” I asked him.

“I suppose so.”  He looked at the arrangement, and then he added a little wistfully, “This is probably as good as it’s going to get for awhile.”

I glanced at the clock.  “Would you like a pill for the pain?  You can have one now, if you’d like.”

“Let’s see how it goes and save it for later,” he said.  “I might need a little help getting to sleep tonight.  Do you know what I’d really like?”

I didn’t wait for an answer; I just leaned in and kissed his cheek, too.  After all, if it was good enough for George, it was certainly good enough for Jake.

“Sure, that’s wonderful and all, but what I was really hoping for was some of your mother’s homemade pot roast.”

I started to throw a pillow at him, but I quickly changed my mind.  If I hit his bandaged arm, I was certain that it could hurt him.  Instead, I shifted at the last second, and still holding onto the pillow, I gave him a gentle thump upside his head.

He laughed, surprised that I’d hit him, even so gently.  “I probably deserved that, but I am fiercely hungry.  Would you like to have some, too?”

“Actually, I’m starving myself, even though I had a snack while you were sleeping,” I admitted.  “I’ll be back shortly.”

“Don’t be gone too long, and I’m not just saying that because I’m hungry.”

Even if that wasn’t exactly true, it was still nice to hear.

Chapter 10

Jake had a little trouble cutting the carrots and potatoes with only a fork at first, but I quickly took care of that, portioning out the meal into bite-sized servings that he could handle without any help from me.

He protested after I finished cutting up his meal.  “I feel like such a little kid.”

“I understand your frustration, but it’s just easier this way, don’t you think?”

“I suppose so, but that doesn’t mean that I have to like it.”  He frowned at his plate, and then stabbed a small bite.

“It’s still better than me feeding you, isn’t it?” I asked him.

“Let’s face it.  Neither one of us is cut out for that,” he answered.  “You were right.  At least I can manage this okay.”

He managed just fine with the new arrangement, and I made a mental note to prepare all of his food in more manageable serving sizes before I even brought anything out to him.

 After he was finished, he pushed his plate away on its tray.  “That was incredible, and not just because I’ve been eating hospital food for the last twenty-four hours,” Jake said as he finished every last bite of the pot roast that I’d given him.

“Would you like more?” I asked as I stood.

“I’d better not,” he said as he tried to stretch a little.  We’d decided not to move from the couch, since it had taken Jake so long to get himself comfortable.  I’d grabbed a pair of the old TV trays we kept in the hall closet and served us both right there.

As I grabbed his tray so I could take it into the kitchen, he said, “I can help with that.”

I let go of the tray instantly and sat back down.  “Thanks.  I’d appreciate that.”

I watched him for a full minute as he struggled to pick the tray up, failing miserably the entire time, and doing my best not to laugh.  Jake must have sensed it, though, because when he looked over at me, I couldn’t contain my grin any longer.  “How’s that working out for you?”

It was touch and go there for a second, but his good humor finally won out.  As Jake slumped back on the couch, he grinned at me.  “You have to at least give me points for trying.”

“What I need to do is swat you with a newspaper,” I said, trying to act sternly but not managing it at all.  “Jake, I know that you hate to be taken care of, but you need to find a way to surrender yourself to it.  I’m here to help you in any way that I can.  Take advantage of that.”

“Suzanne, you know that it’s hard for me,” Jake said softly.

I touched his cheek lightly.  “I’m sure that it is.  Just remember one thing.  I don’t love you any less because you happen to need me right now, okay?”

“Okay,” he said gently.  “I love you, too.”

“There, now isn’t that better?” I asked as I moved both trays into the kitchen.  As I rinsed our dishes and put them in the sink, I called out to him, “Do you have any room left for pie?”

“I’d love some,” he said, “but I might explode if I take another bite.”

“I understand,” I said.  “How about if I give you a rain check?”

“That would be perfect,” he said.  Was his voice a little sleepy as he spoke?  I decided to go ahead and do the dishes while he was resting, and in ten minutes, I had the kitchen in perfect shape again.

I started to say something to him as I walked back out into the living room, but I’m glad that I didn’t.

He was sound asleep again.

I had a dilemma.  Should I wake him so he could move into the bedroom, or just let him sleep where he was?  I was leaning toward letting him sleep when he snored loudly for a second, waking himself up as he did.

“Wow, I’m really wiped.  Would you mind if I went on to bed early tonight?  It’s been a big day.”

I glanced at the clock.  “Are you kidding?  It’s past my bedtime as it is.”

“But you’re not going into work tomorrow, right?” he asked.

“Not a chance.  I’ve got a crack team in place, so why should I?”

“That’s the spirit,” Jake said as he started to stand, but then he fell back onto the couch again.  “How about a little help?”

I helped him up, and he kissed me lightly once he was standing.  “You just did that for a kiss, didn’t you?” I asked him with a smile.

“I really did need the help.  The kiss was just a bonus.”

“For me, too,” I said.  “I laid your pajamas out on the bed.  Do you need any help changing?”

“Thanks, but that’s one of the few things I can do for myself.”

“Okay then.  Holler if you need me.”

“You can count on it,” he said.

I waited five minutes, but when I hadn’t heard from him, I decided to see if he needed a hand after all.

Jake was passed out on the bed, sleeping soundly.  He’d managed to change into his pajamas, but the effort must have worn him out the rest of the way, since he was still on top of the covers.  I took a blanket my grandmother had made and draped it gently over him, being sure not to touch his wounded arm.  He rustled a little, but just for a second, before he went fully back to sleep.

I left his door open so I could hear him if he needed me, and then I made the couch up for my night’s sleep.  It wasn’t as comfortable as my bed, but I’d taken many naps on it over the years, so it was like coming back home again when I settled in.  I’d decided to forgo jammies of my own tonight, content in sleeping in my jeans and T shirt.  It wasn’t the most comfortable way to snooze, but I’d manage somehow.

I was sleeping soundly enough, at least I thought so, when something jarred me awake.  There were voices coming from outside!  Was it a simple shift in the men guarding us, or was something else happening out there?

I decided that since I was already awake, I’d investigate it for myself.  Grabbing my baseball bat from the closet, I looked out the door to see if I could make out what was really going on out there.

“Is something wrong?” Chief Martin asked me as I finally stepped outside.

“We woke you up, didn’t we?” George asked.

“No, it’s fine.  I was already awake.”  I peered out into the darkness.  “Have you seen anything yet?”

“Not a thing worth mentioning,” George said as he stretched.  “It’s been as quiet as a graveyard around here.  I was just about ready to head home, unless you need me for something.”

“No, you go on.  I’m fine.  Thanks for coming by.”

“Have a good night, then,” George said, and then he left the police chief and me.

“Sorry if we were too loud earlier,” Chief Martin said.

“It wasn’t you.”  Why did I keep denying the fact that the men had woken me up?  Then again, it might not have been them after all.  I was used to being up at this time of night, or early morning, and it was clearly going to be a hard habit for me to break.

“Was it because you’re used to usually being at work this time of day?”

I nodded, a little surprised that the police chief had come to the same conclusion that I’d just reached myself.  “I can’t believe that I’m saying this, but I miss being at the donut shop right about now.”