Doughnuts & Deadly Schemes - Culinary Competition Mystery #3

Chapter 23

(Amy)

Amy opened the microwave and inhaled the sweet, fruity scent of breakfast goodness. The square of baked oatmeal was studded with dried apricots, two kinds of raisins, and dried cranberries. She didn't have a problem with the occasional bowl of traditional oatmeal, cooked on the stove with milk and raisins, for breakfast. But it wasn't a portable meal option. She couldn't drive, hold a hot bowl, and spoon drippy nourishment into her mouth at the same time. She wasn't anywhere near that coordinated. So baked oatmeal, which had the consistency of a dense cake and could be eaten like a breakfast sandwich wrapped in a napkin, was her current choice for a quick and easy start to the day.

Except she didn't need to eat the fruit-studded square on the go. It was sitting on a plate, to be eaten with a fork. She was waiting for Sophie to arrive at her house. At 4:30 a.m., after slamming the alarm clock into silence, Amy hadn't yet stumbled out of bed when a text from Sophie beeped onto her phone.

I need to talk to you. Can I come over to your house before we go to work?

Of course, Amy's answer was yes. She'd do anything to help out her friend. But she also had another friend to worry about. The wedding was about thirty-six hours away. A full crew of bakers and cooks was scheduled to arrive at Riverbend Café in less than an hour to start on the extra brownies, cookies, dips, and spreads to cater Carla and Shepler's wedding. The only reason Amy could think of why Sophie wanted to stop by to chat was because she didn't want anybody else to hear what she had to say.

After the break-in the previous day, the café had remained closed as the police collected evidence. When they were finished, Sophie, Amy, and a crew of workers were allowed in to clean up the mess. Miraculously, they found the tower of vintage cake stands was unharmed. The delicate crystal had survived the rampaging werewolf and squad of police officers bumping around in the dark, windowless kitchen.

Headlight beams swept across the barely lit kitchen making Amy wince as she ate the last bite of oatmeal bar. Early mornings and bright lights were not a combination she enjoyed, so she always navigated through her breakfast routine with only a few under-the-cabinet lights setting the gentle, ease-into-the-day mood. She let Sophie in through the side door and handed her a mug of coffee without asking if she wanted it. At that time of day, who would refuse coffee?

Her boss cradled the mug in her hands as Amy steered her to the breakfast nook. Sophie's rich brown hair was twisted into a messy knot at the base of her neck. Amy couldn't recall ever seeing her at the café not sporting her signature sleek ponytail. No matter what time they arrived in the morning, she always wore makeup too. Sophie's eyes were red and swollen, without a trace of eyeliner or mascara.

"What's wrong?" Amy asked as she scooted onto the bench across the table from Sophie.

"I think Matt may have had something to do with Luke's murder."

Yowza. Nothing like hitting the early morning confessional out of the ballpark with one swing. "Why? What happened? Did he threaten you?"

"No...nothing like that." Sophie took a sip of the coffee. "We talked all afternoon about what happened at the café and how it seems to be connected with Luke's murder. When we went to bed, he fell immediately asleep but started having a bad dream, thrashing around and mumbling. When I woke him up, he just looked at me and said, 'I'm sorry, Sophie. It wasn't supposed to turn out like this. You were supposed to be safe.' Then he fell right back asleep. I realized he could've been talking about whatever happened in his dream, so I woke him again and asked what he'd been dreaming about. He said Luke's murder."