Twice Baked Page 3

  My jaw locked up and I starting choking on pieces of pecan.

  Two years!

  TWO YEARS?!

  I opened my mouth to speak, but I couldn’t. I couldn’t breathe either. Turned out I was actually choking.

  “Rita?” Peggy asked, her eyes widening. “Rita are you okay?”

  I shook my head, feeling the pressure that builds up inside of you when air can’t get in. I was going to choke to death. I was going to die eating my own pie and-in doing so- mark the world’s shortest reincarnation.

  “Rita!” She yelled.

  I tried to cough, but hands wrapped around my waist. I felt a sharp push against my gut and then relief as the pecan flew out, clearing my airway.

  “Thank goodness you’re here,’ Peggy beamed in front of me.

  I turned around, looking for the person responsible for saving my life (well, my second life), and found myself unable to breathe again.

  Aiden stood in front of me. He wore a brown scarf and a matching jacket. His face was covered in stubble, different from the clean shaven look that I had always preferred on him. But he still had the same eyes, the same smile.

  “Thank-thank you,” I said breathlessly.

  “Anytime, ma’am,” he grinned at me. “Are you okay?”

  I am now.

  “I think so,” I said. “It’s just a good thing you happened to be walking by, I guess.”

  He smiled at me again, then moved around me, crossing behind the glass.

  “Oh I didn’t just happen by. I’m here every night at this time,” he said. Leaning forward, he gave Peggy a kiss square on the lips. He turned back to me, looping his arm around Peggy’s waist. “I like to walk my fiancé home.”

  Chapter 4

  I sat there, forcing down the pieces of chocolate pecan supreme that hadn’t just rudely tried to kill me, unable to process what I was seeing.

  Watching Peggy and Aiden like this, with her short hair and his arm around her, just seemed strange. It was like when they try to add color to an old episode of I Love Lucy. It has all the same characters and settings that you’re used to seeing, but something just isn’t right.

  “Are you sure that you’re okay?” Peggy asked, putting her hand on Aiden’s shoulder. “Let me get you a glass of water or something.”

  “No.” I shook my head. “You don’t have to do that.”

  Just keep touching my fiancé, why don’t you?

  “Just a little bit shaky, I guess.”

  “That’s to be expected. You should let my fiancé have a look at you. He’s the town doctor,” Peggy said.

  “Full-fledged? ” “ I asked. “You graduated from residency?”

  Aiden looked at me strangely, the way you might if someone you swore you didn’t know started asking you questions about things they had no business being aware of.

  “Just because you look so young. I figured you must have still been in training,” I stammered, trying to cover my tracks.

  “Not that young, I’m afraid.” He smiled that smile at me. “I’m sorry, I don’t think I caught your name.”

  “What am I thinking?” Peggy shook her head. “Aiden, this is Rita.”

  “Oh,” he said, his eyes shading the way Peggy’s did when she heard my name. “Peggy and I used to have a friend named Rita.”

  Is that what I had been, a friend?

  “He’s not giving her enough credit,” Peggy said. “She was my best friend and -” She shuffled uncomfortably. “Before Aiden and I got together, he was actually engaged to Rita.” She pursed her lips. “I know that might make us sound like bad people. Goodness knows I grappled with that for a long time after we started dating. But after Rita died, we were both in such dark places. Neither of us thought we could ever be happy again. And, when found each other the way we did, it just seemed right. It felt like Rita was pushing us together somehow, like she wanted this.”

  I wouldn’t be so sure about that.

  “Well,” Aiden started, looking sheepishly at the floor. “Now that we’ve told a complete stranger our life stories, maybe we should be on our way.”

  “Don’t be rude,” Peggy playfully swatted at him, which somehow hurt more than all the loving touches put together. “Besides, I’m thoroughly enjoying our conversation.”

  “More than likely because the entire thing has been about you,” he answered, grinning. “Why don’t you tell us a little bit about yourself, Rita? What brings you to town?”

  Other than a supernatural mission to close out ‘unfinished business ’ , you mean?

  “A new start,” I answered plainly. Okay, that wasn’t completely a lie. “It wasn’t something I intended, or even something I’m really sure I want, if I’m being honest with you. But it was sort of hoisted on me, and I’m trying to make the best of it.”

  “We know about that.” Aiden nodded. “But the good thing about change is, even if it feels like it’s going to kill you, it won’t.”

  Well, actually…

  “I do hope you find what you’re looking for here in Second Springs, Rita,” Aiden said sincerely, inadvertently dipping into my heart and breaking it all over again. What I wanted was here. It was standing right in front of me. My old life, my old friend, my old fiancé, my old future. That’s what I wanted. It was also the one thing I couldn’t have back.

  “You and your dog.” Aiden grinned down at Mayor McConnell, who repaid him by turning away in a huff. “He is yours, isn’t he?”

  “The dog that sat around indifferently as I nearly chocked to death? Yeah, he’s mine,” I said.

  “What is he, an Irish setter? I have a terrier at home.”

  “You have a dog?” I asked, crinkling my brow.

  “Yeah. I picked him up last June,” Aiden beamed. “I always wanted one, and I just sort of realized that nothing was stopping me.”

  “I didn’t know that,” I muttered softly.

  “Well, how could you?” Aiden grinned. He leaned down and petted Mayor McConnell on the head. The red dog growled at him and backed away.

  “Don’t mind him,” I sighed. “He’s not exactly a social butterfly.”

  “What’s his name?” Aiden asked, standing back up.

  “Mayor Colin McConnell,” I answered.

  “Well that certainly is formal,” Peggy responded politely.

  “I’m a political buff, I guess.” I shrugged.

  “And you, Rita? Do you have a last name?”

  Panic blossomed in my chest.

  “Do I have a last name?” I stammered.

  Well, I did have a last name.

  “Of course. I’m Rita..re..do…” I fumbled the words out.

  “Rita Redo?” Peggy repeated, narrowing her eyes.

  “Yeah,” I stammered. “It’s pronounced Reh-Doh. You know, cause it’s French.”

  Good save, Rita. Good save.

  “I meant what I said,” Aiden answered. “I hope you find your happiness here, whatever that means for you.”

  “Unless, of course, it means suing me for that unfortunate choking incident.” Peggy chuckled.

  “I would never.” I waved her off. “Of course, it might go down easier if you threw a little nutmeg into the recipe.”

  Peggy’s eyes widened.

  “Oh, I’m sorry,” I said. Putting my hands up to apologize. “I shouldn’t have said that. It really is delicious.”

  This was so strange, talking to Peggy as if I didn’t know her, having to edit my words for the politeness that you always drop around those your closest to.

  “No, it’s not that,” she murmured. “Rita-the other Rita; the pie you’re eating was sort of her specialty. It was our best seller. And after she passed, I never could get it to taste the same again. I just realized that you’re right. It’s missing the nutmeg.” She spun around and pulled a marker out of a satchel hanging on the wall. Making a note to add nutmeg on the white board we always wrote the specials on, she turned back to me. “Thank you so much.”

  “
Anytime,” I answered.

  “You’ve got baking experience?” She strode toward me.

  “I do. I used to work in a place a lot like this one.”

  Again, not technically a lie.

  “This is going to sound strange and, if it’s too forward, please let me know. But would you like a job?” Peggy bit her bottom lip.

  “Sweetheart,” Aiden started. “She just got her. Let the woman have a day before you start to swarm her like a vulture.”

  “Not at all,” I answered. “I think I’d be very interested.”

  “Really?” Peggy seemed shocked. “Because, between you and me, I haven’t had great luck with employees lately. Even the guy I have doing deliveries for me now is sort of a flake. I sent him out two hours a go gain with just three pies. I don’t have to tell you how many circles you can make around a town this small in two hours. But you, there’s something special about you. I don’t know what it is, but I feel comfortable around you for some reason, like I’ve known you forever even though we just met.”

  “I know exactly what you mean,” I grinned.

  “Now the pay isn’t much, but there’s a fully furnished studio in the back building that comes with the job, if that’s something you’d be interested in.”

  “Given that neither the mayor nor I have a place to stay, I’d say that’s something I’d be very interested in,” I said, standing.

  Peggy walked toward me, holding her hand out for me to shake.

  I took it. Even though she didn’t recognize me, even though I had just agreed to work at a place that I myself had helped build, and even though she was currently engaged to my fiancé, this felt good.

  Peggy was my best friend. She had been since we were in utero. And you don’t just forget something like that. She could feel it too. It was why she offered me this job and it was why, Charlie’s warning aside, I knew that one day I’d be able to trust her with my secret.

  Of course, I was way too tired tonight to think about that conversation.

  “How about we take a walk to the back building and I can show you your new place?” I recognized the pride in Peggy’s voice. She had always been particular about the shop and everything in it. It’s what made her such a good business partner. It was good to see that hadn’t fallen away in the two years I was gone.

  “Take the lead, Boss,” I smiled and followed her out the back door.

  The back parking lot where we always kept our cars looked relatively the same. The stripes might have been freshly painted, but it was dark and I really couldn’t tell.

  Either way, it was nice to know that some things hadn’t been completely overhauled in my absence.

  “No!”

  A man’s voice echoed from the other side of the parking lot. I heard a struggle, then a sound like a pipe hitting against wood.

  Turning, I saw a dark figure running off in the distance. I squinted, but the white glow of the street light made making out any details an impossibility.

  “What was that?” Peggy asked, looking up at Aiden.

  “Stay here,” Aiden said, jogging toward the source of the noise.

  Peggy didn’t listen, running behind him. And, of course, neither did I.

  By the time we caught up with Aiden, who had ducked behind a blue Honda, I noticed a pair of feet sticking out from the other side of the car, along with what looked like a quickly growing trickle of blood.

  Aiden stood on from the other side of the car, a splash of blood smeared across his face.

  “Aiden, what’s going on?” Peggy cried.

  “It’s Patrick,” he answered solemnly.

  For once in Second Springs, I didn’t recognize the name.

  “Who’s Patrick?” I asked breathlessly.

  “He’s Peggy’s delivery guy,” Aiden answered. “And I’m afraid he’s dead. But someone left this behind.”

  Aiden lifted his right hand and-just like that awful night at Mrs. Hoover’s- I saw a blood covered wrench.

  Chapter 5

  “I can’t believe this is all happening again,” Peggy said, nursing a cup of coffee between her hands. Her eyes were red and puffy and her legs were shaking. She glanced up at me. “You must just want to go running for the hills.” Peggy said, shaking her head. “I wouldn’t blame you if you did, but Second Springs isn’t like this. People don’t just get killed in parking lots.” Her hands went to her hair again and tears filled her eyes anew. “Especially sweet guys like Patrick.”

  “Tell me about him,” I said, reaching across the counter and placing my hand on top of hers. I wanted to comfort my friend more than anything right now, but there were also other reasons for my inquiry.

  That wrench lying beside the body; it was a throwback to the worst night of my life, to the last night of my life actually. There was also one in Mrs. Hoover’s house that horrible night, which meant there was a connection- a connection I needed to figure out.

  But, since I didn’t know this Patrick person from Adam, I needed Peggy to fill in the blanks. And, if talking about a lost friend made her feel a little better during what had to be a terrible time that would be great too.

  “He loved it here,” Peggy said softly. “He was from Philadelphia, but he never much liked it there. He always said it was too busy, that he was more at home in a small town.” She laughed lightly. “And I told him they don’t come much smaller than Second Springs.”

  She set her coffee down and glared at the counter.

  “I know I said he as a flake earlier. I really wish I wouldn’t have. I think he just loved this town so much that he wanted to explore it every chance he got, and maybe that got in the way of things, but that doesn’t mean he wasn’t a good person.”

  “Of course it doesn’t.” I squeezed her hand. “And just because you made some offhanded comment doesn’t mean you thought any less of him.”

  Aiden came back in, along with Mayor McConnell (who followed him out to meet the police either through some sense of duty or because he couldn’t stand being around me anymore) and another officer.

  The officer had close cropped blonde hair that stuck up into points. He was close enough to my age to disregard any difference and, like Patrick, was one of the few faces I had never seen in Second Springs before.

  Not that I was complaining. It wasn’t a particularly bad face. In fact, if it wasn’t for the reason that he showed up here tonight and the fact that he was walking side by side with my used to be fiancé, I’d have said he was pretty cute.

  Of course, he hadn’t opened his mouth yet.

  “Hey Darrin,” Peggy said, keeping a bit of mournful reverence in her voice.

  “What did I say about addressing me when I’m on duty, Peg?” Darrin answered without a hint of sarcasm or Southern accent. Both of which worried me.

  “Sorry,” she answered. “Hey Sheriff Dash.”

  Sheriff? He can’t be the sheriff.

  “You can’t be the sheriff!” I yelped instinctively.

  Smooth as ever, Rita.

  “Is that right?” Sheriff Dash asked, moving toward me and staring at me with piercing blue eyes. “I’m afraid the county says different.”

  “Sorry,” I shook my head, remembering the situation I had found myself in. I was an outsider here, and what was more, I had no idea what the world looked like anymore. I had been gone for two years. For all I knew, I could walk outside and be greeted by a kid on one of those ‘Back to the Future’ hover boards.

  Which might actually make all of this worth it.

  “It’s just, I did some research on town before I came here. I could have sworn your sheriff was named Clarke.”

  “Must have been some old research,” Sheriff Dash said, sitting right next to me. Like a politeness machine, Peggy poured him a cup of coffee.

  “You still take two sugars?” She asked.

  “Three now, but you shouldn’t bother yourself with that,” Sheriff Dash answered. “You’ve got to be more than a little shaken up.”

&nb
sp; “It’s no trouble at all,” Peggy said. “It might actually help take my mind off things. Let me get you some Key Lime.”

  “Eww,” I crinkled my nose.

  “Not a fan?’ Sheriff Dash looked at me, cocking his eyebrow and taking a swig of coffee.

  “Key Lime pie is disgusting. It breaks the cardinal rule of dessert. It’s-”

  “Not sweet,” Peggy finished, setting the pie in front of the sheriff. “My Rita used to say the exact same thing. That’s uncanny.”

  “That is odd,” I said, my eyes darting to the counter.

  Darn it, I have to stop doing that.

  “So, um, what happened to the old sheriff?” I asked, trying to sound nonchalant. “You know, out of curiosity.”

  “That’s a curious bit of curiosity,” the sheriff glanced at me over a chunk of disgusting Key Lime pie.

  “What can I say? I’m an enigma,” I shot back uncomfortably.

  “He retired last year,” Peggy answered, filling up my coffee.

  “That’s an interesting way of putting it,” Sheriff Dash countered.

  ‘Interesting’? What is that supposed to mean?

  “Any clues about w h at happened to poor Patrick?” Peggy asked, cutting me off before I could dig any further into what caused my dad’s ‘retirement’.

  “A few,” Sheriff Dash answered. “Nothing I want to share quite yet.”

  “What about footprints?” I asked, kicking into gear. “We all watched the killer run off. Certainly he or she left a set of footprints in the woods after they dipped off into them.”

  “They did,” Sheriff Dash answered, shoveling up another forkful. Man, he was really digging that pie. “But so did about sixty other people. Those woods are popular with the high schoolers here. I imagine they practice their kissing skills judging by the amount of lip gloss tubes we found out there.”