Caramel Pecan Roll Murder

Book 28: Hannah Swensen Mystery

by Joanne Fluke

Genres: Culinary Cozy Mysteries; Craft & Hobby Cozy Mysteries

Synopsis

In this scrumptious cozy mystery from New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Joanne Fluke, baker Hannah Swensen is tempted by a highprofile tournament in Lake Eden that quickly turns deadly …
Embracing a sweet escape from her usual routine at The Cookie Jar, Hannah gets asked for her help in baking pastries at the local inn for a flashy fishing competition with big prizes and even bigger names. But the fun stops when she
spots a runway boat on the water and, on board, the lifeless body of the event’s renowned celebrity spokesperson …
Famed TV show host Sonny Bowman wasn’t humble about his ability to reel in winning catches, and no one knew that better than his tragically overworked sidekick, Joey. Did Joey finally take bloody revenge on his pompous boss—or was Sonny killed by a jealous contestant?
With goodies to bake and a mess of fresh challenges mixed into her personal life, it’s either sink or swim as Hannah joins forces with her sister, Andrea, to catch a clever culprit before another unsuspecting victim goes belly up …
Features Over a Dozen Cookie and Dessert Recipes from The Cookie Jar!

Release date: February 22, 2022

Publisher: Kensington Books

Print pages: 304

Sample

Hannah Swensen took the last pan of Butterscotch Delight Cookies out of her industrial oven and placed them on shelves in the bakers rack. She was almost through with the baking she did every morning for her customers at The Cookie Jar, her bakery and coffee shop. One glance at the clock on the kitchen wall told Hannah that she had plenty of time for a bracing cup of coffee from the kitchen pot before she had to bake the final batches of sweet treats she needed for the day.

As she was pouring her coffee, the phone on the kitchen wall rang. Rather than wait for her partner, Lisa Herman Beeseman, or Lisa’s Aunt Nancy to answer it, Hannah decided to do it. “The Cookie Jar,” she answered. “This is Hannah.”

“Hannah!” The man’s voice on the other end of the line sounded slightly breathless. “Did Earl come in for coffee this morning?”

“Hold on, Mike. I’ll check,” Hannah said, recognizing the voice of her friend, Winnetka County Detective Mike Kingston. “Is something wrong?”

“I’ll say! I’ve got a mess out here on the highway and I need Earl to come out with the tow truck.”

“A wreck?”

“More than one. Some idiot with a fishing boat jackknifed it coming out of the Corner Tavern. Somebody from Iowa was going too fast and hit him, another driver rear-ended the guy from Iowa, and there’s going to be more if Lonnie and I don’t get this cleaned up fast.”

“Hold on. Let me see if Earl’s here.” Hannah hurried to the swinging restaurant-style door that led from the kitchen to the coffee shop and pushed it open. Earl Flensburg and his wife, Carrie, were sitting at a table in the back having coffee and several of Hannah’s freshly baked confections. She motioned to Earl, and when he came into the kitchen, she handed him the phone. “It’s Mike. Trouble on the highway.”

“What’s going on?” Earl asked, taking the phone from Hannah. He listened for a moment and then he gave a little nod. “Okay, I got it,” he said. “Carrie’s here and we’re coming.”

Earl handed the phone back to Hannah. “Mike wanted to know if Digger’s here. When I said he was, Mike said to tell him he needs Digger too.”

Hannah shivered. The chill she felt had nothing to do with the temperature of the kitchen. “Somebody died?”

Earl shook his head. “No. Mike just wants Digger to get out there with the hearse to slow down the traffic that’s coming from Minneapolis.”

Hannah understood immediately. Digger Gibson was the local undertaker and there was something about a big black hearse on the road that brought home the fact that people were not immortal. The sight of Digger’s hearse caused traffic to slow down and drive more carefully. The Minnesota Highway Patrol called Digger every year when fishing season opened, and Digger drove the stretch from Minneapolis to Lake Eden multiple times on opening day to slow the traffic and prevent accidents. This year Digger would do double duty, patrolling the highway on the official opening of the fishing season, and now it seemed that Digger would have to go out one week early for the first day of the Walleye Fishing Tournament that was being held at the Lake Eden Inn.

“Will you ask Lisa to put on another big pot of coffee?” Hannah asked Earl. “I’ll pack up some cookies back here, and you and Carrie can take them out there.”

“Will do,” Earl said, going back out the door to the coffee shop.

As Hannah packed up the cookies, she thought about the fishing tournament. It wasn’t due to start until tomorrow, but it seemed that some contestants were arriving early. This was a slow time of year at the Lake Eden Inn, and Hannah knew that the owners, Sally and Dick Laughlin, were grateful to Wally Wallace for choosing to hold his fishing tournament at their hotel.

Wally was practically a Minnesota legend. When he’d taken over the boat-building business from his father-in-law he had turned it into a huge success. Wallace Watercraft was a money-making enterprise and Wally Boats were popular fishing crafts all over the country. Once Wally had achieved success with his fishing boats, he had opened a chain of sporting goods stores that were popular nationwide. When tourists from other states came to Minnesota, one of the attractions that they wanted to visit was Wally’s flagship sporting goods store.

Wally Wallace took his popularity seriously. He understood that being a business tycoon came with a certain responsibility. Wally funded charities, established college scholarships, provided entry-level jobs for countless Minnesota teenagers, and sponsored sports events. When the local high school football team, the Jordan High Gulls, had needed new uniforms and equipment, all it had taken was a letter to Wally and the uniforms were designed and delivered. Of course the uniforms had the Wally’s Sporting Goods logo on the back, but that was fine with everyone concerned.

Because of Wally’s generosity, everyone in Minnesota was willing to bend the rules a bit for him. If Wally asked for a favor, it was very likely to be granted. Just recently, Wally had managed to obtain early fishing licenses for everyone who had signed up for his Walleye Fishing Tournament. The early, temporary fishing licenses were only good for the duration of the competition and were limited to fishing on Eden Lake.

Of course Wally’s tournament had been well advertised, and the last Hannah had heard, Sally and Dick were close to running out of rooms.

When Hannah had finished packaging cookies, she took them out to Lisa and Aunt Nancy. Then she got back to work to complete the day’s baking.

It didn’t take long to thaw the puff pastry dough she planned to use for her Danish. Once she’d rolled out the dough and cut it into the required-size pieces, she placed them on a baking sheet and began to make the Lemon Curd. Today’s special treat would be Lemon Danish and she could hardly wait to sample them.

Hannah flipped her loose-leaf recipe book to her Great-Grandmother Elsa’s recipe, got out a saucepan, and followed the directions her great-grandmother had written. She would fill the Danish with Lemon Curd and once they were baked, she’d drizzle a bit of powdered sugar frosting over the tops.

The Lemon Curd turned out to be easy to make, and Hannah had just pulled it off the stovetop and was giving it a final stir when there was a knock on her back kitchen door.

“Norman,” she said aloud, smiling as she recognized the knock. She pulled open the door without bothering to look through the peephole that Mike and Lonnie had insisted on installing, and said, “Come in and have a seat.”

“I can only stay for a couple of minutes,” Norman said, hanging his jacket on a hook by the back door and walking to the work station to take his favorite stool.

“Do you have time for coffee?”

“Just one cup. I need to pick up some cookies to take to Mike.”

“You have time, then. I already sent the cookies out to Mike with Earl and Carrie.”

“Mike knew that, but he just called me to ask me to bring out more. Another four cars couldn’t stop in time. It’s turning into a big accident scene, Hannah.”

“Oh, dear!” Hannah poured a cup of coffee for Norman and walked over to the bakers rack to see what she could send with him. “Is anyone badly injured?”

“Mike said it wasn’t that bad yet. He was just worried that the situation might escalate.”

“That’s always a possibility.” Hannah removed several trays of cookies and began to package them. “Does Mike want more coffee?”

“He said it couldn’t hurt. I’ll go tell Lisa.”

“Okay.” Hannah finished packaging the cookies for Mike and packed up a half-dozen for Norman. As she turned, she glanced out the kitchen window and began to frown.

“What’s wrong?” Norman asked, coming back in from the coffee shop.

“It looks like rain outside.”

“I know.”

“Let’s just hope it blows over.”

“That’s exactly what Mike said. Rain is the last thing we need at the scene of an accident.” Norman walked back to his stool at the work station and picked up his coffee cup. “It’s lonely in the mornings without you, Hannah. I guess I’m getting too used to having you stay with me.”

Warning bells went off in Hannah’s head and she refrained from saying anything at all. It was cozy and comfortable staying with Norman, and she loved the fireplace in the master bedroom. Still, it was temporary and she missed living at her condo. Having Norman move to the guest bedroom made her feel guilty. If only the bad memories would fade for her and for Moishe, she could go back to her own place.

“Did you feed the cats?” she asked, taking a plate of cookies to the work station and setting them down on the stainless steel surface.

“Of course I did. Moishe wouldn’t let me forget to feed him! And come to think about it, neither would Cuddles. I think she’s learned a trick or two from Moishe, because she’s not happy unless she gets her breakfast on time.”

Hannah began to smile. Her cat, twenty-three-pound Moishe, demanded his breakfast and howled about it if he didn’t get it soon enough. He also demanded his treats when they got home from work, his bedtime snack of fish-shaped, salmon-flavored kitty cookies, and his daily ration of tuna. “I think we’ve raised two spoiled cats.”

“I think you’re right.” Norman reached out for a cookie. “What are these, Hannah?”

“Butterscotch Delight Cookies.”

“They’re pretty with that drizzle of icing on top.” Norman bit into his cookie and began to smile. “And they’re really good! Do you mind if I take the rest of these with me, Hannah?”

“I don’t mind at all. Just save some for you and don’t let Mike eat them all.”

“I won’t. I’ll go get the coffee from Lisa and head out to the highway, then. Do you want me to pick you up from work tonight?”

“Sure. Come over when you’re through for the day.”

“Dinner at home? Or out?”

Hannah came close to frowning. That sounded a bit too domestic for her. She’d been staying at Norman’s house for three weeks now and perhaps it was time to make a change.

“I could use a hamburger,” Norman said. “How about one of Rose’s patty melts?”

“That sounds good to me,” Hannah said quickly.

“Thanks, Hannah. See you later, then.” Norman grabbed his jacket, put it on, and opened the back door. “I’ll be here by four.”

“That’s good for me,” Hannah told him.

After Norman left, Hannah went back to her baking. The Lemon Curd had cooled enough for her to use it. She’d already spooned on the cream cheese mixture and now it was time for the Lemon Curd. Once each Danish had its Lemon Curd in place, she folded over the corners of the puff pastry, brushed on the egg wash, and sprinkled sugar on top. It didn’t take long at all to bake them, and less than a half hour later, she was through baking. She should probably bake another couple of batches of cookies since she’d sent so many out to the accident scene, but she needed a cup of coffee first. Once she’d poured it, she walked back to the work station, sat down on her favorite stool, and gave a long sigh. She hadn’t slept well last night and she was tired. Perhaps she’d rest her eyes for a moment and then she’d decide which cookies to make next.

It was a movie of the past few months of her life and Hannah didn’t want to watch it. And even though she was more than reticent, she took a seat in the empty theater and sat down. Her favorite song was playing on the soundtrack, the song she’d thought of as their song. Tears began to form in her eyes, but not enough to shed them.

They stood there on the balcony of a Las Vegas hotel, and she shivered slightly even though his arms were warm around her. It was quiet, the early silence that comes before dawn. The sunrise was coming, but the sky was dark and inky black, the black of loss, the black of supreme tragedy.

And slowly enough to be almost imperceptible, a faint hint of colors began to appear on the horizon. The sun was preparing to rise and with it would come the sorrows of the day, the day that she had promised to go to the airport with him to say goodbye.

“I love to watch the sunrise,” he said softly. “It’s like a resurrection for me. I can forget the mistakes I made in the past because everything is fresh and new again. And if I try, I have the power to make it the best day of my life.”

Hannah didn’t say anything. She didn’t have to. She simply turned and kissed him as the music came to a crescendo and the screen shifted to the next scene.

One more kiss and he was walking away through the checkpoint, leaving her with tears in her eyes that threatened to spill down her cheeks. She stood there, unable to force her legs to move for several minutes, and then, finally, she turned away. He was gone and she felt bereft.

Hannah sighed. She’d never felt so alone. She knew he was coming back in a week, but that didn’t really help right now. Ross was gone and she felt desolate.

“Excuse me, miss.” One of the TSA agents, the one Ross had talked to while he was waiting for his shoes and carry-on, approached her. “Please come with me.”

“Come with you . . . where?”

“To the scanner.”

“But . . . I’m not flying anywhere. I just came here to see someone . . .” Hannah paused as she spotted Ross on the other side of the scanner. “There he is, the man I brought to the airport. What’s happening?”

“It’ll be fine,” the agent said, smiling at her. “Just follow me, please.”

Ross was beckoning to her. If he wanted her to follow the TSA agent, she would. The agent led her to the scanner, and he motioned for Ross to come through. “You’d better ask her in a hurry,” he said to Ross. “Your flight leaves in ten minutes.”

Ross hurried through the scanner and folded his arms around Hannah. “I couldn’t leave without asking you,” he told her.

“Without asking me what?”

Ross took both of her hands in his and dropped to one knee. “Hannah Louise Swensen . . . will you marry me?”

“Oh!” Hannah gasped. Suddenly, her knees began to shake and then she was kneeling on the floor by Ross. His arms closed around her, his lips met hers, and Hannah knew she’d never felt so happy in her whole life.

The kiss seemed to last for eons, but then they heard the sound of applause. Hannah and Ross looked up to see a circle of TSA agents surrounding them and clapping.

The refrain of their song gained volume, and Hannah did her best to swallow the lump in her throat as the scene changed again. It was her wedding day and she was in the back of a garbage truck, stuck in the dumpster where she’d hidden from the killer who’d attempted to make her his next victim. No time to dress in her wedding gown, no time for Michelle and Andrea to do her hair, no time to pack for the Mexican Riviera cruise she’d been awarded for winning the Dessert Chef Contest.

Of course Mike had come through. He’d stopped the garbage truck, he and the driver had extricated her from the depths of the dumpster, and she’d run down the aisle of the church, decorated with butter wrappers, spaghetti sauce, and various unidentified food items clinging to her jeans and sweatshirt.

She still remembered Grandma Knudson’s comment. “That’s our Hannah,” she’d said. The congregation had laughed, Grandma Knudson had taken them down to the church basement for coffee and cookies, and Andrea, Michelle, and their mother had taken Hannah off to the parsonage to get cleaned up and ready to become Ross’s bride.

Their honeymoon had been wonderful. There were new things to see, places to visit, food to eat, and long nights of love to enjoy. Hannah remembered thinking that she’d never been so happy. But it hadn’t lasted, at least not that long.

Less than a month later, Hannah had come home from work to find Ross gone. No note, no message on her answer phone, just his missing suitcases and most of his clothes. She’d been panic-stricken. What had h. . .