Carrot Cake Murder Part 8

"Tell me about it! But that's only one of the things we fought about." Patsy glanced over at Hannah. "I don't want to bore Hannah with the details. Hand me the onions and celery, will you, Marge? I'll chop them up and start frying them."

Hannah could see that Patsy was uncomfortable, and Marge didn't look exactly calm and serene, either. Since they were already upset, she figured she might as well introduce another upsetting subject.

"You know that I found Gus, don't you?" When both sisters nodded, Hannah went on. "Are there any questions that you'd like to ask me about how he died?"

Marge and Patsy turned to each other and frowned. "Not really," Marge answered. "The police told us everything we needed to know."

Hannah just stared from one to the other in surprise. Usually the victim's relatives wanted to know everything.

"To tell you the truth, Hannah, none of the relatives really liked him all that well," Patsy confided.

"Why?"

"Well..." Marge took over. "He just wasn't like the brother we remember. His personality was completely different."

"In what way?"

"He bragged a lot, and he flashed money around. People from Minnesota don't usually do that," Patsy explained. "And he seemed to think he was a lot better than we were. It was like he was amused by us."

"But he came back to see all of you when he saw the notice of the reunion in the paper."

Both Marge and Patsy shook their heads. "No, he didn't," Marge insisted. "Lisa and Herb didn't put any notices in the paper. All they did was mail out invitations to the relatives in our address books."

"So how did Gus find out about it?" Hannah was puzzled.

"We think he must have seen the posters that Lisa and Herb put up on Main Street," Patsy answered.

"You mean, he just stumbled on the reunion when he came back to see his long-lost family?"

"Came back to gloat is more like it," Patsy commented.

"Patsy!" Marge chided her.

"Well, it's true. We both know Gus wasn't like that when he left. He was a little wild, but that was because Mom and Dad spoiled him."

"The high school girls didn't help. The way they fell all over him made him pretty full of himself." Marge gave a little sigh. "He was never a bad person, though...at least not back then."

For the second time in less than an hour, Hannah kept her expression perfectly blank. Maybe Gus hadn't been a bad person when he'd left Lake Eden, but the years that had pa.s.sed had turned him into someone she wouldn't describe as nice. A nice person didn't talk about all he had to the have-nots in Lake Eden. A nice person didn't try to control everything, or order other people to wait on him hand and foot. A nice person would have made allowances for Jack Herman when he learned that Jack had Alzheimer's. Gus knew about it. Hannah had heard Marge mention it to her brother. But Gus had still faced off against Jack the night of the dance.

"Maybe Gus changed over the years," Hannah offered, since they seemed to be waiting for her to say something.

Marge exchanged glances with Patsy. "Or maybe there's another explanation," she said.

"What's that?"

"Neither one of us is sure he really was our brother Gus."

"You think he was pretending to be your brother Gus?"

"We don't know, for sure." It was Patsy who answered this time. "We had a family meeting while you were in talking to Mike. Some of the relatives thought he was Gus, but the others were positive he wasn't."

Hannah felt knocked completely off balance. She hadn't expected this turn of events! "If he was an imposter, he was a good one. He seemed to know a lot about your brother's life."

"Not that much, really." Patsy shook her head. "We compared notes, and all he really knew were the basics. We think maybe he knew Gus and that's why he was so good at pretending to be him. Marge could pretend to be me around people who hadn't seen me for over thirty years. n.o.body would know the difference."

"How about his appearance? Did he look like your brother?"

Marge nodded. "We think so, but Mac pointed out that any guy just under six feet tall with dark blond hair who was close to the same age could pa.s.s for Gus."

"Did Mac know him well?"

"Oh, yes. They were on several sports teams together at Jordan High."

"Did your brother have any distinguishing features, like moles or birthmarks, or anything like that?" Hannah asked Patsy.

"Nothing."

"How about scars from accidents or operations?"

"He didn't have anything other than the usual sc.r.a.pes and cuts from playing baseball, and they would have healed a long time ago," Marge answered her. "And he never had surgery that we know about."

"Do you have any idea why someone would try to impersonate your brother?" Hannah asked the critical question.

"No," Patsy answered. "I mean, it's not like there was an inheritance for him to collect or anything like that."

"Marge?" Hannah turned to her.

"I don't know, either. But we all agree on one thing," Marge gave Hannah a long, level look. "We want you to find out for us."

FUNERAL HOTDISH "Anniversary Hotdish"

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F., rack in the middle position.

Or Use an 18-quart electric roaster set to 350 degrees F.

Hannah's 1st Note: Joyce says this is easiest with three people helping: one person to chop and saute the celery and onions, one person to brown the hamburger, and one person to cook the pasta and mix the sauce.

Start by spraying the inside of your pan, or the electric roaster with Pam or another nonstick cooking spray. (I used a great big disposable turkey roaster sprayed with Pam.) 1 bunch of celery (approximately 10 stalks) 3 large onions (We used four because we love onion) 6 pounds lean hamburger (We used 8 pounds because we like it beefier) 2 two-pound boxes elbow macaroni (for a total of four pounds-Joyce's Funeral Committee uses Creamettes Elbow Macaroni) 1 large can (50-ounces) Campbell's tomato soup, undiluted 2 large cans (46-ounces each) Campbell's tomato juice 1 large bottle ( 46-ounces) catsup (the Swanville Funeral Committee uses Heinz Ketchup) 1 Tablespoon brown sugar 1 teaspoon ground black pepper (freshly ground is best, of course) Clean and chop the celery into bite-size pieces. Put them in a frying pan with a little b.u.t.ter and start cooking them over low heat, stirring occasionally.

Peel and chop the onions into bite-sized pieces. Add them to the frying pan with the celery and continue to cook them, stirring occasionally, until they're translucent.

Brown the hamburger over medium heat. Be sure to "chop" it with a spoon or heat-resistant spatula so it browns in bite-size pieces. (Joyce and her committee do this in a pan in the oven.) Drain the browned hamburger, and rinse off the fat by putting the meat in a strainer and spraying it with warm water. (We drained the hamburger, but we forgot to rinse it off with warm water-it was good anyway.) Cook the elbow macaroni according to the directions on the box. DO NOT OVERCOOK. (Joyce's committee does not salt the water, but we did.) Drain it and set it aside.

Combine the undiluted tomato soup, the tomato juice, and the catsup. Mix in the brown sugar and the pepper. (Joyce's committee does this right in the electric roaster and then heats it before they add the other ingredients. We mixed up our sauce in the bottom of the disposable turkey roaster and didn't heat it before we added the other ingredients.) Add the cooked celery and onions to the sauce and stir them in.

Stir in the hamburger.

Add the cooked, drained macaroni and mix well.

Once everything is thoroughly mixed, cover the disposable roaster with heavy duty foil and put it into a 350-degree F. oven for 2 hours, stirring occasionally so that it heats evenly and doesn't stick to the bottom. (If you used an electric roaster, put on the lid, turn it up to 350 degrees F., and cook it for 2 hours, stirring occasionally so that it heats evenly and doesn't stick to the bottom of the roaster.) Joyce's Note: Joyce says to tell you that cooking the hotdish for 2 hours is mainly to blend the flavors since everything is precooked.

Hannah's 2ndNote: When we made this for the family reunion, we sprinkled shredded Parmesan cheese on the top before we served it. Marge says if she ever makes it at home, she's going to add pitted black olives to the sauce, because Herb and Jack like them so much. She's also going to make garlic bread to go with it.

Yield: The Swanville St. Peter's Lutheran Church Funeral Committee says this recipe will serve 75, but they always serve plenty of other side dishes with it. If you plan to use Funeral Hotdish as your only main course, I wouldn't expect it to serve more than two-dozen people, especially if they're really hungry.

Chapter Ten.

"You're going to take the case, aren't you?" Mich.e.l.le asked, looking young and gorgeous in white shorts to show off her tan and a pink camisole top that played peek-a-boo with her waistband. Her light brown hair was brushed back into a high ponytail held in place with a pink scrunchy, and she looked as if she were still in junior high, except for the fact that her figure was one that most junior high girls would envy.

"I'm taking the case. Lisa already asked me. And Marge and her sister asked for my help, too." Hannah took out another head of cauliflower and plunked it on the cutting board. Edna Ferguson, the head cook at Jordan High, had arrived to join the ladies in the Thompson cottage kitchen, and Hannah had gone to her mother's cottage to make the salad for the buffet table.

"I like Patsy." Andrea adjusted the straps of her gaily flowered, polished cotton sundress. It had an old-fashioned bolero jacket, and it was part of Claire's fifties collection. Hannah had seen it in the window of Beau Monde Fashions.

"We met Pasty when we were walking over here." Mich.e.l.le explained. "She said she could tell at a glance that we were sisters."

Hannah didn't comment, but she knew it was true. Anyone who saw Andrea and Mich.e.l.le together was struck by the family resemblance. And if you added Delores to the mix, you could tell they'd inherited their pet.i.te figures and lovely features from her.

"What size is that top?" Andrea asked Mich.e.l.le.

"A five."

"It looks smaller than that. I wear a five and it looks too tight for me."

"It's a little too tight for me, too," Mich.e.l.le admitted. "I washed it in hot water and it shrunk. I guess it's probably more like a size three now."

Hannah, who'd been listening to their conversation without comment, came very close to groaning. She hadn't worn a size three since preschool. While her sisters had gotten Hannah's share of their mother's pet.i.te beauty genes, Hannah had inherited her tall, gangly frame and tendency to be a bit overweight, right along with her frizzy red hair and freckles, directly from their father.

"You look nice today, Hannah," Mich.e.l.le said, as if she'd suddenly realized that Hannah was feeling left out of the conversation.

Andrea, who was always socially aware, picked up on Mich.e.l.le's cue. "Yes, you do. I like that shade of green on you."

"Thanks," Hannah said, glancing down at the forest green blouse that she'd paired with tan cotton pants. Forest green was one of her favorite colors. She looked up to see Mich.e.l.le watching her, and she noticed again how much skin her youngest sister was exposing. "You're wearing sunscreen, aren't you?"

"Yes, and mosquito repellent, too. You don't have to worry about me."

"Right." Hannah exchanged a glance with Andrea. She was willing to bet that they were thinking the same thing. Sunburn and mosquito bites were the least of their worries. While there was nothing indecent about the way Mich.e.l.le was dressed, her outfit would be certain to produce a loud chorus of wolf whistles if she walked past a construction site.

"Is Lonnie coming to the potluck tonight?" Andrea asked, mentioning the young sheriff's deputy that Mich.e.l.le had been dating for over a year.

"Yes. And that reminds me...I'd better change clothes. Lonnie doesn't like me to wear this top around other men. He says it makes them s...o...b..r."

As Mich.e.l.le headed off to the bedroom to change, Andrea and Hannah exchanged grins. "I think Lonnie's a good influence on her," Andrea commented.

"You could be right," Hannah agreed.

"Do you need some help chopping those vegetables?"

"Not really. This is the only good knife Mother has." Hannah crossed her fingers to negate the lie, a leftover habit from childhood. Their mother had a whole butcher block full of expensive knives on the counter, and every one was perfectly sharpened. But if she let Andrea help her, her younger, less-culinarily talented sister would probably chop off a finger. And Hannah would much rather tell a little white lie than be responsible for that!

"What are you making?" Andrea stepped closer and peered into the bowl. "I see cauliflower and broccoli chopped up into little pieces. It's got to be some kind of salad."

"It is. It's Sally's Sunny Vegetable Salad. I got the recipe from her last year. Lisa's doing a Caesar with black olives, Edna's fixing macaroni salad, and Marge is making coleslaw."

"And I've got my salad," Andrea said proudly. "It's got cottage cheese and grated onions in green Jell-O."

Hannah tried a few comments to that in her mind. That sounds good, was an outright lie, and That's nice, was too generic. She finally thought of something appropriate to say. "That'll look great with the rest of the salads," she said, just as Mich.e.l.le emerged from the bedroom wearing white slacks and a lavender top with blousy, chiffon sleeves.

"Nice outfit," Andrea complimented their youngest sibling.

"Thanks. Lonnie loves it when I wear purple and white. I think it's because they're the Jordan High colors." Mich.e.l.le walked over to stand next to Hannah. "Can I do anything to help?"

Hannah would have loved to ask Mich.e.l.le to chop up some broccoli, but she'd already told Andrea the fib about the knives. "How about whisking up the dressing?" she suggested. "If Andrea will gather the ingredients, that is. And while you're doing that, I need to ask your opinion about something."

"What's that?" Mich.e.l.le asked, as Andrea brought over the small cooler that Hannah had brought with her.

"Mike says he doesn't mind if I investigate as long as we exchange information. He sounded sincere, but I'm not sure."

"That's because you can't tell with a cop," Mich.e.l.le said quickly. "They don't have to be truthful all the time. I think cop school teaches them how to lie to trick suspects."

Both Hannah and Andrea turned to Mich.e.l.le in surprise. "Do you think Lonnie lies to you?" Hannah asked her.

"Absolutely." Mich.e.l.le gave a little laugh. "Last night he told me that I was the most beautiful woman in the world."

"That's not a lie," Hannah said.

And at almost the same time Andrea asked, "What's wrong with that? You are."

"Thanks, guys," Mich.e.l.le smiled at both of them, "but I know that's not true. Lonnie was lying, pure and simple."

"It wasn't a lie, strictly speaking," Hannah informed her. "Lonnie just exaggerated a bit to flatter you."

Andrea agreed. "Men are allowed to say things like that whether they mean them or not."

"But it usually means they want something," Hannah added.

"Oh, he did," Mich.e.l.le said.

Andrea and Hannah locked eyes. It was clear that both of them were hoping the other one would ask. But the silence lengthened, and finally Hannah broke down.

"Okay, I'll ask," she said. "Are you willing to tell us what Lonnie wanted?"