Chocolate Chip Cookie Murder Part 33

"They'd get on the road?" Hannah picked up on the plural. get on the road?" Hannah picked up on the plural.

"The three of them. Deana is Candy's mother. I told you that already. And then there's Deana's new husband, Larry. And his daughter, Allison."

Hannah looked thoughtful. "When did Candy's mother get married again?"

"The day before Candy ran away. And I know what you're thinking, Hannah. I'm pretty sure that has a lot to do with it, too."

Hannah sighed, her heart going out to the teenager whose life had changed so drastically in the past year. "A death in the family, a new stepdad, and a new stepsister. That's bound to upset anybody. Did Candy leave a note?"

"Yes, and Deana's bringing it with her. She said she cries every time she reads it."

Mommy, I love you so much, and I just want you to be happy. I know you love Larry and he makes you laugh the way Dad used to do. I'm really glad you married him. He's been good about not trying to take Dad's place and I know he doesn't mind it if I call him Larry instead of Dad. If it was just you and Larry, I think we'd be okay. But it isn't.

I can't compete with Allison. Larry says she's perfect and she's won all those awards. He told me that she's beautiful, and she sings better than anyone on television, and she makes the honor roll all the time. She's totally different than I am. And Larry is going to compare me to her even if he tries not to.

It's not going to work, Mom. I'm never going to be able to sing, and play the flute, and make the honor roll every time. That's why I have to leave. Allison is going to hate me because I'm not like her. And then we'll fight and you'll stick up for me. That's going to cause trouble between you and Larry, and I don't want you to have to choose between us.

Don't worry about me. I'll find a job and be okay. I look older than I am and I'm not afraid of hard work. When Allison graduates and goes off to college, I'll come back for a visit. And every once in a while, I'll write to you to let you know that I'm all right.

Please don't try to find me, Mom. It'll ruin everything.

I love you, Candy

Hannah looked up to find three people staring at her over the coffee table in what Sally had named The Sunflower Suite by virtue of the pattern in the living room wallpaper. The three pairs of concerned eyes belonged to Deana, Larry, and Allison.

"It's my fault," Larry said, frowning. He was an attractive man with gla.s.ses and a neat little beard. "I wanted her to like Allison and I guess I went overboard when it came to describing her."

The woman who looked like an older version of Candy shook her head. "It's more my fault than yours. I should have realized that Candy would be upset about sharing with another teenager her age. It's a real adjustment. From the time she was a little girl, she's always had all my attention."

Hannah glanced at Allison, who sat with downcast eyes. She was nice looking, a bit overweight, but well dressed in designer sportswear. She wasn't the beautiful girl that Candy had written about in her note, and Hannah was willing to bet the farm that she wasn't a great singer or an academic genius either.

"What do you think about this whole thing, Allison?"

"I wish she hadn't run away," Allison said, and Hannah could hear the hurt in her voice. "Dad always makes me out to be better than I am. That's because he loves me and he can't see my faults. But I'm a real person, and Candy would have seen that if she'd stuck around long enough to meet me. We could have been friends if she'd given me a chance."

That was what Hannah was waiting to hear and she jumped in with both feet. "I'm going to give you the chance."

"How are you going to do that?"

"You're going to meet Candy in a neutral place and see if you can get along."

"That won't work," Allison shook her head. "She's already decided she doesn't want anything to do with me."

Hannah smiled as her plan crystalized. The idea had begun to take form when Allison had said the two girls had never met. "Candy won't know who you are. You've never met, right?"

"That's right. She ran away the day before I got to Des Moines."

"Has she ever seen a picture of you?"

"I don't think so. And if she has, it's an old one. I didn't like my school pictures this year, and they were even worse last year. When I got them, I tore them up and didn't give them out to anybody, not even Dad."

"Perfect." Hannah turned to Larry. Can you stay over until Sat.u.r.day morning?"

"Of course we can. We'll stay as long as it takes to convince Candy to come back to Des Moines with us."

"I want to see my daughter," Deana said, and Hannah could tell she was on the verge of tears.

"I know you do, but it's not going to work if you just walk in on her. She might bolt and then none of us would ever find her again. I've got a plan, but you'll have to be a little patient while I arrange some things."

"How long do I have to be patient?"

"Twenty-four hours. Tomorrow night is Sally's big Christmas party. She has one every year. Everybody who's staying at the inn is invited, and so are a lot of locals from Lake Eden. I'm bringing Candy." Hannah leaned forward and lowered her voice. "Now here's what I think we should do..."

Candy loved to shop and she couldn't seem to stop smiling. They'd gone out the front door of The Cookie Jar and into the next building over. There were party dresses on the mannequins in the window, and Hannah had said they were going to buy something for her to wear to the party tomorrow night.

Mom would love this place! Candy thought, looking around at the thick carpet, the soft lighting, and the closets filled with clothing. There were no racks crowded together and stuffed with clothes that were half off their hangers. Everything was in its own closet, and each closet was marked with a little gold number that told you the size. And instead of just going through the closets by yourself, you told the owner what you needed and asked her to help you choose it. Candy thought, looking around at the thick carpet, the soft lighting, and the closets filled with clothing. There were no racks crowded together and stuffed with clothes that were half off their hangers. Everything was in its own closet, and each closet was marked with a little gold number that told you the size. And instead of just going through the closets by yourself, you told the owner what you needed and asked her to help you choose it.

There were chairs in a conversational grouping in the center of the room, and Candy supposed they were for husbands or friends who wanted to wait while you tried on something and then walked out to model it. Candy was sitting in a pink satin chair while Hannah sat across from her in a pale green chair. The owner was standing at one of the closets, making a selection, and as Candy watched, she chose a dress and carried it over to them.

"This should be nice on you, Candy." The owner was holding the most beautiful dress Candy had ever seen. "I think wine is your color. You need a deep, rich color with your skin and hair, don't you think?"

"Oh, yes," Candy breathed. One glance at the dress and she was in love. She would have agreed that the world was flat as long as she got the chance to try it on.

"Do you need any help?" Hannah asked her.

"No, thanks. I can manage." Candy held out her arms for the dress and tried to keep from skipping as she walked back to the fitting rooms. It was as light as a feather and it shimmered in her hands.

It took only a second to peel off her jeans and sweater. And then carefully, oh, so carefully, Candy unzipped the dress and lowered it over her head. As it settled into place, she thought she could hear strains of beautiful music. She zipped it up, twirled around on the b.a.l.l.s of her feet, and gave a delighted little laugh as she saw her reflection in the mirror. She looked gorgeous, not like herself at all. And she looked older, at least seventeen, and maybe even the twenty she'd told Hannah and Norman she was. She was Cinderella, and she was going to the ball!

"Let's see, Candy," Hannah called out, and Candy hurried out of the dressing room to show her.

"It's lovely on you," the owner of the shop said, but Candy was concerned about Hannah. Her new friend was buying her this dress and there wasn't any price tag. Candy had heard of sticker shock when people saw the prices of new cars. Was this dress so expensive that they had to hide the cost?

"You've got a great eye, Claire," Hannah complimented the owner. And then she turned to Candy. "It looks absolutely wonderful, and I think we should get it for the party tomorrow. What do you think?"

"It's beautiful," Candy said, sighing deeply. "But...is it too expensive?"

"No."

Both the owner and Hannah spoke at once, and then they burst out laughing. Even Candy had to smile.

"Claire gives me a discount because I'm her next-door neighbor," Hannah explained.

"It's only fair," the owner said. "Hannah brings me free cookies whenever she bakes my favorites."

Candy gave a delighted laugh, she was so happy. She was getting the dress of her dreams and it made her look like a princess. The only thing that could make this moment even more wonderful would be if Mom could see her now.

Chapter Ten.

Candy had just refilled the carafe and was preparing to make the rounds of the tables when a pretty, very pregnant lady came in. "May I help you?" Candy asked, precisely the way Lisa and Hannah had coached her.

"Don't I wish! I need to see Hannah. Is she in the kitchen?"

"Yes, she is. But..."

"Hi, Sally," Lisa came up and took the carafe out of Candy's hand. "I'll do the coffee. You go see if you can round up any more Cherry Winks. We're running out. And take Sally back to the kitchen with you so she can talk to Hannah."

"I'm Sally, and I run the Lake Eden Inn," Sally said as Candy led her toward the kitchen.

"And I'm Candy. I'm helping Hannah and Lisa out over the holidays. Are you the one giving the big party tonight?"

"That's me. Or maybe I should say, 'That was was me.'" Sally gave a little sigh as Candy pushed through the kitchen door and held it for her. me.'" Sally gave a little sigh as Candy pushed through the kitchen door and held it for her.

Hannah looked up from the tray of Lovely Lemon Cookie Bars she was cutting and nodded to Sally. "What are you doing here? I thought you'd be decorating for the party."

"I would be if I had some help. But I don't."

"I don't understand. You said you were going to hire three high school girls."

"I did, and all three of them called to cancel this morning. One's sick, one's grounded because she got home late from her date, and the third one slipped on the ice and broke her thumb. I managed to find one girl who said she'd help out, but she can't do it alone."

Hannah glanced at Candy. "Do you want to help Mrs. Laughlin and this other girl decorate for the party?"

"Sure, if you can spare me. But I don't know if I'd be any good at decorating."

"If you can throw tinsel at a tree and make it stick, you're good enough for me," Sally told her.

"Okay, then." Hannah grabbed Candy's parka and tossed it at her. "I'll pick you up in the lobby at five-thirty so we can drive back to the condo and get dressed. Sound good?"

Candy nodded. "Fine with me."

Thanks, Hannah," Sally said, and then she turned to Candy. "And thank you you, Candy. My car's parked in front and the clock's ticking. Let's go do it."

"Candy? Meet Sonny." Sally turned to the girl who was waiting in the lobby for them when they arrived at the inn. "Sonny? Meet Candy."

"Hi, Sonny," Candy said, giving the other girl a tentative smile. She was a little overweight and she wore a knit slacks-and-sweater outfit that was much too good for putting up decorations, but she looked friendly enough.

"Glad to meet you," Sonny said, returning the smile.

"Sonny has the pictures," Sally told her. "My husband hired a photographer to take photos of the decorations last year. We want it just the same, except we decided to use multicolored lights on the trees instead of white. And we want gold b.a.l.l.s instead of silver."

"Got it," Sonny said, and Candy was glad. Since she hadn't seen the pictures, she didn't really know what Sally was talking about.

"Come with me and I'll get you started," Sally said, and the two girls followed her to the dining room. She flicked on the lights and gestured toward the boxes that were stacked against the back wall. "Everything you need should be in those boxes. The busboys set up the tables this morning, and all you have to do is put on the tablecloths and the centerpieces. And that reminds me...on the centerpieces, take off the silver bows and replace them with gold."

"Where will you be if we have a question?" Sonny asked.

"In the kitchen. Just go out the door we came in and turn right. It's at the end of the hallway behind the swinging doors."

"Thanks, Mrs. Laughlin," Candy said, hoping that she would be up to the job.

"It's Sally. There's a cooler of soft drinks in the corner and I'll have one of my staff bring out a snack in an hour or so to keep up your energy."

Once Sally had left, Candy gazed around at the bare tables that dotted the s.p.a.ce and the dozen six-foot Christmas trees that sat in their stands, waiting for ornamentation. "It's a huge job," she said with a groan.

"Relax. It won't be that bad," Sonny told her. "We've got five hours."

"And we're going to need every second of it. Do you have those pictures so we know what it's supposed to look like when we're through?"

"Right here," Sonny plunked a folder on the table. Then she sat down in one of the chairs and motioned for Candy to take the other. "Let's spread out the pictures and leave them right here for reference. That way we won't make any mistakes."

"Good idea." Candy was impressed.

"Thank you. I'm not just another pretty face."

Candy burst out laughing and then she wished she hadn't. What if she'd hurt Sonny's feelings? But she hadn't because Sonny was laughing too. "Do you think we should work together? Or start in opposite corners and meet in the middle?"

"We should work together. That way all the decorations will look the same. Besides, it'll be more fun. What should we do first? The tables or the trees?"

Candy thought about that for a moment. "We should do the trees. That way we can use the tables to hold the boxes with the b.a.l.l.s and the lights. They're probably dusty, especially if they were in storage all year."

"Good idea! You're not just another pretty face, either. Except you are."

"Are what?"

"Pretty. I'd kill for hair like yours. Mine's straight as a board."