Free Mummified Meringues by Leighann Dobbs

they are made of cinderblock,” Charlie said. “Unless you refinished them and they put some stucco cement coating on it to pretty it up.”
    “But was yours cinderblock when you moved in?” Lexy asked.
    “I’m not sure.” Charlie tapped the side of his head. “My memory isn’t as good as it used to be. Do you remember, Mona?”
    “I remember looking at it after you started the remodel and the walls were stucco, but I’m not sure if it was that way before,” Nans said.
    Lois’s brows furrowed, causing wrinkles in her wrinkles. She looked at Lexy. “Why is this so important?”
    “The builder claims the basement was raw cinderblocks when he sold it to you. I was thinking if you remembered that it was stucco when you moved in, it would prove he was lying and make him a suspect.”
    “Oh, dear.” Lois looked at Nans. “Well, I wouldn’t want to point the finger at someone who might be innocent if I wasn’t sure. Did the police pinpoint the time of death to a date before we bought the house?”
    “I haven’t heard anything about an exact date, yet,” Lexy said. “But it must have happened before you moved in—otherwise, surely you would have noticed.”
    “Yes, of course,” Lois said. “Well, I’m sorry if we can’t be much help. Our memories are not so good. And I feel just terrible this has happened in our old house … and now you and George have to deal with it.”
    “Jack,” Lexy said.
    “Did you say track? I don’t know if you’re on the right track.” Lois stood up. “If you could pinpoint the timeframe that person was killed, we might be able to help. It seems there was a stranger around the neighborhood and I wonder if he would have had something to do with it.”
    “You mentioned that before, but I don’t see how it could be relevant to this case.” Lexy followed Lois to the door.
    “Now, don’t be too hasty, dear,” Nans said. “We need to consider every angle.”
    Lexy doubted that would be the case. How could a stranger possibly have made a secret room and put a body in the basement without the McDonalds knowing?  
    They said their goodbyes, and Lexy and Nans headed to the car. Nans seemed more interested in getting back to the retirement center in a hurry than she was in talking about the case, so the ride back was quiet. By the time Lexy dropped her off and headed back to the bakery, she was feeling a little down in the dumps.  
    Not only was Nans’ lack of interest in the case disappointing, their trip to the McDonalds’ hadn’t given her any useful information, so she still had nothing concrete with which to nail Tom O’Keefe. She could only hope that her next stop would be more informative.

Chapter Nine

    Cassie was knee deep in customers when Lexy arrived back at the bakery after dropping off Nans. She threw on an apron and rushed out front to help out. She sold several pies, dozens of cookies for take-out and countless scones and muffins for people who wanted to sit at the cafe tables and enjoy the view.  
    The constant rush of customers and chatter occupied her mind, leaving her no time to think about Nans or the mummy case.
    Once the rush subsided, Lexy grabbed a white towel and made her way to the tables to clean up while Cassie re-arranged the bakery case.
    “The ladies said my meringue recipe still needs sugar,” Lexy complained as she wiped the crumbs from the table into her cupped hand.
    “I didn’t try the latest batch—”
    Cassie stopped abruptly, causing Lexy to look up and see her friend looking at her funny … no, not at her—over her shoulder. Lexy turned in the direction of Cassie’s stare and her heart skidded when she saw a small, white-haired woman standing directly across the street. Not just any white hair woman. Lexy recognized her as the woman in the red Mustang—Violet Switzer.
    Lexy’s heart thudded as she realized Violet was staring straight at her. Their eyes met, then Violet raised two fingers, pointed them at her eyes,