Free Mobsters and Lobsters (A Hooked & Cooked Cozy Mystery Series Book 2) by Lyndsey Cole

Sherry. “I’ll need statements from each of you, so make yourselves comfortable.” She waved her hand toward the ocean. “Enjoy the view while you wait.”
    More police cars, fire trucks, an ambulance, and every volunteer in town descended on Hannah’s small snack bar. Yesterday was terrible, but today was already turning into a nightmare and it wasn’t even ten o’clock in the morning. She looked at her poor snack bar waiting for the last beam to be replaced. It looked like it was impossible that she’d be able to open on time as she watched Pam unroll the yellow police tape.
    “This couldn’t be much worse,” Hannah heard Ruby whisper in her ear. “What am I going to tell Pam? If I continue the lie, and she knows it’s a lie, I’ll look guilty. But if I tell her I lied and why, I’ll still look guilty.”
    “You have an alibi—you, me, and Olivia were all sleeping in the bedroom together.”
    Ruby stood wringing her hands. “I went outside after you fell asleep. Just to sit and listen to the waves. The sound relaxes me.”
    “Pam doesn’t have to know that.”
    “I think Rocky saw me. He was outside too.”
    “Where?”
    “By the snack bar.”
    A piece of paper blew up against Hannah’s leg. She picked it up. “I hate it when people just throw their trash on the ground.” She glanced at it quickly, then turned away from everyone and grabbed Ruby’s arm “Look at this. We have to compare this to the map on Lenny’s camera. Was he under the snack bar looking for the treasure?”
    Hannah paced and Ruby clenched her hands. Cal worked on the picnic tables for outside the snack bar. Jack tried to follow his daughter around, giving her advice about what to look for until she told him to get lost.
    Finally, Pam rounded everyone up to question them one by one. Alone in Hannah’s office. Starting with Sherry.
    While Hannah waited for her turn, she talked to Jack. “Look what I found.” She passed him the folded up map. “Don’t let anyone else see it.”
    Jack sat on a big rock at the edge of the parking area. His eyes met Hannah’s after he spent a minute looking at the front and back, then the front of the map again. “Where’d you find this?”
    “I thought it was a piece of trash blowing in the wind. Should I tell Pam?”
    Jack rubbed his chin. “You should come clean with her. She’ll find out everything eventually. Ruby too. This so-called buried treasure could be key to the murders.”
    “Murders? What are you talking about?” Hannah’s eyes narrowed.
    “The other guy? Found yesterday morning? He didn’t drown. It was in the news this morning.”
    Hannah blinked. “How did he die?”
    “Stabbed.”

Chapter 10
     
    Petunia trotted her little feet right through the middle of all the detectives and disappeared under the snack bar.
    “Oh dear,” Hannah heard Pearl say to Rocky. “I better get over there and retrieve Petunia before she upsets someone.”
    “Too late for that,” Jack said to Hannah and Ruby, with a smile plastered on his face. “This should be interesting.”
    Pearl, with her flowing colorful muumuu streaming behind, marched over to the group of detectives. “I need to get my little Petunia.”
    “Huh?”
    Pearl’s brows shot up and her mouth dropped open. “Are you deaf? I have to get my Petunia.” She pointed to the snack bar. “She’s under there.”
    The second detective took Pearl’s arm, firmly, and pulled her away. “What are you talking about? This is a murder scene. You can’t go over there and contaminate the area.”
    “Hey, there’s a pig coming out from under the floor. Where’d that pig come from?” the first detective shouted.
    Pearl stomped her foot. “That’s Petunia. If you had listened to me in the first place, you’d know that. Keep your voices down or you’ll scare her.”
    The two detectives stared at each other, obviously at a loss for words about Petunia and, most likely, Pearl, too. “Okay lady, the pig’s gotta go.