Free Pastrami Murder: Book One in The Darling Deli Series by Patti Benning

relieved. “Are you okay? She didn’t shoot you?”
    “No, I’m… well, I’m not hurt.” She had been about to say that she was fine, but that would be a lie. She felt like she would never be fine again. “Are you okay?”
    “Yes… hold on…” He reached into his pocket and tossed a pair of handcuffs to her. Nodding at Danielle, he said, “You know what to do.”
    Shaking all over, Moira gingerly put the gun down on the counter, well out of reach, before approaching the flour-covered young woman who was standing in front of her. Danielle didn’t resist as she put the handcuffs on her, and even after everything Moira couldn’t help feeling bad for her.
    “I’m glad you’re alright,” David said softly when she was done. “When I saw her car in your driveway, I knew that you had figured it out too.”
    “I did, just in time. What now?” she asked, feeling numb as she looked at her former employee in cuffs before her.
    “Now, we call the police,” he said. “I’m sure they’ll be glad to know that we found their murderer.”
     

CHAPTER 20
    When Moira saw the detective come through the front door of her deli, she excused herself and asked Darrin to take care of the customer that she had been speaking to. Business was back to normal—better than normal, in fact. It seemed like everyone in town wanted to talk to the woman who had been held at gunpoint by a killer.
    “It’s good to see this place alive again,” David said when she approached him. “I’m glad things are looking up for you.”
    “I am too. I just wish that it hadn’t come at such a price.” She didn’t know if she would ever be able to recover from the shock of finding out that one of her employees had killed someone. It would be hard to trust someone new after all of this, but with the extra business from all of the publicity that the news had been giving them, and with tourist season looming only a few months away, she would have to hire someone else soon.
    “You never really know people as well as you think you do,” he said softly.
    “Are you still planning on moving?” asked Moira. She found herself hoping that the handsome detective would stay around.
    “Those plans are on hold for now.” He grinned and sat next to her. “I’ve been picking up new clients left and right; it looks like all I needed was some TV face time to inspire people to hire me to solve the mysteries in their lives.”
    “I guess they realized that terrible things can happen even in small towns, and they want someone like you on their side.” She smiled at him. “Thanks for supporting me and helping me figure out the truth, no matter how terrible it was.”
    “It’s all in my job description,” he said.
    “Saving me from being shot isn’t,” Moira said, her tone soft but serious. “So, thank you.”
    “It was my pleasure,” he responded. Neither of them said anything for a moment, and then David cleared his throat. “Well, I should get going. I just wanted to stop in and see how things were. You know where to find me if you manage to get into trouble again.” He shook her hand once more, and then disappeared through the front door. Moira watched him go, feeling a twinge of loneliness for a moment. Then Darrin called her name, Candice walked out of the kitchen with a tray of cold cuts balanced on one hand, and Moira felt herself smile again. She had a lot to be thankful for and a lot to look forward to. Life might not always be easy, but with the people she trusted by her side, she could take it one step at a time.