Free Along Came A Needle: A Mercy Mares Cozy Mystery by Ava Mallory Page A

furrowed and his lips pursed.
     
    “That's just great! What did you do to Alice? You know, I'll never hear the end of it when I get home, don't you? Geez, I recommended her, remember? She's my wife's cousin. I mean, they are close, so this is going to fall on me.” Calvin shook his head.
     
    “She'll be fine. She was duly compensated. We just weren't seeing eye to eye on some things and I had to remind her that I was in charge, not her.” Chip answered.
     
    Calvin pulled a seat out from the table. “You can't do that, can you, Chip? You can't have your guests doing the cooking. That's ridiculous.” He looked at me, seated next to him. “No offense, but I just don't think it's a good idea. I'm sure you're a good cook, but this just doesn't seem right.”
     
    I understood his trepidation. I felt the same way. I thought for sure that someone would come in and shut the place down, but until that happened, I'd give it a shot and, hopefully, use the opportunity to do some digging and find out what was really happening here.  Even if Flynn was dead, that doesn't explain what or who I saw in his office. I don't know why it bothered me so much. It wasn't my concern, but at the same time, I felt like I could do something to make sense of it all, if not for Chip, but for myself.
     
    “Mercy is a great cook!” Ruby exclaimed to my surprise. I thought she was against me volunteering to take over the kitchen. She winked in my direction. “She just loves catering to others and she'll bend over backwards to make sure everyone is satisfied. She's just that kind of person.”
     
    I shot her a sideways glance across the table. “Your sarcasm is showing,” I said. Paul, Annie, and Jessica ended their silence and started laughing.
     
    “Don't encourage her,” Ruby groaned.
     
    “So, it's settled then,” Chip said, putting his hands together. “If you really want to help, I'd love to have you.”
    And, it was official. In the span of twenty-four hours I went from an exhausted nurse, just anxious for some time off to one of a few witnesses to a strange death – if that's what it was – and, now, a cook at The Felon House Bed and Breakfast. Yep, I was just making friends and taking numbers all over the place.
     
    “What about health codes?” Calvin protested.
     
    I spoke up, using the information that Aldo and his creepy wife, Thalia, had given me. “Aldo said he'd have no problem with me stepping in temporarily.”
     
    “Just what am I supposed to tell my wife and Alice, for that matter?” Calvin's face reddened with frustration.
     
    Chip huffed. “You don't have to tell them anything. What's done is done and like Ms. Mares said, she's already been approved for duty. He nodded at me approvingly.
     
    Jessica, Paul, and Annie watched in stunned silence. I could only imagine what they were thinking. Their dream vacations hadn't lived up to expectation and, now, a slightly irritated, grumpy nurse was going to be preparing their meals for the remainder of their stay.
     
    “Shall we get you started?” Chip asked me, ignoring Calvin's moaning and groaning. “I'll show you around the kitchen and get you familiar with where things are before our next guest arrives.”
     
    “Next guess?” I asked. He was seriously opening the doors to more guests right now?
     
    He smiled, looking over his shoulder at the others. “A young man phoned me earlier about needing a room in a hurry. I guess his vacation plans fell through, so I offered him a room here. I believe he's a local, but I'm not quite sure yet and it doesn't really matter.”
     
    Open the floodgates, why don't you? I was all for keeping the business open, but that was just for my own benefit, so I could do some snooping... I mean, looking around, not to invite other people to his controlled chaos. That didn't sound like a good idea at all.
     
    The swinging kitchen doors swung open behind us as he showed me where all of the kitchen utensils and cookware were.