Hearty Homestyle Murder: Book 9 in The Darling Deli Series by Patti Benning Read Free Book Online Page A

one of the private investigator’s favorite places to order food. The long-time bachelor nearly always ordered the same dish, so Moira was confident.
    “He’ll want the Kung Pao Chicken, medium spicy,” she told her daughter. “And I’ll take the sesame noodles with shrimp. Here, hand me my purse—I’ll pay.”
    “I’ve got it,” Candice said with a smile. “You paid for my food for the first eighteen years of my life. I think I can return the favor for this one meal.”
    Chuckling, Moira let her daughter win and returned to the article that she was reading on her tablet. The article, from the Maple Creek newspaper, speculated on why the mayor’s son had been killed. The reporter had managed to dig up every piece of dirt on the young man, as far back as his high school detentions. According to the reporter, each infraction could be the reason for his murder, including the time he had gotten a ticket for going ten miles per hour over the speed limit in a school zone. Although she couldn’t take the piece seriously, reading it still made Moira uncomfortable. Reuben’s death was one of the highest profile murders that Maple Creek had ever had, and the public would be quick to blame anyone who seemed even slightly connected to the murder. What would happen if this same reporter got wind of her interview with the police?
    “All right, I ordered our food. I’m going to drive over to get it. Do you want to come along?” Candice asked.
    “Sure.” Moira shut off her tablet and forced a smile onto her face. “Let’s go. I’m pretty hungry too.”
    And hour later she, Candice, and David were sitting, stuffed, around Candice’s kitchen table. Styrofoam trays and plastic forks were strewn about, but there weren’t many leftovers. Hong Kong Fortunes was one of the best Chinese restaurants around. Moira was glad that it was in Lake Marion and not Maple Creek; if it was any closer to her house, she would probably stop there for dinner more often than she should.
    “Have you heard from anyone about Keeva yet?” David asked as he began piling the trash together.
    “No,” she told him. “Not even a single phone call. No one seems to know whose she is.”
    The Irish wolfhound had settled in nicely at Moira’s place. She got along well with both Maverick and Diamond, and hadn’t so much as chewed up a single shoe. She was about as perfectly behaved as a dog could be, and the deli owner would be sad to see her go. If no one ever claims her, I’ll probably keep her , she thought. Maverick could use a friend, and after Martha picked Diamond up in a few days the house would be considerably more quiet.
    “She seemed like a great dog when I met her,” Candice said. “I wonder why her owners aren’t looking for her.”
    “Maybe her owners live in another town and lost her while they were traveling,” David said. “Maybe you should post her online. There are some websites dedicated to reuniting lost pets with their owners.”
    “I’ll help you,” her daughter volunteered. “Just send me some pictures of her, and I can post her online for you.”
    “Sure. Whatever it takes to find her owners,” Moira said, though she found herself selfishly hoping that Keeva remained unclaimed.
    “How have things been going with you?” she asked David. “Any interesting cases?” She hadn’t seen him since the weekend; between taking care of the three dogs, working at the deli, and worrying over her police interview, she had had hardly any time for a social life.
    “Nothing new.” He hesitated. “Well, I did have an interesting meeting with a potential client.”
    “What about?”
    “It was with Mayor Willis,” he said. “He wanted to hire me to investigate his son’s murder… but once he learned that I was involved with you, he left in a huff.”
    “Oh my gosh, really?” Moira was stunned. She understood that Mayor Willis was a grieving parent, but how could he honestly think she had something to do with