Hannah Swensen, Lisa's partner at The Cookie Jar.'
'Of course you are, ' Jack said, giving her hand a squeeze. 'I recognized you right off today. And that's your sister?'
Andrea reached out to take his hand. 'Andrea. And this is my daughter . . . '
'Tracey.' Tracey interrupted her mother and promptly took the chair next to Jack. 'I'm four. How old are you?'
'I'm older than that, but I used to have a daughter just your age. Did you know that?'
'Lisa?' Tracey glanced over at Lisa and giggled.
'That's right. Would you like to have a piece of her cake?'
'Yes, please.' Tracey nodded and Lisa served her a piece. Once Tracey had tasted it, she looked up at Lisa and smiled. 'This is the best cinnamon apple coffee cake I ever had. When Daddy says it's okay for The Cookie Jar to open up again, you should bake this for breakfast.'
Lisa looked confused and she turned to Hannah. 'The Cookie Jar is closed?'
'Mrs. Mac got killer there,' Tracey explained, before Hannah could even think about answering, 'and Daddy and Uncle Mike put yellow tape over the doors.'
Andrea shot Hannah and Lisa a warning glance and then she turned to her daughter. 'Tracey, honey, I really think it would be better if ' '
'It's okay, Mommy,' Tracey interrupted, hopping down from her chair and retrieving her plate. 'I'll just go into the other room to finish my cake.' She started off toward the door to the living room, but then she turned back to Lisa's father to explain. 'Mommy never lets me listen when they talk about the really good stuff.'
Jack Herman's eyes twinkled, but he nodded seriously 'I know just what you mean. Hold on a second and I'll go with you.'
'They don't want you to listen either?' Tracey looked surprised.
'I don't think so.' Jack picked up Tracey's glass of milk and pushed back his chair. 'I'll set up a tray for you in the living room. And when you're finished with Lisa's cake, I'll show you my animal collection.'
'That would be nice,' Tracey said, beginning to smile. 'Are your animals real?'
'They look real, but they're carved from pieces of wood. And they're much smaller than real animals.'
Tracey nodded, stepping aside so that Lisa's father could lead the way 'Do you have a hippopotamus? They're my favorites.'
'I don't remember. Let's go look and see.'
Hannah, Andrea, and Lisa kept their lips zipped until Jack had left the room with Tracey. Then Lisa leaned forward across the table. 'Is it true?'
'I'm afraid so.' Hannah sighed deeply. 'Connie Mac was murdered last night while she was baking the Winter Carnival cake. I found her in our pantry when I came in this morning.'
Lisa shivered. 'Good heavens! I didn't like her much, but . . . murdered?'
'Somebody must have liked her even less than you did.'
'I guess! What about Janie? Is she all right?'
'We think so. The only problem is, Janie's disappeared.'
It took a moment for this news to sink in. When it did, Lisa looked worried. 'You don't think she saw the murder and the killer . . . ?'
'No,' Andrea said quickly. 'Janie packed up all her things and left the inn last night. Bill and Mike are looking for her to find out if she saw anything. As of right now, Janie's a suspect.'
Lisa was frowning as she turned to Hannah. 'Are you going to prove that she didn't do it?'
'Yes.'
'That's good. Did they say how long we'd be closed down?'
'Mike wouldn't give me a definite answer, but he admitted that it could be as long as it takes them to catch Connie Mac's killer.'
'I don't like the sound of that.' Lisa looked very worried. 'I guess we'd better find another place to bake.'
'We're working on that. Andrea and I are going to run out to the inn to ask Sally if we can use a couple of her commercial ovens.'
'That's a good idea,' Lisa said, and then she turned to Andrea. 'I'll keep Tracey with me this morning. Dad loves kids, and we'll take her out to some of the Winter Carnival venues with us That'll give you two a chance to set up your headquarters out at the inn.'
'Headquarters?' Andrea looked puzzled.
'For sleuthing. If Sally lets us use her ovens, I'll handle all the baking. The sooner you can catch Connie Mac's killer, the faster we can get back into The Cookie Jar.'
'Something sure smells good!' Andrea exclaimed as they stepped into the rustic lobby of the Lake Eden Inn.
'And how!' Hannah began to smile. 'It must be Sally's breakfast buffet.'
Andrea sat down on the long wooden bench that was attached to the boot rack and pulled off her boots. She placed them on the rack and unzipped her tote bag, preparing to switch to her shoes. 'Hurry up and I'll treat you to breakfast. I didn't get to eat this morning and I'm starving.'
As Hannah joined her sister on the bench, she recalled that Andrea had eaten two large pieces of coffee cake at Lisa's. for someone who never did more than nibble at a slice of toast for breakfast, she was uncharacteristically hungry. Hannah had been off at college when her sister had been pregnant with Tracey, but Bill had mentioned pounds in the first month. Was the stork about to pay another visit to the Todd household?
'What?' Andrea asked, intercepting Hannah's searching look.
'I was just wondering why you're so hungry, that's all,' Hannah explained, shedding her boots and pulling on the pair of suede slip-ons she carried in her purse.
'I'm not, you know.'
'Not what?'
'Pregnant. I saw that look in your eye. You were wondering if you were going to be an aunt again, weren't you?'
Hannah laughed. She was caught dead to rights Andrea had always been able to read her expressions 'It did cross my mind.'
'Well, forget it. It's just the cold weather. My body's telling me to put on an extra layer of fat for insulation.'
'An extra layer?' Hannah glance at her thin and fashionable sister. 'You don't even have layer number one. There's not an ounce of fat on you.'
'That's because I burn it all off. I have a very active metabolism. Remember how you used to make us oatmeal with brown sugar and chocolate chips when I was in high school?'
'Of course I do.'
'You really sold me on breakfast, Hannah. It's my favorite meal.'
'Then why don't you ever make it?'
'The last time I tried to cook oatmeal, it burned on the bottom and I had to throw away the pan. Toast and cold cereal is a lot safer. I can't mess that up.'
Hannah tried to think of something kind to say, but absolutely nothing occurred to her. Andrea was a terrible cook.
'Let's find Sally and offer to help her. That'll give us a chance to ask her some questions.'
'Good idea.' Hannah stood up and followed Andrea past the old-fashioned reservation desk. She glanced at the wall of pigeonholes behind it and noted that there were no keys in the little cubicles. That wasn't a surprise. When she'd talked to Sally a few days ago, she'd mentioned that The Lake Eden Inn was fully booked with Winter Carnival guest, reporters, and the people in Connie Mac's entourage.
Andrea pushed open the door to the large dining room. It was deserted, and she turned to Hannah in surprise. 'Where are all the people?'
'They're still in their rooms,' Hannah told her. 'It's Saturday and Sally doesn't open the buffet until nine.'
'But it's . . . ' Andrea stopped speaking and glanced at her watch. 'It's only eight. I thought it was much later than that.'
Hannah reached out to pat her sister's shoulder. Andrea liked to sleep in on Saturday mornings and she never
