Fudge Cupcake Murder

this.'

    Before Hannah could offer to do it for her, Beatrice pulled on gloves, climbed up the ladder, reached into the bin, and came down with a taillight. 'This is the one that'll fit Bill's car.'

    'Great,' Hannah said, taking the part while Beatrice rolled back the ladder. 'You don't happen to know where the cigarette lighters are, do you? I need one for my truck. It was missing when I bought it.'

    'They're in section twelve. But I didn't know you smoked, Hannah.'

    'I don't. It's just that you never know when you're going to need to light a candle.'

    'That's profound, Hannah. It's a metaphor, right?'

    'I suppose it is, but I was just being practical. You never know when you'll have to light a candle to keep you warm when you're stranded in a snow bank. And, I really don't like that empty hole in the dash. It looks so unfinished.'

    Beatrice gestured for Hannah to follow her and headed toward the front of the shed. 'Here they are,' she said, pointing to a bin on the second tier and handing Hannah a pair of gloves. 'Just reach in and get one. Almost all cigarette lighters are a standard size. Put on the gloves first, though. Ted got a nasty scratch on his arm when he forgot to wear his gloves last week. His shirt had so much blood on it, I had to throw it out.'

    'Jon Walker mentioned it. Ted and I are taking the same kind of antibiotics,' Hannah slipped on the gloves and reached into the bin, 'the really expensive ones.'

    Once Hannah had retrieved the cigarette lighter she wanted, Beatrice led the way back to the office. On the way, she pointed out a box-like structure about the size of a home garage. 'That's our new crusher. Isn't it wonderful?'

    'Yes,' Hannah said, even though she didn't exactly know how a crusher could be wonderful. 'How does it work?'

    'It's open on top and Ted just hoists the car he wants to crush and drops it right in. The sides move in to crush the car and it ends up about the size of a breadbox.'

    A few moments later, they were back in the office. Beatrice was adding up Hannah's purchases when the phone rang. 'Hold on just a second, Hannah. That might be Ted and I want to tell him you figured out the cupcakes.'

    'Ted's Salvage,' Beatrice greeted her caller. 'Oh, hello, honey! Are you and Krista all ready for your big performance tonight?'

    Hannah smiled. It was obvious that Beatrice was talking to her granddaughter, Leah.

    'Oh, dear! Is there anything I can do to help?' Beatrice listened for a moment. 'Of course I can, honey. I'll be there just as soon as your grandpa comes back.'

    'What's the matter?' Hannah asked, as Beatrice hung up the phone.

    'It's Leah. She tore the wing on her bat costume and she can't seem to sew it back on right. And her mother's not home.'

    'So you're going to go over and help her?'

    'Just as soon as Ted gets back. I'd close up right now, but he's waiting for an important shipment of scrap cars. He needs to dismantle them to get the parts he needs for his big customer in Minneapolis. There's no way we want to disappoint him!'

    'He's an important customer?'

    'He accounts for over half of our business. There's no way we could turn a profit if he ordered from someone else.'

    'He must buy a lot of car parts.'

    'I'll say! He faxes every Monday morning with a long list of car parts for Ted to locate and ship to him.'

    'Locate?' Hannah was curious. She knew nothing about the auto salvage business.

    'That's right. I'm not exactly sure how Ted does it, but he must call around to the other auto salvage places to find the things he doesn't have here. I know he always gets all the parts by the end of the week and ships them off on Saturday morning.'

    Something niggled at the back of Hannah's mind, but she couldn't quite put her finger on what it was. There was something she had to ask Beatrice, or Ted. Perhaps she should offer to stay until Ted got back. She might think of it by then.

    'Go and help Leah,' Hannah said, acting on her impulse. 'I'll stay here and wait for Ted. I want to see his face when he tastes those cupcakes.'

    'Are you sure?'

    'I'm positive. Just tell me what to do when the transport comes in.'

    'There's nothing to it,' Beatrice said, grabbing a clipboard and setting it on the counter next to the cash register. 'The driver knows where to unload, so that's no problem. It'll be that area right in front of the big metal shed. That's where Ted does the dismantling.'

    'Got it,' Hannah said.

    'All you have to do is sign the receipt, give it back to the driver, and keep the bill of lading for Ted. Just put it on this clipboard on the counter.'

    'How about customers? Do you want me to try to find the parts they need?'

    Beatrice shook her head. 'That's too much trouble. I don't think you'll have any customers this late, but if you do, just tell them to wait until Ted gets back, or to come back tomorrow. '

    'Will do. Anything else?'

    'One thing. When Ted gets back, tell him what happened with Leah's costume. And then give him a cupcake right away, so he won't be mad at me for leaving. Do you want me to plug in the heater before I go?'

    'No, I don't think I'll need it. I'll just run out to the truck to get my jacket.'

    Hannah glanced at the clock as Beatrice hurried to her car and drove away. It was already after six and she'd promised to pick up Tracey and Karen at seven-thirty. If Ted didn't get back soon, she wouldn't have time to run home to feed Moishe. Of course, a late dinner wouldn't exactly kill him, especially when he'd had such a nice omelet this morning. If he got hungry enough waiting for his personal gourmet chef, he might just eat some of the senior nuggets in his bowl to tide him over.

    Fudge Cupcakes

    Preheat oven to 350 degrees F., rack in the middle position

    4 squares unsweetened baking chocolate (1 ounce each)

    1/4 cup white sugar

    1/2 cup raspberry syrup (for pancakes-I used Knott's red raspberry)

    1 2/3 cups flour

    1 1/2 teaspoon baking soda

    1/2 teaspoon salt

    1/2 cup butter, room temperature (one stick, 1/4 pound)

    1 1/2 cups white sugar (not a misprint-you'll use 1 3/4 cups sugar in all)

    3 eggs

    1/3 cup milk

    Line a 12-cup muffin pan with double cupcake papers. Since this recipe makes 18 cupcakes, you can use an additional 6-cup muffin pan lined with double papers, or you can butter and flour an 8-inch square cake pan or the equivalent.

    Microwave the chocolate, raspberry syrup and јcup sugar in a microwave-safe bowl on high for 1 minute. Stir. Microwave again for another minute. At this point, the chocolate will be almost melted, but it will maintain its