Roll Six.”
“And you think this woman might have something to do with his murder?”
“It’s possible. We’re just following every lead we can get. The photo’s really dark and it’s taken from a distance. We know how good Norman is with photography, and we thought maybe he could do something to the photo to make her more recognizable.”
Carrie nodded. “If anyone can, Norman can. He’s switched over to digital and he’s getting really good at it. It’s a pity
“Carrie.” Earl reached out and put his hand on her shoulder.
“You’re right, dear,” Carrie said, sighing deeply. “That’s their business and I shouldn’t be talking about it.”
There was an uncomfortable silence for a moment and then Delores stepped in. “Girls? Are you joining us for dinner at the Inn?”
“Thanks, Mother. I will,” Hannah said quickly. “You’ll come with me, won’t you, Michelle?”
“Sure. Thanks for asking us, Mother.”
“Andrea?” Delores turned to her.
“I’ll be happy to come. Bill won’t be home until late anyway. Thank you for inviting me, Mother.”
Delores turned to Lisa. “How about you, Lisa? You’re part of the family, too. Will you join us?”
“I can’t, but thanks for asking. Herb gets off work early tonight, and he’s bringing home a pizza. We’re going to cuddle up with Dillon and Sammy and watch a movie.”
Hannah felt a stab of envy over Lisa’s plan for the evening. She wished she could go back in time to only a few months ago when she’d cuddled up on the couch with Norman, Moishe and Cuddles to watch a movie. But that was impossible now. Norman was embroiled in a lose-lose relationship with Doctor Bev, and she wouldn’t let him come over to watch a movie with Hannah. Cuddles and Moishe would cuddle up on the couch with her, but then Cuddles would entice Moishe into a game of chase all over the condo, and Hannah would miss the end of the movie because she’d have to clean up whatever they spilled or broke.
“Oh, by the way, Hannah,” Lisa said. “I found your coat.”
“You ... did?” Hannah felt as if reality was slipping away from her. She’d gone through every inch of The Cookie Jar looking for her parka yesterday, and she was ninety-nine point nine percent positive it hadn’t been anywhere in the building. “Where did you find it?”
“In the shower, hanging on a hanger. I was going to rinse out some towels and I figured the shower was the quickest way to do it. And there it was, as big as you please.”
Hannah covered her eyes with her hands. It was a pose of abject embarrassment, and it was precisely how she was feeling. She hadn’t thought of it at the time, but now she remembered hanging it there herself after someone had come in the back door and tossed a very wet, snow-covered parka over hers on the rack.
“I did that,” she admitted. “And then I forgot all about it.” She turned to Delores. “I apologize, Mother. I thought maybe you ... but I was wrong.”
“You thought I stole your parka so that I could buy you one that I liked better?” Delores asked, but she looked much more amused than angry.
“Well ... yes. That’s what I thought. But it was just a
“I know how much you love your old parka,” Delores said. “Do you want me to try to return the new one?”
“No! Don’t do that!” Hannah stopped and gave a sheepish grin. “I love my new parka. It’s perfect for me. It makes me feel special, and loved, and ... I’ve never had a parka that made me feel that way before.”
“That’s wonderful, dear.” Delores gave a little smile. “Now the only question is, what are you going to do with your old parka?”
“I’m going to ask you to take it back to Helping Hands, Mother. It’s not in any worse shape than it was when I bought it. Maybe someone else can use it.”
“Nice idea,” Delores said, giving her daughter an approving nod. “And don’t forget to take the charity write- off when Stan does your income tax. I’m sure Helping Hands will value it at least a nickel, maybe even as much as a dime.”
APPLE CINNAMON WHIPPERSNAPPERS
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F., rack in the middle position.
For the Cookies:
1 large egg
2 cups Cool Whip (measure this – Andrea said her tub of Cool Whip contained a little over 3 cups.)
cup apple pie filling
1 package (approximately 18 ounces) spice cake mix
For Rolling Cookie Balls:
? cup powdered
? teaspoon ground cinnamon
Prepare your cookie sheets by spraying them with Pam or another nonstick cooking spray, or lining them with parchment paper, which you then spray with Pam or another nonstick cooking spray.
First of all, chill 2 teaspoons from your silverware drawer by sticking them in the freezer. You want them really icy cold. This will make it lot easier to form the cookies after the dough is mixed.
Whisk the egg in a large mixing bowl.
Measure out 2 cups of Cool Whip and stir them into the egg.
Place the cup of apple pie filling in a small bowl. Cut the apples with a sharp knife until they’re in quarter-inch pieces.
Add the apples to the mixing bowl and stir them in by hand. Mix very gently and don’t over-stir. You don’t want to stir all the air out of the Cool Whip.
Sprinkle the cake mix over the top of your mixing bowl. Fold it in very gently, mixing only until everything is combined. The object here is to keep as much air in the cookie batter as possible.
Place the ? cup of powdered sugar in a separate small bowl
Add the cinnamon to the bowl and stir it all up with a fork. Mix until the cinnamon is thoroughly combined with the sugar.
Drop the cookie dough by chilled and rounded teaspoonfuls into the bowl of powdered sugar and cinnamon. Roll the cookie dough ball around in the bowl with your fingers to coat it on all sides.
Hannah’s 1st Note: Roll only one cookie dough ball at a time. If you roll too many, they’ll stick together and you’ll have a real mess. This dough is very sticky, so you must keep your fingers coated with the sugar-cinnamon mixture.
Hannah’s 2nd Note: If you’re really having trouble with the sticky dough, refrigerate your mixing
