Cinnamon Roll Murder

“Do you want to do it, or shall I?” Hannah asked.

“I will. I’ll say I’m Doc’s secretary. What was the name of that clinic again?”

“Rolling Hills Vista Clinic,” Michelle said promptly. “I remembered it because I thought it sounded fake.”

Five minutes later, they had their answers. Hannah’s head was reeling and she knew that Michelle and their mother felt the same way. There was a Rolling Hills Vista Clinic and it was a leader in the field of facial reconstruction. They did have several interns at the clinic, but none of them had left recently. There were no vacancies for interns, and they’d never heard of Doctor Ben Matson.

“So what does this mean?” Delores asked, “other than the fact Ben lied to us.”

“It means he wants to get out of Dodge for some reason,” Hannah speculated.

Michelle looked puzzled. “Get out of Dodge?”

“Dodge City, Kansas. That phrase comes from the Old West. Dodge City became a law-abiding town when Marshall Dillon took over, and all the criminals had to get out of Dodge.”

“How do you know that?”

“Lisa told me. Herb loves to watch re-runs of Gunsmoke while she’s fixing supper. That’s where she heard it. Dillon loves Gunsmoke, too. He gives a little woof every time he hears his name.”

“That’s cute,” Delores said. “Doc and I watch M*A*S*H. He says it relaxes him. But let’s get back to business. Why would Ben want to get away from Lake Eden?”

Hannah shrugged. “I don’t know, but I think we’d better find out. Maybe there’s a clue somewhere in his background. Can you get his personnel file?”

“That’s easy.” Delores swiveled in her chair and switched on the computer. “All the employee records are accessible from Doc’s computer. I’ll pull it up.”

Hannah and Michelle waited as Delores located and pulled up the file. “That’s interesting,” she said.

“What’s interesting?” Hannah asked her.

“Ben’s from Seattle.”

“Seattle again?!” Hannah was dumbstruck. There were just too many people from Seattle. It was like a Washington State invasion in their own little town! “That settles it!” she said.

“Settles what?” Michelle asked.

Hannah was at a loss to explain. Her mind was churning too fast. It was all about opportunity, and coincidence that might not be coincidence, and things they had yet to discover. The key to Buddy Neiman’s murder was missing, but there might be a place they could find it.

“Settles what, dear?” Delores asked, repeating Michelle’s question.

“It settles what we’re going to do next. Ben’s working all day today, right?”

“I believe so. At least that’s the way the schedule stood yesterday. Let me check to see if there are any changes.”

Hannah waited impatiently as her mother pulled up another file. It seemed to take forever, but at last Delores nodded.

“Ben’s scheduled for a twelve-hour shift from eight this morning until eight tonight. Then Marlene comes on. She works until eight tomorrow morning.”

“Great. Do you know where Ben lives?”

Delores looked puzzled. “Of course I do. Ben lives here in the intern quarters. There are two one-bedroom apartments built at the end of the middle corridor. Ben lives in the one to the right, facing the lake. Marlene lives in the one on the left, facing the pine grove. They’re lovely little apartments. Marlene showed me hers.”

“Okay. We’re all set.” Hannah got up from her chair. “Let’s go, Michelle.”

“Sit!” Delores said, motioning her back down in her chair. “You’re not going anywhere until you tell me where you’re going!”

Hannah sat back down. She knew adamant when she heard it. “We’re going to break into Ben’s apartment. And then we’re going to toss it for clues.”

“Why?”

“Because I can’t think of anything else to do. And I’m hoping we’ll find something that’ll help us put the pieces together.”

Delores reached into Doc’s center desk drawer and pulled out a key. “You don’t have to break in. I’m coming with you, and I’ve got the master key.”

Chapter Twenty-Nine

The first thing they saw when they entered Ben’s apartment was a huge pile of cardboard boxes in the center of the room, waiting to be assembled. A roll of packing tape sat on top of the boxes, and a black felt-tipped marker was next to it. One box was already closed and labeled. It had the word Mementos written on all four sides, and Hannah made a mental note not to leave Ben’s apartment without opening it and taking a look.

“This is your show, Hannah,” Delores said. “What do you want us to do?”

“You take the kitchen,” Hannah said to Michelle. “Call me if you find anything that has to do with Seattle, jazz clubs, Buddy Neiman, or Doctor Bev.”

“Or anything else that piques her curiosity?” Delores asked.

“Exactly right. You get the bedroom, Mother. Just call out if you need us for anything. I’ll take the bathroom and the living room, in that order. When we’re through, we’ll all meet in the hallway by the back entrance.”

“Got it,” Michelle said, heading off to the kitchen.

“Seattle, jazz clubs, Buddy, or Doctor Bev,” Delores repeated, walking toward the bedroom.

Hannah didn’t really expect to find anything in the bathroom, and she wasn’t wrong. The only item of interest was an expensive-looking silver watch that was nestled around the bottom of a replica of the Seattle Space Needle. Hannah picked it up and saw that it was engraved with a name, Dr. Gene Burroughs, on the back.

The living room was next, and it was devoid of personal items. If there had been any, they were probably already sequestered in the box marked Mementos. The bookshelves contained nothing but books, the coffee table had a plant that looked in dire need of water, and since there was a half-empty bottle of water nearby, Hannah watered it. The entertainment center housed nothing but DVDs, the wicker chest by the window was empty, and the closet by the front door accommodated only a coat, a windbreaker, and a parka.

“Hannah!” Delores rushed in with a large binder in her hands. “It’s a scrapbook. Is this the sort of thing you want to see?”

“It’s perfect,” Hannah said, reaching out to give her mother a little hug. “This could be important, Mother.”

Michelle came in just then. “Nothing in the kitchen. There aren’t even any frying pans. I think it’s safe to say that Ben didn’t cook.” She noticed the scrapbook in Hannah’s hands and hurried over. “What’s that?”

“A scrapbook.”

“There are photos, clippings, and some other things,” Delores reported. “I just flipped through it, and then I brought it right out here to Hannah.”

“Let’s take a look,” Hannah said, taking a seat on the couch and waiting until her mother and sister had taken places on either side of her. She flipped the book open to the first page, and they saw a photo of two boys, one a toddler and the other about ten years older.”

“Ben and Gene,” Delores read the caption. “They were cute kids. Gene must be his brother.”

“I think Gene was his stepbrother,” Hannah told her. “At least they had different last names. I found a silver watch in the bathroom, and it was engraved, Dr. Gene Burroughs.”

“I wonder if he’s a medical doctor,” Delores said. “It could explain why Ben went into medicine. They might be planning to open a practice together. Sometimes families do things like that.”

Hannah shook her head. “Not this time,” she said. “I’m pretty sure Dr. Gene Burroughs is dead. Marlene said Ben told her his brother was dead.”

“Oh, that’s sad,” Michelle said.