Cinnamon Roll Murder

Sprinkle in the 2 Tablespoons of sugar and tip the pan so it’s evenly distributed. Sprinkle in the teaspoon of cinnamon as evenly as possible.

Use your sharpest knife to cut the roll of dough into 12 slices. Arrange the slices in the cake pan 3 rows across and 4 rows down.

Spray another sheet of plastic wrap with nonstick cooking spray and use that, sprayed side down, touching the surface of the rolls. Tuck it in and set your Special Cinnamon Rolls in a warm, draft-free place for 45 minutes or until they’re doubled in bulk.

When your rolls are ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F., rack in the middle position. Leave the plastic wrap on your rolls until your oven comes up to temperature.

Remove the plastic wrap and bake your rolls at 350 degrees F., for 30 minutes or until nicely browned. Then take them out of the oven and place them on a cold stove burner or a wire rack to cool while you make the icing. You’ll want to frost your rolls while they’re still warm so that the icing can run down into the crevices.

Put the cup of powdered sugar into a small mixing bowl. Using a fork, mix in the melted butter, milk, and vanilla. Whisk it with your fork until it’s smooth and creamy, and has the consistency of icing.

If the resulting mixture is too thick, whisk in a little more milk. If the resulting mixture is too thin, whisk in a bit more powdered sugar.

Hannah’s 2nd Note: Mother thinks I should frost these with Neverfail Fudge Frosting. I’m convinced that Mother would eat a dill pickle and insist that it was delicious if I frosted it with fudge frosting.

Chapter Four

When Hannah got back to the waiting room, she found Michelle sitting between Lonnie Murphy and his cousin Devin. Devin was a tall, lanky young man with an endearing grin, the bluest eyes Hannah had ever seen, and a shock of black hair that that fell in waves over his forehead. Kevin had the chair next to Buddy Neiman, and there was a big smile on Buddy’s face. Hannah figured that Devin must be regaling the Cinnamon Roll Six’s keyboard player with compliments. Perhaps it would sweeten him up a bit.

“Hi Devin,” Hannah greeted him, and then she turned to Lonnie. “Did they call you in to help?”

“Yup. We were only a mile from here when I got the call. The dispatcher told me to go straight to the hospital, and I was turning in the driveway before she even finished telling me about the accident.”

Marlene came in just then and walked quickly to Buddy’s side. “You can come with me,” she said. “The other intern, Doctor Matson, wants to have a look at your wrist, and then someone will take you down to X-ray. There’s a little wait, but it’s not that long.”

“I’ll come with you,” Lynnette offered, but Buddy shook his head.

“Stay here and wait for the rest of the band,” he said. “You need to meet up with them when they come in. Devin here can come with me to X-ray ... right, kid?”

“Sure!” Devin jumped up immediately. Then his delighted expression faded somewhat as he turned back to Lonnie. “Is it okay? I mean, do you need me to help you with anything?”

Lonnie shook his head. “Not a thing. We’re here to help the patients. Buddy’s a patient, at least for right now, and you’re helping by keeping him company.”

“Bring the rest of your group and follow me,” Marlene instructed Hannah and Michelle. “We’ll take them all into emergency together. Once they’re cleared, the Rainbow Ladies can arrange for transportation.”

It was only a short walk to the emergency room. Everyone handed over the paperwork they’d completed, and they all took seats in the uncomfortable green plastic chairs that were set aside for patients. Hannah wasn’t sure if the chairs were an attempt to keep people from coming to the emergency room with non-emergency ailments, or an attempt to generate business by causing more complaints like backache, stiffness in the neck and shoulders, and loss of mobility from sitting on such a hard, unyielding surface.

The interior of the emergency room looked different tonight. Two sets of ugly tan curtains that could be drawn to cordon off a cubicle, had been tied back, out of the way. The resulting space was filled with medical personnel who were lined up against the back wall. She recognized three of the nurses, but the rest were strangers to her. They must be the extra nurses from nearby communities that had been called in to augment Doc Knight’s small staff.

Vonnie Blair, Doc’s secretary, was sitting at a desk in the far corner of the room. A copy machine sat next to her desk and once she made copies of a patient’s paperwork, she stapled it to a folder. The doctor in the front of the line came forward to take the folder and call a patient to be seen.

Lonnie watched for a moment or two, and then he turned to Michelle and Devin. “I’m going to make the copies for Vonnie. It’ll go quicker that way.”

When Lonnie had left their little group, Michelle turned to Hannah. “Isn’t that Norman near the back of the line?”

“I don’t see ... oh, yes. It’s Norman. They must have called him in for any dental emergencies. I think I’ll go over and ...” Hannah stopped speaking and gave a little sigh. “No, I won’t. She’s with him.”

“I wasn’t going to mention that. I know how you feel about her. But you probably should do it anyway. Lake Eden’s not that big, and you have to get along with her if you want to stay friends with Norman.” Michelle stopped and frowned. “Unless you don’t want to stay friendly with Norman.”

“Of course I want Norman to be my friend. He’s going to need to come over and see Cuddles.”

“How’s that going anyway?”

Hannah gave a little smile. She’d agreed to take Norman’s cat, Cuddles, when he’d said that he had to find a new home for her, that his fiancee, Doctor Bev, was allergic to cats and she was going to move in with him. Hannah’s cat Moishe, and Cuddles were best friends so it wasn’t an imposition at all. “Moishe’s happy to have Cuddles with him. He really likes her you know. And Cuddles is crazy about Moishe.”

“Does Cuddles miss Norman?”

“I think so. I know my place is the second-best home for Cuddles, but Norman’s house, with Norman, is the best home for her. It’s just a pity that ...” Hannah stopped speaking as tears came to her eyes. She blinked several times and managed to keep them at bay. “Never mind. We can talk about that later tonight. You’re staying with me, aren’t you?”

“Of course. I know I could stay at Mother’s, but she’s never home. She’s either at the hospital with the Rainbow Ladies, or over at Doc’s house. It wouldn’t be as much fun to stay there by myself.”

Hannah blinked, and this time it wasn’t to blink away tears. “Mother stays over at Doc’s house?!”

“Oh, no. I didn’t mean that. I just meant that Mother spends a lot of time with him at his place, at her place, at the hospital, or out doing something. That’s all.”

Hannah gave a relieved sigh. It wasn’t that she was concerned about her mother’s behavior. It was just that she didn’t want the other members of the phone tree they’d unofficially dubbed The Lake Eden Gossip Hotline to gossip about their founding member, Delores herself!

“Buddy Neiman?” a voice broke into Hannah’s thoughts. “The doctor will see you now.”

“Come on, kid.” Buddy got up from his plastic chair with an agility Hannah wished she could emulate, and motioned to Devin. “He’s probably going to send me to X-ray. Let’s go.”

Hannah got to her feet. “I’ll go with you. I want to make sure your wrist is okay.”

They walked in pairs, Buddy and the nurse in the lead, and Hannah and Devin following behind them. As they passed by Norman and Doctor Bev, Norman’s fiancee stepped behind him quickly, almost as if she didn’t want Hannah to see her.

Bev’s maneuver couldn’t have suited Hannah better. She gave a little wave as she passed them, said a quick “Hi, Norman.” And then they were on their way to see Doctor Ben Matson.

“Hello, Hannah.” Ben greeted her. “You weren’t injured, were you?”

“Not me. Your patient is Buddy Neiman. He’s with Cinnamon Roll Six.”