Page 12 of Christmas Mittens Murder

“Esther was my friend! We were all her friends! We would never do her any harm!” Betty wailed.

“Then how did your mitten wind up between her teeth?” Rosana shouted.

“I have no idea!” Betty sobbed, falling into Helen’s arms as Helen gently patted her on the back, trying to comfort her.

Liddy whispered into Hayley’s ear. “And the Oscar goes to . . .”

Hayley glanced at her, surprised. “You really think Betty Dyer is capable of murder?”

“If you ask me, I think any one of them in that knitting circle could have done it,” Liddy said.

“Lightning may strike when I say this, but for once I actually agree with Liddy,” Mona declared.

Sergio had heard enough. “Okay, enough speculation from the cashew gallery . . .”

More puzzled looks.

Randy stepped forward again. “Peanut gallery.”

Sergio shot him another annoyed look.

Randy cleared his throat. “Just trying to keep everybody up to speed.”

Sergio mumbled something under his breath in Portuguese as Hayley quietly approached him to offer a suggestion. “Why don’t you search everyone’s knitting bags to see if anyone is missing a needle that could have been used as the murder weapon?”

“I already thought about that. But after searching Esther’s belongings, we found a matching needle, which means the murder weapon belonged to Esther,” Sergio whispered. “Her killer must have grabbed it out of Esther’s bag and impaled her with her own knitting needle. But that stays between you and me. I don’t want that specific detail made public yet, so you better warn Bruce that he will be in a world of hurt if that little fact suddenly pops up in one of his crime columns.”

“Of course,” Hayley assured him.

Sergio then pointed at Rosana. “Mrs. Moretti, come with me upstairs to the reverend’s office, would you please?”

Rosana gasped. “What? Me? Are you saying I’m a suspect?”

“No one is a suspect yet. I’m going to get to everyone eventually, but I have decided to start with you, and so I would appreciate your cooperation.”

Rosana tentatively walked across the room with her head held high and followed Sergio up the stairs as the highly emotional Crochet Mafia members stayed in their cluster, eyeing the crowd surrounding them, sensing their suspicion, and frantically whispering to one another.

Hayley noticed Reverend Ted standing off in a corner by himself with a shell-shocked look on his face. She could tell he was spiraling emotionally. She walked over to him and put a comforting arm around his shoulder. She could feel him shivering. “I’m sorry the Christmas bazaar didn’t work out the way you had hoped, Ted.”

“This is a disaster. Why did these things have to happen, today of all days? This was supposed to be a celebration, a chance to give back to the community, and now we’re dealing with a theft and a murder on church grounds. I know I’m supposed to be a voice of reason and comfort in difficult times, but I’m in shock, Hayley. I don’t know what to do or say.”

“It’s a shock to everyone. You cannot be expected to be a rock at all times. But you will find your voice. And I am sure you will deliver the perfect sermon to honor Esther on Sunday.”

“I just don’t see how things could get any worse!”

“Excuse me,” a man’s voice said from behind them.

Hayley and Reverend Ted turned around to discover Scooter Beauchemin and his wife, Tawny, both gloomy and exhausted from all the drama.

Reverend Ted did his best to collect himself. “Yes, Scooter, how can I be of service?”

“You can give me back that check,” Scooter said flatly.

Reverend Ted’s mouth dropped open. He was speechless. He took a beat, processing the request, swallowing hard. “I-I beg your pardon?”

“To be completely honest, Reverend, I have to be fiercely protective of my public image. My entire business has been built on my reputation. I cannot afford a whiff of scandal, no matter how good the cause. So the last thing I need is for my money to be associated with a theft and a murder.” He thrust out his hand. “So I would appreciate it if you just returned my donation.”

Reverend Ted shakily reached into his pocket and extracted the check. Scooter snatched it out of his grasp before he even had the chance to hand it over. “Thank you, Reverend. I’m sure you understand. I wish you all the best.” He took his wife by the arm. “Come on, Tawny, let’s see if the chief can take us next so we can get out of here.”

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