Read Online Cinco de Mayhem by Ann Myers - Free Book Online Page A

canvas bag embellished with an image of San Pasqual, the kitchen saint.
    â€œWhat is all this anyway?” I asked.
    My friend and boss pushed back her thick round spectacles. “You’ve had too much sugar, haven’t you? You’re like my great-granddaughter Rosa. Too much sugar makes her cranky and edgy.”
    I clamped my mouth shut, realizing that any retort might indeed sound cranky and edgy. Plus, Flori was right. I hadn’t simply added extra syrup, I’d made syrup soup of my pancakes. That, on top of the police station coffee and two too many cups at Tres Amigas and touching a dead body, and I was definitely on edge.
    Flori thrust the pretty, overstuffed tote at me. “Sleuthing supplies. If you won’t take them for Sun Tzu, think of the Girl Scouts.”
    I recalled my one summer in the Girl Scouts before cookie sales stressed me out. What was the motto? Sell more cookies? No. “Be prepared?”
    â€œExactly,” Flori said. “Just like Sun Tzu said.” She handed me the tote.
    I lifted the bag a few times. If nothing else, it was useful for weight-training exercise. “What did you pack in here? Melons? Lead?”
    â€œMy tactical-force binoculars that’ll let you spy on anything, a fresh notepad, bottled water because you should avoid dehydration at high altitudes, a pen, a plastic bag for your cell phone in case it rains, which is unlikely, or if you fall in a hot tub, also unlikely but it does happen, as you know . . .”
    I lifted out one of the lunch sacks.
    â€œBe careful with those!” Flori exclaimed.
    I dropped the bag as if singed.
    â€œOne bag has muffins in it in case you get hungry,” Flori explained. “The other’s pepper spray. Hot Flash, it’s called. The spray button is sensitive. That’s why I put it in the bag.”
    Juan, sitting on a stool by the counter, chuckled. Easy for him to be cheerful. He was tucking into a plate of bacon, eggs, and cheesy chiles rellenos . I wouldn’t have minded some more bacon. I wouldn’t even have minded washing pots, pans, and knives like Addie was doing.
    â€œJolly fine,” Addie said.
    I knew why I felt grumpy, and it wasn’t just the sugar. I dreaded a return to the murder scene. More than that, I didn’t want to get involved in another murder investigation. No! I wanted to yell. Let the police handle it. Let Jake, “the Strong Defender,” prove Linda innocent.
    Then I caught Flori’s worried frown and thought of her ticking off the ways in which Linda looked guilty. If Celia were in trouble, I’d want all the help I could get. Besides, Linda was my friend and a good, kind person who had come to my aid in the past.
    I took a deep breath and focused on the positive. I was getting another springtime walk to the Plaza. And muffins. I asked Flori about their flavor, mainly to delay some more.
    â€œMy health food muffins. To keep up your strength,” she said.
    This was good news. Flori’s health food muffins aren’t the no-sugar, all-bran doorstops the name implies. They’re rich chocolate with chocolate chips. The healthy, in Flori’s mind, comes from using olive oil instead of her usual choices, butter and lard.
    I stalled a little longer by rearranging the tote. Grabbing what I hoped was the bag of muffins and not the pepper spray, I moved it to the top. I didn’t want smashed muffins. I also didn’t want to accidentally Hot Flash myself. Something fluffy came along with the muffin bag. “What’s this pink, furry—” I started to say. Then I realized.
    â€œAck!” I let go of the pink fur in horror.
    Addie looked over my shoulder and tittered.
    â€œHandcuffs,” Flori said, answering what I’d already figured out. “Cute, aren’t they? I found them at a yard sale a few weeks ago. Now don’t give me that face, Rita, I ran them through the dishwasher. The key’s