Read Online One Dead Cookie by Virginia Lowell - Free Book Online

glasses. It was unusual for her to offer wine for dinner
     at home. She wasn’t a teetotaler; it simply didn’t occur to her.
    “I’m not angry, Mom,” Olivia watched her mother pop the cork. “Is it that bad?”
    “A glass of red wine with dinner is good for one’s health.” Ellie half filled each
     wine glass. “Besides,” she said with her signature serene smile, “I’m rather proud
     of myself. I do so hate to give up on anyone, but I’d given upon Binnie. I’d begun to think her beyond the reach even of the universe and its—”
    “Sweetheart,” Allan said, “you are torturing your daughter.”
    “Oh.” Ellie took a sip of wine. “Well, if I must…. Binnie wrote on her unfortunate
     blog that some unnamed customer found dog fur in one of the cookies you and Maddie
     put out this morning. Which is ridiculous, of course. You would have heard about it
     right away. Besides, everyone knows that terriers have hair, rather than fur. Although
     I suppose hair can look like fur….”
    “I’ll sue her,” Olivia said. “She could ruin my business with lies like that. If the
     health department heard—”
    “I know, dear, which is precisely why I warned Binnie that she would find herself
     on the losing end of a very expensive lawsuit if she did not instantly remove her
     accusation. And she did. Quickly, I might add. I watched it disappear, and I checked
     several times to be certain she didn’t post it again.
    “You see, I was sure Binnie had made up the entire story by herself. Not that I’m
     naive enough to believe no one else in Chatterley Heights would say such a thing,
     small towns being what they are and, well, people being who they are, but…Don’t glare,
     Livie, it will give you a headache. I’m convinced Binnie made that story up because
     it’s what she has done so many, many times before, and, sadly, people rarely change.”
     Ellie took a substantial gulp of her wine. “More tabbouleh, anyone?”
    No one spoke. Allan beamed at his wife, and Jason’s mouth hung open…in amazement,
     for once, rather than hunger. “Great job, Mom,” Jason said. “I can’t wait to tell
     Struts and the guys at the garage. Can we have dessert now?”
    “I’m impressed,” Olivia said. “It’s rare for Binnie to back down. Threats usually
     energize her. Would you really have filed a lawsuit if she hadn’t removed that post?”
    “You bet I would.” Ellie nodded so hard that a long lock of wavy hair flipped forward
     over her shoulder. “I had Mr. Willard’s number in front of me, in case Binnie didn’t
     cooperate. Mr. Willard seems so gentle and civil, for a lawyer, and his advanced age
     does rather lull folks into a false sense of ease when he questions them.”
    Mr. Willard was also Olivia’s attorney, and she had observed him in action. Binnie
     would never have known what hit her.
    Jason picked up his fork and used it to salute his mother. “Now, about that dessert?”
    “You take after your father,” Ellie said as she opened the refrigerator. “He could
     eat all day and never gain an ounce. It’s a trait I particularly dislike in a person.”
     She centered a key lime pie on the table and handed Olivia the pie server. “I ran
     out of time, so this pie came from the Chatterley Café.” Ellie began to clear the
     empty plates. “Their key lime is better than mine, and anyway, I think cookies are
     more fun to make than pie. Don’t tell anyone I said that.”
    Olivia cut a small wedge for her tiny mother and a slightly larger one for herself.
     She passed the pie pan to Allan, who took an average slice. Jason began to eat the
     remaining pie right out of the pan. Olivia paused after her first delectable bite,
     and asked, “Mom, when you tap-danced your way through the store today, you said my
     new sales clerk reminded you of someone. Did you ever figure out who?”
    Ellie put down her fork and frowned. “No, Livie, and it’s been driving me crazy. I’ve
     lived