Pies & Peril - Culinary Competition Mystery #1

Chapter 15

(Carla)

"We've pulled into the driveway." Carla took her foot off the gas pedal and let the car slowly coast up Amy's driveway. She stared into the rearview mirror. The pickup hadn't reappeared after it blew past them, but a black truck could easily have hidden in the dead of night on a dark, rural road. She had never been so happy to see the Victorian-style iron street lamps that lined the streets in Amy's neighborhood. The porch light on the house filled the car with light that was far less sinister than the headlights from ten minutes earlier. The faint, frenzied whine of a siren heralded the approaching law enforcement cavalry. "I can hear the police sirens coming. Please let them know my friend and I are in a red Nissan Juke parked in the driveway. The vehicle that was trying to ram us was, I think, a black, full-size Chevy pickup. Thank you for your help."

There was another pause and then the operator said, "I've relayed that information to the officers. I can stay on the line with you until they arrive if you would like, or you can hang up."

Carla glanced at Amy. Her friend's eyes were so wide she looked like a cartoon character. "The police cars should be here at any moment, so I'll hang up."

"That's fine. I'm glad you are safe."

"Me, too," Amy whispered as she touched the phone screen to disconnect the call.

"Are you okay?" Carla asked as she gently patted Amy's knee.

"Nope. Not at all. Not one bit." She stared at the lighted hanging lantern next to the side door on her house. "I thought somebody was trying to scare me away from competing in the pie contest. That's it. Just cruel words to psych me out. A big, nasty truck is much scarier than grammatically incorrect sentences."

Carla opened her door. "Let's go into the house and get some coffee going. Between the cocktails and the drive home, I'm sure you can use some."

The sirens continued to get louder as they hurried up the short walkway. As Amy punched in her security code the noise stopped. Hopefully, the officers were being considerate of the neighbors and the fact that it was after 11 p.m., not called away for something else. Amy hadn't even made it to the coffee maker before the answer arrived. Two squad cars stopped on the street in front of the house.

"Did you re-arm the security system?" Carla asked with her hand on the door handle. The last thing Amy needed was the added stress of trying to shut off a screeching false alarm.

Amy shook her head without turning around as she measured coffee beans into the grinder. "No, you can open it."

"Do me a favor and call Alex. He needs to know about this," Carla called as she walked out to greet the officers, one of whom was already squatting at the back bumper of her car. "Thank you for coming so quickly. I'm sure your hands are full with all of the drunks downtown."

"It is a busy night," a tall, skinny officer said as he strode toward her. "Do you think the person who hit your car was drunk?"

"No. I'm positive those were deliberate attempts to shove me off the road into the river. Whoever was in that truck knew exactly what they were doing. I was driving my friend home from Shots & Whatnots. With so many roads closed or clogged with parked cars, I figured the easiest way to get back here was to take River Road. Unfortunately, whoever was driving the truck figured out it was the perfect place to cause an accident. My friend has been receiving death threats in connection with the murder case at the pie contest a few weeks ago. Looks like someone was trying to make good on the threats."

A blue pickup pulled up behind the squad cars parked at the curb. For a second Carla's heart clattered in her chest. Had the truck been blue instead of black? Then Bruce jogged around the front of the vehicle. Her pulse was still elevated, but for a much more pleasant reason. He wore faded blue jeans and a tight, green V-neck T-shirt that practically molded itself to his abs and pecs. As he walked across the lawn he pulled his badge out of his back pocket and flashed it at the patrol officers. Carla's thigh muscles twitched. She wanted to run and throw herself into his arms, but it wasn't the time for that.