Spotlight: A Hush at Midnight by Marlene M. Bell
/
Publication date: October 1st 2024
Genres: Adult, Mystery
Former Celebrity Chef Laura Harris used to be famous for her show-stopping pastries and mouth-watering desserts. Now, she’s attracting a different kind of attention.
Laura’s been accused of murder.
But how could this petite pastry chef brutally smother small-town matriarch Hattie Stenburg to death? And what could be her motive? Hattie was beloved in her little Texas community – a wise humanitarian who Laura considered a confidant and mentor.
Perhaps it has something to do with a last-minute change to Hattie’s will – bestowing the Stenburg fortune and its history-steeped estate to Laura, instead of Hattie’s surviving relatives. Or maybe it has something to do with the sinister secrets Laura uncovers as she desperately tries to clear her name – secrets that could rock the foundations of this close-knit community.
Only one thing seems clear: The real murderer remains one step ahead of both Laura and local law enforcement, leaving a trail of taunts warning Laura to leave Texas or face deadly consequences. She’s in the way – and that means it could already be too late.
An amateur sleuth sets out to solve a small-town murder in A Hush at Midnight, a mystery by Marlene M Bell, author of the “couldn’t put it down” Annalisse Series.
Excerpt
“Sorry, there’s no dessert tonight. My beautiful cake landed in a heap on the floor.” Laura had grudgingly held off that announcement for as long as possible. “I had to entice the dog away from it. She wanted to lick the tile clean in the worst way.” She chuckled at her dad.
Connie stopped chewing and laid her fork down. She gawked at the remaining slice of beef on her plate, lifting it gingerly with her knife as if scanning the main course for debris. “Please tell me the meat didn’t hit the floor as well.” Connie soured her lips.
“I beg your pardon? If it had, I wouldn’t have served it.” Laura’s face burned from Connie’s crass remark.
Her dad swiped his mouth with the napkin and set it gently beside his plate. “Laura’s skilled at meal preparation. Highly trained, in fact. An excellent dinner, honey. Thank you.” He pushed his chair out, scraping the legs along the floor, and smacked his belly. “Won’t hurt the old man to miss a dessert once in a while.” He grinned at Laura to break off some of the icicles hanging from Connie’s side of the table.
As if on cue, Connie also set her napkin aside. “You’re the only man I know who can eat sweets every day and not gain a pound. Your father is amazing, isn’t he? I don’t know how he does it.”
“It must be Duska’s fried pies. They’re like an elixir that keeps him young.” Laura’s crooked smile at their private joke earned a nod from her dad.
Her statement had the opposite reaction on Connie, who’d swallowed down the wrong pipe and grabbed her water glass to quiet the coughing fit ravaging her throat.
“Are you okay?” he asked as she drained her glass.
Laura poured more lemon water into her guest’s glass, doing her level best to hide the amusement about to burst forth. Karma can be a nasty thing to those insulting the cook.
Connie crinkled her nose as if she’d smelled a skunk on her plate. “Hardly what I’d call an elixir, unless you like clogged arteries, heart failure, and an early trip to the grave.”
Laura sat in stunned disbelief, but only for a second. “Handcrafted pastry and desserts turn a humdrum meal into a masterpiece. They’re not a death sentence, Miss Holloway.”
Her dad turned away and stared at the wall. His thoughts were his own, but Laura had a good idea where his mind had gone: to his late wife, and their most recent loss with Hattie.
Connie’s insensitive comments, while they were still grieving, had fallen out of her mouth too easily. A touchy-feely palm over her father’s hand bothered Laura to no end. Did she not hear about Hattie? It was possible her dad hadn’t mentioned her death.
“Have you missed the fliers about the Novak Bakery?” Connie asked Laura. “They’re everywhere.”
“I’ve been out of town and too preoccupied to read propaganda. I wouldn’t put too much stock in random gossip, Connie. People post reckless garbage these days.” The fliers in question had to be those Duska had seen and removed.
“Propaganda, you say? Hardly what I’d call it.” Tiny wrinkles plagued Connie’s upper lip. “Everyone I know is afraid to go in that Amazon woman’s shop. How tall is she, anyway?”
Her sneering was uncomfortable for Laura to look at, so she studied her plate instead. “Duska’s pies and kolaches are excellent and Coldspell’s lucky to have her. Who thinks she’s too tall?” Laura sat up straighter in her chair with her head held high.
“Her food is sending people to the emergency room. Food poisoning, I hear. And you shouldn’t eat there either, Zane, if you care about your health.”
Laura’s composure began to slip the longer they all sat together, and she had to listen to small-minded notions from someone who hadn’t even been inside the bakery, to her knowledge. Drawing an uneasy breath, Laura willed her mouth to stay shut—which was a huge ask around an insensitive woman who took pleasure in hurling insults at others. Laura could forgive a harsh word from most strangers, but she’d reached her limit with her dad’s opinionated ladyfriend.
“Yikes,” Laura whispered in her dad’s direction as their eyes made contact.
Connie stood up and bussed her utensils and glass to the sink, clattering the silverware.
Her dad outwardly cringed, closing one eye against the noise. “Can we help you with the dishes, honey?” he asked, embarrassment tinging his somber face. A signal that dinner had come to an end and he planned to leave—taking the mouthpiece with him.
“I’ve got it, Dad. Enjoy the rest of your… uh… evening.”
“Thanks again for asking us over, Laura. It’s nice to finally see the beautiful woman you’ve become.” Connie wiped her fingertips along the white dishtowel hanging from the oven door handle, streaking it with sherry gravy. She leaned toward Laura’s ear and whispered, “You might want to get out the china next time, dear.”
An underhanded insult.
Laura balled a hand into a fist and clamped her teeth together.
“I’ll wait for you in the car, Zanie.” Connie touched her dad’s shoulder familiarly and sped outdoors.
Buy on Amazon Kindle | Paperback
About the Author
Mystery at a killing pace
Marlene M. Bell has never met a sheep she didn’t like. As a personal touch, her fans often find these wooly creatures visiting her international romantic suspense, thriller, and cozy mystery books as characters or subject matter.
Marlene’s multi-award-winning Annalisse series boasts numerous Best Mystery honors for all installments including the newest IP Best Regional Australia/New Zealand, and Global Gold Award for the fourth cozy mystery from down under.
Her children's picture book, Mia and Nattie: One Great Team! written for the younger crowd, is based on true events from the Bell’s Texas sheep ranch. The simple text and illustrations are a touching tribute of belonging and unconditional love between a little girl and her lamb. Mia and Nattie is suitable reading for ages 3 - 7 years and beyond, a Mom's Choice Gold Award winner, and Eric Hoffer Award Grand Prize Short List winner.
Connect:
https://www.instagram.com/marlenemysteries/
https://www.facebook.com/marlenembell
https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/17642396.Marlene_M_Bell
