By the time Hannah got back to The Cookie Jar, she was thoroughly frustrated. Mayor Bascomb had been her prime suspect, and in light of what Georgina had told them, he was cleared. She’d checked the clock in her mother’s office and it was actually a few minutes slow. If Delores had glanced at the clock and thought the screams and gunshot had come at a few minutes past eight, it could have been closer to eight-fifteen or even eight-twenty.
Of course, she did have a new prime suspect. It was Tori’s business manager, but Georgina hadn’t known his name. Hannah knew that she could ask Stan Kramer, but he would never tell her. That would be violating a client’s confidence and Stan prided himself on his integrity. Of course Stan would have to tell Mike if Mike asked him, but Georgina had said that Mike hadn’t contacted her. And if Mike didn’t know that Tori’s business manager had been skimming money from Tori, Hannah wasn’t about to tell him . . . at least not until she’d exhausted all avenues to attempt to find him by herself.
The Cookie Jar kitchen was deserted and Hannah was glad. She really didn’t feel like talking to anyone right now. She had to figure out how to get Stan to reveal Tori’s business manager’s name. She poured herself a cup of coffee, sat down on her favorite stool at the work island, and rummaged around in her saddlebag purse for the stenographer’s pad she referred to as her murder book.
“You didn’t do it,” she said to no one in particular since there was no one to hear her as she flipped to the suspect page and crossed off Mayor Bascomb’s name. “I don’t like it, but you’re in the clear.”
“Who’s in the clear?” Lisa asked, coming into the kitchen with an empty display jar.
“Mayor Bascomb. I really thought he did it, but he’s got an alibi for the time of Tori’s murder.”
“Don’t sound so depressed, Hannah. You always eliminate suspects in your murder investigations. Who else do you have on your suspect list?”
“Someone, but I can’t write him down because I don’t know his name.”
“The unknown suspect with an undiscovered motive?”
Hannah shook her head. “I know his motive. He was stealing money from Tori. But I don’t have a name. All I know is his occupation. He was Tori’s business manager.”
“Why don’t you ask Mayor Bascomb? He’s out there having his afternoon coffee.”
“Because he’ll ask why I want to know and if I tell him, he might tell Mike.”
“I get it. You want to follow this lead without any interference from Mike. Is that right?”
“That’s it exactly. This might sound a little crazy, but I want to solve this case for Mother. She worked so hard planning my wedding and redecorating the whole condo for me. Now she’s depending on me and . . . well . . . I owe her, Lisa.”
“I understand. Calm down, Hannah. You’re under a lot of stress and you’re just not thinking clearly. If you relax, the solution will come to you. There are ways around every problem.”
Hannah sighed. Lisa was right. There was simply too much on her mind, and she couldn’t seem to think clearly. She had to work out a morning routine for showering and dressing, figure out some easy and fast things to make for her husband’s breakfast, write out all the thank-you notes for their wedding gifts, spend quality time with Ross and be a good wife, and solve a murder case.
“I think I’ve got it, Hannah.”
“A way for me to ask Mayor Bascomb for the name of Tori’s business manager?”
“You can’t ask, but your mother could.”
“My mother?”
“Yes. Have your mother ask Mayor Bascomb for the name. She can say she needs someone to help her with her investments and Tori mentioned that she had someone really good, but she didn’t give Delores his name.”
Hannah thought about that for a moment. “Thanks, Lisa! It might just work. Mother’s very good at getting information out of people. But what if Mayor Bascomb doesn’t know?”
“You can cross that bridge if and when you come to it.” Lisa walked over to the nearly-empty baker’s rack and took off a pan of bar cookies. She tipped them out, cut them into pieces on the kitchen counter, and brought two to Hannah on a paper napkin. “Here. Eat these with your coffee. You sound tired and the sugar will give you some energy. Besides, they’re delicious. Aunt Nancy baked them right after you left. She said she got the recipe from her friend, Lynn, and everybody out front loves them.”
“What are they?”
“Salted Caramel Bar Cookies. I had one for lunch and they’re wonderful! The combination of sweet caramel and salt is just perfect.”
Hannah picked up one and bit into it. Then she started to smile. “You’re right. I like these a lot!”
“So does everyone who tasted them. Just as soon as Michelle gets back, I’ll send Aunt Nancy back here to bake some more. We’re almost out of cookies.”
“I can bake them if she left the recipe,” Hannah suggested. “I always think better when I bake.”
“It’s in the back of the book. She brought it in this morning.” Lisa glanced at the kitchen clock. “Uh-oh! Time for another performance. Happy baking, Hannah.”
Hannah was smiling as she finished the rest of her coffee and the second Salted Caramel Bar Cookie. She’d call Delores later this afternoon to ask if she’d try to get the name of Tori’s business manager from Mayor Bascomb. Right now, she wanted to start baking. Lisa was right. There were ways around every problem if you calmed down enough to think of them.
SALTED CARAMEL BAR COOKIES
Preheat oven to 325 degrees F., rack in the middle position.
The Crust and Topping:
2 cups (4 sticks, 16 ounces, 1 pound) salted butter softened to room temperature 1 cup white (granulated) sugar 1 and ? cups powdered (confectioners) sugar 2 Tablespoons vanilla extract 4 cups all-purpose flour (pack it down in the cup when you measure it)
The Caramel Filling:
14-ounce bag (approximately 50 pieces) square Kraft caramels, individually wrapped (If the kids help you unwrap the caramels, better buy 2 bags!)
? cup whipping cream ? teaspoon vanilla extract 1 Tablespoon sea or Kosher salt (the coarse-ground kind)
Before you begin to make the crust and filling, spray a 9-inch by 13-inch cake pan with Pam or another nonstick baking spray.
Hannah’s 1st Note: This crust and filling is a lot easier to make with an electric mixer. You can do it by hand, but it will take some muscle.