Rise and Die (The Early Bird Cafe Cozy Mystery Series Book 1) Read online

  “Good morning?” Tessa fumed, her face growing redder each second. “You actually have the nerve to say good morning to me? How could you?” She was nearly yelling.

  Kori was stunned but before she could ask for an explanation, Tessa turned and left. Apparently she’d been unable to stomach the sight of Kori anymore and couldn’t explain what was going on. Saying good morning had set her over the edge.

  Kori let it go and walked back to the kitchen, which wasn’t really separated from the seating area since she had to be able to take orders while she cooked. She took the stuffed French toast out of the oven and set it on the counter to cool. She turned the heat up on the stove top and spread some butter over it, getting it ready for the first order of omelets or pancakes.

  Jenna Rhodes was the next person to come through the door. Kori had just put on another pot of coffee, since she and Nora had nearly finished the first.

  “Hey Jenna. Perfect timing this morning,” Kori greeted her. “Your usual?”

  “Morning. Yes please. I might even need a coffee to go today too.”

  “I know the feeling. Long day ahead of you?”

  “I have the most kids on Mondays and the mix of them is sometimes overwhelming. Even for me.”

  Jenna had an in-home daycare. Most days she only had three or four kids but on Mondays she had seven. Some parents took Monday as their day off from parenting, which made Jenna’s day tougher. Kori couldn’t imagine having seven kids in her care. But despite the headaches they caused, Jenna wouldn’t trade it for the world. She took care of her friends’ kids and without her she knew they’d be at a complete loss.

  “I’m glad you still trek all the way down here even with Sunrise and Shine open now right next door to you,” Kori said as she filled a mug with coffee and walked back to the stove to get the pancakes going. She poured batter for two banana pancakes on the griddle and they sizzled in the butter.

  “I wouldn’t even think of switching.” Jenna took a seat close to the window to where Kori worked so they could easily chat. “Anyway, I walked by this morning and it was closed.”

  Kori let that settle as she relived her recent visit from Tessa. “Any idea why?”

  Jenna took a sip of coffee and shook her head. “Maybe business is slower for her on Mondays so she’s just taking the day off.”

  Kori was skeptical but let it go. She didn’t want to tell Jenna what had happened earlier.

  “Have you noticed a change in business since Sunrise and Shine opened?” Jenna asked innocently.

  “Unfortunately. This weekend was really slow. Maybe she had a special going on.” Kori was hoping Jenna would confirm that idea.

  “I don’t know. I didn’t go but I could see that it was packed yesterday at least.”

  “Nothing wrong with competition.” Kori had to keep telling herself that until she believed it. “I’ll just have to get more creative.”

  Jenna nodded and happily accepted the plate of pancakes and a container of maple syrup from Nora’s farm. Kori turned back to the oven and turned the temperature down so she could put the French toast back in to keep it warm.

  By the time she had turned back to the seating area, the door had opened again and two more customers had entered.

  “Hi Jenna. Morning Kori,” Derek Spears greeted the women. He was the town’s handyman and was accompanied by Spencer Graff, the owner of HC Auto Body, this morning.

  Kori waved and the two men sat in a booth next to a window looking out on Main Street. She could see them discussing the options for breakfast before they walked up to the window to the kitchen to let her know what they wanted.

  Derek ordered the biscuits and gravy and Spencer ordered a goat cheese omelet with spinach and onions.

  “Anything to drink?” Kori asked them.

  “Coffee,” they both said in unison.

  “Cream? Sugar?”

  Derek took his black, Spencer with cream.

  Kori poured the eggs for the omelet onto the griddle and then walked away to get the coffees ready. She placed them on the counter so the men could come back and get them if they wanted. Then she added the veggies and cheese to the omelet, folded it in half and let it cook some more.

  She pulled two plates out and added two biscuits to one, then smothered them in sausage gravy.

  When the omelet was finished, she placed it on the second plate and put everything on the counter to be collected. She didn’t have to call them up; they saw that their breakfast was ready and walked back up to the counter.

  “Thanks Kori,” they said as they took their food back to their booth.

  Before they got back to their seats, Derek’s phone started ringing. Kori heard him apologize to Spencer and walked a short distance from the table to answer it.

  Kori didn’t immediately know who was on the other line but she had a good feeling when she heard the screaming and screeching coming through the phone. From all the way across the café. She suspected that Tessa needed some help, though she didn’t know what for. It was the same angry voice that had accosted her at five thirty, now yelling into Derek’s ear.

  Kori turned back to the stove and cleaned away the bits of omelet that were still on the griddle. She couldn’t help but listen to Derek’s side of the conversation, which she could hear much clearer.

  “I’m not sure what you think I had to do with—”

  Before Kori learned what Derek might have been involved in, he was cut off by more screeching on the other end.

  She could see that he was getting agitated. Kori had initially thought that Tessa might have called him because she needed help but if he was getting uncomfortable, could he have been the cause of Tessa’s anger earlier? But why would she have come to The Early Bird Café where she knew only Kori worked?

  “Tessa,” Derek said into his phone, probably trying to interrupt her. But before she could hear if he succeeded and what he was going to tell her, the door opened and the normal morning rush began.

  Kori suddenly had three orders of goat cheese omelets, two more for biscuits and gravy, two for stuffed French toast and two different kinds of pancakes. She knew about half of the customers at any given time, the other half tourists.

  This time of year Hermit Cove still got a few snowshoers but cross country skiing on Thrush Lake was well over. The snow was too wet and the lake not quite reliably frozen enough to risk going out on it. There were also a few of the more adventurous hikers starting to make their way to the mountains. They had plenty of mud to contend with, in addition to the snow that the snowshoers were enjoying but after a winter holed up in front of their fires they were itching for fresh air.

  The rest of the morning was a blur. The first rush consisted of those who were heading to work but wanted a filling breakfast, or had an early meeting and they chose to have it at The Early Bird Café. The second rush was made up of mostly tourists either getting a late start or already finished with their sightseeing.

  By the time Kori was ready to close, at one in the afternoon—she only served breakfast but she’d learned in New York that everyone loved breakfast any time of the day—her feet were aching and she didn’t want to spend the necessary time in her office to stay on top of everything.

  She flipped the sign back to closed and actually locked the door this time. She would have been fine with Nora interrupting her again but she knew it would be her mother who would walk through that door. She even turned off the lights in the dining area so it looked like she wasn’t there.

  Once she got everything put away—the goat cheese was completely gone, as she’d expected—she did a quick inventory of what was left. She was still fine with eggs, and the spinach, mushrooms and garlic were plentiful. She realized she was getting low on onions, so she would stop at Nora’s farm after she finished up her paperwork.

  The biscuits and gravy were completely finished so she’d have to make more if she was going to offer them again tomorrow. She wasn’t sure she was going to. She could replace
it with country fried steak or even oatmeal and fruit. She loved being able to change her menu regularly.

  Kori headed into her office at the back of the kitchen. She didn’t have a door on it and it was really just a closet. She liked feeling like she was still in the kitchen, even when she was stuck on the computer paying bills, tracking expenses and keeping a current list of inventory.

  When she finished the tasks she considered mundane, she went upstairs to shower and put on some clean clothes, then got in her car and drove out to Nora’s Red Clover Farm. She didn’t notice the red car that followed her at a safe distance.

  CHAPTER 3

  Kori drove up the short driveway and parked in front of Nora’s house. She was immediately greeted by Nora’s two dogs—Milo and Otis. Nora had adopted them from the local animal shelter, Furry Friends, once the farm was up and running, over ten years ago now.

  “Hi boys,” Kori cooed. She hadn’t felt like she could adopt a pet yet while she was still working too hard to keep the café going. She missed the company that a dog or cat provided.

  Kori walked back toward the greenhouses where she hoped she’d find Nora. The dogs followed at her heels. She let herself into the first one she came to and began walking down the center aisle.

  Kori loved being able to come pick out the produce she wanted to serve at The Early Bird. Even in New York City, there had been plenty of rooftop gardens—a growing trend—where she’d been able to pick the food they sold straight from the gardens in which they were grown. That had been her pride and joy, something that wasn’t done before she came along. Doing it now, with her lifelong best friend, was perfect.

  Kori didn’t find Nora in the first greenhouse. Instead, she took her time checking out the seedlings that she would be buying in a month or two from Nora’s greenhouses and gardens. There were plenty of squashes just starting and even more tomatoes. There was nothing better than fresh tomatoes to add on top of her omelets.

  Kori made her way to the second greenhouse and almost walked right into Nora who was just on the other side of the door.

  “Whoa!” Kori said in surprise, making Nora look up.

  “Hey. I wasn’t sure if you’d stop by this afternoon. How did the goat cheese go over?”

  “It was a huge hit. Thank you. It’s all gone and I had to stop making the omelets well before I closed.”

  “That’s great. I’ll see if I can get some more made for next week.”

  “No pressure but everyone loves it.” They both laughed. Who didn’t love goat cheese? “I’m actually here for onions. I’m almost out.”

  “Sorry. No onions ready yet. It’ll be another couple weeks. But I have plenty of leeks that I planted last fall and they’re ready now.” Nora headed down toward her area full of alliums.

  “Perfect. I’ll be able to get more creative with them.”

  “Anything else you’re running low on? Besides goat cheese?” Nora asked, her back still to Kori.

  Kori gave it some thought, remembering her inventory she’d just finished. “I can always use basil and arugula.”

  “Oh good! I have way too much right now. I was thinking of starting the farm stand early just to get rid of some of that but you can buy it in bulk instead. That’ll be easier for me. And it’ll open up more space in my beds.”

  “Are you planting anything outside yet?” Kori asked as they stopped in front of the leeks.

  Nora headed to the back of the bed and started gently working the leeks free from the soil. They were beautiful green on top and perfectly white below the mounds of soil that had blanched them as they grew. The pile quickly grew and Kori considered everything she could do with them, various quiche combinations coming to mind first. Maybe even some leek biscuits. Or bacon wrapped leeks. She knew she couldn’t go wrong with bacon.

  “Yeah. I’m planting outside—peas, cabbage, kale and carrots to start—but still plenty of seedlings inside the other greenhouse. They won’t go outside for at least another month. I’m worried I’ll run out of space if they grow at the rate they’ve been going!”

  “I saw them. There are a lot!” Kori agreed.

  With a box full of leeks, Kori and Nora headed to the beds of greens. Together they picked enough baby arugula for at least a few days worth of egg sandwiches and enough basil to make fresh pesto tomorrow morning. She knew she still had pine nuts—which was one of her guilty pleasures and couldn’t get locally—and parmesan cheese so she wouldn’t have to stop at the store.

  “This is perfect,” Kori told Nora when she had two more boxes to add to her leeks. “I love being able to pick the food I’m going to sell.”

  “I’m happy to provide it. Oh! And I made some more apple cider from last year’s apples that have been waiting all winter. Do you want some for tomorrow? It has to get used in a few days and I know I won’t be able to drink it all.”

  “I can’t believe your apples kept this long to be able to make more!” Kori had enjoyed fresh cider every morning in the fall but it had been months since Nora had stopped making it.

  “They were pretty old and not good for anything else.”

  “I’d love whatever you have. As soon as they know it’s from you, and I add a few spices and heat it up, that cider is gone with the first few customers.”

  “Well I’ll just give it all to you at a discount because I’m not completely sure it’ll be as good as last fall’s.” Nora headed out of the greenhouse and back to the barn. She had a fridge in there with all of her milk and cheese products and the cider.

  Kori followed her, carrying her three full boxes of fresh veggies.

  They got to the barn and Nora loaded four glass pint jars into the boxes Kori was carrying. Then she led the way back to Kori’s car, opening doors for her since Kori’s hands were too full. They stood chatting for a few more minutes before Nora had to get back to the greenhouse.

  “I’ll see you in the next couple days, I’m sure,” Kori said, waving to her friend as she turned to walk away.

  “Stop by whenever you run out of food to serve. You know where to find me. And if you can’t, I’m sure Milo and Otis will be able to lead you to me.”

  “They are very reliable that way.” The dogs were at Nora’s heels, ready to keep her company as she worked away the rest of the daylight.

  Before Kori got into her car, she saw that one of her tires was flat and called back to Nora, “You have a jack?”

  Nora stopped in her tracks and turned back to Kori’s car. Kori was pointing at the tire in question. “Bummer. Must have hit a big rock in the driveway. It’s not long but it can be deadly for cars. Let me go get you the jack from the barn.”

  Kori was disappointed that her evening would be less relaxing but she knew exactly where to take her car. Her brother, Jay, worked at HC Auto Body with Spencer and she could use that time to ask him about their mother’s rumor.

  Nora came back with the jack and offered Kori a ride to the Auto Body. Without another clear option, she gladly accepted and quickly got the tire off the car. She’d rather get it fixed and back on her car than change the tire twice.

  HC Auto Body was located on Main Street, just two buildings down from The Early Bird Café. The only thing between the two was the ever popular Thai restaurant. Nora dropped her off and Kori got her flat tire from the back of the truck, Nora never even turning off her truck. Kori knew she had more work to do and was thankful for the ride.

  Kori headed inside and immediately spotted Jay. He saw her enter, too.

  “Hey Kori. What are you doing here?” he asked, more concern in his voice than she’d expected. They mostly kept to themselves, letting their mother be the link that held them together even though they all lived in the same small town.

  “I have a flat. Can you take a look at it and fix it?” She held out the tire to her brother.

  “Sure. I just finished up what I was working on so I can take a look right now.”

  “That’d be great. I can wait.”

  “
Why don’t you come with me. Mom stopped by earlier.”

  It was always ominous when Jay wanted to talk about their mother. Gale and Kori had an understanding but Jay had never completely understood Gale’s need for gossip.

  Kori followed Jay into the garage area from the front desk where she’d found him and waited for him to break the ice about what their mother had said to him.

  “Mom was asking really weird questions when I saw her after her spin class.”

  Kori waited for him to go on. He wasn’t looking at her but she tried to keep a neutral expression just in case he looked up to gauge her reaction.

  “She was asking about my ex-girlfriends.”

  “Uh-huh,” Kori mumbled, hoping it was encouragement to go on.

  “Like if I kept in touch with any of them. Is she pushing me to get together with someone? Does she think I’m going to be alone all my life?”

  “So what if she is worried about that? I’m not seeing anyone either and she hasn’t been pushing me,” Kori said, avoiding a direct answer to his questions.

  “Yeah but she thinks women don’t need men but men need women.” They both laughed. Gale had turned into a feminist when their dad had died. “She thinks men can’t take care of themselves and need a woman to do that for them.”

  Kori knew he was right but the theory didn’t make any sense to her. It seemed to contradict itself at its core but Kori had always just let it go.

  “I don’t know, Jay—”

  “She told me she stopped at the café this morning before it was open. She didn’t say anything to you?”

  “Not about you getting back together with a girlfriend.”

  “But about something else, then,” he stated. He looked up too, to read Kori’s face she assumed.

  “No,” she lied. “She stops by every Monday before her spin class. I don’t even listen to what she tells me, I’m always too busy getting stuff ready.”

  Jay turned back to the tire. “Isn’t that the truth? She’s always going on about something and I can never keep it all straight even if I’m trying to listen. Here’s your problem,” he said, pointing to an inch long slit in the side of the tire.