A Side of Sabotage by C. M. Surrisi

Author:C. M. Surrisi [Surrisi, C. M.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Boyd, C. M. Surrisi, Detective, Maiden Rock, Maine, Mysteries, Mystery, Quinnie, Quinnie Boyd, Surrisi, A Side of Sabotage, Chef, Competition, Conspiracy, Contest, Crime, Dining, East Coast, Fine Dining, Fish, Food, Foodie, Friendship, Organic, Quinnie Boyd Mysteries, Restaurant, Sabotage, Seafood, Soup, Tourism, tourist
ISBN: 9781541517394
Publisher: Lerner Publishing Group
Published: 2017-12-31T16:00:00+00:00

17

The next morning, Mom slaps an unofficial restraining order on me, Zoe, and Dominic.

“I’m almost running out of ideas as to how to get through to you about your”—she draws her lips tight and pauses before she says—“investigative nature. It seems like I tell you and you agree, and then a split second later, you’re doing the very thing I thought we agreed you wouldn’t do.”

“Could I—”

“Wait.”

“But—”

“You are not to go within fifty feet of Restaurant Hubert. This will apply to you, Zoe, and Dominic. Do you understand?”

“Yes.”

“And let me add that the places you can go are each other’s houses, the beach, Ms. Stillford’s, Gusty’s, and the yacht club. Anyplace else—if there’s any doubt—you ask first. Got it?”

“Got it,” I mumble.

I get the point. I could have been in really big trouble after crawling into Hubert’s like that. But it’s really going to handicap my investigation.

So we lay low for the day. We hang out at Gusty’s, eat chowder and CBTs, and keep our eyes open.

“Okay, so maybe we’re wrong,” says Dominic. A strand of cheese from his Gusty’s grilled cheddar-bacon-tomato sandwich stretches out over his chin.

The first six days of competition are over, and despite the problems, things actually look pretty good for Dad. At dinnertime, he’s bopping around the café, smiling at everyone and being Gusty. Still, from my spot at my usual table, I’m watching everything with an eagle eye. I keep my back to the wall so I can see the parking lot, the whole dining room, the counter area, and a little of the kitchen.

Mr. and Mrs. Morgan, longtime summer people, have come in with their grandchildren, who have grown a year bigger but stayed noisy and loud. “I want a whoopie pie, Grandpa!” “No. Eat your blueberry pie.” “Noooooo!” “Yes.” “No.” “Why not?” “Because it’s not really blue.” “Oh, for heaven’s sake.”

One table over, there’s a young family with a toddler who’s making a mess on the table that’s spilling to the floor.

Mrs. Billingsley and Groucho are at the table next to them. She’s giving the Morgan grandchildren and the toddler dirty looks and feeding lobster fries to the dog. When Dad stops by her table, she tips the butter cup and says, “This really needs to be heated to stay warm throughout the meal.” Dad says, “It’s a paper cup.” She replies, “You could get those little contraptions that put a small candle under it.” Dad repeats, “It’s a paper cup.”

The Lewises are here too. She’s eating fish head soup and doesn’t seem to be bothered by the fish head staring at her from the center of the bowl. He’s eating a Gusty burger but asks to taste the soup. She wants a bite of the burger. They’re kind of cute, the way they eat off each other’s plates. I look at Dominic and wonder if we could do that. He’s stuffing the last bite of his CBT into his mouth. I think that’s a new record, five minutes for a giant sandwich.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.