Mistletoe, Malice and Murder by Bruce Hammack

Author:Bruce Hammack
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781958252048
Publisher: Jubilee Publishing

17

Wealthy women who couldn't hold their liquor always rubbed Heather the wrong way. She offered a silent expression of thanks for Steve extracting information from Carol while she made her way back to Chef Aubert's domain of pots, pans, and all things culinary.

Chef Aubert looked up when she entered his space where copper and stainless steel gleamed. The smile on his face spread, then disappeared. "Tout va bien?"

She joined him in speaking his native tongue. "All is well, Chef. I came back to help you prepare lunch."

"Wonderful! There's an apron in the cabinet by the window. The baguettes are ready to take from the oven and the croissants can go in. It will be a simple lunch of soup, salads, and sandwiches. The bodyguards will come in here two at a time. The family, you, Mr. Smiley, and Mr. Butch will eat in the dining room."

Heather closed the oven door. "What else can I do, Chef?"

"Are you familiar with a salade Niçoise?"

Heather searched her memory. "Tuna, green beans, potatoes, tomato wedges, sliced boiled eggs, onions, and capers on a bed of lettuce."

"Excellent. Prepare two salads separate for Tim and Tammy Green. They're vegetarian, so substitute garbanzo beans for the tuna."

"How do you want the presentation?"

"Long plates with the ingredients separate for the family. They’ll eat in the dining room." He waved a dismissing hand. "For the men who will eat in here, don’t worry about presentation. Mix the ingredients in a large bowl. You could put the food in a trough and they wouldn't care." He pointed to one of three commercial refrigerators. "I did some of the preparation this morning, but you'll find everything in that one."

Heather looked until she found everything necessary to chop, slice, open, and have ready to plate when it was closer to noon. Frequent glances at her progress told her the chef was keeping a close eye on the progress. The absence of words showed he approved.

The chef took a large ham from the middle refrigerator and slapped it on a cutting board. Quick strokes of a knife against a steel preceded him slicing off paper-thin wafers of meat. While they worked on opposite sides of a large stainless-steel table, Heather wondered if he would talk and slice at the same time. Only one way to find out.

"Chef, you said Tim and Tammy Green are vegetarians. That seems odd if Tim comes from a family in the oil business. Oil men are known for their love of red meat, especially in Texas. I thought all the Greens would eat rare steaks at least twice a day."

He wagged his knife at her like it was an extension of his index finger. "That would be how Mr. Sid liked his before his doctors put him on a soft, mainly liquid diet."

"How about Howard?" she said. "Does he like steaks?"

"Medium rare." He looked up from the mound of shaved ham. "I never thought of it before, but Howard is the only big meat eater in the house." He shook his head.

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