A Pinch of Sea Salt and a Dash of Murder (Outer Banks Baker Mystery Series Book 1) Read Online Free Page A

couldn’t count on the cops to save the day. This wasn’t “Castle”, this was real life. And in real life, the police don’t always get their man or woman.
    The back of the building was still blocked off with police tape that read “Do Not Cross”. However, the front was devoid of the tape so Melissa let herself into her own shop through the front door. The place was dark and smelled of something that was not in line with a bakery. She suspected that stench was Linda’s blood but didn’t want to say anything to Logan about it. Wouldn’t do any good to creep the kid out. She was creeped out enough for them both. The boy moved to turn on the lights but Melissa stopped him. The last thing she wanted was for others to notice the lights and come over to confront her invading a crime scene, even if it was her own store. Instead she used the flashlight app on her phone to see her way around. Truth be told, she knew the place so well she could operate an entire day in the store while blindfolded.
    Motioning to Logan to stay behind her and not touch anything, Melissa first inspected the front windows and door to see if anything was amiss. Then she moved around the few tables in the place with the wooden chairs still piled on top from when the bakery had closed two nights earlier. Nothing seemed out of place. The customer counter and display cases showed signs of a white powdery substance she suspected the cops had used to dust for prints. The glass enclosed shelves that normally held breads and pastries were empty and cleaned – not even a crumb. She never served anything that was not made fresh that day. Anything not purchased at the end of the day was delivered to the local soup kitchen. With Logan here for the summer, that was one of his duties.
    The cash register had also been dusted for prints. Melissa grabbed a pen in a cup next to the register to punch in the code to open it without leaving any fingerprints. It was empty. All cash was removed nightly and placed in the safe in her back office or taken to the bank night depository. Thinking back, she remembered that Britney had offered to take the deposit bag the evening in question and had offered to close up the shop for Melissa so she could get home early to cook a decent meal for Logan. Despite loving to bake, and having graduated with honors from a culinary program, she was not big on cooking everyday meals. A thorough sweep of the front of the shop revealed nothing out of the ordinary, other than the fingerprint dusting powder that the cops had not cleaned up during their initial investigation.
    Beginning to think this was a big mistake to come down to the bakery to check things out on her own, Melissa eyed the back of the store. Knowing that was where the crime occurred so that would be where any evidence had been left, she dreaded walking back there. Even more so, she dreaded what she would find even though the cops had most likely taken anything of significance. Taking a deep breath, she used her hip to push open the door leading to the back of the store.
    It was pitch black in this area of the shop. The door to the front obscured all light from the outside and should shield any light from the back of the store from anyone walking past outside. Considering her options, walk around a crime scene using the tiny flashlight app on her phone or risking turning on the lights, Melissa chose the latter. The overhead lights flickered briefly and then hummed on fully.
    Too late, she realized Logan probably should’ve stayed out front. The scene before them was disturbing. Pots and pans and baking utensils had been strewn all over the counters and floors. But the disturbing part was the blood splattered on the corner of the countertop she used for cooling breads fresh from the oven and the blood that had dried into the concrete floor. She doubted bleach was going to get that stain out, ever. The police had left the taped outline of Linda’s body as it had been