Scrambled to Death: A Sage and Dash Cozy Mystery Read Free Page A

legs.
    “Thanks, buddy.” Rosie reached down to scratch his ear. Otherwise, she could only sit and stare at the wall. Life was so simple, and now this. Okay, maybe not simple, but certainly not this.
    When things went haywire, it left her anxious. Her general cautious nature and preference for routine kept most things in check.  She’d lived a crazy childhood that often times felt circus-like, so having a semblance of control as an adult gave Rosie a sense of security. Her mother on the other hand, simply gave her grayer hair.
    Her mom’s lack of common sense, big gossipy mouth, and unpolished ways could have been part of Rosie’s need for calm. While Libby’s heart was big, she was gullible, and had lost the family farm more times than Rosie cold count, and would turn around and get into trouble once again not a few weeks later. Rosie’s childhood was at best – chaotic. Thankfully, those days were behind her, as were her father, the random ‘boyfriends’ that would take advantage of them financially, and her mother’s need for adventure…mostly. Rosie was more the parent these days, and that suited her fine. She was proud of how far she’d come from the flea-bitten trailer park that sat behind the old drive-in movie theater that was all grown over now. She didn’t have issues with trailer parks in general, but the one they were in was all they could afford, and it was hardly the nicest in the area. Rosie shivered remembering the owner…not a nice man.
    These days, electricity stayed on. Food was on the table. And Rosie ran her very own business in the sweet, small town of Spring Valley. Everything was better – except for the fact that a man died smack in the middle of her restaurant. Yeah, there was that small detail; one tiny detail that would throw her life into turmoil.
    She took another drink of her cold diet soda and then went back to bed. It’s not like sleep would take her quickly, but being warm and cozy in her bed was still the best way to spend the night if she couldn’t sleep. There was always a book on her nightstand or a crossword puzzle to do. She loved to snuggle in her soft, goose-down comforter. And with Dash to keep her company, she was never alone.
    Rosie chased away the past, though the memories remained. The biggest memory was the fight that split up her parents. She was better off without her father, from what she remembered. But having lived with her mom all her life, well, that was no picnic either. When he disappeared, nobody heard from him again. No letters, no money, no nothing.
    Her mind drifted back to the earlier events of the day. She couldn’t erase the image of the poor man from her head. And yet, the day before a similar event happened down the road at another small family restaurant. Surely, they used the same distributors for a couple of their items. Maybe she’d check in with John Patterson and see if there were any similarities between what the dead men had eaten, or see if there was anything else that stood out.
    Could it have simply been a coincidence? Two middle-aged guys with plenty of life left to live, dropping unexpectedly? Something wasn’t right, and if Rosie didn’t find out, they might land in deep waters. Would she be held responsible for the man dying at the restaurant? Was she responsible, not even knowing it? Rosie sat up in bed and dug through her small nightstand drawer to find a small pad of paper and a pen. She jotted a couple of questions down for the morning.

Chapter 4
     
    When the results came back from the autopsies, they didn’t look good. The men didn’t die of natural causes. They were poisoned. Poisoned! That only made matters worse. What if Rosie got a bad supply of food or condiments and somebody else got sick. The only thing she could do was close her doors until she knew everything was safe. She’d see if there was any way to find out what type of poison was used, and research what she could. Unfortunately, she was limited by