Pumpkin Spice Lies: A Pumpkin Hollow Mystery, book 16

couple of years. He was still in high school when he started. He worked a few hours each day after school. But the last time I talked to Hailey, she told me the two of them were fighting. I didn’t think a lot of it at the time, but now that I think things over, I have to wonder about him.”
“Did she say anything specifically?” I asked, glancing at the donuts in the display case. I had promised to bring a box of donuts back to the candy store. Mom, Carrie, and Linda were making candy to fill the orders we had taken over the weekend at the vendors’ fair.
“She said he was crazy jealous, and she was tired of it. They were arguing all the time, I guess. He thought she was flirting with another boy, but she swears up and down that she never did anything like that.”
“Was there a specific boy that she mentioned?” I asked.
She nodded. “Yes, Matt Edwards. I’m not sure I know him though.”
“Did she say why her boyfriend thought she was flirting with him?” Christy asked, leaning on the front counter.
“Apparently he gave her a ride home from college last May. She said it was a warm day, and she’d stayed after class to get some help with an assignment. She’d been struggling with her schoolwork and she had been worried about her grade.” She chuckled dryly. “Hailey always struggled a little in school. If you ask me, it was because she was so sociable with all the other kids.” She shook her head and chuckled again. “That was the way she was. Just so full of energy.”
“Sometimes kids have trouble with school if they’re the talkative type,” I said.
“She certainly was. My sister and I were talking about her one night recently and wondering when she would settle down to get married. Her mother wanted her to get married right away because she wanted grandkids.” She rolled her eyes but chuckled when she said it. “I told her that Hailey needed to take her time and wait until she grew up a little more. Hailey’s silliness showed her immaturity, and I didn’t want to see her marry someone just because she wanted to get married. I wanted her to wait and do a little more growing up.”
I nodded. “Do you know anything else about Joey Harper?” I asked.
She shook her head. “I really don’t. I wish I did, and I’m thinking I might go over to the shoe store and talk to Joey and see if he knows anything about who might have killed her.”
I glanced at Christy. “Maybe you should let the police handle that. If you’re worried that he may have had something to do with her death, you might just want to talk to Ethan about it and let him handle things.”
She looked at me, her eyes widening. “Well, I guess I didn’t think about it that way. I just can’t imagine who would do that to my poor niece. I mean, they killed her and buried her at the park. That doesn’t even make sense.”
I nodded. “Murderers seldom think things through. It seems like most murders are committed on the spur of the moment. It may be that they just happened to see that equipment there at the park and buried her there.”
She nodded. “And there aren’t any cameras turned on at that part of the park. Can you believe it? There are some around the restrooms, the parking lot, and the snack bar that they use when they have events at the park, but none on the playground. It doesn’t make sense to me.”
“That doesn’t make sense,” Christy agreed. “I would think they would want a camera on the playground in case someone has an accident, or in case, well, a crime is committed.”
She nodded and sniffed. “I’m sure Ethan will sort things out and arrest the killer. Well girls, what can I get for you today?” She brightened as she said it, but I knew it was just an act.
“We promised we’d bring a dozen donuts back to the candy store for everyone,” I said, looking at the display case that held the donuts. “They all look so good.
“They are,” she said. “If I’m may say so myself.”
I grinned. “Why don’t you get me three of your boo berry donuts, three muddy ghosts, three old-fashioned witches, and three pumpkin spice.”
“And one more for a baker’s dozen?”
I nodded. “A green goblin.”
She unfolded the bakery box and opened the back of the display case. “I’m sure Ethan will find her killer,” she repeated. “I still can’t get over the fact that she’s dead. It was only a couple of weeks ago that I last spoke to her.”
“So did she say if she and her boyfriend had broken up?” Christy asked as she watched Angela filling the box with donuts. “You said that they were arguing a lot. Did she mention them breaking up?”
Angela stopped, a pumpkin spice donut in her hand, and looked at her, thinking. “You know, I don’t recall whether she said that or not. She just said they were arguing a lot, so I assumed they were still together, just not getting along very well.”
Christy nodded. “Makes you wonder if they broke up or not.”
“I wish she had. Maybe she would still be alive.”
I felt bad for Angela and her family. It had to be crushing to lose someone who was still so young and had so much life ahead of them yet. Christy and I would do what we could on our end to discover whatever information we could, and hopefully it would help Ethan in his search for the killer.

Chapter Seven
“I hope you’re ready for donuts,” I said to Mom, Linda, and Carrie. They were working away in the kitchen, each