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just stared at her sister. This was a whole new side of Andrea she’d never seen before.
    â€œAnd then I was thinking of doing white cake mix with some kind of cut-up fruit like cherries or apricots. Why are you staring at me like that?”
    â€œBecause that’s how great recipes are developed. You start with something basic and branch out. Sometimes it can be as simple as running out of one ingredient and substituting something else.” Hannah passed the plate of cookies to Michelle. “We’ve got three left, one for each of us. And then we’d better get down to business.”
    â€œYou’re going to figure out who killed Wayne?” Andrea asked, taking her cookie and making short work of it.
    â€œI don’t even know if anyone did…yet,” Hannah reminded her. “It was night, he was at the bottom of the berm, and I was at least eight feet above him. I guess it’s possible he slipped and broke his neck.”
    â€œBut why was he up there in the first place?” Michelle asked.
    â€œHe could have climbed up to enjoy the view,” Andrea suggested. “What was it like up there?”
    â€œIt wasn’t what I’d call a scenic vista. The only thing I could see from the top was the snow bank behind it and the cars in the parking lot.”
    â€œOkay.” Michelle gave a quick nod. “Then maybe he had to…you know. And he didn’t want to walk all the way back to the inn.”
    â€œSo he climbed up a slippery eight-foot snow bank instead of just ducking behind a handy tree?” Hannah asked her.
    â€œNever mind. It was a dumb idea,” Michelle admitted.
    â€œWait a second,” Andrea looked thoughtful. “Maybe he didn’t climb up there. Maybe somebody dragged him up there and pushed him down the other side to kill him.”
    â€œWhy go to all that trouble when you could just shoot him, or stab him, or club him to death right there on the path?” Hannah asked the pertinent question.
    â€œBecause the killer was afraid somebody might come along and catch him? Or…oh, I don’t know. Let me find out if it was an accident. Bill should know by now.”
    â€œYou’re going to call Bill?” Michelle asked as Andrea took her cell phone out of her purse.
    â€œNo, I’m calling Sally.”
    â€œSally at the inn?” Michelle followed up with another question.
    â€œThat’s right. She can tell me if Vonnie Blair’s still there at the party.”
    â€œDoc Knight’s secretary,” Hannah said, beginning to get an inkling of what her sister was doing. “And if Vonnie’s still there, it’s probably not murder. Is that right?”
    â€œYou got it.”
    As Andrea punched in the number, Michelle turned to Hannah. “Maybe you got it, but I didn’t get it.”
    â€œIt’s simple. If Doc Knight thinks it’s murder, Bill will ask him to rush the autopsy. Doc knows how important it is and he’ll do it right away. And since Doc has such awful handwriting, he’ll call Vonnie on her cell phone and ask her to come out to the hospital to type up the transcript of the autopsy tonight.”
    Michelle’s puzzled expression smoothed out and she looked very impressed. “Wow. Andrea’s devious.”
    â€œShe gets it from Mother,” Hannah explained. “Mother can think of the most roundabout ways to get the latest gossip.”
    â€œThanks, Sally,” Andrea said, and snapped her cell phone shut. And then she looked over at them. “It’s murder. Vonnie left with the paramedics who transported Wayne to the hospital. Doc Knight must have been able to tell right away.”
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    As usual, Andrea was the scribe. Not only did she have good organizational skills, she also had the neatest handwriting of the three sisters. Michelle’s had deteriorated when she’d gone off to college. After two years at Macalister, her notes