**Quincy the butterscotch tabby has a talent for sniffing out sweets --and uncovering crimes--in this Fat Cat mystery from the national bestselling author of *Fat Cat Spreads Out*.** When their former classmate Richard "Dickie" Byrd throws a high school reunion to gather support for his mayoral campaign, it drums up some not-so-sweet memories for dessert shop proprietor Chase Oliver and her friend Julie Larson. Julie would rather not reconnect with Ron North, the creepy kid who had a crush on her back in the day. His social graces haven't exactly improved with age, but is he creepy enough to kill? The next day, Chase is in the park testing a new cat harness for Quincy, who quickly proves that he cannot be leashed. But when his escape leads Chase to Ron's body, the police wonder who else got away. Now, with Julie suspected of murder, Chase must prove her innocence before the real killer plans another fatal reunion. *From the Paperback edition.*
Praise for the Fat Cat Mysteries
FAT CAT SPREADS OUT
“This is one of my favorite new series! The Fat Cat Mystery series is a delectable blend of lovable cat, mystery, baked delights, and friendship. Janet Cantrell has WOWed us again with
—Open Book Society
“Like catnip to cozy mystery readers. It is fast-paced fun, with interesting, likeable characters and a great puzzle mystery. There is even a dash of romance thrown in.”
—Examiner.com (5 stars)
“I am hopelessly in love with Quincy . . . Just priceless.”
—Melissa’s Mochas, Mysteries & Meows
FAT CAT AT LARGE
“A delicious mix of desserts, stealthy stealing, feline foraging, and murder!”
—Fresh Fiction
“Charming . . . Cozy mystery readers will be purring with delight.”
—MyShelf.com
“Ooohhhh . . . a story about an overweight, lovable cat named Quincy. How could I possibly resist this one? Well, of course, I couldn’t. I loved this book from the cover through every page in between . . . [A] great beginning to a brand-new series.”
—Socrates’ Book Reviews
FAT CAT AT LARGE
FAT CAT SPREADS OUT
FAT CAT TAKES THE CAKE
An imprint of Penguin Random House LLC
375 Hudson Street, New York, New York 10014
FAT CAT TAKES THE CAKE
A Berkley Prime Crime Book / published by arrangement with the author
Copyright © 2016 by Penguin Random House LLC.
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eBook ISBN: 978-1-101-62165-3
PUBLISHING HISTORY
Berkley Prime Crime mass-market edition / April 2016
Cover illustration by Craig White.
Cover design by George Long.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
PUBLISHER’S NOTE: The recipes contained in this book are to be followed exactly as written. The publisher is not responsible for your specific health or allergy needs that may require medical supervision. The publisher is not responsible for any adverse reactions to the recipes contained in this book.
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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
I would like to acknowledge a few of the people who have helped me with this book. For information on hacking, Cori Lynn Arnold and James M. Jackson. For details on evasive maneuvers, Sam Morton. For giving me spot-on feedback, Gale Albright and Paula Benson. My Plothatcher friends, as always, Janet Bolin, Janet Koch/Laurie Cass, Pam Cochran, Krista Davis, Daryl Wood Gerber, and Marilyn Levinson, for much needed and invaluable moral support.
CONTENTS
CHAPTER ONE
CHAPTER TWO
CHAPTER THREE
CHAPTER FOUR
CHAPTER FIVE
CHAPTER SIX
CHAPTER SEVEN
CHAPTER EIGHT
CHAPTER NINE
CHAPTER TEN
CHAPTER ELEVEN
CHAPTER TWELVE
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
CHAPTER NINETEEN
CHAPTER TWENTY
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
CHAPTER THIRTY
CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE
CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO
CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE
CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR
CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE
CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX
CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN
CHAPTER THIRTY-EIGHT
CHAPTER THIRTY-NINE
CHAPTER FORTY
ONE
“That’s a lot of mail,” Anna Larson said. She was taking a short afternoon break, sitting on the squeaky stool at the work island in the kitchen of the Bar None, the dessert bar shop co-owned by her and Charity Oliver, called Chase by almost everyone.
“Look!” Chase waved an envelope at Anna. Her eyes were bright and her cheeks red, partly from coming inside out of the early December cold, but also from excitement.
“If you held it still, I could see it.”
