Run: 2026-05-10-01KR919ECEWGK14ABJWNPHEXEN

The air in the Flour Garden was thick with the scent of cardamom and burnt sugar. Dust motes danced in the morning light filtering through the lace curtains, settling on trays of cooling lemon tarts. "You’re sure you saw him leave through the back alley?" "Positive. He was carrying a heavy leather briefcase and looking over his shoulder every two seconds." "That’s odd. Mayor Higgins doesn't usually carry a briefcase, and he certainly doesn't sneak out the back." "Maybe he was meeting someone. Someone he didn't want the whole town to know about." "Like Mrs. Gable?" "Now, why would he be meeting her? They haven't spoken since the zoning board disaster of '94." "Exactly. Which makes it all the more suspicious." "Wait, is that a smudge of blue ink on your apron?" "Where? Oh, it's just a leak from my pen." "That’s not ink. It looks like the specific cobalt shade the Mayor uses for his official correspondence." "You're imagining things. Now, do you want the raspberry scone or the almond twist?" "The scone. And a double espresso. We have work to do."