“Cayenne pepper?” I said. “What’s that?”
“Powdered red chili peppers. Extremely hot. Not something you’d expect to be in cookies.” The old man directed a piercing stare in Scott’s direction.
Scott’s face turned red. “Obviously,” he said coldly. “Someone in the bakery must have used the wrong ingredients by mistake.”
“Maybe…although I’ve never heard of any baked goods that use cayenne,” the man said. “But you’d better call the police as well as your bakery staff.”
“The police?” Scott froze. “Why?”
“Because,” the old man snapped, “you have no way of knowing how many people bought cookies that are full of pepper from that bakery today. You need to get the word out, and that means the police need to know. And if someone put cayenne in those cookies on purpose, that’s a criminal investigation.”
“That’s going to mean press releases and the media, too.” Scott blanched.
The old man nodded. “Yes.”
“That could ruin the store.”
“Probably not, but you’ll have some negative publicity for a while,” the old man said. Seeing Scott’s hesitation, he lost patience. “Look, you’ve got no choice. If you withhold this information, you’ll be held responsible if anyone gets hurt.”
“But cayenne pepper isn’t dangerous,” Scott said.
“Do you really want to take that chance? What if someone eats one of those cookies while driving a car? Look at the kid’s reaction. Is it worth the risk?”
Scott sighed. “No, no it’s not. I’ll call right away.”
“Good.” The old man gave me a pat on the shoulder. “Glad you’re okay, kid. I’d like to be on my way, but if you need me as a witness, you can give me a call. I’ll leave you my number.”
“Thanks,” Scott said. He fumbled for a pen and searched for something to write on, finally pulling a folded-up paper from his pocket. The old man scribbled his name and number on the top and bottom, tearing the paper in two. He handed one half to me, the other to Scott.
“Just in case you or the police have any questions. Good luck, kid. Your tongue should be back to normal in a day or so.” He grinned at me. “Next time, try an apple. Healthier, and no surprises!”