Sleigh Bells and Sleuthing, page 79
He raised his eyebrows questioningly as if he was wondering why I was hesitating.
"It's called the murder game," I said softly, not wanting to say at it all.
I don't know what I expected his reaction to be, but it wasn't this. He didn't even bat an eye.
"Tell me about this game."
I gave him the rundown of the game and who was playing. "Do you think someone playing the game killed him?"
He burst out laughing, and I got annoyed. It wasn't nice for a detective to laugh at you even if you were asking what might be a stupid question.
"Stella, if you're asking me if I think the game inspired someone to kill one of the passengers of this charter, the answer is no. I actually think it sounds like an interesting game to pass the time on a road trip." He smiled, and I noticed what a beautiful smile he had. What was wrong with me? My emotions were all over the place. I was worried he thought I was a murderer one minute, and then finding him attractive the next.
"It was a fun game that passed the time. Megan won but barely. Ted was leading the entire time, which is no great surprise since he's a detective himself."
At this detective Richards showed a bit of surprise with a slight head jerk. It gave me the impression he didn't know Ted was a detective.
"What do you know about Beth and Frank?”
I shrugged my shoulders. “Nothing really. I met them yesterday like everyone else.”
“Do you feel they were upset at his death?”
“We were, are, all upset. With that and Tommy being shot I feel this trip is cursed.” I smiled as I said it, but I wasn’t really joking. It kind of was.
He made a few notes, and I wanted to work up the courage to ask him more questions, but he cut me off.
“I think I have everything I need from you Stella. You can go ahead and try to enjoy the rest of your weekend. You can send the next person then."
I stood up. “So, you no longer suspect me?”
"Never say never, but I don't think you're my murderer."
I knew he was teasing me, so I just smiled and walked out of the room. I reached the group back in the common area and told them someone needed to go next.
Jacob jumped up. "Might as well get this over with."
Chapter Seven
It took a few hours for everyone to talk to Detective Richards, which seemed like a long time since he’d talked to us twice the previous day. When it was over, people headed on about their day and scattered. I found myself a little disappointed that the detective left before I had a chance to see him again. And then I chastised myself for those thoughts. The stress of the last day or so were obviously getting to me. I wasn’t here to ogle the detective, no matter how cute he was.
Those of us who had played the game on the bus had bonded and decided to hang around each other for the day. I was fine with that even though my original goal had been to interact with everyone, a lot had happened since then. I felt with everything that had happened it was fine to stick together. I liked everyone. Well, Art was a little annoying, and even though he hadn’t played the game, he was hanging with us because of Jacob and Ted, but other than that everyone was fine.
After we spent the morning being questioned we had brunch, then spent the day walking some trails on snow shoes which was an interesting experience. It sure wasn’t as easy as it looked. I was exhausted when we got back, as was everyone else, so we went to our rooms for a quick nap before dinner, but not before I snagged a mocha latte and blueberry scone from the café. Calories be damned. I know I burned at least ten thousand snow shoeing. We had decided earlier to go into town and eat at the one nice restaurant in the area, a steak and seafood place called The Swimming Cow. A very corny name for a restaurant, it had great Yelp reviews, and my new friend Courtney at the front desk said she’d never had a guest eat there who didn't love it.
I think we all had a bit of cabin fever, literally, and were excited to go into town. Even Tommy was coming.
"It was nice of the hotel to lend us their van,” I said.
"Well it saved them from having to drive us in to town and then come back to get us," Jacob replied
"Yeah, they were short staffed tonight, and this made it a lot easier for them,” Beth added.
It didn't take long to get to town, and even though we’d known it was a small town, we were surprised by how small it really was. Truly, a one stop-light town. The town of Thief River Falls might be just a few blocks big, but even at this late hour I could tell it had a lot of personality. Maybe there’d be time to come back down here and explore tomorrow.
We declined dessert, stuffed from dinner, the food living up to its expectation, and were relaxing with coffee when I finally got up the nerve to address the elephant in the room. That was a little dramatic, but I knew everyone was curious. It’d come up several times this afternoon. Even Detective Richards brought it up.
"So, Beth, Frank. How did you know Reginald? “I second-guessed myself a little after the words came out, but no stuffing the cat back in the bag, as my grandma used to say.
They looked at each other in such a way that I got the impression they really didn't want to have this conversation. Maybe Jacob was right, and they were avoiding the question, which made me feel worse I’d asked it. They were entitled to their privacy, weren’t they?
"Yeah. How did you know them?" Jacob asked.
Beth sighed and looked at Frank with concern on her face. I couldn’t help but find it a bit suspicious. Why couldn’t they just tell us? Why was it such a big deal?
“He was our cousin," Frank finally said.
That was it? Seriously? I tried to contain my expression to one that was neutral.
"Why would you care if we knew? It's not a big deal," I said.
"I don't know," Beth said. "This whole ordeal has been so devastating. We weren’t trying to keep secrets. We just didn’t want to make a big deal about it."
That didn’t really ring true to me, but I felt guilty for being suspicious. It’s not like I thought they’d killed him. But I had a growing desire to find out who did. Maybe I was being paranoid, but this didn't make any sense.
"Oh, did he come on this trip to spend time with you two?" Annie asked.
"Kind of. He needed to get away, and we felt this was a great opportunity."
“He’d been through a break up,” Frank quickly added. “We were hoping this trip would lift his spirits.”
We all sat silently. I know we were all thinking the trip hadn’t helped with that at all.
The jovial mood had been quieted by the conversation about Reginald, and we paid our bill and were piling in the van a few minutes later.
Everyone was quiet as we headed back to the cabin. A stark contrast to the ride down. Though maybe everyone was just tired. I know I was.
The sky was cloudless, and I was enjoying viewing the stars out my window when I saw headlights coming up behind us.
It’d been the first car we’d encountered on our way back. I’d noticed the lack of traffic as it spoke volumes to the true solitude here. I felt myself falling a little in love with this area. I’d always thought of myself as a city girl, but Thief River Falls was changing my thought on that topic.
The lights got closer, and I assumed they were getting ready to pass us when the van lurched forward.
“What the hell?” Art shouted, and I heard Tommy moan a little. I looked over to where he was sitting, and he had a pained look on his face. Poor guy. He’d been a trooper all through dinner even though we could all tell he was exhausted.
“Hold tight everyone,” Ted said. His voice wavering.
We jolted forward again.
“Hold tight for what?” Annie screamed. “Someone is trying to run us off the road.”
“I need to get up the road a few hundred more feet where the shoulder is big enough for us to safely pull over,” Ted said. He’d volunteered to drive. A move I bet he was regretting now.
“Well hurry!” Art said angrily.
“Almost there.”
But before we made it to where Ted thought was safe to pull over, the vehicle passed us. It was a large black pickup. I couldn’t tell what make, but it was one of those jacked up ones.
Ted finally pulled over and we all sat silently. I was trying to process what’d happened. Had someone really tried to run us off the road? Annie was crying as was Beth with their respective husbands trying to soothe them.
“Everyone okay?” Ted asked, pale himself.
We all nodded.
“Tommy, I want to go home tomorrow,” Annie demanded.
“Us, too,” the sisters nodded in agreement.
“Listen, everyone. This was probably just a drunk driver or something. Don’t let it ruin your time.”
“Are you crazy, Frank?” Annie yelled. “These aren’t all coincidences.”
“Your cousin was murdered, Tommy was shot, and now we were almost run off the road. Why would you want to stay? Much less the rest of us!”
Her yelling ended with a burst of fresh tears, and Tommy hugged her with his good arm. He was murmuring something I couldn’t hear, but it calmed her down a little.
“What Frank means is we can’t leave until the detective tells us we can, so we should all make the best of it.”
Art started to open his mouth again, and Beatrice silenced him with a stare.
“Everyone, calm down. We’re fine. Let’s just get back to the cabin.”
Emily leaned forward toward Annie’s seat. “Here, Annie, roll this essential oil on the back of your wrists and behind your ears. It will make you feel better, I promise.”
Annie took the small brown bottle.
“What is it?”
“Lavender essential oil infused with wintergreen. I have high anxiety, and it works wonders.”
Annie applied it and handed it back to Emily who slipped it back in her purse.
“Everyone ready to get back on the road?” Ted asked.
“Yes,” we all chorused, and he pulled the van back out and headed down the road.
Chapter Eight
I got back to my hotel room and after such a big meal, the drama of the ride home, and not sleeping the night before I would have thought I’d be dead asleep in five minutes. But I was so tired I couldn’t sleep. This getaway was turning out to be something from the Twilight Zone, and I couldn’t help but find Beth and Frank’s behavior about not wanting to tell us Reginald was their cousin a little odd. Regardless of how they said it, it seemed like they were hiding something.
So, what did one do when you wanted to find out more information? You Googled it. The information super highway.
They’d told us his last name at dinner, so I typed in Reginald Thomas into my iPad. And that's all I had to do, because immediately the first page was full of stories about how six months ago, St. Paul, Minnesota resident Reginald Thomas had won the lottery. To the tune of ten million dollars. I let out a soft whistle and furrowed my brow. Beth and Frank hadn’t mentioned this at all. But it could be why they’d been so reluctant to tell us about Reginald. I could see keeping that private. But it also made murder seem more realistic. People did all sorts of crazy things when it came to money.
They’d told us how Beth had grown up with him like a brother, and she’d started dating Frank in high school and they’d all been inseparable.
They’d gone to college together, got married, were in each other’s weddings, and Reginald had been living with them since his divorce last year. It made sense they’d want to protect him. But after he died, what was the need? Especially in light of what happened.
The room phone rang, causing me to jump. I’d been so lost in my own thoughts. Who could that be? I certainly wasn’t expecting anyone.
“Hello?”
“Stella? It’s Jacob. I can’t sleep, and now I’m hoping you weren’t sleeping either or I’ll feel bad for waking you up. God, I’m an idiot. I’m so sorry.”
I started laughing. “No, I wasn’t sleeping. It’s fine.”
There was a moment of silence on the other end of the line.
“Did you need something?”
“Let me try again. Stella, I can’t sleep. Would you like to meet me in the bar for a nightcap?”
I hesitated, if for no other reason than having a drink with a man who wasn’t Frank, my Frank, hadn’t happened in a long time, and it felt weird. Even though I knew I needed to at some point. Mingle with other men that is.
“I shouldn’t have bothered you. You’re probably ready for bed. I’m sorry,” he apologized again, probably thinking since I hesitated I didn’t want to.
“No, no, you aren’t bothering me. Really. Meet you down there in five?”
“Great. See you in a few.”
I hung up and slipped my shoes back on, then looked in the mirror. That was a mistake. A raccoon couldn’t hold a candle to these dark circles. I decided some powder would have to do since the only thing to fix those circles was sleep, and that wasn’t happening any time soon.
I grabbed my purse, slipped my room card in the front zippered pocket, and headed out the door. A few moments later, I was at the bar and Jacob was already there with a glass of red wine sitting in front of him.
“I would have ordered you something, but I wasn’t sure if you would prefer white or red.”
“That’s okay,” I said as I sat down and ordered a glass of Merlot from the waitress who immediately came over as I sat down.
“Are you sure I didn’t bother you by calling?” He really looked worried. It was sweet.
“No. Not at all. I’m glad you called.” I wanted to confide in him, what I had found on Google. I did feel bad for gossiping and was a little embarrassed that I had Googled in the first place. It felt so nosy, but I felt what I’d found out should overshadow that. so, I decided to tell him anyway.
“All kidding aside, that doesn’t shock me,” he said as I finish telling him what I’d found.
“Really?”
“Yes. I’ve felt they were being cagey with information this whole time. Even if Ted and Art were calling me a conspiracy theorist. I knew something wasn’t right.”
“Maybe they didn’t tell us about the lottery because they thought it was tacky?”
I took a drink of my wine and watched Jacob’s expression as he thought about what I said.
“I think there’s more to this than they’re telling us. Are you going ask them about it?”
“No. It’s not my business. No matter how strange I find it. I just wish I could stop thinking about it. Put all this behind us.”
“I guess you have a point. Are you single?” He asked with a smile on his face.
I couldn’t help but to laugh, and if his goal was to get my mind off Beth and Frank and their story, it worked.
Chapter Nine
The next morning after breakfast, the rest of the group minus Annie and Tommy went out on a guided snowmobile trip while I decided to go into town and explore. As much as I wanted to hang out with the group I also wanted some quiet time with myself. Since we’d decided to meet up again for dinner, and I wasn’t a huge fan of being outside in the cold, I thought a trip to town would be perfect. Especially since tomorrow was the big light show, and then the next day we’d be leaving, I wanted to get it all in. I thought exploring on my own would be fun.
“Thanks for dropping me off,” I said to the van driver. I think he said his name was Charles but as usual I couldn’t remember, and he didn’t have a name tag on. I really needed to work on remembering peoples’ names. Maybe I needed some of that natural vitamin stuff that helped your memory. St. John’s wort or something?
“No problem. Now you have our card, right? So you call me when you’re ready to come back?”
“I hate to bother you. Is there an Uber or something I can take?”
He laughed. “I’m your Uber, ma’am. Just give me a call.”
“Okay then.” I shut the door after I got out of the van. I was right in front of the cute little coffee shop I’d seen last night on our way to dinner. The Swimming Cow was just a few doors down. I put my hand on the door handle and started to pull it open thinking about the latte I was going to get when the sound of a loud muffler caused me to reflexively turn around to see what was making that god-awful noise. I gasped, and my hand dropped back to my side, letting the door slam shut. It was a large black truck. The one that tried to run us off the road. A Dodge, which Jacob told me it was. He’d been on the other side of the van and had a better view of the vehicle when it passed us.
This was a small town, so how many black jacked up Dodge trucks could there be?
I blatantly stared as the driver got out, oblivious to me standing ten feet away. It was a kid. Well maybe not technically a kid, but someone in his twenties. Not what I’d expected, though I wasn’t really sure what I’d expected.
Before I realized what I was doing, I marched over to where he was feeding the parking meter.
“Hey!” I yelled, and he looked up, not at all seeming worried that some strange middle-aged lady was yelling out to him.
“Can I help you, ma’am?” he smiled.
That completely caught me off guard. Either I was wrong that there were many black trucks in town and he wasn’t the one who’d rammed into us, or he didn’t have sense enough to be worried I might be one of the passengers from the night before.
I hesitated. I didn’t want to accuse him falsely. But what were the odds?
“Did you happen to ram your truck into the back of a van last night?” I asked in a much softer tone. I wanted to take a look at the front of his truck, but I didn’t want to take my eyes off him either. Especially since after I spoke, the blood drained from his face, and he looked like a guilty scared kid. Clearly, I was right. It was him.
“You did. Didn’t you?” I demanded, stepping up until I was a mere few inches from his face, my hands on my hips. Now I was back to being loud.
