Dead upon arrival, p.12
Dead Upon Arrival, page 12
Cliff scowled. I was losing him. “You try working for the man, then you can judge me.”
“I can’t. He’s dead.”
I stood and unrolled my pant legs. They were a bit damp, but the information was worth the momentary discomfort. “Thanks for the chat, Cliff. I should get going.”
He seemed surprised, like he’d thought I was there just for him. “Leaving already?”
“I have a murder to solve.”
“B-but—”
I noticed security making the rounds and knew I’d need to hurry before they caught me wandering around the same place I’d been last time they’d kicked me out. Knowing my luck, that was exactly why they were here—looking for me.
“Sorry, but I’m not exactly supposed to be here. We’ll have to catch up another time.”
And then I walked the opposite way security had gone, except every door that led back into the hotel was locked, and I needed a room key to get back in. Out through the side gate it was.
By the time I reached the front of the hotel, Sheriff Potts was waiting for me by her car. She noted my damp pant legs and smirked.
“Go for a swim?”
“Something like that. You get anything interesting, or did the desk clerk hold you off, still going on about needing a warrant?”
The sheriff’s smile dipped. “I hate working with people like that—think they’re important. Love the power that the law provides them.”
“Oh, you mean she’s a cop?”
As soon as I said it, I wished I could take it back. The sheriff and I had just started being on friendly terms, but the look she gave me now was not that of a friend.
“Most police officers do not choose the job for a power trip,” she said, her gaze hard. “I’ve lost a friend—a partner—to the job. Because he was trying to keep people safe. Never minimize what it is that we do.”
Duly noted.
“I’m sorry. You’re right. Want to know what I got by flirting with a crew member?”
Sheriff Potts raised an eyebrow. “You flirted with a younger guy to get information?” She paused to appraise me. “I’m impressed—didn’t think you had it in you.”
I was unsure if I should be offended and decided to ignore the comment. “The crew member who ran around cutting the rope—he wasn’t in on some scheme. An order came through the radio to untie the ropes as quickly as possible, and cut them if necessary.”
“Charles Reed?”
“I don’t think so. The poison had probably already done its damage. The crew member said it was supposed to be Charles Reed, but that he sounded different. Not quite like himself. But those guys, they were used to immediately following orders, no questions asked. So someone sprang into action and cut all the ropes.”
Sheriff Potts seemed deep in thought as we slid into the car. “A man, then.”
I gave a quick nod.
She released a long sigh. “Each crew is on their own radio frequency. Things are not looking good for your friend Andrew.”
17
“What do you mean things aren’t looking good for Andrew?” I stared at the sheriff as she drove me back to my motel.
Sheriff Potts glanced at me before her attention returned to the winding road. “Andy was up in the basket with Charles. He had access to all the food and wine and wasn’t allowed to partake of any of it himself. A great excuse to why he hadn’t eaten any of the poisoned food. He’s strong enough to lift Charles over the edge of the basket, and he had a radio on him. He could have easily called in to the crew to cut the tethers. And let’s not forget that he has motive. I’m sorry, but everything points to him doing it.”
“But Andy said that Casey lifted Charles over the edge. She won weight-lifting competitions, and her family has a reputation to protect. And the fact that it was a man who called over the radio doesn’t prove anything. It still could have been another crew member. They would have had access to the food before the balloon went up. Can’t you call them into the police station or something? They have to be questioned.”
The sheriff hesitated, then shook her head. “No. I’m done sticking my neck out for you. If this guy wasn’t a friend of Ruby’s, I would have already drawn up the paperwork and transferred him to a different facility so he can await indictment.” She paused. “Maddie, I’m done. And I’m heading back to Amor to rethink my life choices.”
Anger coursed through me. And desperation. There was no good answer. Sheriff Potts could be right. Maybe Andy really had done it. Maybe I had to call Ruby and tell her that I was sorry, but Parker was going to need to find another crewmate, because this one was guilty of murdering someone.
“Stop the car,” I said.
Sheriff Potts’ gaze whipped toward me, surprise etched in her features. “Sorry?”
“Stop the car,” I repeated, more forcefully this time. “I need some air. Time to think. I’m not going to get it at the motel, and I’m certainly not going to get it here in this stuffy car.”
The sides felt like they were closing in. I needed room to breathe.
“But we’re on a deserted stretch of road,” the sheriff said, seemingly trying to stall for enough time to get me back to the motel. “There isn’t any cell service here, and you wouldn’t be able to contact anyone. I’m not going to abandon you here.”
“It can’t be that long a walk,” I said, my breaths coming faster. “But I’m tired of this. Tired of figuring out who hated who enough to kill them. Tired of thinking someone is a good, kind person who was innocent of any wrongdoing, then questioning everything I’ve believed.”
The sheriff was quiet for a moment, but she didn’t make any move to stop the car. “That’s what makes you such a good psychologist,” she finally said. “You see the good in people. There can be facts staring you in the face, and you still choose to ignore them and see the essence of who a person is. You don’t judge them. You help them, and you do a lot of good. The town of Amor needs you. And frankly, the police department is better off because of you. Because you see the good in people, but you also care about the truth and not jumping to conclusions. You’re not afraid to face the facts, but you want to be absolutely sure of them before you do anything rash.”
I sensed a “but” coming. And it did.
“But we don’t have the luxury of months or years of therapy sessions to get to the essence of our suspects. We have until the end of today. While you were questioning that crew member, I received a phone call. The police chief is happy with my service while I’ve been here, but they feel that with the groundwork I’ve done, they can take it from here.”
“Meaning you did the hard work, and now they’re happy to take credit for the arrest and get the festival back in good standing.”
Sheriff Potts nodded. “Pretty much.” She paused and glanced at me. “I’ve asked them to give me until the end of the day.”
My breath whooshed out. The sheriff really did have my back or was at least trying to. End of the day, though. That wasn’t long. And I wasn’t sure my kids would appreciate me being gone even longer than I had been.
My kids.
“I think it’s best I go back to the motel,” I said.
The sheriff nodded and gave the gas pedal a little more pressure. She never said I told you so, and I appreciated that.
I faced my kids, much like a drill sergeant, pacing in front of them, attempting to gather my thoughts. “Okay, troops. We have less than eight hours to solve a murder. We’ve been through this before, and we can do it again.”
A knock on the door.
I looked to Flash and Lilly, but they gave me blank looks, like they weren’t expecting anyone.
When I opened the door, Benji stood on the other side. “Mind if I come in?” He was looking around, anxious, almost like he thought he’d been followed.
I quickly ushered him in, and his eyebrows popped up when he saw the kids sitting cross-legged on the bed, waiting quietly for the meeting to proceed.
“Am I interrupting something?” he asked, glancing back toward the door, as if wondering if he should leave.
“Just a tactical planning session,” I said, as if this was something we did every day. “Why do you look spooked, though?”
Benji threw on a smile, but it felt like it was for the benefit of the kids. Like something was bothering him and he was unsure if he should talk about it in front of them.
“What you need to say can be said in front of the troops,” I said, resuming my drill sergeant pose, legs spread and my hands clasped behind my back.
Benji hesitated. “O-kay.” He gave one more anxious glance toward the kids before saying, “I think someone’s watching your motel room.”
Aw, crap.
I moved to look out the window, but Benji grabbed my hand and pulled me back. His touch felt natural, and I didn’t drop his hand right away, but then I saw Lilly’s raised eyebrow and I crossed my arms. When Benji and I had been younger, we wouldn’t have thought anything of it. We’d been comfortable with each other.
Kids changed things, though. They read more meaning into things than they should, and judging by Benji’s conflicted expression, I wondered if he was doing the same.
“You don’t want them thinking you’re onto them,” Benji said. “I already called the sheriff. She’s going to swing by and check things out. I figured it would look natural enough if I came up to your room, but we shouldn’t leave until we get the all-clear from Potts.”
Maybe I should have let Benji speak to me in private—I hoped we hadn’t scared the kids.
On the contrary, they both seemed to be itching to move back the curtain, just as I had attempted.
“How many are out there?” I asked.
“Just one. Maybe no one,” Benji said. “It was that desk clerk from downstairs.”
Valerie. Why would she be watching the room? An uneasy feeling settled over me. In a rundown place like this, would they have set up security cameras? Were we being watched that morning when the sheriff came by to visit? And again when I left with her? Maybe the killer thought we were getting too close to the truth.
I shook my head, not wanting to get ahead of myself. “We’re not going to think about that. We only have a few hours until this investigation is handed over to the local police, and we all know that that means Andy will be officially charged with the murder of Charles Reed. That’s fine, if he actually did it. But that’s what we need to find out.” I turned to Flash. “Did you find anything new?”
He had his computer sitting next to him, and he picked it up, his fingers racing across the keys. “I managed to pull up registration information for each of the balloons and their crew members. Most balloons only had two or three crew members, whereas Charles Reed had six. It would make it easier for crew members to slip away because they could take breaks more often, and no one would be checking up on them unless they didn’t return for their turn to keep their eyes on things.”
“Good work,” I said, no longer caring that my son was accessing websites he certainly didn’t have permission to. At least this one wasn’t a government website.
I turned to Lilly. “Anything else you discovered in those pictures of the basket?”
She picked up her camera and flipped through a few pictures, her lips downturned, almost like if she looked again, something might pop out at her. Never mind that she’d already been studying them for two days now. “Nothing new,” she said with a disappointed sigh. “Just a picnic basket full of uneaten food and five empty wine bottles. We already know there was no way that Charles Reed could have drunk all that and not died of alcohol poisoning. Nothing else stands out.”
Alcohol poisoning.
“Flash, what was his blood alcohol level?”
Flash jumped back on his computer, presumably to the government website that I absolutely didn’t approve of him being on. Except for extenuating circumstances.
“Point eleven percent.”
That was way lower than I was expecting. Couldn’t drive with that level, but hanging out in a hot air balloon? He’d be fine. He had certainly been drunk, but he hadn’t been the pilot. And that wasn’t two bottles of wine worth, like Andy had told me.
So, where had all that wine ended up?
18
It was mid-afternoon when my mom finally returned from her breakfast date. I’d been getting worried and had been tempted to go out and find her. I was sure that Arnold was a nice enough guy, from what I’d seen, but still, I’d neglected my mom long enough, I figured it was my turn to worry.
“Where have you been?” I asked her as soon as she walked in.
She gave me an amused smile. “Miss me?”
I gave her my best mom look. “I expected you home hours ago. If you’re going to stay out, you need to at least send me a text.”
My mom was laughing, and I tried to stay stern, but I couldn’t help but laugh with her. My mom and I had exchanged roles. Except, as a teenager, I’d had the excuse of not owning a cell phone. My mom didn’t have that luxury.
“What I meant to say,” I said, “is how was it? Have a good time?”
I wasn’t even sure why my mom had agreed to the date in the first place. She’d been spooked when she’d realized that Arnold and his sons were staying just a few doors down from us—wanted to keep this to casual flirting, and that kind of thing.
But then Arnold had knocked on our door the previous evening and asked my mom out for breakfast. She’d said yes so fast, the entire interaction couldn’t have taken more than a few seconds, and then he had been gone.
She’d said that she felt bad for the man—that he was lonely since his wife had died—and that it was the respectable thing to do.
Never mind that she hadn’t been able to stop smiling the entire time, and that she was grinning even wider now.
“Breakfast was good,” she said, turning and pretending to busy herself tidying up our room, though it didn’t need it. “Surprising to find a good huevos rancheros in this kind of place.”
“Uh-huh. And how was the company?”
My mom’s actions paused for a moment before she resumed straightening the one and only chair at the small desk. “It’s refreshing to meet someone who is so easy to talk to. I didn’t have to do all the work for once, which was a nice change.” She threw me a meaningful glance.
Never mind that I had never asked her to carry a conversation and instead had the opposite problem—getting her to stop talking long enough for me to get a word in.
“So, red or green?” I asked.
My mom raised an eyebrow. “What kind of question is that?”
I raised an eyebrow too. “In my experience, you don’t truly know someone until you’ve discovered the little things. Sure, it’s always good to know how many kids they have and if they have a criminal record or not. But that doesn’t truly tell you about what kind of person they are. Lots of people have kids, and lots of people have never been in prison.” I fought back a smile at my mom’s stunned expression. “So, which is it. Red or green?”
My mom hesitated, and I stepped back in mock horror.
“Please tell me he didn’t order his meal with red chile sauce.”
“It gets worse,” she whispered, her cheeks darkening. “He’d ordered before me, and I was so flustered, I told the waitress to bring me the same. It wasn’t until she had walked away that I realized what I’d done.”
I sank onto the bed. “Mom, we’re a green chile kind of family. We never make exceptions.”
“I know, I know.” My mom sat on the bed next to me, and it dipped under her weight. “But it’s his only flaw, I swear. Arnold is a complete gentleman. He opened doors for me, pulled out my chair, and showed genuine interest in me and our family. He even had the decency to act embarrassed when I asked questions about him. Most men just prattle on about their own accomplishments, strutting around like the peacock they presume they are. Not Arnold, though.”
I nodded, feeling guilty that I’d ever felt unsure about the prospect of my mom dating again. She’d been alone too long—she needed this.
“Did you exchange phone numbers? Think you’ll end up going with him on his national parks excursion after all?” I asked.
“I don’t think so,” my mom said, her words halting and unsure. “I thought he might ask me again, but he seems to have been consumed by this murder business. The poor man said he’s not sleeping well, tossing and turning. He wondered if I had any information on who could have done such a thing. Unfortunately, other than knowing about the poisoning and us hoping that friend of Ruby’s wasn’t responsible for such a heinous thing, I didn’t have much to tell him. He just wants to leave, you know. Doesn’t even care about the festival anymore. Might not even come back to the next one, he said. Too many bad memories, and there are plenty of other locations he can choose from. Arnold was told they can leave tomorrow, though, so that’s something. Must mean the police have what they need from the pilots and their crews.”
More like they thought they did, and they were eager to close the case.
“Would you have gone if he’d asked?”
My mom stood, her knee looking like it was back to its old habits. Apparently, her knee had become something of a mood ring, and Arnold had done more good than my mom had realized. But now that he was heading out, leaving disappointment in his wake, my mom’s knee was letting her know that it wasn’t happy with this turn of events.
“You know, I think I would have.”
As much as I was unsure about my mom dating again, I knew it made her happy, and the pickings weren’t great in our little town of Amor. I couldn’t just stand by and watch my mom walk away from the first man I’d ever seen make her smile.
Whether she and Arnold admitted it or not, they needed me. And who was I to walk away from someone who clearly needed my intervention?
I cringed, realizing that I had become my mother.
* * *
