Dead upon arrival, p.9
Dead Upon Arrival, page 9
So that I could continue to be what they needed.
But I didn’t tell Benji all of this. I didn’t need to weigh him down with all my feelings of inadequacy. Instead, I tilted my head and said, “What? You think I should have dragged the gang here with us?”
“No,” Benji said quickly. We entered the restaurant, keeping him from saying more, and I was relieved to see that it looked, and smelled, like your typical steak restaurant. After we were seated and handed menus, Benji’s gaze settled on me. “It’s just, for a moment, I’d wondered if you’d not told your family where you were going because…” He looked uncomfortable, like he was trying to find a way to express what he wanted to say and was coming up short.
“What?” I pressed, though unsure if I should.
Benji squirmed in his seat. “It’s just that you and I haven’t spent much time alone together. You know, since you’ve been back. And… I don’t know.”
“Oh.” I was unsure what else to say to that. Not sure what he meant by the comment. We did stuff together all the time. Or we used to. I supposed there hadn’t been as much of that since my return to Amor, considering that I now had two kids. A business. A mom with too much time on her hands.
“I don’t see why that would be something I’d have to keep from them,” I said, genuinely confused. “You’re my best friend, and they know it. You’re the most natural person for me to be here with.”
The look of disappointment hadn’t left and only seemed to settle in deeper. “Yes, we have always been best friends. I suppose that’s enough for you, but a part of me thought—hoped…” Benji blew out a breath of frustration, and he shook his head. “It was stupid to think it would ever be more than that, especially after all these years. Everything we’ve gone through.”
I stared, stunned. Benji had admitted earlier in the year that back when we’d been in high school, he’d been in love with me. But twenty years had passed since then. And it wasn’t until that moment that I realized I had no idea what he’d done with those two decades, except become a handyman. No idea what he’d been through. What had led him here. And I’d never thought to ask.
I also felt anger, though. Frustration. That he would put me in this kind of situation. “Benji, I don’t know what to say.”
A woman walked up, and I gave her my drink order but then realized it wasn’t the waitress. It was Valerie, the receptionist from the motel.
“Oh, hi. Fancy meeting you here,” I said, trying my best to smile, even though my insides felt like they were crumbling. How could Benji do that to me? He’d always been the one safe place I could go. No expectations. Just acceptance. And now he was changing the rules.
Valerie didn’t return my smile. “I’m sorry, I don’t mean to interrupt,” she said. “But I just wondered if the rumors are true. Are you here investigating Chuck’s murder? Is that why you didn’t run home at the same time everyone else did?” Her gaze jumped to Benji and then back to me.
He seemed deep in thought, like he was having trouble focusing on the conversation.
“No, not in any formal capacity,” I said, curious why Valerie seemed so nervous at the prospect. “I’m a psychologist and was hired to help a patient who had come to the festival. She asked me to stay until the investigation was resolved.” As soon as I said it, I regretted sharing so much information with a stranger. I’d felt the need to justify my presence, and my rambling mouth had gotten the better of me. But it wasn’t Valerie’s business why I was here, and I should have just told her I’d stayed for personal reasons.
Of course, she would have just taken that as an admission that yes, I was here to investigate the murder.
“A psychologist. Interesting.” Valerie turned to leave, not seeming convinced that I was who I’d said I was, then turned back. “You should probably know that there are some powerful people who really don’t want this murder to turn any messier than it has. They advise you to walk away, if you know what’s good for you.”
Benji sat up straighter, the conversation now having his full attention. “Excuse me, but did you just threaten us?”
Valerie gave a vigorous shake of her head. “Not me. I don’t really care one way or the other. But that can’t be said of other interested parties. I’ve been advised that I said too much when we chatted yesterday in the office, and I don’t want to see anyone else hurt. Like I said, go back home if you know what’s good for you.”
And then Valerie disappeared through the back of the restaurant.
I was no longer concerned whether Benji saw himself as my best friend or the potential for more. Because no matter what he was, or who’d he become, I needed him.
I needed Benji.
He must have seen the fear that had clenched my stomach, and he slid out of his side of the booth and onto mine. Placing an arm around my shoulders, he pulled me in.
“I’m sure it was nothing. Just a scare tactic.”
I leaned my head on his shoulder and pulled in shallow breaths. I could feel Benji’s heartbeat. It was racing. Maybe even faster than my own. As much as he wanted to help reassure me of my and my family’s safety, he’d only succeeded in reassuring me of one thing.
That I needed to solve this murder. And fast.
I straightened, armed with new resolve. Beni’s arm fell from my shoulders, and he watched me with curiosity and concern.
When my gaze met his, I said, “We need to find out what happened in that basket.”
* * *
I remembered Jeremiah telling me that the restaurant was close to the police station, so it only took a couple of minutes to drive over. I knew it was getting late, but someone had to be there. It wasn’t like police work was a nine-to-five kind of job.
“You’re sure about this?” Benji asked, his gaze darting around, like he thought someone could be watching.
Who knew, maybe someone was.
The thought sent chills through me, and I wrapped my arms around my stomach to keep warm.
“No,” I said. “But I’m not going to stand by while an innocent man sits behinds bars and my family is threatened. What kind of person would I be if I ran back home, too scared to stand up for what is right?”
“You don’t know that Andy is innocent,” Benji said, which surprised me, considering he had seemed convinced of this fact not too long ago. Maybe he was scared too and saying what he felt he must to get me to leave.
“If he were guilty, there wouldn’t be some powerful person using Valerie as a mask, warning us to stay away. If the police had their person, there would be no reason.”
Benji didn’t seem to have a rebuttal for that, knowing it was a fair point, and instead followed me inside the station.
An officer sat behind the desk just inside the front doors, and I approached him, hoping I appeared more confident than I felt.
“I’d like to speak to your guest, Andy,” I told him. Was guest the right term? Prisoner sounded so harsh.
The officer watched me from behind bushy eyebrows. “Does this guest have a last name?” He seemed slightly amused.
“I’m sure he does, but it escapes me at the moment.”
Had I ever known Andy’s last name? Yes, I had written it down. But I couldn’t remember for the life of me what it was.
The officer watched me for another second, seeming intrigued, then said, “Sorry, no visitors.”
I balked. “If you’re going to have him behind bars, the least you can do is give him a little social interaction. I’m not asking you to release him.” I’d already tried that, and it hadn’t worked. “I’m a friend of his, and I just want to make sure he’s doing all right.”
“Yeah, we’re friends of his,” Flash piped up from behind me. I closed my eyes, counting to ten, attempting calm breaths. When I opened them, my mother and Lilly had joined him.
What were they doing here? One glance at Benji told me that he was as confused as I was. This had turned into a whole family affair, and Valerie’s warnings played on repeat in my mind. The fear returned.
Not only was this going to look really bad if someone was indeed watching, but it was going to make getting in to talk to Andy more difficult. And I really needed to talk to him.
“All of you want to see our murderer?” the officer asked, incredulous.
“You have no proof he did it,” my mom said, walking up with an angry stride. “It’s a wrong place, wrong time kind of situation, and you know it. You just don’t have anyone else, so you’re laying blame wherever you can.”
“Excuse me? Are you telling me that we are not only incompetent at our jobs, but that we are dishonest, as well?” The officer got to his feet, his eyes angry.
At this rate, we were either going to end up in the crosshairs of the real murderers or as Andy’s cellmates.
“We would never presume to think such a thing,” I said quickly, shooting my mom an annoyed glance. “They can all stay out here. I’d just like to talk to Andy—check on him. Please.”
The officer seemed to soften for a slight moment, but then hardened back up. “No.”
He then sat back down at his desk and started typing on his computer, an obvious signal that he was finished speaking with us.
“Thanks a lot,” I murmured to my mom as I turned away.
“What? It’s not my fault they run an inhuman racket here, not even allowing visitors,” she said, loudly enough that I was sure the officer had heard.
There was no way we were getting in now.
“How did you even know that Benji and I were here?”
Lilly snorted. “Please. Sightseeing? You were obviously going out to investigate without us. It wasn’t difficult to figure out where you’d go.”
Guilt settled in my stomach because investigating had been the furthest thing from my mind. Steak and Benji had been all that had occupied it. Being alone. Without family. Without complications.
Of course, then there had been nothing but complications.
My thoughts were interrupted when Sheriff Potts strode in from the back with an exasperated look on her face. Her presence was either going to be very good or very bad for us. It was difficult to tell which. “Do you always insult people when you need something from them?” she asked.
My mom placed a hand on her hip. “Only when they are being arrogant and power hungry.” Once again, her words were loud enough for the entire station to hear.
I groaned. “Mom, will you stop? You’re going to get yourself arrested.”
“For what? There’s such thing as freedom of speech,” she said, folding her arms across her chest and throwing a glare in the officer’s direction. His gaze met hers, and he didn’t look away, his lips in a tight line. “You should be doing everything you can to find out the truth about this murder,” she continued. “Not just trying to get the paperwork done so you can attempt to salvage this year’s festival. Which isn’t happening, by the way, because you might have the pilots and their crews hanging around, but you don’t have a single attendee left.”
Sheriff Potts looked to me for help. Maybe she had a muzzle in the back we could use.
“You may have forgotten that I don’t live here,” the sheriff said, turning back to my mom. “I couldn’t care less about the festival. I have experience with murder investigations, which is the only reason I’m still here. Otherwise, I’d already be back in Amor. I can’t believe I’m going to say this, but your little hometown is a vacation compared to this place. Trust me, the truth is all I care about.”
This was my chance.
“So, you’ll take me back to talk to Andy, then?”
The sheriff eyed me warily. “You know something, don’t you?”
I raised a shoulder, like maybe I did, maybe I didn’t. “I haven’t been able to get his side of the story, which is kind of an important one. Especially since Casey is lying about what happened in the balloon basket that night.”
Sheriff Potts hesitated, but then nodded. “All right. But I can’t take your mom. Or the kids. Just you and Benji.”
“I completely agree.”
That resulted in a lot of protests, but my family was an unpredictable lot, and if they tagged along, the only thing I was going to gain was being thrown out and banned from the police station. And that was saying something, considering most people wanted out.
The police station was smaller than I’d realized, and all it took was walking through one unlocked door to where a single cell sat. A man lay on a cot, and it looked like he was sleeping. He was large enough that he took up the entire space, one leg hanging off.
“Andrew, you have visitors.”
Andy stirred, as if he’d been wakened, but it seemed fake—like he’d been awake the whole time. Listening. I was certain he’d heard every word my mom had shouted in the lobby.
As he got to his feet, I tried to smother my surprise. Andy was not what I had expected. He was tall. Bald. Huge arms. If it weren’t for his eyes, I’d probably have thought him capable of murder. It wouldn’t have been difficult for him to toss Charles Reed overboard. Could probably have done it one-handed.
But those eyes. They were troubled. And kind. Even though the rest of his expression was pulled into a serious frown, his eyes smiled.
“Benji, it’s been a while,” Andy said. “It’s always good of you to come out and see us.”
“Wasn’t about to miss this one. Parker said it was going to be something special.”
Andy gave a slow nod. “He had high hopes for the race this year. Said he had a lucky charm.”
“Ruby?” I guessed.
Andy’s gaze found me. It was calculating, and it made me want to step behind Benji so he couldn’t find whatever he was looking for. “I was shocked when I saw he’d invited a woman along for the festival,” he finally said. “Never done that before, but after seeing her jump into action when Parker’s balloon went down, I could see why he liked her.”
Benji stepped forward and grabbed one of the bars. “What happened at the Balloon Glow, Andy? Why were you even still here, let alone piloting for another guy?”
Sheriff Potts cleared her throat, and Benji took a step back.
Andy threw a glance her way. “Mind stepping out for a moment, ma’am? It’s hard to talk when I know you’re making a mental note of everything I say. Regardless of how relevant, or not, it is to your case against me.”
The sheriff hesitated, but then made eye contact with me. I knew what it meant. She expected a full report when we were done.
I gave a little nod, and she left.
Once the door had clicked shut, my full attention returned to Andy. He was watching me carefully, like he’d seen the acknowledgement that had occurred between the sheriff and me.
He must have determined that I could still be trusted, though, because he said, “I never should have agreed to be that man’s pilot. And I’m going to regret it every day for the rest of my life. Even if I manage to get out of this jail cell. But I better start at the beginning.”
13
Andy rubbed a hand over his smooth head, like just thinking about what he had to tell us was stressing him out. “Charles Reed was not a good man, I’m going to just put that out there. Horrible guy. I’d known him years ago when he was a crew member for some pretty prominent ballooners. He spent more time schmoozing than doing his actual job. Don’t get me wrong, the guy knew his way around a balloon. Knew how to fly one too. He would have been a fantastic pilot if he’d put his mind to it. Instead, all he cared about was making connections. Either the pilots didn’t have enough brains to notice, or more likely, they didn’t care. They were rich. They liked the attention. I think Charles was more of a pet to them. Either way, they must have noticed how smart the guy was because they brought him in on some business deals, and next thing you know, the guy has a ridiculous amount of money.”
“How long ago was that?” I asked.
Andy looked up at the ceiling, like he had to think about it. “Maybe about five years ago. Anyway, none of us had liked him much when he was crew, and we liked him a lot less once he had his own balloon. The guy was smart and talented, well spoken—and yet he wouldn’t lift a finger when it came to flying in the festivals. Never competed in any of the competitions—just smiled and waved, like his presence was a gift. The act worked on the lady folks, unfortunately. One of the many reasons none of us ever brought women to the festivals. Those who did regretted it.” Andy’s expression darkened. It only lasted a moment, then it cleared, and he glanced at me. “Until this year, that is. Rafael and I were both shocked that Parker had brought Ruby.”
Benji leaned against the wall. “I remember you and Rafael complaining about Charles a couple of years back. I hadn’t made the connection that it was the same guy. You mean to tell me that this was the man who—”
“Yeah.” Andy’s tone was sharp, as if letting Benji know that this was not a topic that was up for discussion. I would definitely be asking Benji more about that later.
“What on earth were you doing piloting for him?” Benji sounded incredulous, like whatever Charles Reed had done to Andy, it had been bad.
Andy released a long breath, then slumped onto the cot, burying his head in his hands.
“I needed the money,” he finally said. “And Charles knew it. I work for a startup company that looked like it had a lot of promise, but it isn’t doing so well. Doing these festivals has been keeping me afloat while I figure out my next move. It doesn’t help that I enjoy the casinos.”
“You have a gambling problem,” Benji bluntly said in translation.
Andy raised a shoulder. “Like I said, I enjoy it. Anyway, when Parker and Rafael took off, I no longer had a balloon to be a crewmate for. Parker’s balloon is damaged and will take a while to repair. When Charles approached me, he must have been able to tell how desperate I was. And he was offering me a lot more money as pilot than I’ve been making as Parker’s crewmate. More than he should have, to be honest. But as much as I hated the guy, who was I to turn down an opportunity like that?”
