Christmas is Murder

by Arnold, Carolyn

  Donnie’s strides were getting smaller.

  Sean eyed two empty metal garbage cans sitting at the end of a driveway. Donnie was on the road and running on a bit of a decline. Sean assessed the surface. The plows had been through, which had packed down the snow to a smooth grade. What did he have to lose?

  Sean picked up one of the cans and rolled it.

  Donnie turned back but didn’t have time to divert. The can butted up against his legs and had him howling in pain.

  “We could have avoided this.” Sean yanked on Donnie’s coat with one hand and picked up the can with the other.

  “I didn’t do anything wrong.”

  “Then why did you run?”

  Sean let go of Donnie when he ascertained he wasn’t going anywhere.

  Sara jogged down the hill to them. “Darling, are you okay?” She rubbed his jacket sleeves.

  “I’m fine. Talk, Donnie. Why did you run?”

  Donnie was doubled over, his hands on his knees, his breath exhaling in puffs of white. “I saw you watching me at the store. Now you show up here—at my house—I was afraid.”

  “You were afraid of us?” Sara laughed.

  Donnie glared at her.

  “There are two people who died. Someone needs to answer for that.” For some reason, Sean was inclined to work the intimidation angle.

  “I had nothing to do with that.”

  “We need to know why you are giving customers a gold starburst when they never paid for one.” Sara’s voice took on a sweet tone.

  “Are you cops or investigators for Rudolph’s?”

  “What does it matter who we are? Answer the nice lady’s question.”

  Donnie licked his lips and let out a deep exhale. “I was mad at Randy, that’s all.”

  “Randy?”

  “Rudolph.”

  “Oh. Was it because you were losing your job?”

  “No, it was because he’s always threatening to let me go. Every year, it’s the same thing. ‘Work harder, Donnie, maybe this year you’ll get to keep your job.’ I work hard all the time.” Donnie’s face was red, and Sean surmised it was from more than the cold air and exertion.

  “It can’t be easy working for a boss like that,” Sara sympathized with him.

  “It’s not, and I just wanted to teach him something, you know?”

  “By stealing ornaments?” Sean said the words and swallowed them like bile. Weren’t he and Sara guilty of the same offense?

  “I thought if the customers received something extra, they would actually be happy and give the store more business.”

  “So, you taught him a lesson by trying to drum up more sales?”

  “He’s so tight. No discounts are extended to anyone. How are we—the store—even supposed to compete with that kind of attitude?”

  “Besides the Wilsons,” Sean bit back the urge to add the Cussons, “who did you give the starbursts too?”

  “The Wilsons? I never gave them one.”

  -

  Chapter 20

  “JOY TO THE WORLD”

  SARA TOOK THE COFFEE SEAN extended her and leaned back into the couch in their front sitting room. “So, if Donnie didn’t give them the gold starburst, who did? Where did it come from? We know that Rudolph’s is the only one who carries them in town. We need Adam again. He needs to search for anyone, on account, who purchased it.”

  “To what point, darling? I hate to say it, but—”

  “Then don’t say it, Sean. As far as I’m concerned we have the same questions we had a couple days ago, with one less potential suspect.” Considering how far they had come, and the fact they had committed a misdemeanor to get here, there was no way she was backing down now.

  “The fire chief said it was an ornament that shorted or overheated. It could have been caused by anything on that tree, including that frayed strand of lighting. The starburst could have been connected to that one.”

  “He also said the likelihood of something like that is slim. It could have just been a random thing.”

  The doorbell rang and had them facing each other.

  “Are you expecting anyone?” Sara asked.

  “No, but these days people are always dropping by.”

  “True.” She smiled at him as he got off the couch. Her mind was fixated on that starburst ornament. Maybe things had escalated to the point she sought mystery where none existed.

  “Charlene Davis is here.” Sean’s introduction was unnecessary, given that Sara could see her. His announcement seemed more to disclose his underlying thought of here we go again.

  “I’m sorry to interrupt your day.” Charlene fidgeted with the pair of gloves in her hands. “It’s just that I’ve heard some rumors. Do you mind if I—” She gestured toward the couch.

  “No, of course not. Please, come in and sit down.” Sean followed her. “Would you like something to drink? Water? Tea? Coffee?”

  “No, thank you. I’m fine.” Charlene sank into the chair nearest to the entry. “I heard that you’re looking into my parents’ deaths.”

  Sara should have expected those words, given Charlene’s comment about hearing some rumors, but with the forthright nature of the statement, it still surprised her. Sean looked at Sara and she responded. “Yes, we are.”

  “God bless you.” Charlene’s face lit with a smile. “I’m having such a hard time adjusting to the thought that they’re gone.”

  “We are very sorry for your loss,” Sara said.

  “I appreciate that.”

  There was more to this visit than the declaration that she knew they were investigating her parents’ deaths. Charlene suspected someone. It was etched in her eyes. Still, Sara didn’t want to tread into that territory quite yet.

  “Sadly, we never had a chance to know your parents that well. What we did know is that they were amazing people.” When Charlene never said anything, Sara continued. “I can’t imagine anyone not liking them.”

  “Me either.” The response was too quick, and there was a flicker in Charlene’s eyes.

  “You just thought of someone.”

  “How did you—”

  Sean joined Sara on the couch. “She’s really good at reading minds, but mostly body language. We were cops before so we catch things other people might not.”

  “I see.” Charlene had placed her gloves in her lap and was now wringing her hands. “It’s the neighbor on the other side of them. Stan Carpenter. He’s a grouch, usually. He hates Christmas and everything it stands for. My parents liked to go overboard with lights and decorations. He complained to them pretty near every day of the holiday season…well, until this year anyway.” Charlene paused. “Stan is the man who was in front of you at the funeral. He has the eighties hairdo, the rattail.”

  “Ah, yes, we remember him.” Sean glanced at Sara.

  “Did it ever come to blows, or was Stan ever physically violent toward your parents?” Sara inquired. It may have sounded like a silly question, given Mr. Wilson’s age, but it had to be asked.

  “Oh, no. See, that’s why I wasn’t even going to say anything. Mom told me that Stan came over and gave them a gift last week. He felt terrible about past years.”

  “A gift?”

  “Yeah, it was a beautiful gold ornament for the tree. It had a light inside. I never got there to see it on, but Mom sent a picture of it.”

  Sara leaped up from the sofa and ran into the kitchen. She returned with the starburst in her hands. “Is this it?”

  “Yes.” Charlene dragged out the word and her gaze passed from Sara to Sean, back to Sara. “Where did you get that?”

  “Don’t worry about that,” Sean said.

  “Wow, you two really are good at these investigations. Did someone—Stan, maybe,” Charlene swallowed roughly, “sabotage the trinket somehow, and ma
ke it a fire hazard?”

  Sara was conflicted as to how to answer. As a cop, she never would have revealed her hand, but they didn’t have to worry about the politics anymore. “It seems quite possible to me. They just put up their tree on the night they—”

  “We need to talk with this Stan Carpenter,” Sean said.

  “I agree, darling.”

  Charlene got up. “Please, let me know everything you find out. I really should get going. The parade’s in a couple hours, after all. The kids are looking forward to it.”

  “We’ll keep you informed.” Sara took one of Charlene’s hands in hers, but the woman pulled Sara in for a hug instead. When Charlene parted from the embrace, she left, calling, “Thank you,” over her shoulder.

  Sara closed the door.

  “Darling?”

  “It makes sense it was that stupid starburst. It’s been eating at me from the beginning. It was in a bunch of little pieces. It exploded when it caught fire. It was the source. Their deaths weren’t the result of an accident, Sean. Someone just wants everyone to think it was, and I think that someone is Stan Carpenter.”

  -

  Chapter 21

  “SILENT NIGHT”

  “NOW YOU’RE BACK ON MY SIDE, aren’t you?” Sara asked.

  “I never truly left it. We need to make things up to the Cussons, though. At the very least, return their ornament. And, we’re not putting it back the way we got it either.”

  “You’re not eager to see our teeth-baring canine friend again?”

  “Do you need me to answer that?”

  Sara smiled. “No. We need to find out more about this Stan Carpenter fellow.”

  “I agree, but before we go banging on his door, do we really want to remain unarmed if we’re going to keep confronting people we suspect to be killers?”

  “You’re not thinking again about growing a mustache, are you?” Sara referred to their last investigation that had Sean nicknaming someone Magnum, like from the eighties TV show with Tom Selleck.

  He smiled, picking up on her inference immediately. “I could if you wanted me to.”

  “As I said then, I rather like you the way you are.”

  “All right, getting serious, though, I was referring to carrying a badge.”

  “Do PIs have badges or licenses? See, there’s still so much for us to learn before we take that step.”

  “Back to the point, darling. We should at least carry a weapon.”

  Sara shrugged. “It would be easy enough for us. Former cops, an easy pass.” When they’d retired from the day job, they’d let their gun permits expire and had gotten rid of their weapons. “I still want to think more about this, Sean. It’s a big undertaking.”

  “It’s only as big as we make it.”

  She touched his cheek as she relished his ability to think smaller scale, when all she could envision was a huge firm with a lot of employees and heavy caseloads. The thought of that undertaking stifled her breath. The fact they were already the owners of multiple companies was something that she had assigned relative fiction to. As long as she wasn’t involved in the day-to-day operations, she didn’t feel any stress or pressure. Opening a PI firm would be something else entirely. Something she would be involved with on a daily basis.

  “Someone looks deep in thought.”

  She lowered her hand.

  “You’ve created a massive conglomerate in your mind haven’t you?”

  “What?”

  “You’ve created a huge empire full of PIs and a heavy workload, people reporting to us, working on our behalf.”

  She tucked her head toward her shoulder. “Maybe.”

  “You’ve always possessed the ability to dream, darling, and so few possess that, but I don’t think a large scale endeavor like that is truly what we want.”

  She shook her head. “Me either.” She smiled at him, relieved they were of the same opinion. She gave it a few seconds before she spoke. “Should I call Jimmy?”

  “It doesn’t hurt—oh, but he won’t be able to do anything right now.”

  “Right. Santa Claus is coming to town, and at least one of them is Jimmy.”

  Sean laughed. “Yes.”

  “We’re going to have speak to this Stan Carpenter without knowing about his past.”

  “Adam?”

  “I didn’t think you wanted to involve him in this one any more than he has been.”

  “Maybe I’ve changed my mind.”

  “Still, do you think he’d be able to get Stan’s information as fast as we’d need it? The parade, Mom and—”

  The doorbell rang and Sean shook his head. “We’ve become Grand Central.”

  “This will be Mom and Dad.”

  “I’m afraid we’ll have to put everything on hold for the evening, darling.”

  “I think you’re right.”

  Sara opened the door and her parents were standing on the front porch, dressed in green and red, from the tips of their toes to the tops of the heads. Her mother wore green earmuffs and her father wore a red Santa hat.

  “Oh, I’m so excited.” Her mom stepped in with her father behind her.

  “It’s just the parade, Mom.”

  “Just the parade? Are you my daughter? As a little girl, you wouldn’t sleep the night before, and it was impossible to get you to take a nap beforehand.” She looked at Sean. “By the end of the evening she was a cranky little thing.”

  Sean put his arm around her. “Sara, cranky? I can’t even imagine that.”

  Sara elbowed him softly in the ribs.

  “I was being serious,” he claimed in his defense.

  “Uh-huh.”

  “Well, should we go? The truck’s still running.” Her dad jacked a thumb toward the driveway.

  SEAN PREFERRED TO BE IN the driver’s seat, but sometimes exceptions needed to made, and now was one of those times. He was with Sara and would have happily skipped the parade to question Stan Carpenter.

  When they drove past the man’s place, Sean assessed the house. Only the front exterior light was on. Otherwise it appeared empty. That offered some consolation for not being able to knock on the door.

  He nudged Sara, and was going to direct her attention to the house, but she was already looking at it. They smiled at each other and he took her hand. The parade was two hours long, and afterward, hopefully, Stan Carpenter would be home.

  -

  Chapter 22

  “SILVER BELLS”

  JEANNIE LED ALL OF THEM to a spot she declared as perfect. They were early enough to garner a position close to the rope. The woman appeared as a happy as a child, a huge grin curved her lips and its light embedded in her eyes.

  Despite the fact they were able to get near to the road, people were starting to crowd in. It wouldn’t take long for this section to be jam-packed.

  “Excuse me, mister.” A boy of about six brushed against Sean’s leg.

  Sean let him pass. Let the kid get a front-row view. It was about the children after all. He glanced at Jeannie—yes, even the big kids.

  The boy’s mother maneuvered through the crowd to her son. “Thank you for letting him go in front of you.”

  “No problem at all.”

  As long as Sean was stuck at the event, he might as well make the best of things. He scanned the area for Jimmy, otherwise known today as Santa Claus.

  “Are you looking for someone?” Jeannie’s question cut through the cacophony of conversation around them.

  “Yes, Santa Claus is a friend of ours.”

  The boy spun around, his big blue eyes widened in astonishment.

  “Santa is your friend?”

  “He is.”

  Sara smiled at Sean and he knew he was done for. They’d had their conversation about children and raising a family. At this po
int, it was something neither of them wanted. With that said, he still had a soft spot for kids, especially ones with a missing front tooth.

  “Can you introduce me to him? I’ve never met him. I leave out cookies.” He shot a glance at his mother then leaned toward Sean, his hand held up to shelter his mouth. “I even sneak downstairs at night to see if I can catch him. I never have.”

  The boy’s mother reached for his hand. “Tommy, leave the nice man alone.”

  Tommy shirked out of her grasp. “No, he’s friends with Santa. He’s going to introduce me.”

  The kid latched his hand onto Sean’s before he had a chance to avoid it, but Sean let go, earning a glare from Tommy in return.

  “Tommy.”

  The boy rotated to face Sara. “Whoa, you’re pretty.”

  Sean glanced over at Jeannie and Leon, but the two of them were caught up in their own conversation. Jeannie’s finger was pointing this way and that, and Leon’s hand shot up occasionally.

  “If it’s all right with your mother, we can introduce you to Santa after the parade,” Sara said.

  “Really?”

  “Yes.”

  The boy strolled back to his mother. “Did you hear that, Mom?”

  She looked at Sara and mouthed, “Thank you.”

  Sean pulled Sara toward him and swept back her hair. “You’re quite the natural.”

  “Just don’t get any ideas.”

  “Yes, dear.”

  The festive music that had been playing switched to another song and increased in volume. The parade was beginning. The band started playing, and the banging drums and deep-based tubas served to ramp up the crowd’s excitement. And, as Sean had anticipated, the space was tightly packed with people.

  Carolers led the way, their voices perfectly accenting the music. They performed a mix of songs, ranging from “Jingle Bells” to “Winter Wonderland.” Then, the marching stopped and a competition waged between the drummers.

  People were cheering them on, kids and adults alike waved light sticks and succumbed to the magic of Christmas. The energy was contagious. Candy canes and Santa hats colored the crowd, and Sean was starting to surrender to the whimsical nature of the parade too, but then he spotted him. Stan Carpenter was straight across from them.