Never Con A Con Man (An Arizona High Country Mystery Book 1)

by Suzanne Floyd

  “No, I don’t check Facebook on a daily basis. Why? Did someone post something about me?” Social media wasn’t my favorite form of communication.

  “Well, not directly,” June hedged cryptically.

  “Okay, it’s too cold to stand out here and play games. What are you two talking about?” I had started to shiver.

  “Beth Ann posted that she had a very informative lunch with someone close to the police chief. That could only be you.” Jill gave me a sly wink. “Why didn’t you tell us you had lunch with her yesterday? Why would you even do that? What were you thinking?”

  I groaned. “Believe me, it wasn’t my idea. Did she say what was so informative about this lunch?” My temper heated me from the inside out, and I no longer felt the cold wind. “Why would she post that she had lunch with someone? No one cares who she ate with.”

  “Well, she cares,” June stated. “She said there would be wedding bells soon. Is there any truth to that?”

  “Nothing has been said about a wedding.” Technically, that was the truth. Drake still had to make his ‘formal proposal.’ They seemed disappointed at that. “Nothing was said about Drake. In fact, very little was said. We ate, and she left. She didn’t even pay for her own lunch. It was the most awkward meal I’ve ever sat through. What else did she post?” I held my breath.

  The twins shared a look before saying anything more. “She hinted that her lunch buddy was helping the police find a killer and the town’s missing money.” June said, giving her head a shake. The wind blew her long hair into her face. “I can’t believe how much money the thief got away with. I didn’t know the town had that much money.”

  “She even posted how much was taken?” The twins nodded their heads in unison. “How could she do that? Any information about accounts at the bank is confidential. If she isn’t careful she’ll lose her job.” That was the least of my worries.

  “I guess she doesn’t care about that,” Jill shrugged. “She promised to keep everyone apprised of what’s happening in the romance department as well as the investigation.”

  I hung my head. I didn’t know whether I should cry or scream. “Absolutely nothing was said about any romance. I didn’t tell her anything about Drake’s investigation because I don’t know anything. Drake would never share information about one of his cases with me or anyone else. She made it all up. He’s going to kill me.” I shook my head. “I mean that figuratively,” I added quickly.

  “To think Linda and I felt sorry for her,” I muttered softly. The wind had picked up since I stepped out of my car, blowing my short strawberry blonde hair into my face. I shook it away, looking off towards the front of the church where Drake was waiting for me.

  “Linda was with you and Beth Ann?” they chorused. “She didn’t say anything about there being three of you at lunch,” Jill added.

  “Lucky Linda,” I said. “We went to the diner after the library closed. It was supposed to be a nice, casual lunch. Beth Ann interrupted us before we could even give our order. We couldn’t very well let her stand there and watch us eat.” I hated to think what Beth Ann would have to say if she realized Linda was secretly in love with Jim. She would have a field day with that piece of news.

  I was beginning to shiver again from the cold as much as with anger. How could she post a bunch of lies like that? “I’m going inside and ask God to forgive me for the hateful thoughts I’m having right now.” I stomped off, leaving the twins behind.

  “What was that all about?” Drake nodded towards the parking lot as he dropped a soft kiss on my lips.

  “I don’t want to talk about it right now. I’m going to church.” I moved past him, my back held rigid with anger. It wouldn’t surprise me if smoke was coming out of my ears, I was that mad.

  ~~~

  “She knows. She found whatever Max had on us. She has to be the one who took our money” He had the phone propped between his shoulder and ear as he paced. “We have to stop her before she turns us in.”

  “Calm down,” she urged. “If she knew anything, she would have already told Drake. We just need to remain calm.”

  “No!” He was almost shouting now. “I’m not going to jail. We need to leave now.”

  “We can’t leave without the money,” she stated matter-of-factly. “Everyone assumed Max was guilty because he disappeared. It won’t be any different if we disappear. People will think we’re guilty as well.”

  “We are guilty.” His voice raised several decibels.

  “You need to find where she put the money, and get it back. You can still turn this around. We need that money, or we’ll be stuck here forever.”

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN

  “You were mad enough to spit nails when you walked up the steps. What had you going?” Drake walked me to my car after the service. After dropping my car off at my place, we were going to the ranch for Hannah’s birthday party.

  “You’re not going to like it.” I drew a deep breath. “Maybe we should wait until we get to my place. I have to check something out on my laptop.”

  “Why so mysterious?” He frowned.

  “Because June and Jill told me Beth Ann posted something on Facebook that I want to check out.”

  “Such as?” The muscle in his jaw twitched as he gritted his teeth. Beth Ann had that effect on people.

  “That woman is a menace,” he grumbled, but he didn’t push me for an immediate answer. “I’ll follow you to your place.” He stomped over to his truck.

  I couldn’t get on Beth Ann’s Facebook page since I’d never ‘friended’ her. There were plenty of people who had shared her latest post though. Drake sat beside me on the couch as we scrolled down the page. “Talk about fake news,” I said. “The only thing she put in here that isn’t a lie is that she was at DD’s Diner for lunch yesterday. She didn’t have to give my name since everyone in town knows about us. She left out the part about Linda being there. Does she think she can get away with posting so many lies?”

  “As long as she didn’t name names, no one can complain or contradict her. That’s how those gossip rags at the grocery store get away with what they print.”

  “I hope you know I would never repeat anything you told me about the investigation.” I looked at him beseechingly. “Everything she said was a lie.”

  He pulled me close for a hug. “I’m not worried about that, but I am worried that the killer will read this, and take it for gospel. If he thinks you know who he is, he’s going to come after you.”

  My stomach twisted with that thought. “If he believes this pack of lies, won’t he leave town before you can arrest him? Wouldn’t he think I’d already given you any evidence I found?”

  “That’s being overly optimistic. We can’t take the chance that whoever the guilty party is will take off. It would be an admission of guilt if someone close to the case suddenly left town.” He paced around my living room. “Beth Ann doesn’t realize how much danger she’s put you in, or the trouble she’s in. The bank isn’t going to be happy with her for releasing information about the embezzlement, even though she exaggerated the amount that went missing.”

  As much as I wanted to post a snarky reply, I decided that would only give credence to her words. If she was hoping to get a rise out of me, she was going to be disappointed. As hard as it was to do, ignoring her would be better.

  When the clock on the mantle chimed the hour, I closed down my laptop. “We need to get out to the ranch, or we’ll be late for the party.” I hesitated, looking around the room. “Where can I hide this?” I held up the laptop.

  “Good idea.” Although he had replaced all the locks with dead bolts, neither of us wanted to take a chance with any potential evidence that might be on my computer. “Take it with us,” he said. “We can put it in the storage space under the cargo area in my SUV.”

  With the laptop safely concealed, we headed for the ranch. “Where was Jane this morning?” Once again, she hadn’t come with Jim and Hannah.

  “Dad sai
d she was busy getting ready for the party. I’m not sure how many people she was planning on attending this gala. You’d think this was Hannah’s coming out party instead of her first birthday.”

  During the short drive, my thoughts returned to Beth Ann’s post. What would the killer do if he read it? Would he really come after me? My stomach filled with nervous butterflies.

  The house was already getting crowded when we arrived at the ranch. Jane was acting the gracious hostess, passing out air kisses to everyone, even me. This was a quickly planned event since Jim had originally meant to hold the party on Thanksgiving Day. I wondered how Jane had managed to pull this together.

  I gave Drake a curious look after she planted a real kiss on the corner of his lips. “Is she drunk or high?” I whispered after she moved on. I’d never seen her quite this outgoing.

  He shrugged, and walked over to the bar. There were five bottles of wine sitting out, but no coffee and no beer. This was more up-scale than beer and pretzels. Were we supposed to start drinking before noon? When Jim came in from the kitchen, he stopped to look around, giving his head a shake. “Where’s the birthday girl?” I asked softly when he joined Drake and me beside the bar.

  “I put her down for a nap when I brought her home from church. She should still be sleeping, but she isn’t in her crib now.” Worry clouded his eyes as he scanned the crowd. “I don’t see her anywhere.” Jane was still making the rounds through the guests. She already had a glass of wine in her hand.

  Bill joined us a few minutes later. After placing a kiss on my cheek he shook hands with Drake and gave his dad a hug. The jealousy he’d displayed a few days ago seemed to have disappeared. “Some party, Dad.” He put the gift for Hannah on a table that was piled high with prettily wrapped boxes.

  “Yeah,” Jim sniffed, giving his head a shake. That was his only comment.

  “This is going to be the best birthday party ever,” Jane cooed. Her face was flushed with excitement. “Thank you for letting me arranged this for our darling little girl.” She kissed Jim on the cheek. She was seldom affectionate towards him unless she wanted something. “She’ll never forget this,” she gushed. I wanted to remind her that Hannah was only one. She wouldn’t remember it at all.

  “Speaking of our little girl, where is she?” Jim asked. “I put her down for a nap, but she isn’t in her crib, and I don’t see her out here.” He frowned at her.

  “She was too excited to sleep. I think my mom has her.”

  “Your mom is here?” This surprised him. He looked around the room again.

  “Yes, didn’t I tell you she was coming? She didn’t want to miss her granddaughter’s first birthday. She drove in from Denver with some of my friends while you were at church. Oh, here are more guests. You’ll have to excuse me.” She rushed away to greet the new arrivals.

  ”Who are all these people?”

  Giving a sigh, he shrugged his broad shoulders. “I have no idea. I don’t know any of her friends from Denver. I can’t believe they came all that way for a toddler’s birthday party. I don’t know what she was thinking.” He shook his head. “Or if she even was. This was supposed to be a small party for the family, not a huge undertaking.” I didn’t know what Jane’s game was, but she wasn’t making points with her husband.

  In a small rural town, people are more down to earth than in large cities. Still, everyone who was someone in Pine Mountain had been invited. Jane was out to impress people.

  My mouth dropped open when Wendell Kramer came in. If he was having an affair with Jane, it took a lot of nerve to show his face here. He stopped to look around. Seeing someone across the room, a smile lit up his face. I followed his gaze, but there were too many people to know who he was looking at. With a determined step, he disappeared in the crowd.

  Caterers brought in trays of finger food, and wine flowed like water. This bash had to be costing Jim a small fortune. When it was finally time to cut the birthday cake, an older woman came in with the birthday girl. I didn’t know where she had been keeping her, but Hannah didn’t look happy. Her big blue eyes swam with tears. Seeing her daddy, she held out her arms, her bottom lip jutted out in a pout.

  Handing the baby over to Jim, the woman joined us at the edge of the crowd. “I’m so happy Jane made it possible for me to make it here for this. I haven’t been able to spend as much time as I’d like with my granddaughter.”

  I looked up at Drake. He shrugged, but didn’t say what both of us were thinking. Supposedly Jane had spent three weeks in Denver with her mother a short time ago. It appeared June was right; Jane had been in Phoenix instead. This was further proof that she was having an affair.

  The crowd stood around while Jim coaxed Hannah to blow out the single candle on the big cake. She began to cry when he tried to place her in the high chair. She stiffened her back refusing to bend so he could sit her down.

  “Can’t you make her sit down?” Jane hissed when she came up behind him. “People are staring at us. How is it going to look if she has a temper tantrum in front of everyone?”

  “About the way it looked when you had a temper tantrum on Thanksgiving Day,” he snapped, not bothering to keep his voice down.

  “Just get her in that chair so the caterer can cut the cake.” She looked around, aware of the number of people listening to them.

  “She’s tired. I’ll hold her. She should have had a nap when I brought her home.” He turned his back on his wife.

  A young man working for the caterer cut the cake, giving the first piece to Jim for Hannah. The sight of the pretty frosting flower captured her attention. She reached out for it, grabbing it with her pudgy fingers.

  Caught by surprise when it smashed in her hand, her bottom lip quivered. When Jim scooped a bit of frosting off her fingers and put it in her mouth, she gave a watery smile. That was all the incentive she needed. She began licking her fingers, babbling happily.

  “She’s going to get her pretty dress stained with food coloring.” Jane attempted to wipe Hannah’s fingers, making her cry again.

  “This is her party. Leave her alone. She’s having fun.” Jane huffed, but didn’t argue.

  Opening the gifts was another ordeal. She didn’t care about the gifts, but the wrapping paper and boxes were a lot of fun.

  A child’s birthday party wasn’t much fun for a bunch of adults. I didn’t know how many had come from Denver. They either had a long drive ahead of them, or they had to get to the airport in Flagstaff for their return flight. By the time the last gift was opened, everyone was ready to leave. Jane’s mother tried to take Hannah from Jim, drawing a squall from the baby. She wanted no part of that.

  “I’m putting her down for a nap,” Jim announced loudly. Turning to the guests, he gave a tight smile. “Thank you all for coming. I appreciate you spending part of your weekend with us to celebrate Hannah’s first birthday. Thank you.” Jane’s face was bright red. She was almost foaming at the mouth with anger.

  “I don’t know about you guys, but I’ve had all the fun I can stand for one day.” Bill chuckled. “I’m going to say good-bye to Dad.” We followed along. We were ready to leave as well.

  “Did you see Wendell Kramer? I can’t believe the nerve it took to come here.” We were alone in his truck, and finally able to relax. The tension had been thick enough to cut with a knife.

  “Yeah, I saw him.” He released a heavy sigh. “We don’t know what’s going on between them,” Drake reminded me. “Maybe they’re just friends.”

  I didn’t argue the point, but I didn’t believe it either. “I’ll give you that. But Jane told your dad she was in Denver with her mom. We know better now. June said she saw her in Phoenix when she was supposed to be in Denver.”

  He raised his eyebrow at me. “Really? When did she tell you this?” I couldn’t believe I’d forgotten about that. There was too much going on to remember everything.

  He wasn’t happy that I hadn’t told him this earlier, but it really didn’t have anything to
do with the murders or the missing money. I decided to try a question of my own. “Have you asked Jack Johnston about the emails to Dynamic Corporation?”

  He didn’t answer right away, and I waited silently, putting the pressure on him to either answer, or tell me to butt out. He finally nodded his head, and answered my question. “I asked him about those emails. He said the first he knew about that deal was when Dad announced it at the meeting.”

  “Do you believe him? What about the signatures on the letters? I would bet money that Max didn’t sign them. If Jack Johnston wanted the Treasurer’s job, maybe he decided to get rid of a rival and punish Jim at the same time. He had all the passcodes the same as Max. He could have sent the emails to make it look like Max sent them, and transferred the money out of the town’s accounts.”

  He gave a small chuckle. “That’s a pretty good conspiracy theory you have going there.”

  Ignoring him, I continued. “Okay, Max said it started out as a game, but he didn’t say who he was playing with or what kind of game. When things took a wrong turn and the money went missing for real, he knew who was playing. Maybe that’s what’s on my laptop.” I paused, thinking this through. “Have any other town employees left recently? Who would benefit by that store being built in town? It would ruin so many families.”

  “I’m sorry, Holly. I don’t have a lot of answers. I wish I did.”

  “Why hasn’t the bank found the money yet?” I tilted my head to look up at him. “Someone has to know something.” I fell silent for a moment. “What if Beth Ann is behind the money transfers? She posted about the missing money. It could be a smoke screen to keep people from looking at her.”

  “So why was Fred killed if Beth Ann was responsible?” He was playing devil’s advocate.

  I had to think about that for a minute. “Maybe they were in it together. She made a point of telling him that I was Jim’s step-daughter when she introduced me. That made him very nervous.”