Riddles that Kill: a gripping paranormal mystery

by Lois D. Brown

  “Okay.” Maria stood up. “Let them know I’m on my way.”

  The scene at the reservoir was completely opposite of that from the day before. It was amazing what kind of ruckus accompanied several school busses full of kids. No wonder the demonstrators had picked yesterday to march. It had given them an audience.

  Today, however, there were only a few people on site. The developer, Mr. Walden, was there. He was in a different colored suit but otherwise looked the same. His sharp edges and air of money were on display for all to see. Everything about him said, “I’m worth a million dollars.” And he likely was. That or he was in the hole a million. With developers it could go either way.

  The two senior officers from the EPA were also present. They had chosen their “field attire” for the excursion. Craig Snyder and Gloria McCoy wore tan pants and green buttoned collar shirts that had the letters “EPA” embroidered over the left breast—like a pledge of their allegiance.

  Mrs. Wolfgramme was strikingly absent. She had given up her picket signs to lead the community efforts to find Justin Hill. The very thought of that woman in charge of something to help Justin helped Maria breathe a little easier. If anyone knew how to mobilize a community, it was Mrs. Wolfgramme.

  A handful of local activists led by Karen Stone sat on the dirt right in front of a large piece of excavation equipment. The metal bucket on the machine could have crushed all of them with one swipe. But they sat there nonetheless, a proud show of humanity vs. mechanical beast.

  Maria marched straight toward Mr. Walden. “What’s going on? I thought we were clear that excavation had to stop until we could get a better site inspection done.”

  “I’m trying to work with these people, but I can’t figure it out. It seems they don’t want me to fix this problem.” Mr. Walden used a silk handkerchief to wipe a drip of sweat off of his temple.

  Maria wondered if silk would ever come clean. She’d never used anything but a disposable tissue.

  “You are not hearing us, Mr. Walden,” said Karen Stone. “We don’t want you to do anything until the water has stopped giving birth.”

  Maria made a double take at Karen. She must not have heard her correctly. “Until the water stops doing what?”

  One of the younger activists sitting on the ground shouted. “Giving birth! You should know, Chief. You’re the one who started it.”

  “How is the water giving birth?” Maria called back down. Sometimes living in a small town meant trying to learn a new language.

  At this point the EPA officer Craig Snyder jumped into the conversation. “Chief Branson, wasn’t it?”

  “Yes.”

  The man continued. “You must not be aware of what has been happening at the reservoir ever since the first skeleton was found yesterday.”

  “No. Not a clue.”

  Gloria McCoy stepped forward. Yesterday her face had been pinched and unfriendly. Today it appeared she’d had a dose of laughing gas at the dentist. Her smile reached ear to ear. “It’s remarkable. I’ve never seen anything like it. We were hoping you might be able to explain.”

  “Explain what?” Maria did not trust a happy state government official.

  “How they keep coming so regularly.” Gloria spread her arms apart.

  “Mr. Snyder?” Maria looked at him desperately. “What is she talking about?”

  “Ever since yesterday afternoon when you … ah … blessed the water and the skeleton showed up, a new skeleton floats to the surface in the same place the first one showed up. It happens every hour. Like clockwork.”

  Blessed the water? It was time to set these people straight.

  “First of all,” said Maria, “I’m not some kind of priest who blessed anything. And second of all, what is being done with all of the skeletons?”

  Mr. Walden cleared his throat. “My workers have carefully gathered all of the … errr … parts and put them in the trailer over there. I wasn’t sure legally if that is what I was supposed to be doing, but I haven’t been able to get ahold of my lawyer today. I swear this just keeps getting worse and worse. What a mess.”

  Maria knew where Rod was, but she wasn’t ready to divulge that information yet. “And what does Jim say about this?” Maria asked the two EPA officials.

  “Jim is gone. He wasn’t in his hotel room this morning. Unfortunately, that is just the way he works. It’s not uncommon for him to disappear mid-job.” Mr. Snyder pushed a button on his phone. “But I’ll try to call him. Maybe he’ll pick up now.”

  Maria’s hope to speak with Jim about the riddle faded. The only thing she wanted to do now was get back to the station and find Justin.

  After a minute, Mr. Snyder put his phone down. “Jim’s still not answering. Chief Branson, can you tell us what is going on here?”

  Maria shook her head and scanned the water to see if she saw any bones poking up from beneath the surface. It was one thing for there to be more skeletons. Maria was certain they would find many more. But to have the skeletons show up in the same place once every hour? Admittedly, that was weird.

  Just like the rest of her life.

  “So I understand the water is giving birth, but I don’t understand why the protestors are protesting. Mr. Walden can’t stop the skeletons from coming up.”

  “That’s just it,” said Karen Stone, who had left her group of activists and joined the conversation. “Now that the skeletons are coming, we should let them come. However, Mr. Walden wants to drain the part of the reservoir that has been filled.”

  “And why do you want to drain the portion of the reservoir that you already filled?” asked Maria to Mr. Walden.

  “So I can have the site inspected again. Do you think an inspector is going to swim around the reservoir to inspect the area?”

  Maria turned to Karen. “Mr. Walden has a point. And, to be honest, the goal is to disturb as few graves as possible. By taking the water out, Mr. Walden will be doing exactly that. The skeletons will stay put.”

  Mr. Snyder from the EPA nodded his head. “The police chief and I are in complete agreement.”

  Karen Stone furiously shook her head. “This isn’t a coincidence. You of all people should know that, Maria. These skeletons want to be let free. Stay and watch. One is due any minute.”

  Ms. McCoy from the EPA sidled next to Karen. “I can’t help thinking she’s right. I know it’s not protocol, Craig, but I mean, come on. Every hour. The same place. Something bigger than us is going on here.”

  Maria had heard enough. These women didn’t know what they wanted. They had completely flipped sides in less than twenty-four hours. “You’re right. Something bigger is going on. A little boy has been kidnapped and I need to get back to the police station to work with the FBI. I’m going to side with Mr. Walden on this one. He is allowed to drain the reservoir but nothing else. The protestors can remain onsite to protest, but only outside the line of the construction zone that Mr. Walden has marked. Mr. Snyder, I will let you and Ms. McCoy fight this out. I have to go.”

  Maria was surprised at Mr. Walden’s reaction to her news. He gasped and asked, “A little boy? Kidnapped? How old is he?”

  “Eight.”

  “I knew something bad would happen.” Mr. Walden mumbled to himself, wiping his face again with the dainty-looking handkerchief. Then, turning to Maria, he asked, “Who is investigating the crime?”

  Maria eyed the man carefully as she answered. “The FBI. Are you okay, Mr. Walden?”

  “Not really,” he replied, sweat dripping down his face, “but I’ll be fine.”

  Turning back to Karen Stone, Maria asked, “Do I have your word that you will not interfere with the draining of the reservoir?”

  Karen’s cheeks flushed. “It’s a shame.”

  “What is?” Maria asked before realizing she really didn’t want to know the answer.

  “It’s a shame that you give more value to one eight-year-old’s life than you do to the hundreds of people who want to be freed from beneath.�
� Karen pointed in the direction of the reservoir.

  Maria didn’t have the time or desire to go along with the dramatics. “Justin’s not dead. All of those people are.”

  Karen stopped, turned, and looked at Maria with complete distaste. “At least you think he’s alive.”

  Maria caught herself before she lashed out. The woman was horrible. How could she say that? Had she never seen a child suffer before? Had she never caught pollywogs at the creek with kids before? How could someone’s heart be so terrifically unfeeling?

  “Actually,” Maria said, “I don’t think he’s alive. I know he is.” As she said it, Maria had the strangest sensation, for she truly did know. Something inside her confirmed to her that Justin was okay.

  “Do you want to see the next skeleton show up?” Mr. Snyder asked.

  “No.” As Maria walked away she was filled with the truth of the words she had just spoken.

  Justin was alive.

  For now.

  Chapter Nine

  [Native American] human remains have been unearthed and stored in a big metal box near Kanab. Last spring, the total reached 54. It’s a dramatic collision of the past with the present. People who lived a thousand years ago have been forced from their final resting place by a modern day construction project.

  “Modern-day project disrupts ancient burial site in Kanab” by John Hollenhorst, Deseret News, Feb. 7, 2011.

  Two questions were driving Maria mad. The first was where was Justin? The second was how did she get messed up with the Sight?

  The two women at the reservoir had thought Maria had blessed the water to make the skeletons show up. Nothing could be further from the truth. Basically, Maria had stuck her fingers into the water. That was it. Nothing else. She’d not said any magical words or called up any ancient spirits.

  Just a finger in water. What could have been so special about that?

  Maria used to be normal. She would go to bed and actually sleep instead of toss and turn and have nightmares repeatedly. Before Tehran, the most Maria knew about ghosts was that Casper was friendly and the movie Ghostbusters was not nearly as funny to watch an adult as it had been to watch as a child.

  She was on her way to the police station, where she would hopefully get more answers to her question about Justin. The debriefing was now in less than an hour. As to her question about the Sight, she’d been playing with an idea for a few days now. It was time to act on it.

  Maria dialed her mother’s number on her cell phone. Julia Branson picked up on the first ring.

  “Maria. Goodness sakes. How you doing, sweetie?”

  “Mom, I’m thirty-two. Don’t call me sweetie.”

  “As I’ve mentioned before, I’m exactly double your age and therefore I get to call you anything I want. So, what’s up? You don’t call me during the day to chat. You save that for Sunday afternoons.”

  Her mom knew her well. “Mom, can we dismiss the small talk and you won’t be offended?”

  “I won’t be offended. I’m doing the dishes and will keep scrubbing away if you don’t mind. Book club was at my house this afternoon.”

  “Oh, fun.” Maria couldn’t imagine she would ever be the book club type. “Well, I have a weird question.”

  “Sweetie, your questions are rarely normal.”

  Maria waited for her mother to laugh but she didn’t, which meant one of two things—either she was serious or she had just encountered a particularly dirty dish.

  “Okay,” Maria said, “and please do not feel like you can’t tell me the truth. I’m a big girl.”

  “Gotcha,” her mother responded. “I promise to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.”

  Maria paused. Why was she so nervous? “I don’t really know how to ask this,” she began, “so I’m just going to say it. Am I adopted?”

  “Are you what?”

  “Adopted. Am I your biological daughter?”

  The noise of dish washing stopped. “You’re right. I wasn’t expecting that. But no, you’re not adopted. I remember well the day you squirmed your way out of me. It hurt, trust me. You weighed more than nine pounds.”

  Relief and disappointment spread through Maria at the same time. For some reason, she had thought that if she were adopted that might explain how she had gotten the Sight. Maybe it was genetic. She did have the darkest hair and skin in her family. Maybe she was part Native American.

  “And,” continued her mother, “just in case you’re wondering, you are also your father’s biological daughter.”

  The running water had come back on.

  “I wasn’t wondering about that, Mom.” Even though Maria was an adult, her face blushed at the thought of her mom having a baby with anyone else but Dad. There were just some things you didn’t want to think about your parents.

  “Well, I wanted to make sure you weren’t left wondering. Honestly, sweetie, I’m not sure what put the idea into your head that you were adopted, but let it rest. If you had been adopted I would’ve told you. I wouldn’t hide that sort of thing.”

  So there it was. Maria was just as confused and bewildered as ever.

  “Mom, I was 99.9 percent sure that was going to be your answer, but some weird things have been happening lately, and I just thought that maybe … I don’t know … maybe it was because I was adopted.”

  “What sort of weird things?” The concern in her mother’s voice rose.

  The last thing Maria wanted to do was make her mom worry. “It’s nothing, really. I’m not sick or anything. I promise. I just have a couple of odd … tendencies … I wondered where they came from.”

  “You’ll have to ask your father,” her mother said, a playful lilt to her voice. “He’s the genetic mutant. I mean, have you seen his earlobes?”

  Maria laughed.

  “Sweetie, now that we cleared up the adoption question, is there anything else I could help you with? I could get used to calls from you during the week.”

  “Nope, that was it, but I’ll try to call more. And, by the way, Mom?”

  “Yes?”

  “I wanted to let you know Beth Hill’s oldest child has been kidnapped. In Kanab. It’s awful.”

  The water stopped, again.

  “That’s horrible, Maria. When did it happen?”

  “Last night. Early this morning, actually. We’re going to get him back. The FBI is already here.”

  “Beth is such a darling girl. And Kanab! Nothing like that ever happens in Kanab. Your grandparents must be turning over in their graves.”

  “I know. But I gotta go.”

  “Okay, let’s talk later. Text me when you find him.”

  “I will. And, Mom, can I ask you for a favor?”

  “Of course.”

  “You know I’m not the praying type, but could you give a little prayer for Justin? I’m sure he’s feeling so scared right now.”

  Her mother’s voice softened. “What makes you think I’m the praying type?”

  Maria didn’t miss a beat. “I made it home from Tehran, didn’t I?”

  “Yes. Yes you did,” her mother answered in a whisper.

  “I’ve always credited that to you.” A lump formed unexpectedly in Maria’s throat.

  The phone line was quiet a moment, then her mother spoke again. “I’ll say a prayer for Justin. And Beth. Please tell them I love them.”

  “I will.” Maria cleared her throat. “And Mom?”

  “Yes?”

  “I love you.” Shakily, Maria hung up the call. She had to get Justin back.

  Chapter Ten

  “‘When it comes to human remains, those are very, very sacred,’ said the director of Utah’s Office of Indian Affairs. He said some Indians believe serious consequences can follow when sacred grounds are disrupted. ‘There have been instances in our history where exposure to human remains and any kind of disrespect or negative energy associated with them has resulted in unexplained deaths and some disastrous consequences.”

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p; “Modern-day project disrupts ancient burial site in Kanab” by John Hollenhorst, Deseret News, Feb. 7, 2011.

  Much to Maria’s relief, the FBI had been busy on the case. In the hours they’d been there, they’d found traces of footprints in the backyard and confirmed that the intruder came in through the window. Unfortunately, the footprints didn’t give them much information. The clay dirt hadn’t seen rain in several weeks. So while the grass showed some matting from being stepped on, there was no defined shoe size or tread. Not much to go on at least not for the moment.

  “Our list of suspects leaves something to be desired,” said FBI agent Davis Carter. “This town is about as big as a small college. Not many people to choose from.”

  “True.” It was hard for Maria to explain to an outsider that despite its size, Kanab was a hub of activity. “But a lot of people make their way through this place. It has a renowned animal sanctuary—one of the best in the United States. It’s centrally located to a handful of national and state parks, it—”

  “Chief,” Agent Carter interrupted her, “calm down. We do have one person of interest in the case.”

  “Who?”

  “Karen Stone and Beth exchanged heated words the day of the kidnapping. Karen had gone in for a haircut. When it was finished, Beth’s next client came in—a Mr. Walden. He was there to get his beard trimmed and Ms. Stone chastised Beth for ‘consorting’ with the enemy.”

  “Good grief.” Maria shook her head. “The woman is a nightmare. She tried to get on the city council but offended both the liberal and conservative voters. She had no support from anyone. She seems to have gone on a crusade to make as much trouble in town as possible since then.”

  “Well, Ms. Stone told Beth Hill she had better watch her back. Apparently she said something about bad karma. Beth doesn’t remember the exact words. Fourteen hours later, Beth’s kid turns up missing. The idea she would be involved seemed a little farfetched until we checked. Lo and behold the woman has a past criminal record. She moved here from Douglas, Georgia where she had several arrests for disturbing the peace. And before she was in Georgia, she had a run-in with the law in Portland, Oregon. That one was a misdemeanor for car theft. She served time.”