Birds of a Feather (An Agnes Barton Senior Sleuth Mystery Book 9)

by Madison Johns

  “I know that, judge,” Jack said, “but I swear it wasn’t my fault this time. You can’t expect me to put up with any guff from those pansy bird watchers, do you?”

  “That’s not an appropriate comment, Mr. Winston. I venture to say you’d benefit from an anger management course.”

  Jack slapped his palms on the table and spat, “And I think you’d benefit from a few less jelly donuts. You could have at least wiped off the powdered sugar from your face before you came to your bench.”

  The gavel was slammed on the sound block. “That will be enough out of you, Mr. Winston. One more word from you and you’ll be sent back to jail for contempt of court.”

  “I’d like to see that, you son of a gun. You come in here and pass judgment on us and you spend the rest of your day on your yacht with women half your age, while your wife is busy with charity work. You’re not worthy of passing judgment on a piss ant.”

  The gavel was in motion and the judge’s face reddened to the point that I thought he was having a conniption fit. “I charge you with contempt of court. Don’t come back until you’re prepared to apologize to the court.”

  The court was abuzz and many laughed, until the judge threatened to clear the room. Jack yelled his displeasure as deputies dragged him from the court.

  “Oh, my,” Elsie said. “You owe me a five, Marjory.”

  “You have me there, Elsie. What will you do without your Jack?”

  “It will be a whole lot quieter.” Elsie laughed.

  They shut up when Bill approached the front, wearing a blue outfit. He didn’t cause any fuss. He was ordered to pay fifty dollars and he was escorted out of court by Andrew, who raised his brow when he caught sight of me. I winced since I now knew I’d have to answer for being here when I knew he didn’t want me to be.

  We left court and Andrew was waiting with Bill, who ran to Marjory. They first looked at the clothing the other wore and burst into tears. “Come on, dear, let’s go home,” Marjory said.

  Andrew now frowned at me. “And what brings you two here? I thought you were investigating a case?”

  “We were, but that was before Elsie called us asking for a ride, but it looks like I’ll have to take her home. I imagine Bill and Marjory need a ride home, as well.”

  “I bet you’re pretty satisfied that Jack was sent back to jail?”

  I shook my head. “That’s not the case. I actually expected Jack to lip off to the judge, but not to the extent of what he did. I hope you can convince him to apologize to the court.”

  “Actually, he can wait and think about his behavior. Perhaps it would be in his best interest to attend anger management classes, which I’ll suggest to the judge to make happen. There’s no excuse for him acting like he did. Especially when I told him to stick with yes and no answers.”

  “Jack can’t help himself,” Elsie said. “It’s just how he is. We should speak to his son, Henry. I’m surprised he wasn’t here.”

  “He’s busy editing a book,” Andrew explained. “At least that’s what Jack said.”

  Elsie’s eyes widened. “Fat chance. My guess is that he never called Henry, but I guess he couldn’t have, if I was his only phone call.”

  “I’ll head out to Henry’s house,” Andrew said. “I need all the help I can get.”

  “We’d be happy to come along,” Eleanor said. “You know … for moral support?”

  “I’d hate to bother you when you’re in the midst of a case,” Andrew said. “I won’t be the reason you don’t solve it.”

  Andrew strode away before I could say anything, gosh darn it. “I can’t say I blame him. He told us to stay away from court today.”

  “Can you take us to the impound yard so I can get my car out?” Bill asked.

  “Sure. I’d hate to see you without a ride.”

  We walked to the Cadillac and once we were all settled inside, I pulled out of the parking spot and off down US 23.

  Chapter Thirteen

  I pulled into the impound yard and the wrecker was nowhere to be seen so I was out of an opportunity to question Jimmy, again. I followed Bill and Marjory, who waved at the young man who was inside the yard. The man pulled back the gate and said, “Hello, Uncle Bill and Aunt Marjory.”

  “This is our nephew, Sean,” Marjory told us.

  I smiled, taking in the young man’s appearance. His tousled blond hair was nearly in his eyes and I was afraid at any moment his pants would drop to his ankles. Why did kids dress like that these days? Before I could say anything, Bill said, “Would you pull your pants up, boy? Your Aunt Marjory doesn’t want to see your white a—”

  “Bill, would you leave the boy alone. We’re here to pick up your car, not chastise your nephew.”

  “Sean, have you seen Jimmy today?” I asked.

  “Oh, no. He has the day off.”

  “Oh, so no accidents today?”

  “No, thankfully.”

  “Have you seen any red GMC trucks with lifters in town?”

  “Can’t say I pay attention to things like that.”

  “Hard for him to pay attention to more than that cell phone of his,” Bill said. “Show me where they parked my car.”

  “You’ll have to head to the office and pay the fine first.”

  Bill just shook his head as he headed to the office. Elsie and Eleanor were over inspecting one of the cars involved in an accident.

  “I just can’t imagine why these accidents are happening on Plank Road. And what is the sheriff doing about it?” Elsie asked.

  “Nothing far as I know, but I plan to stay on the case. Have you noticed anything suspicious going on near where you live?”

  “No. That woman who lives near the accident spot might have heard something, though. Maybe you should question her.”

  “I’d like to do that, but the last time I spoke with her, she held a shotgun on us.”

  “Sounds just like Miss Henry, but I wouldn’t be too worried about her. Her bark is much worse than her bite.”

  “Do you think she does any target practicing out at her place?”

  “Not sure. I suspect she might. She’s a quiet one and doesn’t care to be pestered with questions. I think she prefers to be left alone.”

  “Then why are you trying to convince us to speak with her, Elsie?” Eleanor asked.

  “I was just trying to help.”

  “How about you telling us where a Stephan Hasse lives? He has a large GMC truck we’d like to check out,” I said.

  “Fifty-two twenty-two North Plank, but I suggest you not approach him. He’s not a very nice man and I have no idea what any woman would want with the likes of him.”

  “He’s dating one of the victim’s mothers.”

  “You don’t say. Well, that’s certainly curious. It sounds like you’re on the right path.”

  I wanted to grill her further, but Eleanor piped up and asked, “Have you noticed any more large trucks barreling down Plank? Not necessarily a GMC truck.” Eleanor showed her the red paint on the corner panel the Cobalt. “A red truck.”

  Elsie sighed. “Oh, I don’t know, girls. Actually there are plenty of red trucks in Tawas and I can’t think of anyone specific. I just remember Stephan because I’ve seen how he treated his mother at Neiman’s Market, and if he was my son, I’d have shown him the curb.”

  “So, he lives with his mother?”

  “Yes. I think after Marion’s husband died, he just took over and the poor dear just didn’t know how to stop him. I should have said something when he snatched his mother’s wallet away to pay for groceries.”

  I patted Elsie’s hand. “Don’t blame yourself. It’s hard to get involved with the lives of others. You never know if you should try to help them or not.”

  “He snatched her wallet?” Eleanor asked. “I swear I better never see anything like that or he’ll be tasting my fist!”

  Elsie laughed. “While I’d love to see that, I’d hate to see him get the upper hand and hurt you, dear.”
>
  We stopped talking when Bill came out of the office sputtering. “Three hundred dollars? Am I paying Peterson’s house payment?”

  “So, how did you get arrested, anyway?”

  “Well, we were drinking and some of those birdwatchers came into Barnacle Bill’s and you know how Jack can be.”

  “He made fun of them?”

  “Yes, and he jumped on top of a table, acting like he was a warbler. Don’t ask me what that was about. Anyway, it was funny at the time.”

  “Until you began to act just as foolish, no doubt,” Marjory said.

  “Well, I have to be one of the boys. You didn’t want me to admit to Jack that I like to bird watch myself on occasion, did you?”

  This was so like Bill to stick up for Jack like his rationale made sense, even if Bill was a birdwatcher himself. “I have no idea why Jack would poke fun at birdwatchers. That Birding Festival helps bring business to the Tawas area.”

  “If you’re trying to figure out Jack’s rationale,” Eleanor began. “You might want to remember that this is Jack Winston that we’re talking about here.”

  Elsie’s hands went to her hips. “Whatever do you mean by that? Jack’s not so bad.”

  “Eleanor, you shouldn’t be talking about Elsie’s boyfriend like that.”

  “Like you should talk, Agnes.”

  “Why do you insist on blaming me for everything? You’re the one who was talking about Jack, not me.”

  “You’re a hypocrite, Agnes. You’ve said far worse about Jack than that.”

  “Yes, but not in front of Elsie.”

  “I’ve had enough of the both of you for now. I’m going home with Marjory and Bill,” Elsie declared.

  My mouth gaped open for a moment. I was shocked Elsie had taken offense to us arguing about who said what about Jack. We watched Bill fire up his car and once Marjory and Elsie were both in the car, off they went, leaving us well behind them.

  I felt guilty about how we always spoke about Jack, but I had a feeling she enjoyed Jack’s antics just as much as we did. Of course he was her man now, so we had better behave. But I still can remember how Jack and Eleanor used to be at each other’s throats. Ever since Elsie was dating Jack, though, he had changed his ways and was at least tolerable.

  I drove up US 23 until Eleanor asked, “Where are we going now?”

  “I thought we might visit the Hill boys and check out that truck Jimmy said they have. I can’t wait to hear what the Hill Brothers have to say when they find out that Jimmy mentioned they have a large GMC truck.”

  “Do you think that’s a good idea? I mean, what if they get upset with Jimmy?”

  “How else will we be able to get Jimmy off the suspect list?”

  I rolled up the Hill brother’s drive a little too fast and the men on the porch pulled handguns that were now trained on us.

  We both held our hands up and Curt put his gun away and strolled toward my side of the car. “What you two doing here?”

  “We wanted to ask you a few questions concerning the case we’re on.”

  “What kind of questions?”

  “Can’t we come inside and ask you?”

  Curt stared over to the porch and shook his head. “Not a good time.”

  “Well, is it true you boys have a GMC truck with a lifter?”

  Curt sighed. “Yes, but how do you know?”

  “J-Jimmy told us, but I know you boys aren’t responsible for the accidents. You were with us when the first one happened.”

  “I suppose you’ll want to look at the truck, then?”

  “Yes, if it’s not an inconvenience.”

  “It’s not that. We just have company that don’t take to strangers, even if they’re friends with our mother.”

  He hopped in the backseat and instructed us to back up. Only then did he give us directions that put us in more of the back country than I thought there was in Tawas City. Some of the roads I didn’t even recognize and yet others weren’t labeled at all. When I drove down a dirt road where trees lined the path, it was so desolate that I really started to feel uncomfortable.

  “Are you taking us to your truck, or planning to off us and dump our bodies?” I laughed.

  “Come on, Miss Agnes. You know my ma would have my head if I did that.”

  “Is your truck way out here?” Eleanor asked.

  “More or less.”

  I pulled into the driveway he pointed out and it led through the woods into a clearing where only a barn stood. I braked hard and we got out, stepping over bricks that were the remnants of a foundation. “What happened to the house?”

  “It burned down a few years ago and we bought the property. This is a good place to be left alone.”

  Curt led the way toward the barn and he opened the door, waiting on us to join him inside. A sensor light came on and in the middle of the barn was a red GMC truck, missing a motor.

  I laughed as I shook my head. “Why didn’t you tell me back at the house?”

  “Well,” Curt began. “I know you wouldn’t have believed me so I figured I had better show you where the truck was.”

  “What happened to the motor?”

  “Blew it, or I should say, Curtis blew the motor.”

  “Why would Jimmy mention you had the type of truck we were looking for if he knew it didn’t have a motor?”

  “Now that is a good question. You outta ask him that when you see him next time.”

  “Which won’t be for a while since it’s his day off.”

  “He’s on a charter boat in the Tawas Bay and won’t be back until later. He’ll be in Barnacle Bills later tonight telling fish stories.”

  I sighed. “Fine. I have a few other places we need to go today.”

  I picked up my cellphone as it rang and Andrew asked, “Where are you?”

  “Talking to Curt Hill, why?”

  “Sheriff Peterson is looking for you.”

  “Oh? Did he say what for?”

  “He wouldn’t tell me. What have you gotten yourself into now?”

  “Nothing far as I know. We’ll head for the sheriff’s department soon.” I hung up and shook my head. “Peterson wants to speak with us.”

  “What for?”

  “He wouldn’t tell Andrew, but we better get a move on and find out. I suppose it’s too much to hope that he’ll share information about the case.”

  “You ladies better take me home first. The less I run into the sheriff, the better.”

  “Why, he’s never bothered you boys?”

  “It’s not that he bothers us. It’s that some of our militia friends get nervous when one of their members is seen with law enforcement.”

  “I suppose they don’t want members to get themselves arrested or in trouble. How else will you be able to protect us if we need help in Michigan? I, for one, know where to go if the world nears an end.”

  “Yes, with someone who has guns to protect us,” Eleanor added with a giggle.

  “Can you take me home now?”

  I led the way back to the car and we dropped off Curt ten minutes later. I, for one, was happy to be back on the main drag into town. I wouldn’t mind living in a rural area, but perhaps not in the middle of nowhere. It reminded me of a horror movie in the works.

  “What do you think Peterson wants?”

  “I’m not sure, but it never goes well when we’re called to his office.”

  I turned into the sheriff’s department not long after and when we walked inside, Peterson was on his way out. “Oh, good,” he said. “Come back to my office.”

  I followed Eleanor back there and a map was on the wall with red pins. “Have you seen those birdwatchers you had problems with at Diversions Tea House?”

  “No.”

  “Really? I heard you were talking to them at Augie’s on the Bay last night.”

  “Sorry. I completely forgot about that. We just had a few questions for them. Donald Downey was in their group, or club.”

  “The Bird G
eeks,” Eleanor added. “They were much nicer to us this time.”

  “So, there wasn’t an altercation like the last time?” Peterson pressed.

  “No. We cleared them as suspects. They seemed upset that two of their members died recently, or at least Janice did.”

  Peterson took out his notebook. “So you say both Donald and Mary were part of the club?”

  “Exactly.”

  “Now that puts a spin on things. Have you established a connection yet?”

  “No. We’re still working on finding a GMC truck with a dent or paint on it that matches the victim’s cars.”

  “Since when do you believe there might be more to those accidents than you first thought?” Eleanor asked.

  “Now that the other members of that club are missing, I’m wondering if whoever ran those cars off the road went after them. Did they mention where they were going?”

  I gasped. “They’re missing!”

  Eleanor’s eyes widened. “So that’s why you wanted to talk to us.”

  “Yes, and now I know you didn’t have any firsthand knowledge of it.”

  “I hope you wouldn’t think we had anything to do with their disappearance,” I sputtered.

  “Let’s get back to my question about where they were going?”

  “They planned to head to Tuttle Marsh last night.”

  “Part of a tour group?”

  “No. They were planning to go by themselves. I told them to be careful. I just don’t think that’s a place anyone should go at night when they don’t know the area. It’s pretty desolate out there.”

  Peterson picked up the phone and made a call, telling whoever was on the other end to take the dogs out to Tuttle Marsh.

  When he hung up, I asked, “Why are you suddenly looking for missing tourists who have been gone less than twenty-four hours?”

  “When the brother of one of the group came in to file a report. He was quite upset and insisted they might be in trouble and said they weren’t dressed for the weather.”

  “You mean, Brian?”

  “Have you met him?”

  “Yes. He apologized for his sister after our altercation at the tea house.”