Harrowing Hats

by Joyce; Jim Lavene

  “I’d rather she be here, if it’s all the same with you,” Andre said. “And I assume it is, since you’re visiting me instead of taking me down to the station.”

  “That’s right. You know the drill, don’t you?” Detective Almond smiled slightly but his eyes were steely in his chubby red face. His shirt collar was dirty, like always, and there was a stain that looked like spaghetti sauce on his tie. “Okay. If you don’t mind your little friend knowing the kind of man you really are, that works for me.”

  Andre smiled and patted my hand. “I’ve lived with what happened for a long time, Detective. It won’t bother me.”

  “Well then, Mr. Hariot, I see from your police file that came in today that you were once a suspect in a murder investigation in Hollywood. Care to elaborate on that?”

  “Not really. Since I assume you’re here to question me about Cesar’s death, what happened back then doesn’t matter—except to prejudice you against me.”

  I wished someone would say what happened. I was about to explode with curiosity. I’d been thinking and telling everyone that Andre wasn’t the right kind of person to kill anyone. Yet here he was, a suspect in another murder.

  “That’s your prerogative, of course.” Detective Almond nodded. “What about you and Cesar Rizzo? You were both seeing the same woman, Eloise Santee. That couldn’t have been easy, considering you’re you and Rizzo was himself. Not to put too fine a point on it, he was younger, a little more apt to have someone like Ms. Santee go out with him.”

  Andre smiled. “If you mean by that comment that Cesar was a demon womanizer who never truly cared about anyone he ever dated, you’re right, Detective. Eloise is in love with me, but Cesar kept pestering her. He wanted her for himself. She only wants me.”

  Detective Almond glanced at Chase, then said, “That’s not the way we’ve heard it. Miss Santee and Rizzo were a couple when you started forcing yourself on her. You bought her gifts and tried to take her away. It’s my supposition that when those things didn’t work, you decided to take Rizzo out of the equation.”

  “You have no reason to assume that,” Andre charged. His upper lip was quivering a little, making him look agitated.

  “Maybe I do. The handmade hat pin—your signature, I believe. But to clarify things, what exactly were you doing the night Rizzo died?”

  “I was working on the new hat Queen Olivia ordered.”

  “See, that’s what I mean about being out here.” Detective Almond did a monologue for his officers. “It’s crazy. Nothing makes any sense. The queen needed a hat. Anybody else believe that?”

  Chase stepped into the discussion. “Were you alone, Andre?”

  “As you know, Sir Bailiff, I frequently work at night after the Village has closed. So I suppose I was alone, yes.”

  “Can anyone verify that they saw you here between the hours of midnight and two A.M.?”

  “I seriously doubt it,” Andre responded. “But that doesn’t mean I killed him.”

  “Like you didn’t kill your wife in Hollywood either, right?” Detective Almond nodded to his officers. “I think you were right. We should continue this conversation at the station. If you’d come with us, Mr. Hariot. Maybe we can get to the truth in this matter.”

  There was nothing else to do but let the police take Andre. They didn’t handcuff him or anything. He meekly walked between them out of the shop.

  “That was unbelievable!” I sank down into the chair behind me again. “They think he killed Cesar and his wife in Hollywood?”

  “It looks like it,” Chase replied. “I don’t know all of it yet, but whatever happened thirty years ago was bad enough that the police feel like he’s a slam dunk for killing Cesar.”

  We kind of looked at each other for a moment then the same idea hit both of us.

  “Google!” I yelled, getting to my feet.

  “If there was a murder investigation, it should be out there somewhere,” Chase agreed.

  “I love Renaissance Village,” I said, lifting the hem of my skirt to go past him. “But I’m glad we have the Internet.”

  The rest of the day and into the evening was cloudy and rainy, which meant fewer visitors until the Village closed and we had time to ourselves in Chase’s apartment over the Dungeon. It didn’t take long to locate the information about Andre. The whole scandal was chronicled in the newspapers and Hollywood insider magazines.

  “So the police think Andre murdered his wife because she was sleeping around,” I told Chase as he worked on his patent attorney paperwork and I perused the Internet while I ate cheese curls.

  “How did Andre’s wife die?” Chase asked.

  “I know you aren’t going to believe this—”

  “Try me.”

  “There was a hat pin involved. The woman drowned in the pool, and the police would’ve gone with an accidental death because she’d been drinking. But there was a handmade hat pin shoved in her eye.”

  “Sounds familiar.”

  “They had to let Andre go because the DA refused to indict him. He said there was insufficient evidence. But no other killer was ever found. The case is still open.”

  “And that’s why Detective Almond thinks Andre killed Cesar.” He nodded without taking his eyes off the screen where he was working. “I don’t blame him. It sounds too similar not to be the same person.”

  “It’s kind of spooky thinking about it.” I shivered. “I could’ve sworn Andre wouldn’t be capable of doing anything like that. You know him better. What do you think?”

  He paused and shook his head. “It’s an awfully big stretch between Myrtle Beach and Hollywood for the same basic crime to happen—and coincidental that Andre was involved in both cases.”

  I turned off the laptop and lay back on the bed. “Back to the frog catapult for me.”

  “Maybe not.” Chase got up and lay down beside me. “Mayhap I can convince the powers that be that I need a lackey or a pretty minion. You could help me keep the Dungeon clean and get ripe vegetables to throw at evildoers in the stocks.”

  I sighed. “Like I said, back to the frog catapult.”

  “You’d rather help people throw frogs and win prizes than be with me?” He wrapped his arms around me. “I think I’m hurt.”

  “Wounded nigh to death you are, sir.” I did my best pirate impression learned from my summer spent on the Queen’s Revenge. “And in truth, I pity ye for falling for such a wench as meself. It can only bring ye trouble.”

  “Oh, lass,” he whispered before he kissed me, “but a right pleasurable trouble it is.”

  Twelve

  It was later, when we were sharing a snack, that things got ugly between me and Chase. All I asked is if he was going out to see the knights later, and he got angry.

  “I wish everyone would understand that there’s not much I can do about the knights. They sell tickets and they look good on brochures. That’s all Adventure Land cares about. Everyone forgets that before the knights came, they were all complaining about Robin Hood stealing toaster ovens and snacks. Now it’s the knights. That’s the way it is.”

  I felt sorry for him, but he had a duty to the Village. I couldn’t believe he was willing to shirk that responsibility. He never had before. “You know, Bart and some of the other guys would be willing to go out there with you. It’s not like anyone expects you to confront them alone.”

  He laughed in a snickering kind of way. “I’m not afraid of the knights, Jessie. But there’s not much point in me going out there and confronting them because the girls in the Village want to be out there with them. They haven’t broken any rules.”

  “I’m not saying you’re afraid.”

  “Yes, you are. And I don’t know why. Did someone else say I was afraid?”

  My poor Chase. It was becoming even more apparent to me that he really dreaded going out there. I hugged him and told him it was okay. “No one blames you. They have big horses and everything.”

  “Jessie! I’m not afraid of th
e knights. I can get a big horse, too. It’s not necessary. I’m not going out there unless one of them actually breaks the rules. Can we talk about something else?”

  I immediately changed the subject. There was no reason to antagonize him. I started formulating a plan that would include a group of people from the Village, maybe a few of the more impressive guild heads, confronting the knights. There was a guild for each of the groups such as the Craft Guild, Weapons Guild, Magical Creatures Guild, and the Knave, Varlet, and Madman Guild. The Pirates, Nobility, and the Brotherhood of the Sheaf were all separate groups with their own heads.

  I shouldn’t have pushed Chase, I thought as I closed my eyes to go to sleep. Yes, he was big and, yes, he was usually good at telling people what to do. But anyone can face a foe too terrible to handle.

  I lay there for a few minutes, listening to Chase’s even breathing—he suddenly whispered my name. I was drowsy and comfortable, so I didn’t answer right away. Imagine my total surprise when he got carefully out of bed, got dressed, and left the apartment.

  I couldn’t imagine where he was going or what he was doing. Obviously, he’d called my name to see if I was asleep.

  If there was a problem, I would’ve heard the radio go off. What surprised me even more was that he’d left his radio on the bedside table when he went out. Now I was really curious. Where could he be going? Why didn’t he want me to know?

  I sat there for a few minutes, not sure what to do. Finally I got up and slipped my feet into sandals before I bounded down the stairs. Yes, I was wearing my pajamas, but they looked like a tank top and shorts. It was more important for me to find Chase than to bother with what I looked like.

  I could barely make out his dark tunic as he walked down the cobblestones toward the Stage Caravan. A dancer! I should’ve known!

  But then he suddenly veered right toward the privies. Okay. Maybe he wasn’t cheating on me. Maybe he was inspecting the privies and didn’t want to bother me. Usually that wouldn’t be his job, but Chase didn’t mind doing whatever needed to be done.

  That wasn’t right either. Chase walked past the privies and toward the edge of the forested area. A man dressed like one of the Templar Knights was waiting by the large sign that proclaimed the beginning of the encampment.

  I hung back. This was something more than a woman. Thank God! It was probably something interesting instead of devastating. The fact that he didn’t want me to know that he was going out here, and let me think he was afraid to confront the knights, made it even more of a priority to learn the truth.

  Chase and the knight talked for a few minutes. Most of the normal sounds from the Village were silenced by the lateness of the night. I could still hear some of the animals calling out and some laughter probably coming from the Pleasant Pheasant. There was also a little music from somewhere that drifted by me toward the pine trees Chase and the knight were getting ready to enter.

  I hung back, giving them time to get ahead of me. There were a few real torches scattered along what looked like a path leading into the forest. Normally, fire was discouraged in the Village, but no one cared what went on after the visitors went home. Robin Hood never had any lighting along the path to his tree house encampment at all. It was hard to get in and out without scratching or stubbing something.

  When I saw Chase disappear along the path, I slowly began to follow him. I hugged the darkness away from the torches. The smell of freshly cut pine was strong as I crept along at the edge of the tree line. The torches heated up the already hot night, making it hard to breathe from the fumes as they burned.

  As I left the Village behind me, I began to hear sounds and see flickering lights coming from the deeper part of the forest. The music was loud here and mixed with extravagant laughter. Obviously, someone was having a good time. Since it wasn’t me, it made me angry. It was too hot to be out with dive-bombing mosquitoes swarming around me. There were already pine needles wedged in my sandals. Nothing about this trip to visit the knights was making me feel better.

  I heard movement in the brush close to me and dropped down, breathing quietly. Two knights passed barely a few inches from my position. I looked the way they had come and saw the lighted area around the huge, black tents. Large fires were burning in pits, keeping the area well lit. As many as a dozen knights were standing around like they were waiting for something.

  Once again, I had to admire their wonderful costumes and nicely made swords. No wonder everyone hated them and Chase didn’t want to come out here. Everyone probably wanted to be them or was afraid of them.

  But what was Chase’s angle? He didn’t seem afraid for his life when he met the knight at the entrance. If he wasn’t afraid, why not come out and talk to them sooner? I’d seen him lay down the law on Robin Hood, the pirates, and every other group of miscreants in the Village. Why hold back on the Knights Templar?

  I moved to get a better view of the knights and what they were doing, but a branch cracked under my weight. It sounded like cannon fire to me because I was so nervous. I waited for several minutes to see if anyone else had heard. The men in the encampment didn’t seem to notice, and I took a deep breath of relief.

  That was before a sword found its way to my back and a deep voice said, “What are you doing out here?”

  Thirteen

  “I demand that you release me,” I shouted, hoping Chase would hear me. “The bailiff will hear of this! You better let me go.”

  All of these demands were made from a bad position—sitting on the ground by the fire, trussed up like a turkey and blindfolded. No wonder everyone hated the knights. I was starting to lean that way myself.

  The music had stopped, but I could still hear muted talking. They were out there, just ignoring me. Or worse, trying to figure out what to do with me. I didn’t like that part at all.

  Where was Chase? I hoped he wasn’t close by in the same condition. I knew it would take a lot more than being surprised by an attacker to tie him up and blindfold him. I wanted to kick myself for not putting up more of a fight—but I couldn’t move my legs.

  I kept reminding myself that this was Renaissance Village. Nothing really bad would happen. The knights might put on a good show, but I’d been kidnapped by pirates and the Merry Men before, not to mention the monks. It might seem scary but, in the end, it was all just good theater.

  The smell of pine smoke from the fire was strong. It was getting a little too warm. I hoped they remembered I was here. While I didn’t believe anyone would purposely hurt me, there were always accidents. I didn’t want to be one of those.

  I was about to start screaming again when I felt someone testing the rope that held me. “Sit very still, madam, if you value your limbs. I am going to free you now. I hope you won’t make me regret my decision.” The voice was very low and husky. I didn’t think it was the knight from the morning Cesar died. But I couldn’t be sure.

  I felt something cold touch my skin as a knife cut the ropes that held me. I sat very still for that moment. I planned to get up and run as soon as I could. Maybe I could find a weapon and still give them a good fight.

  “The blindfold stays on,” the deep voice told me. “We can’t have everyone knowing what goes on out here.”

  “I demand to see your leader.”

  “I am the leader of the Knights Templar.”

  “Oh. Well in that case, I demand to know where the bailiff went.” I was feeling a little more courageous since I wasn’t tied up.

  “I think you should be more worried about yourself,” the deep voice told me.

  “I’m not leaving until I know where Chase is. I saw him come out here with one of your other knights. Where is he?”

  I felt him lean closer to me. His voice was a whisper near my ear. “You may have given him away. Did you think about that? What if he came out here to spy on us and now we know about him. It’s much wiser to think before you speak.”

  I hadn’t thought about that. And I didn’t believe it. Chase is always upf
ront. He might be afraid to confront the knights, but I had no doubt that he’d do it face-to-face when it happened.

  “Thanks. I appreciate the advice. Can I leave now?”

  “I thought you wouldn’t leave without the bailiff?”

  “Are you mocking me? If you are, you should know that I am the queen of retribution. You don’t want to mess with me. Just ask the pirates, if you don’t believe it.”

  “Time for you to leave.” He helped me to my feet. I must have been sitting there cross-legged longer than I’d thought. I felt the pins and needles in my legs and would’ve fallen back to the ground if he hadn’t caught me. “Careful. Don’t be in such a hurry.”

  As I held on to him, I felt him moving away, clumsily taking me with him. I smelled horse and, before I knew it, I was up on the beast with the knight. “Where are we going?”

  “You’re going back to the Dungeon, where I feel sure the good bailiff awaits you.”

  “What about Queen Crystal and the other missing women from the Village?”

  “They are not your concern, Lady Jessie. Don’t return to our encampment. The next time could be your last.”

  Even though the large horse only walked down the trail between the trees, we were back in the Village in no time. I could tell because the smell of wood smoke and pine were replaced with popcorn and barbecue being made for the next day.

  He slid me down the side of the horse like a sack of beans. I rushed to remove my blindfold and have a good look at him, but he was gone too quickly. I felt like shaking my fist and cursing him for good measure, but it wouldn’t do any good.

  I had to admit it was an interesting, if infuriating, experience. All that leather and wood smoke is very attractive. I could tell he was strong—I was nothing for him to lift, and I’m no lightweight. I also understood why the women of the Village were headed out to the black tents. Not that I’d be one of them since I was totally committed to Chase.