Good Night Sleep Tight Don't Let the Stalkers Bite (Charlie Bannerman Mysteries)

by Teresa Watson

  “Who is it?”

  “He doesn’t know yet. The coroner said it would take time to identify the body.”

  “Has anyone been reported missing?”

  “I didn’t ask,” Keaton said.

  We ate silently for a few minutes, none of us knowing what to say. Keaton broke the silence. “Larry came over and replaced the plywood with glass panes. I’ve got my alarm company coming over tomorrow morning to install a system for you.” He held up his hand when I started to protest. “I know what you are going to say. ‘You can’t afford it.’ Don’t worry about the cost; we can work something out later. Your safety is more important right now than money.”

  I wasn’t about to argue, especially after what happened today. “You’re right. Thank you.”

  The sound of the doorbell made my heart race. Duke rushed to the door, barking his head off. Keaton put a hand out to steady me. “It’s ok. I’ll answer the door. You two stay here.”

  I didn’t like being afraid in my own home. It ticked me off. I followed Keaton into the living room as he answered the door. “Who is it?”

  “It’s Braden.”

  I let out the breath I had been holding and relaxed as Keaton opened the door. Braden was in uniform, which meant he was working the graveyard shift tonight. “Hey, Charlie,” he said, kneeling in front of me. “You look pretty good for someone who almost got blown up today.” He patted Duke. “How are you, big boy?” His response was a tail wag and a kiss.

  I gave him a hug. “Nice to see you too, big brother. What brings you by?”

  “Mom asked me to come by and check on you before I went on duty. I just wanted to let you know that we are going to be patrolling by here as often as we can throughout the night. I’d park in the driveway all night if Bernie would let me.”

  “Thanks, Braden. I appreciate it. It makes me feel better.”

  He stood up and shook hands with Keaton. “Mom tells me you’ll be staying here for a few days. The couch is pretty comfortable for sleeping.”

  “I certainly hope so,” Keaton laughed. “I doubt Duke would let me near that bed.”

  “Sydney, you look beautiful as always.”

  “Ever the flirt, Braden,” Sydney replied, blushing.

  I rolled my eyes. These two always did this whenever they saw each other, yet they have never gone on a date. I wish they would just admit they like each other and get it over with.

  Braden looked at his watch. “I just stopped by to check on you, and to see for myself that you were ok. You are ok, right?”

  “More or less,” I replied. “At least I can hear things again. I’m in good hands with the Dynamic Trio here.”

  “Make that Dynamic Duo,” Sydney said, grabbing her purse. “I have an early showing in the morning, and I need my beauty sleep.” She gave me a gentle hug. “You call me if you need anything. I’ll stop by tomorrow evening.”

  “I’ve got your back, Sis,” Braden added, hugging me. “I’m only a phone call away. I’m glad you’re ok. Love you.”

  “I love you too, Braden,” I said. “Tell the guys I appreciate the extra patrol. Just watch out for Mr. Crubbs. He sits outside on his porch waiting for the kids to come by.”

  “Never boring around your house, Charlie,” he said laughing. He shook hands with Keaton and left.

  I went back to the kitchen to clean up, but Keaton stopped me. “You just sit down; I’ll take care of this. How are you feeling?”

  “Sore.”

  “Besides that.”

  “Tired.”

  “Charlie.”

  “What?”

  “You know what I mean.”

  “Doesn’t mean I want to talk about it.”

  “I know, but we should. Someone is out to get you.”

  I glared at his back. “Thanks for sugarcoating it, Keaton.”

  He turned around to look at me. “What do you want me to say, Charlie? ‘Gee, it was an accident? Someone put explosives on your car by mistake?’ I don’t think we can say that, do you?”

  I blinked back the tears I felt coming and stood up. “No, we can’t say it. But you weren’t standing there next to me, Keaton. You didn’t look up to see someone in the car just before it blew up into a million pieces. You aren’t the one wondering who died instead of you. I know it wasn’t an accident. I know someone has it in for me. That doesn’t mean that right at this moment I want to think about it. I am trying very hard to be thankful I am still alive even though someone else is dead. Don’t tell me someone is out to get me, Keaton. I am pretty sure I got the message today.” I whistled for Duke and retreated to my bedroom.

  Chapter 11

  When I am angry, I watch war movies. Watching things blow up was therapeutic somehow. Sounds weird, I know. As if I hadn’t already had my fill of exploding things today. I put in ‘Tora, Tora, Tora’, took my pain medicine, and curled up with my cushy pillow. Duke jumped up on the bed, which is something he isn’t normally allowed to do. I guess he felt I needed a little extra love.

  An hour later, just as I started to doze off, there was a quiet tap at the bedroom door. I knew who it was, but quite frankly, I didn’t want to talk to him. On the other hand, I also knew I was being petty and trite. “Come in.”

  He stuck his head inside the door. “Are you sure?”

  “Yes, I’m sure.” I snapped my fingers and Duke jumped off the bed and Keaton took his place.

  “Here, this is for you,” he said, handing me a small bag. “I got it for you earlier this afternoon while they were running all those tests on you. I thought you might need it.”

  I took it from him and looked inside. “Are you kidding me?” I said as I pulled out a new iPhone 5. “You didn’t have to do this.”

  “I know, but I wanted to. Your other one was destroyed, so I programmed all the numbers you would need for now, like your parents, your brothers and Sydney. Oh, and the newspaper. I know how Ralph hates not being able to get a hold of you.”

  I groaned. “Oh man! The feature story he wanted me to do on Isabella Tracy by Friday. I have no idea where the folder is.”

  He laughed. “I wouldn’t worry about it. Ralph said you weren’t too thrilled about interviewing Isabella, and he had an extra copy on his desk. Sarah is going to do the interview; Ralph said that you had recommended she do it anyway. She is thrilled, and said to pass along her thanks.”

  “I don’t think she’ll be thanking me once she gets done. Isabella is going to chew her up and spit her out like she was a bad appetizer.”

  We watched the movie for a few minutes. Keaton glanced at me. “Do you want to talk?”

  “Not really.”

  “I was just wondering if you got a good look at whoever was in your car.”

  I thought about it a moment. “Not really. I was looking for my keys in my purse. I pulled them out, looked up. It was maybe three seconds, from the time I looked up to the explosion. Just long enough to notice someone was in there.”

  Keaton reached over and touched my hand. “I’m glad you weren’t in the car, Charlie.”

  I squeezed his hand just as screams and yells came from the front of the house. Duke and Keaton both ran for the front door, while I followed more slowly behind them. By the time I got there, Keaton was holding Duke by the collar and laughing. I came out to stand next to him and started laughing myself.

  Four boys of various ages were standing in Mr. Crubbs’ front yard, each holding three or four rolls of soggy toilet paper. Mr. Crubbs had obviously waited until the boys were in the middle of the yard and turned on his new sprinkler system. He finally turned it off, and trash can in hand, made each boy throw the toilet paper away before sending them on their way. It was a cool fall evening, so it was going to be a cold walk home for them. I would love to be a fly on the wall to hear them explain the wet clothes to their parents.

  “Well done, Mr. Crubbs,” Keaton said, shaking his hand. “The look on their faces was priceless.”

  “Thank you, Mr. Lawson,”
he replied. “I appreciate the help you gave me setting this up.”

  “I knew it! I knew you had something to do with it!” I said.

  “Maybe just a little,” Keaton admitted.

  I shook my head. “You shouldn’t be encouraging him.”

  “I don’t need any encouragement, Charlie,” Mr. Crubbs snorted. “I take great delight in planning my next maneuver in this war against those boys, and I think in some way, those boys enjoy this, too. Mr. Lawson was merely one part of a battle. The war rages on.” He looked at me closely for a minute. “I heard what happened to you this morning. You need to be more careful, young lady. I don’t want to break in a new neighbor.”

  I reached out to touch his arm. “Thank you for your concern, Mr. Crubbs.”

  He placed a gnarled hand on top of mine for a moment and patted it gently. “You’re like the daughter I never had.” He stood up straight and moved just out of reach. “If I get the person who did this within my sights, I’m going to shoot him full of holes.”

  “Please don’t do anything foolish on my account. The police are investigating and Keaton is staying with me for a few days.”

  “That’s right,” Keaton said. “I’m having a security system installed tomorrow.”

  Mr. Crubbs shook his finger at Keaton. “You just make sure you take good care of her, young man, or you’ll have to answer to me, is that understood?”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “Good enough. Now get her back inside. She’s a perfect target standing out here under that porch light.” With that, he turned around and marched back to his house.

  “He’s right,” Keaton said as we went back inside. “We need to be more careful.”

  “Why don’t I make us some popcorn and we can finish watching the movie?” I suggested. “I’m tired of talking about this whole thing. I need to give my brain a rest before it explodes. No pun intended.”

  “At least you still have your sense of humor.”

  “My sense of humor keeps me sane. I can always find something humorous in any situation,” I said, putting a bag of popcorn in the microwave.

  “You weren’t like that when we were kids,” he remarked. “You were a serious little thing. Always had your nose in a book.”

  “Reading was a way to escape the pressures of school. I didn’t really fit in anywhere, just flitted around the edges of every group. It was like being the middle child, ignored by everyone, wanted by no one.”

  “That’s a rather harsh assessment, don’t you think?”

  “You couldn’t understand, Mr. Quarterback.”

  “I never flaunted it and I never used it to get ahead.”

  I got a bowl out and poured the popcorn in. “If we only knew then what we know now, how different things would have been,” I said. “It’s a shame we can’t go back and do things over, isn’t it?”

  The anger I had been feeling earlier was gone, so I suggested that we switch to a western, “Rio Bravo”. I made it to the part where Ward Bond, after telling people off in the saloon, walks down the street and gets killed before I fell asleep.

  Chapter 12

  I woke up the next morning to the smell of bacon frying. There were a couple of quilts on top of me, and the other side of the bed didn’t look like it had been slept on. I assumed Keaton kept his word and slept on the couch. Every muscle in my body screamed in agony as I started to sit up.

  There was a knock on the door. “Come in,” I said, leaning against the headboard.

  Keaton came in with a breakfast tray. “I figured you would be pretty sore, and I thought you might want breakfast in bed.”

  “You are so right. I hurt everywhere.”

  “Dr. Lance said you would. He told me to keep you in bed all day, that sleep and rest would be the best thing for you. I imagine your ribs are killing you.”

  “Right again. As long as I don’t take deep breaths, it’s not too bad.” Duke put two paws on the edge of the bed and gave me a good morning kiss. “You’ve been feeding him bacon.”

  “Just a couple of pieces, although he doesn’t deserve them, the little turkey. He kept barking at the living room window last night.”

  “I didn’t hear him at all, but I’ll bet he was barking at Blinky. She was probably making her nightly rounds.”

  “Sydney is on her way over. Her sister Aspen and Aspen’s friend Nikki are with her. I hope that is ok.”

  “Syd has seen me at my worst before. I don’t mind. But why are Aspen and Nikki coming?”

  “Beats me. My guys are on their way here now to put in the security system. It won’t take long, I promise. Is there anything you want me to get for you while I’m out?”

  “Just make sure we have a good Dr Pepper supply. I’ve got plenty of movies and books to read, although I really just feel like sleeping.”

  Keaton nodded. “Dr. Lance said you probably would. He told me to make sure you took your medicine. He said you could be stubborn about it.”

  I chose to eat the eggs and bacon Keaton had brought in instead of commenting on Dr. Lance. “This is wonderful! Where did you learn to cook?”

  “My mother taught me. She said she was tired of me eating at her house all the time. Once she taught me the basics, I realized I enjoyed cooking, so I started learning how to cook more dishes.”

  “I’m impressed. You’ll have to let me cook something for you when I feel up to it, as a way of saying thank you.”

  Keaton looked pleased. “I’d like that very much. Maybe you’ll consider going on a date with me sometime.”

  “Maybe.”

  I swear he danced out of the bedroom when the doorbell rang. I must have a serious concussion if I just agreed to think about going out with him.

  “Hey, girl! How are you feeling this morning?” Sydney asked as she came in.

  “Like twenty Mac trucks ran over me, backed up and did it again.”

  “I bet. You probably have bruises all over your back. Let me look.” She helped me sit up and gently raised my shirt. “Ooh, good thing your shirt is the same color as these bruises,” she remarked, pulling the shirt back down.

  “Well, ‘Dr.’ Keaton has joined forces with Dr. Lance and told me to stay in bed and take my medicine like a good girl. I am afraid I won’t be much company today.”

  “I wouldn’t take your medicine just yet,” Sydney advised. “Bernie is in the living room. He has some questions for you.”

  “It had to happen sooner or later,” I sighed. “Could you please help me straighten these pillows so I can get a little more comfortable? I have a feeling this is going to take a while.”

  Ten minutes later, Bernie was standing at the foot of the bed. “After seeing the bits and pieces of your car yesterday, Charlie, I didn’t expect to find you in such good shape.”

  I laughed. “Looks are deceiving, Bernie. My back is covered with purple bruises, I have two fractured ribs, a bruised lung, and cuts on my hands that sting when immersed in water. Right now, I can barely move because every muscle in my body hurts. Gee, other than that, I feel ready to run a marathon.”

  “Sarcastic as ever, I see.” I shrugged. “You want to tell me what you saw yesterday?”

  I gave him an account of the morning’s events, from the time I left my house to the moment of the explosion. He asked me if I had seen anyone running away as I left the newspaper office, if I noticed anything strange before I left the house. I told him that I honestly didn’t remember anything out of the ordinary. Yes, the car had started up just fine when I left the house. No, I hadn’t seen Cash for two days, not since I broke his nose.

  “He hasn’t called you or anything?”

  “Not that I know of. I didn’t get home until last night. Sydney and Keaton had dinner with me, but she left right after that because she had an early morning appointment. We heard a lot of noise coming from Mr. Crubbs’ house, but that was just the neighborhood kids stopping by to say hello. We came back inside, made some popcorn, started watching a movie and I fell asle
ep. You would have to ask Keaton if anyone called after that.”

  “He says no.” Bernie looked down at his notepad. “Have you seen Deja Taylor?”

  “Not for two days. She came over here with some wild story that Cash had told her, but I set her straight and she left. Why do you ask?”

  “Cash reported her missing this morning.”

  “Missing?”

  “He claims he hasn’t seen her since Tuesday evening, says they got into a fight and she stormed out of the house.”

  “And he just reported her missing this morning?”

  “She’s done this before after they have had a fight. But she’s usually only gone about twelve hours.”

  “If you are asking me where I think she would go, you are asking the wrong person, Bernie. I don’t keep up with her, could care less where she goes or what she does. I was in the hospital most of yesterday, and I have been right here since Keaton brought me home last night.”

  “No, I’m not asking you that,” Bernie said, “but I do appreciate you providing me with your whereabouts for the last 24 hours.”

  “Has the coroner identified the body yet?”

  He shook his head. “It could be a while, although they believe it is a female, due to the size.” I stared at him, mouth slightly open. “What?” he said.

  I did not want to say what I was thinking. I did not want to hear the horrible words said out loud. Besides, I had no proof. “Nothing.”

  “I don’t believe you, Charlie,” he replied, shaking his finger at me. “Don’t get any stupid ideas.”

  “I always get stupid ideas, Bernie. I’m just not in any position to act upon them at the moment.”

  “Hmpfh. I doubt seriously that will stop you.”

  Do you have any other questions for me, Bernie?”

  “Not right now. I meant what I said, Charlie. Stay in that bed. Let me do my job without interference from you.”

  I held up three fingers. “Scout’s honor, Bernie.”

  “The same scout’s honor you were under when you punched out Neil Harrison in the fourth grade?”

  “Self-defense.”

  “Because he pushed you in a mud puddle?”