Katie let out a little growl. “Dang it! I suppose that makes sense, but I really wanted to go talk to her.”
Now there was a thought. I sat up straighter, excitement flooding back. “That’s a brilliant idea. She loves you. If you had ten grand, you’d be in her club right now. I bet you anything she’ll talk to you.”
Katie looked nervous. “Without you? You want me to go? Without you?”
This time I was the one who squeezed her knee. “Don’t be silly. We both know all you need to do to get her talking is to spend five minutes on Google looking up facts about that kakapo bird and chances are you won’t leave her store until closing.”
“Brilliant!” She pulled out her cell and began typing away. I was certain she would be an encyclopedia about the endangered species within half an hour. “What will you do while I’m talking to Myrtle?”
No use pretending I wasn’t going to play detective again. “I think I’ll wake Watson and go to gossip headquarters. Luckily, I don’t have to do any research to get Anna and Carl talking. And for once, with him being part of the club, it’ll be some firsthand knowledge.”
Watson seemed to forgive me for disrupting his nap when he realized we were walking toward Cabin and Hearth. He’d come to equate the store with his favorite dog treats instead of the home furnishings and high-end log furniture it sold. Apparently it didn’t matter that Katie was now making those treats in large quantities right above our heads. Watson went from sulking and sluggish at the end of his leash to bouncing on his front paws as we walked through the shop’s doors.
If I’d been feeling guilty about ignoring the police edict to leave well enough alone, or wondering if I was disappointing my father as he looked down on me, all such notions fled when I approached the front counter of Cabin and Hearth.
Not only were Anna and Carl present and accounted for, but they were flanked by my uncles. With so much natural talent for gossip gathered in one place, the home furnishing store might’ve been a front for a new tabloid publication. It was like the universe was flashing the green light saying, “Here you go, Fred, figure it out. Solve that murder, and show that handsome police officer that he can’t tell you what to do, even if it is his job.” Okay, maybe that wasn’t exactly the message, but I was going to take it that way, regardless.
I nearly laughed as the four of them turned as one to look at Watson and me. Then for a second, it didn’t so much seem like a miracle provided from the gossip gods as much as stumbling into a nest of hungry vampires. The look in their eyes was ravenous. So much so that I took a step back. Watson whined, but I wasn’t sure if he felt the same intensity in their stare or if he was begging for a snack.
“Hi, guys.” I managed a wave. “What are you all up to?”
“Talking about you, naturally.” Blunt as always, Percival left the group, grabbed my hand, and ushered me to join the others.
Anna and Carl were on the other side of the counter, and I took my place between Gary and Percival, closing the circle. Watson nudged his head against the back of my calf. I ignored him.
Anna reached across the counter and grasped my hand. “Perfect timing, dear. We were going to come find you in a few minutes. Fill us in.”
“Fill you in on what?” Even as the words left my mouth, I wasn’t sure why I bothered.
Percival rolled his eyes, but Anna used her other hand to pat mine. “None of that. You’re the one who took Myrtle’s pin to the police last night, and then she was brought in for questioning this morning. So, fill us in.”
“How do you all do that? Did you install surveillance cameras in the police department?” I narrowed my eyes at Gary. Though he could hold his own, he was the least natural gossip of the four. “I’m sure Branson didn’t tell you, and I know Officer Green hates you and Percival nearly as much as she does me, since you’re part of the family.” I turned to Anna and Carl. “Is she your in? Do you two have a special relationship with Susan that I’m not aware of?”
“We never reveal our sources, dear.” Anna released my hand and patted her poufy cloud of white hair while managing to look dead serious. “And you came to us, remember? Don’t pretend you’re not here hoping to finagle some details from us.”
Percival snickered. “You can act like you don’t want the gossip, Fred. But you come by it naturally. It’s in the Oswald blood, even if your mother isn’t especially good at it. Maybe it skips generations or something. And while it took a different form, your father was good at it too. It’s what made him such a great detective.” He nudged my shoulder with his. “So give in, favorite niece of mine, and dish.”
I did. Filling them in on Watson’s and my moonlit hike, finding the pin, my interactions at the police station, and what Benjamin told Katie.
Percival threw his long arm over my shoulder and squeezed. “Oh, darling, I’m so sorry that there’s already trouble in paradise between you and that handsome sergeant. Don’t give up hope. We can rope him into being part of the family yet.”
Gary patted my arm comfortingly but leveled his dark gaze at his husband. “I don’t think that was the point of the story, Percival.” He gave me a wincing smile. “But I am sorry about that, too.”
Carl ignored them. “Benjamin told the police he was with Myrtle when Henry was killed?” For once, his words weren’t laced with the enjoyment of a scandal, but sounded more like actual confusion. “That’s odd.”
All eyes turned toward Carl.
He straightened at the attention, seeming pleased. “Well, that isn’t quite how I remember it that evening.”
“She couldn’t quite explain why, but Katie didn’t completely buy Benjamin’s story. Something seemed off.” I knew I’d come to the right place. “What do you remember from that night?”
Settling into the role of center of attention, Carl leaned against the counter and propped his weight on his elbows. “Well, in full disclosure, I was a bit distracted that evening. Ever since Paulie joined the Feathered Friends Brigade, he’s seemed insistent that he and I become BFFs. So I spent a good chunk of the night avoiding him, which is rather like a full-time job. But I teamed up with Roxanne, who has the most badges for her trivia knowledge about birds. After a few minutes, we ran into Raul and Lucy.”
Anna interrupted by reaching across the counter once more and touching my arm. “You know Raul, don’t you, Fred? He owns Pasta Thyme. Where you and Branson went on your first date? I heard you had a very good bottle of wine.”
“What?” Percival went ultrasonic, eliciting a sharp whimper from Watson. He wheeled toward me. “You didn’t tell me that? You made it sound like you simply grabbed a meal a couple of times. You didn’t say it was at Pasta Thyme or that there was wine involved.” He snapped a hand on his jutted hip. “That isn’t a meal. That is a date. I had no idea things were moving so expediently.” He waggled excited eyebrows at Gary. “Can you imagine the gorgeous great nephews and great nieces those two will give us.” Before Gary or anyone else could respond, Percival’s expression crashed into disappointment, and he looked back at me. “Oh, I forgot. You two are already having problems. We need to figure that out.”
I couldn’t even think of how to respond to any of that, and I looked to Gary for help. He simply shrugged. “What do you expect, Fred? You have met your uncle before.”
He had a point. I refocused on Carl. “You said that you teamed up with Roxanne and the two of you bumped into Raul and Lucy. Right?” Maybe we could get the show back on the road.
He nodded emphatically. “Yes, exactly. I do think Raul genuinely cares about birds, even if he doesn’t have any badges, and he’s very committed to the cause. But Lucy….” He waffled his hand back and forth. “I’m pretty sure she’s there for discounted bird feed from Myrtle’s store.”
“Discounted bird feed?” I gaped at him. “She’s paying ten grand a year to be in a club for discounted bird feed?”
“Well”—Carl shrugged—“a discount is a discount.”
All four of the old
er generation nodded, and I realized I had gotten pulled off track, again. I shook my head, trying to clear it, only to have Percival gasp and reach toward my ears.
“Are these the earrings Leo Lopez gave you at the grand opening?” He twisted the dangling chain of corgis, causing me to adjust the angle of my head to keep it from pinching. “They are! Well, you truly are a niece of mine. I couldn’t be prouder. Romancing two handsome men.” He reached behind my back and swatted at Gary. “Our great nieces and great nephews might be of the Hispanic persuasion. We’ll be so cutting-edge.”
Gary cocked a judgmental eyebrow, then cast me a withering glance. “He said the same thing to me at our proposal. If we hadn’t been together for over twenty years, I’d have been fairly certain he was with me because I was black, not actually because he loved me.”
Percival’s expression changed once more, and he turned wide eyes on me again. “Oh no, I just thought! You’re thirty-eight, Fred. Better get moving.”
I sighed, not sure if I should laugh or cry. “Goodness, the four of you together are a lot to handle. If we could try to stay on track, and not worry about the ticking away of my childbearing years, and get back to the case. Besides, I have Watson. If you have a corgi, who needs a kid?”
“Watson!” It was Anna’s turn to suck in a gasp as she threw her hands in the air, as she was prone to do. “Oh my heavens, I was so caught up in the excitement I didn’t even notice my favorite little man.” She ran from behind the counter and smacked Carl’s arm, another thing she was inclined to do. “Go get him one of the treats. Quick.”
Knowing there was no reason to protest, I settled back and watched the fiasco. Anna rushed from behind the counter, all heaving bosom and gingham material billowing around Watson a she threw herself at him while Carl lumbered to the back to retrieve the treat.
Percival and Gary had never seen Anna with Watson before, as they kept casting wide-eyed stares over my head at each new promise of devotion and declaration of adoration that Anna lavished on my corgi.
Finally Carl returned, and knowing his role, handed the large all-natural dog treat to Anna so she could, in turn, present it as an offering to Watson.
And Watson, as he was prone to do, once receiving his treat, rejected further physical adoration and waddled to a large four-poster log bed, squeezed underneath, and relished his treasure.
Anna watched him contentedly for a few seconds and then returned to her place behind the counter. “So, Fred, quit dillydallying and fill us in.”
I managed a smile before looking back at Carl. “I believe it was you who was filling us in. What did you see about Benjamin that made you think he wasn’t with Myrtle?”
“Oh yes! I almost forgot.” I couldn’t say I blamed him for that. He nodded, licked his lips, and then launched in once more. “So, like I was saying, Roxanne and I were looking for the Mexican Spotted Owl and ran into Raul and Lucy.” To my surprise, there was no further commentary about the new players. “I was a little annoyed they wanted to join us—it makes it a lot less likely to find the bird you’re looking for with more people traipsing around—but I think Roxanne has a secret crush on Raul, never mind that he’s married.”
Anna opened her mouth to comment, but I beat her to it. “And then the four of you ran into Benjamin?”
Carl nodded. “Why, yes. Exactly.” He seemed impressed I’d put two and two together. It wasn’t so much that, as simply trying not to spend all day in Cabin and Hearth without ever getting back to the matter at hand. “The four of us were milling about, Lucy constantly stubbing her toe on something or other and making noises, when I saw Benjamin and Petra talking to Owen and Silas. They were doing a better job than my group at being quiet, but from the expression on their faces, it looked like they were having a heated conversation.”
I thought maybe I’d heard wrong. “You saw Silas with them?”
He nodded again.
“And you didn’t see Myrtle with Silas?” The last time Katie and I had seen Silas, he’d been with Myrtle, and Benjamin was nowhere to be found.
Carl seemed to consider, his eyes narrowing. “No, I don’t think so.”
So Benjamin wasn’t Myrtle’s alibi, like Katie had expected, nor was Silas like I’d figured. Granted, if I was remembering all twelve of Myrtle’s disciples, that left only Alice, Pete, Paulie, and Henry unaccounted for. And Henry ended up dead. So either Pete, Paulie, or Alice had a chance to get Henry alone, or it was Myrtle. “How long was it before you heard Alice scream?”
Carl shrugged. “I’m not sure. Maybe five minutes, maybe ten or more. My group didn’t join theirs. In fact, Roxanne and I ended up splitting from Raul and Lucy. We kept going farther back into the forest. Roxanne was convinced she saw the owl hopping from tree to tree, so I followed along. It turned out to be another mountain jay. How in the world a woman so good at bird trivia could mistake a jay for an owl, I’ll never know.”
Five to ten minutes, or more…. Anything could happen in that time. The people Carl’s story truly cleared were Roxanne and himself.
Anna smacked Carl’s arm again. “Well, that doesn’t help at all. What a waste of time that story was!”
Carl gaped at her. “Well, I didn’t say I solved the murder. I said I didn’t see Benjamin with Myrtle.”
“In that amount of time, Benjamin easily could have teamed up with Myrtle. What good did telling us all of that do?” Anna sounded thoroughly disgusted.
He pointed at me. “She asked.”
Another thought hit me. “Wait a minute, Carl. You said that Lucy and Raul were together.”
Carl glanced at Anna’s hand before nodding.
“Well, like before, anything could’ve happened in the time you and Roxanne split up with them, but when Leo, Katie, and I heard the scream, I’m fairly certain we were the first ones on the scene. And Lucy and Alice were the only ones who were there.” I thought back, trying to recreate the image. Maybe that wasn’t true. Maybe Raul had been there as well, off in the shadows, out of sight.
Carl rolled his eyes. “As much as I can’t stand Alice, the woman is no murderer. Obviously I don’t have proof of that, but she just isn’t.”
That was similar to how I felt about Myrtle. “Why can’t you stand Alice?”
“I earned my badges. Every single one.” Carl tapped his chest as if he was wearing his vest in counting the badges. “I practice my birdcalls religiously.”
“I can attest to that.” Anna grimaced. “Twenty minutes a day.” She smacked the glass countertop. “Twenty. Minutes. A day. Twenty! Of the most horrid squeaking and squawking noises you’ve ever heard, outside of Myrtle herself, that is.”
Percival snorted. “You got that right. That woman can squawk with the best of them. Maybe that’s how she killed Henry.”
“You don’t like her because she got on to you for chasing that bird with a broom.” Gary shook his finger at Percival as he would a naughty child. “Just because the two of you don’t see eye to eye doesn’t mean she’s a murderer.”
I tried to rein it in before I lost complete control once more. “What do you mean, Carl? How does Alice get her badges?”
“She cheats!” True indignation crossed his features. “The woman never travels. Ever. So how did she get a recording of the kakapo screeching? The bird is in New Zealand.”
“Maybe she went to the zoo, or got it off YouTube.” Gary sounded like he was trying to be helpful.
Carl apparently felt otherwise, judging from his stern expression. “That would still be cheating, though, wouldn’t it? A badge for capturing bird sounds is only valid if caught in the wild. Nothing in captivity, and you have to capture it yourself. Same is true for the badge for having the most photos.” He shook his head.
Gary tried again. “Well, I know Alice has a son who’s going to school to be a sound designer for movies. Maybe he makes them for her.”
“That is still cheating!” This time, he smacked the counter, only to receive a second smack from Anna.
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“You’re going to break the glass.” She smacked him a third time.
“So Henry’s accusations of people cheating were true.” Maybe whoever killed him didn’t do so because he accused them of poaching, but simply was one of the other cheaters. It seemed a rather drastic reason for murder, but for people willing to pay ten thousand a year to be in a club, maybe not….
“Henry accused everyone of everything.” Carl scoffed. “He even accused me of cheating on my sounds, saying that I had a recording in my pocket and was opening my mouth while I hit Play. Horrible man. But when you accuse everyone of everything, you’re bound to land on the truth every once in a while.”
Yes, I’d heard that logic about Henry before as well. But still… some of Carl’s words replayed in my mind. “Wait a minute. Did you say Alice got a badge for having the sound of a kakapo?”
“Yes, I did. But she’s gotten badges for sounds of lots of birds. But that one was the most infuriating, since that’s Myrtle’s favorite bird.”
I gaped at him. “The kakapo is Myrtle’s favorite bird?”
“Oh, yes.” Carl was all seriousness. “She loves all birds, but none of them as much as a kakapo. Which, I can’t blame her. They are rather fascinating creatures. But if you’re going to cheat, it’s a little gross to go that extra mile toward brown-nosing the teacher, basically.”
“Hold on.” Percival reached out and grabbed Carl’s arm. “Are you telling me Myrtle Bantam’s favorite bird is called a kakapo. As in caca and poo. Her favorite bird is named after two types of poop?” He threw back his head and nearly peed himself laughing.
At that point, I knew I’d completely and utterly lost any chance of getting more actual information from any of them.
I checked my cell as Watson and I stepped back out onto Elkhorn Avenue. No text. Either Katie was still talking to Myrtle, or she truly had been sucked down the Google hole of random kakapo trivia. I glanced toward Myrtle’s store at the other end of the street. I was tempted to go there. If Katie was already talking to her, then the ice would be broken. If nothing else, maybe I could get her to accidentally let slip what happened after she and Silas had left us that night. Although with my luck, I’d say something to irritate Myrtle and damage any relationship Katie was managing to build.
Bickering Birds (Cozy Corgi Mysteries Book 3) Page 8