Trouble Afoot (Shepard & Kelly Mysteries Book 2)

by Benjamin Bradley

  “Better to clear his name now and get out in front of it. Otherwise, Zoe’s life is about to be flipped upside down.”

  On cue, Zoe’s roar seeped through the crack under the bedroom door as she grilled her hapless author of a fiancé. Delaney faked a smile and pointed towards the stack of files. “Maybe we dig into these on the back deck?”

  Chapter Eighteen

  Clothes flew around the room like a child playing dress-up. Zoe sat on the bed trying to convince Gil’s temper to simmer down, but he continued to rage. Her attempts to confront him about his lack of consideration in his decision-making were fool-hearted. Gil had always been sensitive and the brutal events of the day had blinded Zoe’s senses. She had ripped into him with all the fury that she’d saved up from countless long lectures on how she needed more patience with his work.

  “You believe I am responsible for this? For these sightings? For this morning’s crime? Zoe, I—”

  “Just calm—”

  “I know I have been working significant hours as of late, but put my career on hold for this book. I do not enjoy middling through book advances without meeting the deadlines. It is quite stressful! We cannot all be desk-duty park rangers, Zoe!”

  “Drop that tone. That’s bullshit and you know it. I simply asked if you knew more than you were letting on about the recent rash of sightings in the park. I didn’t—”

  “And you think I beat that man within an inch of his life?” Gil scoffed and snatched a shirt from the closet. “What kind of monster do you think I am?”

  “Gil, I—”

  “Next you are going to ask me if I am a serial killer, right?”

  “Gil, that’s quite a leap. I don’t—”

  “One small step for man. One giant leap for Bigfoot enthusiasts everywhere,” Gil said as he stuffed a sweater into his bag and ripped the zipper shut.

  “Stop. You’re being ridiculous. Just take a second to breathe and—”

  “Breathe?” His face turned as red as the sky during a sunset. “How am I supposed to breathe? You are here accusing me of a small catalog of crimes and then telling me to calm down. That, as you would say, is bullshit, Zoe. I know I can be cold but-”

  “Gil, I simply asked you a question and—"

  Gil glared at her. “If you trusted me, you wouldn’t have to ask such a thing.” He stormed out.

  Zoe sat on the bed. Gil’s car started and then sped off down the road. She let out a deep breath and turned back to face Delaney and Casper on the back porch.

  Casper kept his gaze on the files, but Delaney stood to comfort her. “Want to talk about it?”

  Zoe nodded. “There’s not a lot to say. I had dug into him before you came about calling in the tip, and I just wanted to once again explain my point of view. But he blew up. He’s always had a temper, but usually it’s self-destructive. I don’t know what to do now.”

  “Wait him out. Not much more you can do besides wait for him to process everything and come back. I know you feel that you screwed up, but no more than he did,” Delaney said. “Let’s get some drinks and forget this awful day ever happened. It’s almost five. You have the day off, remember?”

  “Yeah but-”

  “But what?”

  “That felt like an overreaction to me. I thought I knew him, but…”

  “Are you interpreting an overreaction as an indicator of guilt? I don’t think he seems like a violent man, but you—”

  “No, that’s what makes no sense.” Zoe shook her head and slumped into a chair. “I don’t think he’d ever be violent or lash out. Especially not toward a stranger.”

  “Well, good then. Try to relax.”

  “But he’s hiding something… I just don’t know what it is.”

  Casper gulped and summoned his bravest face. “It may be time that I mention something else that came up in my initial review of the case.”

  “Let’s hear it,” Delaney said.

  Casper tapped the stack of file folders that stood in two piles. “Well, first I wanted to view the assault and the sightings as isolated incidents. Circles without an overlap in their Venn diagram. When taking that approach, the sightings are a conundrum.” He paused and looked at Zoe. “There are few people who would stand to benefit from such incidents.”

  Zoe nodded and let out an exhale. “You mean like a researcher writing a book on the subject area?”

  Casper bit his bottom lip and nodded. Zoe stared at ice cubes in her drink, as if waiting for them to melt and turn into water. A new form. To Casper, humans didn’t feel all that different. Under the right conditions, people change into something unrecognizable. If the Punkhorns had taught him anything, that much was true.

  “Okay. Let’s check his office. He’s run off in a huff, so we’ve got a few hours at least.” Zoe stood. “Best-case scenario, we find nothing incriminating.”

  “Worst-case scenario?” Delaney asked.

  “Let’s not go there just yet.” Zoe led them down the hallway and used the flathead key that sat on the top of the doorway to unlock the door. Hoagie nudged himself in and plopped onto the floor, panting from an extended stretch of time in the sun.

  “He locks his office?”

  “Sometimes.” She fiddled with the lock and then pushed the door open. “He said it’s just out of habit from when he had an office at the university. I’ve never had a reason to come in here, anyway.”

  The stench of stale coffee and old notebooks hit them the second they entered. Zoe pointed over towards the desk that held his laptop. She moved the mouse, and it came to life.

  “You know the password?” Delaney said.

  “I used to know it. But it may take a guess or two.”

  After two attempts, Zoe typed one last guess in and the screen flickered and opened to a browser. Gil’s email was on the screen, but the inbox was empty.

  “Anything over there?” Zoe asked Casper, who was sorting through a stack of file folders with handwritten labels. Casper shook his head. “No, just old files from his research, it looks like. Nothing within the last year or so.”

  “Check his trash,” Delaney said.

  Zoe hesitated. “This feels wrong. I don’t-”

  “Would it feel better if I did it?”

  “Somehow, yeah, it would,” Zoe said and switched spots with Delaney.

  With a click, Delaney brought up Gil’s discarded messages, but only three were on the screen. “Either he doesn’t get much email or he sets them to auto-delete after a certain time period. There are two here from a book cover contractor about drafts for the paperback edition of his novel. The other seems to be from his publisher.”

  Delaney clicked on the message. Zoe turned away.

  “What’s it say, Laney?”

  Zoe watched as Delaney’s eyes read the message once and then read over it again. She gulped.

  “It says that considering the recent sightings, the publisher has an interest in a second contract with him. A follow up to his current novel.”

  Casper interrupted. “As somebody who has dealt with editors when I wrote a book many years ago, I don’t know how much we should read into this.”

  “How so?”

  “They work to keep all their options open. This is nothing more than an initial mention of it. But it’s still a grim look for Gil’s innocence. His motive just got stronger.”

  “But hear me out. If he’s responsible for the sightings, well, that is one thing. As long as he’s not the one responsible for the assault, he’s still just an idiot in the woods,” Delaney said.

  “For sure. There’s no link right now besides peculiar timing,” Casper said.

  “No, there’s something else,” Zoe interrupted. “We heard from the crime lab just before I got home for the day. They confirmed they found animal fur on and around the wounds. They’re running more tests to determine the specifics but it’ll be days before we hear anything from the county crime lab.”

  “Oh, no. Zo-”

  “It�
��s okay. We still have time to piece this together. I’m just glad we know now. But let’s keep this between us for now? I don’t want to let Detective Russo know about any of this until I can talk with Gil and get some answers.”

  Casper and Delaney nodded. The mood in the room had taken a somber turn. Zoe led them out, locked the door, and placed the key back in its spot. In the hallway, she leaned against the wall and took in a deep breath. Gil, what the hell have you done?

  Chapter Nineteen

  The athletic fields of Pine Hills High School sat within a half-mile-wide stretch of grass surrounded by a rickety rusted fence. Persistent teenagers had ripped holes in the fence that bordered the neighborhoods. Officials had re-attached the fence with great care, only to find it busted open again in a matter of hours.

  A janitor zoomed through the border of the field on a riding lawn mower, kicking up blades of grass and the fresh-cut smell that would forever remind Kyle of early morning runs and cross-country courses. Two fields, each bookended with silver goalposts enclosed by an orange net, were full of teenagers chasing a soccer ball like it was the last dinner roll at supper. Chaos was unfolding. The coaches paid little mind.

  As Kyle cleared the top step that led to the lot, he saw Andy off with the smaller of the two teams. He maneuvered past the Varsity team’s practice. A defender dashed to catch their striker, only to resort to a nasty slide tackle that put three bodies on the ground. Their coach wasn’t watching. Kyle could see him fumbling with his canister of dip, trying to form another pinch.

  Andy’s team was running wind-sprints, either as punishment or because there wasn’t anything better to do than to get them into shape. Andy watched, arms crossed on top of his chest.

  He noticed Kyle approach, blew the whistle, and the entire team dropped to the ground. Each athlete’s hands were on their knees, back bent as they gasped for air. A few of Kyle’s students waved at him as he approached, but he didn’t acknowledge their presence, nor did they do much more than look his way. He wasn’t there to check up on the JV Soccer team or scold somebody for plagiarism on their essay. He was there to tell Andy the bad news.

  “You look like complete shit,” Andy said.

  “Didn’t you read any of my texts?” Kyle glared at him. “I need to talk to you.”

  Andy shrugged. “I had my kids until this morning and then had practice. I figured you knew. It’s the exact reason you took on that job for me and—”

  “Yeah, that’s why I needed to talk to you.”

  Andy met Kyle’s stare. His smile disappeared. “Did something happen?” His eyes grew wide. “Oh, shit. Did you get caught?”

  “Would I be here without handcuffs if I got caught?”

  “I don’t know how the criminal justice system works. I’ve seen a lot of Law and Order and usually they try to flip somebody who has information.”

  “What information do I have for them?” Kyle raised his voice. The students all looked their way.

  Andy turned toward the team. “You all meet up with the Varsity now on the other field. I’ll be up in a minute.” He put a hand on Kyle’s shoulder. “Just need to chat with Mr. Pittman about which one of us will chaperone Junior Prom.”

  The kids milled about and made their way toward the adjoining field where the Seniors were running drills. Andy watched them before speaking again.

  “Is this the part where I check if you’re wearing a wire?”

  “Feel free. But after you’re done inspecting my abs, we can talk about the serious shit that went down yesterday.”

  “Yeah? From the text seemed like a normal drop…”

  “Drop was a piece of cake. Simple spot to find. But I got curious afterward.”

  “You what?” Andy’s stare was icy.

  Kyle looked at the grass as he spoke. “I made the drop and then hid in the woods to see who came to pick it up.”

  “Oh, shit. Kyle-”

  Kyle raised his hand. “Don’t. I know it’s against the code and the rules and whatever else you’re going to throw at me. It was a mistake. I promise you.”

  “So, what happened? Some skin and bones teen come and take the backpack after you left?”

  “Much, much worse.”

  “How do you mean worse?” Andy whispered.

  “I saw The Fox.”

  “You what?” Andy shouted.

  Kyle looked around and was thankful nobody was nearby. “I saw The Fox. No doubt about it. I hung around for fifteen minutes and The Fox came and picked up my delivery.”

  “How do you know it was him?”

  “First off, the person was in a life-sized fox costume. Like, the shit you see at Disney World or something. But they were smaller. It was a human.”

  “Oh damn, Kyle. You had me going for a minute.” Andy roared with laughter. “Dang. You’re a talented actor. You know that?”

  Kyle grabbed Andy’s arm. “I’m not joking, man. And I’m not done with my story.”

  “Okay, let’s hear it.”

  “The Fox came, picked up the backpack, but while I watched that go down, somebody ran down the hill. This middle-aged dude in short shorts and bright blue shoes. The Fox saw him approach and ducked under the bridge.”

  “Okay…”

  “But this dude. The old guy. He must have seen The Fox hide because he slowed to a walk and then called out.” Kyle’s eyes grew panicked. “The Fox shot out of the hiding spot and was on top of the guy in seconds. The dude tried to block the blows with his arms, but The Fox was relentless. Manic. Dude, blood was everywhere.”

  “What the f—”

  “So, I snap myself out of the daze I’m in and I decide to book it. The last thing I want is for The Fox to see me there, watching this man get beat to a pulp. But I stumble and make a noise.”

  “A noise?”

  “A branch on the forest floor cracked. I looked back at the trail and saw The Fox there. No longer wailing on the poor dude that walked up. Now, The Fox was staring into the woods. Right at me. And then, The Fox pulled off their mask and waved at me.”

  “Waved at you?”

  “Yeah. Like just letting me know they saw me. Some seriously sick shit. Who dresses up like an animal and lurks around the park? Who has that much rage inside of them they’d beat a stranger like that?” Kyle paced around the sideline. “Dude, I’m so done. I’m out.”

  “What do you mean you’re out?”

  “I mean, I’m not taking jobs for The Fox anymore. You can have them all. Buy your kids tickets to Disneyland for all I care. Just leave me out of it from here on out.”

  Andy crossed his arms. “And what if The Fox asks about you? According to this story, you know what The Fox looks like and maybe the only person—”

  “I was far out in the woods. It was still before sunrise. I think it was all a mind game. Like, The Fox just waved into the woods to scare the shit out of whoever was there.”

  “But you saw what they looked like?”

  Kyle gulped and nodded.

  “So, what’s stopping you from going to the police?”

  “The police? Dude, what am I supposed to say? I saw a cartoonishly large fox beat a man senseless because I had just hidden drugs there as part of my illicit part-time job?”

  “Maybe leave some of that out but—”

  “No way. They don’t have witness protection for two-bit drug runners. I’d be in the system and out of a job. My life would be over. I’m just walking away. Clean slate.”

  “Brother, your slate is far from clean, but I hear you. I just don’t know how that will work.”

  “I’m only here to tell you because it was your job. And I thought I should warn you.”

  Andy froze. “Warn me? Why?”

  In the silence, Kyle could almost hear the gears click into place in Andy’s brain as he sorted through the situation at hand.

  He put his hands over his eyes. “Oh, holy shit. If they couldn’t see that well from a distance, The Fox might suspect that the person in the woo
ds was a certain someone who had a reason to be there. Like me, who had just dropped drugs under the bridge under orders from The Fox.”

  “Yeah.”

  “Holy shit. You may have just gotten me killed, Kyle Pittman. What the f—”

  Kyle put both hands on Andy’s shoulders and looked him straight in the eyes. “I never meant for any of this to come back on you.” He spoke slowly. “Let me figure out what to do next and I’ll keep you in the loop. I just thought you should know, so you could watch your back.”

  “This is bad news, man.” Andy shook his head. “I’ve got kids! They can’t walk into their daddy’s room and find him beaten within an inch of his life.”

  “I’ll figure something out. Just give me some time. Okay?”

  “Keep me updated. I’ll do the same. But otherwise, I’m going to try and act normal. If The Fox is watching, I don’t want to act suspicious. I’ll just keep teaching and coaching and—”

  “Yeah, keep it up. You did nothing wrong. Hang in there, man.”

  Andy shook his head. “Damn, Kyle.”

  “I know, Andy. I know.”

  Chapter Twenty

  The creak of old seat springs echoed through the tiny bedroom. Casper flashed one eye open and then the other. He reached back towards Delaney’s side of the bed but found nothing but a cold pillow. The creak sounded again. Followed by a sincere sigh.

  “I thought I’d be able to do this without waking you up,” Delaney said. She sat cross-legged with a stack of files on her lap. Hoagie lay at her feet, chewing on a toy.

  “Can’t go sneaking around like that. Scared me half to death,” Casper said.

  Delaney mouthed the word ‘sorry’ and then dove back into the files.

  “Find anything interesting?”

  “Nothing to exonerate Gil. He’s still got the best motive for the Bigfoot sightings, but that’s only an issue if the dots connect to Wade Buchanon.”

  “And what are the dots telling you at this ungodly hour of the morning?”