Frosty the Dead Man (A Snow Globe Shop Mystery)

by Christine Husom

  “What’s wrong?”

  She shook her head. “Nothing at all. Only a little cramp that is going away already. I’ll hang up my coat and bag and then you can tell me your dreams, if you would like.” She was gone for a minute and returned ready to listen. I knew she was probably just being polite.

  I couldn’t share the details of the missing pendant so I said, “I was talking to a friend last night about a diamond pendant that’s been in his family, and it got me curious about diamonds and what makes some more valuable than others, things like that. So I did some online research and that must’ve triggered the dreams. You were even in one of them.”

  “Me?”

  “Yes, we were watching a diamond cutter work, cutting this huge diamond that he’d graded as an FL.”

  She frowned at my answer.

  “That means the clarity is completely flawless under magnification.”

  “I see. Well that does not seem like a strange dream if you were reading about them before you went to sleep.”

  “No, I guess not. The thing that was peculiar, bordering on creepy, was that Mayor Frost was hovering near me most of the time, and pointed his finger at the diamond. He never said a word, he just pointed.”

  Nicoline waved her hand toward Curio Finds. “What shall I do to help?”

  I glanced up at the clock. “I guess it is about that time. We’ll get the shop open, then I’d like you to take a look at the front window decorations. See if you can spruce the display up somehow. You’re so good at making them look better.”

  Nicoline’s smile lit up her face. “Thank you. I will be happy to. There are no customers at the moment, so I will get started. But I will be here to watch for them.”

  “Sounds good.” I unlocked the front door, turned the window sign to Open, and flipped on the overhead lights. We left the tree lights on in the window display around the clock during the holiday season. “The coffee shop was busy earlier. I’ve got mugs to wash and muffins to replenish, so I’ll be next door. Holler if you need me.”

  I was filling the muffin and scone display case when I heard a man’s voice in Curio Finds. I finished my task and then headed back to the shop to help. As I walked through the archway, I got a partial view of a tall man going out the door. “Was he looking for something special?” I said.

  Nicoline was rearranging a tree and didn’t turn around. “No, he was curious about what was in the shop is all.”

  A while later Nicoline found me to say she had finished the window display, if I’d like to take a look. I joined her in the front of Curio Finds. We stood for a time, admiring the results of her labor. She had moved the three Christmas trees closer together, so they were no longer spread out in a row. Now they appeared as a unit, like trees in a dense forest with the smallest tree in the forefront. She’d removed the white garland from the trees and had woven it around the gift boxes under the trees, like they were sitting on fluffy snow. And she changed up the snow globes, adding three that lit up with changing colors and swirling snow.

  “I love what you’ve done. Our mayor appreciated the way it was, but you’ve made it so much better.”

  She looked away then back at me.

  I stepped outside to see what it looked like from there. I was very pleased. The display had taken on a warmer, more inviting character. “You’ll have window shoppers stopping just to watch the snowing snow globes,” I said when I was back inside.

  “Then it is all right to leave them turned on?” Nicoline asked.

  “Why not? During business hours that is. I have no idea how long the batteries last, but we have a supply in the storeroom, and we can always get more.” I gave Nicoline an impulsive embrace. When she flinched, I realized my mistake. “I’m sorry.”

  “No, no. Thank you for the hug. It is just that I was not expecting it.”

  “My friends and I tend to do it without thinking sometimes.”

  Nicoline nodded. “That is very nice. To have friends you are so comfortable with.”

  “How about you, did you leave all your friends behind in Boston?”

  She frowned slightly and it took her a minute to answer. “I had friends there, yes.”

  “Well, until you get to know more people here, I hope you’ll consider me your friend.”

  “I do, already.”

  Progress. “I’m glad.”

  Both shops were fairly steady with customers the rest of the afternoon, and Curio Finds was the busier one. I dearly wished Nicoline would let down her guard and spill out her secrets, but she was not to be rushed. Even some of my simple comments seemed to draw out a negative reaction in her. Removing her barriers, one at a time, might be a slow, slow process.

  • • • • • • • •

  Jason Frost phoned to let me know they’d set his father’s funeral for the following Saturday afternoon.

  “I decided to fly home tonight. I’ll feel better being with my family and my students. My kids didn’t know their grandfather very well, but they’re sad, just the same. The police will keep me informed as they learn more through their investigation. And checking Dad’s safety deposit box for the pendant can wait a few days.” I would have been too curious to let that go, but it was not for me to decide.

  “I’m sure it’ll be good for you to get back to your family. Thanks for letting me know. Travel safe and we’ll see you Saturday,” I said.

  As the day went on I reflected more and more about Mayor Frost and his grieving family. I felt an increasingly strong need to have another conversation with Marvin Easterly, Rosalie Gorman, and Harley Creighton. I didn’t think Easterly would have knowledge about Frosty’s pendant, but the other two might. And I had another question for all of them, one that, by their reactions, could tell me what I needed to know.

  • • • • • • • •

  Nicoline seemed reluctant to leave at the end of the day. “Your mayor? He was a well-loved man, was he not?” she said as I turned the sign on the front window to Closed.

  I nodded. “By most people, anyway. His family and friends in particular. Certainly a well-respected man in the community. He was good at solving problems, and at promoting the business community here, too.”

  “I am sorry for his family and for Brooks Landing.”

  “Me, too.”

  “I will see you tomorrow at nine o’clock.”

  “Thanks, Nicoline, I’m so glad you came to us right when we needed you.”

  I’d hoped my words would be encouraging, complimentary. Instead, she looked sad when she nodded.

  After Nicoline had left, I phoned Rosalie Gorman. “It’s Camryn Brooks.”

  “Yes, Camryn.”

  “I was wondering if I could talk to you about a couple of things.”

  “Like the council seat?” She was all business. “What do you want to know?”

  “I’d rather talk in person and can meet you at your convenience.”

  “That’d be fine. I’m the Realtor on duty today and was just about to leave the office.”

  “I’m at my shop if you’d like to swing by here.”

  “I’ll be there shortly.”

  I hadn’t contacted Van Norden Distributing about the missing snow globe, so I sat down at the computer to send them an e-mail. I was typing away when the shop lights went off. “Molly, I’ve got a visitor coming in a few minutes, and it might freak her out if you’re playing with the lights.” Coincidence or not, the lights came back on. “Thank you.” I sent the e-mail then saw Rosalie Gorman standing at the door, a second before she knocked on it. I let her in, and then locked up again.

  “Thanks for coming over. Would you like a cup of coffee or something else to drink?” I said.

  “I’m fine, thanks.”

  “Let’s go sit in Brew Ha-Ha.”

  “All right.” Rosalie spoke quietly, not
her usual brusque self. “Have you heard Lewis’s funeral is Saturday?”

  “I did, yes.”

  “I can’t believe he’s gone,” she said.

  I waited until she sat down so I could sit across from her. “You’re right, it doesn’t seem real.” Including the part when I found him on his office floor, lifeless, and pointing at the broken snow globe. “Rosalie, I was wondering about a couple of things you may know something about.”

  She focused her weary eyes on mine. “What?”

  “Did Mayor Frost show you his mother’s pendant?”

  “No. I didn’t even know about it until the police asked me about it.”

  “So he wasn’t intending to give it to you?”

  That took her by surprise. “Why, no, I wouldn’t think so. You might as well know about Lewis and me: I already told the police.” She took a moment. “I was in love with him. I hoped he was starting to feel the same way, but he wasn’t ready to admit it yet. And then he, well, you know.”

  I nodded. “The afternoon he passed away, you went in his office and slammed the door. What were you so angry about?”

  “I went through all this with the police.”

  “I know, but I feel . . . I guess I’d like to hear it, too. If you’re willing to tell me.”

  She lifted her eyebrows then nodded. “Okay. I wasn’t exactly angry. I was upset because he’d been spending more time with Gail Spindler behind closed doors. And she’s a married woman. I wanted to tell him it didn’t look right.”

  “I can see why you’d been concerned. What did he say about Gail?”

  The thought of Gail and Frosty together obviously agitated Rosalie. Her voice got louder. “He said she was just a good friend. Ha! I’ve seen the way they look at each other. And then I asked if he’d take me out for dinner that night, but he said he couldn’t. Because we served on the council together, we needed to keep our relationship professional. Can you believe it? It hadn’t stopped him from cozying up to Gail.”

  Rosalie’s whole body tensed up. She was on edge, and perhaps would benefit from some professional help, as Gail had suggested.

  “Did the mayor show you the new snow globe he’d bought?”

  Another surprised expression. “No, he didn’t. Do you think it was a gift for me?”

  “Gosh, I don’t know who he bought it for.”

  I was starting to feel sorry for her, but needed her opinion on one last thing. “Rosalie, you were close to the mayor. Who do you think hurt him?”

  Tears popped out of her eyes. “I can’t think of a single person who’d want to.”

  I leaned in and laid my hand on hers. “Rosalie, it’s obvious how much you’re hurting. Do you have a minister or a counselor you can talk to about it?”

  “Is that your way of saying I need a shrink?”

  “No, all I’m saying is it’d be good to talk to someone you trust. We all need to do that at times.”

  • • • • • • • •

  My conversation with Rosalie Gorman had given me another way of thinking about her nickname. Stormin’ Gorman was in an emotional whirlwind, with a storm a brewin’. I sat down at my checkout counter and added her to my list of councilors who had no knowledge of the pendant. Nor had she seen his new snow globe. With one last council member to go, I phoned Harley Creighton. It went to voicemail, and I decided not to leave a message.

  At four thirty I climbed into my cold car and gave the dashboard a pat when it started right up. When the engine had warmed, I drove west of town to the farm property under debate. The city council had given the Wonder Kids Clothes people the go-ahead to move forward with their feasibility study. As a prospective future council member, I had an excuse to ask a few questions. Right?

  I knew who the Murphys were, and had heard the scuttlebutt about the deal they’d been offered, but didn’t know much more than that. I pulled into their driveway and their outside motion-detection lights came on, illuminating the whole side yard. It sat on the outside edge of Brooks Landing, not two miles from downtown, but I felt like it was miles out, in the middle of the country. It was an old farmstead. And one that Marvin Easterly wanted to remain that way.

  I left my car running and went to the side door, similar to the setup at the Easterly farm. I knocked on the door, grateful the late afternoon air had stilled. It took a minute then Rusty Murphy opened the door. “Hi, I’m Camryn Brooks. I think you know me from the curio and coffee shops.”

  “Sure, come in.” Rusty pointed at the kitchen table. “To what do I owe the pleasure?” His red hair and beard explained how he’d earned his nickname.

  I hung by the door instead. “I’ll only be a minute. This isn’t common knowledge, but I’m thinking of trying for the open seat on the city council.”

  He clicked his tongue on the roof of his mouth. “Isn’t that just a heck of deal about the mayor?”

  “Awful.” We chatted about that a minute then I launched into my questions. “Rusty, your land was a big topic of debate for the council. I understand Mayor Frost himself paid you a visit on behalf of the company to make you an offer on your land.”

  Rusty nodded. “What he said was he’d been approached by someone who was looking for a piece of property on the outskirts of town, and that they had so much to spend. Let me just say it’s more than either the appraised or the assessed value.”

  “That would be tempting all right.”

  “It is. Mina and I have mixed feelings about selling, but if we take what the company is offering, we can buy another farm and move into a for-profit operation. We’re talking about raising organic beef and some other things. Since this property is in the orderly annexation plan, it’s just a matter of time, whether that clothing factory deal pans out or not. We’ll have to see.”

  “Marvin Easterly is certainly opposed to it.”

  “That’s who we feel sorry for in all this. We’ve never seen him upset like this before. He rents our fields and has always been the ideal land tenant. He’s kind to our kids. But this has caused some hard feelings between us, no doubt about that.”

  “You don’t consider him a violent guy?”

  Rusty’s face wrinkled up, like he’d never heard anything so silly. “Violent? No. His bark is way worse than his bite from what I’ve seen. He can be gruff at times, that’s a fact, but he’s a gentle guy. You should see the way he treats animals and kids.”

  But what about the adults he’s angry at? I extended my arm and we shook hands. “Thanks for your time, Rusty.”

  “Sure, and good luck with your decision about the council seat.”

  • • • • • • • •

  As I headed for home, my cell phone rang. I pulled over and fished it out of my coat pocket. “Camryn speaking.”

  “Hi, it’s Harley Creighton. I see I missed a call from you.”

  “Yes, thanks for calling me back. I was wondering if we could meet in the next day or so.”

  “What did you have in mind?”

  After the “I think you’re kinda cute” look he’d given the last time we spoke, and the way he’d just asked that question, meeting in a public place was decidedly in order. And grabbing a beer somewhere was off the table, thank goodness. “If you’re going to be at city hall tomorrow, I could meet you there.”

  “How about I stop by your shop, say around ten?”

  “That works. Thank you, Harley.”

  • • • • • • • •

  It felt like it had been the longest week of my life, and I was torn between stopping in at Erin’s house to chill out with her or go straight home and crash. I opted for some friend time. When she opened the door I must have looked worse for the wear because she gave me a hug. “Look what the cat dragged in.” But she said it in a kind way.

  “Are you busy?” I took a quick look around her living room.

&
nbsp; “Not too. I was going over my lessons for the week. Come on in.”

  I followed her to the kitchen. Her planner and papers were spread out on one end of the table. We sat down at the other. I slipped my coat onto the back of the chair behind me. “Erin, things just aren’t adding up with the usual suspects in Frosty’s death.”

  “I know. Mark said they’ve been getting more and more frustrated as they go along.”

  I told her about my conversations with the councilors, Lila at city hall, Jason Frost, Marvin Easterly, and Rusty Murphy. “I need to talk to Harley Creighton one more time, and maybe I can weasel something revealing out of him.”

  “Cami, I know you were good at researching and investigating issues in Washington, but solving murders is a whole different ballgame. Police have all kinds of cool tools in their kit, making them able to do things like collect fingerprints, run criminal histories, and interrogate people in intimidating little rooms.”

  “Yes, they do. But sometimes people tell other people things they don’t want to tell the police.”

  “Like what?” She leaned closer.

  “Well, take Nicoline for example. I think she’s wary of the police for a reason, one that I hope to get out of her someday soon.”

  “People in abusive relationships are usually threatened with more harm if they tell anybody, especially the police.”

  “I know. But, hey, she told me where she lives so I’m making progress.”

  Erin smiled. “So you don’t have to sneak around anymore.”

  “I still don’t want to push my luck by showing up at her doorstep for no good reason.” I tapped my fingers on the table. “Hey, changing the subject here, so Pinky’s got a date, huh?”

  “You’d think she was sixteen again, the way she’s acting.”

  “She told me that’s the way she feels, too.”

  Erin took a peek at her kitchen clock. “Jake should be picking her up any time now, and I have a feeling we’ll be hearing all about it.”

  We smiled and crossed our fingers, wishing our friend the best of luck.