by K E O'Connor
“Do you know how long you’ll serve for killing Edward?” My heart thumped. I was close to getting the truth out of Danny.
“Less than five years,” Danny said. “There are mitigating circumstances. I didn’t plan for this to happen.”
“Five years! That’s a long time to be put away for something you didn’t do.”
“I should be out in two-and-a-half years if I behave myself.” He looked at the ground. “It won’t be so bad.”
“And this person is worth losing all that time for and getting a criminal record for murder?” I asked. “Has she promised she’ll wait for you?”
“I don’t even need to ask her that,” Danny said. “I trust her.”
“You need to tell this to Nick,” I said. “Be honest with him about what’s going on.”
“No! Listen, Cassie, you have to keep this to yourself. No one needs to know.” A worried look crossed Danny’s face. “I’m not going to tell you who it is. You’re wasting your time if you pass this information on to Nick. I know what happened. I’m prepared to take the blame for Edward’s murder. That’s all there is to it. The person who did this knows they did wrong. It was a horrible accident. One they regret.”
“If it was an accident, Nick will understand,” I said. “He wants to help you. Who are you covering for?”
He scrapped a hand through his hair. “I can’t tell you who it is.”
“Is she here today?” Was I employing Edward’s killer? I could figure out who it was from the staff rota. Had Danny been spending a lot of time with one particular person? My thoughts went to Beth. She was a little older than Danny, but only by a couple of years. They seemed a good fit, but I hadn’t noticed them spending much time together.
“I’m not telling you anything else.” Danny’s eyes glistened. “I’ve already said too much. Now you know, you can stop hassling me and trying to get Nick to make me tell him what happened. He’s going to have to accept I’m to blame and charge me with Edward’s murder. Stop asking questions, please.”
I’d pushed Danny too far. I squeezed his hand. “I understand why you’re doing this. I don’t think it’s right, but if you believe this is the only way and the killer has learned their lesson, I won’t keep asking you.”
“She has. She’ll never do anything like this again,” Danny said. “I love her. We haven’t been together long, but she’s amazing. I’d do anything to keep her safe.”
First love, it was such a powerful, addictive, and dangerous thing. As I was witnessing, it turned sane men into gibbering idiots and normally intelligent women into blushing, giggling fools. “If you change your mind, let Nick know. He hasn’t charged you yet. He still might not.”
“He’s got enough evidence to charge me,” Danny said. “I should put my hands up to the whole thing and stop wasting everybody’s time. Get it over with.”
“Don’t do that,” I said. “At least get your first week out of the way here. You might decide that working at the theme park is so much fun you don’t want to spend the next five years behind bars serving time for a crime you clearly didn’t commit.”
Danny shrugged and a sad smile crossed his face. “You never know, after one day here, surrounded by overexcited tourists, I might decide that’s exactly where I want to be.”
“Go on, get back to work.” I watched Danny walk away. I couldn’t let this drop. He was innocent, and I needed to figure out who he was covering for. I didn’t care if he was in love. The real killer needed to be found and brought to justice. Sure, Danny would suffer a broken heart, but he was young. Young love was easy to heal from.
I wasn’t done with this investigation yet. I was determined the right person would go to prison for killing Edward.
Chapter 19
As I turned toward the office, the sight of a tall, toned male, clad in black combat pants and a short-sleeved black T-shirt made my heart race. It was Archer.
He raised a hand as he saw me. “I thought I’d get here early and catch you before bedlam breaks out.”
“Bedlam has already arrived.” I gestured to the theme park crowd outside the gates. “Be prepared to hold on tight when they open.”
“What would you like me to hold on to?” Archer leaned forward and kissed my cheek. “I can see all kinds of tempting options in front of me.” His gaze ran over my black-clad figure.
“I was thinking more the safety bar on the Terrifying Teacups.” I grinned and blushed.
“We’re in matching outfits,” Archer said. “The look suits you. You can be a part of my team, as well.”
I wore black pants and a park issue black polo shirt with the theme park logo on the front. I already missed being able to wander around in a sundress and sandals. This was the official park uniform. All employees had to wear it, me included.
“I was considering taking a break after the park opened. You could take me on one of your secret missions. I could help you protect the shady characters you look after when you’re not patrolling the Zee Town borders.”
Archer laughed. “No problem. I’ll equip you with an Uzi and some hand grenades. You’d be good to go.”
“Do you really use an Uzi?”
“Only when I’m standing in as the body double for Hugh Jackman,” he said with a grin. “It helps to keep all the lusting women away.”
I couldn’t resist a peek at Archer’s toned muscles. He could easily stand in for Hugh Jackman.
Archer laughed again. “Have you got five minutes to show me around before you let in the hordes?”
“Yes. The gates don’t open for another couple of hours. What do you want to see?”
“Well, I’ve been on the ghoul train. That was an experience I won’t forget any time soon. How about the log flume?”
“You can have a look, but I’m not getting on the ride,” I said. “The soaking wet and bedraggled look isn’t one I want to sport on opening day.”
Archer grinned. “How about those teacups you mentioned? They sound sedate.”
“Yes, if you like being covered in smoke and cobwebs.”
“Okay, how about we walk around? You can tell me everything to avoid so I don’t end up looking like one of the walking dead.”
Archer held out his arm. I took hold of it, surprised by the gentlemanly offer. His muscles tensed under my fingers. Was he flexing for my benefit? He didn’t need to. I already knew how buff Archer was. Hot but dangerous, I reminded myself.
“When does the excitement begin?” Archer asked as we walked past the zombie attack maze.
“I’ve got the Council members arriving in an hour. The official opening event happens just before nine. Then the first one hundred people through the gate get their special prize envelope. I think that’s part of the reason we’re drawing such big crowds. They want to get their hands on a free TV, hamper of food, or a year round pass to the theme park.”
“And because they want to see a zombie run theme park and have the pants scared off them on your rides,” Archer said.
“That could be it, too,” I admitted. “I thought the world had come to terms with the fact we live with zombies. I’m surprised we’ve drawn such interest. It’s been more than a decade since the zombies emerged. You think people would get bored.”
“They will when the next big event happens,” Archer said.
“What kind of big event are we talking about?”
“Witches? Vampires? Or perhaps werewolves poking a furry paw around the door to say hello and eat their neighbors. That kind of thing.”
I had to laugh. “Ten years ago, I’d have thought that was ridiculous. Now we have zombies, I’m more open-minded. The next virus we accidentally create could give us a new spooky neighbor. I’d quite like to meet a few werewolves. They always sound so attractive in the books that get written about them.”
“I assume you’re referring to the wimpy Alpha males in paranormal romances,” Archer said, “and not the ones from horror movies?”
“Definitely the form
er,” I said. “All sexy, hot werewolves are welcome, but no chewing on the locals allowed.”
“Don’t you have enough hot men in town to keep you interested?” Archer asked with a smile.
I blushed under his gaze. “There are some nice looking guys here.”
“Any who have caught your eye?”
“I’m too busy with work to notice,” I said. “I’m married to my job.”
“Half of all marriages end in divorce,” Archer said. “You might like to prepare yourself for something new, just in case your current commitment doesn’t work out.”
I looked over at him, taking in Archer’s clipped hair, his strong jawline, and the determined expression on his face. Was he being serious or playing with me? I could never tell.
As we completed the circuit of the park, we drew close to the waiting crowd outside. The smell of suntan lotion grew stronger, the chatter excited as I stopped by the gates, people watching to see if I was about to open them.
“Are you opening soon?” A girl of about six years old asked. She was dressed in a sundress with red cherries dotted on it and wore an overly large straw hat.
“There’s not long to wait,” I said. “Are you looking forward to the rides?” She was too short to go on a lot of them, but she might make the Terrifying Teacups if she stood on her tiptoes.
“Yes. I want to go in the zombie attack maze and get bitten.” She giggled and clutched the hand of the older boy beside her.
“She’s such a baby,” he said, his nose already looking kissed by the sun. “I’m going on them all. The train, the haunted house, the rollercoasters. I bet I don’t scream on any of them.”
“They are quite terrifying,” I said with a smile. “You might scream a bit.”
“Are there lots of zombies in the park?” the boy asked.
“Yes, you’ll see plenty of our friendly zombies around,” I said. “Make sure you treat them nicely. They’re here to help you.”
“And they don’t bite?” the girl asked, her hat sliding over her eyes as she looked up at me.
“None of our zombies bite.” I glanced at Archer and saw him grinning at me. “Enjoy your day,” I said to the children.
Archer chuckled as we walked toward the office.
“Is something funny?” I asked him.
“You love being around people,” he said. “You came alive when you talked to those kids. It makes you happy to make other people happy, doesn’t it?”
I shrugged. “It always has. I’m still not sold on this theme park making people happy, though.”
“Sugar and fast rides are some people’s idea of a good time.”
“Not mine,” I said. “I’m prepared to give it a go and see what it does for Zee Town. If it works for the town and our residents, then I’ll continue to support it.”
“And if it doesn’t?” Archer asked. “Are you going to ask me to plant explosives around the park and get rid of it for you?”
“Now, that’s tempting,” I said as we stopped by the office door. “I might hold you to that offer if things don’t pan out.”
Archer laughed. He took hold of my hand and kissed the back of it. His fingers brushed along the scar on my palm. He turned it over.
I pulled my hand away. “It’s an old injury.”
“It doesn’t bother you?” Archer asked. “Scars like that can be uncomfortable.” He pulled up the sleeve of his T-shirt and displayed several jagged looking scars criss-crossing his bicep.
“Mine is nothing like yours,” I said. “I never notice it unless people point it out.”
Archer pulled down his sleeve. “Your scar is beautiful.”
I held my hand out and examined the scar, tensing my fingers and watching it ripple across my hand. “It happened so long ago, I barely remember it. It’s in the past now.”
“That’s the best place for old memories,” Archer said. “If I held on to all the ways I’d gotten my scars, I’d stay in bed all day. Look forward and to the future. That’s what I do.”
“That works for you?” I asked.
“It hasn’t done me any harm to date.” He reached forward and kissed my hand again. This time, his lips landed on the scar. “You do what you have to do to survive and keep sane. Everybody has their own way of coping in this crazy world.”
I nodded. “I guess they do.”
“I’ll let you get on with your work, for now,” Archer said. “I want to do some drills with the security team here, make sure their training has stuck. I’ll find you later. We’re going to get on a ride or two together.” He winked at me and marched away, his back erect and arms loosely by his side. He was the perfect, gorgeous killing machine in a tight fitting T-shirt.
It was time to get my mind off my sort of relationship with Archer. That was one hot mystery I had to be careful around. My focus couldn’t be pulled toward him.
I had a park opening to deal with and an innocent man’s name to clear.
Chapter 20
“Are you certain these are sharp enough to cut the ribbon?” Councilman Tapping held aloft the large pair of scissors I’d supplied him with to cut the jaunty red ribbon strung over the entrance gates of the theme park.
“I’ve tested them myself.” I wiped my clammy hands on my black pants. “I’m positive they’ll cut the ribbon.” We were in my office, five minutes from the official opening of the park. There was nothing left for me to do. If things went wrong now, it was too late to do anything about it.
He snipped the air in front of him with the scissors, his bald head gleaming in the sunlight. “This is exciting.”
Councilwoman Mavis Buster stood next to him, her thin frame encased in a heavy red tweed suit. Just looking at her made my armpits prickle with sweat. But she was cool and composed, her pan stick makeup giving her face a creepy doll-like expression, two dots of pink on each cheek, a slash of red across her thin lips, and her over-plucked eyebrows carefully drawn in with a black pencil, giving her a startled, alert look.
“What do you think, Mavis?” Councilman Tapping mopped at his top lip. “Shall we get the ceremony started?”
Councilwoman Buster gave a nod. “Then we can inspect the rides and meet some of the zombies.” She looked over at me.
“Of course,” I said. “I’ve arranged for you to see the whole park and meet our employees.”
Councilman Tapping gave a childlike skip, making his jowls wobble as he landed heavily. “I’ll send a tweet about how things are going. Then we can get some selfies and go outside and meet the crowds. Make sure you get plenty of photographs, Cassie.”
Councilwoman Buster gave a loud sigh and shook her head at me as we waited. I was not the only one frustrated by Councilman Tapping’s obsession with social media.
“All done,” Councilman Tapping said after a few seconds of typing on his phone. “Time to open the gates.”
We walked out of the office and into the bright morning sunshine. The crowd outside the fence shuffled, a murmur of excitement running through them as we approached.
I gestured to the side of the gates, where I’d set up a microphone and stand for Councilman Tapping. “Ready to go when you are.”
He walked over and adjusted the microphone. “Good morning everybody, on this glorious day outside the famous Zee Town, the UK’s most successful placid zombie refuge. I welcome you to the official opening of the theme park. This is the only place to come when you want genuine scares and delights from our resident zombies. All in a safe and friendly environment.”
The crowd gave a muted cheer in response.
“We’ll open the gates in a few moments. No rushing when you come in. We have prizes for some of you, but everyone will be a winner today once you get inside and enjoy the thrills we have on offer.”
“Get on with it,” someone yelled.
Laughter rippled through the crowd.
Councilman Tapping raised one hand and gestured for quiet. “I understand you’re excited, as am I. I intend to try out all th
e rides. But first, I want to remind you how Zee Town was established.”
I noticed with growing horror how many pages of notes Councilman Tapping had in front of him.
He cleared his throat. “Over five years ago, the town first began as a small experiment in a rural part of Cornwall.”
The crowd shifted restlessly. Their patience wouldn’t last for much longer. This wasn’t the right time to give a potted history of how Zee Town was established. People wanted rides and to make themselves sugar drunk on candyfloss and toffee apples.
An empty drink can hit the fence. It was time to take action. I stepped forward and touched Councilman Tapping’s elbow. “Perhaps I could write up your speech and post it online? The crowd is keen to come in and test out your amazing theme park.”
He covered the microphone with a meaty hand. “But this is fascinating. I don’t want them to miss out.”
If we weren’t careful, we’d have a stampede. “I’ll post it all online. That way, many more people will enjoy your words, not just the crowd here today.”
Councilman Tapping paused from studying his notes and looked at the crowd. “You’re right. It isn’t fair to make them wait any longer.” He cleared his throat again. “I can see how eager you all are, so I won’t delay any further.”
The crowd gave a collective sigh of relief.
“It just leaves me to cut the ribbon and officially declare Zee Town theme park open.” Councilman Tapping stood in front of the ribbon, his scissors poised as I took a few pictures. Once the photographs were taken, the scissors cut smoothly through the ribbon.
I looked over to where Archer and several of his team stood and gave them a nod. That was the cue to get the gates open and let the crowds through.
“You might like to stand back,” I said to Councilman Tapping, who still stood in front of the gates and was at risk of being crushed by the sweating crowds as they prepared to charge through.