by Jason Deas
“Can’t hurt.”
“Go.”
“Pink, blue, smudged paint, dancing, closed eyes, heavenly, deep thoughts, balance, toes, arms out, lady, lady dancing…”
“Stop!”
“What?”
“Lady dancing.”
“And…”
“Multiply it.”
“Ladies dancing.” Vernon thought. “Ladies dancing,” he said again.
“Sing it,” Benny instructed.
Vernon did as instructed. “Ladies dancing.” He sang it again. And again. And it struck. His face lit up. Benny’s face brightened.
Together they sang, “Nine ladies dancing.”
“The twelve days of Christmas!” Vernon said. “Multiply one lady dancing and you get nine ladies dancing. Could it be?”
“I don’t know,” Benny said. “It’s a hell of a stretch. Let’s inspect the inner tube and see if it gives us any answers.”
“If it doesn’t, you have to come back in here and do that thinking out loud bullshit,” Vernon laughed.
With their gloves still on, the two men each grabbed an end of the inner tube and brought it inside. Benny let Vernon hold it alone as he cleared the coffee table and asked Vernon to set it down. With the inner tube on the coffee table, they both fell silent and studied the black surface.
“I don’t see anything,” Vernon said. “I was hoping it would have something written on it.”
“Me too. You would think it would have a number at least telling somebody how much to inflate it.”
“Maybe it’s on the bottom,” Vernon said.
He grabbed the inner tube carefully and turned it over.
A nine volt battery was taped to the bottom.
Chapter 17
“Nine!” the two men screamed triumphantly.
“Son of a bitch,” Vernon said. “It is nine ladies dancing.”
“Nine,” Benny said to no one. “Here we go again. What in town relates to the number nine?”
“Whatever it is, I imagine we got another dead body waiting for us.”
“You can be sure of that. I guess my home is now a crime scene. Why don’t you go ahead and make the call so I can get the boys in and out of here. I don’t know when Rachael’s going to be here and the last thing I need is a bunch of guys walking around dusting things and taking pictures. Nothing quite as romantic as a crime scene.”
“When’s she getting in?”
“I don’t know. She didn’t say if it would be today or tomorrow or if she was coming straight here or what.”
“The crime scene guys are probably going to go over absolutely everything in this place. Have you bought anything special to cook that you put in the fridge? If so, you might want to go hide it at Donny’s or something. You don’t want them fingering all your food.”
“I haven’t had time to think that far ahead. She’ll probably want to go eat at the little German restaurant in town. It was always her favorite.”
Vernon’s eyes doubled in size.
“What?”
“The German restaurant.”
“What?” Benny asked again.
“That’s where the dead body is. The German word for no sounds like nine—it’s nein.”
“Let’s go,” Benny said grabbing his keys. “Let your crime scene boys know the door is unlocked.”
Benny drove.
Halfway there Vernon said, “You’re awfully quiet.”
Benny almost choked on his laugh. “Last time we were in a car together you yelled at me for talking while you were trying to think. Now I’m too quiet? I’m not so sure I need a woman back in my life when I have somebody like you who can make me feel bad about everything I do already.”
Vernon lost it and snot flew out his nose he was laughing so hard. When he finally stopped he asked, “Do you happen to have a tissue?”
“Glove compartment.”
Vernon opened it and pulled out a few napkins from a hamburger restaurant. He wiped his nose and the snot off the dashboard.
“You sure do like Wendy’s,” he said, admiring the stash of napkins. “And sorry about that. I’m just nervous. And I bet Rachael isn’t one of those type of women you were joking about.”
“She’s not.”
Benny pulled the Jeep into the gravel lot of the German restaurant. Being about dinner time the lot was fairly full.
“I don’t get it,” Vernon said. “Is there a dead body under the buffet table and nobody has seen it yet? How can there be a dead body inside a restaurant full of people that nobody has noticed?”
“I guess we’ll find out.”
Benny and Vernon walked in to find the dining room three-quarters full. The owner saw Benny and his face brightened.
“Mr. Benny,” he said. “You no come to see me sometime soon.”
“It’s been awhile.”
“Where you sweet young lady?”
“She’s out of town,” Benny said, not wanting to explain the situation. “I’m not here to eat tonight,” Benny started. “Have you noticed anything unusual today?”
“Yes.”
Benny waited for him to tell him what strange thing he had noticed but he didn’t.
“What?”
“Just some kids.”
“You’ve noticed some strange kids?”
“No, kids do some funny prank.”
“What prank?”
“The kids, they cut off my lock on the outside freezer and put on another one lock.”
“Let me get this straight. You have an outdoor freezer you keep a lock on.”
“Yes.”
“Your lock was cut off and another one is now on there?”
“Yes.”
“OK. You just keep doing what you’re doing here and I’ll cut it off for you,” Benny said, not wanting to frighten him with his suspicions.
“Thank you, Mr. Benny.”
“I’ll be back with Rachael soon.”
“Very much the excellent!”
Benny walked back to his Jeep and opened the back where he kept a few tools, one of which happened to be a hack saw. He grabbed it with purpose and walked toward the freezer behind the restaurant.
“You ever cut one of these off?” he asked Vernon.
“No.”
“It’s not as easy as it looks. We’ll have to take turns. You go first,” he said, smiling and handing the saw to Vernon.
Vernon took the saw and began cutting. Before long he found a steady rhythm and beads of sweat appeared on his forehead. About five minutes later, with little progress, he passed the task to Benny and he spent some time with the saw.
The two men went back and forth for half an hour. Finally, the lock fell to the ground.
Vernon looked at Benny.
“You already know there’s a dead body in there. Accept it. And let’s move on with our work. We’re not here to ooh and awe over death. We’re here to catch a killer. The killer wants us to ooh and awe over his cleverness. We don’t ooh. We don’t ahh. We solve murders.” Benny was breathing hard.
“OK. I’m with you,” Vernon said. “Let’s do it.”
Benny pulled the freezer door open. Before the chill of the frozen air hit them they saw the body. Flat on its back, a person with a frozen towel over its face lay with arms stretched over its head. Frozen washcloths covered the hands. Additional frozen towels covered the body. A thin layer of ice had formed on all the fabric covering the victim. A paintbrush with three notches cut into the handle rested on the chest.
“Hard to tell with all the frost and ice if this is even a man or a woman. He must have been wet when he was brought in here. How else would he have that much frost and ice on him?”
Vernon took a step forward and got down on one knee.
“There are some empty bottles of water under the left leg. Get down here and look,” Vernon said.
Benny crept up to where Vernon knelt and got down on the freezer floor next to him.
“I’ll be damned.” Benn
y rubbed his fingers across the floor around the body. He did it on one side and then carefully leaned across the body and did the same thing on the other side. “I bet he brought the body in here, covered it with towels and washcloths and then poured water all over it to meld the body to the floor and to hide the identity.”
“What is it with this guy and ice? The second body was in a cooler full of ice and now this.”
“You got me. I guess we need to get this scene wrapped up before we go over my place.”
“I was just thinking that. Could you stay with Red tonight or something? I can’t see them getting over to your place for at least five or six hours.”
“I’ll call Carlton and see if I can get Rachael’s old room booked at the Lakeside Motor Inn.”
“Good idea. Why don’t you go and tell the restaurant owner to clear the place out. We don’t need everybody freaking out when the police cars and the coroner arrive. Tell him the department will pick up any money he loses tonight. It may soften the blow. Have him tell the customers we found a gas leak. They can find out the truth in tomorrow’s paper.”
“Good thinking.”
Benny walked toward the back entrance of the restaurant, and Vernon pushed the freezer door closed as he pulled his phone out of his pocket.
Inside the restaurant Benny pulled the owner into his office and told him of his misfortune. He took the news fairly well and asked Benny to tell the patrons.
As Benny walked out of his office he noticed a stack of take-home containers and grabbed it. He walked to the center of the restaurant.
“Excuse me, ladies and gentlemen. There is nothing to worry about, and no reason to rush out of here, but we have just discovered a gas leak behind the building and for your safety I’m going to have to ask you to leave. There is no charge for your dinner. If you would like to put what you have not eaten in a take-home box please let me know and I will bring you one. Thank you all for understanding.”
A few people raised their hands and Benny walked over to them and handed over a Styrofoam box as he thanked them for understanding. Others, almost finished, took one last bite and quietly stood up, conversing under their breaths with wide eyes. Before long the restaurant was empty.
Benny found a phone and called information for the number of the Lakeside Motor Inn. Carlton answered.
“Mr. Davis,” Benny said with a smile in his voice. “I need a favor. I’ve got a bit of a situation on my hands, and I won’t be able to stay at my place tonight. I was hoping to get the room Rachael stayed in when she was here.”
“I’m sorry,” Carlton said, with a playful tone in his voice. “Somebody just checked into that room.”
“Of all the rotten luck.”
“Not really,” Carlton said, chuckling.
“What do you mean?”
“I imagine Rachael will let you share it with her.”
Chapter 18
Benny dropped the phone. He ran back outside to the outdoor freezer where Vernon was waiting for his crew.
“I have to go.”
“Is she here?”
“She is.”
“Then go. We’ll be fine here.”
“You sure?”
“More than sure. Go.”
Benny ran to the Jeep, hopped in and slammed the door. He pulled the key from his pocket and stopped just as he was about to jam it into the ignition. His brain went into overdrive.
She left me for a job. She ended us with a phone call. But people make mistakes. She made a mistake. Rachael made a mistake and realized it. Go.
Benny jammed the key into the ignition and cranked. As soon as the engine fired he was off. His heart pounded as the miles flew by.
A rental car was parked in front of Room 12. Benny parked the Jeep next to it and shut off the engine. As he tried to gather himself, the door opened and Rachael stood in the opening, unsure of herself.
Benny opened the door and climbed out of the vehicle.
“Welcome home,” he said.
“Do you mean it?” She pulled her hand to her face to hide her trembling lip.
“Of course I do. Don’t cry.” Benny walked to her and they embraced. Rachael shook with nerves.
“How did you know I was here?”
“It’s still a small town.” They both smiled. “Aren’t you going to invite me inside?”
“I wasn’t sure where I stood with you.”
“Let’s go inside and figure it out.”
Benny pushed the door to Room 12. It shut with a bang.
As they rested on the bed, both staring up at the ceiling exhausted from their reunion, Benny got Rachael up to speed on the new case.
“So, who do you have your money on at this point?” Rachael asked.
“I honestly don’t know. I’m having a hard time nailing down a motive.”
“Well, I’ve got my money on Big E. It seems a little too convenient that his brother is involved. And now that he’s out of the picture he doesn’t have to worry about splitting any family money with him. Sounds like he wasn’t the sort of guy you would want around anyway, money or no money.”
“Then why all the crazy art stuff?” Benny asked, playing devil’s advocate.
“To throw everybody off. From what I understand, it seems like maybe he thought it would be easy to pin this all on Uncle Karl.”
Benny laughed.
“What’s so funny?”
“I was just laughing at myself—and you. I call a guy Uncle Karl who isn’t really my uncle and it just sounded funny coming out of your mouth as well.”
“What I don’t understand though,” Rachael said, pulling the sheet up under her chin, “is why the two other murders. If he wanted to get rid of his brother, that’s one thing, but he took two other lives as well.”
“Assuming it was Big E, he would almost have to take out at least one other person so it wouldn’t look like it was all about his brother.”
“That’s a good point.”
“We can dig a little more on him tomorrow. I have to check on the houseboat in the morning and then check in with Vernon to see if they got an ID on the body.”
“Mind if I tag along?”
“I was hoping you would. We’ll need to stop in to see Red, too. He’ll be glad you’re home.”
“It does feel like home,” Rachael said.
As Benny and Rachael walked out of Room 12 the following morning, Carlton was outside the lobby talking to a customer. He looked Benny’s way and offered a wink that said more than any conversation could.
With Benny’s focus directed at checking out the boat and getting on with the day, he forgot all about the obstacle of Donny seeing Rachael. When he did, it was too late, and he didn’t have time to warn her how badly she had been missed.
Donny walked toward them on the dock and happened to be looking down at his sunburned feet. When he looked up, Rachael was a mere five feet from him. Startled and filled to the brim with joy all at once was too much of a shock for his body, and the jolt of electric feelings buckled his legs. Being a narrow dock his knees bounced just at the edge and he toppled into the water.
Coming up for air he splashed water on his face and said, “I’ve been baptized anew! The prodigal’s daughter comes home.”
Rachael smirked. “I’m glad to be home.”
Donny splashed his face again and looked at Benny. “Did she say home?”
“She certainly did.”
“Oh my,” Donny said, pushing back from the wooden pier into the back stroke. He spit water out of his mouth and chuckled as he swam away from the dock.
“I think he’s happy to see you.”
“I would say so.”
“We’ll talk to you later, Donny. We have a busy morning.”
“And I’ve got a hug for you when you’re dried off,” Rachael added.
Donny kicked his feet and spewed more water from his mouth.
The boat checked out and aside from a few items being out of their normal place, Benny co
uld hardly tell that a crew had gone over it looking for evidence.
“They don’t usually clean up this well. I feel special,” he joked. “Why don’t we get out of here before Donny finishes his swim. If he corners you now, we may be here for a long time.”
A few minutes later they pulled into Red’s driveway. Benny had called ahead, asking him to put on a pot of coffee and to get ready for a surprise.
Knocking on the front door, Benny heard Red call from inside to come in the house. He was sitting on the couch with his hands over his eyes. Rachael walked in behind Benny trying not to make a sound.
“Are you ready for a surprise?” Benny asked.
“Red know what it bees.”
“Did somebody tell you?”
“No. Red just smell Rachael. I hope that good smell be her.”
“It is me,” Rachael announced.
Red pulled his hands away from his face and popped up off the couch. He gave her a gentle hug and as he stepped away, Benny could tell he was beginning to tear up.
“You really did miss her,” Benny said.
“Red do miss her, but Red eyes showing that he heart be happy for Bendy. Bendy now can be all the way happy.”
“I couldn’t have said it better myself, buddy. We can’t stay long, but do you want to have dinner with us one night this week?”
“Red liking that.”
At the station, Vernon and Chief Neighbors were talking at the front desk when Benny and Rachael arrived. From the look on Vernon’s face they both knew that whatever had been uncovered the night before and into the early morning was especially bad news.
Vernon and Chief Neighbors both gave Rachael hugs of welcome. Chief Neighbors’ hands slipped a little past her lower back during his hug. As Rachael backed away she slapped an open fist onto his chest.
“You haven’t changed a bit, Charles.”
“And don’t you forget it,” he said with a wink. “If you ever get tired of that old boy, I may be available.”
“Can we get back to reality?” Benny asked. “I can tell by your faces that something more than just another dead body was found.”
“Yeah,” Vernon began, “unfortunately we know this one. When she thawed out, we were able to remove the frozen fabric from her face.”