Mistletoe and Mayhem

by London Lovett

  His face grew red with agitation. He glanced around, it seemed to make sure no one could hear me exposing the truth. His angry scowl shot across the street to the Port Danby Police Station. There were still no cars out front.

  "You're that woman who was snooping around at the murder scene."

  "So you were there watching? Interesting. Well, have a good day." I tried to walk past him but quickly found I'd made a terrible mistake in taunting a murderer.

  It took me a stunned second to realize that he had wrapped his hand around my arm. He smothered my scream with his other ice cold hand. My moment of extreme terror was cut short by a sharp pain in my head. A layer of darkness swept over me.

  My eyes opened and my head thudded with pain. My first thoughts were to climb out of bed and go down the hallway to the medicine cabinet for aspirin, but when my bottom was suddenly launched into the air before smacking a car seat, my aching head cleared and the terror returned.

  I reached instinctively for the door handle, even knowing full well that we were racing along Highway 48 at full speed. The handle was locked. I frantically rubbed my fingers over the window button, not knowing what I would do once I got it open. But it seemed I wouldn't need to decide that either. The window was locked.

  "Don't know why they put child safety buttons on a work truck. This is the first time I've ever had to use them." Randall Dayton stared straight ahead. From the side he had a jutting forehead and chin that made him look horribly mean. And, it seemed that he wasn't just mean but a murderer. Apparently Dash had good instincts when it came to judging people. He'd sensed something was wrong with Dayton right away.

  I'd been knocked unconscious long enough for him to push me into his truck and head for the highway. I reached up and winced as my fingers grazed the tender lump on the back of my head. "Ouch, what did you hit me with?"

  Dayton lifted his hand from the steering wheel and curled it into a menacing fist. "I'm an amateur boxer. You went down even faster than Ruxley."

  The sky darkened with the impending storm, and the first drop of icy rain plinked off the windshield of his truck. He took a sharp left. The truck tires left the ground for a second as we flew onto the road that led to Beacon Cliffs. My captor didn't bother to belt me in, and I had to grab the edge of the seat to keep from being pitched into the dashboard.

  "Where are you taking me?"

  He stared ahead and drove with one arm casually draped over the steering wheel as if he was just taking a drive in the country.

  "You won't get away with this. Detective Briggs was expecting me this morning.” I kept my voice steady, not wanting him to know that I was scared to death. "He'll come looking for me."

  Dayton looked over at me. He had a truly unlikable, cold face. What on earth was Lola thinking? "I doubt he'll come straight to Beacon Cliffs. Seems to me I've got more than enough time to get rid of his nosy little assistant long before he figures out you're missing."

  My head hurt but it had cleared completely. I was thinking straighter. I discretely reached into my coat pocket. My shoulders dropped in despair when I found that it was empty.

  "I dumped your phone back on the highway."

  I had definitely pushed my nose out too far this time. Briggs would lecture me for taking such a chance. That thought made my throat tighten. What if he never got the chance to lecture me? Dayton had already killed one person, seemingly without an ounce of regret.

  "You killed Chad Ruxley because he caused your family terrible grief. I understand that. But I haven't done anything to you."

  "Nope, you haven't, and if you had kept your nose out of things and not uncovered the truth about my twin brother, you wouldn't have opened your big mouth this morning and you'd be sitting in that diner right now enjoying a plate of pancakes."

  I scooted back and faced out the side window. "I was going to order a yogurt parfait. And two murders will just mean double the prison sentence." I turned back to him. "For each of you, since you are both going to be charged with the murder of Chad Ruxley. I take it you're the builder."

  "Yes, I am."

  The punch of adrenaline had me convinced I could somehow talk my way out of getting killed. Or maybe it was just helping me avoid thinking about my inevitable fate.

  "I guess it was your brother who took my friend, Lola, out on a date to secure you an alibi. Obviously, he is far more charming than you because she enjoyed the date."

  "We both do just fine with the ladies."

  "Can't imagine how," I sneered back. I decided to get all the details I could in case I was lucky enough to survive this. It seemed I really was a detective at heart. "I guess this whole thing was planned. The Holiday Light Flotilla is an annual event, so you knew exactly where Chad Ruxley's boat would be this weekend. How did you manage to line up your work timetable with the flotilla?"

  "Easy enough. I told the clients that I couldn't start until the end of November. That way I knew we'd still be in town for the boat show. Scott came into town last week, but we made sure never to be in the same place at the same time. So no one, not even my crew, knew he was around. Your friend smiled at me in the diner. I knew I'd found my alibi."

  I really needed to talk to Lola about her indiscriminate flirting. I only hoped I would get that chance.

  I grasped the edge of the seat as Dayton pulled the truck off onto an unpaved stretch of road, or, to be more precise, a cleared section of forest. A lush evergreen forest acted like a natural wall between the exclusive neighborhood of Beacon Cliffs and the treacherously steep cliffs along the coast. It seemed we were heading into the forest and away from any chance of being seen.

  That earlier punch of adrenaline started feeling more like a punch in the stomach. I felt slightly nauseous as it occurred to me we were heading toward the highly insufficient safety fence constructed to keep people from slipping over the side of the cliffs to the jagged rocks below.

  "You won't get away with this, you monster."

  "I think I will. You are the only person who knows about my brother being in town. We had this planned down to every last detail. It's taken a few years to get things lined up, but there was no way that plumber was going to get away with destroying our family. I'd planned on rowing out to his boat to strangle him but then luck went my way. I spotted his ex-wife with the singers and I noticed they'd left all their gear unattended. It was easy enough to grab her phone to text Ruxley. There was an extra piece of ribbon in the bag and I took it, deciding I'd found the perfect person to frame."

  "Maybe if your dad had run his business properly, with safety rules followed, none of it would have happened."

  I knew I was tossing gasoline on a fire, but I couldn't help myself. I wanted Dayton to know that Ruxley had done the right thing and that he didn't deserve to die. Just as I wanted Dayton to know that he was a wretched human being.

  "Like you, Ruxley was sticking his nose in other people's business. He deserved what he got." His hands tightened on the steering wheel as he spoke. A chill went through me as I pictured those same hands pulling the ribbon tight around Ruxley’s neck. Would he do the same to me?

  "My brother has a part as an extra on a movie set just two hours away. It's one of those disaster movies with a big crowd on the streets watching as their town is destroyed by meteors. His name is on the roster, but it was easy enough for him to slip away unnoticed. He came into town just for the date I'd arranged with your friend. He left a few hours later and was back on the set the next morning. So our alibis are tight, and your life is, unfortunately, going to be cut short."

  My confusion was replaced quickly with clarity. The poor stooge had apparently trusted his brother to leave town as planned. Only it seemed the very attractive Kate Yardley hadn't been part of the plan.

  Dayton pulled the truck between some trees and stopped a good twenty yards from the fencing that separated me from a terrible death on sharp rocks. My time was running short. Since he outweighed me by a good hundred pounds, it seemed my best bet was
to throw him off mentally. And he had just provided me with exactly what I needed to destroy his cocky confidence. He was sure that once he was rid of me, he would get away with murder.

  "It's a shame your brother is a smoker. He should follow your example."

  He cast a suspicious glower at me. "What are you talking about?"

  "The reason I was snooping around the murder scene is because Detective Briggs calls me to assist. I have hyperosmia, which, in layman's terms, means I can smell a pine needle from ten feet away. I can detect the slightest odor on clothing and on murder ribbons. Like the smell of fresh cut lumber or the pungent scent of adhesive used in construction."

  His expression darkened. I was getting to him, only it seemed I was just pushing myself into greater danger. But I hadn't delivered the final blow.

  "You're bluffing."

  "Am I?" I even managed a fake grin. "Those pieces of evidence will point Detective Briggs in the right direction, even after I'm gone." I only wished I'd found out what the adhesive smell was before this morning. Then I could have let Briggs know. At least my evil captor didn't know the truth. "Of course, I didn't really need a super power nose to smell tobacco on your brother's clothing because it's such a strong, foul smell. Anyone can detect it. Even in cold weather, like last night on the pier when I saw your brother out with one of the local women."

  Dayton's thick forehead and heavy brow had dropped so low over his eyes, I could barely see them. What I could see plainly was the deep red color of anger rising up above the collar of his shirt.

  Heavy rain drops began to pelt the windshield. The first flashes of lightning were followed by gusts of wind.

  "What are you talking about? My brother left town Thursday night." His fists curled, and I questioned whether I should continue. His confidence had been erased. It seemed I'd genuinely thrown him off his game, but at the same time, his entire body was tense with anger.

  I'd gone this far, and I had nothing to lose.

  "No, he didn't. In fact, I was in the market on Saturday afternoon. You two just missed each other by an hour."

  His mouth stretched into a thin angry line. It was obvious he remembered seeing me at the store. He fished around in his coat for his phone and pulled it out. I could hear the light ring of the phone on the other side followed by a recorded message.

  "Hey, it's me. Call me back as soon as you get this." He shoved the phone back into his pocket. "You might be the only person that noticed there were two of us. Either way, you're going head first over that cliff." He climbed out of the truck.

  I lunged over the console, fell into the driver's seat and grabbed for the door handle. I pushed the door open and jumped out into the cold, wet wind. I didn't get more than three steps before he had me in his grasp again.

  Chapter 35

  It was hard to see anything in the blinding rain. The storm had moved in quickly, and it wasted no time in wreaking havoc on the shoreline. I kept my face averted from the onslaught of icy rain as Dayton pulled me along toward the cliffs. His boot hit a jutting tree root. He stumbled forward but managed to keep a firm grasp on my arm. Even through the thick layers of my coat and sweater, I could feel his fingers leaving a bruise.

  The near stumble made one thing clear. Dayton couldn't see any better than me in the storm. In that regard, at least, we were at an equal disadvantage. It was my only chance.

  I kept my bleary gaze glued to the ground to look for an opportunity. Then, after a morning that had gone horribly wrong, a sprinkle of luck came my way. We came to a thick, knotted tree root just as Dayton's phone rang in his pocket. I was sure he would ignore it, but he yanked it out, ready to lay into his brother for messing up the plan. "Is that you?" he barked into the phone. "Where are you?"

  Dayton was temporarily distracted by the phone call. I whipped my arm free and shoved him hard with both hands. The heels of his boots got caught on the jutting tree root and his arms flailed in the air as he fell backward. As badly I would have liked to see the man fall hard as a stone on his backside, I raced off into the trees.

  The storm clouds and the tall trees had blotted out any trace of daylight. The deeper I went into the trees, the darker it got. And there was nothing I hated more than the dark. But as much as I feared it, I was more afraid of the tall, vengeful monster I'd just escaped from.

  I'd lost sight of Dayton, but I had no doubt he wasn't far behind. Rainwater dripped off of me as if I was standing fully clothed beneath an ice cold shower. My teeth chattered from the cold and from fear. The trees were an excellent place to hide, but I badly needed to get to the road and find some form of help.

  I headed in the direction of Beacon Cliffs. Just as I stepped out from the thickest patch of trees, a streak of lightning flashed above, illuminating the entire forest and surrounding neighborhood with nature's biggest and brightest spotlight. Before the glow dimmed, my gaze swept behind me. My heart jumped right into my throat as I caught a glimpse of Dayton lumbering through the trees and heading straight for me.

  I would never make it clear of the forest and out to the neighborhood without him grabbing me first. I had no choice except to turn back to the trees and hide.

  The forest loam became soft as pudding as I raced between the trees and shrubs. Thunder rumbled overhead, vibrating the ground beneath my feet and shaking my resolve even more. I searched around in the shadows for the biggest tree and managed to dash behind it just before the next streak of lightning.

  I huddled behind the trunk of the tree and tried hard to listen for any sound that might signal Dayton was getting close, but I couldn't hear anything through the wind, rain and thunder. Rivulets of rainwater began rushing through the forest, carrying debris off and over the edge of the cliff. I shuddered thinking how close I'd come to being thrown off that cliff. And I shuddered again reminding myself that I was still not out of danger. Far from it. And that frightening revelation was followed by the tiniest sound, the snap of a branch being broken under foot.

  Dayton's angry, terrifying face peered around the tree trunk. A scream caught in my throat as I stumbled back. His hand reached out and grabbed my arm.

  "I'm tired of this of game of hide and seek," he sneered. But his growling expression faded suddenly. His eyes widened and looked as if they might pop from his head.

  "That's too bad. I hear hide and seek is sort of a favorite in the state penitentiary." Detective Briggs stepped out from behind Dayton, revealing that he was holding a gun to the man's head. "Only, in jail, I think you'll be the one hiding."

  Seconds later, red flashing lights lit up the rain soaked forest. "Over here," Briggs called through the trees.

  Four Chesterton police officers emerged through the shadowy foliage. They reached us and Briggs handed off Dayton. "Get this guy out of my sight." The officers took over from there. The cold, the exhaustion and the terror had finally caught up to me. My knees turned to jelly and I collapsed right into Detective Briggs' arms.

  "I've got you," he said in a deep, soothing tone that instantly made the fear drain away. I knew I was safe.

  It took me a few seconds to gather my wits. As much as I wanted to stay tucked there in the security of his arms, I straightened, letting him know I was fine.

  Briggs reached up and pushed a long strand of wet hair off my face. I couldn't stop gazing at him. He was even handsome soaking wet.

  "How did you find me?" I finally managed to sputter.

  "You can thank Franki for that."

  The rain dripped off the brim of his hat. He reached for my arm and led me back through the trees. "I headed into the office to look for my phone. It had dropped out of my coat pocket on my way out of the station last night."

  "I tried to call you this morning, but it went straight to voicemail."

  "It needed to be charged. What timing. That phone couldn't have jumped from my pocket at a worse time, it seems. Everything would have turned out differently." He stopped, and for the first time I'd ever seen, he was visibly shaken. "Lacey,
I'm so sorry this happened."

  His pained expression of regret and his words went right to my chest. "It was my fault. I shouldn't have stuck my neck out so far. I saw Dayton and I teased him about having a twin."

  Briggs turned his head sharply, flicking drops of rain off of his hat. "You knew about the twin too?"

  "Figured it out this morning, after I discovered the chemical smell on Ruxley's sweater was the adhesive contractors use for plumbing."

  "That'll be just one more piece of evidence. Although this case looks pretty solid now."

  We stepped out of the trees and into the clearing. I couldn't wait to get into his dry car. The Chesterton officers already had the suspect in their car. I couldn't even glance Dayton's direction. I was sure his mean face would haunt my nightmares for months to come.

  "I still don't understand. What did Franki have to do with this?" I asked.

  "She saw my car pull up to the station and ran across the street to find me. She was beyond despair and could hardly get the words out. She said she was taking an order and saw you walking across the parking lot, heading for the diner. She wrote down the order and then looked up and you were gone. You had never stepped foot inside the diner. All she saw was Dayton's truck speeding out of the parking lot. She knew something was wrong, so she came over to let me know."

  Briggs opened the car door. I squinted into the wind. "I'm soaking wet," I reminded him.

  He reached up and placed a gloved finger beneath my chin to stop it from trembling. "And freezing. The car seats will dry. Besides, we need to protect Samantha from a bad cold." He tapped my nose. "She's critical to our case." I slipped into the passenger seat and was instantly relieved to be in a dry, warm place and away from the biting, wet wind.

  Briggs leaned down. "I'll be right back."

  I reached up and wiped away the condensation on the passenger window and watched him as he talked to the police officers. His slightly long hair was soaking wet as it curled up on the back of his coat collar. I hugged my arms around myself trying to squeeze away the trembling in my body. If not for Franki and Briggs, the morning might have ended very badly.