Death by Dinosaur: A Sam Stellar Mystery

by Jacqueline Guest

  Sam listened with interest as she offered Clarisse milk or lemon.

  John lowered his voice and leaned toward Jackson. “Yes. It’s not every day I get a ten-thousand-dollar transaction, especially when it’s a transfer to a friend.”

  Sam nearly dropped the sugar cube she was offering Abigail. Ten thousand dollars! Who forgets a ten-thousand-dollar deposit to their account? She slid a quick peek at Jackson. He was speaking so rapidly and quietly to John that Sam couldn’t make out what he was saying.

  Later, after helping Mrs. O’Reilly tidy up the mini-birthday party, Sam, Paige and Rose took a leisurely stroll, enjoying the warm evening air. Walking around the sleepy neighbourhood, Sam mulled over the newest clue of the complicated case. The money deposited into Jackson’s account today had been a sizeable chunk of change.

  “You’re such an open book,” Paige teased, watching her. “I know what you’re thinking.”

  “I didn’t know mind reading was one of your many talents, cousin.” Sam stopped to breathe in the heady fragrance of the lush trees. It smelled green; at least that’s how she’d describe it if a colour had a scent.

  “How long have I known you Samantha Stellar?” Paige, waited for Sam to finish sniffing the foliage. “Don’t you think I know that if there’s even a whiff of mystery in the air, you’re going to be freakily focused on it? You’re thinking about all the so-called clues you’ve been collecting and the missing bone with its connection to Agent D, who we saw leaving the parking lot scant minutes after its disappearance.”

  “It was a little more than scant minutes, Paige Carlson,” Sam corrected, knowing Paige had nailed it.

  Sam had tried to stop her mind from going over everything, which was impossible as her detective’s brain kept replaying the details of her dinosaur dilemma. There were so many odd things tied in with the case.

  “What are you two going on about?” Rose asked turning back to join them.

  Paige, whose Facebook page was like gossip-girl central, eagerly explained, “Rose, you won’t believe what’s been happening. Sam, apprentice super sleuth, has uncovered a ready-made mystery at the museum.”

  “Wait a minute. A real mystery or a wished-up mystery?” Rose sounded extremely sceptical.

  Sam wasn’t sure if telling Rose was a good idea. There wasn’t any real proof of anything except a note about where a foreign visitor was staying, and she didn’t want to be labelled a nut job to a whole new group of people. “Paige, maybe we shouldn’t say anything yet.”

  “Half a minute,” Rose said. “If you really are onto something, maybe I can help. Our brokerage firm does the importing for the museum and I process all the documents for the shipments.”

  Sam was surprised at this answer. She expected Rose to give her the run-along-and-play-crazy-girl speech, like everyone else did when it came to the secret plot and dastardly plan stuff. This said a lot about Rose, and Sam found herself thinking perhaps another brain working on the problem would help.

  A leap of faith was called for, so Sam took a deep breath and jumped. “Okay, I’ll tell you everything I’ve been able to piece together. First, I believe a felon from Colombia is here in Drumheller. I think he came in on the bus with Paige and me.”

  “We tracked him down during what I refer to as the Saturday from Green Vinyl Hell,” Paige added.

  “You’re going to get a lot of mileage out of that poncho, aren’t you?” Sam shot a silencing glare at her cousin. “As I was saying, this Agent D, as I tagged him, is up to no good. He had a museum employee’s phone number and I’m sure he was spying on Paige and me when we went through the Palaeoconservatory.” She took a breath. “You see, Jackson and I have been working on this super-important, rare fossil find from Colombia.”

  “Yes,” Rose said. “I remember doing the import documents for the shipment.”

  Sam went on, “I went over the vertebrae bones and came up with one extra piece.”

  “Which might not have been a real bone,” Paige put in.

  Sam ignored the interruption. “Rose, you know how carefully this stuff is recorded. An extra piece simply wouldn’t be there by accident.”

  “True,” Rose said. “Still, there were a lot of pieces and sometimes things break apart during transport. We are talking fragile fossils seventy-five million years old. So, if an item were to be put in after the shipment was prepared, no one would have known, especially if it appeared the same as all the others.”

  Warming to the direction their conversation was taking, Sam continued, “A fragment that had broken off another chunk is totally possible, except my piece hadn’t broken off. I’m sure of it. It was clearly marked with an X. The extra bone was left on the table, and Jackson said he’d tell Professor Caine about it. I left for lunch and when I came back, it was gonzo. Disappeared into the ether! Poof!” She waved her arms like a magician.

  Rose ignored the theatrics. “Go on.”

  “Later, as Paige and I were waiting in the parking lot, we saw Agent D’s car leaving in a screaming big hurry.”

  “Tell her about your near brush with death,” Paige prodded helpfully, and Sam half-regretted telling her cousin about the earlier mishap with the crates.

  “I wouldn’t call it that exactly. It was a little scary though.” Sam tried to make her voice sound nonchalant.

  “What happened?” Rose asked, alarmed.

  “It went down like this…” She kept her voice very matter-of-fact as she ran through the details. “I was putting a box of fossils away on a shelf in the storage area, when this huge stack of heavy wooden crates fell over. I had to dive out of the way, or I would have been crushed.”

  “Squashed as in bug-on-the-windshield-of-a-Hummer,” Paige added.

  “Jackson was supposed to be gone for the day, then he materialized out of nowhere...” She let this hang in the air a second too long before going on. “I thought the timing of the accident at the museum was suspiciously close to when Paige and I tracked down Agent D. He’s staying at the Westgate Motor Lodge, room 204, in case you need to know for the police statement,” Sam clarified.

  Rose raised her perfectly plucked brows. “Oh, Sam! This is the first I’ve heard of this. How odd Jackson never said a word when I was speaking with him. I’m so glad you were unhurt.”

  Paige poked her finger toward Sam. “Sam is certain the chances of that particular stack of crates picking that particular moment to fall are about as improbable as her winning Miss Congeniality.”

  “So, what are you saying, Sam?” Rose’s voice now had a note of apprehension.

  Sam had to tell her. “I’m saying this Colombian Agent D bone-thief has inside help from someone at the museum. I think that someone is Jackson Lunde.” Sam avoided Paige when she said this. “He’s the only common element. He was in Colombia earlier this year working on this project; he was on the same bus as Agent D and he was alone with the X-bone before it zapped off. Plus, he’s been acting strange.” She thought of the warnings and veiled threats Jackson kept giving her.

  Rose was silent as Sam continued.

  “After I spotted Agent D at the museum, Paige and I spent the next Saturday tracking him down to discover where his base was. Right after we did, someone arranged the accident with the crates. I believe it was Agent D. He must have figured out I’ve been investigating him. I’ve also been expanding my search for clues to the missing fossil,” she added casually.

  “How?” Paige asked quickly, recognizing Sam’s oh-so-casual comment as the tip of a sneaky iceberg. “You didn’t tell me about this.”

  “You should think about getting into the spy business yourself. You never miss a thing.” When it came to secrets, Sam knew her cousin was like a bulldog with a bone. No way could Sam duck out now. “The plot is thickening. I was in the project office trying to jimmy a locked drawer to get at some confidential paperwork, when I found a note with Agent D’s name and motel on it.”

  Paige’s mouth worked, but no sound came out.

 
; “You were trying to break into someone’s desk?” Rose asked incredulously.

  “More like seeing if it was securely locked. It doesn’t matter ‘cause I never got into it. Jackson interrupted me before I could make much progress.”

  “You were caught!” Paige croaked.

  “Well…not exactly. I hadn’t quite busted the drawer open when Jackson showed up.”

  Rose pursed her lips as she tried to unravel all she’d heard. “Wait, back up. How did the fossil get lost in the first place?”

  “It wasn’t lost, it was stolen from the table in the workroom and it all happened so quickly, no one had time to cut open the jacket to confirm that it was an actual fossil and not a piece of plaster. This is very convenient for Jackson because now he can say he saw it, and it was only junk anyway,” Sam went on in a rush. “Everyone sort of forgot about it, treating the whole thing as the ravings of a fanatical teenager with a hyperactive imagination! I think Agent D ordered Jackson to steal the fossil before anyone else saw it.”

  Paige and Rose both listened, speechless as Sam finished her story.

  “And I believe,” Sam continued, “the piece has been, or will be, smuggled to Agent D who’s been waiting for it since he came to Drumheller. It wasn’t listed on any of the documents I saw. Maybe when Jackson was in Colombia, he marked it with the X so it would be easy to spot – and easy to grab.”

  “As a matter of fact,” Rose said thoughtfully, “there was a small hiccup with the paperwork on that shipment, and I had to go over every blasted number. I don’t remember any fossil designated with an X. Believe me, my brain hurt from the long number sequences and a solitary letter or number would have jumped out at me.”

  Sam’s head hurt from all the thinking. “So there’s no proof it was anything more than a chunk of broken plaster, which is how, at Jackson’s suggestion, everyone’s treating it. I’m sure there was something inside. The problem is without the piece, I can’t prove anything.”

  Paige squinted angrily at Sam. “This is the dumbest thing you’ve come up with yet. You’re accusing Jack with only a boatload of circumstantial evidence. He’s not some low-life, petty thief! He’s a kind, generous and honest guy.” She crossed her arms. “And why would he want to steal it in the first place? If he can prove that bone is the missing link thingy, he’d be famous.”

  “He needed it so he could sell it to Agent D for ten thousand dollars.” Sam’s voice was little more than a whisper, but from the way Paige and Rose reacted, she may as well have shouted.

  “What ten thousand dollars?” Paige sputtered, having a little trouble keeping up with Sam.

  “The ten thousand deposited into Jackson’s account today.” Sam nearly winced when she said this.

  “Why didn’t you tell me?” her cousin demanded.

  “Because I only found out about it tonight,” Sam shot back.

  “How do you know about the money?” Rose asked.

  “I overheard John congratulate Jackson at the table about his ten-thousand-dollar deposit today. It was John’s biggest transaction ever.” Sam could feel sweat on her forehead. This was weird because she hadn’t done anything, really. Was this gruelling grilling even legal under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms?

  “And where was I when this was going down?” Paige interjected.

  “You’d gone to get a drink. You said you were tea’d out. Maybe it was teed off.” Sam was at the end of her patience.

  “You think Jackson set this whole thing up when he was in Colombia arranging the shipment.” Rose’s comment was more of a statement than a question.

  “It all fits, and the evidence does point that way.” Sam could practically feel Paige’s temper ramping up.

  “I still don’t believe it!” Rose shook her head emphatically. “I know Jackson. Surely, he wouldn’t do such a thing.”

  “It’s only a theory.” Sam turned to Paige, hoping to dial down her cousin’s anger. “I’m not going to say anything to him. And I don’t think anyone else should either, not until I’ve had a chance to gather more evidence.”

  “I wouldn’t think of repeating such a barrel of cow manure!” Paige growled through clenched teeth before stomping away.

  Sam sincerely hoped her cousin would stay quiet and not blab any of this to Jackson. She and Rose continued walking in silence.

  After a while, the soothing magic that accompanied the peaceful evening did its work and Sam changed the subject. “Rose, do you mind if I ask you a personal question?”

  “Depends. Try me and we’ll see.”

  “I couldn’t help noting you’re fond of John. So why don’t you two ever date?”

  “My, you are observant, aren’t you?” Rose said, surprised. “The answer is quite simple really. He hasn’t asked me.”

  “Okay, he hasn’t asked you…” Sam waited a beat. “So why don’t you ask him? This is the twenty-first century; a girl doesn’t have to wait for a guy to ask her out. If she wants to hook up with him, she should go for it. There are lots of sassy girls who’ve made the first move.” This was true, even if Sam wasn’t one of them. Regrettably, no guys had made a move on her either.

  “Where I was brought up, a lady doesn’t ask a fella out. I don’t want to seem too pushy, or worse, too desperate,” Rose said in her own defence.

  “This isn’t Wales, Rose, and you know what they say. ‘When in the colonies, do as the colonials do.’” It was pretty simple to Sam.

  “I’ll think about it,” Rose promised. “Except…”

  “Except what?” Sam picked a leaf from a bush they were passing and smelled the freshness.

  “Except – what if he turns me down?”

  The lack of confidence in Rose’s voice was obvious, and Sam felt she had to help. “Then you’ll have to try harder – razzle-dazzle him, or at least wear him down. No one in their right mind would ditch you.”

  They’d caught up to Paige, and Sam offered her the leaf in lieu of an olive branch. “Besties again?” she asked hopefully.

  Paige took the green tidbit, stuck it in her mouth and chewed viciously before swallowing.

  •••

  At the boarding house, all the lights were off. The trio said good night quietly and crept off to their beds.

  Sam lay sleepless for a long time watching the shadows dance on the ceiling. “Paige, are you still awake?” she whispered.

  “No.” The terse answer came from under the covers on Paige’s bed.

  “I know you’re ticked off with me about Jackson…” Sam wasn’t sure her cousin understood the big picture. “You’re simply not looking at the facts logically.”

  Paige poked her head out from under the duvet. “I’m not being logical! You’re not being realistic. Jack is star material and wouldn’t think of doing anything crooked.” She waved perfectly manicured fingers in Sam’s direction, silencing her. “I know, your so-called evidence – Jack going to Colombia, Agent D probably being from Colombia, Jack being the last person left alone with the fossil before it disappeared, and, of course, the ten thousand dollars. All circumstantial, which is what any good defence lawyer would say.” Her voice was rising at an alarming rate. “You, girl, have no faith in your fellow man…or guy.” She punched her pillow and then flopped back down on it.

  Sam remained quiet.

  “Well?” Paige’s tone left no doubt as to how angry she still was.

  “I’m thinking,” Sam said. “And you know what I’m thinking?”

  “I couldn’t begin to guess with the way that twisted little brain of yours works.”

  Sam ignored Paige’s dig and propped her head up as she leaned on one elbow. “Jackson’s a cool guy. I don’t want him to be a crook either.”

  “A-r-r-r-g-g-g-h! Paige groaned. “What about the stupid evi-dence?” Paige’s voice was a little strangled, which was probably what she wanted to do to Sam.

  “I know, I built the case, remember? I have a weird feeling, as though we’re missing something, something
right out in the open I can’t quite put my sticky little fingers on. I need more intel to put this whole thing together.”

  “Great! First you throw him under the bus with this airtight case, practically convicting poor Jack, and then you flip-flop on it because of a weird feeling? Come on, Sheriff, make up your mind.” Paige halted mid-tirade. “If all this is real, then there’s something you should worry about, Sam. Whoever stole the bone probably arranged your accident and could arrange another you might not walk away from.”

  Ignoring the obvious danger, Sam sat up. “There’s only one thing left to do.”

  “What now, the RCMP? The FBI? Spiderman?” Paige pulled her newly fluffed pillow over her head.

  “No, Furbrain. I have to find that fossil. Find the bone and we find the answers. Answers that could explain Jackson’s involvement, maybe even clear him.” Sam rearranged her own pillow in an effort to lessen the lumps.

  “We know Agent D already has the fossil. We saw him leave with it.”

  Paige’s logic was less than flawless.

  “Nope, cousin, we saw Agent D leaving. We don’t know he had the fossil. It could still be at the museum. In fact, if I were trying to hide a fossil, I think a museum full of fossils would be a pretty darn good place to stash one.” Sam thought about this, liking it. “If Jackson did take the fossil…for whatever good reason,” she added quickly trying to keep Paige from going ballistic again, “he almost had to hide it at the museum. He didn’t go home over lunch. Then there was the gong show I caused, and with everyone watching everyone, Jack wouldn’t chance having it found on him. He’d hide it somewhere in the building until the heat died down, and it was safe to remove the thing.”

  “And if he didn’t steal it, which one of us is sure he didn’t, you’re off on another wild goose chase.” Paige’s disembodied voice came out of the darkness.

  The more she thought of it, the more positive Sam became that the key to solving this case was to find the missing bone. No sense in waiting. She’d start her search right after work tomorrow.

  Snuggling farther down under her comforter, Sam tried to shut off her brain and sleep. She’d need her rest if she wanted her investigative powers to be working at one hundred per cent tomorrow night.