by Cindy Bell
“Do you want to come in for a little while?” She unlocked the door.
“Just a few minutes. I have an early shift tomorrow.”
She nodded and pushed the door open. The moment she did Arnold came barreling down the hallway towards her. She laughed as he knocked into her legs.
“Did you miss me, Arnold?” Ally crouched down and patted the top of his head. Peaches jumped up on the hall table and flung her tail back and forth through the mail that was piled there.
“I think they both did.” Luke grinned and scratched under the cat’s chin.
“Maybe this is what Clara needs, a few animals to keep her company.”
“That’s true, I wonder why she doesn’t have any, there’s plenty of room in that big house.”
“Speaking of that big house, there’s something I should tell you about it.”
“What’s that?” He tried to turn his attention to Ally, but Peaches bumped his hand to demand more affection.
“Remember those flash drives I told you about?”
“Yes.”
“I think Shane filmed Clara’s house.”
“That’s not too surprising. It’s the biggest in Geraltin and the surrounding towns. Maybe he wanted to use it as a back drop for his movie.”
“Maybe, but what he said on the film clip was strange. Then it seemed like someone was chasing him.”
“If he was filming without permission with all of those security guards around then they probably did catch him and chase him. Can you be sure it’s Clara’s house?”
“No I can’t.” She frowned. “I’ll have to take a look at the clip again.”
“I thought you turned them into the police?”
“I did. But I made copies first.”
Luke smiled as he studied her. “How did you get so smart?”
“I think I can blame that on my grandmother.”
“Yes, you probably can. I’d better get going.” He kissed her and wrapped his arms around her. “As much as I’d like to stay, I really need to be up early. Last time I overslept, let’s just say the consequences were not pleasant.”
“Well, I wouldn’t want you to endure any unpleasant consequences.” She pulled away. “So get home.”
“Ally?”
“Hmm?”
“You’ll tell me if you find anything suspicious before you make any rash decisions, right?”
“Sure I will.”
“Mmhm.” He locked eyes with her. “I’m serious.”
“You’re always serious.” She rolled her eyes and kissed him. “No need to worry.”
“If you say so.”
“I do.”
He sighed and hugged her once more. “Maybe I could stay just a little bit longer.”
“No, no, it’s too late now. You need your beauty sleep.”
“Ha ha.” He slipped out the door. Ally had to resist calling him back. But he needed his rest, and so did she, right after she looked at the video clips again.
Peaches jumped into Ally’s lap the moment she sat down in front of the computer. Ally reached into the drawer beside her desk and pulled out the flash drives that she stored there. She selected the one with the clips of the house on it and plugged it into the computer. When the video began she tried to pause the film right at the moment where it showed the house number, however the camera was moving too much for her to make out the numbers. She played the clip again and tried to look for particular similarities between the two houses. The only thing she caught sight of were the gates at the front of the house. They were both very large and gold colored. However, there may have been other houses in the area that had the same gates. There was nothing about the clip that could prove it was Clara’s house.
“It’s a dead end, Peaches.” She pet the cat and watched the clip a few more times, hoping that there might be some kind of clue that she missed. Just as she was about to close the clip for the final time she caught sight of a tall fountain between the bars of the gate. It was off to the side of the driveway and had a unique multi-leveled funnel shape. She didn’t recall seeing the fountain at Clara’s house, but it was dark when they arrived and she might not have noticed it. It was something she could check to confirm whether the house was the same as the one in the clip. She remembered her grandmother mentioned seeing a spread about Clara’s house in a magazine so she decided to search the internet to see if she could find pictures of it. She got lucky on her first attempt. It was a picture of the fountain.
“That’s it, Peaches! It is Clara’s house. So Shane was filming Clara’s house, and somehow she might just be caught up in all of this. This is a big lead and I need to look into it more. But for now, it’s bedtime.”
Ally scooped the cat up in her arms and carried her to her room. As they settled in for the night her mind shifted back to the last time she saw Shane. He was in the shop, he was working on his computer and seemed nervous. Another customer came into the shop. Shane looked even more nervous. What made him nervous? She tried to recall the other customer. It was a man, but she didn’t know him. If he was a regular she would have recognized him. There was nothing particularly noticeable about him. He was about her age and in decent shape. He paid with cash, she remembered that, because she had to open a new roll of pennies to give him the exact change. Without a credit card receipt there would be no record of who he was, and they didn’t have cameras installed. Was it the customer that made Shane nervous, or was it something on his computer? Or perhaps he wasn’t nervous at all and Ally just misinterpreted his hurry to leave. It was difficult for her to sleep with so much on her mind.
Chapter 9
When Ally crawled out of bed the next morning she was still tired. She stumbled through the motions of making breakfast and feeding the animals then got dressed. By the time she left for the shop she was already a few minutes behind schedule. As expected, as soon as Ally opened the shop Mrs. Cale, Mrs. Bing and Mrs. White walked through the door. When there was something to talk about, the three women would gather at the shop for free chocolate samples and fresh coffee as well as some heavy gossip.
“Good morning, ladies.” Ally smiled as she held the door open for them.
“What’s good about it?” Mrs. White shook her head as she walked right over to the counter where the coffee pot was. “How can anything be good after what happened to that poor boy?”
“Honestly, I wasn’t even going to leave the house yesterday.” Mrs. Bing sniffed. “I was just too heartbroken. But since the three of us had plans to go into the city for some shopping, I had to.”
“Is there coffee?” Mrs. Cale sniffed the air.
“I’m just starting a pot, it’ll just be a few minutes.” Ally followed them over to the counter and finished setting up the pot of coffee. “I can’t believe that Shane is gone either.”
“After what I saw in the grocery store, I can.” Mrs. Bing sighed and picked up a chocolate. “I knew then that something was wrong, and I could kick myself for not prying. I decided not to get involved, and look what happened.”
“What do you mean?” Ally set napkins and mugs on the bar in front of each of the women. “Did Shane tell you someone was after him?”
“Tell me? No, but he was spooked. I went to Geraltin the day before yesterday for a big sale at the convenience store, and Shane was there. I was going to say hello to him and suggest that he buy a new brand of grape, not strawberry jelly, but before I could get to him, he sort of froze.”
“Froze?” Ally’s eyes widened.
“Like he was startled, and then he dropped the jar of strawberry jelly. Glass and jelly went everywhere. I thought surely he would clean it up, but he didn’t, he left his cart and ran right out the door of the store. I thought that was rather impolite.”
“Not what I would expect from Shane at all.” Ally leaned against the counter. “Did you see what startled him?”
“It was a man. In fact, he said, ‘Oh, it’s you!’ then he dropped the jelly and ran.”
; “Do you remember what he looked like?”
“Honestly, I didn’t pay that much attention, but I did notice he had bright red hair. You don’t see that often on a man. I’m not sure it was natural. He was a big fellow, too, at least twice Shane’s size. Maybe that was why he ran.” She shook her head. “Right after Shane took off the man left, too, and the poor store clerk had to deal with the jelly and glass.”
“Maybe he was afraid.” Ally frowned. “He didn’t mention anything to me yesterday about it. But when he was in here, he was looking at his computer and seemed a little disturbed.”
“Something was going on that we didn’t know about.” Mrs. Cale picked up a chocolate. “If only he’d talked to someone.”
“Maybe he tried to and no one listened.” Mrs. White shrugged. “Either way it’s too late now to change anything.”
“Ally, I heard you went to a party at Clara Davis’ house last night, was it just amazing?” Mrs. Cale asked.
“It was.” Ally smiled. “The house is beautiful from top to bottom. Well, what I got to see of it anyway.”
“Who was there? Any other stars?” Mrs. Bing leaned close.
“No, that was the strange thing it was mostly just her security officers. She said that she had invited some of her friends and family, but they were too busy to attend. Luke and I were her only guests.”
“That’s so sad. To think that someone can go from fame to obscurity. She must be lonely.”
“She did seem a bit lonely.” Ally frowned. “She was also quite upset about Shane’s death.”
“I’ve heard some crazy rumors about her.” Mrs. Bing ate another piece of chocolate. “You’d better watch Luke around her.”
“I’m sorry, why?” Ally laughed.
“She’s a cougar.” Mrs. Bing nodded. “That’s what the kids are calling it. She likes her men young. Did you see all of the security guards she hires? Young.” She nodded. “Luke’s just her type.”
“Now, that’s nonsense!” Mrs. White tossed down her napkin. “Clara isn’t trying to steal Luke away.”
“She did seem more interested in him than me, or the cakes.” Ally grinned. “But I’m pretty sure I don’t have to worry about him falling under her spell.”
“I don’t know, money is a strong influence.” Mrs. Bing shrugged.
“Not for Luke,” Ally said.
“Besides, he’s in love with Ally, right Ally?” Mrs. Cale winked. “When is the wedding date?”
“Oh, no, there’s no wedding date.”
“No?” Luke pushed through the door and smiled as he walked towards the four women. “Who isn’t getting married?”
Ally’s throat grew dry. She cleared it and started to speak, but Mrs. White spoke up before she could.
“Apparently you and Clara Davis. I hear she was quite friendly with you last night. But then, who wouldn’t be?”
“Oh?” Luke grinned. “She was just being sociable. Ally, could I speak to you for a moment?”
“Sure.” She was relieved to walk away from the knowing smirks that the three women exchanged. Once they were out of earshot, Luke leaned close to her.
“I heard from Geraltin PD this morning that they are looking into a connection between Shane and Mario, a deeper connection than just a bad review.”
“Oh? What kind of connection?”
“Mario Mazzalli’s brother Vincent used to be involved in drug smuggling and they suspect that Mario took over the business. They’ve suspected Mario of smuggling drugs into Geraltin, but haven’t been able to pin anything on him.”
“They think Shane might have been involved with that?”
“After what they saw on the films, yes. But they’re not sure how, yet. If it’s true then Mario might be the murderer or he could be in bed with some very dangerous people that are involved in Shane’s murder. I know you are going to do some snooping into this case even if I tell you not to, but just make sure you’re careful of Mario, all right?”
“Of course. How are you today? Not too tired I hope?”
“I’m okay. Just trying to think of excuses to see you in that dress again. Want to go on a dinner cruise this weekend? Maybe we could talk Charlotte into bringing her boyfriend?”
“Oh, that’s a great idea, Luke. I’m not sure that I’m up for anything like that until we find out what happened to Shane though.”
“Let’s pencil it in,” he said. “Hopefully all of this will be behind us by then. Good luck with those ladies.” He smiled.
“Thanks, I’m going to need it.”
As she returned to the counter, the bell above the door rang.
“Oh good morning, Charlotte.” Luke kissed her cheek on the way out the door.
“Hmph, first Clara Davis and now he’s making moves on Charlotte?” Mrs. Bing clucked her tongue.
“Excuse me?” Charlotte laughed as she walked up to the counter.
“It seems that Luke has a bit of a soft spot for senior ladies.” Mrs. Bing pulled a compact from her purse and checked her make-up.
“Just because Luke is a gentleman, that doesn’t make him any less in love with Ally. Right Ally?” Charlotte touched her shoulder.
“I guess not.” Ally grinned. “But it seems I do have some competition.”
After they finished their chocolates and coffee the three women left. Once Ally and Charlotte were alone, Ally filled her in on the details of the night before.
“I’m sorry I didn’t call you, but I got caught up in things.”
“It’s okay. What do you think is going on with Clara?”
“I don’t know, but she is a little odd, and certainly was very friendly towards Luke.”
“Interesting. Did Luke have an update?”
“Just to stay away from Mario. Apparently, Geraltin PD thinks Shane was involved in some drug activity with him.”
“Shane wouldn’t do that.” Charlotte pursed her lips. “No way.”
“I agree. But the films made it look like he might be.”
“But they were just for his special project. If only we knew what that was.”
“Why don’t we talk to his teacher? If he was really filming a movie it might have been an assignment, or maybe he at least consulted with the teacher about what he was working on.”
“That’s a good idea.” Charlotte nodded. “We have orders to fill, but we can close the shop and take him some chocolates and come back and fill the orders afterwards. If we sugar him up, maybe he’ll be more willing to talk.”
Chapter 10
A few hours later Ally locked up the shop and Charlotte carried a box of chocolates to the car. The university was just inside the Geraltin border and it served Geraltin and the surrounding towns, including Blue River. As they drove towards it Ally checked the website on her phone to figure out who they would need to speak to.
“Professor Shumer is in charge of the film classes. According to his office hours he’s available now.”
“Great.” Charlotte parked close to the entrance of the university. The courtyard was filled with young people all about Shane’s age. It was hard not to think of him sitting under a tree, or sharing a snack with a friend at one of the picnic tables. It didn’t take long to find Professor Shumer’s office. Ally knocked on the door then pushed it open to find a middle-aged man seated behind a desk piled high with papers.
“Excuse me, Professor Shumer, can I speak to you, please?”
“Sure.” He squinted at her. “You’re not one of my students are you?”
“No I’m not. I’m a friend of Shane Smithson.”
“Shane.” His expression softened. “Yes, do come in. There are some counselors available if you need to talk.”
“Thanks, but I’m okay.” She stepped inside and allowed room for her grandmother to follow. “Actually, I have a few questions for you about a project he was working on.”
“I really don’t have time for this ladies. I have two classes to prepare for and there is of course the matter of me speaking at
Shane’s funeral.”
“It’s so nice that you will be speaking at his funeral,” Ally said. “Shane really enjoyed your class.”
“Shane was more than just a student to me. We became good friends as we discussed our passion for film. I really will miss him.”
“Did he ever mention anyone that frightened him or that he might be upset with?”
“Not really. Our conversations mainly focused on film and the assignment for the class.”
“Something to do with capturing real life on film?”
“Animal life, yes. The current assignment was to capture the weekly activities of a bird. Some people might think that’s an easy assignment, but it’s not. It’s rather difficult to film every element of a bird’s routine as you have to try to film the same bird and recognizing them is one struggle, but they can also often fly away part way through and not come back, and then the entire process has to begin again.”
“So Shane wasn’t filming people? He was filming birds?” Ally asked.
“Yes.” He frowned as he looked between them. “As I mentioned, I really don’t have time for this.”
“We brought you these.” Charlotte thrust the box of chocolates at him. “We really only need a few more moments.”
“A few more.” He nodded as he eyed the box of chocolates. “I don’t mean to be rude it’s just that there’s so much to be done.”
“Do you know where Shane was filming the birds?”
“Yes, he chose one particular spot out of the ones he was assigned. He was the only one filming from the spot. I know of several good places in the woods and wanted to give each of my students a chance to be successful at this assignment.”
“Could you tell us where that spot is?”
“What is all of this about? Why do you want to know?”
“We’re just curious about how Shane spent his last days. Someone certainly wanted him dead, and the best place to start to figure out who is where he spent most of his time in the last few days before his death.”
“All right, I’ll give you the coordinates.” He opened his desk drawer and pulled out a piece of paper. Then he copied some numbers from it down on to another slip of paper.