Swan with the Wind (Bought-the-Farm Mystery Book 9)

by Ellen Riggs

  Jilly let out an audible sigh of relief.

  Staring around at the police, Bridie patted down her frizzy hair. “I don’t know why anyone would choose to live in the tropics. It’s impossible to have nice hair. Jillian, yours looks terrible, and Ivy… Well, I don’t know what to say. And those outfits. Really.”

  “There are more pressing matters than bad hair, Gran,” Jilly said. “Ivy believes you lost a friend tonight.”

  “No speculation,” the chief said, as he started directing his officers to set up lights and inflate dinghies. “Ivy, you’ll need to come back out to show us what you found.”

  I clutched Keats closer. “Really? Do I have to?”

  Janelle stepped in front of me and faced the chief. “Is that really necessary, Chief Gillock? You’ve got a whole fleet set up here. Ivy and my cousin have been through quite a lot this evening.”

  “And over the past few days,” Bridie chimed in. “It’s been one thing after another.”

  The chief tried to peer around Janelle and then gave up. A strange expression came over his face as he stared at her. His eyes widened and his jaw slackened. He looked a little dazed. If I didn’t know better about a cop’s ability to compartmentalize, I’d say he was falling under Janelle’s spell. Keats gave a ha-ha-ha of agreement.

  In fact, all the male officers were staring in Janelle’s direction, as if she were a collectible. Like the winning puck from a playoff game. I had been at enough crime scenes to know that cops were usually laser focused on the job at hand. Asher was a notable exception, because he had trouble paying attention to anything when Jilly was in the vicinity. My friend had always had a powerful allure for men. Perhaps this was something else that ran in the family, along with emerald eyes.

  “All right, we’ll take a look on our own,” the chief said. “As long as you’ll stay put in the squad car until we’ve recovered the body.”

  “Chief, please be reasonable,” Janelle said. “Can’t you see that Ivy is shivering? She’s in shock.”

  I hadn’t even noticed I was shivering until she pointed it out. “I’m okay,” I said. “I’ll stay here till you find her. The swan is still on guard and with those lights, you won’t be able to miss the striped dress. I hope you brought a chainsaw, though, because the vegetation is savage.”

  “We’re well equipped to handle the situation.” He pulled his eyes away from Janelle. “What I really want to know is why you and Miss Blackwood would venture out there after I specifically asked you—nay, ordered you—to stay out of this investigation.”

  “We were just checking on the swan’s health and welfare,” I said. “On the advice of a waterfowl specialist. When we discovered something you needed to know about we called you on the spot.”

  “Chief?” Janelle raised a manicured index finger. He looked back at her reluctantly, his brown eyes landing above, below and offside. It was as if he sensed he couldn’t look right at her without being mesmerized. “It seems like Ivy and Jilly have done everyone a huge favor, especially the poor woman in question. Wouldn’t you say? Now her story can be told.”

  He lost the battle and stared at her again. “I suppose. But it’s frustrating to have people deliberately flout protocol. Someone from out of state. A cowboy.”

  I laughed, and others joined me, even Jilly.

  “I am a cowboy, quite literally,” I said. “I own it.”

  “Here’s what I suggest, Chief,” Janelle continued. “Ivy and Jilly can walk home with Gran and I’ll go up to the rec center and help Vaughan collect everyone else. I’m sure you’ll want to debrief the residents.”

  “Okay. Sounds good.” The chief was seemingly oblivious to the fact that he was taking orders from Janelle.

  “Perfect,” she said. “I look forward to seeing you there soon.” Gesturing to the dinghies at the shore, she added, “Safe voyage.”

  “Thank you,” he said, turning to head down to the inflatable boats.

  Keats gave another pant-laugh from my arms and Janelle wagged a finger at him. “Never mind,” she said. “Get them shipped out before we let our guard down.”

  One of the officers shoved the boat off and then jumped in to join the chief, who managed to stand with his arms crossed without so much as a wobble. I could tell by the set of his jaw that he was in full command again and wasn’t surprised when his gaze fell on me once more. Perhaps Janelle’s magnetic appeal only worked at close range.

  “Ivy, will you be giving a full report to Chief Harper about this, or shall I?”

  “Got it covered,” I called. “Shower, whiskey and full report to Kellan. Can I look forward to your full report later as well?”

  “No.” He raised his voice to be heard over the small motor. “But I’ll have more questions for you.”

  Keats mumbled something insolent and I answered, “He’s not Kellan, buddy. We have to play by different rules here.”

  “You mean, you have to play by some rules here,” Jilly said, smiling. “That will only make victory sweeter when you piece things together like you always do.”

  “Like Cori said, it’s good for sheepdogs like us to keep busy and challenged,” I said.

  “She said I was a Jack Russell,” Jilly said. “I still resent that.”

  “An astute observation,” Janelle muttered. “Whoever this Cori is.”

  I gave Janelle a warning look. “Thank you so much for your help. We’re off to do just as you ordered.”

  “Fine.” She sounded like a sullen teen instead of a siren now.

  Jilly and I shuffled across the grass in our hip waders, arms linked.

  “Don’t you want to get out of those things now?” I asked her. “Or did you really wet yourself?”

  “Better to play it safe. What’s your excuse?”

  “I don’t know what else might be in there,” I said. “No need to invite public ridicule.”

  “My friend, you’ve changed,” she said.

  “Just for now,” I said, as Keats squirmed in my arms. When we reached the road, I finally let him down and he pranced with his show horse strut. Like me, he cherished his freedom. “I’ll go back to letting it all hang out when we get home.”

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Sleep pretty much eluded me that night. The bed in Bridie’s spare room was perfectly comfortable but I hadn’t managed to find more than a few hours of shuteye since our arrival. My perpetually busy brain seemed to be on overdrive here. It was always hyperactive while working on a case, but in Clover Grove, I had my infrastructure to calm me down—my routine, my chores, and my therapeutic manure pile. By now, I’d have eaten a few slices of pie at Mandy’s Country Store to build stamina.

  “That’s what’s missing,” I said to Keats as I dressed at dawn. “Pie.”

  Percy had chosen to grace Jilly with his presence overnight, so I skulked out of the house with Keats. I didn’t have a particular mission in mind. I just needed to be moving.

  Keats led me toward the center of town, and hopefully pie.

  “If the café is open I’ll see what’s available,” I said. “Maybe the sugar will get my brain working properly because I don’t even know what our next steps are, buddy.”

  The dog picked up the pace, which encouraged me. Maybe the next steps were more apparent to him.

  When we reached The Silver Spoon café, it was barely six a.m. but every seat inside and out was taken, while others perched on walkers and wheelchairs. I wasn’t the only one trying to solve the puzzle of who killed not only Lottie, but Alice Cheevers. Both women had floated away with bruises on their necks, but because Chief Gillock hadn’t shared that detail publicly, some continued to blame Zeus, who didn’t have fingers to strangle anyone. I stood on the sidelines with Keats, watching as two men flapped their arms, no doubt demonstrating exactly how a swan might take down a woman—a woman who had seemed well liked. Lottie’s list of detractors was long, but no one had complained to me about Alice.

  “Maybe we should keep walking,” I told Ke
ats. “I don’t really want to hear people dissing Zeus, but there’s not a thing I can say without getting in trouble with one of the chiefs. For the record, two chiefs are not better than one.”

  My conversation with Kellan the night before had been strained. The second victim had sucked away his humor, and he had asked me to consider leaving the Briar Estates and going to a hotel with Jilly, Bridie and Janelle. I dismissed the idea, as he knew I would. There was no way I’d abandon the swan when he was being convicted in the court of public opinion. On top of that, spending time in a hotel with the warring Blackwood and Brighton clan held little appeal. Their differences were best worked out through action toward a common purpose. Teams that worked together grew together. That was another valuable thing I’d learned at Flordale Corp, and put into real world practice with my own family. Solving this mystery might exorcise some old demons.

  “There are no demons, obviously,” I said. “But I do think Janelle has a little something extra going on. Maybe she has some siren blood. Jilly’s no slouch in that department either. She used to hold sway over a roomful of business titans so aggressive they’d pick your bones bare in ten seconds, like piranhas. The cousins have more in common than either wants to admit.”

  Keats mumbled his agreement. What’s more, he offered a half-hearted point in the direction of the patio. Like me, he wanted to avoid the place, but he also felt a duty to report something that didn’t quite belong among the sea of silver hair. Janelle’s brunette curls appeared when the crowd around her shifted. Every senior at her table had a mister in front of his name. The women seemed better able to resist her considerable charms.

  “Okay, fine,” I said. “We’ll go in.”

  Janelle raised her hand to beckon us over, but I signaled that I needed to fuel up first. Inside, relief washed over me when I saw not one but three pies in the glass display case. I didn’t know how I’d missed them the day before. Perhaps we’d be further along with the investigation if I hadn’t.

  The elderly woman behind the counter squinted at me when I asked for two pieces of pie on one plate. Cutting two slivers, she put them on separate plates. I gave her a nice smile and asked for a slice of the third pie. “Let’s make it a trifecta,” I said. “No need to dirty another plate.”

  She carved a sliver out of the last pie and set it on a third plate. “Don’t you even want to know the flavor?” she asked.

  I shook my head. “All pie is good pie.”

  She pushed the three plates toward me. “It’s a bit much for this time of the day, isn’t it?”

  I studied the mingy offerings. “Not nearly enough, actually. But we’ll start there.”

  After paying her, I used a fork to shove all the pie onto one plate. Together they made up a single slice at Mandy’s store.

  “Thanks,” I said. “I couldn’t manage three plates and the coffee, but this works.”

  I dropped a couple of coins into the tip jar, flashed more teeth and then pushed open the door with my elbow. Keats was waiting right outside, but then he pranced ahead of me to Janelle’s table. She was wearing a simple white dress that looked like a million bucks, light makeup and no jewelry at all.

  That anyone would choose a white dress on a regular day astounded me. One thing I knew for sure was that the only white dress I’d ever wear would be at my wedding. And even that was chancy in my grimy life.

  “Gentlemen,” she said. “It’s been great chatting but I need to catch up with Ivy. How about we all meet by the pool this afternoon?”

  They dispersed promptly, if regretfully, and I took the vacant seat beside her where I could still watch the action. Keats sat on alert beside me, like a tuxedoed statue.

  “He doesn’t look very happy,” she said. “What’s wrong?”

  “Something’s off. Bad vibe, I guess,” I said. “He’s read the crowd and wants to move on.”

  He mumbled an affirmative. There was nothing to see here.

  “I know about his special skills,” she said, lowering her voice. “In the sleuthing department. Yours, too.”

  “They don’t work as well here as back home,” I said. “I overestimated my value.”

  “You’ve only been here, what… three days? Did you expect to accomplish miracles in such a short time?”

  I smiled at Keats and his mouth opened in a proud pant.

  “Yes, actually. In a situation like this, it’s all about speed. The longer it’s left to fester, the more complicated it gets. Consider what happened to poor Alice. If I’d worked faster, maybe she’d be alive right now.”

  “Ivy, you’re being way too hard on yourself,” she said. “The Briars is a unique environment. Nothing like Clover Grove, I’m sure. Personally, I’m always happy to visit and even happier to leave.”

  I sighed. “It just feels like I’m missing something obvious.”

  “That’s because these folks are experts at hiding things. You need to be to survive. Maybe I can help. I mean, if it’s okay with Jilly. I do know my way around the place.”

  “I noticed. It’s like you cast a spell over people. Male people especially.”

  “No spells required.” She wiggled fingers at some of her fans. “It helps to have a captive audience. I mean, literally captive. Plus I’ve worked in hospitality for years.”

  “Hotels?” I asked.

  Her green eyes darted everywhere. She definitely didn’t have Jilly’s stillness and focus.

  “High-end resorts, mostly,” she said. “Mountains, deserts, seaside, you name it. I’ve seen the world that way. New faces, new places and jobs on demand. Plus you never need to worry about room and board.”

  “Sounds a bit like the carnie life… always rolling on.”

  “I did that for awhile as a teen, too,” she said. “Had my own fortune teller booth. After a couple of nights sleeping outside, I decided there had to be a better way.” She sat back and sighed. “I ended up running into the same people at resorts. Old carnies never die, they just find work as bartenders or waiters or car jockeys. I’ve been in customer service for a decade.”

  “That explains your handling skills,” I said. “Jilly and I trained in HR so we’re good with people, but you left us in the dust last night.”

  “That would have gone far differently if I’d been the one in the water with the alligators. You’ve got guts, Ivy.” She pointed at the untouched pie in front of me. “Better eat up so Keats can roll.”

  I picked up my fork and poked it. “Maybe it’ll taste better than it looks.”

  “It didn’t,” she said, gesturing to an empty plate. “Mediocre at best. I consider myself something of a pie connoisseur.”

  “Me too!” I felt disloyal to Jilly for my enthusiasm. For finding anything in common with her cousin, in fact. Now I knew exactly how she’d felt last month when she was caught between Asher and me after our dad came back. In fact, it was far worse for her because my brother was her boyfriend, whereas Janelle was someone I would likely never see again after this week. It was a shame, really, because I already liked her and Keats did, too. Janelle passed the sniff test for us, but something had gone epically wrong between the cousins long ago. The way before me was clear. Jilly would tolerate Janelle helping with the case because it was for the greater good, but we couldn’t get too palsy unless something between them changed.

  I chewed a mouthful and felt pie-sick for Mandy’s wonderful concoctions. All pie was not good pie, as it turned out.

  “How’d the meeting go last night?” I asked. “Did you learn anything interesting?”

  She shook her head. “They’re baffled and scared, although many put up a good front. No one seemed to have a clue what’s going on.”

  “Not even Special Constable Doug?” I asked, around another mouthful of mediocre. “He’s still on my suspect list.”

  “Dougie’s all talk,” she said. “I highly doubt he has the cojones for… you know.”

  “That’s what I always think. Until it turns out someone does.”
/>
  “True enough. I’ve been surprised and disappointed plenty of times, too. But Doug? I don’t see it.”

  “What about Vaughan?” I asked. “He’s got motives right up to the goatee. Both men have swindled the residents and Lottie definitely knew about some of it.”

  “I’ve known Vaughan a long time, and I suppose it’s possible.” She gestured discreetly to Shirley Mills, sitting in her wheelchair with Cherise and others. “No matter what stunts he pulls, he takes very good care of Shirley. That’s what keeps him from utter buffoon status. He loves his wife.”

  “Men who love their wives still kill,” I said. “Ask me how I know.”

  She was still scanning the crowd and I noticed she’d fallen into a rhythm with Keats, heads pivoting back and forth. “So what’s on for today?”

  “I’d really love to get a look in the property office,” I said. “Check out the personnel files and board documentation. The chief may have taken everything into evidence though.”

  “Why don’t we give it a try?” she said. “People are distracted here. I’ll stand watch and you slip in.”

  Keats pumped his paws and urged us on with eager mumbles. “That’s a yes from my co-pilot,” I said.

  As we left our table, a woman’s voice called out to Janelle. “Honey, can I have a minute?”

  It was Alba, Vaughan’s supposed girlfriend. She was sitting alone now, in her mint green suit again with the precisely knotted scarf.

  “Of course,” Janelle said. “What can I do for you, Alba?”

  “First, I speak for everyone in asking if you have any special insights about our dear friend Alice. If anyone would know, it would be you.”

  I stared at Janelle and she gave me a bland smile. “My fortune telling days are behind me, ladies. I called so many things wrong that it got embarrassing.”

  “But you were absolutely right last time,” Alba said. “Do you remember?”

  “I do.” Janelle’s smile was dazzling, which was probably half the battle in hoaxing people into thinking these things were real. “I said you’d have a little granddaughter by the time I saw you again.”