by Sue Clifton
“I wonder how long ago he was killed. I assume he was murdered; he didn’t bury himself.”
“No way of telling. It’s just now beginning to get warm up here, and it can still be below freezing at night. Cold temperature and being buried, even in a shallow grave, would slow decomposition. The authorities will be able to tell, and from the looks of him, there’s enough left to get DNA, but probably not fingerprints. Looked like de-gloving has already happened.”
“De-gloving?” Piper asked, never having heard the term.
“After a few days, the outer skin sloughs off the hands, and if it’s not caught in time, no fingerprints can be deciphered. If you can catch it early, you can soak the skin to soften it, then stretch it over your own hands, over rubber gloves, of course, and take a fingerprint. It’s pretty amazing.”
“And you know this how?” Piper cocked her head to one side and stared at Zach.
“I watch CSI.” Zach said it matter-of-factly, trying to lighten the mood but without success. “Actually, I know someone in forensics with the FBI who works at the Anthropology Research Facility, ARF, or The Body Farm, as it’s known. It’s part of the University of Tennessee Medical Center. They actually place bodies, cadavers, in an open forested area in East Tennessee and study decomposition under different situations. It helps law enforcement determine time of death, among other things, about cases involving decomposed bodies.”
“Sounds like a disgusting and nasty job.” Piper cringed at the thought.
“After seeing this, I have a lot more respect for my friend the forensics expert.” Zach turned away from Piper, and she thought he was going to throw up again.
“Man, I’ll never get that smell out of my head, even though it’s not like I thought it would be. Kind of a sickening, sour/sweet, pungent smell.”
“Yep, that pretty much describes it. I know I’m wearing this T-shirt over my face until we can leave here.” Piper looked down at her halter bra. “Thank goodness this sports bra is pink. Maybe if someone comes by, they won’t realize what I’m wearing, or not wearing.”
“I see dust on the road. Maybe we’re in luck.” Zach moved to the other side of the road. Piper crossed and stood beside him, prepared to flag the driver down.
“Piper, you need to ride up to Teesh’s cabin with whoever this is and get the Jeep and go call the sheriff. I’m staying here to watch the site until the authorities get here. I don’t want any tampering, and once we tell this person on the road, the word will spread.”
A man in an old blue pickup pulled over after seeing Zach waving his hands for him to stop. Piper had put her T-shirt back on just before the man got to them, and now had her hand cupped over her mouth and nose.
The man reached across the seat and rolled his window down on the passenger side.
“Howdy!” He leaned way across the seat and yelled out the window. “Need a ride?”
Piper and Zach both recognized the man at the same time.
“Lester, thank goodness you came along. Remember us from the other day at your antique shop? I’m Piper, and this is Zach.” Piper leaned into the truck that smelled old, dirty, and oily, a pleasant reprieve from the smell outside.
“Well, I’ll be darned. I sure do. What you two doing way down Difficult Road?”
Zach opened the truck door. “Could you give Piper a ride up to Teesh’s cabin, Lester? She can fill you in on what’s going on. She needs to get back to Bar None and call the sheriff’s office.”
Lester gave the two a questioning look. “The ghosts on a rampage or something?” Lester tried to make a joke, but Zach could see concern on his face. “Hop in, young lady. I just happen to be heading to Teesh’s anyway. You can tell me what all the hullabaloo is about on the way.”
****
When Piper told Lester what she and Zach had discovered, Lester acted stunned.
“Ain’t been no murders around these parts in decades. I can’t even remember the last one. Must be some of them Hell’s Angels or something, some outside no-gooder! Dang it! No telling who’ll show up now.” Lester gripped the steering wheel tighter. “I guess I’ll have to tell Teesh, but I shore do hate to. She’ll be real uneasy knowing there’s been a murder just down the road, especially knowing it’s gonna bring in a bunch of outsiders—news media and all that.” Lester shook his head. “They’ll be bugging her for information and history, something she only likes to share with friends like your mother and your aunt and you two.”
“Maybe she’ll come stay with us at Bar None until the sheriff’s department can come up with some answers.” Piper looked at Lester.
“Ain’t likely. Teesh is not afraid of much, and she’d never leave her cabin. Besides, she’s a pretty good shot with that old Colt .45 of hers. At least, she used to be.”
A few minutes later, Lester pulled up in front of Teesh’s cabin. Piper got out and headed for the Jeep. “I need to get to Bar None and call the sheriff on the satellite phone. I’ll let you be the bearer of bad news to Teesh.”
****
Piper waited with Zach. When the sheriff and his team got to the site, Zach walked with them to show them where the grave had been and then returned to Piper.
“There’s nothing else for us to do, Piper. The sheriff said he’d let us know what he finds out. We might as well head back to Bar None and take about a two-hour shower. I don’t know about you, but I’m burning these clothes I’ve got on.”
“I promise this will all wash out, with enough bleach shot into the laundry. Besides, I didn’t bring another pair of running shoes. As far as washing out memories—especially that smell? Not likely. I think we’ll have that forever.” Piper sighed.
Piper and Zach bypassed all questions and headed for the showers. Zach did not take the time to go to Belle’s quarters but hit the communal showers with Piper. They took their toothbrushes into their shower stalls and scrubbed their teeth while showering as if the pungent smell had sunk into their taste buds. Piper thought her mouth would be raw after the scrubbing she gave it. She also put shampoo up her nostrils, to alleviate the smell that seemed to linger, and then suffered a sneezing attack.
“Thank goodness for coconut-scented shampoo. You want to use it, Zach?”
“Can I come in and get it?” Zach laughed.
“Uh, no! Not with my mom downstairs, thank you very much!” Piper put the lid on tight and handed the shampoo over top of the shower stall to Zach.
“Oh, yeah! Much better. This is one time I don’t mind smelling like a woman. It’s got to beat the generic, near-nothing smell of my travel shampoo.”
Zach finished first and wrapped himself in one of the huge luxury towels provided by the hotel. He waited for Piper and handed her a towel after she shut the shower off. Before she could finish wrapping herself in the towel, Zach joined her in the dressing area of the stall. Taking both towels and placing them on the wooden seat, he grabbed her to him, kissing and caressing her, lingering on his favorite parts.
“I just need one more thing to erase the unpleasantness of this afternoon.”
Piper smiled and returned Zach’s embrace.
A few minutes later, the two left the showers, each covered in towels and smiles.
Chapter Twenty-Five
“I just can’t believe Charlie would pass up my chocolate pie. I wonder what that little guy is up to.” Harri had left the table and looked out the window again. “Actually, we haven’t seen him since the ordeal with the black fog the other night. You think it was too much for him, Teesh?”
“Oh, don’t worry about Charlie. He’ll stay gone for days and days sometimes. Don’t know where he goes. He likes to wander.” Teesh took another bite of the chocolate pie. “This pie is wonderful, Harri. I will need the recipe, but I guess it will be included in your cookbook, right?”
“Oh, yes. Everything you taste while I’m here will be in there.” Harri gathered up dishes and headed to the kitchen. Cayce, Piper, and Zach stacked the rest of the dishes and followed Harri,
who stopped at the kitchen door.
“I think we’re all avoiding talking about something that needs talking about. As soon as we get this table squared away, let’s have coffee in the parlor and talk about the body Zach and Piper found.”
“You’re right, Harri. We’ll leave the stew and everything on the stove for Hank. He should be here shortly, and hopefully he will have a report from the sheriff’s office. He said he was stopping by there on his way from Idaho Falls.” Cayce followed Harri.
Shortly after everyone finished coffee, Hank entered.
“We saved you dinner, Hank. It’s on the stove.”
“Thanks, but I want to tell you what I found out first.” Hank hung his hat on the coat tree at the entrance and took his place on the settee by Cayce. Everyone’s eyes focused on him.
“You know the flyers you and Harri got on your way to Bar None, Cayce?”
“You mean the young couple missing from Montana?” Cayce kept her eyes on Hank.
“The sheriff is pretty sure the body belonged to Johnny Stinson, the young man who owned the motorcycle. The pieces of clothing found and the boots all match what he was wearing in the picture the girl texted back to her mother.”
“What about the girl, Billie Townsley?” Zach leaned up in his chair, intent on hearing Hank’s answer.
Cayce and Harri glanced at each other. Each one knew what the other was thinking.
“The sheriff said they combed the area, and there was no sign of the girl’s body or any of her clothing or personal effects.”
“So what does he think happened to her, to Billie?” Zach now clasped his hands together tightly, almost in a death grip, unaware that Cayce and Harri were closely watching his reaction.
“The sheriff wouldn’t speculate.”
Zach turned to Cayce. “Do you still have that flyer you picked up? We all need to look at the picture closely so we can get the girl’s picture in our heads. Hopefully, we won’t be identifying a body, but the boy’s body was awfully close to Bar None. I told the sheriff we would be on the lookout, especially since we’re going on the wagon train trip up into the high country day after tomorrow.”
“I have the flyer in my suitcase.” Harri stood and headed for the stairs. “I’ll be right back.”
Zach acted nervous, rubbing his hands on his thighs.
“Something wrong, Zach?” Piper put her arm around Zach’s waist, giving him a squeeze. “I mean, other than finding Johnny Stinson’s body, as if that isn’t enough to give us both nightmares the rest of our lives.”
“Yep, I’m fine. Just think I need a little fresh air.” Zach left the hotel and went out on the front porch. Piper followed him and found him leaning against a porch post, fingertips in pockets, gazing at the moon as it peeked over the mountains. He turned and saw her coming toward him and smiled, opening his arms to her. They stood embracing for a few seconds before Zach lifted Piper’s chin and kissed her. They were in the middle of a deep kiss when Cayce opened the screen door.
“Sorry to interrupt, but you two need to come in and etch Billie’s picture in your minds.”
“Okay. We’ll be there in a minute, Mom.”
Cayce looked at the two young people and wondered whether Piper had the same question on her mind she and Harri did.
How did Zach know the girl’s name was Billie Townsley?
Cayce had purposely not brought up the subject of the girl’s disappearance, not wanting to put a damper on her own daughter’s visit. She closed the door and rejoined the group.
“No, I know I’ve never seen her around here, but then, I don’t get out much.” Teesh passed the picture to Steve, who took his glasses out of his pocket and scrutinized the picture.
“She’s a pretty little thing, ain’t she, with that long blonde hair? I know I ain’t seen her. Would remember her for sure if I had of.” Steve passed it to Hank.
“I know these flyers are all over this part of Idaho. I’ve seen them at every gas station and café around, even in the valley.” Hank took another hard look at the girl.
Cayce’s shoulders relaxed the tension she hadn’t realized was there.
Ah, that could be how Zach knew the girl’s name. He ran that errand for Hank the other day and filled the Jeep up at the little gas station where the surly teenage boy works.
Zach and Piper came back into the room, and Hank handed the flyer to Piper, who studied the picture. “Wow! She’s so young and beautiful. This says she just graduated high school.” She shook her head. “To think, she had her whole life ahead of her, and then this.” Piper reached to hand the flyer to Zach.
“Has!” Zach sharply corrected Piper, and then softened his tone. “Think positive, Piper. Billie has her whole life ahead of her. Nobody’s found a body yet, so we don’t need to put any negative energy out there.” Zach took the flyer from Piper and took a quick glance and then gave it back to Hank.
Piper eyed Zach. “Negative energy? When did you get so New Age?”
“Me?” Zach pointed to himself. “Oh, no. I’m not New Age. I just like to be positive. If this was my little sister or someone in my family, I’d want everyone thinking positive and looking for a living being, not a corpse.” Zach stood. “Can we change this gruesome topic? I’d really like to get this whole scene from today out of my mind before I go to bed tonight.”
“I think that’s a good idea. I for one am going into the kitchen and cut myself another piece of pie.” Piper took off toward the kitchen. “Anyone else want a piece?” She shrugged her shoulders after everyone declined her offer and headed into the kitchen alone.
“There is one more thing I need to show you that the sheriff gave me.” Hank reached into his pocket and pulled out a folded piece of notepad. “The sheriff found this stamped on the boy’s body, under his shirt, right over his heart. The sheriff had no idea what it meant, and neither do I. It’s not a tattoo; at least, it’s not permanent. The sheriff said one of the lines was kind of smeared, probably by body fluids.” Hank spread the notepad out and showed the group the drawing.
“It looks like a diamond, but the ends are rounded, not pointed.” Cayce outlined the shape. “That’s definitely a cross in the middle—not just straight lines, but a thick cross with no shading inside the rounded lines, like some of the crosses you see on necklaces.”
“What’s this at the top of the diamond?” Zach asked. “It looks like an upside-down hook or something.”
“I have no idea, and neither did the sheriff. He asked me not to talk about this. He wants the information withheld from the media.”
“You think it’s some kind of satanic cult responsible for this?”
“No idea, Harri. But I know it would behoove us all, especially you ladies, to stick close to Bar None, or stay with a group.” Hank folded the notepad and put it back into his pocket and then directed his gaze to Zach. “Zach, you’re in charge of Piper. Don’t let her go running or go away from the hotel to paint or anything, at least not by herself.”
“Not a problem!” Zach offered with a big grin.
“Now we can change the subject,” Hank announced, but the group fell silent. Piper re-entered with two cups of coffee and handed one to Zach.
“Thanks, babe. Did you leave any pie?” Zach set his coffee down and pulled his shirtsleeve over his hand to wipe off a bit of chocolate Piper had missed on her top lip.
“There’s plenty left for Charlie or any of you who wish to indulge in seconds as I did. And I might add it was every bit as delicious as the first piece, but just a tiny bit smaller.” Piper held two fingers up to show an inch of smallness.
“Speaking of Charlie, Teesh and Steve, when did you see him last? I’m concerned since he didn’t show up for my chocolate pie.” Harri looked at Teesh.
“The last time I saw Charlie was the night we ate chocolate gravy. Lester brought me some money today to get Charlie some new boots and some other items, so after I run into town tomorrow, I’ll be hanging the bandana up again. He’ll show up
eventually, looking for any pie left over.” Teesh laughed, and did not seem concerned at Charlie’s absence.
“I’m trying to think when I seen him last.” Steve combed his beard with his hand. “Actually, I seen him day before yesterday…no, it was yesterday morning real early. He come by and traded a little dust for a Maglite I had. You know…one of them little flashlights? I was gonna put new batteries in it for him, but he didn’t give me time. He took it and run off.”
“I’ve never known Charlie to use a flashlight. He says he can see in the dark, you know. I tell him his eyes are like Jezzie’s.” Teesh chuckled. “He gets a kick out of that. Loves that old cat of mine. They’re kindred spirits, those two.”
When there was a lull in the group conversation, Hank brought up Cayce’s experience in the saloon. She was reluctant to tell of her encounter with the Reverend but wanted to get Teesh’s take on it. She began with being pushed down the hotel steps by Belle.
“Mom, you didn’t tell me! You don’t need to even think about going in that saloon anymore. Belle must not like you.” Piper glanced at Hank. “She’s probably jealous of you and Hank.”
Hank almost choked on his coffee.
“Whoa, now!” Hank wiped his mouth on the back of his hand. “Let’s don’t go there! I’m just trying to come to grips with what I’m feeling for your mom. I don’t need a madam interfering, especially one that’s been dead since 1928.” Hank put his coffee down and took Cayce’s hand. “Go ahead, Cayce. Tell them what happened in the saloon.”
Cayce had them all spellbound as she told the rest of her story. She added extra drama as she recounted the Reverend’s murder scene, and then hit the group, including Hank, with her own theory.
“I think the black fog is the spirit, or demon, of Reverend Abel Mather, an overzealous frontier preacher who hated Belle because his daughter followed in Belle’s footsteps.” Cayce tried to gauge everyone’s reaction, especially Teesh’s.
“Teesh, do you remember Reverend Mather?” Everyone’s eyes turned to Teesh.