Traveling Town Cozy Mystery Box Set
Page 67
Chapman, who’d been getting ready to head out, donned his derby hat. “I asked about that, thinking they’d done it to sully Wink’s name.”
The diner owner dried her hands on a dishtowel, watching Chapman closely. “And?”
“And neither knew anything about it. So, I asked someone else…”
“Patience,” Ella supplied. “She let Peanut out.”
The sheriff tipped his hat. “That she did. Said she came across the body earlier and saw an opportunity. She’d overheard those two—” he pointed at Wink and Flo “—talking about where they’d hidden the dinosaur and saw an opportunity.”
Ella’s thoughts tumbled over each other. “She used the meat Rose had thawing on the counter to lure Peanut outside.”
“Yes. She figured no one would want to vote for her after her pet killed someone.” After another tip of his hat, Sheriff Chapman departed.
Ella stood on the sidewalk and ran the hem of her shirt over the pink handlebars of Sally’s bicycle. She’d washed it as best she could, even using a toothbrush to dig into the spokes. But because she was a little petty, she’d not used the toothbrush on the wire basket which still faintly stunk. Also, she’d lowered the seat a few inches.
Attached to the front was a note she’d written for the little girl, thanking her for the service of her bicycle and warning her that she’d beat her to the cookies at the next potluck.
Using the kickstand, she stood it on the lawn, rang the doorbell, and jogged away. The sun was out, but the air felt crisp, like the first whispers of autumn. She wondered if the leaves would change and fall.
It had been ages since she’d been on an actual run around the lake for exercise. She’d done plenty of running while fleeing dinosaurs. Later, she planned on changing into her workout clothes then make a loop around the waterfront, but first, there was one more thing she had to do.
A half-hour later, she was leading Six off the terrace, a handkerchief tied around his eyes.
“Just so you know, I got that kerchief off Flo, so I can’t vouch for how clean it is.” Not that the dirty cowboy would mind.
“Would ya just tell me where we’re goin’?”
Ella stopped, turned his shoulders to adjust his position, and told him to take the blindfold off.
“Ta-da!”
He squinted against the brightness. “Why’d you take me to the lake?”
“Not the lake.” Ella pointed at their feet. Engraved on a plaque attached to a large stone read, To all of the brave victims who fell at the hands of the Rough Riders. You will be forever remembered.
“You never properly mourned the loss of that family or your friends.”
She looked down at the engraving. It wasn’t the prettiest, but it was the best Will could do on short notice.
“They died at Ike’s hands. Not yours. Who knows where or when this town will go next, how many years the town will endure, but I figure, as long as we jump, this memorial will travel through history. They will be memorialized for generations.”
Six swallowed and continued to stare at the plaque.
Unsure if she should continue, she plunged ahead with the speech she’d rehearsed. “In my time, there’s a popular quote from a famous movie: ‘Get busy living, or get busy dying.’ You’ve been busy dying, Six. Honestly, I’m tired of it, tired of watching you drown while I’m on the shore, unable to save you.
“Despite your flaws—which, let’s be honest, are many—you’re a good friend. I can’t lose you. So, not only is this memorial for you to mourn your past, but it’s where you’ll leave it. The ghosts stay here. You can come to visit them when you feel the need, but the moment you step away, you’re on the shore with me. And you will get busy living.”
Ella stood beside him a long while, under the shade of the large oak tree, watching the shadows of Twin Hills grow across the lake. She searched out the vast blue canopy overhead and smiled.
The questions that had plagued her for the past week were answered. Darkness had been chased away by light, and she no longer fought the pull of a dark abyss. She had found the horizon.
THE END
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Stay tuned for Traveling Town Mystery #7!
TRAVELING TOWN MYSTERIES
#1 Pancakes and Poison
#2 The Body in the Boat
#3 Christmas Corpse
#4 Phantoms and Phonographs
#5 Perils and Plunder
#6 Ghastly Glitch
PET POTIONS MYSTERIES
#1 Potent Potions
#2 Ghostly Garlic
#3 Brutal Brew—October 31st