“Andy Griffith?”
“No, the other guy. Oh, I’ll think of it.”
As we talked, Myra checked her phone every thirty seconds, apparently expecting a call or message from Freddy.
“I’m sure he’s fine,” I said, trying to reassure her when Mother left the table to get the dessert.
At last, her phone dinged, and she grabbed it to read the message. I watched as her face fell.
“What is it? Is something wrong?” I took hold of her arm.
Right then, my mother walked in with one of the tubs from the party. Smiling, she asked, “Who’s in the mood for ice cream?”
I shot her a pointed look.
A tear slid down Myra’s cheek. “Freddy’s gone.”
Chapter 14
The cryptic message from Freddy’s ranch hand left us all wondering what had happened. He said that it looked like Freddy had packed and taken off. Myra wondered if he had gone to his mother’s house or was headed out of town. After the initial shock, her worry turned to anger.
“He could have at least called me,” she fumed. “I mean, it’s not like we’re engaged or anything, but he should have at least had the decency to call.”
“Sounds like you’ve got him on a short leash,” Tyler said, putting on his jacket. “No wonder he took off. Men need their space.”
I rolled my eyes. “Look who’s giving relationship advice. Last time you had a girlfriend, you were both wearing braces and had matching lunchboxes.”
“That’s what you think. I’ve had my share of girls.” He stuck out his chin. “In fact, I’m going out this weekend.”
“Oh really. I’m sure she’s a real peach.”
“Just wait. Even you would approve of this girl.”
“Oh yeah? I have heels higher than your standards.” The poor girl. I hoped she knew what she was getting herself into.
Myra coughed loudly. “Um, remember me? The one who needs consoling here?”
“Sorry, Myra.” She was obviously upset. As far as I knew, this was the first serious relationship she had in a while. I picked up the bottle of wine. “How about I follow you back to your house for a nightcap?”
“Sounds good.” She automatically began clearing the table.
Mom took the plates from her. “Leave those. You’re a guest tonight. I just hope your Freddy hasn’t run off with another woman.”
I slapped my forehead. It wasn’t that my mother was totally insensitive, but sometimes the filter between her brain and mouth got clogged.
We thanked my parents for the meal and headed outside. I followed Myra in my Jeep. The bright moon illuminated the narrow road as we maneuvered around a few patches of black ice. When we pulled up to her house, a light snow had begun to fall. Myra hadn’t left a light on, and the house was dark.
My teeth chattered and I held tight to my wine bottle while she fumbled with the keys.
“That’s weird,” Myra said. “I don’t hear Brutus. He always barks when I come home.”
The hair on my arms stood up as the wind howled and threw stinging bits of ice in our faces.
Myra opened the door slowly. “Brutus?”
Nothing.
She stepped inside and flipped on the light switch.
I crept in behind her. The room looked normal except for being dog-less.
A floorboard creaked in the hallway, and we both froze. Brutus padded his way into the light, panting and wagging his tail.
Letting out a sigh of relief, Myra bent down to scratch the dog’s ears. “There you are, boy. What were you up to? You better not have been chewing on the bath mat again.”
Just as I flipped on the kitchen light, a dark shadow appeared in the hall. I gasped and grabbed a knife out of the wooden caddy on the counter. “Stop!”
“It’s just me,” a gravelly voice whispered.
“Freddy?” Myra stood up.
He walked forward into the light. When he saw me wielding the butcher knife, he held up his hands. “What the—”
“What are you doing here?” I asked, still holding out my weapon.
“I came to say goodbye.” He turned to Myra with a hang-dog look on his face.
Myra motioned for me to put down the knife. “It’s okay, Wendy.” She put her hands on her hips to address Freddy. “How did you get in here? Where’s your truck? You scared me to death.”
“I pulled around behind the house. The back door was unlocked.”
She shook her head. “It’s freezing in here. Why didn’t you start a fire?”
“I didn’t want anyone to know I was here. Especially the sheriff.”
Uh-oh. That didn’t sound good. I moved back toward the knife block. “Why would you be worried about Sheriff Grady?”
“He paid me a visit today. I think he may be trying to pin Grover’s death on me.”
Myra blew on her hands. “You start the fire. I’ll get us a drink.”
“Make mine coffee.” Freddy headed for the stove. “I’m going to be driving tonight.”
She stood close to me and whispered, “What do you think? Should I forgive him?”
Why was she putting this on me? He was her boyfriend. I took the middle road. “Why don’t you hear him out and then decide.”
“Okay. Will you make the coffee? My hands are still shaking.”
I nodded. But before I got to work on the coffee, I pulled out a wineglass. Just because they weren’t drinking didn’t mean I couldn’t. Besides, Freddy had scared the pee out of me, and I needed to rehydrate. Okay, not literally, but I have learned that drama goes better with wine.
When I brought in the coffee mugs, Myra was inching closer to Freddy on the sofa. I needed to keep her focused. “So, tell us what’s going on.” The edge of accusation in my tone was obvious.
Freddy let out a sigh. “I haven’t been completely honest with you, Myra.”
Duh. That’s a line you never want to hear your boyfriend say. What was next? I’m married. I once killed a guy. I used to be a woman. I could see Myra holding her breath.
“I haven’t always been on the right side of the law. Back when I was a young buck, I got into some trouble. I hung out with some other punks and we got caught. Nothing serious. We broke into houses and helped ourselves to some of the merchandise. But I served my time and learned my lesson.”
Myra sat still, staring back at him. “So if that’s old news, what does it have to do with now?”
I wondered the same thing.
“Apparently, one of those women who came to the party told the sheriff she saw the scuffle that Grover and me got in. He asked me about it, and I came clean. Told him exactly what happened. But I could tell he didn’t buy it. He already knew about my criminal record.”
Myra set down her coffee. “Hey, I was there, too, remember? I can talk to Sheriff Grady and explain what happened. I can call him first thing tomorrow.”
Freddy shook his head. “I don’t know. I can’t chance getting thrown in jail. I have my momma to think about.”
Myra glared at him. “So how is running away going to help anything?”
He put his hand on hers. “I was hoping you could look after her for a while. I’m not going away forever. Just until all this blows over.”
“Sure, but—”
Freddy shook his head. “There’s more.”
Myra threw her head back. “What else?”
“Grady asked a lot of questions about you. He asked point blank if I had knocked Grover out and then had you lock him in the freezer. I’m afraid he thinks we might have done this thing together.”
“That’s ridiculous!” Myra jumped up and walked over next to the stove. “Why would you kill that guy? Because you were jealous? Give me a break. You barely even know him.”
A bang on the door caused us all to jump. Brutus howled.
As Myra inched toward the window, her eyes were wide as saucers. She pulled back the front curtain and flashing lights filled the room.
Another bang on the door
. “Open up! It’s the Cascada County Sheriff.”
“Quick! Hide!” Myra grabbed Freddy by the arm and pulled him to the back of the house.
I picked up Freddy’s mug, set it in the kitchen sink, and then sat back down, casually holding my wineglass.
When Myra returned, she sucked in a deep breath and opened the door.
Sheriff Grady entered the house followed by a deputy. He looked over at me. “What are you doing here?”
I exaggerated being indignant. “I beg your pardon?”
“Is anyone else here?” he asked. “I saw two cars.”
“Just us. The Jeep is mine.”
Grady nodded to the deputy, who then took Myra by the arms and slapped on a pair of handcuffs. “Myra Mendoza, you are under arrest for the murder of Grover Ward.”
“What?” Myra’s mouth fell open.
A shuffling noise came from the back of the house. I jumped up and knocked into the coffee table, trying to camouflage the sound. “Come on, Sheriff. Surely you don’t think she’s guilty.”
“Of course I do. And as soon as I find Freddy Callahan, I’ll be arresting him, too.”
I stuck out my chin. “On what grounds?”
Grady shook his head. “Last time I checked, you were a photographer, not a lawyer. I don’t have to tell you a thing.” He motioned to the deputy to take Myra away.
She looked at me and raised her voice. “If you talk to Freddy, tell him not to do anything stupid. We’ll get this straightened out.”
I assumed that was for Freddy’s ears more than mine.
Grady cut his eyes at me. “If you get to him before I do, tell him to turn himself in. He’s in enough trouble already. He doesn’t want to make matters worse for himself, especially if he killed his cousin by accident.”
I took a step back. “What? Did you say cousin?”
“Yeah, didn’t you know? The clown and him are cousins.”
As I watched Grady drive away with Myra in the back of the squad car, the back door slammed shut. Freddy pulled away in his truck as soon as the sheriff was out of sight.
Well, now, who knew Freddy and Grover were family? That made this case a horse of a different color.
BRUTUS THE BASSET HOUND weighed more than my car, but I couldn’t just leave him there alone. It took all of my strength to lift him onto the seat. I had no idea how long it would be until Myra was able to make bail. I found his bag of food and a rubber hamburger toy and drove to my house.
Cricket’s reaction to our visitor was less than welcoming. She hopped up on the kitchen counter and stared down at him as he circled the room sniffing everything in sight.
“I know what you’re thinking,” I said, trying to console her. “He’s just visiting. Be nice.”
She raised her shoulders and hissed. Was that for me or Brutus?
I drifted around the house, too, checking the heater and straightening up things that weren’t out of place. I couldn’t stop thinking about Freddy Callahan and Myra.
No way did Myra intentionally do anything to Grover Ward. But what if Freddy set her up? Maybe he actually did knock Grover out and put him in the freezer. Then Myra may have come along and locked the door. If he lied about being cousins with the clown, maybe he was lying about other stuff. After all, he did take off to save his own skin right after Myra was hauled off to jail.
I worried Brutus would be confused and upset being in a new place without his owner. But it wasn’t long before he curled up on the rug in front of the fireplace and fell asleep. A few minutes later he was snoring so loudly I had to shut the bedroom door. Cricket had refused to leave her perch in the kitchen.
Looked like another lonely night in paradise for me.
Chapter 15
Who needs an alarm clock when you have a half-ton basset hound howling to wake you up. The neighborhood rooster would be jealous. I pulled on my robe and let Brutus out in the backyard. Cricket used the opportunity to make her escape. She probably hadn’t gotten much sleep either.
I had tossed and turned most of the night trying to decide what to tell Grady about the flasks. Since he’d already made an arrest, he wasn’t likely to care about who was cheating on whom. But I had to give it a shot for Myra’s sake.
Finishing the proofs for the birthday party would keep me occupied until ten o’clock, when I was to meet Leslie Harper at the sheriff’s office. After dressing and saying goodbye to Brutus, I headed out the door. As I pulled into the street, I saw someone walking my way.
It was Jake. He walked up to my car window and leaned in. “Hey, long time no see.”
I took in a deep breath of his musky cologne and stared into his dark eyes. Talk about eye candy. I stopped myself before starting to drool. “What are you doing out of your bat cave?”
“Celebrating. I just finished up a big case and thought I’d get out and see what the real world was up to.”
“As opposed to the cyber world?”
“Yep. You should be glad. I finally showered.”
I tried to push away the picture of Jake in the shower, but it was just so yummy.
He tapped my arm. “Where are you off to, another birthday party?”
“So you heard about that, huh.”
“Sure. Nancy filled me in. Is Grady any closer to making an arrest?”
I felt the wind knocked out of me. “Et tu, Brute? Why would you ask that? Does everyone just assume it was a murder and not an accident?”
“From what I hear, Myra Mendoza admitted to locking the freezer. Sounds like she could be charged with involuntary manslaughter if nothing else. You know how Grady likes to throw people in jail.”
“Well, it’s actually worse than that.” I told him about the arrest and Freddy Callahan.
He ran his hand through his hair. “Sorry. Doesn’t sound good for your friends. Is there any physical evidence?”
I thought about the flask. “Maybe.”
A car coming down the street pulled past us and he waved. “Look, I know you’re busy, but if you need any help, just stop by.”
“I will.” Although I really didn’t want him to go, I needed to get to work. As I drove off, I could feel a big schoolgirl grin cross my face. I would be stopping by all right, whether I needed his help or not.
When I got to the studio, I made a pot of coffee and hoped that Nancy would drop by. Maybe we could make a plan to go out on Friday night now that Jake was finished with his case. Who knew cyber security was so time-consuming.
I quickly printed out the Randalls’ passport photos and started back in on the birthday party pictures. One popped up of Mr. Squishy and gave me the creeps. I moved on to the group photos. Zooming in, I checked the various shots to find one where Leslie Harper wasn’t looking totally miserable. Out of the ten, I found one where she seemed to have a faint smile.
I spent the next hour cropping and retouching until I had finally gotten thirty to forty shots I was happy with. I saved them to a folder on my computer and burned them onto a CD for Leslie.
It was nine thirty. I still hadn’t decided if I should tell Leslie that Gwen Palmer had called the lodge looking for her missing flask. It wasn’t proof positive that Gwen was having an affair with Leslie’s husband, but it was definitely suspicious. And what about Ally? Was she another woman in Preston Harper’s harem?
The buzzer sounded as someone came through the front door. Maybe it was the Randalls looking for their passport pictures. I was surprised to see Leslie Harper standing in the waiting area. Hopefully, she wasn’t getting cold feet. Grady needed to chase a lead other than Myra.
“Leslie, come on in.” I directed her to my office.
“I just dropped by to apologize and to let you know that I won’t be going to see the sheriff. All that nonsense about the flask was just that—nonsense. I talked to Preston and he cleared everything up. He’s not been seeing anyone behind my back. I was just being silly.” The smile on her face was about as genuine as a used car salesman’s.
Cold feet? M
ore like frozen feet. “But Leslie, there’s more to the flask than whether or not your husband was handing them out like candy.” Had I really said that out loud?
She fiddled with her car keys. “Oh, you mean that terrible incident at the party. I heard this morning that they arrested the lodge’s housekeeper. That should put an end to that. Now do you have those pictures for me? I want them for the society page of Friday’s edition.”
I picked up the disc and gave it to her. “Let me know what you want printed after you look at the proofs.”
She stuck it in her big Chanel handbag and turned to leave.
I wedged myself between her and the front door. “Just so you know, Myra didn’t do it.”
“That’s up to the police. It’s none of my concern.” She pushed past me.
“I know who brought the flask to the party.”
That got her attention. She stopped dead in her tracks but didn’t turn around.
“Don’t you want to know who it is?” She had to be curious, unless, that is, she already knew.
“I told you, my husband is not having an affair.” She walked out the door and got in her car.
I watched her through the window as she reached over and pulled a handkerchief out of her purse to dab her eyes.
She knows it’s true. A woman always knows. I felt a brief stab of pain for her. But she had made the choice to live the lie. That was on her. And who was I to judge? Sometimes you do what you have to do to survive.
Leslie did what she had to do; now it was my turn. Before I talked to Sheriff Grady, I had to find out if Gwen Palmer was indeed having an affair with Preston Harper and just how that flask ended up next to Mr. Squishy in the freezer. I had to stand up for Myra even if no one else would.
GWEN PALMER DIDN’T answer her phone, so I called Ally in the hopes she was working with Gwen. I was in luck. She said they were up at the falls catering for the movie crew. It was obvious Ally was star-struck. She went on and on about seeing the guy from some show she used to watch. She couldn’t remember his name, though.
Killer Shots Murder Mysteries - Books 1-3 Page 21