Rock Wolf Investigations: Boxset

by Dee Bridgnorth

  PART II

  Chapter One

  Titus Holbrook wasn’t used to being a creepy stalker. He wasn’t any good at it, which was probably why he was sitting on his front porch staring across the street at Kylie Overton’s house just as the first rays of sunlight filtered through the thick trees on the hilly, rock strewn shores of Tablerock Lake. He desperately wanted to know what Kylie Overton knew about… well, Titus just wanted to know what Kylie was up to. At least that’s what he told himself.

  The summer morning was shaping up to be a hot one. Not that this was anything unusual for southern Missouri in August. Every time Titus made a comment about the oppressive quality of the heat and humidity, someone would inevitably inform him this was nothing, that it was going to either get a lot worse, or it had been a lot worse, or that they remembered when it had once been so hot that they proceeded to recount any number of ridiculous urban legends.

  Titus was from Montana originally, only moving to Missouri to get a fresh start. That’s what he commonly told people since the truth was a little more complicated.

  He cocked his head to the right and then turned as he heard the rhythmic thwap, thwap of a pair of running shoes on the blacktop road that made up Titus’s street, Hawthorn Street. The street was a tiny little spur road that dipped down off an even larger and more meandering thoroughfare simply called Pine Road. Hawthorne Street was a dead end, which meant if someone was running down there, they were doing so because they were either coming or going on purpose.

  Soon enough, Titus spotted Kylie’s head bobbing up and down as she jogged up the incline and into view. Kylie wasn’t beautiful, not in the traditional sense. She was more of your girl-next-door type. She was athletically built, thicker than current fashion dictated. She wore her chestnut brown hair long and kept it piled atop her head in a messy kind of bun that rather defined everything else about her. Kylie’s entire manner was careless, as though she could not be bothered to put any more effort into her appearance or manner than absolutely necessary for the sake of politeness.

  Titus wasn’t entirely sure why she fascinated him, but he was quickly concluded that she did. Maybe it was the carelessness that interested him. The fact that she felt as though she was totally beyond the need to care about what other people thought.

  Titus was staring. He needed to stop. Kylie was humming along to whatever song was coming through her earbuds. Titus should not have been able to hear her but then he wasn’t the normal kind of creepy stalker neighbor. He had acute senses that allowed him to see, smell, and hear things the average human often missed. That was because Titus was a shifter, a man who could also turn into a werewolf. It wasn’t something he shared with anyone. Not usually, but last night he’d stumbled into rather a very strange situation that had ended with an awkward confrontation he now regretted. A lot.

  But Kylie apparently didn’t realize that. She was too busy jogging her way back to the house directly across the street from his. He watched her from the safe cover of his porch and tried not to feel so strange about this observation. He was in the security business. He watched people for a living, observing them, sometimes stalking them. He had a plethora of equipment and other tools at his disposal for this very purpose. So why did he feel like such a creeper right now?

  “Titus?”

  “Huh?” He almost dropped to the floor of his porch when he heard the unexpected sound of her voice calling his name. And to think he’d thought he was so undetectable! He was losing his edge for sure. “I—uh—good morning, Ms. Overton.”

  Kylie jogged up to Titus’s front gate and stood staring pointedly at him for a moment or two. Then she gestured to the gate. “I see you got it fixed.”

  “Yeah. I was tired of Ms. Wankenfurter letting her pug pee on my newspaper every morning,” Titus said by way of explanation.

  “Ah, yes, Pugsley.” Kylie gave a nod. There was a smile on her flushed face. Several strands of her hair curled wildly around her face and neck. She swiped at them and chuckled. “I suppose we all get a little tired of having our bushes and trees christened by Pugsley. It’s just part of living on Hawthorne Street. I think the Wankenfurters were the first ones to build here all those years ago. This was their retirement home, you know? But then Mr. Wankenfurter passed away and left Ursuline on her own…” Kylie looked embarrassed. “I’m sorry. I’m rambling. Look… can you come a little closer?”

  Titus was still on his porch. He stepped down and wondered if she was about to out him, in a manner of speaking of course. He swallowed the lump that had just appeared in his throat. It was so strangely awkward having this conversation. Titus wasn’t really all that good with people. He knew his coworkers at Rock Wolf Investigations, or rather, his employees. He liked them, but this was different.

  Titus stepped off the porch and moved toward the gate. Somehow that barrier was important. There needed to be something between the two of them, it just mattered. “What’s on your mind?” Titus asked, trying to sound normal and figuring he didn’t do a good job.

  Kylie pursed her lips. “I know you told Mrs. Wankenfurter not that long ago that you were sure the prowlers she’d been seeing around her house at night were just raccoons. And I’ll admit, I thought you were probably right. We have a lot of rodents in this area.”

  “And?” Titus steeled himself. Here it was. “You saw a raccoon last night?”

  “No. Well, I don’t know.” Kylie sounded upset. “I saw something. Titus, it was crazy. I was having wine with some friends in the backyard. It’s something that we do at least once a month. In the summer its weekly and I swear they’ve been at the house every night this week. Usually I don’t mind but…” Kylie suddenly looked chagrined. “Sorry. I’m totally off topic.”

  “That’s okay,” Titus murmured. If she was going to yell at him or say something embarrassing, she probably wouldn’t have gone down this conversational rabbit hole before getting right to it. “Just say it however you need to.”

  “Well, the fact that my friend Julie is getting married isn’t important to the story at all. It’s just fluff,” Kylie explained. “But I heard something outside the fence last night. It was odd. Like something moving around in the woods. So, I went out there with a flashlight. I have a gate.”

  “You probably scared it off, if it was a raccoon,” Titus offered.

  Kylie was already shaking her head. “It couldn’t be a raccoon. To be honest,” she said, looking as though she didn’t even want to say it out loud. “It looked… like a dog. But dogs don’t climb trees! And this one was way up in a tree as though he’d climbed up there to peek over my fence. Do you know how crazy that sounds, Titus?”

  “Kylie, dogs don’t climb trees,” Titus said slowly. This was even true. Dogs did not generally climb trees. “Maybe it was jumping up after the raccoon. Did you think of that? Maybe that dog you saw was out there looking for the same thing you were looking for.”

  For just a moment, she looked as if she might really be considering that explanation. Titus took that as a sure indicator that what Kylie had seen outside her fence the night before had really affected her, which was fine since it had affected him, too. It was the first time in a decade or more that he had been spotted by a human while in his wolf form. That wasn’t a good thing.

  “No,” Kylie said slowly. “Titus, I don’t think that’s what it was at all.”

  “What are you talking about?” Mrs. Wankenfurter came waddling down the street with Pugsley hurrying behind her. “Are you talking about the prowler last night? I saw him! I did! Did you see him, Kylie? I told you it wasn’t a raccoon. I knew it was a real prowler. Maybe now Mr. Fancy Pants Security Guy will believe us!”

  Titus stared at the elderly woman in the yellow and black muumuu and wondered what she was up to with her brand new accusations and tirade. There was no doubt in Titus’s mind the old woman had been up to something from the very beginning with her constant yammering about the prowler in the neighborhood.

  “You
know, Titus,” Kylie said slowly as she gazed at Mrs. Wankenfurter’s red face. The woman looked like she had nearly given herself a heart attack running out there when she’d spotted them having a conversation in front of the house. “She’s right. You have a lot of resources the rest of us don’t have access to.”

  “Oh really?” Titus was interested to hear what these supposed resources were. “What kind of resources are we talking about here? The police? I think you have access to that resource. You could call and report suspicious persons in the neighborhood. That’s what those neighborhood watch signs say you’re going to do. So, what’s stopping you from calling?”

  “I don’t know about the police,” Mrs. Wankenfurter was already shaking her head. “We live in Stone County and the resources are already spread too thin. Why, the Branson West Police Department doesn’t have enough time and attention to give to things like this. They’re too busy trying to keep the speeders in check. And so they should be! Have you seen how fast people are going out there on the highway these days? And just a two-lane highway, too! Since they put in that extra lane, all of a sudden people are driving like maniacs!”

  Speeders. It was all that Titus could do to keep himself from rolling his eyes. But that would have earned him another black mark in Mrs. Wankenfurter’s opinion and there was no doubt in his mind that she already thought of him as less than helpful.

  “What resources, specifically, do you want?” Titus finally asked the two women. He was starting to think this had been planned. Like maybe he had only thought he was the first one up and about on this hot morning. Kylie had left the neighborhood for a run perhaps thirty to forty-five minutes earlier. Maybe she had a meeting with Mrs. Wankenfurter before leaving. It was possible. Right? They’d come up with some plan to guilt him into putting surveillance on the neighborhood that would turn up only one prowler—Titus.

  “Not a lot of resources,” Kylie hedged. She glanced at Mrs. Wankenfurter.

  The old lady wasn’t as shy. “I think one or two full-time agents to keep a constant watch on the neighborhood and the street would be good. A full twenty-four hour shift should do it.”

  “You want me to provide twenty-four-hour daily surveillance for the whole street?” Titus felt his mouth pop open. “I don’t even offer that service to most of my clients!”

  “This is your personal residence,” Mrs. Wankenfurter reminded him. “It’s far more important.”

  “Right. But that’s also far more expensive. I thought the two of you were going to ask me for a camera or a video feed or something.” Not that Titus would have just agreed to either of those things either. “If you’re really worried about it, call a meeting with the rest of the neighbors. It’s much better if they all get together and volunteer to take turns with the surveillance. Don’t you think?”

  “Take turns?” Mrs. Wankenfurter looked as though she were ready to call out the National Guard. “You mean little groups of us walking up and down the street like a patrol?”

  “That’s exactly what I mean,” Titus said with a satisfied nod. “I think we would have better luck if you get the rest of the neighbors involved.”

  It was actually a really bad idea for Titus specifically. Though it was a lot better than having to go through hours and hours of video feed just to make sure he wasn’t accidentally getting video of himself in his wolf form bounding through the viewfinder of the camera. Live patrols would be trickier. When Titus was in his wolf body, he would have to make sure he wasn’t getting on the wrong side of any human. One more sighting and he would wind up having to go into hiding. He didn’t like that.

  “Titus is right,” Kylie suddenly decided.

  Mrs. Wankenfurter actually looked in danger of her eyes bugging out. “He is?”

  “I am?” Titus was surprised she had agreed so readily to his idea. “You think that will work, do you?”

  “You’re the security expert.”

  “No. I own a security company. I’m not the expert. There is no such thing as a security expert and that is my professional opinion,” Titus muttered. “And I’m sorry to have to break up this first meeting of the neighborhood watch patrol, but I need to go inside and get ready for work.”

  “It’s barely six o’clock!” Kylie protested. “Where are you going so early in the morning? You usually don’t leave until at least nine.”

  “What are you? My stalker?” He was actually rather flattered that she had just admitted to paying attention to his hours and his movements. It was pretty nice to think about. Sort of. The other part of that was him being totally unaware that anyone was watching him. He was getting lazy. Dammit.

  Kylie’s cheeks turned beet red. “No. It’s not like that. You have to realize that you leave at pretty much the same time that I do. That’s all. The winery opens at ten. I just try to get there a little before opening so I can be there when the first winery tour arrives at the counter.”

  But the truth was Kylie was watching him. This admission should have disturbed him. Flattered, but concerned. Yet he was finding it hard to be cautious as he thought about the fact that Kylie Overton was noticing him.

  Titus felt the smile stretch across his face and had no doubt he looked like an idiot. He just didn’t care. “Of course,” he told Kylie. “I’m sure it’s all coincidence. It always is.”

  Kylie tried to wave him down when he started to walk away. “Won’t you help with the neighborhood watch?”

  “I’m not really into that sort of thing. I’ll be honest with you. You’re probably better off without me.” Except Titus would be able to keep a closer eye on her and the rest of his neighbors if he were part of this endeavor. Plus, it would make him able to know if they had found out his big secret. “But I’d be happy to do a patrol or two every week. Just send me a note or something. Let me know when the meeting is.”

  Titus whistled his way back up the front walk. He wasn’t quite ready to admit his other enjoyment from participating in the ridiculous committee would be getting to spend some more time with Kylie. That was a thought for another time.

  Chapter Two

  The last strains of “Don’t You Love My Cheating Heart” echoed through the Ozark Star Theater. The crowd was already on its feet waving their hands and cheering as Kari Jo Mounds paused for a moment in the blazing hot spotlights. Her beautiful young face was etched in lines of dramatic sorrow that perfectly matched the last stanza of her song about a young girl begging her lover for a second chance. Kari’s long, loosely curled honey brown hair glittered with streaks of silver and gold. Her face was damp from perspiration beneath the broiling hot lights. She looked as though she was the biggest rising star in country music.

  The twenty-two year old up-and-coming music star waved her hands and beamed at her audience. “Thank you!” she shouted into the microphone. “Thank you all! I love you, Branson!”

  From stage left, Adam Cathcart rolled his eyes and wondered for about the millionth time why he didn’t just pass Kari Jo onto another manager. The next act was waiting at stage right, the actual headliner of the show. He was a Garth Brooks impersonator who was eerily good at his job, so much so the famous singer had actually come to the Ozark Star last year to check out the impersonator. With that seal of approval on file, the tickets to see the tribute concert and its two opening acts were almost always sold out. Of course, if you asked Kari Jo Mounds, she’d tell you the tickets were sold out because of her.

  “Can’t you get her off stage?” Clint Beecham, the stage manager at the Ozark Star, glared at Adam and thumbed toward center stage where Kari was way past her two minute closing time and had gone to the edge of the stage to grab the hands of any concert attendees who were brave enough to try to climb up on stage. “We’ve talked about this, Adam. There are two minutes for her to close her shit after the last note. And for shit’s sake, that last note is a whole note. Not some marathon sixteen beat lung killer that lets her stand out there and wiggle her derriere for ten minutes!”

  Ada
m was already leaning as far out around the curtain as he dared. Behind him, Clint had his button on the curtain. He wasn’t above closing it right on Kari Jo to get her attention. He’d done it before. But at the moment, Kari Jo was in front of the curtain so they couldn’t even corral her in that way.

  “Psst!” Adam stage whispered to Kari Jo. “Enough already! Come on!”

  But Kari was in her element. She was waving and whispering to the crowd and acting like the starlet she might someday become in reality. Adam exhaled a sigh then gestured to Clint. “Drop it. I’ll drag her off the front side.”

  The curtain dropped. Adam ducked around to the front of the stage area and counted to three. He kept his eyes on Kari Jo as she received bunches of flowers and teddy bears and no small number of pieces of paper with phone numbers on them. She was so busy with her adoring public that she probably didn’t even realize the house lights were about to go off.

  The house lights dropped completely. The notorious sound of rolling thunder filled the theater and suddenly the fans were heading back to their seats and the screaming was renewed. Adam ran out onto the stage and grabbed hold of Kari Jo. She was still visible thanks to the sparkle of all of the glitter she had in her hair. With her arm in his grip, Adam had to practically drag her off stage.

  “Adam!” she whined when they were safely backstage. “Adam, stop! Oh my God, you are such a bitch!”

  Adam let go of her arm and turned around to glare at her. “I’m a bitch? Really? How many times have you been told there is a two minute limit for time at the end of your show? You know better!”

  “Two minutes isn’t long enough,” Kari sniffed.

  She was holding an armload full of loot. Several stage hands appeared a moment later with the rest of what had been tossed onto the stage. They dumped it unceremoniously at Kari Jo and Adam’s feet before rushing off.