by Amber Boffin
Tina clasped the top of his right shoulder from behind and gently pushed him down onto a chair. The pressure of her fingers had given him a brief reprieve from his pain. She put her bag down on the counter and rolled up her sleeves, as if she were ready to enter a fight. “You are so tense. It would be easier without your jacket with those straps on the shoulders.” She pointed to his insignia. “I’ll focus on the pressure points.”
Sergeant Humphries sighed.
“In my earlier life, I was an acupressure practitioner, before becoming a journalist. The pain will go as the endorphins are released, but you need to relax a bit.”
Sergeant Humphries swung around on his chair, clenching his teeth. “How can I? With this case and your article this morning.” He pushed his palm against his forehead. It was as if someone had hit him above his right eyebrow, preventing him from standing up. He sat back in his chair. He hadn’t had a migraine like this in a very long time. For some reason, the case was getting to him more than any in the past. He felt Tina’s cool fingers on his temples.
“You see? That’s exactly what I mean. Now, give me five minutes, then we’ll talk.”
He breathed deeply and closed his eyes. “Five minutes.”
*
Sergeant Humphries had no idea how long he had been sitting there. When he opened his eyes at the aroma of a cookie, Tina was sitting opposite him, nibbling away at her snack. She looked at him expectantly.
He shook his head. He could still feel a faint pain, but he was able to think again. He had trouble believing it would last, so he stood up and walked around the room. He smiled at her. “I have to say, whatever you did has really helped. You should open a practice here. Thanks…”
Tina beamed back at him. “Good, so you’re fine with my article then. You have to admit that it’s very likely Kate is the missing women. She was seeing Ben Fearon—”
“Don’t think for a moment that what you just did now will have any influence on my opinion. You should’ve asked me first before going ahead with your article. This Kate claims she didn’t go to the forest.”
Tina rolled her eyes. “That can’t be. She said she was going there and asked me all kinds of questions about the ghost when she was on my mushroom class.”
She shook the bag of cookies under his nose. The temptation was too strong, and he plunged his large hand into the paper sack. Having felt at least six of them in the bag, he picked two and slid them in his palm.
He paused, a cookie on its way to his mouth. “Why would she lie?”
Tina shuffled in her handbag and pulled out a pile of papers. “This might give you the answer. I’ve been following Ben Fearon for a few years now, since I wrote an article on him as a freelancer for a major Toronto newspaper. He was plotting one of his coups against this logging operation up here.”
She placed a copy of a picture of him up a tree, where he had set up camp. At the bottom, a harvester machine appeared to be ready to cut his tree down. The forest didn’t look like a maple bush but rather a tropical rain forest.
“This was in Brazil. And he appears to be a tree-hugger, no harm…well, I have reason to believe he was upping his fight since that didn’t work. He has claimed he placed undetectable nails in trees so that—”
“Yes, I see. What makes you say he was targeting the company here?”
Sergeant Humphries had a vague memory that Stuart had mentioned he was suspicious of two of his men but thought it was related to a forest in British Columbia, not here.
“A hunch. Ben Fearon is from British Columbia. Why would he come to Foxton?”
“They don’t have our autumn colors, for a start.” Sergeant Humphries took another bite of the delicious chocolate chip cookie. “Where did you get them? They’re good!”
“I have to confess, I’d like to say I baked them, but I’ve got so little time for baking that I bought them at the Horizon Cafe.”
“I didn’t know she made cookies too.” Sergeant Humphries would have to get Constable Gupta to get some for him next time, although he did really like her cinnamon rolls, and he had to stop thinking of food. However, it had served another purpose: it reminded him that he had seen Kate in Foxton before, which was in line with what Barrie Brown had told him.
He wouldn’t find any details in his notes, since he had let her go with a simple warning. She had seemed so upset about a family matter, he hadn’t had the heart to hand out a fine for speeding or ask her what she was upset about. For some reason, he sensed Tina was hiding something about her encounter with Ben Fearon and Kate.
“I know it isn’t Kate Bingham’s first time in Foxton. Have you met her before your class?”
Tina replied dryly, “Seen her, but never spoken to her.”
“During your course, could they have been misled in picking a mushroom that wasn’t edible? It’s easy even for experts to make mistakes…”
Tina straightened up in her chair as she kept pulling at a loose thread on her sweater. “Are you accusing me of—I can’t believe it. I was very clear and even repeated myself several times, and I can’t help if they’re idiots and forget what I told them!”
“Did you point out to either of them a mushroom that might make someone ill?” Sergeant Humphries was thinking of Kate’s accusing finger directed toward Tina. He had trouble imagining Tina pointing out a toxic one as edible to them, even if she disliked them. But he had to verify it. “They could have mistaken the information and thought it was edible?”
Tina’s eyes welled up. “Sergeant, I never thought you’d be capable of such atrocious accusations after all the help I’ve given you. I don’t know what to say.”
Sergeant Humphries felt bad. He never liked accusing a fellow Foxtonian. “Calm down. I’m not accusing you. Look, I’m only trying to understand what happened. Have you?”
“I might have, but I always do so that people can learn to make the difference between the good, the not so good and the bad. You see, some of them can be toxic if you don’t prepare them well. It’s not that simple.” Tina paused and wiped the black streaks from her cheeks. “That can only mean Kate told you that! Oh, how I misjudged her. Now I’m certain she must have killed him and not the other way around.”
“Now, now, no one is accusing anyone for now, just following leads.” Now that he had unleashed Tina, he had to warn her. “Before you publish anything else on this affair, you have to run it by me. Understood?”
Tina stood up and reached out for her pile of papers. Sergeant Humphries laid his hand flat on them. “I’ll get my constable to look into this.”
He would talk again to Stuart. He might give the outsider’s perspective he was after.
Tina’s face brightened up. “So sorry. I know you have to do your job, and so do I. And I will show you my articles…if I can get exclusivity of the story?” Sergeant Humphries was about to answer when she continued. “You look much better then when I first arrived.”
Two police officers walked in with a tray of coffees. Sergeant Humphries had always hidden his migraines from his staff, and he definitely didn’t want them to hear about Tina’s treatment now. In a loud voice, he said, “Yes, that’s fine. Thank you, Tina, you’ve been helpful. Let me walk you to the door.”
He nodded at the officers, acknowledging their arrival, and ushered Tina out of the building.
*
Maggie pulled up at Adam’s little farm. Barrie’s bike was parked next to Adam’s vintage Toyota Land Cruiser. Carrot and Beans barked in her ears, eager to jump out of the car and greet Adam’s two llamas, Mary and Harry. They had become accustomed to each other from the times Maggie had looked after Adam’s animals while he was away.
As soon as she opened her door, the dogs dashed out and ran up and down the fence, mirrored by the two llamas. Maggie opened the gate for them, careful to close it behind her. She didn’t want the llamas to escape and fall ill again, as had once happened. She had made sure to put a few carrots in her pockets; a guest must never come empty-handed
…
Mary was the first to prick up her croissant-shaped ears and run straight to her. The first time she did that, Maggie was intimidated by this assertive animal breaching her comfort bubble. Mary had learned that she wasn’t allowed to pinch Maggie’s curls between her mobile lips, if she wanted to receive a treat. Instead, the llama pushed her nose against Maggie’s pocket, fully aware of what it contained.
“Patience. You know I don’t like being bullied. Mary, what did I say?” Mary lifted her head and pouted like a diva. “This isn’t what I meant. This is unlike you, Mary.”
Maggie’s voice seemed to calm the llama, who bent her head down, ears and tail up. Maggie pulled the carrots from her pocket. Mary ran off with hers, as if she were scared of something. Maggie looked in the opposite direction from where she had run; it couldn’t have been something very dangerous, otherwise she would have left her treat behind. A tall figure was approaching.
The evening sun that had slipped under the blanket of clouds above the tree line was blinding her. It wasn’t Adam, in spite of the ponytail.
Brigit smiled down at Maggie. “Good to see you. You have a magic touch with Mary.” She laughed. “I think she doesn’t like me for some reason. Look.”
She pointed to Mary, who was at the far end of her enclosure, her ears back, looking at them. Beans and Carrot gathered around Maggie, sniffing Brigit’s trousers.
“It was the same with me when I first met her,” Maggie lied. Mary had always been curious and friendly with her. “She’ll come around. You’re okay with dogs?”
“Sure.” Brigit knelt down and gently stroked Carrot on his neck. “Sweet animals. I heard you adopted them. That’s so nice of you.” She stood back up. “Let me help you carry something.” Brigit lifted the foil from Maggie’s dish. “What a feast. It’s starting to look like a Thanksgiving dinner. A great dessert. I like pumpkin.”
Brigit was very welcoming, and more than that, it was as if she owned the place.
“It’s a savory gratin, to go with the roast. I like cooking. I’m glad we meet again, under better circumstances. What a story...”
“I must admit, I expected my time in Foxton to be relaxing to the point of boring.” Brigit put a hand on Maggie’s shoulder. “Sorry, I don’t mean boring per se, only that nothing much happens here. I’m making it sound worse.” She grimaced. “You grew up here, right?”
Maggie had to walk fast to keep up with Brigit’s bouncy pace. “Yes, then I moved to England, and I’ve only been back since last winter. Don’t worry, I’m not offended. I thought the same when I came back here, and I can tell you it has been far from boring. Perhaps a little too eventful. I’d rather Foxton be a sleepy town than the scene of human tragedies. I hope it doesn’t deter you from staying here?”
Maggie bit her lip. Did she really mean what she said? Brigit had an appeal she had rarely encountered; she was charismatic yet approachable. Maggie was even drawn to her with a desire to befriend her.
The old wooden cottage had never been so neat. The shutters and windows had received a fresh coat of red paint. Adam had even painted the front door, something he had said would have to wait till next year. A long ribbon of smoke from the chimney meandered into the fiery maple bush.
They had reached the front door, which had been left ajar. Brigit pushed it open with her free hand. “Not at all. I’m even thinking of using it as a base. Did Adam mention that we’re looking for a wildlife photographer to take tourists on remote expeditions up north?”
Maggie sat on a wooden bench in the small mudroom. Above her head, Adam’s collection of leather hats hung in a line. Only a few pairs of his low leather boots were tucked under the bench. An inviting pair of sheep slippers lay next to the mat, far too big for Maggie, but not for Brigit, who slipped them on.
Maggie pulled off her muddy shoes and wiggled her toes in her woolen socks. That was all she had. She regretted not having brought a pair of heels. Hopefully, Adam and Barrie would be walking around in their socks, as they typically did this time of year. She looked up at Brigit, who had swung her long ponytail away from her shoulder.
“Yes, he mentioned it. I love wildlife photography; it’s my passion.”
Brigit kept looking at the mudroom door. “I have to warn you up-front. If I get selected for the Antarctica expedition, which is something I’ve wanted for a long time, it will change everything. I won’t be able to commit to anything till I know the outcome, but I need to have a plan for if it doesn’t work out, hence this Nordic safari idea.”
“I totally understand. I like your idea, so who knows, I might even find a way to make it work if you can’t. That way you won’t feel you’re wasting your time on it.”
A voice from the kitchen called out, “Is that you, Brigit? I saw Maggie’s dogs out the window, have you found her?”
“Yes. We’ll be with you in a minute. We’re having a nice chat,” Brigit replied loudly, then whispered, “He hates when I talk about Antarctica, but I warned him that nothing would change my mind. I wasn’t looking for a relationship now, and I don’t want to hurt him.” She touched gently one of the feathers sticking out from Adam’s favorite hat. “It isn’t easy.” She let her hand drop and smiled. “Enough about me. I heard you have your flying license, wow. I know it requires a lot of skill to land on water.”
“Soon. I’ve still got a couple of hours to go, and the final exam. Landing on water is really a matter of practice, lots of practice in different conditions.”
Maggie followed her through the mudroom’s glass door.
“What made you want to learn to fly?” asked Brigit.
Maggie didn’t reply right away. She was trying to digest all Brigit had told her. There wasn’t anything new; Adam had already shared that information with her, but the idea of Brigit and Adam as a couple had remained in the realms of fiction in her mind. She knew it would change as soon as she crossed the threshold of the kitchen door. She had no idea how she would feel then.
Chapter Seventeen
Adam and Barrie were talking next to the gas stove. Now that Brigit had joined them and lifted the lid of the pot in front of her, the kitchen appeared to have shrunk to the size of a children’s playhouse. To Maggie, the place had always seemed cozy, but never that small. Perhaps the low ceilings had something to do with it. Even Barrie’s aftershave had no room to dissipate and was overpowering the nice cooking aromas.
Maggie held back a cough, not wanting to appear asocial toward Barrie. “Where did you find these hazelnuts?” She pointed to a bowl filled with plump nuts. “Are they really from the hazel bushes you showed me?”
Adam took a few nuts in his hands and held them tight until he heard a crack. He opened his large hand and held it open for Maggie to pick one. “Yup, but that’s all I’ve got. I had a fight with the chipmunks and squirrels for the rest of them, and I lost…”
Maggie held up a nut to inspect it and then gobbled it. “Tasty.”
Brigit took a couple from Adam’s hand and popped them into her mouth. “I love nuts. I must have been a chipmunk in another life.”
Maggie’s eyes traveled up Brigit’s athletic body, finding it hard to imagine what it would be like to be tall like that. She wasn’t quite Adam’s height, but she was half a head taller than Barrie.
“Barrie, have you already told Adam your story?” Maggie asked softly.
He nodded. “Brigit knows too.”
“Yes, a strange woman, really. I know her—rather, I’ve met her, I should say, before you think she’s related to me.” Brigit looked at Barrie.
“I wasn’t going to say that,” Maggie said, thinking it didn’t take away their likeness.
“Barrie thought I was the sister she’d talked about to him. He had such a shocked face when I opened the door to him this evening, I was about to slap him to get him out of it.” Brigit laughed and squeezed Barrie’s shoulders. “I hope you forgive me for scaring you like that…”
Barrie’s soft brown eyes were smiling at B
rigit as he squeezed her in return. Maggie couldn’t hold back her curiosity. “You said you met her? It must’ve been recently, then?”
“She came to our base and asked all kinds of questions about how we would rescue someone lost in the forest. How easy it would be for us to locate them. And how best to contact us if something happened to her in the bush.”
Adam looked at Brigit. “You never mentioned that to me.”
“I didn’t think it mattered. I didn’t see her at the cabin.”
Adam shrugged. “No worries.”
“She asked one question that bothers me now that I’ve heard your stories.” Everyone sat down at the dining table, focused on Brigit. “If we had had cases of plant poisoning and if they had survived it. I’ve only been here a few weeks and told her I had no idea. I did say that it was feasible to forage for food, and there was nothing wrong with that if she was well prepared for it. I’ve done it myself as wilderness survival training. She claimed to have done it herself as well, but her boyfriend was the expert.” Brigit shook her head. “That’s why it was weird for her to ask about it, if they’re experts…”
“Not really. Maybe she’s a cautious person and doesn’t assume she’ll never make a mistake,” Maggie said as she walked to the kitchen. She was back at the table within a few seconds with her piping hot pumpkin gratin now that Adam had brought out his roast.
Barrie let out a loud cry. “Ha. Kate a plant expert? No way. She couldn’t tell the difference between a dandelion and a buttercup. Even I can do that.”
“Maybe she is now,” Brigit replied. “Especially if she wanted to impress Ben Fearon.”
“What will you learn to impress me then?” Adam asked with a twinkle in his clear blue eyes.
Maggie pondered for a moment what she could learn that might have a positive impact on Adam’s view of her… More about wolves, perhaps? She doubted Brigit would be interested in that type of knowledge; she seemed to be more of a people person, given how Mary the llama had reacted to her.
