Missy DeMeanor Cozy Mysteries Boxset

by Brianna Bates

  “Miss …” Marie pleaded.

  Missy kept going. She couldn’t even grunt a response now. Her lungs felt on fire. Next to pass them was a bigger group. Missy watched them all and saw only one heel-striker:

  Gabby.

  Missy could barely process the information. It was all she could do to keep running at this insane speed. And to think they had four miles to go!

  They took a bend and Missy didn’t think she could keep up this pace, but then she saw a logjam ahead. The group was bottlenecked at the first obstacle of the course: a wooden wall they had to climb over using ropes.

  They pulled up behind the group. Missy nearly fell over. Marie palmed her thighs and bent at the waist.

  “I’m going to puke,” Marie panted.

  Missy couldn’t believe it. “We already ran a half mile?”

  “In less than four minutes.” Anastasia came up behind them, holding the stop watch out.

  “Now I’m really going to puke,” Marie said.

  Anastasia high-fived them. “Great work, girls!”

  She was hardly breathing.

  Missy used the time waiting in line to catch her breath. When they got to the front of the line, she latched onto a rope and put her heels on the wall. She could do two pull-ups—on a good day—so she didn’t know how she was going to get herself over the wall.

  “Come on, Missy!” Anastasia cheered.

  She gritted her teeth and pulled—and somehow, miraculously, found herself climbing. The wall was “only” eight feet so with a couple of pulls she could reach the top with her hand. Having watched the others go first, she knew what to do. Missy threw one leg over the top of the wall and used all her might to get her body on top of it.

  Somehow she got up there and straddled the wall for a moment. It was only eight feet but looking down from up there, eight feet seemed really high.

  “Oh my God,” Missy said.

  “I know,” Marie said. “Just hold on.”

  Missy kept hold of the rope and swung her other leg around. For a moment, she stayed perched up there then she started going down. Really quickly.

  She let go halfway and managed to land on her feet without injury. Marie was waiting for her.

  “Did I just do that?” Missy said.

  “Yeah, girl.” Marie’s breathing was a little more under control. “You ready?”

  Missy nodded.

  “I’ll set the pace from here on out,” Marie said.

  “Okay,” Missy said. She had gotten a look at about half the group so far and figured the other half would pass them in due course, so she would get a chance to see how everybody ran.

  Marie started jogging, much more slowly than before and Missy fell into a comfortable rhythm beside her. Next to pass were Anastasia and Leeann.

  To Missy’s surprise, Anastasia was a heel-striker. Leann’s form was a little sloppy, either from cumulative fatigue or just naturally. So Missy had to include her as a possibility.

  They jogged the next half mile to the second obstacle. Long, dark, plastic tunnels they had to crawl through like rats.

  Missy got down on hands and knees and just went for it. She shimmied her way down the endless pipe, keeping her eyes on the light at the end of it that seemed not to be getting any closer for the longest time.

  She eventually crawled out of the tunnel and got to her feet as Marie came out the other one.

  “I’m pretty sure I saw wildlife in there,” Marie said.

  They jogged on.

  More people passed, but they all ran on their toes. Missy began to wonder about the two sets of footprints she’d seen. Maybe the second set belonged to someone who wasn’t even involved in the killing. Maybe all she had to do was find the heel-striker. That set of prints began very close to where Eliana had been pushed.

  If that was the case, that made things easier. But she did like the idea that Carl and Adrienne had done it to explain away both sets.

  The third obstacle was a run, jump, and hang on at the top of a big hill. The last person to get up the sharp incline had to reach out for the next. Missy didn’t see how anybody could get up there alone and wondered who the first person had been. She ran as hard as she could and jumped at the last minute. Adam grabbed her wrist.

  “You got this, Missy.”

  He pulled her up like she weighed nothing, which was quite an impressive feat. At the top of the hill, Missy turned and reached out. Marie latched onto her wrist, and nearly pulled her off the hill, but Adam was still there and he grabbed Marie’s other hand.

  “You got it,” he said.

  Together, they hauled Marie to the top.

  “I nearly killed us both!” Marie said, but she was laughing.

  “Nah. Maybe a broken leg, but not death,” Missy said with a wink.

  “Okay, ladies, I’ll see you later.”

  “Thanks for your help, Adam!” Missy said. “Go get it!”

  Adam ran down the other side of the hill. Missy followed him for a bit, watching him closely. When he got to flat ground, she noticed that he too ran with a heel strike.

  The suspect list continued to grow throughout the race:

  Carl.

  Adrienne.

  Anastasia.

  Gabby.

  Adam.

  Paul.

  Joy.

  Leeann.

  And Stephanie.

  ***

  Missy couldn’t believe it. She’d gotten through every obstacle. It didn’t matter that she’d needed help on a few of them—the bottom line was she’d done them. Until this weekend, she would never have even considered attempting things like this. But here she was, ten obstacles in. Including a swim across the lake. She hadn’t swam that far in ages.

  And the last obstacle was just one more one hundred yard dash across sand.

  Exhausted from the obstacle course, Missy tried to run as hard as she could. About ten steps in, she realized how jarring it was to run on the beach especially when you were using a heel strike.

  Missy tipped herself forward a bit more and adjusted her stride length and hit the sand with the balls of her feet first. The difference was like day and night. Running on the balls of her feet across the sand felt weird, but at the same time she felt more fluid and lighter. Whipping across the beach at a good pace, Missy ran it out till the end.

  She was the last to finish, but that just meant everybody was around to cheer for her. After crossing the finish line, the group circled her and there was so much energy, so much good will, she almost felt like she could do the course again.

  But not quite.

  The celebration eventually died down. Anastasia went from person-to-person to give each a pep talk and congratulate them on a race well run. She noted that Jeremy had run the course nearly a full minute faster than he had last year, which was remarkable since they’d worked out this morning as well. The rest of the group applauded him, and there were shouts that he was going to win the overall prize at the Celtic Games this year, no problem.

  Anastasia approached Missy last. By then, everybody else had started wandering back to the cabins so there weren’t too many left hanging around.

  “Believe me now?” Anastasia asked.

  Missy nodded, knowing what she was going to say.

  “You can always do more than you think.” Anastasia gave her a hug. “All you have to do is show up. That’s it.”

  Missy couldn’t help but get a little choked up as they headed back to the cabins. She planned to grab a quick shower, phone Tyler, and then join Marie for dinner. After such a great workout, everything was sweeter. The mountain air tasted crisp, and the sunset was little brighter, and she had surprised herself.

  Back at the cabin, Missy showered quickly and came back out to her cot. Normally in the locker room she toweled and dressed in the blink of an eye because she was self-conscious around some of the other women, but tonight she felt comfortable in her own skin. Still riding the high from the afternoon session, Missy changed into
jeans and a t-shirt and brushed her hair out. Instead of feeling exhausted, she felt energized somehow. It had been the longest run of her life and she’d gotten through the obstacles.

  Back outside, everybody congratulated Jeremy on finishing first by a significant margin. He had beaten Byron and Richie both by over a minute.

  Someone got a bonfire going and everybody sat in a big circle while inside Anastasia and a couple others grilled. Missy could have gone for some more carbs because she didn’t know what was in store for them tomorrow.

  After getting her burger, Missy made her way back toward Marie. On her way, Leeann walked toward her.

  “Hey, Missy.”

  “Hey there.” Missy smiled. “We haven’t had a chance to talk all weekend.”

  Leanna smiled nervously and sat on the cot next to her. She was tall and long-limbed, a very good runner but she struggled mightily with weights. Though she’d been a member at WiredFit for years, Missy was already squatting as much as her. She probably could have kept up with the lead runners on the course were it not for the obstacles. Missy had seen her struggle on the walls.

  “Time flies when you’re having fun.”

  Though Leeann was a great runner, Missy had noticed she ran with a heel-strike. And earlier, Lieutenant Simon had spoken with her. Missy wondered about her history with Eliana.

  “Did you know Eliana well?” Missy asked.

  “Yeah.” Leeann got a faraway look in her eyes. “Really well, actually.”

  “Oh?”

  Leeann nodded. “She was misunderstood.”

  “How so?”

  “She wasn’t good with people. Many thought she was cold and heartless but I knew better. I wanted to tell everybody, but she asked me to keep it between us.”

  Missy was intrigued. This was the first person other than Anastasia and Jeremy to say a good thing about Eliana.

  “Now that she’s gone …” Missy said.

  “Oh, I’ve been telling everybody every chance I get.” Leeann smiled. “She donated a lot to cancer research for leukemia. That’s why we were close.”

  “Oh really? Did you lose someone?”

  “I almost lost me.” Leeann smiled. “I was diagnosed six years ago.”

  “I had no idea!”

  “I was one of the lucky ones,” Leeann said. “Many aren’t as fortunate as me. I used to run triathlons, but then I got sick. I lost a lot of weight—most of my muscle and since then I’ve had a heck of a time trying to rebuild my strength.”

  Missy didn’t know what to say. “Eliana contributed to research?”

  “Very generously.” Leeann nodded, like she was proud of the fact. “I mean, very generously. She lost a cousin to leukemia when she was younger so the cause was near and dear to her heart.”

  So Eliana gave generously for cancer research and she’d helped Anastasia out financially years ago right after she’d opened WiredFit. She must have done well for herself.

  “What did Eliana do for a living?” Missy asked.

  “She created apps.”

  “Apps?” Missy couldn’t believe it.

  “A ton of them, and she got in early when they were all the rage and anybody could put anything out and make money.” Leeann shook her head. “See, she was really an interesting and caring person. But because she didn’t have too many interpersonal skills, people saw her in a bad light. It’s a shame.”

  She donated regularly to cancer research. Missy couldn’t remember the last time she’d given significantly to any charities. Sure, she always bought Girl Scout Cookies and put her spare change in the jars left out at stores. But that was hardly the same thing. It sounded like Eliana committed a portion of her salary to charity.

  “I didn’t know her at all,” Missy said. “We only met yesterday.”

  Leeann nodded. “And I’ll bet she said something.”

  Missy smiled. “Yes, she did.” Then she remembered something. “Doesn’t Adam develop apps too?”

  “Yes. They tried to do a few together, but it never worked out.” Leeann looked over her shoulder, in Adam’s direction. “A couple years ago, he accused her of stealing one of his ideas.”

  “Really?” Missy asked. Adam had been one of the heel-strikers she saw during the obstacle course run.

  “They worked on a few things together, none of them panned out, and when she put out her next app, he made a stink. He said it had been his idea originally and she had claimed it couldn’t be done.”

  “Did she make any money off that app?”

  Leeann gave her a look. “Playing detective again, Missy?”

  “I can’t help it.” Missy smiled. “And it sounds like she was your friend. If she was murdered, don’t you want her killer caught?”

  Leeann smiled. “Of course. But Adam’s not a killer.”

  Maybe not, Missy thought. Or maybe.

  Chapter Twelve

  Missy sat next to Adam. He was finishing up his barbecue chicken and smiled at her with a mouthful of food. Adam was tall with dark hair and big shoulders, like he’d put in fences his whole life.

  “Hey, you,” Missy said. “I wanted to say thanks for earlier.”

  He finished chewing and waved a hand. “No big. That’s what you’re supposed to do when you’re on the top of a hill, help the next person up.”

  Missy nodded her agreement.

  Adam continued. “At some gyms, nobody would do that for you. But not here. Anastasia has created a real community.”

  “Yes, she has.”

  “You know she keeps a close watch on everybody, right? It’s true she won’t turn a customer away, but if someone is bringing everybody else down she’ll give them the boot. She’s done that a few times now, actually.”

  “Eliana was one, right? That was before my time.”

  “Yes. That was absolutely the right decision.”

  “Do you know why she did?”

  Adam took another bite of chicken. He finished chewing before answering. “Sure, I know. It doesn’t surprise me that she got caught doing something she shouldn’t have been doing.”

  “Why do you say that?”

  He frowned. “Look, I don’t want to say anything bad about her.”

  “Now that she’s gone?”

  Adam turned to look at her. “I don’t want to say anything bad about anybody, living or dead. But that woman …” He shook his head and looked down at his food.

  “Did something happen between you?” Missy asked.

  “You could say that.” He took another small bite. “Since something happened between her and everybody.”

  “I met her yesterday and inside of a minute, she made fun of my name.”

  “See?” He looked over at her. “My point exactly. She just had a way about her.”

  Missy decided to take a chance. “It sounds like she crossed paths with everybody during the run. Did she cross yours?”

  “Yeah.” Adam nodded slowly. “Just me and her and …”

  “And what?”

  “It was weird.” Adam sat up, all thoughts of his food suddenly gone. “She came out of nowhere, scared the bejesus out of me actually. You know, she was criss-crossing paths and changing trails because she wanted to double the mileage or something crazy like that.”

  “Yes, that’s what I heard. Was it raining at that point?”

  He thought about it. “The rain had started a few minutes before we crossed paths.”

  Missy checked another box in her mind. Not only was he a heel-striker, but the ground was getting muddy when he and Eliana had met on the trail.

  “What happened?”

  “She had that same look she always did: the angry one.” Adam leaned back. “I guess I have to backtrack a moment here for this to make sense. But a few years ago, she stole one of my ideas.”

  “For an app?” Missy asked.

  He nodded. “Back then, my apps were about half my income. Ah, the good old days.” He smiled. “Back then I could come up with just about any idea, co
de it, and start making money right away. From idea to payment sometimes only took a couple weeks.”

  “Wow.”

  “Like I said, the good old days. But that was a big part of my income. Eliana developed apps as well, but a different kind than me.”

  Missy didn’t want to get lost in the details here, so she was ready to steer Adam if need be.

  Adam said, “We tried working together, but she was impossible. I mean, literally, impossible. I would offer ten ideas, and she would reject nine of them. Meanwhile, she would come up with maybe one idea and if I challenged her on it, she would take it personally.” He waved a hand in front of his face. “She had no self-awareness.”

  “That must have been difficult.”

  He nodded vigorously. “You wouldn’t believe how difficult. I decided to move on because working with her slowed me down. In the time it was taking to agree on something with her, I could have just done it myself and seen right away whether it was worth it or not. It was a waste of both our times. About three months after we parted ways, I was researching new apps and found one that sounded exactly like one of my ideas that she’d rejected.”

  “Oh boy.”

  “I came to find out she had developed it.”

  “That’s terrible.”

  “That’s Eliana,” Adam said. “It wasn’t exactly what I’d wanted to do, but it was ninety-five percent the same thing.”

  Missy could tell he was still ticked off about it, but he also didn’t seem overly angry. She wondered how much money one app would have made him.

  “How many apps were you putting out a year at that point?” she asked.

  He gave her a knowing look, seeing right through the question. “I aimed for two or three a month. Some paid out, some didn’t.”

  So missing out on one app could have been a big deal. “And the one she rejected but later did herself—how did that do?”

  “Very well, as far as I could tell.”

  Missy tried to gauge his reaction. It obviously bothered him, but Adam wasn’t flying into a rage talking about it.

  “The good old days,” he said again. “I wish I could still make that kind of money developing apps. But things have changed. That’s grown into a mature and very saturated market so it’s very difficult to make a lot of money doing it now. I got in during the first wave. Good times.”