Death on the Bella Constance (A Jesse Watson Mystery Series Book 6)
Page 34
“Why are you locking up everything?” Her mind went into a panic. How would she get back into the camper and the truck if he fell off the mountain with the keys in his pocket?
“I don’t feel comfortable leaving everything unlocked,” he replied. “You never know who might be lurking about.”
“Don’t be silly,” Lois told him. “Besides, what would I do if something happened to you and I couldn’t get inside?”
He reached into his pocket, pulled out his cell phone, and said, “We have this. If anything should happen to either one of us, the other one could call for help.”
“What if there’s no signal out there?”
“You may have a point. I’ll tell you what. I have a spare key to the camper in my glove box. I’ll go get it.”
“What about an extra key for the truck?”
Bret turned and looked at her strangely. “Why are you so concerned about having keys to everything?”
She stiffened. His question had hit home. She didn’t want him to become suspicious, so she made up a story. “When I went camping with my folks a long time ago, my dad broke his leg. He slid and fell down the side of the mountain, and my mother couldn’t reach him. She couldn’t get in the car and go for help because he had the keys in his pocket. We had to walk four miles to the nearest house to call for help. My dad lay there in pain for hours before he was rescued. I just don’t want something like that to happen to you.”
“If you’re that worried… here… take the keys.” He handed her the set of keys. “Just don’t drop them off a cliff or we’ll be walking home.” He laughed. “Do you feel better now?”
“I feel much better.” She smiled.
After walking for an hour, they finally reached the waterfall. They both stood and took in the scenery. Lois couldn’t get over how breathtaking it was even though she wasn’t fond of the great outdoors.
“It’s so beautiful here.”
“Yes, it is,” Bret agreed. “Now you can see why I wanted to come.”
Lois stood and looked around, surveying the area.
At the top of the mountain, the end of the trail was cut off and guarded by a row of huge boulders set there by man to keep curious hikers from getting too close to the drop-off point. The area was a big, open space to view the scenery, and a great place for a picnic.
“Where are we going from here?” Lois asked, trying to conceal her excitement of things to come.
“The trek back is going to take a while, so I figured that this would be enough for one day,” Bret replied.
She knew that if this was the end of the line for them, there was no way she’d be able to accomplish her goal. Bret wasn’t stupid enough to venture past the rock wall. This would put a crimp in her plans. Then a thought occurred to her. If she could just get him to be adventurous enough to stand on a boulder, that’s all it would take. She’d shove him over the cliff! So what if he knew before he died that she had been the one to cause his death? She walked over and jumped up on one of the boulders.
“Look, Bret,” she said. “Come join me!”
“Get down from there right now, Lois. It’s not safe.” He walked over to her and held out his hand. “Please come down, Lois. You could fall.” He looked over the cliff and gasped. “Please, get down right now! The ground’s still wet and I bet your shoes are probably slippery, too.”
“I have on hiking boots, Bret. I’m not going to fall. Come on, jump up here with me. It’s so exciting to be this close to the edge!”
Bret turned and walked away. “I’m not going to play your silly game, Lois.”
Furious at him for being such a fuddy-duddy, she called out to him as she danced around on the rock, “See, Bret. I’m fine. Nothing’s going to happen. You’re just a chicken.”
He turned and walked back over to her. “I’m not scared,” he said, his voice dropping to a whisper as not to upset her. “Please get down, honey. I don’t know what I’d do if anything happened to you.”
“Please Bret. Live a little.”
After much pleading, she finally coached him up onto the boulder by promising that they would get down after one minute… exactly.
She held his hand and then took a deep breath of the fresh mountain air.
“You were right, Bret. This is so beautiful. I’m so glad you brought me here.” She turned to him, let go of his hand, and then said, “I lied. Die, sucker!” She shoved him with all her might and watched as he tumbled down the steep incline… into the abyss.
His screams echoed throughout the hills.
She jumped down off the huge rock and pranced about, basking in her accomplishment.
By the time the rescue team finally got to her husband, it was too late. He was already dead. Tears streamed down her checks when one of the EMTs said that if they had only gotten to him sooner, he might have survived. She told them over and over that she wished she had been the one carrying the cell phone. Maybe her husband would still be alive. She cried and cried, but her tears were only for show. The whole time, she kept silently asking herself how much longer this could possibly take. She had things to do, people to see. She wanted to hurry home and start her life over… as a rich widow.
Lois put on a good front in the following months. She was right about the cruise. When she mentioned it, her friends told her it was a good idea to get away for a while. They promised it would do her a world of good.
She booked a cruise on the Bella Constance the next day, heading to Bermuda. She was thrilled to be doing something so exciting. To top it all off, she met a very interesting man the first day on board. He was single, handsome and appeared to be well-off, financially. She could tell by the expensive clothes he wore.
She didn’t question why a man of such means and obvious good looks would take a cruise alone, but that was soon answered during a private dinner in his luxurious stateroom the next night.
“I have something special for you,” he said as he tossed a large vanilla envelope on the table.
She smiled as she opened the envelope and dumped the contents on the table. Unfortunately, her smile was short-lived when she saw the pictures that had fallen out. Evidence of her husband’s murder lay spread out in front of her.
“How…” she started to ask, but her mouth just fell agape. She looked up at him, bewildered. “Where…”
“It doesn’t matter how... or anything else,” he replied snidely, with a grin on his face . “What matters is—how are we going to spend all that money your husband left you?”
She was shocked beyond belief. Bret had chosen that specific spot because he said no one would be around for miles.
He was wrong.
Acknowledgments
Thanks to Greene County Sheriff Scott Haas for taking the time to answer my questions about the law, and Joanne Peach, R.N., for her help with medical information. A special thanks to Kelley Cleaton/graphic artist and Elaine Barnett/photographer. And, thanks so much to Roberta Carrier/Journalist, for always writing wonderful articles about me. A warm thanks and much love to my family for always being there for me.
Look for my next book:
All About the Money
A Jesse Watson Mystery
Book #7
This book is dedicated to Athena, Thor, and Spice Cat.
Loved because they are who they are.