by Cindy Bell
“I’m sure they have.”
“Have you ever shot a bow and arrow, Mee-Maw?” Ally studied her with admiration as her long, gray hair rippled in the breeze. She was the only family that she had, and she was the most important person in her life. But she didn’t know all of her stories. She hoped that one day she might, but she knew it would take a very long time.
“Once.” Charlotte nodded. “I didn’t want to, but I wasn’t given much of a choice.”
“That sounds interesting.” Ally settled in one of the chairs. “Tell me about it?”
“It was because of Karen. She and her whole family were into archery. They even had a range on that property they never built anything on. One afternoon she invited me to go with them, and I decided not to turn them down. This was when your mother had gone off to college, and before you were born. I was struggling with the shop, not sure if it would last, and they were potential investors. When we got there, I discovered she had a surprise in store for me. She wanted me to learn to shoot. I told her no thanks, I’m not much for weapons. She said, we just shoot targets around here, it’ll be fun.” Charlotte rolled her eyes. “So of course, I did it.”
“I bet you were amazing.” Ally grinned as she saw the light shine in her grandmother’s eyes. “I bet you got a bullseye on your first try.”
“No, I absolutely wasn’t. I fired the darn thing backwards! Don’t ask me how I did it, I have no idea, but I almost took out her son, little Billy, who was playing in the field. Luckily, he moved, not that it would have hurt him, as it was the back of the arrow, and it wasn’t going very fast. But still, it shook me to the core. I vowed I’d never pick up another bow and arrow. Looking back on it, it seems a little silly now, but it was serious to me then.”
“I can see why. I’d still love to know how you fired backwards, though.” Ally laughed as she got Peaches out of her carrier, so she could walk around a bit. She was known to roam so Ally made sure she kept an eye on her.
“I don’t think there’s any way that I can ever explain that. Oh, the canoe race is starting soon. They are getting ready. I think we’ll be able to see a lot of it from here.” Charlotte scooted her chair around to the front of the table.
Ally scooted her chair around as well. As she looked towards the water, past the people sitting on their picnic blankets, she noticed Josh and Frank, and one other man who she didn’t recognize heading towards the start line.
“Do you know who that is?”
“Uh, Christian I think. He’s an out-of-towner, just came in for the fundraiser.”
“How did you find that out?”
“How do you think?” Charlotte pointed her thumb in the direction of Mrs. Bing as she headed their way. “Those three ladies always have the dish on everybody.” She shook her head as she looked back out at the river. “I wonder who will win?”
“Well, I know that Josh has been canoeing ever since he moved here, maybe even longer. Frank could surprise us, though. He hasn’t lived here long enough to reveal his boating talents. Hi, Mrs. Bing.” Ally smiled as the woman reached them. “How is everything going?”
“Quite well! What a wonderful day.” Mrs. Bing pressed her hand against her chest and gazed up at the sky for a moment. “Sometimes I think everything is just too perfect for words.”
“I’m glad you’re having such a good time.” Charlotte grinned.
“Oh look, here come the canoes.” Ally stood up and cupped a hand over her eyes so that she could have a clear view of the approaching canoe. It took her several seconds to figure out what she was seeing. “Mee-Maw, I think something’s wrong!” She ran towards the edge of the river. Several other people darted towards the water as well. The man in the canoe was hunched over, way too far to be just resting.
“Is he okay?” Charlotte caught up with her and tried to see who it was in the canoe and why he was slumped over. Several men splashed into the river, while another launched a kayak from the edge. The kayaker was able to get to the canoe first.
“Help!” He shouted and waved at the shore. “Someone call an ambulance and the police! Now!” He grabbed the edge of the canoe as another canoe powered towards him.
“Josh? Is that Josh?” Frank swung the paddle hard through the water as he neared the other canoe.
“Oh no, Mee-Maw, this doesn’t look good.” Ally pulled her grandmother close.
“Get him to the edge!” Shouts came from all directions as the entire community rallied in an effort to save Josh. By the time the ambulance arrived, he was already pulled out of the canoe, but there was nothing that could be done. Ally couldn’t believe her eyes when she saw the arrow in his back.
“How could this happen?” Shocked, she continued to hold onto her grandmother. What was supposed to be a fun day had turned into a tragedy.
“It’s Josh,” Mrs. Bing whispered. “He’s so young. So young.” She gulped. “I have to find Mrs. Cale and Mrs. White!” As she hurried off, Charlotte continued to stare out at the water.
“I don’t understand.”
“Me either. That must be Christian over there.” Ally pointed to a young man who spoke to one of the police officers that responded to the scene. “I wonder what he saw.”
“Or did.” Charlotte crossed her arms as a sense of fear rippled through her. “What if it wasn’t an accident?”
“Oh, Mee-Maw, it must have been. I knew doing archery out here was a bad idea. Remember?”
“Maybe, but it’s pretty hard to accidentally fire an arrow at the river and happen to hit someone.” Charlotte narrowed her eyes.
“This, from the woman who fired an arrow backwards?” Ally raised an eyebrow. “I know it’s hard to make sense of something so senseless, but it was probably just an accident.”
“You’re right, it could be.” Charlotte took a deep breath, then blinked a few times. “We should get things packed up. There’s no way they’re going to continue the picnic.”
“Okay, I’ll box up what’s left. And I need to hunt down Peaches.” Ally frowned as she scanned the grassy field. In all of the chaos she’d lost track of the cat. With all of the shouting and sirens she might have decided to head home or to the shop. Both Arnold and Peaches knew their way around town from walking with Ally or Charlotte, and were often welcomed and spoiled by neighbors. She wasn’t too concerned. Her focus was primarily on Josh. What if her grandmother was right? Could he have been murdered?
* * *
A few minutes later, Ally caught sight of Luke through the crowd of onlookers. His presence sent a familiar rush through her, but it was tempered by the grim expression on his face. As he scanned the crowd, his eyes locked on hers. She walked towards him, and he weaved his way through the commotion to get to her. The moment he could reach her, he stroked her cheek and looked into her eyes.
“Are you okay?”
“Yes, I’m fine. I’m just shocked that this happened.” She returned his gaze for a long moment. Then looked back towards the river. “It seems impossible.”
“Accidents do happen.” He frowned as he scanned the crowd again. His expression grew stern. He had eyes like a hawk. She’d seen him spot something or someone in the middle of a crowd numerous times, before anyone else did. “The problem is that so far no one is owning up to shooting a wild arrow. The volunteers in charge of the archery competition claim that everything was well monitored. But clearly, it was not. I have to get back.” He glanced over his shoulder at the veritable army of police officers that had arrived to aid in the investigation. After a quick kiss on the cheek, he cut back through the crowd. She loved to watch him work, but her attention was drawn away from his retreating form by the sound of her grandmother’s voice.
“Does he have any idea what happened?”
“They’re not sure, yet. But I can tell you that he thinks this is pretty serious.”
“Did he say that?”
Ally squinted against the sun that had finally decided to peek through the clouds. “No, but I can tell. He g
ets this tense look in his eyes when he’s worried about something, and he’s worried about this.”
“We should finish packing up.” Charlotte walked back over to the table and started stacking boxes of chocolates. Ally grabbed the stacks and carried them to the van in the parking lot. As she walked, she noticed that several officers were interviewing those attending the picnic. They worked in small groups.
By the time they got to Ally and Charlotte, the temperature had cranked up about ten degrees.
“May I ask you a few questions?” A young officer pulled Ally aside.
“Of course, you can.” She nodded. His forehead was covered in sweat and it was clear that he was already exhausted. “Would you like a chocolate?” She picked up a box from the table and opened it for him.
“Is this bribery?” He grinned, as he plucked a chocolate out of the box.
“Not at all. You’ve all been working so hard, I can only imagine how taxing it is to get witness statements from such a large crowd.” Ally studied his face, but she didn’t recognize him. She guessed that he might have been borrowed from the next town over.
“Thanks for this.” He popped the chocolate into his mouth.
“Sure. Have you decided whether the crime was an accident, yet?” Ally searched his eyes for any hint of anxiety. He might not be able to tell her much about the case, but his expression might reveal some of what he wasn’t allowed to say.
“No, not yet.” His cheeks reddened just a little.
That was it, he was lying. They’d made a decision about what to call the incident, and she guessed, since he wasn’t telling her the truth, that it wasn’t an accident.
“Okay. Anything I can do to help, I’m more than happy to.”
“Did you see anyone walking around with a bow and arrow after the archery competition began?” He looked down at his notepad as he continued to suck on the chocolate in his mouth.
“No. It was pretty quiet around here once the competition started. Then the canoe race began. After that all I saw was Josh slumped over in the canoe.” Her voice wavered some. “I still don’t understand how it could have happened. How does a random arrow fired from land strike someone in a moving canoe?”
“Did you know Josh?” His eyes snapped up to meet hers.
“Not well, no. He did offer to help us set up when we arrived today. He and his friend, Frank.” Ally’s heart fluttered as she recalled how full of life Josh had been at that moment. In just a few hours that had changed, and there was never going to be any good explanation for that. Reality set in as the buzz of adrenaline began to fade.
“Frank Stunkip?” He made a note on his notepad.
“Yes. They were good friends. Oh, poor Frank.” Ally closed her eyes for a moment. “He must be beside himself.” She scanned the crowd, but didn’t see any sign of him. “Have you spoken to him?”
“Yes. Did either of them say anything else to you? Did they argue?” He held her gaze.
“No, not much. I didn’t see them argue at all.” Her eyes narrowed with interest as she realized that Frank was being cast as a suspect. From what she knew of him he wasn’t a bad guy, but perhaps there was some reason they already suspected him.
The radio on the officer’s hip squawked. The sudden harsh noise made Ally jump.
“Excuse me.” He turned away as he pulled the radio out of its holster.
Ally tried to listen in, but there was too much noise on the radio for her to discern exactly what was being said. It was a jumble. When the officer turned back, his face was pale, and his eyes wide.
“Ma’am, I’m going to have to ask you to leave the park. Quickly!”
“What?” Ally stared at him with surprise. A ripple of fear carried through the rest of the crowd. She guessed that they were being told the same thing. “We’re packing up to leave now. It’ll only be a few more minutes.”
“The park is being evacuated. You don’t have a few minutes. Quickly now!” He pointed towards the exit.
“Mee-Maw, we have to go.” Ally turned towards her grandmother who was stacking up the last of the chocolates. “Come on, the park is being evacuated right now.” She grabbed her hand as her heart began to pound. She was sure if there was that much urgency that something terrible must be going on. Were they in danger?
“But we still have our tables to get.” Charlotte frowned as she looked at the officer. “Surely we can have a few minutes to finish packing up.”
“I’m sorry, but no. We’ll make arrangements for you to get the rest of your things later. A full evacuation of the park has been ordered, I’d appreciate it if you could comply.”
“Ally, just grab one end of that table, and I’ll get the other.” Charlotte walked over to the table. The officer placed his hand on the table and spoke in a sterner tone.
“There is no time for that, everyone has to be out.” He looked into Charlotte’s eyes. “Please ma’am, this is not the time to argue.”
“Mee-Maw, it’s okay. We can come back for it. Just get Arnold.” Ally glanced around and bit into her bottom lip. She hated to leave without knowing where Peaches was, but she also knew that there was no time to hunt around for her. More than likely she would be back at the cottage waiting for them.
“All right, but can you at least tell us why?” Charlotte gave an exasperated sigh as she untied Arnold’s leash from the pole.
The officer glanced over his shoulder as if he was checking to see if anyone was watching, then leaned close to both of them.
“We were unable to pinpoint who fired the arrow, which means that the shooter could potentially still be targeting people.” His brow furrowed as he looked back over the crowd. “This open field makes everyone vulnerable. We don’t want anyone else getting hurt.” He glanced briefly up at the bright blue sky, then shook his head. “It’s a shame, it has turned into such beautiful weather for a picnic.”
“Yes, it has,” Ally murmured as she picked up the remaining boxes of chocolates. “Let’s go, Mee-Maw.”
Ally and Charlotte stuck close together with Arnold between them as they joined the flow of people evacuating the park. When Ally glanced over her shoulder the empty booths, tables, picnic blankets and abandoned sports equipment caused an eerie feeling to carry through her. It looked as if everyone had vanished in the middle of their fun. In a way, that was what happened. One minute it was a perfect picnic, the next Josh floated by in his canoe, and everything changed.
Chapter 3
On the ride to the shop from the picnic Ally stopped by the cottage to check if Peaches was there. After she confirmed she wasn’t they continued on to the shop. During the drive, Charlotte was silent. That was never a good sign. She always had something to chat about, or a new idea to discuss. She was a spunky, determined woman who didn’t let many seconds slip by without having something to say. Ally could sense that something was brewing within her.
“Spill it, Mee-Maw.” She glanced over at her with a half-smile. “I know that something is on your mind.”
“Josh, mostly.” Charlotte sighed and shifted her gaze to the window beside her. “Such a young man. He had so much ahead of him. It’s just hard for me to imagine that all of that future is lost.”
“Yes, it’s difficult to fathom how this happened. And now the police think that it might be some random killing? And there might be more?” Ally pursed her lips. “It seems like a bit of an overreaction.”
“Since they haven’t found a suspect, I’d say they’re concerned that person might do it again.” Charlotte clucked her tongue. “What a terrible thing to even have to think about.”
“A killer on the loose?” Ally’s stomach churned at the thought.
“It’s more than just that, too. How did this happen with all of us there?” Charlotte shook her head. “It just doesn’t add up to me. Who could be that sneaky that no one noticed what was happening? Someone must have seen something.”
“Sure, they might have.” Ally turned down the street that led to the choc
olate shop. “But it wouldn’t be unusual to see someone carrying a bow and arrows around when there was a competition. Lots of people were there with their bows. And a killer’s goal is to blend in.”
“That’s true, I guess. I wonder if I might have seen something that I just don’t recall. Some little detail that should have tipped me off to what was really happening. I mean, I think that almost everyone at the picnic stopped by our table at least once. Does that mean that we saw the killer? Did we give him or her a chocolate? Did I smile and exchange pleasant small talk?” Charlotte shuddered at the thought. “I hope not.”
“I know what you mean. It seems like we should have sensed something was up. But there’s no way to predict these things.” She reached out and patted her grandmother’s knee. “As much as we might want to know everything, we simply don’t.”
“I know.” Charlotte frowned as the van bumped over the ridge of the parking lot. “Let’s get unloaded, we can use these chocolates for the display case.”
“Sounds good.” Ally parked behind the shop then hopped out to start unloading the chocolates. She grabbed Arnold’s leash and he followed right after her. She put him in the courtyard. They had recently put up a nice pen in the courtyard behind the shop where he could spend some time in the fresh air. Arnold’s subtle snorting was a constant reminder that he was nearby. Although it had seemed strange at first that her grandmother had a pot-bellied pig for a pet, now he felt like family to her.
As Ally carried the chocolates in, her grandmother spread them out in the displays. Despite turning the sign in the window from closed to open, not a single customer stepped through the door. Once Ally was finished unloading, she snapped Arnold’s leash on again. “I’m just going to take a look around for Peaches. I don’t like not knowing where she is.”
“I’m sure Arnold will be able to sniff her out. Maybe you can also find out why we don’t have any customers.” Charlotte raised an eyebrow. “This is pretty unusual. I mean the picnic has been cancelled, so everyone should be out and about.”
