by Joanne Fluke
The big hill was almost up to the sky. Maybe it was so high that Laura and Becky could see her from heaven. She had to do it for them. They’d be glad she’d kept her promise.
At last she was there! Jenny turned at the top of the hill. She could see the bonfire flickering faintly on the snow below her. The dark shapes down there were her friends, laughing and having a good time. Her mom was there, and so was her dad. It was scary up here all alone.
There was a noise behind her, and Jenny froze. It sounded like someone was walking through the trees.
“Who is it?” Jenny’s voice was high and a little frightened. It wasn’t nice being scared in the dark. She didn’t like it one bit!
Someone was coming! Jenny whirled and ran for the slope. She threw her sled down and jumped on top of it. She pushed as hard as she could, but the sled wouldn’t budge. She was stuck!
She looked back, frightened. The last thing she saw was a bulky shape blocking out the moon. And something heavy covered her mouth before she could even think to scream.
“Jenny!” Sally cupped her hands around her mouth and called out loudly, “Jenny! ”
Where was that child! Midge had saved her turn in line all this time, and now Jenny had wandered off somewhere else.
“Have you seen Jenny?” Sally warmed her hands at the bonfire. But no one there had seen her. Maybe she was out on the pond with Ronnie.
There was a sled coming down the big hill. Sally put a hand to her mouth as it swerved dangerously. The kids weren’t supposed to be up there. This was the very thing they were trying to avoid!
“Is that Jenny?” Ronnie walked over to join her. “Sure it is! That’s her Red Flyer!”
“Just wait until I—” The threat caught in Sally’s throat as the sled crashed into a tree at the bottom of the slope. She was running now, and Ronnie passed her with his long strides in the snow. They were all running toward the still form on the sled.
She screamed once, a high wail of anguish. Then someone stopped her from coming any closer. Strong arms shielded her, led her away, but Sally had seen. Jenny’s neck was twisted at an impossible angle. Her baby’s eyes were open, seeing nothing. And there was an expression of terror on her beautiful dead face.
Sheriff Bates was already there, red lights flashing brightly against the snow. Marian rushed out of the woods, panting with exertion.
“There was someone up there!” she managed to gasp. Then she saw the stretcher with Jenny’s body. The sheet was pulled up, hiding Jenny’s face. Marian couldn’t help it. She broke into sobs.
“Marian, over here.” Sheriff Bates pulled her over to the side, away from the small body on the stretcher. “Where were you? Did you see anyone?”
“I heard him!” Marian took a deep breath and swallowed hard. “I heard someone on the path, and I ran after him. He got away, but I found this jacket at the top of the hill!”
She held out the jacket with shaking hands. Then she gasped as she recognized it in the light from the bonfire.
“It’s Dan’s! That’s Dan’s old army jacket, Sheriff! We always kept it hanging on a hook in the garage.”
Sheriff Bates took the jacket and examined it. Dan’s name was sewn on the olive-drab strip over the right breast pocket.
“Was your garage locked, Marian?”
“No, of course not.”
“Did you notice the jacket was missing before tonight? Think, Marian. It might be important.”
“No . . . I don’t know, Sheriff! It could have been missing. I . . . I don’t think I would have noticed!”
Marian stumbled heavily, and Sheriff Bates supported her. Midge was standing nearby, and he motioned for her.
“Will you and Edith get Marian home and stay with her until I get there? She needs some help. I’ll come to the house just as soon as I can.”
Marian looked really bad. Sheriff Bates leaned closer to peer into her wide, startled eyes. He’d seen that same desperate look in the eyes of a deer trapped by a spotlight.
“And, Midge? Catch Dr. Hinkley before he leaves for the hospital. I think Marian’s in shock.”
CHAPTER 18
Sheriff Bates closed the door to the den when he came in. There was a serious expression on his face.
“Sit down, Sheriff.” Dan motioned to a chair. “What happened out there? Edith said Jenny’s dead! Something about a terrible accident?”
“That’s right.” The sheriff nodded. “I need your help, Dan. Would you mind answering a few questions?”
“Of course not.”
“You were here all night. Is that right?” Sheriff Bates took out his notebook. He winced at the bitter look that crossed Dan’s face. Of course Dan had been here. Where else could he go? He wished he hadn’t asked that stupid question.
“Did you hear anyone outside your window? Anyone messing around in your garage? Any noise that sounded suspicious?”
“No. I had the television on, and I dozed off a couple times. I didn’t hear a thing, Sheriff.”
Dozed off weren’t exactly the words for what had happened to him tonight. Dan sighed as the sheriff made notes in his little plastic-covered book. His walking dream had been especially vivid tonight. His legs were still shaking, even though they had no feeling. It was more like muscle fatigue than anything else. Of course, it was all a dream. He had to remember that. The sensation of climbing had been merely a figment of his subconscious.
“You’re positive you didn’t hear anything? Think hard, Dan. It’s important.”
“No, not a thing. What’s all this about, Sheriff?”
“I just finished questioning Marian.” Sheriff Bates looked up and sighed. “She’s really upset, Dan. Marian thinks she chased a man through the woods tonight, but she couldn’t give me a description. She says she never actually saw him. She just heard him running on the path ahead of her. And she found your old army jacket at the top of Heidelberg Hill.”
“My jacket?” Dan frowned. “Jesus, Sheriff! Do you think the man Marian chased might have something to do with Jenny’s accident?”
“I’m not sure, Dan. It was dark in the woods, and Marian was distraught. She may have been chasing an animal, for all we know. The jacket may not have any significance at all. Marian said you kept it in the garage. Anyone could have taken it. It might have been lying up there for weeks, though it looks fairly clean.”
Dan nodded slowly. He supposed the sheriff was right. Still, something about the man in the woods and his army jacket was vaguely unsettling.
“Well, thanks for the help, Dan.” Sheriff Bates stood and snapped shut his notebook. “Just as a precaution, I’d make sure your house and your garage were locked from now on. Don’t forget you’re alone up here at the edge of the woods.”
“Sure . . . I’ll do that, Sheriff.” Dan stared at the door long after Sheriff Bates had left. The sheriff obviously didn’t believe that Marian had chased a man in the woods. What if she had? Was Jenny’s death really an accident?
It had to be an accident. Dan closed his eyes and thought hard. Everyone loved Jenny. Surely, no one in Nisswa would want to harm her.
Another accident! Dan shivered. Now Jenny was dead. First Becky and then Jenny. One by one Laura’s friends were dying. Now he felt guilty for resenting the girls. He hadn’t really meant it. It’d been painful to see Becky and Jenny; he had hoped he wouldn’t have to see them again. But he certainly hadn’t wished for their deaths!
“I don’t know, Pete.” Dr. Hinkley shuffled through the stack of medical reports on his desk and sighed. “I’ve got the preliminary autopsy reports right here, but I can’t say with any authority whether Jenny’s neck was broken before she smashed into that tree. It could be a simple accident. Or it could be murder.”
Sheriff Bates frowned. This was bad. “How about off the record, Doc? What do you think?”
Dr. Hinkley looked grim. His bushy eyebrows almost met as he frowned. “Those bruises on Jenny’s neck bother me, Pete. There’s absolutely no medical p
roof, but someone wearing heavy gloves could have broken Jenny’s neck and then pushed her sled down the hill.”
“Christ!” Sheriff Bates winced. “Maybe Marian did chase someone in the woods, Doc. It’s cases like this that make me wish I’d been a plumber.”
“Now, Pete. You’re just tired. Let me get you a refill, and we’ll hash this out together. You’re the best sheriff we’ve ever had, but sometimes it helps to kick ideas around.”
Sheriff Bates gave a tired smile. He just hoped the rest of the town felt the way Doc did. Doing a good job as sheriff was important to him.
By the time Doc was back with the coffee, Sheriff Bates was thinking clearly again. He had to treat this like a murder, even though it probably wasn’t. Explore all possibilities. That was what they did on TV.
“Let’s assume the worst.” He took a gulp of his coffee and opened his notebook. “Can you think of anyone in Nisswa who’s crazy enough to kill Jenny Powell?”
There was a long silence while Dr. Hinkley thought. Someone in Nisswa off balance enough to kill little Jenny?
“No, I can’t think of anyone,” he said at last. “The only person with a history of mental illness is Jake Campbell, but he’s harmless. Jake’s practically a big kid himself.”
“No, it couldn’t be Jake.” Sheriff Bates tapped his pen against his notebook impatiently. “I can’t think of anyone, either. It’s just a pity that Dan Larsen was asleep. His room faces Heidelberg Hill. I talked to him earlier, but he didn’t hear a thing.”
Dan Larsen? Dr. Hinkley frowned. Dan had a whopper of a mental problem. Should he say anything to Pete about Dan’s “walking dreams”?
No, it was clearly ridiculous. Dr. Hinkley discarded the idea. He wasn’t even sure that Dan actually sleepwalked. He hadn’t mentioned it lately.
“It can’t be anyone from town, Pete.” Dr. Hinkley looked serious. “If Jenny was murdered, it has to be a transient. How about checking the state hospital to see if anyone escaped?”
“I’ll go down to the office and call right now.” Sheriff Bates stood up. “Doc? You don’t think we should say anything about the possibility of murder, do you?”
“Definitely not. It’ll only upset poor Ronnie and Sally. And there’s no sense alarming the town. I think a quiet little investigation would be wise, Pete. The less people know about this, the better.”
Sheriff Bates nodded. Doc was right. If the people in Nisswa thought a murderer was on the loose, they’d panic. That was the last thing he needed right now.
“I’m ninety percent sure it was an accident.” Dr. Hinkley walked the sheriff to the door. “This has been a bad winter in Nisswa. First poor Laura Larsen. And then little Becky. And now Jenny. It’s frightening, Pete.”
“Three little girls gone, just like that.” Sheriff Bates sighed heavily. “It makes me sick, Doc. If I had a little girl, I’d watch her like a hawk!”
It was past two in the morning when Dr. Hinkley finished filling out the death certificate. He scribbled a few instructions for Mabel Kaun, the night nurse, and walked down the quiet hallway to the parking lot.
Dr. Hinkley unlocked his car and scraped the windshield free of ice. Then he got in and turned on the ignition. The late-model Buick started with no trouble. When he’d bought the car, Jim told him to warm it up for five minutes before driving it in the winter, but Dr. Hinkley was just too tired. He put the car in gear and pulled out onto the street.
Nothing was moving. Even Jerry Pietre’s Siberian huskies were inside tonight. Dr. Hinkley turned the corner at the Conoco station and noticed that the streetlight in front of the drugstore was out again. His headlights were two tunnels of light in the darkness. The surrounding buildings were dark and deserted. Businesses were closed. The town was sleeping and peaceful, just as it always was this time of night. It seemed utterly inconceivable that there might be a murderer inside one of those friendly houses.
As he passed the street that led to Dan’s house, Dr. Hinkley shivered. Something was bothering him, a strange, anxious feeling at the back of his mind. Marian had found Dan’s jacket up there in the woods. If Dan wasn’t confined to bed, he’d be Pete’s prime suspect.
Was Dan Larsen capable of murder? Dr. Hinkley switched the defroster on high and squinted to see out of the windshield. Dan could be walking. It was medically possible. Dan’s leg muscles were in remarkable shape for a man who’d been immobile for over a month.
The car fishtailed on the ice as Dr. Hinkley took the corner a little too fast. He straightened out and drove on a little slower. He’d heard and seen enough to think Dan had a motive for the murder. He found it painful to be around Laura’s friends, and he was filled with rage about the injustice of Laura’s death. He’d resented deeply the happiness of families whose young daughters were still alive, particularly Laura’s little friends.
He must be really tired to think up such a ridiculous theory. Dr. Hinkley snorted as he got out of the car to open his garage door. It was absurd to suspect Dan of murder. There was absolutely no rational basis for his wild suspicions. Now he was glad he hadn’t said anything to Pete. He would have looked like a first-class fool.
When Marian awoke, the house was quiet. She sat up carefully, reeling a bit from the shot Dr. Hinkley had given her. She remembered Edith and Midge helping her up the stairs, making her lie down on the bed and covering her with a blanket. They had offered to stay. And she had told them it wasn’t necessary, just to make sure to lock the doors behind them.
Marian got out of bed and looked at the clock. It was five in the morning. She had slept all night. Soon the sun would be rising, and it would be another day.
Poor Jenny! Marian felt the hot tears behind her eyelids. She had been crying in her sleep. The pillow was wet.
Slowly, she moved toward the door. Her body felt leaden and awkward. It must be the aftereffects of Dr. Hinkley’s shot. It took her a full minute to slip into her robe and fasten it. Where were her slippers? Groggily, she found them and pulled them on over her chilled feet. Then she moved toward the stairs, one foot in front of the other, like a half-awake child.
Dan must still be sleeping. There was no sound as she shuffled across the living room and stopped at the door to the den. Yes. He was snoring softly. She was glad he could sleep. Last night had been awful.
She wanted coffee, but the noise might wake him. Marian took a glass of orange juice instead. There was a dry metallic taste in her mouth, and the juice washed it away. It was difficult to move. Even lifting the glass to her lips was an effort. Dr. Hinkley’s shot must have been very powerful. Sleeping pills had never affected her quite this way. She was so tired, she didn’t know if she could make it back up the stairs.
She counted the steps as she climbed, but even thinking the numbers was too much effort. Finally, she was at the top, and she paused at the door to her room. No. She didn’t want to go back in there. She would nap on Laura’s bed until the sun was up. It always made her feel better to sleep in her baby’s room.
The sky was starting to lighten as she climbed into Laura’s narrow bed. It was warm here. Safe. Now she would sleep. And when she woke up, everything would be better.
Marian tried to brush it away, but the light was still in her eyes. Why didn’t they turn the lights off? It was impossible to sleep with a light in her eyes.
She blinked and sat up. It must be late! The sun was streaming in the window, and she could hear a snowplow on the street outside. She felt just fine now. Dr. Hinkley’s shot had worn off at last.
Marian glanced at the clock. It was past ten. No wonder she felt better! She had slept a total of eleven hours.
As she got out of bed, Marian saw a lump under the covers. A fuzzy blue face with bright button eyes stared up at her. It was Laura’s teddy bear. In the daytime the bear sat in the rocking chair, and at night it was Laura’s bedtime companion. She must have taken it to bed with her last night, just like Laura used to do.
She picked up the bear to carry it back to th
e rocker. Then she saw the diary. Marian ran across the small room to seize it eagerly. There was another message from her baby!
Don’t feel bad, Mommy. Jenny’s here, and she likes it. She missed Becky and me.
Jenny was there! Marian smiled happily. It made her feel good to think of the three girls playing together. And Laura had been here again, watching her while she slept. Marian felt loved and comforted.
“Be happy, Laura.” She whispered the words into the air. “Thank you for telling me. And say hello to Becky and Jenny. I’ll save all their homework for them.”
Marian made the bed and placed the bear back in the rocker. Then she put Laura’s diary in the bear’s lap. Her baby would laugh when she saw the bear reading it. It would be their own private joke.
Then she closed the door softly and hurried off to get dressed. Poor Dan would be wondering if she was going to sleep all day!
“You can only stay a minute, Marian.” Dr. Hinkley opened the door to Sally’s room and gestured toward the bed. “We have her sedated. She may not be able to talk very well.”
“Sally . . . dear . . .” Marian’s breath caught in her throat as she saw her friend’s desolate face. “Oh, Sally . . . you don’t know how sorry I am!”
Sally looked at her for a moment, and tears began to run down her cheeks. “I’ll be all right, Marian. It’s just . . . such a shock. One minute she’s playing, and the next minute she’s . . .”
“I know.” Marian patted Sally’s hand. “You’ve got to have courage, Sally. You have to go on. There’s no other choice.”
“How did you do it, Marian?” Sally’s voice was trembling. “How did you stay so strong through it all?”
“I . . . I don’t know.” Marian dropped her eyes. She wanted to share her secret with Sally, but it wouldn’t be right. Sally would have to find her own secret to keep her strong.
