by Vikki Walton
They were sitting in the Inn’s kitchen where Kandi was making a batch of chocolate chip cookies to put in the guest’s rooms.
Anne took a swipe of the rich dough before Kandi pulled the dough away. “Now, stop that. If you eat all the dough, I won’t have enough for the actual cookies.” She moved over toward the kitchen counter.
“He has been going up to Denver quite a bit lately. Maybe he went up there and he forgot to turn off the gas on his stove or something.”
Hope twisted her mouth. “I can’t see him being forgetful like that, and he would have come home at night and seen the house.”
“I guess.” Anne sighed loudly. “Oh, have you seen Mary Smith? She was out at Sam’s.”
Kandi shook her head. “Nope. Of course, I’ve been back here much of the morning. She’s usually out early in the morning and often has a continental breakfast versus dining with the other guests.” She pulled out the cooking tray. “She’s kind of, like, a loner. I’ve tried talking to her, and she’s polite, but she doesn’t say much.”
“Yes, she is that.” Anne faced Hope. “Do you think she’s involved with the drugs situation?”
“I couldn’t say. Maybe it’s another woman.”
“It could be. But who?”
“Maybe it’s, like, Thelma at the police station.” Kandi giggled.
“I don’t see her being on the wrong side of the law. I can see her bashing some criminal over the head with her big black purse.” Anne widened her hands. “What does she even keep in that thing?”
Hope chuckled. “I believe she’s a knitter.”
“Ah, okay. Then that makes sense. Hmmmm.”
“What is it, Anne?”
“Kandi actually might have something with what she said.”
Hope moved over so Kandi could set the trays on the sturdy wooden table. “You can’t seriously think Miss Thelma could be part of a gang?”
“Oh, no. But it could be someone we’re not even considering.”
Kandi scooped out the dough onto the baking sheets.
“Like who?”
“I don’t know.”
Stewart came in and the women all responded with hearty greetings.
“I stopped by to see if you’d heard anything about Carson.”
Anne filled him in on the latest and asked if he had any idea where Carson might be.
“Sorry, no. But this has got to be the strangest time around here.”
“Why do you say that?”
“Oh, do you know Gary Neal?”
“No,” they all chimed.
“He’s our local building inspector. He won some kind of contest and he got an all-expense paid trip to Alaska. He doesn’t even remember entering anything, but it’s been a dream he’s had forever. He and his wife left a few days ago.”
“Did you say building inspector?”
Stewart twisted a chair around and straddled it. “Yeah, why?”
“Is he the inspector for the Bennett place?”
“Yes. He is over the entire department. Why?”
“Nothing.” Anne stood up. “Unless I’m needed any more over here, I’m going home. I didn’t sleep well last night, and I might take a nap.”
“You’re so, like, old.” Kandi winked at Anne.
“Ha. Wait until you get older. You’ll realize that naps are a luxury and have great benefits,” Anne retorted.
At home, Anne set to work. She could take a nap, but she knew one thing for sure. She needed to get a closer look at the Bennett place. She knew from Stewart that most of the workers had moved off the property and only a few were still on site. Of those, they went home on the weekends. If she followed the route she and Carson took, she could enter the grounds that way.
That night, she tossed and turned and was up at five. She grabbed her backpack which held a flashlight and cutters, along with her phone, water, and snacks. She’d dressed in browns and greens, hoping that would give her more cover.
Anne walked out to the trailhead at the back of the property when she sensed something. She turned around and saw Mary Smith in the shadows of the gazebo.
“Oh, Mary. You startled me.” Anne held her hand up to her chest.
Mary finished tying her shoe. “Going somewhere?”
Anne fumbled for an answer. “Birdwatching.”
“Oh yes, you said you were into that. Early isn’t it?”
“That’s when you have to go. You can catch them at the crack of dawn.” Anne motioned to her. “You going running?”
“Yes. I like to get my ten miles in early.”
Ten Miles. Yikes.
“Well, if you ever see me running, you better too, because the only reason I’d run is that a bear was chasing me.”
“I thought you shouldn’t run from wild animals.” Mary adjusted the balaclava on her head.
“You shouldn’t. It’s a joke.”
“Oh. Funny.” She didn’t laugh.
“Which way are you headed?” Anne couldn’t have this woman see where she was going.
“I figured I’d go out to Sam’s. Then if he’s up, I’ll see if I can entice him to take me to Donna’s Donuts.”
“Donuts? You? I would have thought you were one of those anti-sugar people.” Anne smiled at the woman as they both walked to the trail.
Mary laughed. “I know about balance. That’s why I run. Then if I eat something unhealthy, it doesn’t end up on my hips.” She pulled one leg up behind her in a hamstring stretch, then followed with the other.
Anne wanted to retort that the woman had no body fat to speak of, but she needed to get going. She had to end the conversation. “Well, have a good run.”
She waved at the woman who smiled and said, “Have a good time spying.”
Mary set off at a slow warm-up pace. As soon as the woman rounded the bend and was no longer in sight, Anne decided she’d jog to do some catching up on time. She’d gotten a quarter of a mile, when she slowed to a walk. Huffing, she wondered, who does that for fun?
A noise sounded behind her. She swiftly turned but saw nothing. Even though she knew animals lived in the forest, she didn’t want to meet one on the trail. She picked up her pace.
As she neared the spot where Carson had taken her off the trail, she turned back behind her. She stared into the forest but could see nothing, but she didn’t feel alone. Was a mountain lion tracking her?
Fear at being stalked made her shiver. She took out the flashlight from her bag. It was a heavy item, and she’d almost chosen to leave it at home but now she was glad to have it. If nothing else, she could use it as a weapon.
Searching the area from the spot they’d left the trail, Anne noticed some broken branches. She walked over to it. Sure enough, someone had constructed a simple cairn under the cover of scrub oak. Had Carson done that? Or someone else?
She turned back once more and saw nothing on the trail. She began her climb to the upper ridge. It took longer than she remembered with Carson. Maybe because she kept turning at any snap of a branch.
Quit being so silly. Animals live here, and it doesn’t mean it’s a bear or mountain lion out to get you.
As she neared the edge, she got down and pulled the binoculars from her pack. She also pulled out an old broken weaved hat. Last night she’d painted it brown and green. She sat down and stuck grasses and dead leaves to it.
Ha! It pays to watch those old shows on staying camouflaged. She put the hat on and secured it with the cord. She grabbed the binoculars.
Cautiously, she raised her head over the ridge to look down on the Bennett’s old homestead. The trailers were now gone and the shells of two homes were off away from the house. Anne scanned the area. No signs of anyone. She looked toward the front gate. It was closed. She couldn’t see any vehicles.
Anne inched closer to the edge and swung the binoculars over to the largest structure—the event center. On the side she spied a door with a window in it. It wouldn’t hurt to go look and see inside.
Anne p
ulled the backpack over to her. She took off the hat and put the binoculars’ strap around her neck. She popped on a cap. If anyone stopped her, she’d give them the same story about birdwatching. She unstrapped a retractable walking stick from the bag to help on her descent. Gingerly, she descended the hill, crossing back and forth, stopping behind trees to see if she could detect any movement. It took a long time to make it to the edge of the property. To keep up the appearance of being a birdwatcher, she stepped out into the clearing and looked up into the bank of trees off to her left.
No one called out to her. That was a good sign.
Anne continued to stay close to the trees until she got within yards of the event center. She picked up the binoculars and scanned the trees again then turned them toward the house. No vehicle. No movement.
Anne let out her breath. She wanted to run over to the event center but forced herself to meander and look up into the trees. She didn’t like being this exposed, but what else could she do? As she walked along the event center, she continued to scan for any movement on the grounds. Then she was at the door. She took one last glance behind her, then cupped her hands over her eyes to see in the door.
As her eyes adjusted to the darker interior, she saw that this part of the hall was small.
She stifled a scream. Someone was looking at her. Wait. No. She squinted at the reflection. They had mirrored all the walls making the room to appear much larger than it was. In the far corner of the room, another door led to the other part of the center.
She tried the door. Locked. She looked into the room again. Boxes were stacked in the middle and what looked like a pile of carpet. It moved.
Carson!
Anne jiggled the door handle. Pulling the binoculars from around her neck, she smashed the window. Carefully, Anne removed the glass until she could get her hand inside and unlock the door.
She ran across the room. “Carson! Carson!”
He moaned. As she reached him, she could see his hands and ankles were tied. His eyes fixed on hers.
He struggled to get the words out. “Drugged. Go.”
“I will not leave you.”
A male voice answered. “You’re right there.”
Anne jumped up from where she’d been bending down next to Carson. The man remained in the shadows, but she could see his bearded face and shoulder-length hair. Sunglasses hid his eyes.
Was this El Toro?
She stepped closer to Carson and her eyes searched the area. No one else.
A crunch of glass. Anne swiveled to see Mary Smith.
“Hola.” She rattled off something in Spanish that Anne didn’t understand.
So Mary was in on the drugs.
The man lowered his arm, and it was the first time Anne realized he carried a gun.
Mary switched to English. “It seems that we have a problem.”
“No problema. I’ve got it under control.”
Something nagged at Anne. The man’s voice. Where had she heard it before?
Carson had righted himself to a sitting position. Anne turned back to help him.
“Don’t move.” The man raised his gun.
From the corner of her eye, Anne watched as Mary launched herself toward the man. In mere seconds, the man was on the ground, Mary’s foot was on his back and his arm was twisted up behind him. She watched as the woman spoke into her watch. “Situation contained. Approach.”
From the various doors, men dressed in swat gear advanced.
Mary hauled the man up.
“What? Who?” Anne struggled to say the words. Then her mouth dropped as she realized whose voice it was.
“Chief Everett?”
Mary waited until the man was cuffed and then pulled the hat from his head. A wig attached to the hat came with it. The beard must be a fake too.
“But…” She turned back to Carson, who stood next to her. “Carson… what?”
“Take him away,” Mary said.
After the men had exited the room, Deputy Ruiz came inside.
“You got him, Deputy. You too, Sheriff. Good work.”
Anne turned to Carson. “You have a lot of explaining to do.”
“Fine. Later.” He slumped against her.
Chapter Thirty-Three
Carson spent a day in the hospital getting checked out. The following day, Anne picked him up and took him to her house. She now sat on the couch next to Carson. Across from them sat Mary Smith. Deputy Ruiz had also joined the group.
Carson began, “I kept thinking that we were missing something.” He turned to Anne. “You gave me an idea when you kept talking about El Toro. The Bull.”
“What was it?”
“E.T.B.” He responded. “That’s the name of the corporation for the Bennett event center. I’d been writing some things down on paper and I held it up to look at it. That’s when it hit me. I took it over to a mirror and I saw it.”
“Saw what?”
Carson flipped his hand. “A mirror turns it around. And there it was. B.T.E.”
“Huh?”
“El Toro. The Bull. Bradley Thomas Everett.”
Mary took up the story. “We’ve—”
“We?” Anne inquired.
“DEA,” Mary responded. “We’ve been after this group for a while. We were tipped off by Deputy Ruiz. After the fire at the Bennetts, we had to get someone on site. Someone had found out that Ray Lawrence was playing both sides of the fence.”
Anne gasped. “He was an informant?”
“Yes. We kept getting all these little fish, but we needed the brains behind the operation. He was really smart to use foster kids that were set to be out of the system. There would be no questions when they took off. With Carolan Springs out of the way, it would be easy to up production and transport it out on I-70. We caught up with Lawrence and, let’s say, we made him a deal he couldn’t refuse.”
“I guess I’m not up on things. It wouldn’t seem that growing pot—”
Mary clasped her hands together. “It wasn’t just pot. Everett was having it laced with other drugs. He wanted to get people hooked on the product and then he had them under his thumb. He could make them do anything at that point.”
“Oh my gosh.”
Carson replied, “Officer Dale figured out that Everett was involved. When Everett heard him talking to you, he knew he had to shut him up. When we were at the scene, Everett said that the cell phone service was bad. That stuck in my mind. Because how could Dale have texted you to come later? And why would he have picked that time to end it? It didn’t make sense.
“When we got there, he said that Dale had driven off the road. That he was dead. What probably happened was that Dale was unconscious when he was driven up the mountain. Then Everett put him behind the wheel and let it go off the cliff.”
Anne stopped him. “But he could have gone off the cliff accidently.”
“True. But that’s where Everett messed up. He had gone down to set up the scene as a suicide. At that point, Dale was still alive. Gravely hurt, but alive.” He sat back on the couch. “He hurried back up the hill and waited for us. He told us Dale was dead and we accepted it. As soon as we left, he hurried back down and finished Dale off.”
“Are you saying he shot him? We would have heard something.”
“I wondered about that too. I also wondered how he’d got the car off the road.”
Deputy Ruiz took up the story. “While you and Carson were away, I had to figure who was behind it. I had to stay clear of Carson because he could have been in on it too.” He spoke to Carson. “Sorry. No offense.”
“None taken. You were doing your job and that means you were unbiased in your methods. That’s the sign of competent lawman.”
Ruiz grinned. “Thanks. Anyway, when Hope’s shop got torched, it seemed too perfect. A set-up. With Carson out of the way, that meant that the police would handle the case out at the Bennetts. It was too convenient.”
“Agree. That’s what I thought.” Carson repli
ed. “Dale’s death kept nagging at me. I took a dirt bike and rode up to the site.”
“Wouldn’t the crime scene technicians have gone over the site?” Anne turned toward him.
“Yes.” Carson nodded. “But I believe that Everett set the site up the way he wanted it perceived. Of course, if his DNA showed up, it wouldn’t be an issue as he’d been the first on the scene. That was the first question. How did he know where to look for Dale?”
“Then what happened?” Anne motioned for him to continue.
“I borrowed a very important tool and took the motorcycle up there.”
Anne crossed her legs. “What was that?”
“A metal detector. I stood where the car was at the window. I mapped out how far I could throw a rock and started hunting in that area. Sure enough, I found a silencer. Everett knew it would be buried under the leaves and it would be better to not have it on him in case they collected his clothing.”
Carson sighed before continuing. “I was on my way home when Ruiz let me know about my house. Everett must have realized I’d be on to him. I’d set the house up to seem like I’d be back shortly. He must have set some trigger to cause the explosion.”
“Do you know how worried we all were?”
“Yes. I was going to come over and let you know but I needed a bit more time to be able to come out to the Bennett place and look around. Everett would think I’d been killed, and I needed to use that time before they shared that no body had been found. Unfortunately, he saw me at the Bennetts. He was dressed up as a worker, so by the time I realized it was him, well, I don’t remember anything after that until I woke up and knew I’d been drugged.”
Anne turned toward Mary. “All this time you were trying to get Everett?”
“We didn’t know it was Everett until recently. We did know there was some connection with the Bennett place. We also knew that the building inspector was probably about to have an accident. Luckily, he got an all-expense paid trip to Alaska.”
Anne laughed. “I wondered how that had happened.”
“Yes, it will be good because when he comes back, he’s going to have to explain the large deposit he received in his bank account.”
