by Joyce Lavene
He chuckled. “I have a feeling you’re wrong about him. He might be attached to you now. If he is, he won’t ever leave you. Maybe you could call him something obvious like small wolf or dark wolf. I could look up those names in Cherokee. They might sound better.”
Bonnie led the way to the laundry room. “And I know something about you, Matthew Brown Elk—you’re a nag.”
He denied it as she opened the door. The wolf was sitting in the middle of the room. His eyes were clear and sharp, focusing immediately on her.
“How did he get out of the kennel?” Bonnie asked. She would never have left it unlocked.
“Don’t ask me. I don’t live here. I think he was waiting for you.”
She carefully moved toward the kennel and put on her gloves. “It’s going to be hard getting him back inside.”
As soon as she opened the kennel door, the wolf trotted in without hesitation.
“And you’ve never noticed that you have a way of making animals understand you?”
Bonnie closed the door and carefully latched it. She wiggled the latch to be sure it was secure. “I’m not Dr. Doolittle, if that’s what you’re saying.”
“Dr. who?”
“Never mind.” She crouched close to the kennel and studied the wolf as he curled up in her jacket again. “He’s just clever. He knew what to do when I opened the door. Wolves are much smarter than people give them credit for.” She put a few pieces of chicken from the kitchen in the kennel for him. “I guess I’ll need some dog food.”
“Get a big bag,” he advised with a smile. “That wahya is never going to leave you.”
Bonnie ignored his predictions as she watched the wolf eat. She could tell his mouth was sore, as he chewed every bite slowly and carefully. “You are a sweetheart,” she told him. “But wolves don’t belong with humans. You have your whole life in front of you.”
Peter came running in to remind his father that they were going to miss a favorite show of his on TV. He and Matthew were getting ready to leave after saying goodbye to Rose.
“If you need anything, let me know,” he said to Bonnie. “People in the valley have to stick together, right, Peter?”
“That’s right, Dad.” His smile showed one missing tooth in front.
Bonnie thanked him. She and Rose waved to them as they left.
“What are you going to do with that wolf?” Rose asked as she closed the front door.
“Reintegrate him into the wild once he’s well,” Bonnie answered. She didn’t tell her mother that the wolf had gotten out of the kennel. She didn’t want to worry her, and she was sure the latch was fastened this time. “I need to run over to Harvey’s office. I shouldn’t be gone long. Will you be okay?”
“I’ll be fine. You have work. I can take care of myself.”
“All right. My phone number is programed into your cell phone. Call me if you need me.”
“Of course. And don’t forget that school from Knoxville is supposed to be here to get their trees this afternoon. It’s on the calendar.”
“I won’t forget.” Bonnie looked at her mother. “You could come with me over to the office. I’m just taking a look at it.”
“No, I have my knitting. I’m way behind on my Christmas projects. Go on. I’ll be here when you get back.”
“Okay.” Bonnie put on her jacket and gloves. “Be back soon.”
It wasn’t easy leaving her mother knowing she was sick, and yet Eric had told her not to hover over her. Rose needed to do things by herself too. She hoped there would be some middle ground that she’d find given enough time.
Could Rose have let the wolf pup out? Bonnie would have to pick up a lock for the kennel, just to make sure.
Eric’s truck cut through the remaining snow and ice going past the ‘downtown’ area of Christmas Tree Valley. It wasn’t much—some houses, the general store, a place that rented and sold snowmobiles. That was it. If people needed more than that, they left the valley. On nice days, that was fine. When the weather got bad, they had to hope they had enough supplies to wait until the road was clear.
As she turned the truck on to the gravel road that led to the Wildlife office, Bonnie’s phone rang. It was Chief Rogers with an update on Harvey’s case.
“Did you hear anything from the family about Harvey purchasing an expensive beach house in Hilton Head, South Carolina? We found a real estate transaction in the glove box of the Hummer.”
“No, but I didn’t ask them about it either. Would you like me to?”
“Sure, since you’re out there anyway.”
“How expensive are we talking?” Bonnie navigated the rutted drive with one hand on the wheel, despite the snow. Maybe she would actually get used to it. “Harvey would’ve been receiving his pension you know.”
“Think he had a million in there?”
She shook her head and then remembered he couldn’t see her. “I don’t think so. Are you sure about this?”
“I’ve got the receipt, and I spoke with the real estate agent. Harvey purchased the place during the same trip he took to Alabama to recruit you. I guess this was a side project.”
“Okay. I’ll check on it. Thanks.”
She’d reached the front of the old log cabin. It wasn’t much—barely room-sized, unless it was bigger on the inside. The roof and front porch both sagged under the weight of the snow. She hoped it was safe to go inside.
But there were things she needed to find. Agents kept reports on cases and animals in the area. She needed to have those, and Harvey had already confessed to not adding to a computer as he should have. If she didn’t get them now, she might not have another chance, by the looks of things.
She locked the truck after she got out and went carefully up the stairs that also seemed about to collapse. This gift from the state of Tennessee left a lot to be desired.
Bonnie touched the door, and it opened. The key was still in her hand. A sound caught her attention from inside, but before she could push open the door the rest of the way, a man came running out, shoving her roughly to the porch floor.
Chapter Twelve
She didn’t recognize him, but he was holding a stack of files that she might need. Before he could make it down the stairs, she grabbed his foot and pulled hard. He stumbled and dropped the files. His boot came off in her hand.
He swore and started to reach for either the boot or the files but changed his mind and turned to flee. Bonnie pulled her gun and held it steadily on him, even though she was still on her butt in the snow.
“Stay right there,” she said. “I’ve never shot a man, but there’s always a first time.”
“All right.” He sat on the step and held up his hands. “Don’t shoot me. I haven’t done anything wrong. I just wanted a look at those files.”
Bonnie got up and brushed the snow from her clothes. As she approached the man, a huge stag beside a fir tree close to where she’d left the truck caught her attention. It looked just like the one she’d seen on her way into town the other day. He just seemed to be watching her with intense eyes. As soon as she started moving around, he nodded his huge head and went back through the snow.
“Wish I had my gun,” the man on the stairs said with awe in his voice. “I’ve never seen one that big.”
“And that’s your first response to it?” She cuffed his hands behind his back. “I think you have a lot more to worry about than killing that deer. So what were you doing in there?”
“Just taking a look at Harvey’s old files,” he repeated. “I was gonna put them back.”
“You know that Harvey and I are federal agents, right?” she asked. “That makes this breaking and entering and theft a felony.”
“I wasn’t stealing,” he argued. “I was borrowing. And the door was already open.”
“What’s your name?”
“Vince Stookey. I’m from Sweet Pepper.”
Finally, the Vince Stookey she kept hearing so much about. She glanced around the yard that was e
mpty except for her truck. “How’d you get here?”
“A friend dropped me off.” He glanced up at her. “You don’t need to arrest him too. He didn’t know what I was going to do.”
“Don’t tell me what I need to do.” She looked at the boot in her hand. Size thirteen. “What were you looking for?”
“Nothing, really.” His eyes shifted away from her. “I was just curious.”
Bonnie bent and picked up the files, glancing through them. It looked as though all the reports involved the creeks that flowed through the valley. One of them was a detailed map of the Little Pigeon River.
“Curious about what?” He didn’t respond, and she nudged him with her boot. “What were you curious about?”
“I wanted to know if the story was true.”
“Don’t make me ask you to continue after every few words. Tell me why you were in there.”
He rolled his head around and chafed at the cuffs she’d put on him. “I wanted to know if he really found a big ruby or not. Okay? That was it.”
She frowned and looked at the maps again. “A big ruby? What are you talking about?”
“I’m not telling you another thing. I want a lawyer.”
No matter what she said after that, he wouldn’t speak. Eventually she locked him in the back of the pickup, after allowing him to put on his boot, and got as much information as she could carry from inside the office. It looked like all the files Harvey had made. Everything else was just a radio, a chair, and an old desk, mostly empty except a drawer full of junk. The only usable thing in it was a padlock with the key in it—perfect for the kennel. She stuck it in her coat pocket. There was no power in the office. She didn’t know if that was because of the weather or if it was always that way.
Finally she got back in the truck and left the valley to drop him off with the Sweet Pepper police. She told Chief Rogers what he’d said and waited to hear what he thought.
“A big ruby?” He rocked forward in his chair. “We’ve got some mines around here for the tourists, but nobody is salting anything like that with something valuable. He might not even know what a ruby is. I’ll talk to him. Thanks for bringing him in.”
“I haven’t spoken with Harvey’s family again, but a big ruby could explain how Harvey could afford a million-dollar beach house.”
“True.” He frowned. “Harvey’s clothes were messed up, like someone was looking for something.”
“I know. Could they have been looking for a big ruby?”
“That doesn’t seem possible, but I guess you never know. Keep me in the loop with Harvey’s family,” he said. “I’ll see what I can find out from here. It seems to me that it would’ve made some headlines if a Wildlife Agent found and sold an expensive gemstone.”
“Okay. Thanks. I’ll talk to you later.”
Bonnie met Stella at the door. She was with Ricky Hutchins and another woman Bonnie hadn’t met. She was wearing heavy clothes and a Sweet Pepper Fire Brigade sweatshirt.
“We were just going to give you a call.” Stella introduced her second in command, Petey Stanze. “We’re looking for a Christmas tree for the fire station. Think you could help us out with that?”
“I think so. I was just headed back that way.” Bonnie shook hands with Petey, who seemed too delicate to make it as a firefighter, much less second in command. “You can follow me, if you like.”
Stella decided to ride down the mountain with Bonnie, leaving Petey and Ricky to bring her Jeep Cherokee down.
A breeze rustled through the files on the dash—a few minutes after the doors were closed.
“You have the ghost with you?” she asked Stella.
“Most of the time. I don’t let him go on dates with me for obvious reasons.” She grinned. “He’s always telling me I should settle down with someone and get married. But he hates every person I date and has used his ghostly powers to ruin a few occasions.”
“Ghostly powers, huh?” Bonnie laughed. “I guess that could be good or bad.”
“It’s been good a few times. He’s saved my life more than once. But I’ve saved him too. I think we’re even.”
That same errant breeze that shouldn’t have been inside the pickup gently moved Stella’s pony tail.
“Is he disagreeing?”
“He’s always disagreeing.”
Bonnie told her about seeing Eric’s picture at the firehouse. “He looks just like by brother. You don’t think there’s any chance…”
Stella turned her head. “Well, Romeo?”
There was no sound from the back seat where she looked. Bonnie hoped to be able to see the infamous Sweet Pepper ghost at some point.
“He doesn’t seem quite sure,” Stella admitted. “What does your mother say?”
“I haven’t asked her yet. She did say he paid her a call the night before he left town. While he was gone, she got married, and Eric was born the next year—maybe appropriately named.”
“Is your brother at your house?” Stella asked. “Eric would like to see him.”
“Sorry. You just missed him, but he’s supposed to fly home for Christmas. Maybe we can get them together then. Would he be able to tell if my brother is his son using his ghostly powers?”
“Who knows? He’s kind of freaked out about the whole idea from the look on his face.”
Bonnie glanced in the rear view mirror. “Does he look like he did in the picture? Or is he like something you’d see at Halloween?”
“Nope.” Stella laughed. “He’s a big, strong, handsome devil who never has to worry about changing his clothes or combing his hair. I guess that’s one advantage to being dead.”
They talked about Christmas trees the rest of the way to the house. Stella wanted two blue spruce trees each about six feet tall. One was for the firehouse, and the other was for her cabin.
Rose came out when the two vehicles pulled up in the yard. She waved excitedly and came down the steps with slippers on her feet. “Oh my goodness. It’s been so long since I saw you last. I’m so glad you’re here.”
Stella and Bonnie exchanged looks.
“Are you talking to Chief Griffin, Mom? Have you two met?” Bonnie asked.
“I know Chief Griffin,” Rose said. “I was talking to Eric, of course. You know, I thought we were going to be married one day. But that was a long time ago. Still, it’s good to see you.”
“Can she really see him?” Bonnie asked.
“She’s looking right at him.” Stella nodded to the space on her right. “Believe me. He sees her too.”
It was odd watching her mother have a conversation without seeing or hearing anyone she was talking to. If Bonnie didn’t know about the ghost, she would have assumed the worst. As it was, she stood there while her mother spoke to Eric Gamlyn and they all watched.
“Wow. That’s amazing,” Petey said.
“That’s the way Chief Gamlyn is sometimes,” Ricky added. “We can’t see him or hear him, but we can see her arguing with him.”
Stella was affronted by that remark. “I’m always very careful where I speak to him.”
Petey and Ricky nudged each other with their elbows and laughed.
“Right, Chief,” Ricky said.
“Come on, Mom,” Bonnie said. “Let’s get inside. It’s cold out here, and you don’t have a coat or shoes. I’m sure Eric can go inside and talk for a bit.”
Stella shook her head. “He can’t go without me.”
“Maybe you could just give her his badge until you’re ready to go,” Bonnie suggested.
“I’m sorry.” Stella wasn’t willing to do that. “Ricky and Petey know what we’re looking for. I’ll go inside with your mother, and they can pick out the trees.”
“Wonderful!” Rose exclaimed. “Maybe you’d like a hot cup of cider, Chief Griffin.”
The two women went inside. Bonnie laughed when she saw the door stay open just for a moment longer than it should have after they were already in the house. Were there things going on like tha
t all around her, but she’d never noticed?
Petey and Ricky both grabbed an ax to cut down the Christmas trees. As soon as the trees were chosen, they engaged in friendly but fierce competition to see who could fell their tree the fastest. Bonnie was surprised when Petey won.
“Let’s take them over to the bailer,” Bonnie suggested. “Then we can get them loaded up.”
There was a snowball fight and a race to see who could get their tree to the Jeep the fastest. It was clear there was a rivalry between Stella’s two co-assistant chiefs—and something more.
“That’s it,” Bonnie said. “You’re ready to go.”
They went inside, where Stella and Rose both had cups of cider in front of them at the kitchen table. There was a full cup of cider at the seat next to Rose’s. Bonnie assumed that’s where Eric was sitting.
“Not there!” Rose said as Ricky started to sit in that spot.
“Sorry, ma’am.” He glanced at the empty chair. “Sorry, Chief Gamlyn.”
Rose got Ricky and Petey cups of hot cider and brought out a pan of s’mores. She carefully put one of the confections on a napkin in front of Eric’s seat.
They talked about the snow and touched on Harvey’s death in the next thirty minutes they were there. Stella finally looked at her watch and said it was time for them to go.
“Please come back and visit anytime,” Rose invited. “And be sure to bring Eric. He likes you very much, you know.”
Stella smiled and nodded. “Sometimes, Miss Rose, when he’s not annoyed and stomping around the cabin. Thanks for your hospitality. How much do I owe you for the trees, Bonnie?”
She started to say no charge then remembered what Matthew had said about the tree farm staying in business. She didn’t want her brother to come home over Christmas and rant about them not making enough money. She quoted the standard price with a ten percent discount, since it was for the fire brigade.
“Thanks.” Stella gave her the cash. “See you soon. Maybe we can have lunch one day in Sweet Pepper.”
Rose applauded. “Oh yes! That would be fun. Can we eat at the cafe? That’s Eric’s favorite.”
“Of course. Why not?” Stella smiled at Bonnie. “Let’s do it once this snow is gone.”
