Murder in the Arboretum (Cold Creek Book 2)

by Christa Nardi

  “Okay, we don’t have any tech types at the Department. So, I finally reached the head of Tech Services here at the College. He is on his way over and then he will extract what he needs from the server. You need to be here so he can access your account. His name is Cerf. You okay with that?” he asked.

  I nodded. It wasn’t like I had a choice. Before Hirsch left I asked if there were any prints found on the box pieces or such. He about groaned and related that the only ones that were clear were Malloy’s, which made sense given that he had collected them. So that was a dead end.

  Hirsch left and I made the most of the time while I waited. I managed to delete a lot of emails and started to work on this week’s quizzes and next week’s lectures. It was getting late when there was a knock on my door.

  “Dr. Hendley? My name is Jackson Cerf. Chief Hirsch asked that I come over about an email.” He was about my age, tall and thin. Unlike most people on a college campus, he wore polyester pants, a few inches too short. I hated to admit it, but he fit what I would expect for someone in technology. I didn’t bother to correct Hirsch’s title.

  “Yes, Mr. Cerf. Here is the email,” I said as I vacated the chair.

  He nodded and sat down. He read the email. Then he swiveled in the chair to look at me, his eyes opened wide. I nodded and he swiveled back to the computer.

  I fussed with books on the shelves and got my things together so I could leave when he was finished. Brett called and I explained that Mr. Cerf was working on the computer. We chatted a bit. His work was going slow and he wouldn’t be back until late. Looked like Charlie and I were on our own for dinner.

  After what seemed like forever, but was only about fifteen minutes, Mr. Cerf stood up to leave. I looked at him questioningly.

  He cleared his throat and explained, “I copied all that I need. I’ll see what I can figure out and send it to Chief Hirsch.” He shook his head and added, “Eventually he’s going to have to send this to someone else. Not my usual gig.” With that he left.

  It was creepy, but I needed to shake it off. I picked up my bags and locked my office. The deadbolt made me smile. Then I remembered why the lock had to be changed.

  On the way home, I stopped to pick up an entrée at the local pizza place. Charlie let me know I was a bit late by jumping around and barking. After a quick walk, I poured myself a glass of wine and attacked the pasta dish. I was famished. Then I fed Charlie.

  Feeling a bit restless, I went into my home office and started to surf the web. Maybe I could find something else about Justin Blake. Something that would explain why he was in Cold Creek. I found the same Facebook information I’d found before. I tried several combinations and nothing.

  I was frustrated. On a whim, I entered his name and the names of the various local newspapers. I found an obituary that listed him as a grandson. Jack was listed along with Justin’s aunt. The obituary must have been printed before the divorce.

  I tried again to draw a diagram of relationships with Clive as one center and Justin as another. From Clive’s circle, I had lines to the Horticulture Department, his job as groundskeeper, and his role with students like Dirk on scholarships. Joe and Kim were added more as a support than anything else on Clive’s diagram. I added Marty Cohn as his attorney. Last, I added a box with the information about his daughter and the drug dealer he assaulted.

  For Justin, the circle included his family, Jack, and the deceased grandfather. If Justin and his grandfather had been close, the death could have triggered changes in his behavior. In the box, I added conjecture that he might have been involved with drugs at least at some point in the past. That information was from Jack and Dr. Wellburn’s report. So far drug involvement was the sole, and very tentative, link between the two.

  I tried to identify others who might be involved. From Max’s comments, I added in Todd Flatts. With the tension between Dirk and Brendon, I added Brendon and connected him to Dirk. Brendon and Justin’s family likely traveled in the same circles even though Justin didn’t live in Cold Creek, but there was no indication they knew each other. I also drew a circle and marked it “group in Arboretum.” I added a box with the note from the boxes, the email, and trashing my office.

  I shook my head with frustration. I could keep adding people, but the bottom line was there was no way to link any of these events or people back to Justin or Clive. At least I hadn’t come up with one yet. Therein was the frustration. I was still staring at my pages, drawings and notes when Brett finally arrived. He looked as exhausted as I felt. Thankfully, he had already eaten. We watched the evening news and called it a night.

  Chapter 17

  The morning passed quickly. I had a lot to do. With Brett at the house most nights, I wasn’t managing to get much grading or preparation for lectures done. Between my classes, I worked on grading, preps, and handling other requests. Several times, Kim came by to discuss what she was going to wear to the dinner. More than once, she mentioned that Garrett called to ask her about the dinner and question the safety of the campus given the murder. She was so excited and anxious, it was hard for me to tell if he’d called once or multiple times in the course of the day.

  I got the feeling she wanted to look especially nice because of Garrett. As of the last time she stopped by, she’d settled on a jacket dress with a variety of blues and violets. Unfortunately, I couldn’t say the same. I had no idea what to wear. I wasn’t even sure what “business casual” really meant and I didn’t own a jacket dress. It was still a bit chilly in the evenings so I eliminated anything that didn’t have a jacket that matched.

  As I drove home, I mentally walked through the clothes in my closet. By the time I reached the house, let Charlie out, and started to get dressed, I had eliminated all but a few possibilities. By the time Brett got home, I had on a navy pencil skirt and pink silk top. A navy tweed jacket with pink threads finished the outfit. From Brett’s expression, I could tell he approved. He took a few minutes to change and we were off.

  The most positive thing about this dinner at the Cold Creek Country Club was that Brett accompanied me. His being there made the awards dinner and my obligatory presence palatable. Each year Cold Creek College honored faculty by recognizing teaching and service. More recently, awards to faculty for their part in undergraduate research activities had been initiated. To be exact, four faculty members were being honored tonight. One of these was my colleague, Jack, obviously much to Max’s chagrin. Jim had made it pretty clear that he expected to see us at the dinner to support Jack.

  Brett and I were seated with other colleagues, including, Kim and Garrett. She looked stunning in soft greens that set off her eyes and her red hair. This was our first opportunity to see Garrett up close and get a feel for what he was like. He was dressed in business casual and seemed a bit stiff. Maybe that was to be expected, but he was a bit pushy.

  Although most would have realized that talking about the murder was probably not in the best of taste, Garrett persisted. Attempts to direct the conversation to what he did, his hobbies, and such were not successful. Although he should get a medal for sitting through this ordeal, I didn’t see Kim staying with him for long. She seemed a little uncomfortable and he didn’t seem to have the same casual air from the restaurant.

  Our other tablemates were Priscilla and her husband, Cody Greene. I had never met Priscilla’s husband before, but he seemed pleasant enough. He wore a suit and tie, a little more dressed than some of the other males. About my height, he was an attractive man and well-mannered. Priscilla seemed all southern manners tonight with not a harsh word. Priscilla wasn’t very talkative but greeted everyone and smiled. She complimented the women, all of them, either on dress or hair or shoes.

  It made me wonder if alcohol or medication or both were the source of her pleasantness, but then she was born and bred in Georgia. For some southerners, a social event was all about proper decorum with no room for personal expression. Either that or maybe her husband had that calming and positive effect. W
hatever the reason, she was very pleasant.

  Cody was very talkative and good at typical awards dinner small talk. He spoke briefly about his job at Major Investments Plus and software design. Although Garrett had a similar job, he didn’t participate or engage Cody in conversation. With no one expressing interest, Cody shifted the conversation back to the College and Department, with some polite comments about Cold Creek.

  Rounding out the table were Max Bentley and his wife, Stella. Max was dressed up for the occasion and it looked like he tried to control his hair. Stella was dressed conservatively and in muted tones. Stella didn’t have much to say, her attention almost always directed at Max. Unfortunately, the same couldn’t be said for him.

  “Sheridan, are you listening to me? Can you please explain to me how it is that Jack is getting this award and not me? I just can’t believe that anyone would think the work his students did was important. I mean, really, Sheridan, you were on the committee, explain this to me,” he fired at me for a second or third time.

  Brett squeezed my knee, sending tingles and distracting me. Catching a glance at Kim, I could tell she was suppressing a smile. “Yes, Max, I was on the committee. The committee reviewed all the nomination packets. Faculty members were self-nominated as you know. Jack submitted a strong packet, you didn’t. It’s that simple. If you want to win the lottery, you have to play,” I explained, this time being a little less diplomatic.

  “I think that is unfair. That project has too many external threats to validity since it is not in a lab and environment can’t be controlled. You should know better, Sheridan,” he argued.

  Max had the opinion that any kind of research with humans had to be flawed. That’s why he studied rats or mice running mazes in a controlled laboratory. Jack, on the other hand, and his honors students, studied preschoolers and their behaviors in different settings. It was a philosophical divide between the hard sciences and the social sciences. In Max’s mind a person was either on his side or Jack’s. It made me groan, perhaps a bit too loud.

  Brett again squeezed my knee, but my anger was getting the better of me. Appetizers had been served and I was very glad my mouth was full. I chewed very slowly before answering Max. “Max, it was a committee decision, not mine,” I pointed out.

  Trying to avoid continuing the conversation, I turned to Garrett and asked, “So how is your business going? I would guess it has slowed down some with your recent move to Richmond.”

  Garrett nodded and agreed. Brett followed my lead and tried to engage him in conversation about investments, software, changes in the corporate world, and what he foresaw in the future. He included investments and looked to Cody to try to engage him as well. I glanced at Kim. She rolled her eyes and then went back to her salad. Garrett, in turn, offered up a very surface response. Having the floor again, he asked us all something else about the murder and the status of the investigation.

  Max apparently had enough of murder discussion. “Gary, these awards are important recognitions for faculty. If you want information on the murder, why don’t you just talk to the Detective here. You knew Brett here is DETECTIVE McCann, didn’t you?” he jeered.

  Talk about a conversation stopper. Obviously, Garrett didn’t know and the color about drained out of his face. It took him a few minutes to recover. He didn’t bother to correct Max on his name. But he asked, “So Detective, are you here because of the murder?”

  Brett put his arm around me and explained very smoothly that he was my date. Garrett didn’t have much else to say. Brett did his best to keep the conversation going until the main course was served. Then conversation gave way to eating.

  I was still eating when Brett’s phone went off. Making his apologies, he moved a few steps away to take the call. He nodded to the phone and raked his other hand through his dark curly hair as I watched him in my peripheral vision. Judging from the serious expression on his face, the phone call probably meant he would be leaving earlier than expected.

  Sure enough, Brett came back to the table and made his excuses. I wanted to stay for the dinner, but didn’t want to horn in Kim’s real first date with Garrett. Honestly, I didn’t want to spend any more time with him. Sensing my feelings, Brett asked Max if he could give me a ride home so I could stay. Max’s chest pumped out and he agreed.

  Given how much animosity there is usually between the two of them, it was rather odd to say the least. Kim looked at me questioningly and all I could do was shrug. I wasn’t sure if she questioned why Brett asked Max and not Garrett or Max’s response.

  Soon after Brett left, Priscilla commented about how thankful we all should be for police, fire and other first responders. I agreed as did the others at the table, but I wasn’t quite sure where the comment came from. The comment led to conversation about the recent fires and natural disasters and the work of first responders instead of Blake’s murder.

  I noticed that Garrett relaxed again once Brett left. Pretty soon it was time for the awards. We all clapped as speakers talked about the awards and recipients who received them.

  We all went to congratulate Jack, but I noticed that Garrett waited at the table for Kim. I guessed that made sense since he didn’t know Jack. Kim looked a little uncomfortable as he joined us and we all got ready to leave. In the parking lot, I asked Kim to call me when she got home and we all went our separate ways.

  All the way to my house, Max kept up a stream of conversation, with the occasional admonishment from Stella. Each time I saw the two of them, it surprised me how quiet she was. The other surprise was that Max wasn’t talking about his research. Although his comments centered on how he was the one chosen by Brett to take me home, it was interesting to note that he wondered about Garrett and didn’t have much positive to say about Priscilla. Small talk from Max was a pleasant surprise.

  At my house, I thanked Max and bid goodnight to Stella and him. Max waited until I was inside to drive away. Charlie waited for me as I opened the door. I let her out, fed her, and curled up to wait for Kim’s call. I watched the news in hopes of new information on Blake’s murder.

  I saw that a major drug bust had gone down in a town the other side of North Shore. I guessed that was the call Brett had gotten and wondered if that was his case or someone else’s and he just happened to be closer. If it was his case the mug book likely was somehow related to drugs.

  After about 30 minutes, I started to get spooked. Kim’s townhouse isn’t that much further from the hall where we’d had dinner than my house and she hadn’t called yet. I hesitated to call her in case she was ‘otherwise occupied’. I waited while I watched the rest of the late news. I jumped when the phone rang. My caller ID told me it was Brett, not Kim.

  “Hi Brett!”

  “Hi Sheridan. I’m about finished up here and should get there in about thirty minutes to an hour if that’s okay.”

  “That’s fine. I’m watching the news and waiting for Kim to call anyway,” I answered.

  My whine at the end of the comment spoke volumes. Brett listened as I explained that I had asked Kim to call when she got home, but I hadn’t heard from her yet. His response was to both reassure me that she was probably fine but also to tell me to call and just make sure. He added “then you’ll feel better” but he sounded a bit concerned. After assuring me, he hung up.

  I got another cup of coffee and called Kim.

  “Hi Sheridan. You still awake?” Kim answered.

  “Hi Kim. Yeah, I am. I’m waiting on Brett. Uh, I thought you were going to call me?” I asked in confusion.

  “Yes, it was a great dinner. Garrett and I both enjoyed it. I was just telling him how tired I was and he was about to leave. I’ll see you at the office tomorrow.” And she disconnected.

  I pondered my phone for a minute or two and drank my coffee. I played back the conversation in my head, and decided she was obviously giving me a message or two. Mostly what I got from her comments was that Garrett was still there and she was trying to get rid of him with the old
“I’m really tired” line. With that, she couldn’t very well talk to me.

  I curled back up with Charlie and my coffee and stared at my phone. I decided to just wait a bit and see if she called. Not a fan of most of the late night shows, I grabbed my Kindle and settled down to read and wait for Brett. That didn’t work as I kept replaying the dinner and Garrett’s comments and reaction to Brett. Obviously, it was up to Kim, but I sure hoped she wasn’t going to see him again. Marty Cohn popped into my head as a much better option.

  I was still digesting the behaviors at dinner and how surprisingly pleasant and considerate Max was in driving me home, when my phone rang. This time it was Kim. As Kim related how difficult it was to get rid of Garrett, I heard Brett’s car pull in the driveway. Kim continued to complain and generally groused about him, while Brett let himself in. He mouthed, “Kim?” when he saw me on the phone. I nodded my head and continued to mumble “Uh huh”, “uh huh”, over and over. He laughed and went into the kitchen.

  By the time he came back, I was off the phone. I related our conversation a bit. He seemed glad Kim decided she wouldn’t see Garrett again. He asked about Max and my ride home. I shared that Max had been very protective.

  Brett’s eyebrows went up and he nodded. Then he said he might have to give Max some slack. Conversation waned. I left him lots of room to talk about his call, but he skirted the issue. Instead he took me in his arms and we headed for the bedroom. An easy and welcome distraction.

  Chapter 18

  After the late night, it was a battle to get up in the morning. Brett and I both moved a bit slower than usual. The slow crawl translated to my late arrival on campus. Relieved I had everything ready to go, I followed my usual routine and grabbed a cup of coffee. Almost on the run as I entered the classroom, I was at the front of the room before I sensed the tension.