02 Outwitted

by Beth Solheim

  "It's wrong. You're always telling me I can't lie to the crossers. The only way they accept death is by telling the truth. How come you can lie and I can't?"

  "Because I'm the boss. Because we're dealing with a crime, not a fairy tale."

  "Then tell the truth. When you lie the cops always figure it out, anyway. I watch TV. I know what happens." Aanders' lip curled in rebellion.

  Toying with an earring, Sadie walked around her chair and leaned on the back with her elbows. "Okay, Aanders. When Lon gets here, I'm going to let you tell him. Be sure to tell him we take care of crossers and there's a dead man sitting at the kitchen table." Pointing a finger at him, she added, "What do you think your mother's going to say?"

  "About what?" Nan opened the screen door. She tapped the lid on Mr. Bakke's urn. "How you doing, Mr. Bakke?"

  Sadie motioned to Aanders to begin, watching his incensed glare turn sheepish.

  "You tell her." Aanders went limp against the back of his chair.

  "Tell me what?" Nan pulled out a chair and sat next to Lon.

  Jane sat in the final chair and watched Sadie spread a napkin out on the table.

  "We've got something to show you." Sadie opened a small box and laid two bones and a necklace on the napkin.

  "Bones? Chicken bones?" Lon picked up one of the bones and rolled it over in his hand.

  "They're human bones," Sadie said. "Finger bones to be exact."

  "Where did you get these?" Lon looked at Aanders, then at Sadie.

  The corner of Aanders' lips twitched as he opened his mouth.

  "They're mine." Sadie waved her hand. "Well, not my personal bones, but I found them. Aanders helped me."

  "What's this?" Lon held up the necklace and blinked twice at the tiny letters. "What does it say?"

  Nan took the necklace and held it toward the window. "It looks like J-E-D."

  "That's what it looks like to me, too," Sadie indicated. "We've discovered a skeleton under Clay's cabin. I think I know who it is."

  "What?" Lon's mouth stayed open as he drew in a quick breath. "You've got to be kidding. Are you saying Jed Perry's skeleton is under Clay's cabin? It can't be Jed. We buried him last week."

  "It's not Jed. Good grief. How dumb do you think I am? It's Jed's sister."

  "Celeste?"

  "I think so. I can't prove it, but the evidence points to it. Do you remember when Celeste disappeared?"

  "Of course I do. That's got to be over ten years ago," Lon said.

  "Fifteen years ago." Jane held her hand over her chest. "I remember the heart ache I felt when her parents offered the big reward and no one came forward. For that kind of money I thought for sure someone would talk."

  The half-heart dangled from the chain as Nan handed it back to Lon.

  Lon squinted at the lettering. "Where did you say you found this?" He set the chain on the table. "If this is evidence, we shouldn't touch it. What were you doing under Clay's cabin?"

  Sadie pointed at Belly. "Our little friend uncovered it."

  "How'd he get under there?"

  "I've seen Belly clawing at the air vent on Clay's cabin," Nan said. "He must have gotten it loose."

  Belly placed his head on Sadie's lap and blinked his eyes in adoration.

  Sadie scratched behind his ears. "You get blamed for everything, don't you?"

  "Bless his soul." Bernie winked at Jane. "He can't help it if he's nosey."

  "You mean Belly actually brought this to you?"

  "You could say that." Sadie placed the bones side by side on the napkin. "There's more. I also found a notebook."

  "You didn't get fingerprints on it, did you?"

  "Well I didn't leave my fingerprints at home."

  Lon ran his hands through his hair. "Sadie. You know better than that. Nan's told you a million times if you suspect anything when you're prepping a body you should contact the authorities. Finding a skeleton is no different."

  "I didn't do anything wrong." Sadie's voice rose. "It's a skeleton. A very old skeleton. It's been there a long time. When I saw the necklace with Jed etched on it, I remembered when Celeste disappeared and put two and two together. You have to admit it's a possibility."

  Lon looked at Sadie and shook his head in disbelief. "Why didn't you come and get me right away? If this is a crime scene, we've got to get the forensics team out here right away."

  "We know that, Lon. That's why we contacted you now." Jane leaned back against Bernie's arm. "We can't be sure, but maybe the skeleton was there when we bought the cabin from Kimmer's folks."

  As if lightning struck, Nan blurted, "Do you think Clay had something to do with this?"

  "I don't think so. I'm still puzzled why Kimmer rented the cabin for Clay," Sadie explained. "I'm guessing neither Kimmer nor his folks knew about the skeleton. Judging by the decayed clothing and mouse droppings, it's been there a long time."

  "The sheriff isn't going to be happy you waited to tell me."

  "You were busy with the missing baby. By the way, how is the search going?"

  "Not good. It's got similarities to the abduction last summer. Somebody knew exactly what they were doing. The abduction was too calculated to be pulled off by an amateur."

  "You're in big trouble, young man." Nan shook her head from side to side. "You should have told me about the skeleton."

  "I made him promise not to," Sadie said. "I needed to think it through before I told Lon. There's stuff in the notebook that didn't make sense. If it is Celeste, why would she have the notebook?"

  "What was in it?" Lon stared at the diminutive sleuth. "Sadie, what was in the notebook?"

  Sadie lowered her head and looked at Lon over the top of her glasses. "You've got to promise you won't yell. If you do, I won't show you."

  Lon's mouth dropped open. "You mean you removed the notebook?"

  "Don't show him if he's going to get huffy," Jane said. "You're darn lucky Sadie's sharing this with you. If it wasn't for her, poor Celeste would never have been found."

  "We've all touched it," Bernie admitted, "so our fingerprints are on it too. Jane tried to help Sadie make sense of the names and numbers."

  Nan put her hand on Lon's arm. "Let her get the notebook. It's already compromised."

  Lon returned from his squad car pulling on a pair of Latex gloves. "A lot of good this is going to do. You've already contaminated the evidence." He placed a plastic bag on the table. Sadie, Nan, Jane, and Bernie stood behind him as he opened the notebook.

  Sadie pointed at the name on the first page. "His name is in there several times." Pointing at a column next to the name she added, "There's a dollar amount and date after his name each time, too."

  "Who's Reginald Carson? And look at this." Lon pointed at another name.

  "Oh, dear," Nan said.

  Lon looked at Sadie and then at Nan. "Does the name mean anything to you?"

  "It does to me. It's the name of the family whose baby was abducted about twenty years ago." Nan put her hand over her mouth in disbelief. "I went to school with one of their kids."

  "Now do you see why I wanted to be sure before I told you?" Sadie pointed at the notebook. "If you follow the line across the page, you'll see a dollar amount and a check mark. It looks like the beginning and end of a transaction. Either Celeste was involved in the crime or she was killed because she knew too much."

  29

  "I want to go to my secret hideout." Sally tugged on Jed's hand. "I want to see what they're doing."

  "You can't. The sheriff's deputies are there and we need to stay out of their way." Jed nodded toward the inner room. "Sadie put some jewelry on your bed. Why don't you play with it?"

  "I don't want to. I want to go to my secret hideout."

  "The answer is no. Quit trying my patience."

  Sally sank back against the chair rungs and dropped her hands into her lap. "I don't like you anymore. You're mean."

  "If you don't like me, I'll have to give your surprise to someone else."

>   "I think you're full of bull."

  "Bull?" Jed grinned broadly.

  Sally tightened her arms over her chest. "That's right."

  "What exactly does full of bull mean?"

  Sally's bare heel tapped against the wooden leg. "It means you're lying. Mom says Dad is full of bull."

  "I'll bet it's not true." Jed patted his lap. "Come and tell me about your dad."

  Sally hesitated. "Mom said Dad didn't love us. I don't believe her. Dad told me every day how much he loved me."

  "He loves you, Sally. Your dad's a good man."

  "I wish he'd find me so we can go home. I don't know what's taking so long."

  Jed lifted her off the floor and Sally snuggled against his massive chest. "You're like a big lion." She spread her arms out to embrace him. "I miss my dad."

  The screen door banged against the frame as Lon, Sadie, and Bernie entered the cabin. Lon lifted the lid off the cookie jar.

  "I wouldn't do it if I were you," Sadie said. "You might have to arrest Jane for murder."

  "Was she experimenting again?" Lon replaced the lid and looked toward the screen door.

  "Unfortunately, she varied the recipe. I bought her two new cookbooks, but she doesn't bother to read them." Bernie looked at Sadie. "Has she always experimented like this?"

  "Always," Sadie and Lon replied in sync.

  "Jane cooked at the resort's restaurant three summers ago. A disaster. A complete disaster." Sadie shook her head remembering the dismal summer. "Word-of-mouth is a killer in a resort community."

  "Bless her soul," Bernie said. "She means well."

  Jane placed her nose against the screen and peered into the cabin. "There you are. I got sidetracked by a guest asking questions about the deputies' cars parked at Cabin 12. We need to do rumor control before we lose our guests."

  "We're trying to keep it as low-key as possible," Lon indicated. "I've gone cabin to cabin telling your guests there's nothing to worry about."

  "That's not what it looked like. Four squad cars and a forensic van is enough to scare people away."

  "They shouldn't have much left to do. As soon as they're done, Clay can move back in."

  "That will make Nan happy," Sadie said. "She isn't thrilled Clay had to sleep on her couch."

  "Neither am I."

  Lon's hostile tone surprised Sadie. "You can't possibly think Nan would give Clay a second chance?"

  "Of course not, but I don't trust the man. Nan doesn't need the added stress."

  Sadie nodded in agreement. "How are Celeste's folks dealing with the news?"

  Lon removed his cap and hung it on a chair spindle. "They're real troopers. They identified the necklace as belonging to Celeste. Mrs. Perry remembered seeing the notebook on Celeste's night stand, but said it wasn't Celeste's handwriting. Actually, I think they're relieved. They can finally put her to rest."

  Sadie glanced at the chair under the clock. Jed winked back and nodded.

  "I trust you won't leak information to the press. There's bound to be a clue in the notebook and I don't want anyone knowing about it."

  Jane set a plate of cookies on the table. "I thought these would have disappeared by now. Eat up. There's more in the cookie jar."

  "I'm guessing Nan will have a full chapel for Celeste's memorial," Lon said. "It's a shame they just buried Jed and now they have to deal with this."

  "Or," Sadie added, "they'll find comfort knowing Jed and his sister are finally together."

  Jed wiped at a tear rolling down his cheek.

  "You're probably right." Lon patted Sadie's shoulder and rose. "You make me look at things from a different angle. I appreciate the new perspective. I'm afraid pessimism comes with my job." He shouted back through the screen door as he stepped off the porch, "I'm going to the sheriff's office. I'll see you later."

  Sadie closed the door to the chapel when the minister began to speak. She tiptoed across the lobby and into the office as the phone rang. "This would be Sadie."

  "I'm out in the parking lot. You'd better keep an eye on Clay. He just sneaked in the back door," Lon said. "I'll be back in a few minutes."

  Sadie looked out the window and saw Lon flip the lid on his cell phone. She dug through the drawer for the stack of Please Turn on Headlights cards.

  Every parking space in the parking lot held a vehicle. Thirty-eight to be exact. Scanning the street in both directions, Sadie figured the twenty additional vehicles parked on the street would join the funeral procession. She fanned the headlight cards. Selecting a hundred or so, Sadie placed them on the credenza.

  The memorial basket situated on the lobby podium held a stack of sympathy cards containing memorials for the deceased's family. The Perry family had indicated they would add the funds from Celeste's memorial to those from Jed's funeral and initiate a yearly scholarship. Sadie aligned the guest book, the pen, and the basket. Nice and tidy. Nan would be pleased.

  Jane walked out of the chapel as organ music filtered into the lobby. A vocalist sang the hymn's last refrain. "Need any help? It's so crowded in there, I couldn't breathe."

  Sadie handed Jane half the Please Turn on Headlights cards. "You take the street and I'll take the parking lot."

  Sadie weaved between each car, tucking headlight cards carefully under the driver's wiper. Saving the best car for last, she slipped a card under a neon-purple wiper matching the car's psychedelic paint job. She gazed at the interior as she waited for Jane.

  "I should have bought the car last year when she had it for sale," Sadie said. "Don't you just love those lavender fur seats? That's the nicest car I've ever seen." Sadie took the remainder of the cards from Jane. "I still don't know why she backed out of our deal. She was all set to sell it to me and suddenly changed her mind. I wonder why she never told me who bought it."

  Jane shot a side-glance at Sadie and hurried toward the lobby door.

  Organ music filtered into the lobby and mourners began to sing. "Bernie's in there singing his heart out." Jane said. "He won't notice I'm gone. He sure has a beautiful voice."

  Sadie followed Jane into the office, but stopped short when she spotted Clay reaching into the memorial basket. He pulled out a sympathy card.

  Seeing Sadie approach, Clay hastily tucked the sympathy card into the seat of his pants and backed against the wall. He crossed his arms over his chest.

  "Give me the card, you worthless crook." The veins stood out in Sadie's neck, contempt flaring in her eyes.

  Clay raised his empty hands. "What card?" After scanning the floor around him, he looked up and shrugged. He gazed at his palms.

  The confident grin disappeared when Jane stepped forward and grabbed Clay's outstretched arm. "Give me the card or I'll tell Nan."

  "Don't tell Nan," Clay whined. "You're going to ruin everything. I'm short on cash. Nan will kill me if she finds out."

  Jane's gray bob swung forward as she thrust her nose under Clay's chin. "Give me the card."

  "I can't. You don't want me to go hungry, do you? If I don't eat, I'm gonna end up in a casket." Clay wavered as he pointed toward the viewing room. "I had a job, but Dan cancelled it. He's heading back to Minneapolis, instead. Ain't it the shits?"

  Before Clay could whine further, Jane spun him around, tugged at his loose waistband, and plunged her hand into Clay's pants.

  Lon stepped up to the jostling pair. "Jane. I'm shocked. The things you don't know about your friends."

  "Don't tell me you called the cops." Clay's whine rose higher with each word.

  As Clay tried to wriggle free, Lon squeezed the back of his neck and pressed him against the wall.

  Jane grimaced and held the sympathy card at arm's length between her thumb and forefinger. Turning her head away from the recovery, she dropped it into the memorial basket. "This insult to the human race is a thief."

  "Now we know why you show up at every funeral. I actually thought you had one redeeming quality." Lon released his grip. "Does Nan know you steal cards from the basket?"


  "Don't tell Nan," Clay begged. "She'll have me put in jail again. She'll kill me."

  "What a shame that would be." Sadie faked a pout.

  Lifting the envelope from the basket with two fingers, Jane peeked under the unsealed flap. "Look at this. There's fifty dollars in there."

  "Fifty bucks?" Clay's disbelieving shout rebounded across the lobby. "Damn. It's usually only twenty." Clay glared at Jane. "You're just as nasty as your sister."

  Turning Clay toward the front door, Lon said, "Now get out of here. If I hear you've taken money again, I'll file charges."

  "I can't for the life of me understand why Nan married a pig like Clay." A smile crossed Jane's face. "Come to think of it, she seems to be a swine connoisseur."

  "Jane!" Lon looked at Sadie. "Who lit Jane's fuse?"

  Jane cocked her head. "What makes you think I don't have a few good zingers? You have to admit he's truly a revolting wretch. Can't you keep him away from the mortuary?"

  "He may be a wretch, but he's a creative wretch. I never thought of stealing money from the memorial basket."

  "He's not in the least bit creative. He's pickled, he's repulsive, and he's Kimmer's puppet."

  "He didn't think you'd dig for the card. I don't think I would have stuck my hand down there. In fact, I know I wouldn't have. We all have secret desires."

  The chapel doors swung open. Nan glared at Sadie. Sadie hurried over and helped Nan prepare the casket before the pallbearers accompanied it to the hearse.

  Celeste's parents wept in silence as they walked behind the casket. Jed placed his hand on his mother's shoulder as he followed behind her. He held on to Sally with his other hand. Tears rolled freely down his face.

  After the mourners returned from the cemetery, they gathered for a luncheon in the Community Center. Sadie reached across the table and put her hand on Jed's arm. "How are you doing?"

  "I'm at peace. Thanks for suggesting I ride with my parents to the cemetery. It's like they knew I sat next to them. Dad told Mom he was proud of me because I insisted they'd someday find out what happened to Celeste."

  Sadie patted his arm. "You're ready to go back through the light now, aren't you?"