Gabe grinned. “Didn’t the sheriff tell you to stop snooping?”
Abby shrugged. “Yes, but that doesn’t mean I’m going to listen. Someone has already taken a shot at me. I think I’m taking this personally.”
“Someone’s already taken a shot at you,” Gabe repeated before shaking his head. “And you’re still going to continue? Well, we can’t let you do it alone.”
Abby narrowed her eyes. “What do you mean, let me?” In this instance, his hazel eyes and dimples were not going to save him.
Fortunately, Gabe was a smart man and realized what he’d said. “That did come out wrong, didn’t it? Sorry, I didn’t mean it like that. Let me rephrase. The sheriff specifically told me he wanted me to keep my eyes out for anything unusual. As part of that service to law enforcement, I think I’m going to visit the buyer’s market up at Clapshaw Road on Tuesday. That’s where the mushroom buyers come out and set up an impromptu place to pay for any mushrooms found by local hunters in these parts.” He stopped and cleared his throat, putting on a fake formal look. “Would you like to go out there with me?”
Abby kept her eyes narrowed for just a moment longer but finally nodded. “Okay, Mr. Ranger. You avoided the fire this time, which I suppose is a ranger skill, but that’s your last pass. Also, I have decided that accompanying you sounds like an excellent idea.”
They both grinned at each other, happy in their momentary conspiracy.
Chapter 18
It was dark with moonlight shining down through the trees as Gabe’s headlights made strange shadows dance amongst the tree trunks and brush that was prevalent on the island. The old house still took Abby’s breath away with the friendly, yellow lights shining happily out from the porch and windows onto the gravel of the round-a-bout. However, as Gabe’s truck rolled slowly up to stop in front of the house, she saw Mr. Wilberson step out of the garage and stare at the unknown vehicle. The headlights must’ve been blinding him, but the old man did not look away and kept his eyes firmly on the oncoming truck until it came to a stop. Once they had stopped all the way, he immediately made his way to the driver’s side door and peered in, his craggy features cast in dark shadow and a disapproving frown. He resembled nothing so much as a guard dog preparing to take a bite out of a trespasser.
Abby almost laughed at the site. She was in her early thirties but suddenly felt like a teenager returning home after missing a curfew. Gabe politely rolled down his window and gave his best, friendliest smile, but Mr. Wilberson’s face didn’t even flinch.
“Something I can help you with, son?” He asked as he squinted darkly at Gabe.
Notwithstanding the fact that this was the longest sentence she’d ever heard out of the old man’s mouth, Abby decided that giggling at that moment would not be prudent. It took some effort, but she schooled her face as Gabe replied.
“Just returning Abby Morgan to her home, if that’s ok?” Gabe half-said and half-asked.
If anything, Mr. Wilberson’s eyes narrowed even further as he peeked past Gabe at Abby and gave a grunt that could have meant any number of things. Abby waved nervously, feeling even more like a young teenager as he glowered at her. Cheerio yipped happily from the back seat.
“What’s going on, Bill?” Hazel asked from the porch with Becky standing just behind her. Hazel looked fine, but Becky appeared to have been crying recently and was still holding a tissue in her hands as she peered curiously around Hazel’s shoulder.
Abby quickly stepped out of the truck, waving at the two on the porch. “It’s okay. He was just bringing me home.”
Hazel frowned. “He? Who’s he? And did something happen with the Cruiser?”
Gabe made to open his door, but Mr. Wilberson didn’t step aside right away until Hazel waved at him. “Stop that, Bill. He’s a park ranger. I’m sure he’s not here to burn the house down and carry off the women.”
Mr. Wilberson just grunted in response. Abby was sure it meant something different this time, but at least he moved away from the truck door and back toward the apartment above the garage. Gabe watched him shuffle away warily before stepping out and giving Abby a look that clearly said ‘that is one scary old man’ before looking back up at her grandmother. “Uh, no, ma’am. There is nothing wrong with your car, but Abby had an accident out on the trail. I took her to the hospital. I’ll bring your car back by tomorrow if that’s okay?”
“Accident?” Hazel asked with a worried tone in her voice and an arched eyebrow. Alarmed, Becky had also come out further on the porch at the word.
“Yes ma’am,” Gabe answered. “Would it be okay to tell you inside?”
Her grandmother nodded though she clearly felt concerned at the news and eyed the bandage on Abby’s arm. She opened the screen door and waved for them to enter. As Abby and Gabe stepped up onto the porch, Abby couldn’t help but notice both women’s eyes widen at the site of him. Internally, she felt pleased she wasn’t the only one that was affected by his rugged, good looks. Hazel quickly gained control of herself, but Becky seemed to have no shame as she stared at the handsome ranger. After he had passed, she looked behind his back at Abby and gave her a big grin and a thumbs up sign.
Abby waved her hands at Becky, trying to get her to stop behaving like a child, though she couldn’t help herself from grinning back. It caused Gabe to turn and give Becky a suspicious look which she returned with over exaggerated innocence. For her part, Hazel just rolled her eyes as she escorted everyone inside and into the sitting room.
“Becky, why don’t you make us some tea, or if you prefer, coffee?” She said as she looked at Gabe with a raised eyebrow.
“No, ma’am,” Gabe answered. “I know coffee is the official drink of the Northwest, but tea is just fine by me. I get more than enough out at the ranger station.”
“Would you like something to eat? I have some biscuits and jam, or there’s some leftover chicken. I made more than enough. You both must be hungry after being at the hospital?”
Abby and Gabe exchanged glances. “Gabe and I already had dinner. We had steak up at Callahans.”
Hazel’s eyebrow rose only slightly as her eyes flitted to Gabe, but Becky peeked her head out from the kitchen so only Abby could see and mouthed ‘Callahans’ at her before wiggling her eyebrows. Abby tried to give her a stern look and shake her head, but it didn’t seem to dampen Becky’s enthusiasm in the slightest.
“Well, Callahans is quite a nice place to have dinner. I’m glad you got up there. They do make good food, especially when Karl is cooking. Now,” Hazel said as she slapped her knees. “Tell me about this accident? Did you fall on the trail, Abby?”
Abby blinked and realized how worried the next sentence was going to make her grandmother but couldn’t find a way out of telling her. “No, I wish it was something like that.” Abby took a deep breath. “I was shot.”
Hazel froze, and Abby could hear that all motion from the kitchen had come to a standstill. A moment later Becky was back out into the living room like a shot as Hazel leaned in.
“Shot?” Becky and Hazel said, almost in unison.
“Was it like a BB gun or something?” Becky asked hopefully, her face suddenly stricken with fear.
“No. No, it was from some sort of rifle as best the sheriff could tell though there is no way to know for sure. The bullet only grazed my skin.”
“It was a rifle,” Gabe interjected. “I could tell from the sound. Most likely it was a thirty-aught-six.”
“That’s a rifle that could have killed her,” Hazel said in a cold tone.
“Yes, ma’am” Gabe confirmed.
“Oh, jackrabbits,” Becky interjected into the silence.
Chapter 19
“No, it’s the end of it, Abby!” Becky said angrily. “I’m not going to have you running around being shot at on my account! Why are we even having this conversation?”
“I’ll be with Gabe,” Abby said calmly from the driver’s seat of the PT Cruiser. She was trying to stop Becky from yell
ing, but so far hadn’t had much luck. Gabe had brought the car back that morning, and Abby had offered to take Becky back to her apartment to pick up more of her stuff. She hadn’t thought that Becky was going to use the time to berate her.
“Well, I might have to remind you, you were with Gabe when you got shot. Did you forget that!? It didn’t seem to help much. I know he’s handsome and all, but those dimples aren’t going to deflect bullets.”
“I didn’t notice,” Abby said with as little emotion as possible.
Becky wasn’t convinced at all and snorted. “Don’t lie to me! I saw the way you were looking at him last night.”
Abby raised an eyebrow and shook her head. “No, that was how you were looking at him. I was looking at him regularly, like a calm and collected adult.”
Both women became quiet, uncomfortable with the tension in the air before Becky said one word.
“Dimples.”
Becky and Abby immediately broke down into giggles. “Would you stop that?!” Abby said, trying to be serious but failing miserably.
“I’m just calling it how I see it,” Becky said as they pulled onto the street her café was on. They had both laughed again, but when they saw the yellow police tape stretched across the door of the happy little building, it dampened their mood like a bucket of ice water.
“We’ll be in and out quickly,” Abby said quietly, pulling into the driveway that led to the back of the building. The café had once been a house but had been converted into a place of business with the attached studio apartment kept separate. It even had its own entrance kitty corner to the back door of the café, itself. Making their way inside, Abby sat on the small love seat while Becky began to pack some of her clothes.
After she’d gotten what she came for, they loaded the suitcase into the back of the cruiser and were about to get in when Becky snapped her fingers. “Oh, almost forgot. The mail. Meet me out front while I go get it.”
As Becky slid into the passenger seat, she was holding several envelopes and junk mail but was busy reading through one of the letters. Abby grew concerned at the prolonged silence even as Becky’s eyebrows lowered like an approaching thunderstorm.
Suddenly, she sniffed angrily and slammed the letter down on her thigh while looking around with wide-eyed outrage. “Those bastards!” Becky said. “They can’t do this! Who do they think they are?!”
Abby couldn’t read what was on the page, but she could see the logo on the now-crumpled envelope which declared it a work of their local bank, Red Pine Mutual.
“What’s wrong, Becky?”
“That weasel, Frank!” Becky yelled. “He shut off access to my accounts!”
“Can he do that?” Abby asked, feeling her anger rising.
Becky looked over at her, enraged, and then waved the piece of paper at her like it was some sort of rattlesnake. “I don’t know, but that’s what he did! Look!”
Abby grabbed the letter and read through it. There, clear as day, was the explanation.
Miss Becky Northridge,
Due to the local police investigation, we are shutting off access to your accounts in support of our law enforcement officers.
Sincerely, Red Pine Mutual
After reading the letter, Abby realized she completely understood her friend’s anger but that if she didn’t want Becky to do anything stupid, she had to take charge of the situation. “I don’t think they can do this. Here, let’s call the sheriff and see if he knows anything about this.”
Looking up the phone number wasn’t difficult, and a few minutes later a voice asking what they needed help with. Abby was just about to answer when Becky began yelling in an epic display of redheaded anger. “You bet you can help me! You can tell me why you’ve shut off my accounts!”
Abby quickly tried to shush Becky, pulling the phone away from her and waving her free hand madly. She could hear the person on the phone trying to ask follow-up questions, but all she could get was a muffled voice as she pressed the phone to her side. She wasn’t about to hold the phone back out so Becky could continue her screaming. “Becky! Shush! They’re not going to help us like this.”
Becky looked like she was going to answer, but instead, she sniffed and shut her mouth, looking out the window instead. Once Abby was sure Becky wasn’t going to start screaming again, she held the phone back up to her ear.
“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean for that to happen but my friend has questions. She just received a letter from the bank stating that her accounts were shut off and they said the police department had requested it. Is that right?”
The voice on the other side had patiently listened until she finished. Finally, the man cleared his throat. “Um, ok, miss. Can you tell me who this is about? I never got your names.”
“My name is Abby Morgan, but the person who had her accounts shut down is Becky Northridge,” Abby said, looking once again at her distraught friend to make sure she wasn’t going to try to take the phone away. Sorry, we’re a bit upset.”
There was silence on the other end of the line, accompanied by the sound of tapping keys on the keyboard. Finally, the voice came back. “Miss Morgan, I don’t see any records of anything like that being asked for or ordered, but maybe you should talk to the sheriff? Would you like me to transfer you?”
“Yes, please.”
Becky had turned back by that time and had been listening to her side of the conversation. “What are they saying?” She asked. “Did they cut off my accounts? By God, I’ll…I’ll. Well, I’ll do something!” Becky stopped talking when Abby held her hand up to her, then pointing at the phone. The familiar voice of the sheriff drawled from the other end the phone line.
“Well, how can I help you today, Misses Morgan? It seems we only spoke yesterday. You’re not still sticking her nose in our business, are you?”
“No, sir, though I am calling on behalf of Becky. She’s sitting right here.”
“Becky is there with you? Why don’t you just let me talk to her directly?”
“Because otherwise, you’d be hearing a lot of screaming. She just got a letter from Red Pine Mutual stating that they cut her accounts off in support of law enforcement officers. You didn’t do that, did you? Because I’m pretty sure that’s not legal.”
There was a pregnant silence on the end of the phone until she could hear the sheriff take a deep breath. “Well, it could potentially be legal but would require significant efforts through the judicial system. Efforts we have not undertaken. Can I ask where you folks are right now?”
Abby looked at Becky and tapped the paper in Becky’s hand before shaking her head. She wasn’t sure if it would make Becky more or less angry, but it seemed to do a little of both. Becky grinned at her, then opened the door and got out, leaving the flabbergasted Abby to stare after her as she began storming across the street directly toward the bank.
“Mrs. Morgan? Are you there?”
Abby sputtered and looked at the phone before remembering who she was talking with. “Uh, yes, we were at Becky’s café getting some clothes, but you might want to go to the bank. That’s where Becky is marching toward right now.”
“What do you mean, marching toward? Didn’t you just say she was with you?”
“She was with me. Now she’s walking toward the bank.”
“Damn. Listen, can you keep her from doing anything that may make me have to do my job? She doesn’t need that right now. I’m on my way.”
“I’ll try,” Abby said, and then hung up her phone before she jumped out of the car after her friend. She was very happy she had worn sneakers because Becky was almost to the entrance of the bank.
Chapter 20
Abby rushed into the bank and into a full blown maelstrom of redheaded fury. Becky had Frank backed up against one of the walls and was shaking her finger in the big man’s face. Susan Clawson and all the tellers were watching the exchange with wide, frightened eyes. It looked like Susan had picked up the phone but hadn’t dialed yet, still mesmerized
by the chaos in front of her.
Abby took a moment to lean in toward Susan. “Don’t bother calling the police, Susan. The sheriff is on his way already.”
Susan just nodded dumbly and slowly put the phone down as the screaming continued.
“You giant ass of a man! How dare you cut off my accounts! You have no right to be doing something like that! I swear to God, if you don’t activate them right now I’m going to be living in your office!”
For his part, Frank seem to be trying to get a word in edgewise, and failing miserably, through the tirade that Becky was unleashing on him. Abby wasn’t even sure she was taking a breath between sentences. Every time he opened his mouth, Becky’s tone would just go up a notch. Frank’s face was floating between angry and terrified, but Abby did not know which way it was going to fall. She hoped the chauvinist didn’t get physical when he got angry.
When Abby reached them, she inserted herself between the very narrow space and faced Becky. “Becky, calm down! The sheriff is on his way. He’ll get things settled and make sure it never happens again.”
Becky’s beet-red face didn’t change much, but she stopped screaming at Frank and took a step back, shaking in anger. With the brief respite, Frank found a little bit more courage than Abby thought he had and started talking. Idiot.
“What is the meaning of this?!” Frank finally managed to sputter. “How dare you barge into my place of business?! You’re just a criminal and most likely a murderer.” He raised his voice calling across the now silent lobby. “Susan! Call the sheriff right now so he can come arrest Miss Northridge.”
Abby spun on Frank. “He’s already coming!” She yelled. “We checked with him just a few moments ago, and he knows nothing about ordering any shutdown of Becky’s accounts. Who do you think you are?”
Frank blinked, and a very faint glimmer of uncertainty entered his eyes, but he quickly stifled it and fell back on his usual bluster. “I’m the bank manager and why wouldn’t I have the right to do that!? This woman clearly murdered a pillar of our community. Just like any business, I can refuse service to someone, especially if I think they are a danger to me or my establishment.” The big man pointed menacingly at Becky. “Clearly this display shows that I was right!”
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