Jack heaved out a sigh. “Well, I’m still angry. I can’t help but wonder if you did this on purpose because you wanted to avoid a fight.”
“Oh, why would I do that?” Ivy adopted a snarky tone. “That simply means I’ll be waiting five years for my proposal. We’re always fighting. It’s not as if I can plan around the arguments.”
Jack made an odd growling sound as he turned his attention to Brian. “What do you think?”
“Much like Max, I think that we should look hard and fast at this place once we’re cleared to search the property,” Brian replied. “One worker dying after a robbery attempt at the mall is a nonsensical tragedy. The tree lot where that man worked with another group of men – men questioned by Ivy and Max less than twenty-four hours ago, for that matter – seems way too out there to be a coincidence.”
“I can’t argue with that,” Jack muttered, running his hand through his hair. “I don’t like it.”
“Join the club.”
“No, I mean I don’t like it that Ivy is in the middle of this,” Jack offered. “If word gets around that Dorian Jackson said something to her before dying, whoever killed him could get worked up and try to make sure she keeps her mouth shut.”
“I’ve already related what he said to me, though,” Ivy argued. “It was one word and we haven’t found a face to go with the name.”
“Honey, just because you told the truth about what Jackson said, that doesn’t mean the people he was working with – and we know he was working with at least one other person – believe that,” Jack said, tugging on his limited patience. The last thing he wanted was to terrify Ivy and cause her to retreat into her own head. “If Jackson’s wife so easily found you … .”
“It’s only a matter of time before the others do,” Ivy finished, pressing the heel of her hand to her forehead. “This is like the worst Christmas ever.”
“Don’t say that,” Jack chided. “It’s going to be a great Christmas. We simply need to approach this as a new case and see what we come up with. Everything is going to be perfectly fine.”
“Says you,” Ivy challenged. “I feel … sick to my stomach.”
Concern washed over Jack’s strong features. “Are you going to throw up? Do you need to sit down?”
“Do you know what would make me feel better?”
“What?”
“My proposal.”
Max snorted as Jack’s mouth tipped down at the corners.
“I saw that coming,” Max chortled. “Dude, she is going to wear you down if you don’t give her what she wants. You know that, right?”
Jack ignored Max’s teasing. “The more you complain, the longer you’re going to have to wait, Ivy. I’m not kidding around.”
Instead of taking the words as an admonishment – like Jack intended – Ivy saw them as a challenge. “I’m going to make you propose by Christmas. Just you wait.”
Jack wanted to argue, but she was fiery … and he liked it when she was fiery. “Well, we’ll see how things go. For now, I want you to head back to the lumberyard with Max. If we get any information I believe needs to be shared, I’ll call you.”
Ivy balked. “I don’t need a babysitter. I’m not spending the entire day with Max.”
“Fine. Do whatever you want.” Jack flexed his fingers as a calming mechanism, reminding himself that she was merely trying to get under his skin. “You’re the boss of you, right?”
Ivy nodded. “I am the boss of me. I’m the boss of you, too. Now … give me my ring.” Ivy pawed at the pocket of Jack’s coat, causing him to jerk away and slap at her hand.
“Do you really think that I have your ring with me?” Jack was incredulous.
“You don’t?” Ivy blinked several times. “It’s not at my house. I mean … it’s not at our house.”
Jack couldn’t help but smile at the way she so quickly switched from thinking of the house as her private abode to their winter wonderland. It was only one of the things he loved about her, the giving spirit she seemed to so easily exude. “You’re not going to find it so get that out of your head. In fact, if you do somehow magically find it, I’m taking it back and getting another ring. It will have a smaller stone, too.”
Ivy’s jaw dropped open. “That is just … mean.”
Jack was fresh out of sympathy. “You’ve brought this on yourself.”
Max chuckled, delighted. “He knows exactly how to play you, Ivy. It’s hilarious.”
Ivy slammed an elbow into her brother’s stomach. “I’m going to make you pay before the day is out. You should prepare yourself.”
“Whatever.” Max wasn’t particularly bothered. “I can keep her with me at the lumberyard for the bulk of the day, but I have plans for tonight.”
“I’ll be home in plenty of time to watch her tonight,” Jack said. “If you can distract her for the afternoon, I’ll be forever grateful.”
Max dutifully nodded. “You’ve got it.”
“I really don’t like any of you right now,” Ivy grumbled, crossing her arms over her chest.
“You’ll live.” Jack leaned over and pressed a kiss to her forehead. “We’re not done fighting about the fact that you didn’t tell me about Mary Jackson’s visit, by the way.”
“Oh, I know.”
Jack had to bite the inside of his cheek to keep from laughing at Ivy’s murderous expression. He opened his mouth to say something cute, but the words died on his lips when he caught sight of one of the firefighters approaching. He immediately straightened and returned his attention to the business at hand.
“Anything?”
“The fire is out,” the man replied. “There’s a body toward the back of the property.”
Jack stilled, dumbfounded. “A body?”
The man nodded. “I think it’s a man but that’s about the only thing I can say right now. The fire burned hot. Accelerants were definitely used. You can smell gasoline all over the place.”
Jack swallowed hard. “Okay. We’ll follow you back there.” He flicked his eyes to Ivy. “Go with Max. Promise me you’ll stay with him for the afternoon.”
Ivy considered arguing – she’d been looking for a way to torture Jack, after all – but now didn’t seem to be the time. “I’ll stay with Max. I’m … sorry.”
“I know you are.” Jack forced a smile. “We’ll talk about it later.”
“I’ll cook dinner tonight.”
“That’s not going to get you out of trouble.”
“No, but it will give me something to do with my hands.” Ivy rolled her neck until it cracked. “Keep in touch … if you can.”
“I’ll keep in touch,” Jack promised. “Be good.”
“I will. I promise.”
“I’m counting on you to keep that promise.”
Twelve
Jack watched Ivy until she was safely in Max’s truck and then followed Brian and the firefighter to the back side of the lot.
“This is Trevor Denham,” Brian offered by way of introduction. “He’s been with the fire department for a good five years now.”
“It’s nice to meet you.” Jack bobbed his head in greeting.
“Was that Max and Ivy Morgan I saw you talking to?” Trevor asked, filling in the conversational gap as they stepped around the charred and skeletal remains of several fallen trees.
“Yes.”
“Ivy is very pretty.” Trevor glanced over his shoulder so he could study Jack. “I haven’t had occasion to meet you yet, but I heard you and Ivy were dating.”
“We are,” Jack confirmed. “For better or worse.”
Brian barked out a laugh. “Son, I know she’s going to ride you ragged, but if it’s any consolation I think you handled that situation in a way that’s unique to your relationship with Ivy. It will all work out.”
“What situation?” Trevor was legitimately curious.
“It doesn’t matter,” Jack answered hurriedly. “I don’t want my private business spread all over Shadow Lake.”
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br /> “I understand that, but Max knows so everyone will know by the end of the week,” Brian pointed out. “Max is a good boy, but he can’t seem to stop himself from gossiping. He’s clearly having a good time at Ivy’s expense.”
Jack mustered a small smile. “It is kind of fun. She’s a firecracker when she wants to be.”
“I would’ve paid good money to see her face when you told her what was what last night,” Brian said. “How did she take it?”
“You saw her. She was worse last night.”
“Oh, I’m practically salivating here,” Trevor said. “Are you going to break up with Ivy? I know a lot of people who will be interested if she’s back on the market. The fact that she dated you made people realize she’s open for offers, which is something people didn’t believe for a really long time.”
Jack narrowed his eyes to dangerous slits. “She is not open for offers.”
“Certainly not,” Brian agreed.
“We’re not breaking up either,” Jack added. “In fact, we’re moving in together.” He figured that was safe to acknowledge in public. He hoped his proposal plans would remain under wraps for a few days at least, but Brian was right about Max’s mouth. Jack was in a pickle and he had to come up with a plan. Until he did, though, the less others knew, the better. “She is not open for offers so don’t even consider spreading that around.”
“I was just asking.” Trevor’s eyes twinkled until he caught sight of two of his men standing close to the wild tree line at the back of the property. “The body is over here.”
Jack and Brian returned to the business at hand as they moved closer to the burned husk on the ground. Jack’s nostrils flared as he knelt, his stomach twisting.
“Do we have any idea who this is?” Jack asked, choking back the bile rising in his throat. The body was badly burned and the smell was … unmistakable.
Trevor shook his head. “I figure that’s your job. For all we know he started the fire and got caught.”
“I don’t think so.” The set of Brian’s mouth was grim as he pointed to the back of the deceased individual’s head. “That is a gunshot wound.”
Jack widened his eyes as he leaned to look. “You’re right.”
“I’m always right.” Brian let loose with a heavy sigh. “We need to call the medical examiner and get him out here. Then we need to talk to the workers. We have to check the vehicles in the lot and figure out who we have here.”
“We also need to have the medical examiner run the ballistics on the bullet against the ones from the mall that they removed from Dorian Jackson,” Jack added, his voice low.
Trevor tilted his head, his interest piqued. “You think this has something to do with that? Is that why Ivy was here? I heard she was at the mall when all of that went down.”
Jack tugged on his limited patience as he fought to remain calm. “I just want to be sure,” he replied evasively. “I don’t want to accidentally miss something.”
“We’ll definitely do that,” Brian said, clapping his hand on Jack’s shoulder. “Come on. I think it’s going to be a long day, partner. We should start tracking down leads now.”
JACK WAS unbelievably weary when he let himself into Ivy’s house shortly after five. He’d spent the entire day questioning people, talking to the medical examiner, and notifying the deceased man’s relatives before finally calling it a day. The only thing he wanted upon his return to the house was a quiet night with his woman. One look at Ivy – and the bags and boxes piled up on the other side of the living room – told Jack that wasn’t going to be in the cards.
“What the … ?”
“Um … so … I was a little antsy this afternoon,” Ivy admitted, wringing her hands together. She wore an apron and boasted a smudge of flour on her face. “I might’ve done something stupid.”
Jack stared at the mound of bags and boxes and nodded. “I’m seeing that. What is all of this?”
“Your stuff.”
“My stuff?” Jack’s eyebrows flew up his forehead. “This is my stuff from the rental house?”
Ivy nodded, worry evident. “I don’t know why I did it. Max says I’m a control freak and I’m beginning to think that he’s right.”
“I’m not sure I understand.” Jack rolled his neck, tension gathering in the tender spot between his shoulder blades. “I thought you were spending the day with Max. You promised.”
“Oh, I spent the day with Max. I simply made him go with me to pack up all your stuff. That’s not an exaggeration, by the way. We packed up everything. In case you’re worried, I didn’t look in any boxes or anything because I figured my ring was in there … somewhere.
“Okay, if I’m telling the truth, I wanted to look in boxes, but Max wouldn’t let me,” she continued, her mouth moving at a fantastic pace. “He didn’t want to do it, but I convinced him it would be a nice gift for you since you’re going through so much thanks to me.”
“Uh-huh.” Jack had no idea what to say so he merely stared at the mountain of belongings.
“I needed something to do and Max wouldn’t let me run the table saw because he said he was worried I would cut off a hand.”
“I happen to agree with Max on that front.” Jack exhaled heavily. “Well, okay. This is fine. I thought we would have a quiet night, but I can unpack. That sounds … really exhausting.”
“Oh, don’t worry about that,” Ivy said hurriedly, taking a tentative step in Jack’s direction. “I figured I could focus on that tomorrow. With the nursery closed, I don’t have a lot to do with my time and I’m too agitated to make lotion. I’ll do that after the holidays.”
“I’m getting the feeling that you’re feeling a little penned in,” Jack noted, pursing his lips. “Still, if you want to unpack everything, I’m not going to argue. It’s just … some of the furniture at that house is mine, too. I wasn’t planning on abandoning the rental completely until the basement renovation is finished because we have nowhere to put the furniture until then.”
“Oh.” Realization dawned on Ivy. “If you want to move your stuff back … .” She didn’t look thrilled with the prospect.
“No, I don’t want that,” Jack clarified. “I want to be with you … despite how crazy I sometimes think you are.”
“Okay … um … good.” Ivy exhaled so heavily her bangs flew up.
“I cannot believe you did this in one afternoon,” Jack said, impressed. “You’re nothing if not efficient, honey.”
“I also made you a pot roast and red velvet cupcakes,” Ivy offered. “I put little Christmas trees on top of the cupcakes because I thought they were festive.”
“Wow.” Jack blinked a few times to clear the fog from his brain. “You don’t eat pot roast, though.”
“I cooked the potatoes, onions, and carrots in a separate roasting pan,” Ivy explained. “I’m going to heat up a soy patty to go with my stuff. I … hope that’s all right.”
“Yeah, apparently we need to talk if you think I’m going to be upset about you making pot roast.” Jack sat in the chair at the edge of the living room and patted his lap. “Come here, please.”
Ivy was surprised by the invitation but did as he asked, melting against him as he brought his arms around her. “How was your day?”
“Long,” Jack answered, smoothing her hair as he pressed a kiss to her forehead. “I’m not sure where to start on all of this.”
“Start with the dead guy. I’ve been driving myself to distraction since it happened.”
“I think you’ve been driving Max to distraction, too, but okay.” Jack idly rubbed his fingers against the back of Ivy’s neck. “Do you know who Norman Fell is?”
Ivy racked her brain. “Yeah. He owns the tree lot. He also rents canoes and kayaks on the river during the summer months.”
Jack nodded. “That’s him. He’s the dead man. He was shot in the head and then set on fire after the fact. The medical examiner seems to think it was a forensic countermeasure, but we can’t be sure about th
at right now. The fire inspector thinks that whoever set the fire only meant to burn Fell and the few trees in that immediate area. The fire got out of hand and burned almost everything in the lot.”
Ivy shifted as she absorbed the information. “So someone was trying to burn the body to cover up the bullet wound?”
Jack shrugged. “That’s as good of a guess as anything. We questioned all of the workers and they expressed shock and outrage, but I have to think whoever the culprit is works there.”
“There are only three of them. Can’t you check alibis?”
“There were three of them present last night,” Jack corrected. “There are twenty total workers. It’s seasonal so people pick up hours whenever they can.”
“Oh,” Ivy intoned, feeling foolish. “I never even thought of that. It makes total sense, though. I don’t suppose one of them is named Mitchell, by any chance?”
Jack shook his head. “That was our first instinct, too, but no. Right now we’re simply in the evidence-gathering phase. We have to look at payroll and bank accounts starting tomorrow.”
“That sucks.” Ivy ran her fingertip over Jack’s strong jaw. “You were complaining about being bored at work this week, though.”
“I would prefer being bored, especially when your name pops up in the investigation,” Jack countered. “I called Detective Crawford, by the way. He claims he never considered you a serious suspect but needed to rule you out all the same.”
“Do you believe him?”
“I have no reason not to believe him right now,” Jack answered. “He says he’s ruled you out because he’s seen the store security footage and you clearly weren’t involved. I’m taking him at his word. We’re waiting to see if the bullet in Norman Fell matches the one removed from Dorian Jackson, though. We won’t know that until tomorrow at the earliest … maybe later.”
“Do you think it will match?”
“I honestly have no idea.” Jack licked his lips as he turned his full attention to Ivy. “As for what you did today … thank you.”
Wicked Fun: An Ivy Morgan Mystery Books 7-9 Page 29
