The Hooded Figure (A Wild Cove Mystery Book 5)

by Laura Greene

  "Yes, Jack but…"

  It’s too late; Jack has already spied a small chair behind the counter. What he has not seen, however, is the single dress pin sitting on top of it. He yelps as the pin pierces his jeans and scratches his backside. Jumping out of the seat, he yells, “This place is dangerous!”

  Now it’s Doreen and Jane who are laughing. By this point, Jane is now back in her sheriff’s uniform and emerging from the back room with a grin on her face. "You're right, Jack. It was worth it."

  Jack is rubbing his leg to soothe the pain, and leans over to give Jane a kiss on the lips. "How about I take my beautiful fiancée for a short lunch break before she goes back on shift?"

  “Oh, I'd love to, but I'm still behind as it is.”

  “The Chuck Moore case?”

  Jane nods. “I can't get it out of my mind. No witnesses. No suspects. But he hasn't been seen for nearly two weeks since that night. That thing I saw across the quarry…"

  “You know, I've been thinking about that," says Jack. "It's strange that I have never heard anything about The Elders while researching my book on local folklore."

  "How is your book doing?" shouts Doreen from the back room. It has become a bit of a running joke with those who know Jack well enough to goad him about it.

  "It's doing just fine, Doreen. Just fine…"

  "I'm always going on at him to finish it, Doreen. Don't worry; as soon as we are married I'm going to chain him to his desk until it's done." Jane looks at her watch. “I really need to go.” She leans over and gives Jack another kiss.

  "The thing you saw though?"

  "Yes?” Jane says, opening the door to the autumn air outside.

  “I was wondering if Pastor Callaghan would know anything about the figure."

  "Why is that?"

  "Well," says Jack, thoughtfully, "the description you gave of the hooded figure, it sounded almost like a monk. Pastor Callaghan is a man of God; maybe he'd know something about that sort of thing."

  Jane smiles. "This is why I keep you around, Jack. Thanks for the idea."

  It’s not a long walk from Doreen's Dressmakers to Pastor Callaghan's church on Main Street. Jane decides not to take her patrol car, enjoying the ambiance of the sunny fall afternoon. Jack is right – there is a chill in the air – and Jane hopes it does not mean they are in for as rough a winter like the previous one. For now, Jane marvels at the golden-brown leaves of the trees dotting around Wild Cove. Fall has always been her favorite season, and Wild Cove, this small town nestled on the coast surrounded by a thick forest, is as picturesque in the fall sun as anywhere she has ever been.

  As Pastor Callaghan's church comes into view, the steeple rising reassuringly above all else around it, for some unknown reason those happy thoughts of this sunny afternoon are banished from Jane's mind; replaced by an unsettling, unexplained, sense of unease and worry.

  The two large oak doors at the front church lie open, welcoming visitors as they always do. Jane walks over the threshold into the church's embrace.

  "Jane!" yells the pastor, enthusiastically, as he comes out of a side door that leads to his office. "It's lovely to see you. Less than three weeks now!"

  "Yeah," says Jane. "I’m quite nervous about it."

  "I've married many couples, Jane. Let me tell you, you and Jack are special. There is nothing for you to worry about. It's going to be a wonderful day filled with love and joy. Did you have some questions about the ceremony today or is there something else I can help you with?"

  "Actually, I'm here on police business. I was wondering if you could help me with something?"

  "Of course. This is becoming so regular you should deputize me," he jokes. "What is it?"

  "Pastor, I want to tell you something that isn't widely known in town. On the night I found Chuck Moore's truck, I saw something in the forest."

  "Oh?”

  "Yes," says Jane, mournfully. "I don't want you to think that I'm out of my mind, but I saw what looked like a hooded figure disappearing into the trees. Jack has pointed out that my description of it was almost like a monk. Deputy Harley said that she'd been told stories as a girl about The Elders; like they were some sort of urban legend haunting the woods around Wild Cove. Hooded figures, that kind of thing. It seems like a pretty big coincidence. Obviously, I don't believe in ghosts or anything like that. However, I definitely saw someone dressed in black robes, and given that the figure was there just after Chuck was most likely thrown into the quarry, I'm convinced whoever it was, was involved. I’m wondering if you've ever heard anything about these figures and what they might be?"

  Jane sees something she's never seen before: the pastor is growing pale, and he is looking around nervously, glancing from side to side. Realizing that he is appearing suspicious in some way, his behavior alters to be more relaxed. Then he says, “Sounds just like old stories... You know, in the dark, sometimes you see strange things in the woods. The mind can play tricks."

  "Absolutely, Pastor. But I'm a trained law enforcement officer, and I know a person when I see one. This wasn't a trick of the mind. Besides, Harley was with me and she saw the same thing."

  "I wouldn't know anything about that." The pastor takes a look at his watch and steps away from Jane. "I'm really sorry, Jane, but I have an important appointment I need to keep. Sorry I can't be of any more help to you."

  "But Pastor, I... "

  “I really must go, but if you need help… with the wedding… please do let me know, Jane. And don't worry about what you saw in the forest. Sometimes we can chase ghosts to our own detriment. I hope you find Chuck." With that, the pastor walks into his office and closes the door behind him.

  Jane's instincts are now buzzing like a beehive and searching for an explanation. If the way he’s acting is any indication, Jane must immediately suspect the pastor knows more than he is saying. More worrying than that, his behavior suggests to Jane that somehow he knows something about Chuck's disappearance. That thought is weighing down on her; she has to shake it from her head. Otherwise, she will have to suspect the worst.

  Chapter 3

  Two more days pass, and the wedding preparations continue. Everything is in place, and so Jane experiences what many brides do in the run-up to the big day. An emptiness is settling in. There is normally always something to do, something to organize, but now with everything mostly in place, it is simply a waiting game. Waiting to finally tie the knot with the man she loves. She is enthused about the prospect of the day, but her heart sinks every time she imagines walking down the aisle towards Jack to be wed by Pastor Callaghan. Every time the image of Pastor Callaghan enters her mind, alarm bells ring, and she is horribly conflicted about what that means. Could Pastor Callaghan really have been involved in Chuck's murder somehow?

  As Jane decides to at least think about chatting with Pastor Callaghan again, she receives a report from Leon, the operator, over her radio, of further potentially unusual behavior

  "Sheriff, when you've got a moment, could you swing past the Whateley farm just to check on Marcus?"

  "Why, what's the matter?" inquires Jane.

  "Joe Jennings keeps calling; that's the third time in the last two days. He says he hasn't received any deliveries from Marcus Whateley for a couple of days and that's unusual. He's tried calling on him, but no one answers."

  Joe Jennings is one of two butchers in town, and he prides himself on offering local produce to the townsfolk. This is sourced from a number of farms which dot the county, but Whateley's farm is closer to home, on the west side of town. There’s not much there except a few fields skirting the tree-line of Wild Cove forest, but Marcus Whateley has a small number of cows he breeds and offers to the butcher on a regular basis. Joe Jennings is clearly worried because he has not heard anything from Marcus, though Jane knows Joe is more concerned about his business than Marcus Whateley himself. That is just the way Joe is.

  Marcus is known as being a bit of a recluse, though harmless enough, and people were
fond of him back in the days when he used to let kids pet the animals on his farm.

  "Okay," says Jane. "I'm sure it's nothing to worry about; Marcus is probably just drunk again. I'll check it out." Jane is happy for the distraction; it’s taking her mind off of Chuck Moore's disappearance and Pastor Callaghan's strange behavior surrounding it.

  Heading across to the west end of town only takes a few minutes in her patrol car, and as the cozy houses of that part of town recede, giving way to rolling hills and the forest of Wild Cove beyond, Jane spots the Whateley farmhouse on a steeper hill than those around it.

  After heading up a small dirt track to the farmhouse, Jane gets a closer look. The house has seen better days; the red paint is flaking from it, crumbling to the ground at its base. The windows are dirty and large weeds surround the perimeter of the building, showing that Marcus has spent more time on his cattle than his gardening.

  Standing on the creaking porch of the house, Jane knocks loudly on the door. "Marcus, it's Sheriff Scott. Are you there?"

  There is no answer. Marcus, though not an alcoholic, is known to occasionally binge for a few days before reeling it in and getting back to his ordinary life. Jane suspects this is just another case of that, but with Chuck Moore having disappeared just a couple of weeks ago, Jane is on edge, waiting for something else to happen. She has been a resident of Wild Cove long enough to know that it always holds surprises.

  Walking around the side of the house, she notices that one of the windows is slightly ajar. After shouting again to see if Marcus responds to her and receiving nothing in return, she decides to climb through the window in case Marcus is lying injured somewhere within. Once inside, the mustiness of the place hits her. Passing the door to the kitchen, Jane sees that plates are piled up in the sink; a month’s worth of solitary meals at least. Slowly, she moves from room to room, finding each in disarray; not from the violent hands of a burglar, but from the hoarding and aversion to domesticity for which Marcus is legendary.

  Clicking on her radio, Jane calls in to Leon the operator. "I'm inside Marcus Whateley's house, but there's no one here."

  "That's strange," comes Leon's reply. "Marcus spends all of his time up at the farmhouse; if he's not in the surrounding fields, I've no idea where he is."

  Jane continues to look around the old farmhouse, looking for any clues as to what might've happened to Marcus. Returning to the dilapidated kitchen, she notices that there is an open book face-down on the kitchen table. It’s a diary of sorts, and it appears to be open at Marcus Whateley's last entries. Perusing the last few days, it reads:

  "Tuesday, 2nd. I saw them again last night. I was looking out from the kitchen window and thought I saw a light on the back field next to the woods. The light went off when I got there. Who knows what it was, but I got to thinking it means they're back. I don't like it.

  “Thursday, 4th. Tonight, I saw them again. Just when the sun had gone down. Walking about through the trees like ghosts. They wear black, but it's hard to see what they look like in the dark. I shot my rifle in the air to warn them off of setting foot in my fields. I think I saw one of them staring at me through the trees and then heading away.

  “Sunday, 7th. I thought I'd get through the weekend without dealing with this again. Not that lucky. Seen them again. This time, one of them was heading across my field late at night and into the trees. I got there as quickly as I could. I saw nothing after that, but it felt like I was being watched from the tree-line.

  “Wednesday, 10th. It's getting worse. I heard footsteps outside my house late last night. No one there. Think I need to buy a dog for protection. Haven't been able to face owning one since poor Betsy got put down last fall, but I need something to warn them off when I sleep. I'll go into Fairsville tomorrow and see what I can get.

  “Thursday 11th. Feel good about tonight. I came back with two strapping Doberman dogs – Night and Shadow. Young ones, but already trained guard dogs. They'll chase off these damned things so I can get some rest.

  “Friday, 12th. The dogs howled last night, scraping at the door to get out at something about three in the morning. I couldn't bear opening the door. I think something was on the other side. I need to be brave.

  “Monday 15th. They came to the door again last night about eleven. I got my gun and opened the door. The dogs bolted after something across the field. I heard them yelp, then nothing after that. I went looking for them in the morning, but there was nothing there. I think they got them. I might have to call the sheriff. Don't know if I can trust the police, not with Sheriff Williams being mixed up in all this.

  “Tuesday 16th. They're getting more forward. I saw one of them, a dark figure on the track outside. They were carrying something into the woods. I don't know what they're up to, but I got to put a stop to it. I'm going mad. Only person I can trust is the pastor now. I reckon he knows more about these Elders than anyone. I'll speak with him tomorrow.”

  That is the final diary entry, and the 16th was just two days ago. Jane feels it in her bones. Something has happened to Marcus Whateley. And what of the strange things he was seeing, these figures out in the woods at night, occasionally stepping onto his land? They sound eerily similar to the hooded figure Jane saw the night of Chuck's disappearance.

  Stepping away from the farmhouse and heading back to the station, inquiries show that Marcus Whateley is most definitely a missing person, with none of his family who live out of state or anyone in town having seen or heard from him for days. Given the last entry in the diary, Jane hates the prospect but she is going to have to bring her friend Pastor Callaghan in for questioning. The gossipers in town will love this. Jane is trying to think of a way to do it without tarnishing his reputation, but that seems impossible.

  But that has been taken out of her hands, anyway. When approaching the church, Jane finds that it is locked up tight. After borrowing a key from the custodian and entering the church, there is no sign of Pastor Callaghan. Gaining later an entry to his private residence, it is clear that he has taken some personal belongings and left the town without telling anyone.

  Heartbroken, Jane contacts county authorities and places Pastor Callaghan as a person of interest in her inquiries. He is to be arrested and brought back to Wild Cove if encountered. The prospect that the pastor is mixed up in all this – Chuck Moore's disappearance and probable death, now Marcus Whateley's disappearance and the strange figures in the woods – is sickening to Jane. She cannot, as a friend, bring herself to believe that he is involved in some sinister ploy, and yet she cannot, in good conscience, discount the possibility as Sheriff of Wild Cove. It is her duty to be impartial, no matter her feelings. Pastor Callaghan has to be arrested, but first, he has to be found.

  Chapter 4

  “Do you think these 'Elders' are real?” Jane asks, her favorite coffee cup, complete with a Dr. Seuss saying on its side, in her hand as she sits in her office back at the station.

  Deputy Harley, who is sitting across the table from her sipping her own cup of coffee, looks bewildered. "I'm not sure. It's possible… while growing up I thought they were real, but once I grew up I thought they were just spooky stories to scare the local kids."

  "That's just the thing, Harley," says Jane. "Jack looks into folklore and other stories in the area for his book, but he has no memory of ever hearing about these Elders in the woods."

  "Oh…" Harley is deep in thought for a moment. "Come to think about it, it was my dad who told me most of the stories. He would scare me and the other kids with them whenever we camped on a bit of spare ground at the back of our old house."

  "Do you think you could ask him about this? Maybe the stories could help us."

  "Dad passed away a few years ago."

  "I'm sorry to hear that, Harley."

  "That's okay," Harley says, finishing her cup of coffee and placing it on the desk in front of her. "I could ask my uncle Felix. He is my dad's brother after all; maybe he'll know something about it that could help."

/>   "I'd really appreciate that, Harley. Any information we can get might shed some light on what's going on here. Sometimes urban legends hold a kernel of truth."

  “Thanks for the coffee.” Harley gets up from the other side of Jane's desk and walks over to the office door to go into the hallway outside. "Is there anything else you need before I go, Sheriff?"

  "Actually," says Jane, hopefully, "could you do my rounds for me today?"

  "Are you feeling okay?"

  "Yes, but I have an important errand to run. Don't worry, I'm not slacking off; it’s police business."

  "Of course. It will be good practice for me for when you're away on your honeymoon with Jack." Harley leaves the office, closing the door behind her.

  It is indeed police business that has altered her schedule, but not the type Jane is looking forward to carrying out. She has an appointment to keep, but first she picks up the phone on her desk to confirm her suspicions. Within minutes, she has been put through to someone she can trust.