The Bigfoot Blunder (A Charlie Rhodes Cozy Mystery Book 1)

by Amanda M. Lee

  “You don’t want them to know we’re here?” I couldn’t contain my surprise. “Why not? We’re not doing anything wrong.”

  “It’s not that I don’t want them to know we’re here,” Jack clarified. “I simply prefer they didn’t know we were stepping on their toes.”

  “How is that different?”

  Jack shrugged. “It makes me feel better. Come on. Let’s go in through the loading dock.”

  Loading dock? I was confused until I followed Jack around a corner, through a set of wide delivery doors that opened and closed for large trucks, and realized he wasn’t referring to anything that could be mistaken for a port. He was referring to the place where the resort’s delivery trucks pulled in for unloading.

  “How did you know this was here?” I asked, flipping my eyes to the large wooden doors that cut off the area to guests when the dock wasn’t in use. Thankfully for us it appeared that a food delivery was on tap for the afternoon so they weren’t locked.

  “I worked at a resort weekends when I was in high school,” Jack replied. “I was a bellhop.”

  I pressed my lips together to keep from laughing at the unintended visual. “Did you wear a uniform?”

  Jack nodded, unembarrassed. “It was good money. If you think you’re going to tease me, you can’t. I have fond memories of that place. That’s where I learned the necessity of a good work ethic.”

  “I wasn’t going to tease you.”

  Jack cocked a dubious brow.

  “Much,” I clarified. “I wasn’t going to tease you much. I just can’t picture you in a uniform. You seem like you’ve always been a jeans and T-shirt kind of a guy.”

  “I have, but I have no problem with a uniform if it involves making money.” Jack held open the door that led inside the building, opting to eschew the area where several men toiled unpacking the truck.

  Once inside it took a moment for my eyes to adjust to the dim room. “What’s with the office over there?” I asked, pointing toward a small corner room that featured multiple glass windows looking out on the dock.”

  “My guess is that’s the purchasing agent’s office,” Jack replied, running a restless hand through his hair as he got his bearings. “He has to sign for every delivery and check to make sure everything arrived, so he has to be close.”

  I stared into the office, focusing on the man behind the glass. He didn’t glance in our direction, seemingly busy with whatever paperwork he studied. “Why isn’t he trying to chase us out of here?”

  “Because he probably doesn’t care,” Jack answered, pressing his hand to the small of my back and prodding me forward. “He’s not who we’re looking for. We need younger workers who are too stupid to realize that talking about co-workers out of school is a bad idea.”

  “So … under thirty?”

  “Under twenty-five if possible. I … .”

  “I found something I want to check out,” Millie announced, staring down a hallway that led to what looked to be storage rooms. I could see two shirtless men unloading boxes, and Millie appeared focused on them. “I’ll catch up with you in a little bit.”

  Jack looked annoyed by the announcement. “Millie, they’re not who we’re looking for.”

  “They’re exactly who I’m looking for,” Millie shot back. “Don’t leave without me.”

  “Like I would do that,” Jack muttered, shaking his head as he walked toward a set of doors that led to a different hallway. “Women give me a headache.”

  I pursed my lips as I followed him. “Just women? That’s kind of sexist.”

  “Maybe I’m a sexist individual. Have you ever considered that?”

  I nodded without hesitation. “Since the moment I met you. You’re not overtly sexist, though. It’s more that your machismo won’t allow you to do anything that would endanger women. You feel you need to protect everyone, but especially women.”

  Jack’s mouth dropped open as he walked through the door with me. “I don’t know what to say to that.”

  “You don’t have to say anything. I like observing people, and you’re easy to read. It wasn’t meant as an insult.”

  “Uh-huh.” Jack rubbed the back of his neck as he locked gazes with me. “I like observing people, too. You know how you’re convinced the Winchesters are hiding something from us?”

  I nodded. I remained convinced of that. It became more obvious with each conversation.

  “Well, you’re hiding something, too,” Jack announced, causing my heart to stutter. “I don’t know what it is. I don’t know if it’s something big, but it’s big to you. That could be because of your age or enthusiasm … but you’re definitely hiding something. Now, I don’t care about it as long as it doesn’t put my team in danger. But I know you’re hiding something, and I want you to know that you’re not fooling me.”

  My instinct was to balk, so that’s what I did. “What do you think I’m hiding?”

  “I don’t know,” Jack admitted, his dark eyes searching my face. “You’re not a normal girl, though. I know that.”

  “I’ll take that as a compliment.” I swooped past him, adding a little swing to my step as my mind worked overtime. He couldn’t possibly know the big secret. He wasn’t prone to believing paranormal tales. He worked for a group of people who sought out paranormal answers, yet he didn’t believe in any of it. Whatever he thought I was hiding was of the mundane human variety. That was good for me … probably. I would have to be more careful. “Where do you want to start?”

  Jack’s face was impassive as he waited for me to turn and stare at him. Something unsaid passed between us – although what it was I couldn’t say – and then he inclined his chin in the direction of two women standing beside the women’s bathroom. They were dressed in maid uniforms. “Maids love to gossip.”

  “I think that was code for ‘women love to gossip,’” I corrected. “You’re probably not wrong about this duo, though. They look like chatters.”

  “Let me do the talking,” Jack instructed, swaggering in their direction.

  “Why? Because you’re a man?”

  “No, because they’ve been watching me since they caught sight of us,” Jack replied, keeping his voice low. “Much like Laura, they fancy themselves man-eaters. They’re not hard to read.”

  Jack plastered a bright smile on his face as he approached the women. I was mildly curious about what tack he would take with them. I was utterly surprised when he opted for the truth.

  “My name is Jack Hanson,” he announced. “I’m conducting an investigation into a woman who died in the woods near Hemlock Cove. Her name was Penny Schilling and she worked here. Did either of you know her?”

  The two women exchanged a quick look and then the bolder of the two – a bottle-blonde who wore way too much makeup – stepped forward. “We both know her. Or, well, knew her. We heard the rumor about her dying when we got here this morning. Is it true?”

  Jack nodded. “It’s true. She was found in the woods.”

  “Is it true an animal ate her?”

  Jack shifted a bit, as he debated how to answer. “My understanding is that the police are still trying to ascertain that,” he hedged.

  “Aren’t you the police?”

  Jack shook his head. “I’m with a private investigation group. We’re looking for answers, and I’m hoping you can help us.”

  I had to hand it to him. He knew how to question people. He flashed a flirty smile to charm the women and didn’t outright lie. He didn’t mention we were with the Legacy Foundation – which might’ve caused them to think we were quacks – but he didn’t open himself up to future issues by telling outright falsehoods either. His method was almost flawless.

  “Who is she?” the second woman asked, nodding in my direction.

  “She’s my assistant,” Jack replied without hesitation. “Her name is Charlie Rhodes. She’s learning on the job. What can I call you?”

  The first woman heaved a sigh and glanced at her friend, both of them n
odding in unison. “I’m Christy Sayre and this is Kelly Nichols. What do you want to know?”

  THE WOMEN were a fountain of information – just as Jack suspected and I initially doubted. While I expected them to know a little gossip, and a lot of unsubstantiated rumors, they appeared to know everything about everyone who worked at the resort.

  “It’s pretty simple,” Christy supplied, popping the top of a can of Coke as she sat in a small resting area in front of a fire. “Penny was a nice woman who did a good job in the main dining room, but she was a total slut.”

  My mouth dropped open at the woman’s bluntness. “How do you know that?”

  “It was common knowledge,” Kelly replied. She was much chattier now that everyone had been introduced, although her keen eyes never left Jack’s face. She wasn’t even mildly interested in me. “She slept with everyone.”

  “Define everyone,” Jack prodded.

  “Well, for starters, she slept with the head of purchasing,” Christy volunteered. “His name is Shane Norman. He’s the guy who works in the glass office on the dock.”

  The guy I saw through the window, I realized. “The one with the bald spot?”

  Kelly nodded. “He’s not much to look at, but he’s one of the better paid administration people around these parts. He’s fairly popular because he keeps to himself and doesn’t bug anyone.”

  “How old is he, though?” I asked. I knew the question sounded judgmental, but I couldn’t help myself. Penny Schilling was twenty-four and in the prime of her life. The guy I saw through the window had to be in his fifties.

  “I think he’s forty or something,” Christy answered.

  “Forty?” That couldn’t be right.

  “He doesn’t get a lot of exercise and he eats terrible food,” Kelly explained. “He looks older than he is. I thought he was close to dying, too. Maybe he’s like forty-five or something. Who can really tell when people get that old?”

  “Oh, well, I didn’t think he was close to dying,” I clarified. “I just thought he was older than forty.”

  “How do you know that Penny and Shane were involved?” Jack asked, directing the conversation back to something he was comfortable talking about.

  “People saw them having sex through that big window,” Kelly said. “It has blinds, but apparently Penny was all pressed up against it. She left sweat stains on the blinds. The gossip spread like wildfire.”

  “Okay.” Jack dragged out the word as he considered the scene. “That’s only one man, though. What you told me makes her adventurous. What makes her a slut?”

  “Shane wasn’t her only boyfriend,” Christy answered without hesitation. “She was also sleeping with the head bartender. His name is Bob Grimes and he’s married. But it’s not as big of a scandal as you think. His wife works here, too. Bob sleeps with everyone who looks in his direction. He’s a male slut, so they kind of meshed well together.”

  “Delightful,” Jack intoned, exchanging a quick glance with me. “Was it just the two of them?”

  “You mean doing it?” The expression on Christy’s face reflected bafflement. “I don’t think they ever all did it together.”

  “Not that.” Jack tugged on his patience as he forced his smile to remain serene. “Did Penny have relations with anyone else?”

  “Oh, that.” Christy nodded. “Just one more that I heard of, but I’m not sure if that’s really the end of the list. She seemed determined to snag her a man, so I think she was spreading herself thin trying to find one. She didn’t even care that all of the guys she was sleeping with were friends in high school.”

  “Why was she so determined to catch a man?” I asked, knitting my eyebrows when she mentioned all of the men being old friends. That seemed a bit … incestuous, at least in a small town way.

  “Because she needed one to take care of her.” Christy acted as if I had asked a stupid question.

  “But … .”

  Jack sent me an imperceptible headshake before returning his attention to our new friends. “Who else was Penny dating?”

  “Jim Green,” Kelly supplied. “He’s the head of security.”

  “Here?”

  Kelly nodded.

  “So you’re telling me that Penny dated three men from this resort and they all had limited power,” Jack mused, rubbing the back of his neck.

  “They all used to be friends, too,” I reminded him. I couldn’t let go of that part of the story. It seemed to make things somehow more sick and twisted.

  “That’s him over there,” Kelly noted, pointing to a man in an expensive suit standing by a set of bay windows on the other side of the sitting area.

  “He’s probably trying to figure out who we are,” Jack mused, looking the man up and down. Jim Green had slicked-back hair and something of an oily demeanor. You could tell from forty feet away that he thought he was more important than the rest of the workers he conversed with as they passed by.

  “Why was she so obsessed with dating men at this resort?” I asked, remembering we were in the middle of an interrogation.

  “Look around,” Christy prompted. “The only people in this area who have money are the guests at the resort or the people who make decent money at the resort. If you want a comfortable life, you don’t have many options.”

  Jack nodded. “In your opinion – and I swear I’ll keep this to myself, so don’t worry about that – would any of Penny’s boyfriends had the drive to kill her if he found out she was cheating on him?”

  Christy shrugged, seemingly unbothered by the question. “They all seem pretty lame, but you never know. Like we said, they’re all friends. If we knew about Penny sleeping with all of them, odds are they knew, too. You just never know what people think and feel about each other if they’re determined to hide their feelings.”

  “No, you never know,” Jack agreed, forcing his smile back in place. “Thank you so much for your time, ladies. You’ve been a big help. You’ll never know how much.”

  I WAITED until we were back on the loading dock – Jim Green keeping an eye on us and making me uncomfortable until we disappeared down the employee hallway – to voice the obvious question.

  “What do you think this means?”

  “I think it means that three men had motive to kill Penny and it’s a lot more believable that it was one of them rather than Bigfoot.”

  “Sasquatch,” I automatically corrected.

  Jack wrinkled his nose. “Whatever. We need to keep asking around, maybe even talk to these men. One of them has to be the guilty party.”

  “That makes sense in theory,” I admitted. “It’s just … whoever killed her had to think fast on his feet to get her out in the woods and fake a monster attack. Do you really think anyone working at a resort for a living would have the fortitude to do that?”

  “That depends on if the murder was planned beforehand or heat of the moment,” Jack answered, not missing a beat. “If it was planned, everything might’ve been in place long before Penny died.”

  “I hadn’t even considered that,” I admitted. “If it was planned, that means one of Penny’s boyfriends could’ve found out about the others and plotted against her.”

  “I think that’s the best scenario for us to work with. Come on. Let’s see what else we can find out … and where is Millie? If she’s naked with one of those guys I’m going to lose it.”

  That sounded like it had the potential to be fun – at least for me.

  9

  Nine

  We managed to get out of the resort without Landon, Terry and Bay seeing us. I did see Bay, though. She stood at a set of large windows, frowning out at the heavily wooded area that surrounded the resort’s far west side. She seemed lost in thought, almost as if she was looking at something only she could see. Landon moved up behind her, slipping his arm around her waist and whispering something to her. She smiled, nodded, and then they disappeared toward the lobby.

  The sight of them was enough to spur Jack to movement. H
e insisted it was time to go. I balked, thinking he meant to leave Millie, but she was prowling the loading dock when we found her. She waited until we were in the Tahoe to speak.

  “Apparently Penny Schilling slept with anything that moved – and maybe even a few things that didn’t.”

  Jack arched an eyebrow as he navigated the road that led away from the resort. “We found that out, too. She apparently had three boyfriends.”

  “She had three older men she was trying to make boyfriends out of,” Millie clarified. “She wasn’t picky when she wanted a night of fun … and apparently the younger demographic at this place likes to have a lot of fun.”

  Jack was flummoxed. “What is that supposed to mean? Are you saying they have orgies and stuff?”

  Millie snorted, amused. “You’ve got a dirty mind, boy. I like it.”

  “I didn’t say I was a fan of orgies.”

  “I am.” Millie made the announcement with a sparkle in her eyes and a smirk curling her lips. She clearly liked messing with Jack, and surprisingly enough, he wasn’t opposed to her antics. “They don’t have orgies, though. What they do have is outdoor parties where the younger crowd groups together to drink before separating for a little one-on-one action, if you know what I mean.” She waggled her eyebrows suggestively.

  “I think everyone knows what you mean,” I said dryly, but intrigued. “Do you know where they have these parties?”

  “They jump around,” Millie explained. “In the winter, they use some of the vacant big rooms in the conference section of the resort. When it gets warmer – in the spring and late fall – they use the cart barn. I had to ask what that was. Apparently it’s where they keep the golf carts during inclement weather.”

  “Yeah, I pointed that building out when we first arrived,” Jack noted.

  “I was barely listening because I found the conversation was boring,” Millie said. “In the later spring and summer, as soon as it’s warm enough, they move the party outside. Apparently there’s a lot of property up that way … .” She waved vaguely as we passed a private road with an automated gate. “They go up there quite a bit.”