“You tell me right now where she is, Becky Northridge, and don’t give me no lip in the process!” a woman’s voice erupted loudly. Abby wasn’t sure, but she thought she recognized the voice and headed out to the dining room.
Everyone was staring toward the two people at the front who Becky was trying unsuccessfully to shush. It was Rachel Clawson, along with her brother Rick. Abby had met them at Butter’s Ice Cream parlor, and they had been pleasant at the time. Now, Abby was seeing a different side of Rachel who was red-faced and clenching her teeth like she was going to take a bite out of Becky.
It was clear to Abby that Becky’s temper was about to take over, so she strode forward, trying to head off even more yelling, but when she came into view, Rachel’s eyes bore into her and she literally pushed Becky to the side as she strode forward.
“You!” she half-screeched, bringing Abby up short in shock. “Just what do you think you are doing!? I got a call from the hospital saying you went to visit my… visit Samantha! I’ve put up with that woman Gloria, but you have no reason interfering!”
Abby blinked, completely caught by surprise and she back peddled quickly away from the advancing woman. “I-“ she started to say, but Rachel quickly cut her off.
“No! You don’t say anything!” she yelled. “It’s bad enough she’s brought such shame to our family! We don’t need some outsider meddling with our affairs! People like you who think you know better! You don’t know what she did! You stay away from her! Leave our family business to us!” She ended her tirade with a slam down on the closest table, sending fries and hamburgers two inches off of the table and toppling the vase with flowers.
Abby just gaped at the enraged woman. Rick was behind Rachel, quiet as usual but glaring at Abby with daggers in his eyes. She didn’t know what to say, but thankfully she heard Becky’s voice float over the sudden silence.
“You better get the heck out of here, Rachel,” Becky said angrily while holding her hand over the phone receiver. “I’ve got the police on the line and they’re on their way over here! I don’t care how long your family’s been in this town, I’m not going to put up with this garbage!”
Rick put his hand on Rachel’s arm then, pulling lightly on her but not being forceful at all. For her part, Rachel didn’t take her eyes off of Abby as she continued to glare for a moment, then yanked her arm out of Rick’s hand before turning around and storming off. “Mark my words, Abby Morgan! You get your nose out of our business or it’ll get cut off!” She spun, pointing her finger dramatically at Abby. “Cut off!”
“Yes, they are still here!” Becky said, talking into the phone but glaring at Rachel and raising her own voice over the woman on the last two words of her sentence. “Please hurry before I have to take out the trash!”
Rachel finally tore her eyes from Abby and looked at Becky, then sniffed. The woman was bigger than Becky, but Abby knew there was a fish bat hidden under the hostess station that Becky stood behind. Thankfully, Rachel Clawson spun on her heels and left followed quickly by the ever-silent Rick.
After they had left, Becky shoved the phone into Abby’s hands and turned to the dining room. “I’m sorry, everyone! Very sorry! I don’t know what that was about, but I’m giving you all discounts on your meals.”
“You didn’t say this was a dinner and theatre place!” someone called from one of the tables in a good-natured voice. It was a good ice-breaker, and most of the people laughed nervously before slowly going back to eating. Becky smiled in the direction of the man who said it, then turned back to Abby and blew out a huge sigh.
“Okay, wow, what was that all about?” Becky said quietly to Abby.
Abby thought furiously for a few moments, staring out of the door at the retreating backs of the Clawsons before she got it. “Rachel must be Samantha’s parent? Or something? The hospital must have called and told them about our visit yesterday. I always wondered who was the person that threw Samantha out of their life. I guess now I know,” Abby finished, scowling at the retreating pair.
“Holy fish nuggets!” Becky said, sharing Abby’s scowl. “I didn’t know it was Rachel. What a piece of work! Can’t say as I’m surprised after her mother tried to pin a murder on me, though.”
“That reminds me, I need to tell you about what happened yesterday,” Abby said. “It wasn’t just the visit to the hospital, either. There’s something more going on, and I think the senator is tied in with it.”
Becky turned, giving her friend a worried look but shook her head. “That weasel, but it’s going to have to wait. We’re still in the middle of lunch rush. You can tell me afterwards, over a cider. We can take a break and go over to McGrady’s. Maybe we can get your handsome boyfriend to come over and flash those dimples.”
Abby laughed softly, though it was a weak thing. She was still thrown by the sudden verbal brawl she’d been involved in. “Okay, that sounds like a plan. I think I need a drink after that.”
“Don’t we both!” Becky said, then moved to the counter to take care of some customers. “You can put the phone down now, there’s no one on the other end.”
Abby blinked and put the phone to her ear then shook her head. “Why didn’t you really call?”
Becky shrugged. “Well, I didn’t think Rachel would do anything for real. I would have called if she’d kept escalating the drama, but she left so it’s all good.”
Chapter 14
“You should have called us,” Lanie said as she gave Becky a sour look. “Seriously, you just never know when someone is going to go all crazy and really do something. Even if nothing happens, it’s good for us to keep an eye on things.”
Becky didn’t look overly apologetic as she tipped her glass back, drinking her cider as she shrugged at the same time. When she put her glass back down, she looked at Lanie who was sitting next to her giant boyfriend, and manager of McGrady’s, Reggie Bascom. “I understand, Lanie, but I don’t want to just go out of my way to make trouble for people. It’s not like I couldn’t handle that old bat if it was needed.”
Abby smirked,” Are you talking about Rachel or the fish bat you have under the front counter?”
Becky looked back, mirroring Abby’s smirk. “Both!”
Everyone at the table laughed, though Lanie rolled her eyes a bit before wrapping her arms around one of Reggie’s massive bicep. “Well, it’s good to know about these blow ups, especially in light of what’s going on with Samantha. For the record, yes, she is Samantha’s mother, though why she was so upset at you visiting Samantha, I just don’t know.”
“Considering how she treated her daughter,” Reggie said, “she probably just doesn’t like things to change or maybe she was off her meds when the hospital called.” He turned to Lanie. “I don’t envy you police officers having to deal with people like that. It would make my skin crawl.”
Lanie shook her head. “Well, it’s not all roses, but for the most part people are okay, at least in a small town. I wouldn’t want to deal with a bigger city though. I think half of our job is dealing with domestic disputes. Those are the worst.”
“Worse than bikers trying to shoot you?” Reggie joked.
Lanie nodded. “Yes, at least they were wearing clothes. Try dealing with someone who’s drunk and wearing not a stitch of clothing.”
Everyone shuddered and Abby took a drink of her hard cider to escape the image. Lanie didn’t give any details, but Abby was more than happy she didn’t. “Did you ever get a chance to show Gloria’s dad any of the pictures she pulled out?”
Lanie took a pull of her beer and then sucked on her lip before answering. “I have to be careful because this is an active investigation, but yes. We did get some leads from that. The sheriff went out to the hotel on the highway where most of those guys are staying. Hopefully he’ll be able to find the person we want to question.”
“So, the person that broke into Gloria’s house trying to get to Demsey was one of the people she identified out of your pictures?” Abby asked.
Lanie nodded. “Yep. I bet he’s not there, though. He’s got to know he was seen, unless he’s an idiot.”
“If he says anything,” Reggie said. “If he’s got any connection to you-know-who, then there’s a large likelihood he won’t.” He reached over and playfully put his hands over Lanie’s ears, then stage whispered to Abby and Becky. “Have you thought about trying to find this thing they’re searching for, first?”
Lanie slapped his hands away, punching him in the arm as he laughed. “I heard everything you said,” Lanie said, but then turned serious. “That’s not a bad angle, though. No matter what it is, if we get it, then once they know the law has it, then it should make Samantha and Demsey safe.”
“I could talk to Gloria about it,” Abby offered. “Maybe she could talk to Demsey, or we could go back to talk to Samantha.”
Lanie gave Abby a wary look. “After the way Samantha’s mother yelled at you today, I’m betting she puts a hold on any visits with Samantha at the hospital. That might actually be a good thing, because those men won’t be able to visit either.”
“It’s a good thing I asked Robert Carrington to look into things,” Abby said.
“Is that your family’s lawyer friend?” Reggie asked. “I could also talk to John Troutdale and see if he knows anything. Neither of us has our fingers stuck into things anymore, but he might be able to ask some vague questions.
“Have you been able to find out what happened at the prison with Buck?” Abby asked.
Lanie shook her head. “Not yet. We’ve got a request in for the file, but it takes time. The prison bureaucracy is pretty slow, even without the senator’s interference.”
“Do you think he’s interfering? Becky asked. “I knew I should have punched him out when I had the chance.”
“Well, I, for one, am glad you didn’t,” Abby said. “There’s no telling how deep of a hole he could have dug for you, Becky. He’s not someone to mess with,” Abby trailed off, looking at her best friend with a trace of fear. After what had happened out in the shed, she knew the senator wasn’t a person to take lightly.
“She’s right,” Reggie said, looking serious for once. The good-natured man usually had a smile on his face, but the way he looked now made them all realize the weight of what he was saying. “Not only did we have to deal with him years ago, we also heard plenty of stories. He’s dangerous and ruthless. I wasn’t really kidding about trying to find what he’s looking for, but whoever has it will be in danger.”
“I’ll talk to Gloria tomorrow,” Abby said, looking at Lanie to make sure the deputy wasn’t going to argue with her.
Rather than look upset, Lanie nodded. “I’ll come with you, Abby. Maybe I can help. At the very least it will help keep the sheriff from getting all twitchy about you being involved in the investigation.”
Chapter 15
“I’m glad I came with you,” Lanie said, trying not to appear nervous as Abby made her way through the snow-covered roads.
“I am too,” Abby said, white knuckling the steering wheel as she navigated along the snow-covered lane. It was still snowing, and Abby was unhappy that she couldn’t look out onto the trees and farmlands that looked like a postcard. Instead, her eyes were glued to the road, and she felt like she was driving about five miles an hour.
Fortunately, Lanie was not judgmental or trying to get her to hurry. She sat in the passenger seat, content to give Abby pointers about driving in the snow and to take it slow. Even with the chains on the PT Cruiser, the car slipped an uncomfortable amount of times.
“The important thing with snow and ice is you need to go slowly, and make any changes very gradually. Even with chains, you will slide. As long as you aren’t trying to take corners normally and try to avoid hills, you should be okay.” Lanie said when they’d first started out that morning.
Abby was just thankful that Red Pine Falls was fairly flat. She’d seen those stupid videos that people posted about cars going completely out of control on even small hills, and Abby didn’t want any part of that.
When they made it to Gloria’s house, Gloria was outside and waiting for them on the porch and she didn’t look particularly happy. Despite her heavy coat, her face was red and she looked like she was freezing. A moment later, they were standing below the steps on the porch looking up at the unhappy woman.
“You look miserable,” Abby said, though they were all feeling the bite of the cold.
“I was never a fan of the cold,” Gloria said as her breath expanded in a cloud. “At least it looks pretty.” She paused and bit her lip before continuing. “Okay, before you come inside, I need to make sure you don’t mention police or do anything that might alarm Demsey. He’s out for a walk right now but when he comes back in, let me do the talking.”
Abby and Lanie both nodded though Abby got a cold chill up and down her spine. It must be bad if Gloria was waiting outside for them. Even though Lanie was a cop, she wasn’t big and she didn’t think either of them would slow Demsey down if he started on a rampage.
It was much warmer inside and though Abby hadn’t forgotten about the dolls, the impact of hundreds of eyes looking at her still made her brain fog up for a second. She heard Lanie mutter a curse under her breath as they moved into the living room, as well. She suspected that Gloria and her father didn’t get many guests.
Gloria moved a few dolls off of the couch, tucking them gently but firmly onto a back table. She was forced to stack them onto the legs of other dolls already sitting back there. Abby did her best to ignore the faces lurking just behind her as she sat.
“Do you want anything to drink?” Gloria asked. “I’ve got some beer, or orange juice. Water too.”
Abby shook her head, and she noticed Lanie shake it vehemently. She hadn’t made it into the kitchen the last time they were here, but she remembered that Lanie had when they were investigating the trespass. Maybe, Abby thought to herself, porcelain dolls were filling the cupboards and they only had two glasses that they just shared.
Either way, Gloria settled into her father’s chair after taking her coat off. “What can I do for you?”
“Do you remember when Samantha mentioned those men were asking if she knew where Buck might hide something?” Abby asked. “Lanie and I were discussing it, and we thought that may be the best way to protect you and your family. Finding whatever it was that Buck stole would mean they didn’t need to bother Demsey or Samantha.”
Gloria frowned and thought for a moment before shaking her head. “I don’t recall anything,” she said. “Do you even know what was taken? I suppose it would matter if it were large or small. It could be anywhere. Maybe Buck even buried it out in the woods while he was out mushroom hunting.”
Abby shivered, remembering where she’d first met Buck. He, Demsey, and Samantha had come up to sell some of the gourmet mushrooms, but had them mixed in with deadly varieties in the back of their truck. It hadn’t been a pleasant experience when the buyers started complaining.
“We don’t know,” Lanie said. “Maybe if we find the guys that tried to break into your house, we can find out. I’m betting they know roughly what was taken.”
Still, Gloria shook her head. “Either way, I never hung out with Buck. That scab weed was just too much trouble. The only people that might know would be whomever hung out with Buck, and that was Samantha and Demsey, as far as I know.”
“Do you think we could ask Demsey?” Abby said, glancing nervously toward the hallway that led to Demsey’s room before she remembered he had been out for a walk. “When is he due back?”
Gloria shrugged but frowned, looking at her watch. “He should have been back already. He likes to go out and poke around the creek behind our property but usually for no more than half an hour, but it’s been longer than that.”
“Should we go look for him?” Abby asked, glancing at the back door through the kitchen. “Maybe he slipped on the ice or whatever?”
“The creek isn’t that big,” Gloria a
nswered, but got up and retrieved her jacket. “I didn’t think anything of it, but now I’m worried.”
Lanie and Abby both stood and put their jackets on, following Gloria through the kitchen and out the back door. On their way through, Abby forced herself not to glance at the sink which held what seemed several days’ worth of dirty dishes. They didn’t have a dishwasher, and the cupboards which didn’t have any doors on them, were fairly empty. She guessed that they washed dirty dishes before using them, which didn’t give Abby any warm fuzzies.
The cold wind outside buffeted the girls, clawing at Abby’s face like a live animal. For the briefest of moments, she almost missed the heat of Phoenix. Instead of dwelling on her misery, Abby followed Gloria and Lanie who were already following Demsey’s monstrous tracks.
The man, large as he was, must have worn clown shoes as his feet were so big. Abby put her own foot inside one of the indentations and marveled at its size. She almost thought Demsey must have been wearing snow shoes, but they were just too small. Besides, as little as it snowed around here, she didn’t think anyone would have them. No, Demsey’s feet were just that big.
It was fortunate, because they were easy to follow. The tracks meandered, moving from one clump of grass, to a bush, to a half-made snowman before working their way through the fence line and down a small embankment. They could tell Demsey must have fallen due to the large skid mark and corresponding pile of snow where the big man must have stopped. There was even a semi-snow angel there where he probably laid, then swished his arms and legs before standing up and continuing on his way.
Abby could almost imagine the hulking form of Demsey lurking next to a tree like some sort of bigfoot, but they didn’t encounter him even when they found the creek. The tracks clearly dallied on the bank of the still-flowing water, but then resumed along the banks. This time, however, Demsey’s footsteps continued with a much wider stride.
“He’s running,” Lanie said, looking with concern at the messy strides. They followed the tracks over a rise, then saw another set of footprints merge and then follow the bigger ones. Gloria began calling for him, screaming his name into the winter silence but there was no answer.
Deadly Desires and Killer Instincts Page 5
