She kept close behind Kane. His size was an advantage in a crowd and people parted to let him by as he strode along. If she kept directly behind him, she had a clear path. Sheriff or not, her small frame was lost in a sea of people. She sidestepped a mother with kids trailing behind her holding hands, their mouths ringed with the unmistakable red of a toffee apple. One small girl had the stick from her cotton candy stuck in her hair. Excitement thrummed through the town and everyone had a smile for her as she walked by.
They finally reached the park and Jenna stared in amazement. Football teams stood at one end waiting to head to their float. A marching band was warming up with an awful assortment of sounds and the cheerleaders fussed over their uniforms and pompoms, some practicing moves or doing pointing and giggling. Inside the perimeter of the park, it was easier to move and Jenna pulled out her phone and located the images of Collins and Moore. She showed the screen to Kane. “Normally I’d say split up but I’ll get lost in the crowd. I think it’s best we stay together.”
“The cheerleader squads are close, so we’ll see if Marlene Moore is with them.” Kane peered over the top of his sunglasses and narrowed his gaze. “Darn, they all look the same.”
Jenna headed in the squad’s direction. “Then we’ll ask, the girls will know her.” She walked up to the first girl she came to and held out her phone. “Have you seen Marlene today?”
“Yeah, she’s over there with Vicky.” The girl pointed. “Standing next to Becky.”
Jenna thanked her and led the way around the group of girls. As they approached, Becky and Marlene stopped talking and nudged Vicky in the ribs. Jenna pasted a smile on her face and pulled out her notebook and pen. “Marlene Moore, may I have a word with you?”
“Sure.” Marlene shrugged and followed her out of earshot of the others.
“I believe you were at the gym on Saturday night speaking with Dale Collins and Laurie Turner. Can you remember what you were talking about?”
“Maybe.” Marlene stood with her pompoms on her hips. “I don’t want to speak ill of the dead but Laurie was a flirt. She had been talking about seeing Wyatt watching her in the crowd, so she dragged me over to speak to Dale. He only opens the kiosk for us during practice and I figure he gets tired of girls hitting on him all the time.” She looked away with a bored expression. “His aunt usually runs the kiosk but she doesn’t think it’s worth her time to open it for a couple of hours for us, so Dale opens it.”
“Really?” Kane gave her a quizzical stare. “Don’t all the members of the football team have admirers?”
“Yeah, but they only go with cheerleaders.” Marlene touched her hair. “Is that all?”
Jenna shook her head. “Can you recall anything at all that was said? Did Dale make a date with Laurie, or plan to meet her?”
“No, he hasn’t asked anyone to the Fall Festival Ball as yet.” Marlene rolled her eyes. “He likes to keep his minions waiting, I guess.”
Jenna smiled. “So, he’s not your type?”
“Dale?” Marlene laughed and looked up at Kane. “I prefer tall, dark, and handsome.” She pointed in the direction of a tall blond teenager. “As you can see, Dale is the opposite.”
“Okay.” Jenna folded her notebook. “Thank you for your time.” She handed her a card. “If you can think of anything else, call me.”
“Sure.” Marlene walked away and Jenna saw the card flutter to the ground.
“The football team is getting ready to head to the float.” Kane hustled through the cheerleaders.
Jenna ran behind him and they reached the football team as they congregated at the far end of the park, in the dog walking enclosure. She made out Dale Collins’ blond hair and headed in his direction. As she made her way through the team, Kane moved ahead of her and led him over to the fence. She smiled at the confused look on the young man’s face. “You’re not in any trouble. We want to know if you can remember speaking with Laurie Turner last Saturday night in the gym.”
“Yeah, sure I do.” Collins frowned. “It’s terrible about Laurie. Have you found who killed her yet?”
Jenna shook her head. “Not yet. What did you talk about?”
“The specials.” Collins stared at his shoes. “I asked her how her truck was going. I teased her a bit about it being a guy’s ride. She laughed. The next thing Marlene came over and told her Wyatt was spying on her again, and Laurie went back to sit with the squad.” He lifted his gaze to Jenna. “I didn’t see her after that, I have to clean the kiosk after the break. I count the money and lock it up. I went home soon after.”
“So, you don’t hang back to chat to the cheerleaders after practice?” Kane was watching him closely.
“Nah.” Collins grinned. “After the game is the best time, when everyone is all pumped up and wanting to celebrate. I try and keep as far away from them as possible during the week. I need to keep my grades up and they’re a distraction.” He glanced over his shoulder as the decked-out float pulled up at the curb. “I gotta go.” He turned and jogged away.
Jenna looked up at Kane. “I wanted to have a chat with Wyatt Cooper as well.”
“That will have to wait for later.” Kane was peering over the heads of the crowd. “As soon as the mayor does his speech, the floats head down Main and do a turnaround at the showgrounds before coming back. We’ll catch him then.”
As they headed back to the sidewalk, the crowd squashed in around Jenna. A sensation of claustrophobia gripped her and she pulled on Kane’s arm to stop him disappearing into the throng. “Dave, I’m getting swamped back here.”
“Hang onto my belt, we’ll cross Main before the parade starts and take the backroad to the office.” Kane turned and grinned at her. “Unless you want a piggy back?”
Rolling her eyes, Jenna twirled her fingers to make him turn around. “The belt will be fine.” She gripped his belt and they moved through the crowd and the next thing she found herself inside Aunt Betty’s Café. “What are we doing here? You have enough cakes to feed an army at the office.”
“Yeah but as we were passing, I thought I’d drop in while everyone is outside watching the parade.” He grinned at her. “We can work anywhere, and it’s a nice quiet place to sit and go through the image files. We can access them on our phones and I know you don’t like eating cake for lunch, so you’ll be able to get something here.”