Moments later, Kane returned with Duke snuffling along the soft ground. A thick layer of pine needles covered the trail, muffling the sound of their boots. The ground was so springy their footprints vanished after each step. “There’s no visible trail to follow.” Jenna searched all around, peering between trees and into shadows. “I can’t imagine why she came in here.”
Mist swirled around her feet with each step closer to the river. Once the sun had dipped in the sky, the mist from the river crept through town in a sea of dampness. As Duke headed through the trees, head down and tail wagging, Jenna followed behind Kane and then stared at a tree alongside a narrow pathway. She snagged a few strands of hair and held them out toward Kane. “Hey, she came this way. This must be some of her hairs. Where is she going?”
“There’s a fire road on the other side of these woods and Duke is heading straight for it.” Kane turned to glance at her. “She’s new in town. How did she know to go this way?”
Recalling when she first came to Black Rock Falls, Jenna waved a hand toward the clearing opening ahead of them. “I studied the area before I arrived and I’d bet you did as well. If she did, then she’d know the fire road does cut right through to Stanton. She could walk to the Cattleman’s Hotel from there.
“It’s a long walk and do you figure her phone fell out her pocket?” Kane shrugged. “She could have run through the woods. It’s not a nice place for a stroll this late in the afternoon.”
Jenna stared all around but only the dead leaves of winter rustled in the light breeze. This deep in the woods spring was a long time coming. “Maybe. Let’s keep following Duke even if it’s all the way to the Cattleman’s Hotel.”
When Duke burst out into the clearing, he wandered up and down for a spell and then sat down and barked. Jenna pulled a face. “Hmm, if I’m reading this right. Poppy’s trail ended here.”
“Yeah.” Kane rubbed Duke’s ears. “When a trail goes cold on a road or similar, it usually means the person climbed into a vehicle or was carried from the area. She doesn’t know anyone in town apart from the mayor
. Maybe she called a cab and they arranged to pick her up here? She ran to meet the cab and lost the phone?” He crouched to examine the gravel and then straightening stared into the distance. “I’ll call the hotel. She’d be back by now.” He made the call and waited for some minutes before raising his eyes to Jenna. “When was that? Did a driver pick up her things? Did you see Deputy Anderson? Okay thanks.” He disconnected. “Poppy checked out and had a cab driver pick up her things from the hotel. The driver handed in her key. The room had already been paid up for a week.”
Jenna pushed both hands through her hair. “Okay. Well, I guess we’d better head back to the office.” She shrugged. “It’s too late to go anywhere. If she wanted to leave town, why not wait until the morning?”
“Your guess is as good as mine.” Kane led the way back to the park and when they reached the fence, he lifted Duke over. “I figure she did this to have us running around chasing our tails.” He held out his hand to her.
Jenna took his hand and he swung her over the fence and followed behind her. She followed Duke’s wagging tail back to the office and walked inside. She leaned on the counter and rolled her eyes at Maggie. “It seems like Poppy has hightailed it out of town. How and why, we don’t know. She’s checked out of the Cattleman’s Hotel and there’s no buses out this late.” She shrugged. “I have no reason to believe she’s in any danger, so we’ll head on home.”
She waited while Maggie shut down the computer and gathered the things she’d left on the counter. “We’ll see you in the morning. I’ll be here before the autopsy.”
“Just one minute.” Maggie was frowning at the screen. “You need to read this. I’ll print you a copy.”
The printer whirred and Maggie stood to pass Jenna a copy of a document. She read the contents of the email and handed it to Kane. “It’s from Poppy. She resigned and got a ride with a truck driver heading for Colorado.” She shook her head. “How did she ever make deputy? That woman gives irresponsible a whole new meaning.”
“Well at least that’s one person we don’t have to worry about anymore.” Kane opened the glass door and ushered Jenna and Maggie outside. He waited for Jenna to lock the door and rubbed his stomach. “I knew we should have gone to Antlers with Carter and Jo. I’m starving.”
Jenna pulled open the door to the Beast. “I’ll get steaks out of the freezer and have them going before you’ve finished the chores.”
“Ah… no.” Kane slid behind the wheel. “I’ll get the steaks out and you can come help me with the chores.”
Giggling at his serious expression, Jenna fastened her seat belt. “I know you prefer to cook but will you at least allow me to make the salad?”
“Sure.” Kane backed the truck out of the parking space and headed down Main. “But leave the dressing to me.”
THIRTY-SEVEN
It was dusk and the time of the evening Harriette Jefferson enjoyed the most. She liked the peace and quiet. By this time most folks had gone home, and in this part of Black Rock Falls, few people ventured out after dark. She sniffed the air and sighed. The rising mist brought with it the scent of leaf mold and damp soil. She wrapped her coat more firmly around her. The smell of ice and snow had almost gone and her daily walk had become a pleasure once more, as spring had arrived in a rush of wildflowers. As soon as the sun slipped over the horizon a new world emerged. The greens and yellows of day became the many shades of blue, black, and gray. It was as if she’d stepped inside a photographic negative, and she embraced the change with wonder. The only points of color came from the wild critters, their eyes, red or orange, peered out from the forest, running here and there trying to avoid the owls in the tall pines waiting to feed on them.
During winter, she’d avoided walking through the wooded area the locals called Wishing Well Park because slipping and breaking a hip wasn’t an option. The last three weeks, she’d taken the bus into town, met with friends, or went to the library but always walked back along Stanton and took the shortcut through Wishing Well Park on the way home. The trees surrounding the park had unusual twisted boughs and it became a fairy grotto or a witch’s lair over Halloween. Often people came from town and decorated it for birthday parties. The old well had been there for as long as she could remember, but a few years ago someone had encircled it with a brick wall. It now resembled a well from a fairy tale, with a wooden peaked roof and a bucket hanging from a center rung, complete with a handle. Nobody drank from the well but many tossed coins into the water and made a wish.
The sun had dropped low in the sky, and as she reached the end of Stanton, the houses became scarce. The open spaces between them were filled with bushes and natural alleyways. She heard a bus slow with a screech of brakes and a sigh to stop some ways behind her, and then it drove past, lights inside blazing. The disgusting smell of exhaust filled her nostrils. She moved slower now, the last part of her walk so exhausting she wondered how much longer she could walk this far. Old age was slowing her down and maybe tomorrow she’d stay home. It wouldn’t hurt to miss her walk for one day. After all, she had walked around town but then she had eaten a large piece of pie at Aunt Betty’s Café. Shaking her head, she pressed on.
Behind her, footsteps tapped on the sidewalk and she turned to look. The mist had risen to her knees and long shadows spilled from the forest and stretched across the road, making it hard to see. She blinked and listened but the footsteps had vanished. Turning back around, she ambled on toward the park, her mind fixed on making dinner for one and eating it in front of the TV. The click, click, scrape, click of footsteps came again. They seemed in a hurry and the temptation to look around to see who was behind her made Harriette stop again. She turned slowly and peered into the swirling mist but nobody was there. A shiver ran down her spine. Halloween was months ago, and in all her years of walking home, she’d never seen a ghost or anything spooky along this road. Maybe it was her imagination playing tricks on her or perhaps it was the trees moaning. They had been frozen for so long it would be reasonable to believe they’d creak and crackle as they thawed. She moved off again and had reached the park when the footsteps came again, running this time. Alarmed, she hurried toward the well. The footsteps pounded behind her, getting louder by the second. All the hairs on her skin stood to attention as a low chuckle came from just behind her. Spinning around, she stared at a masked figure, coming toward her flexing a long cord between gloved hands.
Harriette flung her handbag at them and staggered backward. She opened her mouth to scream but a strange breathless woo woo came out. Horrified, she stared into a hideous face and froze in fear. Her fingers trembled as she searched her pocket for her rosary beads and held them in front of her, mumbling a prayer. The monster lunged toward her and something squeezed and then cut deep into her throat. Unable to breathe she clawed at her neck, pleading with her eyes to make them stop.
“Are you praying for mercy? I’ve never forgotten what you did to me, and only God can forgive you for what you’ve done.” Black pools of emptiness in the mask stared at her.
Unable to form words as pain shot through her head, she could only stare as the edges of her vision dissolved. Spots danced before her eyes and her sight faded to black. Her knees gave way and she hit the ground. Above her the chuckles increased to laughter. She’d heard once that the last sense to remain before a person died was their hearing but it was too late to tell anyone touch remained as well. Hot breath brushed her ear.
“Did I scare you? Did it hurt? Good. Now you know how it feels.”
THIRTY-EIGHT