A Fatal Slip (19 page)

“I think it’s an insult. I can’t believe he thought he could pay me to ignore him.”

Butch fanned the money in front of me. “At least he realized you wouldn’t come cheap. Tell you what I’d do if I were you. Keep digging, and if it turns out Jackson did it, you can send the money to him in prison. If he didn’t kill Charlie Cobb, I’d put it in the Carolyn Emerson Fun Fund. Surely you’ve got one of those, don’t you?”

“Yes, but I don’t want to taint it with this money.” I took the bills from Butch and threw them on the table. He wasn’t taking this seriously enough for my taste.

He thought about it a second, then said, “I’ve got another idea. Instead of keeping it, why don’t you offer some kind of program in the autumn to kids who can’t afford to come in here on their own? It could be a kind of scholarship fund.”

“I don’t know. It’s a good idea, but does the end really justify the means?”

Butch shook his head. “I’m not walking into that one. Let the philosophers hash that out. I’m just an ordinary guy.”

“I know better than that.” I collected the bills, then handed them to him. “Why don’t you take this money until I can figure out what I want to do with it?”

He looked startled by the suggestion. “You trust me with this much cash?”

“Why shouldn’t I?”

He grinned. “The fact that I used to be a crook comes immediately to mind, doesn’t it?”

“The key phrase there is ‘used to be.’ I know you wouldn’t cheat me. We’re friends.”

“I’m honored by the designation, and the faith you put in me.” It was as serious as I’d ever seen him.

“You’re most welcome. Since you’re here, there is something you can do for me.”

“Just name it,” Butch said.

“Rick Cobb threatened me on the sidewalk an hour ago.”

Butch’s fists clenched. “Now that’s something in my area of expertise. I’d be happy to straighten him out for you, Carolyn.”

I put a hand on his shoulder. “I don’t want you to retaliate. I’d love it if you could ask him some questions for me. He doesn’t seem all that receptive to me.”

“What would you like to know?”

I thought about it a minute, then said, “If he’s got an alibi for when his brother was killed, I could strike him off my list. If he doesn’t, I’d like to know what he’s been up to. As soon as he gets his inheritance, he’s leaving town. Can you find out for me?”

“Don’t give it another thought,” he said. “I’m on it.”

I stopped him at the door. “Butch? No rough stuff, okay?”

“I guess that’s up to him, isn’t it? I’ll talk to you later.”

After he was gone, I wondered if I’d done the right thing nudging Butch toward Rick Cobb, but it was too late now. Knowing my friend, he’d have something in motion before I’d be able to call it off.

I had no idea how long David would be at lunch with Suzy, but I had enough walk-in customers to keep me busy. Two and a half hours after he’d left, my assistant came rushing back into Fire at Will.

“Carolyn, I’m so sorry I’m late. We lost track of time.”

“Then you had a good time?”

David grinned. “Okay, maybe I was wrong. Now that I think about it, that sure felt like a date.”

“Have you and Annie discussed your relationship? Does she know it’s over?”

He frowned as he tightened the hair in his ponytail. “She’s the one who’s leaving. It doesn’t make sense for us to try to stay together when she’ll be all the way across the country.”

I touched his arm. “David, I understand what you’re saying. But Annie needs to hear these things from you before you start going out with other women, don’t you think?”

He frowned. “That’s the thing. I never planned on dating anyone so soon, but Suzy is really special.”

“I’m happy for you, but you need to deal with Annie first, no matter how painful it might be.”

He stared at the floor. “Yeah, I know you’re right. I don’t want to be one of those guys.”

I laughed. “David, my friend, you couldn’t be one of those guys if you tried. Now tell me about your lunch.”

“We talked for two hours after we ate. It’s amazing how much we have in common.”

“That sounds nice,” I said. “Are you ready to work now?”

“Absolutely.” He glanced at the open shelves that surrounded the paint-your-own section. “You’ve been busy.”

“There’s been a steady flow. I’ve got two kilns working now, so we should be in good shape.”

The phone rang, and I reached for it. “Fire at Will.”

“Carolyn, it’s Sandy. I’ve been doing a little digging, and I found something you should know about.”

“What is it?” Sometimes I forgot that while I was going about my pottery business, I had the Firing Squad working on things for me out in the real world.

“Jackson Mallory’s has had an awful lot of projects pushed through in the last nine months, so I got kind of suspicious. When I started poking around, I found out about the roof collapsing on a project on Green Mountain Lane. Did you hear about it?”

“I remember reading about it in the paper. Someone was hurt, right?”

“A construction worker was killed. He died a day after the accident, and Jackson was the contractor. Take three guesses who the inspector was?”

“The dear, departed Charlie Cobb,” I said.

“That’s good—you only needed one guess. But do you have any idea who the fatality was?”

“I can’t remember the name,” I admitted.

“Bob Halloway.”

“Should I recognize the name?”

“I didn’t, either, until I saw the list of pallbearers at the funeral. He was Nate Walker’s wife’s third cousin.”

“That doesn’t sound like all that close a connection,” I said.

“I just thought it was interesting,” Sandy said. “You never know what something might mean.”

“Thanks for the call.” I didn’t know whether it was significant, but I’d file it away for the next time I talked to Nate. It would be interesting to get his reaction.

To my surprise, my husband, Bill, showed up ten minutes before closing time. “What are you doing here?” I asked him.

“That’s a fine way to greet your husband. I hope you do better with your customers, or you’ll be out of business in a month.”

“I’m just surprised to see you, that’s all. I thought you were working.”

He shook his head as he frowned. “I can’t focus. This afternoon I nearly cut my thumb off on the table saw, so I decided maybe I should be doing something else. Hodges came by to see me this afternoon at my shop.”

“What did he want?” My distinct dislike for the sheriff had done nothing but intensify over the past few months. It seemed that every time I turned around, he was accusing me or someone I cared about of murder.

“I think the fool’s expecting me to confess to killing Charlie Cobb. Can you believe that?”

“Nothing that man does surprises me.”

David walked up front from the back where he’d been working on a new set of vases for our display. “Hey, Bill, I didn’t hear you come in.”

“Focused on that art, no doubt.” Bill was an artisan in his own way, much like David, and the two had formed a bond between wood and clay.

“I try. Carolyn, I need to scoot. I know I owe you some time, but I was hoping I could come in on my day off and make some up.”

“That’s fine,” I said.

David grabbed his jacket, and I said, “David, remember what we talked about.”

“I’m going to take care of it the second I get home. Thanks.”

“You’re welcome,” I said.

After he was gone, Bill asked, “What was that about?”

“David’s got problems with his love life. I suppose you could call it a problem. Annie’s leaving for college, and there’s another young lady waiting in the wings to take her place.”

Bill grinned. “I remember problems like that.”

“So, which was I? Did you have someone stashed away as your backup, or was that my role?”

He took me in his arms and hugged me. “Nobody could take your place, and you know it, so stop fishing around for compliments. Let’s grab a few steaks and grill out tonight. What do you say?”

My husband loved to fiddle with his charcoal grill, and I was always delighted when he offered to cook anything that wasn’t breakfast themed. “You’ve got a deal. We can go by the store on the way home. Should we take the truck or my car?”

“It’d be kind of hard to ride home in the truck, since it’s back at the house.”

I looked at him and asked, “Then how did you get here? Don’t tell me the sheriff brought you into town to question you? He’s gone too far. We need to find a way to have him removed from office.”

Bill chuckled. “Take it easy. Before you plan your coup, you should probably know that I walked here from the house.”

“Are you trying to tell me that you exercised? On purpose?”

“I needed some fresh air. It’s not that far, and I’ve done it before. Stop making such a fuss.”

“Don’t get me wrong, I think it’s great.” I knew my husband must be troubled if he chose a long walk to clear his head. The sheriff’s scrutiny must have been weighing on him more than he was willing to admit. I’d have to crank up the efforts of the Firing Squad and see if we could bring our investigation to a head.

He glanced toward the back. “How are you managing without a bathroom?”

“So far it’s just a little inconvenient, but I don’t know how long I can wait before I get it back.”

Bill nodded. “I was over at the inspector’s office, and they treated me like some kind of villain. I’m not sure when we’re going to be able to finish it.”

“Don’t worry. We’ll manage. Let’s take care of finding the murderer first, and then we’ll deal with our plumbing problems.”

He nodded, but I knew that it was one more thing troubling my husband. Our lives lately seemed to be a series of loose ends, and it would be nice to tie one or two up before they overwhelmed us.

 

An hour later, Bill was out back fiddling with the charcoal, and I was inside making a salad and trying not to laugh at his intense focus on getting the perfect pyramid of briquettes, when the telephone rang.

“Hello,” I said as I tucked the telephone into the crook of my shoulder so I could still work.

“Carolyn, it’s Butch. Do you have a second?”

“Sure. What’s up, Butch?”

“I just had a talk with Rick Cobb, and I thought you’d like to know what I found out.”

“That was fast.”

“What can I say? He was eager to talk to me.”

“I can’t imagine under what circumstances he’d be willing to share anything with anybody. You didn’t have to rough him up, did you?”

“Carolyn, I keep telling you, you’ve seen too many gangster movies and read too many mystery novels. I didn’t lay a finger on him. Well, not a hand. Okay, maybe a hand, but my boots were nowhere near him.”

He was making fun of me; it was clear in his voice. Besides, Butch was right. I couldn’t very well give him a set of guidelines on his behavior when he was doing something purely as a favor to me. “I get it: don’t ask, don’t tell. What did he say?”

“Mostly he backed up what you told me. He was dating Rose, but he dumped her the second his brother died. The guy’s a real piece of work, isn’t he? A lawyer told him he’d get every dime after his brother died, but he swore he didn’t know that before Charlie was murdered.”

“And you believe him?”

“Let’s just say I had no reason not to. By the time we got to that part, he was pretty much willing to tell me whatever I asked him. I think the extra windfall came as a surprise to him. Besides, there was something in his voice when he talked about his brother that made me think Rick actually liked the guy. They were tighter than what folks have been saying. I still have some doubts about him, but what can I say? I don’t really have an answer for you.”

“Then what’s your gut telling you? Is he innocent?” I asked as I finished making the salad.

“I’m nowhere near ready to say that. I just thought you should know my general impression of the guy.”

“Thanks, Butch. I appreciate your help on this.”

“Not a problem, Carolyn. You know that. I’ve got to go. There’s something I have to do in Boston that I can’t miss.”

“It’s nothing illicit, is it? Butch, I worry about you.”

He chuckled. “You don’t have to. My uncle’s flying in from Virginia. He’s got a layover in Boston, and we’re grabbing some dinner and catching up on old times.”

“What’s he do, or shouldn’t I ask?”

“I’m not ashamed of him, even though he is the black sheep of the family.”

“Is he a criminal, too?” I asked before the impact of the words hit me. “Wait a second. I didn’t mean it like that.”

Butch said affably, “You’ll need to say something a lot worse than that to get me upset. No, Uncle Pat didn’t go into any of the family businesses. He went to law school, if you can believe that.”

“And that made him the black sheep in your family?”

“You should see my family.” Butch laughed.

After we hung up, Bill walked back inside. “Who was that on the telephone?”

“Butch has been doing some investigating for me,” I admitted.

Normally Bill hated it when I poked my nose into police business, but he was remarkably silent at the moment, now that his neck was on the line.

“Is there anything I can do to help you?” he said after a second’s hesitation.

“No, there’s nothing I can think of. I’ve got a good team put together, and between us all, we have Maple Ridge pretty much covered.”

Bill nodded. “I just feel so helpless about all of this.”

I hugged him. “Don’t worry. We’re going to get through this.”

“Yeah, I know you think so. The coals are just about ready.” He grabbed the steaks and took them out to the grill while I set the table. I wasn’t sure what my next step should be, now that Butch had given a mixed review. That didn’t mean the bartender was innocent, but for now I was going to go with Butch’s general impression. As for Rose, I believed her when she told me that she hadn’t been dating Charlie, and if that was the case, she didn’t deserve to be under my scrutiny for murder, unless I was ready to believe she killed the man so her lover would finally have enough money to marry her. Right now, that idea was too far out there to consider.