Moonshine Murder [Hawkman Bk 14] (17 page)

Jennifer lifted the pie from the container and placed it on the small table next to the stove. “I hope your brood likes cherry pie."

Randy clapped his hands. “It's my favorite. Can I have a piece now?"

Beth shook her head. “Not until after supper."

"Darn,” he said. “That's a long way off."

Jennifer laughed. “There's plenty, so don't you worry, it will save until you've eaten. By the way, how are you doing on the puzzle books?"

"They're hard, and Mom is making me think about them. She said I wouldn't learn anything if she kept telling me the answers."

"Good for her,” Jennifer said, grinning.

"If I can't have any pie, can I go outside?"

"Yes, with your crutches,” Beth said.

Randy took off out the door, just as Jeb entered. The man didn't acknowledge Jennifer, but spoke directly to Beth. “I've got a meeting. Save me some food."

She nodded, and Jennifer saw the fire in her eyes. “There may not be any pie left when you return,” she said in a sharp tone.

He glanced at the pastry. “Don't let those boys have more than one piece."

"I'll think about it,” Beth said.

A horn honked, and Jennifer jumped up from her seat. “Are you expecting company?"

"No, it's Jeb's ride. You stay put."

Jennifer had a feeling Tami had pulled up outside, but she wanted Beth to tell her, and maybe she would, once Jeb had gone.

He grabbed a jacket from the rack on the wall next to the door and left without saying a word.

"Damn that woman!” Beth said, stomping her foot.

Jennifer studied Beth and could see the anger she harbored inside. “What woman?"

"Tamara Spencer."

"Who?” Jennifer asked.

Marcy let out a whimper, and Beth whirled around. “You met her the last time you were here,” she said over her shoulder.

"You mean Tami?” Jennifer asked.

"Yes."

"I didn't know her full name, so you threw me. Is she local?"

"She's been in Yreka for the past two or three years. I haven't had much to do with her, because many years ago, she tried to take Jeb away from me."

Jennifer's eyebrows raised. “What brought her out of the woodwork now?"

"She says she's going to try to help Jeb get a job, and has set up appointments for him to talk to different people. I don't trust her."

"You think she's after Jeb again?"

"Definitely,” Beth said, holding Marcy close to her breast so she could suckle. “I don't want her around at all."

"Have you told Jeb the way you feel?"

"Yes, I've also told Tami to stay away from him, but neither pay any attention."

"It sounds like quite a dilemma,” Jennifer said, trying to be careful of the words coming out of her mouth.

"It won't be, if I have my way,” Beth said, removing Marcy from her breast."

Jennifer felt she'd stayed long enough, and rose from the chair. “I better get on my way. If I go into town the next few days is there anything you need?"

"No, thank you. I'm well stocked."

"Tell Randy I said to keep working on those puzzles."

Beth smiled. “He loves those books. They've really helped him get through this ordeal."

"I'll talk to you in a few days,” she said, before closing the door. Once in the Ford, she quickly wrote down Tami's full name and where Beth said she lived. Maybe Hawkman could find out more about this woman.

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Randy was glad to get outside since his mom wouldn't let him have any dessert, and he sure didn't want to hear women's talk. He swung on his crutches alongside the cabin and finally arrived near the second outbuilding. Scouring the area, he looked for Earl, but didn't see him, so he remained hesitant about nosing around the structure. About the time he headed for the corral, Mrs. Casey came out the door.

"Thanks for the pie,” he yelled.

She turned toward him, and waved. “You're more than welcome."

He watched her drive away, then continued his journey. When he arrived at the horse's pen, he saw Earl standing on the other side. “Whatcha doing?” Randy asked.

"Feeding the horses, dummy, can't you see?"

"Nope, looks like you're swinging on the fence. Where's your gun?"

"None of your business."

"Bet Dad took it away from you, didn't he?"

"Shut up, nosey."

"Mrs. Casey brought us a cherry pie."

Earl jerked up his head. “Really?"

"Yep, but Mom won't let us have any until after supper."

"When you gonna get off those stupid crutches so I can chase you?"

Randy threw back his head and laughed. “Soon, I hope. I miss our wrestling matches."

Earl walked around the corral. “Come on, little bud, let's go see how long it'll be until supper."

When Jennifer drove into the driveway, she noted Hawkman had beaten her home. “Darn, I forgot to leave him a note,” she mumbled under her breath, as she hurried into the house.

She found him standing at the counter. “Sorry Hon, I thought I'd be back before you got here."

"Did you go to the Hutchinsons?” he asked.

"Yes, and I got some information for you.” She handed him the slip of paper.

"Tamara Spencer from Yreka. So this is Tami's full name? You have any trouble getting it out of Beth?"

"No, it came quite easily, thanks to Jeb.” She then told him the tale about Tami coming to pick him up while she was there. “If I was that woman, I wouldn't want to be on Beth's bad side."

Hawkman glanced at Jennifer. “Why? Do you think she really cares what Beth thinks? Remember, we're dealing with money."

Jennifer made a face. “Beth has a mean streak; I can see it in her expressions. Also, we're talking about a marriage at stake."

"I'm not following you."

She related what Beth had told her about how Tami had at one time tried to take Jeb away from her, but failed. “I thought something awfully fishy the day I met her, and noticed how she had eyes for Jeb."

"Doesn't sound good. You're right. A woman's wrath can be vicious."

"Right now, Beth's anger is vented toward Jeb, but it could change, if Tami gets aggressive."

"This is all very disturbing."

Jennifer walked over to the cabinet and lifted the lid on the crock pot. “Dinner is done. You want to eat now?"

"No, not just yet.” Then he spotted the cherry pie on the counter. “On second thought, I'm ready."

She laughed. “I wondered when you'd spot the dessert."

"You've been busy today."

"It was my excuse to go see Beth. I made two and took one to them."

"You're quite a blackmailer."

As they ate, Hawkman told Jennifer about his visit with Detective Williams and told her about Bud Chandler, the detective he'd recommended to handle the case when he got some concrete evidence on Jeb Hutchinson. “I've read about him in the paper. It appears he does a good job at law enforcement."

Jennifer nodded. “Yes, I've heard of him too."

"I'm going to make another run up to Hutchinson's tonight."

"Watch for the car lights again. Jeb is out with Tami, and you sure don't want to get caught snooping around."

Hawkman changed clothes and left on the four-wheeler. He soon arrived at the parking spot, then walked in the rest of the way. When he approached the corral, darkness had fallen, and he again detoured; but it didn't keep the horse from neighing. “Damn horse sure has sensitive hearing,” he hissed, as he ducked behind a tree trunk. He waited several minutes to make sure the coast was clear before advancing toward the outbuilding.

The aroma of food cooking floated through the air. No sounds met his ears, and no headlights appeared coming up the path to the house. Hawkman hurried to the second structure and listened. The bubbling noise had decreased quite a bit since last night. He quickly used his pick to unlock the padlock and only opened the door enough to get inside. Again he took a couple of snapshots and checked the barrel with his flashlight. Satisfied with the findings, he slipped out the door, making sure he'd fastened the padlock. When he turned to leave, his heart stopped.

"Hi, Mr. Casey. Whatcha doing?"

"Hello, Randy. Just checking to make sure everything is okay. Why are you outside without your crutches?"

"I wanted to see if walking without them made me hurt."

"How does it feel?"

"Good. No pain. How'd you get here? I don't see your car."

"I came up the back way."

"You want to come inside?"

"Uh, no. Are you good at keeping a secret?"

"Yeah."

"Don't tell anyone, especially, your mom, dad or Earl, that you saw me, not even Mrs. Casey."

"Why?"

"Cause I could get into a heap of trouble."

"How come?"

About that time, Hawkman saw a ray of light penetrate the darkness, as the door to the cabin opened. Randy turned and Hawkman, taking advantage of the moment, dashed around the corner of the building when he heard Earl's voice yell into the night.

"Hey, punk, get back inside before some wild animal eats you."

Randy twisted his head around, looked behind him, then shrugged his shoulders. “Coming."

Hawkman bolted through the brush, and sprinted all the way to the four-wheeler. He jumped onto the seat, started it up, and put it in high gear all the way to his driveway.

When he stumbled into the kitchen, Jennifer looked up from her computer. “What the heck happened?"

"I got caught."

She jumped up, ran to the window, and glanced outside. “Are you being followed?"

"No."

"Who spotted you?"

"Randy."

"Randy!” she said, in disbelief.

"Yeah, I'd just locked the padlock on the fermentation building and about to leave, when I heard this innocent voice at my back. “Hi, Mr. Casey.” Believe me, my heart literally stopped beating."

"What was he doing out at night?"

"He said he wanted to try walking without his crutches."

Jennifer wiped her hands across her face. “He'll tell Beth and probably Earl, then it will get back to Jeb. This could made for a big mess."

"Maybe.” Hawkman told her the rest of the conversation between him and the boy. “I don't know if he'll keep it a secret or not."

She shook her head. “Hard to say."

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His nose wrinkled and scratching his head, Randy walked through the doorway of the cabin. “Is there such a thing as a ghost?"

Earl threw back his head and laughed. “Now he's seeing things. What an idiot."

Beth glanced at him. “Enough out of you. Get to your room.” Then she turned to Randy. “Why do you ask?"

"I just talked to a man, turned around when Earl called, then I looked back, and he'd disappeared. I couldn't find him anywhere."

"What did he say to you?” Beth asked, concern in her voice.

"He just asked why I was outside without my crutches."

"Did you recognize him?'

Randy thought a moment before answering, and remembered he'd told Mr. Casey, he could keep a secret. “No, but he seemed okay."

Beth patted him on the head. “I don't think I'd worry about it. You probably need to get outside more. Tomorrow, you can go play without your crutches."

"Thanks, Mom. I'm going to bed right now, so I can get up early."

Beth chuckled softly and tucked him in. “Don't have a nightmare about the ghost you saw."

"He didn't scare me, he was nice. Maybe I'll see him again."

She checked on Marcy, then put one lamp near the front door, carried one with her, and extinguished the others in the room. “Goodnight, boys."

"Night, Mom,” they said in unison, even though Earl was in the other bedroom.

Randy couldn't go to sleep. Every time he shut his eyes, they popped open again. He couldn't quit thinking about Mr. Casey being outside, and why he wanted him to keep the visit a secret. Why would he come in the dark and tinker with the padlock on the building with the strange noise inside?

About the time Randy's eyelids grew heavy, a squeak he recognized as his folks’ bedroom door forced him to glance toward the noise. His mother, fully dressed, carrying a rifle, walked swiftly across the room, quietly opened the front door, and disappeared outside. Now where is she going with a gun at this hour? Dad hadn't returned home either. This night seemed to be turning into many unexplained events.

Sleep finally overtook the lad and he didn't catch his parents coming in the door.

"What were you going to do, shoot us both?” Jeb said.

"Keep your voice down. You want to wake the kids?” Beth said. “Yes, if she'd put a hand on you, I would have shot you and Tami."

"I told you my dealings with her were strictly business."

Beth whirled around and stared into her husband's eyes. “I can guarantee you, they aren't strictly business with Tami.” She stomped into the bedroom.

Jeb followed, shaking his head.

Hawkman took the camera from his pocket. “Did you by any chance keep those last pictures of the still and fermenting barrels on your computer?"

"Yes,” Jennifer said, as she moved to the machine.

"Good, I want to compare tonight's photos with those of last night. I don't know much about this moonshining business, but I'd suspect one can tell the rate of the fermentation process by the bubbling."

"Sounds logical,” Jennifer said, handing him the cord to connect the camera.

He held up his hand. “Hold on a second. A car is coming across the bridge, let me check if it's Tami.” Moving to the kitchen window, he viewed the tan car as it rolled past. “Yep, it's her, and a man."

"They do hold late business meetings,” Jennifer said, sarcastically.

Hawkman moved back to the computer center and connected the camera. She opened the pictures, then pulled up the older batch. He pointed to the recent barrel. “Looks like it's slowed down considerably, wouldn't you say?"

"Yes, I'd agree."

"More than likely, it will be ready to put in the still by Thursday or Friday. Jeb will probably make a run soon. I can check on Friday, but I'd bet on Saturday."