Flight Risk Cozy Mystery Boxed Set

Books 1-12

Susan Harper

Fairfield Publishing

Copyright © 2019 Fairfield Publishing

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. Except for review quotes, this book may not be reproduced, in whole or in part, without the written consent of the author.

This story is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to actual people, places, or events is purely coincidental.

Contents

Murder at Macbeth

A Killing in Kenya

Homicide in Hawaii

Trouble in Texas

Murder in Mississippi

An Artful Assassination

French Fatality

Kangaroos and Killings

Tailed in Tokyo

Iced in Alaska

Mayhem in Mexico

Nabbed in New York

Thank You!

Murder at Macbeth

Flight Risk Cozy Mystery, Book 1

1

Kendell McDonald awoke early in the morning. Today marked the completion of her fifth year working as a flight attendant for American International Airlines, and she suspected that a significant pay raise would be coming with that milestone. Knowing this, she dragged herself out of bed with a little bit of extra energy. American International Airlines was only six years old, so she was one of the earliest employees at the small but rapidly growing airline company. It was a role she was proud of. She had taken a risk committing herself to such a new airline, but it had paid off. Not to mention that the stocks had been really cheap, so she had a small share that would certainly reap some benefits in the near future.

She showered and fixed herself some breakfast, taking her time since she had risen with the sun. She brushed her long, fiery red hair and worked it into a low, loose bun. She also threw on a blouse and blue jeans. She took some time to do her makeup. She was debating on whether or not to stop to get coffee on her way into work or to brew herself a pot when there was a knock on her apartment door.

Peering through the peephole, she spied a handsome man in a TSA uniform. Kendell smiled, flinging the door open excitedly. “Jack!” she exclaimed. He handed her a to-go coffee. She could smell caramel and knew by the strong scent, he had ordered a dark coffee with a caramel drizzle, and knowing Jack, he had remembered her espresso shot. “You are just too sweet,” she said and offered him a kiss.

“Well, you know me,” he said with a wink as she stepped aside, allowing him to enter her humble dwellings. She and Jack had been together for two years, and he had gotten himself an apartment just across the street. It was very convenient, and dating someone who worked at the same airline also had its perks, though they both had rather strenuous hours.

“I didn’t know you were working this morning,” Kendell said just before taking a sip of her coffee, smiling when she confirmed that he had indeed remembered her espresso.

“Took an extra shift,” he said. “Figured I’d stop by and surprise you with coffee, and we can split a cab into the city.”

“Sounds great,” she said, her face lighting up as he pulled a small bouquet of flowers from behind his back. “You are too much,” she said, taking the small bundle from him and heading into the kitchen. They were roses—a little cliché for her taste, but she appreciated the gesture. “What’s the occasion?”

“No occasion,” Jack said. “I just passed by a flower shop after picking up your coffee, so I figured why not?”

“They were on sale, weren’t they?” Kendell teased.

“Maybe,” Jack half-admitted. After two years, she knew him well enough to know he was a big sales guy. He had four of the exact same t-shirts because they had been 75% off. He blushed slightly, but she assured him she loved the discount flowers and then placed them in a large glass vase with some water. Jack was a handsome guy; he had been a football player back in high school, but he had evidently lost his college scholarship after smarting off to the recruiter. Losing that opportunity had, according to Jack, been a major eye-opener for him about himself. He learned quickly that just because you can throw a football didn’t mean the world would bow down to you; he claimed he had learned humility, and he had taken a job as a janitor working with American International Airlines their first year in business after spending some time feeling sorry for himself. With the company’s rapid growth, he had been promoted a number of times and eventually earned himself a spot with the TSA. Jack claimed becoming a janitor was the best decision he ever made.

“Don’t you need to get dressed?” Jack asked Kendell as she fluffed up her flowers and set the vase on the small coffee table that doubled as her kitchen table in the tiny apartment.

“What, don’t I look ready for work?” she asked.

“Well…you’re not in uniform?” he asked.

She laughed. “I know. They’re giving us new uniforms today before our shift.”

“Us too,” he said. “But, I still thought I’d throw my old one on. Have you seen any of the new looks? They’re keeping quiet about it. Doing something new with marketing, I guess.”

“No, I haven’t seen anything. I know they’ve been painting a lot at the airport lately to match the new themes they’re going with, but outside of the new blue and blush pink colors, I don’t know much.”

“They sure are being sneaky,” Jack said with a slight grin. “I wonder what they’re up to.”

“Who knows?” Kendell said. “I’m just eager to get rid of the old uniforms. After five years, they’ve had a good bit of wear and tear.”

“Agreed,” he said.

The two of them sat together while Kendell sipped on her coffee. There really was no need to rush, so the two sat and simply enjoyed one another’s company. After two years, Kendell was starting to feel like their relationship had really taken off. They spent most of their free time together—not that they had much free time working at an airline—but the time they did spend together was always special and intimate. She suspected, almost expected, a proposal soon. Of course, she knew she would say yes. She loved Jack, she loved his family, and they shared the same group of friends. They had similar interests and were both incredibly ambitious. She figured that it was only a matter of time before the two of them tied the knot. Plus, he had even gone with her to a ring shop to get her size not too long ago. He had asked her close friends about her style preferences. It was a matter of timing, she was sure.

“Looks like we need to get moving,” he said, checking his watch.

The two of them locked up and headed out, hoping to quickly catch a cab to the airport. Thankfully, a cab was parked just a short distance from the apartment complex, so they flagged it down almost as soon as they got outside. The two sat in the back, laughing and chatting about the busy days they had ahead of them. When they arrived at the airport, they parted ways at the gate with a quick kiss, and Kendell headed to the board room where a safety meeting was being held. This was where she was to receive her new uniform, and she was excited for the unveiling.

The room was buzzing, full of flight attendants. She found her friends Jesse, Lil, and Brandon and sat with them. Brandon was still wearing his old uniform, unlike her two girlfriends, and Kendell was glad to see that she was not the only one who had dressed comfortably knowing they would be expected to wear the new uniforms that day.

“I heard the uniforms look decent,” Lil said somewhat nonchalantly. “The last shift is wearing them.” Kendell was sure Lil was hoping for some more loose-fitting slacks. The old uniforms were tight on her, even two sizes up from her normal pants size; Lil was proud of her black girl booty, as she put it, but she didn’t necessarily want to always flaunt it at work.

“Really?” Kendell questioned. “Have any of you seen them yet?”

“Nope,” Brandon said. “I heard they’re awful.”

“Ugh, they’ll probably make us sit through the whole safety meeting before unveiling them,” Jesse groaned.

The meeting got underway, and Kendell could feel herself growing just as impatient as Jesse. Jesse was Kendell’s fashionista friend, so she figured new uniforms would be enough to get Jesse jumpy and excited. Lil was less intrigued, but then again, Lil hated being a flight attendant, so uniforms were an annoyance no matter what. Brandon, Kendell’s closest friend in the bunch, did not really seem to care either way.

Mrs. Morgan, the woman giving the lecture that morning, cleared her throat at the end of the meeting to get everyone’s attention. “So, now that we have the whole safety nonsense out of the way,” she said, only kind of joking, “I’m sure you’re all eager to see the new look.”

Kendell sat upright with anticipation as a group of men entered carrying boxes of uniforms. Mrs. Morgan threw a photo up on the screen of a man and woman sporting the new look, and Kendell’s stomach dropped. “Oh, you’ve got to be kidding me,” Lil groaned, and Brandon elbowed her.

It looked like something straight out of a 1950s Good House Keeping Magazine. The uniforms were very old school. Kendell frowned. The women’s uniforms were especially heinous—dark blue and blush pink, short blue pencil skirt, high heels, stupid-looking hat and scarf, and white gloves. The woman in the picture had her hair done up like it really was 1955. “No,” Kendell mumbled and palmed her forehead. As if keeping gross men from pinching my rear isn’t hard enough already, she thought.

Lil vocalized her concern, loudly. “I’m sorry, Missus Morgan, but what idiot approved this?” she practically snarled, surprising the men who were bringing in the uniforms. “This is just outright sexist. I see what the airline is doing here. Their whole branding is about bringing class back to the airline industry or whatever, but that uniform is just to make all the women eye candy, and you know it.”

“You can express your concern with the airline, not me,” Mrs. Morgan said. “But for right now, if you want to work, this is what you’re wearing.”

“Great,” Lil moaned and then leaned toward Kendell and Jesse. “My butt is going to look like a busted can of biscuits in that stupid pencil skirt.”

Brandon snorted. “At least you don’t have to wear a bowtie.”

“I’d rather have the bowtie,” Lil said firmly.

Jesse was on the other end of the spectrum. The girl was acting like a child on Halloween who had just been allotted her favorite costume. Kendell, Jesse, and Lil headed into the nearest women’s restroom to change, and when Kendell exited the stall and saw herself in the mirror, she frowned. “I think I’m with you on this, Lil,” she said as she started fixing her hair, rolling it slightly and tucking it where she could to look like the elaborate bun from the slide Mrs. Moran had shown them. “Someone is going to try to pinch all this today, and I’m going to give a man a black eye.”

“You and me both,” Lil said.

“I love it!” Jesse exclaimed, twirling in front of the mirror.

“Of course you do,” Lil spat. “You look like a Barbie doll in it. My fat ankles are melting over the side of these stupid shoes.”

They exited the restroom and were met by Brandon, who was in his new uniform as well. Lil whistled. “Dang, boy, you looking good.”

“Oh, so it’s okay for me to be eye candy in the new uniforms, but you have to go all feminist on us in the safety meeting over having to wear a pencil skirt, huh?” he teased, and Lil gave him a shove.

“Oh, shut up, you feel just as stupid as I do in this cotton candy-colored disaster of a uniform,” Lil said.

“Agreed, but I will deal with it,” he said. “Now, in the spirit of our company trying to send us back to nineteen-fifty…” He reached an arm out to Kendell. “Shall I escort the lady to our flight?”

Kendell smirked and hooked her arm into Brandon’s. “Sure. Why not?” she said with a laugh and gave Jesse and Lil a wave good-bye.

She and Brandon would be working Flight 56, an eight-hour flight to London. “So, you like the new uniforms?” Brandon asked as they walked across the airport together.

“Not really,” she admitted. “But they pay me well, so I guess they get to tell me what to wear.”

“That’s the consumeristic spirit!”

Kendell rolled her eyes. She could already see men in the airport practically breaking their necks to watch all the women in their tight uniforms. “Something tells me it’s going to be a long day,” she said with an eye-roll. “I’m really not looking forward to this flight. And, honestly, I’m glad you have my arm. These heels are already killing me. I’m definitely going to see if I can get away with the same colored flats, because this is not about to become a regular thing.”

“I can’t feel my toes,” Brandon said.

“Oh, no, you do not get to complain about shoes!” Kendell exclaimed. “Tight dress shoes are not the same as three-inch heels, so don’t you even start!”

2

As the plane touched down in a small airport just outside of London, Kendell was nearly ready to scream. The eight-hour flight had definitely made her top ten worst days list, and the ridiculously high shoes she had been forced to wear were far from the most obnoxious thing she had dealt with. She had constantly been pulling at her pencil skirt; the poor design caused it to ride up on her every time she walked the aisle. She could only imagine how Lil was doing on her flight to India that day. Her heel, of course, snapped during the first hour of the flight, but frankly, Kendell considered that a win. She was able to slip into some more comfortable shoes while the other women were forced to suffer through them.

Her hat was way too small for her head; thankfully, one of the other flight attendants had let her borrow some bobby pins to keep it in place. She was not the only one dealing with that problem; every other flight attendant was hatless by the time they reached London. Obviously, whoever designed these stupid hats was a man who thinks women’s hats just float on top of their pretty little heads like halos, she thought with a grimace. I could really just punch this designer if I knew who the creep was! Then there was the low V-neck under the open top blazer. Every time she leaned down to pour someone a drink or hand them a magazine, she felt the need to ensure she had at least one free hand to cover her cleavage.

Of course, the attire had been only half the battle that day. The worst of it was, of course, the creepy old men seated near the back of the plane. They loved the new uniforms, obviously, and they had not been shy about it. She had come close to notifying the air marshal after one of them had had the audacity to grab her wrist and try to pull her into his lap. Her abrupt slap followed by a few women applauding had been enough to calm them down, so Kendell let it go for the time being. And the flight attendants were not the only one bothered by the uniforms. Half the women on the plane were rolling their eyes and agreeing strongly with the employees that it had been a cheap attempt at sexual marketing. The more subtle men just tried their hardest to keep eye contact with them.

Kendell collapsed in an empty seat up front, in desperate need to put her feet up, as the ground employees prepared for everyone’s exit. “Long day?” an old woman sitting across the aisle asked, smiling in Kendell’s direction.

The woman had a purse in her lap and a cute little dog poked its head out as if to say hello

“A little bit,” Kendell said, smiling at the old woman.

The woman was the most stereotypical granny she had ever seen. Gray hair, a single curler mistakenly left in at the back of her head. Way too much makeup. Perfume so strong it should be illegal. Teeth that were quite possibly fake. And, to top off the look, a floral long-sleeved dress. Her slight pudginess told Kendell she was probably a true-blue Southern Granny who always felt like her grandkids were too skinny. “There’s always going to be days like that.” The old woman winked. “I have a bet going with the gentleman behind me that you broke that heel of yours on purpose.”

Kendell laughed, holding back a snort. “No, it really was an accident. I turned my ankle, but I don’t think I sprained it or anything. I guess that could have made my day a lot worse having to wear those heels for the entire flight.”

“I saw you sucker punch that pervert in the back,” the old woman said and then leaned in Kendell’s direction to whisper, “I’m the one who started the applause.”

I like this old lady, she thought, perking up quite a bit. “Thanks for that.” She nodded at the dog sticking its nose out of her purse. “So, what’s the little thing’s name?”

“Her name’s Dot,” she said.

“I didn’t see her when the kids were playing with her earlier,” Kendell said, leaning over to get a peek of the carefully-hidden dog. “Does she have a dot or something?”

The old woman giggled. “No. My great grandson named her. Love him, but he’s not the brightest crayon in the box. She’s pure white.”

Kendell smirked slightly. “Well, it’s still cute.”

“I think so,” she said. “My name is Pauline.”

“Kendell,” Kendell said and reached across the aisle, giving the woman a proper shake of the hand.

“I can’t decide whether I like or detest those uniforms,” Pauline said. “It reminds me of the ones I used to wear.”

“You were a flight attendant?”

“Back when they called us stewardesses,” she said. “Hated wearing those uniforms, but I’m enjoying the bit of nostalgia I’m having right now from them. Back then, I would have been expected to suck it up if a man had grabbed me like that on the plane…not that I ever did. I knocked a fella’s tooth out once. That was my last flight. They fired me, and my good old husband helped me sue the airline I worked for at the time. They reinstated me the next day.”

Kendell grinned. “You sound like you were pretty feisty.”

“Were! Oh, honey, I still am!”

“Good,” Kendell said. “I’m glad. So, are you and your husband vacationing?” She looked across the aisle at the older gentleman next to Pauline, who was passed out with his face against the window.

Pauline shook her head. “This ugly old coot is not my husband. I’m sad to say I lost my husband last year.”

“Oh, I’m so sorry,” Kendell said.

“Married fifty-five years! Six kids. Seventeen grandkids. Four great-grandkids with another on the way,” Pauline said. “He lived a long, happy life. Never asked for much. He just wanted dinner on the table at six. He was a good man, but now that he’s gone, I’ve realized something.”

“What’s that?”

“Something I’m going to tell you right now, sugar.” Pauline looked Kendell dead in the eye and pointed a finger in her direction. “I became a stewardess for the adventure. At some point, I forgot to go on that adventure. I got married, had kids, and worked. That was it. I went all over the world on my flights, but I never actually left the airports!”

Kendell frowned. “That sounds familiar.”

“That’s what I thought,” she said. “Listen, hon, don’t do what I did. You’re young. See the world now while you can still get around and actually experience it.”

“Is that what you’re doing?” Kendell asked. “Seeing the world?”

“That’s exactly it,” she said. “I wish I had done it sooner. You know what’s fun about me having married an old southern man like my husband?”

“What’s that?” Kendell asked.

“He was too proud to let me spend a dime of the money I made as a stewardess; he had to be the provider,” she said. “Every paycheck I ever got went into a savings account with incredible interest. That’s over thirty-five years of paychecks that I didn’t touch until I bought my first plane ticket last week to go to New York City. Let me tell you! I loved New York. I haven’t ever been out of the south, well, except for on a plane for work. But like I said, I never left the airports. I’ve never experienced a place I’ve been before, and I plan to experience a lot more. Ooh, New York City! It’s hideous and charming all at once. I just cannot wait for my next adventure.”

“That’s really good to hear, Pauline,” Kendell said, ignoring the comment about New York being hideous. As a native New Yorker, Kendell was quite partial to the city. “Sounds like you’ve earned it.”

“I just wish my husband could be with me,” she said. “But, then again, he never was much of a travelling spirit. He preferred his own bed. He probably would just be complaining the whole time.”

Kendell parted ways with Pauline as she made her way off the plane and she and Brandon headed into the airport, eager to take their break and get some food before their flight home. Their sixteen-hour shift coupled with only a forty-five-minute break made for a long day.

When their break finally ended, Kendell quickly redid her makeup and hair. She and Brandon headed back to the plane, only to learn from the rest of the disgruntled flight crew that there was a problem with the plane’s engine. “Of course,” Kendell moaned. “Perfect end to a perfect day, right, Brandon?” She turned to see Brandon fiddling with his phone. “What are you doing?”

“Booking a flight back home before everyone else does,” he said, and Kendell fumbled for her phone. He had an excellent point, and as she glanced around, she saw that everyone else was already doing the same.

“Phew, looks like I barely got in there,” he said. “I’ll probably get bumped by a passenger, though.”

Kendell frowned. There were no available flights back to the States anytime soon. She kept looking and eventually managed to book herself a flight for midnight. Less than twenty minutes later, she was bumped off that flight for a group of passengers. “I’m going to be stuck in London,” she grumbled to herself later that day as she sat at an airport computer desperately trying to book a flight. Then, suddenly, she spotted Pauline. She was sitting with her bags, speaking casually on her phone—likely calling for a cab. Must have decided to get dinner at the airport, Kendell thought. Seeing her made Kendell think of the conversation they had had earlier. I have five years of vacations days I’ve never used, she thought. Plus, since I didn’t wear my uniform to work, I have at least one change of clothes…

It took her half a second to decide to take a mini weekend vacation. Just something about spotting Pauline made her take it as a sign that she needed to cut loose a little—stop and smell the roses, as they say. She was way overdue for some me-time, she decided. Kendell called her supervisor first, and frankly, the man sounded shocked that she wanted to actually use a vacation day. He told her they were set and to take as many days as she needed. He just wants me to get rid of those vacation days, she thought with a grin. Next, she called Jack. She had to call twice to get him to answer; she imagined that he was just getting off work.

When he answered, he sounded a bit confused. “I thought you were on a flight home?” he asked.

Kendell sighed. “Nope,” she said. “I wish. There was a problem with the plane, so everyone booked flights home. I seem to be getting the raw end of the deal there, though, so I wanted to give you a heads up that I’ve decided to take some vacation time for myself. I’m just outside of London, after all, and seeing a show at the Globe Theater is definitely on my bucket list.”

Jack sounded fairly pleased with her decision. “Good,” he said. “You deserve it. You work way too hard, you know that?”

“Well, Jack, one of us has to.”

“Haha, very funny,” he griped. “When do you think you’ll be coming home?”

“I probably won’t stay more than one or two nights,” she said. “If there are tickets available at the theater, I’ll go see a show tonight and try to book a flight home tomorrow.”

“Well, have fun, babe. Stay safe while you’re out there, okay?”

“Will do.”

“Text me your hotel information so I know where you’re staying?”

“You going to pop in on me or something?” Kendell asked jokingly.

“Just want to make sure you’re behaving,” he teased.

“Fine, if you insist,” she said. “Love you.”

“Love you.”

She hung up and headed back through the airport, bumping into Brandon as he was happily getting ready to board his flight back home. “You get a flight?” he asked.

“Nope. I’ve decided to take a mini vacation,” she said.

“You?” he asked like he didn’t believe it.

“Oh, shut up,” she said. “You and Jack both, I swear. Yes, I’m taking some time to myself. I’m in London, baby. I’m going to enjoy myself.”

“Did you book a hotel?”

“Oh, yeah, I should do that,” she said, laughing.

“Are you going to be okay in London by yourself?” he asked.

“Yes, Brandon,” she said. “I’ll be fine. I’m a big girl. And, unlike what my new uniform suggests, I’m a strong and independent woman who can take care of herself.”

“Easy there, big girl, I know you got this. Just being a proper gentleman as my new attire suggests,” he said with a wink and then muttered, “And we know that’s just a load of crap, right?”

Kendell laughed. “Right.”

He waved good-bye, and Kendell got a hold of her belongings before heading to a bathroom to change. She managed to borrow a locker at the airport to stuff her uniform into before changing into her blue jeans and white blouse. She was ready to take on the world…or London, at least.

3

Kendell stood on the curb outside of the airport, watching the line of unique London-style taxis known as black cabs as they drove by. She grinned at the funny-looking black cars, and she could hardly believe that this was her first time stepping outside of the airport at one of her work destinations. As she was daydreaming about what all she wanted to do during her brief stay in London, the sound of a little dog yapping brought her out of her daze.

She spun around in time to hear an old woman’s voice shouting, “Dot! Dot! You get back here, you naughty little doggie!”

Kendell saw a little white ball of fur darting in her direction, and she sprang into action, leaping forward and bending over just in time to snag a tiny little teacup Pomeranian before it could dart out into the street and get hit by one of the black cabs. “Gotcha!” Kendell exclaimed as she scooped up the little dog. She tossed her red hair over her shoulder triumphantly as she scanned the crowd for the old woman in the floral dress, spotting her as she scooted between a couple smacking lips—boldly making a statement against PDA during her frantic sprint.

“Kendell!” Pauline exclaimed, taking the little dog from her. “Thank you so much! Dot, you naughty, naughty puppy! Shame on you!”

“Of course,” Kendell said. “She got away from you, huh?”

“She’s a little troublemaker,” Pauline assured her. “Are you taking a cab into the city?”

“That’s the plan.”

“So, you’re staying in London!” Pauline exclaimed.

“Your little talk about living life to its fullest got to me,” Kendell admitted. “I’m taking a little bit of vacation time. Just a couple of days in the great historic city of London.”

“Why don’t we share a cab?” Pauline suggested.

Kendell thought about this for a moment. She normally had a rule against sharing cabs with strangers, but that was more of a rule against strange men she didn’t want to inform where she was going. Pauline was just an old lady—innocent enough. “That sounds great,” Kendell said, and the two of them waved down one of the black cabs.

A black car pulled up, and Kendell helped Pauline throw her small suitcase into the back. “I haven’t booked a hotel yet,” Kendell grumbled, but she figured she could get some sightseeing in before worrying too much about the details. Pauline was fiddling with her phone; the woman seemed half-blind as she attempted to read whatever was on her screen. “Could I help you with that?” Kendell asked.

“Yes, actually,” Pauline said. “My glasses are in my suitcase, and I’m trying to buy some tickets for a show tonight.”

“Oh?”

“The Globe Theater,” Pauline said in a dramatic voice.

“Hey! I was going to do the same thing!” Kendell exclaimed as she took Pauline’s phone.

“Help me book two tickets. My treat after you stopped my dog from running into traffic,” Pauline said.

“Oh, I couldn’t possibly ask you to do that,” Kendell argued.

“I insist. Besides, it doesn’t look like there are many tickets left if you were planning on going tonight,” she said. “Go ahead and book us two before it fills up.”

Kendell smiled. “You know what, I could use the company. I’d rather not sit by myself at a theater anyway.” She helped Pauline book two tickets for the evening’s show. The two women laughed as they talked about London and what they wanted to do and see while in town. Pauline was adamant about wanting to see the royal palace. In fact, the woman had a whole list of stuff she wanted to do. Kendell had not put much thought into her trip just yet, but Pauline was giving her some exciting ideas.

I should hang out with people her age more often, Kendell thought with a grin. They’re way more fun than people my age!

“You know, Kendell, you seem like a sweet girl. The hotel I’m staying at is right in the middle of downtown London. I had to book a two-room hotel because it was all they had left. I’d like to offer you my spare room,” she said. “You don’t have to split the cost or anything. It’s just going to be sitting there.”

Kendell’s heart leapt up into her chest. A free room in downtown London? “That’s really generous, Pauline—”

“Don’t try to argue with me. I insist,” Pauline said. “Like I said, it’s just going to go to waste if you don’t.”

Kendell nodded; she could hardly believe how quickly she had befriended this strange woman. “You know what, I’d love to.”

“Great! Oh, this will be so fun. Two ladies out on the town. I just cannot wait!” Pauline cried and then pulled Dot out of her bag. She gave the dog a kiss and scratched her behind the ears. “Ooh, does my little Dot want to go see Shakespeare? You want to go see Macbeth? I know you do!”

Kendell smirked. She could not quite figure it out, but there was just something about this sweet old woman that she liked. She was funny and had this I really don’t care what you think attitude Kendell admired. They arrived at the hotel, and Kendell held Dot for Pauline while the woman got them checked in. Not having time to go check out the room, Pauline handed her suitcase over to the concierge before they headed back out. They located another black cab and headed straight to the Globe Theater to try to catch the show in time.

Kendell could hardly contain her excitement. Sure, this was not exactly shaping up to the sort of vacation she would normally imagine during her downtime, but it was vacation. Truth be told, when she thought of taking time off, she usually imagined hanging out with her girlfriends and sipping mimosas on a beach somewhere rather than sharing a cab with a strange old lady. But Pauline was turning out to be excellent company. Kendell quickly learned that Pauline was from rural Georgia, she was the youngest of eight children, and she had of course been the troublemaker during her younger years—but she said that with a hint of pride. “I remember one of my older brothers telling Mama that she needed to quit having babies after me,” Pauline said with a smirk. “He said I was just too much for the whole lot of them to handle.” Pauline pet Dot’s head as she recounted a few stories of her childhood to Kendell, including one incident that got her into such trouble, her mother made her cut her own switches out of a tree in the backyard. Before the driver got them to the theater, Kendell felt like she could vividly imagine the quaint little one-horse town that Pauline had grown up in. It was something straight out of an old-timey movie where everybody knows your name and always asked how yer mama and ‘em were doing. Not at all like the hustle and bustle of modern New York City where Kendell had spent most of her childhood.

At last, they arrived at the Globe Theater, and they had made great time. Still having plenty of time before the show would start, the two women took a moment to explore the nearby Shakespeare exhibit. “So, are you a fan of Shakespeare?” Kendell asked Pauline as they admired some of the items on display.

“Oh, not in particular,” Pauline admitted. “I did study Macbeth in high school, though, and I liked that play in particular. Though I do love good literature, I am more a lover of history than literature, so I could not resist coming to visit a historical building like the Globe Theater. Getting some entertainment while here is just a bonus.”

It was getting close to show-time, so the two of them headed inside the large, round building before finding their upper-level seats that looked down on the old wooden stage. Pauline had somehow managed to sneak her dog in, so Dot wound up sitting in the woman’s purse in her lap. “You’re going to get yourself in trouble sneaking that dog around like that,” Kendell warned.

“I haven’t yet,” she said and patted the dog’s head.

Smoke erupted across the stage, and a strobe light danced through the audience. Three women dressed in raggedy clothes appeared on stage amidst the smoke around a large, steel cauldron. The play had officially begun, and Kendell giggled slightly to see Pauline jump excitedly in her seat. The three women, Kendell knew, were the famous witches from the Scottish play they had come to see. Macbeth was one of Kendell’s personal favorites, and she was glad she was sitting next to someone else who had bothered to read the play even if it had been a lifetime ago since she last picked it up.

“When shall we three meet again, in thunder, lightning, or in rain?” called the first of the three witches.

“When the hurlyburly’s done, when the battle's lost and won!” shrieked the second witch.

“That will be ere the set of sun,” said the third.

“Where the place?”

“Upon the heath.”

“There to meet with Macbeth!” the witch shrieked his name, making sure the title of the infamous cursed play was heard loud and clear by the audience. A few people up front clapped excitedly in anticipation for the show’s leading man to make his grand entrance.

And so, the play pressed on. The more Kendell observed the first scene with the witches, the more she came to notice that the three women were most certainly related. In fact, they seemed to be triplets. That, or the makeup crew here was just incredible. It could go either way. The man playing Macbeth was devilishly handsome. Kendell noticed this on her own, but Pauline could not resist nudging her during the first act and grinning as she muttered something about the tight pants the “pretty young man” was wearing. He played his part well; truthfully, everyone was excellent. Kendell was particularly moved by Lady Macbeth’s eerie performance in the sleepwalking scene as she viciously tried to wipe away imaginary blood the character was supposed to be seeing in her delusional state. The scene gave her goosebumps, and Pauline squealed slightly.

The final battle scene at last got underway, and Kendell found herself sitting on the edge of her seat. The show had been simply phenomenal up to this point. The acting, the props, the combat—all of it was certainly better than any theatrical performances she had ever seen, and as a girl who grew up near Broadway, that was truly saying something. And the Globe Theater was doing the job with probably half the extravagant set and technologies she had seen on Broadway. The Globe Theater’s focus was on the acting entirely as they paid homage to the old school theater world in which Shakespeare’s play first aired.

Just when the scene was really getting going, Pauline needed a bathroom break. The old woman handed Dot over to Kendell and disappeared just as the actors playing Macbeth and Macduff ran off-stage in a violent chase. The fighting on stage continued. Kendell knew the play well enough to know that when Macduff returned, he would be holding up a prop severed head, having defeated the play’s wicked protagonist.

The fighting calmed down, and the characters Malcom, Ross, and Siward had their final conversation with the entering soldiers. Then Macduff entered, gripping a prop head by the hair. “Hail, king!” he called. “For so thou art; behold, where stands th’usurper’s cursed head: the time….” He froze.

Geez, that prop is coated in fake blood, Kendell thought, her stomach churning slightly. I know they’re going for realistic here, but, man, that’s just gross!

Suddenly, Macduff broke character. He screamed and dropped the head. “Ah! Oh my God!” he shouted. He paused, looked at the prop head, looked at his hands, and shouted again. “Oh my God! Oh my God!

Is he improvising because someone forgot their lines? Kendell wondered. She continued to be glued to the edge of her seat as she observed the man playing Malcom glance at the head now rolling across the stage. He too screamed, and suddenly, the director was jumping up on stage. The people in the front row were all shrieking and mumbling something. The woman who had played Lady Macbeth came running out on stage. Okay, I know there’s no ghost scene at this part of the play. What’s going on? Kendell wondered as more and more dead characters started popping up all over the place, all just as befuddled as the man playing Macduff.

“Matt!” the woman who played Lady Macbeth shrieked. “Someone call the police! What happened?”

“What in the world?” Kendell muttered. Dot started barking and growling angrily, so Kendell quickly shoved the dog further down in the purse—gently, of course. The last thing she wanted was to get busted with Pauline’s dog. “Hush, before you get me in trouble,” she warned Dot.

Kendell looked back to the stage where half the cast was now at, all darting out on stage or attempting to calm the audience. At least three of them had already pulled out their cellphones and were on the phone with the police. Kendell felt her stomach tighten as she looked to where the prop head was lying in the middle of stage in a pool of fake blood. “Oh… Oh no…” she mumbled to herself as the director threw a small sheet over the head to hide it from view. “It’s real,” Kendell said, instinctively biting her nails. The head was no prop. An actor had really lost his head!

4

“Well, I can only imagine the reviews for the show tomorrow,” Kendell grumbled under her breath as she made her way to the main floor of the theater, holding Pauline’s purse closely to her side. “Not exactly the way I was planning on spending my vacation,” she said and sighed as she slowly made her way down the crowded stairwell. “Maybe I should have just booked my own hotel room and gotten up tomorrow morning to take an early flight home.”

Frankly, anything seemed better than this moment. She kept replaying what had happened in her head, and it was pretty hard to believe. Someone had actually chopped off the head of the actor playing Macbeth, replacing the prop head. What kind of person did something like that? And how in the world did the actor playing Macduff not notice he was carrying an actual head sooner! Kendell could hardly imagine it. The man had seemed pretty sincerely shocked when he realized what he had in his hands; he had nearly passed out when the head had rolled across the stage.

Kendell heard a gentle whining coming from the purse at her side.

“Easy there, Dot,” she said as the little dog began to cry. The crowd of people were already being interrogated by police, each person anxiously waiting to be allowed to leave. Obviously, no one wanted to wait around, except for the nosey few hoping to eavesdrop on the police conversations. The authorities had arrived very quickly and had prevented everyone from pouring out into the streets in a panic. The head had been quickly removed and the rest of the body located and cordoned off as well before Kendell even got down to the main floor and away from the balcony seats she and Pauline had been in. The balcony had given Kendell a great yet daunting view of the whole scene, but it had been far enough away for her to have not realized very quickly that someone had been killed. She continued to think back on that moment over and over, trying to figure out whether or not the actor who had played Macduff could be the culprit.

The Macduff actor seemed like the most likely responsible for the death of his fellow actor. They had both been offstage, though so had a number of other actors since half the cast of characters had been killed off by that final scene. But Macduff and Macbeth had run backstage together, and Macduff had come running in with an actual head instead of a prop. Sure, there was probably time between their exit and Macduff’s re-entrance for someone else to have done something, but it seemed unlikely to Kendell. But what possible motive could there be for this guy to kill the lead actor of a show he was in? Surely with a prominent role like Macduff it wasn’t due to jealously? Sure, Macbeth was the lead, but Macduff was quite a prominent character as well. It was likely something personal, Kendell assumed, that had led to the death of the actor.

She made her way toward the front of the stage. The actors, all still in costume and each covered in stage blood—or at least what Kendell assumed to be stage blood—were seated along the edge of the stage, many draped in shock blankets. Macduff seemed to be an absolute mess. The way he was frantically wiping his hands off on his costume reminded Kendell of the scene in which Lady Macbeth had frantically washed imaginary blood from her hands, shouting, “Out damned spot! Out, I say!” So much like the character Lady Macbeth, could the frantic actor be experiencing guilt? Or, was he just disgusted that he had unknowingly picked up one of his acting companion’s severed heads? Kendell supposed it could be either one. She watched him carefully for some sort of sign, but she couldn’t quite read him.

Deciding to leave the detective work to the authorities, Kendell began scanning the crowd for Pauline. “Dot, it’s probably a good thing your mommy was in the bathroom during that final scene. I don’t know her that well, but I’m sure something like that could have stirred an old woman to the point of a heart attack!” Kendell said, patting the purse where Dot was still nervously shaking. They were in quite a crowd of people, so Kendell imagined that the group of strangers they were walking through were what was making the dog so anxious. That, and Dot had no idea who she was and why her owner had left her.

Suddenly, the pooch managed to escape the purse. It jumped down into the crowd, and Kendell felt a rush of panic. That tiny dog was bound to get trampled amidst this sort of crowd. She scurried after it, and the little thing kept yelping and darting back and forth around the aisles. “You’ve got to be kidding me,” Kendell moaned as she ran back up the stairs after the dog that was running between people’s legs like this was some sort of hilarious game of tag.

Kendell had hoped to head outside and just meet Pauline out front, but Dot apparently had other plans. Her loud yapping was drawing attention to them, and the last thing Kendell wanted to do was get in trouble for bringing a dog into the theater. Obviously, dogs were not allowed. Kendell still couldn’t figure out how Pauline managed to sneak the dog everywhere. She supposed the fact that the dog behaved better for Pauline had something to do with it. At last, after the dog decided to jump in a seat and take a break, Kendell managed to snatch it up and put it back in the carrier purse. “Bad girl,” Kendell said, taking a deep breath to release her frustration before heading back down the stairs once again.

She was certain that Pauline hadn’t made it outside yet, so she continued to scan the crowd. The bathrooms were on the other side of the theater, so she would have had to walk through the onslaught of people Kendell was standing amongst, but she had not seen her.

Just when Kendell was starting to wonder if Pauline had fallen into the toilet, she saw the old lady up on stage being berated by police. “Oh no,” Kendell said under her breath, as though she just instinctively knew Pauline was the type of old woman to get herself into trouble.

Kendell made her way back toward the stage just as an officer was escorting Pauline down and toward the front of the building. “This is ridiculous,” Pauline was saying as the man continued to coax her as gently as a frustrated cop could.

“Pauline!” Kendell shouted, meeting her and the cop just at the Globe Theater’s main entrance, where the crowd had dwindled significantly.

Pauline and the officer turned around, and Kendell could see the officer holding a pair of handcuffs and seeming quite eager to slap them on the old woman’s wrists. “Kendell! Thank goodness. Do you have Dot?”

“I’ve got her,” Kendell assured her and then looked at the officer. “What are you doing? Why are you taking her out of the building?”

“She was backstage during the final act,” the officer said matter-of-factly. “We’re taking her in for questioning.”

“You’re joking,” Kendell said. “Pauline, what were you doing backstage?!”

“I was trying to weasel my way into meeting the actors,” she said. “But like I told this inbreed, I didn’t see anything. I was just hiding out back.”

“Pauline!” Kendell admonished, unable to believe the woman had the audacity to call an officer an inbreed.

“Do you know this woman?” the officer asked.

“See what I mean?” Pauline said, pointing a thumb in the man’s direction. “We’re standing here talking like old friends, and he asks if you know me. Not exactly a genius, this one.”

“Listen here, you old hag—”

“All right, ease up,” Kendell said. “Pauline, I’ll get a cab to take me and Dot to wherever this officer is taking you. I’ll wait on you there. Just do me a favor and please cooperate with them and answer their questions, all right?”

“Fine,” she said and turned toward the officer with this absolute look of loathing. “Are we going or what? I’m old. I can’t just stand here for ten minutes while you try to make a decision. My ankles will start to swell, and then you are going to have to carry me. Well? Hurry up! Make up your mind!”

“Unbelievable,” the man muttered and then turned on his heels, continuing to escort her out of the building.

Kendell knew she could very well just hand the dog off to Pauline and the police, head back to the hotel, book her own room, and forget she ever met the old woman. But Pauline had been very nice to her since they had first met. She had bought her show tickets and paid for a room for them both. She could hardly imagine abandoning an old woman who had found herself in such a strange predicament. She had a grandmother back home whom she adored, and she hoped that a stranger her grandmother had been kind to would do what they could if found in the same situation. Then again, I don’t think my grandmother would have tried to sneak backstage at a play, Kendell thought as she watched Pauline be driven away.

Just as Kendell was about to attempt to hail a cab, she realized she had left her own purse up in the balcony seats, so she headed back inside. Thankfully, her purse was still sitting where she had watched the show. She took a moment to look toward the stage below, and she could see the entire cast and crew gathered around still speaking with police. They all seemed shaken. She studied their faces carefully. Lady Macbeth was crying; most of the women of the group seemed very distraught. The men looked quite numb. Kendell assumed a theater troop, particularly one doing a show at the historical Globe Theater, would be close. She had done a little theater back in high school, and even though high school performances were an entirely different world than professional theater, she could still recall how close she had gotten with her fellow performers. Preparing for a play took a lot of time and work, and a lot of time spent with your fellow cast members. It was hard not to get close.

Kendell headed back down to the main level, deciding she would need to avoid walking up and down stairs for a while. Between going up to enjoy the show, heading down after the actor was killed, heading back up to chase the dog, back down to meet Pauline, and then back up and down again to fetch her purse, she felt like she had gotten in a good workout. The crowd had cleared dramatically by this point, and she was able to get closer to the stage. One man was addressing the actors, and his tone and the general way that he spoke to the troop led Kendell to believe he was in charge somehow, probably the theater’s director. Alongside him stood another man, who looked quite similar, and Kendell guessed the younger man was related, possibly a son.

“I know we’re all a bit shocked right now,” the older man said. “But the police have assured me they’re going to do a quick and thorough investigation of the stage. We’re cancelling tonight’s later performance so the police can have the area. I need you all to stay here and speak with the police, and I ask that you all behave and cooperate accordingly so that the police can get what they need to do done. My hope is that we’ll have the stage again tomorrow.”

The group all nodded along. Lady Macbeth piped up. “But Matt was our lead. How are we supposed to—”

“That’s what we have understudies for, Julie,” the man said, but he sounded sad. “As they say, the show must go on. Especially at the Globe Theater. We are meant to be a light of professionalism for all of theater! They do say that Macbeth is the cursed play. Perhaps now I know why.”

Kendell felt someone touch her shoulder. It was an officer letting her know she needed to stop eavesdropping. “Sorry,” Kendell mumbled and decided she needed to get to the station to Pauline anyways.

She made her way outside and groaned in frustration, realizing she wasn’t quite sure how to contact a cab or exactly where the police station was located. She sighed heavily and patted Dot’s head; the little dog had stuck her white, fluffy head out of the old woman’s purse. “Of course,” Kendell groaned. “I wanted to take a vacation. Now, I’m stuck in London with some old woman’s purse dog.”

5

Kendell managed to get a hold of a black cab, and it took her to the nearest police station. She thanked the driver before heading inside, still toting two purses—one with a small dog whining inside. She then realized that the thing probably needed to go to the bathroom, so she searched the purse for a leash. Of course, Dot’s leash was this adorable pink leash with fake diamonds bedazzled all over it. “Here we go, girl,” Kendell said, hooking the leash onto the dog’s collar before letting her pee in front of the police station. She figured it was a small revenge for arresting an innocent old lady. At least she didn’t go number two, Kendell thought with amusement before putting the dog back into the purse and heading up the stairs to the front entrance.

In such a large city as London, the downtown police station was ridiculously busy. She sighed as she attempted to make her way to the receptionist’s desk to ask about Pauline. Unfortunately, Kendell had no idea what the woman’s last name was, which made it difficult for the officer working the front desk. “Ma’am, I’m sorry, but why are you looking for this woman you barely know?” the officer asked.

“It’s a long story,” Kendell said, feeling somewhat defeated already. “But I met her on the plane ride over here from the States, and we wound up going to see the show at the Globe Theater tonight. She was backstage when Macbeth lost his head, and now I’ve got her dog. I’m just trying to figure out what happened to her and where she’s at. Plus, we’re sharing a hotel room. I just want to make sure she’s okay.”

“Oh, the Macbeth show! You’re talking about the old lady who bopped Bobby in the nose!” the officer said, laughing. He shouted across the crowded room. “Hey! Bobby, get over here!”

Kendell frowned as she saw the officer who had ushered Pauline away from the theater in the first place come wandering over. The man had tissues shoved in one of his nostrils, and he did not look thrilled to see Kendell. “What happened to you?” Kendell asked.

The man bucked up at her slightly. “Your grandma punched me in the nose when we got to the station! That’s what!”

“Oh! Wow, I’m so sorry to hear that!” Kendell exclaimed, feeling more and more put out from befriending this crazy old lady. “But, Pauline isn’t my grandmother. She’s a friend, but I just met her today. I have her dog, and I’m just trying to figure out what’s going on. Is she being arrested for anything?”

“The owner of the Globe isn’t worried about pressing charges against her for trespassing backstage,” the officer with the bloody nose, whose name was apparently Bobby, said. “But we still brought her in to question her about whether or not she saw anything since she was backstage during the murder, but she’s claiming not to have seen anything.”

“So, there’s no reason to hold her, right?” Kendell asked.

“There wouldn’t have been if she hadn’t bopped me in the nose!” Officer Bobby shouted.

Kendell bit her tongue to keep from smirking. “Why exactly did she punch you? Pauline seems tame enough.”

“I told her to shut up, because she wouldn’t stop talking the whole way here,” Bobby said. “When we got to the station and she climbed out of the back of my car, she punched me in the nose and told me I should have opened the door for her.”

Kendell laughed slightly; she couldn’t help it. Plus, the cop working the desk was laughing his head off. Kendell caught her breath. “I’m sorry I laughed,” she said. “But, come on, she’s just an old lady. You’re really going to hold her here for that?”

“Yes, I am!” he snapped.

“That’s ridiculous!” Kendell countered.

“She assaulted an officer!”

“Who cares!” Kendell snapped right back. “Take that stupid tissue out of your nose. You’re not even bleeding anymore. You really want word to get around about you arresting an old lady because she one-upped you?”

“She’s got a point, Bobby,” the other officer said. “I saw the old lady. She looks like a strong gust of wind could knock her over. She’s just an old biddy using her retirement money to vacation to good old London. Why don’t you cut the vacationers a break?”

“Please,” Kendell said as politely as she could and even cupped her hands together. She showed Officer Bobby her loveliest smile, and he rolled his eyes at her. “I would certainly appreciate it. I kind of wound up being responsible for this complete stranger today, and I want to cooperate the best I can with your investigation, but this is supposed to be a vacation. Pauline was just in the wrong place at the wrong time. And, honestly, you could have opened the door for her. She’s a lady, after all. I thought you English were supposed to be gentlemanly.”

“Oh, screw it,” Officer Bobby said. “I’ll go get your…your friend? She’s really not your grandma?”

“Just met her today,” Kendell said.

“Americans,” the man murmured before heading off.

Kendell waited patiently, and she heard Pauline before she ever saw her. “Honestly! You need to learn how to treat a woman! So rude! Didn’t your mother teach you any better than that? And wipe that frown off your face! It wouldn’t kill you to smile a little.”

Kendell saw Officer Bobby walking alongside Pauline toward the front of the station. The man had a scowl on his face while Pauline walked slowly beside him, waving an accusing finger in his direction as she talked. Kendell smiled. She was probably a hoot as a teenager, she thought. She looked down at Dot, who was poking her head out of the purse. “Who am I kidding, Dot? She’s a hoot now.” Kendell waved in Pauline’s direction, and the old woman spotted her and smiled.

“You have a nice day, sonny,” Pauline said to Bobby, patting his arm gently. “Sorry about your nose. Sometimes I don’t know my own strength.” She held out one arm and flexed her nonexistent muscles. The gesture caused the uptight Officer Bobby to actually crack a small smile, apparently offering his version of forgiveness to the old woman.

Pauline scurried up to Kendell, fussing over Dot as Kendell returned the woman’s purse. “Ooh, Pauline, you have some explaining to do,” Kendell said harshly.

“I am so sorry!” Pauline said. “I didn’t mean to drag you into my escapades, Kendell.”

“What were you doing backstage?” Kendell asked.

“I just wanted to meet some of the actors, and I figured being backstage when the show ended was the best option. I was just planning on running to the restroom, but on my way back to my seat, I saw this door no one was watching, and it led backstage. I couldn’t resist,” Pauline said. She then sighed. “The officers say I’m not allowed to leave the country while the investigation is open because I’m a suspect. Can you believe that!”

“Hold up, you’re a suspect!” Kendell exclaimed.

“They said me going backstage when I wasn’t supposed to be there is suspicious,” Pauline said. “I think they just don’t like Americans.”

Kendell was not having any of this. She marched back up to the front desk, and the officer working it frowned. “What now? We’re letting her go?” he asked.

“She’s a suspect, and she’s not allowed to leave the country?” Kendell asked.

“That’s right,” he said.

“So, basically, you people have no real suspects, so you’re blaming the old lady. Look at her. Do you think she’s strong enough to actually decapitate someone!” Kendell cried, not quite sure why she was taking such offense to this stranger being accused of a crime.

“Lady, someone’s head got lopped off and put on display at the Globe Theater,” the officer hissed. “They’re taking all the precautions they can until we can find out who did it. Plus, this whole thing was obviously done quickly in the middle of a scene. I’m sure we will figure out who did it quickly enough. I’m sure it won’t even mess with your grandma’s vacation time, all right?”

“She’s not my grandma,” Kendell said, “but that doesn’t mean I can’t be annoyed on her behalf. You can’t seriously believe she had anything to do with this, do you?”

“Pretty much, yeah.”

“Idiot,” Kendell snapped and then spun around on her heels. “Come on, Pauline, let’s just get out of here.”

“Bye!” Pauline cried out as she waved good-bye to the officer behind the desk. She followed closely behind Kendell. “So, where to?” Pauline asked.

“I don’t know about you, Pauline, but I’m going back to the Globe Theater,” Kendell said. “I want to make sure we clear your name, and I’m going to start by talking to the show’s cast.”

6

By the time Kendell and Pauline arrived back at the Globe Theater, the police had begun to disperse and the audience members were long gone. It was starting to get a tad late, though the sun was still up and keeping the sky bright and orange. “It’s past my bedtime,” Pauline said, sounding quite exhausted after her hectic evening at the police station.

Kendell could imagine that taking an eight-hour flight followed by a rapid check-in, viewing a play, and then being arrested at that age was particularly exhausting. In fact, she herself was ready to turn in, but she was determined to try to get something done to help Pauline’s case. They headed inside, and Kendell encouraged Pauline to sit down on one of the benches in the lobby. She also pleaded with the woman not to go anywhere or get herself into any more trouble than what she was already in. “You don’t have to babysit me, Kendell,” Pauline warned. “I’m old. Not a toddler.”

“Yes, ma’am,” Kendell said with a grin. She headed into the auditorium where the main stage was set up, and one or two officers were still lingering while getting together statements from each of the cast members. One officer was on his way out, passing Kendell in the doorway without much notice as his partner finished everything up.

Kendell waited patiently by the doorway for the other officer to finish speaking. The cast members were seated throughout the theater, all looking quite exhausted and anxious. Some of them had changed out of their costumes by now—most had at least wiped off any stage blood at this point, probably worried it could have possibly been the blood of their leading actor without their knowledge. When the last officer left, the director stood up. “Listen, everyone, I know that today has been rough. When I hear anything about Matt’s…about paying our respect…his funeral… I’ll be sure to pass on the information. For now, everyone just go on home. Get some rest. We’ll do a run-through first thing in the morning with Matt’s understudy to make sure he’s got the blocking down. I’ll see you all in the morning.”

The cast remained still, all of them letting the shock finally sink in. The director headed in Kendell’s direction followed by the younger man she had seen earlier. “Excuse me,” Kendell said as the man approached, and he stopped as did his younger doppelganger. “Are you the director of tonight’s show?”

“Um…yes. My name is Tony,” he said, throwing his thumb over his shoulder and pointing at the younger man. “This is my son, Edgar, the assistant director here.”

“His lackey, in other words,” Edgar said, forcing a sad smile.

“Were you here tonight?” Tony asked.

“Yes,” Kendell said. “I watched the show from the balcony. I’m so sorry about…Matt, was it?”

“Yes,” Edgar said. “He was kind of the heart of this troop.”

“Listen, just me trying to be honest with you both… I kind of came to the show with the old woman who was busted sneaking backstage,” Kendell said. “She was arrested due to suspicious circumstances, but she was just wanting to meet the actors. I was hoping to find out if the police have told you all anything yet or if you know anything at all about what happened.”

“Not much right now,” Edgar said. “Dad and I were in the audience when it went down, so we probably saw about as much as you did. I saw the old lady they dragged off, though. I can’t imagine her having had anything to do with this. Too frail… I don’t think she could take out Matt. They don’t even know how Matt’s head got lopped off to begin with. A lot of the cast was backstage, but I can’t imagine any of them wanting to hurt Matt. Everyone here is really close.”

“Thank you for the information,” Kendell said. “Is there anything else you could tell me?”

“Not right now,” Tony said. “We have to get home, though.”

“Of course,” Kendell said, stepping aside.

Tony peered past Kendell into the lobby. “Is that batty old coot in the lobby?”

“Don’t mind her,” Kendell said. “I’m pretty sure she fell asleep on the bench.”

Tony shook his head, and he and Edgar headed out. Kendell headed toward the stage. She went ahead and introduced herself to the cast members still hanging around, saying she had accompanied the show with Pauline—the woman who had been busted sneaking backstage. The woman who had played Lady Macbeth laughed slightly. “Do you know why she was backstage? I’m assuming she didn’t have anything to do with what happened tonight, so what was she doing?”

“She said she wanted to meet the cast,” Kendell said. “I just met her on the flight here from the States. She’s a mess, but she’s harmless.”

“My name’s Julie,” Lady Macbeth said, stepping off the stage to politely shake Kendell’s hand. She had been standing with the three women who had played the witches, so she went ahead and introduced them. “This is Lana, Laura, and Lane.”

“Are you three triplets?” Kendell asked.

“Yeah,” Lane said with a smirk. “That sure did make it easy to get the part of the three witches, I’ll tell you that much. Tony practically begged us to play the roles when we walked into auditions.” Her two sisters grinned along with her. Now that they were out of their scary witch makeup, Kendell could see that the three women were gorgeous.

“And I’m Ambriel,” another woman said, who had been standing with the group of women. Ambriel had brought the role of Lady Macduff to life.

“I really enjoyed your performance tonight. I’m so sorry about what happened to your friend,” Kendell said.

“Thanks,” Ambriel said.

“Did any of you see anything while you were backstage?” Kendell asked, knowing that each of the women must have been backstage when Matt had been killed.

“No,” Laura said. “My sisters and I had been in the dressing room. Lana’s witch’s nose had fallen off, so she was trying to get it glued back on before curtain call.”

Kendell looked at Ambriel and Julie. “How about you two? Did you see anything?”

“We were standing in the wings watching the final scene,” Ambriel said. “I didn’t see anything out of place. I saw Matt run to the prop area. He normally would lay out the prop head for Alfred to grab before he came back on stage.”

“Alfred?” Kendell asked.

“Alfred is the one who plays Macduff,” Julie explained, pointing to where the men had all gathered in the front row of the audience.

I definitely need to talk to him, Kendell thought. “Thank you, ladies,” Kendell said.

“Let’s go home,” Lane moaned. “I don’t know how I’m going to get up in the morning after all of this mess to get ready for a rehearsal.”

“Matt’s understudy is just awful,” Julie commented as the group of women all walked out together.

Kendell headed toward the group of male actors who had gathered; she could hear them all talking about Matt sympathetically. It sounded like they planned to go grab drinks once they all changed back into their street clothes. From what she overheard, it was normally traditional after a night show for the cast to all go to a nearby tavern afterwards for drinks. The men sounded like they wanted to go despite the fact all the women were headed home to sleep off the craziness of the evening, mostly so they could toast the fallen actor.

“Hello,” Kendell said softly, alerting the men to her presence.

“Hey, sweetheart,” the man who had played Macduff said politely. “Can we help you?”

“I was hoping to just get some information about what happened tonight. The police arrested a friend of mine, the old woman who snuck backstage.”

The group of men smirked. “Oye! I think she snuck backstage because she wanted to get a peek at Matt when he changed.”

Kendell recalled Pauline gushing slightly over the lead actor, and she shivered a bit. She had certainly made friends with a very unusual woman that day. “Probably,” Kendell said and looked at Alfred, the Macduff actor. “I was really hoping I could speak to you specifically.”

“Sure, why not,” he said, rising. “I can take time to speak to a pretty redhead anytime.” Kendell frowned, and he noticed. “Sorry, I’m not as smooth as Matt. Trust me, honey, that man could have any woman feeling hazy as soon as he opened his mouth to talk.”

Kendell and Alfred stepped aside while the others all headed backstage to get changed before their trip to the tavern. “Thanks for agreeing to speak with me for a moment,” Kendell said. “I’m really just trying to figure out what happened. Did you see anything at all?”

“No,” Alfred said. “Not a thing. Matt and I ran backstage during the chase scene. There’s a curtain backstage that hides the props in case anyone gets a peek into the wings. Matt was on the other side, I assumed getting the prop head ready. You have to coat it with stage blood right before going out on stage so that it’s dripping and looks like it was freshly cut. If the stage blood dries, it kind of ruins the effect of it all. So, Matt normally grabs the prop head, coats it in the stage blood, and throws it up on the table for me. I was just standing in the wing mentally running through my lines for the final scene like I always do. I turned around and saw… Well… I was just in the moment, I guess. Everything just seemed so normal. Just another performance. Just another scene, you know? I wish I had noticed. I feel like an idiot bringing….Matt…out on stage like that. His head…” Alfred shivered a bit. He started instinctually wiping his hands against his shirt as though they were still covered in Matt’s blood. “I thought it was the prop. It’s not like I inspected it, you know? The prop head was always made to look a little like Matt. That last scene is so rush, rush, rush… I was rushing. And his head was where the prop normally was. I grabbed it, not thinking anything of it, you know? It felt heavier than usual, but I didn’t have time to think about that. It’s dark backstage at the prop table too. I didn’t realize anything was wrong until I got out on stage…and I smelt it…” Alfred again shook a bit. “I’m going to need therapy after this.”

“You went through something pretty insane tonight,” Kendell assured him. “Do you have any idea who might have wanted to hurt Matt?”

“No, none,” he said. “Everyone loves Matt. He’s a great actor. As our show’s lead, he kind of became the unofficial leader of the group, you know? Good guy. Everyone just loves Matt like crazy, especially the girls.”

“Especially the girls?” Kendell asked.

“Um…women?”

“No, I mean, what do you mean by the girls?”

“Oh, I just meant Matt’s always had a way with women,” he said. “All the women in the show love him. I mean, you’ve seen the guy. Add those looks to his usual charm, and he could have any girl eating out of the palm of his hand. Our lady actors were no exception to that. Pretty sure he’s dated several of them at some point or another.”

“Do you think Matt’s murder could have been motivated by jealously?” Kendell asked.

Alfred thought for a moment. He seemed unsure. “I don’t know. Maybe. I mean, none of them ever seemed to have a problem with Matt. Sure, he’s taken a few of them out, but I don’t think there is any hard feelings there or anything. He always got along really well with everyone. The triplets, Julie, Ambriel—they all love Matt. They all seemed pretty devastated tonight too.”

“Can you be sure they were upset?” Kendell asked. “I mean, you’re all trained actors, right?”

“Right, but… I don’t know. I guess you’re right. But, like I said. They all seemed to get along just fine. Listen, I’m going to head backstage and get out of this outfit. We’re all headed to the tavern. Going to drink to our buddy tonight.”

“Understood,” Kendell said. Deciding it was getting too late to keep Pauline out any longer, she headed out to the lobby. The old woman was passed out on the bench where Kendell had left her with her mouth hanging wide open. Kendell tapped Pauline on the shoulder, and the woman jumped up. Her little dog yelped slightly.

“Phew! I’m exhausted. Please tell me you’re ready to get back to the hotel?”

Kendell smiled. “Yes, I’d say so. It’s been a long day.”

7

It was getting somewhat late by the time Kendell and Pauline arrived back at the hotel, but by then, the two women were starving. Kendell realized she hadn’t eaten much at all that day; she was not the type of woman to skip a meal, ever. She had had a small meal at the airport, but that had hardly been satisfying. And she was under the impression that Pauline wasn’t the type to skip a meal either. But with all of the rushing and the ruckus that had taken place throughout the day, neither of them had thought about food until their cab was arriving outside of the hotel.

“I think the hotel has a restaurant that’s open a little late,” Pauline said as she stepped out on the curb, her purse containing her pooch still hanging from her shoulder. “It’s past my bedtime, but I have weird dreams if I don’t eat dinner.”

“I could definitely go for some food right about now,” Kendell said.

The two of them thanked the driver, and Pauline tipped him before they headed inside. The restaurant was on the far end of the hotel, but thankfully, they were still open and accepting patrons. It was one those high-class hotel restaurants where the steak would probably melt in your mouth like butter and nothing was affordable, but Kendell reminded herself that she was on vacation. Plus, it wasn’t like she had to pay for a plane ticket over here, and she had managed to get herself a free room and a free ticket to a play, even if that had turned out disastrous, so she figured why not spoil herself on some fine dining.

Kendell had to ignore the prices on the menu as much as possible because nothing was within her normal eating out budget, but tonight, she didn’t care. She did, however, order the cheapest steak on the menu, which was still nearly double anything she had ever paid for a steak before. The server was a lovely, upbeat young woman whose energy was something to be admired. It was close to closing time for the restaurant, Kendell was certain, yet the woman, whose name she learned was Natalie, was still as bubbly as she probably was when the first customers of the evening had walked through the door. I should definitely tip her well, Kendell thought.

“I’ll tell you what,” Pauline said, sneaking her dog some bread from the table. “I am looking forward to sleep! I know better than to plan an activity the day of my flight because I’m always so tired, but I never thought going to see a play would turn out to be such a mess.”

“Agreed,” Kendell said, fiddling with her fork. “I’m exhausted. I’m going to have to get up a little early to swing into a shop to get myself a change of clothes. This is all I have.”

“Oh, goodness!” Pauline said. “You should really plan your vacations, dear.”

Kendell laughed. “Yeah, I definitely should. I decided to be a little spontaneous, though, otherwise I probably would never actually take some time to myself. Your little talk on the plane really got to me. When my ride home was cancelled, I took it as a sign.”

“Well, good for you!” Pauline exclaimed. “Do it while you’re young. My time in New York City was just wonderful! I’m from Georgia, so it was a bit of a culture shock to me, but I just loved it! New York was my first stop on my monstrous adventure I have planned.”

“Where else are you going?” Kendell asked.

“Everywhere,” she said with a wink. “It’s time I soaked in as much of the world as I possibly can. I love culture; I just never experienced it. I want to see the places that inspired some of the world’s greatest works of literature, especially.”

“You know, I hate to admit it, but I had a sort of stereotypical idea of you in my head. Older southern lady… I didn’t really expect you to be all into history and literature.”

“Oh, so you thought I must have been some Bible-thumping hillbilly who is out of touch with modern society?” she asked, and Kendell turned a slight shade of red.

“No! That’s not what I meant!”

Pauline cackled slightly at Kendell’s discomfort. “Kendell, my dear, it’s a stereotype for a reason. You better believe I have my copy of the Good Book in my suitcase. I know how to shoot a gun. I speak with a bit of a twang. I spent my marriage helping my husband chop up his tobacco, and I make the best darn sweet tea you will ever taste. But, sugar, that don’t mean I can’t read and enjoy it!” She then pointed at Kendell in an accusing manner. “What about you, Miss Native New Yorker? I bet you’re a smarty-pants socialite, and a die-hard cussing, screaming, bra-burning, gun-hating, tax-raising snowflake liberal. How’s that for stereotypes?”

Kendell nearly snorted. “Maybe I am some of those things, but that doesn’t mean I don’t know how to rough it like a country girl.”

Pauline giggled and clapped her hands together. “Ooh, you and I are going to get along so well. You are sassy like me.”

We sure are two peas in a pod, Kendell mused, even if at times it felt like they came from two different planets. Natalie, their server, arrived with the scorching hot plates. “Careful,” the perky woman said as she placed each plate in front of them. She got them refills and happily told them she’d be around if they needed her.

The first bite of steak nearly placed Kendell in a state of euphoria. “Oh my,” was all she could say. Will I ever enjoy another steak after this? “So,” she said once she and Pauline had each gotten a few bites in. “What are we going to do about you not being able to leave the country? I’m sure you have plans for more traveling coming up soon?”

“I have no idea!” Pauline said, looking quite annoyed. “Honestly, it really will mess up my plans. I bet I can’t even cancel my next flight at this point, and that will just mess up later flights I have booked already. It’ll be like the world’s worst domino effect of cancelled flights.”

“Maybe we should do a little more investigating of our own,” Kendell suggested. “You know, help poke the fire a little bit. I was going to suggest we go back to the theater tomorrow; they said they were going to be doing an early rehearsal to help Matt’s understudy learn the blocking.”

“Ooh, detective work? That could be fun,” Pauline said with a giggle. “This really is such a shame, though. I really enjoyed going to the Globe Theater. I hate that it was ruined and that that poor actor got hurt.”

Natalie had arrived back at their table at this point, and she was refilling Kendell’s glass. “Someone got hurt at the Globe Theater tonight?” Natalie asked. “What happened?”

“It was just awful,” Pauline said. “Someone murdered the lead actor backstage and lopped his head off! Macduff came running out with the actor’s actual head during the final scene.”

Natalie dropped the pitcher of water in the middle of the table, and it spilled everywhere. Kendell jumped back, sliding her chair across the floor to keep from getting a lap full of water. Well, there goes my ridiculously expensive steak, she thought, glancing over to see Pauline’s food had managed to escape the mess. “Are you all right?” Kendell asked with a bit of frustration.

“The lead actor? You mean the man playing Macbeth?” she asked.

“Yeah, Matt something or another,” Kendell said.

“Matt’s my fiancé!” she shouted, looking like she was going to faint.

“Oh dear!” Pauline squealed from her seat, looking sick by this discovery.

This is definitely not how she should have found out, Kendell thought, watching as the woman’s face contorted into horror and tears started to flow. “Are you two serious? Did that really happen? Matt’s dead?”

“I am so sorry,” Kendell said.

“I’ve been at work all day,” Natalie said, her voice shaking. “I…I have to go!” She ran off toward the kitchen. Kendell grabbed some napkins and started cleaning up the water.

A few minutes later, probably after speaking with a manager, Kendell watched Natalie remerge from the kitchen and dart across the restaurant while speaking on her cellphone, crying and frantically attempting to ask questions to whomever she was speaking with. She disappeared out of the restaurant just as a manager was coming over to Kendell and Pauline’s table. “Evening, ladies,” the older gentleman said. “Natalie told me there was a bit of a spill over here. Allow me to get you another steak, miss, and of course your dinner is on the house tonight.”

“Oh, wow, thank you,” Kendell said. “Is your server all right? We had no way of knowing she knew the actor we were speaking about. We’re so sorry we upset her!”

“She’ll be all right, but she’s pretty shaken up, understandably,” the manager said, picking up the plate holding half a pitcher of water. “Let me get this mess cleaned up, and I’ll bring you another steak. It’s already on the grill, so it will be here shortly.”

“Thank you,” Kendell said, double-checking her seat to make sure she did not sit in any water.

Pauline thanked the manager and continued eating her dinner. “What an evening,” she said. “That poor girl.”

“I know, that was just awful,” Kendell agreed. “You know, I’m surprised Matt had a fiancée, though. From what I gathered after speaking with the actors, he kind of sounded like a ladies’ man.”

“Interesting,” Pauline said. “Unless that girl is an actress too, though, I don’t think you’re dealing with an incident of a scorned woman. She said she’s been here all night, and it’s awfully hard to fake surprise like that.”

“True,” Kendell said. “But just because Natalie isn’t the scorned woman doesn’t mean there isn’t one.”

“Interesting. You think one of the ladies from the show could have gone after Matt?”

“Possibly,” Kendell said. “Although, that would be awfully difficult. I mean, I can’t imagine decapitating someone is easy, especially for a woman sizing up against a big guy like Matt.”

“I feel like we just got our first clue, though,” Pauline said. “And that’s awfully exciting. We should celebrate. Dessert is on me.”

Free flight, free show tickets, free hotel, free steak, and now free dessert? As messed up as witnessing a murder is, today hasn’t been so bad for me, Kendell thought. Her steak arrived, and it was just as delicious as the first. Pauline ordered each of them a slice of raspberry cheesecake, and at last, they decided it was time to call it a night. They had endured far too much excitement for one day.

8

Kendell’s eyes glistened when she and Pauline walked into the hotel room. It was enormous; they had a shared kitchen, large living space, and a giant television. The large hotel suite split off, a large bedroom with a king-sized bed on either side and a private bathroom for each. Kendell felt like she was in heaven, and she could not spit out ‘thank you enough to Pauline before retiring to her private bedroom. The hotel suite was decorated beautifully, with golden walls and hints of lavender-colored décor everywhere you turned. Once in her private bedroom area of the suite, Kendell discovered that because they were in a corner hotel suite that each of the two bedrooms had its own balcony overlooking downtown London. It was simply breathtaking. She could see Buckingham Palace from where she stood out on the small terrace. “I befriended a rich old woman who’s ready to blow her money on a stranger,” Kendell said under her breath, hardly able to believe her own fortune.

A part of her felt guilty for taking advantage of the kindness of this stranger, but she supposed she could be of some benefit to the old lady as well. Kendell decided that she would do what she could to help Pauline in any way that she needed, such as being the one to take Dot out and walk around the hotel if the little thing needed to go, helping her carry her luggage, and generally doing any of the heavy lifting that Pauline would need. It was not exactly an even trade, but Kendell figured she could find some way to make up for the generosity.

She sat herself down on the large, comfy chair on the balcony before calling Jack. I’m sure Jack appreciates all these long-distance calls, she thought, smirking a bit as she let the phone ring. When he answered, he sounded a lot less chipper than he had been earlier that day. “Hey, Kendell,” he said grumpily. She sensed his agitation, but she did not sit on it at all, figuring that something at work had bothered him that day or that she was catching him at a bad time.

“Hey, so listen, I’m thinking about staying in London for a few more days. I’ve got to check with my supervisor first, but they’ve been bugging me about all that saved up vacation time, so I don’t think he’ll mind, but I’m planning on—”

“A few more days?” he asked, his voice raised ever so slightly. “What do you mean a few more days? I thought you were going to try to catch a flight out tomorrow?”

She frowned, not really appreciating his tone. “Um, well, that was the original plan. But, like I said, I have all this saved up vacation time. I figured why not, while I’m already here, enjoy a week in London and—”

“A week!” he yelped, cutting her off.

Kendell felt herself becoming frustrated. Why did he believe he had an opinion on this? “Yeah? Why not?” she asked. “What’s wrong with me taking a little vacation?”

“I don’t know,” he practically snarled. “Do whatever you want, Kendell. You always do.”

“Are you serious right now, Jack?” Kendell asked, her own voice raising to Jack’s level. “If I want to take some time to myself, I can do that. I don’t need your permission.”

“I’m not telling you to ask my permission, Kendell,” he said. “I’m just wondering when I’m going to see my girlfriend again.”

“You’re kidding me, right? I haven’t even been gone for a day yet! What is with you tonight? Did something happen at work?” she asked, trying to give Jack the benefit of the doubt. Surely, he was not being this controlling. He had never shown any sign of being that way before. It definitely was not an attractive trait.

“No, nothing happened at work, Kendell,” he said. “I am just trying to figure out when you’re coming home. That’s all. Stop freaking out.”

“Freaking out! You’re the one who is freaking out, Jack!” Kendell practically growled into the phone. “You don’t get to tell me when I can and cannot take a trip. Especially when the whole thing was because of an error on the airline’s part. That’s not my fault. Even if I hadn’t decided to take some me time, I would still be stuck here at least until tomorrow, so back up!” She hung up on him, practically seething. Jack had always been a bit of a hard-head, but he had never acted like he had a right to dictate her schedule before. And it wasn’t like she had ever done anything this spontaneous before; he had acted like this was some sort of recurring problem instead of one-time decision to actually enjoy herself.

“Dump him!” she heard Pauline shout from the balcony around the corner.

Kendell blushed. “Didn’t know you were out on the balcony too,” she called back. “Sorry that you had to hear that, Pauline. Jack and I never get into it like that. I don’t know what his problem is tonight.”

“Eh, Eddie and I used to fight like that on occasion too,” Pauline said. “I’m sure something’s got him all upset, and he is taking it out on you. That’s not really an excuse, but it’s better than him just being a tool, right?”

“Right,” Kendell agreed. She was confident that something was up for Jack to go all commando on her. “Good night, Pauline. I’m headed in.” She heard the dog yelp. “Good night to you too, Dot.”

“Good night, Kendell!” Pauline called back. “I’m going to sit out here and enjoy this cool breeze. Don’t really get a lot of nice, breezy weather back home in Georgia. It’s sunshine and mucky winters where I come from.”

Kendell headed back into the hotel room and plopped down on the bed. She was furious, and embarrassed that Pauline had overheard the conversation. Jack had acted like a controlling jerk, and that was just simply a side of him she hadn’t seen before. She decided she needed to show him; she pulled out her phone and called her supervisor. The man was just getting off his shift and didn’t sound too much in the mood to talk, so she decided to make it quick. “Exactly how much of my vacation time would you let me use right now?” Kendell asked with intensity.

“I can give you three weeks, maybe four if you check back with me after the end of three,” he said. “We’re overstaffed right now, honestly, but if I can hold them off from doing layoffs, that would be nice. You dipping out for a while will prevent us from looking too overstaffed. Take your vacation days, you’re good, Kendell.”

“Seriously?” she asked, shocked he would be able to allow her three to four weeks off without any notice whatsoever. “I’m good, though, right? I’m not going to come back and be out of a job or anything?”

“No,” he said with a laugh. “Are you kidding? You’ve been with the airline since the beginning. Unless you kill a man or something dramatic like that, the airline is going to be loyal to you like you’ve been to them. The bigshots respect their original members. Take your vacation days, but don’t you dare let them build up like this again, got it? They’re going to be implementing a new policy because of you that will only allow a certain number of days to roll over into the new year. So, thanks for that.”

“Fun, fun,” Kendell said. “Will I have the policy named after me, or…?”

“Enjoy London, kiddo. I got a barstool with my name on it,” he said, hanging up on her.

Kendell grinned. She could take as many days as she wanted to spend in London, and Jack couldn’t do a thing about it. She then almost felt guilty for this sneaky and subtle act of betrayal. Jack had expressed that he wanted her home—was it really such a bad thing that he missed her? Now she felt somewhat childish for calling in all those extra vacation days just because Jack had annoyed her. She needed someone to talk to, so she called Brandon, assuming his flight had landed back home in New York by now.

He answered, yawning. “Kendell? How’s London?”

“London is…complicated. Remember that woman with the dog from our flight? Well… She had a spare room, and I’m staying in a suite overlooking London free of charge with her.”

“You’re kidding me!” he moaned.

“Don’t be too jealous, but I can see Buckingham Palace from my balcony,” she said, glad to be talking with someone who was happy for her.

“No!” he cried. “I should have stayed in London with you! How did this even happen?”

“Oh, that’s only half of it,” she sang. “This woman paid to take me to a show at the Globe Theater. And we went to this fancy restaurant, and the server dumped water on my steak, so I got a hundred and fifty-dollar steak meal for free.”

“You’re joking!”

“I’m not.”

“Man!” he exclaimed, and she could hear him chuckling. She heard mumbling in the background, and she realized he was retelling her tale to some of his friends who were apparently present. Kendell grinned slightly to hear the agonized moans of jealousy.

“So, now that my bragging is out of the way, I need some advice,” she said.

“Shoot.”

“I just got into a fight with Jack. He was acting like a jerk about me staying in London. Earlier today, he told me to take some time to myself, but when I told him I was thinking about staying a little longer, he flipped out.”

“That doesn’t sound like Jack,” Brandon said. “Any idea why he freaked out so much?”

“I have no idea!” she exclaimed. “I was honestly hoping you could find out for me.”

“You know he doesn’t like me.”

“He likes you just fine,” Kendell insisted, though she knew Brandon’s words did carry a little bit of weight. It wasn’t that Jack didn’t like Brandon so much as it was Jack just not caring how close she and Brandon were.

“It could be that extra shift he picked up,” Brandon suggested.

“What? The same shift we worked?”

“No, Kendell, he picked up another shift. He was still working when I got into New York. He was going on nineteen hours when I saw him.”

“You’re kidding me!” Kendell cried. “I had no idea. Why has he been taking on so many extra shifts lately?”

“I don’t know. You’re the girlfriend. Is he having money trouble?” Brandon asked.

“I really have no idea,” Kendell sighed. “I should probably talk to him after he’s had a nap, though. He is always cranky when he’s running low on sleep. He’s like a kid in that way, but that would certainly explain a lot. That makes me feel a little better, I guess.”

“Hey, no, no. Just because he’s sleepy and overworked doesn’t mean he gets to boss my girl around,” Brandon said. “Just talk to him when he’s not in a foul mood. Make sure he knows he doesn’t get to talk to you like that just because he’s got his panties in a wad. Don’t put up with that. Jack’s a good guy, but make sure he knows he’s got to stay a good guy to keep you.”

Kendell laughed. “Okay, thanks, Brandon. I will.”

“Enjoy your trip. Keep me posted on your adventure in London.”

“Thanks. I’ll see you all when I get back to New York.”

Kendell hung up the phone and tossed her clothes aside, throwing on the hotel’s bathrobe that had been hanging in the bathroom. After adorning herself with the robe, she decided she would do a little shopping in the morning for some clean clothes to wear. Plus, it would be nice to have a little keepsake from her crazy weekend in London.

9

Kendell woke herself up early the following morning and hit the streets to do a little bit of shopping. Her London vacation had been a rather abrupt decision, so she had no clothes or necessities with her. Plus, any excuse to go shopping in the great city of London would do. She returned to the hotel with two new outfits in a tote bag, and she bumped into Pauline at the hotel’s complimentary breakfast. Kendell smiled and waved at her from across the room, and Pauline sat upright with a bright smile and returned the excited wave.

As if the woman was just urging to get herself into more trouble, Pauline had fixed both herself and her dog a plate. Dot was seated in her own chair, scarfing down some bacon and eggs like there was no tomorrow. “Morning,” Kendell said, and she set her bags in the empty chair at her table. “Mind keeping an eye on my shopping bag while I run through the buffet line?”

“Go for it, and grab me another croissant while you’re up there. They are just wonderful!” Pauline exclaimed, and Kendell did as she was told, laughing at Pauline as she shoved it into her mouth.

Kendell helped herself, loading down her plate with a plentiful amount of free food. So far, this trip had been just wonderful to her budget, and she planned to keep it that way. Complimentary breakfast was just one way to do that. She moved her bags to the floor and sat down by Pauline, trying not to look at Dot while she ate. There was just something about dog slobber that could cause a person to lose their appetite. Kendell was confident the dog would soon go into a food coma inside Pauline’s purse from the amount of bacon she had just scarfed down.

“So, I took a month off from work,” Kendell said somewhat proudly.

“What!” Pauline looked up her plate with an excited smile. “You took a month off work?”

“I may have done it out of spite after my boyfriend got snippy with me,” she said. “But, you know what? Five years of working for the airlines, and I’ve never taken a single vacation day. One sick day in five years, and it’s not like I could help the fact that I had the flu. Five years of nothing but work! I have decided that it is time to cash in those vacation days. Plus, my supervisor said that starting this year, the vacation days won’t roll over anymore. I might even get a policy named after me due to my abundance of stored-up vacation days…at least, that’s what I suggested they do. So, I figured that was all a sign that I needed to do this and just enjoy myself.”

Pauline was positively giddy. “Oh, come with me on my tour!” she shouted abruptly.

“Excuse me?” Kendell asked.

“You heard me. Let’s travel together,” Pauline said. “I have a bunch of fun places and attractions already booked all over the world. My treat.”

“Your treat? I’m sorry, but I’m not letting you pay for me to take a vacation around the world, Pauline,” Kendell argued, though she had to admit the offer was certainly tempting. A trip around the world? Who wouldn’t want to do that? Especially if some stranger was paying for it! But Kendell wasn’t so sure. Pauline was old and obviously a little senile; she would feel like she was taking advantage of the old woman.

“Why not?” she asked. “I’ll pay to upgrade my hotel rooms, and you can tag along. You obviously don’t have anything planned, and I can use a travelling companion other than Dot. Dot is good company, but she’s not much of a conversationalist.”

“You don’t want to pay for me to go on vacation with you. You’re joking, right?”

“Not even a little,” Pauline said.

“Why would you pay for a complete stranger to travel the world with you?” Kendell asked, hardly able to believe the offer that had just been thrust before her.

“Why not?” Pauline asked.

“Because, Pauline, it’s weird.”

“I’m weird,” she said proudly and then sighed. She pushed her plate away and looked at Kendell with a serious expression. “Truthfully, I am not really speaking with my family right now. When they found out I had planned this lavish trip of mine, do you know what they said to me?”

Kendell shook her head.

“They were offended that I was planning on spending their inheritance!” she exclaimed and slammed a hand down on the table, causing the silverware to jingle. “Can you believe that nonsense? My grandchildren are just sitting around with their fingers crossed waiting for me to keel over so they can each make off with a little bit of money. It’s my money. Not theirs. If I want to see a little bit of the world before I die, I think I have a right to do that! My plan was to invite some of them along. I wasn’t going to have the whole clan out on every flight, but I was going to invite them along for some of the rides. My trip to New York? I was going to take my grandson Eric; he has always wanted to see the Empire State Building. London? My granddaughter Sonya is a high school theater director, so I was planning on paying for her to fly out and meet me in London to see a show at the Globe Theater. It was all going to be a surprise, Kendell! But those little brats had the audacity to sit me down and talk about how I don’t know how to manage my money. They wanted to hire someone to watch my spending! Unbelievable! I bet if they knew I had planned on taking each of them on a lavish dream vacation, they would have had different words. Spoiled little brats! I had no idea they had turned out that way. I ought to smack each and every one of their parents upside the head for letting their kids turn out that way.”

“Pauline, I am so sorry,” Kendell said, hardly able to imagine a world in which a woman as sweet as Pauline would have to deal with her family essentially telling her that they cared more about her money than her. “I hate that you’re not speaking with them.”

“Well, it’s not like we haven’t talked at all,” she admitted. “They’re just upset with me for spending what they think is their money. They have an inheritance waiting for them. The money from my days as a flight attendant was always meant to be mine and my husband’s rainy day fund. He promised me that he would travel with me one day, but he never got the chance. He got sick right around the time we started planning this trip. So, I’m on it without him…but I never intended to travel completely by myself, Kendell. I’m too old for this nonsense.”

“Pauline, I don’t know…”

“Think about it,” she said, waving her finger a bit to let Kendell know she meant business. “You’re young. I’d love to have a young woman I can spoil like I wanted to spoil my rotten grandkids. We could have fun like we were doing before Macbeth’s head decided to roll.”

Kendell smiled. “I’ll think about it. I don’t want to take advantage of you, though.”

“Sweetie, I’m going on the trip whether you come with me or not. I’ve already been to New York, and now London. If you decide not to tag along, I’m okay with that, but I honestly would love the company.” She smiled and pulled her plate back in front of her. “Have you tried these muffins? They are just divine! Honestly, I cannot believe I’ve never stayed in a hotel with complimentary breakfast before. Eddie and I always booked the cheapest hotels we could find. I’m too old not to enjoy every bit of my vacation now, though.”

Kendell decided to take Pauline’s offer seriously and to really consider whether or not she would just tag along with her. She wasn’t even sure where else this woman was planning on going, but for some reason, she had a hard time imagining herself parting ways with the crazy old coot. There was just something about her that was comforting.

After breakfast, Kendell took a moment to change into one of her new outfits before the two of them headed back to the Globe Theater with the intention of speaking to the stage crew and actors. She felt rather decked out in her long white skirt and silky pink top, but she was in the mood for dressing up and showing herself off a little. The door at the theater was unlocked, so the two women wandered inside without so much as an invitation.

From the lobby, they could hear arguing. “Come on, Donte! The blocking is not that bad, and for crying out loud, how long has it been since you studied your lines!” It was Ambriel, the woman who played Lady Macduff.

The two of them peeked in, observing the embarrassing scene unfold before them as the cast attempted to run over blocking with Matt’s understudy, a tiny man named Donte. Ambriel was standing at the base of the stage, and she looked like she wanted to jump up on stage, tackle Donte, and beat the life out of him. Donte grumbled to himself, flipping through the script. “I know, I know. Hold on a second, let me just read this scene again really quick…”

There was a loud group moan. All of the actors who were not present in whatever scene they were rehearsing were seated in their costumes in the first two rows up near the stage. Everyone looked exhausted and incredibly frustrated. Donte, the new Macbeth, was skimming through the script. The director, Tony, was standing with his face laying against his folded arms as they rested on the front of the stage. The man seemed to have given up on any hope of recovery at this point. The entire room of actors and crew members looked equally drained, each having an expression of horror or fury toward the understudy who kept fumbling through his script.

Alfred shoved Donte and proceeded to unleash a slew of swear words that made Pauline’s jaw drop. “My word!” she said under her breath and covered her ears. Dot started yapping, so Pauline sat herself down a few rows back and pulled the dog from the purse to calm her down.

“Shut up, Alfred! I haven’t looked at this script in weeks,” Donte said.

“Your job was to make sure you knew this play inside out! That’s what understudies are for, Donte!” Alfred shouted, a fist at his side.

“Aw, cut me some slack, Alfie,” Donte said. “This theater has not needed an understudy in ages. How was I supposed to know someone was going to kill Matt?”

“You want me to punch you?” Alfred questioned. “I think you honestly want me to punch you! In fact, I’m positive that by the end of this rehearsal, if someone else doesn’t slug you, I will!”

Tony just flopped down on the ground. He looked truly defeated. Then, suddenly, Tony’s son jumped up. The man darted up the side stairs that led to the stage, and he looked furious. The man was practically shaking as he reached Donte. He snatched the script out of Donte’s hand and tossed it off the stage, pointing a finger in his face. “Donte, get out of here. You’re fired!” Eddie shouted.

Donte bucked up at Eddie. “You can’t fire me! You’re not the director!”

“You heard him!” Tony shouted from the ground. “And if you think you’re getting a paycheck for pretending to memorize a play, then forget it! Get lost!”

Donte took a moment to cuss everyone out before leaving. Kendell could feel the nerves in the room. The Globe Theater was the theater. They couldn’t just keep cancelling shows until they had someone rehearse the Macbeth role. “What are they going to do?” Pauline asked as Donte made his way up the rows and toward the theater exit. Pauline pointed at him. “Shame on you!” she told him.

“Whatever, granny,” he said, marching out of the building.

Kendell watched as Eddie directed Alfred to head off-stage and to listen for his que. Eddie cleared his throat. “Why should I play the Roman fool and die on mine own sword? Whiles I see lives, the gashes do better upon them!” Eddie called, suddenly embodying the persona that Matt had played just the night before.

Alfred entered stage left, his eyes blazing. “Turn, hellhound! Turn!”

“Of all men else I have avoided thee, but get thee back. My soul is too much charged with blood of thine already,” Eddie said, bending to pick up the sword that Donte had tossed aside during his angry exit.

Alfred, trying not to break character but still looking quite surprised at their assistant director, drew his prop sword. The entire cast and crew who were seated up front were all leaning in with anticipation. Kendell and Pauline each leaned in as well, waiting to see what happened next. “I have no words,” Alfred said. “My voice is my sword. Thou bloodier villain than terms can give thee out!”

Eddie lowered the sword and held up his hand, letting Alfred know to end the scene. “Okay,” he said under his breath. “We just need to focus on blocking. I can make sure I study the parts that aren’t stored up here today,” he said, tapping the side of his head.

During the brief performance, Tony had managed to pull himself up off the ground. His eyes were wide. “Eddie, you memorized the play?”

“Not intentionally,” Eddie said. “Dad, I’ve been coming to this theater and others watching the same Shakespeare plays over and over again. Macbeth probably more so than any of them since we do it every fall. I’ve sat in on every one of your rehearsals, run lines with your actors, and have been to every performance for the past twenty-five years. I guess it just sort of sticks when you’re around it that much?”

“Better than Donte,” Ambriel said from her seat in the front row. “Who knew you had an actor in you, Eddie?”

“Okay,” Tony said, thinking hard. “Here’s what we’re going to do. We’re going to go over blocking for every scene first. Then, Alfred, I want you to take Eddie and run through lines with him and to study your combat scene today. We’ll all meet back here for a final run-through at three. That should give us plenty of time to do a full-dress rehearsal before tonight in order to make sure that Eddie is ready to go.”

“Way to go, Eddie,” Alfred said, giving his assistant director a friendly nudge. “You might have just saved the show.”

Kendell frowned. Something wasn’t sitting quite right with her. Dot had started barking again, and Tony was on them in an instant telling them to leave—at last noticing the intruders now that his stress was starting to melt away. They had to get some rehearsal time in, so said the director, and they did not need any distractions, especially not a yelping dog.

10

Much to Kendell’s delight, she and Pauline wound up actually enjoying the day in London. They rode the London Eye, did some shopping, and of course took part in the local cuisine. Pauline scheduled a tour of the palace for another day, something she was quite excited for. Kendell had a wonderful time exploring London with Pauline, and frankly, the woman was a hoot. With all of her silly antics and absurd commentary, Pauline made all of the sightseeing much more amusing than Kendell thought possible. Despite all of the fun, however, there was still the concern of ensuring that Pauline was able to leave the country again in time for her prescheduled flight, which was coming up in only a few days. Kendell supposed she felt such a strong urge to help the woman simply because she had paid for everything since arriving in Europe, apart from her new clothes. The woman was the most generous human being Kendell had ever had the pleasure of knowing, and she wanted to try to pay her back in any way that she could.

After heading back to the hotel for a few hours for some much-needed rest, Kendell arose from a brief nap with the intentions of trying to come up with a good next move regarding the case. She recalled the actors telling her that after a night’s showing, they would all head to a nearby tavern for drinks to celebrate a successful day in the theater. Kendell left her bedroom and headed into the shared space of the hotel suite, and she saw that the woman had arose from her nap before her. She was sitting on the large, comfy couch with her feet propped up on the coffee table, Dot in her lap while she watched a bit of television.

“I had a thought,” Kendell said, alerting the woman to her presence in the room.

“That’s a dangerous thing to have,” Pauline teased. “What is your thought, dear?”

“Would you want to go to an English pub tonight for some authentic local cuisine?” she asked.

“Ooh, sounds lovely! We should order some fish and chips!” she exclaimed. “There are so many pubs around here. Did you have one in particular in mind?”

“Yes, actually,” Kendell said. “The one down the street from the Globe Theater. I was thinking that we could head over there around the time their last showing of Macbeth gets out for tonight and see if we can get any of the actors alone to talk. Maybe we can come up with some additional questions to ask them all about Matt. Now that we know he had a fiancée, I know I definitely want to try to get the scoop on exactly what sort of relationships he had with all of the women in the cast. Alfred made him sound like such a ladies’ man, so I want to see if we can find out if any of the women knew he had a fiancée.”

“Oh, I agree,” Pauline said. “That man was just too handsome to not have at least one of those ladies after him.”

“And his friends didn’t exactly make him sound like he was a jerk either. Said he was the heart of the cast. So, good looks, charming personality, and the lead in the show probably all made him desirable to them. Maybe one of the women killed him out of jealousy over Natalie?” Kendell theorized out loud.

“I did do a little bit of digging while you were still asleep,” Pauline said. “And Natalie’s manager at the restaurant downstairs confirmed that she was here at the hotel all night that night. Her story is solid… What’s that called? An alibi? Ooh, I just love playing detective! This is almost as fun as the actual vacation.”

“Look at you, Detective Granny.” Kendell smirked as she sat beside the old woman.

“If you’re giving me my codename, I get to pick yours,” Pauline insisted. “Agent Possible.”

Kendell frowned. “Is that supposed to be a reference to the children’s cartoon Kim Possible because of my red hair?”

“I have a lot of grandchildren.”

Kendell simply laughed. “Okay, so dinner at the pub it is.”

“Aye, aye, Agent Possible!”

“Yeah, that’s going to need to stop right now before it catches on.”

Each of the women freshened up, and Kendell happily offered to take Dot for a walk out front to let her do her business before they called for a black cab to take them to the pub. They arrived early, getting themselves a booth that had a good view of the rest of the restaurant. As promised, the actors from the show arrived in groups and took up a long table almost right next to theirs. Kendell watched them with a keen eye, studying who sat with who to try to figure out what the group dynamics were.

“What should we ask them?” Pauline asked Kendell, peering out from behind her menu as though she was supposed to be undercover.

Kendell shook her head, pleasantly amused by the woman’s antics. “I’m not sure, but let’s give them all time to get settled in instead of ambushing them as soon as they sit down. We can go ahead and order some food if you’re good?”

“Definitely. I want some authentic fish and chips while we’re here!” she exclaimed as the waiter made his way over, already scribbling Pauline’s order down on a pad.

“So, we’re having the fish and chips?” he asked with a wink, finding Pauline’s loud demeanor entertaining, so it seemed.

“Make that two,” Kendell said, and the man happily took their menus and hurried off.

Just as Kendell and Pauline’s food was arriving, there was a disruption in the midst of the restaurant. Glancing up, Kendell spotted Natalie hovering over the table and shouting at some of the actors. “Where did she come from?” Pauline muttered.

“Hush, listen,” Kendell said, leaning in a bit to eavesdrop—not that she needed to. Natalie was not exactly being quiet.The woman was positively shaking as she stood over the table, her voice raised and her fists clenched at her sides.

“Well? Which one of you was it?” she shouted at the group, her eyes darting from one of them to the next. “Tell me! The police know one of you was sleeping around with him!” She glared at the women. “Huh? Well? Are any of you going to tell me?” Then she homed in on Julie, the woman who played Matt’s wife in the play. “I knew it!” Natalie screamed.

Julie jumped up out of her seat. “I was not sleeping with him!” she declared loudly. “But, you should know, that he definitely made a move on me.”

Natalie slapped her. Ambriel jumped up between the two of them. “Okay, that’s enough! Back off, you psychopath!”

“Was it you?” Natalie sneered, grabbing Ambriel by her hair.

“Hey!” Ambriel yelped. “Let go of my hair!”

The two women yanked on each other’s hair and clothes, attempting to throw the other to the ground. The table of actors all jumped out of their seats, tripping over one another to get to Natalie and Ambriel to pull them off each other. The next moment seemed to happen in slow motion for Kendell. Alfred reached out, grabbing a hold of Natalie’s shirt with the tips of his fingers. This threw both women off-balance. Alfred’s fingers slipped, and the two of them crashed down right on top of Kendell’s plate. Poor Ambriel face-planted into the hot plate of Kendell’s fish and chip.

“Ah!” Ambriel roared and then threw a kick back into Natalie’s stomach, sending her falling back onto the floor. “Are you kidding me? You’re crazy!” Ambriel snapped. “Let me tell you something. I used to date Matt, but that was months ago! Long before I knew he was dating other women. I dumped him, and we moved on. Maybe you should too! You obviously didn’t have a winner there if he was going to cheat on the both of us with each other!”

Natalie just screamed bloody murder from her place on the floor before she stood, brushed herself off, and shoved past Alfred and out the door. “Are you all right?” Alfred asked Ambriel.

“I’m fine,” she said, wiping fish and chips from her hair and then looking down at Kendell. “I’m sorry about that!”

“Wasn’t really your fault,” Kendell said, looking across the table at Pauline, who was holding her plate of fish and chips. Apparently, Pauline had seen the women tumbling to the table in time to pick up her plate and avoid getting someone’s face slammed into her food. That old lady has some quick reflexes, Kendell thought.

Ambriel ran off to the restroom to clean herself up and a manager quickly arrived at the scene. Kendell assured him she wasn’t upset—just that she wanted another plate of food that had not had a woman’s face smashed into it. He assured her it would be right out, and then he turned to the group of actors, speaking to them in a whisper to find out what had happened. Obviously, the actors were regulars, so it was probably going to take a lot more than what had just happened to get them thrown out.

As Ambriel exited the restroom, Kendell waved her over. “I’m so sorry about your food,” Ambriel said again. “I didn’t even know Matt had a fiancée until she came in here screaming at us.”

“You said you dumped Matt because you found out he was dating other women?” Kendell asked.

“Yeah, pretty much everyone,” Ambriel said. “He wasn’t necessarily dating all of us at the same time, but he had been with all of the women in the cast at one point or another. Me, Julie, the triplets, and a few of the stagehands too. I realized pretty quickly he was a player, and I’m not really into that sort of thing.”

“He certainly got around,” Kendell said. “But you all talked about him like he was Mister Nice Guy.”

“He was certainly charming,” Ambriel admitted. “Even when I broke up with him, he was really sweet about it. A lot of good-looking guys like that take it as a personal offense when their good looks and charm aren’t enough to keep a lady around, but he and I were cool with each other after the breakup. I had no idea he was engaged. From what that crazy woman was ranting about, it sounds like she and Matt had been together for a long time. I never would have dated him if I had known he was engaged.” Ambriel sighed heavily, shaking her head. “I’m still a little shook up about what happened to Matt. He was a player, obviously, but he still didn’t deserve this. I’m sorry again about your plate. They’re bringing you another plate, right?”

“Yeah, it’s no big deal,” Kendell assured her, and then Ambriel excused herself so that she could return to her friends.

Kendell’s food arrived, and the manager assured her it was on the house. I’m really having a lot of luck as far as food is concerned on this trip. I’m okay with a meal being ruined if I can walk away with a free one.

“So, it looks like we have more suspects,” Pauline said. “Any one of those women that Ambriel said had dated Matt could have found out about the fiancée and decided to do something about it. Or if they found out about each other, if he was dating several of them at once.”

“Okay, so basically any female plus the director’s son are on our list of suspects,” Kendell said in agreement. “Eddie jumping up to take the role so quickly was a little suspicious. I’m not sure if I buy the whole I accidentally memorized the lines thing he was spewing. I mean, I have a few scenes from movies I’ve seen over and over again memorized, but that doesn’t mean I’d be able to hop up and recite the whole thing verbatim and do a performance.”

“Agreed… It doesn’t seem like we’re narrowing down a list of suspects at all,” Pauline said. “Seems like we’re just adding to it. What are we going to do to narrow it down?”

Kendell thought for a moment. “I wonder if I can speak to the local forensic pathologist about Matt?”

“Forensic what-now?”

“A forensic pathologist—the person who looks at the body to determine how they died,” Kendell said. “If we can figure out exactly how he was killed, maybe that can point us in a good direction.”

“I can tell you how he died,” Pauline said. “His head was cut off. I don’t think there’s any question there.”

“Yes, but a forensic pathologist can give me details. Maybe what type of material or weapon was used. That sort of thing,” Kendell explained. “And, whether or not his head being cut off was exactly what killed him or if maybe he was killed before the decapitation.”

“Interesting,” Pauline said. “How are you going to do that? Just show up at the local morgue tomorrow morning and tell them you’re an American citizen and that you demand to see a body? I’m not so sure how well that will work out for you. Is that what you’re going to do?”

“Pretty much. I didn’t say this was a fool-proof plan, Pauline,” she said, shaking her head and taking a bite of her new plate of fish and chips. “But that’s really the best I’ve got as of right now. Who knows? Maybe the forensic pathologist will be in a good mood and will cut me some slack?”

Suddenly, a band started up, and Kendell jolted a bit in surprise. She had hardly noticed a group of musicians coming in and setting up in the corner. “I say for now, we just enjoy ourselves and we worry about our sleuthing journey in the morning,” Pauline declared, swaying back and forth to the music while occasionally slipping Dot some food into the purse seated beside her. Dot made happy puppy noises as she chomped down on some fries.

That dog is not going to live that long with the way this woman feeds her, Kendell thought, recalling her childhood when feeding the family dog table scraps had been completely forbidden by her mother. Dot was a cutie; the thing was probably more spoiled than any person Kendell had ever met.

“I can’t believe our server hasn’t said something about you bringing a dog in here yet,” Kendell said, chuckling to herself. “How do you always get away with that?”

“When someone does say something to me, I pretend I’m delusional and get upset and then they forget about it,” Pauline said.

“You’re joking.”

“I’m not.”

“You play it off like you’re a confused old woman?” Kendell laughed. “Pauline, that’s just awful!”

“I don’t think so,” she said. “I’m old. I’ve spent my whole life obeying the rules. I can’t have that much time left. So, if I want to take my little companion with me, I’m going to take her with me. If I get in trouble, so be it. I’ll apologize, and whoever is getting onto me will get over it.”

“You know, you could probably register her as a therapy dog. That would save you a lot of trouble in trying to sneak her around…not that you are particularly discreet about it,” Kendell suggested. “I mean, with you travelling around the world, I’m not sure what rules they have in other countries, but in the United States, you would be able to get away with taking a therapy dog just about anywhere.”

“Oh, I never even thought about that!” Pauline exclaimed. “She really does help me with my anxiety. Do you think you could help me figure out the logistics of that? It certainly would make things a lot easier.”

Kendell agreed and Pauline quickly finished eating her food. When she was finished, Pauline pushed away from the table with a mischievous grin on her face. With a quick wink, she was gone, making her way to the front of the pub. To Kendell’s embarrassment, Pauline starting dancing next to the band. At first, Kendell remained hidden in the booth while Pauline shook it for half the restaurant to enjoy. But Kendell could hear Pauline’s voice in her head telling her you only live once, so Kendell reluctantly emerged and danced the night away with her new Georgia Peach companion, not caring who stared.

11

The following morning, Kendell arose early with the intentions of heading out to the morgue where Matt’s body was being kept. The thought of going to a morgue to check out a dead body made her a little anxious, but she felt that it was something she needed to do. She was confident it would help her in solving this case. Before she left the hotel, however, she first took Dot out for a little bathroom break so Pauline would not have to do that herself, then she left the old woman a note informing her of where she was. After patting Dot good-bye, she headed out.

It was a short drive to the morgue, which was just down the street from the police station she had been at a couple of nights before. She ducked into the morgue, worried she might bump into one of the officers she had spoken to the night that Matt was killed. The last thing Kendell wanted was to be questioned as to why she was being so nosey about the case in which her elderly friend was a suspect. It was unlikely that an officer would believe it was simply because she didn’t want this complete stranger to miss her flight out of London. Plus, for all she knew, the officers might take offense if she told them she was working the case; they might take it as a sign that she had no faith in their investigation. It wasn’t that, of course. It was just that she wanted the case solved quickly, so she believed an extra set of eyes (her own) would be beneficial.

Once inside the morgue, she did her best to remain unnoticed by staff. Being a stunning redhead automatically made her stand out in the States, but with the good old Celtic countries of Scotland and Ireland being right there, redheads were not as much of an oddity around these parts. It made her stick out slightly less, which she appreciated.

She managed to slip down a hallway that required a key code by stepping in behind a man in a lab uniform. By simply acting like she knew where she was going, keeping her head upright and walking with purpose, no one bothered stopping her. The morgue was large enough to where it had various departments, so Kendell imagined that it wasn’t uncommon here for people not to know everyone they worked with.

Suddenly, up ahead, Kendell spotted a group of men heading in her direction. They were chatting casually, but there was something about the way they carried themselves that told her they were important and that she shouldn’t be seen. She dipped into a bathroom to hide, and once she was fairly certain the coast was clear, she slipped back out. “That was close,” she muttered to herself, and on her way out the door, she saw a small poster across the hall. It was a fire escape plan; she smiled and approached it, observing the detailed map. She was only a few halls down from the main mortuary room. “Glad I saw this,” she muttered.

It was quiet in the hallway, so she figured now would be the best time to make it to the room where Matt was likely being kept. She started down the hall, mentally following the poster she had carefully studied. As she passed down one hall, she noticed a large picture hanging of a geeky young black man with giant glasses. Above the picture were the words Employee of the Month, and his name was printed on the bottom: Frankland Smith. The picture would have escaped her notice if not for the incredibly unphotogenic, crooked smile that caused her to smirk slightly as she continued on her way.

She turned at the end of the hall, and then she saw the set of double-doors leading into the cold room of the morgue. There were two small glass windows looking in, but the doors required a key code to get inside. Of course, she thought. Maybe I should have just tried my luck at asking permission to get information instead of sneaking around. It had seemed unlikely that anyone would give up information on an ongoing case, so Kendell had thought about just popping in and seeing what she could find in the forensic pathologist’s notes. But if she couldn’t even get into the room, the plan seemed to already be failing.

Just when she was about to throw in the towel, she spotted a familiar face through the window. The gentleman from the photograph down the hall, Frankland Smith. Normally, Kendell was not one to practice deceit, but a brilliant idea hit her so suddenly that she just had to give it a whirl. She banged on the door. “Yo! Frankie!” she shouted in the most serious tone she could muster. “What, did you guys change the passcode again?”

The door opened and the gentleman in the glasses stared back at her, confused. “Um… Can I help you?” he asked as Kendell pushed her way in.

“Look, I got to get my report back down to the station,” she said confidently. “How’s the family, by the way?”

He stared at her blankly, even more confused. “Um… I’m sorry… Do I know you?”

“Uh, yeah?” Kendell said, crossing her arms and acting offended. “Oh, you know what, I used to be blonde. I know it’s been a while, but geez.”

He stared at Kendell, studying her. “Officer…Sarah, was it?” he asked.

Oh my God, this worked, she thought. “Uh, yeah,” she said in the most sarcastic tone she could muster. “The chief sent me down here to chat about our decapitated friend.”

“I already spoke with the investigators for the case?” Frankland asked.

“Look, I’m just the errand girl today,” Kendell said. “Is there anything useful you can tell me?”

Frankland crossed his arms. “Nice try,” he said at last. “There is no Sarah.”

Dang it, Kendell thought. I walked right into that one. “What are you talking about? Of course there is.”

“You really think I’m that stupid?” he asked. “Who are you, why are you sneaking around the morgue, and what interest do you have in this case? I’m about to call the police and have you arrested if you don’t—”

“Okay, okay, easy!” Kendell stammered. “Look, the truth is, I’m looking into Matt’s case because the police are acting like jerks and are holding this old woman in the country while the investigation is active just because she was backstage during the murder. She’s just a confused old woman who wandered backstage during the performance and didn’t see anything. She’s taking a trip around the world, and she’s spent her entire life savings on some plane tickets that is about to go to waste just because she was in the wrong place at the wrong time. I’m just hoping to speed things along, if that makes sense.”

“That’s really crazy, you know that?” he said. “And pretending to be a cop when the police station is just down the street was a terrible idea. You should have acted like you were an insurance agent or something who needed proof of death for his family to collect his life insurance policy—that I would have believed instead of you trying to pretend like you know me.”

“Okay, lesson learned,” Kendell admitted. “So, are you going to help me or not?”

“No,” he said. “I can’t give out information on an open investigation.”

“Oh, come on!” Kendell exclaimed. “Please. I don’t need to know everything, just give me something to work with here. I’m trying to help. I’m not trying to be nosey or anything like that. I just want to help my friend.”

“Just because you’re playing amateur sleuth doesn’t mean you get free access to information. Now, if you would, get out or I will call the police.”

“Fine,” Kendell said and headed toward the door. Once out in the hall, she grinned and pulled a file out from under her jacket. The man hadn’t even noticed her slip the file off the small desk in the corner; she had spotted it the moment she walked into the room.

She opened it quickly, figuring it was only a matter of time before he noticed it was missing. It turned out, according to Frankland’s notes, that Matt had not been killed from the decapitation—that had happened post-mortem. He had been bashed in the head multiple times by some sort of large, rounded object made from some type of cheap metal. That would certainly explain how someone was able to decapitate him so quickly—if he was knocked out as soon as he went backstage. The coroner’s notes also stated that, based on the damage to Matt’s throat, the assailant had managed to hack his head off after three quick swings using some sort of axe.

“Okay, so two weapons. Something round made of metal and an axe,” Kendell said under her breath just as Frankland came darting out of the room.

“Are you serious?” he snapped, snatching the files from her. “I’m calling the police!”

“What’s my name?” Kendell asked.

“Um…”

“You don’t have cameras here,” she stated.

“The police are right next door. As soon as I call them, they’ll find the redheaded woman walking down the street,” he snapped.

“Oh, really?” Kendell asked. “For a guy so smart, you don’t really pay attention, do you?”

“Excuse me?”

“There’s a ginger pride march going on right outside,” she said and crossed her arms, giving him a smug look. “You seem like a nice guy. I’m sorry I snatched the files, but it really would not have killed you to help a girl out.”

He just rolled his eyes. “Just get out of here, pest.”

Kendell smiled and headed out the door. She had gotten what she came for, but she had certainly annoyed the poor man more than she’d intended. At least he’s not calling the police, she thought perkily.

She headed back to the hotel, where she bumped into Pauline as she was exiting a black cab, Dot at her side within her purse as always. “I just had the most wonderful time. I took a tour of Big Ben. Did you find anything at the morgue?” she asked as they headed inside.

“Not too much,” Kendell said. “I found out Matt was dead before getting his head cut off. Someone bashed him in the head a few times with a metal object, and then cut his head off with an axe. Took them three swings to cut off his head with what was presumably a heavy axe, so someone strong but not so strong that they could just lop his head off in one go. It must be pretty hard to cut through a human bone in one strike.”

“With a large enough axe, Edgar might could have done it in one go,” Pauline suggested.

“So, you think we could be dealing with a jealous woman?” Kendell asked.

“Maybe…”

“Well, that narrows it down to half of the cast and crew,” Kendell moaned.

“Don’t worry, we’ll figure it out,” Pauline assured her.

After a little bit of rest and relaxation, the two women geared up to head to their tour of the royal palace. The palace was simply beautiful; Kendell could hardly contain herself, and Pauline was not any less enthused. The art, the architecture, and the culture was evident everywhere they turned. The paintings of the royals throughout the centuries were particularly stunning and fascinating to Kendell. Pauline adored the lovely state rooms.

When the tour was over and they had the opportunity to watch the changing of the guard, Kendell and Pauline were both giddy with all of the excitement and culture they had soaked in that evening. Once back at the hotel, Kendell showered and plopped into bed, exhausted from all the walking they had done on the royal grounds. She simply could not believe how much fun she was having.

She debated with herself as she sat up in bed that night on whether or not to call Jack. She decided against it; she was curious as to whether or not he had heard about her taking off nearly a month. Word would get around eventually, and she was certain that he would not be happy about it with the way he had acted when she had told him she would be gone for a week. She was having more fun than she’d had in a long time—actually taking time to herself like he was always telling her to do—so it had really stung to have him get so angry. Brandon had told her that Jack had worked a long shift, but that was certainly no excuse for yelling at her the way he did.

Kendell curled up in bed, too exhausted to think too much about Jack at this point. She wasn’t sure what else to do about the case either, but she supposed that was just something she would have to deal with in the morning.

12

Another day went by, and Kendell and Pauline spent the day playing tourist and traveling the city. Halfway through the day, after a wonderful repeat lunch of fish and chips, an idea sparked in Kendell’s mind regarding the case. The two women were finishing up lunch when Kendell asked, “Pauline, we never actually looked at the scene of the crime.”

“You’re right!” Pauline exclaimed, once again slipping Dot a small treat from her plate. “That’s what they always do on those detective shows. That’s the first thing they do, in fact! I wonder if there’s even anything to look at now? After several days and having the police already traipsing through there, I’m sure there’s not much to pick over now.”

“True, but we can at least get an idea of the lay of the land,” Kendell said. “Look at where Matt’s body was found. Check out the prop area where his head was laid out. It could give us at least some idea of how the killer might have killed Matt.”

“Do you think they will even let us backstage? I think I’ve already caused them enough grief. And the cast and crew are probably getting a little irritated at us by now. We keep popping up whenever there’s trouble—the murder, the crummy understudy getting fired, and Ambriel getting her face slam-dunked into your dinner.”

“That is an excellent point.” Kendell thought for a moment and then pulled out her phone. She looked up show times for the current performances at the Globe Theater, and she saw that they should be getting out of a matinee performance within the next half-hour. “I say we sneak in. That way, the killer, if they’re in the cast or crew, won’t see us coming and won’t be able to hide anything they don’t want people snooping to see.”

“How are we supposed to sneak in? I’m sure they lock up the theater between shows,” Pauline said.

Kendell thought for another moment. “Let’s hide out in the bathrooms until they lock up.”

“Great!” Pauline said, taking one final bite of her lunch. “If we go now, we can get inside the theater lobby before they close up shop for the afternoon.”

The two of them, along with their trusty canine companion, loaded up into yet another black cab to take them to the theater. They hurried into the theater’s lobby, which was empty—everyone was still in the theater’s house enjoying the last scene. Unable to resist, Kendell popped her head in. Edgar was center stage, gripping his sword and staring down Alfred, who was once again playing the role of Macduff. “Then yield thee, coward!” Alfred called, his prop sword pointed at Edgar. “And live to be the show and gaze o’th’time: we’ll have thee, as our rarer monsters are, painted on a pole, and underwrit, ‘here may you see the tyrant’!”

Edgar displayed mock laughter for the crowd. From what Kendell could tell, Edgar was holding it together. Impressive for someone who had only been playing the character for a few days after learning the part abruptly. “I will not yield, to kiss the ground before young Malcolm’s feet, and to be baited with the rabble’s curse,” Edgar called. “Though Birnam wood be come to Dunsinane, and thou opposed, being of no woman born, yet…I will try the last. Before my body, I throw my warlike shield. Lay on, Macduff. And damn’d be him that first cries, ‘hold, enough’!” And with those parting words, Edgar darted off-stage, chased relentlessly by Alfred as the fight on-stage continued.

“I wonder how hard of a time Alfred has doing that scene now,” Pauline whispered as Kendell stepped away from the cracked door and back into the lobby.

“After accidentally picking up his friend’s severed head, I can’t imagine that it comes easy,” Kendell said. “They’re in the final scene, so we should find ourselves a hiding place.”

“There’s an open broom closet over here. I’d really rather not hide in the bathroom,” Pauline said.

“Sounds good.” The two of them squeezed together inside the closet, Dot nervously whining. Kendell reached into Pauline’s purse and gently patted the dog on the head to keep it from making too much noise. Not exactly how I thought I would spend a vacation, Kendell thought, feeling Pauline’s elbow pressed against her side.

They could hear noise just outside the door as patrons flooded the lobby, many excitedly talking about the show. Twenty minutes or so went by, and Pauline grumbled, “I can’t stand up like this much longer.”

“I’ll take a peek out. Keep quiet,” Kendell said, slowly opening the door. She saw a number of the actors from the show dressed in casual wear, all getting ready for a late lunch before their evening performance.

“Hurry up, Ambriel!” Alfred called. Edgar was standing next to him with a big grin. Alfred put a hand on Edgar’s shoulder. “Hey, man, you did great. You really saved us this week. Matt would be proud.”

“Thanks, Alfred,” Edgar said. He looked very proud of himself; he had done a couple of performances so far, and based on the conversation, Kendell guessed that the performances had been going really well.

“Just a few more minutes,” Kendell assured Pauline.

“Thank goodness. My ankles are swollen.”

They waited a few more minutes, and once Kendell felt like the coast was clear, they exited the broom closet. They peered into the theater house, and it seemed empty. The two of them scurried down the aisle, past the seats and up onto the stage. Pauline smiled and stood center stage with a large grin. “I feel like a performer up here,” she said. “Who knew that one day, I would actually stand center stage at the historical Globe Theater!”

“I’m glad you’re enjoying yourself,” Kendell said, smirking. “I’m heading backstage. Are you coming?”

“Of course,” she said, scurrying along.

They headed backstage, which at the Globe was considerably large. They located the prop table, and Matt’s blood had been thoroughly removed. The prop head was sitting on the side of the table. “This must be where Matt’s head had been placed,” Kendell said, shivering.

They continued looking around. Pauline found the large witches’ cauldron and giggles excitedly, saying the witches were her favorite. “Hey, Kendell,” Pauline called Kendell over. “Looks like there’s some dents on the bottom of this cauldron. You said that Matt had been killed by a knock in the head by a large, round object, right?”

Kendell knelt down, observing the cauldron more carefully. “You’re right… Pauline, this could be the murder weapon!”

“I wonder if the police think so?” Pauline asked.

“Probably not,” Kendell said. “Otherwise, that cauldron would be in evidence, right?” Kendell continued observing the cauldron. “Yeah, there’s definitely some dents.”

They continued exploring the backstage. Pauline was having more fun than Kendell thought possible. She kept trying on hats and bits and pieces of costumes. She wound up standing by the costume rack playing dress-up for several minutes while Kendell continued looking around. She found a bathroom for the actors backstage, and something caught her eye. She grabbed a bit of toilet paper and used it to pick through the trash. “Whoa! Pauline! I found something…interesting.”

Pauline poked her head in; she was now wearing one of the witches’ head scarves. “What did you find?”

“Three positive pregnancy tests,” Kendell said. She pulled out her phone and took a picture, figuring that this was something certainly worth noting. She quickly scooped the tests back into the trash and washed her hands before leaving the bathroom.

“What could that mean?” Pauline asked.

“I’m not sure,” Kendell said. “But something is definitely up. Looks like one of the women here is pregnant.”

“Why take the test three times?” Pauline asks.

“I don’t know,” Kendell said. “I guess to just be sure.”

“Or,” Pauline said with a smirk, “there’s more than one knocked-up lady around here.”

“Maybe…” Kendell said. “You think Matt was…intimate...with a lot of these women? The police seem to think that he was cheating on Natalie with some of the women in the show. You think he could have gotten someone, or multiple someones, pregnant?”

“It’s possible,” Pauline said, and then they heard the sound of a jiggling doorknob.

“Crap! Hide!” Kendell exclaimed, and the two of them hurried behind a costume rack in a corner.

From a side entrance, a group of women entered. “Ugh, I cannot do tavern food anymore,” one said.

Kendell peered through some clothes, and she spotted the triplets: Laura, Lana, and Lane. “You’re telling me,” said Lana. “It makes me nauseous. When are we going to tell everyone we’re all pregnant so they’ll know why we’re not partying with the rest of them?”

“Not any time soon,” Laura said. “How are we supposed to explain this? I have no idea how we’re even going to talk to Mom and Dad about it.”

“I’m so sorry, you guys,” Lane said. “This is just so messed up. I had no idea he was seeing you guys too.”

“This crap is tabloid-worthy,” Laura moaned. “These kids are gonna be cousins and siblings because of that creep. Have either of you had your first appointment with the doctor yet?”

“Yeah,” Lane griped, plopping down in a lounge seat. “This is going to ruin our acting plans. I mean, I’m happy about being a mom and all…but not like this.”

“Same,” Laura groaned.

Kendell and Pauline exchanged glances as this sort of banter continued between the sisters. It sounded as though Pauline had been correct—three pregnancy tests for three people: the sisters. And, based on what they were all saying, it didn’t sound like they were too thrilled about it. What were the chances of all three sisters having unplanned pregnancies, and from the same man? It bothered Kendell a bit. It sounded like it had been intentional on the father’s part. But the question was, was Matt the father? If so, secretly dating three sisters without any of them knowing and then getting them all pregnant was certainly something worth getting upset over. It would be motive.

Kendell thought back to what she had learned at the morgue. The killer had hit Matt with a large, round object—like the cauldron. A prop that these three would have used and would have had access to. His head had been cut off by an axe, but the paperwork at the morgue had distinctly mentioned that it had taken three whacks to decapitate Matt. Three. And there were three very angry women on the other side of the clothing rack. It was all circumstantial evidence, though, and Kendell knew that. They needed more. So, Kendell pulled out her phone and pressed record. If I could get a confession on tape, the police wouldn’t have a choice but to leave Pauline alone, Kendell thought with a smirk.

“Well, we will just have to figure something out. We’ll be able to stay on as the witches for as long as Macbeth is airing…but it’s definitely going to be hard to find acting work once the show is over and we are super pregnant,” Lane said. “This just really stinks all the way around.”

“Well, there’s one good thing,” Laura said.

“What’s that?” Lane asked.

“At least we don’t have to deal with their crazy father!” Laura said, and the three women began to laugh.

Maybe the reason they didn’t need to deal with the father was because they had killed him? It was certainly starting to look that way.

Just as she was doing a miniature celebration, anxiously anticipating the women to say something condemning, Dot started barking.

13

When Dot started barking, Kendell felt every inch of her body tense up. She was still peering through the rack of clothing, so she saw all three of the triplets jump in surprise. They had not quite spit out a confession, but it was enough circumstantial evidence to bring a case up against them. The sisters knew that. Kendell and Pauline knew that. “Shh…” Pauline tried to tell the dog, but it was far too late for any of that. The women had heard the dog, so they knew that someone had been listening in on them talking about how the father of their child was no longer a problem. Between the pregnancy tests, the three women saying they shared a baby daddy, and the dented cauldron, Kendell was confident she had enough to at least get the local police to stop looking at Pauline.

Suddenly, when one of the women stood, Dot jumped right out of Pauline’s purse and darted out from behind the rack. Kendell looked at Pauline, who was now wide-eyed in horror. If those women killed Matt, they could be willing to kill again to keep their dirty little secret. And there was no way that Pauline could outrun these women. “Stay here until I lure them away,” Kendell whispered. “I’ll go after Dot.”

Kendell jumped out from behind the rack of clothes and ran straight toward the startled women. One of them had picked up the dog. Kendell ran by them, snatching the poor little pooch right out of the woman’s arms before darting out of the theater wings. “Get her!” one of them shouted.

Kendell ran out on stage; Dot bit her hand, but Kendell held onto the dog regardless. She couldn’t really blame the dog for biting her, after snatching her out of someone’s arms the way she had. Two of the women darted out on stage from the right wing, and the third from the left. The stage was a pretty steep drop into the house, but she went for it. She landed awkwardly on her ankle, and she fumbled, scraping herself against the hard floor before scurrying to her feet.

The sisters were all darting down the stairs on either side of the stage now. Kendell glanced back, seeing that one of them was wielding an axe. She stood, darting toward the back of the theater. Of course, the doors to the lobby had been locked behind her and Pauline when they had first entered the theater. She felt like a trapped rat being chased by three hungry cats.

Kendell darted up the stairwell that led to the second-floor balcony, knowing that this would only get her cornered but not having much of a choice. “Back off!” she shouted at the women.

“You really think we’re going to let you leave?” Lana asked, her voice raised.

Kendell reached the top of the balcony; there was a small gate she could close and lock, and though she was certain that the women could climb it easily, she closed it and locked it to slow them down. The three women reached the stop of the stairs, and one of them laughed. “You really think a four-foot tall gate is going to stop us?” Lane questioned. “What all did you hear?”

“Enough,” Kendell said, not sure why she even felt the need to respond. “You three killed Matt, didn’t you?”

“He told each of us he didn’t want anyone to know he was dating a fellow cast member, said it was unprofessional,” Laura said. “He was dating all three of us along with every other woman on the cast!”

“But he got you three pregnant,” Kendell said. “Triplets all sharing the same baby-daddy. That must be hard to explain to everyone.”

“Yeah, except no one is going to have to know,” Lane said. “We’ve all been seeing other people ever since we found out we were pregnant. We just had to make sure Matt kept his mouth shut.”

“So, you silenced Matt because he was cheating on all three of you with each other and because you were too embarrassed to admit you all became pregnant by the same guy?” Kendell asked.

“Pretty much,” Lane said, throwing a leg over the gate.

Yeah, I didn’t think that gate would hold them, Kendell thought with extreme disappointment. She scurried down the aisle of seats to get as far away from the women as possible. They weren’t in a hurry. It wasn’t like Kendell had anywhere to go. I guess murder has become a new family bonding exercise, Kendell thought, frowning as she heard the three of them laugh at how desperately she was trying to get away. There was another flight of stairs leading down, but one of the triplets had already run back down the flight of stairs and was making her way up the other to keep Kendell from escaping.

Kendell had reached the end of the aisle, and looking back, she could see that all three sisters were only a short distance away. Dot was growling at the women from Kendell’s arms. “Oh, for crying out loud,” Kendell moaned when she reached the end of the aisle. She was trapped.

She noticed a large banner hanging against the far wall over the edge of the balcony. She doubted it would hold her, but figured she probably had a better chance surviving the fall than an axe to her head. Lana saw Kendell looking at the banner. “You’re crazy,” Lana shouted, realizing she needed to pick up the pace. She darted down the aisle, followed closely by her sisters.

“Hang on, Dot,” Kendell said, gripping the dog close to her chest and throwing a leg over the side of the railing. The large banner was promoting their next show, Julius Caesar. Kendell grabbed hold of the giant wall-length banner and immediately, one end snapped, sending her and Dot soaring downward, over and across several rows of theater seats below. From the corner of her eye as she was swinging across the banner like Tarzan, she saw Pauline looking at her with the goofiest look of confusion Kendell had ever seen—her head cocked to the side, one eyebrow raised, and her mouth open.

Kendell felt someone grab her, and she tumbled on top of whoever had her with the banner wrapping around her. “Thanks,” she groaned to whoever caught her as Dot leapt out of her lap and hurried over to Pauline.

“Get off,” the person moaned, and Kendell rolled over, the banner wrapping around her even more.

She fought to free herself, and when the banner fell away from her face, she saw that her rescuer was none other than Officer Bobby. Standing under the balcony, their batons in hand and looking just as stunned Pauline, were three other officers.

“Nice fall, hon,” one of them said.

Dot jumped into Pauline’s arms and Pauline fussed over the little thing.

“That demon dog bit me,” Kendell grunted, standing up in time to see Lana, Laura, and Lane come darting down the stairs, with Laura waving the axe around.

The three of them came sprinting down the aisle toward them just as Officer Bobby stood. The girls’ eyes widened, and they spun around on their heels to bolt. “Freeze!” one of the other officers shouted.

Two of them darted after the women, but the women stopped running when two other officers came in ahead of them and cut off their escape. All three were placed in cuffs and told to sit down in the theater seats. Officer Bobby helped Kendell out of the banner that had completely wrapped around her, then he helped her stand. “How did you all know to come here?” Kendell asked.

“I ran out and called the police, dear,” Pauline said. “Turns out you don’t call nine-one-one in other countries though…”

“No, no, you don’t,” Bobby said. “But she figured it out. Want to tell me why these three women were chasing you with an axe?”

“Yup,” Kendell said, pulling out her phone. “I recorded the whole thing. The three of them killed Matt. I found dents in the cauldron—the prop they use during the witches’ scene at the beginning of the play. They must have bashed his head in before cutting his head off with that axe.”

“Do you know a motive?” Officer Bobby asked.

Kendell showed him the picture of the three positive pregnancies tests. “He knocked each of them up without the others knowing he was dating them,” Kendell said.

“Aw, geez,” Bobby groaned. “All right, I’m going to need your phone to send over evidence to the station.”

“Understood,” Kendell said proudly. “Thanks, Officer Bobby.”

“It’s constable over here, sweetheart, not officer,” he said with a wink. “But I’ll let that pass since you two basically solved a murder.”

“Basically?” Kendell questioned.

“Okay, you did good, sweetie. Don’t push it,” Bobby said. “Your friend is still the one who clocked me in my nose.”

“Wait, that was her?” one of the other officers asked, and the group of men started laughing at Bobby’s expense.

Bobby rolled his eyes. “Thanks for that.”

“You brought it up, genius, not her,” Pauline said and then held up a fist. “And watch it, before I clock you again!” She laughed. “Sorry about that. Honestly.”

Bobby just shook his head.

“So, we’re good if we want to leave the country now, right?” Kendell asked.

“Yes, you’re good,” he said.

“Thank goodness!” Pauline exclaimed. “We have an early flight tomorrow.”

“We?” Kendell asked.

“I went ahead and booked you a seat on my flight, just in case,” Pauline said and winked.

“You knew I would take up the offer?”

Pauline smiled. “Well, aren’t you?”

“Yeah,” Kendell said with a smile. “I think I will.”

14

Kendell rolled out of bed the following morning, a little sad that she would be leaving London. It had been quite an adventure, but she was really looking forward to her next stop along the journey. It occurred to her that she had no idea where they were going. She laughed at herself as she got dressed and packed what little she had into a carry-on bag she had purchased during her shopping spree. She slapped a London sticker portraying Big Ben onto the new suitcase, smiling excitedly. She planned to decorate the new bag with stickers from her travels, and traveling was something she intended to do a lot more of. Starting with this little adventure she was about to take with her unlikely traveling companions, Pauline and Dot.

She wrapped her hand up where Dot had bit her, dabbing a bit of medicine on it she had gotten from the hotel’s gift shop. “That little dog has a serious bite,” Kendell groaned.

Kendell headed downstairs; Pauline had been up for hours and had shouted into her room earlier, letting her know to meet her downstairs for breakfast. Kendell carried her bag down into the hotel’s complimentary breakfast room. Pauline had saved her a seat, and Dot was in the woman’s lap, nibbling away on some food the woman had slipped her.

“Morning!” Kendell said, placing her bag under the table. “Hey, Dot, you still mad at me?”

The dog yelped and wagged her tail. Pauline smiled. “Sorry she bit you. She’s never bit anyone before.”

“I don’t blame her,” Kendell said. “I violently snatched her away from someone who was petting her and then took off running. I’m just surprised she only bit me once! And, after jumping off a second-floor balcony, I’m surprised she hasn’t tried to bite me again!” Kendell laughed, then went and fixed herself a plate.

When she returned, she saw that Natalie, Matt’s fiancée, was standing and talking to Pauline. “Um…hello?” Kendell said as she sat down.

“Hi,” Natalie said awkwardly. “I just saw Pauline, and I wanted to thank you two before you left the hotel. I’m angry at Matt for cheating on me, but I’m still glad his killers are going to see justice.”

“Good,” Kendell said. “I’m sorry about what he has put you through, though.”

“I’ll be all right,” Natalie said. “Finding out he cheated…cheated a lot, in fact…well, it makes it a little easier to move on. Thank you both. The police told me you two pretty much solved the case for them.”

“Yeah, we kind of did,” Kendell said proudly.

Natalie left them, heading back to work. Kendell and Pauline enjoyed their breakfast. “Hey, Pauline, where are we going anyways?” Kendell asked.

“Africa,” Pauline said.

“Africa!” Kendell exclaimed.

“I already booked us a safari trip!” Pauline exclaimed. “I want to see some giraffes in their natural habitat and not at a zoo.”

“Wow,” Kendell said excitedly. “I can’t wait! Dang, I’m going to need to buy more clothes. I bought stuff for the cold London weather, and now we’re talking about an African safari.”

“Ooh, I want to go shopping with you this time,” Pauline said happily.

Kendell texted Jack, letting him know where her adventure was taking her next. After breakfast, the two women headed out of the hotel and called for a black cab to take them to the airport. They had to wait around an hour because of a delay, but Kendell didn’t mind. Things happened. As they were boarding the plane and taking their seats, Kendell noticed she had received a text from Jack. It read: R u kidding me? When r u coming home?!?!

She sighed as she read the angry and disgruntled text. “What is his problem?” Kendell asked out loud as she plopped down in her seat beside Pauline.

“Everything all right, dear?” Pauline asked.

Kendell shoved her phone into her pocket after turning it off, knowing that a request to turn off all mobile devices would be coming soon. “Yeah, I’m fine,” Kendell said. “It’s just Jack. He’s acting kind of controlling, and I don’t know what that is about. He’s never been that way before.”

“I’m sorry, sweetheart,” Pauline said. “I hope I’m not making things worse by offering to take you on my trips?”

“No, I’m actually very excited to have met you and to be going on this little adventure. I never take time for myself, and he knows that. He’s always telling me I need to relax, but now that I’m actually doing it…he is kind of acting like a jerk.”

“I’m sorry, Kendell,” Pauline said, glancing out the window. “I hope Dot is okay. I can’t believe you made me put her in a crate.”

“I think she’ll be all right,” Kendell assured.

Kendell tried to relax as she looked out the window. She decided to forget about Jack for the time being. She was on the adventure of a lifetime, and she was going to enjoy it.

* * *

A Killing in Kenya

Flight Risk Cozy Mystery, Book 2

1

Kendell McDonald could hardly believe the company she had found herself in. If someone had tried to tell her a month ago that she would be taking any time to herself, let alone traveling the world with a near stranger, Kendell would have laughed in their face. As a flight attendant, Kendell had taken her job hoping for adventure. Five years later, and there had been very little adventure outside of eating dinner at whatever airport her plane landed at. She had never experienced any of these places, but that all changed on a very special flight to London less than a week before.

Kendell had met Pauline, an old granny-type woman from rural Georgia who just so happened to have been a flight attendant herself. The old woman had a lifetime of money saved and was planning on traveling the world with Dot, her fluffy white purse dog. One thing led to another, and suddenly, Kendell had befriended the old woman and earned herself an all-expense paid-by-Pauline world tour. Kendell’s supervisor had been kind enough to let her take a month of leave to get rid of five years’ worth of unused vacation time.

In other words, life was good. They had boarded their plane to leave London and now were heading to Africa. Specifically, the two of them were headed for the beautiful country of Kenya. Kendell could hardly contain her excitement. She glanced at Pauline, who was happily petting Dot, and Pauline smiled back at her. “I just cannot wait for Kenya,” she said, grinning. “You think a little uppity New York City girl like you can handle the humid air?”

“I can handle it,” Kendell assured her, laughing. The two women had known each other less than a week, but they picked at each other like old friends. Kendell called Pauline a backwards conservative, and Pauline would counter with a snowflake liberal comment, but it was all in fun. “So, in London, our big events consisted of a tour of Buckingham Palace as well as watching Macbeth at the Globe Theater. What sort of things would you like to do in Kenya?”

“Ooh, I already booked us a room at Giraffe Manor!” Pauline exclaimed.

The little light telling them they could remove their seatbelts came on, and Kendell quickly obliged. She hated being strapped in. “Giraffe Manor?” Kendell asked.

“It’s this beautiful, old colonial mansion. It’s a boutique sort of hotel, very intimate with only a few guests able to stay at a time. I booked us one of the largest rooms there that has the best view of the courtyard. I’m told that giraffes will come and poke their heads in the windows!” Pauline seemed nearly breathless. “I’ve never even been to the Atlanta Zoo, so I’ve never seen a giraffe anywhere other than pictures. Can you imagine a giraffe poking its head into your hotel window?”

“Wow, that sounds really fun.” Kendell smiled.

“I booked us the safari package,” Pauline said. “So, in addition to staying in the manor on the giraffe preserve, we will get to go on an actual African safari trip! It’s going to be just lovely!”

Kendell felt more excited than a child at Christmas time. She had been to a zoo before, but being up close and personal to a giraffe would be a very different experience. Plus, a safari sounded very exciting. Just as she was about to start asking Pauline more about what she had planned, a familiar voice muttered her name, “Kendell?”

She glanced up to see her friend Lil, a gorgeous, curvy black woman who looked relieved to see a familiar face. Lil was a flight attendant with the same airline that Kendell worked for. Flying aboard her company’s airlines, she figured she was bound to run into someone she knew sooner or later. “Hey, Lil!” Kendell said perkily.

“Girly, did you really take a month off work? Because that’s the rumor I’ve been hearing,” Lil said, smirking.

“I sure did,” Kendell said, almost proudly.

“Miss Never Have Fun took off a whole month!” Lil exclaimed.

“Hey, I’m fun,” Kendell countered. Lil raised a brow and gave her a look that said you-know-you’re-not. “Oh, whatever. Yes, I took a month off work. Taking some time to myself.”

“Who’s your friend?” Pauline jutted in suddenly.

“Woman, is that a dog in your lap?” Lil asked. “You…you’re supposed to check your animals into baggage claim.”

“We’re thousands of feet up in the air,” Pauline said. “What are you going to do about it now?”

The look on Lil’s face was priceless; Kendell could not help but laugh. If there was one thing Kendell had learned about Pauline in the brief amount of time she had known her, it was that the woman rarely obeyed the rules. That, and for some reason, no one ever noticed she had a dog with her until it was too late. She snuck her dog in everywhere; she had even brought the dog to the show at the Globe Theater. There was just something about Pauline’s attitude that made everyone bow out and just let her do whatever she wanted to do.

“I guess nothing,” Lil said and almost laughed.

“Lil, this is my new friend, Pauline. We met on the flight into London, and she sort of just nabbed me as a traveling companion,” Kendell said. “The two of us have been hanging out in London, and now we’re headed to Kenya for some more vacation time. Pauline, this is one of my good friends, Lil. She’s from New York like me.”

“New York is such a fascinating city,” Pauline said, smiling. “Before London, New York was my first stop along the world journey I’m on.”

“How did you like it?” Lil asked.

“Not as fabulous as London, but I just adored it,” Pauline said. “You look tired, hon.”

“Long couple of days,” Lil admitted. “These new uniforms are killing me.”

Kendell nodded, recalling how they had been issued new uniforms right before her trip to London. She had hated them with a passion; they were very 1950s stewardess wear, and the male passengers were eating those costumes up like the flight attendants were dressed like strippers. Lil, who was a larger woman, looked like a busted can of biscuits in the tight skirts. She had been the first to voice her dissatisfaction on the matter.

“I broke my heel in the first five minutes of my flight to London,” Kendell said.

“I wish I could,” Lil muttered. “I tried.”

“Hey, let me ask you something, if you got a second,” Kendell said, and Lil nodded to let her know she was good. “It’s about Jack. When I told him that I was taking some extra time to myself, he kind of freaked out. Brandon said he worked a double shift and was just cranky, but he is still being kind of a jerk about the whole thing.”

“Wow, really? Your boyfriend doesn’t really seem like the controlling type,” Lil said.

“My point exactly, but he is really giving me a hard time about this whole thing.”

“Jack…your TSA boyfriend?” Pauline asked for clarity.

“Yeah, that’s the one,” Kendell said. “He has been acting like a real tool lately. At first, he was all supportive about me taking some time to myself, but then he just freaked out on me. He got really mad, and that’s not really like him. I was just wondering if you have spoken to him any this week?”

“No, I haven’t seen him,” Lil said. “You know us—always working. The only people I see are the other flight attendants.”

“You sound like you could use a little vacation yourself,” Pauline said and then snapped her fingers like she had something very important to say. “Oh, I know! We have an extra bed at the manor! I ordered us the suite. There’s a queen and two twin beds in the loft area. You should come stay with us for a night or two at Giraffe Manor.”

Lil’s eyes widened, and she cocked her head in Kendell’s direction as though to ask is this batty old lady for real? “I don’t know if I could afford to stay in a place like that,” Lil said.

“Sweetie, it’s already paid for,” Pauline insisted.

“You’re offering a complete stranger to come stay in your hotel suite?” Lil questioned.

“Well, who do you think Kendell stayed with in London?” Pauline countered. “I suppose this world tour of mine is starting to have a theme of making friends with strangers! But, why not? We have the space, and you are friends with Kendell, aren’t you?”

Lil and Kendell exchanged glances, and Kendell nodded her head slightly. “Pauline has been very sweet,” Kendell said. “She let me crash in her hotel room in London, and she and I toured the city together. She’s a hoot.”

“I bet,” Lil said, and she thought for only a second. “I do have a few days off…”

“Oh, wonderful!” Pauline exclaimed and then tapped Kendell’s shoulder. “Remind me when we land to make sure I book an extra seat on the safari tour for Lil. Oh, this is just going to be a fun girls weekend, I’m sure!”

“I… um…”

“Just say thank you,” Kendell told Lil.

Lil laughed. “Yeah, okay. Thank you, Pauline. That’s just so… generous.”

“Of course!” Pauline said, and returned to patting her dog on the head.

“I guess I have to get back to work for right now,” Lil said, still looking quite baffled that she had managed to earn herself a free weekend trip simply by knowing Kendell.

A little over eight hours later, the flight touched down in the city of Nairobi. Kendell could hardly contain her excitement. She’d had such a blast with Pauline in London, despite some unexpected ordeals, so she was really looking forward to this African safari adventure. Plus, having a friend of hers tag along would only add to the fun. Lil was a fun woman; she always knew where the best clubs were in town, always had fun ideas for double dates, and was generally more relaxed than Kendell could ever hope to be. Lil had dreams and goals much like herself, but Lil was much more inclined to know how to enjoy the moment at hand, which Kendell was certain would make Lil a fun traveling companion.

Kendell and Pauline headed to an airport restaurant to fuel up since their ride would not arrive for another hour and a half. Lil met them shortly after they ordered food, and Kendell had ordered an appetizer dish in case Lil didn’t make it to them in time to order. “So, I’m good for a few days!” Lil said as she sat down with them. “Thanks for inviting me along…Pauline?”

“Yes, that’s me!” Pauline exclaimed. “And this little fluffy cutie here is Dot.”

“Dot?” Lil questioned. “She’s pure white.”

“One of my great grandsons named her,” Pauline said. “But I like the name.”

By the time they had finished their dinner, it was time to meet the ride Pauline had booked online. A yellow, topless jeep painted to look like giraffe’s spots was waiting for them, the driver a young kid holding a sign with Pauline’s name on it. The boy didn’t speak English, but he welcomed them with a giant smile nonetheless. “This is going to be a lot of fun,” Lil whispered to Kendell as they all crowded into the jeep, Pauline sitting up front with the driver with Dot in her lap.

“Our driver looks like he’s eight,” Kendell said nervously.

“Welcome to Nairobi!” the boy said, clearly the only English words he knew, and he spun out of the airport. The boy messed around with the CD player for a moment, and then an extremely touristy-sounding voice came through the jeep’s speakers.

“Welcome to Nairobi, Kenya! You are about to embark on a wonderful adventure! Nairobi is both the capital of Kenya as well as the country’s largest city. It is the tenth largest city in Africa. Nairobi is home to the famous Nairobi National Park. It is also a home to thousands of Kenyan-based businesses as well as over one hundred major international companies and organizations. Nairobi also hosts the United States National Embassy…” the voice droned on and on with varying facts about the city as they drove to the manor.

By the time they arrived, it was getting dark. The sun was still peering over the horizon when the first cluster of giraffes came into view. Kendell’s eyes widened; the creatures were just beautiful as they grazed throughout the forest area they were driving through. Up ahead, Kendell spotted the manor. It was simply lovely. It was a cluster of small colonial buildings, vines growing up over the old brick. Kendell could already tell this was going to be a magnificent trip.

2

“Welcome to Giraffe Manor!” a tall, slender Kenyan man called as they pulled the jeep up just outside of the manor. “I am Jahi, the manor’s current in-house resident. I just saw your booking for the safari has changed, so I do not have all of your names?” The man held out his hand for Pauline. Pauline smiled.

“What a gentleman!” she said, taking the middle-aged man’s hand as he helped her out of the jeep. “I’m Pauline.”

“Ah! Yes, your name was on the booking,” he said, picking up her bag. “David! Bina! Oye, come here!”

Two children bearing a resemblance to Jahi came darting out of the manor with big, gorgeous smiles. “Why, hello there,” Kendell said to the little girl, Bina, who could not seem to stand still to save her life.

“And you, miss, your name?” Jahi asked.

“Kendell,” Kendell said, hardly able to contain herself as she spotted a giraffe in the distance making its way over to the manor.

“Kendell! Beautiful name!” Jahi said, then looked at Lil. He put his hands to his heart. “Beautiful lady, you have Kenyan in you, I can tell.”

“I have no idea,” Lil admitted. “But sure, why not?”

The two children giggled and started grabbing suitcases and bags. “Oh, they don’t have to do that—” Pauline started to protest. The little girl paused; she saw Dot in Pauline’s shoulder tote. Pauline smiled and bent down, handing the little girl the bag the puppy was in. “How about you get this bag for me, dear?”

The girl nodded excitedly. The boy looked incredibly disappointed as he got stuck with Pauline’s enormous suitcase. Jahi grabbed Kendell’s luggage as well as the purse Lil had thrown over her shoulder. He began leading them inside. “This is the famous Giraffe Manor!” Jahi called, and Kendell realized that it had been his voice on the CD. “All of our other guests have already retired to bed, so you will get an opportunity to meet them at breakfast. Have you all had dinner?”

“Yes, we ate at the airport,” Pauline said.

“Wonderful! I will have my wife, Jina, bring you up some treats!” he exclaimed.

Kendell got her first look inside the manor, and the inside was just as stunning at the outside. There were lots of windows and large doors on the exterior for giraffes to poke their heads in, according to their excited tour guide. Most every room and hall they turned down had some sort of giraffe themed décor, with some rooms subtler than others. Their room was the large suite, so unfortunately for Pauline, that meant going up a flight of stairs, but she assured Kendell it would be worth it. And it most certainly was.

When they arrived, David and Bina were playing with Dot after having carefully laid out each bag in the room. “David, Bina, very unprofessional!” Jahi insisted. The two children laughed and scurried out of the room.

Kendell glanced around. The room was enormous with tall ceilings. Two large, glass doors led out onto the manor’s giant balcony that overlooked some of the forest where giraffes probably grazed quite regularly. The room gave off a quaint, cottage-like feel, but the giant, private shower was something of excellence. An enormous queen-sized bed was against the far wall, a set of spiral stairs going up beside it to the loft where two twins could overlook the entire room. The chandelier hanging high above their heads brought a certain elegance to the room. “Whoa,” Lil said under her breath and nudged Kendell. “Where did you meet this woman?”

“On a flight,” Kendell whispered back.

“You realize she’s loaded, right?” Lil asked, and Kendell merely snickered.

As Jahi was chasing his children off, a lovely woman arrived with a tray of local goodies for them to try. She set it down on the coffee table, and the family informed them of their early breakfast time before leaving them to themselves.

“Pauline, I’m pretty sure you should take the large bed on this level,” Kendell said with a wink.

“You better believe it!” the old woman said, practically throwing herself on it. I’m exhausted; I can’t wait to sleep after that flight!”

“Same,” Lil said, quickly running to claim that gorgeous bathroom.

Kendell climbed up into the loft, quickly changed into some lounge clothes, and plopped down in the nearest twin bed. She could hear the shower running, but Lil emerged fairly quickly. While Kendell and Pauline had been able to at least rest on the flight, Lil had been working. She looked exhausted. Kendell smiled as Lil hopped on the other twin and stretched out. “Miss Pauline, you are just too kind to invite me along on this trip!” Lil called down to the old woman.

They heard Pauline snore in response, and the two younger women laughed quietly. It was a little stuffy in the loft area, so Kendell opened up the window for some fresh air. “Smells like giraffe poo when the wind blows in,” Lil complained.

“First of all, I’m not going to ask how you know what that smells like, and second, don’t complain. We are staying in what has got to be the most expensive hotel suite in all of Kenya,” Kendell said, smirking.

She drifted off to sleep fairly quickly. It had been a long day. In fact, it had been a long week. She and Pauline had stayed very busy in London between the tours, eating out, and of course, the local murder they had helped to solve. Kendell was ready for the relaxing part of this world tour to begin. The night ended almost too quickly, and she awakened to the sound of Lil’s excited squealing followed by what felt like a tongue right across her face. Oh my God, did Lil lick me, was Kendell’s first thought before her eyes darted open and she saw a giant giraffe tongue coming at her like a snake. “Oh!” she yelped in surprise. A giraffe had stuck its head in through the open window, and Lil was sitting on the other twin bed filming the whole thing on her phone.

“Did you get a good shot?” Kendell asked, wiping her face. “Eww!” She then looked at the creature and smiled. She never thought she would be able to pet a giraffe on the head!

Realizing they had no food or treats for him, the giraffe went on its way. “That was amazing!” Lil exclaimed.

“Hey, you two!” Pauline called from below. “You have ten minutes if you want to make it for breakfast!”

Lil and Kendell bolted, hurrying to get ready. Kendell did a speed rinse in the shower—mostly to wash her hair—and then scurried to meet Lil and Pauline in the hallway. They walked down together, easily locating the beautiful breakfast nook. It was a long room complete with an enormous table where a number of other guests were already seated. There were large, open doors all around along with giant windows; Kendell could see a number of young giraffes already making their way over, probably expecting to be given a bite of everyone’s breakfast.

Kendell got a good look at who else was staying at the manor with them. There was a white family consisting of a father, mother, and two children probably around eight or nine—fraternal twins, it seemed. The four of them were having an excited conversation in what sounded like French at the end of the table. The little children were bouncing in their seats, pointing at the giraffes making their way to them. There was a somewhat young couple, probably in their late twenties, leaning into one another speaking giddily; by the way they were acting, Kendell felt like they were honeymooners, obviously from the States. There were also two young Kenyan men, each sporting a professional-grade camera; they wore matching t-shirts that, though the words were in Swahili, Kendell guessed were promoting a photography business. Finally, there was what looked to be an American businessman attempting to go casual for the first time in his life to enjoy some time with strangers.

Kendell and Lil wound up right across from the honeymooners, and Pauline sat closer to the French family. “Bonjour,” Pauline said to the family with a big smile.

“Papa, chiot!” the little girl squealed, pointing to Pauline’s lap where Dot was stationed.

The man laughed. “Would you mind if she pet your dog?” he asked Pauline, and Pauline happily surrendered her puppy to the little girl. “I am Jean Duffey,” he said. “These are my children Abella and Victor.”

“You two must be twins,” Pauline said.

“Yes, ma’am,” the little boy said, his accident quite evident. “I like your dog.”

Pauline then looked at the woman. “And your name?”

The woman stared blankly, just nodding and smiling. “Oh, sorry, this is my wife, Esme. She does not speak very good English. This is our…honeymoon-slash-family bonding excursion.” He then muttered, “New stepmom for the kids.” Both children rolled their eyes, and the man shot them a glare.

Kendell giggled slightly. "Enchanté de vous rencontrer, Esme.”

Esme looked up and smiled at Kendell. “Parlez-vous français?”

“Oui,” Kendell said. “C'est comme ça que j'ai eu mon job d'hôtesse de l'air.”

“Okay, we’re going to need subtitles,” Pauline said.

Kendell laughed. “I got my job at the airline because I spoke French. I studied a little of it in college and did a semester abroad.”

“And here I thought you never traveled!” Pauline exclaimed.

“Sophomore year of college in Paris, France. That was the last time I ever vacationed before bumping into you, and it was for school,” Kendell said.

The honeymooners across from Kendell and Lil turned to the Duffeys, smiling. The young man said, “So you two just got married? Us too! We are also on our honeymoon.”

“We can tell,” Lil said with a smile and a wink. “You two from the States too?”

“Detroit,” the woman said. “I’m Katie Ashley, and this is my husband Richard.”

“Nice to meet you,” Lil said. “I’m Lil, this is Kendell, and our new friend Pauline. The white furball is Dot.”

“Since we’re doing introductions,” one of the cameramen said. “I’m Rider, and this is my business partner, Landon. We’re local, but this is our first time at the manor.”

“Let me guess,” the lonely man at the end of the table asked. “Photography, right?”

The two photographers laughed. “Yes, fairly obvious, I suppose,” Landon said, holding up his camera. “Our business is new, so we needed to build our portfolio a bit. Decided to do a little two-person company retreat and try to get some good photos.”

“You boys want to earn some money?” the man asked.

The two photographers exchanged glances. “Doing what, sir?” Rider asked.

The man pointed at the camera. “Taking pictures, kiddo.” He winked. “I’m on a little mission this week, and I would like to document my travels. I’m all about supporting small businesses. I ran a startup out in California, and if it wasn’t for some rich creeps throwing me a bone, I wouldn’t be where I am today. How’s three thousand American dollars sound for me to claim you two for the week?”

Rider and Landon’s jaws nearly hit the floor, and they were shaking the man’s hand in agreement before even hearing what they would be shooting. “What was your name?” Lil asked the strange man.

“Zachariah,” he said with a smirk. “I run a corporation based out in California. We’re looking into expanding all the way out here in Kenya, and I figured if it was going on the company card, I’d stay somewhere with a bit of flair. My secretary told me about this place; her ex-husband took her here once. I’m actually very excited to be here.”

“And we’re glad to have you!” Jahi called as he and his family arrived, each carrying a tray. Breakfast smelled amazing, and plates and glasses were placed in front of each of them.

Almost as soon as the wonderfully smelling food was placed in front of them, giraffes started poking their heads into the breakfast nook. “Giraffe-friendly dishes are in the blue bowls,” Jahi said. “Share with our tall companions or don’t, that’s up to you. Just keep the non-giraffe-friendly dishes out of their reach…if you can.” He laughed as a giraffe used its tongue to swipe something right out of Mrs. Duffey’s bowl. The woman laughed and patted the creature on its nose. Her stepchildren giggled, and the three of them started laughing together.

Props to you, Mr. Duffey, Kendell thought as the man smiled proudly to see his new wife having a fun conversation with his children. A giraffe sniffed Kendell’s neck, and she laughed and jumped a bit. “You!” she said. “That’s the same giraffe who woke me up this morning! Poked his head in my window and licked my face!”

“That’s Yoyo,” Bina said as she refilled Kendell’s glass.

“Why do you call him Yoyo?” Kendell asked.

David snickered. “He came here to the sanctuary because he was sick when he was a little baby. Turns out he had eaten a yoyo, and, well… we got it back.”

“Oh, gross, kid, we’re eating!” Zachariah exclaimed.

David’s face scrunched up as he looked at Zachariah. “You are sharing a breakfast plate with a stinky animal, and that is what ruins your appetite?” the boy asked, and everyone at the table had a good laugh at Zachariah’s expense.

3

After breakfast, the cluster of Giraffe Manor patrons flooded outside where two large jeeps were waiting for them. There were two young men at the wheel of each vehicle, ready to take them all to the tour that would be heading out soon. While there was plenty to view on the land at the manor, namely giraffes, this particular safari excursion would allow them to see a variety of popular African creatures. Kendell in particular was hoping to get up and close to an elephant.

Kendell, Pauline, Lil, and the Duffeys piled into one of the vehicles while the Ashleys, the two photographers, and Zachariah crammed into the second. Jahi and his family remained behind, waving to them as the group headed off on their adventure. Pauline had left Dot behind, much to Kendell’s surprise. Dot was in good hands; Jahi’s children had been more than happy to offer themselves as free puppy-sitters.

It took them close to an hour to get to where the safari tour would begin. The two jeeps stopped in front of a small wooden building where a number of tour guides were waiting. There was a large bus with a shaded roof and open viewing out front, the bottom half of the bus was painted with zebra stripes. Kendell was bursting with excitement. Lil nudged her, nodding at Zachariah, who was posing for the photographers he had hired. “That’s so weird,” Kendell said under her breath.

“Have you ever in your life met a man that vain?” Lil questioned.

“Honey, give it time. You’ll meet plenty by the time you’re my age,” Pauline said, chuckling. “Time changes. Men really don’t.”

Lil laughed. “I’m really digging her little nuggets of wisdom, Kendell.”

“The charm of it will pass,” Kendell assured her.

The group from Giraffe Manor all loaded onto one bus, and since the large bus was over halfway full, the tour guides decided not to wait around for any last-minute bookings and took them out a bit earlier than scheduled. For the first ten minutes or so of the ride, everything was quiet. The tour guide standing next to the driver spoke loud enough for everyone to hear about Nairobi and some of its animal inhabitants. Finally, after what felt like an eternity but was only a few short minutes, they spotted a cluster of elephants in the distance. Kendell’s eyes glistened.

“This group you see to your right have been living on sanctuary grounds most of their lives,” the tour guide began. “So, they’re a bunch of friendly girls. I’m sure they’ll let us come right up to them so long as we’re quiet.”

“Will this tour take us off the sanctuary?” Mr. Duffey asked.

“Yes, so we’re bound to see some predators out here today as well,” the tour guide said. “So, stay vigilant!”

As promised by the tour guides, the elephants eventually made their way over toward the safari bus, and the tour guides gave them all buckets of lettuce to pass out the window. Kendell squealed excitedly as she pet the trunk of a large female.

“So, are all of them girls?” Victor asked as he and his sister fought over the last bit of lettuce in their family’s bucket.

“All of these are,” the tour guide said. “In an elephant herd, the ladies tend to stick together. Although, unlike most animals, family relationships are very important to elephants. In fact, they are one of the only creatures in the animal kingdom in which the grandmother will stick around to help her child raise the young.” The guide pointed to the elephant allowing Kendell to pet the trunk. “That is this particular herd’s matriarch right there. She just became a great-grandma last month, and she looks after that little fella like you would not believe.”

“Great-grandmas are that way,” Pauline said with a wink. Kendell leaned back as the elephant’s trunk made its way into the bus, and Pauline touched the creature and stroked its rough skin. “Friendly girl. You weren’t kidding.”

Realizing the group had run out of treats, the elephants headed back to their watering hole, and the bus drove on. The tour guide continued giving them a long-winded talk on Nairobi’s animal populations. In the distance, they did spot a male lion, but it dipped out fairly quickly, much to Kendell’s disappointment. Most of the animals were not as friendly as the practically domesticated elephants, but they were able to view some of the creatures from a safe distance.

They came to a small creek, and the tour guides pointed out a number of rhinos cooling down in the water. Zachariah stood up in the back of the bus, calling for his hired photographers to take some pictures. He posed for the cameramen as they ensured him they were getting plenty of the rhinos in the background.

“So, do you like rhinos or something?” Lil asked.

“Yes, I’m going to kill one,” he said so bluntly that Kendell had to pause to ensure that she did in fact hear him correctly.

“Excuse me?” Mrs. Ashley asked, spinning in her seat.

The man smiled proudly. “Yes, dear, I’m a bit of a trophy hunter. Planning to snag me a rhino horn for my office back home.”

“Um,” Lil piped up again. “Isn’t that poaching? And, you know, illegal?”

“There are legal ways around it, dear,” he said, still posing.

The Kenyan cameramen didn’t look too thrilled.

“Is that your mission you are wanting us to photograph for you?” Rider asked.

“Yes! I want to get a professional shot done when I take down my rhino,” he said, smirking. “I’m going to frame it and hang the horn above the photograph.”

“Wow,” Mr. Duffey said under his breath with a not-so-subtle eye-roll. “You can’t be serious.”

“Quite so!” Zachariah exclaimed. “I’m quite the skilled hunter. I own a cabin out in Montana, and I filled it to the brim with deer, elk, and all sorts of stuffed creatures. But, shooting the same animals over and over again doesn’t make for a good story! I’ve been trophy hunting for about eight years now. I’ve gotten a lion, an elephant, a—”

“Okay, that’s enough,” Lil snapped, waving toward the Duffey children. “You’re upsetting the kids, man, chill.”

“Sounds like Mr. Duffey there needs to take his kiddos on a hunting trip, then,” Zachariah claimed. “Especially your son. Let him learn what it’s like to be a real man!”

The little boy, Victor, bucked up slightly. “My dad is an animal rights activist. He’s more of a man than you, you creep.”

Mr. Duffey shushed his son, but he did look in Zachariah’s direction with disappointment.

Mr. Ashley grunted. “You really hunt endangered animals? How do you even get away with that?”

Zachariah just grunted and rolled his eyes. “Every last one of you,” he says with a huff. “You’re just a bunch of tree-hugging, hippie animal-lovers. If I want to hunt, that’s my business. And, in three days, I’m killing myself a rhino. I got paperwork that says I can.” The man plopped himself down, crossed his arms, and huffed again.

The tour guides pulled the bus away from the rhinos. Kendell shook her head. Surely something could be done about this Zachariah character? Like Lil said, Kendell was quite confident that poaching was illegal, so she wasn’t sure what he meant by having paperwork that granted him permission to do so. Kendell shook it off, deciding that the unusual disruption caused by Zachariah’s childish outburst would not ruin her tour.

The bus stopped near where a group of flamingos were gathered, and everyone laughed and took pictures. As everyone was over to one side of the bus to attempt to get a good photo with their phones, one of the tour guides abruptly called everyone back to their seats. “Please, everyone, remain in the aisle seat of the bus. We have a hostile visitor, it seems,” the guide said just as a female lion jumped up onto the hood of the bus.

The children shrieked, but the guides didn’t seem fazed. The lion growled and then hopped back to the ground, circling the bus. “We’re safe in here, right?” Mr. Duffey asked, patting his new wife’s hand.

“Of course. Just remain in the aisle seats, though. If she jumps up on the side of the bus, she could claw you if you’re sitting to close to the side,” the tour guide said nonchalantly.

“The casualness of these people over a live lion circling the bus is just creepy,” Lil muttered, and Kendell smirked a bit. They waited a few minutes before the lioness eventually wandered off, and then they started up the bus again. The tour guide kindly pulled out prepared lunches, and everyone ate happily while watching some gazelles grazing.

Kendell had felt anxious during the lioness’s strut around the bus, but it had been exhilarating as well. Eventually, the bus headed back to its initial starting point where Giraffe Manor drivers were waiting on them. Everyone was excitedly talking about all of the amazing animals they had seen and how they had been able to pet an elephant.

Dinner was ready when they got back to the manor, and everyone ate outside on the beautiful patio. A young giraffe was grazing nearby, but he didn’t come over. He just made for a lovely sight while they all enjoyed their food. Eventually, the sun set, and everyone headed off to bed. Lil, Pauline, and Kendell all excitedly jabbered on about the tour and how much fun they’d had. Pauline gushed over Dot a little after having not seen her little pooch all day, and she gave the children candy from her bag as thanks for being such willing dog-sitters.

Kendell took a shower to get the smell of dirty animals off her, and she could hear Lil speaking to Pauline outside of the bathroom, thanking her again for such a wonderful trip. “Honestly, I really cannot believe your generosity,” Lil said. “I’m going to run down to the kitchen and fix myself a little midnight snack. They said they have little teacakes sitting out. I didn’t eat much at dinner. Would you like anything?”

“Oh, no, I’m headed off to bed,” Pauline said appreciatively.

Kendell exited the shower, dried her hair, and passed by a sleeping Pauline on her way up to the loft. She tiptoed, not wanting to wake the old woman from her peaceful slumber. She could hear Dot snoring almost as loudly as Pauline. Kendell closed the window this time, not really sure how she felt about being awakened by giraffe slobber for a second morning. Just when she was drifting off to sleep, she was abruptly yanked from her slumber by the sound of loud, incoherent shouting. It was significantly later now, and she glanced over to see that Lil was still not back from what should have been a quick trip to the kitchen. She bolted down the spiral staircase down to where Pauline had been sleeping; the old woman had already crawled out of bed and thrown on a robe after hearing all of the noise.

The two women exchanged worried glances, and Pauline nodded toward their balcony. The two of them hurried outside, and they were able to look out onto the front lawn of the manor where Jahi and his wife were standing, both shaking their heads and having a loud discussion in Swahili with what looked to be uniformed Kenyan officers.

“What’s going on?” Kendell quietly asked Pauline, and the woman shrugged. Pauline held Dot tight in her arms as she scanned the surrounding area.

“Oh, no,” Pauline said, nudging Kendell and pointing to the manor’s front entrance where Lil was being shoved by some of the officers. They watched as the man shoved her into the back of a vehicle.

“Jahi!” Kendell shouted down, and the man looked up at them. “What’s going on?” she demanded. “Why are they putting Lil in a car? Did something happen?”

Jahi shook his head and shouted back up to her. “Yes, something is very terribly wrong, Miss Kendell. Mr. Zachariah is dead, and these officers believe your friend killed him!”

4

Kendell and Pauline had immediately rushed through the manor and down to the front garden where the police vehicle was parked. Kendell was adamant about finding out exactly what had happened to result in Lil being accused of such a crime. She could not imagine Lil as a killer—a little abrasive, but no killer. Lil was seated in the back of the vehicle, the back door open. She was not cuffed or anything, but she had been warned not to get out of the car.

“You all right?” Kendell asked her first, and Lil nodded nervously. Pauline came and stood by the vehicle next with a reassuring gaze while Kendell walked up to the two officers speaking with Jahi and his wife. “What happened? Why have you arrested my friend?”

The two officers stared blankly back at Kendell. One of them grunted and crossed his arms. Kendell looked at Jahi. “They do not speak English,” Jahi said. “But I can tell you what happened. I woke up because I heard a crashing sound in my kitchen, and when I got in there, I saw your friend Lil standing over Zachariah with a busted coffee pot in her hand. There was glass on the floor, and in the man’s head. He was dead. I called the authorities, and they concluded that your friend must have hit him over the head with the coffee pot.”

“Murdered by a coffee pot?” Kendell questioned. “You must be joking!”

“I saw the busted pot before I saw Zachariah!” Lil called from the vehicle. “I picked it up when Jahi came walking into the room. I didn’t kill him!”

Jahi kindly translated for Lil to the officers, then he turned to Kendell. “I do believe your friend. She has no reason to want to hurt this stranger, does she?”

“No, we never met him until we came to the manor,” Kendell said.

“Jahi,” Jina said, touching his shoulder. “Didn’t our patrons say Zachariah disturbed everyone at the safari yesterday?”

“Yes, but that does not mean that Lil murdered him,” Jahi said.

Kendell looked at the officers. “My friend is innocent. You need to do a proper investigation. Just because she was the first one to find the body does not mean she is guilty.” Jahi translated Kendell’s words to the officers. One of the men spoke.

Jahi then translated for Kendell. “He says your friend is guilty, and they are leaving.”

“You’re joking!” Kendell exclaimed, her voice raising. “You two get in there and do your jobs!”

“Miss Kendell, I will do you a favor and not translate that,” Jahi said, shaking his head. “These officers are professionals.”

“They’re not acting very professional. They are assuming my friend’s guilt just because she was the first one to find the body!” Kendell shouted. “That’s not professional! They need to interview everyone who was here. They need to investigate the scene. They need to—”

Dot suddenly started yapping. The little dog leaped out of Pauline’s arms and came running over to Kendell, barking loudly up at her for all of her shouting. “Dot! Dot, that’s enough!” Pauline shouted from the car.

The two officers laughed a little at the hyperactive dog. Then, Lil made a move during the distraction. She bolted from the car, and by the time the officers spotted her, she was sprinting for the Giraffe Manor forest. “Uh oh,” Kendell said under her breath, shaking her head.

The officers bolted after her. “Lil! That is a terrible idea!” Pauline shouted.

One of the officers looked over his shoulder and shouted at Jahi before continuing his pursuit. Jahi turned and shooed Kendell and Pauline. “He tells me to make sure everyone is in their rooms, especially you two,” he said. “Please, let’s go.”

“They’re chasing my friend through the woods!” Kendell snapped.

“Go inside!” Jahi demanded. “Listen to the police!”

Kendell scooped up Dot and went with Pauline. The two of them headed inside as instructed and returned to their suite. “I cannot believe they were so quick to blame Lil!” Kendell growled and plopped herself down on the little sofa in the room. She crossed her arms, positively seething. “My friend is about to be arrested in a foreign country. What am I supposed to do? Why would she run? That is only going to make her look even guiltier.”

“I don’t know, Kendell. That might have been the smart move,” Pauline said. “From the way I understand it, Kenyan prisons have quite a problem.”

“What kind of problem?” Kendell asked.

“Overcrowding, mostly. Abuse of prisoners,” Pauline said. “They were in the news recently about it, and I can’t imagine an American in the prisons would bode well with the other prisoners.”

“This is not good,” Kendell said, glancing toward the balcony. “I think I need to find Lil before the police do.”

“I think that is an accurate statement,” Pauline said. “What we need to do is get your friend to the US Embassy.”

“Is there one here?” Kendell asked.

“Remember how we had to listen to the pre-recorded message on our drive out here? I think I remember it saying there was an Embassy.” Pauline said and went digging through her purse on the bed. “Let me look it up.” She pulled out her phone, struggling a bit to figure out the internet, but she got it working after a few minutes. “Yes!” Pauline said excitedly. “The US Embassy is right here in Nairobi.”

“Great,” Kendell said and smiled. “If I can find Lil before the police do, we can try to get her off the manor…but the embassy is really far away. There is no way we can walk off the manor. It would take us all night just to get off the manor’s property. Then the embassy is still a considerable distance across Nairobi.”

“I’ll see if I can’t figure something out,” Pauline said, smirking. “I think I have an idea. You just get to Lil before the police do.”

“I’m on it,” Kendell said and started to open the door to head out into the hall. She frowned, spotting Jahi and his wife keeping guard in the hallway. She closed the door. “Looks like I’m going the long way around.” Kendell headed to the balcony. It wasn’t too far of a fall, but was further down than she would risk just throwing herself over edge. She threw her legs over the balcony and slowly attempted to scale down the wooden bars until she got to the brick. She looked below, still not confident in such a drop, but she went for it, landing on bent knees to diffuse the shock a bit. She felt a slight pain in her leg, but overall, she was a bit proud of herself for accomplishing such a drop.

Kendell then headed into the forest where she had seen Lil dart off to. She could hear the officers traipsing around, sounding quite frustrated. She did her best to avoid being seen by them, heading in a different direction. If the officers hadn’t found Lil by now, Kendell assumed it was because they had gone the wrong way. She started wishing she had put on more comfortable shoes instead of the complimentary slippers she had snagged from her room, but she figured if she was going to step in giraffe droppings, she’d rather it not be in her nice, white Keds.

Kendell walked around for nearly half an hour, occasionally ducking behind a tree and changing directions to avoid the officers, who were growing louder and louder and more and more frustrated with each passing second. After a moment, she saw them head back toward the manor, probably to call for assistance in finding the woman who had slipped away into such a large forest. Kendell felt something smack the back of her head, like some sort of small seed. Looking up, she saw Lil waving at her from up in a tree.

“How did you get up there?” Kendell whispered, her friend hardly visible in the dark as she hid behind some lower branches.

“There were a lot of trees at my house as a kid,” she said, barely able to hold herself up.

“I’m impressed,” Kendell said. “Why did you run?”

“I got scared,” she admitted. “I’ve heard things about Kenyan prisons…”

“You and Pauline both,” Kendell grunted. “Listen, if we can manage to sneak you off the manor, the US Embassy is in Nairobi.”

“How are we supposed to do that?” Lil questioned.

“Pauline is working on something,” Kendell said.

“How do you know that old lady isn’t just going to turn me in to the police?” Lil asked shakily.

“She’s a friend,” Kendell assured. “And it sounded like she had a plan.” Kendell put her hands on her hips. “Would you come out of that tree? You look like an idiot up there like that.”

“I’m actually feeling pretty smart right now since they walked by me three times tonight,” she said, smirking slightly as she made her way down. She nearly toppled over when she jumped. Lil moaned as she caught herself against another tree. She stood upright and stretched her back. “I haven’t climbed a tree since I was a kid. I’m way too old for that nonsense.”

“Let’s just get you to Pauline,” Kendell said. “Without running into our Kenyan friends.”

“If you say so,” Lil said anxiously.

It was still pitch black outside apart from some stars overhead. Kendell nearly ran into a tree twice, but the two of them managed to circle a good distance in the forest until they believed they could head to the manor without being spotted. They stood at the tree line, each feeling a bit anxious, before darting toward the manor and creeping around the back walls. Thankfully, a back door was unlocked, and they were able to slip inside without being noticed by the officers stationed by their vehicle at the front of the manor, calling for assistance.

Kendell walked lightly with Lil on her heels. They turned a corner, and suddenly, there was Jahi staring them down. They both stiffened. The man shook his head, pressing his fingers against his temple. “You Americans…” he groaned. He glanced toward the manor’s front entrance. “I saw nothing…” he said, spinning on his heels and walking back to his bedroom.

Lil exhaled heavily, and the two of them hurried back to the suite, where Pauline was patiently waiting. She was on her phone, and she seemed to be studying a map. “Thank goodness,” the old woman said when she spotted Lil. “That was quite a sprint into the woods.”

“If you think that was impressive, you should have seen where I found her—up in a tree,” Kendell said.

Pauline snickered. “Please tell me you two have a plan to get me out of here,” Lil moaned. “Eventually, those officers are going to come look inside the manor instead of the forest. They’re calling in backup. They are bound to find me eventually. I need to get to the embassy so that I can get myself an American lawyer to help me out and to keep me safe.”

“I agree with you completely,” Kendell said. “Lil, what happened? Did you see who hurt Zachariah?”

“No,” she said. “I already told you what happened. I went down to get coffee and maybe something to eat. I saw the busted coffee pot on the ground, and I picked it up. I figured that someone had just broken it and had not wanted to clean up the mess, but then I saw some blood dripping off the pot. That’s when Jahi came walking into the kitchen. He flipped on a light, and we both saw Zachariah lying there with his head cut up. Jahi called the authorities, and I waited downstairs with him. When those officers got there, we told them what happened, and they just started shoving me out the door. They wouldn’t listen to anything I said. They just knew I was an American and that I was in the room with Zachariah.”

Kendell shook her head in frustration. “Okay, get your stuff packed,” Kendell said. “We’re going to see what Pauline and I can come up with.”

“Okay, but do it fast,” Lil said, hurrying up to the loft where she and Kendell had been sleeping. “It’s only a matter of time before they find me.”

Pauline kept scrolling through her phone. She glanced up at Kendell. “Looks like you and I have another mystery to solve.”

“Looks like it,” Kendell said, shaking her head. “But, before we do any of that, we’ve got to find a way to get Lil somewhere safe.”

Pauline nodded. “Yes, dear, I agree.”

5

Kendell watched anxiously as Lil rushed to pack up her little bag with what few items she had brought with her to Kenya: her flight attendant uniform, two pairs of shoes, a toothbrush, spare underwear, socks, and her famous bag of mid-flight snacks. This had been a spur of the moment decision for Lil, and Kendell hated that the woman was probably regretting it. It seemed that a spew of bad luck had latched itself onto Kendell and Pauline’s trip. Their London trip had been the first leg on Kendell’s journey, and the second for Pauline, who had been visiting Kendell’s stomping grounds in New York beforehand. London had almost been disastrous after an actor at the Globe Theater had literally lost his head. Now, it seemed that single incident of misfortune had cursed them; Kendell blamed it on the show they had seen at the theater. Macbeth was known as the cursed Scottish play, after all. What were the odds of seeing two murders in one week, across ocean waters no less?

“Poor Lil,” Pauline said as they watched Lil rush around the loft, shoveling everything she could into a bag.

Kendell gently touched Pauline’s shoulder, encouraging her to sit down on the sofa with her. “I’m not sure what we’re going to do now,” Kendell said. “Those officers just called in for backup. It’s only a matter of time before they realize Lil is no longer in the forest and decide to search the manor for her. The manor’s property is miles long in every direction. I don’t know how we could possibly get her out of here before getting caught.”

“You have no faith in me,” Pauline said, grinning.

“You have a plan?” Kendell asked.

“Not a very good one,” she said. “But, yes, I have a plan. Excuse me for one moment. I’ll knock three times so you know it’s me.” Pauline stood, placed Dot in Kendell’s lap, and scurried out into the hallway.

“Where is she going?” Lil asked in a panicked whisper as she made her way down the spiral staircase from the loft.

“I don’t know,” Kendell said. “But apparently, she has some sort of plan to help you out.”

“I’m freaking out,” Lil admitted. “We’re in a foreign country, and I’ve just been accused of a serious crime. Remember what happened to that American kid who got arrested in Korea?”

“That was Korea, Lil. We’re in Kenya,” Kendell reminded her.

“Kenyan prisons still have a terrible reputation, Kendell!” Lil hissed, still whispering out of fear of being heard by unfriendly ears.

“I know, I know,” Kendell said as she stood, still holding Dot in her arms as she made her way over to Lil. “But I trust Pauline. She may be a kooky old broad, but I trust her. She had my back in London, and I had hers.”

“Why? What happened in London?” Lil asked.

“Just a really bad misunderstanding,” Kendell said, attempting to brush it off as nothing, but Lil was giving her the stare down. “Pauline may or may not have been arrested for murder. The reasoning for her booking was never really clear to us.”

“What!”

“She was cleared,” Kendell assured her. “But, yeah, we witnessed a murder at the Globe Theater, and Pauline had snuck back stage to meet the actors. It kind of looked suspicious, so they brought her to the station for questioning. Then the cop who arrested her was rude, so she broke his nose. I’m pretty sure the assault on the officer thing was the reason they arrested her, but they wound up dropping whatever it was they initially charged her with. It was really just a big misunderstanding.”

“She’s nuts!” Lil yelped, still trying her hardest to keep her voice down. “And you brought me here with the crazy old bat!”

“Lil, calm down,” Kendell said. “Pauline is trying to help you, remember? Someone killed Zachariah, and it obviously wasn’t Pauline. She was up here with me, so you don’t need to worry about her. She’s your friend, I swear.”

Lil sighed. “Yeah, I guess so. Pardon me for being a little skeptical of the white southern lady who offers free rooms to a random black woman she met on a plane.”

“You weren’t random,” Kendell argued. “She invited you along because you’re my friend.”

“Yeah, whatever,” Lil groaned.

Three quick knocks interrupted their bickering, and Kendell hurried over, cracking the door open to see that it was indeed Pauline. “Hurry,” Kendell muttered, opening the door for Pauline to slip inside.

“They’re still outside looking for you,” Pauline said. “So far so good. Here, Lillian, put this on.”

“What is this?” Lil asked, taking the colorful cloths that Pauline had managed to swipe.

“I believe it’s called a kanga wrap,” Pauline said. “Masai tribe clothing. This is a plate-like necklace.”

“I do like the gold,” Lil muttered, attempting to figure out how to adorn herself in the dress-wrap. She threw on the necklace as well, and Pauline tied up a colorful scarf to cover Lil’s hair. Pauline stepped aside and then nodded approvingly at her little disguise.

“Now, finish it off with this,” Pauline said, handing Lil a bright-colored vest that the tour drivers had been wearing when they first arrived in Kenya. Lil didn’t question her as Pauline seemed very confident in whatever plan she had brewing.

“So, what now?” Kendell asked once Lil was dressed.

“Now, you are going to stay here,” Pauline said to Kendell. “You’re going to need to cover for me in case they start counting heads or anything like that.” She tapped the side of her head. “I’ve got the route to the US Embassy right here. I’m taking Lil there.”

“How?” Lil asked.

Pauline grinned triumphantly and held up a set of keys.

“Where did you get those?” Kendell asked. “And what do they go to?”

“They leave the keys in an unlocked cabinet near the door,” Pauline said. “No worries. I’ll return it once I get Lil to the US Embassy.”

“Great, let’s add grand theft auto to my list of crimes they can slap me with,” Lil grumbled.

“We’re not stealing it,” Pauline insisted, “we’re borrowing it. And if you don’t like this idea, why don’t you go outside and turn yourself in and find out how Kenyan authorities treat American criminals?”

“Fine,” Lil grumbled.

“You really think I should stay behind?” Kendell asked.

“Yes,” Pauline said. “The last thing we want is to make all of us look suspicious, in case Lil and I get caught. We’ll need a lady on the outside watching out for us. Wish us luck, Kendell.” Pauline was scooping Dot up under her arm, and Lil anxiously scooted after her.

“You got this,” Kendell told Lil confidently, giving her a tight hug before watching the two of them depart. Pauline is going to drive her crazy on their little road trip, Kendell mused as she watched the door close. She waited several minutes before slipping out of the room herself; she could hear voices downstairs.

She headed down into the kitchen; she could see that the city’s coroner had already moved Zachariah’s body and cleaned up the mess left behind. Everyone, apart from Pauline, Lil, and the multiple children in the household, had gathered. They were all whispering so as not to disturb the sleeping children as they spoke.

“I just cannot believe someone killed that man,” Jina said, her eyes focused on the spot where the body had been found.

“You don’t believe that American girl did it, then?” Mr. Duffey asked.

Kendell cleared her throat, letting everyone know she was present. “Lil wouldn’t do this,” she assured them.

“Then why did she run?” Rider asked.

“No doubt because she knows the embassy is around here,” Mr. Duffey suggested.

Spot on, Frenchie, Kendell thought, but decided to keep her mouth shut. “Where is the older woman?” Landon asked Kendell.

“Sleeping,” Kendell said.

“She is not worried for your traveling companion?” Mrs. Ashley questioned.

“Not so much,” Kendell said. “Lil is my friend. Pauline just met her on our flight in from London. Have the police said anything about why they believe someone would have killed Zachariah?”

“No,” Jahi said. “But, from what I have heard from all of you, he did not exactly make friends on the safari.”

Mr. Ashley huffed. “That’s Zachariah for you…”

Kendell raised a brow. She looked directly at Mr. Ashley. “Did you know him before coming here to the manor?”

He stiffened slightly. “Well…somewhat. Our companies were competing over some land here in Nairobi, and he was being aggressive in his business strategies. We had never met face to face prior to this trip, though. A few shared emails here and there, but that’s all.”

Mrs. Ashley crossed her arms, frustrated. “He was very rude to us at the train museum.”

“Train museum?” Kendell asked.

“Yes, before we came here to the manor, we ran into Zachariah at the local Nairobi Train Museum. It was the first time we met him, and we got into a slight confrontation,” Mr. Ashley admitted. “But, that’s just business for you.”

Rider grunted. “Sounds like it probably wasn’t Lil who did Zachariah in.”

“Are you accusing me of something?” Mr. Ashley hissed. “Because I do not appreciate it. Besides, I’m not the only one here who had problems with Zachariah. I speak a little French, sweetheart,” he said, turning toward Mrs. Duffey. “You’ve been moaning and groaning about him ever since we got back from the safari trip. His little talk of Trophy hunting has had this broad up in arms. Don’t let the timid I-don’t-speak-English stich make you all think she’s Miss Innocent over here.”

“Hey! Don’t you dare accuse my wife of anything, you creep!” Mr. Duffey snapped.

“What about you?” Landon said, pointing at Duffey. “Your kids said you’re some animal rights activist. Did Zachariah’s talk bug you as much as it did your wife?”

“Really?” Mr. Duffey said with an eye-roll and then pointed his thumb in the Ashley’s direction. “You’re going to accuse me when someone just said they got into it with the deceased only a couple of days ago?”

“Okay, everyone, that is quite enough!” Jahi exclaimed. “Let the police do this work. It is not our jobs.”

“Yeah, but the police aren’t interested in doing the work,” Kendell groaned. She glanced in Landon and Rider’s direction. The two photographers seemed legitimately upset by this ordeal—probably because they were out three thousand dollars now that Zachariah had been killed. She felt confident she could wipe those two off her suspect list, but the Duffeys and Ashleys…not so much. They had legitimate reasons to want Zachariah gone, it seemed, while the photographers had taken a loss with the man’s death.

The group’s voices had escalated quite a bit. Jina at last snapped at everyone, clapping her hands to get everyone’s attention. “I realize I am not being the kind hostess by yelling at everyone right now,” she growled. “But, enough is enough! There is nothing we can do about Zachariah right now. It is late, and if you all keep yelling at one another, you are going to wake up the children. All of you, off to your rooms! Right now! Go on! I’ll bring up a midnight snack and some tea to calm everyone’s nerves, but everyone, stay in your rooms until the Nairobi police tell us it is safe.”

The group all groaned as if they were Jina’s children and had gotten scolded for bickering. Kendell returned to her room, closing the door behind her. She fetched a piece of paper and pen from the work desk in the suite and sat herself down, turning on a lamp. Technically, everyone was a suspect at this moment simply because they were staying at the manor, but she felt the need to focus in on the Duffeys and the Ashleys. Perhaps, she figured, the photographers would even be able to help her with the investigation. She certainly felt like the weight had fallen on her shoulders since the police were so insistent that Lil was guilty.

Kendell knew better. Lil was her friend, and Lil had no motive to hurt Zachariah. These strangers staying at the manor, however, did. If she had to play detective again, now would be the time. Lil was one of her closest friends. She would find a way to clear her name and to get justice for Zachariah, even if he was a bit of a creep. After scribbling down everything she knew so that it would be fresh in her mind the following morning, Kendell headed up to the loft. She had a hard time getting to sleep, though. How could she sleep knowing that sweet old Pauline and her friend Lil were darting through Nairobi in hopes of finding refuge before the police caught up with them?

6

Lil climbed into the passenger’s seat of the striped jeep as Pauline cranked it up. She wasn’t really sure about trusting her well-being to this complete stranger, but Kendell had vouched for the woman. Lil and Kendell had not been friends too terribly long, but they had become close very quickly. Kendell was usually pretty good about gauging people, but Pauline was a bit of a question mark.

“Keep your head down,” Pauline said, turning the headlights off as she slowly pulled the vehicle away from the manor.

Lil felt Dot, the old woman’s little purse dog, shaking next to her. She wasn’t much of a dog person, but the little thing could potentially start barking and draw attention to them. So, Lil picked her up and put the pup in her lap. It calmed down almost instantly. It must not like the jeep, Lil thought. It was pitch black out this way, so Lil was just hoping Pauline didn’t hit a giraffe on their way off the manor property. “Can you… Can you even see where you’re going?” Lil asked as Pauline made an abrupt swerve, avoiding a random boulder.

“Honestly, not really,” Pauline admitted. “Plus, I haven’t had a license in years!”

Lil felt her stomach drop. She was starting to wonder if staying back with the Kenyan officers and remaining in a Nairobi prison would have been a better option. She shook her head, knowing good and well the safest thing for her to do was to get to the US Embassy where she could be protected by the US government during court hearings. Otherwise, she could become another one of those American traveler statistics that wound up dead in a foreign country’s prison system. True, Nairobi was no North Korea, but Nairobi had a reputation for not treating their local prisoners well, let alone foreign ones.

Far off, Lil could see headlights heading past them and toward the manor. “At least they still think you’re somewhere in the forest,” Pauline said. “That will hopefully keep them busy until we can get off the property. Not sure how good police communication is in Nairobi, but just in case, we are going to ditch the jeep in the national park.”

Lil raised a brow. “You haven’t…done anything like this before, have you?”

“Oh, honey, no,” Pauline said, chuckling at the thought. “But I watch a lot of crime shows. It’s my secret vice. This car has a plate. Taking it into the city won’t be a good idea, so we’re heading northeast into the national park. From there…well…we’ll have probably twelve miles through the city.”

“Twelve miles on foot!” Lil shrieked.

“An hour’s car drive, probably,” Pauline said. “But taking this colorful jeep through the city is going to stand out. We’ll figure something out once we leave the national park. For now, why don’t you lean your head back and rest.”

“You don’t think you should rest?” Lil questioned.

“I’ll rest when I feel like I need it. You’re the one who has had the shock of her life. Not me,” Pauline insisted.

Lil wasn’t so sure she could rest, but decided to give it a try. She leaned her head back and closed her eyes. There was something about the calm little dog in her lap that was soothing, and she fell asleep.

It wasn’t until she felt sunlight against her face and heard a distinct purring sound that Lil opened her eyes. She blinked. The sun was up and shining directly on them, and she saw that Pauline had climbed into the backseat and was curled up asleep with Dot. She must have gotten tired in the middle of the night, Lil concluded and sat up. What she saw next almost caused her to scream, but she bit her tongue. There was a large lioness fast asleep on the warm hood of the jeep. “Oh…oh no, oh no, oh no…” was all she managed to mumble. “Pauline…” she whispered harshly. “Pauline!” She grew only slightly louder.

Pauline sat up slowly. “What are you moaning and groaning about?” she asked, and the giant cat awakened to the sound of Pauline’s nagging tone. When Pauline saw the creature, she sat upright.

Lil froze. Well, I guess this is it, Lil thought. Dot started barking. Yup, I’m going to die. The lioness didn’t like Dot’s barking. Its mouth widened and it snarled slightly before hopping off the jeep and slowly walking away. Lil, once the lioness was trotting off, immediately hopped over into the driver’s seat and started the engine.

“What are you doing?” Pauline questioned. “I was going to leave the jeep here!”

“Are you crazy?” Lil yelped. “That would mean we would have to walk here! There was a lion on top of our jeep ten seconds ago!”

“Sweetheart, we are a five-minute walk from the park’s welcome center,” Pauline assured her. “We will be fine.”

“Not if we get eaten by a lion!” Lil argued.

“Shut the engine off,” Pauline demanded. “I promise, we will be just fine.”

Lil hesitated, but she supposed they did need to ditch the vehicle as Pauline had said the night before. Against everything her fight or flight instincts were trying to tell her, Lil shut off the engine and slowly made her way out of the jeep. She grabbed her bag from the passenger’s side floorboard and then held a hand out to Pauline to help her out of the back. The woman tucked her little dog into her purse-like carrier and straightened up, taking a moment to fluff her gray hair before walking away from the jeep with an abundance of confidence. “You’re really okay with walking after just seeing a lion here?” Lil asked after they had been walking for a few minutes. They were surrounded by large, open fields. She could see a herd of zebra far off in the distance.

“Yes, because the welcome center is right there,” Pauline said, pointing. Lil could see the safe haven in the distance.

“Thank goodness,” Lil said under her breath.

Once they reached the welcome center, they were greeted by a white Kenyan woman who began speaking to them in Swahili. Lil stiffened, realizing that the woman might have mistaken her for a native between the garb and the Giraffe Manor vest she was wearing. Pauline spoke before Lil had to explain why she didn’t speak the national language. “Pardon me,” Pauline said perkily. “But we are hoping to catch a bus back into the city?”

The woman frowned slightly for being interrupted, but quickly changed her expression. “If you hurry around front, there is a bus about to leave,” she said, pointing. “I’m sorry, but were you part of the earlier tour? Giraffe Manor is in the opposite direction that the bus will be taking you? Are you lost?” she asked, confused as to why a Giraffe Manor tour guide would be walking around the national park.

“No, we’re not lost,” Lil said. “This kind patron just asked me to give her an extended tour.” Lil then made a motion with her fingers like she was handling money, implying that Pauline was paying extra for a more extensive private tour. The woman nodded and smiled at Lil like she understood.

Lil and Pauline scurried around the small building and made it into the city bus just in time. So far so good, Lil thought, proud of the old woman who had managed to get her this far. “We’ll take the bus as far as it will let us,” Pauline said. “Which should be just a few short miles from the US Embassy.”

“Thank goodness,” Lil said under her breath.

They stayed on the bus for nearly thirty minutes, traveling through the enormous city of Nairobi. The buildings were enormous. Had Lil not been so distracted by the lion on top of their jeep, she probably would have taken time to enjoy the juxtaposition of being able to see the giant skyscrapers in the distance while in the Nairobi National Park surrounded by zebras and their predators. Now, deep in the city, she found that Nairobi was not too different from New York—slightly less crowded, but still an industrial city full of its own special culture.

The bus made a stop, and Lil stiffened when she saw a handful of officers climb onto the bus. The men sat toward the back, and Lil could feel her heart racing. She felt Pauline touch her hand and shake her head to warn her not to make a move. “We get off at the next stop, and we do so quickly,” Pauline said, looking into her compact mirror back at the officers. “They haven’t taken their eyes off us since they got on the bus. They’re probably planning on nabbing us outside of the embassy.”

“So, we’re just going to get off at the next stop?” Lil questioned.

“That’s the plan. And do it quick,” Pauline said. “They won’t expect us to.” Pauline glanced out the window, and Lil felt as though the old woman must have been secret ops or something because she was acting like she had done this a hundred times before. “I see the stop coming up. There is a taxi sitting right there across the street. We bolt for that.”

“Okay,” Lil said anxiously, jumping up as soon as the bus started to come to a rolling stop. Pauline was just as quick as her, scurrying right on Lil’s heels. The officers jumped up as well as Lil had expected them to do, but there were so many others standing up to exit the bus at this point that it blocked them off. The two women darted across the street, dove into the taxi, and told the driver to head north.

The man didn’t understand what they were asking very well because he went east, and the next thing they knew, they were scurrying out of the taxi into a small Kenyan village just northeast of Nairobi. “You’ve got to be kidding me. Could you really not understand the word embassy!” Lil shouted as the disgruntled taxi driver made an obscene gesture, muttered something about Americans, and sped off.

“Ooh! Just look at those beautiful clothes!” Pauline cried, headed into the village. A small group of villagers, mostly children, greeted Pauline with smiles.

“Pauline!” Lil snapped. “What are you doing? We have somewhere to be!”

“Oh, honey, I hadn’t planned a trip to an actual village! Why didn’t I think of that?” Pauline mused. “Sometimes you just have to take what life is giving you and roll with it, Miss Lillian!”

“The police are looking for me!” Lil argued as a small child grabbed her hand and giggled up at her. Lil looked out at the crowd that Pauline was just chatting away with, and it made her smile slightly. Truthfully, as an African American woman, Lil had always wanted to take a trip like this. A tour of the African plains. See a village, go on a safari, experience the culture of her ancestors that had been completely lost on her. She had no way of knowing if she was specifically Kenyan or of some other African heritage, but the thought of missing out on this experience made her stomach churn almost as much as the thought of being caught by the police.

She joined Pauline by some of the group that were attempting to converse with the silly old woman who had come across their village by mistake. And Lil decided to enjoy every moment they would spend at the village, hardly allowing herself to think about having to get to the embassy at all.

7

Kendell awoke early the following morning after a very restless night. She woke up thinking about Lil and Pauline, and even about little Dot. She was worried. Did they even make it off Giraffe Manor property, or did they get caught by the incoming police? She decided to get dressed before heading downstairs to the breakfast nook where the other patrons were already gathered. They all looked beyond frustrated.

“Where’s Pauline?” Abella, Mr. Duffey’s daughter, asked politely. Kendell was certain the girl was just hoping to see Dot that morning.

“She still isn’t feeling that well,” Kendell said. “So, she’s resting upstairs.”

“Oh,” Victor, Abella’s twin, groaned.

“Did they find Lil?” Kendell asked, sitting at the table across from the Ashleys. She was surprised that she was the last one down to breakfast that morning. It seemed that no one else had gotten much sleep either.

“No, your friend is still missing,” Mr. Ashley said. “I can’t believe she stayed out in that forest all night. I mean, it’s just a giraffe preserve, so it’s not like there are a lot of wild animals out there, but still… I’d be afraid of getting trampled by one of those things.”

“Weird,” Kendell said under her breath, and she saw Abella shoot her a look like she was sensing something the adults were not. Abella just grinned and went back to feeding a giraffe now sticking its head through one of the open archways.

Kendell thanked Jina as she placed a plate in front of her. She helped herself to some breakfast, keeping mostly to herself while the group talked about their plans for the day. Just as the Duffey children were excitedly talking about going to see the train museum that the Ashleys had recommended, the two officers from the night before walked in. Kendell remained quiet, worried they might question her because Lil had arrived with her at the manor. But, instead, the officers spoke briskly to Jahi and to Jina and then remained with their arms crossed, staring down each of the patrons.

“What did they say?” Kendell asked, noting that Landon and Rider were both shaking their heads, already frustrated.

“The officers must insist that everyone remain on the property,” Jahi said. “They will conduct interrogations here as they continue searching for Miss Lil.”

“What!” Mr. Ashley exclaimed. “We have places to be. I have a business meeting an hour from here this afternoon. I can’t stay around waiting on you to find your escaped prisoner!”

Jahi kindly did not translate, but the officers spoke angrily, with an extreme sense of command. “They say you can either stay here while they do their investigation, or you can go to the local prison and speak to them there. They suggest you take up their first offer.”

Mr. Ashley quieted down, but he still looked incredibly frustrated. The officers glared in Kendell’s direction, and she did her best to pretend not to notice. She wanted to appear as innocent as possible, not wanting to make Lil appear any guiltier than she already did. One of the officers again spoke, and this time, Landon reacted before Jahi could translate. “What do you mean she’s gone?” Landon asked.

“What did he say?” Mrs. Ashley asked.

“They believe that Lil has managed to get off of Giraffe Manor property and has escaped into the city,” Landon said, fiddling nervously with his camera. “But, until they are sure, we are not allowed to leave. A Giraffe Manor jeep has gone missing, and they believe someone must have helped Lil escape.” Landon looked suspiciously at Kendell.

Kendell played innocent. “I was in my room all night,” she assured. “Don’t give me that look.”

“Well, you were the one who came here with her,” Rider said in Landon’s defense.

“Yeah, well, just because I came here with her doesn’t mean I was going to defend her running from authorities,” Kendell said, but truthfully, she had been quite in favor of that decision. She felt Abella and Victor looking her way with these little smirks on their faces. Do they know something?

The officers spouted off another warning in Swahili before leaving the room, and Jahi merely repeated the officers’ words about remaining at the manor. Kendell decided to excuse herself from breakfast despite the risk of making herself look even more suspicious. She felt the need to talk to someone about what was going on, so she pulled up her tablet and attempted to video chat with her boyfriend back home in New York. A few rings, and he answered. She smiled to see him; it had been over a week, which wasn’t too untypical for them with their usually heaving working schedules, but being so far from home made it seem like it had been a lot longer.

“Jack!” Kendell said happily.

“What’s up, girl!” he yelped, excited to see her face as much as she was to see his. “How is Kenya?”

“It’s amazing,” Kendell said. “I got woken up by a giraffe the other day sticking its head into my window.”

“Wait, where are you staying?” he asked, looking confused.

“Giraffe Manor!” Kendell exclaimed. “It’s beautiful. It’s this old mansion they’ve renovated into a hotel on a giraffe sanctuary.”

“That’s…cool…” he said uncertainly. “Um…how are you paying for all of this, if you don’t mind me asking?”

“I’m not,” Kendell said. “I met this woman, and I have sort of become her traveling companion. Her name is Pauline, and she’s been paying for a lot of stuff for me because, well, really she just wants the company. I’m having a lot of fun, but today, things have gotten kind of crazy because—”

“When are you coming back?” Jack interrupted.

“I don’t know,” Kendell said. “Pauline has a few more legs on her trip, and I’m thinking about tagging along for now since work said I could take the days off and—”

“Oh my gosh, so you’re just going to keep bouncing around from country to country with this complete stranger? Seriously, Kendell, when are you coming home?” Jack asked, and he sounded sincerely bothered.

“Are you at this again?” she asked. “Why do you keep giving me such a hard time about this? You are the one who told me that I needed to take some time to myself, and that I work too much.”

“Yeah, but—”

“No, Jack,” Kendell said. “No buts. You are the one who told me to take time to myself.”

“Yeah, as in a weekend trip! You’re being selfish!” he snapped.

“You know what? I called you because I wanted to talk to you about something, but you can forget it. I’ll talk to you when you simmer down,” Kendell said, closing the video chat.

She felt adrenaline rushing through her veins from the sudden, brief confrontation. They had been dating for years, and he had never acted so controlling. But he had not been a fan about this little impromptu trip of hers since the moment she told him. Now, full of energy, she felt a need to get to work. She was going to investigate. She pulled out her phone and sat down at the suite’s desk. She decided to do a little research on some of the guests staying at the manor. Knowing that the Ashleys had fully admitted to knowing Zachariah before coming to the manor, she decided she would start by finding out more about them.

After typing ‘Richard Ashley’ into a search engine, she didn’t find much. Richard was a common name, and Ashley was a common surname. So, she refined her search a bit and included Zachariah’s name. “Bingo,” she said. The Ashleys had not been honest about how well they knew Zachariah. Richard and Zachariah had been business partners from the get-go. Their tech startup had started in Los Angeles. The company had flourished in its first few years and they had opened up a second location in Detroit. However, Zachariah had attempted a hostile takeover, trying to push Richard out. From what the articles were saying, Zachariah had been pretty dirty, but Richard had hired a good team of lawyers. They split into two separate companies—Zachariah taking the location in LA and Richard the location in Detroit.

“They definitely knew one another well,” Kendell said to herself. “And they definitely weren’t friends…” She then refined her search even further, realizing that the two former business owners were probably not both in Nairobi by chance. She typed Richard Ashley + Zachariah Lot + Nairobi, and she hit the jackpot. “Well, well, well,” she said, skimming the article.

As it turned out, there was a large piece of land for sale in Nairobi, but not just any piece of land. The land was home to a single business building, another tech startup similar to the company that Richard Ashley and Zachariah Lot had started. The two former business partners had been competing for a business merger. “Mr. Ashley,” Kendell said under her breath. “This looks awfully suspicious.”

Kendell left the suite, heading downstairs where the Giraffe Manor patrons had gone off in different directions. She ran into Mrs. Ashley in the kitchen. The woman was making a pot of coffee with a new coffee pot Jahi had pulled out of storage. “So,” Kendell said to her, cornering the woman slightly in the kitchen. “What was that argument your husband had with Zachariah at the train museum about?”

“Nothing, really,” Mrs. Ashley said. “Zachariah just confronted Richard and was just being incredibly rude—”

Kendell cut her off. “So, it had nothing to do with the business merger in Nairobi? That’s why you’re here in Nairobi, right? To try to make a deal with the tech company that’s going out of business, am I right?”

Mrs. Ashley stiffened slightly. “What? No, of course not. Why would Zachariah and Richard get into it over that?”

“Um, because they both have cards on the table for the merger,” Kendell said. “And, as former business partners, I imagine a competition like that could probably get a little heated. Especially after the way Zachariah had tried to push Richard out of his own startup.”

Mrs. Ashley crossed her arms and glared at Kendell. “Well, congratulations. You know how to work a search engine. You better keep your mouth shut about this.”

“Why?” Kendell nodded toward the coffee pot. “You and your husband going to do me in too?”

“What!” the woman exclaimed. “Oh, you are out of your mind! We had nothing to do with what happened to Zachariah!”

“Maybe,” Kendell said. “But you sure were quiet about your previous engagement with him. You know that it was my friend who has been arrested. I hope you understand that I certainly don’t intend to lay down and let her take the fall for something I know she didn’t do. That’s not really my style. I’m not saying you or Richard did it, but you have got to admit that you two look pretty suspicious. I have my eye on you.”

“Whatever you say,” Mrs. Ashley said, pouring herself a cup of coffee. “We didn’t do a thing.”

“You say ‘we,’ but can you account for where your husband was when Zachariah was murdered?”

“In bed asleep with me!” she declared and turned around. “Stop poking your nose into my husband’s business. He is not a killer.”

“Maybe,” Kendell said. “But neither is Lil.”

“Yeah, but she’s the one who found the body,” Mrs. Ashley said, waving her finger accusingly as she started to walk off. “But you better watch your back. If you think I’m going to just sit down and take it while you throw accusations around, then you’re insane. I’m a Detroit native, and we Detroit girls know how to go a few rounds.”

Kendell laughed. “Are you threatening to fight me?”

“Maybe,” she said. “Just stay away from my husband, and don’t you dare start blabbing your mouth about whatever crap you found on Google.”

Kendell shook her head as she watched Mrs. Ashley storm out the door and onto the manor’s front patio to enjoy some morning coffee with her new husband.

8

Pauline and Lil were less than a block away from the US Embassy. They had stayed overnight at the small Kenyan village, and frankly, Lil had truly enjoyed herself—definitely not the way she thought she would feel about being on the run from a foreign authority. Pauline was quite a unique, astounding individual who knew how to enjoy herself in even the darkest situations. She had forced Lil out of her shell, and the two of them had truly had a wonderful time experiencing some of the local culture and cuisine.

Pauline checked her phone and huffed slightly. “My phone is about out of juice. I wonder if once we get to the embassy, one of those fellows in suits would have a charger for me to borrow?”

Lil laughed. “Maybe. I’m just ready to get there. I’m not really sure how this whole embassy thing works. Will they be able to get me an American lawyer or something?”

“Not exactly,” Pauline said. “They will probably set you up with what’s called a consular officer. Their job is basically to make sure the local authorities are treating you fairly and humanely during any sort of trials. They’ll set you up with a local lawyer who knows the country’s laws, who will have your best interest at heart and will try to move quickly to get the case dismissed if they can.”

“I’m going to get fired,” Lil moaned. “I mean, the airline has been making cuts lately. The flight attendant who can’t even stay out of trouble on a weekend getaway… That won’t look good when they start looking at our department for layoffs. If I’m stuck in Nairobi for a month dealing with court issues, I won’t be able to work either. I don’t have five years’ worth of unused vacation days saved up like Kendell. I actually use my leave time.”

“You don’t need to worry about that right now,” Pauline said. “Right now, let’s just get you to the embassy. Besides, I’m sure that your employers will understand that this was hardly your fault. You were just in the wrong place at the wrong time. And, when you’re cleared, they can hardly use this as a reason to let you go.”

“I guess,” Lil moaned. She then smiled at Pauline. “Pauline, as crazy as it sounds, this has been one of the most amazing trips I’ve ever been on. I’ve always wanted to take a trip to somewhere in Africa. You know, I tried tracing my ancestry once…and as you can probably guess, I could only go back so far.”

Pauline frowned. “I’m assuming you mean your ancestors did not come to the states voluntarily?”

“No,” Lil said. “I was able to trace us back to Virginia, but that’s when the records stop. I don’t know what my heritage is outside of guessing which plantation we came from. I always hated back in school when they would do this stupid Heritage Day thing. I went to a mostly white prep school, so some of the teachers there just didn’t get it. I didn’t know my heritage. My option was to either talk about black culture in America or to talk about slavery, and frankly, I didn’t like drawing attention to myself, so I always just talked about black culture. But I would get kind of jealous. All these other kids had to do was to do a search of themselves, maybe log into an ancestry website, and then they would be introduced to all this cool stuff about themselves. Kids would dress up in costumes. But, I never really got to enjoy that. Knowing where my family is really from, you know? Based on what little I was able to find back in the day when I still thought I could figure it out, I pretty much could just assume that I was from a certain continent. That was about it. I always wanted to visit here, Africa. Didn’t really matter which country. Just wanted to experience some culture. And you know what? I’m really glad I got to do it with you. There is no way I would have wound up in an actual native village if it wasn’t for you. Thank you, Pauline.”

Pauline smiled and straightened herself up. “Well, Lil, I am glad you shared that with me. I wanted you to enjoy this trip. Almost getting arrested for murder certainly put a damper on things, I’m sure. But, hey, I didn’t plan a visit to a native village. That only happened because you got caught bashing a man over the head with a coffee pot.”

“Whoa!” Lil shrieked. “I didn’t do it, Pauline!”

Pauline laughed. “Oh, I know, I just wanted to make sure you were listening.” Pauline froze, gripping Lil’s arm. “We’ve got company. Looks like some local authorities are watching the embassy’s main entrance.”

“Crud,” Lil said.

They looked down the street. The embassy was only a short distance away, but the street was full of at least half a dozen officers all scanning the crowds. Pauline grinned. “I bet they’re not watching every side of the gated fence.”

“Oh, yeah, good idea. Let’s you and me jump an eight-foot-tall fence onto US Government property. I’m sure that will go over well. I’m coming here for help, not to make more enemies,” Lil said. “Plus, I’m overweight, and no offense, Pauline, but you look pretty brittle.”

“Fine,” Pauline griped. “How then do you expect us to get into the embassy without being noticed by the patrol of Nairobi officers?”

Lil frowned. “I have no idea.”

“Then hiking the fence it is,” Pauline said. “And it’s not like I’m the one who has to get over the fence. They’re not looking for me. Ooh! I know. I’ll go in the front entrance, cause a little bit of a scene to draw the officer’s attention. That will give you time to get up and over the fence on the side without getting busted.”

“Great,” Lil moaned. “I’m not really looking forward to this.”

“Go team!” Pauline said, patting Lil on the back as the two women separated. Pauline headed toward the main entrance. From the corner of her eye, she could see Lil making her way around the side of the building. There was a large tree planted along the sidewalk, with a thick branch reaching toward the gate. She supposed it was probably easier to climb the tree than to scale the bottom half of the gate.

A Nairobi officer attempted to stop Pauline on her way into the embassy. The man spoke to her in Swahili, so Pauline just shrugged. “Sorry, I only speak English,” she said to him as a few other officers approached her. “Easy, boys, you’re getting a little close for comfort.” She could tell they were questioning her about Lil. “Hey! Back off! I don’t know what you’re saying!” she shouted, drawing attention to herself from both people in the street and a handful of men in suits on the other side of the gate. Pauline then started screaming, probably making herself seem a little insane, but so long as everyone was looking at her rather than the goofy woman climbing a tree planted along the sidewalk…

Two men exited the embassy, one appearing to be Kenyan while the other was American. The American man smiled at Pauline. “Ma’am, is everything all right?” he asked.

“These officers are harassing me!” Pauline shrieked. “I don’t even know what they’re saying!”

The Kenyan man in the suit smiled and looked at the officers, questioning them. The Kenyan diplomat then smiled and looked at Pauline. “They seem to think you have come from Giraffe Manor? Apparently, there was a young American woman who got herself into some trouble out that way?”

Pauline crossed her arms, but she smiled. “Well, I appreciate being called young, sweetie, but do I match the description?”

Dot began barking loudly, yelping and growling from her purse. The Kenyan and the American both laughed slightly and offered for Pauline to come inside to sit and get herself some tea. “What gentlemen!” Pauline called and then scooped her arm into the Kenyan man’s arm so that he could escort her.

The American and the Kenyan man both laughed and spoke in Swahili to one another on their way onto the embassy grounds. Just as they entered the main entrance, Lil came crashing into a bush. “What was that?” the American man yelped as a number of guards swarmed Lil.

“That would be your young American woman who got herself into some trouble at Giraffe Manor,” Pauline smiled, still walking arm in arm with the Kenyan man. “Her name is Lillian, and I believe she could use some help.”

“I think I twisted my ankle,” Lil moaned as men swarmed around her like she was some terrorist threat. Lil sat up and held up her hands. “Hello,” she said politely as she was pulled to her feet.

The men searched her, and once they realized she was unarmed, they were much more willing to listen to her. Lil was a little skittish at this point, so Pauline did most of the talking and explained how she had been arrested by Nairobi officers but fled when they realized they were not going to conduct a proper investigation. The kind Kenyan man who had greeted Pauline at the door escorted both of them inside and immediately set Lil up with an American consular officer. Pauline smiled. “You are just too sweet,” Pauline said to the nice Kenyan man. “Who are you? I don’t think I caught your name?”

“Jomo Kenyatta,” he said, smiling. “I’m very disappointed to hear how some of Nairobi’s officers have treated this case. I’m going to call the station personally to make sure that this does not happen again.” The man shook Pauline’s hand and then headed deeper into the building to make a phone call.

“Jomo Kenyatta,” Pauline said, grinning. “What a nice man.” She then turned to Lil, who was still seated on a nice, leather bench out in the hall next to her consular officer. She was looking a lot less stressed than when they had first left the manor. “Looks like you’re all set up.”

“Yes,” the consular said. “From what your friend is telling me, we could possibly get this case dismissed. She won’t be in Nairobi long if I have anything to say about it.”

Lil smiled from where she sat. “Thank you so much, Pauline, for getting me here.”

Pauline nodded. “Of course, dear.”

The American man who had first greeted Pauline arrived back in the hall. “Ma’am, Mr. Kenyatta has called for a taxi to take you back to the manor. He’s already paid the gentleman.”

“My goodness!” Pauline said, smiling. “What a kind person that Jomo boy is.”

The consular laughed. “You know who he is, don’t you?”

“Yes, he told me his name was Jomo Kenyatta,” Pauline said. “Such a nice young man.”

The consular smiled. “Yes, he is. But, so you know, Jomo is the Kenyan president’s son.”

“Oh my goodness!” Pauline shrieked excitedly. Lil laughed.

“Yes, you tend to meet some interesting people at the embassy,” the American man said. “I’ll walk you back out, Miss Pauline.”

Pauline said her farewell to Lil, wishing her luck on her way out. There was indeed a taxi waiting for her outside. “Do tell Mr. Kenyatta I said thank you!” Pauline said to the American man. He nodded as Pauline loaded up. She instructed the driver to take her back to where she had left the manor’s stolen jeep, figuring it was probably best she returned that to their kind hosts.

She said farewell to the driver, loaded up into the jeep, and headed back to the manor. When she pulled up to the manor around noon, lunch was being served out on the patio while the abundant number of officers watched her pull up. “Where have you been?” one of the newer officers shouted.

Pauline frowned. “I’m sorry. What do you mean?”

“We’ve been looking for you and your friend!” the officer shouted.

Dot started barking, and Kendell scurried over to the jeep. Jina was close behind her. She smiled at the officer. “Sir, Miss Pauline, I believe, is just a little confused,” Jina said, covering for them.

“Oh, did I wander off again?” Pauline asked, then smiled at the officer. “I forget where I’m at sometimes. It’s this old mind of mine.”

The officer grunted. “Where is the suspect?” he demanded.

“She is with Jomo Kenyatta,” Pauline said.

“Crazy old bat!” the officer snarled and then walked off, shouting in Swahili at his fellow officers.

“Who’s Jomo Kenyatta?” Kendell asked.

Pauline smiled. “A nice young man I met at the US Embassy. He’s making sure that your friend Lil is well taken care of.”

“So, you made it to the Embassy!” Kendell said happily. “I’m so relieved.”

“Believe me,” Pauline said. “So was Miss Lillian.”

9

Kendell was so glad to see Pauline again. Being in a foreign country on her own made her a bit nervous, and there was just something about having someone more experienced around. Pauline, albeit a little senile at times, had a way about her that just made Kendell feel more relaxed. The two of them sat down to lunch with the rest of the Giraffe Manor patrons. Everyone was on edge now after having had their rooms searched by the local officers. Now that Pauline had come out of hiding, Kendell was sure that they would search their room again. They suspected that Pauline had helped Lillian get off the manor’s property, but she had done such an excellent job of playing the part of the confused old lady that it left the men discombobulated about the whole ordeal.

Jahi and his family walked around the table, dropping off a homemade dessert for everyone to enjoy, and again reminding everyone that the giraffe-friendly dishes were in the blue bowls if they wanted to share. Some of the younger giraffes were making their way over even as he said it. Kendell and Pauline remained quiet, not wanting to say anything about Pauline’s adventure to the embassy just yet since everyone was acting strangely. Kendell was certain the quiet, discontent behavior was mostly because they were being detained until Lil was found. No one was speaking with them since they had been the ones to arrive at the manor with the accused. It was like everyone at the table was angry with them for ruining their vacation plans.

The Duffeys were whispering to one another at the end of the table. Mrs. Duffey had her nose turned up and kept rolling her eyes. Kendell listened carefully. Her French was incredibly rusty. She picked up that they were talking about African animals, recognizing the word elephant at one point as well as what she believed to be the word for rhino. Kendell nudged Pauline, who was sitting happily as she snacked on the pie and acted like nothing was wrong. “Yes, dear?” Pauline asked.

“What animal was it that Zachariah was talking about hunting while he was in Africa?” Kendell whispered.

“A rhino, I believe,” Pauline said.

Kendell nibbled on her slice of pie, trying to act like she wasn’t trying to eavesdrop. They’re definitely talking about Zachariah, Kendell thought. Mr. Duffey and Mrs. Duffey seemed to be arguing about something. Then, one phrase stood out to her. Mrs. Duffey spoke plainly and a bit loudly, probably forgetting that someone at the table other than her family spoke French. “Je suis content qu ‘il soit mort,” she said in an annoyed tone.

“Oh, really?” Kendell smirked, turning her head to look straight at the woman. Mrs. Duffey’s face turned red, probably now recalling how Kendell had spoken a bit of French during their first meeting. “You’re glad that Zachariah is dead? Why?”

“That’s not what she said!” Mr. Duffey yelped.

“That’s exactly what she said,” Kendell countered.

“It’s not like it sounds,” he said, changing his direction entirely.

Mr. Ashley put down the blue plate he had been holding up for one of the young giraffes. He turned his chair slightly and looked back at the Duffeys. “She said she’s glad Zachariah is dead? Why don’t you explain that?”

Mr. Duffey practically snarled his response. “She was just very upset about the way he had been talking during the safari. About hunting the rhino.”

“Yes, that was a bit troubling,” Mrs. Ashley said, crossing her arms. She then glared at Mr. Duffey. “And she was very upset about that, wasn’t she? I bet you were too. You are the animal rights activist, right? Would you be so angry about Zachariah’s plans for illegal poaching that you’d kill him?”

Mr. Duffey didn’t miss a beat. He rolled his eyes, crossed his arms, and slumped in his chair. “Shows how much you all know. You don’t get how this works, do you?” he asked. “I was fine with Zachariah hunting a rhino because he was going through a legitimate hunting company to do so. My company. Now that he’s dead, I’m out nearly two hundred thousand dollars!”

Kendell raised a brow. “I’m sorry, a hunting company?” she questioned. “I thought you were some animal rights activist?”

“I am!” he snapped. “It’s complicated… Well, not really. Here’s how it works. I run a wildlife sanctuary. We have rhinos, elephants, zebras, lions, all sorts of animals. We’ve helped rescue and rehabilitate dozens of animals this year alone. One of the ways we fund our sanctuary is through legitimate, legal trophy hunting. Old males who can no longer mate, or young animals who can’t be saved due to various complications, or even animals who pose a threat to other animals in the sanctuary because of territorial attitudes, we let people hunt them. We charge hundreds of thousands of dollars for creeps like Zachariah who get off on it. That money goes toward wildlife rescue efforts. Zachariah was a creep who wanted to shoot himself an animal to make him feel like a big man, I’ll give you that, but that bigshot attitude makes the sanctuary the money it needs to feed and aid the animals we rescue.”

Well, that information certainly blew Kendell’s mind. “So…by killing animals…you save other animals?” Kendell asked slowly.

“It helps stimulate the economy here in Nairobi too,” Landon said, coming to Duffey’s defense. “By allowing trophy hunting in sanctuaries, it provides more jobs for locals. Someone has to be out there monitoring the hunters and taking care of the animals. You see this sort of thing all over Africa. It’s one of the few successful attempts at actually saving endangered animals. Let a few guys shoot five or six animals that were going to be put down anyway for one reason or another, and you save twice that many and provide additional jobs for people in the community. Didn’t realize you ran one of those operations, Mr. Duffey. A cousin of mine lives out in Nigeria, and he works at a wildlife sanctuary that does something similar.”

“That’s so…weird!” Mrs. Ashley exclaimed and looked at her husband. “Have you ever heard of such a thing?”

“No, and I don’t buy it,” Mr. Ashley said, glaring down the table at Mr. Duffey.

“Of course you don’t, you stupid American,” Duffey said. “Americans think they can fix problems by picketing in the streets and making laws as though people will actually follow them. Poaching by locals is the real problem, Mr. Ashley. They mass murder elephants to sell tusks to people who believe they have healing qualities. But you Americans are only concerned about image. You cry animal rights and picket in the streets when you hear of one of your own killing a lion or whatever creature you love so much to keep in a cage at a zoo. But real change happens when money is thrown at the problem. We let people like Zachariah do their hunting so long as they pay, and I have enough money to feed an entire herd for months. So, no, I did not kill Zachariah. Why would I if he was going to write my company a check for two hundred thousand dollars so that he can chase around a rhino that killed another endangered rhino last week because he got antsy? We were going to put him down anyway, got it?”

Kendell crossed her arms. She wasn’t sure if she was buying this just yet. She spoke up and nodded toward Mrs. Duffey. “If Zachariah was going to be making you so much money, why is she so uptight about it?”

“Because she’s like one of you stupid Americans,” Mr. Duffey said. “Wants us to find a solution that keeps people like Zachariah from killing rhinos. But, like I’ve explained to her a thousand times, one dead rhino equals twenty living ones. That’s how this system works, and until we find something better, this is how the people of Nairobi and other organizations will continue to handle it. Kids, let’s go to our room. I’m done discussing this with these people.” Mr. Duffey stood abruptly, and his wife and two children followed after him.

Kendell and Pauline decided to return to their suite as well so they could have some privacy to talk. While Kendell pulled up information on trophy hunting on her phone, Pauline gave her the rundown on her and Lil’s adventure through the city. She told her about how they had woken up with a lioness sleeping on the hood of their jeep, and Kendell nearly had a heart attack at the thought. She imagined that Lil was going to have words for her next time they saw one another—probably something about introducing her to a crazy southern white lady. Kendell smiled when Pauline told her all about the native village they had visited, and Kendell was sorry that she had missed it. And, finally, Pauline told Kendell how they snuck past police into the US Embassy.

“It was just wonderful,” Pauline said. “And your friend Lil is quite a trooper. Thankfully, she has an American consular officer to help her now. She will be stuck in Nairobi for a few days at least dealing with legalities. But she probably won’t see any jail time. The consular officer thinks that with the right lawyer, they could get the whole thing dismissed.”

“Thank goodness,” Kendell said. “But they’re still going to need to narrow down a suspect.”

“Have you found anything about this so-called legal trophy hunting operation?” Pauline asked.

“A little bit,” Kendell said. “And what Duffey said checks out. That really is a legitimate way that some wildlife organizations run things. One or two dead animals a year can fund the entire organization, depending on how large they are. So, it’s definitely possible that Duffey’s company participates in this. I’ve just never heard of such a strange way of operating. I guess I see why he and his wife would argue about it. Talking about killing animals for sport, especially endangered animals, is bound to strike someone’s nerves.”

“Enough to kill Zachariah?” Pauline asked.

“Maybe,” Kendell said, thinking about Mrs. Duffey. “I just find it hard to believe that someone as little as Mrs. Duffey could take on Zachariah, even if she got him by surprise. I think something else is going on here. If Zachariah was really using Duffey’s company, then… Wait… Zachariah said he had paperwork, remember?”

Pauline smiled, and soon the two of them were sneaking into Zachariah’s room. They were very cautious to put everything back into place, but sure enough, there was paperwork regarding his trophy hunting permits inside his briefcase. Kendell skimmed through them, and eventually located the name of the wildlife preserve that had issued the permit allowing him to shoot and kill a specific rhino. “Mr. Duffey’s story checks out,” Kendell said after looking up the name of his sanctuary online. “Zachariah really was paying him so that he could shoot a rhino on Duffey’s sanctuary. There is no way Duffey killed him if he was going to be making that kind of money off him. And, I really don’t think Mrs. Duffey could have physically hurt Zachariah like that.”

“So that leaves the photographers, the Ashleys, and the manor’s owners,” Pauline said. “But I don’t really have any idea what sort of motivation any of them could possibly have for killing Zachariah.”

“The Ashleys did get into a confrontation with Zachariah, and they were competing for a company here in Nairobi,” Kendell said. “That’s definitely motivation. And they were former partners who split on not-so-very-nice terms. And the Ashleys lied, telling me that the confrontation at the train museum was the first time they had met him. So, they’re lying, and they have the motive.”

“You think you found your perp?” Pauline asked.

“Maybe,” Kendell said. “But we need to find out for sure.”

10

Kendell headed outside after putting everything in Zachariah’s room back into place. Pauline, stuffed from overeating at lunch, headed back to the suite to rest with Dot. Once Kendell made it outside, she saw that there were some new officers. One of them was out of uniform, but he had his badge and gun on his hip. The man was dressed in a clean button-up and trousers; he was clean shaven, and just something about him told Kendell that he was in charge and would be conducting himself professionally. She approached him, crossing her fingers that he spoke English.

“May I help you?” he asked as she made her way over, and she smiled with relief that she would be able to communicate with one of the officers without a translator.

“Yes, actually,” Kendell said. “I’m honestly just hoping to get an update. My name is Kendell McDonald. I came here with my friend Lil and Pauline. Lil was accused of hurting Zachariah, and I’m starting to get worried about her.”

The man crossed his arms, but smiled ever so slightly. “I wouldn’t be too worried about your friend. Sounds like she is in good company at the embassy.”

“Oh,” Kendell said. “So, she’s at the embassy?”

The man laughed. “Don’t play coy. I’m sure you knew.”

“Okay, fine, I knew,” Kendell said, feeling a bit defensive now. “But, to be fair, your fellow officers were not conducting a legitimate investigation. They just arrested her because she was the first one to find the body, pretending like that was enough to say case closed.”

“That’s why I’m here,” the man said. “When your department gets a call from the president’s son, they straighten up. Sounds like your friend Lil made friends with the right people very quickly.”

“Sounds like Lil,” Kendell said, smirking. “So, why shouldn’t I worry?”

“Because we are no longer looking at your friend Lil as a possible suspect,” the man said. “My name is Detective Mwangi, by the way. After President Kenyatta’s son called the station and complained about the way things were being handled down here, the station’s leading officer asked me in to come and straighten these boys up. I’m very sorry for the way your friend Lil was treated. She definitely should not have been made to feel like she had to run straight to the embassy. And, for future reference, all you have to do if you’re arrested in a foreign country is request to speak to someone from your country’s embassy, and a consular officer will be appointed to you. There is no need to attempt to evade police to get to the embassy. That’s not the case in war-torn countries necessarily, but in places that are friendly with the Americans… Wel, there was really no need for her to do all of that.”

“That’s good to know,” Kendell said, blushing with embarrassment at the lengths they had just gone to get Lil away from the local police. “But, why are you no longer looking at Lil?”

“Because I looked at the body and spoke with the forensic pathologist,” Detective Mwangi said. “Before Zachariah was bashed in the head with the coffee pot, he was in a fight. We found bruises on his arms. One bruise in particular is on his arm, and suggests that the assailant gripped his arm. You can see impressions of the assailant’s fingers. And, they’re very large. Plus, Zachariah’s fists are split, suggesting he punched and fought back. We are assuming that whoever attacked him is large and fit. Like every single man who was here the night he was murdered.”

“So you’re throwing out the possibility of a female assailant?” Kendell asked.

“After looking at the scene of the crime again as well as the body, I’m almost certain of it,” Detective Mwangi said confidently. “We’re looking for a man, which gives us five suspects. Mr. Duffey, Mr. Ashley, Landon, Rider, and least likely, Jahi. Our primary suspect at the moment is—”

“Mr. Ashley,” Kendell said.

Detective Mwangi raised a brow. “Yes,” he said. “Have you been doing a little detective work, Miss McDonald?”

“A little,” Kendell said. “I know that he and Zachariah are former business partners. They run competing businesses. Now their businesses are both looking to merge with a company here in Nairobi. And I know they got into a confrontation at the train museum the other day here in Nairobi. Plus, Mrs. Ashley has some reservations about his plans for trophy hunting. That’s a lot that makes Mr. Ashley look bad.”

“Have you noticed any bruises on him?” Detective Mwangi asked. “Because Zachariah definitely put up a fight.”

“Honestly, no,” Kendell said. “But, I haven’t noticed bruises on anyone, really. I haven’t been looking because I didn’t know Zachariah had fought off his attacker.”

“Well, do me a favor and keep an eye out,” Detective Mwangi said. “We have five suspects, really, and everything we have on Mr. Ashley is fairly circumstantial. He definitely has motive, though, and motive could lead us in the right direction. But, we need to be sure he’s the only one with motive. Everyone else has been acting very odd. I’m going to be conducting some additional interviews soon. The manor guests are understandably getting antsy. Now, if you will excuse me, I have some work to do.”

“Of course, and thank you, Detective Mwangi, for taking the time to speak with me,” Kendell said. “I really appreciate it.”

Detective Mwangi nodded and headed back toward a group of officers who all seemed annoyed that they now had to take orders from the detective. Kendell was glad, though. She decided to go grab her phone and send Lil a reassuring text on her way back to the suite, but first, she noticed a text from her boyfriend.

Still being lame, Kendell? When R U coming home?

“You’ve got to be kidding me,” she griped. She stormed into the suite in such a fury, it woke Pauline up from her nap. “Oh, sorry, Pauline,” Kendell muttered.

“What did you fling the door open like that for?” Pauline moaned, gradually making her way to the edge of the bed before throwing her feet over the side. She placed her feet on the floor and stretched a bit before standing.

“I’m sorry,” Kendell said. “I got another lovely message from Jack. He is being such a jerk! He has always been such an awesome boyfriend, but the moment I decide to do something for myself, he has completely flipped on me. He has acted like a total jerk ever since I left New York. It’s not like I’m going to be gone forever, just a month, maybe a little longer. He’s even encouraged me to take some time to myself! So, why is he acting like this? We don’t even live together, you know? It’s not like I’m inconveniencing him or anything.”

“I don’t know, honey,” Pauline said, rubbing her eyes. “He doesn’t need to be so controlling. You’re a sweet girl. You deserve better than this. But, you say he’s never acted like this before?”

“No, and we’ve been dating for years,” Kendell said. “So, I just do not get where this has come from all of a sudden. I’ve always been very independent, and he has always respected and appreciated that. So, it’s just so…weird. And out of character for him. My friend Brandon told me Jack has been stressed because he’s been putting in a lot of overtime, so that might have something to do with it, but he doesn’t need to take his stress out on me!”

“What are you going to do?” Pauline asked.

“What do you mean?” Kendell asked. “Are you asking if I’m going to break up with him?”

“Maybe.”

“I don’t know,” Kendell said, suddenly feeling very sad. “I don’t like this version of Jack. It’s very unattractive, and I don’t like being told what I can and can’t do. I might have to, but the idea of walking away from a relationship that I’ve put so much into just seems insane to me. I don’t doubt that he loves me and cares about me, but this is ridiculous. I haven’t even been gone for two weeks. He has gone longer than that without seeing me because of our crazy work schedules. So, it can’t be that he’s missing me too much or whatever. We’re used to going long periods like that. If he’s mad because I’m not working… Well… Honestly, that’s just selfish. I’m using my vacations days, for crying out loud! A paycheck is still going into my account each week. So, what is it? I just… I just don’t know.”

“Maybe you should enlist your friends to help?” Pauline suggested. “Lil certainly owes you after you and I got her out of here and to the US Embassy.”

“You’re suggesting that I have Lil spy on Jack to see what’s up?” Kendell asked.

“That is exactly what I am suggesting,” Pauline said as she sashayed toward the bathroom. She stood near the sink with the door open as she filled a small bowl of water for Dot. She exited the bathroom and plopped it down on the floor, and the little dog scurried over to get herself something to drink as Kendell contemplated Pauline’s suggestion.

“Hmmm…” Kendell pondered. “I guess it wouldn’t hurt, but that sure does seem dishonest.”

“True,” Pauline said. “But he is acting like a bit of a…a creep, really. I think trying to find out why he is acting that way is you trying to salvage the relationship instead of running away from it.”

“I guess,” Kendell said and nodded. “I think I will talk to Lil, but right now, I just want to shower. It’s been a long day.”

“Oh, you know our shower has a tub bottom with jets, right?” Pauline said, smirking while she pointed to the bathroom. “I got the suite for a reason, honey.”

Kendell smiled and headed into the bathroom. She closed the door behind her and set her phone down on the floor by the tub. She ran some hot water, then found a basket sitting on the bathroom counter full of bubble bath, foot scrub, lotions, and various scented bath soaps. She grinned. “Well, I am on vacation,” she told herself as she filled the tub with bubbles and dove in.

Instantly, she felt relaxed. She smiled and reached for her phone. She decided to text Lil about Jack. Lil was still at the Embassy, she learned, but things were looking good for her. It didn’t sound like she would be staying in Nairobi for any length of time after all—not any longer than the rest of them, at least. She would still have to stick around until the investigation was complete, but Kendell was able to assure her that the president’s son had put a rush on things and that a proper investigation was now taking place. It would be over soon, they hoped.

Now, the uncomfortable part of the conversation. Kendell explained everything that Jack had been guilt-tripping her about, and Lil of course responded with an overwhelming amount of support. Lil could be sassy at times. She was the feminist of the group, the one who didn’t need a man and always had her fellow woman’s back. To hear that Jack was being anything less than supportive obviously set Lil off by the number of swear words that came in her next text. Kendell laughed. Sometimes talking smack about your boyfriend was the best therapy, but she knew it was not the best thing for her relationship to make her friends not like him, so she defended him gently before asking Lil to keep an eye out when she returned to the States. Kendell still had a few legs left on her world journey with Pauline, so Lil would probably see Jack before she did.

Red, you know I got this. I’ll find out what has pretty boy’s panties in a knot.

Kendell laughed when she read the text. She thanked her, wished her luck while at the embassy, and then put her phone back on the bathroom floor before letting herself sink down deeper into the warm water. It was soothing and relaxing, exactly what a vacation was supposed to be. “Finally,” she said once her shoulders relaxed. “Now I actually feel like I’m on vacation.”

11

Kendell was growing tired of all the waiting around. Giraffe Manor was an amazing and beautiful place, but after being cooped up there for several days under constant surveillance by local police, its charm was wearing off. So far, the police had not been able to make the connections they needed in order to nail down a perp. Not entirely. Mr. Ashley was on Kendell’s list for sure; the man’s history with Zachariah that he had conveniently attempted to keep under wraps was in and of itself very convincing, but that was hardly enough to go on. The police seemed to be on the same page there, but Mr. Ashley maintained his innocence, and there really wasn’t much more to go on beside his history with Zachariah.

After spending a good part of the afternoon lounging around the suite attempting to kill time, Kendell finally emerged from her quarters in time to enjoy some of Jina’s afternoon tea. Jina had plates full of cookies set out in the breakfast nook, and pretty much everyone apart from Rider and Landon had come down for her tasty treats. Jina was an incredible cook; she also made some of the best tea. Kendell figured everyone else was starting to get a taste of cabin fever like herself, and so were desperately seeking some sort of conversational peace with one another. The Duffey children were half-asleep come teatime, probably from pure boredom. Their eyes lit up when they saw Kendell round the doorway. While she appreciated their smiles, Kendell knew they were just waiting on Pauline. Pauline’s dog had become a form of entertainment for the children that they so desperately needed. The giraffes were fun to look at and to occasionally feed, but they could actually chase the dog around and play with it.

As Kendell was sitting down, Detective Mwangi appeared in the entryway. After he had first arrived at Giraffe Manor, he had emptied out one of the open guest rooms and turned it into a temporary office. Kendell felt like that was the one and only thing the man had done since arriving, and it seemed like a waste of time. But, by the look in his eyes as he entered the little breakfast nook, she could tell he was ready to get down to business. About time, Kendell thought. Supposedly, this man was the best of the best in their area, and his slowness to get going had made her question that significantly. Mwangi called in Mrs. Ashley, saying he wanted to speak with her privately. The woman went pale, and her husband attempted to insist he come along. Detective Mwangi denied the request, explaining that he needed to speak with everyone individually. This made sense, and frankly, Kendell was surprised the local police hadn’t thought to do this just yet.

“I’ll be fine,” she assured her husband and followed the detective into the makeshift office.

“About time they started doing something other than moping around looking for your friend,” Mr. Duffey said. “I feel like all they’ve done is hold us up in here while they walked around aimlessly in the manor’s forests.”

“There has been a change in leadership on the case,” Pauline said. “They were just letting local police take care of it, but apparently, the local department received a personal call from the president’s son about their professionalism, so they brought in that Detective Mwangi fellow.”

“Really?” Mr. Duffey asked. “Interesting. Well, so long as we get out of here soon, I really don’t care who is running things. Don’t get me wrong, I love giraffes and could probably spend time with them all day, but I’m about to go crazy just sitting in my room.”

“You’re not the only one,” Kendell said sympathetically. Watching this investigation unfold was as agonizingly slow as watching paint dry.

They all sat enjoying their tea and treats, and avoided talking about Zachariah. They’d had one too many heated discussions since the man’s death, and everyone was worn out. Screaming matches could be quite draining, especially over something so serious. Everyone was simply done trying to defend themselves to each other. Instead, they all conversed about life in general and enjoyed the ability to have conversation instead of being cooped up in their rooms. The Duffey children sat on the floor, playing happily with Dot. Nearly forty-five minutes went by, and Kendell could see Mr. Ashley growing antsy.

“What could they possibly be talking to my wife about for this long?” he growled, crossing his arms in frustration. The man had started bouncing his leg impatiently, and he kept looking toward the entryway for his wife to appear. The man started to stand up like he intended to go investigate why the officers were keeping her so long, but finally, Mrs. Ashley returned along with Detective Mwanji.

The detective smiled at Mr. Ashley. “Sir, if you would come with me, I’d like to have a word with you.” The look on Detective Mwanji’s face was pointed, like he had learned something from Mrs. Ashley that was incredibly incriminating.

Kendell watched Mr. Ashley grow pale, then he nervously straightened out his shirt and followed the detective out of the room. The detective must have found something out about the Ashleys, Kendell thought. What could he have possibly had to say to Mrs. Ashley that would have kept them cooped up that long? “What did he talk to you about?” Kendell asked her.

Mrs. Ashley huffed and crossed her arms. “Nothing, really. He asked me a few questions and then just had me sit there while he did some paperwork. It was such a waste of my time and energy. I told him that too, but he just smirked at me like he couldn’t care less whether or not he was wasting my time. He better have a good reason for all of that nonsense. I’m so tired of being here! How hard is it to find out who killed that man? Surely they must have some crime scene investigative person who can…I don’t know…do a DNA test or something, right?”

Mr. Duffey rolled his eyes. “This isn’t television, dear.”

Kendell smirked. I see what you did there, Mwangi, she thought, recounting Mr. Ashley’s very nervous face. The man had kept Mrs. Ashley tied up for so long with one purpose: to make his prime suspect nervous. Mr. Ashley had motive, which automatically made him a suspect. Kendell realized that Mwangi was playing the Ashleys. He had taken them separately and one right after the other so that they couldn’t talk to each other about what he had asked her, and that let Mr. Ashley get in his own head about it. It would certainly keep them on their toes, and it would increase his chances of catching one of them in a lie.

But Kendell was still not convinced. Several more minutes ticked by, and Kendell lost track of time. She imagined that Mr. Ashley was squirming in his seat talking to Mwangi. It had been over an hour since Kendell and Pauline left their room, and Kendell found it odd that neither Landon nor Rider had come down for tea yet. The two men had shown quite a love for everything Jina had thus far created, so she found it strange they would not have at least come down briefly to sample one of her treats. With everything going on, a part of her was worried for the two men. Could the killer have struck again? Even if the killer had not, it was still a little strange that the two of them had stayed cooped up in their room. Deciding that she really hadn’t spent any time looking into the photographers, she rose to go pay them a quick visit.

Kendell made her way through the manor, eventually arriving outside one of the smallest guest rooms in the building, which was being shared by the photographers. She knocked, and Rider answered with a pleasant, surprised smile. “May I help you, Miss Kendell?” he asked in his thick Kenyan accent.

“I was just checking in on you two,” Kendell said. “Neither of you came down to tea, so I haven’t seen you guys since lunch. Just making sure everything is fine?”

“Oh, yes, everything is fine,” Rider said, opening the door wider so she could peer inside. A part of her instinctively jolted back. There was a killer loose in the manor, after all, so someone abruptly swinging open a door was alarming. Was he planning to grab her and yank her inside? Did Rider and Landon kill Zachariah? Maybe Zachariah hadn’t planned on paying them for their services, and they had found out and decided to take what they had earned? Had anyone scavenged Zachariah’s room in search of money after his death? She didn’t know, since she hadn’t looked with that in mind. But, she saw Landon sitting quietly across the room. Neither of them reached for her or made any sort of threatening move. No, they were just working. They had all of their equipment set up, and Kendell could clearly see Landon sitting at a small table with two laptops set up, working away and not at all interested in grabbing her and severing her head or whatever the true murderer might want to do now that they had a taste of blood. Kendell shook her head, realizing how quickly she had overreacted. This whole thing has me on edge more than I thought.

“What are you two doing?” Kendell asked curiously.

“Downloading all of the pictures we took during our safari,” Rider said. “Would you like to see?”

Kendell smiled and took up the invitation. The two men seemed rather down, but still quite proud to show off their pictures. Most of them were of Zachariah, seeing as how he had intended to pay them to be his personal photographers for his hunting trip, but there were a few of the other guests. “I would love to buy that picture,” Kendell said after sitting down for several minutes, enjoying the slideshow the gentlemen had proudly put on for her. It was a photograph of herself, Pauline, Lil, and Dot all squished together in one of the seats of the safari bus. You could see an elephant’s trunk reaching toward them, and they were all smiling and laughing like a group of old friends on the adventure of a lifetime.

“Of course, Miss Kendell,” Landon said. “What size would you like it in?”

“I’d like to have it framed in my apartment when I get home, so maybe an eight-by-ten?” Kendell asked. The men nodded and promised to get one done for her, even offering her a discount rate seeing as how they had all spent time together at what was now basically a fancy, giraffe-filled prison.

“I’m sorry you guys lost your big booking for the week,” Kendell said sympathetically. The two of them had seemed very excited about Zachariah’s offer, and she was under the impression they were not usually paid such a substantial sum for their work. The two men were just getting going in their professional career, from what Kendell understood, although their pictures were simply marvelous. In addition to taking pictures of guests, the two men had certainly taken the time to do some more artistic shots of some of the wildlife during the safari. They had also spent quite a lot of time around the manor, taking shots of giraffes as well as the manor itself.

Landon sighed. “Yes, while the loss of life is most certainly sad, we are quite selfishly upset about the loss of income we experienced from it,” Landon admitted. “We certainly could have used that money.”

Kendell continued to look through the pictures on the laptop. “You took some amazing pictures of the manor. You should show these to Jahi. He might be interested in purchasing some for himself to put on his social media pages,” Kendell suggested, and the men smiled and nodded in agreement. Some more shots from the safari appeared, and something stood out to her. In half of the pictures, Mr. Duffey was looking at Zachariah, and he did not look pleased. Kendell didn’t have to point it out for the two men to know what she had spotted.

“You see it too, then?” Rider asked. “The way he is looking at Zachariah in all of these pictures?”

There was so much hate in those eyes, like it was taking so much restraint to keep him from pouncing and strangling the man right there. “I sure do,” Kendell said. “But why would he look at him like that? I found the paperwork Zachariah was talking about. He was going to do his hunt on Duffey’s preserve, and Zachariah was going to pay him two hundred thousand dollars. According to the paperwork, he had already made his required down payments and he had another hundred and fifty thousand dollars waiting to be transferred to Duffey. Why would Duffey hate him for that? The money would have done wonders for the wildlife preserve that Duffey is so passionate about?”

“Maybe he doesn’t like trophy hunters?” Landon said.

“Duffey makes his money off trophy hunters,” Kendell said. “So, that doesn’t make sense. The man loves his animals, but what he was saying about how preserves take advantage of trophy hunters is a good plan. They get rid of animals they can’t take care of for one reason or another, and they get paid to have someone else handle the carcass. I imagine that kind of money to lose one animal goes a long way to take care of the animals they actually can save. Something else is going on here that has Duffey looking at Zachariah like that.” Kendell tapped her finger against the laptop. “Do you have this set up to access internet?”

“Go ahead,” Rider said.

It was a lot easier to do research on a laptop versus her phone; the more she thought about it, the more she realized she needed a new laptop. The one she had back at home had just about had it. She made up her mind to find a tech shop in Nairobi to buy herself a new laptop to have with her on her journey and to take back home with her. Just something about the bigger screen and the way webpages converted onto it made it simpler for searching.

She was convinced that there had to be something she was missing. Sure, Mr. Ashley had had it out with Zachariah over the company they were looking to buy, but there was just something about Duffey that was setting an alarm off in Kendell’s head. He seemed like a nice man, but there was just something in her gut telling her to look into him more. But how was he connected? What motive could he possibly have?

Finally, she found a connection, but it wasn’t much. The company Mr. Ashley and Zachariah were fighting over—the tech startup here in Nairobi—was right next door to Duffey’s wildlife preserve. So, what did that mean? Well, for one thing, it meant all three of these men were somehow connected, a fact both Ashley and Duffey had neglected to share.

Kendell thanked Landon and Rider, paid for her picture, and left the room. Before venturing back downstairs, she decided to do a little more snooping in Zachariah’s room. There wasn’t anything new that hadn’t been there before. The same piles of paperwork from his case. But, this time, she was looking with a different perspective. She dug through the paperwork, and now something stood out to her that had not the first time around. Blueprints.

The blueprints were of the tech company in Nairobi, except it wasn’t the same as the current building in existence. It was expanded. Kendell’s eyes widened. “The current owners allow Duffey to use their land for his preserve, but if Zachariah bought the land…he could push Duffey out…” Was it possible that Duffey cared so much about his animals that he would murder someone who was planning on building over a wildlife preserve? Did that make more or less sense than Mr. Ashley’s motive?

Kendell put everything back where it had been and headed downstairs. She pulled Pauline aside, excitedly sharing with her what all she had discovered—the pictures of Duffey that Rider and Landon had taken, the fact that Duffey’s preserve was right next door to the tech startup that Mr. Ashley and Zachariah were competing over, and the fact that Zachariah had blueprints in his belongings indicating that he intended to wipe out half of the preserve’s land.

When she was finished explaining this all, the woman looked shocked. She put her hands on her hips. “You only ordered one picture?” she asked. “Oh, no, that won’t do. I’m going to have to go talk to those boys myself and order me a few copies as well! How rude of you not to think that I would want one as well, Kendell!”

Kendell felt like palming her face. She shook her head. “Pauline, that was hardly the important part of my story. Were you not listening to me at all?”

Pauline huffed. “It was important to me! I would love some of those pictures. You know, I did take one lovely picture of us on my phone at the theater in London. We should certainly start taking more pictures, don’t you think? Oh, when this trip is done, I could make a lovely collage of all of our adventures! We have so many lovely places to go. I cannot wait! I’m a very crafty person, you know. I would just love to create something lovely in my home with lots and lots of pictures… Maybe I could buy some burlap and do something rustic… Ooh, I saw online, someone who took an old window and hung it on a wall, covering the glass with black and white photos, and it was just—”

“Pauline, focus for a second, would you?” Kendell said, trying to remain serious rather than burst out laughing at how ridiculous her elderly friend was being. Note to self, Pauline loves arts and crafts. “I’ve pretty much narrowed this thing down to two suspects—Mr. Ashley or Mr. Duffey. So, how do we find out if Duffey knew about Zachariah’s plans to demolish his preserve? Because, if he knew, that would give him a serious motive. If it was a secret, Duffey probably just thought his future business neighbor was about to write him a big paycheck for his trophy hunting, and that wouldn’t make much of a motive at all.”

Pauline paused to think for a moment, tapping her chin as she contemplated. She then smiled and looked over her shoulder toward where the Duffey children were still on the floor playing with Dot. “I think I know of something we could do,” Pauline said, smirking. “But first, I’m going to place an order for Jina to whip up a special batch of chocolate chip cookies just for us.”

“Chocolate chip cookies?” Kendell questioned. “Now is hardly the time for you to lose control of your sweet tooth, Pauline.”

“Oh, Kendell, they’re not for me! Well… I’ll probably have me a taste, of course,” Pauline said, laughing. “But I believe they’re going to be just what we need to crack this case wide open!”

12

After Pauline paid Jina for the extra treats, Kendell and Pauline snuck off to the manor’s patio to enjoy some fresh air. Pauline had casually asked Abella and Victor to take Dot outside to use the restroom a few minutes before. They had happily obliged—anything to allow themselves some more playtime with the small white pooch to pass the hours as they ticked on by. Once the cookies were ready, Kendell and Pauline brought them out to the patio where they could see the children were still happily playing with the dog. This plan was incredibly sneaky, and Kendell loved it. Something about how easily Pauline had come up with this plan led Kendell to believe that this was not the first time she had bribed children for information using sweets. She was a grandma and great-grandma, after all. She had numerous grandchildren and great-grandchildren to bribe if she needed to find something out about members of what she considered to be a very unappreciative family.

Pauline put the cookies down on one of the patio tables, and Kendell joined Pauline in nibbling on some of the freshly baked chocolate chip cookies—taking her time to savor the one cookie she had picked up, knowing the plan was to give as many of them to the children as possible. It only took about thirty seconds before the smell of cookies made its way over to the children playing only a few yards away. They were both incredibly polite children, so they didn’t ask for any of the women’s goodies, but they definitely kept glancing over and smiling at the smell.

Kendell grinned in Pauline’s direction. Sneaky old bat, Kendell thought, taking note as the two children’s game of chase started to wind down. They slowly inched their way closer and closer to the patio, and they started inserting themselves into Kendell and Pauline’s conversation. They were just casually chatting about the manor, nothing special, just something for the children to eavesdrop on. “Would you kids like some of our chocolate chip cookies?” Kendell asked after they had been lingering for some time.

“Chocolate chip?” Abella asked enthusiastically.

“You like chocolate chip?” Pauline asked, picking up one of the small cookies and popping it into her mouth. “Mmm…. So very good,” Pauline said as she reached for yet another cookie.

Victor and Abella both nodded. Victor grinned. “Chocolate chip is my favorite,” Victor said, his eyes widening in anticipation.

“Have at it,” Pauline said, and the two of them scurried up onto the patio, Dot yapping and following them closely. “Just don’t give any to Dot. They have chocolate in them, and that’s very bad for my little pooch.”

They had these kids’ full, undivided attention now. Good move, Pauline, good move, Kendell thought. “So, it must be very exciting having your father running a wildlife sanctuary. It must be fun being around all of those neat animals all the time,” Kendell said, hoping to get the conversation moving.

“Yeah,” Victor said. “But Papa only comes here once or twice a year. We live in France, and Papa doesn’t usually take us with him. This is only my second time in Nairobi, but I love coming to Nairobi. I wish we lived here instead of France. I love being around the animals all of the time. It’s so neat!”

“We only got to come this time because of Esme,” Abella moaned as though in physical pain.

“Sounds like you two aren’t a huge fan of the new stepmom?” Pauline asked gently, shaking her head slightly.

“She’s okay,” Victor said. “She’s just kind of boring. She tries too hard to be fun, and she really isn’t.”

Kendell smiled. Esme sounded like she really wanted to be a part of this family. It was a shame that the kids hadn’t taken to her. “It’s funny because she doesn’t really speak any English, so Victor and I can have secret conversations in front of her,” Abella said, giggling. “It makes her mad when we don’t speak French to her. It’s so funny.”

“Oh, that’s so mean, you two!” Kendell said, but she laughed slightly. Sounded like Duffey had his hands full with these two. “You know, she probably really likes both of you. Maybe you shouldn’t give her such a hard time?”

“We know,” Victor admitted. “But she makes it too easy.”

Kendell laughed. “You two are a couple of troublemakers, aren’t you?”

“Maybe,” Abella said with a giggle. “We’re not mean to Esme. We just didn’t want a stepmom.”

“May I ask where your birth mom is?” Pauline asked cautiously.

“She died two years ago,” Victor said. “She had cancer. I knew Dad was going to get married again eventually, but it just sort of happened really fast.”

“I’m very sorry to hear that,” Pauline said.

“I remember her funeral,” Abella said. “Mr. Zachariah brought that big bouquet.”

Kendell raised a brow. The Duffeys knew Zachariah that well? “Oh, yeah?” Kendell said casually, not wanting to alert the children into believing they had said something condemning. They wanted them to keep talking. “How big of a bouquet was it?”

“It was huge,” Abella said. “It was taller than me.”

“Did your father work with Mr. Zachariah?” Pauline asked.

“No,” Victor said, “but Papa always said Mr. Zachariah was just trying to butter him up.”

“What for?” Kendell asked.

“He wanted some land or something,” Abella said. “But Papa said the animals needed it, so he wouldn’t sell it. Papa cares a lot about the animals.”

So Zachariah had been after that land for a while, Kendell pondered. “So, Zachariah has been trying to get to the tech startup for a long time?”

“You mean that company that lets Papa use some of their land?” Victor asked

“Yes, that’s the one,” Pauline said.

“Yeah, I think Mr. Zachariah thought Papa owned part of the company since he used the land,” Abella said. “But the company just lets him use the land. Papa was worried about Mr. Zachariah taking over the company, though, because then he would lose all that land for the animals. That’s why Papa invited him to come hunt.”

“He was invited?” Kendell asked. This was a new revelation. From the way she had understood it, Zachariah had just found a place that permitted big game hunting and it just so happened to be Duffey. Knowing that Duffey had known Zachariah for at least a couple of years and that he had actually invited the man to come with them to the preserve, well, that certainly changed things.

“Yeah,” Victor said. “Papa invited him to come hunt so that he could talk to him about letting him still use the land once he takes over the company.”

“Interesting,” Pauline said. “So, who was paying for Mr. Zachariah to do his hunting trip?”

“I don’t know,” Abella said. “Not Mr. Zachariah. I think Papa was just going to let him hunt at the preserve for free. He said he wrote him a receipt, but I don’t think he ever paid anything. But, I don’t know.”

The cookies were gone. And clearly, that meant the children were done talking about this boring adult stuff. That hardly mattered, though. Kendell and Pauline had uncovered a major hole in Mr. Duffey’s tale. If he was letting Zachariah hunt without charge, that meant he didn’t lose any money from the man’s death as he had stated.

Pauline and Kendell took Dot back up the suite, and they hid out as they discussed what they had learned. “So, it looks like Duffey was fibbing,” Kendell said. “He wasn’t out two hundred thousand dollars. He was just trying to butter up Zachariah. He even invited him here to talk. I wonder if he paid for his room here at the manor? This didn’t really seem like the type of place a man like Zachariah would visit. It could have been Duffey just trying to win his favor this whole time.”

“But if the conversation didn’t go well, Duffey was out a rhino and a substantial amount of land,” Pauline said. “If Zachariah told him that he planned to expand the company into the preserve’s land, then Duffey just falsified documents to allow Zachariah to hunt for nothing. Zachariah already had the paperwork stating he could kill a rhino. So Zachariah would walk out with a free hunt and would still be able to push Duffey off half of his preserve, and Duffey’s animals would all suffer because of it.”

“Having his life’s work blow up in his face is certainly motivation,” Kendell said. “He might have attacked Zachariah to prevent himself from losing the land and to save the rhino he had promised him.”

“But how are we supposed to prove that?” Pauline asked. “It’s all just speculation, and all we have to go on is a conversation we had with a couple of kids.”

“I say we confront him. Maybe we can get him to confess?” Kendell suggested.

“Maybe,” Pauline said. “But we should be careful. He has already killed someone. Well, if he is really the guilty party, he has.”

Kendell nodded in agreement. “Let’s go find Duffey.”

13

Kendell decided that after the incident in London, she was not so willing to put herself into another dangerous situation confronting a killer. You only had to be chased around by a crazed woman with an axe once to learn a lesson. Make that three crazy women, Kendell mused, not really wanting her mind to go back to that incident at the Globe Theater. It was the stuff of nightmares. Instead of confronting Duffey on their own, they first went to Detective Mwanji with the information they had, deciding to work with the officers rather than against them. It was a nice change of pace considering that for the first half of their vacation, Pauline and Lil had been fleeing from local authorities. Now it was time to work together to put an end to all of the nonsense. The only problem was that Detective Mwanji had arrived at a very different conclusion. They were still looking at Mr. Ashley.

Kendell and Pauline found themselves sitting in Mwanji’s makeshift office, Dot sitting quietly in Pauline’s lap while the three of them had their private conversation. “So, you believe that Duffey killed Zachariah, for what, some land?” Detective Mwanji questioned. He didn’t seem convinced at all. There was simply too much pointing to Mr. Ashley, and Kendell agreed to a certain extent.

“It’s a little more complicated than that,” Kendell said. “It goes back a couple of years, according to the kids. He foresaw the company here in Nairobi failing, and he started trying to get in good with the Duffeys thinking that Mr. Duffey owned part of the land that he wanted to expand on. Except he didn’t realize the company was just letting Duffey use the land for the preserve. When Zachariah started trying to make a deal with the company, he realized that the land belonged to them and that he didn’t need to go through Mr. Duffey.

“So, the tables turned. Duffey needed to suck up to Zachariah to try to keep his land. Based off what his kids told us, it sounds like Duffey forged some paperwork to make it look like Zachariah was going to pay for a hunting trip on the property, but instead, it was just a gift from Duffey to Zachariah to try to win his favor. Our belief is that once Zachariah and Duffey both got here to the manor and started talking business, Zachariah revealed that, despite the hunting trip bribe, he still intended to kick Duffey off the property. Without that extra property the tech company was letting them use, Duffey’s preserve would be cut in half. Dozens of animals would be left without proper habitats, and that could affect the rest of the wildlife preserve as well. He would have to lay people off, reduce the number of volunteers, and a lot of the animals would be sent back into the wild where they could fall victim to local poachers. It could even affect the economy here in Nairobi, considering the number of people Duffey employs.”

Detective Mwanji nodded as Kendell spoke. When she was finished, he leaned back in his seat and crossed his arms. “What you are saying makes a lot of sense, but so does Mr. Ashley’s motive. Mr. Ashley was pushed out of his own company by Zachariah, and the two of them have been long-term business rivals. Now, they were both competing for the same merger with the Nairobi tech company. They even got into a verbal confrontation in a public place only a few days before. It seems that the two of them are equally likely to have gone after Zachariah. They’re both reasonably sized men as well, so it fits with what we found at the scene of the crime.”

A thought hit Kendell. Neither Mr. Ashley nor Mr. Duffey had any visible markings, nothing that would draw attention. Zachariah had clearly fought back. According to Mwanji, Zachariah had split knuckles and bruises all over his body. “What if they worked together?” Kendell questioned. “Those two big guys versus just Zachariah would explain why they came out mostly unharmed, though with Zachariah’s knuckles cut open, I’m sure he managed to knock one of them fairly well—probably somewhere underneath their clothing. If it had just been one of them, you would think the strong punches Zachariah was landing would have at least managed to get one of them in the face, somewhere where they couldn’t hide it. Zachariah might have fought off more than one attacker.”

“You think they were working together?” Detective Mwanji asked. “The Ashleys and the Duffeys do not seem to have known one another at all. Why would they work together?”

“Well, if Duffey failed to win Zachariah over, maybe he started talking to Mr. Ashley?” Kendell suggested. “Ashley and Zachariah were both competing over the same company. Maybe Duffey went to Ashley, saying he’d do what he could to help him win over the company if he promised to let him keep the land? The two of them… They could have been plotting to ensure Zachariah lost the business, Zachariah could have confronted them about it, and then it resulted in a beat-down in the kitchen, thus ensuring the Ashleys would manage to get the startup with the other company’s CEO down for the count, and Ashley would make sure Duffey got to keep his land for the sake of the animals. As far as I know, Ashley wasn’t planning on expanding the building in the way that Zachariah was, so Ashley wouldn’t need all that excess land.”

Mwanji nodded, a slight smile appearing on his face. “This makes a lot of sense, but, we need to prove it. This is all speculation, and I can hardly arrest and trial someone over mere speculation.”

“Well, how do we prove it, then, Mr. Detective?” Kendell asked, crossing her arms

“Oh, that’s easy,” Pauline said. “Turn them on each other. Make one of them think the other talked.”

“That’s risky,” Mwanji said. “But it’s doable. And quite clever, ma’am.” He smiled at Kendell and nodded toward Pauline. “Your grandmother is…a sneaky devil, isn’t she?”

“Oh, she’s not my grandmother,” Kendell said. “She’s a friend.”

Mwanji smiled and then called one of his officers for assistance, and they all decided to put the plan into motion. Most everyone was out on the patio enjoying an early dinner, so Kendell and Pauline headed outside to join them. Kendell could hardly wait. Even Rider and Landon had decided to come down for dinner after downloading some additional photos. Kendell sat by Pauline and began fiddling with the food on her plate. She certainly didn’t feel like eating knowing what was coming, but she didn’t want to draw attention to herself, so she took a couple of bites and tried to not appear like she had something to hide.

A few minutes went by, and Mwanji asked Mr. Ashley to come to his office for another interview. Mr. Ashley moaned as he stood up. “How many times is he going to interview everyone?” he questioned, shaking his head. “This is getting ridiculous.”

Landon sighed. “They’re never going to let us leave. They have no idea who killed Zachariah. Just talking to everyone is not going to do a thing to find out what happened. Not at this point.”

Mr. Ashley left with Detective Mwanji while everyone else continued to eat their dinner. “How many times have they asked you to come talk to them?” Mr. Duffey asked Landon.

Landon groaned. “Just twice,” he said. “It’s getting old.” Yes, everyone was growing frustrated. That was good for the plan.

“You’re not kidding,” Duffey said, shaking his head. Kendell was pretty sure they were about to find out exactly what happened to Zachariah.

Only ten minutes went by before Detective Mwanji returned…without Mr. Ashley. He had a serious expression, and his eyes darted straight toward Duffey with a piercing gaze. “Mr. Jean Duffey, you are under arrest for the murder of Zachariah Lot! Stand up!”

Duffey jumped up quickly, his eyes wide. “What! That is nonsense! I didn’t kill anyone!” he shrieked.

“That’s not what Mr. Ashley said,” Detective Mwanji spat. “He says he saw you kill Zachariah to try to save your wildlife preserve! I hope it was worth it, Mr. Duffey!”

Duffey’s fists clenched, a scowl appeared on his face, and he pointed toward the doorway where Mr. Ashley had been ushered off to only a little while ago. “That rat! It was his idea to kill Zachariah! I just held him down. He’s the one who beaned him in the head with the coffee pot and killed him!”

“Dad!” Victor yelped after hearing his father’s confession, and Kendell felt a knot form in her stomach. She shook her head. What kind of man brought his family on a trip where he planned to kill someone? She hoped it was at least impromptu and not some twisted, premeditated thing.

Mrs. Duffey looked incredibly confused, and she and Abella started speaking to one another in rapid French. Kendell wasn’t able to follow. The next thing Kendell knew, Mr. Ashley was being escorted back outside by another officer, seeming completely oblivious to what was happening. “You creep!” Duffey shouted in Ashley’s direction. “You ratted on me!” Duffey pointed at Ashley. “It was his idea! I just wanted to save my animals. This man was just in it for the money his company would make off the merger!”

Mr. Ashley’s eyes widened. “Duffey, you idiot, I didn’t say a thing to them!” Before Ashley could get the entire sentence out, the officer who had escorted him outside was placing him in cuffs. Detective Mwanji did the same to Duffey.

Kendell smiled. Case solved. They could finally leave the manor.

She glanced over at the Duffey children, and it made her sad. Mrs. Ashley was crying. Mrs. Duffey just sat there in a daze, attempting to get the children to explain to her what was going on. Rider and Landon just sat back, shaking their heads as Mr. Duffey and Mr. Ashley were led out front and placed into the back of Detective Mwanji’s vehicle. He slammed the door shut as everyone gathered around. “I’m very sorry,” he said to Mrs. Ashley and the Duffeys. “Please allow my officers to escort you folks to the local station where we will be taking your husbands. We will be sure to put you ladies in contact with a local consular officer from your countries’ embassies to help you through this difficult time, but your husbands both confessed. For everyone else, it’s over, but I know for you, this is far from through.”

It was finally over, as Mwanji had stated. While Kendell was relieved, she couldn’t help but feel sorry for Victor and Abella. However, Mrs. Duffey was crouched down next to them, speaking gently to them in French. She didn’t seem to care about her husband at all in that moment, just about those children. This was probably not the bonding trip they had in mind, but it sure worked, Kendell thought when Abella willingly accepted a comforting hug from her new stepmom. The look on Mrs. Duffey’s face told Kendell that this was probably the first time Abella had hugged her without being told by her father to do so. At least the children had someone who seemed willing to help them through this difficult situation. No doubt their father was about to go to a foreign prison.

The Duffeys and Mrs. Ashley rode off in patrol cars ahead of their husbands, as Detective Mwanji had some unfinished business at the manor. He spoke with Jahi and his family, apologizing for the inconvenience he had placed on their business. The detective then came over to Kendell and Pauline, shaking each of their hands. “You two are some very clever ladies,” he said. “Thank you for your assistance on this case. It seemed we each had a piece of the puzzle, but not the whole picture.”

Rider held up his camera. “Picture?” he asked. “No charge for this one. I’ll just print you a little four-by-six before you leave?”

“Sounds good,” Kendell said. She, Pauline, and Dot posed on either side of Detective Mwanji. The man laughed, demanding he be sent the picture as well. He left the manor, driving off with the guilty parties in tow.

Kendell sighed. “Well, this sure is turning out to be quite a vacation,” she said.

Pauline nodded. “Frankly, dear, I wouldn’t have had it any other way.”

14

Kendell sat next to Pauline while they waited in the Nairobi airport for their flight. She sat with her new laptop in her lap, Skype pulled up as she spoke directly with Detective Mwanji. It seemed as though she had made a friend in him during their adventure, and it was a friendship she was proud to have. He had been a kind, thoughtful, and very professional man during their stay. Much better than the initial on-scene officers who had done nothing more than chase Lil around the forest. “Hey there, Detective!” Kendell said excitedly as his face popped up on her laptop screen. They had exchanged information, and she was surprised to be hearing back from him so soon, but she was certainly glad to see him. The man had a lovely smile.

“Miss Kendell, I see you’re in the airport. Are you leaving us so soon?” he asked.

“Our flight is supposed to leave in about twenty minutes,” Pauline said, glancing over Kendell’s shoulder to get a glimpse of Detective Mwanji.

“I just thought I would update you on the case,” he said. “You did request to know what was going to happen to Mr. Duffey and his children.”

“Yes,” Kendell said. “Any news?”

“It is still very early to tell. He has a consular officer from the French Embassy representing him now. He is most certainly going to face some prison time,” Mwanji said. “But Mr. Ashley is cooperating. He has confessed that he pressured Mr. Duffey into helping him take out his competition. It seems this was most certainly a revenge story. Ashley still harbored some resentment for losing his part of the startup in California.”

“Do you think Duffey will get a lesser sentence?” Kendell asked.

“It likely won’t be what Ashley is facing; he is being charged as an accomplice to murder while Mr. Ashley has already confessed to being the one to deliver the fatal blow. His lawyer has advised him to be fully cooperative,” Mwanji said. “As for Duffey’s children, it seems his new wife is going to be sticking around to run the wildlife preserve instead of returning to their home in France. She tells me she plans to live here in Nairobi for a while with the children.”

Kendell smiled. “That’s probably so that Victor and Abella can visit their father regularly while he’s going to court and in prison. She’s quite an incredible woman.”

“Those kids are lucky to have her,” Detective Mwanji said.

“I think they would agree,” Pauline said. “Victor really likes the preserve, from what I could tell. His stepmom is probably getting a lot of brownie points deciding to stay out here for a while.”

“I couldn’t agree more,” he said just as a voice over the airport’s speaker system called for their flight to start boarding.

“Got to go,” Kendell said. “But stay in touch, Mwanji.”

“You too, McDonald,” he said.

Kendell closed her laptop, and she and Pauline stood up and headed to their plane. Eventually, they managed to snag their seats and were able to take a load off while they waited on the rest of the passengers to board. “Oh, I almost forgot!” Kendell exclaimed, pulling out her carry-on bag. She slapped on a sticker of the manor that read Nairobi, Kenya over the image of a giraffe, right next to her sticker of Big Ben in London. It was her new tradition—collecting stickers to put on her carry-on bag.

“Very lovely,” Pauline said.

“I hope you two weren’t planning on leaving without me!” a familiar voice called. Kendell jumped up out of her seat when she saw Lil boarding the plane. “Lil!”

“I made it just in time too,” she said, plopping down in a seat in front of them. “I thought I was going to have to travel alone.”

“Oh, good!” Pauline exclaimed. “I’m so glad you are able to leave the country.”

“Thanks to you two, I hear,” Lil said. “I spoke with Detective Mwanji, and he said you two helped him solve the case! How awesome is that?”

“Very awesome,” Kendell said, relieved to see her friend again. She hadn’t seen her since Lil ran off with Pauline to the US Embassy.

“Lil, would you care to join us on the next leg of our adventure?” Pauline asked.

“Heck no!” Lil exclaimed. “I’m done vacationing with you two looney toons.”

Kendell laughed. “I don’t blame you after what happened in Nairobi. Wait, where is this flight headed anyway?”

“Hawaii, dear,” Pauline said.

Kendell’s eyes glistened. “Hawaii!” she yelped.

“I’ve got to take a flight from Hawaii to LA and from LA to New York in order to get back home,” Lil moaned. “I am not looking forward to that.”

“You really don’t want to stay with us in Hawaii?” Kendell asked.

“No, I’m good,” Lil said. “I’m ready to curl up in my own bed in my New York City apartment and forget about the fact that I was accused of murder, had to run away from the cops, and almost got mauled by a lion in the process. Yes, New York is my town, and I’m ready to go home.”

Kendell nodded, certainly understanding the sentiment. “And…don’t forget?” She hesitated.

“Like I said, I got this, Red. I don’t know what has Jack being so crazy, but I’ll help you figure it out. It’s not like I don’t owe you one after helping me clear my name,” Lil replied.

Smiling gratefully, Kendell said, “Thanks.”

She sighed and leaned back in her seat. It was going to be a long flight. She drifted off to sleep shortly after takeoff, dreaming about sipping a Mai Tai on a beach while enjoying a beautiful Hawaiian sunset. What could possibly go wrong?

* * *

Homicide in Hawaii

Flight Risk Cozy Mystery, Book 3

1

“So long, Nairobi, It’s been fun,” Kendell McDonald said as she gazed out her window as the plane took off. She had just spent a few days in Nairobi, Kenya at Giraffe Manor—an amazing hotel on a giraffe reservation where she had been able to regularly dine with the beautiful creatures. Now, she had a long flight ahead of her, but Pauline had just informed her that the next stop on their journey would be Hawaii. She could hardly wait. The African sun had been lovely, and the food and the culture and the animals equally astounding, but there was just something about the idea of visiting an exotic beach that made her all the more excited.

She sat with her little carry on bag in her lap, a souvenir from London. So far, she had placed exactly two stickers on her bag to pay homage to her travels: London, England, and Nairobi, Kenya. Frankly, this whole thing had been a very impromptu adventure. As a flight attendant, Kendell had taken the job expecting a lifetime of adventure. Instead, she had just worked—going to places all over the world, but never stepping outside of the airport. It was a crying shame. That was, until she met Pauline and Dot. Pauline, the elderly woman currently sitting beside her, and her loveable white purse dog, Dot, had invited her along for the adventure of a lifetime. She was following the woman on what was essentially her attempt to complete a bucket list, and Pauline was kindly paying for flights and hotel rooms. The two had become friends, despite their age difference and their different backgrounds: Kendell was a liberal from the bustling city of New York while Pauline was a southern belle from rural Georgia. New York had been Pauline’s first visit on her bucket list, and the two women had met on a flight leaving the Big Apple.

Pauline fell asleep almost as soon as the plane took off. Thankfully, the woman was in the aisle seat, so Kendell and her friend Lil did not have to talk over the woman and risk waking her. Lil, one of Kendell’s fellow flight attendants, had bumped into them on the flight from London to Nairobi, and Pauline had invited her along for the Nairobi trip. “You sure you don’t want to join us in Hawaii?” Kendell asked quietly.

“No, I got to get back to work. Unlike you, I don’t have five year’s worth of vacation days saved up,” Lil said with a smirk. “I still can’t believe they approved you using all those at once.”

“My supervisor said they were worried about layoffs and having one less person walking around might give him some leeway to save some jobs,” Kendell said. “But he said I don’t have to worry about layoffs considering I have been there since the company started.” The airline where Kendell and Lil worked was only about five years old, and Kendell had been one of the original hires.

“Yeah, I doubt you have anything to worry about,” Lil said. “But I’m surprised to hear they are doing layoffs at all. They’ve grown a lot in the past five years.”

“True,” Kendell said. “It sounds like they over-hired and have more than they need at the time.”

Lil shrugged, then nodded to the sleeping elderly woman. “So, you’re really going to Hawaii with her after everything that happened in Nairobi?”

“Everything turned out okay,” Kendell said. A fellow traveler, an American named Zachariah, had been murdered during their stay at Giraffe Manor. It had certainly put a damper on things, especially after Lil had been accused of the murder and they’d had to get her to the US Embassy quick.

“Yeah, well, I suppose you’re right, but that doesn’t mean this old broad isn’t some jinx,” Lil said with a slight laugh.

“Pauline’s not a jinx,” Kendell said. “Shut up and go to sleep. We have a long flight ahead of us.”

Kendell curled up, leaning her head away from Lil and toward the window. She always liked this part about flights—the view of the clouds. It was very relaxing, and she drifted off to sleep. She stirred and woke up a few times, but for the most part, she slept the flight away. When they finally touched down on the island of Oahu, Kendell was giddy with excitement, as was Pauline.

“Oh, I just cannot believe you are flying back to New York!” Pauline complained to Lil as they stepped off the flight.

“I know, but eventually, your vacation has to end,” Lil said. “My flight leaves in, like, an hour.”

“Then let’s enjoy some dinner here at the airport,” Pauline said. “My treat.”

“I will definitely take you up on that,” Lil said. After retrieving their bags, the women headed toward the airport’s finest dining experience, a steakhouse. “Ooh, Pauline, you spoil me!” Lil teased.

The three women, and Dot, all laughed and talked about the adventures they’d had thus far. Lil particularly spoke about the incident where a lioness had fallen asleep on the hood of the jeep Pauline and herself had nabbed for their escape to the embassy, as well as the beautiful village they had visited. Kendell was a little jealous she had missed out on the experience at the village.

After enjoying their dinner, Lil bid them farewell and good times during their time in Hawaii. “Have a safe flight back home,” Kendell said, giving her friend a hug.

Lil nodded. “Will do, and don’t worry. I’ll keep an eye on Jack for you like I promised.”

Kendell frowned, but she thanked Lil nonetheless. Jack was her boyfriend, and he had been acting very strange ever since she decided to go on this little trip with Pauline. Very controlling and angry. He wanted her to come home, and she felt like something more was up than just him missing her. “Thanks,” Kendell said and watched Lil head off, her bags in tow.

The two of them headed out front to catch a cab to the resort, and that was when Kendell heard a familiar voice. “I mean, are you serious? There’s really no room at your place for me to crash, Nick?”

Kendell spun, and she spotted her best friend, Brandon, standing on the curb with a cellphone to his ear. Kendell tapped Pauline, and the woman glanced over. “I recognize that boy,” Pauline said. “He was one of the flight attendants when we flew to London.”

“Hold on a second, would you, Pauline?” Kendell said and snuck up on her friend, tapping him on the shoulder.

The man spun around, and a big smile came over his face. He spoke into the phone. “Nick, I’m not sleeping on your porch. Let me call you back,” he said, hanging up the phone. “Kendell! What are you doing here?”

“This is the next leg on mine and Pauline’s journey,” Kendell said. “What are you doing here?”

“Visiting my little brother,” Brandon said. “He lives here on Oahu.”

“I didn’t know that! Your little brother Nick moved to Hawaii?” Kendell asked.

“Yeah,” Brandon said. “He moved out this way a little over a year ago. He met a Hawaiian woman while she was in Jersey, and he pretty much followed her out here. She’s a professional surfer, and there is this local contest happening this week, and he signed up for it—her too—so the family is coming out to watch and have a good laugh about my idiot brother trying to keep up with professional surfers, but he swears he’s a natural at it.”

“That’s so cool!” Kendell said. “Is the competition here on Oahu?”

“That’s right,” he said. “If you’re going to be here, you should go.”

“Definitely!” Kendell exclaimed as Pauline trotted up to them.

“I overheard you on the phone,” Pauline said. “Do you not have a place to stay?”

“The hotel I booked lost my reservation,” Brandon sneered. “And Nick is already hosting our parents and sister. I kind of decided to tag along last minute, and that’s why I booked the hotel in the first place because he doesn’t really have any room for me to stay. They live right up on a beach, so the floor is basically sand, and they already don’t have a spare bedroom—everyone is slumming on couches and chairs. He offered me to sleep outside on his porch on some patio furniture, but I’m not really feeling that. It’s going to be so expensive to get a last-minute reservation on Oahu…”

“Oh, there’s no need for that, hon,” Pauline said. “I’m sure Kendell and I could squeeze you in somewhere in our hotel room. They could probably send up a cot or something. We’re staying in Honolulu here on Oahu.”

Brandon seemed to have a glimmer of hope in his eyes. “Oh, I couldn’t possibly intrude—”

“Pauline offered Lil her own bed in Nairobi, you’re just getting a cot,” Kendell teased.

Brandon smiled. “Well, okay!” he said. “You two sure I won’t be a bother?”

“No way,” Kendell said and hooked arms with Brandon. “This will be fun. Pauline, did you hear him say his brother is competing in a local surfing contest?”

“That sounds just lovely!” Pauline said. “I would love to watch a surfing contest! And, you know what? With your brother living here, he could probably tell us where to go to an authentic luau!”

Brandon grinned. “Are you kidding? We’re going to one tonight! You ladies have got to tag along.”

“Oh, that sounds just lovely!” Pauline exclaimed. “Okay, we mustn’t dawdle! Let’s get ourselves a cab so we can make check-in!”

The three of them, and Dot, loaded up in a cab, and Brandon continuously thanked Pauline for her kind offer. They arrived outside an enormous resort, and Kendell felt herself becoming giddy once again. There was a pool, spa, and a complimentary bus that would take people directly to the beach. Kendell simply could not wait to check out the room.

Brandon carried Pauline’s bags—anything to let her know how appreciative he was. Pauline got them checked in. They were on the tenth and highest floor of the resort. When they opened the door to their hotel suite, Kendell was blown away. Beautiful and elegant décor, lovely floors, and fine furniture. “Hey! The couch pulls out!” Brandon exclaimed and proceeded to test out the pull-out bed. “And, it’s comfy!” he said before folding it back up again.

“Great!” Pauline said. “There’s two bedrooms, so us ladies will each get our own little bed, and Brandon, you can sleep here in the living room. Ooh, I must go look at that balcony!” She scurried through the living room, and Kendell could hear her gasp once she made it outside. “Oh, Kendell! You must check out this view!”

Kendell hurried after her, Brandon right on her heels. The view was simply breathtaking. They could see much of the beach, and in the distance across the ocean, they had a slight view of one of the other islands and the enormous volcano. “Whoa,” Kendell said. “When you said you booked a room with a view, you weren’t kidding. This is beautiful!”

“Wow,” Brandon said. “Ladies, thank you so much for letting me accompany you!”

“Well, you have the room to yourself for a little bit,” Pauline said, plopping Dot in his arms. “I don’t suppose you would mind watching my little pooch while Kendell and I head downstairs?”

“Um…yeah, sure,” Brandon said. “Where are you two going?”

“Yeah?” Kendell asked. Pauline rarely included Kendell with her plans.

“Oh, well, we need to avoid jet lag. And a relaxing massage and spa day sounded like a good way to do that to me,” Pauline said, and Kendell’s eyes widened.

“You booked me a massage!” Kendell cried.

“Oh, you are just such a sweet girl,” Pauline said. “I just love spoiling you.”

“Dang,” Brandon said. “Kendell, where did you get her? I want one.”

Kendell laughed. “She’s a hoot!”

“So, we’ll start with massages, but we have full spa access,” Pauline said as they left their hotel room. “Mud baths, sauna, hot tub, and we can even get manicures and pedicures.”

“Fun!” Kendell said. “I can hardly wait. Let’s try to make this a fun, crime-free trip, what do you think?”

“We have had some very interesting luck on our journey, haven’t we?” Pauline said. “But, honestly, what sort of trouble could we possibly get into in Hawaii? It’s such a lovely and peaceful place. Oh, I just cannot wait for that luau tonight! I’m so glad we bumped into your friend. That is going to be so much fun.”

“Same,” Kendell said. “And the surfing contest? That should be fun too!”

“Agreed,” Pauline said. “What could possibly go wrong?”

2

Evening arrived, and Pauline and Kendell were beyond ecstatic. After their day at the spa, followed by a well-deserved nap, the two ladies had gone shopping to get some new bathing suits and covers. The luau, according to Brandon, would be taking place along a tourist-free beach area. Brandon had thrown on his own suit, a colorful neon thing, and a t-shirt. Kendell was wearing a stylish one-piece with lots and lots of lace in a teal color that complimented her orange hair and light skin. Pauline had gotten herself a black suit with a skirt, and she had thrown on a grass skirt over it along with a very tourist-looking beach hat, Tiki earrings, and of course, a matching bag for Dot. She had even gotten her dog her own grass skirt, and to finish off the look, Pauline had thrown on the leis they had gotten from the airport.

“Wow,” Brandon muttered to Kendell when he saw Pauline. “It’s like she wants everyone to know she’s a tourist.”

“She’s having fun,” Kendell said. They followed Brandon out, taking a cab out of the tourist-friendly area near the resort. After exiting the cab, Brandon took them on a brief walk through some neighborhoods, eventually locating a bus stop where Pauline could take a seat.

“This is where Nick said to meet,” Brandon said, checking the time on his phone.

Kendell pointed, spotting a young couple walking toward them. “Oh, wow, is that Nick?” she yelped, hardly recognizing her friend’s younger brother with his hair grown out to his shoulders and his facing having blossomed into a much older version than what she remembered.

Nick hurried over, all smiles. “Yo! Brandon!” he called, giving his brother a welcoming hug and punch in the arm.

“The rest of the family not coming?” Brandon asked.

“Yeah, they’re hiding out at the house,” Nick said, smirking. “Jet lag. Guessing you’re used to that?”

“Flight attendant,” Brandon reminded his younger sibling and then he smiled at the lovely Hawaiian woman who had walked up with Nick. “Good to see you again, Makani,” he said, giving her a hug. “This is my friend Kendell, a fellow New Yorker.”

Nick smiled. “Good to see you again. It’s been a while,” he said, then looked at Pauline. “Is this your grandmother?”

Pauline laughed. “Nope! Just an old friend. I’m Pauline.”

Makani giggled slightly. “I like her. She’s funny.”

“She’s really looking forward to the luau,” Brandon said. “So, how are we getting there?”

“Bus,” Nick said. “It will be here soon.”

They waited for nearly thirty minutes before a bus finally came zipping up the road, blaring music, and they could hear excited shouts and singing coming from inside. The door swung open as it came to a stop. “Makani!” a few people from the very sketchy-looking bus shouted out the window.

Kendell grinned as they were all invited on board. “Whoa, Nick, who are the out-of-towners? You know you’re the only city sewage rat we allow at these things,” the driver said, smirking at Kendell and Pauline in good fun.

Nick shook his head, but he had a smile on his face. “This is my brother, Brandon. He’s here to watch me fall on my butt at the surfing contest.”

“That sounds about right,” the driver said and fist-bumped Brandon on his way through. He winked at Kendell. “How about the pretty ginger?”

“I’m friends with Brandon,” Kendell said.

“Aww, man, we got ourselves another Jersey rat!” the driver called.

“Ooh, don’t you dare! I’m not Jersey slum like these boys,” Kendell said. “New York City, baby, born and raised.”

“Dang, girl!” the driver said, hooting and raving. The crowd laughed as Kendell plopped down in an empty seat.

“What about you, Mama?” the driver asked Pauline as she made her way up the steps.

“I ain’t no city girl,” she said.

“Ah!” the driver shouted in excitement. “You hear that accent? We got ourselves a southerner! Ooh, where you from? Bama?”

“I ain’t that redneck!” Pauline called, reaching the energy of the driver. “I’m a Georgia peach, hun, born and raised, and we Georgia girls know how to have a good time.”

“Dang!” the driver called, yanking the bus door shut. He sped off, and the bus shook with each turn he made down the backroads. The man’s voice spoke over the bus’s screechy intercom system. “Ladies and gents, we have ourselves some newbies tonight, so I’m going to do my spiel.”

“Boo!” a few people shouted, laughing and just having fun giving each other a hard time.

“Aw, don’t give me that, Luke-ie boy!” the driver called. “Aloha, folks, the name’s Johnny, and I’m gonna be your driver this evening! Now, city folks and southern belles, this is not your mama’s luau you get from those bogus resorts, no. This one’s au-then-tic. We are headed to Ikaika!”

The whole bus began stomping their feet and shouting Ikaika like it meant something, and Pauline and Kendell exchanged curious glances. “I haven’t read about a place called Ikaika,” Pauline whispered to Kendell.

Nick turned in his seat, smiling back at Pauline and Kendell. “Ikaika is not a place. It’s the owner of our luau local. He throws the best luau at his bar on the beach.”

“Ooh, lovely!” Pauline said.

Johnny, the driver, continued. “Folks, the bus will be leaving whenever I feel sober enough to drive us all home tonight, because you better believe this driver is downing The Ikaika’s Special as soon as we get there.” The crowd cheered, laughed, and clapped. Johnny laughed into the intercom. “But, in all seriousness, folks, the bus will leave whenever I feel the need, so if you got some place to go, make sure you got a ride out, because I party late! Now, Ikaika’s is the place to be, folks. It is the surfer hangout, in case you haven’t heard, so be prepared to talk waves with every other person you bump into tonight including myself, as I intend to take home the gold this weekend, Makani!”

“Not in your life, Johnny!” Makani shouted, and the whole bus broke out into a roar of laughter.

“Hold on tight, everyone, this is going to be a bumpy ride!” Johnny called, putting up his intercom speaker and zipping off-road. The bus bounced and jerked, and Kendell and Pauline gripped the seat in front of them, laughing as they were tossed about.

Eventually, the bus pulled down onto the beach. The sun was setting over the horizon, and Kendell could make out a small bar that seemed to be in the middle of nowhere. There were several other rinky-dink buses parked all along the edge of the tree line, and there were fire pits already blazing all up and down the beach. There was music blasting, people dancing, and general merriment.

“Oh, this is going to be so much fun,” Pauline said as everyone unloaded. Several people from the bus went straight for the water while there was some daylight left, surfboards in tow.

Johnny gave Nick a friendly shove on their way out. “Hey, looking forward to surfing circles around you this weekend!” Johnny teased, twirling his bus keys around.

“Yeah, right,” Nick said. “My girl is the best of the best, and she’s been training me.”

Makani elbowed Nick. “You still suck, baby.”

“Geez, thanks,” Nick said, shaking his head and leading Kendell and the others to the outdoor bar.

“Welcome!” a loud, booming voice called out. A round, dark Hawaiian man stood behind the bar, holding out his arms happily.

“Ikaika!” Nick called. “Hey, man, this is my brother, Brandon.”

“More folks from Jersey?” Ikaika smiled.

“I’m from Jersey,” Brandon said. “This is my friend Kendell and her friend Pauline. Kendell’s a New York native, and her friend Pauline here is from Georgia.”

“Well, welcome to Oahu, ladies,” Ikaika said, pouring them some drinks. “First round’s on Ikaika! E komo mai!”

“Aw, such a gentleman!” Pauline exclaimed, willingly taking her free drink.

Kendell sat at the bar, smiling happily as she watched the surfers. “You didn’t bring a board, Makani?” Kendell asked.

“She’s been training nonstop,” Nick said. “Getting ready for the competition. She’s guaranteed to win.”

“I don’t know about that, Nick,” Makani said, blushing.

“You’re a natural,” Ikaika said. “This girl has been surfing these beaches since she was a toddler.”

“Hey!” a voice called from across the bar, and Kendell looked up to see a young man scowling their way. He was tall, muscular yet slender, and he was coated in a layer of sand over his wetsuit. He had just leaned his surfboard against the outside of the bar.

“Bane,” Makani groaned under her breath.

“Friend of yours?” Kendell muttered, taking a sip of her drink.

“Ex-boyfriend,” she said, and Kendell could see Nick rolling his eyes as the man made his way over.

“This is a tourist-free spot,” Bane hissed. “Locals only.”

“Relax, Bane,” Nick said. “This is my brother and his friends.”

“Tourist-free means tourist-free,” Bane said, glaring in Kendell and Pauline’s direction.

“Yeah, you tried to say the same thing about Nick,” Makani said, rolling her eyes.

“Hey, Bane,” Ikaika said, slamming a drink down on his counter. “Bane, this is my beach, kid. You don’t make the rules. This place is tourist-free, but these folks are Nick’s ohana from home. E hana me ka ha`aha`a, am I right?”

“E hana me ka ha`aha`a,” Nick said.

“Oh, shut up, Nick,” Bane said, snagging his board and heading back on the beach. “This place isn’t what it used to be, Ikaika.”

“Then go somewhere more to your liking,” Ikaika warned, and Bane ignored him on his way out.

“Well, he’s pleasant,” Kendell muttered.

“He got too competitive,” Makani said. “I dumped him because he didn’t like it when I started competing against him. They started letting women compete against the men, and he got all misogynistic about it. He was just mad when I won. And he doesn’t like tourists. You should have seen his reaction when I brought Nick home after my trip to New York.”

“He sounds fun,” Pauline said.

At the end of a bar, there was a man sitting quietly, head slumped down. Kendell continued drinking and chatting with Pauline, Brandon, and Nick, but Makani headed over to the quiet man and spoke with him for a moment. She ordered some food from Ikaika for the man before heading back over. She asked Ikaika if he had a spare board, which of course he did, and Makani decided to catch a couple of waves before the sun went down.

Kendell nodded toward the sad young man in the corner whom Makani had bought food for. “That’s just Mikey,” Nick said, shaking his head. “Homeless guy who hangs around. He was on drugs, but he’s gotten clean and is looking for a job. Makani has been helping him out—getting him clothes for interviews, that sort of thing.”

“That’s really sweet of her,” Kendell said. “Sounds like you got a real winner there, Nick.”

Nick smiled and gazed out toward the beach where Makani was swimming out to the water on Ikaika’s board—apparently unable to resist the ocean even after leaving her board behind. “I definitely do,” Nick said. Brandon elbowed him, giving him a hard time like brothers do.

“I certainly hope so,” Brandon said. “You moved across the country for her!”

Nick laughed. “Yeah, well, I can’t help it.”

“You are too sweet,” Pauline said to Nick. “Such a sweet boy.”

Dot started barking, and Kendell could see Bane scowling from the beach. “Creep,” Kendell muttered under her breath.

They continued on with their evening, partying and generally having a good time. They danced, watched a few dancers who worked for Ikaika, and had an incredible, traditional Hawaiian dinner. As Johnny had warned, he liked to stay late, and he was their ride home. Kendell was quite surprised to see that Pauline was still going strong—dancing, laughing, and conversing with the locals. The woman, despite her age, was a twenty-something at heart. She did cut herself off after the one free drink, but that didn’t keep her from having a good time.

At last, Johnny called over a megaphone for those wanting a ride, and everyone scurried onto the bus. Brandon was laughing, picking fun at his brother on their way back to the bus stop. On their way, Pauline called for a cab to meet them back at the bus stop so they wouldn’t have to walk. It had been a good evening, and Kendell was really looking forward to the rest of her Hawaiian vacation.

3

Kendell awoke completely exhausted the following morning, already making up her mind that it was going to be a day hanging around the resort rather than a full day doing tours or whatever else Pauline had in mind. She needed some time to recoup after the flight the day before as well as the late-night luau, so she was hoping that Pauline would feel the same. If anything, Kendell decided, she would wander down to the beach and lay out on a towel all day. She was looking forward to her day a she rolled out of bed, only to have her day start out sour with a stream of text messages from her boyfriend Jack.

“You’ve got to be kidding me,” she moaned, picking up her phone and sliding through the texts. Basically, he wanted her to come home and end her vacation. It made zero sense to her, considering that Jack was always encouraging her to take a break; however, the moment she actually decided to take up the suggestion, he had had a change of heart. Suddenly, Jack felt that she was being selfish, and it was driving Kendell crazy. Five years working for the airlines, and she had never taken a single vacation day. Maybe one or two sick days because some people just couldn’t avoid flu season, but that was all. She was committed to her job to the extreme, and after this year, her vacation days would no longer roll over. Her supervisor had been kind enough to let her spend them all at once, which she certainly hadn’t expected, but that didn’t seem to matter to Jack. It didn’t matter that she was exhausted. It didn’t matter that she was finally doing something for herself. And he wasn’t even giving her much of a reason she shouldn’t do it.

Kendell sent Jack a quick text, gently telling him to back off, and then put her phone away in her bag. She combed her hair, threw on her new bathing suit, and put her cover on. The cover had been a gift from Pauline that she had nabbed from one of the resort’s numerous gift shops. It was very cute and lacy, much like the bathing suit underneath, and was a lovely off-white that complimented her curves. Very Kendell, she felt.

She slipped out of her bedroom, where she saw that Brandon was already dressed in his swim shorts and t-shirt, ready for a beach day. “Pauline up yet?” Kendell asked.

“She’s downstairs hitting up the complimentary breakfast,” he said, laughing. “She’s in her swimsuit too, and she said she’d save us a seat at breakfast.”

“Awesome!” Kendell said, joining Brandon in his laughter. “Pauline sure does love her complimentary breakfasts. She won’t book a hotel unless they offer free food.”

“That’s my kind of girl,” Brandon said.

“I think she’s a little old for you, Brandon,” Kendell teased.

The two headed downstairs, and sure enough, they found Pauline sitting with Dot at a table, several plates full of food in front of her. “You’re a mess,” Kendell said when she saw Pauline, and the older woman laughed. “I’m going to go make my own plate.” Kendell headed toward the buffet line, filing her plate with an orange, a pancake, and some yogurt. Brandon made himself a plate as well, and the two of them joined Pauline and Dot at her table.

“So, what’s the plan for today?” Pauline asked.

“Beach,” Kendell said. “I’m exhausted, and sitting and lounging around on the beach sounds like a good plan to me. Maybe we could do tours tomorrow?”

“That sounds lovely,” Pauline said. “I’m not as young as I used to be, and that luau wore me out last night.”

“Yeah, we were stuck there pretty late,” Brandon said, rubbing his eyes and attempting to hold back a yawn. “Well, if you ladies are interested, Nick invited us to a private beach. You can be lazy there if you’d like, and it won’t be as crowded with other tourists.”

“That sounds just lovely!” Pauline exclaimed. “Hanging out with the locals! That’s what destination vacations are all about.”

“Yeah, that sounds good to me too!” Kendell said, smiling. “Last night hanging out with the locals was a lot of fun, well, except for that Bane guy. Everyone was really nice, but he acted like we were invading his space.”

“We probably were a little,” Brandon said. “I mean, we’re from New York. You and I both know what it’s like when tourists take over a local hangout, right?”

“Yeah, I guess that’s true,” Kendell said, slumping slightly. “But he was pretty rude about it. He was even mean to your brother, and he lives here.”

“True,” Brandon said. “But apparently, Nick is dating his ex, so that is probably a reason behind the callousness a little bit.”

“Boo-hoo,” Pauline said, shaking her head. “Well, I say we get a move on! I cannot wait to head to the beach!”

Once Kendell and Brandon finished up their breakfasts, the three of them headed out with Dot in tow. They were able to catch a public bus deep into the outskirts of Honolulu, where Nick lived a short distance from a private beach. Kendell smiled, spying Brandon’s parents and sister lounging out on the front porch. “Kendell!” Brandon’s younger sister, a younger twenty-something named Trixie, jumped up. Kendell smiled, glad to elicit such an excited response. She didn’t know the girl particularly well, but they had gotten along and had gone on a couple of shopping excursions together since she had befriended Brandon. Kendell had also attended a Christmas party Brandon’s parents had hosted once, so she knew the family fairly well.

They talked for a bit until Nick came out of his little Hawaiian shack. “Morning!” Nick called. “Man, I’ve been waiting on you three forever. I snagged some of our spare boards and stuffed them into the car; I want to see if Brandon can hold his own.”

“Yikes,” Brandon groaned, but he laughed. “Yeah, well, I’m sure if you’ve managed to become good enough to join a local surfing contest, then it’s not that hard.”

“Low, man,” Nick said, smirking. “Mom, Dad, you two change your mind yet about coming?”

“We’ll catch up with you later,” their mother said. “I’m still on Jersey time.”

Nick held out his hand to help Pauline into the passengers’ seat of the little beat-up pickup; the back of the truck was loaded down with surfboards, and he had been thoughtful enough to throw a good beach chair with an oversized umbrella in the back for Pauline. Kendell crowded into the back seat of the truck with Brandon and Trixie, and soon they were off.

“You guys are going to love this beach,” Nick said. “The waves are awesome. It’s a big surfers’ hangout. But, there is this one spot nearby that’s really tame because of some rocks in the distance that makes almost a beachy pond area for those less enthusiastic swimmers. Surfers bring their families here—stick their kids in the chill area of the water so that they can catch some waves.”

“If the waves are as big as you say, I might be hanging out in the kiddie pond!” Trixie joked. “I don’t know how much I can handle getting tossed about in the ocean. I’m not the best swimmer.”

“You get used to it after a while,” Nick said.

“So, where is Makani this morning?” Kendell asked.

Nick smiled. “She left the house before sunrise this morning. Went for a jog before heading to the beach. She wanted to get there early and get a little time in. She doesn’t want to overwork herself this close to competition, but she wants to make sure she’s prepped too, so she decided to put in the extra early morning practice.”

“So, she’s really a professional surfer?” Kendell questioned. “Like, how good is she?”

“She’s one of Hawaii’s best,” Nick said proudly. “She can surf circles around some of the guys, too. You guys ever heard of Bethany Hamilton?”

Kendell thought for a moment. “Yeah, she’s that surfer who lost her arm to a shark attack. They did a movie on her, right?”

“Right,” Nick said. “She’s from Kauai, one of the islands. Makani was in a magazine alongside her once. They did a story on local female surfers, and Makani and couple other locals were in there with Bethany. Makani met her, and I got to meet her too. It was really cool. Makani is becoming a sort of celebrity around here in her own right because of her surfing.”

“Why is she dating you, though? That’s the real question,” Trixie teased, and Nick reached back and punched her in the leg.

Soon, after only a brief drive, they were pulling up on a gravel parking lot. They piled out of the car, and Nick frowned. He nodded toward a parked ambulance.

“Hope everyone’s okay,” Brandon said.

They walked through some tress, coming out onto the beach, where they saw a number of surfers standing around. There were some paramedics and a police officer standing over someone, and Nick abruptly broke away from them to rush over. Brandon and Trixie hurried after him while Kendell remained back with Pauline. The older woman did her best to scurry, but the sandy beach was not the easiest thing for a woman her age to sprint on.

It was still early in the morning. There were only about four or five surfers there, and they were all gathered around the paramedics. One of the surfers glanced up and spotted Kendell and Pauline heading over, and he separated from the group. After a moment, Kendell recognized the man as Johnny, the giddy driver from their luau the night before. He looked sad and a bit shaken.

“What happened?” Kendell asked.

“I don’t know. I just got here,” Johnny said, and Kendell glanced over to see Nick in a fit. Johnny lowered his head. “It’s Makani,” he said. “Some of the surfers who got here before me found her amongst the rocks. Man, she was smart… She knew better than to start surfing these waters before anyone else showed! You don’t surf along out this way, man! She’s so stubborn!”

“Oh, no,” Kendell said under her breath. She glanced over again and could see Nick lingering over the paramedics, his face very pale. In fact, Nick looked like he was about to fall down. “Is she okay?” Kendell asked under her breath.

“No,” Johnny said. “She hit her head… It looks bad…”

Pauline passed Kendell, evidently wanting to get a look for herself. Kendell followed, walking alongside Johnny. Johnny was dressed in just his swim trunks, his hair pulled back tight in a soaking wet man-bun. He too had been planning to head out into the waves that morning, but everyone’s plans seemed to have been cut short.

The paramedics were still attempting to revive her, and the police were starting to push everyone back. One of them pulled Nick and his siblings aside after seeing how distraught Nick had gotten. Trixie had her arms around her distraught older brother, and Brandon had placed a hand on both of their shoulders.

Kendell got her first good look at Makani. She was in her suit, and her hair was wet—she had clearly been in the water. There was a serious hole-like gash on her right temple. One paramedic was attempting to apply gauze to her head; the other was trying to revive her. The woman was pale; it looked like she had been in the water for a while before someone had pulled her out. The paramedics just stopped suddenly, shaking their heads.

“What are you doing!” Nick yelped. “Help her! Do something! Help her!”

Brandon came and stood between Nick and the horrendous scene; he along with one of the officers slowly ushered Nick back up the beach toward the parking lot. One of the paramedics put a blanket over Makani while the remaining officers pushed everyone away. A coroner was called.

Kendell and Pauline hurried back to the lot where Brandon had taken Nick. Trixie was standing there waiting for them; she looked traumatized. “She’s dead, they said,” Trixie muttered, and Kendell gave the poor girl a hug. She glanced over at Brandon and Nick who were sitting on the tailgate of Nick’s truck while speaking with one of the officers.

“I don’t get it,” Nick said under his breath. “She knew better than to go out surfing by herself so early in the morning. The waves are rough. If she had come down to the beach and no one else was here, she would have waited.”

The officer nodded. “I know. I know Makani well,” the officer said. “The paramedics just told me that they spotted some sort of metal fragments in her skull. Makani didn’t fall off her board, Nick. Someone hit her in the head and dumped her in the water.”

Kendell felt her stomach tighten. This hadn’t been an accident. Makani had been murdered.

4

Kendell stood near Nick’s truck. The man was positively stunned; he had cried his eyes out for a moment, but now he was numb. Trixie sat beside him, her head resting on her brother’s shoulder while Brandon stood nearby. Pauline abruptly plopped Dot into Nick’s lap, and he glanced at her curiously. “She’s a good therapy dog,” Pauline said, and Nick actually managed to smile ever so slightly.

“Thanks,” he said and pet the little dog’s head. The white ball of fluff curled up near him, and Nick seemed to want to just hug the little thing.

“I’m so sorry, Nick,” Kendell said. “Makani seemed like such a great woman. I can’t imagine that someone would want to hurt her.”

“But someone did,” Nick said and gritted his teeth. “And there’s a surfing competition this weekend. She was a sure win. Everyone knew it. A five thousand-dollar grand prize.”

“You think someone killed Makani over five thousand dollars?” Pauline asked, mortified.

“It’s not just the money,” Nick said. “This competition is a big deal locally. It’s not one of those highly advertised ones a bunch of tourists and east coast surfers come to. It’s the local big-show. The winner almost always gets signed for local advertisements for the next year at big companies. The grand prize is nothing compared to the publicity. A lot of the winners get legitimate sponsors. There were going to be Olympic scouts there this year! Surfing is going to be in the 2020 Summer Olympics and Makani was hoping to book herself a serious trainer. She has one now, but he’s not Olympic material.”

“Whoa,” Brandon said. “So, this could be about a lot more than five grand, then?”

“Exactly,” Nick said. “There are hundreds of surfers in the competition, and every last one of them knew that Makani was the one to beat.”

“That is not going to help the police narrow down a suspect, now is it?” Pauline grumbled. “Well, Kendell and I will see what we can do.”

“I’m sorry?” Kendell piped up, and she shot Pauline a knowing glance. “What do you expect us to do?”

“We helped your friend Lil out in Nairobi,” Pauline reminded her.

“Oh, you must be joking,” Kendell said. “That was luck!”

“And London?” Pauline reminded her.

“I almost got my head lopped off by some crazy women with an axe!” Kendell yelped.

“Oh, but you and I do have so much fun,” Pauline said. “And that Makani darling was just too kind of a soul! Whoever did this deserves to have justice served, wouldn’t you agree?”

“I think the police can handle this one,” Kendell muttered.

“Many eyes make a search seem smaller,” Pauline sang. “There is nothing wrong with offering them a little assistance.”

“Wait, are you two detectives or something?” Trixie questioned. “Kendell, I thought you were a flight attendant.”

“I am, and so was this old broad,” Kendell said. “No, we are not detectives. But for some reason, Pauline seems to think that we are.”

“Your friend needs help,” Pauline said, nodding toward Nick.

Kendell looked at Nick; he was a mess. “I just want to go home,” he grumbled.

“We’ll take you home,” Brandon said. “Let me double-check with the police and make sure they don’t need anything else from us. Go ahead and get in the truck. I’ll drive.” Trixie walked Nick to the passenger’s seat before climbing into the back while Brandon walked back down to the beach toward where some of the officers were still standing. Nick was still holding Dot as he watched his brother from the truck.

Kendell and Pauline remained standing outside. Kendell, despite her initial refusal to get involved, was already making mental notes of everyone present. There were five people on the beach apart from the police and themselves: Johnny and four others whom Kendell recognized from the luau. There was a woman named Bonnie, two brothers who went by Yoyo and Bump, and a man named Eddie. They had all seemed stunned about Makani. Out of all of them, Johnny seemed to be the only one who knew her personally while the others probably only thought of her as an acquaintance. She told Pauline to wait and headed down to the beach, nabbing the man who went by Yoyo. She asked if he was part of the surfing competition coming up, and he said he wasn’t, and neither were any of the others, including Johnny. If any of them had killed Makani, it was unlikely because of the competition.

After Brandon was finished speaking with the officers, Kendell walked with him back to the truck. Close behind them, the coroner was having the paramedics place Makani’s body on a gurney to be taken away in the hearse. Kendell shuddered slightly. She had just partied and hung out with Makani the night before, and she had been such a sweet woman. She doesn’t deserve this, Kendell growled inwardly.

“Let’s get Nick back home,” Brandon said, starting to get into the truck.

Kendell hesitated, and Pauline stood by her with a slight smile starting to appear. “We’ll catch up with you guys later,” Kendell said. “We’ll take a bus back to the resort.”

“Where are you two going?” Nick asked.

“I’m not sure yet,” Kendell admitted. “But I feel like I’ve got to do something.”

“Why don’t you take Dot with you, honey?” Pauline suggested to Nick, reaching through the window to give Dot one last pat on the head. “I’m sure Brandon wouldn’t mind bringing her back to the resort for me when he goes?”

“Of course,” Brandon said, and Pauline and Kendell remained behind as Brandon drove his younger siblings off.

“So, we’re going to investigate?” Pauline asked giddily.

“Maybe,” Kendell said, eyeing the beach. Johnny and the other surfers were standing around, none of them seemingly in the mood to surf after what had just happened.

“Yay!” Pauline said. “Let’s figure out who hurt that poor girl. You and I have a winning streak going.”

“You could say that,” Kendell said, and she proceeded to wave Johnny down as he made his way back toward the parking area.

The man trudged over, his shoulders hanging low and a sad expression on his face. “Can I help you?” he asked.

“Do you know of anyone who would want to hurt Makani?” Kendell asked.

“No,” Johnny said. “Everyone liked her. She is…was…the local sweetheart, you know? She got along with everyone. Friendly to tourists. A little bit of an activist. She cared about Hawaii and the people here. I can’t imagine anyone wanting to hurt her, you know?”

“Thanks,” Kendell said, and Johnny dragged his feet toward his vehicle before peeling out. The other surfers soon followed suit. “I’m not sure what to do from here,” Kendell said.

“I think I know where we could go to dig up some dirt on Makani’s group of friends,” Pauline said. “Maybe then we could at least get ourselves pointed in the right direction.”

“Where to?” Kendell asked.

“There are exactly three professional workers whom people are comfortable telling just about anything to,” Pauline said.

“Oh?”

“Therapists, hairdressers, and bartenders,” Pauline said. “They always know everything about everybody. Problem with therapists is they don’t tend to give up information—patient confidentiality sort of thing.”

“I don’t think Makani was going to a therapist,” Kendell said.

“No, I don’t think so either,” Pauline said. “But I know a local hangout where she and her friends would go. One that has a bar.”

“Ikaika,” Kendell said and grinned. “Okay, let’s see if we can catch a bus to his bar.”

The two women began their walk, realizing they hadn’t thought this through too well. They had to walk a considerable distance before finding a bus stop, and that bus did not take them all the way to Ikaika’s luau location. They had to walk to another bus stop and finally just call for a cab since the buses were obviously not going to go off-route. The cab would not take them down to the beach, so they had to walk through the tree line before finally arriving on the beach where the outdoor bar sat. The little shed behind it had smoke coming from its makeshift chimney, and they could smell food.

“After all that walking, I need to put my feet up,” Pauline groaned; the poor old woman was out of breath. “And I need food!”

“I agree,” Kendell said. “Let’s just eat here.” They walked toward the smoking hut, and Ikaika spotted them and told one of his workers, a young woman in beachwear, to go take their heavy beach bags from them.

Ikaiaka was an outright gentleman, meeting the women on the beach and walking them back up to the hut. “Have trouble getting here?” he asked, laughing because the answer to his question was incredibly obvious. “Most tourists, if they ever come here, only come once because of that trek.”

Kendell smiled. “Well, the food was just that good.”

Ikaiaka nodded and forced a laugh, but Kendell could already tell that he knew about Makani. He was not as chipper as he had been the night before, and in fact, everyone working at the little bar that day seemed incredibly distraught. Word traveled fast in these parts, apparently. Ikaika got them a seat at a covered table and pointed to the chalkboard behind the bar. “That would be our menu,” he said. “Let me get you ladies some water. You look a little parched.” He brought them back some ice water, and Pauline thanked him profusely.

“I’m guessing you all heard about Makani?” Kendell asked.

“Johnny stopped by before you ladies to get himself a bite before heading into his other job,” Ikaiaka said. “Makani was our local angel.”

“We were hoping you could tell us a little more about her and her friends,” Kendell said.

“How about you ladies get some food, and I’ll fix it up for you, and then we can talk. It’s slow today,” he said, and the two women didn’t hesitate to order some local cuisine.

Ikaiaka brought them their fish and pineapple-scented dishes before sitting down. The chair creaked under his weight as he leaned back and sighed. “Not much to say,” he said. “I suppose not, at least. Makani was well-liked. I can’t imagine someone wanting to kill her. You saw her last night, how she bought food for Mikey.”

“So, what’s his story?” Kendell asked.

“Got hooked on some bad drugs. Lost his job. Lost his wife. Lost his home. He slums around, but Makani had pushed him into rehab. She buys him food from time to time, and she was working on helping him to get a job now that he’s clean,” Ikaiaka explained. “That’s just the type of woman she was. Couldn’t just see someone who was in trouble and not help. She thought she could fix anything. Mikey’s been doing good. I’m worried he might relapse when he hears what happened to her. Makani’s been with him through two relapses, making sure he got clean. This time, he’s been sober for over a year—the longest he’s gone.”

“What about her relationship with Johnny?” Pauline asked.

“Old friends,” Ikaiaka said. “Johnny’s surfing is amateurish, even though he’s been on a board his whole life. Even Nick has bested him from time to time, and Nick’s a Jersey kid…although Nick did have the best of the best training him, but Johnny’s taken a lesson from her from time to time too. The two of them are friendly, but they like to pick fun at each other a lot. Almost like a brother-sister relationship.”

While Ikaiaka had been talking, Kendell had been looking at the bar. She pointed. “Is that a picture of Makani?” she asked, nodding to where a number of pictures were pinned to the back of the bar.

Ikaiaka hopped up and walked over, removing the photograph and bringing it back to the women. “Forgot this was back there,” he said.

It was a picture of Makani and Bane, obviously several years old. The two looked very happy in the photograph; she was holding a giant carnival teddy bear that he had probably won for her. “What happened to those two?” Kendell asked, handing the picture back to Ikaiaka. “I mean, Makani kind of told me last night. Something about a surfing competition?”

“Bane was just always really competitive. He didn’t care about them combining the men and women’s competition too much…until Makani bested him at everything,” Ikaiaka said, smirking. “The competitions caused too much friction in the relationship. Bane wanted her to stop surfing, said she embarrassed him. Bane just didn’t know how to be proud of his girl the way Nick was. He was too worried about being in her shadow.”

“Where is Bane?” Kendell asked accusingly, and it caused Ikaiaka to raise a brow.

“Bane wouldn’t hurt Makani,” Ikaiaka said sternly. “He loved her too much. Still does.”

“I was just asking if you had seen him since last night,” Kendell said.

“No,” Ikaiaka said and then looked a bit pale. “Actually, he normally is here by now… I wonder where he has gotten off to.”

Pauline glanced in Kendell’s direction. It looked like they had their first suspect.

5

Kendell continued nibbling on her lunch. It was deliciously authentic—getting local cuisine on their adventures seemed to have become a theme of theirs. Kendell stared at Pauline curiously; the old woman had not looked up from her phone since Ikaika had scurried off to help some other customers, locals he greeted with a formal Hawaiian expression that Kendell was beginning to pick up on as customary. “You know,” Kendell said, scooping up the last little bit of food on her plate. “For an old lady, you sure do spend a lot of time on that phone of yours.”

“I’m investigating!” Pauline said defensively. “I’m not one of you technology-obsessed millennials.”

“What exactly are you doing on your phone?” Kendell asked curiously.

“Looking up our suspects,” Pauline said. “Makani had been talking about going for an early morning surf last night at the luau. From what Nick was saying, Makani wouldn’t normally do early morning surfs like that this close to competition. She liked to take it easy to conserve her energy. So, that means her choice to go surfing this morning was not part of her usual routine. Which means that if this murder was premeditated, someone would have had to have known that she was going. And since she was telling everyone at the luau about her plans for an early morning surf—”

“You think the killer was someone from the luau?” Kendell completed the woman’s thought.

“That’s exactly what I’m saying,” Pauline said. “And, after rummaging through Makani’s social media pages, I’ve been able to see who she talks to online and which ones of those were at the party.”

“And what have you deduced from that, detective?” Kendell asked.

“A suspect list,” Pauline said. “We have Mikey, the former druggie. As someone with obviously questionable morals, having someone like Makani constantly barging in on his lifestyle might not be super appreciated. I found an old post from over a year ago of him ranting about her and a few others for burning a stash of his drugs.”

“Whoa, go Makani,” Kendell said. “When she intervenes, she intervenes. You think he might have fallen off the wagon, and she did it again?”

“Maybe,” Pauline said. “But he’s staying quiet about it. And, from what I found, Makani reported him to the police once for drugs—the same time she threw his drugs into a bonfire on the beach. He might feel resentful for losing what, from his old online rants, was some very expensive drugs. But since then, he has had nothing but good to say about her. She helped get him clean, so there doesn’t seem to be any resentment, but you never know. Not everyone posts the whole truth about their emotions and attitudes online.”

“Okay, so, suspect number one: the former druggie,” Kendell said. “Should I be writing a list?”

Pauline whipped out a notepad and pen from her little beach bag and tossed it Kendell’s way as she continued sorting through things. Kendell smirked and wrote down Mikey’s name and the reason why he was on their suspect list. Pauline waved her finger a bit as she spoke about her next suspect. “The most likely suspect, I would say, is Mr. Bane,” Pauline said. “He was completely in love with Makani, but after she started competing against him, he turned sour. And, from what I’ve found, things only got worse when Makani started seeing Nick. Bane hates Nick. There’s even one picture on Nick’s page of him with a black eye, and from the comments, it’s courtesy of Bane and a couple of his buddies. Bane did a night in jail for the tussle—jumped Nick after a night of drinking. And, from what Bane was saying last night, he’s not a fan of out-of-towners. His ex-girlfriend choosing an out-of-towner over him was probably a serious blow. Plus, she was his biggest competition for the surfing contest. And Bane has been missing since the luau. Maybe because he killed Makani and decided to ditch?”

“It’s only been a few hours,” Kendell reminded Pauline. “There could be a number of reasons that Bane didn’t show up here today, even if it is his usual routine. Let’s not jump to conclusions just yet, but I do agree with you. After the way Bane acted last night, he’s definitely a suspect.”

“What about Johnny?” Pauline suggested.

“I mean, he was at the beach this morning where Makani was found, but he could have just come to surf,” Kendell said. “And he seemed pretty upset. But he did know she was going to be there since he was at the luau. And he was there at the scene of the crime. But I can’t think of a motive for him since he’s not even in the competition, and Ikaika said that the two of them were good friends.”

“Write his name down anyway,” Pauline said. “He’s in Makani’s inner circle, and something tells me this wasn’t just some random act of violence.”

“Agreed,” Kendell said. “Okay, who else?”

“Well, as much as I don’t want to say it, shouldn’t the boyfriend be on the suspect list?” Pauline suggested.

Kendell frowned. “I know Nick; he’s as delicate as a little flower. There is no way.”

“I suppose that Nick was with us that morning, so the chances that he went to the beach, killed Makani, snuck back home without his parents or sister noticing, and then drove us to the scene of the crimes is…unlikely…” Pauline said. “You’re right. I don’t see how that would even be plausible. Just making sure we cover all of our bases. What about Ikaika? He was the host.”

“I don’t know about him either.” Kendell shook her head, pushing her plate aside. “What would the motive be?”

“I’m not sure, but he is a big guy. Definitely big enough to beam someone in the head with some sort of tool and kill them,” Pauline said.

“Okay, but I’m putting him and Johnny at the bottom of our suspect list,” Kendell said. “There’s just no motive…not yet.”

“Agreed,” Pauline said, then turned her phone around to show Kendell. “Let’s start by talking to Johnny. As one of Makani’s closer friends, he would probably be willing to tell us anything to help us find out what happened.”

“Wait, what did you do?” Kendell asked, taking Pauline’s phone. There was a website pulled up for some sort of tour boat. “What’s this?”

“Well, Johnny’s got a reputation around here for being the surfer who can’t stay on his board. He’s got some side jobs—bus driver for Ikaika, and he runs a tour boat. I just booked us a tour so that we can talk,” Pauline said.

“Sweet,” Kendell said. “That actually sounds like a lot of fun, getting an ocean-side tour of Hawaii. We are on vacation, after all.”

The two women thanked Ikaika for being so hospitable before heading out. They caught a bus, and later a cab, before arriving at the harbor where a rinky-dink ship christened the SS Johnny-Boy was docked. “What’s up, ladies!” Johnny called from the deck of the ship. “I thought I recognized those names on my booking list!”

“Hey, Johnny,” Kendell said. “Yeah, we heard you did a boat tour?”

“Oh, yeah, it’s going to be a blast!” Johnny said. “There’s a honeymooner couple who booked the same slot, but that’s it. So, it’s going to be pretty intimate of a tour today.”

“Awesome!” Kendell exclaimed, holding a hand out to Pauline to help her on board.

“Yeah, I’m glad,” Johnny said, waving the women on. “This is my last tour today. After what happened to Makani, I’m just not feeling it.”

“I understand,” Pauline said.

The ship was very tiny, but it was enough for a fast-paced tour around the islands. Kendell was ecstatic. The first thing Johnny did was pass out some wet suits for them to wear, which Kendell found a little strange, but she went with it. “Why would we need wetsuits?” she whispered to Pauline. “We’re already wearing bathing suits?”

“Just go with it,” Pauline said, attempting to wiggle herself into the suit. The honeymooner couple arrived, giddy as ever, and wiggled themselves into their suits as well.

“You don’t look like the thrill-seeker type,” the young man said to Pauline.

“I think I can handle a tour around the islands,” Pauline insisted, and the couple laughed like she was making some sort of joke.

“Weird,” Kendell said under her breath.

Johnny drove the small boat out into the ocean at full speed, and Kendell laughed as sea water spewed past them. There was loud, Hawaiian music playing over the boat’s loud speakers. The views were fantastic. Kendell snapped a photo of herself and Pauline, one of the volcano’s smoldering in the distance. “This is awesome,” Kendell said, grinning. When the boat started to slow down, it was then that Kendell noticed something very strange. “Um… Pauline… Why is there a giant cage on the side of the ship?”

“All righty, ladies, and sir, are you folks ready?” Johnny called.

Kendell’s heart started racing as she watched Johnny throw a bucket of dead, bloody fish over the side of the ship. “Pauline,” Kendell whispered. “What kind of tour is this?”

“Sharks!” Pauline yelped as they looked over the side, a bunch of shark fins popping up everywhere they looked.

Johnny was going through a step-by-step instruction on what they were going to do, how to work the snorkeling equipment, and where an emergency call button would alert him if anyone had a panic attack and they needed to abort. Kendell felt as though she was already having a panic attack as Pauline jumped up, eager as ever, and muttered, “You only live once, dear.”

“Did you know this was a swimming with the sharks experience?” Kendell hissed.

“No, I’m just as surprised as you,” Pauline assured. “Honest! But we’re definitely doing it.”

Kendell could not believe how easily she had been talked into this. The next thing she knew, she was decked out in snorkeling gear, inside a metal cage, being dropped into shark-infested waters. As horrifying as it was, Kendell was in absolute awe. The clear water. The sea creatures. The coral wreaths. The underwater hills and valleys. And, of course, the sharks swarming around them. At first, her heart beat rapidly whenever one came near. But they were so peaceful. It was an awe-inspiring moment of absolute natural beauty.

When they were finally pulled back to the top, Kendell felt almost disappointed it was over. The honeymooners spoke excitedly with Pauline about the experience, and Kendell just smiled. As Johnny drove the ship back to harbor, Kendell asked to know more about Makani. “A humanitarian by every definition of the word,” Johnny said.

“How do you mean?”

“A big social justice warrior,” Johnny explained. “Now, Makani was a sweetheart, loved everybody, but she’s made a few enemies in her day.”

“Really?” Kendell asked, finding it hard to imagine Makani making enemies.

“Well, after she started to kind of become a local surfing legend, she started using her position to her advantage. She used her platform as a professional surfer, which basically amounts to celebrity status around here, to talk about things that she was passionate about—poverty, pollution, wildlife preservation, and about a thousand other causes.”

“Sounds like Makani had a lot of projects,” Kendell said.

“Too many to keep up with,” Johnny said with a laugh. “She was branding herself as a person for change. Her latest thing was about holding politicians accountable. Regardless of whether or not it was someone she voted for, she wanted to make sure local politicians stayed true to their campaign promises. It drove her insane. I can’t tell you how many times she’s started protest rallies and demonstrations against local politicians. Eventually, they started calling it harassment. In fact, our local mayor has a restraining order against her.”

“Yikes,” Kendell said.

“She’s just a person who cared a lot,” Johnny said, “about a lot of things. She especially cared about keeping elected officials in check.”

Kendell thanked Johnny for the information, and she added to their list of suspects…literally every politician living on Oahu.

6

“Sharks!” Brandon yelped as Pauline showed off an underwater photograph of herself and Kendell in the underwater cage.

“Yeah,” Kendell said, slightly annoyed despite the fun she’d had on the misadventure. “Pauline failed to mention that the tour included a dive into shark-infested waters. I didn’t know Johnny had an underwater camera snapping pictures of us. Pauline bought, like, five photos.”

“I can’t believe you two swam with sharks,” Brandon said, smirking. He had been waiting for them in the hotel room with Dot when they had arrived back at the resort, and Pauline had been eager to show off the photographs.

“I can’t believe the website wasn’t much clearer about what all we were going to do on the boat,” Pauline said.

“I went and looked. It’s pretty clear, had you been paying attention,” Kendell said, shaking her head. “You are a nut.”

“Yes, I am aware,” Pauline said and plopped herself down on the sofa beside Brandon. She bent down and picked up Dot; the little dog was standing up on her back legs, gently pawing at her owner for attention.

“So, did you two manage to find anything out about Makani?” Brandon asked hopefully.

“We found out that she had more enemies than people would like to admit. She was well-liked, but the local officials around here were not a fan. Too much of a social justice warrior. She liked to hold politicians accountable for their campaign promises, and that sort of behavior was not well-received by some.”

“Yes, what a shame that people are asked to keep their promises,” Brandon said, shaking his head. “So, she did have enemies.”

“None who would have known she was at that beach that morning,” Kendell said.

“You still think someone from the luau is the guilty party?” Pauline asked.

“I think so,” Kendell said. “Someone must have overheard her saying she was going to catch some early morning waves, and they met her out there and killed her. We can still look into some politicians she might have rubbed the wrong way, but I’m pretty convinced it was a surfer or someone at the luau.”

“I agree,” Pauline said, turning to Brandon. “How is your brother doing?”

“Not great,” Brandon admitted. “He was totally in love, you know?” Brandon sighed heavily. “Listen, I hope you two are actually going to be enjoying your vacation instead of spending all your time looking into this. I don’t want you to ruin your trip because of this.”

“Oh, I do intend to enjoy my vacation,” Pauline assured him. “We already got a lovely ocean-side tour, hung out at a luau, and tomorrow, I’m going to visit the Pearl Harbor memorial!”

“Ooh, really?” Kendell asked.

“I do hope you will join me,” Pauline said. “I’m going tomorrow evening. We’ll have plenty of time to fit in some other adventures in the morning, but I’m going to spend the rest of the day relaxing.”

“I agree,” Kendell said. “I think I’m going to get myself another swimsuit.”

“There are a bunch of cute ones in the resort’s gift shops,” Pauline said.

“Well, while you two are shopping, I’m going to head out,” Brandon said. “I think I need to be with Nick right now, so I’m going to go hang out with the family for a bit.”

“I understand,” Kendell said. “We’ll catch up with you later.”

“Thanks,” Brandon said, and he left.

“So, now that Brandon’s gone, who do you think is responsible?” Pauline asked.

“Honestly? Bane,” Kendell said. “I called Ikaika to ask if Bane has shown, and he said no one has seen him since the luau. He also said it’s not usual for Bane to just drop out like this. Especially so close to a surfing competition.”

“He might have run,” Pauline said, shaking her head. “We should definitely look more into him.”

“That’s going to be difficult if we can’t find him,” Kendell said. “Anyway, let’s head to the gift shop. I really want a new swimsuit because I’m going to hit up the beach and take a nap on a towel!”

The two women headed down, did a little suit shopping, and Kendell picked herself out a fairly conservative two-piece, yellow with blue polka dots. “Cute,” she decided and headed back to her room to change. Their large suite had its own washer, so she tossed all the dirty clothes she had been stuffing in her suitcase since London along with her teal one-piece before heading down to the beach. Pauline elected to remain in the hotel room to take a snooze with Dot.

Kendell headed out to the beach the resort rested on, laying out her towel and just enjoying a little bit of sun after coating herself in a thick layer of sunscreen. She snapped a photo of herself and sent it to Jack, hoping he would appreciate the two-piece shot. She hoped the flirty photo might help make a little peace.

That was about when Kendell fell asleep. Between the sun, the gentle waves, and the distant chatter of tourists, she couldn’t keep her eyes open. Bad idea for a ginger. When she woke up, her entire front side was burned red. “Ow!” she yelped as she sat up. “Oh, you’ve got to be kidding me!” She stood, snatching up her beach bag, phone, and towel. She wrapped her towel around herself and hurried up the beach back to the hotel. She realized she had to have been asleep for over an hour.

When she reached the suite, she could hear Pauline snoring from her room and decided not to wake her. She went to her room, made her way to the bathroom, and when she saw herself in the mirror, she felt distressed. “I look like a tomato!” she moaned and leaned forward, looking at her face in the mirror. “All my freckles have morphed together!”

She called the hotel staff, asking for some aloe or any sort of sunburn relief. She knew by now this was something she needed to treat quickly. The cream the staff brought up for her worked wonderfully, but she knew she was going to be red for a while. After examining herself a bit more in the mirror, she felt foolish to see how white her back was and how red her front was. There was a perfect line on either side, splitting the two skin tones perfectly. She shook her head, imagining what Pauline would say to her when she woke up.

After coating herself in aloe, she checked her phone. Of course, she had a string of texts from Jack.

Cute bathing suit, babe!

Wish I could see it in person.

Why aren’t you texting me back?

Did you fall asleep on the beach? You’re going to burn.

When are you coming home?

Are you going to keep travelling and never come home or something?

Hello?

Babe?

When are you coming home?

How long will you be in Hawaii?

Where are you going next – are you coming home?

Kendell shook her head, finding it hard to believe how many messages she had from him. She sent him a photo of her burnt face, telling him she’d fallen asleep. They texted back and forth for a bit, and he was a little less obnoxious than he had been when she was in London or in Nairobi. Lil must have gotten a hold of him, Kendell thought, smiling. Lil was always quick to whip up on their significant others if they weren’t treating anyone in their group of friends right. She was the mama bear of the group.

Through his texts, he seemed honestly interested in what she was doing, and he took the time to playfully pick at her about falling asleep on the beach and missing his panicky texts. He offered up an apology about being so obnoxious with her wanting to take some time for herself, and he even went as far as to tell her that he hoped she was having a fun, relaxing time. He asked about this strange old lady, Pauline, he had heard about, and Kendell shared some of the adventures she’d had with Pauline. Frankly, it was one of the most refreshing conversations they’d had in a while, even if it was just through text messaging.

Kendell felt somewhat satisfied knowing that Jack had chilled out some, but she could still sense his agitation. She wished she knew what was bothering him so much about her taking a little time for herself. It had been incredibly last minute, and it was more than just a weekend trip. She was planning on being gone a whole month. Maybe he was just clingier than she thought? She shook it off and headed out to the living room, where she found Pauline in pajamas with a plate of food in her lap and a large rolling tray filled with even more food beside her. Kendell laughed slightly at the sight. Pauline certainly looked comfortable.

“Whatcha doing, Pauline?” Kendell sang.

“I ordered room service,” she said, smirking. “I wasn’t sure what you would like, so I ordered four different dinners. I got a little excited because everything looked so yummy. I tend to get really hungry when menus have pictures. They make everything look so good in those pictures, and the room service menu I had them bring up was just full of pictures! Oh my goodness, you must try this salmon cooked in pineapple juice. I wasn’t sure about it at first, but my goodness!”

Kendell laughed and grabbed herself a plate, filling it up with different dishes. She giggled at how ridiculous Pauline could be at times. It was incredible that she had found such a good friend in someone so different from herself.

“You look like a circus clown,” Pauline said. “You fall asleep on the beach or something?”

“Yes, that is what happened exactly,” Kendell moaned. “My whole front side is bright red, and my back is so white, it glows.”

Pauline snorted. “You poor girl. You would never make it in Georgia, would you?”

“I prefer New York and it’s freezing cold winters and cool summers,” Kendell said. “Direct sunlight doesn’t really like me.”

Pauline laughed, shaking her head. “Baking soda,” she said. “Use baking soda. Trust me.”

“Baking soda, huh? One of those old lady secret remedies?”

“Something like that,” Pauline said, laughing.

The two of them enjoyed their dinner, and Kendell listened to Pauline as she went over the next day’s itinerary. It was going to be a fun, busy day, so Kendell made sure to go to bed early that night to get ready for it.

7

The following morning, Kendell woke up to the sound of Dot barking outside her door. It was a sound that she was rapidly becoming used to. Dot was becoming more and more familiar with Kendell, so if she ever needed attention, the little pooch was never afraid to let Kendell know if Pauline was too preoccupied. She threw on some clothes before opening the door, only to have the little dog come sprinting into her bedroom and hop onto the bed. The little white ball of fluff tilted her head ever so slightly, tongue hanging out of her mouth and tail wagging a million miles an hour. “Well, good morning, Dot,” Kendell said, smirking. The little thing was really adorable when she wanted to be. She was friendly, but also calm enough for an old woman like Pauline to handle fairly well.

“Sorry!” she heard Pauline call from across their room. Kendell picked the little dog up and dipped out into the main room of the suite, where she saw Pauline, bag over her shoulder and wearing giant bug-eyed sunglasses. The woman looked like she was ready to go, but had a slight scowl as she eyed Dot in Kendell’s arms.

“She got away from you?” Kendell asked, petting the little dog between her ears. She could feel its tail wagging against her side. This little ball of fur is certainly in a good mood this morning, Kendell thought as the little thing licked her elbow.

“I was in the shower,” Pauline grumbled. “I left my bedroom door open. Sorry, Kendell. Did she wake you up?”

“It’s okay,” Kendell said, putting the dog down. Dot scurried over to Pauline, tail wagging, and stood up on her hind legs, begging.

“I don’t have anything for you, but the buffet downstairs does!” Pauline said, putting her purse carrier down. Dot climbed right in, and Pauline picked it up and held it swaying at her side. “Brandon headed out this morning to go be with his brother. He sounds like he is really worried about Nick.”

“Understandable,” Kendell said. “I can’t imagine going through something like this. Nick seemed to be so in love. It’s probably a good thing that Brandon and the rest of the family were down here when it happened so that they can be with him. He definitely could use the support right now, I’m sure. So, Pauline, what’s first on our itinerary today? I always look forward to whatever it is you have planned. You know how to have a good vacation.”

Pauline beamed, seeming quite proud that Kendell enjoyed her vacation planning. The woman seemed to always have something fun up her sleeve, and always planned some sort of local experience—a step away from something too touristy. If she didn’t have a local experience planned, she would always find one, like she had done with the luau. In London, Pauline had taken Kendell to see Macbeth at the historical Globe Theater, and Pauline and Lil had visited that village in Kenya. Yes, Pauline certainly always had something exciting up her sleeve. “I have booked us an aerial tour of the islands, and I am planning on going to the Pearl Harbor memorial as well,” Pauline said. “But, we have some time this morning first. I say we hit up the complimentary breakfast buffet and then go back to the scene of the crime where Makani was killed. See if there is anything suspicious.”

“We probably should have done that the day she was killed,” Kendell said. “By now, the police will have picked over everything or surfers would have stepped on any evidence…or even the tide could have swept everything out. Do you really think we will find anything useful at this point? I imagine everything’s gone.”

“True, but I think it’s worth the effort. You really never know. We might just find something to help the police crack this case wide open. Many eyes make a search seem smaller, so they say,” Pauline said. “Oh, and I called Ikaika this morning. Bane is still missing. No one has heard from him since that night at the luau.”

“He is starting to look more and more suspicious,” Kendell said. “Okay, we’ll head back to the scene of the crime. You never know, we might actually find something.”

The two women headed downstairs for breakfast. They dined on waffles, eggs, and bacon before heading out. They called for a cab to take them there, and Pauline asked the driver to wait for them. The man grunted slightly, but he perked up after Pauline told him she’d throw in a good tip. Kendell walked alongside Pauline as they crossed through the gravel parking lot and through the thick trees before coming out onto the private, local surfers only beach.

They could see several surfers out in the water, all hoping to catch a decent wave, but the water was fairly calm this morning. So, they were all just relaxing on their boards and cutting up in the water with one another. Kendell looked out across the sandy beach; the sand was smooth. Some children were playing in the shallow pool, occasionally waving at a parent sitting on a board out in the water.

“It’s like nothing happened here,” Kendell said sadly. She knew the news had traveled faster in some circles than in others, and she wondered if those surfers out on the water even knew.

Pauline tapped her shoulder, and Kendell turned to see what Pauline was trying to get her attention for. A young man was walking out toward the edge of the beach from the parking lot. He was stumbling a bit, and he knelt down near the trees. “Is that Mikey?” Kendell asked quietly. Why would Mikey, the homeless man Makani had been helping, be at this beach? It was a surfer only beach, and he was definitely not a surfer.

“That’s suspicious,” Pauline said, and the two of them stood back to watch for a moment. He remained kneeling on the ground, perhaps praying, before standing and hurrying back to the parking lot. The man was certainly in a hurry once he stood up, almost like he didn’t want to be seen out on that beach. Something was definitely up, Kendell decided, and Pauline seemed to agree. Had he been hiding something in the sand? Evidence, perhaps?

The two women scurried over to where he had been knelt down, and they discovered that a little memorial had been set up for Makani. Many people had been laying out flowers, leis, little toy surfboards, cards, and a few other items in her memory. There was even a magazine, the one Nick had mentioned Makani was in, set up against a rock. Kendell picked up a card that had yet to be covered in sand, an obvious indicator that it had not been sitting there for too long. It was a thank-you card from Mikey. You saved me, he had written in it, and Kendell felt a ping in her stomach. “Poor Mikey,” Kendell said. “Sounds like Makani’s death has really affected him. I doubt Makani’s killer would write something heartfelt like that to leave at her memorial.”

“Looks that way,” Pauline said. “Although, it could be because of guilt.”

“True,” Kendell said, nodding. “Let me run and see if I can catch up to Mikey.”

“Go right ahead. I’ll wait for you here. I’m too slow; there’s no way I could catch up having to walk through those trees,” she said, and Kendell watched as the old woman found herself a seat against one of the nearby stones some of the memorial items were propped up against. The woman wiped her brow and stretched her back, putting Dot’s carrier down. The little dog hopped out of the carrier and used the opportunity to stretch her legs, running around in the sand and taking a bathroom break.

Kendell nodded and hurried through the tree line toward the gravel parking lot, scanning the area for Mikey, but he seemed to have disappeared completely. The cab driver was sitting in the driver’s seat of his car, half-asleep. Kendell assumed he hadn’t seen Mikey. Deciding he was probably long gone, but making a mental note that Mikey was probably someone they should talk to soon, Kendell headed back to the beach where Pauline was waiting. She noticed Pauline snapping a picture of the memorial with her phone.

“What are you doing?” Kendell asked.

“Evidence,” Pauline said. “Recognize that?”

Kendell followed the direction of Pauline’s finger; sitting amongst the large collection of memorial items was an ugly carnival teddy bear. She recognized it instantly as the bear from the picture of Makani and Bane that Ikaika had behind his bar on the beach. “Looks like the breakup had been pretty rough,” Kendell said, pointing out that the teddy bear’s head had been ripped off and that someone had used duct tape to put it back on; it looked like the little bear had a neck brace on. In addition to that, its button eyes had been ripped clear off its face. She wondered what had happened to it, although she could make a few guesses. “Do you think Bane put that here?” Kendell asked Pauline.

“Who else?” Pauline asked, laughing slightly at the zombie-esc teddy bear. “And, considering the fact that Bane has been missing in action, how did he even know about Makani?”

“Unless he was the one who killed her and then decided to bail,” Kendell said, shaking her head. “I think we might be closing in on our perp. But, same question, why leave the teddy bear if you’re the one who killed her?”

“Same answer as with Mikey—guilt, or to cover your tracks and make it seem like you’re innocent. I too think we might be zeroing in on Bane,” Pauline said. “He has the motive. And he was a big fella. He could definitely have killed her easily with any sort of blunt weapon.”

“And since he was at the luau, he probably heard her talking about wanting to take an early morning surf,” Kendell said.

“And,” Pauline added, “since they had dated, he probably would have known that this was her go-to place for a morning surf. She wouldn’t have been concerned if he had approached her since she knew him, either, because it didn’t seem like she had fought back. He could have taken her by surprise too, though. Either way, Bane has motive from a number of different angles. The competition and the breakup.”

“We need to find Bane,” Kendell said, clapping her hands together like a big decision had been made final. She knew then that they did not really have any evidence against him, but he was most certainly looking guilty. Her hope was to talk to him—to see whether or not he could talk his way out of the suspicious hole he was currently buried in.

“Agreed,” Pauline said. “But not today. We have a schedule to keep, and we are on vacation, after all! So, let’s press pause on the whole super sleuth thing for a moment, dear. I’m ready for a little bit of adventure!”

Kendell smiled and followed Pauline back toward the parking lot. As promised, Pauline tipped the driver generously for waiting, and the man thanked her profusely. Kendell was excited for this aerial tour that Pauline had planned for them. Hawaii was simply beautiful; the sea tour with Johnny had been fun, but she imagined she would get a very good look at this lovely place from the skies. Plus, there probably would not be any sharks to worry about that far up and away from the ocean. She’d had her taste of seafaring adventures for the time being.

The vehicle drove along several long, winding roads, and Kendell truly enjoyed the scenic route they were taking. “This place is just beautiful,” she said as she gazed out the window. She had seen more of the world in these past few days with Pauline than she had in her five years working at the airlines. She really felt like it was such a shame that she had never bothered using her vacation days to explore all the amazing places she had been. She had always just worked. Get on a plane, stop off at the airport for dinner, take a flight home—all just working. Nonstop shifts. Go home just to sleep and get back up the next day to do it again. Kendell felt so relieved and so incredibly refreshed to just be out on an adventure, even if it was with a woman she had only met about a week before.

“Oh, absolutely,” Pauline said, then sighed. “This was probably the one place I think my husband would have liked to have gone with me. He used to talk about taking me all the time. The sandy beaches, the volcanos, the dancing, the people! He would daydream about it a lot, but we just never made it. I’m glad we’re finally here together to experience.”

“We?” Kendell asked.

“Oh, yes, dear,” Pauline said. “We.”

8

“I’m sorry, Pauline, but what do you mean by we?” Kendell asked hesitantly. Pauline was gazing out the window, her doggy carrier squished between the two of them in the backseat with Dot hanging her head out, panting.

“Oh, hold on, I’ll show you,” Pauline said, reaching for her beach bag.

“Show me what?” Kendell asked as Pauline continued digging through what was essentially a Mary Poppins bag of a random assortment you may or may not need on a beach.

The old woman whipped out what looked suspiciously like an urn, and it took Kendell all of ten seconds to realize that was indeed what she was looking at. An urn. “Oh, Pauline! Have you had that with you this entire trip?”

“Well, yeah,” she said, patting the top of the urn. “Sprinkled a tiny bit of him in the Globe Theater, and I tossed some down while Lil and I were in that native village in Nairobi too. But this is where I really wanted to bring him to spread the ashes. Hawaii. He always wanted to go here.”

“So…you’ve been toting him around in your bags and purses?” Kendell asked.

“Oh, heavens no!” Pauline exclaimed. “Only when we went where I wanted to put his ashes, sweetheart.”

“Wait, I thought you and Lil came across that village by accident?”

“Yes, well, maybe it was a little more intentional than I let on,” Pauline said.

“Pauline!” Kendell cried. “You and Lil were literally running from authorities, and you decided to make a pit stop at a native village?”

“So that I could spread some of my late husband’s ashes, yes,” Pauline said. “We always talked about seeing the world together. I wanted him to come with me. Although, after today, I won’t be needing this urn anymore.”

“You’re planning to spread your husband’s ashes while we’re on the aerial tour?” Kendell asked.

“That’s the plan,” Pauline said. “They’re going to take us all over the place. I want him to just spread all over Hawaii.”

I suppose with active volcanos, if it starts raining down ash, people won’t suspect anything, Kendell thought, cringing slightly. “Okay, Pauline, well, if that’s what you want to do, I’ll support you one hundred percent.”

“Thank you, dear,” Pauline said, gently tapping the top of the urn. As they drove up a long, winding hill, Pauline went ahead and tucked the urn back into her bag. They drove through some tropical forests, a path for vehicles having been cleared up what looked like a mountainside, until they reached a small parking lot overlooking some incredible scenery of beaches and tropical forests. Pauline paid the driver, and she and Kendell hurried out of the vehicle.

They were met by a friendly man coming out of a small building that acted as the office for the aerial rides. There were four helicopters seated nearby on various landing pads. Looking down the mountainside from the safe side of the protective wooden gates, Kendell felt her stomach drop. “Oh, wow, we’re really high up. I didn’t even realize how high up we had driven,” she said anxiously.

“Yes, it was all those trees,” Pauline said. “They blocked our view for the second half up the mountainside.”

“This is actually a volcano,” the man who had approached them said.

“Is it active?” Kendell asked.

“No, there are only three active volcanos in Hawaii, but there are a few so-called hills that used to be volcanos spread all throughout the islands,” the man said. “This is just one of them.”

“We should check out a volcano later,” Pauline said.

“You have already had me do shark diving and now you’ve got me jumping into a helicopter. Maybe we do a volcano tour another day?” Kendell suggested.

“I’ve spread out the terror,” Pauline teased. “One adrenaline challenge a day is good, I suppose.”

“You two went shark diving?” the man asked. He laughed and extended his hand. “You must be Miss Pauline? We spoke on the phone. My name’s Danny, and I’ll be your pilot today. Let’s get inside first to fill out the necessary paperwork, and then we can begin your tour!”

“Sounds wonderful!” Pauline said, and the two of them followed the man inside.

They sat in a little makeshift lobby, and Kendell had to admit that the rickety benches, the peeled paint, and the general dust made her nervous. “So, how long have you been flying?” Kendell asked, hoping this was a professional operation that would be taking her to the skies.

“Oh, my whole life,” the man said. “My grandfather started this company. He taught my dad how to fly, and my dad taught me and my siblings. I got my pilot’s license before I got my driver’s license. You’re in safe hands, ma’am, and we get a lot of business here. Our helicopters are well-maintained and top of the line. You won’t be flying in what my grandfather flew or anything like that.”

Kendell breathed a sigh of relief. She glanced around the room, enjoying some of the old photographs of fliers all over Hawaii, some of which were in black and white. “Is that your grandfather?” Kendell asked, pointing to an old photo of a pilot standing near an ancient-looking chopper.

“That would be him,” Danny said. “Now, I see you two ordered the deluxe package. You realize you’ll be up in the air for over an hour, ma’am? I know for some of our older patrons that gets to be a little rough on their backs?”

Pauline huffed. “How ageist of you,” Pauline said, then grinned. “Don’t worry, darling. If I can dive with sharks, I think I can handle sitting down for an hour.”

Danny laughed. “You’re going to be fun. I can tell.”

They signed the necessary paperwork, sat through an instructional video in the lobby, and then Danny showed them how to work the headsets they would be wearing. Danny called for one of his employees upon realizing that Pauline had a dog with her, and the woman was more than happy to watch an adorable dog while they went up. “Next time for stuff like this, you should probably leave the dog at home,” Danny said. “I can’t imagine the dog would have been happy after I turned those propellers on.”

“Oh, you’re so right!” Pauline cried. “Poor Dot!”

“This woman takes her dog everywhere like it’s a fifth limb,” Kendell said, smirking.

They headed out, and Kendell’s heart started beating rapidly as she and Pauline each grabbed a seat in the back of the helicopter. They were strapped in, given headsets, and told that the flight would be taking off shortly. Pauline had her bag with her, so Kendell knew the woman was still planning on tossing some ashes out of the plane.

Danny sat up front, and his voice came through the headsets for a check. “Can you hear me all right, ladies?” he asked, and they both threw up a thumb up.

“Hear you good,” Kendell said. His voice was loud in her ears, but she was told that was normal because he would need to be heard over the sound of the helicopter.

The propellers started turning, and dust and dirt flew all around the helicopter. Kendell laughed nervously as the helicopter first came off the ground, swaying back and forth for a moment before lifting off. “Whoa!” she heard Pauline in her ear, followed by the woman’s cackling laughter.

The moment the helicopter took off, it swooped up and down around the enormous mountainside. The view was simply breathtaking. It flew all throughout Oahu, zipping around the beaches. Eventually, he flew out of the familiar areas of Honolulu, and they flew toward one of Hawaii’s volcanos. It was smoldering, and she could see the lava actively flowing over the side and into the ocean. According to Danny, the reaction from the smoldering hot lava coming into contact with the sea gradually expanded the land mass of the island. Fun fact, Kendell decided.

“Woo hoo!” Pauline cried when a bit of wind swayed the helicopter back and forth.

“Would you just look at that water?” Kendell called. They flew directly between the volcano they had been observing and the beautiful, crystal blue ocean.

“Now,” Pauline said, suddenly plopping the urn into Kendell’s lap.

I should have known better than to sit by the window, Kendell thought, cringing, but she wanted to do right by her new friend. She removed the top from the urn and flung the ashes out the window. Danny didn’t even seem to notice; he was giving them some sort of archeological history lesson on the island, but Kendell wasn’t listening. She was watching the ashes float down, some flying toward the volcano while some flew out to the ocean. It was rather breathtaking. She looked over at Pauline, and the woman was smiling ear to ear with this look of absolute satisfaction.

Kendell handed the woman back the urn, and she placed it inside her bag. The helicopter continued flying around the islands, and Kendell and Pauline sat quietly, enjoying the view. They snapped a picture of themselves with a beautiful scenic background, the Hawaiian sun shining bright against the water below.

Eventually, their fun-filled flight adventure came to an end. Danny circled back around, and soon they spotted the mountainside where they had first taken off. “Oh, this was just wonderful, Danny!” Pauline cried into the headset.

“I’m so glad you ladies enjoyed the adventure,” he said. “Please be sure to remain inside the helicopter until you are informed that it is safe to exit.”

“Will do!” Kendell said.

The helicopter landed somewhat abruptly, but overall, it had been a fun experience. The two women laughed at how crazy Kendell’s hair had gotten once they exited the helicopter. Her hair had been whipped around by the wind and tangled terribly. Pauline snapped a photo of Kendell standing by the helicopter, the mountains in the distance. “I’m sure that was a lovely photo,” Kendell groaned slightly. She imagined that her peeling skin and tangled red hair made her look like a circus clown.

They headed back inside the building to collect their things, and they spotted a few employees—the woman they had left her with and three men—all on the floor playing with Dot. Pauline laughed. “Aww, I’m sure you are just eating up that attention!” she cried. Upon hearing her voice, the little dog yelped and scurried over to Pauline to be picked up and coddled.

“Thanks for watching her,” Kendell said to the woman pilot.

“It was the highlight of my day,” the woman said, laughing. “She was so sweet!”

As they were getting ready to leave, Kendell spotted something. One of the many pictures hanging on the wall was of Makani. “Hey! You all know Makani?” Kendell asked, and Danny looked up sadly.

“Yes, she helped us out with some repairs about a year ago,” Danny said. “She was a good woman. Our family business had taken a hit from a storm, and she had rallied some local contractors together to get us some free repairs we just could not afford at the time.”

“Makani was a huge supporter of local businesses like ours,” the woman said. “She even did some modeling for one of our advertising campaigns for free just to help us to compete with a more corporate tour company.”

“She sounds like she was as saint,” Pauline said. “We met her through one of Kendell’s friends, Brandon. His little brother was dating her.”

“Nick?” the woman asked.

“That’s the one,” Kendell said.

“How is he holding up?” Danny asked.

“Not great, honestly,” Kendell said.

Danny shook his head. “We’ll be at the funeral, but if you see him, offer our condolences for us.”

“Absolutely,” Pauline said, and the two women left, their minds back on the case. “We have one more stop on our adventure tour today, but this one is a little tamer.”

“Pearl Harbor, right?” Kendell asked, and the other woman nodded. Kendell was actually looking forward to checking out the memorial site and the museum. She wanted to pay her respects to those who had been lost, and she was a bit of a history buff, so she was excited to see the location.

“That’s right,” Pauline said. “But, after that, I say we dive back into this case. That girl was just too sweet for words. I’ve yet to meet anyone who did not completely adore her.”

“Except for the local politicians…and Bane,” Kendell said, crossing her arms. The man was still her number one suspect.

Pauline nodded in agreement. “Yes, and Bane.”

9

The women did not have to travel too far to the memorial site. When they first arrived, Kendell spotted a large sign reading World War II Valor in the Pacific National Monument. They headed straight for the Pearl Harbor visitor center, where Pauline handed a kind woman their tickets. They, along with a large group of other tourists, were ushered into a large theater room. “Stop one on the tour is an informational movie,” Pauline said.

“How much did it cost?” Kendell asked; Pauline had essentially paid for everything on the trip thus far, so she was hoping to at least pay for the tickets.

Pauline shook her head. “They’re free, dear, you just have to register. The one thing you offer to pay, and it’s zero.” Kendell sunk in her seat slightly, but Pauline laughed at her. “Dear, I’m only joking with you. I told you, I like the company. We’re friends, and I’m spoiling my friend.”

“Well, I appreciate it,” Kendell said.

The woman at the front desk appeared at the front of the theater, all smiles. “Aloha, and welcome to the USS Arizona Memorial Tour. My name is Stacey, and I’m going to be one of the many faces you see today leading you on your journey. Our tour begins here in our theater where we will be watching a documentary about the attack on Pearl Harbor. It’s only a brief twenty-three-minute video, but I promise you that it is quite enriching and informative. After the video, my friend Captain Scott will escort you all out these doors—” She waved toward one of the exits. “—where you all will then ride on a boat out into the harbor of the actual memorial. There you will have time to view the exhibits and see the sunken ship, the Arizona.”

The woman gave several more facts and figures about the memorial and the attack itself before stepping out. A moment later, the video began to play, and Kendell and Pauline each sat quietly learning about the incident. When the video finished, the house lights came on rather abruptly, blinding Kendell for a moment. Pauline had a sad but satisfied expression after hearing about the Pearl Harbor attack; she was very interested in the history here, and it was clear to Kendell that the woman was eager to go see the sunken ship.

They filed out of the theater with the rest of the crowd, following Captain Scott outside and toward a loading dock where a small, white boat was waiting for them. They crowded in, and the captain introduced himself loudly to the crowd as a Navy captain. According to him, it is mostly Navy officials who operated the day-to-day activities at the memorial.

The boat set sail for what was essentially a large, white floating museum out in the harbor just off the coast of Ford Island. Once inside the museum, the group scattered. There were several museum workers throughout the building all happy and eager to answer any questions. Pauline was very interested in the artifacts, and she separated herself from Kendell for moment as Kendell was drawn to a large wall cordoned off by velvet rope. The stone wall read: To the Memory of the Gallant Men Here Entombed and Their Shipmates Who Gave Their Lives in Action on December 7th 1941 on the USS Arizona.

The moment became a bit surreal for Kendell, realizing the wall was dedicated mostly to men who had sunk with the ship they were currently floating above. “Kendell?” a man’s voice asked, and she spun around on her heels only to see Bane in full Navy getup standing behind her.

“Bane!” she yelped as though she thought the man was going to push her out the window and over the side of the memorial. This was the last place she expected to bump into him.

“It’s Kendell, right?” he asked to be sure.

“Um, yes,” she said. “What are you doing here?”

“Um, I work here,” he said.

Kendell looked him up and down. “You’re in the Navy?”

“That’s right,” he said. “I was medically discharged a couple years ago, though. I developed an asthmatic condition after an out at sea station fire got the better of me.”

“Oh, well…um… Thank you for your service,” she said. “I didn’t know you were military. I guess I wasn’t expecting that.”

“And why not?” he asked, somewhat smug with the way he questioned her.

“Honestly?” she said, putting her hands on her hips. “You seemed like just a bum surfer boy.”

“Ouch,” he said, then laughed slightly. “That’s pretty harsh. Surfing is my life, though, especially now that I’m no longer active duty. Navy was my first love, though.”

“So, you…you work here?” Kendell asked.

“Yeah,” he said. “Some virus has been going around, so they’ve got me working double-shifts all week.”

“So, this is where you’ve been? Ikaika has been wondering what happened to you,” Kendell said.

“That old man worries too much,” he said, then sighed. “How is Nick holding up?”

“As well as can be expected,” Kendell said. “Who told you about Makani?”

“Mikey,” Bane said. “Ran into him when I went for a morning surf. The man wanted to borrow some money to buy a card for Makani’s memorial.” Bane’s face went slightly pale. “He…he thought I already knew. Not exactly how I would have liked to have had the news broken to me. It really sucks. Makani and I were not on great terms with each other. If I had known we were going to lose her, well, I would not have been such a tool. I was just jealous, you know?”

“How jealous?” Kendell asked, and Bane raised a brow.

“You accusing me of something?” Bane hissed.

Pauline came up behind them. “Well, well, well,” Pauline sang. “If it isn’t surfer boy. So, this is where you’ve been hiding?” Then Pauline looked the man up and down and giggled slightly. “Ooh, Bane, you should dress like this more often. The military getup suits you.”

“Is that old broad hitting on me?” Bane muttered.

“Just paying you a compliment,” Kendell said and crossed her arms. “Let me see if I can make some sense out of this really quick. You, the tourist-hating surfer boy, work at a location that is literally constantly filled with tourists?”

“Pretty much,” he said. “This place is different. It’s a memorial to my Navy brothers. Plus, some of the guys who work here are getting to be too old to whip up on rotten kids disrespecting the memorial. Got to pull in us younger boys to chase disrespect out of this joint. It happens more than you would think. Some kid tried writing his name on the memorial last week.”

“Wow,” Kendell grunted. “That’s so…well…like you said, disrespectful.” Kendell stared at Bane a moment longer. “So, how long have you been working here? Ikaika didn’t seem to act like he knew.”

“He doesn’t. I’ve only been working here for about a month. Before Makani and I broke up, we had been working with the museum at forming a non-profit that helps local retired military. The non-profit has been up and running for over a year now, but when the museum started looking into hiring new faces, they thought of me and gave me a call. I hadn’t told anyone about the job yet because I wasn’t sure it was going to stick. Plus, my fellow surfers give me a hard time about the military thing— working for the man, that type of attitude,” Bane explained.

“So, the morning Makani died?” Kendell asked.

“I was here,” Bane said. “If it’ll make you feel any better, you can even look at my time card. I wouldn’t hurt Makani. I loved her. I was a jerk, and I know that, but I still cared about her. And I want to know what idiot did this. Because when I find out, I’ll break his neck.”

“Violent,” Pauline chastised. “So very violent.”

Bane shook his head. “Yeah, comes with the territory. You two want the grand tour? That is my job, after all.”

“Ooh, look, Kendell… Suddenly, Bane is no longer too good to talk to the tourists!” Pauline teased.

“Today, I’m getting paid to,” Bane reminded them, but he offered them a somewhat warm smile. “Sorry about my attitude at the luau. I know that I need to tone it down. I should probably apologize to Nick especially. I’ve given him a hard time since day one, but honestly, I was just jealous. Seeing Makani go after some city boy who could barely swim when they first met was kind of a low blow, and I took it out on him, even though I know it was totally my fault.”

“Well, you sure have come around,” Kendell said. “So, level with me. Who do you think hurt Makani?”

Bane shook his head. “I have no idea. Maybe another surfer? The competition is this weekend, but I just don’t know anyone who didn’t like Makani, you know?” Kendell could not help but to look at the man suspiciously, and he clearly picked up on it. But, surprisingly, he was calm about it. “If it makes you feel any better, the police have already come knocking on my door, and they’ve cleared me. The whole bitter ex thing is obviously something to make me look guilty. But, honestly, if that was my motive? I wouldn’t have gone after Makani. I would have gone after Nick.”

“That was more information than we needed,” Pauline said.

Bane shook his head. “Sorry, guess I’m still bitter. I really do need to apologize to that little Jersey Boy…” He looked very sad despite his efforts to hide it.

“We saw the teddy bear on the beach,” Kendell said. “You put that there?”

“Yeah,” he said. “I put that there before my first shift this morning. I really miss her, you know?”

“I’m guessing your breakup wasn’t super friendly. Was the bear a casualty during all of that?” Kendell asked.

“So, you saw the duct tape,” he said, rolling his eyes. “Yeah. We were fighting, and I tossed the bear at her. She ripped its eyes out and its head clear off before throwing it back at me. Not either of our proudest moments.”

“But you kept it,” Pauline said. “You even taped its head back on. Why?”

“Because I always loved her. I just couldn’t get over myself,” Bane admitted. “So, seriously, about this tour… I’d rather talk about anything else right now…”

Kendell and Pauline nodded, and they followed Bane around the interior of the museum as he gave them the guided tour. They observed the sunken ship, checked out some artifacts, and paid their respects to the fallen soldiers before returning to the small boat. They bid Bane farewell, and Kendell even wished him good luck at the upcoming surfing contest.

She and Pauline sat by one another on the boat ride back to the welcome center, both deep in thought. “What do you think?” Pauline asked. “Do you think he’s lying?”

“I’m not sure,” Kendell said. “But if he was working when Makani was killed, that sure does give him quite an alibi. Not like he could have jumped off the memorial site and swam all the way to the surfers’ beach and gotten back here without anyone noticing. And if the police really have already looked into him and cleared him, then we might be wasting our time with Bane.”

“So, now what?” Pauline asked. “I’m running out of ideas at this point.”

“I don’t know,” Kendell said, shaking her head. “But the funeral is tomorrow. I say we go, and maybe we can talk to a few other people about Makani. See if anyone else has anything to say about her other than the fact that she was a sweetheart who cared too much about everything and could surf.”

“We should look into the city officials too,” Pauline said. “Sounds like Makani had a tendency to rock the boat. This could have been a hit.”

“That might be taking it a little too far,” Kendell said, “but I’m open to the possibility. Makani was someone of importance around here.”

“Exactly,” Pauline said.

The boat arrived back at the dock, and they all unloaded. It had been a long day for Kendell and Pauline, so the two women took a cab back to their resort. Frankly, Kendell was really looking forward to a nap.

10

Finding appropriate funeral attire in the touristy area that Kendell and Pauline were staying proved to be difficult. Everything was bright and colorful for tourists to pick over and pretend they had purchased something local rather than manufactured. Eventually, the two women found a boutique where they were each able to pick out something a bit duller. Kendell found herself a black dress, and Pauline some nice black pants and elegant pullover top.

They hurried back to the resort, where they changed, did their makeup, and picked up some flowers they had ordered from the front desk, where they were waiting for them. “Ladies… Where are you two headed?” the man behind the counter asked curiously.

“A funeral,” Pauline said sadly.

The man raised a brow. “Oh… Oh, dear…” he began, but before the man could explain his concern, they heard Brandon from behind them.

“Kendell, Pauline, what are you two wearing!” he yelped.

Kendell spun around, a bit confused as to why such a question was being asked. “What do you mean?” Kendell asked just as she spotted Brandon in a nice pair of slacks and a very brightly colored shirt. “Um… Brandon… Why are you wearing a bright yellow polo?”

The man behind the counter cleared his throat. “Ladies, in Hawaii, no one wears black at funerals. It’s very…untraditional…”

“We need to change!” Pauline exclaimed.

“I just spent two hundred dollars on this dress…” Kendell grumbled under her breath. “I don’t know if I have anything…”

“Go grab something from the gift shop,” the man behind the counter suggested. “We have a lovely assortment of ladies’ garments.”

Kendell and Pauline sped into the gift shop after Pauline tossed Dot and her carrier to Brandon. The two women changed into their brighter colors before rushing out the door with Brandon. “You could have told us that Hawaiians didn’t wear black at funerals,” Kendell griped as she climbed into the back seat of the truck.

Brandon pulled out of the parking lot, laughing slightly. “Sorry, and honestly, I had not even thought about it myself until Nick mentioned it the other day. I should have thought to tell you.”

“Well, at least the gift shop had something in my size,” Pauline said. “Believe me, that’s an incredible feat.”

“Where is the funeral taking place?” Kendell asked.

“At Ikaika’s,” Brandon said.

“That’s an odd place for a funeral service,” Pauline said.

“She was cremated. They’re spreading her ashes. It was her favorite surfing spot,” Brandon said. “Cremation is a popular burial method in Hawaii. Ikaika offered to provide food for the guests. Makani’s father is going to spread her ashes in the ocean.”

“Makes sense for a professional surfer,” Kendell said. “Very fitting. A good way to honor her.”

“Makani’s father asked Nick to help spread her ashes,” Brandon said. “He’s a little anxious about it. He’s not one to like a lot of attention, but he felt very honored. I could tell.”

“How very unlike his big brother,” Kendell said. “The attention-seeker.”

“Don’t judge me,” Brandon said, but he smirked slightly—a silent way of admitting he was indeed the attention-seeker Kendell claimed him to be.

Brandon eventually pulled off the main road onto the bumpy mess that Johnny’s bus had once taken them. Kendell was just glad they didn’t have to walk. It was amazing that at such a cutoff location, Ikaika managed to stay in business, but locals supported one another. And with a personality like Ikaika’s, Kendell imagined everyone around knew him and knew about his surfers’ hangout.

There were a number of vehicles, Johnny’s rickety bus included, all parked along the tree line. There was a large crowd of people standing around Ikaika’s outdoor bar and grill. Pictures of Makani were hung up everywhere on various sized easels. After exiting the vehicle, the three of them walked toward the crowd.

Kendell could see that Ikaika had set up a number of chairs in the sand. A large television was set up at the front of the line of chairs, a large extension cord bringing power to it from the bar and grill. A man called out for everyone to have a seat, and Kendell and Pauline sat near Nick and his family. Kendell looked around. There were a lot of familiar faces. Johnny, Bane, Mikey, Ikaika, and several of the surfers who had been there the morning of the murder. Brandon nudge Kendell before the service got underway and nodded back where several people were standing dressed in suits. “Who are they?” Kendell asked.

“City officials,” Brandon said. “Came to pay their respects. That’s the Mayor of Honolulu over there.”

Kendell glanced at the older, graying man in the navy-blue suit; he was wearing a brightly colored vest and tie under his suit. “She had friends in high places,” Kendell whispered.

“It’s her involvement in various charities,” Brandon said. “She was well-respected. And over there - those people are professional surfers.” He nodded toward a more casually dressed group. “That guy right there? Olympic swimmer.”

“Dang,” Kendell said, impressed with Nick for having found himself such a prestigious girl. Makani had been such a wonderful person, it seemed. However, she recalled Johnny telling her that the mayor had a restraining order against Makani. It seemed awfully strange that you would want to show up to someone’s funeral whom you had filed against.

The memorial service got underway. A man who ran the local funeral home spoke first, and they started a slideshow with numerous pictures of Makani, starting with her childhood. One of the first photos was of a toothless Makani sitting on a surfboard that was way too big for her, a loud group “aww” erupted from some. From the pictures, it was clear that Makani was involved in a lot of social justice warrior events. One photo was of Makani hitting someone with a picket sign, followed by a photo of the two of them laughing it off as though they had apologized to one another. The picture of Bane and Makani at the fair had made its way into the slideshow, and a few people laughed and whispered comments in Bane’s direction. The man shook his head in embarrassment and looked down. There were lots of pictures of Nick and Makani in the more recent pictures. A picture of her laughing as Johnny fell off his board. Lots of pictures of her at Ikaika’s. There was even one picture of Makani and Mikey smiling at the camera together.

When the video ended, a few more people got up to speak. Eventually, everyone stood and moved out onto the beach where Nick and Makani’s father stripped to their swimwear and headed out on surfboards where they spread her ashes in the water. When the two men returned to shore, Makani’s father loudly announced that Ikaika had kindly provided food for those wishing to stay.

Several of the city officials used this as an opportunity to dip out, along with those who did not know her quite as personally. Kendell and Pauline decided to stay to be there for Nick. “We should use this dinner as an opportunity to mingle and talk to some suspects,” Pauline whispered to Kendell as they made their way up the beach toward the bar and grill.

“Agreed,” Kendell said.

Before they even got to the grill, they heard shouting. Kendell glanced up just in time to see Bane and Johnny come tumbling out from between two tables, landing on top of one another in the sand. Punches were being thrown, and Makani’s mother was shouting and crying for the two of them to stop. It was Makani’s father who put an end to it. The man stomped on Johnny’s leg, causing the man to yelp, and yanked Bane up by the hair. “Get out of here! Both of you! You disrespect my daughter’s memory fighting here!” he roared.

Both men quickly uttered apologies before going their separate ways. “What was that about?” Kendell asked Nick as she and Pauline approached.

“Johnny accused Bane of killing Makani,” Nick said under his breath.

“What do you think?” Kendell asked.

“There’s no way,” Nick said. “Bane’s a jerk, but he would never hurt her. Johnny was out of line. Everyone’s still…upset…on edge. The police are still trying to figure out who did this. I hope they do soon before this circle of friends completely implodes.” Nick approached Makani’s father, placing a hand on the man’s shoulder and murmuring something to him to calm him down. The two men headed toward Ikaika, where the man helped them get situated for their dinner.

“Looks like Nick got really close with the family,” Kendell said. “I wonder if he will stay in Hawaii?”

“From what I’ve learned, it sounds like he has created a life for himself out here,” Pauline said. “I couldn’t imagine wanting to leave a place like this for New Jersey.”

Kendell nodded and had to concur. Hawaii was an incredible place. People gathered around tables, all telling fun stories about Makani. Frankly, it was quite merrier than a funeral in New York. Kendell liked it. When I go, this is how I want my friends and family to be, she decided. Laughing, telling stories, making one another feel better. Celebrating life, not mourning loss.

As Kendell was enjoying some of her dinner and listening to a story about Makani’s first surfing competition, she spied Mikey hiding out in a corner. The man was always lurking. Always just standing back and observing. It was always the quiet ones you needed to worry about; maybe he knew something he had yet to share?

Kendell excused herself form the table and made her way over to him. Mikey looked nervous to have someone looking directly at him. She smiled kindly. “Hey, Mikey,” she said. “So, I saw you at Makani’s memorial site the other day. The card you put down was very sweet.”

He frowned. “Yeah… I had to borrow money from Bane to buy it…” he admitted, sounding quite ashamed.

“How is the job hunt going?” Kendell asked. “I was told Makani had been helping you out in that endeavor?”

He smiled. “I got a job on the docks,” he said. “I start Monday. My new boss knew Makani… She was here earlier. She is paying for my uniform until I can pay her back so that I can get started right away. I think it was just as favor for Makani, but it’s the first time I’ve had a job in a long time.”

“Good for you,” Kendell said.

“Believe me, I had little to do with it,” Mikey said, wringing his hands anxiously. “Makani had everything to do with it. She was the only person who didn’t completely write me off as a lost cause. She got me help. I’ve been sober for over a year. That’s the longest I’ve gone since I was probably fourteen without a fix. I’m not going to let myself fall off the bandwagon again. For Makani. She would want me to keep pushing forward. I don’t want to let her down.”

“That’s really good to hear,” Kendell said. “I’m sure she would be glad to know that you’re pulling yourself together. The job is a great start.” Mikey continued wringing his hands and staring at his feet. Something was up. “Mikey, are you okay?”

“I’m worried someone hurt Makani…because of me…” he said under his breath, and Kendell raised a brow.

“How do you mean?” she asked.

“After Makani got to know me…she started harassing authorities about cracking down on drug dealing in the area,” he said. “Makani… She went after one of my old dealer. He’s in jail now, and then she was pressing me to give her the name of the newest guy I had been going to for the drugs, but I wouldn’t tell her. And, she told me just a few days before she had been killed that she had identified my dealer’s supplier and was going to be taking that information to the police. She was cleaning up the streets.”

“Do you know who the supplier was?” Kendell asked.

“No,” Mikey said. “And my old dealer was in jail. I asked her to let it go and to just let the police handle this sort of thing, but Makani was never one to sit still when there was injustice in front of her. My dealer got me hooked when I was just a kid. She didn’t want that to happen to anyone else.”

“Who was Makani planning on sending this information to?” Kendell asked.

“Directly to the mayor’s office,” Mikey said. “This is my fault, isn’t it? She’s dead because of me. I know it.”

“It’s not your fault, Mikey. You didn’t make Makani get involved. That was her choice,” Kendell said. “But I’m going to do what I can to find out exactly what happened to Makani. That much, I can promise.”

11

Kendell pulled up outside of City Hall, Honolulu along with Pauline and the woman’s trusty puppy dog sidekick. She could hardly imagine what Pauline planned to do to get them a meeting with the mayor, but the elderly woman was quite confident. They headed inside, where they found a directory hanging on a far wall. “Mayor’s office is upstairs,” Pauline said.

“I’m sorry,” Kendell said, shaking her head. “But I don’t get how you plan to get a meeting with him?”

“We’re just going to walk in, dear,” Pauline said, heading to a nearby elevator.

“I’m not sure if it’s going to work that way, Pauline,” Kendell argued, but the woman was insistent.

Kendell followed the woman into the elevator. Frankly, she was just trying to figure out how Pauline had managed to get Dot in the door. She had that effect. Somehow, no one ever noticed that she was obviously carrying a small purse dog. It was like the whole world bowed to Pauline, but then again, she did always walk with such confidence for someone so old. It was like she owned any room she walked into. Kendell imagined that in her younger years, Pauline was a stunning woman who had gotten very used to getting whatever she wanted if she just used the right words.

The elevator opened, and the two women poured out into the hall. There were a lot of people wearing suits walking up and down the halls, most hardly paying them any mind at all. There was a secretary in the main lobby of this floor, so Pauline trotted up to her. “I have an appointment with the mayor,” she said.

The woman frowned. “I don’t think you do,” she said, but she skimmed through the mayor’s booking anyway. “Yes, the only thing Mayor Caldwell has on his agenda for today was an appointment with Miss Makani, but that has obviously been canceled.”

“Yes, that’s what we’re here for,” Pauline said, and Kendell eyed her elderly companion suspiciously.

“I’m sorry?” the secretary asked.

“We are here on behalf of the deceased Miss Makani,” Pauline said. “I believe we are right on time?”

“Well…yes…but…” The woman looked very confused, but she snatched up her desk phone. “One second.”

“Of course,” Pauline said, taking a few steps back from the desk. “Take your time.” She wandered over to a wall where she began casually admiring some artwork hanging in the lobby.

Kendell followed Pauline. “How did you know Makani had an appointment with the mayor?"

“Ikaika gave me some things of Makani’s that she had left at his bar. A small box of stuff he gathered up. He meant to give it to Makani’s parents at the funeral, but it slipped his mind. He asked me to deliver it instead. The box is still at our resort. I was going to bring it all to Nick so he could get it to Makani’s parents, but first I decided to skim through everything.”

“And what did you find?” Kendell asked.

“A planner,” Pauline said, smirking. “And guess who had an appointment with the mayor this morning?”

“So, that’s why you dragged me out of bed so early to try to go talk to the mayor?” Kendell questioned.

“To swipe Makani’s appointment time, yes,” Pauline said proudly.

“Yes, sir,” the secretary was saying behind them. “Well, they say they are here to fill in for Miss Makani?” There was a long pause. “Okay, sir. I’ll send them in.”

The secretary hung up her phone and wandered over to Pauline and Kendell before asking them to follow her. She escorted them toward a back area of the building, eventually arriving in a large room where Mayor Caldwell was waiting for them behind a desk. The man was wearing a casual pair of khakis and an orange shirt. “I wasn’t expecting to see anyone today,” he said, standing up from his desk and coming around to the women. “I saw you two at the funeral for Miss Makani?” he asked, extending his hand to shake.

Pauline shook first, then Kendell. The secretary excused herself to allow them some time to talk. The man kindly pulled up a chair for each of them before sitting back down behind his own desk. “So, you are here on behalf of Makani? Do you have some information for me?” he asked, leaning back in his seat.

“I’m sorry for the misrepresentation here,” Pauline began, sounding quite professional in her demeanor. “Truthfully, we are hoping you could help us with something.”

“Oh?” he questioned, smirking—seeming slightly amused by the old woman who had weaseled her way into the mayor’s office with her redheaded sidekick and poof-ball doggy companion.

“Yes,” Kendell said, taking over for a moment. “We noticed you had come to Makani’s funeral. Rumor has it that you had a restraining order against her, and we wanted to ask some questions to see if you could help us with Makani’s case.”

“Oh, I didn’t realize you two were…detectives?” he asked.

“No, we’re not detectives,” Pauline said. “We’re friends with the young man who had been seeing her prior to her death. We are just trying to make sense of it all.”

“I see,” he said. “And what is it you ladies are wanting from me?”

“Well, for starters, why were you at Makani’s funeral? We were told you had a restraining order against Makani,” Kendell said.

He laughed. “Who told you that?” he asked. “Not me. Well, not anymore. That was five years ago. She beamed me in the head with a picket sign. I filed for a restraining order, but frankly, that has been put behind us. Makani has been helping us with getting information on some local drug operations. I finally convinced her that picketing was not the only solution to local problems.”

“You had her doing undercover work?” Kendell asked.

“Nothing of the sort,” he said. “I would not send a civilian for something like that. She already knew some local dealers, and she had been sending me information.”

“We think the drug supplier that Makani was going to out to you might have gotten her,” Kendell said.

“Well, that would certainly make a lot of sense, but our local officers arrested the supplier that Makani gave us over a week before her death,” the mayor said. “He already is sitting in a local jail cell waiting for his prison sentence.”

“So, Makani already got that information to you?” Kendell asked.

“That’s right,” the mayor said. “Months ago. She was currently working on locating some of his dealers for us, though. I told her to back off, but Makani was hardly someone to listen to a person of authority. Having the supplier behind bars was going to make change happen in time.”

“Could Makani’s killer have been one of the supplier’s lackeys?” Pauline suggested. “Someone taking revenge for their boss and for ruining their business?”

“That’s certainly possible,” the mayor said. “And I’m sure it’s something local police are looking into. That is their job, after all.”

“We understand that the police are looking into things,” Pauline said. “And we certainly are not trying to step in on the toes of local authorities. We are just looking into it, is all. Talking to friends and family. Like we said, trying to make sense of it all.”

“Well, I can tell you that the operation Makani was helping us to uncover was a very sophisticated one,” he said. “The suppliers were using scuba divers to trade the drugs and money.”

“Scuba divers?” Kendell questioned. “How were they using scuba divers?”

“The divers would swim underneath ships that were transporting the supplies. They would have cages hooked under the ships. It was quite impressive ingenuity, honestly,” the mayor explained.

Kendell’s mind started going off in a thousand different directions. “What kind of ships were being used?”

“Mostly tour boats. The dealers would drive out to sea where the divers were stationed nearby. They would just go out on one of their tours. Then the divers would fasten the drugs in the steel cages under the ships. Later, the dealers would dive off the side of their ships while it was in dock to collect the drugs. It was no wonder it took so long to find the supplier.”

“This was very helpful,” Kendell said.

“Listen, ladies, the last thing I need is two tourists winding up dead in my city,” the mayor said. “Do be careful and let the police handle the real investigations.”

“Understood,” Pauline said, standing with Dot’s carrier thrown over her shoulders.

Kendell and Pauline left City Hall, calling for a cab out front to take them back to the resort. As the two of them arrived, Kendell went and located the photos from hers and Pauline’s underwater sea adventure. She could almost recall seeing something in the photographs, but she wasn’t sure.

Eventually, she found one of her favorite pictures. It had caught just herself and Pauline, and they were looking straight at the underwater camera in their full snorkeling getup. But, in the background, you could see the tour boat. Specifically, you could see directly under the tour boat—where there was a small metal trap welded to the bottom of the ship. “Pauline!” Kendell called for her friend, who was currently on the phone ordering room service.

Pauline held up her finger to let Kendell know to give her just a moment. Kendell shook her head. The woman was a nut at times. She ordered everything off the resort’s menu that they had not already tried so that they could feast. The woman was truly enjoying her vacation, even with the craziness of a looming case over their heads. When Pauline finally got off the phone, she scurried over to the couch next to Kendell. “Ooh, are you looking at our pictures from the shark diving!” Pauline exclaimed. “That was just so much fun.”

“Yeah, well, check this out right here,” Kendell said, pointing to the small metal box on the bottom of Johnny’s boat. “Sound familiar?”

“That’s just what the mayor was talking about,” Pauline said. “Do you think Johnny could have been one of the dealers Makani was looking into?”

“Johnny is probably Mikey’s dealer,” Kendell said. “They run in the same crowd. Maybe Johnny and Mikey kept it quiet, but then Makani started working on getting Mikey clean. It messed with Johnny’s business. Then, she got Johnny’s supplier arrested, and that would have completely ruined him.”

Pauline nodded. “That is certainly a possibility. And Johnny has been trying to put everyone on Bane’s tail. Bane would be a first instinct for both the police and for Makani’s friends and family, especially if none of them knew that Johnny was Mikey’s dealer.”

“And Johnny was there at the beach when Makani was killed,” Kendell said. “And if Makani didn’t know that Mikey’s dealer was Johnny…then she wouldn’t have known she was in danger when Johnny showed up at the beach with her that morning.”

“Oh, my dear, I think we just cracked this case wide open! Excellent detective skills, Kendell,” Pauline said.

“Me? You’re the one who got us in to talk to the mayor!” Kendell cried. “You are quite an impressive woman!”

“So, what’s next?” Pauline asked.

“Well, you did just order a bunch or room service,” Kendell said. “So, after we stuff ourselves silly, I say we go talk to Johnny.”

“But the mayor told us to stay out of it,” Pauline reminded her.

“Yeah, well, we could report it to the police, but we don’t have a lot of concrete evidence other than this picture,” Kendell said. “We need to see if we can find out more. Otherwise, Johnny could walk.”

“Excellent point,” Pauline said. “We’ll be careful, though. Let’s go talk to Johnny…but you’re right. Food first.”

“Exactly,” Kendell said, laughing. “I do love food.”

“We are on vacation, dear. Remember that!”

Dot began barking as though she was letting them know that she too was ready to eat. Yes, they were on vacation. But, strange as it was, sleuthing was one of the most relaxing and fun things Kendell had ever done. Maybe I chose the wrong career path, Kendell thought with amusement. Room service arrived, and the women laid out the various plates that Pauline had ordered. They weren’t in a hurry. Johnny had no idea that the two tourists were onto him, after all.

12

After finishing the ridiculous feast that Pauline had laid out for them, the women lounged around a bit, a little overcome from their gluttonous experience. They each sat on the couch, discussing the possibilities of the case. “Ikaika and Mikey have no motive, same for most of the people on that beach who had attended the luau outside of the surfing competition,” Kendell said. “Plus, Makani helped them both in some way. For Mikey, she helped him get clean. And, as a local borderline celebrity, Makani making Ikaika’s bar and grill her regular hangout probably helped his business.”

“If what the mayor told us is true, sounds like Makani was starting to make amends with a lot of the local officials she had been known to harass,” Pauline said. “She was starting to work with them rather than against them. So, I think that rules out most everyone at City Hall.”

“Other witnesses would be you, me, Brandon, Nick, Johnny, and Bane,” Kendell said.

“Well, correct me if I’m wrong, but I’m pretty confident that we can rule out you, me, and Brandon. We all heard Makani talking about her morning surf, but as out-of-towners, none of us would have known where she would have gone—not without getting lost, at least. Plus, no motive. And it’s not like your friend Brandon didn’t like his brother’s girlfriend, so it’s not like Brandon was trying to get rid of an unwanted potential in-law. And it obviously wouldn’t have been some sort of get back at my brother thing, because he and Nick get along wonderfully.”

“Agreed,” Kendell said, but frankly, she knew even if there was evidence completely stacked against him, there wasn’t any scenario where she would ever believe that Brandon would hurt anyone. “So that really just leaves Nick, Johnny, Bane, and the group of surfers who were at the luau.”

“Well, before we start diving into random surfers who barely even spoke to Makani at the luau, let’s look at Nick, Johnny, and Bane,” Pauline said. “I think it’s safe to say that Nick had nothing to do with this, unless he just an incredible actor. He was obviously in love with that girl. They didn’t seem to be fighting. She seemed to be in love with him too. He’s an amateur surfer from New Jersey, so it’s not like he stood a chance in the surfing competition against anyone, even with Makani out of the running.”

“I agree that we can totally just take Nick from the suspect list,” Kendell said. “And, honestly, I’m starting to feel the same way about Bane.”

“I wouldn’t jump the gun on that just yet,” Pauline said. “He has a lot of motive. And it’s hard to tell when someone is faking feelings for a person. But I do think it’s highly unlikely. The fact that the police have already investigated him, that he cooperated fully, and that they have supposedly cleared him is making me suspect him less.”

“And that leaves us with Johnny as our most likely suspect,” Kendell said, picking up the photograph of her and Pauline in their snorkeling gear surrounded by sharks. “While his motive was probably not the surfing competition since he has a reputation for being a lousy surfer, if he has been dealing drugs and his supplier happened to be the same person that Makani went after… Well, she probably just swiped half his income out from under him.”

“Let’s go over what we do know for sure,” Pauline suggested. “Then we speculate.”

“Okay. So, Johnny was definitely at the luau, and he spoke with Makani plenty that night. He most likely knew her intentions to come to her morning surfing spot,” Kendell began.

“He was there on scene when we arrived,” Pauline said, and then her eyes lit up as though she was recalling something. “His hair was soaking wet.”

“So?”

“Think about it,” Pauline said. “Johnny acted like he had shown up at the beach and saw those surfers crowded around Makani and had joined them after the police had been called. Why would his hair have been wet already if he never made it out into the water?”

“Okay, so that’s definitely something,” Kendell agreed. “Let’s see… What else do we know… We know that Mikey knows a dealer but that he hasn’t revealed the dealer’s identity to his group of friends. Which meant that if the dealer was within Makani’s group of friends, said dealer could have approached Makani without her putting her defenses up. It could easily be Johnny...or Bane. We also know that the operation the locals are currently trying to break up used tour boats to stash their drugs and that Johnny owns a tour boat. And, from the look of this picture, the drugs could be stashed in that little cage.”

“I don’t think Bane is our dealer,” Pauline said. “He’s former Navy, and he has a steady job. He also has a good surfing career ahead of him. I don’t think he would jeopardize it selling drugs on the side. Not to mention, he worked with Makani on some of her various causes, like the veterans group. So, while it’s true he could have just been doing that to impress his girlfriend, he might be a little bit of a social justice warrior like Makani was. That would make sense, and it would have been something other than just surfing that the couple had in common. I doubt a fellow social justice warrior would sell drugs to his local community and then murder someone who was actually making a difference.”

“True—if he is, in fact, that type of social justice person,” Kendell said. “I say our next step is to look more into Johnny.”

“Excellent. I concur,” Pauline said, pulling out her phone.

“What are you doing?” Kendell asked.

“Johnny schedules his tour times on his website. I’m just going to make sure that he doesn’t have any coming up soon. We know where his boat docks. I say we go take a look,” Pauline said with a smirk. “Okay, good, he doesn’t have another tour scheduled for at least two hours. If we book it, we should be able to make it down to the docks before Johnny shows up from his break.”

“Great,” Kendell said, standing and immediately feeling the lethargy after all the food she and Pauline had just devoured. “Okay, I have a new rule for us to follow for our vacations.”

“What’s that, dear?” Pauline asked.

“No more ordering multiple meals from room service. One meal per person,” Kendell said, touching her stomach and groaning a bit. “That’s twice we’ve done that here in Hawaii.”

“I told you, this was the one place I was most looking forward to,” Pauline said. “It’s the place my husband and I always talked about going. I’m trying as much local cuisine as possible!”

“Fine, but after Hawaii, we have got to chill,” Kendell laughed, and Pauline agreed.

The two women got dressed and hurried out the door, Dot in her pink carrier as always. They called for a cab that met them out in front of the resort, and away they went. Kendell sat behind the driver, staring out the window and enjoying some of the beach scenery during their drive. Dot sneezed, and Kendell glanced down at the little pooch. “Oh, wow, when did you bedazzle her carrier?” Kendell asked.

“Oh, my goodness. Early this morning before you got up, I headed out to get some ice cream. Don’t know why I was wanting ice cream so badly, but I needed to stretch my legs and it was hot. So, I wandered away from the resort a good bit and came across some street vendors. One of the vendors was a group of young girls selling bedazzled items. They were just so adorable. Reminded me of some of my great-grandchildren. I offered to pay them to decorate Dot’s carrier. They had so much fun playing with Dot and taking turns bedazzling the carrier that they bedazzled her little pink collar for free.”

Kendell laughed so hard that she snorted. “How many little adventures like that do you go on that I completely miss because I’m sleeping?”

“Probably one every morning, dear,” Pauline said. “I’m old. I’ll sleep when I’m dead!”

Kendell’s phone buzzed, and she picked it up. It was Brandon. “Hey! What’s up?” she asked. “Where were you at today? I thought you were going to be at the resort?”

“Um… You realize the surfing competition starts today?” Brandon questioned.

“Wait, what? I thought it wasn’t for another day or two?” Kendell shrieked.

“The finals are in a couple of days. It’s several days long. Today is preliminaries,” he said.

Kendell turned to look at Pauline. “The competition is today!” she squealed.

“Whoops!” Pauline said, shaking her head. “Should we have the driver turn around?”

“No, we’re almost there, we should be able to make it,” Kendell said and then turned her attention back to the phone. “Brandon, when will Nick be surfing?”

“Not for a few hours,” Brandon said. “You should have time to get here. You two running an errand or something?”

“Yeah, you could say that,” Kendell said. “We shouldn’t be too long.”

“Okay! Awesome,” Brandon said. “See you there!”

Kendell hung up the phone just as they were arriving at the docks. There were signs all over the place saying things like, “Closed for the Surfing Competition!”

“Looks like Johnny’s probably down at the competition today too,” Kendell said. “Those tour times you saw are probably canceled today.”

Pauline and Kendell approached Johnny’s boat, and sure enough, there was a closed for the competition sign there as well. They stepped over the ropes blocking off the end of the dock and made their way toward the rickety vessel with the large steel cage sitting on deck. “We could have died,” Kendell said as she took her second good look at the ship. It looked very sketchy. They walked all around the deck before entering the ship’s cabin and snooping around, looking for anything that they could find.

Pauline opened a small chest sitting near an old fridge, and Kendell heard the woman gasp. Kendell hurried over. “What did you find?”

“I think I might have found our murder weapon,” Pauline said, pointing. Inside the chest was a large rod with various points on the end.

“What is that thing?” Kendell asked, noticing one of the tips was chipped off and there was dried blood along the points.

“It’s called a fishing spear,” Pauline said. “Usually used for making catches for larger fish, but…I bet working a tour boat that drops people off in shark-infested waters, it’s probably used to scare off the sharks if they get a little testy.”

“So, before we jump to conclusions, that could very well be the blood of a shark, right?” Kendell said.

“Probably,” Pauline agreed. “Or it could be Makani’s. They found metal fragments in her skull, remember?”

“I remember,” Kendell said, taking a picture of the tool/potential murder weapon with her phone. “Let’s keep looking.” The women continued looking around the cabin, not finding much until Kendell stubbed her toe on a rug. “Hmm…” she said, noticing a bump in the rug. She rolled it back, and there was a wooden plank with a hinge.

“What did you find?” Pauline asked.

“Not sure,” Kendell said, grabbing the little handle and opening the makeshift hatch. The hole opened up below the boat. There was a rope, and Kendell grabbed it and pulled. She heard the water drain, and as it did, they discovered a small crate full of plastic bags of a white substance. “So, this is how Johnny gets the drugs out from underneath his ships. The supplier’s lackeys use scuba divers to sneak the drugs onto the ship, and then Johnny just pulls this rope, and he is able to sneak the drugs off the ship by just putting them in a fishing bag or whatever.”

Pauline took a picture with Kendell’s phone. “I think we know who killed Makani,” Pauline said.

“I think we do,” Kendell said. “If we can get Mikey to confess to us that Johnny is his dealer, that will probably be all we need. Mikey told us that he suspected his dealer might be behind this.”

“I bet you anything Mikey and Johnny are both at that surfing competition,” Pauline said as they lowered the drugs back into the underwater capsule beneath the rickety ship. They closed the little hatch and covered it with the rug, making sure everything that they had moved was back in its proper place.

“Let’s go,” Kendell said. “We have a surfing competition to get to.”

13

Kendell and Pauline arrived at what had to be the most crowded beach they had ever seen. There were lifeguards posted every thirty feet, and ropes blocking people off from the water. White chairs lined one side of the beach, and a number of truck vendors were posted all along the sand. There were vendors selling clothes, food, crafts, and even surfing lessons. There was loud music blaring, people dancing, and of course, surfers in line getting their numbers pinned to their chests to compete.

Surprisingly enough, Kendell saw Nick in the lineup with the number 42 proudly pinned to his chest. They approached him; he was standing with Brandon, his sister, and their parents. “Glad to see that you decided to still partake in the contest,” Kendell said. “Good for you.”

“I’m wearing Makani’s number,” he said, tapping his chest. “I’m not much of a surfer, but if I am awarded anything—even if it’s something small—the announcers will call her name out.”

“That’s very sweet, Nick,” Kendell said, nodding toward the crowd where she could see Makani’s family gathered to support Nick and some of Makani’s friends who were competing in the surfing contest. “So, who all is here?”

“Pretty much everyone,” Nick said. “Johnny and Bane are both competing. So are some of the other surfers you guys met at the luau. Ikaika is here with his food truck. I think I saw Mikey hanging out around here somewhere…”

“Where did you see him?” Pauline asked.

“Um…probably around Ikaika’s food truck,” Brandon said. “Sounded like he was hoping to get some free food. He told us his new job is going well, but he won’t get his first paycheck for a while.”

“Good for him,” Kendell said. She reached out and put her hand on Nick’s shoulder. “Kick some butt out there for Makani today, all right?”

“I’ll do my best. But, I’m just a New Jersey boy trying to go up against Hawaii-born surfers.”

“You had a great teacher,” Pauline said, and Nick beamed.

“Thanks,” he said and headed toward the lineup of surfers who would be going out in the water with the first round of competitors.

The sun was beating down on their backs that day; Kendell wished that she had thought to wear a swimsuit so she could go splash in the water at the edge of the competition where contest volunteers were allowing some swimmers to go. But she knew that could not be her main focus that day. She and Pauline slipped away from Brandon and his family and made their way over to Ikaika’s food truck. After the painful amount of food Kendell had already ingested that day thanks to Pauline’s room service buffet-style order, she definitely wasn’t going over there to eat. She wanted to talk to Mikey, and Pauline seemed to be on the same page as far as that was concerned.

The two women said hello to Ikaika, and Pauline asked him if he had seen Mikey. The big-bellied Hawaiian smiled. “Yeah, I saw him just a few minutes ago. Gave him a plate.” The man leaned out of the window of his food truck and pointed toward some picnic tables that had been set out in the sand for the event. “There he is, chowing down.”

“Thanks, Ikaika,” Kendell said.

“Any time, ladies. What do you need Mikey for?” Ikaika asked curiously.

“Just needed to ask him some questions about Makani,” Pauline said. “We think we might have found something that could help the police with their investigation, and we just need to confirm something with him.”

“Oh, Mikey’s not in any trouble, is he?” Ikaika asked, sounding worried.

There was a line forming behind Pauline and Kendell now, so Kendell quickly settled the man’s mind. “No trouble,” Kendell assured him. “We just need to talk.”

“Okay, if you say so. All right. Next order! Aloha!” Ikaika called out, glancing past Kendell to the next person in line.

Pauline and Kendell hurried over to the picnic table where Mikey sat alone. They sat down without an invite—Pauline right beside him, and Kendell across from him. The man nearly choked on his food in surprise. “Ladies,” he said, raising a brow. “Can I…can I help you two with anything?”

“Who’s your dealer, Mikey?” Kendell asked, and the man’s eyes widened.

“I don’t do that anymore, and it’s none of your business,” he said under his breath. “And, chill, would you? My boss is here watching the competition. This is not exactly a conversation I would want her to overhear.”

“You said you were worried your dealer might have killed Makani?” Kendell asked.

“No, I was worried his supplier might have,” Mikey corrected.

Pauline shook her head. “Yes, that would make sense, if the man hadn’t been in jail when Makani was killed. She got him booked a while back.”

Mikey grew pale. “So…you think my last dealer…”

“Who is he, Mikey?” Kendell asked.

“I shouldn’t say,” he said, nervously tapping his fingers against the picnic table. “I really shouldn’t say.”

“You ever seen that To Kill a Mockingbird movie or read the book?” Kendell asked.

“I read it in high school before I dropped out,” Mikey said. “I think we watched the movie too. Why?”

“The lawyer, Abacus, had a theory about practicing law—specifically about when you were questioning someone. Do you remember what it was?” Kendell asked.

“No.”

“Never ask a question you don’t already know the answer to,” Kendell said, and Mikey’s shoulders slumped. Kendell stared him down. “We know Johnny has been dealing.”

Mikey frowned. “Okay, okay, hush!” he hissed, sinking further in his seat. “No one in our group of friends knows about Johnny dealing on the side. He doesn’t do drugs himself. He just deals. After my old dealer went to prison and I started having bad withdrawals, Johnny pulled me aside and started dealing to me. That was over a year ago before I decided to get help. Before Makani decided I needed to get help, that is. He and I were cool about me not buying from him anymore, but he was dead serious about me keeping my mouth shut about it. The surfers that hung in our crowd were all big on making society better, mostly because of Makani. He didn’t want to lose his job driving the bus for Ikaika, and he was worried Makani would actually report him even though they were friends. So, I kept it a secret for him. Makani would always pressure me to give her the name of the new dealer I went to, but I kept quiet because Johnny was always a good guy despite the dealing.”

“Thanks for confirming,” Kendell said, she and Pauline exchanging worried glances.

“How did you know that Johnny was my dealer?” he asked. “Johnny is pretty quiet about that sort of thing around this crowd.”

“We went to his boat. He’s got drugs being smuggled there…and, Mikey…we think we might have found the murder weapon that killed Makani on his boat—a fishing spear,” Pauline said, and Mikey’s face contorted from sad to very, very angry.

“You’re serious?” he asked.

“We think so,” Kendell said. “But we want to try to get a confession. See if he can talk his way around it sort of thing.”

“Let me do it,” he said angrily. “I’ll confront him. I’m not afraid to.”

“Where is he?” Pauline asked.

“He is down at the beach…waiting his turn…” Mikey stood up.

“Whoa there, Mikey, not now!” Kendell yelped, but he was already darting off toward the crowd.

Johnny was standing in a line along the beach among those surfers cheering on their fellow surfers already out on the water. Nick was among those swimming out to get ready to catch a wave, as was Bane and about six others. Kendell pulled out her cell phone, wanting to get the confrontation between Mikey and Johnny on film, even though it was happening in a way she did not prefer. She much rather would have planned something, but instead, Mikey was on the hunt.

“Johnny!” he shouted, and Johnny looked up with a large grin.

“What’s up, Mikey?” he called, but Mikey came right up to him, nose to nose.

“Hey, man, personal space!” Johnny yelped, attempting to take a step back.

Mikey grabbed Johnny’s board, pushing it down. “Where were you the morning Makani was killed?” he demanded.

“Man, I was heading toward the beach. I done told you I was among those who found her,” Johnny said.

“You and I both know that’s a lie,” he hissed.

Johnny grabbed Mikey by the arm, pulling him aside and away from the other surfers. “Dude, what are you talking about?” Johnny asked.

Kendell kept a safe distance, but continued filming with her phone. “You know what I’m talking about,” Mikey said. “Makani put your supplier behind bars. She wiped out half of your income when she took that guy out. And you knew that she was trying to identify my dealer. Trying to identify you. You decided to put an end to your little problem, didn’t you? You knew she was going to be at that beach by herself that morning. Probably got her to go out in the water with you to surf.”

“I did not such thing, you little washed-up creep,” Johnny snarled. “Get out of here before I beat you down into the sand.”

“I know you got her with a fishing spear,” Mikey said somewhat loudly.

Johnny’s eyes widened, and he reached out and grabbed Mikey by the collar of his shirt. “How the hell did you know that, you worthless little hobo?” he snarled and pulled his fist back. Mikey took the hit, and he fumbled back into the sand. “How about I stab you in the back of the head like I did that uptight, Miss Do-gooder Makani!” Johnny reached down, grabbing Mikey again by the collar of his shirt again and pulling him to his feet. “Let’s go. You and I are leaving.”

Kendell glanced around for Pauline, but she was nowhere to be seen. She thought to ask the surfers standing around her for backup, but she wasn’t sure how quickly she could corral them together to help Mikey. She definitely couldn’t take out Johnny, and Mikey didn’t look like the type of guy to put up much of a fight. But she wasn’t about to let Johnny drag Mikey off the beach and away from witnesses. “Yo, Johnny!” she called, and Johnny glanced up in her direction just as a beach rover with the word Lifeguard painted on the side came zipping by, driven by Pauline.

Brandon was in the passenger’s seat as they zoomed by, and he swung a spare surfboard right into Johnny’s back. It knocked the man clear out, and of course, lifeguards immediately swarmed them—one of them tackling Brandon to the ground after pulling him from the stolen beach rover.

“Nice,” Kendell said, glad she had still been filming.

“Hey! I only did it because he was trying to kill him!” Brandon yelped as though he really was not entirely sure and had just been taking Pauline’s word for it.

Kendell hurried over to the lifeguards, one of them checking Johnny over since he had just been KO-ed by Brandon. She showed them the video, and they were on the phone with the police in an instant. The police arrived just as Johnny was coming to. Kendell played the confession for them, and he was carted off. “Nice job, ladies,” one of the officers said as Kendell sent him the video.

“Wait until Nick hears what you did,” Brandon said, pointing toward the beach.

Nick and several others were still out in the water waiting on the preliminary rounds to start. A large group of waves came in, and the judges gave the signal that they were ready to start. Nick and Bane both caught a wave, followed by several other surfers. Brandon, Kendell, and Pauline stood toward the front of the viewing crowd, watching with anticipation. Then, Bane dropped out. The man smiled at Nick and threw himself clear off his board, as did every other surfer out there. Nick rode the wave in. His tricks were very amateur, but with no other surfer competing against him, he managed to rack up the most points. Makani’s name was called over the loud speaker as the surfer who had gotten the most points in this first set of preliminary rounds.

Kendell smiled as Bane made his was over, followed shortly by Nick. “You had the other surfers jump off their boards,” Nick said to Bane.

Bane pointed to a giant chalkboard stationed behind the judges. “I heard you were wearing Makani’s number. Just wanted to make sure I saw her name up on the leader board one last time.”

“That’s just too sweet,” Kendell said.

“So, where’s Johnny at?” Bane asked. “I thought he was going in the next round?”

Kendell smiled slightly in their direction. “Well, about that… I think you two might want to sit down. We have some news on the Makani front.”

14

Kendell rolled out of bed the next morning, doing so slowly and with very little energy. The surfing contest had really taken its toll on her, and she’d had to go give a statement after the contest about how she and Pauline had managed to identify Makani’s killer. Between the video confession and Mikey’s testimony, Johnny was going to be going to prison for a long time. She felt accomplished, and she had somehow managed to actually relax a good bit.

Pauline was still asleep; the poor old woman had to run out of batteries eventually. Kendell threw on her bathing suit, and she and Brandon made their way down the beach. They had already shared their good-byes with Nick, Bane, Ikaika, and Mikey—all the friends they had made during their stay. The two friends enjoyed some time relaxing on the beach, hardly able to believe that their flight left in a few hours.

“These touristy beaches are pretty lame when you’ve been to the locals’ sights,” Brandon said.

“Way too crowded,” Kendell agreed. “But I’m really glad your brother was able to show us around and give us an authentic taste of Hawaii.”

“Same,” Brandon said.

“So, what is he doing? Is he going to stay in Hawaii?” Kendell asked.

“I think so,” Brandon said. “He has made a life for himself out here. He wasn’t just slumming around with a girl, you know? He came here with her to get to know her, but he totally fell in love while he was out here. Not just with her.”

“What do you mean?”

“With this place,” Brandon said. “He may have been born in New Jersey, but he is a Hawaiian all the way. It kind of sucks, though. I’ve really missed seeing him all the time, you know?”

“You literally work at an airline,” Kendell said. “Use your vacation days. And be glad your brother moved to freaking Honolulu. He could have moved to Chicago.”

“God, I hate Chicago,” Brandon said.

“I know you do,” Kendell said. “But instead, whenever you want to visit your brother, you get to come to this amazing place.” She extended her arms, waving toward the crystal-clear ocean. “Not a bad place to visit.”

“No, definitely not,” he said, moaning. “My flight back to New York leaves in two hours.”

“Our flight leaves at about the same time. I guess we should head back inside and get showered,” Kendell said.

“Where are you two going next?” Brandon asked.

“I have no idea,” Kendell admitted. “It’s weird. I don’t even bother asking her until we’re at the airport.”

“That’s weird,” Brandon agreed.

“Yeah, but it’s kind of fun and exciting at the same time,” she said.

They headed back up to the hotel, each heading to their respective showers to get dressed and ready to go. By the time Kendell was dressed and had dried her hair, Pauline was on the suite’s kitchen phone.

“Who are you talking to?” Kendell asked. “You better not be ordering room service galore again.”

Pauline laughed, hanging up the phone. “No, I just reserved us a seat for lunch. I’m going to treat you and Brandon before we have to fly off.”

“Sounds great,” Kendell said, and the three made their way down to the resort’s restaurant, where they enjoyed a meal together. They shared a cab to the airport, and Pauline took Dot out of her carrier to let her use the restroom outside before the flight.

Once inside, the ladies bid farewell to Brandon. “Enjoy your flight back to New York,” Kendell said, giving him a hug.

“Enjoy your flight to…wherever…” he said, laughing.

“Peru,” Pauline said. “We’re going to Peru.”

“Oh, wow!” Kendell exclaimed. “That sounds fun!”

Brandon gave Pauline a hug as well. “Ma’am, it was so nice meeting you. You are just wonderful. And thank you, thank you so much for what all you did for my brother. I don’t think you realize what it meant to him to see justice for Makani.”

“Kendell helped, you know?” Pauline teased.

Brandon laughed. “Of course,” he said, giving Kendell another hug. “Thank you. And don’t worry. I’m going to keep an eye out on Jack for you.”

“Appreciated,” Kendell said and waved good-bye as he headed off in the opposite direction.

The two women went and waited in line for boarding, and eventually they found themselves sitting on the plane waiting for takeoff. Kendell set her carry-on in her lap, and then her face grew pale. “Oh, no! I forgot to get a sticker for my bag!” she yelped.

“No worries,” Pauline said, reaching into Dot’s carrier. “I snagged you one from the resort’s gift shop while you were showering.”

Kendell grinned and thanked Pauline for the kind gesture. She took the little sticker; it was a surfboard with the word Honolulu written on the side. “That’s just perfect, since we went to a surfing competition!” she exclaimed, thanking the woman again before putting the sticker next to her London and Nairobi stickers.

She leaned back in her seat as the flight attendant up front giddily went over safety instructions. “I recognize that voice,” Kendell said, sitting up. The girl upfront giving her sing-song version of flight instruction was none other than Kendell’s friend Jesse. Kendell laughed and nudged Pauline. “That’s my friend, Jesse,” she whispered.

“You know everyone, don’t you?” Pauline asked with a laugh.

“Hey, Kendell!” Jesse’s perky voice erupted over the speaker she was using, and then the girl blushed and giggled at the mistake. “Whoops, sorry, folks. As I was saying…” She went back into her spiel.

“Ooh, we should invite her to Peru with us!” Pauline exclaimed.

“You really don’t have to keep inviting my friends along,” Kendell said. “I already feel bad enough that you are paying for all of my traveling expenses.”

“The more the merrier!” Pauline said, waving Jesse down as soon as the woman as done with her announcements.

Jesse scurried over, plopping down in the empty third seat between them. “Kendell! You have been missing for weeks!” Jesse cried. “Jack said you are taking a long vacation?”

“I am,” Kendell said.

“And Lil told me she ran into you guys in Kenya…and that she almost got arrested?” Jesse asked.

“That sounds about right,” Kendell said.

Jesse turned and looked at Pauline. She smiled brightly. “You must be Pauline! Lil told me about you. She said that you saved her from going to prison…and that you almost got her mauled by a tiger?”

“A lioness,” Pauline corrected. “And that was hardly my fault. The thing fell asleep on top of the hood of a borrowed jeep.”

“Stolen,” Kendell coughed.

“Borrowed,” Pauline coughed right back. “Anyway, yes, I am Pauline. Kendell tells me your name is Jesse?”

“Yes,” Jesse said, smiling. “Kendell, Brandon, Lil, and I are all buddies in New York.”

“How fun!” Pauline said. “Well, Kendell, Dot, and I are flight buddies now as well. We have been doing quite a bit of traveling together.”

“Dot?” Jesse asked, and Pauline opened her bedazzled doggy carrier. “Eek!” Jesse exclaimed with the excitement of a four-year-old. “Oh my goodness! She is so cute I could die! Can I please pet your puppy!”

“Of course,” Pauline said, laughing. “You remind me of my grand-niece Tara.”

“Isn’t your grand-niece Tara five?” Kendell muttered.

“Yes, why?” Pauline asked, and Kendell shook her head.

“I hope you have been having fun on your little adventure,” Jesse said, petting Dot. The little white pooch’s tail was wagging a million miles an hour. “Aww, she likes me! Yay!”

“Jesse, you simply must join us on our next adventure,” Pauline said. “We’re going to Peru.”

“This flight touches down in Texas,” Jesse said. “Are you taking a flight from there to Peru?” she asked.

“That’s the plan,” Pauline said. “And it is one hundred percent my treat.”

Jesse’s eyes widened. “Are…are you serious? I could not possibly let you do that! You don’t even know me!”

“Oh, come on now, dear, you must!” she argued. “Peru or bust! When we touch down in Texas, see if your supervisor will let you off for a few days, and we will vacation in Peru.”

Jesse looked at Kendell cautiously. “Is she for real?” Jesse asked.

“She’s for real,” Kendell said. “She did the same thing for Lil. And when Brandon lost his reservation in Hawaii, he stayed with us in the resort Pauline had booked.”

Jesse looked very excited, but Kendell could tell the woman was trying to talk herself out of it.

“Do it,” Kendell said. “You only live once.”

“Oh my goodness, well, I think if the workaholic in our group—ahem , Kendell—can take a vacation, then so can I!” Jesse said. “I’ve always wanted to visit Peru. That sounds just lovely! Lovely, lovely, lovely! Well, the flight is about to take off. I need to get back to work. And…wait… How did you get a dog on board without checking her into baggage claim?”

“You know what, Jesse, I ask myself the same question every single time Pauline manages to pull that off, but are you really going to kick her off the flight two minutes before takeoff and stall all these people and risk being uninvited on a trip to Peru?” Kendell said.

Jesse stood up slowly. “I saw no dog,” she said, winking at Pauline before heading to the front of the plane.

“Ugh, we have an eight-hour flight ahead of us to Texas,” Pauline groaned.

“Joy,” Kendell muttered. “Probably going to be using that time to nap. How soon will we have to board after landing in Texas?”

“About four hours of wait time,” Pauline said. “Plenty of time to get some food and maybe run to a shop to get some more appropriate Peru attire for yourself.”

“Sounds good to me,” Kendell said, yawning. She leaned her head back and shut her eyes. She began daydreaming about her trip to Peru. Maybe they could walk the Incan trails? She could only imagine what sort of adventures Pauline had in store for them. Plans that were never going to happen because, unbeknownst to Kendell and her traveling companion, there was a storm brewing in the south.

* * *

Trouble in Texas

Flight Risk Cozy Mystery, Book 4

1

“Good-bye, Hawaii,” Kendell groaned slightly as the flight took off toward the continental US. “What a shame to be leaving.”

It had been quite an adventure, and Kendell was sad to see it end, but her favorite traveling companion had another adventure planned just around the corner. Pauline, an elderly woman Kendell had met during a flight from New York to London, had invited Kendell along for the journey of a lifetime. Pauline was seeing the world, and she had needed a companion. Mostly someone to carry her heavy bags and to help her out if her arthritis got the better of her, and Pauline’s grandchildren had been less than receptive about the woman spending all of their inheritance on a trip.

Thus far, Kendell had been placing stickers on her new carry-on bag from each of the locations they had visited together. There were stickers from London, Nairobi, and now Honolulu. She was looking forward to adding Peru to her list. They had bumped into Jesse, one of Kendell’s friends and fellow flight attendant, on the plane. Jesse had been working, although now the woman was seriously slacking as she had found herself a seat by Pauline upon being invited to join them.

“I simply cannot believe you are inviting me to come along!” Jesse squealed as she flipped through the booklet Pauline had been carrying in her purse. It was all about Peru, and Pauline was pointing out everything she had on the itinerary. The most impressive of which would be walking the Incan trails. “It looks so beautiful!”

“Oh, I’ve heard it is simply marvelous,” Pauline said, and her little purse dog yelped. “Hush, Dot,” she whispered. She wasn’t supposed to have the little dog on the plane, but somehow the woman kept managing to sneak Dot past airport security.

Unfortunately, there was no direct flight path to Peru from Hawaii. They would first be traveling to Dallas, Texas, with only a brief period to stretch or eat before their flight to Peru. Kendell was not looking forward to spending almost two full days just flying—normally, spending that much time on a plane meant she would be receiving a paycheck.

“I hate that we weren’t able to get a direct flight,” Pauline sighed. “I personally have never been to Texas, though. I’ve been told there might be some delayed flights out that way. Maybe we’ll get stuck for a few hours so that we can go see some sort of local Dallas attraction?”

“Eww,” Jesse said. “I don’t know about getting stuck in the South.”

“Excuse me, young lady, but you are sitting next to a Georgia lady,” Pauline warned. “God bless the South.”

“Sorry,” Jesse said with a laugh. “I’m a New Yorker through and through. Right, Kendell?”

“You and me both,” Kendell said, smirking. “But, I have to say, it sure has been nice experiencing some other cultures with you, Pauline. A few hours stuck in Texas wouldn’t be so bad. I wouldn’t mind seeing some of the Lone Star State. I have heard they have an awesome botanical garden in Dallas.”

“They have a park called Pioneer Plaza that has giant bronze statues of cattle,” Pauline said.

“You mean, like, cows?” Jesse asked. “Why would someone make giant statues of cows?”

“It’s because of the state’s cowboy heritage,” Pauline said. “The statues are lined up like they’re in a cattle drive.”

“Don’t they have an endangered species center or something like that in Dallas too?” Kendell asked.

“Highly likely,” Pauline said. “They have a lot of museums, so I’m told. I’ve heard the Old Red Museum is gorgeous.”

“Old Red?” Jesse questioned.

“The museum was built of red brick. Lovely architecture. I’ve seen pictures online,” Pauline said.

“I suppose going to a museum wouldn’t be a terrible way to kill some time if we wind up stuck in the city for half a day,” Jesse said. “I love going to see museums in New York.”

“New York does have some pretty wonderful museums,” Pauline said. “I got to experience some of them before our trip to London.”

As they were talking, one of the flight attendants paused by them and smiled. “If you like museums, Dallas has an amazing flight museum. It’s full of a bunch of old aircrafts.”

“That actually does sound interesting,” Jesse said.

“You’re only saying that because your ex-boyfriend is Air Force and you would like to take a picture of yourself standing next to an old aircraft and post it online to make him think you found yourself another Air Force beau,” Kendell teased.

“That is only partially true,” Jesse laughed. “Cut me some slack. He was kind of a jerk.”

“No doubt you would have me take the picture while you posed like your new boyfriend had surprised you with the camera,” Kendell scolded.

“How devious!” Pauline exclaimed as the flight attendant walked to the back of the plane, laughing the whole time.

“I think the Wi-Fi is up now,” Kendell said. “Hold on, let me see what else… I like how we’re planning to do a bunch of stuff on the off-chance a flight is delayed.”

“I told you there is a pretty good chance,” Pauline said. “I turned on the television before we left for the airport, and they were saying there was going to be some serious storms.”

“Yikes,” Kendell said under her breath. “Okay, I hate flying in bad weather.”

“Same,” Jesse said. “Ugh, especially in those new outfits the airlines got us.”

“I broke a heel,” Kendell said.

“Ha! Me too!” Jesse exclaimed. “I mean, don’t get me wrong, I totally loved the new outfits, but those high heels were so cheaply made.”

“You would like those outfits,” Kendell said, shaking her head. The airline they worked for had issued new uniforms right before Kendell began her journey with Pauline. They were tight, 1950s-style stewardess looks that made all the perverts on the flights drool. The airline was launching some new slogan about bringing class back to the airways, so all of their new décor was very airline nostalgic. Something the female flight attendants did not appreciate. Even her friend Brandon, a male flight attendant, had looked like straight-up eye candy in his new attire. Jesse was always a bit oblivious. She enjoyed the attention she got from the new uniforms.

“Well, excuse me for wanting to look cute,” she said, fluffing up her hair and crossing her legs, showing off the frightfully short skirt of the new uniform.

“There is nothing wrong with wanting to look cute,” Pauline assured Jesse.

“Come on, Pauline,” Kendell argued. “Wanting to be gawked at by a bunch of creepy old men is kind of sad.”

Jesse crossed her arms, sinking in her seat a bit. “It wouldn’t hurt you to glam up every once in a while,” Jesse argued.

“Kendell! Honestly,” Pauline said. “You’re making your friend feel awful for what she likes.”

“Sorry,” Kendell said. “I just feel kind of patronized in the outfits.”

“And there is nothing invalid about feeling that way either,” Pauline said.

“Kendell thinks me being too girly is supporting the patriarchy,” Jesse teased. “She’s a diehard, bra-burning feminist.”

“Oh, I knew it,” Pauline said, laughing. “Honey, let me tell you something right now. Being a feminist doesn’t mean you reject all things feminine, got it?”

Kendell smiled. “Yes, ma’am.”

“It simply means equality,” Pauline stated proudly.

“You sound like you come from experience,” Jesse said.

“Oh, I marched back in the day,” she said with a wink.

“No way you marched,” Kendell argued. “You’re way too…what’s the word…conservative?”

“A conservative woman can’t demand equal pay?” Pauline asked.

“You really are always so full of surprises,” Kendell said.

“No, you just like to put people in little boxes, my dear,” Pauline said. “And that’s just not the way the world works. Human beings are quite complex.”

Kendell nodded. She supposed she did have quite a few strong opinions that made her quick to judge. She smiled at Jesse. “I think you look cute, and there’s nothing wrong with that, I suppose,” Kendell said. “Sorry.”

“Thank you,” Jesse said. “I totally get you not liking the outfits… They are pretty impractical. I think the airline is going to release some different shoe options, at least. Too many people have complained, and the airline keeps having to replace everyone’s shoes because the heels keep snapping off.”

After the riveting conversation surrounding things to do in Dallas and the brief brush on feminism, Kendell decided it was time to attempt to sleep for the remainder of the long flight. Jesse went back to work, occasionally popping by to ask Pauline an excited question or two about their Peru trip. Kendell reached a deep sleep, and she slept for the majority of the flight--waking only when the plane began to shake.

She sat upright to the sound of shrieking children, thunderclaps, and the flight attendants shouting that the seatbelt light was on. Kendell, barely awake, struggled to get her belt on. She looked up, seeing that even the flight attendants were darting toward their emergency seating to get buckled in. “What’s going on?”

“Our pilot just flew us straight into a hurricane!” Pauline squealed, gripping her purse while Dot yapped in a panic.

Kendell’s eyes widened. “Please tell me you’re joking!”

“Nope! The hurricane changed paths at the last second after it hit land,” Pauline said.

Kendell’s heart raced as the plane jerked back and forth. She heard crashes behind the curtain where the plane’s cabinets were probably flying open. Looking toward the front of the plane, Kendell could see Jesse locked into one of the flight attendant’s seats beyond the curtain.

“Attention passengers. This is your pilot speaking. Please remain seated at all times. We are about to attempt an emergency landing. Note that we are no longer within the path of the hurricane, but this is still going to be a very bumpy ride. Hang tight,” a voice called over the intercom.

The oxygen masks fell in front of everyone’s faces. “You have got to be kidding me,” Kendell groaned, strapping a mask to her face. She had never had to deal with an emergency landing before, and she had been a flight attendant for five years. She looked over at Pauline; the old woman looked just as terrified as she was.

Kendell gripped her seatbelt, hoping it would give her some stability and keep her from jerking her head around too much. The plane continued to bounce around, and when they finally landed, it was far from gentle, but they had made it.

“Ladies and gentlemen, we have landed. Please remain seated with your seatbelts fastened… We’re not out of the woods just yet,” the pilots voice called over the intercom. As if on cue, the plane began to shake again. They were moving.

“Where did we land?” Kendell asked, removing her oxygen mask.

Pauline looked out the window. “We’re in a lake!” she yelped. “But…the storm seems to be dying down out there. That or it has moved on.”

“This is crazy,” Kendell said. “We’re on a freaking lake!” She could see out the window that several ambulances were pulling up at the water’s edge. “Thank goodness,” she said under her breath, hoping that they would be getting out of there sooner rather than later.

The flight attendants were gathered at the front of the plane, making sure they all knew their assigned duties in the midst of this emergency, and soon each of them was walking up and down the aisle passing out life jackets. Not exactly how Kendell expected to start her day.

2

By the time they reached the airport after having been retrieved from the lake, Kendell and her traveling companions were drenched. They had been able to retrieve their carry-ons, thankfully, but that hardly made up for the miserable state they currently found themselves in. The three of them, plus Dot, were huddled together on the floor in the overly crowded airport. Pauline was currently using Jesse’s laptop, which kept cutting in and out thanks to a bit of water damage, to cancel all of her plans and reservations in Peru.

“This is such a bummer,” Jesse said, sighing heavily. “I have the worst luck. The moment you invited me along, you probably doomed your vacation.”

“Don’t start a little pity-party now, dear,” Pauline said, smirking. “We are still in Texas. We had a bunch of plans of what all we could do while here. I say we have ourselves a little impromptu vacation here.”

“That does sound nice,” Kendell said with a smile.

“It’s not like I’m going to be able to get home to New York,” Jesse said. “They’ve canceled all incoming and outgoing flights. Are they expecting more storms?”

“There is some huge hurricane that traveled up the west coast of Florida, and Texas is receiving a lot of its rain,” Pauline said, pulling up a video online of some of the flooding already taking place all over Texas. “Looks pretty bad out there.”

“I don’t know how we’re supposed to enjoy a vacation in a place that looks like it’s in the middle of monsoon season,” Kendell admitted. “At the very least, maybe we can find ourselves a nice hotel to stay in.”

“Agreed,” Pauline said. “Ladies, if we’re going to do that, we’re going to all need to take to the computers. With this many flights delayed, I’m sure there are a lot of out-of-towners making last-minute bookings.”

“Excellent point,” Jesse said, standing up, her knees clacking together as she shivered from the cold. “I don’t have a change of clothes.”

“I’d offer you some of my clothes, but my bag fell over the raft on the way out of the lake,” Kendell said, holding up her little carry-on. “All of my clothes are soaked.”

“Well, ladies,” Pauline said, holding up her large bag. “I don’t know how you feel about dressing like an old woman, but I do have some dry clothes.”

“Hey, I’ll wear anything to get out of this,” Jesse said, waving her hand up and down. Her uniform had started sticking to her skin, and Kendell imagined with how tight and form-fitting it was, it was probably chafing in a number of places you didn’t want chafed.

They first headed to the bathroom where they all changed into some of Pauline’s clothes. Kendell laughed at herself because she was now wearing a Hawaiian shirt that Pauline had gotten in Honolulu. It was so large on her, it kept falling off her shoulders and revealing her soaking wet bra strap. The pants she had selected were also far too large—a pair of black slacks that she had to use her own belt to keep from falling off her waist.

Jesse looked a bit silly as well, electing to wear one of Pauline’s floral dresses with the slight shoulder pads. Kendell watched as Jesse stared at herself in the mirror, dissatisfied. “I can make this work,” she said, digging through her wet clothes sitting on the sink. From the jacket pocket, she pulled out a pink ribbon that she used to tie a bit of the dress to her side, working part of the dress up her right leg a bit to reveal her calf. She tugged the fabric around her waist, bundling a good bit to her right hip and then tied it off with the lovely ribbon she had probably intended for her hair. When it was done, it actually looked like something a woman her age would wear and not an old woman’s Sunday best.

“How in the world do you always manage to do that?” Kendell asked in awe.

“Do what?” Jesse asked, fixing her makeup in the mirror.

“Look like a freaking Barbie doll no matter what,” Kendell complained.

Jesse laughed and said she would take that as a compliment. Pauline exited the bathroom stall, dressed in some dry clothes herself. Dot was running around on the floor. “Okay, ladies, let’s get to those computers,” Pauline said.

They hurried out of the bathrooms and searched for the public computers, where a number of other people were already stationed. While Jesse used her laptop, Kendell and Pauline managed to gain access to a computer where they all sat for the next hour looking up local hotels and making phone calls only to discover that place after place was booked. After they were heading into the third hour of failed searches, the three women stepped back, realizing that they would be spending the night at the airport.

“This is just awful,” Pauline moaned. “This is not going to be good for my back.”

“No, I can’t imagine so,” Kendell said as the three of them began aimlessly walking around the airport, trying to come up with a plan.

They tried using their phones to look up what sort of local attractions were still open, but it seemed that there was nothing. Everyone was gearing up for the storm, closing themselves in and boarding up their windows. “This is insane,” Jesse complained as they passed one of the airport restaurants that had a line out the door.

“So, we’re pretty much stranded here at the airport for who knows how long with no place to sleep and no food,” Kendell said. “Great. This is just great.”

“I agree,” Pauline said. “We seem to be in quite a predicament here, ladies.”

“Pardon me,” a friendly, Texan voice called behind them.

They spun around to see an old, well-built man in a flannel shirt, blue jeans, and boots. He had a long, graying beard and appeared to be chewing tobacco--something Kendell was fairly certain he wasn’t supposed to be doing in an airport, just like how Pauline was probably not supposed to have her dog with her either. Next to him was a woman near Kendell and Jesse’s age. She too was in jeans and a flannel shirt, and she looked to be related to the older man.

“Oh, hello,” Pauline said and smiled at them.

“We couldn’t help but overhear,” the old man said. “You ladies stuck?”

“Afraid so,” Jesse said. “We were headed to Peru, but all the flights in and out are on a wait that doesn’t seem to have much of an end game. And all the hotels in the area are booked up because they’ve been taking in so many locals whose homes have already flooded.”

“That’s quite a shame,” the old man said. “The floods have been going on for about a week now, and they say tonight’s storm is only going to make things worse. I imagine there is a chance the airport will lose power tonight too.”

“Well, that’s just great,” Jesse mumbled.

“I’m not one to leave some out-of-towners, particularly a group of ladies such as yourselves, stranded,” he said. “If you ladies are interested, my daughter and I are headed to our ranch. We live just a few miles outside of Dallas.”

“Why, that is awfully kind of you,” Pauline said. “What is the name of our rescuer?”

He smiled and put his hand out. “Edward Carson,” he said and shook Pauline’s hand. “Local rancher. This is my daughter Mary. She’s been out of town visiting some old friends of hers. Thankfully, she managed to get a flight in before the storms really picked up.”

Mr. Carson shook hands with each of them. The man seemed friendly enough. Kendell wasn’t sure how she felt about staying with a complete stranger, but it certainly sounded like a better option than staying at the airport when a hurricane was making its way up the Florida coast with the promise of extreme flooding in the area.

“Is your ranch going to be hit by the storm, do you think?” Kendell asked.

“It could,” Mr. Carson said. “We have a storm shelter, though, and my kids convinced me to buy a small boat to go to the lake when they were younger. Still got the hunk of junk in my barn. If it gets as bad as they say it’s going to, a man with a boat is a good person to befriend.” The old man laughed. “It’s up to you ladies, but we are leaving now before the storm hits.”

The three women exchanged nervous glances. “My ma makes an amazing supper,” Mary said. “I bet you all could use a decent meal. I saw that line at the restaurant.”

Kendell felt her stomach growl. Food did sound good. “We have a spare bed, a couch, and a cot,” the old man said. “But I’m not going to force you if you’d rather sleep on the floor here at the airport.”

“No, I think we would love to take up that offer of yours,” Pauline said, smiling. “Such a gentleman!”

Kendell and Jesse nodded in agreement. Favors from strangers were not exactly the New Yorker way, but Pauline was a little more familiar with the workings of South. She seemed confident she was reading the man well and had decided he was trustworthy. They headed outside, and Mr. Carson insisted on Mary waiting with the ladies at the curb while he ran and got his vehicle since it was raining so heavily.

Kendell smiled. She had never been in the South, but so far, she was certainly enjoying the famous chivalry’s-not-dead attitude she had heard about. The man pulled up in a beat-up old truck at the front of the hotel. He stepped out of his truck, soaking wet with a grin on his face. He opened the tailgate and smiled at Mary.

“I’m in the back, I know,” Mary said with a laugh as Mr. Carson invited Pauline to sit in the passenger’s seat.

Jesse cringed a bit, but Kendell laughed and pushed her friend toward the back of the truck. They, along with their bags, sat with Mary. Mary opened a toolbox in the truck bed and pulled out a tarp; the three younger ladies huddled together under the tarp as Mr. Carson pulled away from the airport.

The rain was already hitting them pretty hard, and the tarp did very little to shield them as the back of the truck started to fill with water. “So, where are all of you from?” Mary asked.

“Well, Kendell and I are from New York,” Jesse said. “We’re both flight attendants who foolishly thought we could actually take a vacation.”

Mary laughed. “Oh, I know how that is. This was my first time off the ranch in months.”

“Your dad said you were visiting a friend?” Kendell asked, feeling herself be jerked around a bit as they pulled onto a back road that would lead them out of the city.

“Yes,” Mary said. “An old friend from high school moved to Atlanta for work. I haven’t seen her in years.”

“That’s fun,” Kendell. “Our friend Pauline up there, she’s from Georgia.”

“A beautiful state,” Mary said. “Have you ever been?”

“Not outside of the airport,” Kendell said. “But, maybe one day.”

They continued down several old, worn-out roads. Kendell didn’t dare look out from under the tarp to enjoy the scenery. The rain was hitting them hard. She just hoped wherever they were going, they could manage to avoid some of the storm.

3

From what little Kendell saw during their sprint inside the homestead, the Carson family ranch was an enormous piece of property with a vast amount of cattle. In addition to ranching, there was also a pigpen up near the homestead and a chicken coop that, during their run, Mary said was their personal supply and not something they sold at market. The storm was already starting to pick up, but thankfully, the homestead still had power as they entered. Kendell could feel the heating system working, and she was relieved to see a large fireplace already going. It was very cozy, and she was feeling quite relieved that they had bumped into the kind Texan. There was a lot of noise inside the Carson home; there were several people working hard in the kitchen, and wonderful smells tickled Kendell’s nostrils and caused a slight pinch in her stomach. She hadn’t realized she was this hungry. Dinner had not been served on the flight, just a bag of peanuts.

“Hope we got enough to eat for three more,” Mr. Carson said as he removed his soaked hat and shoes at the door, placing his hat and coat on a large coat rack and depositing his boots on a mat. The rest followed suit, removing their shoes and anything that would soak the floors such as socks. Pauline removed a lightweight jacket that was now positively soaked. Poor Dot shivered as Pauline fetched her out of her little carrier, so Pauline held the little drenched thing tight in her arms.

They entered the enormous kitchen, and the old man came up to a woman his age and gave her a peck on the cheek. “You pick up some stragglers, Edward?” the woman asked.

“They’re out-of-towners. Got stuck at the airport,” Mr. Carson said.

“Probably a good thing you grabbed them,” the woman, whom Kendell assumed to be Mrs. Carson, said. “Just saw on the news they’re evacuating the Dallas airport because it’s starting to flood too.”

“Yikes,” he said, then smiled in their direction. “Good thing you folks decided to come with me after all, huh?” He placed a hand on the woman’s shoulder. “This here is Cindy, my wife of nearly forty years.” Mr. Carson pointed at another older woman working in the kitchen with his wife. “And this is Mrs. Johnson. She and her husband and son own the ranch adjacent to ours. Whenever there’s a serious chance of flood, they have to drive their cattle onto our land. Their ranch sits pretty low ground, and they always wind up staying here with us until the floods recede.”

“That’s awfully kind of you,” Kendell said, smiling. She was really astounded and pleased with the generosity of this family.

“Oh, it’s not all that kind,” Mr. Carson said. “In exchange, when the weather’s too hot and my bits of creek dry up, we got to send our cattle to take up some of their plentiful water sources. We help each other out around here.”

Suddenly, they heard what sounded like shouting. It was the voice of two women coming from the back porch. “Please tell me they ain’t still here,” Mr. Carson moaned to his wife.

“Who?” Kendell asked curiously.

“Laurie and Monica,” Mr. Carson said. His wife nodded and rolled her eyes. Mr. Carson explained. “Laurie is our son’s ex-girlfriend. She came by earlier today to get some stuff she left here at the house.”

“And Monica?” Pauline asked.

Mr. Carson laughed. “A girl he knows from back in high school who has been hanging around a bit. Laurie showed up and saw her here, and the two of them have been bickering since I left to go pick Mary up this morning.”

“I always liked Monica,” Mary said. “Have her and Junior started dating since I’ve been gone or something?”

“Oh, you know your brother ain’t interested in Monica,” Mrs. Carson said. “But that ain’t stopping that pretty girl from hanging around trying to get her heart broke. Just so long as Laurie gets out of here before the storm gets too bad, but she’s taking her sweet time packing up her things just to irritate Monica and Junior.”

“Speaking of, where is Junior?” Mr. Carson asked, plopping down at the kitchen table.

“He and Mr. Johnson and his boy are out driving both herds up to the rocky planes to keep them safe from the storm,” Mrs. Carson explained. “They decided they couldn’t wait for you to get back with Mary because the roads started to flood.”

“Yeah, I noticed that on the way in,” Mr. Carson said and looked toward Kendell and her group. “I hope you ladies don’t mind if you wind up getting stuck here for a day or two. They’re saying these floods are going to be pretty bad.”

“We’re just grateful to have shelter,” Kendell said.

“Mary, why don’t you get these ladies some dry clothes to wear?” Mr. Carson suggested. “And you too. You’re soaking wet.”

“Will do, Dad,” Mary said and waved them on. “Come on upstairs, and I’ll see what I can find you.”

Kendell, Pauline, and Jesse followed Mary upstairs, where she showed them the bathroom and gathered towels so they could each take a warm shower. She also found them some dry clothes that were a little more fitting for their age. The women took turns showering, and Kendell was relieved to be granted the opportunity to use a hair dryer as well.

All four eventually returned downstairs where dinner was being set out by Mrs. Carson and Mrs. Johnson just as the front door opened, and the gentlemen who had been in the middle of a cattle drive arrived home. The three men were covered in mud, and Kendell suspected they were going to need to clean up as well. “No way!” Mrs. Carson cried as they attempted to make their way inside. “Out! Out!” she said, shooing them back onto the porch while she went and fetched them dry clothes.

The men changed outside and left their muddy clothes on the porch. All three washed up a bit in the kitchen before sitting down to eat. Kendell smiled at the men. The first she assumed was Mr. Johnson, an older gentleman similar to Mr. Carson, because he sat down by the Mrs. and gave her a peck on the cheek, telling her dinner smelled great. The other two were her age, one of which she quickly picked out as Mr. Carson’s son because he looked like Mary, so the other, by default, Kendell assumed was the Johnsons’ son.

“Who are our guests?” Junior asked, smiling.

“Son, this is Pauline, Kendell, and Jesse,” Mr. Carson said. “They were trapped at the airport, so I invited them to stay.”

“A pleasure,” Junior said, and Kendell could see Jesse gushing slightly. Junior was a very handsome man, Kendell had to admit. He looked like he should be standing outside an Abercrombie and Fitch store rather than working a ranch.

“This is Mr. Johnson, the neighbor I mentioned,” Mr. Carson said, and the older man nodded politely. “And this is his son, Brenton. You all got the cattle to the caves?”

“Sure did,” Mr. Johnson said, then added teasingly, “No thanks to you.”

“Hey, Dad had to come pick me up from the airport,” Mary said.

“That’s the story he’s telling, isn’t it?” Mr. Johnson said, and the men laughed.

They heard shouting coming from the porch again, and Junior stiffened. “Is Laurie still here?”

“Go invite your girlfriends to dinner, Junior,” Brenton said, and Junior elbowed his friend in annoyance.

“Actually, that’s not a bad idea,” Mrs. Carson said. “Those girls are probably hungry, and maybe they’ll shut up with a little food in their mouths.” A few people laughed at the comment.

Junior reluctantly stood and walked toward the door leading to the porch. He raised his voice ever-so-slightly to get the women’s attention, then he led them inside. “Did you get all your stuff packed, Laurie?” Junior asked the woman with the fake red hair.

She crossed her arms. “Yeah,” she said. “And thanks for the dinner invite, but I think I’m going to just go.”

“Honey, you ain’t going to make it off the property in this storm,” Mr. Johnson said. “The road’s already flooded. You’re stuck here like the rest of us.”

Laurie looked horrified. “Please tell me you’re joking.”

“You’re staying here,” Junior said. “Sorry, Laurie.”

“Great,” she moaned and made her way over to the table. She took a deep breath. “Thank you for inviting me to join you for dinner, Mrs. Carson.”

“Of course, Laurie,” Mrs. Carson said. “You and Junior may be broken up, but I ain’t about to let you starve.”

“Thanks,” she said under her breath.

Monica was close by Junior, all smiles as she talked to him and seemingly followed him around like a lost puppy dog. Kendell smiled slightly to herself in amusement. Junior seemed very uninterested in either of the women. He sat down, and of course Monica sat beside him. Junior suddenly whistled, and Kendell heard the pitter patter of little feet. She glanced over her shoulder to see that a large, black and white dog with graying fur had been asleep on the coach. Junior threw some food on a plate that he put under the table.

“Aww, what a cute dog!” Jesse exclaimed.

“Yeah, that’s Bo,” Junior said. “Been around here almost as long as I have.”

Dot, who was by Pauline’s feet, noticed Bo. Bo noticed Dot. Neither seemed to worry too much about the other while there was food on the table.

“Now,” Mr. Carson said, smiling in Kendell and Jesse’s direction. “I don’t know how you folks do supper up in New York, but here in Texas, we pray first.”

Kendell nodded and smiled as everyone took one another’s hands and bowed their heads. “Holy and gracious Father, we thank you for this meal. We ask you to bless the hands that prepared it. We pray over this storm that you will keep your people safe from harm, and we thank you for the company we have this evening. We pray over this food. May you bless it for nourishment of our bodies. In Jesus’s name, and all his people said…”

“Amen,” the group said, releasing one another’s hands before excitedly digging into the dinner Mrs. Carson and Mrs. Johnson had prepared for them.

4

Kendell felt absolutely full only halfway through supper. The Carsons and the Johnsons most certainly knew how to cook a hearty meal. There was a whole goose sitting on that table that acted as the main course. There was also freshly made mashed potatoes and gravy, green bean casserole, squash casserole, steamed broccoli and carrots, and that was just the beginning. Kendell felt that every time she started to clear some room on her plate, another dish would be passed in her direction and someone would plop a spoonful of something down on her plate for her.

And, of course, every last bit of it was delicious. Once everyone had had their fill, Mrs. Carson shooed the men upstairs to get cleaned up. With the exception of her husband, they were all still pretty filthy from chasing the cattle to safety. She sent her husband away as well, telling him to change into some dryer clothes as he had not hurried off with Kendell and the others when they had first arrived but had instead remained to help the women in the kitchen. So, it was just the ladies left downstairs for a while to do cleanup duty.

After Pauline helped move all the dishes off the table and onto the kitchen counter, Mrs. Carson sent the older woman to go sit by the fire. Pauline insisted, but Mrs. Carson insisted harder. “Sweet girl,” Pauline said, making her way over to the fire where she put her feet up. Both Bo and Dot decided to curl up in the big chair with her, much to the old woman’s delight.

Kendell and Monica helped Mrs. Carson dump what few leftovers they had into some Tupperware containers for later while Jesse and Laurie helped Mary with the dishes. Mrs. Johnson too was sent off by Mrs. Carson to go put her feet up as the woman had been on her feet since arriving at the ranch, helping prepare supper. Soon, the kitchen was completely spotless, and all the women settled down in the living room either on the floor or squished together on the sofa. One by one, the men trickled downstairs after having showered and changed.

When Junior came downstairs, he had with him a few board games, and Bo jumped up and ran to sit by him on the floor. “Aww, I lost my seat warmer,” Pauline teased, and Junior laughed from the floor.

“Sorry, ma’am,” Junior said. “Bo has been attached to my side ever since he was a pup.”

Jesse, who had also been sitting on the floor, smiled at him. “That’s so sweet,” she said, her eyes twinkling a bit.

Kendell could see both Monica and Laurie glare in Jesse’s direction. Kendell shook her head. Jesse had a tendency to go after guys with crazy ex-girlfriends, and here Junior was with both an ex and a potential future girlfriend lurking over his shoulder shooting Jesse don’t-you-dare looks, but that wasn’t stopping her. Once, in their early days of being flight attendants, Jesse had started dating a pilot who, as it turned out, was just getting out of a marriage with a woman who should probably have been in a ward. She set the man’s car on fire, or at least, what she thought was his new car. It was actually Jesse’s. Insurance gave her a hard time about that one, but eventually caved.

Brenton and Mary came and plopped down while Junior worked on setting up a Monopoly board. “Really, Junior? Monopoly?” Laurie asked.

“You don’t have to play,” Junior said over his shoulder. “If you had left when you were supposed to, you wouldn’t be stuck here watching me play your least favorite board game.”

Monica laughed. “I’ll play,” she said, sitting beside Junior on the opposite side from Jesse. This caused Laurie to stiffen; she did not look the least bit pleased to see not one but two girls curled up close to her ex.

The storm outside was really starting to pick up, and after only a few minutes into Monopoly, the power went out. “Great,” Mr. Carson mumbled.

“You got that backup generator?” Mr. Johnson asked.

The large fire they were all sitting by provided the crowded room with more than enough heat and light, but with the large feast of leftovers they had placed inside the fridge, Kendell imagined they wouldn’t want any of it to spoil. “Nope,” Mrs. Carson said, glancing up at his neighbor from across the room with this grin that simultaneously looked like an annoyed glare. “Someone borrowed it and never brought it back.”

“Oh, shoot, sorry about that,” Mr. Johnson said, shaking his head. “That’s my bad. I completely forgot to bring it back. I’ll get it to you next week.”

“Not really doing us a whole lot of good right now,” Mr. Carson said, and his wife elbowed him and told him to behave.

Desperate to avoid any confrontation building in the room, Kendell offered a change of subject. “So, earlier this evening, you were all herding the cattle somewhere safe for the storm? Where did you send them?” she asked.

Mr. Carson smiled. “Well, back in my youth, the family had a large barn we’d herd them all in, but that got to be too small as our herd grew. Plus, we got Johnson’s herd out there too. When Junior and Brenton were, oh, I don’t know how old you boys were…”

“About twelve,” Brenton said with a friendly smile in his neighbor’s direction.

“That’s right,” Mr. Carson said. “Well, the boys were supposed to be working, but you can’t get boys to do nothing at that age except get into trouble. There are some rocky areas on my family’s property we hadn’t never paid too much attention to because it’s no good for the herds and you can’t drive on it. No grass. No water. Nothing all that useful. Anyway, the boys were up playing that way when the ground caved in.”

“Dad, you forgot, Monica was there too,” Junior said, smiling at the girl beside him.

“Oh, yes, that’s right,” Mr. Carson said. “Back in the day, Monica’s family owned another ranch nearby. She was just as much of a troublemaker as those two boys over there. She snuck off her ranch to come chase these two boys around. I can’t believe I forgot you were there; she’s the one who came running down to the homestead looking for me to come fetch the boys out of the giant hole they had fallen in. I sent Mary to the Johnsons’ farm to let them know our boys had gotten into trouble, and we all reconvened on the rocky planes.”

“What does this have to do with herding your cattle for the storm?” Jesse asked, smiling.

“Oh, I’m getting there,” Mr. Carson said. “So, anyway, we pull the boys out. Turns out, there was a whole cavern system. It’s not so much a mountain area--not really somewhere you’d expect a bunch of caves. We did a little investigating and found that, apart from where the boys fell in, the place was real sturdy. Plenty of coverage. And, since most of it’s underground, perfectly safe during a storm for a large number of cattle. We haven’t ever lost one single cow in a storm thanks to those caves; not one other local rancher can say the same.”

“I feel mighty blessed that the Carsons let us use the caverns during the storms too,” Mr. Johnson said. “The way our ranch floods every time it rains…” He shook his head.

“We should really do something about that sometime soon,” Brenton said. “I’m thinking about renting some equipment to dig a trench to lead the water somewhere other than our fields and our house.”

“Agreed,” Mr. Johnson said, smiling at his son. “If you can figure it out, by all means son, go for it. I’m getting too old for this nonsense.”

Kendell laughed, then turned to Monica. “So, your family are ranchers too?”

“Not anymore,” she said. “Dad sold his ranch when I was still in high school. Made a good bit of money off it to retire early, but my mom still teaches in Dallas. I sure do miss the rancher life, though,” she said, eyes gleaming in Junior’s direction; Junior tried to avoid eye contact.

“So, you three pretty much grew up together?” Kendell asked Brenton, Junior, and Monica. They all laughed and began sharing some of their misadventures growing up as local ranch kids. All three of them had been homeschooled until Monica’s mother got a job teaching in the city. They told funny stories about being in 4H together and doing things with a local homeschool group. But even with all the social interaction the three spent a lot of time together at each other’s houses. Preferring that over all the scheduled activities.

“How about you, Laurie?” Jesse asked. “How do you know the family?”

Laurie scowled a bit. “Junior and I dated, obviously.”

“How did you meet, I mean,” Jesse said.

“Through Monica,” Laurie said with a huff. “She and I used to be friends.”

Monica rolled her eyes. “After I started high school in Dallas, I met Laurie. We were both on the soccer team. I introduced her to Junior.”

Awkward, Kendell thought. It was clear that Monica and Junior had been a sort of boy-next-door story in which Junior had been and was still uninterested and Monica had probably accidentally set him up with Laurie, much to her disappointment. Poor Junior seemed embarrassed to have both girls there, and he was now really starting to focus all his attention on Jesse to try to give the two of them a hint.

Brenton scooted a bit closer to Laurie, who had not joined them on the floor but was instead taking up a large loveseat all on her own; no one seemed willing to sit with the bitter ex-girlfriend who had wound up getting stuck. “So, Laurie, how’s life in Dallas been treating you?” Brenton asked, a flirty smile etched on his face.

“No,” she said.

He huffed and scooted away, rejoining the game.

Kendell had to bite her tongue to keep from laughing. The group dynamic here was quite hilarious. She glanced over at Pauline, who was sitting across the way in one of the lounge chairs, her feet still propped up. Dot had jumped out of her lap by now and was currently tugging on Bo’s ear. Bo was doing his best to ignore the small dog that was clearly a nuisance to him.

As the Monopoly game continued and conversation somewhat died down, Kendell was beginning to feel sleepy. Just as she was about to request sleeping arrangements, there was a loud clacking sound outside. Mr. Carson jumped up and darted toward the window. “Oh, holy hell,” he said under his breath. “We got a tornado! Folks, to the cellar!” he roared, and everyone jumped up.

Mrs. Carson and Mrs. Johnson ran for the kitchen, snatching old milk jugs full of water to toss over the fire. Junior, Brenton, and Monica sprang into action, running for a hall closet to grab emergency flashlights. Laurie was shrieking nervously. Pauline picked up Dot, and the next thing Kendell knew, they were all darting outside after Mr. Carson, who was leading the way around the house toward the outdoor entrance to their cellar.

Kendell glanced out across the field, and sure enough, there was a twister heading their way that looked so frightening she could have sworn she had just been dropped onto the set of the Wizard of Oz. “Oh, crud!” Kendell yelped, one of the last of the ladies to make her way into the underground cellar in the darkness. Their only light during their sprint to the cellar was from the occasional bolt of lightning striking not too far away.

Junior and his father closed the wooden panels above them, and they all crowded in the small storage room. A flashlight flickered on, and Kendell could see Jesse’s face. “I’m never going on vacation with you again,” Jesse muttered to Kendell, and Kendell actually managed to smile despite the grim circumstances.

They could feel the ground shaking, and the whirling wind outside was so loud that Kendell placed her hands over her ears.

“It’s right on top of us!” Pauline yelped, sounding almost excited rather than afraid. That was Pauline for you.

The storm went on through most of the night. So much for getting any sleep tonight, Kendell thought miserably. When at last the storm settled down, it was morning. Kendell had drifted off, for how long she wasn’t sure, with her head lying on Bo, who had been more than willing to act as her pillow. Mr. Johnson and Brenton tried to open the doors, but they were stuck. “Something fell on us,” Mr. Johnson groaned.

Junior and Mr. Johnson helped them force open the doors. It turned out it was an old tractor tire blocking them in. Thankfully, nothing too heavy to permanently confine them. Kendell looked out around them as the light blinded her a bit. The ranch was an absolute mess, and there was a trampoline, of all things, crashed through the front porch window. “You guys own a trampoline?” Kendell asked.

“We do now,” Junior teased, and Jesse giggled a bit.

Then, Jesse screamed. Everyone jumped, startled from the sudden outburst. She pointed down into the cellar where Monica remained. Kendell looked, and sure enough, Monica was still lying down in the cellar.

She was dead.

5

The first thing everyone tried to do was call the police, but of course after the storm, the phones were not operational. Mr. Carson imagined that the phone lines were down, and cell reception out that way was completely non-existent. Out of respect for Monica, they covered her up so that no one could gawk at her for any reason. Mrs. Carson went down and got flowers from the fields to lay on her.

“How could someone have gotten away with stabbing her with all of us crowded together in this tiny room?” Kendell questioned out loud. It had been pitch-black, and they hadn’t really used the flashlights much as some of them had actually attempted to sleep through the night, knowing the storm would provide them with plenty of work to do the next morning.

Kendall looked around at the sobbing families. It was hard to imagine something like this. They had all been snuggled up together in that room all night, and no one had even noticed that something was amiss. Monica had been killed, and no one had noticed until the next morning when she had been the only one not to emerge from their dark hiding spot.

Kendell and Junior left the cellar after Mrs. Carson laid flowers on the girl’s stomach, and the three of them closed the wooden latches behind them. “What are we going to do, Pa?” Junior asked his father.

The man looked angry. Everyone did. Kendell studied each person’s face, trying to read through them. “Well, we can’t get through to the police. And, even if we could, they probably wouldn’t be able to get down this way.”

“First things first, we need to find out if any of the roads or paths out of here are clear,” Mr. Johnson said. “And if they ain’t, we need to clear one.”

“I agree,” Mr. Carson said.

“But what are we supposed to do here?” Mrs. Carson asked through her tears. “Someone killed that girl!”

“I know,” Mr. Carson said, looking around cautiously. His eyes seemed to linger on Pauline, Jesse, and Kendell. They were the strange out-of-towners, after all, so Kendell couldn’t blame the mistrusting gaze they were receiving. “For now, everyone pitches in. We got to get the herd back down from the caves soon; they’ll start trampling each other if they’re locked up too long, and that’s our livelihood.”

“Clearing a path out of here is a lot more important than your stupid cows,” Laurie complained. “I mean, I get that’s your family’s business and everything, but someone was just killed. We need the police to be able to make it down this way once we’re able to call them.”

“What about this giant hole in the side of our house?” Junior pointed at the mystery trampoline that apparently no one on the ranch owned. “If it rains again, our whole kitchen and living room will flood.”

“And look!” Mary cried, pointing out toward the yard. “Looks like the chicken coop got busted. We have to mend that and catch our chickens. And we need to check to see if the herd’s fence needs mending, and who knows what sort of problems are at the Johnsons’ ranch!”

One by one someone pointed out something else that was damaged and Kendall could see what was happening. The death of Monica was too much to handle so these poor families were trying to focus on what they could handle – fixing the ranch. But she could see right through them. They were all on the verge of losing it.

Mr. Carson spoke loudly, interrupting the hysteria about to break loose. “All right, listen up! We have to divide and conquer here. First things first. Junior and…Jesse, you two go check on the cows’ fencing. Make sure there’s no damage there. Once you’re done with that, you two head on to the Johnsons’ farm and check on their fences too. Meanwhile, Johnson and I will head up to the herds and start leading them down here. If the gates are good, we’ll put both herds here until we can confirm that the Johnsons’ ranch is safe for his cattle too. Let’s see… Brenton, you think you and Ms. Kendell can handle getting that trampoline out of my living room?”

“We got this,” Kendell said, and Brenton nodded.

“All right, excellent. Mary, I’m going to have you go ahead and get going on coming up with a temporary fix on the chicken coop. Laurie, you and my wife can be on chicken-catching duty.”

“Joy,” Laurie moaned. “I’m sure I can help her catch some chickens. Not like I haven’t done that before.”

“Brenton, we got a lot of chickens, so once you and Kendell get a tarp up, help Laurie and my wife catch the rest of them,” Mr. Carson said. “I doubt they’ll be finished with that by the time you get that done.”

“What can I do?” Pauline asked.

“I was hoping, ma’am, that you wouldn’t mind helping Mrs. Johnson prepare everyone something to eat. We’re all going to miss breakfast, looks like, so I’m sure everyone would appreciate something hearty for lunch,” Mr. Carson said, and Pauline smiled.

“I hope you don’t mind a Georgia girl in your kitchen,” Pauline said to Mrs. Carson.

Mrs. Carson smiled. “Better you than one of these Yankee girls,” she said, winking at Kendell and Jesse.

“Okay, but what about the roads?” Laurie asked.

“Oh, yes, forgot about the most important part,” Mr. Carson said. “Mrs. Johnson, you and Pauline mind taking my truck down the roads and finding out which ones are flooded and which ones we might be able to get out through before you start on food?”

“Looks like we’re on investigative duties,” Mrs. Johnson said to Pauline.

“All right, looks like everybody has a job,” Mr. Carson said. “Once we figured out where the herds are going, we’ll start working on the road situation.”

And, just like that, everyone’s duties were assigned to them. One thing Kendell learned quickly, Texans don’t dillydally. Brenton was dragging her off to get going on the trampoline before she even had time to mentally review what she was supposed to be helping with that day. On the way to the front of the house, Kendell could hear Laurie moaning and groaning about having to chase chickens around her ex-boyfriend’s ranch.

Kendell shook her head as she and Brenton climbed onto the front porch to assess the damage. The trampoline itself seemed to be in good shape, but the metal bars had busted the window and had snapped a board up on the front porch. “This isn’t too bad,” Brenton said, eyeing the porch ceiling. “We’re lucky it didn’t break a beam and knock the whole porch cover down.”

“How in the world did it even manage to get onto the porch?” Kendell asked, not sure how they were going to wiggle this giant trampoline off the porch.

“I don’t think just the two of us are going to be able to move this,” he said and spun around, shouting for Laurie to come lend a hand. Mary hadn’t come up with a temporary repair for the chicken coop anyway, so it wasn’t like Laurie would have anywhere to put the chickens once she caught them. Between the three of them, and a lot of frustration, they were able to finally jiggle the trampoline off the porch and into the front yard. Once it stood upright, Kendell was pleased to see that the thing was not damaged.

“Where did a trampoline even come from?” Laurie asked. “The only other place around here is your family’s ranch,” she said to Brenton.

“We don’t have a trampoline. Twister must have picked it up from some poor kid’s yard before heading toward all the ranches. Whoever it belongs to is going to be really disappointed. This is a nice trampoline,” Brenton chuckled slightly.

“Whatever,” Laurie growled. “I’m going to go see if I can find those stupid chickens.” She stomped off, clearly not pleased to be having to do any work at the ranch.

“She sure is pleasant,” Kendell said under her breath.

“I mean, you can’t really blame her,” Brenton said. “She came over here to get a box of stuff Junior was threatening to trash and then bumped into Monica.”

“So, I’m assuming Laurie and Monica never got along?” Kendell asked.

“Not once Laurie and Junior started dating. Junior, Monica, and I have been best friends since we were kids,” Brenton said, sounding very sad as he said it. “Laurie never liked the idea of her boyfriend having a female friend. She’s controlling, which is one of the main reasons he finally broke up with her.”

“You don’t think…” Kendell stopped herself from making any accusations, but Brenton already knew what she was thinking.

“I would like to hope that Laurie wouldn’t,” he said. “But…I guess you never know. The only people in that cellar I can’t vouch for would be you and your friends, but I can’t imagine what motive a handful of out-of-towners would have for hurting Monica. Everyone else I know well, and it is painful to think any of those people I know and love would want to hurt her. So, I don’t know.”

Kendell decided not to say anything else. Instead, she and Brenton got to work on cleaning up the mess made by the trampoline. They swept up all the broken glass from the window and then nailed a tarp to the wall. Next, they found some wood in one of the barns that Brenton cut up, and the two of them fashioned a replacement board for the one that had gotten busted during the storm. “Apart from the window, this looks good as new,” Brenton said to Kendell. “Good job, city girl. Now let’s see if you can catch some chickens.”

Kendell laughed, having a hard time imagining she would be any good at that. Mrs. Carson and Laurie and Mary had already managed to catch a chicken each by the time they had finished fixing the coop. Mary managed to snag herself a second one. “How many chickens do you all have?” Kendell asked.

“Twelve,” Mrs. Carson said. “And so far, we’ve managed to catch four. I think I see some over by the pigpen.” She pointed. There were about four or five of them walking around.

“You’re gonna want to walk up behind them and grab them around their bodies, pinning their wings down and avoiding their talons,” Laurie said to Kendell.

“Thanks,” Kendell said. “I’ve never done anything like this before.”

“I kind of want to see her do it,” Mary teased, and Laurie laughed a bit.

“Betcha she falls on her face,” Laurie said.

“Hey, I totally got this,” Kendell assured, and even Mrs. Carson laughed at her a bit.

“Oh, don’t give the pretty city girl such a hard time. I’m sure she can catch a chicken,” Mrs. Carson said. “Go for it, Kendell.”

Kendell made her way over to the pigpen where the chickens were gathered, walking slowly to avoid startling them. They didn’t seem to mind her presence, but as soon as she reached out, they started to strut off. When she ran at them, they ran faster. She realized very quickly that she looked ridiculous and the women and Brenton were laughing at her. “Hey, I’d like to see you hail a New York cab, just saying,” Kendell said, laughing at herself a bit.

Everyone else caught at least one more chicken before Kendell finally managed to snag herself one. She was proud when she finally did, and Brenton initiated a round of applause for her accomplishment. Unfortunately, they found one chicken half-eaten by a fox, much to Kendell’s displeasure, but they managed to locate and pen the rest.

It was around this time that Kendell spotted Jesse and Junior by the pigpen, having just arrived back from checking the fences and getting ready to head to the Johnsons’ homestead to investigate their ranch as well. Laurie was standing nearby and Kendell missed whatever started the interaction, but the next thing she knew, she saw Laurie and Jesse pushing each other, and the two went fumbling on top of one another into the pig’s pen.

6

Jesse could not believe it when this woman pounced on her. She had just been standing there, talking to Junior about his ranch. He was so…hot. And he had this charming, youthful smile that made her blush. As a New Yorker, Jesse never imagined herself crushing on a man like Junior, but the butterflies in her stomach every time the man opened his mouth were hard to deny. They had just driven around the entire exterior of the enormous herding grounds where Junior’s family kept their cattle. The fence had managed to survive the storm, so they had driven to meet Junior’s father to let him know that the Carson family fencing was good to go. They had then decided to make a quick pit stop at the homestead for Junior to grab a drink from the fridge, as he was claiming to be a bit parched. He had run inside, grabbing each of them some water, and the two of them had wound up standing by the pigpen talking.

An innocent smile and the touch of his arm was all it took to send Laurie off the deep end. She had come up behind Jesse and shoved her. Jesse spun around, glaring at her. “Are you serious?” she snapped and promptly flung her water at the woman’s face. “Grow up!”

“Ack!” the woman shrieked as though she was the wicked witch and the water burned her face. “Me grow up?” she sneered, then went to shove Jesse again.

“Laurie, knock it off!” Junior snapped.

Jesse managed to sidestep another shove, and as Laurie came near, she flung a palm in the woman’s direction. Her open palm made direct contact with the woman’s ear, and Jesse knew from experience after a tussle with her older brother as a kid that a direct palm to the ear was not a pleasant experience. “Ow! Oh my gosh! Ow!” Laurie yelped.

“Back off!” Jesse hissed.

“There’s a ringing in my ear!” Laurie shouted. “I swear, you dang Yankee, if you screwed up my hearing, I’ll—"

“Oh, shut up,” Jesse said, and Laurie went at her again, this time managing to grab her by the hair.

Jesse grabbed Laurie’s hair as well and attempted to yank her down and off, but Laurie was gripping her like a cat whose claws had been caught in a rug. Laurie shouted several profanities at Jesse, mostly those involving one’s sexual charisma, and accused her of having already slept with Junior. “You psycho,” Jesse hissed. “I just met him last night!”

Junior attempted to grab one of them to pull them apart, but all that earned him was a kick in the leg that made him fumble. The two of them separated for a split-second, and that was all Laurie needed to run at Jesse full-speed as though she was some football player. The two of them fell back, flipping clear over the pigpen and into the mucky waters below. “Ah!” Jesse wailed. “My clothes!”

Laurie sat up, also drenched in muck, but she shook it off like it was nothing. She stood up, wiping mud off herself and allowing it to splash into Jesse’s face. Kendell, Mary, Brenton, and Mrs. Carson all arrived over by the pigpen as Junior was jumping over the small fence to help Jesse to her feet.

Junior, after helping the hysterical Jesse stand, pointed a finger in Laurie’s face. “Get out of here, right now!” he shouted. “Go inside and shower off, you’re covered in crud! Just be grateful the power is back so you even have a shower!”

Laurie huffed and attempted to throw a leg over the fence. She struggled and turned around, looking at Junior. “Mind giving me a hand?” she asked in a flirty tone as if now was an appropriate time to flirt with one’s ex.

“Sure,” he said as she attempted to throw her leg up over the gate. He gave her rear end a prompt shove, causing her to fall to the other side and land on her stomach.

“Ah! Junior!” she wailed.

“Inside!” he shouted at her.

She stormed off toward the house.

“And don’t you dare get any mud on my mama’s clean floor!” he called, and she shot an obscene gesture over her head at him.

“Now, Junior,” Mrs. Carson said. “I know she wasn’t acting like it, but Laurie’s a lady. Don’t let me ever catch you shoving a lady again.”

“Sorry, Mama,” he said, walking Jesse to the gate.

“Jesse, are you okay?” Kendell asked, and Jesse did her best to pretend she was.

“I’m fine. It’s just mud, right?” Jesse said, but she was pretty sure Kendell read right through her. Jesse was not exactly known to be cool under pressure. She was an uppity New Yorker type who had once broke down in tears when a taxi drove through a puddle and got her shoes wet. Secretly, she was completely freaking out wondering if she was covered in mostly mud or mostly pig feces.

“I am so sorry about that, Jesse,” Mrs. Carson said. “You seem like such a sweet girl. Laurie… She hasn’t exactly been…”

“Normal,” Junior huffed. “I broke up with her because of how jealous she was of Monica. She tried telling me I wasn’t allowed to talk to her, but I’ve been friends with Monica since we were just tots running around. Plus, Laurie didn’t want me working the ranch. We would have never worked, but she is…persistent.” Junior rolled his eyes and put a hand on Jesse’s shoulder. “Come on, let’s go rinse you off before we head to the Johnsons’ ranch.”

“I might as well go with you two,” Brenton said. “We got the chickens rounded up.”

“Thanks,” Junior said, and the three of them walked up to the side of the house where a large garden hose was.

Jesse frowned. She really wanted a shower, but she supposed this would have to do. They were waiting on her to head to the other ranch. I like how the crazy girl gets to go inside and shower while I’m stuck hosing off in the yard, she thought with an eye-roll. Junior gave her the hose and let her drench herself, the mud all forming at her feet. She paid careful attention to her hands and face, because the idea of carrying around germs from that mess made her sick.

Once she wrung her shirt out, Junior gave Brenton the keys to his truck so that he could sit in the bed with Jesse while he drove. It was a long drive to the neighboring ranch, so she did her best to get comfortable. The sun was shining bright after the terrible storm, so Jesse was hopeful that the sun would dry her off.

“I think you win the award for craziest ex,” Jesse said.

“Not an award I want to have,” Junior moaned. “You know, we hadn’t even dated that long. A year, maybe. Since day one, she’s been so commanding. Started picking out colleges she wanted me to attend. I’m nearly thirty. If I wanted to go to college, I would have gone by now. She just said she wasn’t going to be with a guy who shoveled cow crap for a living and that I needed to make more money. Well, if that’s what she was wanting, I wasn’t going to be it for her.”

“You’d think that would have made sense to her,” Jesse said. “It’s like you were a project to her.”

“Exactly,” he said, shaking his head. “What about you? You got any looney former boyfriends?”

“Plenty,” she said. “I sure do know how to pick them. Let’s just say my friend Kendell used pepper spray on one of them.”

He laughed. “Oh, you must be kidding me.”

“Nope,” she said. “We all went to a club together. Kendell brought her boyfriend Jack, and I brought Mr. Grabby, and he tried to grab on Kendell while Jack was off getting us drinks and I was in the restroom. She whipped her can of pepper spray out of her purse and got him right in the eye. She sure does know how to clear a room at a club…”

Junior laughed. “I ain’t never been to a club. I must be some dumb hillbilly rancher to you, huh?”

“Clubs are really not that great of an experience,” Jesse said. “And you were smart enough to ditch the psycho. You don’t seem dumb to me.”

He smiled. “Good. I wouldn’t want you to think poorly of me.”

“You must think I’m some stuck-up city girl, right?” Jesse asked.

“I mean, you did just tussle with a Texan girl and not get all too bothered after being shoved into a pigpen,” he said.

“I’m secretly freaking out and wishing I had hand sanitizer,” she said, and that made him laugh.

“Sorry,” he said. “I suppose I could have let you stay at the homestead and shower off, and Brenton and I could have handled this, but, honestly, I kind of wanted to get to know you a bit. I’m a little bummed Brenton decided to tag along.”

Jesse blushed. “Oh, really?”

“Yes, really,” he said, and suddenly, the truck stopped moving. They looked out ahead of them toward some pastures, and in the distance, Jesse could see another house–probably the Johnsons’. The whole area was flooded.

Brenton hopped out of the truck, as did Junior. Junior held out a hand to help Jesse down, and her boots sunk into the mud.

“Man…” Brenton groaned. “This will take forever to dry. The dang creek rose up.”

“We better go make sure the house ain’t flooded,” Junior said, and Brenton agreed.

They had to walk to avoid getting the truck stuck in the mud, and at one point, Jesse got her boot stuck. Thankfully, the house was fairly dry. They also checked out the herd’s fencing, and it wasn’t damaged. The cattle’s area was wet but would be fine to move the cattle to, but there was no path leading to the fences that would be safe to travel across with a herd. “Looks like our cows are going to be staying with you a bit longer,” Brenton groaned.

“That path over there don’t look too bad,” Junior said, pointing. “It’ll probably dry up in a day or two.”

Brenton headed inside after removing his muddy boots to pack a bag for himself and his parents, grabbing some extra supplies since it seemed they would be staying on the Carson ranch for a few more days. While outside, Jesse caught Junior staring at her. “What?” she asked, embarrassed knowing she had washed all her makeup off and her hair was probably tangled and halfway dry.

“You just look nice,” he said. “Pardon me for staring.”

Jesse smiled at him. After Brenton had his bags packed, they marched back through the mud and then loaded up in the truck, heading back to the Carson ranch. Jesse and Junior sat in the back, this time sitting much closer as they talked and got to know one another. As they approached the Carson ranch, Junior slipped her a quick kiss.

7

Kendell, Pauline, and Jesse had all been given one of the ranch’s guest rooms to share. With so many guests staying in the house, there wasn’t much room for everyone, but they were doing their best to make it work. Kendell and Pauline had been getting ready for supper after a long day of work, and Pauline was relieved she hadn’t been put in charge of supper as she had spent the whole morning on her feet getting lunch ready for the large group of people. “I’m really getting too old to do much at all!” she wailed in despair as she sat on the one bed in the room, putting on a clean pair of socks.

Kendell laughed. “I don’t know. I think you got quite a bit of fight left in you, Pauline.”

“Oh, I didn’t say I don’t have fight left in me,” she said. “But, speaking of which, how proud are you of your little blonde friend tussling with that gaudy Texas girl?”

“I’m pretty impressed, honestly,” Kendell said with a smirk. Jesse was currently in the shower; she had gotten the messiest out of just about everybody that day after being thrown into a pigpen and then having to traipse through the mud at the Johnson’s farm. “She’s normally pretty squeamish when it comes to anything outdoors related. She showed me she can handle a lot more than I give her credit for.”

The door to their room opened, and Jesse was standing there dressed up with her hair pulled up in a towel. She was wearing a scowl on her face. “Laurie broke Mary’s hairdryer,” she hissed.

Kendell frowned. “Why was she even using the hairdryer? She showered this morning after the pigpen incident, and it was working an hour ago after I showered.”

“I think she went in there and broke it so I couldn’t dry my hair!” Jesse hissed. “She is out to get me! I wanted to…look nice at dinner.”

“Someone likes that Carson boy,” Pauline teased.

Jesse blushed. “Well… Yeah… I do.”

“Easy there, Jesse,” Kendell warned. “You know you live in New York, right?”

“Yeah, but…” Jesse had this look of absolute joy on her face. “Kendell, I really like him.” Her face turned red. She seemed almost giddy.

“Oh yeah?” Kendell asked as Jesse removed her towel, letting her sopping wet hair fall down.

“Yeah,” she said. “I mean… I really, really like him. Kendell, I think he could be the one.”

Kendell tried not to laugh. Jesse had melodramatic tendencies, but she did seem rather serious. “Jesse, that’s sweet,” Kendell said. “But you two are pretty different. You know he’s a rancher, right? And he and Laurie broke up because she wanted him to do something other than ranching. Brenton told me that this morning.”

“I know,” she said. “But I can’t help it. I really like this guy. He’s different.”

“Honey, you cannot deny the pull that a Southern boy has,” Pauline said with a smile. “A true Southern gentleman can make any girl’s toes curl. My husband was the same way.”

Kendell laughed. “Well, I’m happy for you, then, Jesse.”

“He’s really upset about what happened to Monica,” Jesse said. “I want to try to help.”

“I agree,” Kendell said, then elbowed Pauline. “And I think you and I may have a little experience in this area.”

“Yes, indeed, we do,” Pauline said. “Being here on the ranch makes it easier. There are only so many suspects.”

“That’s true,” Kendell said. “Let’s see. There’s Mr. and Mrs. Carson, Mary, Junior, Mr. and Mrs. Johnson, Brenton, and Laurie. That’s the smallest suspect list we’ve ever dealt with. We were all locked up in the cellar together, so it’s not like there could be any more surprises.”

“I think Laurie did it,” Jesse said.

“You’re just saying that because she pushed you into a pigpen,” Kendell said.

“No, the girl does have a point,” Pauline said. “She has motive. She wants Junior to be with her, and Monica had clearly been hinting at Junior all night about wanting to be with him. And, Laurie even attacked Jesse in broad daylight for flirting with him. If she’ll attack a woman while everyone is looking, imagine what she thought she could get away with in the dark of the cellar with all the noise of the storm going on?”

“That’s a good point,” Kendell said. “I suppose she is definitely the one with the motive. Where is she now?”

“Sulking somewhere,” Jesse said. “She’s still irate about the whole pigpen incident. I don’t think we’ll have a chance to talk to her.”

“No, probably not,” Kendell said. She heard noises outside and went to look out the window. The Johnson family had all gathered together outside. Brenton and his father were tossing a football back and forth, and the man was moaning about being too old to play catch. “I say we go out and talk to the Johnsons before dinner.”

“Agreed,” Pauline said, standing.

The three of them made their way downstairs and through the house; the Carsons were all working on dinner together, so the Johnsons had all wandered outside for some fresh air. Pauline, Kendell, and Jesse joined them, and Mr. Johnson tossed Jesse the football. “Heard you and Laurie tussled today,” he said with a laugh. “I knew I liked you.”

Jesse laughed. “Not one of my proudest moments, I’ll admit.”

“Why not?” he asked. “I heard you won.”

“Not sure about that. The fight ended after she tossed me in the mud, but I did manage to pull her down with me,” Jesse said.

“All right, that’s enough games for me,” Mr. Johnson said. “I’m going to go inside.”

“Um, Mr. Johnson,” Kendell said, meeting him by the door. “I was wondering if I could ask you some questions about Monica?”

“What about her?” he asked, shaking his head. “Shame what happened.”

“Yes, well, my friends and I are all trying to figure out exactly what happened. I was wondering if you could tell me about her?” Kendell asked.

“Look, darling, I want to find out what happened to the girl as much as you do, but I’m tired. I’ve been moving trees all afternoon trying to clear the roads so that we can get out of here and contact someone who can help. The police aren’t going to be able to investigate if they can’t get out this way. I’m going to go inside and sit down in front of the fire and try to catch some shuteye before supper,” he said and entered the house.

Strike one, Kendell thought, not finding the brief interaction the least bit helpful.

Kendell turned around to see Pauline standing by Mrs. Johnson. “Well,” Pauline said. “I was just hoping you could tell me about Monica?”

Mrs. Johnson sighed sadly. “She was a good girl. Grew up on the ranch nearest to ours and the Carsons’. She and Brenton and Junior played together all the time till her family sold their ranch. Even after they moved to the city, though, she would always come out to spend time with the boys. She always looked after them, and they looked after her. Kind of always hoped she’d date my boy. I would have loved for her to call me her mother-in-law, but the three of them were always too good of friends. Probably would have made it awkward.”

“I’m sorry your family has lost someone you were so close to,” Pauline said.

“Me too,” Mrs. Johnson said, wiping a tear that slid down her cheek. “She used to always bring me snickerdoodles on my birthday. The girl knew how much I loved snickerdoodles, and hers were just wonderful. It breaks my heart to think that next month on my birthday, Monica won’t show up at the ranch with a plate full of them for me. She was going places, that girl.”

“Do you know of anyone who would want to hurt her?” Pauline asked.

“That’s the thing. She had a whole other life in the city we didn’t know much about. If she had been killed somewhere other than in that cellar, I’d say we would need to start looking to see what she had been up to in the city. The idea that one of us could have done it… It doesn’t make sense.”

“What about Laurie?” Pauline asked.

“I suppose that would make some sense, but I don’t know,” Mrs. Johnson said. “Laurie has always been a little extreme, but I can’t imagine her killing someone over some innocent flirting.”

“Yeah, Ma, but I didn’t think she’d be the type to pounce on someone and push them into a pigpen either,” Brenton said.

Mrs. Johnson shook her head. “I suppose you have a point,” she said. “I’m going to go help the Carsons finish up in the kitchen.” She too headed inside.

“What about you, Brenton?” Jesse asked. “Anything useful you could tell us about Monica?”

“Only that she was my friend,” he said. “Man, we used to do some crazy stuff, the three of us. Mary would always chase us around, too, wanting to play with the big kids. I remember one year, our parents bought all three of us four-wheelers for Christmas. The three of us drove around like we were in some sort of biker ranch gang. Monica would let Mary ride on the back of hers. Monica always treated Mary like a little sister. I know Monica always had a little crush on Junior, but he thought of her too much as a sister himself, so he never acted on it none.”

“I’m sorry you lost someone you were so close to,” Kendell said.

“Same,” Brenton said. “Monica, Junior, and I… Well, all three of us were homeschooled till Monica moved into the city. We were the only kids within miles of each other growing up. We hung out all the time, whenever we could avoid working on the family ranches. I really don’t like the idea of having to tell her parents what happened. They are good people. Good ranchers until her dad pulled her back out and finally decided to just cash in. Can’t blame the man. This certainly ain’t an easy life.”

“You not the gung-ho rancher that Junior is?” Kendell asked.

Brenton laughed. “Not really,” he admitted. “Don’t get me wrong. I enjoyed growing up on the ranch. Ideally, though, I’d want to expand. Get large enough to where I could hire workers. Enjoy just being the boss instead of the lackey. That’s my dream for when I inherit Pa’s ranch.”

“How would you expand it?” Kendell asked.

“More cattle. More land. I’d have to talk some other ranchers into selling,” Brenton said. “Not sure if I could talk Junior into selling. I’d probably have to expand in the other direction, but you never know. He does have a good piece of property with those caves. Couldn’t ask for better shelter for the cattle.”

Eventually, Brenton also headed inside, leaving Pauline, Kendell, and Jesse standing outside by themselves as the sun was setting in the distance. “Sure is beautiful out this way,” Jesse said. “Even with a body stored in their cellar. It kind of ruins the beauty of it, doesn’t it?”

“We’ll find out what happened to Monica,” Kendell assured Jesse.

“Why are you so confident?” Jesse asked. “What if we don’t?”

“We will,” Pauline assured Jesse. “We’ve done this sort of thing before. Trouble tends to follow us a bit, doesn’t it, Kendell?”

Kendell shook her head. “Point is, we’re going to find out what happened to Monica. We’re not going to just pretend everything is okay. Whoever killed Monica better watch out, because we’re coming for them.”

8

There was still some sun shining by the time supper was finished. Everyone was so tired. Kendell got the impression that they were normally work from sunrise until sunset kind of families, but the added stress from what happened to Monica and the storm was causing a slothfulness amongst the crowd. Plus, everyone had stuffed themselves at the early supper they’d had, causing a bit of extra drowsiness to seep in.

Kendell made her way outside; it seemed most everyone spent their time outside, including their leisure time. There wasn’t a television at the ranch, and while she had been told they normally had internet there, the storm had put an end to that after throwing a dish clear off their roof. “Roads ain’t cleared yet,” Mr. Carson said with a huff as Kendell made her way out the door.

Mr. Carson was sitting alone on the front porch in one of the many rocking chairs. He was sitting just under the tarp that she and Brenton had placed over the window earlier that day. He pointed toward one of the rocking chairs, inviting her to sit. The old man lit a cigarette and was sure to blow the smoke opposite of Kendell. “Where are you friends?” he asked.

“Pauline and Jesse both went to lie down,” Kendell said. “Pauline is old and needs her rest. And I think Jesse just needed a break from Laurie following her around.”

Mr. Carson snorted slightly. “I think we all need a break from Laurie.” He pointed out into the front yard by a large tree. Junior was sitting on a little bench, and Laurie had found a seat on a stump nearby. And she appeared to be running her mouth a million miles an hour while Junior distracted himself with some sort of craft.

Kendell smirked. “She driving him crazy?”

“Junior likes to whittle,” Mr. Carson said, and Kendell took a second glance to see that the craft Junior was working on involved a small piece of wood and a knife. “He’s actually pretty good, but everyone—even Laurie—knows he tends to go under that tree and whittle when he wants to be left alone.”

“So, why is she bothering him?” Kendell questioned.

“Because she knows it’ll bug him,” Mr. Carson groaned. “I warned Junior about that girl the moment he brought her onto the ranch. She said all the right things, but I could tell she wasn’t no rancher.”

“Most women you meet in a big city like Dallas probably aren’t going to be,” Kendell said with a slight smile.

“True,” he said. “And there wasn’t nothing wrong with Junior being with a girl from the city. I had no problem with that. Those city girls are well brought up, most of them. Educated. Smart. A lot of them come from good families. But, Laurie… Well, she liked to play fantasy.”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean she pulled Junior in by acting like she just loved the idea of a rancher’s life. My son has always wanted to take over my ranch. End of story. I never tried to push that on him. Told him it was always an option, but I’d be just as happy to leave my ranch to my daughter. Right now, they both want to be ranchers, so looks like it’s going to be both of them. Junior has always wanted to run this ranch. That was the dream. Laurie, when they first started dating, acted like she was up for being a rancher’s wife. But, after they had been together for a while, she flipped the script on him. The real her started coming out. She started showing up to the ranch with college pamphlets and job applications. Pulling that whole if-you-love-me bull crap. Then, she started getting more and more uncomfortable with Monica. Monica was the one who introduced the two of them! But, the moment Laurie started telling my boy he wasn’t allowed to be around Monica, he dumped her.”

“Good for your son for remaining so loyal to his friends,” Kendell said. “I could probably name a few guys who would dump their friends in a heartbeat over a pretty girl. Laurie is definitely pretty.”

“Pretty dim,” Mr. Carson grunted. “I don’t mettle in my kids’ love affairs, but that girl certainly made me nervous. You know who did try intervening on that relationship, though?”

“Who?” Kendell asked curiously.

“Mary,” he said with a laugh. “The wife, Mary, and I read right through Laurie the second she stepped foot on this ranch. But, my wife and I decided to keep our mouths shut and let Junior figure it out on his own. Mary, though, been jabbering in her brother’s ear that Laurie was faking the whole country girl routine since day one. Kind of makes me glad to know that my kids will look after each other once I’m too old or too dead to do so.”

Kendell chuckled slightly. “Well, that’s good. You have a lovely family here, Mr. Carson.”

Kendell heard a slight screechy yawn erupt, and she glanced down to see Bo sitting at Mr. Carson’s feet. She had almost not noticed the large black and white dog sitting there. “He’s a handsome dog,” Kendell said, reaching down and scratching the dog behind the ear.

“Oh, yeah, he’s a good one,” Mr. Carson said. “He’s the source of a lot of drama around here as well, though.”

“Really? He seems like a sweetheart,” Kendell said.

“Oh, he is. Thing is, Junior and Brenton bought him together when they were just knee-high,” Mr. Carson said, shaking his head. “I told Junior that was a bad idea. Later on, as Bo got a little older, Junior and Brenton had a sort of falling out. Nothing too serious; they just both got more intent on working mine and Mr. Johnson’s ranches. They argued a bit about where Bo should be living as he got older. The dog used to roam back and forth between the two ranches, but he started getting a bit old for that. It was pretty clear Bo favored Junior, and he wound up living here. I don’t think Brenton cared too much for it, but Junior was always the one taking up the responsibility of owning a dog compared to Brenton. Mr. Johnson told Brenton that if he had wanted the dog so bad, he should have been the one spending money to feed the poor thing.”

Kendell laughed a bit. “I hope that didn’t have anything to do with them drifting apart?”

“Nah,” Mr. Carson said. “Like I told you, the boys both got serious about working. You can’t be rancher kids forever. Eventually, those rancher kids become ranchers themselves.”

Mr. Carson sat up suddenly, staring past Junior and Laurie. “Is that Brenton?” he asked, pointing past them and out across the fields.

Brenton was darting through the pastures in their direction, waving his arms and yelling. “Cows are out! Cows are out!”

Mr. Carson cussed under his breath and hurried over to the front door, flinging it open. “Cows are out!” he hollered inside. “Cows are out!”

The next thing Kendell knew, the whole lot, even Bo, was darting toward the largest of the barns on the property. Even Pauline and Jesse had risen from their slumber to come join the ruckus. Even crazy, neurotic Laurie leapt into action. They all darted into the large barn. Kendell and her group followed, even though they had no idea what the protocol for loose cattle was. Kendell watched as everyone began saddling up horses. Even city girl Laurie knew what to do; she helped Junior get his horse going, and she slapped the thing on the rear once he was on top. He darted out of the barn on his horse shouting, “Come on, Bo!”

Bo suddenly seemed five years younger; that dog darted out of the barn, his old dog persona leaving him like a retired soldier forced back into combat. Laurie ran and grabbed a stool out of a corner, putting it down so that short Mrs. Johnson could hop up onto a horse as well. The men, Mary, and Mrs. Johnson all darted after Junior on horseback while Mrs. Carson scrambled to pass out car keys. She paused before handing Kendell a key. “Um… Do you know how to drive a stick?” she asked.

“I’m from New York,” Kendell said. “I don’t drive. Period.”

Mrs. Carson nodded. “Ms. Pauline, you and your little pooch are with me. Jesse, Kendell, you two are with Laurie.”

Laurie darted off, so Kendell and Jesse followed close behind as she loaded up into one of the beat-up old trucks that were parked on the property. Kendell and Jesse sat in the back as Laurie zoomed toward where the ranchers on horses had gotten off too. She slammed on her brakes and hopped out of the truck. Kendell looked around and could see that those who had arrived on horses had yet to get the situation under control. Several groups of cattle had already strayed.

“What happened?” Kendell called from the back of the pickup.

Brenton came trotting by, shaking his head. “Man, this is my fault!” he said. “I left the stupid gate open!”

“Are you kidding me?” Laurie hissed from inside the truck. “How old are you? That’s crap five-year-olds forget to do!”

“I was distracted!” Brenton hissed back.

“By what?” Laurie hissed and rammed the gas, sending Kendell and Jesse fumbling all over each other. Laurie slammed the brakes again, sending Kendell and Jesse fumbling in the opposite direction.

“Knock it off!” Jesse hissed, but they saw that Laurie had merely been trying to avoid hitting a horse.

“You stupid beast!” Mr. Carson was shouting; he had been thrown from the horse and was sitting in a giant puddle.

Laurie jumped out of the car to go help the older man up. “I’ll get the horse,” Kendell said to Jesse. “You try to get this truck moved up that way to block any more cows from darting out of this pasture.”

“It’s a stick shift!” Jesse snapped as the two of them climbed out of the back, covering their shoes instantly with mud.

“Figure it out!” Kendell snapped and darted off after the panicked horse. She managed to catch up to the thing, and it was fairly calm by the time she found it. She thought about just holding its reins and walking it back, but frankly, she was tired of looking like a stupid, pampered city girl around these people. She very carefully pulled herself up onto the horse’s back and took hold of the reins. “I have no idea what I’m doing,” she whispered into the horse’s ear. “Please don’t throw me.” She scratched it behind the ear, and the thing shook its head like she had tickled it.

She made a clicking sound like she had heard Junior doing earlier that day, and the horse started walking back toward Mr. Carson. It wasn’t exactly a quick trot, but she at least got the creature moving in the right direction. Mr. Carson smiled at her when she arrived back with the horse. “Good job,” he said. “You know how to dismount?”

“I wasn’t even sure if I knew how to mount it,” Kendell admitted and patted the horse on the neck. Mr. Carson helped her climb down, and Laurie handed out switches to Kendell and Jesse. They helped chase the cows on foot while everyone else was on horse, and Mrs. Carson and Pauline drove their truck around, blocking any cows from escaping the herd.

Eventually, after nearly an hour of running around in the mud, they got the last of the cows back into the pasture.

9

Somehow Kendell wound up being the last person allowed to use the shower. She felt an incredible amount of relief as the mud and gunk washed off her and down the drain. Apparently, herding cattle was very messy business, and it was obviously something greatly over-romanticized in the movies. Frankly, she was a little embarrassed at how easily Laurie had handled herself. The Carsons and the Johnsons both had made her out to sound like an incompetent city dweller, but compared to Kendell and Jesse, the woman had sprung into action like a pro. That wasn’t to say that Kendell and Jesse hadn’t figured out how to be useful, it had just taken them a bit longer.

Pauline, on the other hand, had eventually taken control of the stick shift and had herded the cattle like she’d done it before. She later explained that she had grown up next to a small dairy farm, and on more than one occasion, she’d had to help her neighbor chase a couple of cows off her parents’ property. She had assured Kendell it had been a vastly different experience from what they had experienced on the ranch, but she had at least known how cows would respond to her.

Kendell had to wash her hair twice to get out what she was praying was mostly mud. “Ugh, the water is cold!” she suddenly yelped, recalling the number of people who had already showered before her. Frankly, she was surprised the shower had started out lukewarm at all. The water being freezing cold was not going to stop her, though. She was not about to go to bed with remnants of what might be manure in her hair.

Once she was finally washed up, she exited the shower, ran a towel across herself quickly, and then got dressed. She wrapped her hair up in the towel and headed down the hall in search of Laurie. Junior had managed to fix the hairdryer Laurie had destroyed, so it had been passed around all evening since arriving back from chasing the cows around. She was fairly certain that Laurie had been the last one to use it.

As she was about to round the hallway, she heard Laurie’s voice. “Yeah, I’m just glad I’ve managed to get a little cell reception, finally,” she said, and Kendell peered around the corner to see Laurie in a bathrobe, hanging out in the hallway with her ear up to the phone. “Junior’s dad called the police about Monica, but the roads are still blocked or flooded. They have no way of getting down here any time soon. The police told us not to mess with the body or the crime scene or whatever… Hello, can you hear me? Okay, good.”

Kendell hadn’t realized the Carsons had finally gotten some cell reception. It had probably happened while she had been waiting on the shower. “Ugh, no, I can barely hear you,” Laurie groaned. “You can hear me okay? Okay, I hear you now. I know, right? I can’t believe I hung around here so long that I got stuck! I could be here for another two days. Mr. Carson says it’s going to take them a while to clear the roads. We’re working from one end, and the local authorities I guess are working their way this way. This just blows. I mean, it’s bad enough that I’m stuck here with my ex and his family, but now I have to watch this stupid New York girl gawk all over Junior… Yeah, you heard me right. A New Yorker! It was weird enough when it was Monica. Yeah, I know. Well, at least Monica’s not flirting with him anymore…. No, I don’t mean I’m glad she’s gone! Geez, I’m not that morbid!” Laurie laughed, and Kendell decided to dip out rather than alert Laurie.

She headed back to the room she had been sharing with Pauline and Jesse, and she combed her hair and pulled it up in a wet bun before going downstairs. The family were all gathered around the fire again. “So, I heard phones are working now?” Kendell asked.

“Barely,” Junior groaned from his spot by Bo in front of the fire.

“I managed to get a call out to the police,” Mr. Carson said. “But the roads are so flooded that there is no way they can get out here. If it was an active emergency, they say they could send a helicopter, but there’s nothing they can do for Monica now, so they can’t stretch those resources. Sounds like a lot of people in the city are just as bad off as we are. They have the national guard rescuing people from rooftops in the suburbs, according to the operator I spoke to. I told her we could handle ourselves until they could get the main road cleared—that’s the only road that’s not flooded, but there’s so much debris and trees that they can’t make it out this way. They contacted Monica’s family for us, though.”

“Well, at least you were able to make contact with someone,” Kendell said, sitting on the floor next to the chair Pauline was in.

Everyone was present, with the exception of Laurie. “Laurie still up there babbling on the phone?” Mr. Johnson asked.

“Yeah,” Kendell said.

“Can’t blame her,” Junior said. “It’s got to be a little uncomfortable for her to be stuck here with all of us.”

“You’re not kidding,” Brenton grumbled.

The power suddenly went out again. “Oh, you have got to be kidding me!” Mr. Carson groaned.

“I’ll go check the fuse box,” Junior said, jumping up. “That’s probably all it is. The weather looks fine out tonight.” Junior grabbed a flashlight from the kitchen and went into another room. He called from a backroom. “We blew a fuse!”

“Dang,” Mr. Carson groaned. “Replacements are in the cellar. Police told us not to go down there…”

“What they don’t know won’t hurt them,” Jesse said, standing. “I’ll go nab it. I think I remember seeing the box of fuses while we were down there.”

“Thanks, hon,” Mrs. Carson said as Jesse headed outside.

Kendell sat, just enjoying the fire and the warmth and the light it provided. She was attempting to make sense of what little information she had regarding Monica when Laurie arrived from upstairs, complaining about the power being out. “Jesse ran to get a fuse from the cellar,” Mr. Carson said. “Junior’s working on it.”

“Oh, okay, good,” Laurie said, sighing. “I lost signal. That was incredibly short-lived.”

“Who did you call?” Mr. Johnson asked.

“I called a friend in the city and asked her to let everyone know I was okay,” Laurie said.

“Good,” Mrs. Carson said.

Junior came walking in from the back. He was sniffing the air and holding his flashlight. “Does anyone else smell smoke?”

“There’s a fire going right here, son,” Mr. Carson said with a laugh.

“No, I mean, like smoke-smoke. Like…something’s…” He sniffed, then shone his flashlight across the room. He raised a brow. “There’s smoke coming from the floorboards!”

Kendell jumped up, as did everyone else. Pauline walked over to where the light was shining. “The floor sure is warm here,” Pauline said, walking her bare feet across the floor.

“Just the cellar,” Mr. Carson said. It clicked for everyone at the same time that there was a fire in the cellar and that Jesse had just gone down that way.

Everyone darted out of the house. Mr. Carson and Junior and Kendell ran for the cellar while Mrs. Carson shouted at everyone else to grab buckets and fill them with water while she searched for their fire extinguisher. By the time they got to the cellar doors they could see Jesse at the bottom of the steps, struggling to stand up. Junior darted down the stairs and returned a moment later with Jesse, her arm flung over his shoulder as he helped her walk.

“Jesse!” Kendell cried and ran, giving her a hug.

“Ow! Ow!” Jesse moaned. She had a gash in her leg.

“What happened?!” Mr. Carson yelped as everyone started arriving one by one with buckets of water, and Mrs. Carson at last found the fire extinguisher. Mr. Carson took it from her and began spraying down the cellar, careful not to disturb Monica’s body. Thankfully the fire had been put out long before it had reached her.

“I don’t know!” Jesse cried. “I had just found the fuse you needed when I smelled smoke at the back of the cellar. I saw that there was a small fire and tried to put it out, but when I realized I wasn’t going to be able to, I spun around to run out of there and tripped over a stupid rake!” Jesse cried out again and pointed at her leg. Kendell saw the blood dripping down and painting the poor girl’s socks red. Jesse wailed, “Geez, this hurts!”

“Let’s get her inside,” Mrs. Carson said once the fire was under control.

Jesse held out the fuse. “I did manage to get this, at least,” she grumbled, handing the fuses off to Brenton, who ran ahead of them to try to get the power back on in the house.

Thankfully, by the time they got Jesse inside and sat her up on the kitchen table, her leg propped up on a kitchen chair, Brenton had managed to get the lights back on. “Oh, for crying out loud, Jesse!” Kendell cried when she saw the large gash in the girl’s leg. “What was that from, the rake?”

“Yes!” Jesse cried.

“Oh, honey, I got some bad news,” Mrs. Carson said. “They’re not going to be able to get an ambulance out this way.”

“Oh, what am I going to do?” Jesse cried. “This is not just a little cut!”

Mrs. Johnson was rummaging through a hall closet, and she returned with what Kendell assumed to be Mrs. Carson’s sewing kit. “Oh, you’ve got to be kidding me!” Kendell shouted on Jesse’s behalf.

Mr. Carson was already fetching alcohol from the kitchen. He poured some right on Jesse’s leg, which caused her to stiffen. Junior offered Jesse a warm smile. “My mom’s done this before,” he assured her. “She knows what she’s doing. Trust her, all right?” He held Jesse’s hand.

Jesse gritted her teeth as Mrs. Carson lit a match to burn the end of a needle. Mr. Carson handed Jesse the now half-empty bottle of alcohol. “What, do I need to pour more on my leg?” Jesse asked.

“No, honey, I was going to suggest you down the rest of it,” he said.

Jesse frowned, but she decided to take the old man’s advice. Kendell held Jesse’s other hand while Mrs. Carson stitched her up. Frankly, Kendell was surprised. Jesse had teared up a little bit at first, but she had grinned and bore it the rest of the way through. Once she was sewn up, Mrs. Carson had Brenton fetch some bandages from the downstairs bathroom cabinet. She put some medicine on the wound and bandaged her up. She also gave Jesse some of her personal stash of painkillers, which she had for her arthritis.

Kendell smiled at Jesse. “You did good,” she told her.

“I’m actually really impressed,” Junior told Jesse. “I cried like a little baby first time Mom stitched me up.”

“How did you know how to do that?” Jesse asked Mrs. Carson.

“Honey, I’m a veterinarian,” Mrs. Carson said with a smile. “Or I was in my younger years. It’s how I met my husband. I came out to tend to one of his father’s cows.”

Jesse smiled. “It really wasn’t that bad at all,” she said. “Thank you.”

Everything seemed to have worked out fairly well. They had put the fire out, and Jesse didn’t seem to be in too much pain. Only problem was, they had no idea what or who started the fire, but Kendell suspected she knew the why. Someone was trying to cover up their tracks by destroying the crime scene.

10

Once everyone had settled down a bit after Jesse had her leg sewn up, they all migrated back in front of the fireplace. They sat Jesse alone on the couch, propping her injured leg up on a pillow. Junior was kind enough to fetch extra pillows for her so she could sit up with ease, as well as a blanket. Mr. Carson never sat down, Kendell noted. He looked furious as he paced behind everyone, occasionally grumbling to himself about the fire. Kendell couldn’t blame him. It had been his property that had been destroyed.

“I’m going to go into the cellar and check it out,” Mr. Carson finally announced, his voice beyond irritated. “See if anything managed to not be destroyed by that fire.”

“You might want to take Kendell with you,” Pauline suggested, giving Kendell a wink. “The girl has a keen eye. She might find something you wouldn’t.”

Mr. Carson nodded, and Kendell followed him outside and around the house. She knew the real reason Pauline had suggested she tag along was to make sure no evidence was being scooped up. You never knew who the killer might be; Kendell had yet to uncover any possible motives for Mr. Carson or anyone apart from Laurie. Frankly, as suspicious as Laurie was, she didn’t seem strong enough to take Monica down with such ease and confidence with everyone else in the crowded room with them.

They each had their own flashlight, and Mr. Carson also brought what looked like a battery-operated lantern. “That’s interesting,” Kendell said, looking at the plastic lantern that he set down on the floor in the middle of the smoky-smelling cellar.

“Oh, it’s great for camping,” Mr. Carson said as he twisted a nob on the top, and it lit up the entire cellar with a bluish light.

“What do we even need flashlights for?” Kendell asked. “I should definitely order one of those things online. We get occasional blackouts in New York. That thing would probably light up my whole apartment.”

They began pulling things out of the cellar—anything that hadn’t been totally destroyed by the fire—and they set storage boxes and garden tools outside to air out. The hope was that the items would avoid smoke damage if they brought it all out of the cellar, which still smoldered a little. Mr. Carson pointed to a few different areas in the cellar, groaning as he spoke. “We need to probably dump some water on these hot spots. Make sure the house doesn’t go up in flames in the middle of the night.” He came to a half-burnt wooden filing cabinet, and he looked beyond annoyed. “Great. Let’s hope I don’t get audited anytime soon. Junior told me I needed to put all this stuff on a hard drive.”

“Oh no, is that all your records?” Kendell asked.

“It was,” he growled, sifting through the ashes of half-burnt paper. Then he spotted an empty gas container in another corner. He knelt beside them, shaking each of them one at a time. “This was full two days ago,” he hissed. It seemed they had figured out how the fire had gotten started. It seemed that this fire had been quite intentional. He stood up suddenly, his face turning red. He snatched the lantern, so Kendell followed him, spotting Mr. Johnson coming out of the house and looking as though he had planned to come help.

Mr. Carson put the lantern down, turning it back on and standing upright. He looked like he was ready to pounce.

“You two need an extra set of hands?” Mr. Johnson asked in a friendly tone of voice.

“Oh, I think you’ve done enough,” Mr. Carson hissed, causing Mr. Johnson to stop in his tracks.

“Excuse me?” he asked.

“You heard me,” Mr. Carson snarled. “My files! They were covered in gasoline, and they’re all gone!”

“Why would I want to destroy your files?” Mr. Johnson asked.

Kendell stood back, quite ready to hear Mr. Carson’s answer if it would be another clue to solving Monica’s murder. Surely the arson and the murder were related and not some coincidence?

“You did this!” Mr. Carson shouted, pointing an accusing finger at Mr. Johnson. “What files did you take that you didn’t want me to notice? I know you did it! I know it! That land dispute was settled in court five years ago, and you can’t let it go!”

“Ooh, you are out of your mind, you old coot!” Mr. Johnson shouted, stepping toward him.

“Am I?” Mr. Carson questioned. “Who else would want to destroy my files?”

“Mr. Carson, to be fair, I’m pretty sure there was gasoline in other parts of the cellar,” Kendell said softly, but the two men did not hear her as they had started a serious shouting match. A land dispute? She imagined something like that would cause some serious tension amongst ranchers.

“You and I could have handled it like men!” Mr. Johnson claimed. “But, no, you had to get the law involved. Had a bunch of state officials traipsing all over my property! One of them left my gate opened, and I lost a calf to a coyote!”

“That’s on you!” Mr. Carson declared. “You’re the one who was trying to build on my land!”

“My family had been on that land for generations!” Mr. Johnson argued.

“It was owned by my family! Your father paid rent to my grandfather when he used that land!” Mr. Carson shouted.

“No, he didn’t!” Mr. Johnson roared, shoving the man. Carson shoved back, and suddenly fists were flying.

“Oh, are you kidding me! Knock it off!” Kendell shouted, and she could hear people rushing out onto the porch. “Would you two stop it?” She attempted to get between them, but she wound up being pushed flat on her back. It stopped the fight immediately.

“Hon, you all right?” Mr. Carson asked, reaching a hand down to help her stand.

Kendell refused the hand and stood up, making sure they both knew how irritated she was. “You two are ridiculous!” she shouted. She looked down at her elbow, seeing that it was incredibly cut up and bloodied from her fall. “I’m going to go clean up!” she snapped, storming past everyone who had gathered on the porch.

Once inside, Kendell cleaned her elbow off at the kitchen sink and then used some of the medicine that had been left out from stitching up Jesse to dab on her elbow. She found a bandage in the first aid kit and went ahead and slapped one on before going and plopping down in front of the couch where Jesse was still seated. Pauline was sitting in the same lounge chair she seemed to claim each time they all sat down by the fire, and Dot was on the floor by Bo.

Even from across the kitchen and living room, they could all still hear the Carsons and the Johnsons shouting at each other out on the front porch. The missing window covered up by just the tarp made it perfectly easy to hear every word. Evidently, there had been a land dispute a few years back when Mr. Johnson tried to rebuild a barn that had blown down during another serious storm. According to Mr. Carson, his grandfather had allowed them to build a barn on that piece of property for a fee. According to Mr. Johnson, the land belonged to his family and he need not pay a rental fee to build a barn on it. They had gone to court, and ultimately, the courts ruled in favor of Mr. Carson. Mr. Johnson never rebuilt the barn, unwilling to pay Mr. Carson a dime.

“So, what happened to your elbow?” Pauline asked, her head turned to where she seemed to be listening to the fight outside more closely than she was listening to Kendell.

“Their little fight out there turned into a fistfight for a second, and I got in the middle and got knocked over. Hit my elbow on some rocky ground,” Kendell griped.

“This place is hazardous,” Jesse joked, shaking her head.

“So, it looks like more people than just Laurie has some motive,” Pauline said.

“For the fire, yes,” Jesse argued. “But not for killing Monica. Why would a land dispute cause Mr. Johnson, or any of the Johnsons, to want to hurt Monica, who is not even a rancher anymore?”

“That’s an excellent point,” Pauline said.

“So, you all agree that it was definitely Laurie?” Jesse said, crossing her arms. “I mean, she obviously killed Monica because she was jealous of Junior. Then, she jumped me out by the pigpen because he and I were talking. Then, she set the fire to cover her tracks.”

“I don’t know about that just yet, Jesse,” Kendell said. “We don’t have any proof. Not yet.”

“I think we should look more into this land dispute,” Pauline suggested.

“I agree,” Kendell said. “Monica might actually be involved somehow. For all we know, she was a part of it somehow.”

“Her family doesn’t own any land around here anymore,” Jesse argued. “So, why would she be involved in a land dispute?”

“She does know both families,” Pauline said. “She might have taken sides or something. Maybe helped the Carsons win the case somehow?”

“That’s possible,” Kendell said. “It might not even have anything to do with the land dispute at all. But we can’t just point fingers at Laurie so quick because we don’t like her. And not liking the victim doesn’t mean you’re the one who killed her.”

“Fine,” Jesse said. “Since when are you a detective, anyway?”

“I’d say London,” Pauline said.

Kendell shook her head, recalling the first time she and Pauline had helped authorities investigate a case during their travels. They had gone to see a performance of Macbeth at the Globe Theater in London. The play always ended with the character Macbeth having his head severed, something done by using a prop head. Except, it hadn’t been a prop head. Their next trip in Nairobi, Kenya, had not gone particularly well either after a man at Giraffe Manor had gotten bashed in the head by a coffee pot and Kendell’s friend Lil had been accused of the crime. Then, in their latest trip to the Hawaiian Islands, Kendell’s friend Brandon had been visiting his brother Nick when Nick’s girlfriend had gotten her head bashed in while surfing. All three cases they had managed to solve, but this one here on the ranch was a bit different. They were stuck. They were trapped on that ranch—trapped with the killer, who had apparently turned into an arsonist overnight as well. They had been locking their door at night, of course, but that didn’t stop Kendell from being anxious.

One by one, the Carsons and the Johnsons came in from the porch and retired to bed. Mrs. Carson was the last one to come inside, locking up behind her and then plopping down in front of the fire with a sigh. “Those men, I swear,” she said, shaking her head. “One of these days, I’m going to sock both of them in the jaw!”

Kendell laughed, as did Pauline and Jesse. Bo jumped up, scurrying up the stairs to probably try to weasel his way into sleeping in Junior’s room. Kendell thought about retiring to bed as well, but she made eye contact with each of her friends as well. If Mrs. Carson was up for some late-night chatter, then maybe they could learn something useful.

11

Mrs. Carson made each of them some hot cocoa. Kendell was fairly certain the woman was feeling a bit guilty about her husband and neighbor knocking Kendell flat on her back in the front yard. But Kendell wasn’t about to refuse some hot chocolate. Especially since Mrs. Carson had some mini marshmallows to go with it. She even broke up some peppermint sticks, placing one in each cup. “I normally do this around Christmastime,” she said as she handed Jesse her mug. “But with the storm, it’s been a bit chilly. And I had some peppermint leftover from last week. I use peppermint whenever I’ve got a migraine I can’t kick.”

“Peppermint? Really?” Kendell asked.

“Oh, yes,” Mrs. Carson said. “Works better than any over the counter medicine. It’s a great headache and migraine remedy.”

“I used to do the same thing,” Pauline said. “I kept a box of peppermint candies in the house just for that. My husband used to get terrible migraines, and it was the only thing that would help him. After he turned sixty, our children convinced him to start wearing contacts instead of glasses. He loved them, but every once in a while, he’d go back to wearing glasses and the switch would give him the worst headaches.”

“Brenton is the same way,” Mrs. Carson said. “At least that’s what his momma tells me. He wears glasses, but they get in the way of him working, so he started wearing contacts. He will switch back to glasses on the weekends when his father keeps the workload light, and it’ll give him a headache because he’s not used to them. When I started recommending peppermint, he says it changed his life.”

Kendell took a sip of the hot cocoa, and a smile appeared on her face from the slight hint of peppermint. It felt like Christmastime even though it was mid-summer. “How’s your leg feeling, Jesse?” Pauline asked. Dot had jumped up next to Jesse and had curled up next to her injured leg. Dot had a way of sensing when someone was uncomfortable.

“A little better,” Jesse said. “It’s pretty sore.”

“I don’t think peppermint is going to help with that,” Mrs. Carson said. “Let me get you some more pain medication to help you get through the night.” She stood and headed over to the first aid kit still sitting on the kitchen table. She brought some pills over to Jesse, and Jesse thanked her again for stitching her up. “Sorry I didn’t have something to numb it with,” Mrs. Carson said. “You’re a pretty tough young lady, I’ve got to say.”

“I don’t think of myself as particularly tough,” Jesse admitted.

“Well, you sure impressed me,” Mrs. Carson said. “That hurts, and I know it.” She turned to Kendell. “How is your elbow?”

“Not too bad,” Kendell said.

“I am so sorry about my husband and Mr. Johnson,” she said, shaking her head. “That was completely uncalled for and childish, the way they acted. I thought we had put all that nonsense behind us, but apparently, my husband hasn’t let it go.”

“Do you mind telling us exactly what happened?” Kendell asked. “My curiosity is killing me, and I’d kind of like to know what wound up getting me shoved to the ground this evening.”

“Oh my goodness. It’s really quite ridiculous,” Mrs. Carson said, shaking her head again. “Let’s see… There was another storm about five years ago. Not quite as bad as this one, but it completely destroyed this little storage shed that Mr. Johnson owned. My husband had been thinking about having him move it for years because it was on our land, but he had decided it wasn’t worth the trouble. Well, Johnson started rebuilding, so my husband went to talk to him about building somewhere else.”

“I’m guessing that conversation didn’t go all that well?” Jesse asked.

“Not at all,” Mrs. Carson said. “My husband explained that his grandfather had let Johnson’s father build it there, and that Johnson’s father had paid a monthly rent. Johnson’s father continued paying the monthly rent for the land to my husband’s father up until Johnson’s father passed away. My father-in-law didn’t pester Mr. Johnson for the rent, assuming the man didn’t even know his father had been paying rent for it at all. So, when my husband approached Mr. Johnson about not building there, he assumed that my husband was crazy. Johnson had always thought it was his family’s land there. Things got very heated, and Johnson told us he was going to build a barn twice the size as the old one, which would block a backroad we used quite often. It was just to spite us, so my husband wound up contacting a lawyer who was able to prove definitively that the land did indeed belong to our family.”

“I’m surprised you are all still so friendly with one another after all of that,” Kendell said.

“Five years is plenty of time for old wounds to heal,” Mrs. Carson said. “At first, the families were not speaking to each other at all.”

“I’m guessing that’s what really happened between Junior and Brenton, is it?” Kendell asked. “It’s been mentioned that the two of them had a falling out.”

“Of course that’s what really happened,” Mrs. Carson said wryly. “They didn’t just outgrow each other like my husband and Mr. Johnson like to pretend. Mine and Mrs. Johnson’s stupid husbands started a feud, and it affected the boys. Awfully hard to stay friends when your fathers won’t let each other on the property because of what family you belong to.”

“Well, that’s just ridiculous,” Kendell said. “Your husbands let their feud pull their sons’ friendship apart?”

“They certainly did,” Mrs. Carson said with a huff. “It was quite a shame. I was very embarrassed of my husband at the time. He would blow a gasket each time I called up Mrs. Johnson for advice on a recipe or to see how she was doing. All over half an acre of land.”

“What finally happened?” Jesse asked. “I mean, apart from their little spat tonight, everyone seems to get along just fine.”

“Oh, as obnoxious as those two men acted during all of that, they’re not really those stereotypical overly proud ranchers,” Mrs. Carson said. “It took a couple years and a serious dry season before they apologized. Our waters dried up one summer, so my husband had to go to the Johnsons for help so that we could save our cattle. The Johnsons knew that without the water, our ranch was done for. They weren’t about to let us be ruined over a dispute over a barn.”

“That’s very good of them,” Jesse said.

“Well, they knew that if the tables were turned, we would have done the same,” Mrs. Carson said. “I mean, they’re here now because of the flooding, aren’t they?”

“I’m glad the two families finally made up,” Pauline said. “How long did the feud last, you said?”

“About two or three years,” Mrs. Carson said. “Years I’d rather not go back to. It is a shame, really. Junior and Brenton used to be best friends. Even after their fathers’ little feud ended, the two of them weren’t really ever the same. I suspect that a few unforgivable words were exchanged between the two of them in defense of their stubborn fathers during that time. Poor Monica was caught in the middle of all the fire, too. She told me that at the time, she was relieved that her family had sold their ranch because it made it easier to avoid those two and avoid having to choose sides.”

“Did Monica manage to stay friends with them both during all of that?” Kendell asked.

“Oh, of course,” Mrs. Carson said, sighing heavily. “She was a good girl. She was always the great mediator between Junior and Brenton. Unlike Laurie.”

“What about Laurie?” Jesse asked curiously.

“Oh, she was good at pinning them against each other,” Mrs. Carson huffed. “Now, don’t get me wrong, Laurie could be a real sweetheart at times, but…drama just tends to follow that girl. I think she enjoys it. She would pick at Brenton until he would pop off at her and then get Junior to defend her, causing the two of them to fight. I was honestly relieved when Laurie showed up to get the box of things she had left behind. It meant it was finally over. She just caused my boy too much stress. And, the colleges! Oh my goodness, that looney-toon filled out financial aid paperwork for him and contacted schools on his behalf without even telling him. She even picked out pre-approved majors for him, and he laughed in her face and said he was going to be a rancher. Now, I would have loved to see my boy go to college, but I love seeing him be a rancher too. I don’t know why she ever dated him if she had such a long list of things she wanted to change about him. You should have seen this hat she bought him once…a fedora, I think she called it? Told him he needed to start dressing better.”

“A fedora?” Jesse asked and began laughing. “I bet that looked downright goofy on him.”

“It did, and he fed it to one of the Johnsons’ goats,” Mrs. Carson said with a laugh.

“I’m curious,” Kendell said. “Did Monica or her family have anything to do with the land dispute?”

“No,” Mrs. Carson said. “Her family sold their land a long time ago. She was only vaguely aware of what the dispute was even about.”

Kendell sighed. It was sounding like the Johnsons wouldn’t have any motivation either. It was starting to seem like they were going to have to find evidence against Laurie because no one else seemed to have any motive whatsoever. Mrs. Carson eventually retired to bed after helping Jesse change her bandages. Kendell then helped Jesse up the stairs; Jesse said there was no way she was sleeping out in the open like that with a killer loose in the house.

Jesse and Pauline took the bed together while Kendell took the cot that night, but she couldn’t sleep. She decided to pull out a notebook she kept in her bag along with a pen and write down everything she knew. She thought that maybe if she visualized everything, it would make it easier for her to figure this thing out. But even once she had filled a page of everything she had managed to learn about the two families, she was no further along than before.

She wrote down everything she could remember about the crime scene from both before and after the arson attempt. It was only then that she realized there was something she had not thought to look for just yet. When she had seen Monica’s body, she had noticed the girl had blood on her lips and under her nails. She had bitten the attacker! “Of course,” Kendell said under her breath. If Monica had bit someone hard enough to draw blood, then the culprit must have bite marks on them somewhere—that and scratch marks, too. Monica had even broken a nail trying to escape her assailant.

The killer had to be strong. Strong enough to sneak up on Monica without any of them noticing, grab her, hold her down, and end things very quickly. Laurie did not fit the bill despite her obvious motive, so that meant it had to be someone else.

“Let’s see…” Kendell said, looking at her suspect list. Obviously not Pauline—not enough strength or motive. Jesse liked Junior, sure, but Kendell wasn’t sure if the woman had even noticed Monica’s flirtation until after she was dead and everyone else was pointing it out. Plus, Monica was definitely stronger-looking than Jesse, and Jesse was Kendell’s friend. Laurie was out simply because of her small size. If Jesse could put up a fight against Laurie at the pigpen, then there was no way Laurie could take out Monica, who was still built like a rancher’s kid.

Mrs. Carson and Mrs. Johnson were both strong women, but probably not strong enough to take out Monica without everyone else noticing. Both Mr. Carson and Mr. Johnson could have probably done it, but at their age, it might have even a bit of a struggle. It seemed the two people most capable of pulling it off would be Junior or Brenton, but that made little sense considering their close friendship.

But, at the end of the day, Kendell knew there was a motive she was missing. That was what she needed to find. But she knew she needed to start with those most capable of pulling the kill off, and that would be the male ranchers and their sons.

12

Kendell awoke early the following morning. Jesse and Pauline were both still fast asleep, as was the rest of the household. This surprised her a bit as the Carsons and the Johnsons both tended to rise long before the sun. That way, they were able to eat breakfast and be out the door just as the sun was peeking up outside. Kendell was used to having unusual sleeping schedules based around flight plans, but she wasn’t sure if she would be able to make rising an hour before the sun a daily habit.

The ranchers were hard-working individuals. Truth be told, as a New Yorker, she always imagined the sort of farmer/rancher lifestyle through over-romanticized lenses. The truth was far different from what they showed on television. Rancher life was hard work. Especially after the sort of storm the property had just endured.

Kendell dipped into the upstairs bath, deciding to take advantage of it while the rest of the house was quiet. She combed her hair and pulled it back before washing her face. She smiled at herself in the mirror. It had been a busy night the night before, so she imagined that had a lot to do with why everyone was still asleep. She changed, applied some deodorant (which was something she had never needed so badly in New York), and brushed her teeth. Just as she was getting ready to leave, she noticed a bunch of what appeared to be unused tissues laid across the top of the trash can. Almost like someone had thrown something away they didn’t want anyone else to see.

She couldn’t resist. She cleared away the unused tissue and found some bloodied bandages. Had Jesse come into the bathroom to change her bandages in the middle of the night? Kendell decided to ask, so after washing her hands, she dipped back into the shared bedroom. Already, as she made her way there, her nostrils tickled with the smell of bacon. It seemed that Mrs. Carson, and probably Mrs. Johnson, were already up and moving around.

Kendell entered the guest bedroom. Dot was running around in a circle. She probably smelled the bacon downstairs. She had gotten some pretty good scraps here at the Carson homestead. It was like a constant fest of artery-clogging goodness. Pauline was sitting up, rubbing her eyes, and Jesse had already changed into a t-shirt and some of her yoga pants. Kendell imagined the yoga pants were probably more comfortable than the jeans the Carsons had let her borrow, now that she had stitches in her leg.

“Morning,” Pauline said, yawning. “Wow, how long have you been up?”

“Earlier than usual,” Kendell said, catching Pauline’s yawn. “Hey, Jesse, have you changed your bandages since Mrs. Carson helped you last night?”

“No,” she said. “But I’m probably due for some clean ones. I think I finally stopped bleeding last night.”

“Interesting,” Kendell said.

“Why is that interesting?” Pauline asked, standing and grabbing her little bathroom bag from her suitcase.

“Because there are some bloodied bandages in the upstairs hall bath. It looks like someone tried to hide them,” Kendell said.

“That is awfully suspicious,” Pauline said.

“I agree,” Kendell said. “I’m going to go on downstairs. See if I can get anyone alone to talk this morning.”

“We’ll be down shortly,” Jesse said.

“Do you need help getting down the stairs?” Kendell asked.

“No, I think I’m good. I’m able to put some weight on my leg this morning,” Jesse said, offering Kendell a grateful smile.

Kendell nodded and left the bedroom, Dot following on her heels. “I’ll let her out!” Kendell called over her shoulder, and Pauline shouted back a thank you.

Kendell headed down the stairs, Dot yapping the entire way. As she suspected, Mrs. Carson and Mrs. Johnson were already busy in the kitchen. “Good morning,” Kendell said.

“Look at you, dressed and ready to go for a day of work,” Mrs. Carson said with a smirk. “I’m telling you, these New York girls aren’t so bad. I always thought Yankees were afraid of a little hard work.”

“Not this Yankee,” Kendell said with a laugh. “Hold on a second. I’m going to let Dot out.”

“Watch her close,” Mrs. Johnson said. “I saw a stupid fox snooping around this morning. Probably hoping to snag him a chicken.”

Kendell nodded and headed outside, where she spied Brenton sitting out on the porch in one of the rocking chairs while Bo sniffed around. He was cleaning a shotgun he had pulled apart and set out on a little table in front of him, and he was wearing the same black gloves she had seen him wearing since she had met him.

“Morning,” he said.

“Good morning,” Kendell said, watching Dot hurry out into the yard to chase circles around Bo. “Dot, leave Bo alone!”

“Dot’s kind of an unusual name for a perfectly white dog,” Brenton said.

“The way I understand it, one of Pauline’s great-grandchildren named her,” Kendell said, and Brenton nodded and smirked.

“Kids are funny,” he said.

“I notice you always wear those gloves,” Kendell said. “Even when we’re not working.”

“Yeah, I’m just used to having them on, I guess,” he said.

“Makes sense,” she said. “So, I know it’s a lot to ask, but I was wondering if you could tell me about the night Monica died. If you remember anything.”

He frowned. “Yeah, I guess,” he said, looking very sad. “I don’t really remember much, to be honest. It was dark, so I just leaned against a wall and tried to sleep. I wasn’t anywhere near Monica. I kind of scooted back on my own to try to get some rest because I knew there would be a lot of work to do the next day. I still haven’t totally caught up on sleep after all that. Next morning, I didn’t even notice Monica wasn’t with us as we left the cellar…not at first. If anything, I thought she had just fallen asleep and hadn’t come out because she was maybe comfortable or something.”

“You don’t remember anything being said to Monica or about Monica?” Kendell asked.

“Honestly, I was just more worried about the twister outside,” he said.

“I suppose that is understandable,” Kendell said, sighing as Dot made her way back up the porch and began running around Kendell’s feet, eager to get back inside where the bacon smell was coming from.

Kendell went inside with Dot, and she ran over by the fire, jumping up into Junior’s lap, who was seated in one of the lounge chairs. “Well, hello, there,” he said.

Kendell offered to help in the kitchen, but both older women waved her off, assuring her they just about had breakfast ready and telling her to go sit down because they would be putting her to work as soon as they all ate. Kendell went and sat on the couch near Junior. “How are you doing?” Kendell asked.

“Pretty good. I slept good last night,” Junior said.

“I mean about Monica,” Kendell said.

Junior’s face fell.

“I’m just trying not to think about it,” Junior said, his voice cracking a bit. “I’m honestly not sure how else to cope with the fact that one of my best friend’s bodies is locked up in our cellar until we clear the roads. It’s not exactly a normal situation.”

“No, it really isn’t,” Kendell said. “I’ve come to understand that you and Brenton had a bit of a falling out a while back. Did you and Monica drift apart like that too?”

“Oh, no, not at all,” Junior said, smiling. “Monica was good at not getting in the middle of mine and Brenton’s families’ crap. She stayed close with us both and even helped us sort of mend things. I’m guessing everyone told you all about mine and Brenton’s spats, huh?”

“Well, I was told that your father’s dispute sort of caused you two to clash,” Kendell said.

“Yeah, pretty much,” Junior said. “Although we had our own crap we were going through. He approached me around that time, wanting to buy some land. I told him my dad wouldn’t go for it. He told me he was talking about once we both took over our fathers’ ranches. I wasn’t really thinking that far ahead, but when I turned him down, he got all mad and that’s when our own little feud started. It got pretty serious.”

“Another land dispute, huh?” Kendell asked with a smirk.

“Land disputes are a common tension-causer amongst ranchers,” Junior said, shaking his head.

“What piece of land did he even want?” Kendell questioned.

“A little half an acre near those caverns we keep the cattle in,” Junior explained. “I told him it was my land, and he couldn’t have it. He got mad.”

“Isn’t that land pretty rocky?” Kendell asked.

“Yeah,” Junior said.

“So, just out of curiosity, that would make the land fairly useless for a rancher, right?” Kendell asked, and Junior nodded. “So, if Brenton wanted some land that you couldn’t even use, why not sell it to him and make a little extra money?”

“I have some vision,” he said. “The land is pretty useless for cattle, but I can find other uses for it. Plus, the way Brenton came at me about it was a little offensive. Like he just expected me to hand it over for next to nothing. I know the land was fairly useless, but he didn’t have to give me a joke offer. Then he upped the offer like he was all desperate for it, and that’s when he started getting kind of aggressive. I finally just ended it, told him we were done talking about it.”

“What about Bo?” Kendell asked. “Is Brenton mad at all about losing the dog he helped you buy?”

“I don’t think so,” Junior said, laughing. “I mean, maybe a little annoyed, but it’s not like I can help it that the dog likes me better. He should have fed him. That somehow became my job.”

Kendell snickered a bit, and soon everyone had come down for breakfast, all ready to get started on the day. The hope was that they would be able to clear the roads by that afternoon. Mr. Carson had managed to make another call to police to get an update on their progress, and it sounded like between the ranchers working one way and the local authorities the other that freedom was a mere day’s work away.

“Thank goodness,” Kendell said under her breath, looking around the breakfast table at all of the strangers. Jesse was sitting by Junior, the two of them chatting like they had been dating for ages. Brenton was quietly nibbling on his breakfast, still wearing his work gloves as a signal he was ready to get outside and get going quickly. Mr. Carson and Mr. Johnson sat near one another, chatting in a much friendlier manner than the night before. Laurie sat glaring at Jesse. Pauline quietly hummed as she ate, occasionally complimenting Mrs. Carson and Mrs. Johnson on their cooking. Someone at that table had killed Monica, and Kendell was getting increasingly eager to figure out who.

13

Pauline had a tendency of getting herself in trouble, but she was hopeful that today would be an exception. Shortly after breakfast, she faked a stomachache and blamed it on her medication. As she expected, these lovely rancher folks were more than understanding that the pleasant old woman staying in their guest room wouldn’t be darting out the door to help with the workload. They were all quickly assigned duties as Pauline scooted off to the bathroom to hideout.

Kendell, as Pauline suspected, came knocking on the door while everyone else was headed outside, to check on her. But, of course, Kendell wasn’t really coming in to check on her. Kendell knew Pauline well enough by now that she didn’t get sick from her medication, and she also knew enough by now to pick up on when Pauline was being mischievous.

Kendell peered into the bathroom, and Pauline smiled at her. Dot was running around her legs happy as ever. “May I help you?” Pauline asked.

“Thought I’d ask how you were feeling?” Kendell asked, raising a brow and smirking slightly to let Pauline know that she knew.

“I’m feeling just fine, dear,” Pauline said with a smile. “Don’t worry about me. Go on outside, and I’ll join you all shortly on the road. Mrs. Carson left me the truck keys so that I can meet everyone in just a bit.”

“You need the truck keys for whatever you’re planning, don’t you?” Kendell whispered. “All right, what are you up to?”

Pauline smirked. “Well, I thought that I would go investigate that piece of property that got Brenton and Junior all worked up. Something about that conversation was sending up red flags. Why argue over a seemingly useless piece of property? And, I asked Mr. Carson about it and he said he never even uses it. So, why not sell it?”

“That’s a good point. Maybe I should come with you?” Kendell suggested.

“Sweetheart, let’s not draw any more attention to ourselves than we already have,” Pauline said with a wink. “You go on with everyone else, and I’ll meet up with you in just a bit.”

Kendell nodded and closed the bathroom door behind her. Pauline took a few minutes to freshen up, waiting patiently until she was certain she was alone in the house before she and Dot headed out. Dot walked alongside her, panting a bit as she pranced toward the front door. Pauline snagged the truck keys from the kitchen counter on her way out.

The homestead was incredibly quiet. Everyone had worked together to get any of the necessary morning duties done quickly before heading out to work on clearing the roads. Clearing the main road, the only one into the ranch that wasn’t currently flooded but merely covered in fallen trees and debris, was the top priority for the day. Even Jesse, who was still injured, was being put to work as the driver of the truck that wasn’t a stick shift.

Pauline opened the passenger’s side door of the rusty old truck and Dot jumped up into the seat. “Good girl,” Pauline said proudly of her pooch, then she walked over to the driver’s side. The old woman struggled a bit climbing up into the truck, but she felt at home behind the wheel. It had been a long time since she had driven a stick shift, aside from the cow roundup the other night, but that was what she had grown up using.

Instead of heading toward the roads, she headed through the pasture toward the underground caves the Carsons used to keep the cattle safe during large storms. Eventually, it reached a point where the land was no longer drivable and Pauline had to park. She rolled down the windows and told Dot to stay put before stepping out. The old woman tread carefully. The last thing she wanted to do was trip and be stuck out there on the terribly rocky grounds.

She spied the entrance of the caves and decided to peek inside, using a flashlight she had pulled from the truck’s glovebox to look around. “Whoa,” she said, impressed at how massive the cavern was. It seemed to go back forever. It was no wonder two different ranches were able to fit their entire herds in there. The walls of the cave were incredibly sturdy, much sturdier than a barn would be. It was probably the safest place for the animals, and since the Carsons had built a gate at the entrance of the cave, they were able to ensure they wouldn’t lose a single frightened cow during a storm. “Very impressive,” she said to herself.

She had learned from Mary that the bit of land Brenton wanted was very close to the caves, so she began walking. Pauline was extremely cautious with each and every step. The ground was simply terrible here. The rocks were plentiful, as was the mud. She got her boot stuck twice, in fact, during her walk. “Ridiculous,” she kept muttering. There was no grass for grazing—just rocks and mud everywhere she looked. Why would Brenton want to buy this?

“Um…hello!” a familiar voice called through the dead and slightly rotted cluster of trees. Pauline jumped, ducking down. She saw Laurie.

What is she doing out here, Pauline wondered, extremely suspicious at first. She watched carefully as the woman walked across the rocks, and after a moment, she paused and turned. “Yeah, I can hear you,” she said, and Pauline realized the woman was just on the phone. It seemed that she had just been looking for service. “Yeah, okay, so you can hear me fine? Thank goodness! I think this is the best it’s going to be,” Laurie said. “Yes, Mr. Carson asked me to call you… Sheriff Woods, right? We’re still working on moving a large oak that’s fallen on the road. We’ve about got it moved now, but after that, we’re pretty sure the road is clear for about half a mile. We looked through some binoculars, and there’s some more trash and branches blocking the road a good ways down next to the abandoned church…. Uh huh… Yeah… Okay, good. So, we should be able to clear the roads today, you think? Thank God!”

Pauline breathed a sigh of relief. At first, she had thought Laurie had been up to something and she had put herself in danger being out here by herself. But it seemed like the woman had just been sent on an errand by Mr. Carson to talk to the cleanup crew working their way toward them. Pauline remained hidden, waiting to catch the end of whatever conversation Laurie was having. “No, no one has come clean about Monica,” Laurie said. “I don’t know. It was dark. I didn’t see or hear anything with the twister outside.”

Pauline tried to gauge whether or not the woman was telling the truth, but she couldn’t tell. Frankly, Laurie was still at the top of her suspect list. When Laurie hung up, Pauline attempted to remain hidden. She didn’t want anyone knowing she had snuck off, but it was to no avail. The leafless trees didn’t do much to hide her.

“What are you doing out here?” Laurie asked, walking toward Pauline in a way that made her nervous.

“Um…” Pauline realized she didn’t have an excuse, and that made her anxious. She took a step back, and she tripped over a rock. “Ah!” Pauline yelped, landing on her rear.

Laurie darted over. “Oh my gosh! Are you okay?” She sounded legitimately concerned, and the tone of her voice calmed Pauline. The woman was obviously not going to hurt her, but being trapped on the ranch with an unidentified killer had shaken Pauline’s nerves a bit.

“I’m okay,” Pauline said. A fall at her age was certainly something to worry about, but thankfully, she had landed in a thick pile of mud rather than on a pile of rocks.

Laurie knelt beside her. “You’re not hurt, are you?” Laurie asked.

“No, I don’t think so,” Pauline said. “What did I even trip over?” she muttered, and then she saw something that caught her attention. Right there next to her ankle was a giant gold rock. “No…” she said under her breath, reaching out for it.

“Whoa,” Laurie said as Pauline held up the rock the size of her fist. “Is that what I think it is?”

“It sure is,” Pauline said, using both hands to cup the large hunk of gold in her hands. “This is gold!”

Laurie’s eyes glistened. “I don’t suppose you’ll let me sneak that into my bag, will you?” Laurie asked, and Pauline wasn’t sure if she was serious or joking.

Pauline’s jaw dropped. “Look,” she said, pointing to where her feet had fallen. There were several more, smaller nuggets by her feet.

“Holy cow!” Laurie exclaimed, and she couldn’t resist. Laurie tucked a golden nugget into her pocket.

“Pretty sure that belongs to the Carsons,” Pauline said, but she wasn’t going to press. Even she had to admit the giant hunk of gold she held was difficult to pass up. “I wonder who all knows about this?”

“I don’t think Mr. Carson knows,” Laurie said, helping Pauline stand. The two of them replaced the large golden brick Pauline had tripped on, having a hard time validating taking such a large piece. “If he did, he would have dug all this up by now.”

“Do you think Junior knows?” Pauline asked.

“I have no idea,” Laurie said. “He never mentioned anything.”

Pauline nodded. “Let’s keep this between us. I think it’s best we not tell everyone until we let Mr. Carson know. He probably won’t want people digging around on his land.”

“Good point,” Laurie said. “I’ll keep my mouth shut if you don’t say anything about the little piece I just tucked in my pocket.”

Pauline laughed. There was plenty to go around, so she wasn’t going to give Laurie a hard time for taking the smallest of the small bits they had found. “Mum’s the word,” Pauline said as the two of them walked back to the truck. Pauline of course offered to give Laurie a ride back to the road where everyone else was currently working, but then Pauline paused. A thought occurred to her. “Laurie, you know the story about how Monica, Junior, and Brenton found the caves?”

“Yeah, I know all about that,” Laurie said.

“Do you know where they fell in at?” Pauline asked.

Laurie turned around. “Just up there.”

“Take me to it,” Pauline said. They walked past the little pile of gold.

Laurie pointed to a hole in the ground that was now boarded up with wood to prevent anyone else from falling in. It was a short distance from the caves. Pauline handed Laurie her flashlight. “See if there’s any gold down there.”

Laurie obeyed; the two of them pulled back the boards, and Laurie laid on her stomach and leaned into it, shining her flashlight around. “Oh… my… God!” she cried, causing her voice to echo. “It’s everywhere!”

Laurie stood back up, and they boarded back up the hole. “This is incredible!” Laurie exclaimed. “The Carsons are rich and they don’t even know it!”

“I think one of them does,” Pauline said.

“What do you mean?” Laurie asked as they began walking back toward the truck.

“Brenton wanted this land, and obviously Junior said no. They both knew about the gold if that’s where they fell in. Monica probably knew about it too. But why not tell his parents he found a lot of gold on the land?” Pauline asked.

“I don’t know. It would make them rich!” Laurie exclaimed, but then she paused. “It would make Mr. and Mrs. Carson rich. Not Junior.”

“Exactly,” Pauline said. “They must have all agreed to keep the gold a secret… Maybe all three of them have been pulling gold from the reserve?”

“And so…that means…one of them took out Monica…to make sure they got more gold…” Laurie said, her face turning red. “Oh no.”

Pauline nodded. “We need to go speak to Junior and Brenton…and everybody else…right now.”

14

Brenton had just moved the truck a few miles out, leaving Kendell and the others time to rest while he went and dumped the debris into a wood pile they had started. Mr. Carson and Mr. Johnson were both sitting on a large log they had managed to roll away from the road, leaving the duty of chopping it up for another day. The important thing was that they cleared the road. “I hope Laurie gets back soon,” Mrs. Carson said, stretching her back. “I’m looking forward to an update on how the authorities are handling it on their end.”

“I doubt they’re moving as fast as us,” Junior boasted.

Jesse was sitting in a lawn chair that had been in the back of the truck. She had been doing most of the driving that morning, but even the constant use of her right leg for something as trivial as driving had caused her stitching to start rubbing against the bandages. She was now pretty much just moral support for everyone else. Jesse smiled up at Junior. “You guys are moving pretty quick,” she said. “I got to say, I’m impressed.”

“I’m impressed by you,” Junior said to her. “If I had a gash in my leg like that, I’d be milking it.”

Jesse smiled. “Not too bad for a city girl, right?”

“Right,” Junior said, grinning.

Kendell laughed, brushing her hands off onto her jeans after removing her gloves. Her hands were getting awfully sweaty, and she was glad to have a break. They had managed to cut up two trees that had fallen and had gathered a tremendous number of oversized limbs, as well as what looked like half of a demolished shed that the Carsons and Johnsons were both thankful not to recognize as one of their own.

“I have to say, I misjudged you all,” Mary said, giving Kendell a friendly bump of her hip. “I thought you New Yorkers wouldn’t be able to keep up.”

“Hey, New York is the city that never sleeps,” Kendell said. “We know how to pull our weight.”

“I mean, honestly, between this and you catching those chickens, you’ve certainly changed my perspective,” Mary said.

Mrs. Johnson had now joined her husband and neighbor on the large log. She stretched her legs out in front of her. “Laurie has been gone for a while now,” Mrs. Johnson said. “You think that girl is avoiding work?”

Junior pulled out his cell phone and shook his head. “Nah, she is probably just having a hard time finding service. We had it in the house for a little bit there, but it went out. She’s probably walking all over the property trying to pick up a few bars.”

“Oh, would you look there,” Mr. Carson said, pointing out behind them. “Looks like Ms. Pauline is feeling better.”

Kendell turned around, looking back toward the homestead. Sure enough, she saw the beat-up old truck heading in their direction. “Oh, hey, Laurie’s with Pauline,” Kendell said. “Guess Pauline must have seen her and picked her up.”

“I hope she’s got an update for us,” Junior said, putting a hand on Jesse’s shoulder.

Jesse smiled. “I hope so. No offense, Mrs. Carson, your patchwork was wonderful, but I’d like to have a doctor at a hospital take a look at my leg as soon as possible.”

“No offense taken, dear,” Mrs. Carson said.

As soon as Pauline parked the truck, Laurie jumped out of the passenger’s seat. She looked furious, and honestly, Kendell’s first assumption was that Pauline must have said something that annoyed her. But she marched right up to Junior. “All right, creep, let’s talk,” she hissed, and the Carsons and Johnsons all jumped up from where they had settled down because Laurie’s demeanor was incredibly intimidating.

“Excuse me?” Junior asked, taking a step back because Laurie was in his face.

Pauline came scooting out of the truck, joining the hostile group as casually as ever. “Pauline, what’s this about?” Kendell asked.

“Well, we think we know what happened to Monica,” Pauline said to Kendell loud enough for the group to hear.

“What!” Mary exclaimed. “What happened?”

Laurie reached into her pocket, pulling out what looked like a decent hunk of gold.

“Whoa,” Kendell said.

“Pauline and I found gold!” Laurie announced.

“Gold!” Mr. Carson exclaimed. “Where did you find gold!” Laurie tossed the golden nugget to Mr. Carson. The man examined it, his eyes widening. “This is real!” he cried.

“They’re by the caverns,” Laurie said. “That hole the boys fell in when they were kids is full of the stuff. Junior and Brenton knew all about the gold, and so did Monica.”

Junior stiffened.

“Junior!” Mrs. Carson exclaimed. “Did you really know about this?”

Junior’s face turned red. “Yes, I knew about the gold.”

“You found those caverns when you were just a kid,” Mr. Carson said. “How could you not tell me that plot was filled with gold?”

“Because he didn’t want his daddy taking the money, that’s why,” Laurie said, poking him in the chest. “He convinced Brenton and Monica to stay quiet so that when he inherited the ranch, he’d inherit the gold too.”

“What! No, that’s not it!” Junior yelped.

“And,” Laurie added. “This is the real reason he and Brenton had a falling out. Brenton tried to talk him into selling the land to him, but obviously Junior wasn’t going to sell him a literal gold mine. No doubt Monica was flirting it up with you because she knew you were going to be rich!”

Junior’s face turned red. “You’re way out of line!”

“Junior, explain yourself!” Mr. Carson snapped. “Are you really so greedy, son, that you wouldn’t tell me about gold on my land?”

“Dad, that’s not it at all, I swear!” Junior shouted. “I didn’t tell you about the gold because I was worried you’d sell the ranch.”

Mr. Carson raised brow. “You think I’d sell the ranch?”

“I thought you’d liquidize the gold and retire,” Junior said. “And sell the ranch. I didn’t want you to do that because I want this ranch. I would sometimes take a few gold pieces and sell them when we weren’t doing great at the ranch, and I’d put the money in your account. I hadn’t ever stolen any of your gold, Dad. It’s your land, not mine. I would never do anything like that, I swear.”

“But Monica knew about the gold,” Mr. Johnson said. “Junior…you didn’t kill her to keep her quiet, did you?”

“What!? No! Monica was my friend, I would never—”

Junior was interrupted as Brenton returned in the now-empty truck. Brenton stepped out and wiped his brow. “Okay,” Brenton said, everyone staring in his direction. “Next time I go to dump a load in the fire pit, someone else is coming with me.” He paused, realizing everyone was staring at him. “What’s up, you guys?”

“Brenton, did you hurt Monica?” Junior hissed.

“What? No!” Brenton exclaimed, taking a step back. “What makes you all think that?”

“They found the gold. Everyone knows about the gold,” Junior said.

“Oh,” Brenton said, shaking his head. “Well, that doesn’t mean a thing. That was a secret between the three of us. Did you hurt Monica, Junior?”

Brenton had a point. If Monica’s death was about keeping the gold a secret, either one of them could be guilty. If Monica had threatened to tell Mr. Carson, would that be enough for Junior to want to kill her? Was he lying and was really trying to hoard all the gold himself to keep his father from claiming it? Or if Brenton was the guilty party—when Junior had refused to share the land and the gold, did Brenton decide to start taking out anyone who knew? What if he was planning on going after Junior too?

Then, a thought suddenly occurred to Kendell just as tensions were starting to rise further. “Brenton!” Kendell snapped, pointing at him. “Take off your work gloves!”

Brenton had been wearing his work gloves ever since the night Monica had been killed. Whoever had killed Monica would’ve put their hand over her mouth to keep her from screaming. Monica could have bitten her attacker when they had tried to keep her quiet.

“What? Why?” Brenton asked.

“Take. Off. Your. Gloves,” Kendell demanded slowly, enunciating ever word. “Monica had blood dripping down her lips. I think whoever stabbed her had held their hand over her mouth to keep her from screaming—we were all together in the cellar, after all—and I think she bit whoever attacked her. I bet if you take those gloves off, there will be a bite mark on one of your hands.”

Brenton glared at Kendell. “I didn’t hurt Monica! She was one of my best friends.”

“What happened, Brenton? Have you been taking gold off the Carson’s property, and Monica found out about it? Is that it?” Kendell asked, and she could tell this stirred him. She felt like she had probably hit the nail on the head with that one. “And I bet you were planning on taking Junior out next.”

“And without Junior, you would easily be able to convince Mr. Carson into selling that piece of land that, without the gold, would be completely useless for a rancher,” Pauline said.

“That’s ridiculous!” Brenton shouted and started toward his truck. “Screw you guys! I’m out of here. Finish clearing the road yourself!”

Just as he opened the driver’s side door of the truck, Mr. Johnson bolted over and slammed the door shut, staring his son in the eye. “Take off your gloves, son,” he said.

Brenton stiffened. He stared at his father, and after a moment of hesitating, he removed his gloves. His left hand, sure enough, was wrapped in a bandage. Mr. Johnson grabbed his son by the wrist and slowly began unwrapping the bloodied bandage. Then, clear as day, was a very obvious bite mark that had pierced through his skin.

Mr. Johnson’s head lowered. He looked more devastated than Brenton. Kendell shook her head. They had figured it out. Brenton had killed Monica, and it was evident by the hateful look he was shooting in Junior’s direction that he had planned on going after him next. Kendell half-expected Brenton to attempt some maddening escape—perhaps grabbing a gun and going after the Carsons all together. But, he didn’t. It would have been quite futile because just as Mr. Johnson revealed Brenton’s hand, they heard sirens in the distance.

It seemed that the local authorities had finished clearing the road. They were coming, finally responding to the emergency call about Monica. Not that they would need to do any investigating now. They all knew, and Brenton didn’t seem willing to run—not with his own father gripping him by the arm and looking at him with such devastated disappointment.

15

Kendell arose the next morning feeling somewhat refreshed. She reached over, picking up her now-fully charged cell phoned. The nearby service towers had evidently been repaired, because her phone had over fifty missed messages—mostly texts from her boyfriend, Jack. “Oh, you’ve got to be kidding me,” she groaned. Some of them sounded like he was just worried; she had told him she was flying to Texas before turning to South America, so he had probably seen the crazy storm on the news.

Jesse and Pauline had already gone downstairs, it seemed. She sat up on the little cot and called Jack. When he answered, she half-expected him to start yelling in her ear, but instead he cried out, “Thank God!”

“I’m so sorry,” Kendell said. “Pauline, Jesse, and I got stuck in Texas, and these local ranchers let us stay on their property. The cell towers went out, and the roads were totally blocked off. I had no way of reaching you. They don’t even have internet out here, otherwise I would have reached out to you.”

“You’re okay, though?” he asked, a bit breathless.

“Yeah, I’m fine,” she said. “I’m sorry to worry you so much, Jack.”

“No, I totally overreacted… I’m guessing you have service now if you’re calling me…so you probably see all those texts… any chance you haven’t read them?”

“I haven’t, why?” she asked.

“Because I probably started sounding like a real jackass about thirty text messages ago,” he moaned. “Do me a favor and just delete those instead of reading them, please? I got worried and then I got mad and then I got worried again. I’m sorry.”

Kendell laughed. “You know, this is probably the sweetest you’ve sounded since I started on this little adventure with Pauline.”

“Yeah, I’ve been a little much, haven’t I?” he asked.

“A little bit,” Kendell said with a smirk. “You want to tell me what’s really going on with you, Jack? You know I’ve always been really independent, and it’s never bothered you before. What’s going on? Have I done something to make you not trust me or something?”

“No! No, nothing like that… Honestly, there is something kind of going on. Nothing you need to worry about or anything, but it’s a conversation I would rather have face-to-face, if that’s okay?” he said.

Kendell frowned, finding herself sitting up a bit straighter. “Something going on? What? Are you okay? Did something happen?”

“No! Nothing happened. You don’t need to worry, I promise,” he assured her. “I just have some stuff going on that I want to talk to you about when you get home, okay?”

“Okay… I mean… Is it really serious? Do you need me to come back to New York?” Kendell asked.

“No, no, no,” he said quickly. “Look… Lil and your buddy Brandon kind of went their rounds with me. Told me to back off you. You’ve got some good friends there. I’ve heard Jesse has been with you in Texas, so I’m guessing she probably has some words for me too with the way I’ve been acting. They knocked some sense into me…quite literally.”

“Oh no!” Kendell yelped. “Please don’t tell me that you and Brandon got into a fight!”

“I didn’t say Brandon,” Jack laughed. “Lil socked me in the jaw and told me to quit being such a whiny brat.”

Kendell laughed. That sounded about right. “I’m so sorry.”

“And, you know, they both told me about what you’ve been up to. Lil says your old lady friend helped her escape authorities and get her to the US Embassy in Nairobi, and Brandon tells me you solved a murder in Hawaii too… Why didn’t you tell me about all this?” Jack asked.

“I didn’t want you to worry,” Kendell admitted.

“Well, between those two crazy incidents and the storm you got yourself caught in, I hope your adventure is almost over?” Jack asked hopefully.

“Not quite,” Kendell said. “But getting there.”

“Okay, well, I’m going to be more supportive from now on. I promise,” he said. “Just, do me a favor, and don’t keep stuff like that from me anymore. I know you can take care of yourself, but I’d rather know if you’ve gotten yourself into some trouble, you know?”

“Okay, well, I guess I should tell you Pauline and I witnessed a decapitation in London and that we watched one of the rancher’s sons get arrested for homicide last night,” Kendell said.

“What!” Jack cried, and Kendell just laughed and reassured Jack that she and Pauline and Jesse would be heading out soon. “Do me a favor and just keep me posted… No more secrets, okay?”

“No more secrets,” Kendell assured him. “I love you.”

“Love you too,” he said.

“I’m going to head down for breakfast before I miss it. The Carsons sure do know how to cook. I’ll talk to you later,” Kendell said, hanging up the phone and laughing. She got dressed and then finished packing her bags before going downstairs.

The Johnsons were not at breakfast—not that Kendell expected them to be. They had followed Brenton to the police station after he was arrested. Brenton had confessed to everything. He even admitted to the police that he had planned on killing Junior as well and to setting the fire in an attempt to cover his tracks. He was hoping that if he cooperated, he might get a lighter sentence.

Junior and Jesse were sitting next to one another at breakfast, laughing and getting quite close. Pauline was speaking with Mr. and Mrs. Carson about the wonderful breakfast they had prepared and all of their hospitality. Mary was picking fun at Junior and Jesse for getting so close. When Kendell came and sat down, Pauline made an abrupt announcement. “Kendell, Jesse has decided that she is going to spend some time here at the ranch with the Carsons.”

“Really?” Kendell asked, grinning in Jesse’s direction as her cheeks turned red.

“They offered to rent me a room… The airline we work for has an airport in Dallas, so I can make it my new, temporary home without inconveniencing them,” Jesse said perkily.

“Aww,” Kendell said, smiling at her and Junior. The two of them had really hit it off. Kendell turned to the Carsons. “So, what are you all going to do about all of that gold you found?”

Junior and Mary each turned to their parents curiously. “Well,” Mr. Carson said. “We’re going to hire some hands to mine it out. I’m going to put a fourth of it into a gold reserve. Then the Mrs. and I will liquidize a fourth of it to help expand the ranch. We’re going to let Junior and Mary each have a fourth as well, to do whatever they want with it.”

“But you’re not selling the ranch?” Kendell asked.

“My boy said he doesn’t want us to sell the ranch. We aren’t going to sell it. Mind you, we might retire early,” Mr. Carson said, smiling at his wife. “With that gold, we’ll be able to—especially if we’re able to expand the ranch. I think we’re going to stick around for a while as we do all that, buying more land and dealing with hired help and cattle. Once we’re sure it’s settled in, the ranch is going to belong to my kids. If I can retire early, I will.”

Junior smiled. “Thanks, Dad.”

“Yeah, thank you,” Mary said, smiling. “You know, Junior, I had a thought about what I want to do with some of my gold.”

“What’s that?” Junior asked.

“Well, if Mom and Dad retire, Mom can’t be your on-hand vet anymore. I was thinking I’d send myself to school and build another homestead on the land. Have my own house, and let you take this old place. I know it means more to you. But I can be the official veterinarian for the ranch and let you run the place. I know that’s probably more your speed anyway,” Mary explained.

Junior perked up. “Mary! That’s a great idea!”

“I thought you might like that,” she said.

Kendell smiled. “Where’s that leave you, Jesse?”

“I’m just the girlfriend,” she said, then cringed a bit for using the word ‘girlfriend’ so quickly, but Junior smiled and nodded in agreement.

Kendell felt a little odd leaving Jesse at the ranch, but she was glad she had found such a nice guy that she was willing to invest in. Mr. Carson and Mary drove them to the airport, waving and hugging good-bye. “So, where to, Pauline?” Kendell asked, and Pauline started walking around the outside of the airport, confusing Kendell significantly.

“We’re not taking a plane to our next destination,” Pauline explained as they made their way to the airport’s rental service station.

Kendell raised a brow. “Oh, yeah?” she questioned. “Where are we going?”

“You just wait here, dear. I’m going to go get us a car,” Pauline said. “Actually, why don’t you take Dot inside to the gift shop and get yourself a new sticker while I get us a car?”

“Good idea,” Kendell said, taking the dog carrier from Pauline. She headed inside, where she quickly located the airport’s gift shop and picked herself out a new sticker—a giant sticker of a long horn with the words Dallas, Texas across its horns. She bought it and then slapped it onto her carry-on bag.

She then went outside, let Dot out of her carrier to use the restroom, and began walking back toward the rental car location where Pauline was already waiting in a little Ford Fusion. Kendell climbed into the passenger’s seat, releasing Dot into the back. Dot liked to jump around a lot whenever they were in the car. “You never told me where we were going,” Kendell said.

“Well, we have some downtime,” Pauline began. “Because the plan was to spend two weeks in Peru before going to our next location. But we certainly didn’t spend two weeks in Texas, so it’ll be a while before my reservations are ready for the next location.”

“So, where are we going?” Kendell asked.

“A road trip,” Pauline said. “We’re going home.”

“Home?” Kendell asked.

“Well, my home,” Pauline said with a smile. “We’re going to Georgia!”

Kendell laughed. It seemed like she was going to be stuck in the South for a while. She propped her feet up onto the dashboard and sent Jack a text message while Pauline pulled out of the airport’s parking lot. She turned on the radio and they sang along to the country music that filled the car. It was going to be a long ride to Georgia, but Kendell was looking forward to seeing Pauline’s home.

She smiled at her little carry-on bag. A London, England sticker; a Nairobi, Kenya sticker; a Honolulu, Hawaii sticker; and now a Dallas, Texas, sticker decorated the bag. She was happy. She had spent so much of her young life working and just wasting away the good years. She was glad to finally be out having adventures. She was thankful for Pauline. Pauline was the woman who had made this adventure possible for her. And, now, she was going to get to see where this crazy woman she had come to love as a close friend came from. She was looking forward to putting that sticker on her bag most of all.

* * *

Murder in Mississippi

Flight Risk Cozy Mystery, Book 5

1

Kendell’s eyes shot open, feeling herself jerked around in her seat.

“Watch the road!” Pauline, her elderly traveling companion, shouted out the driver’s side window, her fist raised. “Seriously! Where did you learn how to drive!”

“Beat it, you old broad!” someone shouted back, and Pauline huffed.

“Old broad! Some people are just so rude!” she said, gripping the steering wheel tight. Kendell could see a red pickup truck go zipping by them, the young men inside waving their fists around angrily, seemingly at how slow Pauline was driving. They all seemed a bit surprised at how snippy the old woman had gotten with them for swerving around on the road.

Kendell sat upright. “Ugh… How long was I out?” she asked, and as she did, Pauline’s little dog jumped into her lap and barked and whined. Kendell pointed a finger in the dog’s face. “If you have to pee, don’t you dare do it on me, Dot.”

Pauline laughed and shook her head. “I just walked her. While you were sleeping, I filled up on gas. No worries. I would have woken you to let you stretch your legs, but you looked so peaceful. I didn’t want to wake you! Plus, I know you had just driven for several hours, so you needed the rest.”

“Well, thank you for the consideration,” Kendell said, yawning. “I don’t know how much longer I can keep this up. I’m used to traveling on a plane, but this is starting to get to me, if I’m being honest.”

“Yes, it’s certainly not ideal, but we need to get to Georgia as quickly as possible,” Pauline said, and she said it with such severity that it caused Kendell to straighten up.

“Pauline, is something going on?” Kendell asked, feeling quite concerned.

The two women had been traveling together for several weeks now after meeting one another on a flight from New York City, where Kendell lived, to London. Kendell had been working as a flight attendant, and as a retired flight attendant who had let the work get in the way of her sense of adventure, Pauline had sympathized and invited Kendell along on her retirement vacation. They had been all over the place. London, England, had been the first stop on their incredible journey. They had also stopped for a safari adventure in Nairobi, Kenya, along with Kendell’s friend Lil. In Hawaii, they met up with her friend Brandon, and they enjoyed a helicopter ride over the islands. Then, what was supposed to be a trip to South America—Kendell’s friend Jesse tagging along—wound up being an adventure in Dallas, Texas, after their flight had gotten cancelled. Now, the two of them were on a road trip through the South, the destination being Georgia—Pauline’s home.

“Nothing’s going on!” Pauline said quickly. By the way Dot tilted her head, Kendell was certain even the dog knew that the woman was lying through her teeth.

She decided not to press. “So, are you ending the adventure, then?” Kendell asked. “Is that why we’re rushing off to Georgia? I guess I could get a flight home to New York from there…”

“Ending the adventure! Oh, of course not! Why on Earth would I do something like that? No, no, no, no…nothing like that, my dear. Nothing like that!” Pauline exclaimed as though the very thought had her shaken. “Our flight to South America was cancelled, and so was that trip, but that was certainly not the last leg of our trip that I have planned out. To reach our next destination in time, we need to catch a plane that will be leaving Atlanta.”

“Gotcha,” Kendell said, but she had this sinking feeling that something else was going on that Pauline just didn’t want to talk about. A part of her felt like she was overreacting and reading too much into Pauline’s fidgetiness. Atlanta was quite an international airfield, so you could get a flight just about anywhere from there. Pauline had probably booked them a direct flight to wherever it was they were going. She might even have just been missing her family and wanted to have time to see them before catching their next flight for all Kendell knew, even if she was a little annoyed with her grandchildren at the time. They had evidently not wanted Pauline to take her little adventure around the world, because they didn’t want her to spend their inheritance. The thought was ludicrous, and Kendell could understand why the topic of her family or Georgia would be sensitive for her.

Kendell decided to change the subject since the old woman was acting so uncomfortable. “So, during my last turn driving, when you were sleeping, I got a call from Jack.”

Pauline stuck out her tongue to express her annoyance with the mere mention of the man’s name. “What did your rude little New Yorker squeeze do now?” Pauline asked. “Do we need to take a detour to the Big Apple so that this old lady can whip up on him and give him an attitude adjustment?”

Kendell laughed. It was kind of remarkable how she barely knew this woman, and already she acted incredibly protective of her. “Well, surprisingly, he was very sweet,” Kendell said. “It’s weird. When I first decided to take some time to myself, he was supportive for about two days. Then, when I decided to extend it and use up my vacation time, he freaked out. Completely lost his mind. Started getting weird and controlling. Nothing like the Jack I was used to. It has just been so weird, you know? It just wasn’t like him.”

“Yes, dear, I was there—you told me all about it—but has our little Yankee brat seen the error of his ways or is he just playing nice now?” Pauline asked.

“He was really apologetic when I spoke to him in Texas, and this time, he was very pleasant with me again,” Kendell said. “He was asking me if I was having fun. He laughed with me when I told him what all went down in Texas and how Jesse decided to stay to hang out with a rancher she had just met. He told me about what he’s been up to. Told me how Lil punched him in the arm for giving me a hard time.”

“Sounds right,” Pauline said with a laugh. “I liked that Lil girl. She was feisty.”

“Jack warned me to stay out of trouble, though,” she said. “Sounds like both Lil and Brandon told him about some of our misadventures.”

Pauline laughed. “Ooh, I bet he just loved that.”

“Not really,” Kendell said. “He worries.”

“But, he’s acting sweet and supportive now?” Pauline asked.

“Yeah…but…it’s weird. I don’t know where the change in attitude came from all of the sudden,” Kendell said. “It’s just not quite right, I guess? I wonder… I hope he didn’t do anything to get himself into trouble.”

“I don’t think so,” Pauline said. “He probably just had your friends giving him a hard time about the way he’s been talking to you, and he realized what a little twerp he was being.”

Kendell smiled. “Well, good,” she said. “I was getting tired of it.” Kendell yawned again, and this time, Pauline caught her yawn. Kendell shook her head. “You want to switch and let me drive again?”

“Honestly…my back is starting to get to me,” Pauline said. “Not sure if switching places is going to do much. How long have we been in the car?”

Kendell checked her phone and cringed. “Ugh, almost seven hours! And we still have several more to go. Where are we?”

“Um…” Pauline’s face turned a little red. “Okay, so, while you were asleep, I got a little lost. But, we’re still in Mississippi.”

“How lost?” Kendell asked. It was obviously not too bad, since they were still crossing Mississippi.

“Somehow, I got onto the wrong interstate and wound up driving north for a while instead of east,” Pauline said, sighing. “I figured it out eventually, but I’m a little turned around.”

Kendell shook her head. “Get off the interstate, and we’ll see if we can figure out where we are.”

Pauline nodded and took the first exit. The next thing they knew, they were driving right up against the Mississippi River. They both smiled excitedly to see a river ferryboat, and people were standing on the edge waving at everyone driving by. “I’ve always wanted to take a ferryboat down the Mississippi River,” Pauline said.

“Well…” Kendell said. “We could check into a motel. Honestly, driving five or six more hours does not sound that great. I don’t want to cause us to miss our flight, but maybe a day’s rest in Mississippi wouldn’t be so bad? Totally up to you, though.”

“That actually sounds just lovely!” Pauline exclaimed. “And we can take a ferry ride tomorrow before we get back on the road!”

“Exactly,” Kendell said, laughing at Pauline’s childlike excitement.

They drove around for a bit, eventually discovering they were in the town of Clarksdale. “Clarksdale!” Pauline exclaimed happily. “I’ve always wanted to come here,” she said. “This place birthed a number of wonderful blues musicians.”

“You into the blues, Pauline?” Kendell asked.

“I’m into anything my hips can swing to,” she said. “And blues is smooth and just makes you feel something. I love it.”

They passed by the Delta Blues Museum, and Kendell pointed it out. Pauline grinned. Kendell could tell the woman was already forming an itinerary for their one day in Mississippi. “Looks like they’re setting something up,” Kendell said as they passed by the museum. She noticed a few event vans and catering company vehicles stationed out front. “I wonder what that’s about.”

They drove around a bit longer until they spotted a cute little family-owned motel. “That should do for one night,” Pauline said as they located a parking space. “Plus, it’s very close to the river and to the museum.”

“Perfect,” Kendell agreed. She gazed out the window, seeing a number of people walking around. Everyone in town seemed jumpy, but in a good way. People were talking and laughing with each other as they walked up and down the street. There seemed to be something that everyone was excited about, and Kendell wondered if it had anything to do with what she had seen at the museum when they had driven by it.

“This town sure is lively,” Pauline said. “I wonder what everyone is so up and about for?”

“I think it must have something to do with what we saw at the museum,” Kendell said. “They’re probably doing some sort of event.”

Pauline smiled. “Maybe we came to Clarksdale at the right time, then.”

“Maybe,” Kendell said.

The two of them got out of the car, and Dot jumped out after Kendell. The little thing started yapping, demanding to be carried. Kendell laughed and picked up the little white ball of fluff, holding her close. She had gotten close to Pauline’s little companion on their journey. It snuggled up close to her. “Good girl,” Kendell said, scratching the little dog behind the ears.

Kendell and Pauline headed toward the welcome room of the motel, eager to get checked in and enjoy some time out of the car before they had to complete their journey the following evening. It was going to be another long car ride, so they were looking forward to stretching their legs and getting themselves showered and well fed. Plus, Kendell was very much looking forward to taking a ferry ride down the Mississippi River. It was already shaping up to be another fun adventure with her new friend, and Kendell simply could not wait for the excitement to begin.

2

Kendell always found it a bit amusing how she had to double-time to keep up with Pauline. The woman had to be approaching her eighties by now, but she had such a pep in her step that she seemed to just glide across the parking lot, taking small but bouncy steps as she moved. The two women, and Dot who had been released from her carrier, entered the welcome area of the small, well-kept hotel. A middle-aged black gentleman was standing behind the counter, and he was all smiles when the two women entered.

He was dressed in a tan suit with enormous, broad shoulders with a dark brown hat to match. He looked like something pulled straight out of a vintage advertisement from the late 30s or 40s. Kendell grinned as the man tipped his hat. “Welcome, ladies!” he called. “What can I do you for?”

Pauline grinned. “I have to say, you look quite sharp, sir.”

The man laughed. “Yes, well, got an event at the museum tonight I’m planning to attend with my wife, and I’m dressing the part all day, I decided. My name’s Bobby, the owner of this fine establishment.”

Kendell giggled again. “What sort of event is taking place? The whole town seems pretty giddy, and I noticed some catering vans parked outside of the Delta Blues Museum on our way into town.”

Bobby smiled at her, returning his hat to his head. “The museum is hosting a music night tonight. Live blues and jazz music. And, it’s free. Donation based sort of thing. They’re going to have all sorts of musicians there, and they’ll be doing free tours of the museum. Dinner, dancing. A big shindig, and it sounds like just about everyone in Clarksdale is planning on going out tonight. They’ve really played this event up, so it sounds like it’s going to be really hopping. They said you can dress to impress in modern style or do a throwback to the classical blues and jazz era, and I couldn’t help but to pull out my grandfather’s old suit. He was a jazz player, so I’m paying homage to my roots tonight.”

“Well, you look spiffy,” Pauline said, and Bobby laughed.

“You ladies need a room?” he asked.

“Yes, please,” Pauline said, then turned to Kendell. “A party at a museum sounds pretty fun. What do you think, Kendell?”

“I don’t know. It does sound like a lot of fun. I’m pretty tired…but it does sound like it’s going to be quite an event. It would be a shame to miss it,” Kendell said.

“I think we should definitely go!” Pauline decided for them, and Kendell smirked. The woman had more energy than half the people Kendell knew. “We should probably go see if we can’t find something to wear. I’m not sure if anything we have in our suitcases is going to be fitting.”

Bobby was just pulling some keys out from behind the desk when he paused. “You know, my wife was just about to go out and do a little shopping herself at a local thrift store. See if she couldn’t find anything to fit the party theme. Would you ladies like me to give her a call to see if she’s left yet? I’m sure Jen wouldn’t mind showing you around.”

“Oh, that’s just too kind of you!” Pauline exclaimed. “Are you sure your wife wouldn’t mind?”

“Oh, she’s quite the tour guide,” Bobby said, snatching up the phone on the desk. “Let me give her a ring.” He dialed his wife’s number. “Hey, hon!” he called excitedly into the phone. “I got a couple of out-of-towners here about to check in, and they’re looking into doing some shopping for tonight’s party. Thought I’d see if you wanted to… Oh, great! I’ll let ‘em know. See you soon. Love you.” He hung up the phone and smiled at the two of them. “She’s on her way here right now. You two get yourselves settled in, and I’ll give your room a call when she gets here, and you three ladies can go paint the town red.”

“Thank you so much for the hospitality,” Kendell said, taking the room key.

The two headed back out to the car, and Kendell gathered up the heavy luggage while Pauline grabbed their little carry-on bags. Dot followed behind them; she was getting better about staying close even without a leash, though Kendell was a bit nervous in the parking lot. Pauline trusted the dog way more than she did. They entered into their room, and frankly, Kendell was quite impressed by the little motel. It was clean, well kept, and the enormous window let in plenty of natural light, giving off a homey feeling.

There were two twin beds, all the room the two women would need for their brief stay in Mississippi. They each sat down, claiming a bed and taking a moment to rest. Pauline got Dot situated in a corner, planning on leaving her in the motel while they went out shopping. They were able to get a little rest in by the time the phone rang. It was Bobby, of course, calling to let them know that his wife had arrived and was ready to be their escort for the day.

“Such nice people,” Pauline said when she hung up the phone. “I love family-owned establishments. I’ve been staying at all the luxury hotels on this vacation to spoil myself a bit, but sometimes, it’s nice to just meet someone with a big heart running a small business.”

“I agree,” Kendell said. “This has been a great experience already. I can’t believe his wife was okay with taking us shopping.”

They headed back to the welcome area after Pauline gave Dot a few kisses. A tall, slender woman met them out front. “You must be Jen,” Kendell said, extending her hand.

“That I am,” she said, smiling and shaking Kendell’s hand.

“I’m Kendell, and this is Pauline,” Kendell said. “You and your husband are too kind for offering to give us a little tour around town.”

“Oh, we do that all the time,” Jen said. “We like getting to know the out-of-towners who stay at the motel. I love hearing their stories. Well, let’s run along! Got to make sure we find some outfits for tonight!”

They loaded up into Jen’s car, a vintage Beetle, and headed into town. “Now, there are plenty of places to shop around here that are just fabulous, but for tonight, we’re looking for something a little old school. So, I’m hitting up the thrift stores,” Jen said. “You ladies are welcome to check out some of the boutiques if you’d rather get all dolled up, but—”

“Oh, no,” Pauline said. “We want to play the part too.”

“Absolutely,” Kendell said, and Jen laughed excitedly.

They hit up about three thrift shops before all of them had found outfits for the party. Pauline had found herself a 30s afternoon dress that went down to her ankles, had puffy sleeves, and a belted waist. She had loved it because it reminded her of a dress her own mother had once worn. Pauline even managed to find a matching hat and white gloves to complete the attire. Jen found herself a pink, floral housedress that when coupled with nice shoes, hat, gloves, and jewelry, she decided would make the look complete. Kendell went for a baby blue evening gown with arm-length white gloves that she could not wait to get all dolled up in.

“Well, that was just too fun,” Pauline said as the three of them were leaving the last thrift shop. “Tonight is going to be very fun.”

“Well, I appreciate you ladies letting me tag along. I don’t like shopping by myself,” Jen said. “But now I’m starving. Who’s up for a late lunch?”

“Us!” Kendell answered for herself and Pauline. They hadn’t eaten since they’d left Texas early that morning.

“Excellent, I know just the place,” Jen said. She took them across town to a lovely little café and bakery that sat right on the river.

It was a beautiful sight, and of course, the three of them got seats on their patio so that they could enjoy the view. A large ferryboat went by as soon as they sat down, and Pauline got positively giddy. “Ooh, I cannot wait to ride on a ferryboat down the Mississippi!” she exclaimed. “It is going to be so lovely!”

“A river ride is nice,” Jen said. “I haven’t been on one in a while.”

“Well, I just cannot wait to do it,” Pauline said, eyeing the boat as it passed by.

The server returned with their drink orders, and they all ordered some rather hefty meals. It seemed like Pauline and Kendell were not the only ones who hadn’t eaten all day. “Something about being in the car for seven hours, or however long we were in there for, really makes you hungry. I can’t believe we didn’t go eat the moment we got settled into the motel,” Kendell moaned, waiting anxiously for her meal to arrive. She had ordered a fried green tomato BLT. Kendell had never had fried green tomatoes before, but both Jen and Pauline had insisted that the New Yorker give the classical Southern dish a try.

She was not disappointed. Kendell scarfed down her BLT and even contemplated ordering a to-go plate of fried green tomatoes for the road, but she resisted, as Jen reminded her that there would be finger foods at the party. After finishing their meals, the three women headed back to the motel. Jen bid them farewell at the welcome building, thanking them for the fun day before heading on her own way to go get ready.

Kendell and Pauline headed to their motel room, and after Kendell took Dot out to walk and use the bathroom, they started to get ready for the party. Kendell smiled at herself in the mirror when she adorned the elegant, vintage dress. Pauline couldn’t resist; she pulled out her curler and did Kendell’s hair in appropriate 30s fashion. Kendell smiled, really liking the look on herself.

Pauline looked quite natural in her attire, and she kept saying how much she looked like her mother in that green dress. They did their makeup and dug through their bags from the most appropriate shoes they could find for the outfits. Kendell did have a pair of heels, which was about the fanciest thing she had, and she was wearing a ballgown, so she threw those on along with the white gloves to complete the look. “I think we are dressed to impress,” Kendell said to Pauline as the women admired themselves in the mirror, trying not to laugh.

“Oh, I am so excited!” Pauline exclaimed.

“Do you want to take a tour of the museum while we’re there?” Kendell asked. “Mister Bobby did say it was free.”

“Absolutely,” Pauline said. “Us history buffs have got to enjoy everything we can while we’re here.”

Kendell found it a little strange. Pauline had been in such a hurry to get to Georgia, but now she seemed much more willing to experience Mississippi now that they were there. If the reason Pauline wanted to get to Georgia so quickly was to catch a flight, why the sudden change in urgency? Kendell was fairly convinced something else was going on, but she didn’t want to pry. Instead, they headed out to their rental car, loading up in their evening attire, and headed to the Delta Blues Museum. Kendell was looking forward to an evening of good music, food, and dancing. Pauline, she had learned by now, was a wonderful person to have along with you for a good time. The party was sure to be a night to remember.

3

Kendell and Pauline enjoyed a tour of the museum when they first arrived. They had decided to go a little early rather than arriving fashionably late so they could take one of the earlier tours that were being offered and then spend the rest of their evening at the party. The museum itself was fascinating. Pauline in particular was fascinated by the Muddy Waters Cabin on display in the gallery.

“Clarksdale is known as the land where the blues began,” their tour guide said. “The Delta Blues Museum is the oldest music museum in the entire state of Mississippi.” The guide continued walking, but Pauline and Kendell wound up standing by the Muddy Waters Cabin exhibit, being left in the dust by the less-interested tourists.

“It’s pretty, isn’t it?” a friendly voice said, and Pauline jumped.

A janitor had been standing nearby. He had a strong Lebanese accent, and he stood there with his mop and bucket and a big grin on his face. “It is,” Pauline said. “Reminds me of the little cabin my daddy grew up in.”

“You a fan of Muddy Waters?” the man asked. “The name’s Fred, by the way.”

“I’m Kendell,” Kendell said, smiling at the man. “And this is my friend Pauline. I don’t know a whole lot of blues music, if I’m being honest. Pauline, on the other hand, she’s a fan.”

Fred grinned. “Are you now?”

“Absolutely,” Pauline said.

“Well, this bit of cabin was taken right off Stovall Farms where Waters lived when he was doing sharecropping and working as a tractor driver,” Fred said. “He was quite a musician.”

Soon, they started hearing music being blasted from across the museum. Kendell smiled. “Sounds like the party is starting,” she said.

“Don’t let me keep you, ladies,” he said and tipped his hat.

Pauline hung back, deciding she wanted to talk to Fred some more about Muddy Waters. Kendell, however, decided to go check out the party. It was certainly a hopping place. There were some blues musicians up on stage, and people were swaying and nodding their heads to the music. Almost everyone was decked out in 30s or 40s attire, celebrating the time in Clarksdale when the blues had truly thrived. She spotted the dessert table, and after reminding herself that she was supposed to be on vacation, she headed in that direction.

Kendell picked up a little dessert plate and fixed herself some cookies. While she was doing so, she spied two gentlemen at the end of the table speaking with one another. A tall, redheaded man was acting anxious; he kept looking around the room, and it didn’t take Kendell long to deduce he was the museum coordinator based off his badge and the way he was constantly observing the happenings of the party. The other man was short and round with an enormous, bushy beard. He held himself like he thought he was very important.

“Well, Thomas, I have to say this is one of the better events the museum has done in a while,” the bearded man said.

“Thank you, Gerald,” Thomas, the redheaded museum coordinator, said. “I appreciate you letting Hiccup come out and play. I know he’s still signed with your agency.”

“Hiccup is getting pretty old,” Gerald said. “He appreciates any opportunity to play for the locals. He got his break here.”

Suddenly, Thomas glanced in Kendell’s direction. “Enjoying the museum?” he asked.

“Sorry, I wasn’t trying to eavesdrop,” Kendell said.

“It’s quite all right,” Thomas said. “Are you from around here?”

“New York, actually,” Kendell said. “You’re the museum coordinator?”

“I am,” Thomas said. “Very observant. This is Gerald, one of our local music managers.”

“Looking for new talent or supporting current talent?” Kendell asked, reaching out a hand to shake with both of the gentleman.

“A little of both,” Gerald said. “Hiccup, the gentleman up on stage now, he’s an old client. Wanted to come play out in Clarksdale tonight. It’s his hometown and where he got discovered.”

Kendell glanced up at the stage set up front of the room, and she saw an elderly black man with serious multitasking abilities—he was playing both guitar and harmonica, and occasionally he pulled away from the harmonica hanging about his neck to sing a line into the microphone. “He sounds great,” Kendell said.

“Oh, he was quite a star in his glory days,” Gerald said. “Good man. Couldn’t have asked for a better client to represent. But, I am looking for some fresh meat tonight. Tonight is sort of a local amateur night.”

“But Hiccup certainly is the cause of this big crowd,” Thomas said. “People were ecstatic when they found out they could come and listen to the local legend play for free. I’m hoping this event will get us some good attention and hopefully some donations.”

“I hope so,” Kendell said. “It’s a beautiful museum.”

Hiccup had just finished up his song as he spoke into the microphone. “I’ll be back later tonight to close us out, folks,” Hiccup said. “But, in the meantime, please show some appreciation for some of our local newcomers who are going to be playing for us tonight.” The crowd cheered.

Gerald and Thomas excused themselves to go speak to Hiccup, so Kendell decided to look for Pauline. And, of course, she found the woman out on the dance floor. “Did you hear that gentleman singing a moment ago?” Pauline asked, and Kendell was pretty sure Pauline was a little flustered. The old woman had rosy red cheeks and the biggest grin Kendell had ever seen.

“Oh my, Pauline,” Kendell said. “Do you have a thing for musicians?”

“Maybe a little,” she said. “My late husband was wonderful with a guitar.”

“The performer who was just up here goes by Hiccup,” Kendell said. “Apparently a big deal around here. Local legend.”

“I’m going to have to speak to him,” Pauline said, grinning. “Hiccup,” she said. “I’m going to have to remember that name and look up his music.”

“He is pretty great, ain’t he?” a voice from behind said, and Kendell and Pauline turned.

There was a young man with shimmering eyes standing behind them; he had a guitar slung at his side. There were two girls standing with him wearing matching black t-shirts that read Rodney Azul. “He was very impressive,” Pauline said. “Quite the musician. I’m guessing by the guitar you’re going to be playing for us tonight?”

“Yeah,” the young man said somewhat nervously.

“You’re going to do great, Rodney,” the blonde girl said, hooking her arm in his.

“Yeah,” the brunette agreed.

“I’m guessing you’re Rodney Azul,” Kendell said, motioning toward the girls’ shirts.

“Yeah,” he said, laughing. He nodded to the blonde. “This is my girlfriend Stacey and her friend Lilith. They’re sort of my groupies tonight.”

“With all the music managers here tonight, we’re hoping he’s going to get noticed,” Stacey said.

“He totally will,” Lilith said. “Blues is not out of fashion. People are eating it up, and you’re bound to get a label.”

“So, do you model yourself after Mister Hiccup?” Pauline asked.

“He’s been a role model of mine since I was a kid,” Rodney said. “I first heard him play here in Clarksdale when I was just a kid, and I totally fell for the blues. It’s not exactly as big of a genre as it used to be, so it’s hard to break into it now. But, I think it’s going to make a comeback.”

“I agree,” Pauline said. “I’m looking forward to hearing you play.”

“Thanks,” Rodney said.

“Good luck,” Kendell said, and soon they too departed. “I love how friendly everyone is here. Not really used to having so many conversations with strangers.”

“That’s the South for you, honey,” Pauline said.

“Oh, up north, it’s not so bad,” Kendell said. “We’re friendly when we want to be.”

“Except you people never want to be,” Pauline teased, and Kendell laughed.

They bumped into Jen and Bobby, and the four hung out for a while eating finger foods and talking about their lives. Bobby and Jen were particularly interested in Pauline and Kendell’s travels. Pauline was a bragger; she told them all about the murder they had solved in London, where Kendell was chased around by the killers with axes in the historical Globe Theater. She also talked about evading the authorities in Nairobi and getting their friend to the US Embassy. Frankly, by the time they got through the tale of Hawaii and were starting to talk to them about Texas, Kendell was pretty sure Jen thought that Pauline was crazy and making half of it up. But, truthfully, the two women had had some incredible adventures since meeting one another, and Kendell was thankful for every one of them.

Then, they bumped into Hiccup. The old man was trying to get to the dessert table when he bumped right into them. “Sorry, ladies,” he said, tipping his hat. “My sight ain’t what it used to be.”

Pauline grinned. “No problem at all. I just have to say I adored your music. Especially that harmonica playing of yours.”

“Why, thank you kindly,” he said with a laugh.

“I’ve got to ask… Why Hiccup?” Kendell questioned.

“What’s wrong with my name?” he asked.

Kendell turned red. “Oh, is that your… That’s your actual name?”

He laughed. “Nah, I’m just kidding with you,” he said, causing them all to laugh. “My first stage performance was when I was fourteen. I got so dang nervous that I got a nasty case of the hiccups. Completely embarrassing. My future wife, God rest her soul, was in that audience. She came up to me afterwards, and I was about ready to call it quits after that, and gave me a good pep talk. Told me to run with the embarrassing incident instead hiding from it. So, I started going by Hiccup because, believe me, everyone in this town over sixty still won’t let me live that one down. But, like my girl told me, I embraced instead of hiding.”

“That’s a fun story,” Kendell said. “And, you turned out to be pretty successful from what we hear.”

“Thank you,” he said. “Not bad for someone who got laughed off stage his first time playing, eh?”

“You’re going to play some more tonight?” Pauline asked.

“That I am,” he said. “But not until much later. Actually,” he said and smiled at Pauline, “I wouldn’t mind dancing. How about yourself?”

Pauline nodded. “I would love to.”

Kendell laughed and watched Pauline as she followed Hiccup out on the dancefloor. “Well, dang, look at her go,” Kendell said, and Jen and Bobby laughed.

“Your girl has game,” Bobby teased.

“That she does,” Kendell said, shaking her head. Pauline certainly knew how to have a good time. Kendell wished that she was as free-spirted as Pauline. Then again, she felt like a bit of Pauline had rubbed off on her lately. She was becoming more adventurous. Frankly, before having met Pauline, Kendell hadn’t done much with her life other than work. She had been all over the world as a flight attendant, but she’d never left the airports. She just went from one flight to the next, working. It was not a way to live.

As she stood there watching Pauline dance with a complete stranger, she tried to imagine herself at that age. She shook her head. I don’t want to wait until my retirement to really live, Kendell decided. Instead, she wanted to embrace the spirit Pauline had now and live life to its fullest. She thought about Jack, her boyfriend back home. Would he want to live that way too? She hoped so, because she wasn’t going to let anyone hold her back.

4

Kendell stood in the back of the room, swaying her head to the smooth sound of Rodney’s music. He was very good, and so far, he had done a lot of covers. Stacey and Lilith were both standing up near the stage with googly eyes as he serenaded the crowd. He was young, but when he played his music, he seemed to have an old soul. Pauline and Hiccup were in the center of the dancefloor, swaying to the music together. Kendell thought this was the first man Pauline had probably danced with since her husband had passed away, and she was glad to see the woman so chipper. She had been acting strangely ever since they had left Texas, so it was a relief to see Pauline acting more like herself. Carefree. A little wild. Youthful for someone with fourteen grandchildren.

She pulled out her phone and decided to record Pauline and Hiccup. They were just so adorable. She started to feel herself rooting on this sudden friendship. And the fact they were wearing clothing from the 30s and 40s made it all the more surreal. They were acting like a couple of teenagers. Rodney finished up a song, and the growing audience clapped for him, as he had done an excellent job covering a blues classic. He leaned into the microphone, all smiles. “Thanks, folks,” he said. “Up next I’ve got an original piece for you all. I hope you enjoy.”

“I’m sure I will,” Kendell said to herself. She had been enjoying his music so far, so she was eager to hear an original.

“She was a dancer…” Rodney began, his voice holding onto a note in a slight southern drawl. “She was an angel…” he cooed. “She was just what I never knew I would need…ooh… A stranger in the night. A sun-kissed beauty that hadn’t never noticed me…”

Kendell felt herself swaying. The music had certainly taken over. She had never been a huge fan of blues, but this evening had given her a new perspective on the genre. His voice seemed to captivate everyone, and the lyrics were deep and relatable. She was so captivated that she didn’t even notice Pauline standing next to her. Kendell jumped. “Oh, Pauline, where did you come from all of the sudden?”

Pauline crossed her arms; she seemed incredibly annoyed. “Hiccup had to leave all of the sudden. He just took off on me. So rude.”

“Aww, I’m sorry Pauline,” Kendell said. “You two looked like you were having a lot of fun.”

“Honey, this gal hadn’t ever needed a man to have fun,” she said, laughing. Kendell aspired to have that level of confidence. Pauline waved her hand, writing off Hiccup’s sudden disappearance as trivial. “He probably just left so he could go get ready for his second set.”

“Probably,” Kendell said. “Musicians are a little flaky.”

“I wish he had just said that instead of just dipping out on me, though. Some men, honestly, they don’t have any sense.” She shook her head. “You still up for the party? I’m enjoying myself, but I don’t want to keep you here if you’re ready to leave.”

“I’m having fun,” Kendell assured her. “You and I can dance together.”

“Wonderful!” Pauline exclaimed, pulling Kendell out onto the dancefloor.

The two women danced and swayed, talking and laughing while listening to the soothing sound that was Rodney Azul. “Ooh, that boy has some serious talent,” Pauline sang to Kendell. “I love it! And, he’s so handsome. No wonder he’s got himself a little posse of girls following him around.”

“I thought the Rodney Azul t-shirts were cute,” Kendell said, and Pauline agreed. Kendell listened to Pauline as she talked about the type of music she liked to listen to as a girl as the evening’s activities were throwing Pauline down memory lane. Overall, the two friends were having fun, joking and reminiscing about the good old days of Pauline’s youth.

“All right, folks,” Rodney said into the microphone. “I’m going to take a fiver, but I’ll be back soon to finish up my set.” Everyone clapped, and some pre-recorded music came on at a low volume while Thomas, the museum coordinator, stood up and spoke about some of what the museum offered and about future events and how people could donate to the museum.

“I haven’t tried any of the food they’ve been bringing out. I think I’m starting to get hungry,” Pauline said.

“I’ve been snacking at their dessert table all night,” Kendell said with a chuckle. “You should definitely try some of those cookies. They’re really good. They taste homemade.”

“You don’t have to try to convince me to try something sweet, hon,” Pauline said, heading straight for the dessert table. “The way I see it, we had such a late lunch, that it qualifies as dinner. So, we can have dessert now.”

“I might just fix myself another plate of treats, then,” Kendell said, glad that Pauline was validating her food choices for the night.

The two of them loaded down their little dessert plates, then went and found seats. Pauline leaned back in her chair, relaxing her back. “Sure has been a while since I’ve danced like that,” she said. “That was very lovely. My husband and I used to go dancing back in the day, but it’s been years since I’ve danced.”

“I bet it was nice,” Kendell said.

“Do you and your boyfriend ever go dancing?” Pauline asked.

“We’re not really clubbing type people,” Kendell said.

“Clubbing!” Pauline exclaimed. “Honey, I mean dancing. Real dancing. Dancing where you hold your man close to you and just sway, occasionally having him twirl you. Getting dressed up and having him tell you that you’re the most beautiful woman in the room. That sort of dancing is what I’m talking about, dear. Does your man ever take you dancing?”

“I guess not,” Kendell said. “The way you make it sound, it seems like we’re really missing out.”

“You should give it a try,” Pauline said. “A man who refuses to take his woman dancing ain’t worth the time of day. Get him to take you dancing.”

“I will,” Kendell said confidently, trying to imagine Jack dressed up in a suit. It made her blush a bit; it was a sight she wouldn’t mind seeing up close. “Definitely.”

“I am just so excited about taking a ferryboat ride tomorrow,” Pauline said. “A tour of the Mississippi River by boat! I am so excited! Aren’t you excited?”

“Of course,” Kendell said. “Have you already booked us a ride?”

“Not yet,” Pauline said. “We probably shouldn’t stay out too late. I’m hoping to see some of the town tomorrow and still try to fit in our ferry ride before we start heading back to Georgia.”

“That’s a lot to fit into one day,” Kendell said. “Maybe we should stay a second night.”

“Oh, I’d rather not,” Pauline said. “We really need to get back to Georgia.”

“Is something going on?” Kendell asked.

“No, not at all. Why?” Pauline asked somewhat defensively.

Again, Kendell decided not to press. “No reason. Just making sure you’re okay.”

“I’m fine,” Pauline insisted. She took a deep breath. “It would be nice to enjoy Mississippi tomorrow without feeling like we have to rush.”

“That’s entirely up to you,” Kendell said. “I’m following you.”

Pauline nodded. “I’ll think about it.”

“Can I take your plates, ladies?” a familiar voice asked. Kendell glanced up to see Fred, the friendly janitor from earlier, smiling at them.

“Why, of course, thank you,” Pauline said as the man picked them up.

“You ladies enjoying yourselves?” he asked.

Pauline grinned. “Absolutely! This is just wonderful. The music is fantastic. That young boy Rodney Azul brought me back to the good old days.”

“You’re telling me,” Fred said. “I remember listening to Hiccup around these parts. Rodney did a few of his covers tonight. It really takes me back. I like following the local musicians. Out of everybody I’ve seen in recent years, Rodney is going to be the one that brings blues back, I’m telling you!”

Kendell nodded. “It was really good. I enjoyed it. I’d listen to his music.”

“I agree,” Pauline said.

“Well, you ladies continue to enjoy yourselves,” Fred said before depositing the plates in a nearby trash receptor.

“Why don’t you join us?” Pauline asked. “Looks like you’ve been working all night.”

Fred smiled. “I could use a break,” he said, sitting down.

“Ooh, it looks like that Rodney boy is getting ready to go back up on stage,” Pauline said, standing up. “I think I might try to scoot my way over there and give him a compliment on his performance before he goes up there.” Pauline scurried off, leaving Kendell sitting along with Fred.

The crowd in the room started going crazy again, and Kendell looked up to see that Rodney was going back on stage. “The locals really like him,” Kendell said. “I mean, I did too, but there’s clearly a lot of love for that kid.”

“The ladies certainly love him,” Fred said. “He sounds like classic blues. And his last name is Azul. Sounds like he was born to play the blues, right?”

Kendell laughed, not having noticed the irony there. “I wonder if that’s his actual name or just a stage name?” she asked.

“I’m pretty sure it was his mother’s maiden name. Either way, he’s going places,” Fred said. “I could dance all night to that kids’ music. He’s been playing around these parts for a while now.”

Rodney started playing, and the room seemed to all sway together. People were shouting for an encore of his original he had played earlier. “I appreciate it, folks,” he said and then began playing the original song again. “She was a dancer,” he sang. “She was an angel… She was just what I never knew I would need… ooh… A stranger in the night. A sun-kissed beauty that hadn’t never noticed me…”

Suddenly, the power went out. A few people screamed in surprise. It was pitch black in the room, and Kendell felt a knot starting to twist in her stomach. Something didn’t feel right. There was a loud crash. A few more people shouted, and Kendell stood up, trying to let her eyes adjust to the dark to figure out what was happening. A part of her was worried that Pauline had fallen—a possible cause of the noise. She had a tendency to get herself into trouble.

“Hold on, folks!” she heard Thomas’s voice calling out over the crowd. “Everybody stay put, and we’ll get the power back on! Nobody move. Let’s not panic! Give us just a moment!”

Kendell remained standing by the table where Fred was still seated. She could hear people speaking nervously. They had all heard that crash, but no one could see what had happened. Then, suddenly, the lights came up. Kendell shielded her eyes and blinked several times.

Looking up, she could see what the noise had been. Several people were screaming and jumping up onto the stage. Rodney was lying flat on his back. The truss system and lights had fallen right on top of him and crushed his head. Kendell looked away and sat back down by Fred, who had yet to see what had taken place. “What happened?” Fred asked as people scream. Someone was already on the phone with the police.

“It’s Rodney,” Kendell said, shaking her head. “The stage lights fell on him. The truss system hit him.”

“Is he okay?” Fred asked, and Kendell shook her head.

“Looks like the pole hit him in the head,” Kendell said, keeping her voice low. “Fred, I think Rodney’s dead.”

Fred frowned. He looked devastated. “That poor kid,” he said. “He could have had such a bright future. That kid was going places. That just isn’t right.”

An ambulance arrived shortly, and the paramedics pronounced Rodney dead on scene.

5

Not again, was the first thought that ran through Kendell’s mind. It seemed as though she and Pauline were destined to always find trouble. As soon as she realized Rodney had been hurt, she started looking for Pauline. She was ready to get out of there before the police showed up. And, of course, Kendell found Pauline right by the stage—eyes wide. “Come on,” Kendell said, hooking her arm in Pauline’s. “You have a deadline to get to Georgia, and if we’re going to make it, we don’t need to get pulled into any more sleuthing nonsense.”

“That poor boy,” Pauline said as the two of them started to scurry off.

They pushed through the crowd toward the back of the room. Kendell felt herself having flashbacks to London. Something about being chased by some crazy sisters with an axe made Kendell want to avoid any more detective work. This time, Kendell was determined to avoid it at all costs. However, this proved to be a terrible decision as her attempt to avoid fate sent her into its direction.

Just as she was about to pull Pauline out the back door, the police came in. The responding officer stared at them. “Where are you two getting off to in such a hurry?” the officer asked.

“It’s late,” Kendell said. “We were hoping to get back to our motel.”

“Yeah, I don’t think so,” the officer responded, and Kendell sighed.

Several officers entered the building, dividing people up to start taking statements. They taped off the area by the stage after the coroner pronounced Rodney dead. The crime scene unit backed people up and began instructing witnesses to go speak with officers before anyone was allowed to leave.

“I saw those two trying to run out of here!” someone shouted, pointing a finger in Kendell and Pauline’s direction.

Kendell slumped. This was going to be a long night, she could already tell. An officer came up to them, scowling. “Excuse me, ladies, but there seems to be some general concern about you two,” he began.

“What concern?” Kendell asked.

He nodded toward Pauline first. “Well, some other witnesses are telling me they saw you speaking to Rodney between songs while he was on stage right before the lights went out. And everyone is telling me that you, miss, tried to get out of here pretty quickly after those stage lights fell. Where were you running off to so suddenly?”

Kendell really didn’t have a viable excuse. She shrugged. “Honestly,” she said, only halfway being honest, “this sort of thing just makes me anxious. I wanted to leave. I’m sorry if I upset anyone trying to run out of here like that. But, you see, we’re not from around here. We’re trying to get to Georgia, and we just stopped by here in Mississippi. We’re actually supposed to be on vacation in South America right now, but that hurricane that swooped up the coast and hit Dallas got us stuck in the states. So, we’re trying to make a drive to Georgia to try to catch a flight to our next destination. I just didn’t want to get involved in anything and get us stuck here.”

“Well,” the officer said somewhat smugly. “Guess what you running out has done, honey?” The man seemed to step forward in an intimidating way, and the next thing Kendell knew, he was jolting back and screaming, hands over his eyes.

Pauline had sprayed the man in the face with mace.

And then she and Pauline were being ushered outside. They were asked to voluntarily go down to the police station for questioning, but Kendell certainly felt like it was not truly a choice. She and Pauline drove their little rental car to the Clarksdale Police Department, where they were asked to sit and wait in one of the interrogation rooms.

“Well, this is just perfect,” Kendell groaned once she and Pauline were alone.

“Well, you’re the one who tried to run out of there, dear,” Pauline said.

“I’m sorry, but with our track record, I didn’t want to get dragged into something else,” Kendell said. “You are the one who is in such a hurry to get to Georgia.”

“Not that big of a hurry, dear, that I would feel the need to run out on a crime scene and make us look suspicious. We’re out-of-towners. Everyone else at that party was local. You just made it easy for them to point fingers our way,” Pauline said, but she didn’t sound angry. If anything, she seemed to be finding the whole thing to be quite humorous. She was picking on Kendell.

“It’s really not that funny, Pauline. And I’m pretty sure the real reason we’re here is because you decided to spray an officer in the face with mace! This is hardly my fault,” Kendell said, but she smirked. Pauline was just sitting there all happy as ever, despite their grim situation, and Kendell could not help but let a slight chuckle emerge from her throat.

“He lunged at you, and it made me nervous,” Pauline said.

“They are going to arrest you,” Kendell said.

“Maybe. Now, I suppose we just wait for the police to get in here,” Pauline said.

It wasn’t but a few minutes later before the responding officer who had ushered them there arrived in the room, and he sat across from them. His eyes were still bloodshot from where Pauline had gotten him with the mace. He looked furious; he had been pretty vocally abusive after the incident, so his angry expression was certainly better than the irate version of himself from the museum. “You ladies mind if I record this?” he asked as though he already suspected them. That, or he just wanted them to be guilty to get some revenge on Pauline. Frankly, Kendell was surprised that the man hadn’t thrown Pauline to the ground and arrested her at the museum.

Kendell crossed her arms. “Sure,” she said. “Record whatever you need.”

“Okay, if you would state your names,” he began.

This dragged on for a while. Kendell felt bothered by the officer, whose name she learned was Officer Tripp. Tripp seemed to already think that they were, in one way or another, responsible for what had happened to Rodney. “How do you know someone killed him?” Kendell asked.

“The power had been cut,” Officer Tripp began. “And the truss system had been tampered with. Someone intentionally let those lights fall on Rodney. He was murdered.”

Kendell sighed. “Well, I’m sorry to hear that. I don’t know who would want to hurt him.”

“Neither do we,” Officer Tripp said. “But you better believe that we are going to find out.”

“Do you need anything else from us?” Pauline asked now that they had given their story.

“Just for you two ladies to remain in town until we are able to clear you two of any wrongdoing,” he said.

Kendell huffed. “I don’t believe you have anything against us to detain us.”

Pauline popped Kendell in the arm. “It’s quite all right. We can stay,” Pauline said.

“Thank you, ma’am,” the officer said. “And we’ve decided not to press charges for the assault.”

Kendell tried not to grumble too much, but she supposed she should consider them lucky that they weren’t spending the night in jail for assaulting an officer. “I do apologize, young man,” Pauline said. “I’m just a nervous old lady, and frankly, I didn’t care for your aggression.”

The man frowned. “I think it’s time for you to go,” he growled and walked them out of the interrogation room.

Kendell was fairly certain that if they tried to leave town without permission, the police department would slap Pauline with charges for assault, so it seemed like they were stuck. They walked outside of the station and went and sat in their rental car, Kendell in the driver’s seat. Kendell punched the steering wheel. “Unbelievable,” she said. “Pauline, why would you spray that man with mace? And where did you even get mace?”

“Oh, I’ve been carrying the stuff since London,” Pauline said.

“London! Pauline, you can’t bring mace on a plane!” Kendell exclaimed.

Pauline laughed. “No, I suppose not. But I did. You never know when you might need it. I figured the mace would be safer to bring aboard a plane than a gun.”

“Pauline, please don’t tell me you thought about bringing a gun with you on a plane,” Kendell moaned.

“I’m from Georgia,” she said. “I have a conceal carry permit.”

“But those are only good for your state, Pauline,” Kendell said.

“I know, honey,” she said. “That’s why I left it at home. You worry too much, dear. You need to relax.”

Kendell exhaled heavily. “Pauline, I really don’t know what I’m going to do with you.”

“Are you getting tired of me?” Pauline asked, and she sounded somewhat sad and serious when she asked it.

“Pauline, of course not,” Kendell said. “I don’t know how, you crazy old bat, but somehow you have become my closest friend. Honestly, before you, my life was pretty boring and predicable. I appreciate the feel of adventure that you bring to my life.”

“So, now what?” Pauline asked.

“Now, I suppose we go back to the motel and let Dot out,” Kendell said. “She’s probably going crazy in that little room. And, then, we do what we do best.”

“Oh, and what’s that?” Pauline asked.

“We figure out who killed Rodney, of course,” Kendell said. “If we’re going to get back to Georgia anytime soon, the police are going to need the extra help, wouldn’t you agree?”

“We do have a wonderful track record in this sort of thing,” Pauline said, smiling.

“I agree,” Kendell said, pulling the car out of the parking lot. “What’s our first step, do you think?”

Pauline thought for a moment. “We need to check out the crime scene,” Pauline said. “See if there is anything the police missed. They always miss something.”

“They’re probably still there,” Kendell said. “They didn’t keep us detained for too long, and I doubt they made quick work of that crime scene. It was a mess. There was glass from the lights everywhere, and Rodney got his head bashed in. Plus, there were a lot of witnesses still there to interview when we left. They’re probably going to be talking to people for a couple more hours if they’re wanting to get statements from everyone who was there when it happened. Half the city was at the museum tonight.”

“Well, by the time we go back to the motel and take Dot out, they should probably be clearing up. They had interviewed a handful of people before they started talking to us,” Pauline said. “We don’t want to wait too long or the museum will be closed down. Although, I could probably pick a lock…”

“Pauline!” Kendell exclaimed. “You’re already in trouble for spraying mace in an officer’s face. Let’s not add breaking and entering to our list of crimes, okay?”

“Okay, okay,” Pauline said, attempting to wave her off as though she was the one being unreasonable.

“I swear, Pauline, sometimes you make me seriously contemplate your sanity,” Kendell said with an eye-roll. “Let’s just get back to the motel, okay?”

“Sounds like a plan,” Pauline said. “I miss my little Dot! I don’t like being away from my little pooch for too long anymore. She’s my baby.”

Kendell shook her head. Yes, her life had certainly taken an interesting turn since meeting Pauline. But, truth be told, she really was thankful for the excitement.

6

They arrived back at the motel, and Kendell found a good parking spot right near their room. Pauline practically leapt out of the car and scurried to the room, saying she missed her little doggie. Truthfully, Pauline rarely left Dot behind on any of their adventures. The little dog was always at her hip, so Kendell had been surprised Pauline hadn’t snuck the dog into the party. The dog had been acting pretty tired after the long car ride, so she had left her to get some rest.

Kendell exited the car slowly, and she spotted Bobby and Jen pulling into the parking lot. Rather than just standing around while Pauline took Dot for a walk, Kendell decided to follow Bobby and Jen to the welcome room to get started on hers and Pauline’s little investigation. The older couple had already made their way behind the counter by the time Kendell reached them. “You guys just now getting back?” Kendell asked.

“Yeah,” Bobby groaned, propping his elbows on the counter. “The police are interviewing every single person individually, and there were a lot of people at that party. I saw you two being taken away by police earlier tonight. Is everything okay?”

“An officer got a little aggressive when he was talking to me, so Pauline sprayed him in the face with mace,” Kendell said. “They really just took us down to the station to scare us for that one.”

“That old woman sprayed an officer with mace!” Jen exclaimed, but then she started laughing. “My goodness, you must have your hands full with her.”

“You really have no idea,” Kendell said, smirking.

“I’m going to run get some of the vacant rooms straightened up, Bobby,” Jen said with a sigh. “Party’s over. Time to work.” Jen pecked her husband on the cheek before grabbing some room keys and scurrying off.

“Is there anything I can do for you tonight, Miss Kendell?” Bobby asked.

“Yes, actually,” Kendell said. “I was actually hoping to just ask you some questions about Rodney.”

“Oh,” he said, frowning. “Why is that?”

“Truthfully, the police won’t let us leave town until they clear us for the case. They’re just being that way because of what Pauline did. So, I thought I’d ask around. Help if I could,” Kendell said.

Bobby nodded. “Well, what do you want to know?”

“Really anything that you can tell me,” Kendell said. “Did you know him?”

“Oh, just about everyone in town knew him,” Bobby said. “Good kid. Everyone is really supportive of his music around here. I mean, you heard him tonight. He’s talented. A little bit of a troublemaker, though.”

“Troublemaker?” Kendell questioned. “Troublemaker how?”

“Well, back in high school, he got in trouble a couple of times for graffiti. Vandalized a few buildings. Here recently, he was arrested for a barfight, but the charges were dropped. He seems to behave himself most of the time, but every once in a while, you hear about him getting into something he’s not supposed to,” Bobby explained.

“Anything serious?” Kendell asked.

“Nothing too bad,” Bobby said. “He’s just kind of rotten. I don’t really care for him too much. I like what he was doing with his music, but he just likes to cause trouble. He knows how to talk the talk of a well-behaved kid, but he don’t walk the walk. He is tricky. I support his music just like I would anybody else from this town, but at the end of the day, I don’t trust him. He sprayed the side of my motel once. I was mad as spitfire.”

“I’m sorry to hear that,” Kendell said. “So, do a lot of people in town not like him?”

“I don’t know, honestly,” Bobby said. “He’s good at smooth-talking you. A lot of people like him. A lot of people don’t. Just depends on how fooled he’s got you.”

“Well, I appreciate your honesty,” Kendell said. “I’m going to go see if Pauline is about finished walking Dot. I’ll see you in the morning, Bobby.”

Bobby tipped his hat, and Kendell exited the welcome building. She didn’t see Pauline anywhere, so she assumed that the woman had already made her way back to their room. Kendell began walking in that direction when she spotted Jen exiting one of the empty rooms, her cleaning cart in tow. “Headed to bed?” Jen asked.

“No, not quite,” Kendell said. “We have a few things we’re going to take care of tonight.”

“Well, if you folks need anything, you just let us know,” Jen said. “I think I just saw Miss Pauline head back into her room with her cute little pup.”

“Thanks, Jen,” Kendell said. “Before you run off, do you mind if I ask you some questions?”

“About what?” Jen questioned.

“Well, after Pauline sprayed that officer with mace, they’re giving us a hard time. They’re not letting us leave town until they can clear us, so we are going to try to help them speed things along. Thought I would ask you if you know anything about Rodney. Like, maybe if there’s anyone who would want to hurt him?”

“Oh, absolutely not!” Jen exclaimed. “That Rodney is…was…such a sweetheart. I just love him to death. He was always so sweet every single time I saw him. Always called me Missus Jenny in the sweetest little voice. He helped me carry some stuff in from my car a few times to the motel. Always ready to lend a helping hand. Such a little charmer!”

Kendell raised a brow. That was quite a different picture from the one her husband had painted. “So…he wasn’t much of a troublemaker, then?” Kendell asked.

“Well, he had gotten into a little trouble here and there,” Jen said. “But, who hasn’t? Overall, he was an upright young man. It’s a real shame what happened. I just cannot imagine anyone wanting to hurt him. The world lost a wonderful young man. Surely this was some sort of accident? I know the police were talking murder, but that’s just so hard to imagine. Who would want to hurt such a sweet boy?”

“I couldn’t say,” Kendell said, shaking her head. “But maybe Pauline and I can figure it out.”

“Well, best of luck to you,” Jen said. “I hope you can find out what happened to that poor boy.”

“Thanks for talking to me, Jen,” Kendell said and headed toward hers and Pauline’s room.

Pauline was sitting up on her bed, Dot excitedly jumping around by her. “Good girl! Who’s a good girl? You are! You are!” Pauline exclaimed as the little dog ran off her energy on the bed.

“She missed you while you were at the party, huh?” Kendell asked and sat on the other bed, smiling at Dot as she jumped all over Pauline.

“I guess so!” Pauline exclaimed. “She’s so playful. I guess I shouldn’t go anywhere without her.”

“You’re allowed to leave your dog behind for an evening out,” Kendell said, laughing. “I mean, you can’t take her everywhere, can you?”

“No, I suppose not,” Pauline said. ‘But I certainly try.”

“Believe me, I know you do,” Kendell said. “The first time I met you, you had snuck Dot onto the plane without checking her in.”

“Well, I just can’t go anywhere without my little doggie,” Pauline said, picking Dot up and giving her several kisses. “So, did you talk to anyone?”

“Yeah, I managed to talk to Bobby and Jen,” Kendell said.

“And?”

“Well, it was kind of weird,” Kendell said. “I talked to Bobby first. He said Rodney was a decent kid, but he made him out to be a real troublemaker. Like he was really fake. When he was younger, he used to get into trouble for vandalizing. He even spray-painted the side of the motel once. Now, he’s older, and Rodney got arrested thanks to a bar fighting incident.”

“Sounds like we might have a lot of potential angles then,” Pauline said. “Maybe a business owner who got tired of him messing with their property or someone he rubbed the wrong way at a bar?”

“That’s the thing, though. When I talked to Jen, she acted like all these things he had gotten in trouble for were very minor. Like he was just the sweetest thing she’s ever met.”

“Interesting,” Pauline said. “Sounds like a two-faced kind of person.”

“You are bound to make some enemies that way,” Kendell said. “Probably the kind of person who is nice to people he thinks he can get something from. Maybe he left someone in the dust when he started gathering some local fame?”

“That’s possible,” Pauline said. “I’d like to talk to those girls he had with him all night. One of them was his girlfriend. I bet she would have some information that would be useful to the case.”

“I’m sure the police already have her and are talking to her tonight,” Kendell said.

“Oh, I’m sure,” Pauline said. She picked up Dot and patted her head several times. “I say we head back to the museum before they close down for the night.”

“I think I agree with you,” Kendell said.

“Okay, well, let’s get ready to go,” Pauline said and reached for Dot’s little pink, bedazzled dog carrier.

“You’re taking Dot to a crime scene?” Kendell questioned.

“Well, I already told you, dear, I take her everywhere,” Pauline said, slipping the little dog into the bag. Dot curled up, and the little dog looked quite satisfied knowing that she would be accompanying them.

Kendell shook her head. “I suppose you did just say that. All right, let’s go. Maybe we can figure this thing out before tomorrow if we’re lucky and we pull an all-nighter. That way, we can get us back to Georgia in time to catch that flight.”

“Right… Right…the flight,” Pauline said, smiling. “Yes, let’s go.”

Kendell and Pauline headed out, Dot in tow.

7

Kendell and Pauline pulled up outside of the museum, and it was only then that Kendell realized they were still dressed in their 30s attire. “We probably should have changed,” Kendell said, shaking her head. “We stick out like a sore thumb.”

“The place is still pretty crowded,” Pauline said, nodding toward the parking lot where costumed guests were just now being allowed to leave.

There were a few police cruisers parked out front, and there was yellow tape everywhere blocking people from entering the building. It seemed as though the officers were just now finishing up with their witness interviews. Kendell saw a cop car pull up into the parking lot, and it parked up front close to the building. She sighed heavily when she spotted Officer Tripp step out of the vehicle. “Your friend is here,” Kendell said, sinking into her seat.

“Who?” Pauline asked, and Kendell nodded to the front entrance. Pauline glanced out to see Officer Tripp speaking with several other officers. From the looks of things, they were probably giving him a hard time about being sprayed in the face with mace by an old lady. “Hmmm… This could work to our advantage. I have an idea. Go across the street and pull through the drive-through of that coffee shop down that way.”

“All right?” Kendell said, unsure of what Pauline was getting at. They pulled through the drive-through of the nearby coffee shop that, surprisingly, was still open. Pauline ordered several to-go coffees and some muffins before they headed back to the museum. Pauline put Dot on her leash and handed some of the coffees to Kendell before they hopped out of the car and began walking toward Officer Tripp and the others.

“I’m going to distract them while you go inside and get a look at the crime scene,” Pauline said.

“Is that a good idea?” Kendell asked, but Pauline was already calling out for Officer Tripp.

Kendell shook her head. There was really no use in arguing with Pauline.

“Oh, Officer Tripp! Officer Tripp!” Pauline called.

The other officers smirked a bit when Pauline approached. “Miss Pauline…” Officer Tripp groaned. “What are you doing here?”

“Well, I honestly just felt so awful about our little confrontation earlier tonight,” Pauline said, “and I figured that you and your fellow officers would be working late this evening with everything going on, so we brought you all some coffee.”

A slight smile appeared on Officer Tripp’s face. “That’s awfully kind of you, ma’am.”

“I also have a doggie bag full of muffins if any of you boys are hungry,” Pauline said, and the small group of officers slowly began to crowd around while she passed out coffee and treats.

“So, you’re the woman who took down my buddy Tripp,” one of the officers said, teasing his brother in blue.

“I suppose that would be me,” Pauline said, laughing. “I am so terribly sorry about that. I think I might be going a little loopy in my old age.”

Tripp rolled his eyes, but he willingly took one of the to-go coffees. “It’s all right, Pauline. It’s forgiven. But I’d advise you not whip out pepper-spray on any police officers in the future. Someone else might would have gotten you with a tazer or thrown you down.”

“I suppose I’m lucky I confronted an officer with a level head, then?” Pauline asked.

Kendell wasn’t sure when she should sneak off. She heard some ducks squawking nearby; they had landed in the parking lot. Then, she noticed that Pauline had unhooked Dot’s leash. The next thing Kendell knew, Dot was running through the parking lot yelping and chasing the ducks. Pauline was shrieking, crying out for the dog, and there were three officers attempting to chase Dot between cars for the kind old woman who had brought them all coffee.

Way to distract them, Pauline, Kendell thought, amused. She slipped away and dipped down under some of the crime scene tape before heading inside. Inside, she could see that a cleanup crew was on stage removing the shattered glass from the stage lights. Some of the museum employees were cleaning up the tables where the food had been placed. Others were removing tablecloths from the tables where guests had sat around the dancefloor.

She spotted Fred among those on cleanup duty, and she decided to approach him and engage him in conversation so that she would look like she belonged there if an officer was to spot her. “Hey, Fred,” she said, smiling at him as she made her way over. He had a broom and dustpan, and he was sweeping up bits of crumbs around the tables.

“Why, hello, Miss Kendell,” he said. “Glad to see you didn’t wind up spending the night in jail. I saw Miss Pauline spray that officer with the pepper-spray.”

“Yes, they’ve actually been very forgiving for that one,” Kendell said to him. “Not one of our proudest moments. Pauline is a bit overprotective of me.”

“You two go way back or something?” he asked.

“Not really, if I’m being honest,” Kendell said. “I’ve only known her for a couple of weeks. But, we’ve gotten pretty attached to each other. We’ve been traveling together, and we’ve had some good times. She felt like that officer was being a little aggressive, and she overreacted. She has a tendency to be a little dramatic, I’ve learned.”

“Well, I’m glad you’re both all right. She’s not in jail, is she?” Fred asked.

“No, she’s outside chasing her dog around,” Kendell said, laughing. “She decided to bring the police working the scene some coffee and muffins as a peace offering.”

“That’s awfully sweet of her,” Fred said. “So, what are you doing inside? I don’t think they want anybody in here.”

“Just looking around,” Kendell said. “The police want us to stay in town until they can for sure clear of us any wrongdoings. I was hoping to help find something to move things along.”

“Well, the police did a pretty good sweep of this place,” Fred said. “Not sure if you’re going to find anything that they didn’t. They were pretty on top of their game. I mean…” Fred paused like he had thought of something.

“What?” Kendell beckoned.

“Well, it occurred to me the police only checked this room and the breaker room where the power was cut,” Fred said. “They didn’t really look around the rest of the museum. Not that they would find anything there because the crime took place in here, you know?”

“Well, it might be worth looking around,” Kendell decided. She thanked Fred for the information, and she began walking about the museum. She walked along the path of the tour she and Pauline had taken earlier that evening. There weren’t any police there, so she didn’t feel a need to be super quiet or sneaky. There didn’t seem to be anything out of place. A few people had left their drinks sitting around from when they had likely taken the tour, but apart from a little bit of trash from the party, there was nothing particularly suspicious.

Then, just as she was about to head out, she spotted something sitting on the ground near the Muddy Waters Cabin exhibit. Kendell knelt to look closer, not a particularly easy feat in the tall heels she was wearing with her evening gown. “Looks like someone lost a wallet,” she said under her breath, and her heart fluttered a bit when she discovered that it was Rodney’s.

“Whoa,” she said, realizing she had made quite a discovery. She knew that this was definitely something she needed to turn over to the police, but not without taking a look herself.

Rodney didn’t keep much in his wallet. Just his ID, a few credit cards, a picture of his girlfriend, and finally a business card. Kendell pulled out the business card, and she saw that it belonged to Gerald—the music manager she had met earlier that evening. It was new, and it had a personal phone number scribbled on the back. “Interesting,” Kendell said, making her way back to the main room where Fred was still cleaning up.

“Hey, Fred,” she said, approaching him. “I don’t suppose you saw anything worth noting tonight, did you?”

He shrugged. “Not really,” he said. “I was with you when Rodney was killed. I didn’t see much.”

“Anything before then?” Kendell asked.

“Hmm…” He thought for a moment. “You know, I did see a man talking to Rodney before he went up for his final performance. That music fellow. What’s his name? Starts with a G…”

“Gerald?” Kendell asked.

“That’s the one!” Fred said. “Got a little excited for the kid. Thought maybe the man was talking to him about signing or recording. The man came here to scope out new musicians, I know. And to support Hiccup. From what I saw, Rodney sure did look happy, but I didn’t hear what they talked about.”

“Thanks, Fred,” Kendell said. “I’ll be around. Maybe I’ll see you again before we leave Mississippi.”

“Maybe so. I’ll be here. I’m here just about every day,” he said with a smile. “You have a good evening, Miss Kendell.”

“Same to you,” Kendell said and made her way back out to the parking lot where she spotted Pauline standing and talking to the officers, Dot now in her carrier. They were all laughing a bit and carrying on about the little dog they had just chased all over the place for her.

“Where did you go?” Officer Tripp demanded when Kendell came walking up.

“Sorry, I realized I had left my phone inside the museum,” Kendell lied. The officers glared at her, realizing she had obviously crossed over the caution tape. Before they could say anything, though, she held up the wallet. “I found this over by the Muddy Waters exhibit. I think you guys must have just missed it.”

Officer Tripp snatched it from her. He raised a brow. “This is Rodney’s wallet,” he said. He glanced back at the other officers. “None of you saw this?”

“Well, Tripp, we didn’t really look out by the exhibits,” one of the officers said.

“Why not?” Officer Tripp asked, glaring at all of them. No one had much of an answer for him. He rolled his eyes and turned back to Kendell. “Thank you,” he said, though it sounded quite forced. “You really should not have gone into the museum, though. This is an active crime scene.”

“I’m sorry. You’re absolutely right,” Kendell said. “I don’t know what I was thinking.”

“Good thing she did, though,” Pauline said, shaking her head. “Sounds like your officers wouldn’t have found that wallet.”

“Okay, Pauline, let’s not taunt the police,” Kendell said, hooking her arm with Pauline’s. “Let’s get you back to the motel, all right?”

She walked Pauline across the parking lot. “Nice,” she said. “Did you look through that wallet before you gave it to them?”

“Of course I did, and you know what I found?” Kendell beckoned.

“What?”

“Gerald’s business card,” Kendell said. “And I talked to Fred. He said he saw Gerald talking to Rodney right before he went up on stage before his final set.”

“Sounds like Gerald might have been the last person to speak to Rodney before he was killed,” Pauline said as they climbed back into the car.

Kendell sat in the driver’s seat, and Pauline sat in the passenger’s seat with Dot in her lap. “Good dog, Dot,” Kendell said, laughing at the memory of the officers chasing her around the parking lot while she chased the ducks. “What would you have done if you actually caught a duck? Those things are a lot bigger than you.”

“Let’s see…looks like we’re going to need to speak to Gerald next,” Pauline said.

“I took a picture of the card,” Kendell said. “So, I have his personal number he gave Rodney and the address for his recording studio. We can go see him first thing in the morning if you want.”

“Or, we can go talk to him right now,” Pauline said, pointing her finger next door to the museum. “Is that him?”

Kendell followed the direction of Pauline’s finger, and sure enough, she spotted Gerald leaving the museum parking lot, crossing over to one of the nearby historical buildings. The building looked to be newly renovated into a blues club. “Good eyes,” Kendell said, and she backed the car up into the road and pulled over into the blues clubs parking lot just as Gerald dipped inside. They could hear music coming from the building, so it sounded like the place was still hopping even late into the night.

“We certainly are dressed to go to a blues club,” Pauline said, laughing.

Kendell’s cheeks turned a little red. “We really should have changed while we were at the motel,” she said.

“Probably,” Pauline said with a laugh. “But it’s doubtful we’ll get another chance to speak to Gerald. So, what’s done is done. Let’s go corner him before he leaves.”

Kendell shook her head. “Okay, so do we have a plan?”

“I suppose just walking up to him and asking to talk is as good of a plan as any,” Pauline said. “I find that the truth if usually enough.”

Kendell nodded in agreement. “Okay, let’s go talk to Gerald. This is our only lead we’ve got so far, so we might as well follow through with it.” The two women headed up to the blues club in their 30s attire. Pauline walked with Dot’s carrier under her arm. When they opened the door, their ears were flooded with the soothing sounds of the blues.

8

The two women lost Gerald almost as soon as they entered the club. It was crowded with people there to enjoy the music, food, and drinks. It was clearly a happening place. Already, Pauline was slipping away from Kendell to make her way into the heart of the club, and even Kendell was feeling drawn in by the atmosphere. On one wall, she spotted pictures of Hollywood actor, Morgan Freeman, who apparently had his hands in the club. A neon light hanging up on the back of the stage caught Kendell’s attention, and in doing so, she found herself drawn even more into the local musician performing that evening.

There was such an authentic blues feeling in the club that Kendell did not even truly feel out of place in her 30s attire. She found herself drifting toward the bar, completely forgetting why she had even come into the building in the first place. Totally transfixed by the atmosphere. The bartender handed her a menu—a collection of down home style cuisine, like catfish, fried chicken, sandwiches, and burgers, all the stuff you’d expect to find on a bar menu in the South. Kendell’s mouth watered.

“Order you something, hon,” Pauline said, appearing beside her in an instant. “I want me some of them fried pickles! Yum!”

Kendell ordered the fried catfish and decided to try the classical Southern sweet tea Pauline was always bragging about. And, the woman was right. The stuff was nothing like what you could get up in New York. She could practically feel the sugar rotting her teeth, but it was positively divine. “When we get to Georgia, I’m going to have to make you some of my specialty sweet tea,” Pauline said. “If you like that, you’ll love my homemade batch.”

Kendell laughed. When her late night dinner arrived, she felt herself salivating. Pauline tossed some of the fried pickles onto her plate as well, and Kendell felt like she was in heaven. Back home in New York, she certainly would not have ever ordered a fried appetizer followed by a fried dinner, but she was in the South. And, as they say, when in Rome, live as the Romans do. Sweet tea, fried pickles, and deep-fried catfish. She was really starting to feel like a Southerner.

“So, where are you ladies from?” the bartender asked.

“I’m from New York,” Kendell said, then nodded toward Pauline. “And this is my Georgia girl, right here.”

The man smiled. “Well, welcome to Mississippi, ladies. You ladies taken a ferry ride yet?”

“Not yet!” Pauline exclaimed excitedly. “But we intend to do that tomorrow. I’m very excited about that, in fact. I’ve only been to Mississippi a couple of other times, but never on the riverfront like this. I came to Biloxi a few times with my husband and hit up the casinos.”

“Ooh, a gambling girl,” the bartender laughed.

“Not so much,” Pauline said. “Although, I would always enjoy the slot machines. I won eight thousand one year. My husband about lost his mind until I pointed out to him that we had lost way more than that over the years. Kind of disappointed the poor man. I probably should have just let him have that one.”

“Does Hiccup ever come in here to perform?” Kendell asked.

“Oh, all the time,” the bartender said. “Although, it sure has been a while. The old man’s probably looking to retire soon. I can’t blame him. He’s had quite a run. I’d be ready to ease up a bit. He’s stayed busy since he was in his twenties, as far as music is concerned.”

“I bet he’s had a very interesting life,” Pauline said.

“Good man,” the bartender said. “Everyone in town loves him.”

“What about Rodney?” Kendell asked. “He ever play here?”

The bartender sighed. “I don’t know if you’ve heard—”

“We were there at the museum when it happened,” Kendell said. “I was just wondering if he had ever played here.”

“Of course,” the man said. “All the time. Probably even more than Hiccup. The kid was certainly going places. I was sure he was really going to make it. Do more than that, actually. He was going to bring blues back to the mainstream, I’m telling you. He was good at crossing genres a little. Having that classical blues flair on most of his songs, but he’d add a little modern poppy twist to some of them that would get the young people excited about blues. That’s how you got to make it in the industry today. Get on those modern stations. He knew how to work it. With the right manager, he would have gone far.”

“So, you were a fan?” Kendell asked.

“Of his music, sure,” the man said. “But, as a patron, I would cringe to see him walk in the door if he wasn’t playing. He was a bit of a troublemaker. Problem is, he was always good at talking his way out of trouble. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve called the police down here and he weaseled his way out of an arrest. Then, there was this other version of Rodney. When he was performing for us, he was well behaved. Wouldn’t never drink when he was supposed to be playing. Total professional. But, on his off nights, he was up here partying hard like the rest of the drunks. As far as musicians go, he was a bartender’s dream. But patron? Nah. Let the next guy deal with him, you know what I mean?”

“Sounds like he was a party boy who knew how to work the system,” Kendell said.

“Exactly,” the man said. “He knew he had to act right when he was representing us. He knew which managers to cozy up to, also. Rodney was smart. A little manipulative. I think he had a good heart, but he just knew how to play the game.”

“You got a dessert menu?” Pauline asked.

The bartender grinned. “We got our fried chocolate delight, our sweet magnolia ice cream, pecan pie, and homemade peach cobbler.”

“Ooh, cobbler, please!” Pauline exclaimed.

“How about for you, miss?” he asked Kendell.

Kendell shook her head. “No, I think the sweet tea is dessert enough for me.”

“That’s a Yankee if I’ve ever seen one,” the bartender teased and hurried off to place Pauline’s dessert order.

Pauline laughed. “You will have to try a bite of the cobbler.”

“Will do,” Kendell said, smirking.

And, of course, it was delicious. But she only allowed herself one bite. She was stuffed enough from the catfish. And, knowing Pauline, she was going to want to try all the local cuisine the following day. As Pauline finished up the dessert, Kendell began scanning the room. Gerald had to be there somewhere. She had been keeping an eye on the door, and he hadn’t left unless he had managed to slip out without her noticing. She turned to the bartender as he brought them their tab. “I’m looking for a man named Gerald. Know him?” she asked.

The man nodded. “You mean the record label guy?”

“That’s the one,” Pauline said.

“He’s in the back,” the man said, pointing toward a back door. “He has a lot of his meetings with clients here.”

“Thanks,” Kendell said, paying the bill and hopping off the barstool.

Pauline followed close behind. They had to push through the crowd of people who had made their way to the dancefloor. Kendell and Pauline both slipped through the door, and sure enough, they found Gerald sitting in a corner talking it up with a couple of musicians. “Ladies, this is a private room,” Gerald called, not really even looking in their direction.

“Gerald, we need to talk,” Kendell said, and the man looked up at them curiously.

He smiled. “I remember you ladies. You were at the museum tonight. Still in costume, I see.”

The musicians looked a bit befuddled. “We want to talk to you about Rodney Azul,” Pauline said, and Gerald stiffened a bit.

“Now is hardly the time,” he said, waving toward the door like he actually thought a simple flick of his wrist was going to send the two of them packing.

Kendell crossed her arms. “We need to talk,” she said again.

Gerald grimaced. “Well, I’m in the middle of something,” he said. “I’m assuming you two aren’t police?”

“Nope,” Kendell said. “Which means we don’t have to follow their rules. We need to talk.”

“Wow, you two are stubborn,” he said, but he smirked slightly. “Look, I’ve got a lot of meetings and phone calls tonight. If you two want to talk that badly, come by the studio tomorrow morning. I’ll be there, and I’ll actually have a moment to talk. Sound like a deal to you two?”

Kendell and Pauline exchanged glances. Kendell supposed that annoying the man wasn’t going to get them anywhere. People who were annoyed weren’t going to talk to you. “Okay,” Kendell said. “We’ll be at your studio first thing in the morning.”

“Don’t be late,” Gerald said. “Be there when they open, and we’ll talk.”

“Yes, we will,” Pauline said confidently.

Kendell and Pauline turned, heading back into the club. Pauline took a moment to write hers and Kendell’s name on one of the walls—the place was covered in signatures—before they decided to head out. They exited the building, and it was like leaving a strange fantasy world. The blues club had certainly had Kendell a bit transfixed.

The two of them walked back to the car, and Pauline took the driver’s seat. “I don’t know about you, but I’m ready to get into some comfortable clothes and get some sleep,” Pauline declared.

“You’re telling me,” Kendell moaned. “My feet are killing me. I can’t wear heels for that long. I can’t believe we didn’t change before leaving the motel.”

“We probably looked like a couple of loons,” Pauline said, laughing. “Walking into that club like that.”

“Nah,” Kendell said. “I saw a few other people from the museum in there who were still dressed up too. Although, not quite as extravagantly as this ballgown and white gloves.”

“You sure were a treat eating fried catfish in that,” Pauline said, laughing so hard she gripped her belly. Dot began to bark.

“Ooh, we should probably get her something to eat,” Kendell said.

“She had about half of my fried pickles,” Pauline said. “She’s fine.”

“You should really watch what you feed her,” Kendell said.

“She’s got a fairly healthy diet when I’m home,” Pauline said, patting the dog’s head. “But she’s on vacation too. Aren’t you, Dot? Aren’t you, girl? Yes, you’re on vacation too! Yes, ma’am!”

Kendell shook her head. “Let’s just get back to the motel. I’m exhausted, and now we have to get up early to head to a studio.”

“Honestly, that sounds very exciting,” Pauline said. “I’ve always wanted to see the inside of a recording studio. I wonder if we’ll get a chance to see one of those recording booths?”

“You understand that we’re not going for a tour, right?” Kendell asked. “We’re going to interview a potential suspect. Not play”

“Right, right,” Pauline said, attempting to wave Kendell off a bit. She started up the car and pulled out of the parking lot.

“We should probably talk about what we’re going to ask Gerald,” Kendell said.

“I don’t know,” Pauline said. “I was just going to wing it.”

“Of course you were,” Kendell said, shaking her head. “He was the last person to talk to Rodney before he was killed. We need to know exactly what they talked about. Maybe he can lead us in the right direction.”

“Maybe so,” Pauline said. “I certainly hope he can tell us something. We really need to get back to Georgia.”

9

The following morning, Kendell had a hard time getting herself out of bed. She had been going non-stop for the past several days, and the idea of getting up early to go interview a suspect for a murder case was not exactly something that excited her. However, Dot helped out in that endeavor. The little dog jumped up onto Kendell’s bed and barked twice in her face as a warning before slobbering all over her. “Yuck! Seriously, Dot?” Kendell groaned. She sat upright and slowly pulled herself out of bed, deciding she had time to shower before they had to leave.

Pauline wasn’t in the motel, but knowing her, Kendell assumed the woman had gone on the hunt for something to eat that morning. By the time she was showered and exiting the bathroom, hair up in a towel and dressed in something a little less extravagant than the ballgown she had worn the night before, Pauline was back in the room. She had brought muffins and coffee, and to Kendell, that really hit the spot. It was just what she needed as an early morning pick-me-up.

“Are you ready to go squeeze the perp, as they say?” Pauline asked.

“Is Gerald even really a suspect at this point or just a witness?” Kendell asked, taking a giant bite out of the blueberry muffin Pauline had snagged for her.

“I suppose just a witness,” Pauline said. “But being the last person to speak to Rodney while he was alive makes him a person of interest.”

“A person of interest is the same thing as a suspect, right?” Kendell asked.

“I honestly have no idea,” she said, shaking her head. “Either way, he might have some good information for us. Let’s hope he wasn’t pulling our leg and that he’s actually going to be at the studio this morning.”

“I didn’t even think about that,” Kendell said. “We probably should have pushed a little harder for an interview last night.”

“Live and learn,” Pauline said. “For now, let’s just get ready to go.”

“Okay, let me finish this muffin, then I’ll dry my hair and we can leave,” Kendell said, taking just a few minutes to savor the muffin and coffee before heading back into the bathroom to blow-dry her red hair. It was not behaving the way it normally did, falling flat on her shoulder. Instead, her hair curled a bit today. Frankly, she thought it looked nice, so she smiled, satisfied, before leaving the bathroom.

The two women headed out, and of course Dot accompanied them that morning. Pauline had already looked up where the recording studio was located, so she drove them down into the center of Clarksdale. It was a moderately sized building, and the décor inside was very elegant. The receptionist in the lobby was incredibly polite, though a little resistant about letting them in since they were not on the books that morning. She called Gerald from the office phone sitting on the desk to confirm that he had an unscheduled meeting before allowing them to set foot on the elevator.

“I wasn’t expecting something this nice,” Kendell admitted once she and Pauline boarded the elevator after getting directions to the recording booth where Gerald was that morning.

“Neither was I,” Pauline said. “But Clarksdale is the heart of blues country. I suppose there are probably a few nice recording studios around here.”

“I just think of like LA or Atlanta or even New York when I think of big time recording studios,” Kendell said. “Mississippi isn’t the first place that comes to mind.”

“Well, this place is very nice,” Pauline said, and Kendell nodded in agreement.

“I’m surprised they let you bring Dot in here,” Kendell said, but it occurred to her that the woman had probably thought the bedazzled bag Dot was sitting in was just a purse.

“Dot is quiet,” Pauline said. “Probably why I am able to get away with what-all I get away with. I bring her just about everywhere.”

The elevator door opened, and they walked down the hall as the receptionist had instructed. Eventually, they found the main studio on their left where Gerald was sitting alone and munching on a breakfast biscuit. “Morning, ladies,” he said.

Pauline entered excitedly. She walked straight over to the glass where she could look into the recording booth. “Good morning,” Kendell said, sitting on the lounge furniture by Gerald. “I appreciate you agreeing to meet with us this morning.”

He shrugged. “Not like I had a lot going on this morning. You ladies were pretty persistent last night, weren’t you? What is it you need to talk to me about so badly?”

“We are looking into Rodney Azul’s murder,” Kendell said.

“And why is that?” he asked. “You two are just tourists, am I right?”

“Yes, but Pauline got us into some trouble last night at the party,” Kendell said. “The police don’t want us leaving town, but we have a flight to make. So, we’re doing what we can to speed things along.”

“I see,” Gerald said. “So, what do you need from me?”

“We have it on good authority that you were the last person to speak to Rodney before he was killed,” Pauline said.

“I suppose that’s true,” Gerald said. “I spoke to him before he went up on stage for his final set.”

Kendell pulled out her phone; she had snapped a photo of his business card that had been in Rodney’s wallet. “Looks like you wanted to continue the conversation?” Kendell asked.

“Yes, actually,” Gerald said. “I gave the kid my business card and personal phone number. He really impressed me last night. It wasn’t my first time seeing him perform. He’s pretty popular with the locals, but last night he really blew me away. I wanted to talk to him about possibly signing with me. He was pretty excited about the whole thing. It’s a shame, really. That kid could have really gone places. He was talented.”

“Was that the first time you two had spoken?” Kendell asked.

“For the most part, yes. Rodney had come out to the recording studio before trying to get me to sign him, but honestly, I had always brushed the kid off. I had never heard of him apart from a few local gigs. He had no recording demo to show me, and he expected me to drop everything to just sit and listen to him play. Frankly, he was kind of arrogant. I cannot spend all my time waiting around listening to every kid who shows up with a guitar, so my receptionist always turned him away. I had heard him play one other time at a local bar, but his original songs were never exceptional. Last night, though, I heard him play that new song of his. I knew he had obviously improved a great deal since the last time I had heard him play. His singing had improved, his songwriting, and his playing. He really captured the heart of the blues last night, so I decided to give the kid my card,” Gerald explained.

He put his breakfast down, wiping his hands off on a napkin and taking a sip out of the to-go drink he had with him. “That original song he played last night, though, that’s what got my attention. I like musicians who can double as songwriters. We’re a small-time record label. We’re good, but we’re not bigtime. Not having to pay a songwriter is a nice bonus when signing musicians. And when they’re as good and original as what I heard last night, I jump on it.”

“How many times did he come to the studio?” Pauline asked.

“Several,” Gerald groaned. “At least eight times. Each time, he got more and more persistent. I actually wound up firing someone over the whole ordeal.”

“Really? Someone got fired here because of Rodney?” Kendell asked.

“Yeah. One of the girls I used to have working as one of my assistants. Her name’s Lilith. She and Rodney’s girlfriend, Stacey, got into it up here once. Lilith was trying to talk me into hearing Rodney out, and Stacey felt like Lilith wasn’t being persistent enough with me. The two of them wound up throwing fists in my lobby. I fired her that day, but I think the two women made amends. Saw them both last night wearing Rodney’s merchandise. I spoke with her briefly, and she said there weren’t any hard feelings. She knew she had crossed a line with me.”

“So, Lilith, Stacey’s friend…used to work here for you when Rodney was trying to get your attention?” Pauline asked.

“Pretty much,” Gerald said, huffing a bit. “Before Rodney even started trying to weasel his way into letting me hear him, I actually thought Lilith and Rodney were dating. Turns out, she was just the side-chick, though.”

“Whoa,” Pauline said. “So, you think Rodney was cheating on Stacey with Lilith?”

“Think? I caught them swapping spit in the sound booth once,” Gerald said. “That was the first time I met the kid. Lilith had brought him up here to meet me, and when they were waiting on me to come in here, they decided to get a little frisky. I warned her if anything happened like that again she was fired. Then, not but a couple of months later, she and Stacey were going at it in the lobby. It was all very weird. I suppose I could have listened to the kid, but there is a process to this sort of thing. Rodney thought he was too good to pay his dues. I tried telling Lilith that I thought the kid was using her to get to me, but she wouldn’t believe it. And when I found out he had a girlfriend, I was already pretty disgruntled with Lilith. It was all very weird.”

“I imagine so,” Pauline said. “So, let me make sure I’ve got this straight. Lilith was working for you. You caught her making out with what you assumed to be her boyfriend in the sound booth. Then she tried to get you to listen to him play music, and you turned the opportunity down. Then Rodney continues coming up here to try to bother you, and you and your receptionist continue turning him away. Eventually, Stacey shows up and she and Lilith get into it. Sounds like Lilith was promising Stacey and Rodney that she could get him an in with you and when she didn’t deliver, Stacey got antsy.”

“That’s exactly what happened,” Gerald said. “It was nuts. When I came out of the elevator and saw that Lilith had a guest, Stacey, in a headlock, I lost my mind. I threw them both out for fighting, and Rodney was out there in the parking lot with his guitar, waiting on me. I told him to beat it, told all three of them. That was about a month ago. That was the last time I had seen them until last night. I bumped into Lilith, and we talked it out a bit. She told me it was water under the bridge, and I said the same. I told her she couldn’t have her job back, but that I wished her luck. She seemed okay with that.”

“And last night, you finally heard Rodney sing,” Kendell said. “You were impressed, so you gave him a card. And you spoke with him before he got up on stage for his second performance.”

“Yep” Gerald said. “The police want me to come down to the station this evening to tell them about the incidents. Word gets around, so they heard about it fairly quickly. I’m sure they’re just wanting to rule me out.”

“I’m sure,” Kendell said. “This was very informative. We appreciate you taking the time to talk to us.”

“I hope you ladies find out what happened to the kid,” Gerald said. “He was kind of a nuisance, but that sort of talent is hard to come by. It was a shame, really, it was.”

10

When Gerald stood up to toss his breakfast leftovers in the trash, Kendell and Pauline took it as a sign that he was finished talking. He seemed like the type of person who kept busy, so they both assumed he wasn’t going to be much use to them now that his mind had moved on to something else. “I’ve got a last-minute meeting this morning,” he said, checking his watch. “I’ll walk you ladies out.”

“Thank you for taking the time to speak to us,” Kendell said. “We really do appreciate it. It might just lead us in the right direction.”

“I hope so,” Gerald said. “I hate that something happened to the kid. He would have been good. Would have made me some money too. It’s a shame that his musical gift won’t be broadcasted to the world. I hate it for him.”

They exited into the hallway, and Kendell noticed some framed photographs she hadn’t noted when they had first arrived. “Is that Hiccup?” Kendell asked, stepping toward the collage of framed pictures, awards, and even a golden album hanging on the wall.

“Aww, yeah,” Gerald said, taking a step toward the wall that was almost entirely dedicated to the elderly man. “My father started this studio, you know?” Gerald pointed to an old black and white photograph. There was a picture of Hiccup and a man who looked quite similar to Gerald standing close together, holding up a contract and smiling. “Hiccup was his golden cow back in the day. He’s definitely one of the greater success stories this studio has had. Well, in our golden years, that is. When I took over, I’ve had a few successes that outweighed what Hiccup did in his prime. But Hiccup was my father’s first true success story.”

“I think I may have heard of Hiccup,” Pauline said. “Before we came to town, I mean.”

“Probably,” Gerald said. “He was mostly just popular with the blues crowd. If you’re not really into the blues, you probably don’t know his music. But the blues followers really dug him. Unfortunately, people aren’t quite as into the classical blues anymore. He’s kind of washed up now.”

“That’s a terrible thing to say,” Pauline said.

“Ah, he knows it,” Gerald said with a wave of his hand. “Jokes about it himself. Hiccup helped make this studio, though. He knows I’d do anything for him. He’s about to retire, you know? We’re planning a little farewell tour, mostly just local. He’s a little old and worn down to do a big country-wide thing. We’ll just do a little tour through the South. Might even go to Georgia. You ought to listen out for us.”

“I think I will,” Pauline said.

“Has he had any new songs come out lately?” Kendell asked.

“Not in probably eight years,” Gerald said with an eye-roll. “I had to hire a songwriter for him a while back because he lost his mojo after his wife passed. I can understand that. She was a lot of his inspiration. Good woman. He probably should have retired after her passing, though. It’s been rough on him without her.”

“How sad,” Pauline said.

“You ladies can pick up some of Hiccup’s old CDs in our giftshop downstairs,” Gerald suggested.

“This studio has a giftshop?” Kendell asked.

“We do a few tours a week, and we take people through a giftshop on the way out,” Gerald explained. “Helps to pay for songwriters. It’s one of our studio’s largest expenses, honestly. That’s why I was so excited about Rodney. That song he wrote was amazing. It’s hard to find raw talent like that.”

Gerald escorted them down the elevator and walked them up to the receptionist who had originally blocked them from entering. He smiled at the woman. “Sandra, get these ladies two of Hiccup’s CDs—on me.”

“That’s awfully kind of you,” Pauline said with a smile.

He nodded. “Find out what happened to that kid, and I’ll send you a whole care package to Georgia, ma’am,” Gerald said. “That kid was going to be my next Hiccup. I could tell. Now, he’s gone and I’m stuck running amateur hour up here.” Gerald sighed and turned to his receptionist. “Text me my appointment times, would you, Sandra?”

“Right away, sir,” she said, pulling out her phone before scurrying off to the gift shop, returning with two CDs. She pointed to one. “This one was his Christmas album from the eighties. It’s a personal favorite of mine and Gerald’s.”

“Thanks,” Kendell said, letting Pauline have her pick of the discs. Pauline chose the best hits, so Kendell slipped the Christmas CD into her purse.

The two women headed out. They had spoken to Gerald longer than anticipated, so they decided to snag an early lunch. They found a quaint little café near the river, and they settled in at a window seat that had a wonderful view. Kendell sighed, sinking down into her seat. “So, what do you think our next move should be?” Kendell asked from behind her menu. When Pauline didn’t answer, she lowered the menu to see what had the woman so distracted. Pauline was on her phone. “Pauline, what are you doing?”

“I just booked us two ferry tickets!” Pauline said excitedly. She squinted as she looked at her phone. “I think I did, at least.” She held her phone up to Kendell. “Did I do it right?”

Kendell chuckled and took the phone from Pauline to confirm that she had indeed purchased tickets online. “You’re getting to be pretty tech-savvy there, Pauline,” Kendell teased, returning the phone.

“I’ve always at least tried to keep up with the times,” she said. “One of my granddaughters got me this phone and showed me how to work it.” She laughed for a moment. “We took a million, what’s the word, selfies that day. It was a good day.”

“Sounds like not all your grandchildren are as bratty as you make them out to be,” Kendell said.

“Oh, they’re not so bad. Truth be told, I’ve got two granddaughters that are absolute angels, sisters. Their parents raised them right. The rest could use a little work, if I’m being honest,” Pauline said with an eye-roll. “Although the little fella who helped me name Dot is a sweetie when he wants to be.”

Kendell smiled. “I’m glad to hear that.”

“Let’s order some food quickly so we’re not rushing to get to the ferry,” Pauline said.

“Yes, ma’am,” Kendell said. They ordered as soon as the server came over, and the food was delivered very promptly. “So, as I was trying to ask before you got all distracted about your little ferry ride, where do you think we should go from here as far as the case is concerned?”

“Well, I think we need to speak to Stacey and Lilith for sure,” Pauline said. “Find out if Stacey knew that her boyfriend was cheating with her friend.”

“If so, Lilith might be in trouble too,” Kendell said. “If Stacey is our culprit, that is.”

“Lilith could be as well,” Pauline pointed out. “If she was jealous of the girlfriend.”

“Good point,” Kendell agreed. “Okay, let’s look at what we know so far.”

“Okay,” Pauline said. “Let’s see… We know that Rodney was doing well for himself locally. That he has a reputation for getting into trouble. He’s gotten into a few bar fights. But, when it comes down to it, he knows when to act professional.”

“Right,” Kendell said. “He knew which bar owners to play nice to so that he can get gigs. And he is good at playing people. He got Lilith to help him try to weasel his way into a one-on-one session with Gerald, even if the plan didn’t end up working. And his girlfriend is such a super-fan that she threw down with Lilith at the studio for not doing her part. He’s a total player, a cheater. He was swapping spit with Lilith while dating Stacey. But Stacey and Lilith seemed really cool with each other at the party.”

“That’s true. It’s doubtful that Stacey knew,” Pauline said. “That, or the poor girl was in absolute denial about Rodney.”

“Okay, what else… We know that Gerald had heard Rodney play before but never thought much of him until last night,” Kendell said.

“Right, because of that original he played,” Pauline said, and the woman began to sway her head a bit. “It was awfully catchy, wasn’t it?”

“She was a dancer… She was an angel… She was just what I never knew I would need… Ooh… A stranger in the night… A sun-kissed beauty that hadn’t never noticed me…” Kendell instinctively began to sing along with Pauline, and the two laughed at themselves.

“You know, it really stinks that that song never got recorded,” Kendell said. “Rodney did a good job with it.”

“As bratty as some people are making Rodney out to be, I do wish his music could have been heard,” Pauline said. “I agree with Gerald. That was some wonderful talent we saw last night. Especially that song. Maybe someone recorded him singing?”

“I hope so,” Kendell said. “I bet his girlfriend has him singing the song on something.”

“Oh, I hope so!” Pauline said. “All the more reason to go talk to her.”

“Agreed,” Kendell said. “So, our plan for today is…”

“Eat lunch, go on a ferry ride, and then try to find our victim’s girlfriend and side-piece,” Pauline said matter-of-factly.

“Great,” Kendell said and picked up her chicken salad sandwich. She took a bite. “My goodness, this is good. Why is all food down south so much better?”

“We know about this thing called flavor,” Pauline said.

“Grease. You know about grease,” Kendell teased.

“You’re eating chicken salad,” Pauline countered.

“Yeah, and it’s good because it’s filled with excess mayo,” Kendell said, shaking her head. “My goodness, how does anyone down here survive past thirty? Between all those steak dinners in Texas, the fried food here, and this massive glob of chicken-mayonnaise, I don’t know how everyone living in the South isn’t just a heart attack waiting to happen.”

“We probably get more exercise than you northerners,” Pauline said. “Keeps us healthy.”

“You know what, I’m not even going to argue that,” Kendell said. “I stay cramped up in my apartment, and after spending a weekend working on a ranch in Texas with you, I’d have to say you country bumpkins have us beat on that. The only working out I do takes place in a gym, and let’s face it, I never go because I’m always working.”

“That stressful, busy lifestyle is just as unhealthy as all the fried pickles running through my veins, honey,” Pauline said. “That’s no way to live.”

“I think I’m figuring that out,” Kendell said. “These past few weeks traveling with you have been some of the most relaxing days I’ve ever had. And most adventurous, I’d say. I’ve had actual fun on these trips, and that’s something I have not really done in a long time.”

Pauline smiled. “Well, honey, I’m glad I’ve been able to be a part of that. I’m glad you’re figuring it out early—that you need to have a little adventure in your life. Believe me, you don’t want to wait until you’re my age to start living. It’s not good on your back.”

Kendell laughed. “No, I suppose it’s not. Thank you, Pauline. I’m really glad to have met you.”

Pauline was grinning ear to ear. The old woman seemed moved. “And I’m glad to have bumped into you, Miss Kendell.”

11

The ferry ride that Pauline had booked them was hardly a grand adventure down the Mighty Mississippi. It was a fun tourist attraction without the commitment of an all-day ferry cruise down the river. The boat they were on was set to travel only a few miles downriver, and at their stop, they would be picked up by a bus to take them back to their original location. The whole tour would only last a few hours, but during that time, they’d get a tour of a good bit of Clarksdale as well as some food, music, and dancing aboard the deck of the ferry.

Pauline was having a good time, so to Kendell, that’s what really mattered. This was the old woman’s big retirement dream she was living. Kendell was hoping that Pauline would enjoy every single minute of it. The two of them danced and joked around with other ferry guests, and frankly, Kendell found herself feeling a bit freer than she had in the past several days. After being dragged to the police station and being told they couldn’t leave town, Kendell had felt an incredible weight on her shoulders. But Pauline always managed to find the fun in their misadventures.

“I have to tell you, Kendell, I just love the music of Clarksdale,” Pauline declared as the band playing on the deck continued another song.

“I was never that into blues, but I think being here has changed my tune a bit,” Kendell said, agreeing wholeheartedly with the woman’s statement. “I’ve definitely fallen for the genre. I can’t wait to listen to Hiccup’s Christmas album. If I like it enough, I might just have to throw a themed Christmas party this year for me and my friends.”

“A Mississippi Christmas?” Pauline asked. “In New York? That sounds positively divine!”

“You’re welcome to come,” Kendell said. “If you want to make the trip all the way to New York for a Christmas party, that is. Not that that’s anytime soon.”

“Yes, I suppose it is awfully early to be making Christmas plans,” Pauline said with a giggle. “Ooh, this old lady has got to rest her feet. Between the party, the blues club, and this ferry ride, I think I’ve put in more dancing these past two days than I have in the past five years combined.” Pauline went and found herself a seat near the railing. They were able to look out over the river and enjoy some of the local scenery. Clarksdale was a beautiful city, and Kendell was thankful to have gotten the opportunity to visit.

Mississippi had not been the plan, not in the least. In fact, they were supposed to be finishing up their trip in South America right about now. The plan had been to leave Hawaii and get a flight from the Dallas airport to Peru, but the weather had had other plans. Now this borderline cross-country road trip was turning out to be just as fun and adventurous. Perhaps not as exotic, but coming from New York, Texas and Mississippi was quite a change for Kendell nonetheless. She was used to crowded streets, loud sirens, muscle cars, and taxis on every street corner. Even in a big city like Clarksdale, it was awfully quiet compared to New York City. It was a good change of pace.

“You know, I’m kind of glad our flight to Peru was cancelled,” Kendell said. “I don’t think I would have ever chosen to come to the South for a vacation.”

“But?”

“But I’m glad we’re here,” Kendell said. “This has been really awesome. The people are super nice and so friendly. The food, albeit a bit unhealthy, is amazing. I guess what I’m trying to say is, the South isn’t anything like I pictured it to be. I like it.”

“Good!” Pauline said. “Maybe when our trips are over, I might actually get a visit from my New York friend, then?”

“I would love to!” Kendell exclaimed. “But once we leave Mississippi, we’re going to be in Georgia for a little bit. Maybe you can find the time to show me around your hometown?”

“That would be just lovely!” Pauline cried.

The ladies enjoyed the rest of their ride on the ferry, eventually getting off on their stop at the docks. As they were getting ready to load onto the bus, Kendell spotted a familiar face crossing the parking lot. “Pauline, look!” she said, pointing. It was Stacey.

The two women beelined toward the woman, catching her just before she got into her car. The young woman looked positively frazzled; her eyes had dark circles under them like she hadn’t slept at all the night before. “Stacey?” Kendell beckoned.

“Do I know you?” she asked.

“Yes, we met last night at the party,” Kendell said, and Stacey’s shoulders slumped a bit.

“Oh,” she said. “So you were there when it happened.”

“Yes, we’re so sorry about what happened to Rodney,” Pauline said. “Honey, are you okay? You look exhausted.”

“I couldn’t sleep last night,” she admitted. “I stayed up late talking to Rodney’s parents on the phone. They’re out of town, so I had to call them. It was awful. They’re heading home today.”

“I’m very sorry you had to do that,” Kendell said. “I know you probably don’t feel like it, but would you mind talking to us for a bit? We’re helping the police to investigate what happened.”

Stacey hesitated. She looked positively wiped out. “Honestly, I need to go home and get some sleep,” she said. “I’ve been going non-stop since yesterday. Not to mention all the prep work Rodney and I have done all week leading up to last night’s event. I don’t have the energy.”

“Should you even be driving?” Pauline asked. “You look very distraught.”

Stacey yawned, looking like she was struggling just to keep her eyes open. “Maybe not…” she admitted.

“I know you don’t really know us,” Kendell said. “But, if you’d like, I can drive you home. We can talk then. No pressure. You can sit at home and relax while we talk.”

Stacey hesitated again, but she conceded to the plan. Kendell drove, and Stacey sat up front with her—giving directions to her apartment—while Pauline sat in the back, Dot in her lap. The three of them headed up to Stacey’s apartment. Once inside, it quickly became clear that she and Rodney had been living together. His merchandise was laid out everywhere in boxes, and there was music equipment strewn across the apartment.

Stacey went and sat on the couch, yawning again. “Would you two like anything to drink?” she asked.

“No, that’s quite all right,” Pauline said, sitting in one of the empty chairs nearby. “Don’t feel like you a have to wait on us.”

“Would you mind just answering a few questions about Rodney?” Kendell asked, sitting next to Stacey on the couch.

“Sure,” she said. “I mean, I already talked to the police. But I don’t feel like I was very helpful.”

“Anything you tell us could be beneficial,” Kendell said. “Even if it feels like it might be nothing.”

“Okay,” Stacey said, sighing heavily.

“Can you tell us about yours and Rodney’s relationship with Lilith?” Pauline began, and apparently, she hit a sore spot.

Stacey began to cry. “I guess everyone’s going to find out now. Rodney was cheating on me with Lilith. I knew the whole time, but I kept thinking that I could get him to stop and win him back sort of thing. My latest attempt to push her out, I think it would have finally worked.”

“And what would that be?” Pauline asked.

“I wrote him a song,” Stacey said. “That original song he played last night.”

“Wait… The ‘she was a dancer, she was an angel, she was just what I never knew I would need’… That song?” Kendell asked.

“That’s the one,” Stacey said.

“You wrote that!” Pauline exclaimed.

“I did,” Stacey said. “I wrote it for him…for him to perform. And it got that Gerald guy’s attention, finally. And what was so amazing…was that after Gerald gave him that card, Rodney told Lilith to beat it. He was done. He finally cut things off, and I thought that things could finally go back to normal with Rodney and me. The way things were before he started seeing her. The only reason he started seeing her in the first place was to try to get in with Gerald. But that didn’t work out because she got fired.”

“We heard about her getting fired,” Kendell said. “You two got into it at the studio?”

“I mean, can you blame me? I thought maybe she was just holding out on Rodney, trying to get him to leave me, before helping him get his in with Gerald. Turns out that wasn’t true. She just wasn’t as powerful as she told Rodney she was over at the studio. She was just a glorified secretary,” Stacey said. Stacey started to get really worked up. She started sobbing. “Was it stupid of me to hold out and think that Rodney would be better? I mean, he did finally cut things off with Lilith last night…but now he’s gone, and I won’t ever know if things would have gone back to the way they were. You know, Lilith used to actually be my friend? Can you believe that? I mean, what kind of friend messes around with your boyfriend behind your back? Things were getting really serious with Rodney and me too when I found out about it. It just… It just sucks!”

“I’m really sorry you’re going through all of this,” Kendell said. “Rodney didn’t realize how lucky he was to have you, I don’t think. I mean, that song you wrote for him… It was amazing. You did a great job.”

“I think he might have finally realized what he was…what he was risking with me…” Stacey said, wiping tears. “And that’s what’s so wrong about all of this. I finally made him see. Finally made him realize what a jerk he has been to me. That Lilith wasn’t worth it. And then…he’s just gone. He’s been a part of my life for so long. He’s been my whole world. I’ve dedicated the last two years of my life to helping him achieve his dream, and I don’t even know what to do now. I really don’t. I’m just so…so angry. So…confused. What am I supposed to do now? My life was about Rodney. About making Rodney’s dream come true. What now?”

“Well, you certainly could have a career in songwriting,” Pauline said, and Stacey began to cry all over again.

“I don’t want to do that!” Stacey whined. “I like managing. That’s what I’ve been doing for Rodney. But just for Rodney. I don’t think I could do this for anyone else. It’s just not right… It’s not!”

“I’m so sorry we’ve gotten you so worked up,” Pauline said. “How would you feel about me whipping up something tasty for you? Something sweet? You mind if I use your kitchen?”

A slight, sad smile appeared on Stacey’s face. “That…that actually sounds really nice…”

“You like brownies? If you have cocoa, I know an amazing recipe I can do from scratch,” Pauline said.

“I have cocoa,” Stacey said. “Rodney and I used to make fudge together. It’s been a while since we last did that, though.”

“Well, I’m going to make some brownies!” Pauline declared, jumping up and scurrying into the kitchen, leaving Dot behind on the couch.

Dot looked over at Stacey and decided she needed to go cozy up to her. Stacey smiled and held the dog close, giving her a big hug. “What a good dog,” Stacey said as Dot curled up in her lap and tried to make her feel better.

Kendell smiled. “Yeah, she has her moments.”

12

“Brownies should be ready in just a few more minutes, ladies!” Pauline sang as she scurried back over to them. The apartment was already starting to smell positively delicious. Personally, Kendell was pretty excited. She had never had any of Pauline’s baking or cooking because they always ate out, but Pauline seemed like the old granny type who had a million family recipes stored in her head.

“Thanks,” Stacey said. She had gotten herself composed after a good cry and a few cuddles from Dot. “Your dog is so sweet.”

“Isn’t she, though?” Pauline said. “My great grandson named her Dot. A pretty silly name for a pure white dog.”

“She’s not pure white,” Stacey argued.

“Pardon?” Pauline asked.

“Yeah, look…” Stacey said. “Right here on the bottom of her front right paw. There’s a little dot right here.” Stacey held up Dot, and Pauline’s face seemed to suggest that the woman was questioning her sanity as she took her little puppy from her.

“Well, I’ll be!” Pauline said, examining her little dog’s front right paw where there was indeed a moderately sized freckle. “And here I thought my great grandson was a little idiot.”

Kendell laughed. “Oh, that’s so mean, Pauline!”

“Well, the boy once tried to rollerblade on the roof,” Pauline said. “Not exactly the brightest crayon in the box.”

Stacey snorted. “You two are so nice,” she said. “Thanks for being so kind to me today. I probably needed this.” She stood up and brushed herself off. “I’m going to run to the restroom,” she said, then sniffed the air. “Ooh, those brownies smell amazing.”

Stacey dipped out, and Pauline glanced in Kendell’s direction. “What do you think?”

“I don’t think she did it,” Kendell said. “No one is that good of an actor. She’s legitimately upset, and she shared some pretty personal information with us to vent. Lilith, though… If Rodney broke up with her last night… Well, she might have had something to do with this.”

“Maybe,” Pauline said. “It’s certainly possible. Sounds like both of those girls are absolutely nuts over him.”

Kendell spied Stacey’s phone sitting on the couch where Stacey had been. She snatched it up. “Keep an eye on the bathroom door,” Kendell whispered to Pauline as she started sifting through messages. Perhaps there was something in there that Stacey wouldn’t want them to know?

And there was. “Whoa,” Kendell said.

“What?” Pauline asked as Kendell put something into her own phone.

Before Kendell could tell Pauline what she had found, Stacey came out of the bathroom, and Kendell had to toss the phone back onto the couch. “Mmm…. Smells like chocolate in here,” Stacey said just as the oven timer went off.

“Brownies are done!” Pauline cried excitedly, jumping up and hurrying to take the brownies out of the oven. The three of them happily cut up the treats. Eventually, Stacey was starting to look like she was feeling a little better, though still exhausted, so Kendell and Pauline excused themselves. Before they left, Stacey thanked them again profusely for their kindness.

As soon as they had left the apartment, Pauline smacked Kendell on the arm. “What did you find in her phone?” she whispered as they made their way outside.

“I found a few messages from a number she didn’t have saved in her phone,” Kendell said. “But, from what I read, it was a songwriter. Stacey didn’t write that song. She hired someone else to write it for her so that she could take credit for it and impress Rodney.”

“Oh, that poor girl,” Pauline said, shaking her head. “That boy messed her up, didn’t he?”

“Looks like it,” Kendell said. “I saved the number.”

“So, Stacey lied to her boyfriend to try to impress him,” Pauline said. “Do you think that’s even worth looking into?”

“Maybe,” Kendell said. “I mean, it’s the only lead we have. Maybe this mysterious songwriter could tell us something?”

“Text the number,” Pauline said. “See if they can meet up with us.”

“What should I say?” Kendell asked. She then paused. “Dang, Pauline, we don’t have our car. We drove Stacey here in her car.”

“Shoot,” Pauline said. “That’s all right. I think I see a bus stop up ahead.”

The two women went and sat at the nearest bus stop, having to wait about fifteen minutes before another bus came through. Once they were on the bus and headed back to their car, Kendell texted the number. “How’s this sound?” Kendell asked. “Hey, my friend Stacey said you’re a great songwriter. I’m interested. Can you meet up?”

“Sounds convincing enough,” Pauline said.

The number didn’t text them back right away. They made it back to their car, and then they took the car to motel, where they decided to try to get a little rest themselves. Once inside their motel room, they pulled out their phones and started searching the web to try to get some sort of lead. They looked on all of Rodney’s social media pages as well as Stacey’s and Lilith’s, but nothing stood out as suspicious to them.

“I feel like we’re running out of leads here, Pauline,” Kendell said, throwing herself down on one of the beds in frustration. “I wonder if the police are doing any better than us?”

“I certainly hope so,” Pauline said. “We can try to interview Lilith. We haven’t spoken to her yet.”

“So far, everyone’s stories have been pretty consistent,” Kendell said. “No one is really standing out as particularly suspicious, but if Rodney did finally end things with Lilith last night, then maybe that’s good enough of a motive?”

“Only thing is, the power went out when Lilith was up near the stage,” Pauline said. “I saw her. And, according to the police, someone had messed with the breaker box. So, unless Lilith got someone to cut the power…and the stage lights for her…it doesn’t look very likely.”

“Doubt she would have had time to rig up some sort of timer either,” Kendell said. “Not if he had just broken up with her right before going up on stage. I guess Lilith’s really no more suspicious than anyone else just because her being the killer is so unpractical.”

“There’s got to be something we’re missing,” Pauline said just as Kendell’s phone buzzed.

Kendell snatched up her phone. “The songwriter finally texted me back!” she exclaimed. “And our mysterious songwriter is free to meet up.”

“Thank goodness,” Pauline said.

“I’ll text them the motel’s address and see if they can meet up here,” Kendell said.

“Good. I don’t think I can do much more walking today,” Pauline said. “My feet have had it!”

Kendell smirked as she texted back and forth with the mysterious songwriter until they agreed on a time to meet at the motel. Kendell and Pauline waited around the motel for only another half-hour before the songwriter texted them that they had arrived. Kendell and Pauline both jumped up, eager to head out and meet who they had been talking to for the past hour.

“Ooh, do you think it’s someone from the party?” Pauline asked.

Kendell was hoping so, hoping that the songwriter would lead them straight to Rodney’s true killer. But when they made their way toward the welcome building, Kendell felt rather disappointed. A young, black, teenaged girl was waiting by the building. Kendell didn’t recognize the young woman at all. She certainly had not been at the party the night before, so she felt it was probably highly unlikely that she would have anything useful for them.

The girl smiled and stuck out her hand to shake when they approached. “Are you Kendell?” she asked. “The woman I’ve been texting?”

Kendell stuck her hand out as well. “That would be me. And you’re the songwriter?” she asked.

“That’s me!” the girl exclaimed. “My name’s Jasmine. So, are you looking to buy a song? I have a few that I could sell, but I’m not super great at just running with ideas. Stacey bought a song I already had written. I hope she didn’t tell you I could create personalized stuff…”

“Well, we’re not exactly looking to buy a song,” Pauline said. “We really were hoping you could answer some questions for us.”

“Questions?” Jasmine asked. “Questions about what?”

“I don’t know if you’ve heard or not,” Kendell said, “but Rodney Azul was murdered last night.”

Jasmine’s eyes widened. “The musician? Aww, man… No, I hadn’t heard. I’ve seen him play at the blues club. He was really good. What happened?”

“Someone cut the lights at the party at the museum, and while the lights were out, someone cut the truss system for the stage lights. The whole truss system fell on him while he was up on stage,” Kendell explained.

“That’s…that’s quite a way to go,” Jasmine said. “I’m not really sure if I can provide you with any information to help with your investigation. I just write music. Why did you come to me for this, anyway?”

“We were looking into Stacey,” Kendell said. “She told us she had written that song for Rodney in an attempt to win him over, but then we found out she had hired a songwriter. I guess I would like to know if you told anyone that Stacey didn’t actually write the song?”

“Nope,” Jasmine said. “I keep my mouth shut.”

Kendell noted that Jasmine was holding some papers. “What’s that?” she asked.

“Oh…just…songs…” Jasmine said.

Kendell held out her hand. “Mind if I see?”

Jasmine shrugged and handed the papers over to Kendell.

The scribble certainly didn’t look like a woman’s handwriting, and on one of the scrap pieces of paper was an emblem of Gerald’s studio. Kendell raised a brow. “Do you work at the studio?” she asked, pointing to the emblem.

“No,” Jasmine said, snatching the papers back. “Look, if you’re not interested in buying some of my songs, then I should probably just go.”

Pauline crossed her arms. “Young lady, I have a bunch of grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Raised four kids myself. Point is, I’ve been around a lot of young people in my lifetime, and I can tell when a kid’s lying through her teeth. What are you hiding?”

“Nothing,” Jasmine said. “Why would you think I’m lying about something? Or that I’m hiding anything?”

“Because you are acting very strange and nervous,” Pauline said. “And, honey, I can read right through you. You’re hiding something.”

Kendell stared at Jasmine. “Oh my gosh,” Kendell said. “You didn’t write that song either, did you?”

Jasmine crossed her arms, looking quite flustered. “Why do you say that?”

“Jasmine,” Kendell said firmly. “Tell me right now. Who did you steal that song from?”

13

Jasmine did not seem too keen on admitting that she had stolen the music. She outright denied it, saying that they were being very insulting, but Kendell wasn’t buying it. “Jasmine, I can tell you’re not being completely truthful with us,” Kendell said. “We are trying to find out what happened to Rodney Azul. You realize he was murdered, right? He was just a kid. Any bit of information you have could be helpful. And, frankly, if you don’t tell us anything, we’re just going to inform the police about our lead, and then they’ll come knocking on your door instead. You wouldn’t want that, would you?”

Jasmine looked incredibly flustered.

“How about you just start by telling us about your interaction with Stacey?” Pauline asked. “When did she first contact you?”

The girl sighed heavily. She stood with her arms crossed, her head down, and she seemed to be doing everything in her power to avoid eye contact with them. Eventually, however, she relented. “So, Stacey contacted me a little over a month ago. I have a profile on this freelancing website as a songwriter, but I’ve never really gotten any hits before. People usually want to give you concepts to run with, but my profile said I already had songs written for people to choose from…so, I never really got a lot of interest. I’ve only had the profile for a couple of months, so honestly I’m surprised I got any hits at all. Anyway, Stacey contacted me because my profile said I had good blues lyrics and music as well. She made me sign a contract saying I wouldn’t tell anyone she had hired a songwriter.”

“Did she say why she needed the song?” Kendell asked, though she already knew the answer. She was just trying to keep Jasmine talking.

“Yeah. Said it was for her boyfriend. I guess that was Rodney Azul?” Jasmine asked.

“Yes,” Kendell said. “He played it for the first time at the party the Delta Blues Museum hosted. A music manager heard it and loved it. I think that’s just what Stacey was hoping would happen.”

“Yeah, she said something about Rodney’s attention being on some other chick,” Jasmine said. “I didn’t really care about any of that. I just wanted to sell the song to make some money.”

“Are you in need of some money right now?” Pauline asked.

“Yeah,” Jasmine said, somewhat embarrassed. “I took out a loan a while back to help put a down payment down on an apartment. I’m doing great with making those monthly payments and all, but I’ve had a hard time paying back that loan. Now, the bank sent the loan over to a collection agency. I’ve been getting harassed non-stop from them, and they’re saying it’s going to affect my credit if I don’t start paying up. That’s why I sold the songs.”

“I’m sorry to hear that,” Kendell said. “You look awfully young to be dealing with that sort of thing.”

“I’m twenty,” she said. “I’ve always been kind of independent. I was ready to move out when I was seventeen. I started college as soon as I graduated high school, but my folks wouldn’t help me pay for dorms, and I’ve been commuting an hour to school during the week. I got tired of it, so I started working too to save money to pay for a dorm next semester. But, honestly, I realized for just a little more, I could get my own place instead of rooming with three other girls I don’t really know. So, working…going to school… It was all a bit much. That’s why… That’s why I stole the music…”

“So, you admit that you didn’t write any of these songs you’ve been selling?” Kendell asked.

Jasmine nodded. “Yeah, they’re not really mine. And I’ve only sold the one song. Like I said, people don’t want to buy pre-written stuff, and it’s not like I know how to write music from scratch. I could probably sell the stuff to agencies, but I don’t really have the connections to do that.”

“Whose songs are you selling?” Kendell asked for what felt like the millionth time.

The girl hesitated for a moment before sighing heavily. “They belong to my grandfather. He has a million notebooks full of old songs he wrote. I found one, a really old one, and I ripped a few songs out of it. He hadn’t looked at that notebook in years, so I honestly figured that he wouldn’t notice or care. I still don’t think he knows it’s missing.”

“So, you’ve been stealing music from your grandfather to sell?” Kendell asked to confirmed, and Jasmine nodded.

“Who is your grandfather?” Pauline asked.

“Alfred James Whit,” she said. “He’s a blues musician. He did pretty well for himself.”

Kendell shrugged. She had never heard of Alfred James Whit.

Pauline, however, raised a brow. “Alfred, you say?” Pauline asked.

“Yeah,” Jasmine said. “He was a pretty popular blues musician back in the day. Especially locally. People still love him.”

“Hiccup’s name is Alfred,” Pauline said.

Kendell stared at Jasmine. “Is Hiccup your grandfather?”

“Yeah, that was his stage name. He still introduces himself as Hiccup to people,” Jasmine said with a slight adoring smile appearing on her face. “Grandad is an amazing musician. And he’s an even better songwriter. He used to write all of his old songs for his records and CDs. I remember listening to him play his music every time I came to visit him and Grandma. He loved playing on his guitar. I feel bad for stealing the song out of his notebook, but honestly, I don’t think he even remembers the song. He has a hundred old notebooks stashed all over his house full of music he never used. It’s not like he is still recording or anything. So, I snagged a few songs hoping to sell them to pay off my debt. I managed to sell the one to Stacey already. I guess I should have asked him. I was just afraid he’d say no or give me a hard time about letting my debt get turned over to a collection agency. He’s all about money management and being smart with what you have, and I didn’t want to disappoint him.”

Kendell nodded. “I understand. I wouldn’t want to disappoint my grandparents either.”

“So, what does this mean?” Pauline asked.

“I don’t know,” Kendell said. “Are you sure your grandfather doesn’t know that you stole the music?”

“Pretty sure, yeah,” Jasmine said. “I’d be too embarrassed to say anything.”

“Pauline, do you think that Hiccup noticed the song Rodney sang last night was his?” Kendell asked.

Pauline thought for a moment. “Actually, yes. Remember how he ran out all of a sudden at the party? He and I were dancing to Rodney’s playing, then all of the sudden, he just left. He seemed awfully distraught. He left during that song.”

“So…Hiccup thinks that Rodney stole his music!” Kendell exclaimed.

“It’s not just that,” Pauline said. “Think about the way Gerald had talked about Hiccup—about him being washed up. Wanting him to retire. Maybe Hiccup wasn’t really ready to retire, and his manager was just forcing him out to make room for new, younger musicians.”

“Is your grandfather resentful about his retirement?” Kendell asked Jasmine.

Jasmine now looked even more uncomfortable than before. “I don’t like what you’re getting at,” she said.

“Just tell the truth, Jasmine,” Kendell insisted.

Jasmine shrugged. “Honestly, he isn’t too happy about it. Mister Gerald kind of pressured him into doing this whole farewell tour this year. Grandad is a musician. He loves it. He loves going on tour and writing new music. When Mister Gerald told him he was going to be done promoting him, Grandad got pretty mad. I mean, Mister Gerald was going to set him up pretty good in his retirement. Have him do this farewell tour, sell some Hiccup merchandise, that sort of thing, but that’s not the same as still being actively playing and touring. Mister Gerald thinks my grandad can’t handle it anymore, and my grandad’s never liked people to tell him he’s too old to do anything.”

“I know the feeling,” Pauline said.

“So, Hiccup is told that he is getting the boot to make room for new musicians coming in. Then, he sees Rodney playing a song he can only assume the kid stole from him somehow,” Kendell said. “He probably saw Gerald getting all excited about it too. It probably made him angry.”

“And he left the room,” Pauline said. “He could have gone to cut the power. Hiccup told me he had played at that museum for events plenty of times before, so he knew the area. He probably also knew how to get up into that catwalk and cut the lines.”

Kendell nodded in agreement. “Hiccup is our killer.”

Jasmine looked very pale. “You can’t be serious. My grandad wouldn’t hurt anybody!”

“He doesn’t know that his granddaughter is the one who stole the music,” Pauline said. “He thinks that some local punk swiped one of his songs and got his big break. In Hiccup’s head, Rodney probably became the symbol of his forced retirement. Rodney’s one of those new, young musicians that Gerald is replacing him with. That made Hiccup angry. Does that sound like something your grandfather would get angry about?”

Jasmine winced. “I mean…” She paused and shifted her stance. “Yes. Yes, it does. His music meant everything to him. He has been so angry about his retirement. He even threatened Mister Gerald once. I shouldn’t have done this! I stole his song and sicked him on Rodney, didn’t I? I made my grandfather snap!”

“No one is responsible for this except for your grandfather,” Pauline said. “No, you shouldn’t have stolen the songs, but that’s hardly excuse for what your grandfather did. We need to find Hiccup. Do you have any idea where he might be?”

Jasmine thought for a moment. “Actually, yes. I spoke to him earlier today. He said he was going to the blues club and then was going to go grab lunch by the river. There is this little café on the riverfront he really likes. He’s probably there now.”

“Jasmine, thank you for talking to us,” Kendell said. “But we need to go talk to your grandfather now.”

Jasmine looked mortified. “I really messed up. I messed up so bad.”

“It’s not your fault, dear,” Pauline said. “Let’s go, Kendell.”

Kendell and Pauline headed for their rental car, leaving Jasmine behind. Jasmine looked very upset as she stormed across the parking lot to her own vehicle. “You really think Hiccup did it?” Kendell asked Pauline.

“He had the motive,” Pauline said. “And he dipped out right before Rodney was killed. He would have had time to cut the power and send those stage lights flying down on top of him. Sounds like Hiccup is guilty.”

Kendell shook her head, disappointed. She had really liked the old man. She pulled the car out of the lot. “We should call Officer Tripp,” Kendell said. “Let him know what we found out and have him meet us at the café.”

“I’m already on it,” Pauline said. “I’m calling the station now.”

14

Kendell sped through Clarksdale, heading straight for the Mississippi River. The café Jasmine had told them about wasn’t far, but they didn’t want to risk missing Hiccup. She went over the facts in her head as she drove, and she was confident that they had at last identified the culprit. And in record time, no less. They had been investigating Rodney’s murder for less than twenty-four hours, so a part of her felt a sense of pride as they headed to the café.

“What did Officer Tripp say?” Kendell asked after Pauline had hung up on the station.

“He said do not approach him and that he would be there soon,” Pauline said. “So, let’s just get to the café and keep an eye on him, make sure he doesn’t leave or anything.”

“Sounds like a plan,” Kendell said. “I can’t believe we figured it out.”

“You and I are pretty good at this,” Pauline said. “We should open up our own practice.”

Kendell laughed. “Yeah, I don’t think so. I think I’m perfectly fine with my job as a flight attendant. Although, truth be told, this has been pretty fun.”

“I’m glad you’re having fun,” Pauline said with a giggle. “Once Officer Tripp nabs Hiccup and we present the police with all the evidence we’ve managed to find, I think they’ll give us the go-ahead to leave. And we’ll be Georgia bound before you know it.”

“Good,” Kendell said. “I’m looking forward to seeing where you’re from. I’ve only ever been to the Atlanta airport, you know? I’ve never actually seen the city.”

“Well, Atlanta is an entirely different monster from the little town I’m from,” Pauline said with a smile. “I’m about an hour south of the city.”

“Well, either way, I’m looking forward to it,” Kendell said just as they were pulling up to the café.

A small, silver car came zipping out of the café’s parking lot, forcing Kendell to slam on her brakes. “Hey!” Pauline yelped.

The next moment seemed to happen in slow motion. The little silver car whipped around them, driving in the direction they had come from. Kendell glanced out the driver’s window, and she saw him. Hiccup. He was glaring as he glanced in their direction before speeding off. “Oh my gosh! That was Hiccup! He’s making a run for it! Jasmine must have called him and told him we were coming after him!” Kendell shrieked and quickly spun the car around in the street.

“Ooh, that little girl is such a little troublemaker!” Pauline exclaimed. “I’m calling the station. Don’t lose him!”

“How in the world did I wind up in a car chase?!” Kendell cried as she chased after Hiccup. The man had gotten pretty far ahead of them, but Kendell did her best to keep up without playing with the line of reckless endangerment.

“Yes, Hiccup has left the café, and he definitely knows… Yes, we’re following him… I have no idea what the name of this road is— I’m not from Mississippi!”

“Well, this is just great!” Kendell exclaimed.

“Ooh, he’s pulling in near some docks!” Pauline yelped into the phone.

Kendell whipped her car into the parking lot where a river ferry ride was loading up. Hiccup ran across the parking lot, pushing past people in line to get onto the boat. Kendell did the same, but Pauline remained behind—no way was she about to run through that parking lot after all of that dancing she had done. The woman’s feet had gotten swollen, so a foot chase was out of the question, and Kendell was on her own.

“Hiccup! Stop running!” Kendell shouted, but obviously, the man didn’t listen. He managed to board the enormous ferryboat, and Kendell lost him in the crowd.

She ran about the deck of the ship, and the next thing she knew, the boat was moving. “Oh, you’ve got to be kidding me!” Kendell yelped. She ran to the railing and stared back at the docks where she had just boarded. She could see Pauline and Dot standing on the docks now, the old woman shaking her head. “Kendell! What did you do!” the old woman shouted, and her shout turned into a slight cackle. “Honey, you are getting to be as big of a troublemaker as I am!”

Kendell shook her head. “Have Officer Tripp meet us at the ferry’s next stop!” Kendell called, and Pauline gave her a thumbs up to let her know she had heard the instruction.

Kendell spun around. Hiccup was somewhere on that boat, and she was determined to find him. Her first thought was to alert the shipping crew that they had a runaway criminal on board, but she wasn’t really sure where everyone was at. She had more or less stowed away on the tour, so she had missed the crew introductions. She headed to the interior of the boat, where the ferry had a nice bar setup for the people enjoying the tour.

She glanced around the room and finally spotted Hiccup hiding out in a corner. “Hiccup!” she shouted, and the man jumped up and headed out a back exit. “Oh, no you don’t!” she called after him, hurrying across the room. “Stop that man!” she shouted, but no one seemed particularly interested in getting involved and instead just jumped out of Kendell’s way as she continued to pursue him onto the deck.

Kendell lost sight of him once again as she exited the cabin. She frowned, stepping toward the edge and gripping the railing. The ferry was slowing down. No doubt the police had managed to call the captain and tell him that he needed to stop at the next dock because a suspect had snuck onto the boat. Kendell could see hers and Pauline’s rental car whipping into the parking lot at the dock up ahead along with several police cars. She grinned. “He’s so busted,” Kendell said, but then she felt someone grip her. “Ah!” she yelped, spinning around to see that Hiccup had a hold of her wrist.

“You should have just minded your own business!” the old man snapped at her.

Kendell yanked back, and the two of them tumbled back, smashing into the railing. “Let go of me, you old man!” Kendell snapped, attempting to yank her wrist away, but the man had a tight grip.

She then felt his hands around her waist, and she realized he was trying to pick her up. Her eyes widened when she realized she was about to topple over the side of the ferry. She had no balance, and frankly, she felt a little ashamed the old geezer had managed to one-up her so easily. “Nope!” she shouted. “If I’m going for a swim, you’re going with me!” She threw her legs around the man, pulling him with her. The two of them toppled into the river.

It was a pretty far drop, and Kendell felt herself smack the water hard. The water didn’t break way quite like she had hoped, so she was pretty sure she was going to bruise from the impact. She went under, and she felt Hiccup kick her in the side, but she managed to distance herself pretty quickly and get away from the ferry. Hiccup was struggling a bit more in the water, and Kendell was sure he had injured himself when she pulled him over the railing with her.

“You stupid ginger!” he shouted as he floated down the river.

Kendell got dunked a couple of times, but eventually, she made her way to the docks where a couple of officers were able to help her out of the water. Hiccup had already been nabbed and was sitting on the ground in handcuffs by the time she was pulled out. The ferry was now docking, and the people on the tour boat were all by the railing with their phones out, recording the incident.

Officer Tripp and Pauline came hurrying over to her. “Are you all right?” Pauline exclaimed. “I can’t believe you chased that man onto that boat!” She slapped Kendell’s arm to let her know she had scared her half to death.

“Did he assault you?” Officer Tripp asked.

“Yeah, I’d say so,” Kendell huffed. “He went to push me over the side of the ferry, but I pulled him down with me.” She touched her side. “Dang, I felt like I hit concrete when I hit the water.”

“I’ll have a paramedic look at you,” Officer Tripp said.

“Thanks.” Kendell grimaced a bit.

“Good work, ladies,” Officer Tripp said with a smile.

“So, are we allowed to leave Mississippi now?” Kendell asked. “After that fall into the water, I’m kind of ready to get out of here.”

Officer Tripp grinned. “I’d say so.” He walked off to speak to the paramedics.

Kendell had some bruising, and the paramedics recommended she go to the hospital for x-rays. Rather than take an ambulance, Kendell and Pauline drove in the rental. Thankfully, after a few hours waiting around in the ER, they were able to tell her she hadn’t broken anything. As they were leaving the hospital, Pauline stuck Hiccup’s CD into the player and began bobbing her head along to the music.

Kendell raised a brow. “Seriously, Pauline?”

“What?” Pauline asked. “He might be a crazy murderer, but that doesn’t mean I can’t enjoy his music.”

Kendell shook her head. “Whatever you say, Pauline. Let’s just get back to the motel and pack. I’m ready to get out of Mississippi, if that’s okay with you.”

Pauline laughed, still nodding along to the smooth sound of the blues. “Of course, dear. Of course.”

15

“Well, ladies, I hate to see you leave,” Bobby said as he helped Pauline place her bag into the back of the rental car. “It’s been fun.”

“Aww, who are you kidding?” Pauline teased. “You’re ready to get rid of us. We’re nothing but a couple of troublemakers.”

“You read our minds,” Jen laughed. “You ladies have a safe drive to Georgia.”

“Thank you so much for your hospitality,” Pauline said. “Our stay in Mississippi has been quite an adventure.”

“I bet after all this madness, you won’t ever come back to Mississippi, will ya?” Bobby asked.

Kendell smirked. “I don’t know. I mean, it seems like no matter where we go, Pauline and I can manage to get ourselves into trouble. Honestly, I’ve enjoyed our stay.”

“Bobby, I think they might be a little crazy,” Jen said.

Kendell picked up Dot and placed the little dog in her carrier that was currently sitting in the back seat. The little thing was acting like she was falling asleep. Kendell patted the dog’s head before closing her up into her carrier. “I’ll drive, dear,” Pauline said. “Helps keep me awake, and I don’t want to be half-asleep when we finally reach Georgia.” Pauline hopped into the driver’s seat after giving Bobby and Jen a quick side-hug.

“Thanks again, you two,” Kendell said, smiling at the kind motel owners before hopping into the passenger’s seat.

Pauline pulled out of the parking lot, and the two of them were finally on their way east. They drove along the riverfront for a while, enjoying the scenery, before finally finding their way to a highway. Kendell had gotten up pretty early that morning, so she wound up falling asleep in the car for a good bit. When she awoke, they were only a few more hours out from the Alabama/Georgia line. “Ooh, how long was I out?” Kendell asked with a yawn.

“About two hours,” Pauline said. “You were out cold.”

Kendell rubbed her eyes. “Ugh, I never used to sleep like that in cars, until this trip.” She stretched her back. “I think I might need some coffee.”

“I could use some as well,” Pauline said. “I think I saw a sign for a doughnut shop. I bet they have coffee.”

“I wouldn’t mind, like, something cold. Like a Frappuccino,” Kendell said.

“That sounds excellent,” Pauline agreed, so they pulled off the highway for a bit. They got out at the doughnut shop and stretched their legs, heading inside to place their coffee orders and make use of the facilities.

Soon, they were once again on the road, and Pauline was still insisting on driving. The woman was making excellent time. “You seem like you’re in a bit of a hurry,” Kendell said. “When does this flight from Atlanta leave, anyway?”

Pauline stammered. “Oh…um… I’m not sure…”

“All right,” Kendell said, taking a swig of her frozen coffee before setting it in the cup holder and turning toward Pauline. “The jig is up. Time to tell me what’s really going on. Why are we really going to Georgia, Pauline?”

Pauline sighed. “We do have a flight to catch, but it’s not as soon as I’ve been implying.”

“Okay, so what? Are you just homesick and are afraid to admit it or something, and you want to spend a few days in your hometown? I’m okay with that. You don’t have to lie to me,” Kendell said.

“No, it’s nothing like that,” Pauline said, sighing. “Remember how I mentioned those two granddaughters of mine?”

“The two you actually like,” Kendell said. “Or, I guess I should say, the two who have been supportive of you about this crazy adventure? The sisters?”

“Those are the ones,” Pauline said. “The older girl, she’s about your age. After we left Texas, when we finally had cell reception, I saw that I had a missed call from her. You were asleep in the car, and I called her back, and she was very distraught. She just wanted to talk to her grandma about some trouble she’s been having, and, well…now I’m all worried about her.”

“Oh, I get it,” Kendell said. “Pauline, if you wanted to go visit your granddaughter, you could have just told me. That’s family. I completely understand.”

“I know, I know,” Pauline said. “I just wasn’t sure if I was overreacting or not. I worry about her. She takes herself so seriously, you know?”

“What sort of problem is she having?” Kendell asked.

“A boy problem,” Pauline said with a huff. “She is dating this lovely boy. I just love him to death. It’s a little complicated, though. The two of them run a business together. They’ve been friends for a long time. Plus, they live together. They were roommates before they started dating.”

“Ooh, that does sound complicated,” Kendell said. “Is there trouble in paradise or something?”

“No! And that’s the thing,” Pauline said. “He is so good to her, Kendell. They have a lot in common. He is just the kind of man you hope your children or grandchildren meet. Someone who treats them right. Someone who respects their dreams and ambitions. He’s a good, good man. But…my granddaughter…”

“Does she not feel the same way about him?” Kendell asked.

“Oh, no, she absolutely does. You see… About a year ago, she was engaged to someone else,” Pauline said. “And, well, she lost him. He was killed. It was very traumatic. It was just awful. They were going to get married, and he was a good man. After she lost him, I honestly didn’t know what was going to happen. She was so distraught. She’s a tough girl. Tried to act like she had everything together, but I know she didn’t. Not really. Then her and her roommate started dating. I was ecstatic. But my granddaughter is having a hard time moving on. I don’t blame her, but I feel like she’s been stringing this poor man around for almost a year now, and she’s not really committing to him. I just think I need to come and smack some sense into the girl before she loses something good,” Pauline explained.

“Don’t you think this is something your granddaughter needs to figure out for herself?” Kendell asked.

“Of course,” Pauline said. “I don’t like to intervene in my grandchildren’s lives, but I’m just so worried about her. I feel like I at least need to talk to her face to face. Let her vent. Hear her out. Maybe try to help if I can.”

“I understand,” Kendell said. “There’s no reason you shouldn’t. You didn’t have to keep something like this a secret from me, Pauline. I would have understood.”

“I was worried you would think me going to Georgia for something personal like this would make you think I wanted to end our little adventure,” Pauline said. “But I’m not ready for it to end. I just needed to hit the pause button for a little while.”

“There is nothing wrong with that,” Kendell assured her. “How long will we have in Georgia before we have to catch a flight in Atlanta?”

“Just a few days,” Pauline said. “Enough time for me to see some of my grandchildren and to give this one a reality check. I think you’ll like her. You two are a lot alike.”

“You said she runs her own business?” Kendell asked. “What does she do?”

“She’s a party planner,” Pauline said. “She’s been doing it for a long time, and she does a wonderful job. She used to just run the whole business out of her van. It was supposed to be a side job to put herself through college, but she realized she had a calling. Now, she does it full time and operates out of a shop. My daughter, her mom, she tells me that she has expanded the business some. I don’t have all the details, but I’m looking forward to seeing what-all she’s done to the place.”

“That does sound very exciting,” Kendell said. “Well, I’m really looking forward to meeting your granddaughter. She sounds like a fun person.”

“She’s really not,” Pauline said with a laugh. “She takes herself far too seriously. Kind of like you. You have to force her to enjoy herself because she’s always working. Like I said, she reminds me a lot of you.”

Kendell smirked. “Haha, very funny, Pauline.”

“Well, honey, are you denying it?” Pauline asked. “Before you and I bumped into each other, you had been working non-stop for five years at that airline. Five years and you had never taken a single vacation day. You told me the airline was implementing a new policy about only letting a limited number of vacation days roll over because of you. Five years, and not one vacation day!”

“Hey, if I hadn’t have saved up all those vacation days, there’s no way you and I would be off on this adventure,” Kendell pointed out. “I wouldn’t have been able to take off this much time.”

“I suppose that’s true,” Pauline said. “But it did take a crazy old lady sneaking her dog onto an airplane to finally convince you to live a little. Now, that same crazy old lady needs your help to convince her granddaughter to do the same before she breaks her own heart.”

“All right, well, I’m game,” Kendell said. “Let’s go save your granddaughter’s relationship before she pushes this nice guy away.”

“That’s the spirit!” Pauline exclaimed. “Senoia, Georgia or bust!”

Kendell shook her head. “So, Pauline, what is your granddaughter’s name, anyway?”

“Felicity,” Pauline said. “Felicity Overton.”

* * *

An Artful Assassination

Flight Risk Cozy Mystery, Book 6

1

The car bounced, causing Kendell to stir. She blinked her eyes open after realizing the cool sensation on her cheek was slobber. “Eww! Dot!” Kendell exclaimed, positioning the passenger’s seat back up into a seated position. The little white fluffball yelped and hopped into the back seat.

Pauline, the elderly woman currently driving down what looked like some twisted backroads, laughed. “Sorry, Kendell,” the old woman said. “I think she smelled that peanut butter and jelly sandwich we had earlier and wanted a lick.”

Kendell rubbed her eyes. They had been driving for hours, and she had just relinquished the driver’s seat a little over an hour and a half ago when she had started to feel drowsy. The two unlikely traveling companions should be in South America, walking the Incan trails, but that trip had been abruptly cut short thanks to a hurricane that landed them in Texas. Since then, they had been traveling through the South via rental car toward Pauline’s home in Georgia.

“Please tell me we’re almost there,” Kendell moaned.

“As a matter of fact, we crossed the Georgia line while you were asleep,” Pauline said happily.

“Thank goodness!” Kendell exclaimed. “How far are we from Senoia?”

“Oh, about half an hour or so,” Pauline said. “The car rental place is in Peachtree City. My granddaughters are going to pick us up there.”

Kendell smiled. “I’m really excited to meet some of your family, Pauline.”

“Oh, and I just cannot wait for you to meet my girls!” the old woman cried.

The two of them had become acquainted just about a month before. Kendell was a flight attendant, working a flight from her home base in New York to London, when she had met the rambunctious old woman, Pauline. There was just something about the lady that had attracted Kendell to her, and the woman had invited her along on her retirement adventure around the world. Thanks to a ridiculous amount of saved-up vacation time, the timing had been perfect. “Felicity and Iris, right?” Kendell asked, making sure she remembered the two granddaughters Pauline had mentioned, and wasn’t at all shy to say that the two of them were her favorite of her fourteen grandchildren.

“That’s right,” Pauline said. “Felicity told me she’s got some sort of big news for us.”

“You think her and that guy are engaged?” Kendell suggested, wanting to give Pauline some hope. That was the real reason they were going to Georgia, after all. Pauline was concerned that her granddaughter was pushing her good-boy boyfriend away because of some grief she was still going through regarding her ex-fiancé. Kendell was not sure of the entire story, but Pauline was definitely pushing her granddaughter with this guy, Jefferson. Enough to put a pin in her extravagant vacation plans just to go knock some sense into the girl.

“Oh, I don’t think so,” Pauline said. “But, here’s hoping! You’re going to love Felicity. She’s about your age.”

“What is it she does again? Event planning?” Kendell asked.

“That’s right,” Pauline said. “I’m told she recently expanded her shop and is partial owner of another company. It’s all very exciting. I’m so proud of her. She works very hard. And her little sister, Iris, is just like her. Iris is talking about going into law. I hope she does it. I think it would be a perfect fit.”

Kendell smiled. “You sure do sound like a proud grandmama.”

“Oh, honey, you know I am,” Pauline exclaimed. “You might want to check your phone, by the way. It was buzzing a bit earlier.”

“Thanks,” Kendell said, digging around the floorboard in search of her cell phone. “I got some texts from Jack. Says he misses me and hopes I’m having a lot of fun.”

“That’s sweet,” Pauline said. “Glad he finally straightened up.”

“Me too,” Kendell told her. “I don’t know why he was like that in the first place, though.” Kendell frowned as she thought back to her earlier trips with Pauline. Her boyfriend of nearly five years had started acting like a real jerk—controlling and demanding, angry that she was taking some time to herself. It was very out of character for him, but thankfully, he had apologized to her and had been a real sweetheart ever since. “I just wish I knew where that attitude of his came from all of a sudden.”

“Yes, you said that was strange behavior for him,” Pauline said. “Well, it’s good that he apologized. That’s a lot better than some men, you know? Trying to get my husband to apologize was like pulling teeth, and I count him a good man. That Jack fellow sounds like a good catch, but you need to watch out. Make sure he’s not just playing nice.”

“You’d think after five years I’d know whether or not I had a good guy,” Kendell said.

“What’s your heart tell you?”

“I think he is. It was just weird the way he was acting when I first went on this trip,” Kendell said. “I just can’t help but feeling that something else is up, you know?”

“I agree,” Pauline said. “Ooh, yes! We’re in Peachtree City! Finally!”

Kendell glanced out the window to take a good look at the small city. There were cars all over the road. No skyscrapers or anything like what she was used to in New York, but there were shopping centers and a lot of restaurants. The thing that stood out to her the most, though, were the golf carts. “What in the world?” Kendell asked, pointing to some golf carts crossing the street up ahead.

“Oh, yes, Peachtree City…” Pauline said with a laugh. “Half the people in this city get from place to place by golf cart. In fact, all the walking trails have been made wide enough specifically for golf carts to ride up and down. And most places have parking spaces just for golf carts.”

“That’s so weird!” Kendell exclaimed, laughing as they drove by a high school whose parking lot was completely filled with nothing but golf carts.

“That’s Peachtree City for you,” Pauline said with a laugh, and eventually, they arrived at the rental car place. Kendell and Pauline dragged all of their bags out of the car, placing Dot into the bedazzled carrier as they headed inside.

“Did you call Felicity?” Kendell asked as she dragged the last of the bags inside and placed everything on some chairs in the waiting area.

“I texted her,” Pauline said, scurrying up to the counter to speak to the gentleman working there. “She’ll be here soon.” Pauline turned to the man and handed over the keys of the rental car they had gotten from Texas.

Kendell sat down in one of the chairs, Dot’s carrier beside her. The dog was falling asleep. “You and me both, Dot,” Kendell said with a yawn. She pulled out her cellphone, deciding to find out exactly how far away they were from Senoia. She wasn’t looking forward to being in the car for too much longer. Much to her pleasure, they were only about fifteen minutes or so away from the little town. “Thank goodness,” she said under her breath. “Don’t worry, Dot. We’re about done with the car rides.”

“Oh my goodness!” Pauline suddenly yelped, picking up Dot’s carrier and hurrying out the door.

Kendell shook her head. Pauline had gotten excited and had darted off. Kendell turned and looked out the window, seeing Pauline excitedly talking to two young women. “That must be her granddaughters,” Kendell said under her breath and began grabbing up all the luggage. She thanked the man working the counter. Kendell could hear Dot yelping excitedly outside.

“Pauline, you could at least get the door for me,” Kendell called, struggling as she attempted to make her way outside with all the bags.

The older of the girls hurried over, laughing a bit as she opened the door for Kendell. “So, you must be the mysterious woman who has been traveling with my grandmama?” the woman asked in a slight southern accent, nothing compared to the southern drawl she had become accustomed to from Pauline.

“That would be me,” she said, still struggling with the bags. “My name’s Kendell McDonald. Nice to meet you both. Pauline has told me a lot about you two,” she said as the younger sister came to help her out with some of the bags.

Kendell stretched her back. She heard her spine pop slightly, stiff after being in the car for so long. As she did so, she spied a shiny old-timey car in the parking lot. It was a bright red Cobra. “Whoa! Check out that car over there. Dang!” Kendell exclaimed.

The older sister, Felicity, laughed and jingled her car keys. “Want to ride it?”

“That’s yours!” Kendell cried out, eyeing the shiny car.

“It is now,” Felicity said. “Come on, let’s go, Grandmama. I know Mom is really excited to hear about your travels. I am too, as a matter of fact.”

“Okay, but on our way to Senoia, you’re going to have to explain to me exactly how you got that car,” Pauline said, just as surprised as Kendell at the vintage vehicle.

“Wait until Felicity tells you!” Iris, the younger sister, exclaimed. “It’s crazy! Felicity, tell them how much it’s worth!”

“Hold on a second, Iris,” Felicity said. “Let’s get on the road first.”

Kendell and Iris loaded up the bags and then sat next to one another in the back seat of the shiny red convertible. Pauline sat in the passenger’s seat, and Felicity took the wheel, starting up the engine and pulling out of the parking lot. “Okay, so how did you come across this car?” Pauline asked.

“A client of mine just gave it to me,” Felicity said. “Well, sort of. He wasn’t really a client. You remember my first case, the Charles Jones case from two years ago?”

“The man who was murdered on the elevator?” Pauline asked.

“Yes,” Felicity said. “Well, his son Brandon was murdered, and I solved that case as well. Brandon’s older brother, Charles Junior, was so thankful for what-all I’ve done for the family that he just gave me his father’s car!”

“It’s worth five million!” Iris cried, practically screaming it in her excitement.

“Someone just gave you a five-million-dollar car!” Pauline asked, looking nearly faint.

“That’s right,” Felicity said. “I couldn’t believe it either.”

“So… I thought you were a party planner?” Kendell asked.

“I am,” Felicity said.

“So, what are you doing solving two murders?” Kendell asked.

“Well, I was just a party planner. But, recently, I’ve expanded my business operations,” Felicity explained. “I own a detective agency now.”

“Whoa,” Kendell said. “That sounds pretty cool. So party planning and private-eye stuff?”

“Pretty much,” Felicity said with a laugh. “It keeps me pretty busy, but I love it.”

Kendell smiled, realizing that troublemaking probably ran in the family. Pauline, she had learned, had a tendency of getting them into trouble. They were always being pulled into some sort of local crime wherever they went. It seemed only fitting that one of the woman’s granddaughters would be a detective! And the younger one was talking about going into law. “These two are definitely your grandchildren, Pauline,” Kendell said.

“I’m sure you think that because of their stunning looks. It’s genetic,” Pauline said with a slight cackle. “I cannot wait to show you around my hometown, Kendell. Girls, Kendell has been such a big help on my trips. You really have no idea.”

Felicity smiled back at Kendell in the rearview mirror. “I hope my grandmama hasn’t been too much of a handful for you.”

Kendell grinned. “Of course, she has,” Kendell joked. “But I think I am just as much of a troublemaker as she is.”

“Good,” Felicity said. “Sounds like you’re going to fit in around here just fine.”

2

They pulled up to a large home with an even larger yard surrounded by woods. “Whoa,” Kendell said. “Talk about rural living.”

“That’s right, you’re from New York,” Felicity said as they headed down the gravel driveway after pulling off a dirt road. “I bet this is a bit of a culture shock, huh?”

“You have no idea,” Kendell said, staring in disbelief to see that the home next door had their own cow pasture. “So, this is where you two grew up?” Kendell asked Felicity and Iris.

“That’s right,” Iris said. “This is Mom and Dad’s place. It sure was a lot of fun growing up here. Felicity and I used to run around in the woods a lot.”

“Remember that time Mister Smith’s bull got loose in our yard?” Felicity asked.

“Are you kidding? When Dad tried to chase it back to the fence with a belt as a whip, it wound up charging him, and Dad had to climb up a tree to get away from it!” Iris laughed.

“That’s not funny, girls!” Pauline exclaimed. “Your father threw his back out and was bedridden for a week.”

“Yeah, but that video went up online and has gotten a ton of hits,” Iris said.

“Iris! Quit picking on your poor father,” Pauline said.

“You pick on him all the time,” Felicity argued.

“He’s my son-in-law,” Pauline said. “He’s supposed to be scared of me. You two respect him.”

“Yes, ma’am,” the sisters said in unison as Felicity parked the car out front.

“Something reeks,” Iris said as they walked into the house.

“Okay, don’t make fun of your mom’s cooking either,” Pauline said, and the two of them laughed.

“Mom’s not cooking, Grandmama,” Felicity said.

“Oh,” Pauline said. “It sort of smelled like one of her dishes…”

Kendell laughed, shaking her head. Something really did smell unpleasant. “Mom!” a voice called, and Kendell looked up to see a middle-aged woman sprinting through the living room, full of energy and excitement. The woman wrapped her arms around Pauline. “Mom! How has your trip been going?”

“Wonderfully,” Pauline said. “Darling, what is that I’m smelling?”

The woman sighed heavily. “I’m afraid our guest room is flooded.” The woman rolled her eyes and looked at Felicity and Iris. “Your father decided he was going to redo the upstairs bathroom, and he wound up busting a toilet. The whole house stinks!”

“If the guest room is flooded, where are Grandmama and her friend supposed to stay?” Iris asked.

“They can stay with us,” Felicity suggested.

Iris pinched her nose. “Lucky them.”

Her mother slapped her daughter’s arm. She then turned to Kendell and offered her a warm smile. “I’m Samantha, by the way. I’ve heard a lot about you from my mom,” she said and gave Kendell a warm embrace.

Kendell smiled. “Thank you for being so welcoming. I’m sorry about your bathroom flooding! That’s no fun.”

“No, especially with a husband who thinks he is Mister Fix-it. I’ve thankfully convinced him to call a plumber,” she said, shaking her head. “Unfortunately, Mom, I’m going to have to deal with this fiasco today.”

“Sammy, it’s fine,” Pauline said. “Kendell and I will go to Felicity’s and get settled in. Iris, why don’t you stay back and help your mother out?”

“Joy,” Iris said, pinching her nose again.

“Your father is going to be disappointed he missed out on seeing the car,” Samantha said, laughing. “So, he really just gave that to you, Felicity?”

“I know. I’m still stunned,” Felicity said with a laugh. “Come on, we’ll ride on down to my house.”

“Is Jefferson going to be there?” Pauline asked as the three of them loaded back up into the car after allowing Dot a quick bathroom break.

“He lives there, Grandmama. It’s his house,” Felicity said as they pulled out.

“How very New York of you,” Kendell said, a bit surprised to hear she lived with her boyfriend. It wasn’t exactly the conservative stereotype Kendell had grown up hearing.

Felicity laughed. “Well, we have our own rooms,” Felicity said.

“Ah,” Kendell said, laughing. “That sounds a little more Georgia.”

“I lost my house last year. Jefferson offered his spare room to me. I pay rent. We started dating a short while after that,” Felicity explained.

“Is Jefferson the one you run the event shop with?” Kendell asked.

“That’s the one,” Felicity said.

“I just love Jefferson,” Pauline said. “Such a sweet boy with a good head on his shoulders. I like him a lot more than that boy you dated back in high school.”

“Grandmama, Jack and I are still friends, so you have to play nice. In fact, he and I are business partners now. He owns half of the detective agency,” Felicity said.

“Jack’s my boyfriend’s name back home in New York,” Kendell said. “Funny. So you run a business with your current boyfriend and your ex-boyfriend?”

“Yeah, and out of the same building!” Pauline exclaimed.

“How does that work?” Kendell asked.

“Pretty well, actually,” Felicity said. “The two of them are friends.”

“I really want to check out this shop of yours,” Kendell said. “How do you make such different businesses work under one roof like that?”

“We’ll go by there tomorrow,” Felicity said. “Grandmama, you haven’t been by since we added in the detective agency, anyway. It’s really starting to come together. I’d love for you to see it.”

“I’d love to see it!” Pauline cried. “I’m so proud of you, Felicity.”

“Thanks, Grandmama,” Felicity said with a big smile.

Soon they were pulling up to a small house in a little neighborhood. Nothing like the neighborhoods in New York where the houses were right up on one another and separated by gates. The yards were large, and some homes had a line of trees separating them. Kendell smiled, loving the quaintness of the area.

“Hey!” a voice called, and Kendell got her first glimpse of Jefferson.

He was adorable. The man was standing out on the side porch, a grill up and going. He smiled down the driveway in their direction, abandoning the grill for a moment to come and greet them. He looked very youthful. His eyes shimmered a bit, and even though this was Kendell’s first time seeing them, she could already tell he completely adored Felicity. “Jefferson!” Pauline called, waving him on as he made his way to them.

The young man smiled and gave the old lady a hug. “Always good to see you, Miss Pauline,” Jefferson said. He put his hand out. “Kendell, right?” he asked, shaking.

“That’s right,” she said with a smile.

“Dad overflowed the bathroom, and now the guest room is flooded,” Felicity said. “I hope you don’t mind if Grandmama and Kendell stay with us for a few days?”

“No, not at all!” Jefferson said, immediately going to grab their bags. “Felicity, would you mind throwing a few more burgers and hot dogs on the grill?”

“On it!” Felicity said, hurrying up to the house.

Kendell and Pauline followed Jefferson inside as he put their bags on the couch. “Hmm…” Jefferson said under his breath. “It would probably be best if I maybe stayed at Jack’s. That way each of you ladies could have your own bed, and Felicity could take up the couch.”

Felicity shook her head, coming in from the porch. “My bed is plenty big enough for me and Grandmama to share,” she said.

“Okay, then Kendell can have my room, and I’ll slum on the couch,” Jefferson said. “Besides, Jack’s place is starting to smell like kitty litter. Brittany talked him into getting two cats.”

Felicity laughed. “So I heard!”

“You guys are so sweet,” Kendell said, smiling. “But, Pauline, is there a reason we’re not just staying at your place?”

“Oh, honey, I sold it,” Pauline said with the wave of her hand. “After my retirement trip, I was planning on getting myself just a little apartment or a trailer. It was time I downsized. Got tired of taking care of my big yard. I am getting too old for that nonsense.”

“I didn’t realize you had sold your house,” Kendell said.

“Good retirement investment. We paid off the house years ago, so all that went into savings,” Pauline said. “A little camper sitting on my daughter’s property sounds good to me. I can be close to my daughter if I need her when I get really old, but far enough away to where I won’t drive my son-in-law crazy.”

Felicity laughed. “Dad loves you,” she assured her.

“Oh, I know he does, but you know we drive each other crazy,” Pauline said, and Felicity laughed.

“I’m going to go check on the burgers. Feel free to settle in,” Jefferson said, dipping out of the room after giving Felicity a friendly peck on the cheek.

He sure is sweet. No wonder Pauline likes him so much, Kendell thought as she watched Jefferson leave the room. Kendell glanced around the living room. Her eyes were drawn to the mantle above the fireplace where there were a bunch of framed photographs. It looked like a shrine to a group of friends. She smiled, looking at one group shot. It looked like Felicity and Jefferson had a tight-knit group they hung with. She picked up one frame in particular; it was of Felicity and another man in a tight embrace. Jefferson was also in the picture, smiling and awkwardly to the side. “Who’s this?” Kendell asked curiously, finding the picture to be a bit strange.

“Oh,” Felicity said, her cheeks turning a bit red. “That’s Brian. He was my fiancé before he was killed.”

“Oh!” Kendell exclaimed, feeling sorry that she had asked. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to…”

“No, it’s fine,” Felicity assured her. “Jefferson’s actually the one who framed that picture and put it up there. I guess it’s healthy to remember him fondly instead of shoving the memory of him away.”

“That’s my girl,” Pauline said. “I’m sure it helps to have someone as supportive as Jefferson around.”

Felicity smiled. “Definitely so.”

A few minutes later, Jefferson entered the living room with a plate full of burgers and hot dogs. “Dinner is served!” he sang, heading toward the kitchen.

Kendell sniffed the air, and her stomach growled. She hadn’t realized how hungry she had gotten. She was eager to take a bite out of one of those hamburgers. They gathered around the kitchen table, slapping on toppings and laughing while Pauline told them about their adventure in London. “The Globe Theater was just beautiful!” Pauline cried. “Wasn’t it, Kendell?”

“It was,” Kendell said, though she was personally thinking about how an actor had gotten killed while they were there.

“And you went to Africa, too, right?” Jefferson asked.

“Nairobi, Kenya,” Pauline said. “A beautiful country. We stayed at Giraffe Manor. Kendell, tell them about your little wakeup call you got!”

Kendell laughed. “Yeah, a giraffe stuck its head in through the window of our room and licked my face. About gave me a heart attack!”

Jefferson laughed. “That’s so cool. I hope you guys have pictures.”

“Oh, don’t worry, we do. I’m planning on getting some of them printed while I’m home,” Pauline said. “Oh, and Hawaii! Simply beautiful. I dumped your grandfather’s ashes there from a helicopter.”

Felicity smiled. “Grandaddy made it to Hawaii after all, huh?”

“That’s right,” Pauline said. “And after that, we got stuck in Texas and stayed on a ranch. So fun! Then on our way here, we stopped by Mississippi. I rode a ferry, and we enjoyed some blues music. It really has been a wonderful trip! But, now, I want to hear what all you’ve been up to, dear.”

Felicity went on to tell her grandmother more about some of her recent adventures, and Kendell found herself quite captivated listening to Felicity talk about her party planning business and about the detective agency. She was really looking forward to checking out the shop the following morning.

3

“Whoa,” Kendell said under her breath as she entered Overton Family of Companies behind Pauline. The little shop on Main Street, Senoia, looked like any other building on the street, but once you got inside, the magic began. The main floor of the shop Kendell now found herself standing in looked like something straight off the Clue board game. There were elegant red lounge furnishings set up where customers were already sitting and looking at sample books. A chandelier hung from the ceiling, giving the room a classy dining room feel. Crime scene tape acted as accent décor on the back wall. The base of the lamp sitting on one of the end tables was a stack of Nancy Drew and Sherlock Holmes books.

There were floating shelves on the walls covered with sample books galore where patrons were happily looking through them for inspiration for their own events. In the middle of the floor, a chalk outline of a body. The whole place looked like murder mystery threw up in there and arranged itself perfectly and majestically. “You like it?” Felicity asked her with a smile.

“It’s amazing,” Kendell said.

“It was Jefferson’s idea to do the whole murder mystery theme in the shop,” Felicity said. “Playing up my reputation as Senoia’s Nancy Drew.”

“Is that what they’re calling you now?” Pauline asked, smiling proudly as she plopped herself down on one of the red furnishings.

“Pretty much,” Jefferson said, passing by them and going to the counter a young girl was standing behind, filling out something on the computer. “Thanks for getting the place opened up for us this morning, Trixie.”

“Of course!” the young girl said. She finished what she was doing and scurried around the counter, smiling. “Are you Miss Pauline?” she asked.

Pauline stood back up. “I am.”

“I’ve heard a lot about you from Felicity and Jefferson and Jack,” she said. “I’m Trixie.”

“Oh, yes, Felicity told me about you,” Pauline said. “Sounds like you really help keep this place running smoothly.”

“I do my best,” Trixie said. “Felicity, I got us a booking this morning. When you have time, would you mind taking a look?”

“Of course, Trixie,” Felicity said. “But, I think my grandmama wants a tour.”

“I want to see the detective agency you’ve added in,” Pauline said.

“Me too,” Kendell said with a big smile in Trixie’s direction.

“Trixie, this is Kendell. She’s been accompanying my grandmama on her travels,” Felicity said, and Kendell shook the young woman’s hand.

“So, you’re one of Felicity and Jefferson’s employees?” Kendell asked.

“One of two,” she said. “My boyfriend Fix works in the agency upstairs. If you’re taking a tour, I’m sure you’ll meet him too.”

“Come on, let’s try out the elevator,” Felicity said. “We just added that in. Before, everyone had to take the stairs to get to the detective agency, so we wanted to add handicap accessibility.”

“Oh, honey, that must have been expensive!” Pauline exclaimed.

“It was quite an investment,” Felicity admitted. “But the year has been pretty good to us, and we were able to swing it.”

“I’m sure she’s not too worried about finances now that she is driving around a five-million-dollar investment,” Kendell muttered to Pauline under her breath.

“You’re not kidding,” Pauline said, laughing.

Kendell and Pauline followed Felicity into the backroom while Jefferson got to work with Trixie speaking to the customers who were currently sifting through sample books. The back was basically a giant storage room, full of shelves of items they used for some of their events. To the right was an office, Felicity’s. To the back of the room was a spiral staircase leading up to the building’s attic, and to the left was the brand-new elevator. “All aboard,” Felicity said, and the three of them headed inside.

The elevator took them up into a large room with drab carpets and a decent amount of sunlight coming in from an open window. It was clear that this office area used to be an attic due to the rafters above their heads, but it was redone nicely. There were two desks on opposite sides of the room, and a large bulletin board set up with case information. In addition, there was a display wall with framed newspaper clippings on past cases and a large filing cabinet in the corner.

“Well, well, well,” a man sitting at the larger desk said, standing. “If it isn’t Miss Pauline!”

“Jack,” Pauline said with a smile. “Hope you’ve been staying out of trouble.”

“Please, Pauline, you know I’m business partners with your granddaughter now. I’m always into some sort of trouble,” Jack said, heading over to give Pauline a big hug. Kendell smiled at him, and he beamed right back at her. “You must be…Kendell, right?”

Kendell nodded. “That’s me,” she said, feeling that it was a nice change of pace to be somewhere familiar to at least one of them. Pauline seemed to know just about everyone they had run into thus far.

The kid sitting at the smaller desk stood and came over, grinning somewhat sheepishly. “Grandmama, Kendell, this is Fix. Our other employee,” Felicity said. “He helps Jack and me out a lot on our cases. He’s going to school for criminal justice.”

“A pleasure to meet you, young man,” Pauline said.

“Pleasure’s all mine,” the boy said politely.

Kendell, while Pauline was playing catchup with Jack and showing off Dot to him, made her way to the display wall to check out some of the newspaper clippings. Felicity hadn’t been boasting when she had called herself Senoia’s Nancy Drew. The nickname had come directly from the local papers. Kendell pointed to one of them. “Hey, that’s your Cobra right there,” she said.

“Yup,” Felicity said. “That was the very first case I worked. It was at the Senoia Car Show. The car’s owner was murdered here in Senoia the same month my shop opened up, and a friend of mine was framed for the murder. I helped get him set free and find the real killer. Detective work just sort of fell into my lap, and soon, Jack and I started working together.”

Pauline had made her way over to the bulletin board where information on their current cases were pinned up. Pauline shrieked in alarm. “Felicity, what’s this? These are pictures of your room!” Pauline exclaimed, and Kendell hurried over to see what had her friend so worked up.

There were pictures of Felicity’s room as well as pictures of the shop in shambles posted on the board. “What happened?” Kendell asked.

“It’s nothing,” Felicity assured them. “We had a break-in a while back. We’re still trying to find out what happened. We’ve added security cameras since then. Someone stole some files from the agency and my sleuthing notebook from the house. And they trashed the place. No one was hurt, but the culprit still hasn’t been caught.”

“Felicity! That is very concerning,” Pauline said.

“There’s no reason to get worked up about me, Grandmama,” Felicity assured her. “Me and my team have it handled.”

Jack’s desk phone rang, so he hurried over to pick it up. “Yo, Jefferson,” he answered. “All right, I’ll tell her.” He hung up and smiled at everyone. “The Hornsbys are here.”

“Oh, awesome!” Felicity said. “We have an event tomorrow for them.”

“Ooh, so I get to see you in action, am I right?” Pauline asked.

“Of course. The event is open to the public,” Felicity said, leading them back onto the elevator.

The elevator let out in the backroom, and Felicity hurried them back into the shop. Kendell spied a young couple standing in the middle of the room—a smiley blonde woman and a serious-looking redheaded man. A young toddler was roaming around, being chased by Trixie. “Hey, Felicity!” the young woman said perkily. “Just coming by to make sure we’ve got everything set for the art show tomorrow.”

“Of course,” Felicity said. “Stephanie, TJ, this is my grandmama, Pauline, and her friend, Kendell. Grandmama, this is Stephanie and TJ Hornsby. They run a local art group, and we’ve done a few events together in the past. These two put a lot of work into their art events.” Felicity knelt as the little boy came scurrying up to her, all smiles. “Aww, is this little Oliver? He’s gotten so big! I can’t believe he’s walking now!” Felicity exclaimed as soon as the little boy fell on his behind.

“Barely,” Stephanie said with a laugh and picked him up. “We have to watch him. He’s a big climber.”

“Ha, show them that picture you took on your phone this morning,” TJ said.

Stephanie laughed and pulled out her phone, showing a picture of her kitchen where all of her chairs and stools were up on the counters. “This is what I have to do every morning before he wakes up because he climbs up onto the kitchen table and tries to jump off! He’s such a mess!” Stephanie laughed, shaking her head.

“That’s so cute,” Kendell said, smirking. “So, you two have an art show tomorrow?”

“Yes, it’s an auction. We do a lot of those,” TJ said. “There will be live music and talks. Authors will be there. Painters, sculptors. Basically any kind of art you can think of.”

“That sounds really cool,” Kendell said.

“It’s at that museum you like, Grandmama,” Felicity said.

“The one in Fayetteville?” Pauline asked.

“That’s the one,” Felicity said. “The Holiday Dorsey Fife Museum.”

“Sounds exciting,” Kendell said.

“It will be,” Felicity assured her.

“Well, then, count us in,” Pauline said. “We’ll definitely attend. I might just have to get myself some artwork as well!”

“I’m sure the artists will appreciate that,” Stephanie said. “Our last one got rained out. It was really a bummer, and we didn’t sell much. Plus…we kind of planned it during a big football weekend, so we’re hoping this one is going to go over a little better.”

“I’m sure it will,” Felicity promised her. “Let’s go through everything to make sure we’re good to go for tomorrow. Jefferson, why don’t you take my grandmama and Kendell to our favorite coffee shop for some breakfast while I work through everything?”

“I’m assuming you want me to bring back your usual?” Jefferson asked.

“Definitely,” she said, smiling.

Pauline and Kendell laughed, and they followed Jefferson out the front door. “The Senoia Coffee shop has been around for a while. It’s gone through a few owners, but it’s still a favorite,” Jefferson said.

It was only a few doors down from them. Kendell’s stomach growled. She was eager for some good breakfast. As they entered into the shop, Kendell jumped when she found herself face to face with a zombie. “Oh my goodness!” she yelped.

“Oh, sorry,” the man in the incredibly gory costume said. “Didn’t mean to startle you.” He headed out, coffee in hand.

“What the heck was that!” Kendell exclaimed, and Pauline and Jefferson just laughed at her. “It’s the middle of the summer! What’s he doing in a freaking Halloween costume?”

“Didn’t you know this little town is where they film that zombie show?” Pauline asked. “Are they filming right now, Jefferson?”

“Always,” he said.

“And…this is normal? To just pop into zombies?” Kendell asked.

“They roam around on Saturdays a lot,” Jefferson said. “A lot of stuff was filmed around here. Sweet Home Alabama. Driving Miss Daisy. Fayetteville is just as popular of a film destination too. But Senoia is kind of the new headquarters for the film industry. Kind of weird for such a small town, but we make it work.”

Kendell smiled. “I think I’m really going to like this little town of yours, Pauline.”

“Good,” Pauline said, and Dot yelped in agreement.

4

Kendell and Pauline arrived at the Holiday Dorsey Fife Museum in Fayetteville. It was a small two-story building, a home belonging to some prominent families during the Civil War era that now acted as a local history museum. Inside were Civil War displays, paintings, photographs, and artifacts. “I’ve never seen so many Confederate flags in one place,” Kendell muttered under her breath as she and Pauline walked around the first floor of the building.

“Honey, you’re in Georgia,” Pauline said. “You’re bound to see those everywhere.”

“I guess so,” Kendell said. “I saw one on the back of someone’s pickup yesterday.”

Pauline shook her head. “Well, this is a museum memorializing the Civil War. You’re going to see some stuff paying homage to the Confederacy.”

Felicity, Jefferson, Jack, Trixie, and Fix had arrived about an hour before Kendell and Pauline to help the Hornsbys set up for the art show. Tablecloths were laid out over tables and display booths, covering up some of the display cabinets so that they could set up artwork. TJ headed upstairs to set up chairs in the rooms where the classes would be held, and Stephanie went around placing silent auction sheets, taping them down in front of every piece of art they had on display.

“There’s such a diversity here,” Kendell said as she admired a cat statue made entirely of spoons sitting next to an elegant painting of fruit.

“Oh, you just wait,” Jefferson said as he and Jack worked together to bring in some hand-crafted furniture that would be going up for auction. “The Hornsbys really know how to throw an art show. The group they are a part of are all about the arts—any type of art.”

“They have a fire dancer coming who’s going to be performing outside,” Felicity said.

“A fire dancer?” Kendell questioned.

“It’s art,” Jack said. “When Jefferson said any type of art, he meant it. They’re all about networking and providing outlets for artists of all kinds.”

“There will be live music outside today too on the patio,” Felicity said. “The music groups should be arriving soon. There will be about fifteen or so different local musicians showcasing and selling CDs outside during the art show.”

“This is really awesome,” Kendell said. “Very…New York.”

“Hey, the South is full of artists too,” Pauline said. “Don’t go convincing yourself that you yankees are the only cultured folks around.”

“Yes, ma’am,” Kendell said, smirking. She decided to tour the museum a bit. She was ecstatic to see some costumes on display from the Gone with the Wind movie and learned that Margarette Mitchell’s parents were buried in a cemetery nearby. She could hardly believe the deep, rich history surrounding this little town. On one wall there was a black and white photograph of the main square in Fayetteville—a man sitting on a wagon out in front of the buildings that still stood, and for some reason, the photograph transfixed her.

“I like that picture too,” an older man, probably in his seventies, said, and Kendell spun around to see a friendly gentleman staring back at her. “The man in the picture is a Mister Graves. His grandson now owns that building he’s in front of, turned it into a tavern. You ought to go by sometime. They got good food.”

Kendell smiled. “Are you here for the auction?”

“I’m one of the artists,” he said and stuck out his hand. “Name’s Tim.”

“Kendell,” she said, shaking. “What artwork is yours?”

“Did you see all the cat sculptures?” he asked.

“The ones made from spoons?” Kendell asked.

“That’s me,” he said. “I weld unusual objects together and make cats.”

“That’s so fun and unique,” she said.

“Thanks, sweetie. If you like it, bid on it for me,” he said with a wink.

Kendell followed him out into the main hall, where most of the artwork was currently being set up. More artists were arriving with more and more artwork. Felicity came scurrying down the stairs after helping TJ set up chairs for the speakers. “Barbara!” Felicity called as an old woman and two younger men came scurrying inside, each carrying some covered paintings. “Glad you’re here. We just pulled out the easels for your paintings.” Felicity smiled at Kendell. “Mind giving me a hand?”

“No problem,” Kendell said and followed Felicity to a corner where a number of easels were propped up. She grabbed one, as did Felicity, and the two of them began setting them up near some of Tim’s cat sculptures.

“Oh, no,” Barbara muttered. “I didn’t know Tim was here.” She rolled her eyes.

“Is there a problem?” Felicity asked.

“No, no… Ignore me…” Barbara said, waving her hand to let Felicity know she was just being petty.

When the two men helping out Ms. Barbara removed the sheets covering the paintings, Kendell was blown away. They were portraits of some actors from the Marvel franchise—ones that had filmed there in Fayetteville. “Did you meet them?” Kendell asked.

“I ran into them and asked them to let me take a photo so that I could paint them,” Barbara said. “They gave me permission to do so, so I’m hoping to sell some of these today. I added their characters’ hero colors in the background. There’s a lot of fans around here, as you can imagine.” Barbara handed Felicity a framed piece of paper that read One Portrait by Ms. Barbara.

“What’s that?” Kendell asked curiously.

“Barbara is going to auction a portrait session,” Felicity explained. “She’s really good, isn’t she?”

“You really are quite talented,” Kendell said, smiling at the beautiful images.

“Lonnie, you and Sheldon go grab the rest of the portraits from the car, would you?” Barbara asked.

“Sure thing,” Lonnie said, and the other man followed.

“Are those your sons?” Kendell asked.

“Sheldon’s my son. Lonnie is my long-time stepson,” Barbara said. “He’s a sweetie. They both are.”

“Wow!” a squeaky voice called from behind. A young woman with her hair done up on the top of her head in intricate braids came scurrying over. “Are these your paintings?” she asked.

“They are,” Ms. Barbara said.

The young woman frowned. She was holding a canvas.

“Are you a painter too?” Kendell asked.

The woman nodded and turned her canvas around. It was a self-portrait. “That’s very good,” Ms. Barbara told her. “What’s your name, dear?”

“Ariana,” she said. “I’m still learning. This is my first portrait I’ve done. The rest of my stuff is nature scenes. They’re nothing compared to yours.”

“Oh, don’t say that,” Ms. Barbara said. “Besides, I’ve been at this for about seventy years, dear.”

“I suppose time is the best teacher,” Ariana said, and Felicity ushered her into another room to get her artwork set up as well.

Kendell thanked Barbara for showing her the amazing paintings and then continued looking around at some other artwork. Pauline came scurrying over, Dot in tow. “Have you seen some of the guitars they’re auctioning off? Beautiful.”

“I did see those,” Kendell said, thinking about the guitars that someone had hand-crafted. “All of the artwork here is amazing. I’m glad we decided to come to this. Plus, I’m actually enjoying brushing up on some Civil War history too.”

“Me too,” Pauline said.

“Are you kidding me!” a roar came from one of the rooms.

“Uh oh,” Kendell said, and she and Pauline headed into the room where Barbara’s paintings were set up. One of Tim’s sculptures had crashed straight through one of Barbara’s paintings—destroying the canvas before shattering on the floor.

“You crazy old clutz!” Tim shouted at Barbara.

“Me! You’re the one who knocked it over!” Barbara shouted.

“You intentionally got in my way!” he retorted.

“Miss Barbara… Tim…” Felicity stammered. “I’m sure this was not intentional on either part. Let’s just get this cleaned up before the art auction starts, and we’ll sort this out…”

Stephanie arrived on scene, shaking her head. “Okay, let’s move Tim and Karen’s sculptures—switch them,” Stephanie suggested.

“Good,” Barbara hissed. “I don’t want to deal with you today.”

“Same,” Tim growled and proceeded to help Stephanie rotate the sculptors.

Stephanie stood with Felicity, Pauline, and Kendell at the front entrance once all the artwork had been set up, shaking her head. “I should have known better than to set Barbara and Tim up in the same room.”

“Do they not like each other?” Felicity asked, though that seemed fairly obvious.

“They got into it one time at another art show about spacing, and ever since then, they’ve been at one another’s throats,” Stephanie said, shaking her head.

“Well, that’s just rude,” Pauline said. “The whole point of your art group is supposed to be artists supporting one another, am I right?”

“Exactly,” Stephanie said.

“Well, we’ve got them separated now,” Felicity said. “The event is about to start, and you’re speaking upstairs in ten minutes.”

“That’s right!” Stephanie exclaimed. “What would I do without you, Felicity?” Stephanie hurried up the stairs to prepare for her speaking engagement.

“What is Stephanie speaking on?” Kendell asked.

“Publishing companies. She’s a writer,” Felicity explained. “They really do mean all types of artists. The fire dancer will be getting going soon too. You should definitely check that out.”

“Definitely,” Kendell said.

The art show was underway, and soon, the small building was flooded with people bidding on the silent auction. One woman stood out to Kendell. She was a stiff in a suit, but she kept looming around Barbara’s artwork—immediately outbidding anyone who dared to write their name down on one of her bid sheets. Kendell overheard that the woman’s name was Lark, an interesting name that stood out to her.

“Of course,” Ariana muttered from across the hall, gaining Kendell and Pauline’s attention. “No bids on my sheets.”

“The art show has just gotten started,” Pauline said.

“Barbara has twenty bids on just one of her paintings,” Ariana said. “I’m nothing compared to her.”

“Like Barbara said, she has about seventy years of experience on you, but honestly, I really like your artwork too,” Kendell said. “I might even bid on one.”

Ariana smiled. “Thanks.”

“Let me get it going. You got to get some momentum over here,” Kendell said, scribbling her name on one of the sheets.

“I think I want to go sit in on one of the speakers,” Pauline said, looking at a pamphlet that some of the event volunteers had been giving out at the door. “They have one starting on professional writing in a few minutes. Stephanie is doing that one too.”

“Professional writing? That sounds interesting,” Kendell said, and the two women made their way up the stairs—slowly at Pauline’s pace.

Kendell was glad to have sat in on this particular speaker. It was Stephanie as well as a friend of hers who did freelance writing. The two of them spoke about different career options for writers, and for whatever reason, it really struck Kendell as interesting. Especially when they started talking about travel writing and blogging. It sounded fun. Maybe I should start a blog, Kendell pondered as she and Pauline left the room to clear it out for the next speaker.

“How fun!” Pauline exclaimed. “Could you imagine writing for a living?”

“I could imagine it,” Kendell said, just as they heard a loud scream outside.

They scurried down the stairs as quickly as Pauline’s tired old legs could take her, and when they arrived out on the front porch of the museum, they spied Ms. Barbara lying out in a bush. She had fallen. Several artists had gathered around by the time Kendell and Pauline made it outside. “Mom! Mom!” a voice behind called. It was Sheldon, pushing past people to get over to the woman now lying in the bushes. “Someone call an ambulance!”

5

The Fayette police arrived shortly after the paramedics announced Barbara dead on the scene. She had hit her head on the brick steps on her way down into the bushes. Felicity and Stephanie worked at ushering everyone to the back of the building to distract patrons while the police handled things in the front, leaving Kendell and Pauline standing in the middle of the museum. Those who were working the event continued moving everyone out front as Stephanie and Felicity announced the winners of the silent auction.

“I can’t believe that poor old woman fell,” Kendell said, shaking her head. “They need to add a railing to those steps. She probably turned her ankle.”

“Nope,” Sheldon muttered as he entered the building from the front porch where his mother had been found. The man looked a bit shaken.

“What do you mean, nope?” Pauline asked.

“I mean she didn’t fall,” Sheldon said. “The police just told me that my mom had fresh bruises around her wrists. They think someone pushed her!”

The front door opened, and Felicity slipped inside and away from the outdoor portion of the event where most everyone was still fairly oblivious to what had taken place. “Hey,” Felicity said, approaching the three of them. “It’s Sheldon, right? I’m so sorry about your mother. What a terrible accident!”

“Sheldon was just telling us how the police don’t think it was an accident,” Kendell said, and Felicity stiffened.

“You’re kidding me,” she said. “What did they say, Sheldon?”

“They think someone pushed her, that’s what,” Sheldon said, his shoulders slumping. “I can’t imagine someone wanting to hurt my mom. She’s just a retired old woman. It doesn’t make sense.” Sheldon paused, suddenly looking angry. “She did get into it with Tim earlier…”

“Let’s not jump to conclusions,” Felicity suggested. “Tim is certainly someone the police need to talk to, but he’s not a particularly aggressive fellow. I doubt that he and your mother would have gotten into a shoving match over a ruined painting and sculpture.”

“You’re probably right,” Sheldon said, then snapped his fingers. He looked at Felicity. “You’re the one who has that detective agency out in Senoia, right?”

Pauline jumped on the comment rather quickly, as Kendell would expect her too. Pauline was always prepared to get right in the middle of any mess that presented itself. “Oh, my granddaughter is the best in the business!” she proclaimed. “She could figure out what happened to your mother. I know it.”

“Well…” Felicity began, but Sheldon seemed persistent.

“I want to hire you,” Sheldon said. “You can help the police with an investigation, right?”

“Of course,” Felicity said.

“Then I want you to find out what happened to my mom,” Sheldon said.

The front door opened, and Lonnie slowly made his way in toward them. He reached out and put a hand on Sheldon’s shoulder. “Hey, Shelly, they’re taking her now,” Lonnie said, his voice a little hoarse.

Sheldon frowned and rubbed his eyes, taking a deep breath. “Okay, I’m coming,” Sheldon said. “Thanks, Lonnie. Lonnie, this is Felicity. I think you two met earlier. She’s going to help the police with the investigation.”

Lonnie smiled. “You’re the detective who does the event shop?” he asked.

“Well, technically speaking, I’m more of an event planner who does detective work since I started doing event planning first,” Felicity said. “But, yes, that’s me. I’ll do whatever I can to find out what happened to your stepmother.”

“Thank you. If there is anything we can do to help, let us know,” Lonnie said and ushered his stepbrother out of the building.

Pauline stood upright and clapped her hands together. “Ooh, I cannot wait to work a case with my granddaughter!”

Felicity raised a brow. “Grandmama, I think it’s probably best if you let my team handle this.”

Kendell smirked. “I think you might be surprised at how well your grandmother can handle herself. She has managed to get herself in and out trouble a good bit on our trips.”

“What is she talking about, Grandmama?” Felicity asked.

“Oh, there was a little incident in London…and Kenya… Hawaii… Texas… And one in Mississippi…” Pauline said this slowly as she contemplated just how much trouble she had managed to get them into during her retirement trip. “Hmmm… Kendell, I believe we may have a pattern forming.”

Kendell instinctively slapped her forehead. “Yes, Pauline, I think so.” She straightened herself up and smiled at Felicity. “What I mean is, we’d like to help. Your grandma and I make a pretty good team, and together, I think we can solve this thing quickly.”

Felicity smiled. “Okay. Nothing wrong with a few extra hands.”

“Now, if you two ladies will excuse me, this old lady heard there was a dessert table set out up front, and I also bid on some artwork that I’d like to see if I won,” Pauline said, scurrying outside.

Kendell laughed slightly, then looked at Felicity. “So, since you’re the actual professional here, where would you start?”

“With the obvious,” Felicity said. “Tim and Barbara don’t have a good relationship. It’s best to start there, to rule it out or confirm it early on. I saw him out back in the parking lot a minute ago taking a cigarette break.”

“Then let’s go,” Kendell said, and they headed out back to where the event was still going on. Stephanie was announcing winners into a microphone while TJ counted cash and handled all the transactions for people taking home art. Kendell spied Tim a short distance away in the parking lot, smoking a cigarette as Felicity had said. The two women headed across the parking lot, meeting Tim, who put out his cigarette politely as they approached.

“Can I help you ladies?” he asked.

“I was hoping to talk to you about Barbara,” Felicity said. “Her son Sheldon hired my team to work her case.”

“Case?” Tim questioned. “I thought she fell?”

“The police believe she was pushed,” Kendell said.

“Dang,” he said, shaking his head. “Knowing Barbara, she probably smarted off to the wrong person.”

“I’m guessing you weren’t a big fan of hers?” Felicity asked.

“Truth be told, no,” he said. “But that was just a stupid feud. We always wind up at the same art events and get on each other’s nerves is all. She says I’m a grouchy old man, and I say she’s an uptight old woman. I think I’ll actually miss it.”

“So, who destroyed the painting and the sculpture earlier?” Felicity questioned.

Tim sighed. “I never would have admitted it to her…but that one was on me,” he said. “I was moving my sculpture, and I pushed it too close to the edge of the display table. I told her she bumped her easel because I know her—she would have made a huge scene and tried to make me pay for her canvas. And she wouldn’t have ever let me live it down.”

“I appreciate your honesty,” Felicity said.

“Ruining her painting was an accident,” he said. “I wouldn’t ever do anything like that.”

“Does Barbara have problems getting along with other artists apart from you?” Felicity asked.

“She’s talented,” Tim said. “And she knows it. Sometimes she would get a little arrogant. In fact, one of my favorite sculptures was one I did of her that displayed that arrogance…”

“You made a sculpture of Barbara?” Kendell asked, having a hard time imagining someone wanting to do a sculpture of someone you were feuding with.

Tim snickered and dug around in his pocket for his phone. “Hold on a second, and I’ll show you. Give me a second, I’m an old fellow, and it always takes me a minute to remember how to pull up pictures…” He played around on his phone for a moment and then showed them a sculpture made entirely of umbrellas of what looked like an angry fat woman. “Sold this for two thousand dollars. Best sale I had made in nearly a decade.”

“Why did you make a sculpture modeled after Barbara?” Felicity asked.

“Told you—to display her arrogance. At one of the first art shows we were both at, Barbara got into it with the curator of the event. Told him her artwork needed to be displayed up front because it was better than most everything else there. It was kind of true, but it was just so prideful that it ticked off the curator and he told her no. She smacked him with her umbrella, so at the next show, I displayed this beauty—” He shook his cellphone, showing off the picture of the sculpture. “Ooh, wee… She sure was mad about that one, but the curator bought the statue and put it in his museum up in Atlanta.”

“That’s kind of hilarious,” Kendell said.

“So that’s it? You two were just in a friendly feud?” Felicity asked.

“I wouldn’t say friendly,” Tim said. “But it was fairly innocent. She did a painting of me that next year and gave me a cat face to make fun of my cat statues.”

“Well, I appreciate the information, Tim,” Felicity said, shaking the man’s hand. She exchanged information with him and headed back toward the event, Kendell following close behind.

“You’re good at this,” Kendell said.

Felicity smiled. “Thanks, I appreciate it.”

“I’m curious as to how a party planner got into detective work?” Kendell asked. “I mean, you kind of already told me, but I’d really like to get the whole story sometime.”

Felicity nodded. “It’s quite a tale. But, honestly, I just sort of fell into it. I had done a little bit of investigative journalism in college, but I dropped out after my party planning business really started to take off. Jefferson and I eventually opened up a physical location for the shop, and it really started to pick up steam after that. During one of our first events for the city, a friend of ours was wrongly accused of a murder, and I wanted to do what I could to help out.”

“And so after that, you just realized you had a knack for it?” Kendell asked.

“No, not exactly. I still was focused on my party planning at that point. Jack was still a cop for Senoia back then. He was also my ex, and he liked to give Jefferson and I a hard time. This was before we became pretty well reacquainted with each other, and Jack and Jefferson became friends. Jack’s little sister was killed at one of our events. I think that’s the case that finally started to pull me into this line of work. I was so angry. She was just a kid, and Jack was pulled off the case because of how close he was to it. Jefferson and I helped him find out what happened to her. The three of us became close friends after that, and a few other cases fell into our laps. Jack finally decided he had enough working for the local chief, and he and Jefferson approached me about expanding. It sort of just happened.”

“Well, that’s really interesting how it just fell into place, isn’t it?” Kendell asked.

“Life is funny like that,” Felicity said. “I’m looking forward to working with you and my grandma on the case. This should be…different.”

Kendell laughed. Yes, she imagined this would be one for the memory book.

6

Kendell decided to stick by Felicity. The woman seemed to have a system down for this sort of thing. She walked like she was on a mission, and this very much intrigued Kendell. While she herself had never considered doing detective work, the past several adventures she’d had with Pauline had been more fulfilling than her five years of working as a flight attendant. It had been fun and rewarding. And, much like Felicity, her early cases had just fallen into her lap. Maybe the universe was sending her a sign? Kendell decided to follow Felicity closely on this case to see how a real detective worked it. Felicity might have just been an amateur, but she was making a living off of this. Kendell figured that she could get a good idea of just what to expect in this line of work.

Jack, Jefferson, Trixie, and Fix met just inside the museum while the Hornsbys finished passing out artwork people had purchased out on the back porch. Pauline and Kendell stood by as Felicity gave her team the rundown. “Okay, so Sheldon has just hired Overton Detective Agency to handle Barbara’s case.”

“I thought she just fell?” Fix asked. Word had not quite gotten around just yet that the incident was turning into a homicide investigation.

“I’m afraid not,” Felicity said. “Sheldon informed me that police told him that bruises were found around her wrists and that it appeared as though she had been in some sort of a struggle with an attacker.”

“Aw, man,” Fix said, shaking his head. The kid crossed his arms. “So, are you going to let me work on this case more so than filling out paperwork?”

“Of course, Fix,” Felicity said. “You’re in training still. This will be a good case for you to get some more experience.”

Me too, Kendell thought. There had been an inkling in her lately, like she had been wanting something more out of life. Obviously that inkling had led to her traveling around the world with a complete stranger, but eventually that was going to have to come to an end. She needed to find that thing that fulfilled her the way that Pauline’s granddaughter had. So, Kendell was thinking of this case as a sort of test run. She wasn’t sure how her boyfriend back home would feel about her making a sudden career change, but it was ever present on her mind lately.

“What’s our first move, Felicity?” Jack asked.

“First things first, we are in the middle of an event,” Felicity said. “Jefferson, you and Trixie do what you can to salvage this event. Let’s consider ourselves lucky that the police haven’t cleared the Hornsbys out of here already. The police are probably going to start rounding people up for interviews soon. In the meantime, I want you two to work on making this as pleasant of an experience for everyone as possible. We don’t want the Hornsbys’ art group’s reputation to suffer.”

“We’re on it,” Trixie said, and her and Jefferson headed out the back door to go help Stephanie and TJ with keeping the guests occupied.

“We’ll get one of the bands to entertain everyone,” Jefferson suggested on their way out the door.

“All right, what about us?” Jack asked.

“Divide and conquer,” Felicity said. “Let’s see if we can find any clues lying around. Jack, go check around Barbara’s booth. See if there’s anything she left lying around. I’m going to go talk to the police to see what sort of information they can give me.”

“I’ll go check out the scene of the crime,” Fix said. “If the police will let me, that is.”

“I’ll come with you, dear,” Pauline said to Felicity.

“I guess I’ll go with Fix,” Kendell said.

“Okay, go team,” Felicity said, heading around back with Pauline.

Jack nodded to Fix and headed toward where Barbara’s paintings had been on display. Fix and Kendell headed out the front door where some crime scene tape had already been put up. A forensic scientist for the police department was kneeling in the bushes where Barbara had landed. “Have you found anything?” Fix asked.

“Hey, kid, this is a crime scene,” one of the officers said.

“I apologize,” Fix said. “I work for the Overton Detective Agency. My boss just asked me to come make nice with the police.”

The officer rolled his eyes. “Stay on that side of the tape.”

“Yes, sir,” Fix said.

“You guys always play nice with the police?” Kendell asked.

“Sometimes,” Fix said. “Felicity says it’s a lot easier to have them on our team than to be competing against them.”

“Makes sense,” Kendell said. “Do you guys do a lot of homicides?”

“Some. We mostly get the cliché cheating husband cases. We did work a case a while back for the Georgia senator. That was pretty cool. He was receiving death threats, and we solved that case,” Fix explained.

“Sounds exciting,” she said.

“It was,” Fix said. “I got stuck in the van watching security cameras for that one, but I was the one who spotted our would-be assassin in time, so I guess I felt pretty useful after that one. Jack and Felicity have me stay back a lot to answer phones at the agency. So, it’s always nice when I get to do some actual detective experience.”

The police were starting to clear out. Fix gave them a lingering look. “Yeah, yeah, yeah. Go ahead, kid,” the cop said, and Fix jumped over the crime scene tape.

Kendell came and sat down on the front stoop, watching Fix as he dug around in the bushes. “You aren’t going to find anything we didn’t, kid,” the cop said as they began walking toward their vehicles parked out in the street, blocking the road.

“So, what kind of stuff are you looking for?” Kendell asked.

“Anything, really,” he said. “But the police are probably right. If they found anything, it’s probably already in evidence bags. But if we play nice, they might let us take a peek.”

“Important to have a good working relationship with local law enforcement—noted,” Kendell said.

Fix snickered. “You thinking about getting into detective work?”

“I don’t know. Not really sure if it’s my thing, but I’m starting to think that being a flight attendant isn’t really my thing either. I wanted to travel the world. I have a sort of adventurous soul, you know? That’s why I became a flight attendant. To travel. To see things that I had never seen before. Five years later, and the only thing I’ve seen is the inside of different airports,” Kendell explained.

“That stinks,” Fix said. “So, you signed on for adventure, but instead, you just got a lot of rough hours serving people on an airplane.”

“I’m a glorified waitress in the sky,” Kendell said. “And my airline just recently decided they were going to change their approach. They’re calling it vintage, but really it’s just some less than appropriate attire to give creepy customers an excuse to stare at our behinds.”

“Aw, man,” he said, shaking his head. “Sorry.”

“Yeah, I broke my high heels they were making us wear on day one,” Kendell said. “Ridiculous three-inch heels. How do they expect us to walk up and down the aisles like that? I don’t know… The company I work for just isn’t what I thought it was going to be.”

Fix suddenly stood upright, a grin on his face. He glanced toward the officers a short distance away. “Come on,” he said softly, suddenly scurrying toward the door.

Kendell raised a brow, following him inside. “Did you find something?” she whispered as though she thought they were in trouble.

“I did,” he said. “Let’s go find Felicity and the others.”

They found them out on the back porch. Pauline, Felicity, and Jack had gathered already. “Did the police you spoke to tell you anything useful?” Kendell asked.

“Not really,” she said. “And Jack didn’t find anything either.”

“Yeah, the police by the crime scene weren’t particularly chatty either,” Fix said. “But we found something.” He dug around in his pocket, pulling out a cell phone. “This was in the bushes.”

“Way to go, Fix,” Felicity said, taking the phone from him. “Did you sneak this away from the crime scene, Fix?”

“Maybe,” he said with a smirk. “We can turn it into the police after we have a look.”

“Agreed,” Felicity said as she began snooping around on the phone. “This is definitely Barbara’s.”

“You see anything good?” Jack asked.

“She’s got her email pulled up… She got an email from Stephanie,” Felicity said. “There’s a bunch of emails about the art show. Looks like she doesn’t really use her email for much else. There is an email to Stephanie from Barbara saying she didn’t want to be put anywhere near Tim at the art show. It sounds pretty petty.” Felicity took a moment to send the email to herself. “Okay, that’s all, I think… I should really go give this to the police.”

“Boo,” Fix grumbled, and Felicity laughed.

“Good job, Fix,” Felicity said, walking off to go find an officer.

Jack nudged Fix. “Let’s you and I go help Jefferson and Trixie. They got to start cleaning up now that the event is about over.”

Fix sighed and followed Jack, leaving Kendell and Pauline standing on the back porch. “So, what now?” Kendell asked.

“I think we should go speak to one of the Hornsbys,” Pauline said, pointing toward TJ who was currently helping some of the musicians pack up their gear. “They probably know Barbara fairly well. They seemed familiar with each other like she had been to some of their events before.”

“Take the lead,” Kendell said, following Pauline as she marched up to TJ.

“Hey, ladies,” he said politely as he placed a guitar inside a case. “Can I help you?”

“We were wondering if you could tell us more about Barbara,” Pauline said as she sat Dot’s carrier down. The little dog came crawling out of the bag to stretch her legs.

TJ chuckled. “My brother-in-law has a dog like that. Holly. They’re good dogs.”

“My little Dot is an angel,” Pauline said.

“Focus, Pauline,” Kendell said, and TJ snickered a bit.

“Not sure if I can tell you a whole lot. Barbara is a good artist. She comes to a lot of our shows. Has been coming to them for the past year or two,” TJ said. “I didn’t want her to come to this show.”

“Really? Why?” Kendell asked.

“As soon as we started getting emails from Barbara and Tim about being picky about how close they were going to be to each other, I told Stephanie to tell them both not to come. I didn’t want to deal with it again. They’re always at each other’s throats. You saw what happened with the painting and sculpture. It’s ridiculous, but Stephanie is little miss peacemaker sometimes, so she redid our whole setup to keep them as far away from each other as possible. Then one of the volunteers set them up next to each other by mistake, and you saw what happened. Ruined their artwork over some stupid, petty stuff,” TJ said. “It’s ridiculous.”

“I imagine that that is very frustrating,” Pauline said.

“Very. And something almost always happens every time those two are in the same room together,” TJ said. “I would have preferred to just tell them both to beat it. It was getting old. Our group is all about art collaboration and networking—artists helping artists, you know? But those two just made it difficult for everyone.”

“Is there anything more you can tell us about her?” Kendell asked.

“Not really. We didn’t know Barbara that well. She just came to the art shows and would leave when they were over,” TJ said. “I hope you all find out what happened to her. Felicity told me she is taking on the case. I’ve heard she’s good at what she does, so hopefully Barbara will get some justice.”

“With my granddaughter working the case?” Pauline smirked, her chest rising pridefully. “I know that she will.”

7

The next morning, Kendell rolled out of bed fairly early. She got dressed and headed out, deciding to walk to Main Street to get herself some breakfast. It hadn’t seemed that far away, but she was very soon regretting the decision. A five-minute car ride in rural Georgia took you a lot further than a five-minute car ride in New York. She had greatly over-exaggerated her physical capabilities. By the time she arrived on Main Street, she was panting. “That was so stupid,” she said under her breath, slowly making her way to the coffee shop on the corner. Felicity and Jefferson had told her how wonderful the coffee shop’s breakfast was, and she had been craving a taste of it. “This better be delicious,” she growled as she entered the shop. She had enjoyed their coffee the other day, so she assumed the food had to be good as well.

There were a few people already lounging around, drinking coffee or enjoying their breakfasts. Kendell ordered herself a platter of food, starving after such a crazy walk. She also got herself a coffee and found a seat in one of the lounge chairs by the window, sipping her drink while waiting for the employees to finish up her food. When her plate was set in front of her, she immediately began to devour the eggs and bacon. The door to the coffee shop opened, and Pauline came wandering inside, Dot on a leash beside her.

“Morning, crazy,” Pauline said with a smirk. “I got your note. I cannot believe you walked all the way here.”

“Believe me, I am seriously regretting that decision,” Kendell said, laughing at herself. “We just got to Felicity’s house so quickly from Main Street yesterday, I thought I could do it. A ride that quick would have been like half a block in New York. That’s nothing. I greatly underestimated the power of not having any traffic.”

“Well, now you know,” Pauline said, shaking her head. “Well, don’t worry. You won’t have to walk back. I drove Felicity’s car here.”

“The Cobra!” Kendell exclaimed.

“Oh, no, not the Cobra!” Pauline laughed. “That is parked in the garage where it belongs. Just her regular car.”

“Oh, okay,” Kendell said. “I thought for a second there you might have swiped your granddaughter’s car before she could wake up to say otherwise.”

“No, I’m not that bad,” Pauline said. She went and ordered herself some coffee and returned shortly, sitting beside Kendell.

“I appreciate you coming to my rescue,” Kendell said. “There is no way I would have made it back to the house. Felicity and Jefferson hanging out at the house today?”

“For now. The event shop opens a little later today,” Pauline said.

Kendell smiled, thinking about the shop. “Your granddaughter really does have a pretty cool business set up. You can tell she has found her passion.”

“Most definitely,” Pauline said.

“I’m having some second guesses about my career choice,” Kendell said. “I don’t know if I want to spend the rest of my life on an airplane not really going anywhere. I want a career that allows me to travel, and by travel, I don’t mean from airport to airport.”

“Oh, how exciting!” Pauline said, clapping her hands. “You’re young. Now is the time to explore and find out what really drives you. What are you thinking about?”

“I’m not sure,” Kendell admitted. “I just know I’m not totally happy where I’m at. I know I enjoy traveling. I mean, that’s why I became a flight attendant. I just don’t know what could let me do that in the way I expected being a flight attendant would have done for me. I just sort of lost my sense of adventure somewhere along the way. I feel like I am finally getting it back, thanks to you.”

“Well,” Pauline said, sitting up straight. “I’m glad that I could be of service to you.”

The door to the coffee shop opened up, and a familiar young woman entered and headed toward the counter. “Hey!” Kendell said, popping Pauline in the arm. “That’s Ariana, one of the artists from the art auction!”

Pauline immediately began frantically waving the young girl over. “Hey! Ariana! Ariana!” she yelped as the young woman turned around, coffee in hand.

“Oh…hello…” the girl said, confused as to why this old woman was shouting for her. She slowly made her way over. “Oh, I remember you! You bought one of my paintings!” Ariana exclaimed.

“I did!” Pauline said. “Sit down, dear. I’d love to chat.”

Ariana smiled. “I suppose I could sit for a minute,” she said, sitting in the empty chair across from them.

“Ariana, I don’t suppose you could tell us anything about Barbara,” Kendell said, immediately taking up the opportunity to help out with the case if she could.

Ariana huffed. “I don’t really have anything to say about her, honestly. I didn’t really like her.”

“We know about her little tiff with Tim,” Kendell said.

“Yeah, him and everybody else,” Ariana said, crossing her arms. “At least, that’s what it sounds like. Like she couldn’t get along with anyone, and after meeting her, I see why.”

“Really?” Kendell asked. “She seemed so nice when she was speaking to you about your paintings.”

“Yeah, she was,” Ariana said. “But every time I got someone looking at one of my paintings, she would draw their attention away.”

“Intentionally?” Pauline asked.

“I think so,” Ariana said. “I mean, she was good. I get that. People were bound to be drawn to her artwork. But it was like she didn’t want anyone else to succeed either. It was crazy. I couldn’t believe it. Every single time I had a potential buyer looking at my artwork, it was like she would just appear and steal them away.”

“That’s awful,” Pauline said. “I’m sorry you were having to deal with that.”

“Especially Miss Lark,” Ariana said. “I couldn’t get that woman’s attention for nothing, and she was there to spend some money. I could tell. But she was all over Barbara’s paintings. She really didn’t seem interested in anybody else’s artwork at all. Barbara told me she didn’t know who Lark was, so I thought it was weird that the woman didn’t look around at other artists and just hung around her booth the whole time making sure she outbid everyone on the paintings. It was really weird.”

“She didn’t look at anyone else’s artwork at all?” Kendell asked.

“She came right for Barbara’s booth as soon as she got there and didn’t move the whole time,” Ariana said. “Like I said, weird. Barbara comes off as kind of sketchy to me. I don’t know what it was exactly, but I felt like there was something off about that woman. She was up to something. I don’t know how she kept people coming over to her, like she was just summoning them or something. I swear, Barbara just didn’t want anyone else to do well at that art show. Like it gave her some sort of trip knowing that no one else was doing well except for her.”

“That’s…harsh…” Kendell said, raising a brow. Ariana didn’t seem entirely truthful to her. Not that she was lying, more like exaggerating. She knew from Stephanie that Ariana only sold one painting—the one that Pauline had purchased. Kendell highly suspected a lot of what was coming out of Ariana’s mouth was due to jealousy.

“Well, we appreciate you taking the time to talk to us, Ariana,” Pauline said.

“Sure,” Ariana said. “And, thank you for buying my painting. I really appreciate the support.”

“Well, it was a lovely painting. You are very talented,” Pauline assured her. “Just keep at it, and don’t let anyone discourage you.’

“Thank you,” Ariana said before standing. “I have to go. I’ve got some work to do today. You ladies have a nice day.” Ariana headed out the door.

Once she was gone, Kendell and Pauline exchanged uncomfortable glances. “Did you believe anything that young lady said?” Pauline asked.

“Not really,” Kendell said. “Sounded like Ariana was coming from a place of resentment. Barbara seemed like a sweet old lady to me. I have a hard time imagining that she would intentionally lead people away from Ariana’s booth. She had been very sweet and encouraging to Ariana when they had first met. I think Ariana is probably jealous of Barbara’s skills.”

“Barbara’s paintings were quite amazing, and the theme was clever and something that the young audience at the art auction particularly enjoyed. She knows how to work a crowd, but she seemed like the type willing to support young artists, not compete against them,” Pauline said. “Ariana is definitely bitter because she only sold one painting… I was the only one who put a bid on the painting, so I imagine that that hurt a little.”

“Yeah, that was probably a bummer, but do you think jealousy like that is motive?” Kendell asked.

“Depends on how off her rockers she is,” Pauline said. “But I think this conversation is definitely something worth reporting to Felicity.”

Kendell nodded in agreement. She finished her breakfast, and by that time, Pauline said that Felicity and Jefferson were probably already at the shop. They headed out, walking up the street toward Overton Family of Companies. As predicted, the shop was already up and running that morning.

They found Felicity upstairs working with Jack and Fix while Jefferson and Trixie manned the event shop. Felicity was pinning evidence and photographs up onto the board in preparation for the new case. “Hey, Grandmama,” Felicity said, smiling. “Kendell, I heard you walked here? Are you nuts?”

“Apparently,” Kendell said, laughing. She looked down at her sandals. “Especially in these shoes. I think I have effectively ruined my white sandals with Georgia clay.”

Felicity laughed. “Well, now you know. Did you enjoy your breakfast?”

“I did. And your grandma and I ran into one of the artists from the art auction. We had a talk with her—Ariana,” Kendell said, and she and Pauline proceeded to fill Felicity, Jack, and Fix in on what little they had learned from the jealous young artist.

8

“Ariana sure does paint an interesting picture,” Felicity commented as they sat around considering what Pauline had just told them.

“Are you referring to her painting that Pauline bought or the way she talked about Barbara?” Kendell asked.

“Her talk she had with you two,” Felicity said. “Something seems kind of off about what she said. Do you two think what Ariana was saying was true?”

“Not really,” Pauline said. “I think Ariana sounds like she was just jealous.”

Jack was the one working on the board now, while Fix worked away on his laptop. Jack pinned up a picture of Ariana as a potential suspect.

“Seems extreme,” Kendell said. “You think Ariana would kill Barbara over some petty jealousy?”

“Every killer we’ve ever dealt with has their own motives for doing things,” Felicity said. “And they have all seemed pretty petty to me. But, to the killer, it’s important.”

“But because someone sold more paintings than you?” Pauline asked.

“Maybe in Ariana’s head, the only reason she wasn’t doing well was because of Barbara,” Felicity stated. “It doesn’t necessarily have to make sense to us. It just has to make sense to the killer.”

“Excellent point,” Kendell said, crossing her arms and staring at the bulletin board. “Doesn’t look like we have a whole lot to go on just yet. Do you have anything else?”

“No. What’s on the board is just about it,” Jack said. “But we’ve worked with less than this before. I think we need to look at some potential suspects other than Tim and Ariana. Tim may have a shaky history with the old woman, but frankly, he was just a frail old man. Barbara was a little old lady herself, but she seemed sturdier than Tim. I don’t know if Tim would have been able to leave those bruises on Barbara’s wrists. I managed to call up Veronica, and she did a little bit of snooping around the hospital for me. Tim’s got serious arthritis in his hands after spending his life doing sculptures. He used to carve stone before moving to welding. He does welding now because it’s less demanding on his hands.”

“That would make it pretty difficult for him to grip her wrists and leave those sort of bruises, then,” Felicity said. “Not impossible, but difficult. Ariana is young and fit. She probably could have caused more damage, but the motive is a little far-fetched. Plus, I think she might have been in the seminar upstairs at the time of the murder. I’m not certain, but I feel like I saw her. Anyone else recall?”

There were shrugs all around. “Whoa! I think I got something you might want to see!” Fix called from the couch where he was slouching while aimlessly looking for information on his laptop.

“What do you have, Fix?” Felicity asked.

“Barbara’s attorney is holding a public reading of the will,” Fix said. “Today.”

“Public?” Felicity questioned.

“It was per request of Barbara that the reading of her will be open to the public,” Fix said.

“That’s…unusual…” Jack said. “She must have wanted plenty of witnesses.”

“That must mean she’s doing something unexpected,” Felicity suggested.

“So, if it’s public, then that means we can go to it, right?” Kendell asked.

“That’s exactly what that means,” Felicity said. “Fix, text me the address. I’m going to head that way.”

“I’ll hang back,” Jack said. “I’ve been on the phone with Tim some today trying to get a follow-up interview with him. He might stop by, so someone needs to be here.”

“I could interview Tim,” Fix suggested.

“Why don’t you go with Felicity, actually?” Jack suggested. “She might need some backup if things get crazy at the reading. Something doesn’t feel right in my gut about this thing being so public. The fact that a notice was sent out about it too is strange.”

“Awesome,” Fix said, smiling, clearly glad that he was going to get in on the action today.

“We’re going with you too,” Pauline declared, and Kendell nodded approvingly. It seemed that Pauline spoke for both of them nowadays, but she was okay with that.

“Why don’t you leave Dot here with Jack?” Felicity suggested. “I don’t think you’re going to be able to sneak her into the courthouse, Grandmama.”

Kendell smirked. She wondered how surprised Pauline’s granddaughter would be at all of the places she had managed to sneak that dog into. “Oh, if you say so,” Pauline said, putting Dot’s carrier down. The little dog jumped out of the carrier and scurried over to the couch, hopping up next to Fix and claiming the spot as her territory.

“So, I’m dog-sitting now?” Jack asked, but he asked with a smile. “Don’t worry, I’ll take care of the little fuzzball.”

Pauline, Kendell, Fix, and Felicity headed back down into the shop. They paused by Jefferson and Trixie, letting them know that they were headed to the courthouse in Fayetteville for the reading of Barbara’s will before departing. They loaded up into Felicity’s car; she had left her fancy Cobra at home that day. “Do we have time to make it?” Felicity asked Fix, who was sitting in the back with Pauline. He pulled up his phone.

“Oh, yeah, totally,” he said. “It doesn’t start for another hour.”

“Oh, good, we’ll have plenty of time to get there then,” Felicity said.

“I’m excited to see the inside of that old courthouse,” Kendell said. “I saw it on our way into town for the art auction. It’s gorgeous.”

“Oh, that courthouse isn’t the actual courthouse,” Felicity said, disappointing Kendell. “The one you saw is more of a historic site now. It’s used as a sort of welcome center and planning center for the city.”

“Oldest courthouse in the state,” Pauline said. “The only one Sherman didn’t burn down during his March to the Sea during the Civil War.”

“That thing predates the Civil War?” Kendell asked.

“That’s right,” Felicity said. “The story is that a local lawyer distracted Sherman when he came through town, waving a Confederate battle flag around and running down the street, causing the soldiers to chase him and forget all about the courthouse. Not sure how true that is, but that’s the story they’ll tell you. The courthouse did catch on fire and had to be redone once, though. Some criminals broke into the courthouse and set the record room on fire to try to cover up some of their crimes, back when everything was on paper and not kept digitally. Now, the building is mostly a monument to the town’s history. The new courthouse is just down the road. A regular old brick building.”

“Too bad,” Kendell said, a little disappointed to hear that the beautiful old building was mostly out of commission—at least for its intended purpose.

They arrived at the newer Fayette courthouse within forty-five minutes, plenty of time to head up the brick steps and into the building. The building was huge. There were courtrooms galore as well as a number of meeting rooms. Usually, a reading of the will would be done in one of the meeting rooms as it was more of a private event. However, because Barbara had requested such a public reading, the courthouse had decided to move the reading into an empty courtroom to prevent overcrowding.

A decent amount of people flooded into the courtroom. Felicity, Fix, Pauline, and Kendell found themselves a seat in the back. There were some familiar faces from the art auction. Kendell imagined it was people just trying to be nosey. There were people sitting up front she suspected to be related to Barbara in one way or another, including Sheldon and Lonnie. Kendell watched the stepsiblings for a moment. Sheldon occasionally wiped tears from his eyes, and Lonnie would pat Sheldon on the shoulder reassuringly.

Fix nudged Felicity, nodding toward a back corner of the room. Kendell turned around to see what Fix was trying to show Felicity, and she spotted Ms. Lark standing in a corner. She was eyeing everyone in the room. “Do you think Lark expects to get something in the will?” Kendell whispered to Felicity.

“I doubt it, but she might be here to see who gets what of Barbara’s,” Felicity suggested. “She did purchase a bunch of Barbara’s paintings at the auction. Maybe she thinks she can purchase some more from whoever inherits her supply?”

“That makes a lot of sense,” Kendell said. “She sure did seem interested.”

A gentleman in a suit made his way to the front of the room, making the official announcements about the reading of Barbara’s last will and testament. “Missus Ross’s will is fairly short and to the point,” the man stated as he held up the paper in his hands. He cleared his throat. “I, Barbara Ross, being of sound mind and body, do hereby bequeath all of my earthly belongings, my finances, my art, and all life insurance claims to my stepson, Lonnie King.”

The room erupted into a murmur. Kendell looked up front toward Sheldon and Lonnie. Sheldon didn’t move. Lonnie looked incredibly uncomfortable and quickly removed his hand from Sheldon’s shoulder. Some of the other family members were whispering to themselves, others leaning up toward Sheldon and Lonnie, questioning the reading that had just taken place.

The man who had read the will placed the papers under his arm. “That’s it. That’s all,” he announced to the room and proceeded to leave.

Slowly, bit by bit, the room dispersed. Felicity, Fix, Pauline, and Kendell remained behind as people trickled out until only Lonnie and Sheldon remained. Lonnie was fidgeting in his seat uncomfortably. Sheldon at last rose. “Mom left everything to you?” he asked.

Lonnie just shrugged. “I don’t know what happened, Shelly,” Lonnie said, rising from his seat and staring down at his feet, unwilling to look his stepbrother in the eye. Lonnie at last scurried out of the room, leaving Sheldon alone.

The man sunk back down into his seat. Felicity waved them all with a sway of her head, and they slowly made their way up to Sheldon. “Sheldon?” Felicity spoke, and the man looked up.

“Ah, Miss Overton,” he said, sitting upright.

“Do you have any idea why your mother wouldn’t leave you anything?” Pauline questioned, getting straight to the point.

Sheldon frowned. “I…I have no idea,” he said. “I mean, I didn’t expect everything…but…I honestly didn’t think she’d leave anything to Lonnie! The two of them were never particularly close. Mom and I were. I took care of her. I did everything for her. She was practically my best friend… I was wondering why the life insurance company didn’t want to talk to me. She must have removed me from her benefactor list and put Lonnie on it instead. But…why? Why would she do that?”

“You don’t think Lonnie had anything to do with this, do you?” Fix asked.

“I don’t know… Maybe…” Sheldon stood. “He seemed just as surprised as me, though.”

“I’m very sorry about this, Sheldon,” Felicity said.

“Yeah… Me too,” he said, and he left.

“Well, glad I came to this,” Fix said. “It was like watching a TV drama unfold.”

“I think Lonnie just made it onto our suspect list,” Kendell said. “And what about that Lark woman? Did anybody see her when the announcement was made?”

“I did,” Pauline said. “She seemed pretty satisfied by it.”

“You don’t think Lark could have changed the will somehow, do you?” Fix asked. “I mean, that seems like a lot of trouble to go through to try to get some paintings. But, maybe she worried that Sheldon would have wanted to hold onto the paintings while she would be able to convince the stepson to sell them?”

“That’s possible, but it seems pretty far-fetched,” Felicity said. “But I think Lark might be someone worth looking into. She was definitely hanging around Barbara a lot at the art auction. Maybe there is something more to that story than meets the eye.”

“Maybe,” Pauline said. “She did seem very obsessed with Barbara’s paintings. She bought every last one that Barbara had brought to the auction, and she hovered during the entire event, outbidding everyone the moment they put their name down on one of the paintings.”

“Something more is probably going on, then,” Kendell said, agreeing with Felicity. “But, not sure if it’s motive to kill.”

“Lonnie and Lark have definitely made it onto our suspect board, though,” Felicity said. “Let’s head back to the agency so that we can update Jack. I want to see how his follow-up interview with Tim went.”

“Do you think he stopped by?” Fix asked. “Jack seemed unsure as to whether or not he would actually come talk again.”

“I hope so,” Felicity said. “But, you never know.”

The four of them headed out, piling into Felicity’s car. “This has been quite an exciting trip back home,” Pauline said as she sat herself down in the passenger’s seat.

Felicity frowned. “You’re home. We should go do something fun tomorrow instead of you just following me around while I’m working.”

“Oh, honey, I enjoy watching you work,” Pauline insisted.

Felicity looked back at Kendell. “You’ve never been to Georgia, right?”

“Just the Atlanta airport,” Kendell said.

Felicity seemed to be thinking as she pulled out of the parking lot of the courthouse. She smiled. “I think I know just what we need to do tomorrow.”

9

Kendell, Pauline, Pauline’s daughter Samantha, Felicity, and Iris all loaded up into a family van and hit the road, headed north for Stone Mountain Park—a lovely Georgia attraction that Kendell had heard about once during her stay at the Atlanta airport a year or so before. She had not of course left the airport to venture out and visit the state monument.

Samantha had packed snacks and was the driver for their destination trip. They played loud country music that Kendell affectionately referred to as hillbilly sing-alongs. Although, since becoming acquainted with Pauline, she had learned to enjoy the style of music. They tuned into a country station that played some greatest hits from different generations of country, and Chattahoochee came on the radio. It was like a bomb had gone off in that car.

Pauline, Samantha, Felicity, and Iris all belted out singing.

“Way down yonder on the Chattahoochee

It gets hotter than a hoochie coochie

We laid rubber on the Georgia asphalt

We got a little crazy but we never got caught

Down by the river on a Friday night

A pyramid of cans in the pale moonlight

Talking 'bout cars and dreaming 'bout women

Never had a plan just a livin' for the minute

Yeah way down yonder on the Chattahoochee

Never knew how much that muddy water meant to me

But I learned how to swim and I learned who I was

A lot about livin' and a little 'bout love”

Kendell shook her head, laughing slightly at the lyrics of this classic country song that all of the women in the car, apart from herself, seemed to know by heart. When the song ended, the women all laughed together. “Remember how this was basically our theme song on our trip to Helen, Felicity?” Iris asked.

Kendell was seated between the two sisters in the back seat. The two women laughed. “Oh, I remember,” Felicity said. “I think it was played every four songs on the stations out that way.”

“You’re not kidding,” Iris said. “Plus, the band by the river was playing the song during that riverfront party.”

“You all sure do love your country music,” Kendell said.

“Well, honey, we’re in the country,” Pauline reminded her. “We all grew up listening to it. Gospel and country, that’s what you get out this way. Although, with Atlanta growing up the way it has and the movie industry coming out this way, Georgia’s choice in musical preferences has expanded a good bit.”

“I imagine so,” Kendell said. “So, are we going to be hiking up Stone Mountain or taking the sky lift?”

“My thought was we walk up it and then take the sky lift back down,” Pauline suggested.

“Mom, you do not need to be hiking up a mountain!” Samantha exclaimed. “How about you and I take the lift, and the girls can walk if they want to?”

Pauline pouted. “Fine. I suppose I need to keep my back steady for my trips.”

“Exactly,” Felicity said, leaning up and touching her grandmother’s shoulder. “You’ve walked up Stone Mountain plenty of times. Save your energy for your unchecked items on your bucket list.”

Dot, who was sitting in Pauline’s lap, yelped in agreement. Eventually, the van was pulling up into a large parking lot. There was an entrance into the park, and just in front of the ticket line was a strange vehicle that resembled a boat with wheels. “What is that?” Kendell asked.

“Ooh, we’re just in time for the duck boat!” Pauline exclaimed. “Let’s do that before we go inside the park!”

Everyone was jumping out of the car too fast for Kendell to keep up. She saw people lining up to get onto the weird car-boat contraption. They all piled onto the duck bus, and little plastic duck beaks were given out to everyone. Kendell held hers in her hands, staring at it curiously—wondering what it was for—when a small child behind her blew into the beak, causing a loud, obnoxious quacking sound. “Oh!” Kendell yelped in surprise as she did not realize it had been a duck whistle. She laughed, blowing on hers as well.

The vehicle went off, and a friendly and peppy driver spoke to them as they drove around the outskirts of the park—taking a bit of a tour and learning all about the history of the duck boat and about Stone Mountain Park. Suddenly, they arrived at a lake, and rather than driving around it, the car drove straight into the water and floated. “Oh, wow,” Kendell said, though based off the name and the design, she had guessed the vehicle would float. Either way, it was a fun experience going from trail to water.

Eventually, the duck boat arrived back outside of the gates of Stone Mountain Park, and she and her group of friends hurried to get tickets. “I say we go up the mountain first,” Iris said. “Then we can come back and enjoy the park.”

“I agree,” Pauline said, then sighed and looked at Samantha. “You’re going to make me take the lift, aren’t you?”

“I am, Mom,” Samantha said, laughing. “We’ll meet you girls at the top.”

“You ready to go on a hike?” Felicity asked, leading Kendell and Iris off in a different direction. They walked a few trails through the park, eventually arriving at a path that would lead them up the side of the mountain.

It started out easy enough. While Kendell could definitely tell they were walking uphill, the track was not too demanding. There were some spots where the girls stopped to take pictures as the scenery was just lovely. Kendell could hear a train whistle blow. “We’ll have to ride the train around the mountain while we’re here,” Iris said.

“You want to do everything, don’t you?” Felicity teased.

“I mean, it’s been forever since we’ve come to Stone Mountain. We used to come up here all the time when we were kids,” Iris said. “I kind of miss it.”

“Remember how we would always come up here every December for Snow Mountain?” Felicity asked.

“Snow Mountain?” Kendell questioned, starting to pant slightly as the Georgia heat beat down on her shoulders.

“They take ice machines and blow a bunch of snow on the hillside in front of the mountain for people to ride tubes down. It’s a lot of fun,” Felicity said.

“That does sound fun,” Kendell said.

“Yeah, we don’t exactly get a lot of snow down here in Georgia,” Iris said. “So, that was always a highlight every year.”

“I imagine so,” Kendell said, smiling. “So, were the guys okay with you taking a break today, Felicity? It sounds like you guys have a lot of events coming up and with an active case, I imagine you were probably needed. I hate that we pulled you away from your work.”

“Are you kidding?” Felicity said with a laugh. “The guys know I never take “me” time. They practically had to push me out the door when Iris first came home for the summer for the two of us to go take a little sisters’ weekend trip. I think sometimes they want me gone just so they can breathe. I stay on top of everybody too much. I’m learning how to relax a little more, you know?” Felicity stepped up onto some large rocks, looking back down the mountainside. “We’ve walked a good ways already.”

“I’m curious as to how you balance your work and personal life,” Kendell said.

“It’s not easy,” Felicity admitted. “But when you find something you are passionate about, it becomes easier. Especially when you have a good group of friends like I do who support me. And, being able to see the guy I’m dating at work is nice. A lot of my work life overlaps in my personal life, you know? I think that makes it easier on me. Although, recently it has been pretty stressful.”

“How so?” Kendell asked.

Felicity hopped down, and they continued their walk up the mountain. “These break-ins we’ve been looking into are pretty heavy on my mind. I’ve never worried about home security before. We live in a small town—stuff like that doesn’t happen very often. Now I’ve got to put an alarm code in every time I enter my house, and we put in a security system at the shop. I just wish we knew who was behind all of that mess.”

“I’m sorry you’re having to deal with all that, Felicity,” Iris said. “Do you guys have any leads on that case?”

“None,” Felicity said with a sigh. “And after what happened to Bobby, I’m getting worried.”

“Bobby?” Kendell questioned.

“A friend of ours was killed recently,” Felicity said. “He was involved in my very first case. He was wrongly accused of murder, and Jefferson and I looked into it to clear his name. Well, just this past week, someone murdered Bobby and posed him in the same manner of the victim of my first case. I felt like someone was trying to send me a message.”

“That is scary. Do you think that and the break-ins are related?” Kendell asked.

“Could be,” she said. “But, right now, I’m more focused on Barbara’s case. We need to find out what happened to her, and I highly suspect our first step is going to involve finding out why she left her entire fortune to Lonnie as opposed to her son.”

“I agree,” Kendell said. “Something is not sitting right with me about that.”

Kendell looked ahead, cringing. They were almost to the top of the mountain, but there was a frightfully steep incline ahead. So steep, in fact, that the park officials had added in a railing for people to hold onto. The three of them lined up and began the climb. Kendell felt like she was having to pull herself up.

When they finally reached the top, Kendell looked out at the wonderful view. She smiled. The top of the mountain was incredibly flat. There was a building at the top, and the Overton sisters darted toward it, talking about getting slushies as their reward for the climb. “They have slushies?” Kendell asked, chasing after them.

Inside the air-conditioned building were Pauline and Samantha, each with a slushie in hand. Kendell had sweated under the Georgia summer sun, so she very eagerly got herself a slushie as well. The five of them sat in a booth together, talking about the girls’ climb while Pauline and Samantha spoke about a young boy who had been running around in the lift, making it sway and scaring everyone on board.

“That sounds awful!” Kendell exclaimed.

“They’re steady. But it did make me a little woozy when he started doing that,” Samantha said. “His dad got onto him pretty bad when we got off the lift about the whole ordeal.”

“Why didn’t he say anything while he was shaking the lift?” Kendell asked.

“He was too busy groaning in the corner trying not to throw up,” Pauline said and laughed loudly.

Once they had all devoured their slushies, they headed outside to take pictures on top of the mountain. “You girls want to ride back down with us?” Samantha asked.

“Yes!” all three of them moaned, their calves a bit sore after the climb.

Kendell and the others loaded up into the lift, thankful the little boy who had terrified Pauline and Samantha on the way up would not be joining them for this round. The view was incredible. Kendell soaked it in as they slowly descended back into the park.

10

The train came to a screeching halt, and the group of women made their exit. The train ride had allowed Kendell to get her first good glimpse at the Confederate memorial on the side of the mountain. It was quite an impressive carving, though she was a little bummed to learn that it was not carved directly into the mountain but had been carved on a separate stone and then fastened to the mountainside. Not that one could tell the difference looking at it. If there was one thing Kendell had learned about the South, it was their obsession with the Civil War, especially in Georgia. There were monuments everywhere, Confederate flags posted about, museums galore, and just about every historical site in one way or another paid homage to the Confederate army. She couldn’t quite wrap her head around the obsession the South had over a major military loss in their history—one where the history books greatly painted them as the villains of the war, seeing as the South had been the side owning slaves.

After the train ride, they headed directly into the park where they enjoyed watching a glass blower at the park’s glass shop, did a little bit of shopping, and enjoyed their sky hike adventure attraction. Eventually, the women headed back to the car to gather blankets before returning to the park and finding themselves a spot on the grassy hill that looked out toward the Confederate soldiers’ carving on the mountainside.

“I haven’t seen the Stone Mountain laser show since I was probably fourteen,” Felicity said, laying out one of the two blankets they had brought. Once it was spread out on the grass, she helped Pauline sit on it. Pauline released Dot from her carrier, and the little dog scurried around the blanket, sniffing the grass and wagging her tail happily.

“I’m looking forward to it,” Kendell said, her stomach growling slightly as she laid out the second blanket.

“Hungry?” Iris asked, laughing.

“Yes, actually,” Kendell said, rubbing her stomach. “I mean, we pretty much just had slushies for lunch. I think I need some solid food.”

“There is a place that does stuff like pizza and hot dogs and hamburgers just down that path,” Felicity said, pointing. She looked at her grandmother. “Grandmama, you want me to grab you something to eat too?”

“A hot dog and some fries sounds just lovely,” Pauline said.

“I’ll go with you,” Kendell said. “You want anything, Iris?”

“Pizza!” Iris exclaimed. “You know, I wouldn’t mind a soft pretzel too with a cheese sauce. Extra salt.”

Felicity laughed and nudged Kendell. “Sounds like you weren’t the only one who was hungry.”

“Oh, I would just love a soft pretzel as well,” Samantha said as she sat beside Iris.

Kendell grinned, and the two of them left Samantha, Iris and Pauline behind by the blankets to save their spots for the laser show that would be starting soon. The sun was setting, and bits and pieces of the park were slowly closing down for the night. Thankfully, most of the places that served food were still open for business in expectation of the laser show crowd. Kendell got herself a hamburger and fries along with a soda, as did Felicity. They got pizza and a drink for Iris, Pauline’s hot dog and fries and soda, and eventually, they found a place serving soft pretzels for Samantha and Iris.

“Good thing you came with me,” Felicity said as the two of them slowly made their way back to the hillside, worried that they were going to spill everything.

“You’re not kidding. We should have made Iris come too,” Kendell said. “I appreciate you two being so hospitable. I’ve really enjoyed my time here in Georgia. And this trip to Stone Mountain has been a blast.”

“Are you kidding me? You have been putting up with my grandmother—I know she can be a little abrasive at times. I’m amazed she hasn’t gotten you two into a bunch of trouble!” Felicity exclaimed.

“Um…sure, let’s just pretend we haven’t gotten into any trouble at all,” Kendell said, and Felicity laughed.

“I mean more trouble than what she, I assumed, did,” Felicity said. “I’m so glad she found a friend during her travels. I know it’s been pretty hard on her since my grandfather passed away, so I know she has probably really enjoyed the company.”

“I’ve enjoyed it,” Kendell said. “She’s really made me realize just how much of a stick in the mud I had become. And I think you’ve inspired me a good bit as well. I am contemplating getting into detective work like you.”

“Really?” Felicity asked, smiling.

“Yeah, but I still love to travel, and it doesn’t look like you get to do a whole lot of that,” Kendell said. “I want to see the world, but at the same time, there is something very intriguing about what it is you do. I guess I want to find a way to do both?”

“Why not do both?” Felicity asked.

“How could I possibly make that work?”

“Well, find a career that allows you to travel,” Felicity began. “And then you can get certified to start your own practice. You can get some sort of certification, I’m sure, that would allow you to take up jobs in more than one state—or around the world, for that matter.”

“Maybe…but I already have a job that allows me to travel, but the problem is the lack of flexibility. I’ve got to be on my flights on time, and after this trip with your grandmother is over, I’m going to be maxed out of vacation time. I don’t see how being a flight attendant is going to work if I’m wanting to become…a traveling detective?” Kendell shook her head. “Plus, who would hire me to work a case? I don’t have any real experience. I need to find a job that allows me to travel that is more flexible while I’m working toward some sort of certification.”

“What about travel writing?” Felicity suggested. “You can go where you want. You could do blogging.”

“I don’t know about supporting myself through a blog…” Kendell muttered. “But I do like writing. That might be fun. Traveling, getting paid to write about my journeys, and then picking up private investigative work wherever I’m at.”

“If that’s what you’re thinking you would enjoy, I’d go for it. Life is too short to be spent in a career you hate,” Felicity said. “Maybe start small. Start up a blog while you’re traveling now and see if people respond to what you’ve got to say. That would at least get you some practice and give you a chance to see if it’s something you would really want to do.”

“I think that’s an awesome idea,” Kendell said, smiling confidently. “A blog writer… I could do that… Hmm… I wonder what my boyfriend would think of that.”

“Grandmama told me you were dating someone,” Felicity said. “Sounds like a good guy from what she has told me.”

“Really?” Kendell was surprised. “She’s never actually met him, and from what I told her, she didn’t seem too thrilled about him.”

“Well, I think she’s trusting your decision-making skills,” Felicity said. “She told me he was missing you really bad and had given you a hard time about being gone?”

“Yeah, it was so weird. He started getting all grumpy with me about it and then all of a sudden started acting like Mister Supportive,” Kendell exclaimed. “It was so random. I think one of my friends might have gotten a hold of him about it, but I’m not so…” Kendell stared at Felicity. She had this I-know-something-you-don’t look about her. “Oh my gosh, please don’t tell me…”

Felicity’s face turned bright red. “What?” she asked.

“Did Pauline… Did Pauline talk to him?” Kendell asked.

Felicity looked away. “Okay, so… Grandmama may have mentioned to me that she got a hold of your cell phone while you were sleeping and decided to call your boyfriend and chew him out…”

“Oh my gosh!” Kendell exclaimed. “I can’t believe she would do that!” For a moment, it made her angry. It was a major invasion of privacy, but then she smiled and laughed. Pauline had just been trying to look out for her, after all, and, frankly, whatever she said had obviously straightened Jack up. “Your grandmother is so crazy, but I love her to death,” Kendell said, and Felicity smiled, glad she hadn’t gotten Kendell angry with the woman.

They arrived back at the blanket just as the lights at the base of the mountain were starting up and an announcement was being spoken over the loudspeakers about the laser show. Soon, loud country music started to boom, and colorful light images displayed up on the mountain. Kendell sat next to Pauline on the blanket as the woman fed Dot bits of hot dog. She smiled. She felt so fortunate to have met this crazy old coot. It was nice having someone look out for her the way she did.

* * *

After dropping Samantha and Iris off, Pauline, Felicity, and Kendell headed back to Felicity’s home. Kendell went straight to bed, exhausted after the trip. Pauline headed to Felicity’s room, where she had been staying. Her granddaughter sat up on the bed after changing, yawning and stretching. Jefferson had been passed out on the couch when they had arrived back from Stone Mountain, so they had all tip-toed back into the house.

“Tired?” Pauline asked.

“It was a long day,” Felicity said. “Aren’t you tired?”

“Most definitely,” the woman said, peering out the bedroom door into the living room where Jefferson was sound asleep. “Sweet man. Looks like he tried to wait up on you.”

“I would hate to wake him. I sent him a text letting him know we had made it back,” Felicity said.

“You know, Felicity, he really is a good boy,” Pauline said. “One I wouldn’t mind my granddaughter marrying one day.”

Felicity’s cheeks turned bright red. “Oh, well… I don’t know… I mean…maybe one day…”

“Felicity,” Pauline said sternly. “You know why I came to Georgia, don’t you?”

Felicity frowned. “Yes, Grandmama, I know. You made it pretty clear you came to knock some sense into me.”

“What’s the problem?” Pauline asked.

“I guess I’m just scared,” Felicity admitted. “After what happened to Brian, I’m just worried about getting hurt like that again. It would kill me if something happened to Jefferson.”

“Do you love him?” Pauline asked.

“I do.”

“Then you can’t keep living in fear,” Pauline said. “Please tell me you are going to stop stringing that poor boy along. He loves you so much, you know?”

“I know,” Felicity said. “And he is such a great man. He really cares about me. He loves me, and I do love him too. I need to snap out of this funk I’m in.”

“That’s right, you better,” Pauline said. “What happened to Brian was just awful. I’m sorry you had to go through that. It was not right. But Jefferson is a good man who deserves more than just a casual dating experience.”

“I know,” Felicity said. “And I’ve been working on that. I think we’re going to be okay, Grandmama. I have been opening up to him more lately. And we’ve gotten more serious. It’s just kind of weird. We’ve been friends for so long, and now we’re in a relationship. It’s like you skip a bunch of steps when that happens.”

“I imagine so,” Pauline said. “Just don’t scare him off by being distant.”

“I won’t. I promise. I would be foolish to do something to chase him away,” Felicity said. “He’s one of the good ones.”

Pauline smiled at her granddaughter and leaned down, kissing the woman’s forehead. “Yes, Felicity, I do believe he is. I’m so glad I came to visit with you. It has been so wonderful.”

“I’m glad you decided to stop by,” Felicity said. “Although, I hate that part of your trip was ruined.”

“Ruined!” Pauline exclaimed. “Missing out on Peru is nothing. I got to see my girls. That’s all that matters.”

11

The following day, Kendell and Pauline met Samantha for lunch at a local Irish pub just across the street from the event shop. Kendell enjoyed a shepherd’s pie. Unfortunately, Samantha had to run out of lunch early when the contractor coming to work on their ruined carpet called saying he would be early. She was having to replace the carpet in their guest room after the upstairs bathroom flood.

After lunch, Pauline and Kendell headed across the street to Overton Family of Companies, where they saw that the shop was full of people. Jefferson and Trixie were of course helping out the abundant number of walk-ins they had unexpectedly gotten, but even Fix was downstairs with Felicity. Felicity was on the phone, talking to Jack upstairs. “Well, we can’t all go,” Felicity said into the phone as Pauline and Kendell approached.

Felicity smiled at them. “Jack, I’ll go. You just man the phones in the agency, and let Fix help Jefferson and Trixie down here with the crowd that just came in… I’ll be fine. Jack, I said I’ll be fine.”

“Tell Jack we’ll go with you,” Pauline whispered. Kendell raised a brow, not sure what it was Pauline had just signed them up for.

“Jack, my grandmother and Kendell are here. They will go with me,” Felicity said. “It’s just a witness. I can handle it. It’s not like I haven’t gone on my own before. Just man the phones.” Felicity hung up and shook her head. “Things got crazy, and I’ve got to go meet up with Lonnie and Sheldon.” She grabbed her purse out from under the counter. “Grandmama, are you sure you want to go with me to that?”

“We told you we wanted to help with the case,” Pauline said firmly.

Kendell nodded in agreement. Truthfully, she would take any experience she could get. She was really starting to think that becoming a private investigator could be something she was legitimately interested in doing. It would be a major career change, and she wasn’t sure how she was going to make it work with her dreams of traveling. She liked Felicity’s idea of doing travel writing as well, but it was a risky business design—a traveling private investigator.

Felicity bid farewell to Jefferson, Trixie, and Fix, then led Pauline and Kendell out the door. They loaded up into her car and headed up to Fayette County. “So, where are we going exactly?” Kendell asked from the back seat.

“Sheldon and Lonnie are at Barbara’s house right now. They agreed to let us come by to interview them and talk about their mother,” Felicity said. “But it got really crazy at the shop today, and we needed someone to stay in the office because we might have some more people coming by for a cheating husband’s case we’re working on.”

“Did Jack interview Tim again?” Kendell asked.

“Yeah, but it wasn’t very helpful,” Felicity said. “We didn’t really learn anything that we didn’t already know. He isn’t really making it a secret that he doesn’t like Barbara, but that hardly qualifies as actual evidence against him.”

“You would think if he was guilty, he could be trying to make it sound like they were best buddies to avoid being busted,” Kendell said.

“Exactly,” Felicity said. “It’s weird. Same with Ariana. People are smarter than that, even killers. If you had just killed someone, you wouldn’t go around telling people what your motive could be.”

A few more minutes went by, and soon they were pulling up outside of a large house off a main road in Fayetteville. There was a white picket fence around the entire property, and a long-abandoned horse stable in the back. There was a moving van out front as well as a couple of vehicles and a giant ‘for sale’ sign. “Looks like Lonnie is moving everything out of his stepmother’s house,” Kendell said. “He sure did jump on selling this place.”

“I wonder how Sheldon feels about that?” Pauline asked as they exited the vehicle and began walking up to the house.

Felicity knocked on the door, and Lonnie answered it. He smiled sadly. “Hey,” he said quietly. “Come on in.” He opened the door wide, and the women entered the house.

Sheldon was just inside, loading some items up into a carboard box. He looked sad and a bit broken. “Hey, Sheldon, Felicity is here,” Lonnie said, and the man looked up from what he was doing.

“Hey,” he said, approaching the women.

“I appreciate you agreeing to speak with us,” Felicity said. “I imagine you all have a lot to worry about right now. I noticed the for-sale sign in the yard… Was your mom selling the house?”

Sheldon frowned. “No… Lonnie decided to sell the place.” He sounded sad but not too annoyed. “It was necessary. It’s a pretty big house to keep up. We’re clearing some stuff out we want before the estate sale he has set up.”

“I’m letting Sheldon go through to get any sentimental stuff he wants before I put everything up for sale,” Lonnie said.

“Yeah, I appreciate it,” Sheldon said uncomfortably.

Lonnie’s shoulders slumped. “I’m really sorry, Sheldon. I know this is weird…”

“It’s not your fault,” Sheldon said. “I need to run out to the store in a bit and get some more boxes.”

“Okay, that’s fine,” Lonnie said. “I’ll be here all day.”

“I’m going to grab some more photo albums right now to fill up this last box.”

“Yeah, go ahead. Take all the photo albums if you want. If there are any pictures I want, I’ll get photocopies from you later,” Lonnie said.

“Thanks,” Sheldon said, dipping out of the room and returning a few moments later with the photo albums that he began working to fit into the box.

“I’m going to go rearrange some stuff in the truck so we can get the rest of those boxes in there,” Lonnie said, heading out the door.

“So, Sheldon, I hate to ask this, but it’s imperative for the case,” Felicity began once Lonnie was out of the room. “Now that there’s been a little time to think, do you have any idea why your mother would leave everything to Lonnie over you?”

“None,” Sheldon said, looking as though he felt quite betrayed. “Like I told you already, Mom and Lonnie were never that close. She married his dad when Lonnie was sixteen. He moved out at eighteen, and they really just saw each other around the holidays. He would come and help out around the house if she needed anything out of respect for his dad, but they weren’t close. I don’t know why Mom would do this. It just doesn’t make sense. I mean, it would have made sense to a certain extent, she was his stepmother, but I was expecting her to leave him stuff that belonged to his dad. He got a lot of money and belongings after his dad passed away. So, I just wasn’t expecting this.”

“I imagine not,” Pauline said.

The door opened and Lonnie returned, wiping sweat from his brow. “Okay, I got the boxes put into the back of the van. There is plenty of room for more if you want to go get some more boxes.”

The doorbell rang moments later, and Lonnie excitedly scurried to answer it. Kendell wasn’t sure who she was expecting to be on the other side of the door, but it sure wasn’t Ms. Lark. The tall, slender woman slipped into the house carrying a briefcase and looking quite smug. Her hair was pulled up in a tight bun, and she nodded approvingly at Lonnie. When she saw Sheldon, she nodded in his direction as well and calmly stated, “Ah, Mister Sheldon. I wasn’t expecting you to be here. I would like to offer you my deepest sympathies for your loss.”

Sheldon stared at the woman curiously. “I appreciate the sentiment. Pardon me for sounding so forward, but why are you here?”

“She wants to buy your mom’s paintings,” Lonnie said. “All of them.”

“All of them!” Sheldon exclaimed. “Lonnie, you can’t sell all of Mom’s paintings.”

Ms. Lark raised a brow. “Is there a problem, Lonnie?” she asked.

“Um, no. No problem,” he said. “Why don’t you head on into the kitchen. Some of her paintings are hanging up in there, and you can have a look. I’ll meet you in there in just a moment.”

The woman nodded and left the room. Sheldon stared at Lonnie. “You can’t seriously sell all of my mom’s paintings,” Sheldon said. “I would like to keep some.”

“Well, Sheldon…” Lonnie muttered. “Look she left them to me, and Lark is offering a lot of money. Like, a lot of money. I can’t pass that up. I’m going to give you some of what I make off them.”

“I don’t care about the money, Lonnie. I want to keep some of my mom’s paintings,” he said.

“Sheldon, she offered two grand for one painting,” Lonnie said. “I’m sorry, bro, but I’m selling them.”

“There has got to be seventy something paintings in this house, and you’re going to sell every single one of them and not let me keep any?” Sheldon demanded.

“It’s nothing personal, Shelly,” Lonnie said. “Look, Miss Lark is not a particularly patient woman. I’m going to go talk to her. I’ll be back in a minute. Don’t worry, Sheldon, I’m going to cut you in on what I make off the paintings.”

Sheldon watched Lonnie leave, looking very heartbroken.

“This isn’t right,” Kendell said.

Sheldon stormed outside, obviously not in the mood to talk now. He slammed the front door, leaving Pauline, Kendell, and Felicity standing in the dining area alone.

12

Kendell crossed her arms as she heard the front door slam shut. She shook her head. “That’s just not right,” she said. “How hard would it be for Lonnie to let Sheldon pick out a couple of paintings?”

“I agree, but I see where Lonnie is coming from,” Felicity said. “If I had some paintings I could sell for that much, I’d have a hard time just handing them out. I definitely think something is going on here. It makes no sense for Barbara to leave everything to the stepson she barely knew.”

“Do you think Lonnie could have done something?” Pauline asked. “He is certainly making quite a profit off the death of his stepmother.”

Felicity nodded. “It definitely gives him a strong motivation for killing her. But, based off of that really big moving truck out front, it’s not like he’s not letting Sheldon have his fair pickings of his mom’s belongings. And other than those paintings, it doesn’t seem like there is a whole lot in this house worth a lot of money. But how would Lonnie have even known he would come across someone who loved his stepmother’s paintings enough to fork out two grand a painting? Unless he knew that long before the art auction, somehow managed to convince his stepmother to leave everything to him, and then plotted to kill her…but how would he have known?”

“Maybe he knew Lark beforehand?” Kendell suggested.

“Yeah, but do you think Lark could have conspired with Lonnie?” Felicity questioned.

“You think she would want a woman dead just so she could maybe get a deal on her paintings?” Pauline questioned. “I doubt that. That’s a bit of a jump.”

“There is something we are definitely missing here. I just don’t know what,” Felicity said, shaking her head.

“Well,” Kendell said, leaning back a bit to spy around the corner and make sure no one was within earshot. “They all did just walk off and leave a detective alone in the house. It’s almost like they expect us to go snooping around.”

Felicity snorted slightly. “I doubt that, but it’s not like we can get busted for breaking and entering when we’ve been invited inside already. Let’s split up and look around. See what we can find. I’m going to go talk to Sheldon, see what he thinks about this whole situation.”

“Feel him out and see if he thinks Lonnie could have something to do with his mom’s death,” Pauline said. “You don’t just wake up one day and decide to become a murderer. If Sheldon has known Lonnie since their adolescent years, he might know whether or not Lonnie would be capable of something like that.”

“Okay,” Felicity said. “You two be careful.” Felicity headed outside in search of Sheldon, leaving Kendell and Pauline behind in the house.

“I guess we should split up too,” Kendell said.

Pauline nodded in agreement. “Why don’t you see if you can go talk to Lonnie and Lark. Find out from Lark why she is willing to pay so much money for a small-town artist’s artwork. See if you can find out if they knew each other before the art auction.”

“What are you going to do?” Kendell asked.

“Well, I figured while you have Lonnie and Lark distracted and Felicity has got Sheldon’s attention, I would use the opportunity to do a little bit of snooping around the house,” Pauline said. “You never know what I might find.”

“Sounds like a plan,” Kendell said. “Watch your back.” Kendell left the dining area and headed toward the back of the house where she had seen Lonnie and Lark walk off only moments before.

She could hear their voices coming from the kitchen, but she paused before going inside to listen in. “I don’t know,” Lonnie said. “I think this one is worth at least three grand.”

“You’re trying to overcharge me now,” Lark said, laughing a little. “Your stepmother was a haggler too.”

“So, exactly how many paintings have you bought from her before?” Lonnie asked.

“About a dozen,” Lark said. “But I came to the auction ready to write her quite a check this time around for her Marvel-themed paintings. She ensured me they would be worth a lot more. I can’t believe Gerald was there. He kept trying to outbid me on those paintings. Your stepmother was clever inviting us both. And here I thought she was being silly putting these paintings in an auction where people wouldn’t know what they were actually worth. But, she invited several of her past buyers, so we were outbidding each other the whole day.”

“So, that guy Gerald was a past buyer?” Lonnie asked.

“Gerald, Beth, Thomas… There were at least twelve or so there, but I outbid them all,” Lark said.

“I still can’t believe she was keeping such a secret from Sheldon and my dad and me,” Lonnie said, laughing slightly. “I mean, she always played little miss innocent. But, turns out, she was just a retired crook. No wonder she always made so much money off all these paintings.”

Kendell could not quite figure out what it was about these paintings. Surely, there was something more going on. She entered into the kitchen, making herself known. “Hey, Lonnie,” she said perkily.

He jumped slightly. “Oh, hello,” he said. “It’s…Kendell, right? You’re friends with the detective Sheldon hired?”

“Detective?” Lark asked.

“Yes, Felicity Overton. She’s a local private investigator with an incredible track record,” Kendell said, eyeing them both. “Don’t worry, Lonnie. Felicity is the best woman for the job. She will find out what happened to your stepmother. I can guarantee that.” Kendell stepped toward one of the paintings hanging on the wall in the kitchen. “So, your stepmom’s house is jampacked with all sorts of paintings, I’ve noticed. I’m curious, Miss Lark, about what made you so interested in them to begin with. Not that they aren’t wonderful. This one is particularly beautiful, I’d say.”

Kendell was examining a painting of a bowl of fruit. Barbara was certainly talented, but she had heard Lark and Lonnie discussing Lark paying anywhere between two and three grand for it. It was good, but it wasn’t that good. Suddenly, the clouds outside must have moved, so a bit of light flooded in through the window brighter than before. While Lonnie attempted to move to block the light, Kendell definitely noticed something peculiar. The painting shimmered. She pretended not to notice.

“I just know good talent when I see it,” Lark said nervously.

“Well, I’ll let you two get back to what you were doing, then,” Kendell said. “I’m sure you have a lot to discuss. There sure are a lot of paintings in the house. Whenever you two are finished, I’m sure Felicity would appreciate a one-on-one interview with you, Lonnie. That’s why we came here, after all.”

“Of course,” Lonnie said, eagerly pointing her toward the door leading out of the kitchen.

Kendell headed out, thinking about how the painting had glistened in the light. She headed back into the dining room and observed a painting of a bunch of dogs. They looked adorable. Kendell stepped closer and decided to pull the painting down from the wall. She laid it out on the dining room table to observe it carefully. Barbara certainly liked to layer her paint, she noticed. Kendell leaned forward, examining the painting with a keen eye. Yes, Barbara certainly put the paint on that canvas very thick. Kendell touched one of the dogs in the painting right on the nose. Against what she thought to be her better judgement, she scratched the clump of paint right on the dog’s nose. “Crap,” she muttered as a bit of paint chipped off. Then, she saw it. It was, without a doubt, a paint-covered diamond. “Oh…oh my gosh…” she said, picking up the rock. She scratched the paint off the jewel to confirm it.

She set the diamond on the table and continued to observe the painting. I hate to destroy it, but… Kendell cringed slightly as she used her fingernail to continue to scratch at the beautiful picture of the puppies. She peeled an entire golden necklace out from under the thick paint. From what she observed, Barbara had hot-glued various bits of jewelry and jewels to the canvas prior to painting it. No wonder there was so much paint. Kendell’s eyes widened as she recalled the stepbrothers discussing how there was over seventy paintings in the house. If every painting was secretly stashing gold necklaces and diamonds, they were worth a fortune! And it seemed like Lark and Lonnie both knew this. “I have to find Pauline,” she said under her breath. She took the painting and hid it behind a cabinet in the dining room. Hopefully, Lonnie wouldn’t find it before she had a chance to tell the group what she found.

* * *

Pauline headed up the stairs, Dot napping in the little carrier she had slung over her shoulder. She searched for the master bedroom belonging to Barbara, deciding to search it first. The boys had clearly not been in this room just yet as the furniture, decorations, and a small pile of clothes in the corner had gone untouched.

Barbara had a beautiful vanity that Pauline could not help but go and sit at. She smiled at herself in the mirror. There was a little jewelry box sitting in front of her, so she opened it up, revealing a beautiful assortment of necklaces. “She’s got good taste,” Pauline said, opening a drawer in the vanity. More jewelry. “My oh my,” Pauline said, eyeing the drawer that was positively packed with expensive-looking necklaces. “This is real gold. Smart woman. That’s the way to invest.”

Pauline stood up and headed to the closet. There was a collection of shoeboxes in the corner. She opened one up, knowing that she personally used to keep things other than shoes in her boxes back before she owned a home. The first box merely contained a pair of new shoes that had not been worn, but the second box once again contained a bunch of jewelry. “What in the world?” Pauline wondered aloud. She knew that some women had rather extensive jewelry collections, but this was a bit overboard. It seemed like there was nice, elegant jewelry stashed in just about every nook and cranny of her room.

Even when Pauline opened up the woman’s sock drawer, she found diamonds shoved away inside a folded pair of socks. “How could she possibly afford all this?”

As she was heading toward the nightstand, expecting to find additional hidden jewelry in there, she stubbed her toe on something sticking out from under the bed. “Ouch!” she said, setting Dot’s carrier on the bed while she bent down to see what she had run into. It was a scrapbook. “Ooh, lovely,” Pauline said, opening it up to find an assortment of newspaper clippings dating back to the fifties and sixties. Every single one of them was on a string of jewelry store robberies throughout the Midwest. From the looks of the papers, the culprit had never been caught. “Barbara was a thief!” Pauline exclaimed. But she was a smart thief, it seemed. The woman clearly had bided her time before ever attempting to pawn the jewelry, otherwise she would have been busted back in the fifties and sixties. Pauline found a booklet sitting on top of her nightstand of an inventory she had done of her jewelry, and it looked as though the book was fairly new. “She waited nearly half a century before she started selling the jewelry,” Pauline said, realizing this was probably the reason she had never been busted. There was no way the authorities would have been able to connect any pawned jewelry all the way out in Georgia to a string of robberies taking place in the Midwest nearly fifty years prior.

Pauline set the journal Barbara had used for inventory on top of the scrapbook that Dot was now sniffing at, the little dog having crawled out of her carrier. Pauline opened up the nightstand. She found a manila envelope that she promptly opened up. Her jaw dropped. She had found Barbara’s last will and testament, and it certainly had not left her entire fortune to Lonnie. “Jackpot,” Pauline said. “Lonnie must have forged her will…”

The door opened, and Pauline jumped. However, it was just Kendell and Felicity. “Grandmama, you won’t believe what Kendell found,” Felicity said.

“Ooh, me first!” Pauline exclaimed, waving the will in her hands. “I found Barbara’s will—the real one!”

“Real one?” Felicity questioned.

“Yeah, I bet Lonnie doesn’t know she kept a copy of her original will in her room, or he would have gotten rid of it by now,” Pauline said. “She left all her paintings and her home to Sheldon and left about ten grand to Lonnie in her will, but most everything was supposed to go to Sheldon. I also found an inventory book on a bunch of jewelry that I believe was stolen.”

“Stolen?” Kendell asked, and Pauline presented the girls with the scrapbook.

“Barbara was a thief in her younger years. She waited, though, before she started selling off her jewelry until her old age to set herself up with a good retirement plan,” Pauline said. “There’s jewelry hidden all over the place in the bedroom.”

“That’s not all,” Kendell said, holding up a paint-coated, golden necklace. “Barbara has been hiding the stolen jewelry in her paintings and selling them to people who don’t seem to mind buying stolen jewelry.”

“You mean like Miss Lark?” Felicity asked.

“Exactly,” Kendell said. “From what I heard, Barbara had invited a lot of her regular buyers to the art auction. She was putting her jewelry onto canvases to move the stolen jewelry safely to the buyers.”

“So, what do you think, Felicity?” Pauline asked.

“I think Barbara kept her little jewelry heists a secret from Sheldon and Lonnie, but Lonnie found out about it and struck a deal with one of her buyers—Lark—to make sure he made off with the money,” Felicity said.

Pauline grinned. “I think we might just know who killed Barbara.”

13

The group of ladies spread all of the evidence they had found out on Barbara’s bed, including the painting from the dining room that Kendell had ripped jewelry from. The bed was covered in jewelry, the book full of newspaper clippings, the painting, and of course, the original will and testament. Felicity was busying herself with taking pictures of all of the evidence. She forwarded the pictures to Jack and then went ahead and gave him a call.

“Jack!” Felicity exclaimed once she had him on the phone. “Did you get those pictures? Yeah, I agree. Send the police down here. We’re going to let Sheldon in on what we found and see what we can do about making sure Lonnie and Lark don’t go anywhere… We don’t know if Lark was involved, but it’s highly possible, we think. No doubt Lonnie had something to do with the will, which makes him our most viable suspect… Okay… Yeah, we’ll be careful. Let Jefferson know what’s going down, all right? See you soon.” She hung up the phone. “Jack’s calling the police, and he’s heading this way now too.”

“Oh, how exciting!” Pauline exclaimed, clapping her hands. Dot was circling Pauline with her tail wagging a million miles an hour. Clearly, the playful little pooch was feeding off the excitement from her owner.

“Should I go grab Sheldon and bring him up here?” Kendell asked.

“Yes, that’s a good idea, but make sure Lonnie and Lark don’t see you,” Felicity said. “We don’t want to tip them off that we’re on to them before the police get here.”

Kendell nodded and slipped out of the bedroom. She quietly made her way downstairs where she could hear Lark and Lonnie still arguing about prices in the kitchen. “You told me you would give me better prices than your mother, Lonnie,” Lark sneered.

“These are better prices,” Lonnie insisted.

“Hardly!”

Kendell made her way outside the front door where Sheldon was still sitting and sulking. He was sipping on a soda and munching on some pretzels he had probably fetched from the kitchen. “Hungry?” Kendell asked.

“I haven’t eaten much since Mom was killed, and I think it’s finally getting to me,” Sheldon groaned. “Started getting a little woozy. I haven’t eaten today at all.”

“You have to remember to take care of yourself,” Kendell chastised. “I’m sure your mom would want you to.”

“Maybe,” he grumbled. “I feel completely blindsided by all of this.”

“Come with me, quietly,” Kendell said. “We might have found something that is going to help us finish up this case.”

Sheldon jumped up. “Really?” he asked. “You think you might know who killed Mom?”

“Keep your voice down,” Kendell said as they entered the house. She could still hear Lark and Lonnie bickering away.

“I can throw in that ugly cat painting upstairs if you agree to the price we’ve set for these two,” Lonnie growled.

“Well, I’ll have to have a look at this cat painting first, Lonnie, before I agree to that!” Lark countered.

“Fine. Fine,” Lonnie said. “But tell me what you think of this one first…”

Kendell and Sheldon headed up the stairs, Kendell shaking her head as they heard Lonnie and Lark’s bickering echoing from the kitchen. They slipped back into the bedroom, and he raised a brow at all the stuff spread out onto the bed. “What’s all this?” he asked.

“Evidence,” Felicity stated. “Sheldon, were you aware of your mother’s…extracurricular activities from her youth?”

“What? Like tennis?” he asked.

“More like robbery,” Pauline said, picking up the scrapbook and handing it to him.

He skimmed through it. “I don’t know what this is supposed to be,” he said.

“The articles cover a string of jewelry thefts from almost fifty years ago out in the Midwest,” Felicity said.

“My…my mom lived out that way when she was younger…” he said.

“This is only some of the jewelry we found,” Felicity said, waving her hand toward the bed. “There’s more hidden in your mom’s paintings.”

“The paintings!” he exclaimed, leaning forward and looking at the painting of the puppies that Kendell had ripped up a bit. “I…I have never noticed…”

“Each canvas seems to be full of stolen jewelry,” Kendell said. “Your mom was moving stolen jewelry this way, selling them to various buyers. There are golden necklaces, and lots and lots of diamonds.”

“So, do you think a deal went south or something?” Sheldon questioned.

“Not exactly,” Felicity said, reaching for the original will that they had found. “Your mom had this stashed away in her bedroom. It’s her last will and testament. A copy of the real one.”

Sheldon took it and began skimming through it. “She left almost everything to me…left a little money to Lonnie…but where did the fake one come from?”

“We highly suspect that it came from Lonnie,” Felicity explained. “He probably destroyed the official copy and plagiarized the one that was read at the courthouse. But he also likely did not realize that your mom kept a copy here in her bedroom.”

Sheldon tensed up as he placed the copy of the will back on the bed. “Lonnie… You think he killed her?” he asked.

“The evidence certainly seems to suggest that,” Felicity said. “The police are on their way now to collect the evidence, and it’s very likely that they will make an arrest today.”

“Thank you,” he said, looking very sad. “I can’t believe Lonnie would do this.”

The door to the bedroom suddenly opened. “Wait until you see this big one she’s got hanging over her bed. There’s more diamonds than…” Lonnie froze. He stood upright, staring at all of them, and he quickly put on a perky facade. “Hey, so, are we having a meeting in here?” he asked.

Lark entered the room behind him. “Tsk, tsk, tsk,” Pauline said under her breath.

Lonnie’s eyes darted toward the bed where a bunch of jewelry was spread out. “Oh, wow, would you look at all of that jewelry,” he muttered, trying to pretend like he wasn’t aware of the number of jewels hidden in the house.

Sheldon shot Lonnie a filthy look, and that was all it took for Lonnie to realize that they all knew. But he wasn’t the first one to bolt. It was Lark. She practically leaped out the door, Lonnie right on her heels. “Well, that certainly made her look guilty,” Pauline said.

“They’re going to get away!” Sheldon yelped, hurrying out the door as well. The women all dipped out as well. Lark was already halfway down the stairs by the time they all got out of the bedroom.

Dot had zipped past all of them, feeding off the excitement in the room. Lonnie was just about to start down the stairs when Dot arrived at his feet. The little dog grabbed hold of a loose shoelace as though she wanted to play, and Lonnie toppled over his feet. Kendell covered her mouth in surprise to see Dot still at the top of the stairs, Lonnie’s shoe in her mouth. The little thing looking happy and victorious that it had managed to swipe a toy during all of the commotion. Lonnie went tumbling down the stairs, leaving his shoe behind. He collided with Lark at the bottom of the steps, sending her to the floor with a fierce thud.

Sheldon scurried down the stairs, meeting with his stepbrother and Lark, who were both lying out on the floor moaning. Sheldon jumped onto Lonnie, pinning him down. “You killed her! You killed her, didn’t you?” he shouted.

“Get off me, Shelly!” Lonnie yelped.

“You did it, didn’t you? You killed her!”

Lark managed to jump up and bolt for the door. Kendell had made it to the front of the trio of women and was nearly at the bottom of the steps. She contemplated tackling the woman to the ground, but there was no need. Lark flung the door open and ran smack into an officer who had been about to knock.

“Stop her!” Kendell shouted, and he did.

Lark backed up. “I had nothing to do with this!” she declared.

“Yeah? Then why did you run!” Sheldon shouted, still sitting on top of Lonnie.

“She’s the one who forged the will!” Lonnie snapped. “This was all her idea because your mom was overcharging her for the jewelry!”

Sheldon glared down at Lonnie. “So, she was the mastermind, but you’re the one who attacked her, aren’t you? You killed her!”

“He killed her!” Lark snapped. “I had nothing to do with this!”

“She’s lying!” Sheldon retorted.

A second officer entered the house, and the two of them were quick getting both Lark and Lonnie in cuffs, but not before Sheldon delivered one good punch to his stepbrother. He was quickly told to back off or they would put him in cuffs as well. Sheldon obeyed, standing upright. Lonnie and Lark were both shoved into the back of a patrol car just as Jack came pulling up to the house. He exited, smiling to see that there were some suspects locked away in the back of a cop car already.

“Ooh, a two-for-one,” Jack joked as he met Felicity, Pauline, and Kendell on the porch.

“You missed quite a show,” Felicity said. “Dot knocked Lonnie down the stairs, and he crashed right into Lark.”

Pauline was holding the dog, grinning and laughing. “That’s my little Dot! Such a brave girl! You helped catch the bad guys, didn’t you? Who’s my good girl? Who’s my good girl?” Dot was wagging her tail and giving Pauline kisses, not sure why she was getting so much praise after knocking someone down the stairs.

Felicity and Jack went inside with one of the officers to talk and to show them the evidence they had all found. Kendell, however, opted to sit outside on the porch with Pauline, taking advantage of the nice rocking chairs. Sheldon sat down near them, taking in a deep breath as he gazed out into the yard where the other officer was standing near the patrol car that contained Lonnie and Lark. “Thank you,” he said. “I’ll have to thank Felicity too. Thanks to you all, my mom is going to get the justice she deserves.”

“I’m so sorry about all of this mess,” Pauline said. “But at least the truth is out now.”

“I wonder if all of my mom’s paintings are covered in stolen jewelry,” he said. “No doubt the police are going to confiscate all of that. I was really hoping to keep some of her artwork. I wasn’t expecting to find out that my mom was some national jewelry thief back in the day.”

“No, that one was an interesting little twist,” Kendell said, smirking. “But we have the real will now, so Lonnie’s not going to be able to touch your mom’s belongings.”

“Good,” Sheldon hissed, staring down at the patrol car angrily. “I knew something was wrong. I just couldn’t figure out why my mom would have left me nothing. It didn’t make any sense to me at all. I felt so betrayed, I guess. Like I told you all, she didn’t have much of a relationship with Lonnie at all.”

“Well, now you know,” Kendell said. “And it looks like those two are probably going to be in jail for a good, long time.”

Sheldon smiled. “Good riddance. You know, I never really liked Lonnie all that much. I just put up with him because he was my stepbrother. I don’t have to do that anymore.”

Kendell smiled. Dot hopped out of Pauline’s lap and came over to her, wagging her tail and looking up at Kendell eagerly. “Good dog, Dot.”

14

Kendell breathed in the air as she sat out on the deck of Pauline’s daughter’s home. Samantha was inside cutting up watermelon while her husband was working the grill nearby. “These barbeque ribs are going to be great,” he said, smelling in the aroma.

“If you don’t burn them,” Pauline said.

“Hey, let the grill master do his thing,” he said.

“I’m just saying that it’s a good thing Samantha is making fried chicken,” Pauline said. “You’ve caught that grill on fire more times than I can count.”

“You just like giving me a hard time, don’t you?” the man asked.

“You’re my son-in-law. It’s practically a requirement that I heckle you,” Pauline teased. He laughed and shook his head.

Felicity and Iris were seated at the picnic table with Kendell, laughing at their dad as he and their grandmother made jabs at one another. “Are those two always like this?” Kendell asked.

“Pretty much,” Iris said. “It’s all in good fun, though. They secretly love each other.”

Kendell snickered a bit. Dot came running around the picnic table, barking. “Easy, girl,” Kendell said. “I’m sure Pauline is going to feed you something in a minute.”

Samantha came out onto the deck, a giant plate of watermelon in tow. “Iris, come help me get the fried chicken out here,” she said.

“It’s done already?” Mr. Overton asked.

“Just pulled it out of the fryer,” she said.

“Yum,” he said. “I love your fried chicken. Felicity, this little cookout was a good idea.”

“Well, I hated to send Kendell off without presenting her with some traditional southern homestyle cooking,” she said, jumping up. “I better go finish the potato salad, actually.” Felicity followed her mom and sister inside to help finish everything up.

Soon there was an entire spread of southern fixins in front of them. Watermelon, barbeque ribs, fried chicken, mashed potatoes and gravy, corn on the cob, biscuits as well as cornbread, deviled eggs, potato salad, Brunswick stew, and a bunch of other southern delicacies everyone was insisting the New Yorker try. Kendell laughed, loading her plate down. “There is nothing even remotely healthy on this table other than that watermelon,” she said.

“Boo!” Iris yelped. “This is a southern feast, it’s not supposed to be healthy!”

“There’s okra,” Pauline said.

“It’s fried!” Kendell countered, laughing. “But, oh my gosh, everything is so good!”

“Of course it is. It’s all fried!” Pauline exclaimed, laughing. “Make sure you save room for dessert. I got my famous peach cobbler cooking in the oven inside.”

“I am of course going to have to sample some of your cooking, Pauline,” Kendell said with a smile. “And cobbler? That sounds good.”

Kendell smiled as she chewed on her fried chicken, sampled the potato salad, and chugged the sweet tea that Samantha had made. Mr. Overton at last finished his barbeque ribs, and he loaded them onto a tray and brought them over to the table, sitting down to fix himself a large plate of food. “So, I have to hear about how you all managed to crack this latest case. Especially your part of the story, Pauline. Did your grandmama give you a hard time working this case, Felicity?” he asked.

Felicity laughed. “Actually, Dad, Grandmama was really helpful. So was Kendell.”

“What’s the news on Lonnie and Lark?” Iris asked.

“Awaiting their court dates from the comfort of a local jail house,” Felicity said. “Turns out Lark was a notary as her day job, so she was easily able to create a fake will. And her brother worked at the same firm as Barbara’s lawyer, so she got her brother to convince Barbara’s lawyer that the woman had updated her will and sent it in while he was out of town. So, now Lark’s brother is possibly going to lose his license. Lark is giving names of other buyers Barbara dealt with in the past in an attempt to get a lighter sentence, so they’re going to probably be able to get a lot of the stolen jewelry back that Barbara has been selling over the past several years.”

“I cannot believe the patience of that old woman,” Mr. Overton said.

“Yeah, for real,” Iris agreed. “She waited…how long before she started selling that jewelry?”

“Almost fifty years,” Felicity said. “And she moved across the country too. Police out in the Midwest had given up the search for the lost jewelry nearly twenty-five years ago. Barbara put a lot of people out of business—she hit up mostly family-owned places. She had only just started selling the jewelry about a year ago from what the police can tell based off her inventory book we found. So, most all of the stolen jewelry was in her paintings. A lot of it is going to be returned to the families who lost it.”

“That’s pretty remarkable,” Samantha said.

“So, Felicity,” Kendell began. “Have you heard from Sheldon whether or not any of the paintings he wanted didn’t have stolen jewelry in them? He really wanted to keep some of his mom’s paintings.”

“As a matter of fact, yes,” Felicity said with a smile. “He found a self-portrait she had done that is jewelry-free, as well as a landscape painting. He was glad his mom had done at least some paintings without her stolen goods. He’ll be able to keep those in memory of his mom. Although, I think it’s a little bittersweet finding out your mom was some famous, unmasked jewelry thief.”

“Well, you girls did a great job on this one,” Samantha said, then shook her head. “Mom, you’re getting too old for this sort of stuff.”

“Age is only a number, dear,” Pauline said.

They heard Dot growling and looked over to see the little dog playing with a shoe. “Grandmama…is that what I think it is?” Felicity asked.

Pauline smiled. “You mean Lonnie’s shoe?” she asked. “Well, I think that after helping us catch the bad guys that my little Dot deserved a take-home prize.”

“You stole the man’s shoe!” Kendell exclaimed, slapping her forehead in disbelief.

“To be fair, he tried to steal his stepbrother’s entire inheritance. Besides, I’m pretty sure the local prison will provide him with his own pair of shoes. He’s not going to need it where he’s going,” Pauline declared.

“Oh, Jefferson’s here!” Felicity exclaimed excitedly, jumping up and hurrying toward the driveway to meet Jefferson as he pulled up.

Kendell saw Pauline smile at this. Kendell knew that Pauline’s intentions of coming to Georgia had been very personal. She had wanted to make sure her granddaughter was okay. That she wasn’t pushing this nice guy away. It seemed like Pauline’s mission had been a success.

15

Kendell rolled out of bed the following morning, still feeling incredibly stuffed after the feast she had enjoyed at the Overton household. She felt a little groggy after the immense amount of fried food had put her into a deep slumber. While Kendell was never opposed to trying new foods, her usual cuisine was much more fat-free. She was a salad type woman. Not a fried appetizer followed by a fried meal type. But it had been a worthwhile experience.

She rubbed her eyes and headed to the hall bath to shower. She knew that Pauline had briefly mentioned something about catching a flight to their next destination, and just like Pauline, she had left out all the details such as when the flight was leaving and, of course, where they would be heading. So, she decided to just be ready to go.

After a shower and taking time to dry her hair, she promptly got dressed and was greeted by the smell of bacon frying. More fried food, she thought but smiled. Their last three destinations had been in southern states, so a part of her was growing quite accustomed to the southern diet. She slipped out of the bathroom and was greeted by a jumpy Jefferson, who smiled and hurried past her. Evidently, he had politely been waiting to go to the bathroom. He hadn’t even knocked.

Kendell laughed at him as he scurried into the bathroom and shut the door, shaking his head in embarrassment. She headed into the kitchen, where she spied Felicity making breakfast. “Ooh, pancakes!” Kendell exclaimed excitedly as Felicity poured the freshly-mixed batter onto the pan.

“I like blueberries in mine,” Felicity said.

“Same!” Kendell exclaimed excitedly. “Mmm…blueberry pancakes, bacon, and eggs? Breakfast of champions.”

Felicity laughed. “Grandmama tells me you have a flight to catch in a couple of hours, so I thought I’d give you a good sendoff.”

“Well, I appreciate it,” Kendell said, sitting at the counter to watch Felicity as she finished up.

Jefferson joined them shortly, plopping down by Kendell. “So, Kendell, how have you enjoyed Georgia?”

“Quite a bit, actually,” Kendell said with a smile. “The people here are friendlier than just about anyone I’ve ever met. And you guys have been so hospitable. And I appreciate you, Felicity, giving me some advice on my career. I’m definitely going to take some of that into consideration.”

Felicity grinned. “Glad I could be of service.”

Dot suddenly came scampering out of the back room, barking and yelping excitedly as she discovered the luring smell of bacon. Kendell laughed. “Well, good morning to you too, Dot,” she said, looking up in time to see Pauline slowly making her way out of Felicity’s bedroom, yawning loudly and unapologetically.

“Morning!” Kendell said as the woman made her way over to the kitchen table.

“Good morning, dear,” Pauline said. “Do I smell coffee?”

Felicity put the last of the pancakes onto the large plate she had sitting out. “I’ll make you a cup,” she said, hurrying over to the coffee pot.

“So, Pauline, what time does our flight leave?” Kendell asked.

“Yours leaves in about three hours,” Pauline said. “Mine doesn’t leave for another two days.”

Kendell frowned. “We’re going separately?”

“Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to get us on the same flight,” Pauline moaned. “Plus, I wouldn’t mind spending another day with my granddaughters. But I needed to go ahead and get you on a flight so that you could check into our suite, otherwise they’ll give it away, and this is a trip I’ve very much been looking forward to.”

Kendell grinned. “Where are we going this time?”

“My dear, we’re going to Paris,” Pauline said, and Kendell’s stomach fluttered.

“Paris!” Kendell exclaimed. “Oh, wow!”

“You be sure to pick me up from the airport, now,” Pauline insisted.

“Are you sure you wouldn’t want to go first, Pauline? I can wait two more days, if you’d rather go,” Kendell said.

“Oh, I’m quite fine spending a little bit more time at home with the family,” Pauline said. “Plus, I know you know a little bit of French, so I think you’d probably fare better on your own for a couple of days than I would. I’d be completely lost.”

“You know French?” Felicity asked.

“A little,” Kendell said. “I did a semester abroad in college.”

“I bet that was fun,” Felicity said.

“It was,” Kendell said. “When we were in Kenya, we met a French couple at Giraffe Manor, so it was fun getting a refresher course talking to them.”

“Well, I imagine being in Paris, France, will be an even grander refresher,” Jefferson said, fixing himself a plate.

They all enjoyed breakfast together, laughing and talking about the adventures they’d had over the past several days. Kendell felt a little disappointed knowing that she would be traveling without Pauline. They had been traveling companions for a while now, and she also felt like she would be taking advantage of the woman seeing as how Pauline had been paying for all of the trips for the two of them. It seemed unfair that she would be vacationing for a couple of days without her. But Pauline was quite insistent.

Before Kendell knew it, it was time for her flight. Pauline remained behind, wanting to rest her back rather than driving an hour in the car to the airport. Kendell understood, but she felt sad leaving Pauline behind in Senoia. Felicity and Jefferson kindly drove her. The three of them laughed and talked in the car on the way up to Atlanta. It was a strange feeling as she was dropped off at the airport and waved good-bye to Felicity and Jefferson. As a New Yorker, she had never really envisioned enjoying the small-town lifestyle. She had certainly never envisioned herself enjoying a vacation to a place like Senoia, Georgia. She had never imagined she could enjoy the food and the culture and the people as much as she had. In fact, the South was the last place she ever thought of traveling. Yet it had become her favorite spot thus far along hers and Pauline’s journey.

Eventually, it was time for her to board her flight. Pauline had gotten her a first-class seat, and she smiled thankfully as she sat down, her carry-on bag in tow. She set the bag in her lap, pulling out a new sticker that read Senoia, Georgia, on it and had an image of the little town’s skyline—including the little water tower. She smiled happily. “I might actually have to come back to Senoia sometime,” she said to herself.

She listened halfheartedly to the flight attendant as she went over safety procedures. It was a speech she herself had memorized from years of working in the airlines. She sighed heavily. After five years, she had finally realized that she wasn’t getting what she wanted out of being a flight attendant. It was time for a career change. Felicity had suggested travel writing, but was there really any money in that? Then again, did it matter if she was enjoying life, able to travel, and was generally happier than she was now?

Plus, what would her boyfriend think? He always took himself so seriously, and the two of them had been getting quite close in the past few years. Would he be supportive? It was a lot to process. Maybe I could just do a trial run, she contemplated. Now would be the good time to do it. She’d had a few adventures so far. Her phone and camera were full of pictures from her and Pauline’s travels. Maybe a blog would be a good idea.

The flight took off, and eventually, the announcement that the WiFi was available came on. Kendell pulled out her laptop, opening up the internet icon. She created for herself a little blogger webpage. She called it New York Class and Georgia Charm. She had already downloaded pictures from her phone from that first trip in London, so she started uploading some of her favorite photos onto the webpage. Then, she started typing.

The words flowed from her fingertips with ease. It came easily and naturally, and she spared no detail. She talked all about the incident at the Globe Theater—about the case she and Pauline had worked out there. She was funny and clever, serious when needed, and respectful to the deceased. Before she knew it, she had completed her first travel writing article. She played around a bit with the home page, pulling stock photos off the internet and using Photoshop to edit her own photos with the stock photos. Soon, she was looking at a beautifully designed webpage—one with a fun roadmap background with a super sleuth caricature of herself and Pauline and even Dot in the bottom right corner. She then created bio pages for herself, for Pauline, and yes, even Dot. She smiled, feeling quite satisfied. The website was complete, the first blog post written.

Her finger lingered over the publish button for several minutes. The gentleman next to her smiled. “What is it you’ve been working on over there with that big smile on your face?” he asked.

“A possible career change,” Kendell said. “Thinking about becoming a travel writer, so I just started up my blog… I’m kind of nervous to publish it.”

“What’s the blog called?” he asked.

“New York Class and Georgia Charm,” she said.

“How did you come up with that title?” he asked curiously.

“I’m from New York, and my partner-in-crime is a Georgia woman,” Kendell said, tapping her fingers nervously against the top rim of her computer screen.

“Publish it,” he said encouragingly.

Kendell nodded, clicking the button. She breathed. She felt anxious about putting herself out there like that. The man beside her had his phone out, but she was not paying attention to what he was doing. He snickered to himself every once in a while. Kendell had opted to put a tracker of website views on her page, and she saw that she already had a view. She looked to the man beside her. “You’re reading my blog?” she asked.

“Is this a true story?” he asked her.

“Yes,” she said.

“This is amazing,” he said. “You can really write. You paint an interesting picture. It’s funny, too. Kendell McDonald? According to the blog…”

Kendell smiled. “Thank you,” she said. “And yes, my name’s Kendell. What’s yours?”

“Rodney Adams,” he said, and they shook hands. It was always nice when you were going to be on a long flight to get seated next to someone so friendly. “You mind if I share your blog on my social media pages? I like it and would love to support it.”

“Please do!” she said excitedly.

“You know, you should add a donation option,” he said. “With an option to do a monthly donation. That way, people who enjoy your writing can support it to help you keep doing it.”

“You can do that?” Kendell asked.

He pointed eagerly to her laptop, and she passed it to him. He played around for a minute, then started typing away. “I’ve got three different donation options setups,” he said. “Kendell’s Crew—five dollars a month with the option to change the donation fee to something a little more. Pauline’s Posse—one hundred a month with the same option to go a little higher. And, finally, you have Dot’s Division—five hundred a month, and those who join that group can get perks like seeing your blog posts early and getting access to exclusive behind-the-scene photos through an online newsletter you can send out once a month.”

Kendell took the laptop back, looking at some of the changes Rodney had made. “This is incredible,” she said, smiling. “This is amazing advice. Thank you.”

“Bloggers have got to stick together,” he said with a wink.

“You’re a blogger too?” she asked.

“Yeah. Not a travel writer or anything. I do stuff on local cuisine. I’m from Detroit. It’s just a side job right now, but it’s been growing.”

“Tell me the name of your blog, and I’ll follow you too,” Kendell said, and they exchanged information. She felt very fortunate to have wound up next to him. It was almost as though the universe had placed a fairly successful blogger next to her as a sign to go for it. She smiled, checking in on occasion to see her views going up.

She leaned back in her seat, closing her eyes for a bit. It was going to be a long flight to Paris.

* * *

French Fatality

Flight Risk Cozy Mystery, Book 7

1

While Kendell McDonald had been disappointed that her elderly friend Pauline had chosen to remain in Georgia for a bit, she was feeling almost as though it was destiny that had sat her next to the charming man, Rodney, on her flight to Paris. Pauline would be joining her sooner or later, so Kendell was doing her best to make use of this time apart. It was still strange, though, to think that Pauline was paying for this trip without being with her. True, she planned to take a flight out of the States soon, but it was still a bit unusual to Kendell.

The flight from Georgia to Paris had left nearly seven hours ago. Thanks to some weather conditions early in the flight, it was looking like they were going to be up in the air at least another three hours. But Kendell was doing her best to be productive. Thankfully, the plane’s wifi network had been working flawlessly the entire time, so while she had a professional blogger sitting beside her offering tips, she was working diligently on her new blog.

“Okay, let me read it before you post it,” Rodney said, reaching for her laptop. He read through the blog, chuckling to himself from time to time. “This…this really happened?” he asked.

“Yeah, I know,” Kendell said. “Should I confess to helping an accused criminal evade Kenyan police?”

“I think you’ll be fine,” he said with a laugh. “Sounds like everything worked out for the best. You know, you’re a really good photographer too. That really makes your blog pop. I mean, these pictures from Giraffe Manor are amazing.”

“I already started on my third story, too,” Kendell said. “If you look, I’ve started writing it in a document first before moving it to the blog. It’s our trip to Hawaii.”

Rodney switched over to the document Kendell had been typing up, doing a little proofreading for her. “You and your friend Pauline have had some incredible adventures,” he said.

“I think so,” Kendell agreed. “It’s why I want to write about it. I think people are really going to like the story.”

“Life of a blogger isn’t easy,” Rodney said. “But with a platform like yours, I think people are going to respond really well. I mean, I’m just a food critic from Detroit.”

“Your blog is just amazing, though,” Kendell said. “So, what are you doing in Paris, anyways?”

“Little bit of vacationing,” he said. “But I’m hoping this trip is going to give me a major boost as a blogger. I’ve been invited to do a restaurant review.”

“In Paris!” Kendell exclaimed. “That’s quite a feat.”

“You’re not kidding,” he said with a laugh. “I could hardly believe it myself. We’ll see where this winds up taking me. Who knows, maybe this can bring me to a point where I could start doing this thing full time.”

Kendell smiled at the thought. It was still a fairly new dream of hers. She had decided in recent days that she wanted to get out of her job as a flight attendant. She had started working at the airline five years ago hoping to get a sense of adventure but instead had spent the past five years working nonstop. She had never even left the airports whenever she would arrive in a fascinating country. It was ludicrous, really, that she had seen so little of the world. That had all changed during a fateful encounter from New York to London when Kendell had met Pauline and her little pet dog, Dot. The woman had convinced her that she needed to start living and had invited her along for an adventure around the world.

They had been to England, Kenya, and Hawaii before hitting up the southern United States on a road trip where they visited Texas, Mississippi, and finally, Pauline’s hometown in Georgia. It had been Kendell’s time in Georgia visiting with Pauline’s family that had really stirred something inside her. Pauline’s granddaughter, Felicity, had greatly inspired her. Felicity had an unusual business platform where she ran a party planning business alongside a detective agency. It seemed like a strange combination, but she made it work. Kendell and Pauline had helped Felicity on a case, and Kendell had loved the experience. So much so, in fact, that she was contemplating a career change.

Kendell had always enjoyed writing. English and history had been some of her favorite subjects back in the day. And she desperately wanted to travel. To see the world. Her time with Felicity along with some of the trouble she and Pauline had gotten into along their journey made her realize she had a knack for detective work. Felicity had managed to combine two businesses, and Kendell was wondering whether or not she could do the same. A blog writer and an international detective! But how realistic is that, Kendell wondered.

Could one even do detective work abroad? Was that even a thing? Would she have to get some sort of universal certification? Could she even do that? Frankly, it was a lot to think about. Kendell had just finished uploading her third blog post about her and Pauline’s trip to Hawaii when Rodney, who was receiving her blog updates on his cellphone, chuckled. He had just pulled up the Hawaii story to view her completed work.

“I love this picture of you and Pauline and the little dog, what was its name…Dot…at the surfing contest,” he said. “I have to say, I really love this blog. You’ve really made Pauline out to be quite a character. People are going to eat this up.”

“She is a character,” Kendell said. “That’s hardly my doing.” Kendell sighed. “I hate that she’s not coming to Paris for another day or two.”

“Sounds like you two have gotten close,” Rodney said.

“Yeah, we really have,” Kendell said. “I mean, Pauline and I haven’t known each other for very long, but we’ve traveled the world together…gotten in and out of a lot of trouble together too. But I suppose it’ll be nice to have a little time to myself in Paris.”

“You said you’ve been before?” Rodney asked.

“Back in college, I did a semester abroad,” Kendell said. “Learned a little bit of the language. Definitely wouldn’t consider myself fluent, but I can read French fairly well and hold a basic conversation.”

“Wish I knew a little,” he said, holding up a French to English translation book.

Kendell laughed again. “Well, I’m sure you will manage. You seem like a smart guy.”

“Thanks, I appreciate it,” he chuckled.

Kendell opened her laptop back up, deciding she wanted to read a little bit more of Rodney’s blogs as well. He did mostly restaurant reviews in the Detroit area, and his reviews all seemed very honest and helpful as well as a bit humorous and fun to read. She found his bio page and then laughed. “Oh, wow, you’re a lot younger than I thought. You’re only twenty-two?”

Rodney smirked. “Yeah, I know,” he said, running his fingers through his hair. “Most people tend to think I’m a lot older thanks to the receding hairline. Genetics, I guess. Wouldn’t really know. I’m adopted.”

“Oh, really?” Kendell asked. “What was that like growing up?”

“Pretty much the same as any other childhood,” Rodney said. “Didn’t even know until I was around fifteen. I looked just like my adopted parents. Funny enough, my biological parents are apparently from Paris. It was a closed adoption, so any information on my biological parents can’t really be dug up unless they decide to come looking for me. But I’m pretty excited to be here in Paris because apparently the children’s home I came from is in the heart of the city somewhere. I’m going to check it out while I’m here. It’ll be kind of neat seeing where I came from.”

“That’s so interesting,” Kendell said. “It’s like you’ve been brought full circle.”

“Exactly,” he said. “I’m hoping it’s a sign. Maybe I’ll catch my blogging break here in the city I come from.”

Kendell looked at the time. They should be arriving in Paris very soon, so before the wifi was lost during their descent, she pulled up her blog post one more time. “Whoa!” she exclaimed. “I have seventy-five views already!”

“Way to go!” Rodney said. “That’s a lot for someone who just uploaded their blog a few hours ago.”

“People are loving it!” Kendell said, skimming through some of the comments that had been posted. “Wait… Oh my goodness! I got a sponsor!”

“No way!” Rodney glanced over her shoulder. “Way to go!”

Rodney had helped her set up her blog page early on during the flight. He had showed her how to set up a donation page for people to sponsor her blog. They had set it up with three different sponsor options. Level one was Kendell’s Crew—a five dollar a month commitment. Level two was Pauline’s Posse—one hundred a month. And, finally, level three was Dot’s Division—five hundred a month. Kendell doubted she would ever have anyone sign up for Dot’s Division, but it was still good to have on there. Each level up would get readers different perks like being able to see extra pictures or read her blog posts early. Her first sponsor had opted to join Kendell’s Crew, a five dollar a month commitment to help keep her blog running.

“Thanks, Rodney,” Kendell said. “I really appreciate all of the advice you’ve given me. Who knows, I actually might be able to make this work.”

“I hope so,” he said. “You seem really excited about it.”

“I am,” she said. “It’s a lot to think about, though. The legalities of it all, especially.”

“I suppose you should research the countries you plan on going to and seeing what their laws are about amateur detectives. Maybe you won’t need a license at all,” he suggested.

“That’s an excellent point,” Kendell said. “I mean, it would be nice if I could actually get hired for detective work…but if I could make this blog really work, then maybe it wouldn’t matter? I don’t know. I might be getting a little ahead of myself.”

“That’s the point of dreaming, though, isn’t it?” he said.

“I suppose that’s true,” Kendell agreed. She smiled at the thought. Could she really make a traveling blog successful enough to support herself?

Her mind drifted back home to New York, specifically her boyfriend Jack. What would he think about her becoming a travel writer? She huffed. He hadn’t been a huge fan of her grand excursion around the world at first, although she knew Pauline had evidently had a conversation with him and had nipped his attitude in the bud. Plus her friends had all cornered him too. But even though he’d had a change of heart about this trip she was on, that didn’t mean he was going to be gung ho about her making this a more permanent thing. Plus, how was she going to make a relationship work if she was gone all the time? And it wasn’t like Pauline was going to be able to fund this adventure forever. She would have to get way more sponsors, especially if she kept doing detective work for free.

For the time being, she decided not to worry about the details and just enjoy the fact that she had over seventy-five views and a single sponsor on her first day as a blogger. Yes, that was victory enough for now. Kendell took a break from her blogging. She put up her laptop and before she knew it, the pilot was announcing their descent. Kendell grinned, peering past Rodney out the window at the upcoming view. Finally! They had arrived in Paris, France. It had been years since Kendell had last been to this beautiful city, and she couldn’t wait to explore it again.

2

Kendell bid farewell to Rodney at the airport before collecting her bags and heading out front to grab a taxi. She pulled out her phone where she had stored the information Pauline had given her regarding their hotel. Frankly, Kendell had a terrible habit of not following up with a lot of information Pauline gave her regarding their trips. Half the time, she wasn’t even sure what destination they were headed to next until they boarded their flight. This particular trip, seeing as how she was arriving long before Pauline, was probably not the best time to not be aware of the plan.

Her eyes glistened as she pulled up the little text document she had typed up, realizing that the hotel they would be staying at was Melia Paris Notre Dame! The hotel right across the street from the beautiful Notre Dame Cathedral. “Pauline sure does like to go all out,” Kendell said to herself, already fantasizing about her stay. Truthfully, a part of her was looking forward to a night alone. She was going to miss Pauline, but a night alone in her favorite city in the world didn’t sound like such a terrible evening. It was going to be lovely, she decided. And being right across from Notre Dame was going to be a major perk.

She called for a taxi and was happy when it arrived quickly. It swerved up to her in a hurry; there was evidently a lot of competition this time of day for taxi drivers. She had arrived at a time that didn’t seem quite as busy as she remembered when she had last ventured into this marvelous city. After tossing her bag into the cab, she climbed in. The driver addressed her in French, and Kendell smiled to hear the familiar language again from a native speaker. The man nodded approvingly when she was able to respond. The French people were very proud. She recalled back in college when she was still learning the language how some folks had gotten a bit annoyed with her broken French, and while she was out of practice, she knew she had significantly improved since her last venture here.

She sat back, smiling and admiring the view as they drove through the lovely city of Paris. She had done a bit of sightseeing back in college, the last time she had been to this beautiful city, but it had been very school-led. She had been given a little bit of free range on the weekends during her six-week stay, but now she felt like she truly could get to know the city. She spoke a bit with the cab driver, practicing her French, and she realized just how rusty she was. Thankfully, the driver was very polite and kindly helped her out with a few phrases and pronunciations. Kendell was very grateful for the tips, and they chatted a bit about her last adventure in Paris, about the college courses she had taken back then, and about how much she was looking forward to this trip.

At last, they pulled up outside of the hotel. Kendell grinned ear to ear as she pulled her bag out of the taxi and paid her fare. The entrance to the hotel was surrounded by a lovely dark gate and a pristine walkway leading up to the doors. She walked, passing by perfectly-trimmed bushes as she admired the architecture of the place. It was an oddly shaped building, the sides jutting out toward her in a U shape as she walked toward the main entrance. The windows nearly all faced the cathedral to give each guest a proper view of the ancient and remarkable piece of architecture.

When she entered the lobby, her breath was taken away by the elegant white floors that almost seemed to shimmer in the light. There were a few golden accents on the wall, and as she approached the desk she admired the black marble countertop. This was a huge step up from the tiny hotel she and her classmates had stayed at back in the day. This was pure luxury, and she knew she was going to have to make this the best trip she could for Pauline to make up for this grand gesture of inviting her along on her retirement adventure. The gentleman behind the desk grinned at her as she made eye contact with him. “Bienvenue à Melia Paris Notre Dame!” he exclaimed.

Kendell smiled. “Bonsoir. J'ai une réservation d'hôtel pour Pauline.”

The moment she said the name Pauline, the man behind the counter seemed suddenly giddy. It was as though someone had lit a fire under him. “Ah! Yes, you must be the American!” he exclaimed in a very thick French accent. “Kendell?” he asked, practically jumping in his excitement.

Kendell nodded. “Yes, that’s me,” she said. “I see Pauline must have contacted you already.”

“Yes,” the man said. “Let me get your bags and show you to your suite!”

Kendell thanked him as he took her bag and headed off. She followed close behind, and she was thrilled to be up on a top level, thus granting them one of the best views. Pauline had opted for one of the hotel’s grand suites, which included two bedrooms and a large seating area. And, much to Kendell’s delight, they had a perfect view of Notre Dame. “Beautiful,” Kendell said. She paused for a moment, taking it in. She could hardly believe that she was back in Paris, and this moment seemed to make it more real for her.

The man gave her a little spiel about the hotel, and Kendell couldn’t help but notice his extreme enthusiasm. Kendell, who had spent time in Paris, could never recall meeting a Frenchman with so much energy and glee. He must be having an exceptionally good day, Kendell thought as the man practically danced out of the room. She had never met someone so incredibly giddy. Maybe Pauline had been very pleasant when she had made the reservation? The woman could have promised to give the man a good tip. She wasn’t quite sure what was going on, but something was definitely up. That much she could be sure of.

Kendell wasted absolutely no time throwing herself down onto the bed, taking a moment to text Pauline to inform her she had arrived at the hotel, and then passing out. It had been an incredibly long flight, so she slept for several hours before stirring awake. She yawned loudly, and then she rubbed her eyes, feeling quite refreshed. Kendell sat up, stretching a bit and shaking her arms out. She decided to pull out her laptop to update her blog. Upon powering up the laptop, she was ecstatic to see that she had over one hundred views already. Almost two hundred views in less than a day. “Amazing,” she said under her breath, hardly able to believe it. The blog had been up for less than twenty-four hours, so she felt proud of this new accomplishment.

Kendell finished typing up the story of her and Pauline’s time in Texas, already having completed England, Kenya, and Hawaii. Just as she was finalizing the blog and putting in pictures, there was a knock on the door followed by a call for room service. Kendell rose, somewhat quizzical, and answered the door. “I’m sorry, but I didn’t order room service,” she said.

It was the man from behind the counter, and he was pushing a rolling cart into the room almost as soon as she had opened the door. “Yes, but your friend did for you,” he said excitedly. “Worried you’d be hungry after your flight, I suppose. Such a nice woman, that Pauline.”

Kendell smiled. “Well, that’s so sweet of her,” she said, stepping aside so that the man could roll the cart the rest of the way into the room. “Pauline really is quite a character. You know, she and I have only just met recently, and she spoils me like I was one of her grandchildren.”

“Some people are just naturally giving,” he said.

“Yes, I suppose so,” Kendell said in agreement. “I just met some of her grandchildren recently, and I just loved them. She’s got a lovely family. I can tell she is a woman with a big heart.”

“I cannot wait to meet her face to face,” the man said. “We spoke briefly on the phone, and I am certain I will enjoy her company. Now, if you need anything else, Miss Kendell, do not hesitate to ask.”

“Of course,” Kendell said, smiling at the man.

Once the cart of food was brought in, he handed her an envelope, practically giggling like a silly schoolgirl on his way out the door. Kendell held the envelope in her hands, somewhat confused as she ripped it open. It was a typed letter from Pauline that she had sent to the hotel staff to forward to her. What is she up to, Kendell wondered as she began to read.

Kendell,

I hope you had a wonderful flight into Paris! I apologize for not being able to join you right away. I’m enjoying spending a little bit of extra time with my granddaughters. I’m still a little worried about Felicity – not because of her relationship or anything (as I believe she’s worked that out), but there is this looming case she is working on that I can tell has her quite stressed. She is trying to talk me into taking a flight out tomorrow, so we will see… What can I say? I’m just a worried old grandma sometimes!

Dot is doing well, but I think she misses you! That little pooch has grown quite attached to you, Ms. Kendell! I myself am feeling quite excited to meet with you in Paris very soon. However, I felt simply dreadful to send you off on your own, so I prepared a little fun for you during my absence.

I booked you a reservation for dinner tonight at the Eiffel Tower. I’ve attached your reservation information to this email – the hotel staff should be able to provide everything for you. I do hope you’ll go and enjoy yourself! The staff should have also put a dress in your closet I ordered from a local Paris boutique! I hope I got your size right. Enjoy,

-Pauline

Kendell grinned ear to ear. “I cannot believe her,” she said, pulling out her laptop. She pulled up a video chat with Felicity, doubting Pauline would have any idea how to work it. After a moment, Felicity’s face popped up on screen.

“Well, well, well, if it isn’t my redheaded Yankee friend!” Felicity smiled, clearly in a fun and joking mood compared to her usual serious demeanor. “How is Paris?”

“Amazing,” Kendell said. “And I’ve only been to the hotel. I just found out your grandmother booked me a dinner reservation at the Eiffel Tower, so I wanted to thank her! Is she around?”

“Sure, one sec,” Felicity said, disappearing from the screen for a moment. A second later, the elderly Pauline was smiling back her—her white and fluffy pooch, Dot, in her lap.

“Well, hello there!” Pauline exclaimed excitedly. “Have you gotten settled in?”

“I have, in fact,” Kendell said. “And I just got word from the hotel about my dinner reservation tonight at the Eiffel Tower! Pauline, you are too kind. You didn’t have to do that.”

“Oh, but I wanted to,” Pauline insisted. “I hate the idea of you sitting around bored waiting on me to get to Paris. I should be in soon. I think my granddaughter is trying to give me the boot.”

“Grandmama!” she heard Felicity from the background. “You know you can stay as long as you like! I just know you’re staying because you’re worried about me, and I told you I’d be fine!”

Kendell laughed. “Felicity is a tough girl, Pauline,” she said. “I’m sure she can handle herself. I hate that I’m going to the Eiffel Tower without you, though! Isn’t that one of the places you wanted to see?”

“I think I want to visit Versailles,” Pauline said. “And Notre Dame more than anything, but if I want to see the Eiffel Tower, I’ll do a little tour before we head to our next destination. I’m sure I can fit it all in.”

“Oh, I have something to tell you!” Kendell exclaimed. “I started a blog.”

“Really!” Pauline cried out. “About?”

“Our travels,” Kendell said. “It’s already got a hundred views, and I just started it a few hours ago on the plane. I’ll send Felicity the link so that she can show it to you.”

“Oh, wonderful!” Pauline said, clapping her hands. “I hope any pictures you put on there of me have captured my elegance and grace.”

Kendell laughed. “Of course they have.”

“Now, you better start getting ready,” Pauline said. “Don’t want to miss your dinner reservation. And take a picture of yourself in that dress. I want to see it! It looked simply lovely online.”

Kendell nodded. “Will do, Pauline. You have a safe flight and let me know when you’re headed in, and I’ll pick you up at the airport.”

“Perfect!” Pauline said and then held up Dot. “Dot, say bye-bye to Kendell.”

The little dog yipped in response. Kendell closed her laptop before heading to the closet where she pulled out a beautiful teal dress. She threw it on and was very satisfied. She felt beautiful in it. “Way to go, Pauline,” she said, locating matching shoes in the closet as well that were just her size. As she was finishing up with her hair and makeup, there was a knock on her door.

It was the same man from behind the counter, and he was grinning ear to ear. “Your ride has arrived, Miss Kendell.”

“I have a ride?” she asked.

“Yes, ma’am,” he said, escorting her out of the hotel.

Kendell’s jaw dropped when she saw a horse-drawn carriage waiting for her. “Whoa,” she said. “Seriously? That thing’s going to take me all the way to the Eiffel Tower?” They were a considerable distance from the Eiffel Tower, so she wasn’t sure how she felt about riding all the way there in a carriage. But if Pauline had gone through the trouble of hiring a carriage ride for her, she figured she might as well. She certainly didn’t want to disappoint the woman who had clearly put a lot of time and effort into making sure she had an enjoyable evening.

The man nodded happily at her and helped her up into the back of the carriage. The carriage driver tipped his hat to Kendell as she boarded. The hotel clerk beamed and then spoke to the carriage driver. “Make sure she has a wonderful escort,” he instructed. “It is a special evening for the lady.”

Kendell raised a brow, feeling like Pauline had something rather extravagant planned. The carriage took off, and Kendell watched the hotel disappear in the distance. She looked out, truly mesmerized by the beautiful scenery of Paris at night. “Amazing,” she said as the carriage pulled her along. She was going to have to thank Pauline profusely for this. I cannot believe Pauline would go to such lengths to ensure I had a good evening out by myself, she thought, realizing what a good friend she had made in that old woman.

Kendell leaned back in her seat, people watching. Paris was such a lovely city, and the night scene was particularly breathtaking. The lights had her positively mesmerized. The three-mile track from her hotel to the Eiffel Tower took a considerable amount of time in a carriage, but Kendell didn’t mind. She was able to enjoy the scenery and the night air.

Soon, she could see the Eiffel Tower and the lovely reflecting pond in front of it. The lights especially had her feeling all romantic and nostalgic about this city she had once visited in her youth. Yes, this was going to be a magnificent evening.

3

Kendell headed to the second-floor restaurant of the Eiffel Tower, her breath absolutely taken away by the scenery before her. The view of Paris was especially breathtaking. The city was lit up, and the light glimmered against the beautiful night sky backdrop. “Whoa,” she said. Although Kendell had been to Paris before, she didn’t have the opportunity to be up in the Eiffel Tower at night. It was like looking upon an entirely different city that was just as beautiful but in a different way. It was like the difference between flowers and Christmas lights—equally lovely as well as unique.

The host smiled when Kendell gave them Pauline’s name and he switched from French to English quickly. “Ah, our American, Miss McDonald, I presume?” he asked.

Kendell smiled. Pauline had certainly planned quite an evening for her. “That’s me.”

“Right this way. Your table awaits,” he said, and frankly, Kendell was a bit taken back. She was certain that even with a reservation, she was going to have to wait. Evidently not.

She was taken to a table that seemed a bit away from the others, and it was simply the best view in the house. She could see the reflecting pond below. “I dare say again, whoa,” Kendell muttered under her breath as she sat down. She noted that it was the only table with an elegant floral arrangement, and it was made up of some of her favorite flowers. She snapped a few pictures with her phone, even pausing a moment to take a selfie. This would be a wonderful addition to her traveling blog. She stood up to get a better angle of the view and was quite distracted by her phone when she heard someone clear their throat behind her.

Kendell turned, expecting to see her server. Instead, she had to do a double-take. Standing in front of her was none other than her boyfriend Jack dressed to the nines in his best suit with a nervous, toothy grin. He looked so handsome in his black suit and his hair neatly combed—something he rarely did. “Jack!” Kendell yelped in surprise. They had been together for five years, and they had spent every spare moment together in those past five years up until Kendell began her adventure around the world with Pauline. Since then, the most she had seen of him had been strictly through video chat. She practically knocked him over with the abrupt hug. “What are you doing here?!” she exclaimed. “You–you’re supposed to be in New York! Oh my goodness, what in the world!”

He smiled. “Yeah, well, your friend Pauline helped me out a little. She’s quite a character, you know? She and I had a good talk, and we came up with this little surprise for you. I’m glad it all actually worked out and that Pauline was able to keep the surprise under wraps. She seems like the type who would have a hard time keeping a secret.”

Kendell laughed, sinking back down into her seat once he kindly pulled it out for her. He sat across from her, smiling. “I’ve missed you,” Kendell said.

“I’ve missed you too,” he said, reaching across the table and taking her hand. “And I’m sorry. I’ve been a jerk, and I want you to know that it wasn’t me trying to be all controlling or anything like that.”

“Good to hear,” Kendell said.

“Because I have no problem with you wanting to see more of the world. Honestly, I wouldn’t mind doing the same,” he said.

“Then why have you been acting so rotten?” she asked, taking her hand away and giving him what was supposed to be an angry look, but she was smiling underneath it. It was so good to see him again.

“Your friend Pauline knows…” he said, his cheeks flushed. “It was funny, actually. You know she got my number from your phone and called me one night while you two were on the road and you were sleeping?”

Kendell made a face.

“Yeah…” he said, shaking his head. “She called to chew me out, but we wound up talking and planning this little trip.”

“So this is why she stayed in Georgia, huh?” Kendell asked.

“To give us some alone time,” he said and then sat upright, straightening the tie he was wearing that Kendell could not help but notice matched her dress perfectly. “You see, when Pauline called me, she called me to give me a piece of her mind. But once I explained to her why I was acting so upset, well, she helped me pull this off.”

“And, what did you tell her exactly as your reason for being such a tool?” Kendell asked, and the next thing she knew, Jack was getting out of his chair.

“Because I had a plan for when you got back from London,” he said, getting down in front of her on one knee. “Then I had to postpone the plan until you got back from Nairobi, and then it was Hawaii, and Texas…Mississippi… I had this whole plan, you know, wanting to make this moment special, but I couldn’t seem to get you in the same state as me…”

Kendell’s eyes widened as Jack opened up a ring box, revealing the most beautiful engagement ring she could have possibly hoped for. “Jack!” she exclaimed, covering her mouth in surprise.

“When Pauline told me that your next adventure was going to be in Paris, I couldn’t think of a better place than your favorite city in the world,” he said. “Kendell, I love you. And I know I haven’t been the best boyfriend this past month, but I hope you’ll judge me off the past five years instead of the way I acted when my proposal plans kept getting delayed…because to me, the past five years have been the best in my life. I love you, Kendell, and I want to marry you. Will you marry me?”

“Of course I will!” Kendell cried, practically falling out of her chair to give him a hug and a big kiss. It all made sense now. The Jack she knew was not some controlling creep. He was just excitedly waiting for her to come home so that he could propose, and when she kept delaying that again and again, he started getting irritated. If she had only known!

Jack breathed a sigh of relief. Their server immediately came over and poured them some champagne. Evidently the man at the hotel, the carriage driver, and the servers at the Eiffel Tower were all aware of this celebratory evening. It was no wonder the man at the hotel had acted so giddy. Kendell was quite beside herself as the past several weeks started to finally make sense to her. “I can’t believe you and Pauline pulled one over on me,” Kendell said.

“Congratulations, you two,” their server, a polite young woman named Katie, said.

“Thank you so much,” Jack said, wiping his brow.

Katie nudged Kendell. “He was so nervous that you were going to say no,” she said.

“You really thought I was going to say no?” Kendell asked.

“I’ve been pretty awful lately,” he said.

Kendell smiled at their server as they placed an order for some appetizers. “You’re American?” she asked the server, picking up on the slight Jersey accent.

“I am,” the server said. “I mean, ethnically speaking, I’m French. I earned this crazy scholarship out of nowhere the beginning of the schoolyear to this French university. It even guaranteed me a job here. Pretty crazy, right?”

“You’re telling me,” Kendell said, smiling. The server happily skipped off and headed in to place their appetizer order.

Katie arrived back in record time, but this time, she had with her a second bottle of champagne. Kendell smiled at Jack, but he held up his hands defensively. “Not me,” he said.

“Pauline?” Kendell asked.

“Nope,” Katie said and pointed at another young couple seated not too far from them. “From them.”

Kendell watched their server disappear, and she glanced at the unfamiliar couple who were now turning around in their seats and holding up glasses. The young man spoke up, his voice carrying to their table. “We got engaged five minutes before you two arrived! It’s a night of celebrating! Congratulations!”

Jack turned around and smiled. “Thank you! That’s very kind of you.”

The young man was very giddy. He and his new fiancée hopped up out of their seats and came over to make a toast. They toasted to love and marriage and each took a sip before getting around to introductions. The couple were Frasier and Wyetta, both locals from the city of romance. “We truly appreciate the champagne. That was so nice of you,” Kendell said.

Frasier held up his glass, and Kendell got the impression the decision to purchase two complete strangers a bottle was greatly encouraged by the shots he said he had to down to work up the courage to propose as well as what was apparently his third glass of champagne. Regardless of his current alcohol intake, he seemed like a very pleasant fellow. “Of course!” he sang. “Love is in the air tonight, my friends!” And soon they were headed back to their seats.

Kendell leaned forward toward Jack. “We should send something to their table too. Looks like they’re finishing up their meals. Want to buy them dessert?”

“I think that’s a great idea,” Jack said and informed Katie of their decision as soon as the appetizers arrived.

Once they tasted the appetizer and put in an order for two dishes that Jack couldn’t pronounce, the two of them began catching up. Kendell especially had a lot to tell, and she chatted excitedly about her travels with Pauline. Jack was excited to meet the woman who would be arriving in Paris very soon, and he listened intently and laughed along after hearing about all of their misadventures. “You sure did leave out a lot of details about all the trouble you two have been getting into whenever we spoke on the phone,” Jack said.

“Sorry. I didn’t want you to worry,” Kendell said, blushing. “And I’ve started a blog about the whole thing. Believe it or not, it’s already gotten over a hundred hits!”

“When did you start the blog?” he asked.

“On the flight here to Paris,” she said proudly.

Jack beamed. “That’s my girl.” She handed him her phone, and he began reading through the blogs. Laughing at some of the trouble she had gotten into and questioning whether or not the stories were true. It took some convincing, but eventually he believed every word.

“I have to be honest. All of this traveling I’ve been doing with Pauline… It’s really had me thinking, Jack,” Kendell said, suddenly becoming nervous. She had said yes to his proposal—they were officially engaged. What if he reacted negatively to her desire to quit her job?

“Thinking about what?” he asked warmly.

“That I’m in the wrong career,” Kendell said. “Truth is… I don’t know if I want to keep flight attending. I’m not getting that adventure I’ve wanted. I met this other blogger on the plane over here, Rodney, and… Oh my gosh! Rodney!”

Jack spun around because the handsome young man was coming right up to them. “I saw the proposal and wasn’t sure how long I had to wait before coming to offer my congratulations,” he said and winked at Kendell. He smiled at Jack. “Lucky man, let me tell you. I mean, I only spent a flight from the States to Paris with the woman, but I can tell she’s a catch.”

“This is the blogger I was literally just telling you about, Jack!” Kendell said. “I forgot you told me you were doing a review of the restaurant.”

Rodney and Jack shook hands. “Good to meet you,” he said. “Check out her blog. It’s amazing. Way better than any garbage I’ve ever written. She’s got a natural humor in her writing that people are going to eat up.”

“Thanks, Rodney!” Kendell said.

Rodney smiled. “Hope to see you two around Paris. I’ll leave you alone. Congratulations again.” He hurried off.

Kendell smiled. “So funny that he would walk up right when I was talking about him. What I was saying was that I met him on the plane, and he gave me some great pointers. I’m wondering if I could make a career out of it.”

Jack smiled. “I bet you’d be great at it. I mean, you succeed at everything you do.”

“Seriously?” she exclaimed. “That’s it?”

“Come on, Kendell, you really think I’m going to chew you out about wanting to pursue something different?” he asked. “It’s you and me, Kendell. And if this is what’s going to make you happy, then I’m one hundred percent there for you.”

“You’re amazing,” Kendell said.

“Hurry up with the menu, would you?” a rude voice nearby snapped, and Kendell glanced over her shoulder to see two men in suits sitting down—an older gentleman and a younger man. The older man had clearly been the one to snap at his server as he was now snatching the menus from her hands. “Honestly,” he growled, then said something in French as the server was walking away that Kendell hoped she had heard incorrectly.

Kendell shook her head and turned her attention back to Jack, who was smiling at her like she was his whole world. She wasn’t going to let anything ruin her night.

4

Jack had just gotten up to go to the restroom when Kendell once again overheard some of the conversing between the two suited men behind her. Their server was also Katie, and after the girl took their orders, the men whispered about her. Kendell had been eavesdropping on them and had learned that the older man’s name was Gabin and the younger one was Mathis. She wasn’t exactly sure what these two businessmen did, but she had managed to learn that they were both rather unpleasant.

“Looks just like her, don’t she?” Gabin asked.

“I mean, why wouldn’t they?” Mathis replied.

What in the world are these two rambling on about, Kendell wondered. She shook her head. The men had switched back to French, and she was having a harder time deciphering what their conversation could possibly mean. Kendell took another moment to gaze down at her hand, and she smiled as her engagement ring glistened. She was looking forward to talking to Pauline very soon to thank her for helping Jack pull this little stunt off. Looking back, she realized that Pauline had been rather giddy in Georgia, but she had done a good job at trying to hide it.

Kendell saw Frasier and Wyetta stand up from their table. Frasier had had a good bit of water by this point and had sobered up quite a bit. They walked arm in arm toward the exit, pausing by Kendell. “It was lovely meeting you and Jack this evening,” Wyetta said. “Thank you for our dessert.”

“Thank you for the champagne,” Kendell said. They had spent a good portion of the evening chatting with the other happy couple. Wyetta had even taken a few pictures of Kendell and Jack, and Kendell had returned the favor for the other newly engaged couple.

“Tomorrow morning, we’re going to this adorable little café near Notre Dame. You and Jack simply must join us,” Wyetta insisted.

Kendell smiled. “That sounds wonderful, actually. We’d love to.”

Frasier nodded approvingly. “Well, we are off! Please, enjoy the rest of your evening.”

“Same to you.” Kendell watched them for a moment as they made their way through the restaurant. She saw them bump into Jack, and the three of them smiled and seemed to exchange pleasantries for a moment before Jack headed back her way.

He bent down and kissed her cheek before finding his way back to his chair. “Bumped into your pal Rodney,” he said, and Kendell noticed a slight hint of hostility in his voice.

“Everything okay?” Kendell asked, and he quickly perked up again.

“Yeah, everything’s fine,” he assured her and picked up his fork. “You know, if I was ever going to spend time in Paris, it’s a good thing it’s with you. I wouldn’t be able to find my way around or know what in the world to order off the menus.”

Kendell laughed. “Well, I’m glad I can be of service.”

“You made me so happy tonight,” he said. “I can’t believe we’re engaged.”

“Well, it’s been a long time coming,” she said, winking at him. Truthfully, she had been expecting a proposal for a while. “Frasier and Wyetta would like us to join them for breakfast at a café near our hotel tomorrow.”

“Yeah, I got the invite when I bumped into them on their way out,” Jack said. “Sounds good to me. I like them. They seem real cool.”

They finished up their meals and had what was left of their champagne packaged. Jack paid for dinner and then kindly pulled her chair out for her. “You are being extra gentlemanly tonight,” Kendell teased.

“Aren’t I always?” he asked, and she laughed in response.

They hooked arms and headed out, taking their time. The Eiffel Tower was mesmerizing. They paused outside to snap some pictures together on Kendell’s phone with the Eiffel Tower in the background. They then walked along the reflective lake, simply enjoying the view. “I hope you don’t mind that we’ll be taking a cab back,” Jack said. “But did you enjoy your carriage ride?”

“It was really nice,” Kendell said. “I got to see a lot of Paris that way. It took a while to get here by carriage, though.”

“Yeah, see, I was thinking about taking a carriage ride tomorrow, but Pauline kind of insisted on pulling a Cinderella sort of move by having you arrive in a carriage,” he said, and Kendell laughed.

“That Pauline sure is opinionated, isn’t she?” Kendell asked, and Jack nodded.

Just as they were getting ready to leave, they heard a loud scream. “Oh my Gosh!” Jack yelped, his eyes looking upward.

Kendell hardly had time to look up to see what it was Jack was yelling about before she saw a body flailing down from the tower. She looked away just in time to avoid having to see the man hit the ground. After that, it was complete pandemonium. The Gendarmerie, the French national police, arrived on scene. The entire tower was evacuated. People were being questioned left and right while the police roped off where the man had landed as well as the room in the tower from where he had apparently been shoved out a window.

While Kendell really didn’t want to see the body, she couldn’t help but take a peek at the crime scene. She and Jack walked by it just in time to see who it was before an officer covered the body with a tarp. “That’s Rodney!” she yelled, and a French officer immediately made his way to them, staring intently.

“Est-ce-que tu le connais?” the officer asked.

“Oui,” Kendell responded. “But I just met him today.”

Jack, Kendell, and the officer spoke for a bit. It seemed that no one had been able to identify Rodney until Kendell had pointed out who he was. “He is American?” the officer asked.

“He told me he was from Detroit,” Kendell said.

After several more minutes of questions, the officer thanked Kendell for helping them. Soon Kendell and Jack were starting to leave. Kendell felt very upset, as Rodney had been very kind to her. They had only just met, but it was still quite sad. Just as they were about to leave, an officer came running up to them, speaking rapidly in French. Too fast for Kendell to follow. “I’m sorry?” Kendell asked.

The first officer she had spoken too hurried over and pointed at Jack. “You need to come with us,” he said.

“Excuse me?” Jack asked.

“Witnesses tell us they saw you arguing with the victim!” the officer declared.

“Oh, you’ve got to be kidding me!” Kendell smacked Jack in the arm. “What were you arguing with Rodney about?”

“Why does it matter?” Jack exclaimed, staring at the officer. “I was down here by the reflective pond when he fell!”

“He was pushed,” the officer retorted.

“Yeah, but either way, I was down here!” Jack snapped.

“I want you to come with me for questioning,” the officer said, and the next thing Kendell knew, Jack was being toted off by the Gendarmerie.

“This is ridiculous!” Kendell kept telling any officer who would listen to her. “He was with me! You can’t just arrest him because someone saw him arguing with Rodney half an hour ago! Are you even listening to me? Parlez vous anglais? I heard you speaking it earlier! Quit ignoring me!”

Kendell realized very quickly that there was not much she could do. Jack was being taken to the police station whether she liked it or not. Kendell quickly called for a cab once Jack was taken away. She wasn’t sure if he was being arrested or simply detained for questioning. Either way, she wasn’t going to let her fiancé take the blame for something she knew he could not possibly have done. She loaded up into a cab and followed him to the nearest station.

5

Kendell had been sitting in the waiting area of the local Paris police station for hours and had yet to be allowed back to speak to Jack. She imagined that they were really grilling him. It sure would make things easier for them if Jack was guilty. An American killing an American, case closed, but of course that was impossible. Jack had been with her when Rodney had been pushed. He couldn’t have possibly committed the crime. And he had been with her for almost the entire night with the exception of when he had taken a quick bathroom break—supposedly when he had gotten into an argument with Rodney.

“Ugh, Jack, you stubborn idiot,” she said under her breath, imagining that he had very likely gotten into it with Rodney about her. It certainly sounded like something Jack would do. Kendell recalled how Jack had always had trouble getting along with her friend Brandon. Brandon and Jack had eventually learned to get along, but Jack had always been a bit on the jealous side.

Kendell’s phone buzzed, and she pulled it out to see that she was getting a video call. Felicity Overton’s face popped up on screen. “Hey, Felicity,” Kendell said.

“How’s Paris!?” Felicity sang.

“Pretty well, all things considered,” Kendell groaned. “Jack was sort of arrested.”

Felicity’s jaw dropped. “What!”

“Yeah, right after proposing to me, someone was pushed off the Eiffel Tower—someone Jack got into a spat with earlier in the night,” Kendell said with a sigh. “But they should be letting him out soon. He was nowhere near the man when it happened. He was with me at the base of the tower.”

“So…congratulations and I’m sorry?” Felicity fumbled over her words. “Congrats on the engagement and I’m sorry your fiancé is in a foreign jail?”

“Sounds about right,” Kendell said. “Is your grandmother getting on the plane?”

“She’s right here, just heard everything you said,” Felicity said, turning the screen a bit to where Kendell could see Pauline shaking her head as the two women made their way through the Atlanta airport.

“Please tell me you’re joking,” Pauline said.

“I wish I was,” Kendell said, sighing heavily. She felt her insides churning. “This is just awful. I mean… I got engaged tonight, and now my fiancé is in jail! Thank you, by the way, Pauline. Jack told me how you two conspired together to make all of this happen, and before the murder, it was all very lovely.”

“Well…I’m…um…glad it went well?” Pauline said, still shaking her head. “You listen to me, dear. We’re going to straighten this out. Like you said, he was nowhere near the man when he was killed. The police will straighten up and figure that one out soon enough.”

“I certainly hope so,” Kendell said. “The man who was killed was named Rodney. He and I met on the flight to Paris. He was from Detroit and had been invited to come do a review of the Eiffel Tower restaurant. Him and Jack kind of got into it earlier in the night, so that’s why Jack wound up getting accused of everything. I’m really sad about what happened to Rodney. I mean, we had just met, but we were getting along very well. He gave me some pointers about blogging. By the way, did you two get the link I sent you?”

“We did!” Felicity exclaimed. “And the blog is amazing, Kendell! Although I was having a mild heart attack reading about all the trouble my grandmother has gotten herself into. You two better behave yourselves.”

“You say this as I am about to board a flight to Paris where the girl’s fiancé has just been arrested for murder,” Pauline said, laughing slightly. “Don’t you worry, Kendell. We’ll get this whole thing straightened out. I promise.”

“Thanks, Pauline,” Kendell said. “You have a safe flight. I’ll be at the airport to pick you up.”

“Thank you, dear,” she said. “See you soon.”

“See you soon. Bye, Felicity,” Kendell said, closing the chat app. Kendell wound up sitting in the station for another couple of hours before she was at last approached by an officer and told that she could speak to her fiancé.

Kendell practically flew out of her seat to follow the man to the interrogation room. Her heart fluttered when she saw Jack sitting there, looking very exhausted after going back and forth with local police for the past several hours. She sat down across from Jack, and the officer kindly gave them some privacy. “Are you all right?” she asked, reaching across the table to grab his hands.

“I shouldn’t have said anything to Rodney,” Jack grumbled. “I did this to myself. I’m sorry, Kendell. I ruined our special night getting myself into trouble because I thought Rodney was flirting with you and I let my big mouth run off again.”

“You do have a big mouth,” Kendell said, smiling at him. “But this isn’t your fault. You didn’t hurt Rodney. They know that, too. They just don’t have an actual suspect in custody and don’t want the local media to get wind of it, I’m sure.”

“They’ve officially arrested me,” he said. “I’m stuck here for the time being.”

“You’ve got to be kidding me,” she griped. “You weren’t even on the tower when Rodney fell!” Kendell sighed, letting go of Jack’s hands for a moment to lean back in her chair and rub her temples. It was then she noticed some files sitting on the table. “Case files?” she asked.

Jack glanced at the paperwork. “Yeah, I guess they left them in here… What are you doing?”

Kendell was already opening up the files, snapping as many pictures with her phone as she could. “Whatever I can do to get you out of here,” she said. “Don’t worry, Jack. We’re going to fix this.”

“Kendell, please, don’t do anything stupid,” Jack warned her. “I’m going to talk to a lawyer. You don’t need to put yourself into trouble over me.”

Kendell smiled at him. “You’re worth the trouble.”

Jack smirked. “I’m glad you think so.”

She quickly flopped the files back into place when she heard the door opening behind her. The officer had arrived back to escort her out of the interrogation room as another investigator had arrived to speak with Jack. Kendell stayed at the station, at a loss for what to do. This case was quite different from any she and Pauline had gotten involved in before. Her fiancé was in trouble. This was quite personal.

She waited around for several more hours before falling asleep in a chair in the waiting area. Eventually she had been at the station for so long that it was time to go pick up Pauline at the airport. She took a cab and waited around the airport for another forty minutes before Pauline and Dot arrived. Pauline gave Kendell a big hug and touched her face. “Dear, don’t you worry. We’re going to get this straightened out, I promise you,” she said.

They decided to head to the hotel rather than to the station. It was not as though the police were going to let her speak to Jack any time soon. Pauline, upon seeing the beautiful room with a view, seemed to forget about Jack for a moment. “Would you just look at this room! Oh, I can see Notre Dame right out our window!”

Kendell shook her head, sinking down into the little French sofa by the windows. “Pauline, I’m sure you’re probably tired after the flight. Why don’t you go on to bed? I’m going to see if I can’t—”

“Oh, no, you don’t,” Pauline said, putting Dot down to let her run around and stretch her legs. “I am here, I’m awake, and I’m going to help you. What do you have so far?”

Kendell sighed. “Not a whole lot, honestly.”

“Well, let’s see,” Pauline said, snatching up the phone in the hotel room and calling room service, asking them for paper.

After a while, the hotel attendant arrived, and once sending him on his way, Pauline and Kendell sat together on the sofa. “Okay, let’s see… What do I remember…” Kendell mumbled.

“Anything at all, I’ll write it down,” Pauline insisted.

“Well, I know Rodney is from Detroit,” Kendell said. “He was invited here to do a review of one of the Eiffel Tower’s restaurants. I met a few people at the tower. I met a nice couple there. There was some rude businessmen sitting behind us. The server was nice, an American girl going to school here. Rodney came by and spoke to us, telling me congratulations about how well my blog was going and to congratulate Jack and I on our engagement. I didn’t see Rodney after that, but Jack bumped into him by the restrooms and apparently got into it with him.”

Pauline had stopped writing. “Was Rodney some sort of renowned blogger or something?”

“He was a blogger, but he wasn’t full time or anything. Mostly just blogged restaurant reviews for places in Detroit,” Kendell said.

“So…some random restaurant reviewer with a blog in Detroit was invited to do a review of a restaurant in Paris, France?” Pauline asked.

Kendell frowned. “Actually, when you say it that way…it’s a little weird, isn’t it?”

“It’s downright suspicious,” Pauline said. “I think, my dear, we might just have a lead.”

6

It had been a rather restless night for Kendell. She’d had to get some sleep eventually, passing out in the wee hours of the morning and eventually waking up thanks to having left the blinds open in her room. The light shined through, blinding her as she blinked her eyes open. Slowly, Kendell sat up in bed only to be greeted by Dot jumping onto her feet. Kendell sighed as the memories of the night before came flooding back to her. Her engagement followed by her fiancé being arrested for murder. “Let me guess,” Kendell said to Dot. “You have to go to the bathroom?”

Dot whined, and Kendell crawled out of bed and threw on some clothes before hooking a leash on the dog’s collar and taking her out for her morning bathroom break. While the dog sniffed around in the grass for several minutes, Kendell rubbed her eyes, attempting to awaken herself. Her stomach growled a bit. “Ugh, I’m starving,” she grumbled, and then she suddenly recalled that she and Jack had had breakfast plans with the lively couple they had met at the Eiffel Tower.

I wonder if Frasier or Wyetta saw anything last night, Kendell pondered and decided their mere presence at the tower was enough of a reason to stick to her breakfast plan and go speak with them. She woke up Pauline, who smiled and stretched, clearly having had a much more restful night’s sleep than herself. Once she told Pauline about her breakfast plans, the woman quickly hopped up and got ready to go.

Once the ladies were dressed, they headed out, deciding to walk to the café as it was not particularly far. Much to Kendell’s satisfaction, Frasier and Wyetta were seated outside the café munching on their breakfasts. “Ah! It is our American friend from last night!” Frasier exclaimed, getting his fiancée’s attention.

Wyetta spun in her seat, and beamed upon spotting Kendell. “Ah! Miss Kendell! Where is your lovely fiancé? And who is your sweet friend?”

“Wyetta, Frasier, this is my friend Pauline. She helped Jack pull off the proposal last night,” Kendell said, and the pair pulled up a chair for each of them.

“What a good friend to have,” Frasier said, smiling and absolutely losing his mind over Dot. Before Kendell knew it, Frasier had the little white dog sitting in his lap.

“Unfortunately, Jack is not going to be able to join us this morning,” Kendell said.

Wyetta frowned. “What a pity! Why not?” she asked.

“Because he’s in jail, dear,” Pauline said quite plainly.

“My goodness!” Wyetta exclaimed. “For what!”

“A man named Rodney was pushed off the Eiffel Tower last night. Someone managed to shove him through a window. Jack was seen arguing with him earlier in the night, so even though Jack and I were at the base of the tower when Rodney was pushed, the police took him in for questioning and seem to want to pin this thing on him,” Kendell explained.

“My goodness! How awful!” Wyetta cried. “He was with you when the man was pushed?”

“Yes,” Kendell said. “And there are plenty of witnesses who can confirm that, so I suspect Jack is going to be released soon. But I can’t be sure. I’m a little worried.”

“I imagine so,” Frasier said. “What are you going to do?”

“Right now, try to prove that Jack is innocent,” Kendell said. “I was going to see if you two saw anything last night.”

Frasier shrugged. “You say a man named Rodney was pushed? What did he look like?”

Kendell went on to describe Rodney. Unfortunately, neither of them seemed to have noticed him. She didn’t think they would have. Rodney was from Detroit, so it wasn’t as though they would have known him. “Wait!” Wyetta suddenly exclaimed. “I believe I do know who you are talking about. You say Jack got into it with him a bit? I believe I saw that!”

“You saw the argument?” Kendell asked.

“Yes, your Jack blocked the man from entering into the restroom and told him to stop flirting with you. Then Rodney threatened to punch Jack’s lights out if he spoke to him again, and then Jack just walked away,” Wyetta said. “It was all quite harsh. The man acted as though he had no idea what Jack was talking about.”

“Rodney threatened to punch Jack?” Kendell asked, and Wyetta nodded. “I mean, I just met Rodney, but he didn’t really seem like the aggressive type. He really threatened Jack?”

“Jack was quite calm,” Wyetta said. “Rodney was the more aggressive party.”

“Maybe Jack struck some sort of nerve with him,” Kendell said. “Maybe if Rodney was in a particularly aggressive mood, he got into it with somebody else as well?”

“That’s possible,” Pauline said. “What did Jack say about his confrontation with Rodney?”

“He admitted to running his mouth to him,” Kendell said. “That he accused him of flirting with me and that they got into it. He didn’t really give me details. But I’m very surprised to hear that Rodney threatened Jack… Maybe he really was flirting with me and Jack wasn’t as paranoid as I thought? For him to get so offended, you know?”

“It is possible,” Wyetta said. “You are quite a beautiful woman. No wonder Jack would get so jealous.”

Kendell laughed. “Well, I appreciate the sentiment. And thank you for telling me exactly what happened. But that is not going to help Jack any.”

“No, but you seem like a smart woman,” Frasier insisted. “If he’s got you on his side, I’m certain he will be out of jail before you know it.”

7

Kendell and Pauline headed back to the hotel after speaking with Frasier and Wyetta. Kendell wasn’t so sure how she felt about what Wyetta had told her regarding Jack’s spat with Rodney. Sure, she had defended Jack and had said that he had not been the aggressor of the situation, but why had Jack even bothered confronting Rodney? Was he really that jealous? She thought back to the conversation with Rodney when he had come to congratulate them on the engagement. Had he been flirting and she was just oblivious to it? Her friend Lil had told her before that she never caught on when guys were flirting with her. Maybe Jack had picked up on something she hadn’t? But even if Rodney had been flirting, was it really Jack’s place to say anything?

The two of them entered the hotel, and Pauline paused at a stand where the hotel staff had set up some brochures of local attractions. The woman started plucking brochures—particularly any that were written in English, which were few and far between—excitedly flipping through them. “Oh, I must visit Versailles! That is at the top of my list. Even above the Eiffel Tower, if you ask me. I’ve heard such wonderful things about Versailles. Did you visit the palace when you came to Paris in college, Kendell?”

Kendell sighed heavily. “Briefly. Didn’t get to see much, though. And honestly, sightseeing is the least of my concerns right now with Jack being in a Paris jail.”

Pauline waved her off a bit. “Now, dear, just because your fiancé is in jail doesn’t mean we can’t have a little fun.”

Kendell shook her head. She wasn’t so sure if that was true. How could she possibly have fun when Jack was sitting in a jail cell being interrogated by an angry little Frenchman who wanted to make this a quick case rather than look for actual evidence? The accusations, she knew, were not going to stick. Too many witnesses had seen Jack at the base of the Tower, but that didn’t mean she was just going to wait for common sense to take over. The less time Jack spent in jail, the better.

Once Pauline had picked out several brochures, they headed back up to their room. Dot made herself comfortable on the couch next to Kendell, who plopped down quickly, feeling exhausted even though all they had done is go have coffee and breakfast with the kind French couple. Thinking about Jack and worrying about him was taking a lot of energy out of her.

“So, what’s our next step?” Pauline asked, finding herself a seat by the window while she looked through the brochures.

“I think I might do a little research on Rodney. See what I can find out about him,” Kendell said.

“Oh, you’re talking about the case… I was talking about sightseeing, but of course, Jack should come first, shouldn’t he?” Pauline said, shaking her head at herself. “Okay, what sort of research are you going to do?”

Kendell pulled her laptop out. “Just see what I can find out about Rodney for now,” she said, starting by pulling up his blog. She skimmed through some of his reviews. He had a really nice blog, but it was all local reviews from his home in Detroit. Local hotspots. It had a big following, but why in the world would someone from France want him to come do a review? It didn’t make any sense. She pulled up a bio page he had on the blog and began reading his little life story about living in Detroit and how he got into blogging. There was a picture of him on the page smiling happily at the camera, and Kendell felt sad. He had been such a nice guy. But she noticed something odd about that picture. She pulled out her phone and searched for the pictures she had taken of the case file at the station. While she had been hesitant to look at it, she found the pictures of Rodney lying out on the sidewalk. Something wasn’t right…

“Oh…oh my gosh!” Kendell shrieked, jumping out of her seat.

“What?” Pauline asked. “Did you find something?”

She brought the laptop and the phone over to Pauline, setting the laptop in her lap. “Look at this picture on his blog. You see his right cheek? He’s got a blemish.”

“So?” Pauline asked. “It’s just a birthmark.”

“Yeah, well, here’s a picture of the dead guy,” Kendell said, showing Pauline the phone.

“No blemish?” Pauline asked. “Well, I’m not sure if that means anything, Kendell. It could just be the lighting, and I wouldn’t put it past modern men to be wearing a bit of foundation.”

Kendell shook her head. “No, look closer. Look at their jawlines. The man on the sidewalk has a much more defined jawline. And he’s got a bald spot right here on the side of his head, and the man in the picture on the blog…his jawline is much less defined, and no bald spot.” Kendell looked at the picture on her phone. “He’s…he’s wearing different clothes from when he came to talk to me and Jack at the tower!”

Pauline stared at her. “Are you telling me that the man on the sidewalk might not be Rodney?”

“I’m not sure,” Kendell said, picking up her laptop. She played around on the blog for a minute, eventually finding a messaging option. She sent the blog a quick email. A few minutes went by. She refreshed the page, and a new blog post popped up. The Eiffel Tower review. “Rodney uploaded a new blog post!” she yelped.

“What?!” Pauline exclaimed. “How could he do that if he’s in the Paris morgue?”

Then, she received a response. Kendell read it out loud to Pauline:

Hey, Kendell!

Thanks for reaching out! Congratulations again on the engagement! Hope you and Jack had a wonderful evening. Would love to see you two again before I have to get back to Detroit. Let me know a time that works for you – I’ll be here for a few more days!

Rodney

“What in the world!” Pauline exclaimed. “I don’t understand what’s happening!”

“I’ll tell you what’s happening,” Kendell said. “Rodney is alive! The man who was killed isn’t Rodney! He just looks like him!”

“What do we do now?” Pauline asked, looking quite flustered by this strange discovery.

“Now? Now we go to the station and show the police what we found!” Kendell exclaimed. “And we get Jack out of jail!”

“Thank goodness,” Pauline said. “You’ve been awfully boring with him being in jail! Can’t have any fun with you being so distracted!”

8

The police at the station in Paris had been difficult at first when Kendell and Pauline had provided the evidence that they had found regarding Rodney. Especially after they conducted a bit of research on Rodney and couldn’t find any evidence of Rodney having any siblings, let alone a twin. But eventually, the police decided it was worth looking into. Kendell and Pauline wound up sitting in the waiting area of the station for several hours playing cards while Dot sniffed around.

“Do you think they’re going to find anything useful?” Kendell asked.

“I don’t know, honey,” Pauline said, shuffling the deck of cards to start another game of bridge. “Let’s just be thankful they agreed to look into it.”

Kendell sighed, pulling out her phone. She started skimming through Rodney’s latest blog post about the Eiffel Tower’s restaurants. It was well done, and after examining an older blog post, she found the writing to be of the same sort of style. It was unlikely that someone else was writing the blog for him if the style had remained the same. Another half-hour went by, and the next thing Kendell knew, she saw Rodney, the real Rodney, entering the station escorted by two French officers, who looked incredibly confused.

“Rodney!” Kendell yelped, jumping up to her feet and hurrying over to him. “You’re okay!”

“Of course I’m okay!” he said loudly. “Why does everyone keep saying that? I’m not sure what’s going on here, but I’d like to know why my parents in the States were contacted and told that I was dead! My mom about had a heart attack when I called her on video chat this morning!”

Kendell laughed slightly. “I’m just glad you’re here.”

“If I may intervene for a moment,” the French officer said. “We need to try to figure out exactly what’s going on here because I’m certainly at a loss.”

“Sorry,” Kendell said.

“I am Commissaire Allard, and I am the lead on this peculiar case,” the man said, and both Rodney and Kendell shook his hand as Pauline came walking up, Dot right at her ankles.

“Might we involve Mister Jack with this discussion?” Pauline suggested. “Seeing as how you have the poor man detained for this man’s murder, and, clearly, he is not dead.”

“Um…oui… Yes…” Allard said, shaking his head. “Come with me. Americans, honestly, always causing trouble…”

They followed Allard to an interrogation room where Jack had evidently just been moved to. He smiled tiredly when he saw Kendell and Pauline, but he nearly fell out of his chair when he saw Rodney. “Holy crap!” was his response. “You’re not dead!”

“Again, I’d like to know why everyone keeps saying that,” Rodney insisted.

“Sit down, all of you,” Allard insisted, and he dipped out for a moment to fetch the case file. He returned before Kendell even had a chance to get all the way into her seat. When Allard returned, he placed the file in the middle of the table. “Mister Rodney, if that is indeed who you are, I believe you would be the one most likely able to shed some light on this situation.” He opened up the file and slid a picture of the corpse they had mistaken for Rodney toward him. “Can you tell me about the man in this photo?”

“What?!” Rodney shrieked, growing pale. “I…I have no idea who that is!”

“You do not have a twin or a sibling? Perhaps a cousin who looks similar?” Allard asked.

“I…I don’t!” Rodney exclaimed, but then paused. “Well, I mean, I was adopted.”

“Can you give us the name of your adoption agency?” Allard asked. “Perhaps that will help us identify our victim. I highly suspect this is not just a case of doppelgangers. You two are very clearly related.”

“Yes, I would have to agree,” Rodney said, growing increasingly pale. He wrote down the information that he knew regarding the French children’s home he was adopted from, and Allard left the room.

“So, you all thought I was dead?” Rodney asked.

“Yes,” Kendell said. “I was the one who misidentified the body. I mean, you saw the picture.”

Rodney lifted the picture off the table again. “How could I have a twin brother? Surely that’s something a children’s group home would release? Right? Surely my parents didn’t just adopt one twin.”

“Either way, I need to get out of here,” Jack grunted. “I didn’t push anyone out a window!”

“They think you killed him?” Rodney asked, looking angry.

“Yeah, because someone saw me arguing with you earlier in the evening,” Jack said with a huff.

“You didn’t argue with me,” Rodney said.

“Of course I did,” Jack argued.

“No, you didn’t,” Rodney said. “Besides, what would you and I even have to argue about? I don’t even know you. I just met you that night.”

Jack’s face turned red as he realized that he had bucked up at the wrong man. Allard returned, having spent a bit too long away for Kendell’s liking. He sat down at the table with the rest of them, sighing. “We were able to identify our victim thanks to the information you provided, Rodney. Looks like your twin brother, Aaron, was adopted about a year after you by another family.”

“So…” Rodney muttered, leaning forward against the table. “The man…in the picture… That was my brother?” He was clearly distraught by this news.

Jack cleared his throat to bring the attention back to him. “Since I clearly did not murder Rodney, am I free to go?”

“Who was it you had your dispute with?” Allard asked.

“I thought Rodney,” Jack said.

“But apparently it was my brother…” Rodney said.

Allard looked at Jack with a very intentional frown. “So, Jack, sounds like the only thing that has changed is the name of the victim.”

Pauline, who had been incredibly quiet this whole time, snapped at the policeman. “You must be joking! From what I hear, this man wasn’t even in the Eiffel Tower when Aaron was pushed! What sort of police work is this? You’re keeping him because he’s an American and that would make for an easy arrest, right? Well, guess what, now you’re dealing with a set of twins adopted out of France! Explain that one to your press!”

This clearly took Allard for a spin. He hadn’t expected the little old lady to pop off at him. Before Kendell knew it, Jack was being released under the understanding he was not permitted to leave the country for the time being. While Kendell, Jack, and Pauline were quite ready to leave by the time the paperwork had been filed, Rodney was not quite ready to go and so remained behind at the station to find out more about the brother he would never have the opportunity to meet.

Almost as soon as they were leaving, before they even had time to talk about the ordeal that had just taken place, Pauline transitioned. “Well, that was all fun and good, but now to be serious!” she exclaimed, picking Dot up and putting her into the carrier that swung from her hip. “I have gotten us some tickets to the Moulin Rouge dinner show tonight, and I don’t intend to waste them!”

“I just got out of jail,” Jack said.

“Are you honestly telling me you’re going to let that little hiccup ruin a lovely night in Paris! Darling, we’re in the city of romance, and this granny has gotten us some tickets to one of the greatest shows on the planet! We simply must go!” Pauline insisted, clapping her hands together excitedly. “Let’s get going! I need to get us a cab.”

It seemed that Pauline had made up their minds for them. They hailed a cab back to the hotel to give Jack a chance to shower after spending so much time in jail, giving them all time to rest before the show. Before Kendell knew it, they were heading into the Moulin Rouge dinner show, and it was beyond spectacular. There was a three-course gourmet meal served as they watched brightly colored showgirls strut their stuff on stage. Amazing dances and drama, and the champagne was just excellent. And the costumes were lovely, absolutely beyond compare. Kendell in particular enjoyed the Octopus Carpaccio.

Frankly, by the time the show was over, Kendell and Jack both were glad that Pauline had dragged them to it. After the crazy past few days they had, it was nice to be able to put that on the backburner for the evening. The crowd let out into the street, and Kendell glanced up at the beautiful architecture of the building. The giant windmill atop the building’s roof had her quite mesmerized. “Could you believe those dancers?” Jack asked as the three of them stood outside.

“It was simply marvelous!” Pauline exclaimed, clapping her hands.

“I’m actually glad you dragged us to this thing,” Jack admitted. “Honestly, after the past few days I’ve had, it was a nice change of pace. Pauline, you have been just too kind setting all of this up.” Jack put his arm around Kendell. “I mean, getting arrested wasn’t exactly part of the plan, but now that the police have backed off me a little, I feel like Kendell and I can actually celebrate our engagement.”

“Exactly,” Kendell said, falling into Jack’s embrace a bit. “But we’re going to have to do something about this case. Jack, they don’t want you leaving the country.”

“Yeah, and I honestly would like to get back,” he said. “Unlike you, I don’t have a month and a half of vacation time saved up. And with them doing a bunch of layoffs, I definitely don’t want to give them a reason to bump me.”

“Excellent!” Pauline said, practically jumping up and down. “Then it looks like we are on the case!”

Jack laughed. “You two are…quite a pair…” he said. “So, based off what I read on your blog posts, it looks like you two have a bit of experience in this department. What’s our first move?”

“I guess we can start by talking to people we know were at the Eiffel Tower that night,” Kendell said, sighing. “There was an impressive crowd. Plus the employees. That’s going to be difficult to find all of those people or even just trying to figure out who all was there.”

Jack abruptly grabbed both Kendell and Pauline by the arm. “Well, well, well,” he said, nodding down the street. “Look who I see.”

Kendell glanced in the direction Jack was nodding and spotted Wyetta standing on the street corner, her ear in a phone. Kendell smiled. “Funny bumping into her,” Kendell said. “Although Pauline and I already interviewed Wyetta and Frasier. But it might be nice to say hello again.”

Pauline crossed her arms, staring curiously at Wyetta. “Such a strange little outfit she’s wearing,” Pauline commented.

Kendell observed Wyetta closely. She was wearing some rather skimpy shorts and fishnet stockings along with a black leather jacket. Her makeup was heavy, and her nails done long. Thinking back to the last two times Kendell had met with Wyetta, she could hardly imagine the woman wearing something so gaudy. Wyetta had worn white jeans, a large sun hat, and a frilly shirt at the coffee shop, and she had worn a form-fitting elegant dress at the Eiffel Tower. Frankly, Wyetta practically looked like something she would have seen on stage during the Moulin Rouge dinner show if she had just added a few feathers to her outfit.

“Let’s go see what she’s up to,” Kendell said, and the three of them drew near just as the woman was hanging up her phone.

She looked about ready to cross the street when Kendell tapped her elbow, and the woman spun around abruptly with a scowl on her face. “Hey, Wyetta,” Kendell said with a smile. “Funny bumping into you here. Were you at the dinner show?”

Wyetta just stared blankly at Kendell for a moment. “No,” she said.

“Listen, we were hoping we could talk to you some more about what happened at the Eiffel Tower,” Kendell said.

“I don’t know you,” the woman said at last, a slight hiss in her voice as she spun around on her heels and darted across the street.

“What in the world?” Pauline cried, her hands on her hips. “That was awfully rude!”

“Something is up,” Jack said, and the three of them seemed to silently agree to cross the street after her.

Wyetta was walking quickly, but the three of them were adamant about keeping up with her. Kendell had this bad feeling in the pit of her stomach, this creeping suspicion that Wyetta was in some sort of trouble, and so her desire to catch up to her dramatically increased. Pauline got a little bit behind, only able to scurry so quickly at her age, but Kendell and Jack kept up the pace. Wyetta made a lot of unusual twists and turns through the streets, and it seemed as though the woman was intentionally trying to ditch them.

“Where is she even going?” Jack muttered as the two of them panted.

Kendell glanced back to see that Pauline was now doing double-time to catch up to them. “I don’t know, but we’re about to leave poor Pauline in the dust.”

“Go back with her. I’ll catch up to Wyetta,” Jack insisted, and Kendell slowed down so that Pauline could catch up to her.

“That girl is being awfully rude!” Pauline panted. Kendell took Dot’s carrier from Pauline so the woman wouldn’t have anything weighing her down.

“I think something’s wrong,” Kendell said. “I think she might be in some sort of trouble.”

“Well, that’s not good,” Pauline said.

Kendell looked up ahead and could see that Jack had at last caught up to the woman. Wyetta had stopped, and she was standing with this very frustrated look on her face. Thankfully, Kendell and Pauline were at last able to catch up to her. “Wyetta, why did you run off?” Kendell asked. “Is something going on? You can tell us.”

Wyetta’s face contorted into a look of pure frustration. “Stop following me,” she said in a way that almost sounded like a threat. “I mean it!”

“Wyetta, just tell me what’s going on,” Kendell persisted. “Please, we just want to help. If you would just talk to us—”

The woman stomped her feet. “Woman, I don’t know you! And I am not Wyetta!”

9

Kendell stared blankly at the woman who was now looking at them with an increasingly disgruntled glare. “What do you mean you’re not Wyetta?”

“I mean my name is Talia,” she hissed. “Now, leave me alone.”

“Wait!” Kendell exclaimed. “You don’t understand. We are investigating a murder, and you look just like one of our witnesses.”

“So? I must just have one of those faces,” she insisted.

“No, that’s not it at all,” Kendell said. “You could be her…her twin…”

“Doubtful,” she said, spinning on her heels. “Now leave me alone. Stupid Americans.”

“Hey! Listen, this is serious,” Jack said, walking around the woman to cut her off.

This irritated her more, and she was clearly not taking any of this. She jumped and threw one leg up, her foot making contact with Jack’s face and sending him falling onto the pavement. Kendell whipped out her phone, snapping a picture before the woman could dart off down the street. Jack remained on his back, his eyes wide in surprise as a little bit of blood dripped out of his nose. “Did…did she just kick me in the face?” he asked, still flat on his back.

“Pretty much,” Kendell said, kneeling beside him. “Are you all right?”

“I just got kicked in the face,” he said as though he still did not believe it. Kendell helped him sit up. She glanced up at Pauline, who was biting her bottom lip to keep from busting out laughing. Truthfully, it was a little funny, but this was quite serious.

“Pauline!” Kendell said firmly, and that did it. The poor old woman started laughing. Kendell held up Dot’s carrier for the old woman to take while she helped Jack back up to his feet.

“It’s not funny!” Jack snapped. “I just got kicked in the nose by a little French ninja in fishnet stockings!”

“I’m amazed you don’t see the humor in that,” Pauline said, digging around in one of the side pockets of Dot’s carrier, eventually finding a small pack of tissues. She handed them to Jack so that he could wipe his nose.

“I’m going to bruise,” he grumbled, cleaning the blood off his face. “I don’t think she broke my nose, but it hurts. She was wearing heels! I’m lucky she didn’t poke my eye out! Who does that? Who kicks a person in the face and runs off?”

“I saw you pull your phone out,” Pauline said. “Any chance you managed to get a picture of her?”

Kendell glanced at her phone. The picture was a little blurry, but you could certainly tell that the woman looked exactly like Wyetta. “I got it,” she said. “But now what?”

“I’m not sure,” Pauline said. “Maybe we should call Wyetta and Frasier? Speak to them?”

Kendell nodded in agreement. She sifted through her phone’s contacts, looking for where she had saved Wyetta’s number. She gave it a call, and the woman picked up on the third ring. “My American friend! How are you?” she asked. “Is your fiancé still in jail?”

“No, actually. The police have agreed to release him on the agreement that we remain within the country,” Kendell said. “We need to talk. Can you and Frasier meet up tonight?”

“One moment, let me see,” she said, and there was a long pause on the line before she returned. “Yes! Would you like to meet at that café in half an hour?”

“Yes!” Kendell exclaimed. “Thank you! We will see you there.”

After hanging up, Kendell, Jack, and Pauline hailed a cab. They arrived at the coffee shop only twenty minutes later, and Wyetta and Frasier were already happily walking up to locate them a table. The couple waved excitedly upon seeing Jack, and Frasier pulled up chairs for everyone. It was fairly dark out now, and the Paris lights glistened in the distance as Kendell found herself a seat next to Wyetta. “You sounded awfully worried on the phone,” Wyetta began. “Is everything all right?”

“Hold on,” Frasier said. “I would like to order first. My treat, everyone! What would you all like to drink?”

Kendell was ready to get this conversation started, but Frasier was quite insistent. They all ordered a coffee, and once it was served by the barista, Frasier and Wyetta were ready to chat. Wyetta sipped her coffee while Kendell began. “First, where were you earlier tonight?”

“Across town in my apartment with Frasier,” she said. “Why?”

Kendell and Jack exchanged glances. “Show her the picture,” Jack said.

“Earlier tonight, we bumped into this woman. Said her name was Talia,” Kendell said, pulling up the picture on her phone and handing the device to Wyetta.

Wyetta nearly spilled her coffee. “What in the world!” she exclaimed. “She looks just like me.”

“Exactly,” Kendell said. “The reason Jack has been let out of jail is because Rodney is actually alive. It was a twin brother he knew nothing about who died. And, now, we bump into another mysterious face. Do you have a twin that you’re aware of? A sister? Any relative who looks just like you?”

“I… I wouldn’t know…” Wyetta admitted. “I was adopted. Maybe…”

“You were adopted too!” Pauline exclaimed. “Oh my goodness, I feel we have stumbled upon some sort of maddening conspiracy!”

“Rodney was adopted?” Wyetta asked.

“He was,” Kendell said.

“So…so you think…that this woman in the picture…could be my sister?” Wyetta seemed quite flustered by this discovery. “I have a sister, Frasier!”

“My word!” he cried.

“Call Rodney,” Jack said. “See if he can come here to meet us. Maybe we can talk this out and figure out what’s going on?”

“Good idea,” Kendell said, and soon she was on the phone with the still distraught blogger. “Listen, Rodney, I know you’re probably busy right now with everything going on, but can you spare a little bit of time and come meet us?”

“I don’t know, Kendell,” he said. “I’m still trying to figure out what’s going on.”

“That’s exactly what we’re doing. We found something we want you to look at,” Kendell said, and after a bit more convincing, Rodney said he was on his way.

While they were waiting on him, they talked about the woman in the picture. Wyetta laughed a bit when Jack told her how the woman had kicked him in the face. “She has spunk!” Frasier said. “We simply must find this woman!”

“Of course we must!” Wyetta said. “If she is my sister, I must meet her! Mais je rêve! This is madness!”

Kendell spied a cab pulling up near the café, and Rodney stepped out. He looked a bit sickly as he approached the café and Kendell waved him on. Frasier quickly pulled up another chair for him, and Rodney plopped down between Frasier and Pauline. “Kendell, what’s going on?”

“Rodney, these are our friends Wyetta and Frasier,” she began. “We think they might be able to help with your brother’s case.”

“How?” he asked, then paused. “I think I saw you two that night at the tower?”

“Oui, we were there,” Frasier said.

“We bumped into someone earlier tonight at the Moulin Rouge dinner show,” Kendell said, sliding her phone to Rodney. “Her name’s Talia, but that’s all we managed to get out of her.”

Rodney picked up the phone, looked at the picture, and looked at Wyetta. “This isn’t you, is it?”

“No,” Wyetta said. “It seems you are not the only one with a mysterious twin walking about Paris.”

Rodney wrung his wrists. “Are you…also adopted?” he asked.

Wyetta nodded. “I am. From a children’s group home here in Paris.”

Rodney’s eyes widened. “The children’s group home my parents adopted me from is here in Paris. I grew up in Detroit, though.”

“An American-sounding Frenchman, then?” Frasier teased. “Something very peculiar is going on here, friends.”

“Send me that photo,” Wyetta insisted, and Kendell did so.

“So, what are the chances us and our mysterious twins would all wind up in the same city the night my brother was murdered?” Rodney asked. “I’m starting to think that my invite to come blog about the Eiffel Tower was a big hoax to try to get me in town.”

“You know, Talia didn’t really have a French accent,” Kendell said. “Sounded almost Germanic or something. Something tells me she’s not local either.”

“If Rodney’s twin was murdered, perhaps someone is trying to cover something up about us?” Wyetta suggested. “Could we all perhaps be in trouble?”

“That’s certainly possible,” Pauline said. “Perhaps you two should go to the police station for your own safety?”

“Yes,” Rodney agreed. “And we should turn this information over to the police immediately. For all we know, there could be more twins walking around the city in trouble.”

“Oh, how strange this night has turned out!” Wyetta cried. “Oui, let’s go.”

“I think we are going to remain behind,” Pauline said. “I need to rest my feet.”

“The three of us can share a cab,” Frasier said, then thanked Kendell and the others for the information they had given them. Frasier, Wyetta, and Rodney hurried off to head to the local station.

Kendell sat upright, sipping her coffee. “I can’t be the only one a little freaked out about whatever is going on. This has got to be the craziest thing you and I have dealt with, Pauline.”

“I don’t know,” Pauline said. “Macbeth literally losing his head on stage is pretty hard to beat.”

“I read that blog post,” Jack said. “You two have a serious knack for getting involved in things you shouldn’t be involved in.”

“You sure you want to marry me?” Kendell asked, and Jack smiled.

“There is nothing I want more,” he said. “But if we’re going to get married, we’re going to need to get me out of Paris. Not really planning on settling down here.”

“Agreed,” Kendell said, sighing heavily. “But, honestly, I’m at a loss. I don’t even know where to being with this one. I mean, a man was pushed out of the Eiffel Tower! That by itself would be crazy enough, but now we have a bunch of mysterious twins walking around Paris who don’t know they’re twins. And what about Rodney being invited to Paris? Seems pretty clear that someone is after these twins.”

“Oh, I wonder if that poor Talia woman knows someone is after her?” Pauline asked. “I hate that we just now realized this. We should have warned her!”

Jack rubbed his nose, which was slowly starting to turn a bit purple. “I suspect that Talia can take care of herself just fine, Pauline.”

“Looks that way.” Pauline giggled a bit. She stood up to go order a biscuit for Dot to nibble on, leaving Kendell and Jack alone at the table.

“All right, what’s our next move?” Jack asked her.

“I’m really not sure,” Kendell said. “This one has me pretty stumped. Maybe we should go check out the children’s home?”

“That’s a good idea,” Jack said. “Find out why the twins were all split up in the first place. That could lead us in the right direction.”

“Okay, hold on. I’ll text Rodney and ask him what children’s home we should be looking into,” she said, quickly sending the man a text message. “This whole thing is just too weird. I don’t even really know what to think of it. Do you have any theories, Jack?”

“None,” he said. “But it’s definitely suspicious the way Rodney was invited to Paris. Does he have any information about who brought him here?”

“Doesn’t sound like it,” Kendell said. “But I can ask him.”

“Yeah, do that,” Jack said, and she proceeded to text him about that as well.

Pauline arrived back to the table with a little biscuit and proceeded to feed Dot as they sat. Kendell’s phone buzzed after a few minutes. “Okay, so, Rodney sent me the name of the children’s group home he and Wyetta both came out of. And he tells me he never spoke with anyone on the phone about his trip. It was all done by email, and now when he tries to send the person an email, it bounces back like the email doesn’t exist anymore.”

“So, someone lured him here,” Jack said. “Yeah, your friend Rodney is definitely in trouble. It’s a good thing they went to the station.”

Kendell nodded. “Now, I’m worried.”

“About what?” Pauline asked.

“Like what they said, what if there are more twins out here? They wouldn’t know they’re in danger,” Kendell said. “I mean, I’m not sure what the chances are that there are more than just Wyetta and Rodney, but there could be. We need to figure out what’s going on quickly before anyone else gets hurt.”

“Well, we’re not going to figure anything out just sitting here enjoying coffee and biscuits,” Pauline said. “Let’s get to that children’s home before it gets too late.”

The three of them quickly hailed a cab. The vehicle moved slowly through the streets of Paris as there were a lot of people bustling about that night looking for fine food and entertainment. Kendell was mentally trying to piece together what little information they had, but she knew they didn’t have much to go on just yet. The cab driver didn’t speak much to them, but she was pretty sure he was muttering something in French about having to drive Americans around.

“So, what exactly are we going to do once we get to the children’s home?” Jack asked.

“I don’t know,” Kendell said. “I guess talk to whoever will listen to us.”

“Yeah, but what are we going to ask?” Jack pressed.

“We can start by asking specifically about Rodney and Wyetta and their twins and see where it takes us from there,” Pauline suggested. “Oh, this is all so very exciting! Honestly, this is such a wonderful way to spend my retirement.”

Kendell shook her head, laughing slightly. “If you say so, Pauline.”

“Seeing the world? Fighting crime? Frankly, I feel like an elderly superhero,” Pauline insisted.

Kendell again snickered. “Okay, calm down there, Captain Pauline.” Kendell glanced out the window as they pulled up to a beautiful, old building with a large, elegant gate wrapped around the front. “Looks like we’re here,” she said and thanked the cab driver for the ride, quickly paying the fare. They exited the vehicle and stood in front of the large building.

“This place looks a little depressing,” Jack said, nodding toward some gargoyle statues by the windows.

“It’s a children’s group home,” Kendell said. She took a deep breath. “Okay, let’s go. I think it’s high time we figure out exactly what’s going on here.”

Jack and Pauline nodded in agreement, and the three of them made their way up the cobblestone steps.

10

“I think that gargoyle is staring at me,” Jack said as they arrived at the door.

“Doesn’t exactly seem like the type of place you would want children to be raised in,” Pauline said. “The building looks like it hasn’t been too well taken care of. Look at the flowers over there, they obviously haven’t been watered.”

“I don’t know,” Kendell said. “It’s just an old building is all. Not too bad, I think. Sort of homey.”

“You and I have very different definitions of homey,” Pauline said as she knocked on the door.

The door flung open, and a short round woman stared back at them.

“Um…hello,” Jack said, hesitantly because the woman had on a terrible scowl.

“Ah! Americans!” she said with her lips pursed. “Je déteste les Américains.”

“The American’s aren’t big fans of yours either,” Kendell huffed, and the woman’s face turned slightly red.

“What do you want?” she asked.

“We’re investigating a murder,” Kendell began, “and we need to ask some questions. Who is in charge here?”

The woman again scowled. “Are you with the police?”

“Alice, who’s at the door?” a man’s voice boomed from within the building.

“Some Americans,” she said.

“See them in and quit being so bitter,” the voice called, and the woman, whose name was evidently Alice, opened the door wide.

Kendell, Pauline, and Jack entered the large lobby area. She could distantly hear the sound of children being told to get back into bed by some of the workers. She spied two men in suits standing toward the back of the lobby, and her stomach flipped slightly. She recognized the men immediately. It was the men from the Eiffel Tower—the older man, Gabin, and the younger man, Mathis, who had sat near her toward the end of the night. The men who had been very rude to their server.

The older man stepped forward, shooing the chunky woman off and assuring her he would handle their guests. “Welcome,” Gabin said. “What can I do for you all?”

“My name is Kendell,” Kendell began. “This is Jack and Pauline. We were hoping we could ask you a few questions about the children’s home.”

The man nodded and glanced back and forth between Kendell and Jack. “Are you two considering adoption?” he asked. “Because there is quite a process.”

“No,” Jack said quickly. “Really, we wanted to talk specifically about the children’s home. Do you two run it?”

Mathis, who had been standing back since they had first entered the building, slowly made his way over to them. “Not really,” Mathis said. “We just invested in it. A little side project of ours.”

“A good tax write-off, really,” Gabin said with a slight chuckle. “I try to avoid the place as much as possible, if I’m honest.”

“Not a big child person?” Pauline asked with an almost bitter tone in her voice.

“No,” Gabin said. “But I have the money, it’s a good cause, and it makes my business look good to have something like this attached to it. Everyone wins. Now, if you don’t mind me asking, why are you three so interested in this children’s home?”

“Well,” Kendell said, not sure how much information she should give the man. “A friend of mine was killed at the Eiffel Tower the other night. I’ve come to learn that he grew up in this children’s home before he was adopted.”

“Oh, dear,” Gabin said. “Was it the gentleman who they say was pushed from the Eiffel Tower? My friend here and I were there that night, but I didn’t hear about it until later when I saw the incident being reported on the news.”

“Yes, that’s the one,” Kendell said. “Turns out he and his twin brother both came from this children’s home.” Kendell noticed the moment she said the word twin, Mathis shifted his stance. His face remained serious, but the change in body language had caught her attention. “I wanted to ask,” she said, looking directly at Mathis now, “um, whether or not your children’s home took in a lot of twins?”

Gabin shrugged. “I mean, we’ve had a few come in and out over the years. We’ve been around for…almost sixty years now. My father opened up the children’s home with some of his company’s surplus when I was just a boy. We’ve continued the tradition of keeping the place up and running. I don’t believe we have any sort of excess of twins, but they do come through from time to time.”

“Why the interest in twins?” Mathis asked.

“As I said, the man who was shoved off the Eiffel Tower was a twin,” Kendell said.

“I’m not sure how that is relevant to the case?” Gabin asked. He straightened his tie. “Well, it is getting a bit late. Mathis and I have a bit of work to do. And the children are going down for the night. I think it’s best you leave.”

Kendell continued to stare at Mathis, and she could tell he was avoiding eye contact. But they were being shooed out the door. She felt that something was very off about the children’s home. She didn’t like the feeling she had developed in the pit of her stomach as they wound up back in the front yard. The door was slammed shut, and Kendell could hear it lock. She put her hands on her hips and stared up at the building.

“Okay, something is definitely up with this place,” Jack said.

“Agreed,” Kendell said. “And I’m not leaving so easily.” She continued staring up at the building, and she noticed a child looking at them through a second-story window with a silly grin on her face. Kendell waved at the girl, and she waved back. Kendell then made a motion of opening a window, and the girl seemed to giggle. She dipped out for a moment, but seconds later, she and another little girl appeared and were opening up the window.

“You can’t be serious,” Jack said.

“I’m dead serious,” Kendell said. “Je vous remercie!” she called to the little girl.

“De rien!” the girl called back, and the other little girl she had fetched to help her with the window giggled slightly and dipped out.

“Come on, let’s go,” Kendell said, heading toward the outside wall just under the window. “Give me a boost.”

“I’m not going to be able to boost you up to the second floor,” Jack said.

“You won’t have to,” Kendell said, pointing. “There is a ledge right there by the gargoyle. I’ll be able to pull myself up to the window.”

Jack shook his head. Pauline smacked him in the arm. “Give the girl a boost.”

Jack sighed heavily. “Okay, okay, fine,” he said, looking quite unsure of himself. He cupped his hands, and she stepped into his interwoven fingers as he raised her up.

“Be careful, dear,” Pauline said, and Kendell could hear Dot whining from within the carrier. Kendell was able to reach the gargoyle. She grabbed onto the thing’s foot, which allowed her to pull herself up onto the ledge. She did her best not to look down as it would be quite a fall. The little girls stepped away from the window, laughing quietly as though this was the most fun they had had in a long time.

“Okay, I’m in!” Kendell called down at last once she had crawled into the room. “I’ll sneak down and let you two in!”

“Be careful!” Jack called. “I’m not familiar with French law, but I’m pretty sure they have a law against breaking and entering.”

“It’s not breaking and entering,” Kendell argued, smiling back at the little girls. “I was let in.”

“I really don’t think the police would see it that way,” Jack called back. “Just be careful.”

“Will do,” Kendell said, closing the window behind her. She smiled at the little girls and then promptly told them to head to bed. They laughed and did as they were told, and Kendell slipped out of the bedroom.

She tiptoed down the dark hallway, trying to locate a set of stairs to lead her back down to the lobby. As she was rounding a corner, she heard voices and froze. She could see the stairs up ahead, but between her and the stairwell was an open office door, and Gabin and Mathis were inside. She hid in the hall, and she could hear the two of them whispering.

“Are you sure we should have even gotten involved in this?” Mathis asked.

“We had to,” Gabin insisted. “Besides, Aaron, Demi, and Talia know too much. Aaron’s gone. That’s one less problem we’re going to have to deal with.”

Who’s Demi, Kendell wondered. They know about Talia… Something is definitely up… She waited. “I need some whiskey,” Mathis moaned. “I don’t like people snooping around.”

The door to the office closed, and Kendell used the opportunity to sprint down the hall and down the stairs, eventually arriving at the front door. She opened it up, and she saw a very relieved Jack and Pauline on the other side. They slipped inside, and Kendell quietly warned them about where Mathis and Gabin were located. “We should split up, cover more ground,” Pauline whispered.

“We need to be quick,” Kendell said. “There are a lot of workers walking around here. We’re bound to be spotted. Let’s meet back out front in ten.”

“I don’t like this,” Jack said again, and Pauline nudged him.

“Don’t be so scared. We’ll be fine,” Pauline said. They split up and began snooping about the building. Kendell was not able to find much during her second walkaround, but by the looks on Pauline and Jack’s faces when they met again at the front door, they had been more successful. The three of them quickly dipped out, locking the front door behind them, and darted off the property. They began walking down the street, and Kendell noted that both Pauline and Jack had swiped something from the children’s home.

“What did you two find?” Kendell asked as they walked.

“I found this,” Pauline said excitedly, holding up a small black book. “Gabin’s schedule.”

“Whoa,” Kendell said. “Nice find! Anything good in there?”

“Well, I’ve been skimming through it, and I see that he has a meeting with a woman named Katie tomorrow evening.”

“Katie?” Kendell asked. “I wonder if it’s the same Katie as our server at the Eiffel Tower?”

“Katie is a pretty common name,” Jack said.

“Maybe,” Kendell said. “But Rodney, Aaron, Katie, Gabin, and Mathis were all at the Eiffel Tower the night Aaron was killed. I don’t know if that’s a coincidence.”

“What about you, Jack?” Pauline asked. “What’s in that file of yours?”

“Well, I found this in the nursery,” Jack said. “They had a bunch of babies there. And guess what?”

“What?”

“Seven sets of twins,” Jack said. “All identical. There was a filing cabinet in a downstairs office, and I found this one marked twins twenty-eighteen. They must get a lot of twins in that children’s home if they file them specifically. But that’s not what’s weird.”

“What’s weirder than a children’s home that basically specializes in twin babies?” Kendell asked.

“Well,” Jack said, opening the file, “I found some copies of letters Gabin wrote to some of the employees at the children’s home. He doesn’t want prospective parents who are coming in looking to adopt to be aware that the children are twins. He requests them to be separated.”

“Why would you want that?” Kendell asked. “That doesn’t make any sense. Why would you want to separate siblings? You would think that a children’s home would at least try to keep twins together, right? Not intentionally separate them.”

“My thoughts exactly,” Jack said. “I mean, I’m sure siblings get separated all the time, but wouldn’t they at least want to try? The fact that they’re writing to the workers at the children’s home reminding them not to inform potential parents that the children are twins is strange. It gets weirder.”

“How does it get weirder?” Kendell asked.

“Well, when I started digging through some of the older files—the ones on twins from previous years—I tried to cross-reference adoptions. Except I could only find files on one of the twins in the adoption files.”

“What do you mean?” Pauline asked.

“I mean that Gabin and Mathis only keep paperwork on one twin, whichever one would get adopted out first. Then it’s like the other one just stops being mentioned in any paperwork or forms,” Jack said. “And, if you look in this file on all the twins in the nursery for this year, only one baby in each set of twins is given a name. The other one is given a number.”

“That’s…that’s weird,” Kendell said. “So, if only one twin in each set is being adopted out…what is happening to the other twin?”

“I don’t know,” Jack said. “But something tells me Aaron could have answered that for us if he hadn’t had been murdered.”

“Oh, I think we’ve stumbled across some sort of crazy conspiracy,” Pauline cried.

“I don’t think it is a conspiracy,” Jack said. “Something is going on. Those creeps are doing something with the twins.”

“Is there any consistency as far as where the twins are being adopted out? Like, are they all going to the same area?” Kendell asked.

“No,” Jack said, sifting through the paperwork he had swiped. “These kids have been adopted out all over the place, and their other halves were left behind, I think. The ones given a name are adopted, and it looks like they’re pretty careful not to leave any paperwork lying around about the twin assigned a number.”

“So, what do we do now?” Pauline asked.

“I say we keep an eye on Gabin and Mathis,” Kendell said. “And we can start by showing up to that meeting they have with Katie tomorrow evening.”

11

Kendell was actually having a pleasant dream. She dreamt of her future wedding with Jack, and the dream was almost certain to wake her in a good mood. However, just when she was about to kiss her future husband after the I-dos, she was awakened by a significantly less pleasant kiss. “Dot!” Kendell yelped, sitting up and wiping her lips after the dog had slobbered all over her. She heard laughing, and she glanced up to see that Jack was standing in the doorway holding two cups of coffee.

“Morning,” he said. “Sorry, but as soon as I opened the door to come wake you up, Dot came darting into the room. Guess she was excited to see you.”

Kendell yawned. “Well, I suppose I can forgive you since you have brought me coffee.”

He smirked and headed over, sitting on the edge of her bed. “It’s kind of early, but Pauline was pretty insistent.”

“What is it that Pauline is wanting to do so early?” Kendell asked. “I thought that Gabin’s meeting with Katie wasn’t until later this evening?”

“Which is exactly why she wants to get up really early to visit Versailles. It’s about an hour’s train ride there,” he said.

“She’s wanting to squeeze in a visit to Versailles today?” Kendell asked, recalling that Pauline had been talking about visiting the palace since she had first arrived in Paris. Kendell took the coffee from Jack as she threw her legs over the side of the bed, yawning. “Okay, let’s get some caffeine in me so that we can get a move on.”

Kendell followed Jack and Dot out into the main area of the hotel room where she saw that Pauline was already dressed and ready to go. She looked exceptionally excited to get going that morning, and she was talking on and on about her brochures on the city they would be visiting. Before Kendell knew it, the four of them were sitting on a train bound for Versailles.

“We’re not going to be able to spend too much time here,” Kendell reminded Pauline. “Not if we’re going to spy on Gabin’s meeting.”

“Yes, yes, dear, I know,” Pauline said. “But there is no reason we can’t have a little fun. You really need to learn how to relax. Kick up your feet. Seek adventure!”

Jack laughed. “Yeah, Kendell. Lighten up.”

“You’re one to talk seeing as how you’re the reason we are looking into this case at all,” Kendell said. “You’re the one who can’t leave the country, remember?”

“Yes, I remember,” Jack said. “I just like giving you a hard time, and Pauline makes it easier for me to do that.”

Pauline grinned. “Oh, I do like him, Kendell.”

“I’m glad,” Kendell said, shaking her head. In less than an hour, the three of them were arriving in the beautiful town known as Versailles, and Kendell was instantly blown away by its splendor.

As they exited the train and began walking into the town, Kendell spied a walking tour group. She overheard the tour guide, a woman dressed in 18th century garb, speaking. “Versailles was founded under the wish of King Louis XIV. It was a temporary capital of the Kingdom of France for over a century before becoming a staple point of the French Revolution. Versailles is well known for a number of treaties such as the Treaty of Paris that ended the American Revolution as well as the Treaty of Versailles that was signed after the first World War. Throughout history, Versailles has been many things to the people of France. Today, it is a lovely tourist destination where both houses of the French Parliament meet in the chateau to vote on revisions to France’s constitution—”

The tour guide’s voice trailed off as the group made its way past them. Pauline wanted to visit the palace first before anything, followed by the gardens, and since they were somewhat limited on time, they decided to head there first so they wouldn’t have to try to squeeze it in later. Everywhere at the palace seemed to glisten with accents of gold. The gates, the chandeliers, and even the stairwells. Kendell felt like royalty simply walking around the place.

“Can you believe how big this place is?” Jack asked as they made their way from the interior palace to the enormous gardens out back.

Kendell’s eyes glistened at the greenery outside. “Look at those fountains!” she cried, pointing. She turned around to make sure that Pauline was keeping up with them when she saw someone amongst the group of tourists.

At first, Kendell thought it was Katie. But much like their run-in with Wyetta’s lookalike, there was something very off. Yes, she shared their server’s face, but her demeanor was much more serious, and her clothes were much slicker. Jack and Pauline both instinctually looked in the direction that Kendell was staring, and upon seeing Katie’s double, they all started in the woman’s direction. The woman immediately noticed the three of them heading back toward the palace doors, and she spun around quickly on her heels and hurried back inside.

Kendell spied the woman turning a corner. “Katie!” Kendell called, although she knew very well that this woman was not Katie, but it was almost instinctual.

Jack ran up ahead, cutting the woman off to keep her from disappearing the way Talia had. The woman stopped in her tracks and stared at Jack with a hateful glare. “Leave me alone,” she hissed as Pauline and Kendell caught up. Pauline bumped right into the woman, nearly knocking her purse off her shoulder. “Watch it, you old bat!” the woman snapped.

“Please, we just want to talk,” Kendell said quickly. “My name is Kendell. This is Pauline and Jack. We want to talk to you about your sister.”

The woman’s nose wrinkled ever so slightly. “I don’t have one,” she said. “I’m an only child.”

“No,” Kendell said. “You have a sister, and her name is Katie. And I think you know that, right?” She was picking up a slight accent with the woman, but she couldn’t quite place it. “You didn’t grow up here in France, did you? Where were you? Where did the children’s home send you?”

The woman pointed in Kendell’s face. “You should mind your own business before you get yourself into some trouble.”

“We know about Rodney and about Aaron,” Jack said. “We want to help.”

Upon hearing the names Rodney and Aaron, the woman seemed to stiffen. “You three don’t know anything,” she snarled. “You’re messing with stuff you don’t want to be messing with.”

Something clicked with Kendell. She recalled the conversation she had overheard between Gabin and Mathis at the children’s home the night before. Kendell stared at the woman carefully for a moment. “Your name doesn’t happen to be…Demi, does it?”

The woman’s eyes shot open, and she pushed past all three of them quickly. “Wait!” Jack called, attempting to grab her by the arm. She spun around quickly, swiping with her foot and shoving Jack’s legs right out from under him. He landed on his back, and the woman darted off. Kendell watched her leap up onto the railings of the nearby stairwell, causing a palace guard to shout at her as she suddenly dipped right out a second-floor window after an impressive jump.

Kendell’s jaw hung open at the strange maneuver she had just witnessed. “It’s like she just flew right up there!” she shrieked in surprise.

Jack moaned, sitting up and rubbing the back of his head that had smacked against the floor. “Ninjas. That’s my theory. We are dealing with ninjas,” he said. “She swept my feet right out from under me and ran up the railing of the stairwell like something you’d see in a manga show.”

“I think you mean anime,” Pauline said.

“Pardon?”

“Anime is animation. Manga is graphic drawings,” Pauline said.

“How in the world do you know that?” Jack asked, slowly pulling himself up off the ground. Kendell checked him over, making sure he didn’t bang up the back of his head too good.

“I have a lot of grandchildren,” Pauline said. “One of them is very much into all of that.”

Jack shook his head. “You get my point, though. She had to have jumped four feet off the ground to get up onto that railing like that.”

“It was a pretty impressive leap, but I’m pretty sure she grabbed the railing with her hand to give herself the extra leap…impressive either way,” Kendell said. “But, once again, we are at a loss.”

“She sure did react when you called her Demi,” Pauline said. “How did you know her name was Demi?”

“I overheard the suits talking at the children’s home. They said that Aaron, Talia, and Demi knew too much, but I didn’t get a lot of context to the conversation,” Kendell said. “I took a guess, and based off her reaction, I’m pretty sure I struck some sort of nerve.”

Jack stretched his back. “When we get back to New York, can you promise not to tell our friends about me getting beat up by two women in a matter of days?”

“To be fair, I’m pretty sure you’re right about them being ninjas,” Kendell said.

“Really?”

“No,” she said, laughing. “But they’re definitely skilled. I wonder if Aaron was that way too?”

“I bet so,” Pauline said.

“We’re not any further along than we were last night,” Jack complained. “All we have is the name Katie on a calendar. We don’t even know if they’re meeting with the same Katie. The event on the calendar doesn’t give hardly any information except for when and where. All we have is a conspiracy, and I don’t think the French police are going to budge if we bring nothing but a conspiracy their way.”

Pauline had on this ridiculous smile. A smile Kendell had grown to recognize. The woman knew something that they didn’t. “What are you smirking at?” Kendell asked.

“Oh, I just think that I might help us crack this case wide open!” she exclaimed and clapped her hands together excitedly. Dot let out a slight bark from within her carrier and poked her little head out, her tongue hanging out of her mouth. The dog yelped again. “That’s a good girl,” Pauline said. “Your mommy is so smart.”

“What did you do?” Jack asked.

“I put my cellphone in Demi’s purse,” Pauline said.

“What?” Jack exclaimed. “When did you do that?”

“When you stopped her and Kendell and I bumped into her. I had it in my hand because I was going to take a picture of the garden, and her purse was just hanging wide open on her shoulder. It was so easy. I just slipped it right in,” Pauline said. “And I have the Find my Phone app. My granddaughters showed me how to work it.”

“Oh my gosh!” Kendell exclaimed. “Pauline, you’re a genius!”

“Are you serious?” Jack exclaimed. “Did you just basically manage to slip a tracker onto a ninja?”

Pauline straightened herself up proudly. “Why, dear, I do believe that is exactly what I did.”

“She’s not a ninja,” Kendell said, nudging Jack and rolling her eyes a bit.

“I’m standing by my theory,” Jack said. “Pauline, you’re a genius.”

“I know,” the old woman said with a laugh. “Kendell, let me see your phone. I should be able to put in my information after downloading the app onto your phone, and it should lead us right to Demi.”

“This is awesome,” Kendell said excitedly as she pulled her phone out of her back pocket and handed it over to Pauline. The old woman took forever trying to figure out how to download the app, but she was insistent upon doing it herself. She typed in her cell phone number, and after a minute or two, the app pulled up a map of Versailles.

“She’s moving quick,” Pauline said. “Looks like she’s heading out of town back toward Paris.”

Kendell looked at her phone and nodded in agreement. “The train is nowhere near there,” Kendell said. “She must be in a cab.”

“Then we need to get a cab and get going!” Pauline said, practically sprinting down the hallways of the palace. “This is positively thrilling!”

“Yeah…” Jack said somewhat nervously. “Nothing quite like trying to stalk someone I’m pretty sure could kill us with her bare hands.”

Kendell laughed as she and Jack chased after Pauline. While his theory of ninjas in France sounded ridiculous, she had to admit that after everything they had seen since arriving in the country suggested that the theory was perfectly probable.

12

“Pull over here,” Kendell told the cab driver, and once they paid their fare, the three of them slipped out onto the street. “The phone has slowed down a bit. Looks like our little ninja is on foot now.”

“How far from her are we?” Jack asked.

“Keeping a safe distance of half a mile,” Kendell said. “We’ll stay back a good way until she stops moving so that we don’t get spotted.”

“Good idea,” Pauline said, and Dot whined in agreement.

The three of them continued walking. Kendell looked around curiously. “I’m not exactly sure where we’re at.”

“Somewhere between downtown Paris and Versailles,” Pauline said. “Where is she heading now?”

“Down a fairly empty-looking street,” Kendell said as she watched the little dot on her cellphone carefully. “I still can’t believe that you managed to slip your phone into her purse without her noticing.”

“Here’s a thought,” Jack interrupted. “What if she did notice and she just slipped the phone on someone else, and now we’re just chasing some random person who had been at Versailles?”

“Dang,” Kendell said. “I hadn’t really thought about that.”

“Well, we might as well see this through at this point,” Pauline said with a sigh. “We’ve already left Versailles. No sense in going back now. We’ll miss Katie’s meeting if we do.”

Kendell nodded, sighing. “Hey!” she shrieked suddenly. “She’s stopped!”

“Finally,” Pauline moaned. “My ankles are starting to swell.”

They continued heading toward the little blinking dot on Kendell’s phone. After a few minutes, Kendell stopped and looked up. They were standing in front of what looked to be an old, abandoned warehouse. “I think we’re here,” she said.

“Looks just like the kind of a place a bunch of ninjas would hide out,” Jack said.

They slowly crept up to one side of the warehouse and glanced inside. There was no one within the large building, and according to the tracker on Kendell’s phone, Demi was out back. “I say we hurry and take a look around,” Kendell said.

“Really?” Jack asked. “With the ninja creeping around out back?”

“If we’re going to find out what’s going on, we have to take a couple of risks,” Pauline said. “I’m with Kendell.”

Jack stared at them both for a moment, then sighed. “Okay. Fine. But let’s be quick.”

They entered the large garage door opening. The room was lit by a single lantern sitting on a desk on the far side of the warehouse. They tiptoed toward it, and they got quite an eyeful. There was a large bulletin board standing up with various photographs—mostly pictures of Rodney, Katie, and Wyetta along with photographs of the children’s home and various men in suits, including Gabin and Mathis and a few others Kendell didn’t recognize. “What in the world is all of this?” Jack said, then yelped slightly. “Kendell, look! You’re in this picture!”

Kendell glanced at the photograph of her and Rodney speaking to one another in the airport. “They’ve been watching me,” Kendell said anxiously. “Okay, this is starting to get really creepy.”

“Or they were watching Rodney,” Jack suggested tensely.

“I’m thinking we shouldn’t have come in here,” Pauline said nervously. “I think we need to go.”

“That’s probably wise,” a familiar voice hissed behind them.

Kendell spun around to see a group of four people staring back at them. Demi and Talia were among them, and it had been Talia who had spoken. The other two were men she did not recognize. Kendell, Jack, and Pauline all stepped back nervously. Demi crossed her arms. “How could you have possibly followed me here?” she asked. “You three are cleverer than I gave you credit for.”

“Um…my cellphone…” Pauline said. “It may have made its way into your purse.”

One of the men laughed. “Ha! The old woman managed to one up you, Demi.”

Demi punched the man in the arm. “Shut up, Jim!”

Talia rolled her eyes. “Okay, you three start talking and tell us why you have followed us here. What do you know?”

“We know that Rodney wasn’t the one pushed off the Eiffel Tower. It was his twin, Aaron,” Kendell said. “And we don’t know why exactly, but we know that the children’s home in Paris is separating twins.”

“Not bad for a handful of Americans who just work for the airlines,” the man, Jim, said as he crossed his arms, looking a bit impressed.

“How did you know we work for the airlines?” Kendell asked.

“When we saw you hanging around Aaron’s twin, we felt the need to look into you,” the other man said, and he smiled. “I am Sahib.”

“Sahib! Do not just blab to these people,” Demi said.

“We have information,” Kendell said, looking directly at Demi. “We think your sister could be in trouble.”

“Obviously,” Demi said. “That’s why we’re all here.”

“All right, that’s it!” Jack said, throwing up his hands. “Look, we are here to help. That’s it. So cut the crap. Tell us what’s going on.”

The four strangers exchanged glances for a moment before Talia at last spoke. “Aaron was part of our little group here. He was at the Eiffel Tower keeping an eye on his brother, Rodney. That’s why we’re all here. To look after our twins who have all arrived in Paris thanks to примета.”

“Nримета?” Kendell repeated.

“It means omen in Russian,” Demi said. “That is where we’re all from. Russia.”

“This is some creepy KGB stuff!” Jack exclaimed, and the group laughed.

“Not quite,” Jim said. “But close. After the fall of the KGB, a lot of its members came together to create примета. They went into hiding and started training new soldiers with the intention of one day starting a coup against the new government. They were patient, and their plan goes far beyond taking over Russia. They recruited children from children’s homes as young as infancy. That would be us. We grew up with примета, being heavily trained in various skills.”

“Told you they were ninjas,” Jack muttered, and Kendell punched him in the side to let him know it was a time to be serious.

“We’re spies,” Talia said. “To put it simply. But what we didn’t know was that we were specifically recruited because we were identical twins. It wasn’t until recently that we learned about our twins and what примета was planning. They made alliances with various children’s homes. One twin would be taken in by примета, and the other would be intentionally adopted out to well-to-do families from around the world. We were purchased by примета, and our twins scattered about the globe. My sister Wyetta stayed here in France. Aaron’s brother was sent to Detroit, and so on and so forth.”

“Why did they only want one of you?” Kendell asked. “Why adopt out the other twin?”

“Like Talia said, our siblings were intentionally adopted out to wealthy families. The plan was that once we were grown and trained, we would be able to easily infiltrate the families or different social circles by playing the part of our civilian halves,” Demi explained. “We could pose as our counterparts, and if we ever found ourselves in trouble our other halves could take the fall for any crime we committed on behalf of примета, and they wouldn’t lose their assassins.”

Kendell shook her head, hardly able to believe what all she was hearing. Pauline laughed slightly. “What a mess!” Pauline exclaimed. “So, you came here to protect your siblings? Protect them from who?”

Sahib crossed his arms and plopped down on one of the folding chairs sitting by the bulletin board. “Who else? Protect them from примета.”

Jim nodded. “After our organization announced to us their plans, some of us felt uneasy. We were all raised and trained to be loyal to the cause. To be soldiers day in and day out. We were going to be the ones to help take back Russia and take down enemies of the homeland. But when we heard about their plans for our twins…when we heard we had family they had kept secret from us…some of us lost all feeling of loyalty.”

“Yes,” Talia said. “A few of us, but enough. Myself, Aaron, Demi, Jim, and Sahib… We all escaped. We wanted to find our family. Our twins. But you don’t betray the organization without consequences.”

“As soon as we escaped, примета started rounding up our twins here in France,” Jim said. “My brother was killed over a week ago after being offered a fake job in Paris. He was flown out here and killed. I never got to meet him. Aaron never got to meet his brother, either. When those creeps at the Eiffel Tower spotted him, they went after him instead of Rodney. Aaron was an easier target, so when they had the opportunity to take one of us out, they went for him first.”

“I’m so sorry,” Kendell said. “I cannot imagine what kind of life the four of you have had.”

“How many more of you are there?” Jack asked. “I mean, is it just the five of you?”

“No. There are about a dozen others who remained loyal to примета. We just couldn’t do it. With the success of their first round of twins, they’ve decided to relaunch the program,” Demi said.

“The babies I saw at the children’s home. They’re going to separate them just like they did with you guys,” Jack said.

“Exactly,” Demi said. “We need to stop this from happening again like it did in the early nineties. But, right now, our main concern is our siblings. They are all in trouble.”

“Your sister is in trouble especially,” Kendell said. “Show them the black book, Pauline.”

Pauline reached into the side pocket of Dot’s carrier, pulling out the black book she had stolen from Gabin’s office. “It seems like the owners of the children’s home have an appointment with your sister for later today.”

Demi took the book from Pauline, and she stiffened. “Katie’s in trouble. She’s their next target.”

“Do you know who killed Aaron?” Kendell asked.

“Either Gabin or Mathis,” Jim said. “They’ve been put in charge of taking out our twins, the civilians. They are not примета, so the organization wouldn’t send a couple of baboons like those two after us. They’ll be sending trained assassins after us. But they thought they would get in good with примета by going after Aaron. I’m surprised they managed to jump him at all. They must have taken him by surprise.”

“Yeah, you’ve proven to me that you’re all pretty tough,” Jack said, rubbing his nose.

Talia and Demi both laughed. Talia smiled slightly. “Sorry about that, but you were pretty persistent. I had to get rid of you some way.”

“So what now?” Kendell asked. “We need to save Katie before she walks into a meeting with two men asked to kill her by a Russian mob.”

“We need to do more than that,” Sahib said. “We need to put a stop to примета permanently.”

“Sahib, what about your brother?” Jack asked. “We know about Wyetta and Katie and Rodney. Jim says his brother was killed. What about yours?”

Sahib sighed. “He got cancer, apparently. Died two years ago. That put a damper on примета’s plans. But I’m not loyal to them. Even though my brother died, the thought of what they would have wanted me to do to him is upsetting. To kidnap him, take his place, and frame him for crimes he didn’t commit. No, I would never have done it. When we escaped and started looking into finding all of our siblings, I sadly discovered he lost his battle to cancer and that I would never get to know him.”

“I’m sorry,” Kendell said.

“But we can save Rodney, Katie, and Wyetta,” Sahib said. “That will be good enough for me today.”

“We need to call Rodney and Wyetta,” Jack said. “Get them here so that you all can keep them safe.”

The four assassins exchanged nervous glances. “You came here to keep them safe,” Kendell said. “I think it’s time to meet your twins. If I had Katie’s contact information, we’d be calling her too.”

“I think the Americans are right,” Talia said. “It’s time to come out of the shadows, my friends. And if we can get them here, we can keep them safe. Kendell, make the call.”

Kendell opened up her cellphone, not sure what sort of fib she was going to have to tell Wyetta and Rodney to get them down to that warehouse, but she figured she would come up with something.

13

Kendell hung up the phone after speaking with Rodney. She had left out the details of why she needed to meet, but he and Frasier and Wyetta had all agreed to come to the warehouse. It had taken a little convincing, but the urgency in her tone had eventually gotten them to agree to leave the station. The three of them had been at the police station all day trying to help in any way they could in discovering what sort of grave conspiracy was amiss in Paris.

Kendell, Jack, and Pauline stood outside of the warehouse, waiting for their cab to pull up. The Russian spies remained inside, sorting through what information they had regarding their siblings and the case at hand. “How do you think they are going to react when we show them that we found their twins?” Jack asked.

“I have no idea,” Kendell muttered, narrowing her eyes as she stared down the fairly empty road. Several more minutes ticked by, but eventually, she spotted a cab zooming down the road.

It stopped right in front of them, and out popped Rodney, Wyetta, and Frasier. The cab pulled off, and Frasier looked at them curiously. “What was so important that you would have us drive out to the middle of nowhere?” he asked. “Have you found something for the case?”

“You could say that,” Jack said. “Come on. We’ve got something to show you all.”

As they approached the warehouse, Talia stepped out, causing Wyetta and Frasier to both jump back in surprise. The others followed closely behind. “What’s going on here?” Rodney asked, staring at Talia and her friends behind her.

Talia looked at Wyetta, and the woman looked almost nervous to speak. “Hello, Wyetta,” she said. “My name is Talia… Um… I know this is probably strange to you, but I am your sister, and I—”

Wyetta leaped forward, shrieking somewhat excitedly. “A sister! It’s true! It’s all true!” She suddenly had the woman in a tight hug, and Kendell could see a look of relief on Talia’s face. Wyetta let go of Talia, taking a good, long look at her. “I cannot believe it! This is the craziest thing I have ever heard of! Long-lost twins! Ha! Who are your friends? Are these family?”

“Not exactly,” Talia said.

“If you think it’s crazy now, you just wait,” Pauline said excitedly.

“Remarkable,” Frasier said under his breath.

After quick introductions, Rodney and Wyetta were both demanding explanations. Demi stepped in and gave them the shortened version of their lives—the children’s home, the coup, and how they had all come to be in Paris for their executions. “That’s why Aaron was killed?” Rodney asked.

“Aaron wasn’t supposed to die. Not yet, at least. You were the one who was supposed to be pushed off the tower that night,” Demi said. “But when the men saw Aaron, they decided to go after a bigger target. They’re much more concerned about us than you all.”

“Why was Aaron even at the Eiffel Tower?” Rodney asked.

“He was keeping an eye on you,” Talia said. “We’ve been watching Gabin and Mathis closely, and we were able to find out that you were the target that night. He went there to protect you and wound up being targeted himself.”

“This is my fault,” Rodney said. “I mean, I should have known better. Why would the Eiffel Tower want me to come do a review of their restaurant? Gabin… He’s the one who has been in contact with me. He is the one who paid for my flight… Oh, gosh! I was supposed to meet him this morning!”

“Whoa,” Kendell said. “What happened?”

“Well, I didn’t go,” Rodney said. “Thank God! I got so busy at the police station after hearing about Aaron that I completely forgot. If I had gone…”

“They would have killed you,” Jim said. “Just like they have done to our twins.”

“Wyetta!” Frasier suddenly exclaimed. “You…you had an appointment for an interview tomorrow morning… Wasn’t that man’s name Mathis? The principal you were supposed to be meeting?”

Wyetta put her hands to her face. “My word! Yes! Oh, dear. Thank goodness it was not until tomorrow, or I would have walked up to that coffee shop and gotten myself killed!”

Kendell nodded. “They’ve planned to take every one of you out. Katie… She told me she got a scholarship out of the blue to come to school here in Paris. That’s how they got her here to Paris. Looks like Gabin and Mathis told whatever lie they could to get you all to come marching straight to your deaths.”

“This is so messed up,” Rodney grunted.

“We must intervene quickly before they get a hold of my sister,” Demi said. “Katie is going to be meeting with those goons in just a couple of hours.”

“What are we going to do?” Pauline asked. “We need a plan. Not just to save Katie, but to put a stop to all of this.”

Kendell was thinking. Sure, they could save Katie. They knew where and when she was going to be meeting her potential killers, but what would that do in the long run? The men would keep coming after them. And even though they had some experienced assassins at their disposal, taking out Gabin and Mathis probably wouldn’t stop примета from coming after them and just sending different lackeys to do the job. “We’ve got to get evidence,” Kendell said. “We’ve got to take out примета if any of you are ever going to be safe.”

“Awfully confident for a flight attendant talking about taking out a secret Russian spy organization,” Jack said. “How are we supposed to take something like that on?”

“We just need proof,” Kendell said.

Jack waved a hand at the twins standing before them. “These guys are all the proof that we need.”

“We need to prove Gabin and Mathis’s involvement,” Kendell said. “Make sure this doesn’t happen to any other kids ever again. Demi said that the children’s homes are starting the programs up again now that they’ve had a test run with them.”

“Kendell is right,” Talia said. “This is a lot bigger than just us. We have to take примета down once and for all.”

Kendell glanced from Wyetta to Talia and then back to Wyetta again. A slight smile appeared on Kendell’s face. “Ohh, I know that look,” Pauline said. “She’s got an idea.”

“Believe it or not, I think I actually do,” Kendell said, still putting the pieces together in her head. “How good is your acting, Rodney?”

“Me?” Rodney asked. “What in the world are you wanting me to do?”

“Cut your hair, first,” Kendell said. “And we’re going to need to get you into some different clothes.”

“What are you talking about doing?” Demi asked.

Kendell looked Demi up and down. “Yeah, you too. You’re going to need to change…and probably pull your hair back…”

Pauline practically jumped up and down. “Oh! I think I know where this is going! Please tell me we are about to pull a twin switcheroo!”

“You must be joking,” Sahib said. “That will never work.”

“Do Gabin and Mathis know any of you personally?” Kendell asked.

“Well, no,” Demi said.

“Then this should work,” Kendell said. “Do you have any of Aaron’s clothes?”

“Yeah,” Sahib said, glancing at Rodney.

“Go get them,” she said. “I have a plan. But, first, we have to find Katie before she walks right into a trap.”

“Don’t worry,” Demi said. “I know her routine quite well after spying on her for as long as I have. We will find her before she gets anywhere near Gabin and Mathis.”

“Great,” Kendell said, smirking wickedly as she was starting to feel like some sort of evil mastermind. She was starting to piece all of the little details together in her mind, and soon a solid concept had formed. “Okay, you guys ready to hear the plan?”

Jim smirked in her direction. “Oh, yes, I am all ears. How are we going to save Katie and take down примета?”

“We’re going to need a video recorder,” she said. “And we need to get moving if we’re going to get to Katie first.”

14

“I feel like we’re in a James Bond movie,” Pauline said excitedly as they piled into the back of the unmarked, black van.

“Let’s not put that on us,” Jack said, squeezing between Pauline and Kendell. “I’m pretty sure I’m the type who would be killed off in a Bond film.”

“Undoubtedly,” Sahib said in a tone that made Kendell question whether or not it was meant as a joke.

They headed deep into the heart of Paris, and soon they were only a short distance from the Pont de Arts bridge, where Katie was supposed to meet Gabin and Mathis. Demi, who had been tailing her twin for a week now, knew the woman’s routine. She was able to guess what direction Katie would be coming from, so they were able to limit their search to a few streets. Sure enough, they eventually spotted the perky Katie strutting down the street looking to be in quite an excellent mood, completely unaware that without their upcoming intervention, she would be strutting to her death.

“She’s going to freak,” Jack said.

“Probably,” Kendell said. “Let’s just hope we can explain this one to the police when the street cameras pick us up.”

Jim was driving, and he pulled up right next to Katie and slammed on the brakes. Both Demi and Talia jumped out on either side of Katie and shoved her into the van before anyone else on the street had a chance to notice. The van door was shut, and Katie had hardly let out a yelp of surprise by the time Jim was zipping down the road. “What! What are you… Oh my gosh!” she shrieked as she looked at Demi.

“Hey, Katie,” Kendell said, and Katie’s shocked face went from Demi to Kendell and back to Demi. She pointed at Demi. “You look like me!”

“Yeah,” Demi said.

Katie looked back at Kendell, practically shaking. “Wait a second… You’re that woman…the one who got engaged at the Eiffel Tower…” She then looked at Talia. “You got engaged that same night.”

“No, that was me,” Wyetta said, and Katie’s head whipped around to look at Wyetta. “What is happening?!”

“It’s a long story,” Kendell said. “But the men you are heading to meet, well, they’re trying to kill you.”

“What?” Katie asked. “The real estate agents?”

“They’re not real estate agents,” Demi said. “Although, I am impressed. It just took them telling Rodney they wanted him to do a blog post to get him to walk into their den. You looking for a new place?”

“Well, yeah, somewhere closer to school…” Katie then shook her head as though snapping herself back into reality. “Pause. What’s going on?”

“Oh, you know…Russian spies…conspiracies…secret twins…” Pauline rambled, and Kendell shook her head.

Demi smiled at Katie. “Well, for starters, I’m your sister. It’s nice to finally meet you, Katie.”

“I don’t…have any…siblings…” Katie muttered, although she could not deny the resemblance. “Why would someone want to kill me, anyway!”

“Unfortunately, Katie, we don’t really have time to give you the whole rundown,” Kendell said. “We need you to trust us, and we need your clothes…”

“Excuse me!” Katie yelped.

“I need to pretend to be you,” Demi said.

“I’m not giving you my clothes!” Katie shouted. “And why should I trust any of you? I don’t know any one of you!”

“Because I’m your sister,” Demi said, her voice full of sincerity and concern.

Katie looked at Demi, and her shoulders seemed to relax. “I don’t know what I’ve just gotten involved in…” she said. “But, okay.”

The next thing Kendell knew, Demi and Katie had swapped outfits, and their plan was a go. Kendell pulled her hair back and then threw on a wig that Talia had stashed for her, before adding large sunglasses and a scarf to her attire. Pauline put on a large sun hat and an enormous shoulder-padded vest, and Jack threw on a ball cap and a pair of sunglasses. The three of them exited the bridge first, leaving Dot behind with Jim in the van. Of course, the Russian spies they had somehow befriended had all the tech necessary for a sting operation just lying around. Jack, Pauline, and Kendell all had small cameras on their clothing along with mics. Their job was to just stand back and remain unnoticed.

Demi exited the black van next. She was wearing only a wire for audio recording. She went and stood on the bridge, her arms propped up against the railing as she gazed out at the scenery like all the other tourists in the area. Only a few minutes went by before Gabin and Mathis appeared. Demi smiled at them. “Hello, Mister Gabin. Good to finally meet you in person,” she said, mimicking Katie’s perkiness and American accent flawlessly.

Gabin shook Demi’s hand, as did Mathis. “We’re very excited to show you some of these properties opening up near your university,” Mathis said.

“I’m so glad you reached out to me,” Demi said. “I cannot wait. I am curious, though. How was it you knew I was looking for a property?”

“Search engine,” Gabin said quickly. “You looked something up online, and our agency gets sent information.”

“Funny,” Demi said. “I did that at the public library. How would you have known it was me and not one of the other hundreds of people coming in and out of the library?”

“You’d have to talk to someone in our IT department,” Mathis said. “If, um, you’re concerned about your security or something. I assure you it is legitimate information access, Miss Katie.”

“Oh, I’m sure,” Demi said. This banter continued back and forth for several minutes. It didn’t seem like Demi was getting anywhere. It was time for phase two of the plan.

“Hey! Katie!” a familiar voice called, and Talia came trotting across the bridge dressed as Wyetta.

Her mere presence caused Gabin and Mathis to tense, but the fact that Talia was acting familiar with Demi made them all the more nervous. “Are these your realtors?” Talia asked, smiling.

“Yeah, I was wondering when you were going to get here,” Demi said. “Guys, this is my friend, Wyetta. We were talking about renting a place together. Hope you don’t mind her tagging along.”

The men were both looking around, probably trying to determine if either of their assassin doubles were observing them nearby. Little did these men know that they were staring the assassins down. “Of…of course,” Mathis said. “How, er, did you two meet?”

“Oh, geez…” Talia said. “The Eiffel Tower, right? You waited on me and Frasier a couple of times.”

“That was it,” Demi said. “Well, are you two ready?”

Gabin and Mathis were certainly thrown for a loop. Kendell imagined that they were trying to determine whether or not they were about to trot off with two unknowing citizens or two trickster assassins. Trying to decide if their lives were worth the risk. Gabin straightened his tie. “Yes, um…ladies… You know what? I just…remembered…”

“Going somewhere, Gabin?” Rodney had appeared on the bridge dressed exactly like his twin brother Aaron. He had even shaved the side of his hair to play the part. Rodney even spoke in a flawless Russian accent. “Mathis…” he said.

Gabin and Mathis spun around together. Mathis yelped in surprise, pointing a finger toward Rodney. “No! I killed you!” he cried. “I pushed you out that blasted window!”

Rodney crossed his arms. “Wrong twin.”

Gabin grabbed Mathis by the arm. “You told me you took out one of the assassins!” he shouted.

“I did! I killed Aaron! I…I thought it was Aaron…” Mathis said.

“What’s going on?” Demi asked. “Who is that?” She was still playing innocent.

Rodney took one step forward, his eyes narrowed. The two businessmen jumped back as though they thought Rodney’s stare would be enough to take them out. “You really thought you could take out a trained assassin?” Rodney asked.

“I suppose they did,” Talia said, now completely dropping the French accent and replacing it with her Russian one.

“Foolish little trolls,” Demi said, also dropping her fake accent.

Gabin and Mathis both looked terrified, now realizing they had walked into a den of trained killers. Kendell turned, double-checking to make sure her camera was picking all of this up. “It wasn’t my fault!” Mathis cried, suddenly turning on Gabin. “It was him! It was all him! He and his father organized this whole thing. They made the deal with примета! I just work for him!”

“Deal?” Demi said, her voice full of sass. “And exactly what was your deal?”

“You know примета! I didn’t have a choice,” Gabin tried to say, but Talia cut him off.

“Didn’t have a choice? From what I hear, you and your old man approached примета when you caught wind of how much money another children’s home was making off selling twins,” Talia said.

Gabin hesitated, looking like he was about to pass out from fear. “Yes…but…it wasn’t my fault…” Gabin abruptly grabbed Mathis, shoving him into Rodney before jumping clear over the bridge.

“Well, I wasn’t expecting that,” Pauline said. Jim came bolting out of the black van parked a short distance away, followed by Sahib, both men laughing uncontrollably that Gabin had jumped the bridge into the water below and was now desperately trying to swim ashore.

Sahib used zip ties to restrain Mathis, who was shaking nervously. When the real Katie and Wyetta, followed by Frasier, came running out of the van, Mathis realized he had been duped. Kendell, Pauline, and Jack hurried over, all grinning. “Were you able to see it all from the cameras in the van?” Jack asked Sahib.

“Every bit of it,” Sahib said. “Wonderful performance, Rodney.”

“Thanks,” he said.

“Your accent needs work,” Jim said, walking toward the end of the bridge where people were already gathering, gawking at the lunatic old man who had thrown himself into the water. “I’m going to go get the big oaf. Someone call the Gendarmerie. We need to turn our evidence over to someone, I suppose.”

The police arrived soon after, and after providing them with the taped confessions, Gabin and Mathis were taken away. The rest of them, admitted trained assassins as well, were asked to come to the station. Kendell was nervous for Talia, Demi, Sahib, and Jim. Would they be going to jail? Would they be arrested? She was surprised they hadn’t completely dipped out the moment they had gotten Gabin and Mathis detained.

The evidence was impossible to rebuke. The case was essentially closed.

* * *

Later that night, Pauline, Jack, and Kendell at last made it back to their hotel room after spending the entire rest of their day being heavily interviewed by multiple officers and even someone from Interpol, who had been flown in the moment French police contacted them about примета. It seemed like the three of them, after collapsing from exhaustion that night and sleeping a solid twelve hours, could finally enjoy their vacation in Paris.

They returned to Versailles for Pauline’s sake, explored restaurants, toured Notre Dame, and everything else they could think of. But being tourists was hardly the start of their adventures there. Russia’s prime minister made a visit to Paris while they were there, wanting to personally shake their hands and thank them for their part in uncovering примета in their midst. Gabin turned out to be a complete and total snitch, and thanks to him desperately trying to get some sort of plea deal, примета was going to be dismantled, and the owners of all participating children’s homes arrested.

One of the officers at the Paris station took a picture of their ragtag group of heroes: Kendell, Pauline, Dot, Jack, Talia, Wyetta, Frasier, Demi, Katie, Jim, Rodney, and Sahib along with the Russian prime minister and the President of France. Thankfully, Talia, Demi, Jim, and Sahib wouldn’t be facing any charges, it seemed, as they had fled примета and been a central part of bringing the organization down.

On their last night in Paris, Kendell pulled out her laptop and uploaded the group photo, along with several others from their trip, to her blog. She wrote out the story with all the details that the media wasn’t ever going to be able to get. Within the hour, her personal blog became an international sensation. It was being talked about on news channels all around the world—journalists and reporters were messaging her on her blog, all wanting to talk. Rodney said even his blog had experienced a bump, although nothing compared to Kendell’s.

They packed their bags. According to Pauline, they had an early flight out of Paris the next morning, so they didn’t want to wait until morning to get ready. And even though her blog had blown up that afternoon, she had no idea what was going to be waiting for her the next morning.

15

They were running a bit late the following morning getting to the airport, and Kendell was thankful that Pauline had suggested they pack the night before. Kendell gave a friendly salute to the giddy man behind the counter on their way out, and he returned a thumbs up and a wink in Jack’s direction. Once in the cab, Kendell felt like she could breathe for a minute. They had double-timed it getting out of the hotel, so she felt like they were unlikely to miss their flight now.

“I feel like I can breathe,” Kendell said, resting her head on Jack’s shoulder.

Dot jumped out of Pauline’s lap and over into hers, wagging her tail. Kendell patted the dog on the head. “Don’t relax too much,” Pauline said. “If we get into any traffic on the way there, we are going to have to book it through the airport.”

“You two should be good,” Jack said. “My flight leaves half an hour before yours does.”

“You sure you don’t want to go with us to our next destination?” Pauline asked as Kendell started playing with her phone, eager to take a look at her blog while she had a moment to breathe.

“Nah, I have got to get back to New York,” he said. “Unlike Kendell, I don’t have over a month’s worth of vacation days saved up.”

“You sure you’re okay with me continuing on this trip?” Kendell asked.

“Absolutely,” Jack said. “And, besides, I’m going to be really busy in the next few months.”

“Taking on some extra hours now that you’re an engaged man?” Pauline asked.

“No,” Jack said, and there was a playfulness to his voice that caused Kendell to sit upright.

“What’s going on?” Kendell asked curiously.

“Well, let’s just say that you’re not the only one looking into a career change,” he said.

Kendell stared at him. “What’s are you talking about?” she asked.

“Well, before I came here to Paris, I applied for flight school,” he said.

“What!” Kendell exclaimed, punching him in the arm. “Are you serious?!”

“Congratulations!” Pauline said. “Oh, how exciting!”

“I had been thinking about it for a long time,” he said. “And, let’s be honest, the TSA thing has been getting pretty old pretty fast.”

“I’m so happy for you, Jack!” Kendell said. “You’ve been talking about that ever since we first started dating.”

“I know,” he said. “I figured if I was going to marry someone like you, I needed to step it up a bit.”

“You’re sweet,” she said. “But you know I don’t care what you do.”

“And I don’t care what you do, either,” he said. “But a pilot’s paycheck would definitely be able to support us a lot better than what I make now. Especially if you’re going from full-time job to blog writer.”

“Oh, I don’t think you’re going to have to worry too much about that,” Pauline said.

“Huh?” Kendell asked, and Pauline reached over and tapped her phone.

“I took a look this morning while you were bringing the bags down to the lobby,” Pauline said. “Have you seen your blog?”

Kendell finished pulling up the blog on her phone, and her mouth hung open in awe. “A…a hundred thousand hits!” she screamed so suddenly that the cab driver nearly jerked the vehicle into the other lane. She could hear him swearing under his breath in French.

“A hundred thousand hits!” Jack exclaimed.

“Everyone has been going to it to read my story about the Russian mob,” Kendell said. “Oh my gosh! I have new sponsors! A bunch of Kendell’s Crew, a few Pauline’s Posse… I even have two Dot’s Division! That’s a thousand dollars a month between the two!”

“Whoa,” Jack said. “If you keep this up, this might become an actual thing.”

“An actual thing?” Kendell laughed. “I can’t believe it…”

“That blog hasn’t even been up for more than a week,” Pauline said. “I’m very impressed, Kendell.”

The cab pulled up to the airport, and of course they wound up having to bolt. Jack gave her a hug and kiss, telling her to enjoy the rest of her trip before hurrying in the opposite direction. Kendell and Pauline grabbed their bags, scurrying off toward boarding. She was quite breathless, and she felt a sense of relief wash over her once they were finally in their seats. “What an adventure,” Kendell said under her breath.

“Oh, you know, just a normal vacation to Paris—breaking up Russian mobs, saving orphans from being sold off to be trained as assassins, the usual…” Pauline said with a laugh. “This is incredible. Have you responded to any of the messages those reporters sent you?”

“I told them I would send them a schedule of where we would be,” Kendell said.

Pauline frowned. “That means I can’t surprise you anymore,” she said. “It’s fun having you wait until we’re about to board or until we’re actually on the plane.”

“Speaking of which, where are we going?” Kendell asked.

Pauline laughed. “Hold on, I must savor this moment,” Pauline said. “Okay. We are going to…drum roll please!” Kendell laughed and drummed on her legs. “Australia!”

Kendell grinned. “Sounds like a blast. Think we will get into any trouble there?”

Pauline smiled brightly, and Dot let out a quiet, excited whine. “Oh, Kendell, my dear, I most certainly hope so!”

* * *

Kangaroos and Killings

Flight Risk Cozy Mystery, Book 8

1

Kendell McDonald smiled at the ring that sat prominently on her left ring finger. Now, everything made sense to her. While her boyfriend Jack’s previous behavior was inexcusable, this at least made it all make sense. Less than a month ago, Kendell, a flight attendant, had bumped into an elderly woman—and former flight attendant—named Pauline. Pauline had invited her along on her retirement adventure around the world, and because Kendell had five years’ worth of vacation time and sick time saved up, she had hopped on the opportunity. At first, Jack had been exceptionally supportive, but then he started to become increasingly agitated by her absence. Kendell had written it off as him being controlling. Turned out, he was just anxiously waiting to see her again because he was wanting to propose and the waiting had gotten him a bit frustrated.

After getting chewed out by Kendell’s southern belle companion, Pauline, Jack had straightened up and the two of them had conspired behind Kendell’s back to pull off an enchanted Eiffel Tower proposal in Paris, France. Kendell could not possibly have been any happier in that moment.

Now, Jack had returned home to New York where he would be starting flight school, no longer willing to work as a TSA goon for the airlines. He was ready to become a pilot. Kendell, on the other hand, was headed off on her next great adventure with Pauline and the elderly woman’s trusty puppy companion, Dot.

Currently, they were headed for Alice Springs, Australia. Usually, Pauline waited to tell Kendell of their next destination, but that traditional surprise was no longer an option. Kendell needed to let her blog readers know where her next grand adventure would be taking place. “Hey, Pauline.” Kendell nudged the woman, who was half asleep beside her.

“Wha-what!” Pauline jumped up, fists at the ready.

Kendell laughed, shaking her head. “I just wanted you to read my last blog post before I submit it. We’re going to be landing soon.”

Pauline rubbed her eyes and went digging around in her purse for her reading glasses. Dot grumbled from within Pauline’s carry-on. The dog had been sleeping as well, and the little white fluff ball glared up at them angrily for daring to disturb her. “Go back to sleep, Dot,” Kendell whispered.

“What on earth are you writing about?” Pauline asked as she moved Kendell’s laptop into her own lap. “You already wrote about our adventure in Paris?”

Kendell grinned. The adventure in Paris, their most recent adventure, was one for the record books. Kendell had written a firsthand account of how she, Pauline, Jack, and a group of sets of twins had brought down a Russian mob called примета who had been stealing twins from French orphanages for decades. They had brought down the group that had been planning a coup and had spy cells all over the world. When the world had gotten wind that the pair of American heroes who had brought down the organization had their own blog, Kendell’s web fame had blown up overnight. She had become an internet sensation in a matter of hours of uploading the photographs she had taken throughout the trip to Paris. People were losing it over the story, and everyone loved Kendell’s witty sense of humor from when she’d written about her proposal.

The Paris blog was her seventh, but it was the one that had finally attracted the sort of attention she wanted. Now, she even had sponsors. If things continued like they were, there was a good chance she would be able to quit her job at the airlines and make blog writing a full-time gig. It would be like a dream come true.

“Let’s see…you’ve elected to do a recap blog?” Pauline asked as she scrutinized the page.

“Yeah. Just a sort of what the blog is about. Updating people about the past adventures we’ve been on. Catching people up on us and telling them more about you and me. And, of course, telling people where we are going next,” Kendell said.

“I say it’s good to go,” Pauline said. “Plane’s WiFi is on, right?”

“It is,” Kendell said, grinning.

“Post it,” Pauline insisted, and Kendell did.

She closed her laptop for only a few minutes before she had to open it up again. She was eager to see how quickly the response time was, and she was beyond herself to see she had several comments and over two hundred viewers in only the fifteen minutes she had closed the laptop up. “This is crazy!” she yelped. “I can’t believe people are actually reading this.”

Pauline leaned over Kendell’s shoulder. “I can. Your writing is fun and witty. And, you know, we brought down a Russian mob… People want to know what us crazy ladies are up to.”

Kendell laughed. “People love you,” Kendell assured her. “The photos I post with you in them get the most likes.”

Pauline fluffed up her hair. “What can I say? The camera loves me,” she said, cackling her grandma laugh that Kendell had grown to adore.

The two of them made quite a pair. Kendell was a liberal New Yorker, a career-driven woman with stunning red hair and a traditional New Yorker attitude. Pauline was the polar opposite of that as an elderly Georgia woman with more grandchildren and great grandchildren than she knew what to do with. But somehow, this unlikely friendship just worked. And Kendell was quite thankful for it. She had learned a lot from this conservative woman; Pauline challenged her. And, unlike the cliché stereotype of the stubborn southerner she had come to believe was true, Pauline was an open, loving individual from the land of red clay and peaches.

“Wait a minute…” Kendell said as she studied her blog. “I have a new sponsor!”

“I imagine. You’ve been getting new sponsors all evening,” Pauline said with a yawn.

“Not a little five-dollar sponsor,” Kendell said. “Someone just joined Dot’s Division!”

“What!” Pauline yelped.

Kendell had created three different types of sponsors for her blog page that people could choose to join. It would give them different perks, and it would help pay for any future adventures since she could not rely on Pauline’s generosity forever. The first level of sponsorship was Kendell’s Crew, with a five dollar a month commitment. The second level was Pauline’s Posse, with a one hundred dollar a month commitment. Kendell had several Kendell’s Crew donors as well as a handful of Pauline’s Posse. As of a day ago, she had two Dot’s Division sponsors, and that was a five hundred dollar a month commitment. It seemed as though a third person had just become a Dot Division member, adding another five hundred dollar a month commitment to Kendell’s blog.

“Who is it?” Pauline asked.

Kendell had discovered that the first two Dot’s Division sponsors had been a friend of hers in New York and a friend of Pauline’s—friends with enough money to spare five hundred a month to read up on their crazy adventures. But this third Dot’s Division sponsor was not familiar to Kendell. “Let me see,” she said, pulling up the information. “It’s a news program,” she said. “One located in Australia.”

Pauline clapped her hands together. “Oh, that’s exciting! You have a network sponsor!”

Kendell laughed. “Something like that. That’s so… Wait…”

A notification popped up that she had a new sponsor. Someone had joined Dot’s Division but had committed to a thousand dollars rather than the five-hundred-dollar requirement. “What!” Kendell exclaimed. “Who would…” A familiar name popped up on screen. “Felicity Overton?”

Pauline nearly choked. Felicity Overton was the name of one of Pauline’s granddaughters. “Pardon me for saying so, Kendell, but what is my granddaughter thinking!” Pauline exclaimed. “She can’t afford to throw out a thousand dollars a month for a blog!”

Kendell agreed. Felicity was well off, but she certainly wasn’t so well off that she should be putting out that kind of money for something like this. “It’s probably a mistake,” Kendell assured Pauline. “I bet she meant to join Pauline’s Posse, the one hundred dollar a month commitment, and she probably typed in an extra zero or something. I can refund her the money once we touch down in Australia.”

Pauline exhaled, relieved. “Thank you, Kendell. My granddaughter is a very generous soul, but I can’t imagine her being able to afford a thousand dollars a month to go toward something like this. I won’t let her.”

“Understood,” Kendell said in agreement. “Like I said, I’m sure it’s a mistake. Unless she just came across some extra money and meant to do a one-time donation of a thousand? I don’t know. We’ll get in touch with her once we land and find out what happened.”

Before she had a chance to contemplate the large donation much further, another notification popped up. She had plenty of fan mail coming in through the blog, enough to keep her quite busy and unable to respond to it all, but this one had the subject line FROM OVERTON in all caps, so it caught her attention. “Oh, wait, looks like she’s realized her mistake,” Kendell said with a laugh.

“Poor girl is probably panicking,” Pauline said.

Kendell pulled up the message, where she saw a picture of Felicity and Jefferson standing together, all smiles, next to the shiny red classic Cobra car that had been gifted to Felicity after she had solved a murder—the victim’s brother had given her his father’s car as she had also solved that man’s murder two years prior. “Wait…” Kendell said as she began to read the email. “Felicity sold the Cobra for four million dollars!”

It was perfect timing, really. Pauline had just taken a swig out of her water bottle, and half of it came spewing out of her mouth while the other half clearly went down her throat the wrong way. She started coughing and gagging. “F-four million?” Pauline asked once she had regained her breath.

“She said she sent a million to the family who had given her the car as a thank-you, but she and Jefferson are wanting to invest the rest in their company…and ours? Wait… What does she mean?”

Pauline leaned over, trying to read the email without her reading glasses, causing her to squint. “She wants to invest in your blog?” Pauline asked.

“Felicity says she wants to completely fund us for two years in exchange for a percentage of our future profits,” Kendell said. “She says to call her once we land in Australia, and that we can talk details.”

“Four million dollars,” Pauline said, pulling a handkerchief out of her bag to dab sweat that had started to form on her forehead. “And my granddaughter wants to spend some of that on us so that we can travel?”

“Looks that way,” Kendell said, smirking. “You really have a one of a kind family, you know that?”

“Oh, believe me, I know,” Pauline said. “I just don’t believe this. My retirement trip fund is about spent out, and now I might get to see more of the world? No… I don’t know if we can accept this money…”

“She’s not just giving it to us,” Kendell assured Pauline. “She wants to invest.”

“Well, now I wish this plane would hurry up and get to Australia,” Pauline said. “Because I’m going to need to hear what Felicity has to say about all of this.”

Kendell nodded in agreement. “You’re not kidding. I wonder what she has in mind specifically? I mean, I’m not sure if she’ll be able to turn much of a profit fronting everything like that.”

“I don’t know,” Pauline said. “But I know my granddaughter. She must have some sort of plan in mind.”

The pilot came over the intercom of the plane, telling people to prepare for landing. Kendell closed her laptop and put it away, eager for them to get on the ground so that they could conference with her new backer, Felicity Overton.

2

Kendell did not waste any time pulling up her laptop once they had landed in Australia. She and Pauline were quick to find a place to sit at one of the airport’s cafes, and in a matter of minutes, they were on a conference call with Felicity. The woman beamed when she spied Kendell and her grandmother. “Well, hello, superstars!” Felicity exclaimed.

From the looks of it, Felicity was at her shop that morning. Kendell could see the uniquely decorated walls of the murder mystery theme in the background. “You going to tell me what that large donation was about?” Kendell asked, cutting straight to the chase.

Felicity laughed. “Well, I sold the car. I put it in an auction, and wow! I’m going to be expanding our shop to a secondary location up in Atlanta. That’s the goal, at least. New employees. I also hired an investment advisor. And I want to purchase part of your blog.”

“Whoa,” Kendell said. “You really want to invest in my blog?”

“That’s right,” Felicity said. “I’m going to set you up with a shopping page. We’ll do merchandise. I got a designer willing to create some adorable animation-style caricatures of you guys to put on stuff like t-shirts and hats. I mean, this is just an idea. But from when we last talked, it sounded like this is really something you want to do, and my grandmama obviously loves traveling with you.”

“Felicity, you can’t honestly want to pay for us to travel?” Pauline asked hesitantly.

“Yeah, I do, Grandmama,” Felicity said. “But not for free. I want a percentage of your funds. I want to own part of your company.”

“Company…” Kendell said under her breath. “I never really thought of this as a company.”

“That’s what I’m here for,” Felicity said. “I’ve got a pretty business-savvy mindset. If you are willing to let me help you out, I’m willing to front you the money you’ll need to get this thing off the ground.”

“That’s incredible,” Kendell said, hardly able to believe it. “I mean… I really don’t know what to say. I would feel guilty taking advantage.”

“You’re not taking advantage,” Felicity argued. “I told you, I want in. It’s an investment.”

“Well, when you put it that way…” Kendell muttered.

“You’re in?” Felicity asked.

Kendell looked at Pauline. “I’m in if your grandmother is in.”

Pauline grinned, and Felicity took this as confirmation. “Excellent!” Felicity said. “I’m going to have a contract drawn up. We’ll work out details on a business plan. This is going to be great! You two, and Dot, are going to be the faces of this thing. I plan on making your blog the most popular traveling blog on the market. Internet stars. Merchandise—I’ve got a lot of stuff in mind. First things first, your interview.”

“Interview?” Kendell asked.

“Have you been reading all the comments on your blog?” Felicity asked.

“Well, a few. There’s a lot of them, and you know how Wifi can be on planes. Never know if you’re going to have it or not,” Kendell said.

“Well, a local reporter in Australia wants to interview you,” Felicity said. “I hope you don’t mind, but I reached out to the news station and gave them your flight information because the reporter is wanting to jump on the story before anyone else has a chance. I kind of started negotiating with them about what they’re going to do.”

“Whoa,” Kendell said. “So, are you my PR department now?”

“If you’ll let me be,” Felicity said, laughing. “It just sort of happened. I saw the comment the reporter put on the blog, and I looked up her credentials. She’s a pretty big name in Australia. You get an interview with her, and it’s going to skyrocket.”

“Okay, so…is she here at the airport? You said you gave them our flight information?” Kendell asked.

“I’m not sure,” Felicity said. “They never told me if they were going to meet you there or not. We have only exchanged a few emails, but they definitely want to meet you.”

“This is so exciting!” Pauline said. “But we better get going. We need to get checked into our hotel before they give away our room. The flight left a bit later than expected.”

“Okay,” Felicity said, smiling ear to ear. “Keep an eye out for emails from me. I’ll be sending contracts, funds, and business plans your way.”

“Perfect,” Kendell said, and they bid Pauline’s granddaughter farewell before scurrying off. They needed to get a rental car, and it looked like the lines in that area of the airport were already forming.

They turned a corner, and Kendell was instantly thankful that Felicity had given them a warning about potentially meeting a reporter because Kendell was suddenly face to face with a woman holding up a sign with her name on it. “Whoa,” Kendell said.

The woman was tall and well-built, her hair pulled up in a tight bun. She wore khaki pants and a button-up pink blouse that hung loosely on her shoulders. She smiled. “I recognize that bright red hair! You’re Kendell McDonald!” the woman said, putting the sign with Kendell’s name under her arm and putting her hand out to shake. “Abby Toya,” she said, shaking Kendell’s hand first and then Pauline’s. “Oh, and this little pooch must be Dot! I’m a local reporter here in Alice Springs, and I was hoping you ladies would take up my offer for a ride to your hotel to give us a chance to chat?”

“Well, I don’t know…” Kendell started to say, but Pauline butted in.

“Absolutely!” Pauline said. “I don’t feel like standing in that line for a rental anyhow. I was starting to think about getting a cab, but I’ll take a free ride anytime.”

Kendell decided not to argue, and the next thing she knew, they were getting in a car with this complete stranger and giving her the address to the hotel that Pauline had booked. “Crowne Plaza, huh?” Abby said perkily when Pauline took the passenger’s seat and gave her the address. “Nice place! I see we’re a group of classy ladies.”

“But of course,” Pauline said, laughing.

“That’s so nice of you to offer us a ride,” Kendell said, sitting in the back seat with Dot.

“Any chance the little ankle biter back there needs to use the loo before hopping in my car?” Abby asked, her accent seeming to become a bit thicker now that she was relaxed knowing she would likely get an interview with Kendell.

“Good idea,” Kendell said and took Dot out for a moment. Once Dot had relieved herself, they headed off.

“Hope you ladies don’t mind me popping in on you at the airport,” Abby said. “But when I see an opportunity, I’ve got to chase it down. The attitude comes with the territory as a journo.”

“Journo?” Kendell asked.

“Journalist,” Abby explained.

“Well, regardless of your motives, we appreciate the ride,” Pauline said. “Now, as a local, I must ask you about the best attractions. I want to see the down under, if you will.”

Abby laughed. “I hear you! Betcha want to see a kangaroo or a koala up close, am I right? In the wild, that is.”

“Definitely!” Pauline said.

“Well, since you’re staying so close to Alice Springs, I say you’ve got to check out Uluru,” she said. “It’s just gorgeous. Sandstone rock formation. Sunrise and sunset there is incredible. Just make sure you bring you some fly wire. Maybe do a tour. Lots of incredible tour guides in Alice Springs.”

“Perfect,” Pauline said.

“So, if you don’t mind, I want to talk business for a sec. I want to do an interview about your blog that seems to have blown up overnight. I’m sure you’re going to get plenty of offers, but Abby Toya wants to get you first! My station is one of the most popular ones in Australia, especially here in Alice Springs. It’ll get you a lot of coverage.”

“I don’t see why not,” Kendell said.

“Ace!” Abby exclaimed.

“Say, why don’t you go with us on a tour?” Pauline suggested. “You could get shots of us doing our…our thing, I suppose.”

“Blimey! Excellent idea, madam!” Abby said excitedly, honking her horn at a car that zipped by them rather quickly. “I’ll get my cameraman ready, if you ladies would just give me your information on when you’re leaving for your tour. That’ll make for a real beautiful interview.”

“Agreed,” Pauline said, and they exchanged information as they arrived at the hotel.

“Make sure you ladies bring you a mosquito net. Those buggers are terrible in the outback,” she suggested as they were unloading. “Hooroo, ladies!” Abby told them, making sure they had her business card. “And just give me a ring if you need a ride anywhere. I’d be happy to oblige.”

“Well, she was just lovely,” Pauline said as they dragged their bags toward the hotel.

They entered a large lobby in which Kendell was instantly attracted to the lounge area. The lights glistened, and the large white couch seemed to be calling her to rest her feet, but she resisted since she needed to get them checked in and she was certain that Pauline needed to sit down after the long haul from the car to the lobby.

It only took them a few minutes to get checked in, but by the end of it, Pauline had learned that the hotel had a casino, which excited her greatly. “Oh, I haven’t played slots in the longest time!” she said, jumping up and down a bit. “Can’t play slots in Georgia. I would always go all the way out to Mississippi if I had an urge to play.”

Kendell laughed. “Well, maybe we’ll try our luck while we’re in Australia. Between your granddaughter making bank on a car and meeting a reporter, I’d say we’re on a lucky sprint. What do you think?”

“I would say so!” Pauline said. “I cannot believe how popular your blog got so quickly. I mean, you just started the thing in Paris, and it really blew up overnight, didn’t it?”

“It really did,” Kendell said, dragging their bags behind her.

When they entered their hotel room, Kendell’s eyes glistened. “Beautiful,” she said, quickly throwing her stuff on the bed and plopping down herself. “So, we’re going to do a tour of the outback, is that the plan?”

“Yes,” Pauline said. “I want to see a kangaroo in the wild. I really do! Oh, I cannot wait to see the Uluru. Do you really think it is as beautiful as Abby was saying?”

“I’m sure,” Kendell said, her eyes starting to feel heavy. “I think I need a nap. Those long flights are really starting to get to me.” Kendell could hear the clitter-clatter of someone typing, and she opened her eyes up to see that Pauline had gotten a hold of Kendell’s laptop and was typing away. “What are you doing?”

“I’m trying to find us a tour guide,” Pauline said, turning the laptop around to show a picture of a very Steve Irwin-looking fellow. “He looks like he knows what he’s doing. I’m going to book us a tour for tomorrow.”

“Are you sure? You picked that guy out pretty quickly,” Kendell said. “Don’t you want to look at some reviews or—”

“Booked!” Pauline said excitedly. “I’m so glad I’ve got you as a friend. I’m really learning how to work computers. I don’t think I would have been able to do that four months ago. Not without calling Felicity to walk me through it. And don’t worry about credentials. I just saw online that he has his own television show! He must be very good.”

Kendell shook her head. Pauline had a tendency to jump into things without thinking them through.

3

Kendell was thankful that the tour Pauline had booked was not until later the following day, because it gave her the opportunity to sleep in and try to recover from the bit of jetlag she was experiencing. It was a bit unusual that she’d had so little problem so far with her sleep pattern throughout their other trips, but she supposed it was going to have to catch up to her eventually. Better now, she figured, then later once Felicity launched her business plan for Kendell’s blog.

She rolled out of bed near noon before pulling up her laptop and deciding to video call her boyfriend, who, she was fairly certain, was not at work. When his face popped up on the screen, she smiled sleepily at him. “Morning,” she said.

“How is my beautiful fiancée doing?” he asked. “Is it morning in Australia?”

“Two minutes before noon is still technically morning, right?” she asked with a yawn.

He laughed. “You got jetlag, don’t you?” he asked.

“So bad,” she said. “As a five-year flight attendant veteran, I thought I had become immune to jetlag. Apparently not.” She yawned yet again. Then, she smiled, realizing that Jack had called her his fiancée. “And how is my fiancé doing?” she asked.

He grinned. “Not bad. I have been working hard since we last saw each other. About got all my enrollment paperwork straightened out for flight school. Met my instructor this morning.”

“Have you not slept since I last saw you?” Kendell asked.

“No, I haven’t,” he admitted. “But I’m kind of wired. I think the time in Paris messed up my sleep pattern as well, but I’m on the high end of jetlag at the moment. I’ll crash really hard in a few hours, I’m sure.”

“I’m glad to hear the schooling stuff is starting to come together,” Kendell said. “I got some pretty big news on my front.”

“Oh, yeah?” he asked.

“I got an investor,” Kendell said. “Felicity Overton, Pauline’s granddaughter, wants to invest in my blog. She’s developing a business platform for me to follow, and I’ve got an interview with a reporter here in Australia.”

“Seriously!” Jack exclaimed, clearly very excited for her. “Babe! I’m so proud of you!”

Kendell beamed. This was the Jack she knew and loved. “Yeah, I’m pretty excited about it. Ugh… I think I need to start getting ready. Pauline has booked us an Australian Outback adventure.”

“I look forward to reading your next blog post on your time in the Australian Outback, then,” Jack said. “Have fun, babe.”

“Thanks. Love you,” she said.

“I love you too.”

She ended the call and headed into the hotel’s kitchen area, where she could see Pauline was already packing a small bag for their adventure that day. “Okay, so…” Pauline said as soon as Kendell exited her bedroom. “I didn’t realize, but the adventure package I booked will be an overnight stay in the Outback.”

Kendell’s eyes widened. “Overnight? In the outback? Pauline, I don’t know about that. I’ve heard some horror stories about some of the wild animals that live in Australia. Like, spiders the size of footballs kind of horror stories.”

Pauline waved her off. “I’m sure it’s not that bad. This will be an adventure, my dear! And we’ll get to see Uluru like what Miss Abby was telling us. I think it will be wonderful, but be sure to pack enough for two days. They will provide meals and plenty of water for the journey.”

Kendell wasn’t so sure about this, but she could tell Pauline was very excited about it. And if a woman in her seventies—possibly eighties, Kendell wasn’t entirely sure—could handle a night in the outback, she figured she could as well. Soon, they were standing outside the hotel, Dot on a leash at Pauline’s side, when a familiar car pulled up. “What’s this?” Kendell asked when she spied Abby in the passenger’s seat.

“I called her. She has offered to be our official escort during our stay in Australia in exchange for interviews,” Pauline said.

Abby jumped out of the car, and so did a young man wielding a camera. “Get a few shots of them leaving the hotel, Joe!”

Joe, the cameraman, immediately started filming them. I’m not sure if I can get used to this sort of attention, Kendell thought.

“I appreciate you offering to drive us,” Pauline said to Abby.

“But of course,” Abby said. “I’m just glad that I’m going to be the one to get the first official interview with you two. Do you realize how much of an internet sensation you’ve become overnight? It’s incredible.”

Abby helped them throw their bags into the car, and soon Kendell was sitting in the back with Dot jumping back and forth between her lap and Pauline’s. “And we spoke with Riley Jones, the gentleman who will be doing your tour, and he is going to be sure to make this an extra special tour for you. Joe here has known Jones’s assistant for a couple of years, so he made the call for me.”

“That’s awesome,” Kendell said. “What are they doing for us?”

“Betsy said they’ll make sure to bring you to some places where you’re guaranteed to see some Aussie-unique wildlife,” Joe said as he pulled the car away from the hotel. “Betsy is a zoologist who specializes in Australian wildlife. She and Riley Jones run his show together. She’s mostly behind the scenes, but they do these tours together a couple of times a month. Helps fund the show.”

“Well, I’m looking forward to it,” Pauline said, clasping her hands together excitedly.

Soon they were pulling up outside a small television studio where a large jeep-like vehicle with multiple rows of seating was waiting for them. They checked in with a secretarial woman who told them all to wait by the car for the rest of the group to arrive. They were each given a bottle of water and advised to drink it because there was a bit of a heatwave coming in that day. Kendell kept an eye on the secretarial woman to see who else checked in with her. A tiny toothpick woman with jet black hair came bouncing up, pink backpack in tow. The secretary frowned a bit when they spoke, but eventually, she sent the woman toward them.

“Hi!” she said perkily, putting her hand out to shake. She spoke with an Australian accent that was even thicker than Abby’s when she had let her guard down. “Name’s Mika.”

Kendell shook. “Kendell,” she said.

“Oy! I’m such a galah, are you Kendell McDonald?” she asked.

“That’s me,” Kendell said, her cheeks flushing.

“And that must be Pauline and her companion, Dot!” Mika exclaimed. “I’ve read your blog. I saw that you were going to be here in Australia, didn’t expect to actually bump into ya. This is just exciting.”

“You look familiar to me,” Abby said. “Have we met?”

Mika eyed her for a moment. “You that reporter?” she asked, nodding toward Joe, who was holding his camera bag at his side. “That’s right, you’ve interviewed me just last year after me boy got himself locked up for poaching.”

Kendell frowned. “Poaching?” she asked.

“Yeah, he’s still doing time for that one,” Mika said, shrugging as though she found the arrest to be unjust. “Shot himself a kangaroo to try to sell. Got caught day one in the illegal bizz. Bigger galah than I am.”

“That’s right,” Abby said. “I’m sorry about…well…” Abby’s face scrunched up. “Sorry, but don’t take this the wrong way. I just didn’t expect to see the girlfriend of an illegal poacher going on an outback tour.”

She laughed. “I love the wildlife. So did my boo. He just loved them stuffed.”

“And you?” Pauline asked hesitantly.

Mika shrugged and reached into her purse, pulling out a camera. “I’ll just be shootin’ them with this,” she assured them. “No worries there.”

A second woman came trotting up wearing a dark pair of sunglasses. She looked dressed and ready to go for such an expedition. Pauline started the introductions again, and the woman smiled at Pauline for her friendliness. “Tonya,” she said her name, removing her glasses to reveal a nasty scar just above her right eye.

“Blimey!” Mika said, then covered her mouth, embarrassed to have brought attention to it.

Tonya smirked. “It’s all right. Surprises most people. Don’t plan on wearing my sunglasses the whole trip, so I figured I’d get the questions over with now. Bird talon.” She touched her forehead where the cut began up until the top of her eyelid.

“A bird talon?” Kendell asked.

“I’m a wildlife expert,” she said. “Got this in my early years on the job bathing an eagle who had gotten himself trapped in some freshly-laid pavement.”

“Geez,” Kendell grumbled. “So, wildlife expert? What are you doing taking a tour of the Australian Outback? Sounds like you could probably give the tour yourself.”

Tonya laughed. “Undoubtedly. I was invited by Riley Jones personally. I wrote a blog about him that was less than enthusiastic, calling him out for being an uneducated nut. I think this is him trying to get me to revoke my statements because he’s worried about it affecting his ratings.”

“You think he doesn’t know what he’s talking about?” Kendell asked.

“He knows enough to get by,” Tonya explained. “But he’s fed information and facts by his team. He’s not a real scientist or wildlife expert to say the least. Don’t get me wrong, I’m sure this tour will be very interesting and educational, but only because he’s got a script memorized for every occasion.”

Kendell was starting to think they picked the wrong timeslot for a tour, between the convict’s girlfriend and the wildlife expert whose goal seemed to be to badger their tour guide, but it was a little late to turn back now. Riley Jones exited the studio alongside a robust woman with her brunette hair pulled up in a long ponytail and thick glasses lying at the tip of her nose. Riley took each step in a grand manner, and when he spoke, Kendell could instantly tell he was forcing his accent to be thicker than it actually was. “G’day ladies…and gentleman…” He winked in Joe’s direction, calling attention to the fact that he was the only fellow taking the tour. “I’m Riley Jones, and I’m pleased to be yer guide. This here is me best mate, Betsy, who is going to be helping me out on this tour. Let’s load up, folks. Just got word that a mob of roos have been hanging around Uluru. We’ll be hitting Uluru early in the morning, but doesn’t hurt to get to our campsite early!”

They all loaded into the oversized jeep, and Riley started up the vehicle as Betsy went over rules for the trip and what to expect. Betsy spoke with a lot of confidence, though Kendell picked up quickly that her nervous habit was to constantly adjust her thick glasses on her nose. They seemed to be a bit crooked, like someone had sat on them by mistake and now they didn’t quite sit right on her face. But Kendell was very interested in what Betsy had to say. She sat on her knees facing backward toward them all from the passenger’s seat of the caravan, and she sounded well-informed on every Australian-related matter under the sun.

Kendell glanced behind them as the city disappeared in the distance and they made their way off road toward where they would be camping for the evening. She smiled as the wind whipped through her hair. She felt confident that this was going to be an adventure worth remembering.

4

Kendell laughed as she and Pauline took yet another photograph together as they rode in the back row of the oversized, extended jeep. The two of them were having a real giggle over Tonya’s mutterings. The woman was scribbling notes down in her notebook regarding every other word that came out of Riley’s mouth. “That’s not entirely accurate,” she would say just about each time he presented them with some fact about the Outback and its wildlife. “Yeah, that’s going in the blog for sure,” she grumbled when Betsy had to correct him on how to pronounce marsupial for the second time.

“I don’t know,” Kendell whispered over Pauline’s lap to the wildlife expert. “I mean, he’s certainly not a zoologist or anything of that nature, but he seems to be informed enough.”

“He’s just a pretty face,” Tonya grumbled. “I don’t care for it. He lacks all professionalism. And the fake Australian accent is very insulting. He’s trying to make himself out to be the next Steve Irwin, but he’s a complete phony.”

Tonya’s constant eye-rolling was becoming quite a downer. While it had been mildly entertaining at first, Kendell was now wishing that she and Pauline had booked a tour with another company. The thought of listening to Tonya’s repetitive complaining during their overnight tour was dampening Kendell’s mood. Abby and her cameraman were seated right in front of Kendell and Pauline, and Kendell could tell that Tonya’s regular scribbling in her notebook was ruining their spirits as well. Mika, who was seated directly in front of Tonya, seemed to have been blocking out much of Tonya’s mumblings, but it had evidently been getting on her nerves because she finally spun around in her seat.

“Okay, I know you’re here to pick apart the tour, but can you maybe do it silently?” Mika snapped. “Some of us are actually here to enjoy ourselves.”

Glancing toward the front of the jeep, Kendell caught Riley’s eyes from the rearview mirror. He was smirking, and she guessed that he had, in fact, heard Tonya’s comments and he seemed appreciative of Mika’s outburst. “All righty, Betsy, looks like we’re coming up on the rehabilitation center—the first stop on our tour.”

“I thought we were going to see animals in the wild?” Mika asked.

“We will be,” Riley assured her, “but I always like to start our tour here. You never know what the animals in the wild are going to do, so I like to make sure my tours include a stop here in the event we aren’t able to get a good view of any of the animals in the wild.”

“That, or by letting the tour guides here tell you about their animals, it takes the stress off him,” Tonya whispered to Pauline, who simply rolled her eyes.

They exited the vehicle, and Riley led them toward the sanctuary’s main entrance. There they met with one of the local veterinarians on staff who shook hands with Riley and thanked him for his participation in their wildlife research. It was around this time that Kendell started to see what Tonya was getting at. He kept trying to interject whenever the clearly more knowledgeable veterinarian was talking; he would try to throw in facts, but half the time, he was corrected by Betsy or the veterinarian. While Kendell agreed that Tonya’s badgering was unnecessary, she was starting to see where the woman was coming from.

Much to their pleasure, Riley was permitted to take them to a koala habitat, where they got to see Bon-Bon, a koala, up close. “Crikey!” Riley exclaimed. “This here is a real treat—”

Tonya’s bitterness toward Riley seemed to have spread upon Riley’s “crikey” exclamation. The Australians in the group, everyone but Kendell and Pauline, all scrunched up their noses. “Told you he was trying to mimic Steve Irwin,” Tonya huffed. “It’s insulting, really.”

“Usually we don’t get to see koalas on my tour,” he said. “They’re mostly located in coastal regions, so you can think of this as a nice little bonus.” Bon-Bon seemed to like Riley, and the little fellow crawled right into his arms as Riley was offered a bottle by the veterinarian to feed him. Riley continued to speak while he held the young koala. “Bon-Bon here was found lying at the base of a tree in Queensland after its mother suffered at the hands of some teenagers.”

“Oh, wow, what happened?” Pauline asked.

“Some stupid kids thought they’d try to throw rocks up in the tree at the mother,” the veterinarian said. “The kids were actually the ones who wound up calling us to come get the baby. They were goofing around. It seemed like none of them actually expected to hit the koala but were trying to scare it. Wound up hitting the koala right between the eyes. She fell from the tree, and Bon-Bon was still in her pouch.”

“Well, I hope those kids got into some serious trouble!” Tonya exclaimed.

“You can ask them yourself,” Riley said, nodding toward a window. Glancing out the window, Kendell could see a group of teenage boys unloading a truck that had just pulled up to the building. Each of them wore t-shirts that read volunteer on the back.

“They got stuck doing community service, huh?” Mika asked.

“That they did,” Riley said, but he beamed. “Except they finished their service hours about three weeks ago. Still come twice a week and every other weekend to help out.”

“That’s wonderful,” Pauline said. “Well, I’m glad they learned their lesson.”

“The change in attitude is very much thanks to Riley Jones here,” the veterinarian said, clasping Riley’s shoulder. “He does a mentoring program here at the shelter.”

Kendell smiled. She was having a hard time making up her mind about Riley. It was pretty clear that he was uneducated on pretty much everything and that he relied heavily on Betsy to keep him straight, but the man clearly had a heart for wildlife regardless of his expertise. Much to Pauline’s excitement, she was allowed to hold Bon-Bon. Dot didn’t seem too thrilled when Pauline practically shoved her into Kendell’s arms to make room for Bon-Bon, but she lightened up when she was permitted with Kendell to stand by Pauline and Bon-Bon for a group photograph. Mika kindly snapped a picture of Kendell and Pauline with their two animal companions with her nice camera, promising to send them a copy.

Soon they were on their way out after being told that the kangaroo exhibit was off-limits due to a bacteria outbreak that had several of their joeys sick. This was a grave disappointment to Pauline and the rest of the group alike, but Riley and Betsy both assured them that they would most likely get to see some kangaroos near their campsite in the outback.

Their plan was to camp out a few miles from Uluru, where they would travel to first thing in the morning. They arrived at the base of a small sandstone monolith, basically a miniature version of Uluru, where Riley declared they would be camping for the night. They all helped with unloading the jeep, and Riley got right to work on pitching tents. This seemed to be where his expertise triumphed over Betsy’s, who needed a lot of assistance from Riley on setting up the tents.

Joe, the cameraman, eventually stepped in to help Betsy finish with setup while Riley unveiled a small grill that had been hidden in the jeep’s trunk. “That’s right, everyone! We’re going to be having a traditional Australian barbie for supper tonight!”

Most everyone seemed thrilled with this discovery as Riley got the grill up and running and then proceeded to start a fire with ease. Tonya nodded approvingly and muttered to Kendell, “Perhaps he should have done a survival show instead of a wildlife one. He seems to know what he’s doing.”

Betsy, who had kept her mouth shut all day regarding Tonya’s comments, interjected at last. “Riley, I’ll admit, has a bit of space between his ears,” Betsy said. “But he has his strengths. He’s a great cartographer. I wouldn’t be able to find my way around the way he does with a map.”

“A cartographer?” Mika, who was standing nearby, asked.

“A map reader,” Tonya said, huffing slightly. “That’s great and all, but that doesn’t change the fact that he is clearly a big phony. If he presented himself as a survivalist or cartographer, then that would be fine, but that’s not what he does at all.”

Betsy rolled her eyes at Tonya, as did just about everyone else. They sat around the campfire while Riley and Betsy handed out some classical Australian barbecue dishes, and as the sun started to set over the outback’s horizon, Mika shared some photographs she had uploaded to her laptop. Kendell was especially thrilled about the picture of herself with Pauline, Dot, and koala bear. “Wasn’t that koala just the sweetest thing?” Mika exclaimed. “I wonder how much you’d have to pay to get one of those as a pet?”

Everyone frowned, especially Riley. “Mika, you can’t have koala bears as pets. It’s illegal.”

“I know it’s illegal,” Mika said, waving her hand as though this was merely a minor detail. “But there are certain stipulations, right? I mean, the rehabilitation center keeps them. Zoos keep them. And I’m sure there are certain groups of researchers who are allowed to hold onto them, right? And, besides, money talks. I’m sure if you had the right connections, you could get one…”

Riley looked red in the face. “No, Mika, that’s not how it works.”

Mika shrugged. “Oh, well,” she said and continued sifting through pictures.

Mika was becoming a bit of a red flag for everyone. Kendell wasn’t so sure how she felt about the woman. The way Mika had casually flaunted that her boyfriend was in jail for shooting a kangaroo had been alarming enough, and now she was asking questions about how to obtain a koala bear.

They all enjoyed a beautiful sunset over the horizon before at last turning in. Kendell’s legs were covered in bug bites, and she was wishing she had taken Abby’s advice about obtaining a net. Kendell and Pauline shared a tent along with Dot, and soon the three of them were fast asleep. Thankfully the tent itself was fairly creature-proof once it was zipped up and closed. Pauline chattered for a while excitedly about the interview Abby and Joe were wanting to conduct with them once they reached Uluru. They had already gotten a lot of shots of their adventure through the outback, including some filming done at the rehabilitation center of them with the koala bear.

“It really is crazy to think about what all we’ve done in the past few months,” Kendell said. “It’s going to be fun to get a chance to talk about it during the interview.”

Pauline clapped her hands together. “You’re going to have so much to talk about in your next blog already! Australia has proven to be quite an adventurous location! I just loved the koala bear. Bon-Bon was precious.”

Kendell nodded in agreement, but she was no longer able to hold much of a conversation. Soon, she was fast asleep. She dreamed about seeing kangaroos in the Australian Outback, making her excited about the chances of seeing some the following day. Just as the sun was creeping through the netting on the side of hers and Pauline’s tent, Kendell was jerked awake by the sounds of screams. “Snakes! Snakes!” shrieked Tonya.

“Oh, my gosh, they’ve bit him!” called Mika.

“He’s dead! He’s dead!” screamed Joe.

Pauline and Kendell scurried out of their tent in time to see everyone gathered around Riley’s tent. Betsy was seated outside of it, her face incredibly pale as though she had come close to fainting, Joe at her side attempting to get her to drink some water.

“What happened?” Kendell asked, and Abby pointed a shaky hand toward Riley’s tent that was zipped closed.

There was a netting window on the side of the tent much like the one Kendell and Pauline had slept in the night before. She peered inside to see a stunned, dead Riley staring back up at her, surrounded by nearly a dozen hissing snakes.

5

Betsy had taken charge rather quickly, ushering everyone away from Riley’s tent and telling them to keep their distance. She opened the tent, and most of the snakes seemed to make their way out on their own. “Tonya,” she called as some of the snakes started to make their way out. “I’m not much of an expert on snakes. Can you identify any of these?” she asked.

Tonya hesitantly made her way over to Betsy, and Kendell could see the two women trying to identify the snakes. Joe was filming the whole thing while Abby talked on camera with the two women in the background. “Behind me is wildlife expert Tonya Green conversing with Betsy Nots, assistant to the late Riley Jones—”

“Could you two stop, please?” Mika snapped. “We don’t even know for sure if he’s dead yet!”

Abby gave Joe a sign to cut the filming, then put her hands on her hips. “This is my job, you know? I report the news, and the death of a reality television star is news. I’m getting this recorded now so I can report on it later when we’re able to air it. I’m first on the scene.”

Mika rolled her eyes. “It’s distasteful, really.”

Abby looked rather offended, but Kendell had to agree. They were not even sure if the man was dead just yet, though she suspected they would find out soon, and yet the woman was already acting like this was going to be a big career break for her. After a few moments of standing uncomfortably off to the side, Tonya and Betsy finally came over. “Well?” Kendell asked.

“There’s, like, four different species of snakes in there,” Tonya said. “All incredibly poisonous. He’s got multiple bites on him. He’s gone.”

There was a group murmur. “So, how did the snakes get into his tent?” Joe asked.

“Must have left the flap open during the night,” Mika said. “I mean, I’m not wildlife expert, but they probably would have liked the warmth, right?”

“It’s possible,” Tonya said. “But that’s a lot of snakes. We counted eight. We’re pretty sure they’re all out of the tent now, but you guys stay away from over there. Betsy and I chased them off out of camp.”

“Did you say four different species?” Kendell asked. “Is that normal? For different species of snakes to hang out like that?”

“Not really,” Betsy said. “But if there is something in his tent that they wanted…maybe. I’m not too keen to go poking around in there too much, though. Might be more snakes, and the ones we’ve seen are very deadly.”

“Okay, so I guess we need to call a coroner or something? You’re sure he’s dead? There’s nothing we can do?” Joe asked anxiously. “I mean, you don’t have any anti-venom or anything?”

Betsy sighed heavily. “We keep some anti-venom vaccines in the jeep, but it’s not going to do him any good now. He’s gone, and from the looks of him, he was bitten hours ago. Probably early on in the night.” Betsy’s shoulders slumped. She looked sick at the thought. “Riley and I have been working together for years now…”

“Are you okay?” Pauline asked.

“I think I’m just trying to wrap my head around it,” Betsy said, shaking her arms out. “Hold on. There’s a walkie in the jeep. Let me radio into the nearest town.” She headed toward the jeep, disappearing from the rest of the group for a few minutes.

Tonya looked the most jittery out of all of them. “I know I was bad-mouthing him a lot yesterday,” she said at last. “But… I mean… I wasn’t expecting anything like this… Let’s just leave it at I don’t plan on writing up anything about this tour.”

“So, you’re done talking smack about him, then?” Mika asked with a huff.

Tonya nodded, and she avoided eye contact with everyone. A few more uncomfortable minutes of silence went by before they could hear Betsy shouting angrily from the jeep, causing them all to gather in her general vicinity. “What’s going on?” Joe asked.

“The radio is busted,” Betsy snarled, jumping down from the jeep. “Anyone’s phone working? Can’t get signal.”

Everyone immediately rushed to pull out their phones, and much to everyone’s disappointment, they were far from any cell towers and were unable to get even a sliver of signal. “So, what do we do now? Our guide is dead!” Joe yelped.

“Calm down, Joseph,” Betsy said quickly, seeming worried about starting a panic.

“You know the way back, right? I’m sure if we leave a note in case anyone comes across the campsite, we should be able to find out way back,” Kendell said confidently.

Betsy looked a bit sick. “Um… This is only my second time on this particular tour with Riley,” she said. “Honestly… I’m not sure how confident I am about leading you all on an excursion through the Outback without Riley.”

“You’ve got to be kidding me,” Mika exclaimed, looking like she was near ready to faint. “You’re telling me that we are lost, we have no cellphone reception, our guide is dead…and we basically have no way of knowing how to get back to civilization?”

“That was good. Did you get that?” Abby’s voice squeaked, and everyone turned to see that she and Joe had set up their camera again.

“Seriously!” Mika snapped, flashing them a rather obscene gesture before turning her attention back to Betsy. “Please tell me you know what to do.”

“Don’t panic,” Betsy assured them. “There’s another guided tour going out today. We send out three around the same time with different guides. Riley is only one of them. When we don’t show up at Uluru in a few hours, they’re bound to send out a search team.”

“So, your advice is to just wait here?” Pauline asked nervously, gripping Dot tightly against her chest.

“We have plenty of supplies,” Betsy said. “There is nothing wrong with waiting around until this evening. We have water and a bit of food.”

“How much food? Enough to last all day for all of us?” Joe asked.

“The tour was scheduled to last until this evening,” Betsy said. “For the sunset at Uluru. The tour included three meals a day, so there is nothing to worry about. Riley and I packed the jeep before we left with supplies. We have water and food. I’m not quite the cook Riley was, but I am confident that we can manage for a day.”

They all seemed a bit anxious about this plan, but Tonya spoke up on Betsy’s behalf. “I say we listen to Betsy for now. If no one comes by this evening, then we might have to set out. But if we set out now with no idea of where to go, we’re going to wind up getting lost in the outback and no one will be able to find us. At least if we stay here, we’ll be on the tour path.”

“Exactly,” Betsy said. “I know this is a bit overwhelming, but we will manage.”

“What about Riley?” Mika squealed. “Are we supposed to just ignore the fact that there is a dead body covered in snake bites sitting right over there in a tent?”

Pauline cleared her throat. “I know this may sound a bit crude, but I agree with Mika. Perhaps we should move our tents away a bit? Relocate camp…just close enough to where we can keep an eye on Riley until help arrives?”

Betsy frowned, but she consented. “We’ll spread out a bit,” she said. “Away from the tent. But we’re not going to go too far. We need to keep an eye on Riley.”

They all agreed, and Betsy got to work on rationing out food for the worst-case scenario, being that they would eventually have to set out on their own in the event help did not arrive. And it was a good thing she did, because by the time the sun had set, no one had come and they had already gone through half of their food and water supply.

As they sat around the fire, a fire that had taken them a considerable amount of time to get going without Riley, they discussed what their course of action needed to be. Of course, to make things incredibly uncomfortable for everyone, Abby and Joe kept recording everyone—calling this “the top story this month.” The fact that the two seemed excited by the fact that someone had died so they could cover the story made everyone incredibly uncomfortable, and having a camera shoved in their faces every few minutes merely added to everyone’s nerves.

Kendell was especially starting to feel some resentment toward Abby. She had been the one responsible for Abby being there, after all, and now they were all being subjected to what had to be Australia’s most insensitive journalist. “We’ll head out first thing in the morning,” Betsy said. “Unfortunately, I don’t see much of a choice. We’ll have to do our best to try to make it back to town using Riley’s maps.”

“Can you read a map?” Kendell asked hopefully.

“Somewhat,” Betsy said.

“I can read a map fairly well,” Pauline said.

“One without roads?” Betsy asked, and Pauline frowned.

“Not particularly,” Pauline admitted.

Betsy sighed. “It’s all right, Pauline. I think we can figure this out.”

“What about Riley?” Tonya asked. “What are we supposed to do with him? We surely can’t take him with us. What if it takes us a day or two to get back? He’ll start to…you know…smell…”

They all shuttered. “Unfortunately, Tonya is right,” Mika said. “And the last thing we want to do is find ourselves lost and have to ditch his body somewhere where we won’t be able to find it again.”

Betsy sighed heavily. “I’m afraid I’m going to have to agree with you both on that front. We’ll leave him in his tent, but we’ll make sure no animals are going to be able to mess with the tent. If he stays here, he will at least be on the path to Uluru and one of the other tour guides should be able to lead us back here.”

“I think that’s the best we can do for now,” Pauline said. “So, first thing tomorrow, Betsy, you’re going to try to lead us back to Alice Springs?”

“That’s the plan,” she said somewhat anxiously. “I’ll do my best, I hope you all know that, but I’m not super familiar with this area. I worked in southern Australia before I came to work with Riley. I’ve only been in Alice Springs for two years, and this is only my second tour to Uluru with Riley.”

“We know you’re going to do your best, Betsy,” Joe assured her.

It was late, and since everyone now had a heightened fear of snakes, they all headed back to their freshly pitched tents—each of them being extra cautious to check the interior and make sure they were zipped up tight that night. The last thing any of them wanted was to wind up like Riley. Kendell laid her head down and curled up in the sleeping bag that the tour company had provided, hoping she wouldn’t wind up having nightmares over what they had in store for themselves the following morning.

6

In the morning, Tonya took her time writing a note for them to leave behind. The last thing they wanted anyone to think was that they had panicked and fled the scene, leaving behind a dead body. No, this was about survival, but in the event a rescue team did come by, they didn’t want it to look bad. They placed the note in the tent with Riley; Betsy had the unfortunate duty of placing the written note in the dead man’s hands to be certain it was found. When the woman emerged from the tent, Kendell noticed that she had tears in her eyes.

“Any more snakes in there?” Joe asked nervously.

Betsy wiped her eyes. “No, I don’t think so.”

“Did you find anything that might have led the snakes in there?” Joe asked, starting to sound rather insensitive with the way he was badgering his friend.

“No, Joe, I didn’t,” she practically snapped at him.

Pauline frowned. “Are you all right, dear?” she asked. “I know this must be hard on you what with you working with Riley and all, but you seem awfully distraught.”

Betsy straightened herself up. “A little, yes, I suppose I am. I would prefer we get back to Alice Springs as quickly as possible. Do we about have all the tents packed up?”

“Just one more,” Mika said. “We’re kind of struggling trying to figure out how to get this one back in its bag.”

Betsy came over, her shoulders slumped. “I’m afraid this sort of thing was more of Riley’s expertise.”

“So, it looks like you were more of the animal expert and Riley was more of the survivalist and camper, am I right?” Tonya asked with a weak smile.

“Why? You want to put that in your blog too?” Betsy snapped at her.

Tonya held up her hands defensively. “I told you, I’m not going to write anything else nasty about him. I’m not one for speaking ill of the dead, and he was actually somewhat informative on this tour.”

“Then you should print a retraction,” Betsy said almost angrily.

Tonya hesitated. “I don’t know about that.”

“You were really cruel in that blog post,” Betsy snarled. “And he invited you here to try to show you what he knew, but all you did yesterday was nit-pick with him. It was really annoying, and you threw him off his game and made the trip miserable for everyone. It was cruel and petty, and I think if you want to show the man at least a hint of respect for what he was trying to do then you will print a retraction and apologize for the way you wrote about him.”

Everyone seemed a bit taken back by Betsy. She had been the shy and timid sidekick to Riley during the first half of their tour, but now that he was gone, a grizzly bear seemed to have taken over. Tonya, much to everyone’s surprise, relented. “You might be right,” she said. “I might have been crueler in my blog than I should have been.”

Betsy nodded, seeming satisfied with this confession, and marched over to where the last tent was stuffed halfway into its carry bag. She used her boot, shoving the thing in completely wrinkled, to get it back into the bag. “That’s just going to have to do,” she said, zipping it up and shoving it into the jeeps behind the back row of seats. “Now, let’s all load up. There’s only so many hours of daylight. We need to try to find civilization quickly.”

“Do you have a game plan?” Abby asked, and it was at this time that they realized she and Joe were filming yet again.

“Are you serious right now?” Betsy asked. “Is the camera really necessary?”

“I would think so,” Abby said. “We might be able to spin this as a triumphant hero story depending on what sort of footage we get. You could come off as our heroine, Betsy.”

A very subtle and slightly unwilling smile crept across Betsy’s face, but she was quick to push it aside. “While that would be…somewhat fun, I’ll admit… I would probably rather you talk about Riley Jones. He was a good man who didn’t deserve this.”

“No one thinks he deserved it,” Abby assured her. “I was having a wonderful time day before yesterday getting to know him. The tour has been such a pleasure up until…well…what happened.”

“Thank you for saying so,” Betsy said, taking a deep breath before speaking again. “I’ve got some bad news… I’ve searched everywhere, and I can’t find Riley’s map.”

“You’ve got to be kidding me!” Joe yelped.

“I don’t know what he did with it. I’ve searched his tent top to bottom, and I’ve looked in the jeep…” Betsy shook her head. “We’re going to have to try to do this without a map.”

This made everyone twice as anxious. Betsy pulled a compass out of her pocket that she held out in front of her, studying it and their surroundings for several minutes. “Okay… I think…. Oh, dear, I’m not sure if we are north or south of Uluru…”

“Surely he didn’t drive us around Uluru, right?” Pauline asked.

“I wouldn’t think so… Truthfully…I know he said otherwise, but he usually doesn’t take the tours to the wildlife center,” Betsy said. “I think he was just doing that to try to impress Tonya, so I’m a little turned around…” She sighed heavily. “Okay, I’m going to make a call that we head south…southwest…” She nodded like she felt confident in her decision, and since it wasn’t as though anyone else had any clue as to where they were at, they followed her lead.

Kendell felt incredibly uncomfortable leaving Riley Jones behind, but it was not as though they had much of a choice. The sun was beating down on them, and the topless jeep offered very little shade. The mosquitos were crazy that day too, and at one point, Betsy pulled over and whipped out a mosquito net for Kendell, who seemed to be the insects’ primary victim. “You’re not wearing perfume, are you?” Betsy asked as Kendell proceeded to drape the net over her, canopying herself.

She was starting to feel rather miserable. “No, I’m not. Abby told me not to and even warned me to bring a net when she dropped us off at the hotel. I should have listened.”

“It’s your red hair,” Abby teased slightly. “The gingers always get the worst of the bugs, I’m telling you. Something in your blood they just love.”

“I would believe it,” Kendell said. “We spent a week in Georgia, and the little devils were killing me!”

They continued driving for several hours. Kendell, and everyone else, was becoming increasingly worried. For all they knew, Betsy was driving around in circles. She stopped regularly to check her compass, and Kendell could tell that she too was starting to get worried. There was an extreme amount of uncertainty in her each time she made a decision about what direction they should be going. She started conferring with them more and more about her decisions.

Because they didn’t seem to be making much progress, they were very picky about how much food and water was handed out. All anyone had for food during the day was half a protein bar. It wasn’t until the sky started to turn a pinkish tint did Betsy make the call that they needed to camp, and only then were they allowed some more rations. They ate leftovers from the barbeque, which were significantly more filling than the half of a protein bar they had all nibbled on earlier that day.

It took them a painfully long time to get a fire going, and that was all the light they had to work with to get their tents pitched. Everyone was quite eager to get the tents up, all of them now with a heightened fear of snakes. Abby and Joe conducted interviews with those who were willing, the camera in their faces as always. It was starting to rattle everyone’s nerves. Only after Tonya threatened to smash the camera did Abby and Joe both decide it was probably time for them to retire to their tents.

Tonya and Mika also headed off to sleep, leaving Pauline, Kendell, and Dot alone by the fire with Betsy. Betsy was twiddling her fingers, fidgeting with her compass. “Are you all right, Betsy?” Kendell asked at last.

She glanced over her shoulder as though to make sure none of the others were listening. “Truthfully, and I’m sure everyone knows this, but we are very lost right now,” she said. “I’m starting to wonder if we should have just stayed at our campsite, but at this point, I’m not even sure if I could find our way back there.”

“We didn’t travel too far on our first day of the tour, did we?” Pauline asked. “Surely we couldn’t have gotten too lost.”

“No, not too far, but I’m worried about how far Riley might have taken us off the usual route thanks to that detour to the wildlife center,” she said, wringing her hands. “I just… I can’t believe he’s gone, you know?”

“Sounds like you two were very close,” Pauline said.

“Yeah, well…” Betsy turned a bit red in the face. “It’s fairly new, but he and I…well, he was my boyfriend.”

“Oh!” Pauline exclaimed. “You poor dear. I had no idea.”

“Yes, well, we were working. We try to keep things very professional, you know? Especially on this trip, between the reporter and two bloggers tagging along. Tonya was going to be picking everything we did apart, and Riley didn’t need any more negative reviews from her. And we know about your blog too. Riley was pretty excited when he saw you. Thought maybe you’d be a little more flattering if you wrote about your adventure with us.”

Kendell smiled. “Believe me, I intend to. So, let me ask you something, are you saying there really wasn’t anything in the tent that would have drawn the snakes in?”

“Well, there were some mosquitos that had found their way into his tent. Maybe they went after the bugs? Snakes are known as opportunistic feeders. Meaning, they don’t really track scents or anything like that. They crawl around waiting for something to cross their paths. Scent tracks would have to be incredibly fresh to lure them in. Thing is, for all I know, they had already eaten whatever it was Riley had in his tent to lure them in. I just don’t know why he left his tent wide open,” Betsy said with a sigh.

“So, you all closed the tent that morning? I noticed the tent was closed when Pauline and I got up,” Kendell said.

“Yes, I told Joe to close it quickly,” Betsy said. “It was clear that Riley was already dead, and until I identified what sort of snakes we were dealing with, I didn’t want them to get loose and bite someone else.”

“That must have been a difficult decision to lock his body up with all those snakes like that,” Kendell said.

Betsy nodded, wringing her wrists yet again. “Yes, it was,” she said. “But the last thing I wanted was for someone else to get hurt. Tonya and I were able to identify the snakes. I can’t believe how many of them there were. We must have been camping out near an underground burrow or something.” Betsy stood up slowly. She looked up at the stars for a few minutes before departing toward her tent, her shoulders slumped.

“Poor girl,” Pauline said. “She’s trying very hard to get us back to Alice Springs.”

“We better get some rest,” Kendell said with a groan. “Something tells me we are going to have another long day tomorrow.”

7

The following morning, they made a rather startling discovery. They had gone through over half of the water they had left. It was nowhere near enough to get them through more than a day, and this greatly increased everyone’s worry. They headed out yet again, and they spent the day driving around in what felt like circles.

“Pretty sure we passed that bushel of flowers earlier,” Tonya said under her breath as they sped down what had at first appeared to be a sort of roadway. They were not so sure anymore.

“This is unbelievable!” Betsy exclaimed, punching the steering wheel. “We did not drive this far from Alice Springs! I’m worried we might be going in the wrong direction.”

“Are you kidding me?” Joe practically snarled. “You think we’ve been driving in the wrong direction?”

“I told you, Riley took us a crazy route. And I’ve only been out this way one other time with him,” she said. “I’ve hardly been to Uluru at all, but at least if we had made it there, I could have gotten us back to Alice Springs from there.”

“Maybe it would have been better if we had tried to get to Uluru instead of trying to get back to Alice Springs,” Tonya said. “There would have been other campers there we could have followed back, at least.”

“Yes, but it’s a little too late for that now, isn’t it?” Abby said, sighing. “Any chance it’s almost time for our next ration of water?”

“No chance,” Mika groaned.

They continued driving for the majority of the day when come late afternoon, the jeep came to a stop. “No!” Betsy yelped, and she began banging on the steering wheel. “No way. No way!”

“Calm down,” Kendell said. “It’s late anyway. We might as well go ahead and set up camp. Maybe a search party has been sent out now? For all we know, someone will find us tonight.”

“That would be a relief,” Betsy said, sighing. “Okay, let’s unload and start working on getting our tents put up and a fire going.”

They did as they were told with much grumbling. Everyone was hot and tired and hungry, the combination of which made them all short-tempered. While Kendell was working on pitching hers and Pauline’s tent, she suddenly heard Mika shouting. “Are you kidding me? You can’t give that stupid dog our water!” Mika’s voice railed.

Glancing back, she could see that Pauline had poured some water into a little bowl for Dot who was greedily drinking it all up. “She is just a little thing,” Pauline argued. “She needs water just like the rest of us do.”

“Exactly! We need water,” Mika snapped. “What if we don’t find Alice Springs tomorrow? Or the next day? We don’t even really have enough water to last us through morning. You can’t give any to the dog.”

Everyone was starting to gather around. “I don’t want my Dot to get dehydrated. She could die. She’s such a little thing. This heat is really getting the better of her,” Pauline said, attempting to explain herself.

“I think that should come out of your share of water,” Mika snapped.

“Fine,” Pauline said.

“Wait, hold on a second, Mika,” Betsy said. “I really don’t think depriving our eldest member of the group of water is going to be a good idea. Not unless you want to be dragging her around tomorrow. The jeep is out of gas. You realize that means we’re going to be walking now?”

“Yeah, I do. Which means we’re going to sweat and get hotter than we were riding around in the topless jeep. Which means we’re going to need more water, and she’s giving it away to her dog,” Mika snarled. “We’re out of food, and we’re almost out of water.”

“I know,” Betsy said. “Which means now is not the time to get at each other’s throats. We need to work together to make sure we stay safe.”

“Fine, but tell the old lady she can’t give any more water to her stupid dog,” Mika insisted.

Betsy sighed and turned to face Pauline. “Pauline, I’m afraid I’m going to have to insist that you not give out any more water to your dog. I know you love the little thing, but we’ve got to save as much water as we can for everyone else.”

Pauline did not seem to like that very much. Her face scrunched up, and she crossed her arms. “You can’t possibly expect me to watch my dog die of thirst,” she said.

“Yeah, actually,” Mika snapped. “If that’s what it takes.”

“Okay, that’s enough,” Kendell said loudly, noting that Pauline was now looking incredibly distraught. “Pauline, why don’t you take Dot to our tent. I just finished pitching the tent. The best thing is for Dot to stay cool.”

“Probably the best thing for me as well,” Pauline huffed and reached down to pick up Dot and her little cup of water she had almost emptied. She stormed off, disappearing within the tent.

“All right, everyone, let’s just move on from this little incident,” Betsy insisted. “Go finish pitching your tents.”

“Hey, Mika,” Kendell said, catching the woman’s attention before she had a chance to walk off like the others.

“Look, I’m not sorry about telling Pauline that she shouldn’t be giving our water to her pet. I mean, I get it. I love animals, but you can’t put them on the same level as people, you know? She can’t be giving out rations to the dog,” Mika said.

“I understand,” Kendell said. “But that’s not really what I wanted to talk to you about. I was hoping we could discuss what happened to Riley.”

“Oh,” Mika said. “I mean, it’s a bummer, and now we’re in a lot of trouble because of it.”

“I was wondering if anyone else thought it was strange the way he died,” Kendell said. “I mean, they said there was almost a dozen snakes in there, and it was four different species. And neither Betsy nor Tonya had any idea why the snakes would have crawled into his tent. Do you think it’s possible that someone might have put them there?”

“Whoa,” Mika said, raising a brow. “I didn’t even think about that. I mean, there seemed to be some hostility all over the place. If someone did put those snakes in there, my money is on Tonya.”

“Tonya?” Kendell asked. “You think she would have killed him just because she thought he was a phony?”

“Well, you heard her,” Mika said. “All she did for the first half of this tour was moan and groan about every other word that came out of his mouth. The way she would angrily scribble stuff in that notebook of hers. I mean, she was obviously angry. Maybe she felt slighted or something.”

“Maybe,” Kendell said, pondering what Mika had said. “So, how did you hear about this tour, anyhow?”

“Oh, I saw a pamphlet for it,” Mika said. “It had a cute picture of a joey on the front that was just too adorable. I’ve mentioned wanting to get something cute for a pet.”

“You can’t have kangaroos as pets,” Kendell said.

Mika shrugged. “Yeah, that’s what I keep hearing.”

“Did your boyfriend really go to prison for illegal hunting?” Kendell asked.

“Pretty much,” Mika said.

“And that doesn’t bother you?” Kendell asked.

Mika shrugged again. “I guess it should. I think he was wrong, of course, but I just think it was a little excessive of a punishment over an animal, you know?”

Kendell still wasn’t quite sure about Mika. She seemed ditsy and a little dark at the same time. Mika scurried off to finish with her tent, and since Kendell’s was done, she decided to snoop around the jeep. They were going to have to ditch it in the morning, so she wanted to make sure that they didn’t overlook any supplies that could be of use. As she was rummaging around, she found a phone underneath the driver’s seat. When she turned it on, she saw that it only had a little bit of a charge left. It was Riley’s phone; he had a picture of the kids he had pointed out to them from the rehabilitation shelter. They were smiling and bottle feeding a tiny koala that looked like Bon-Bon. She frowned, realizing that Riley had really been a pretty decent guy.

She saw that he had a text message and decided to read it. It was from a guy named Eddie, and based on the conversation, it sounded as though Eddie was a producer or some sort of important decision maker for Riley’s reality show.

Yo, Riley, good job on set the other night!

Thanks – Betsy helped me out with the dialogue again

She does a good job – don’t know what your dumb butt would do without her

Gee, thanks

We r wanting to add a second face to the show – probably a chick to act as your assistant. Any ideas?

Ur not thinking about Betsy, r u?

LOL no way, Riley

They say the camera adds ten pounds. People wouldn’t be able to tell if she was my assistant or one of the animals

Ur so wrong, man. But ur right. She definitely doesn’t have the face for television

“Um…wow,” Kendell said when she finished reading the text exchange that had been going on between Riley and one of the show’s producers. Despite his care for animals and for troubled youth, Kendell suddenly had a sour taste in her mouth about Riley “That is so mean!” she said to herself. “I wonder if Betsy knew her boyfriend was talking about her like that?”

Kendell threw the phone down in the driver’s seat after seeing that there was zero service. She huffed thinking about what she had just read but she continued searching the jeep. Then, much to her delight, shoved underneath the floor mat, she found a map. “Oh, my gosh!” she cried, snatching the map up and running around the jeep back to the midst of camp. “A map! I found a map!”

Everyone seemed to appear all at once. “This is Riley’s!” Betsy exclaimed. “Where was it?”

“It had gotten shoved up underneath a loose floor mat,” Kendell said.

“This is fantastic,” Betsy said, sounding very relieved. “This will help us get back to Alice Springs.”

“You can read a map, then?” Joe asked.

“I’m no Riley,” Betsy said. “But, yes, I can read a map. We just have to figure out about where we are.” She looked up. “It’ll be dark soon. I should be able to figure out about where we are using the map and the stars.”

“Star navigation?” Abby asked, slapping Joe to get him to pull the camera out so they could document what Betsy had to say. Joe scurried off to get his oversized news camera, and he was soon documenting their conversation.

“I mean, I’m not an expert or anything, but I’m thinking with the help of the map, I might just be able to pinpoint our location,” Betsy said, smiling proudly. “I just have to wait until I get some stars.”

“So, you weren’t able to figure out where we were last night with the stars?” Tonya asked.

“Not really,” Betsy said. “I was able to get a general idea of where we were, but with the map helping me out, well, this will be exactly what we needed.”

Kendell grinned. “Believe me, I’m glad to hear it. How long before sunset?”

“Just a couple of hours,” Betsy said. “And once I figure out where we are, we can head back to Alice Springs first thing in the morning.”

8

The sun was just barely hanging over the horizon that evening. Soon it would be dark, and thanks to the clear night sky above, Betsy was confident that between the stars and the map, she would be able to get them going in the right direction that following morning. Most everyone had retired to bed, with the exception of Pauline, Kendell, Betsy, and Tonya. Tonya was doing her best to try to help Betsy read the map as the two of them seemed to be the only ones even remotely familiar with cartography.

“I think I’m going to need to confirm what you’re saying once the stars are out,” Betsy said to Tonya, who was pointing out Uluru on the map.

“So, where did you learn how to do star navigation?” Tonya asked, and Kendell glanced over curiously.

“I have a minor in marine biology, and I started my career studying mostly sharks. I interned under a scientist who was doing a lot of trips out to sea, and I picked up a few things,” Betsy explained.

“Sharks? Really?” Kendell asked.

“That’s right,” Betsy said. “We would rescue injured sharks or those of endangered species for rehabilitation. It was a little scary at times, I’ll be honest.”

“Kendell and I had the opportunity to go swimming with the sharks in Hawaii,” Pauline said proudly. “It was quite fun.”

“Was that in your blog?” Tonya asked.

“You’ve read my blog too?” Kendell asked hopefully.

“I skimmed it after Mika said something on our first day of the tour,” Tonya said. “Before we got out of range.”

“You blog too, right?” Kendell asked.

“That’s right,” Tonya said. “Been doing it for years.”

Betsy huffed slightly. “Yeah, mostly rants, right, Tonya?”

Tonya frowned. “You and I both know that Riley was a big phony. If you ask me, you should have been the one running things. You’re clearly more knowledgeable, and you have more experience.”

“Riley has been doing activism for years,” Betsy argued. “He did a fine job.”

“Thanks to you,” Tonya chided.

Eager to keep them from arguing, Kendell asked, “So, you knew Riley and Betsy before this trip?”

Tonya shrugged. “Not personally. I met Riley at a fundraising event a couple of years ago right after his show started to really take off. I watched his show, and I thought it was really good. Sent him an email asking him about an animal they had shown on an episode who was going to be needing surgery. Wanted to see if there was anything I could do to help—provide connections or resources, that sort of thing. He wound up calling me, and it didn’t take but about five minutes for me to realize he had no idea what he was talking about. He was completely clueless. Kept having to put me on hold to talk to his assistant to make sure he was understanding what we were talking about. I started asking him a few more questions, and it didn’t take me long to realize that he was definitely no wildlife expert. I did a little digging and realized the man was just an actor presenting himself as someone with some authority to speak with zoological expertise. It was a little insulting as someone who works in the business to find this actor making bank in a field in which he has no real knowledge.”

“I imagine it was a little frustrating,” Pauline said, then glanced in Betsy’s direction. “What about you? Did you ever feel that way, Betsy?”

“Maybe a little bit…before I got to know him,” Betsy said. “He has a real heart for wildlife preservation. I mean, you all saw him at the rehabilitation center. He may not be an expert, but his heart is in the right place, and honestly, Tonya, isn’t that what’s important?”

Tonya nodded. “Yes, I suppose so.”

Betsy stood, putting down her map and compass. She started to walk off. “Where on earth are you off to?” Pauline asked.

“Well,” she said a little breathlessly. “I need to…you know…go to the bathroom.” Betsy laughed slightly. “Never really thought of myself as someone who would crouch behind a bush to do my business, but sometimes, you got to do what you got to do.”

“Eww,” Tonya said.

“Like you haven’t had to go this whole trip,” Betsy huffed before dipping out, leaving Pauline and Kendell alone with Tonya.

“So, you really aren’t going to continue to post negative reviews about Riley after this?” Kendell asked.

“No, that would just be wrong,” Tonya said. “I’m not going to bash a guy who can’t defend himself. I’ll probably take down my old blog post about him too. I don’t really regret anything I said. I didn’t say anything that wasn’t true in my blogs. He was just an actor trying to present himself as the next great Steve Irwin, and it was offensive to me as an actual wildlife expert. If he had at least bothered to educate himself beyond the basics, it might not have annoyed me so much, but he didn’t. I’ll probably write an in memorial blog post for him. He did do a lot of good, and that I can appreciate. His organization did a lot to help raise money for wildlife preservation.”

“That’s good that you acknowledge that,” Pauline said, just as they heard shouting coming from one of the tents.

“Give it here! You’ve been stashing this the whole time!” Mika roared.

“Let go of my hair!” Abby shrieked.

Kendell jumped up in time to see Mika dragging Abby out of her tent by the hair. “Whoa!” Kendell jumped up as a half-asleep Joe came stumbling out of his own tent.

Joe yelped and ran to separate the two women, but Mika managed to slapped Abby clear across the face with her nails exposed, cutting Abby’s cheek. “You’re crazy!” Abby screamed.

Betsy came running over, freshly relieved, and stood with her eyes wide in surprise. “What’s going on?” she demanded.

Mika pointed a finger at Abby. “She has three protein bars in her bag that she’s been hiding from everyone!”

There was a group gasp. Everyone was getting awfully hungry. Abby held up her hands defensively. “I wasn’t hiding them,” she insisted. “I had just opened up my bag to dig around for…for some feminine products when I saw the bars sitting at the bottom of my purse. They’re old. I hadn’t even realized they were in my bag. I was going to share, but Mika came busting into my tent before I even had a chance. She’s nuts!”

“She’s lying,” Mika hissed.

“No, I’m not,” Abby said, crossing her arms.

“She’s just a sleazy little journalist,” Mika insisted.

Abby pointed a finger at Mika. “How about I share with everyone except the girlfriend of the looney poacher? How about I tell everyone what I know, Mika?”

“What are you talking about?” Pauline asked, gripping Dot close to her as the little dog had begun to yelp.

“I’m talking about the fact that Riley led up one of the protests during her boyfriend’s trial!” Abby shouted.

“What?” Betsy asked.

“Yeah, I remember interviewing Riley. He used his platform to speak out against poachers,” Abby said. “So, tell me, Mika, did you put those snakes in Riley’s tent?”

Mika looked rather astounded by what Abby had just said. “I didn’t even know Riley led those protests,” Mika stated matter-of-factly. “And I don’t know anything about snakes. I would have probably gotten bit myself. Snakes are gross. There is no way I would have even touched one. And I’m not a killer.”

“Why not? Your boyfriend is. He killed a kangaroo to try to make a profit,” Abby hissed.

“Killing a stupid animal is pretty different from killing an actual person, Abby,” Mika snapped.

Pauline gripped Dot closer to her, as if she thought Mika would snap the little dog’s neck just to make her point. “Okay, that’s enough!” Betsy shouted over them all. “Mika didn’t kill Riley, Abby. No one did. I’m sure those snakes just got into his tent. Why exactly, I’m not sure, but let’s not start turning on each other. We got another long day ahead of us tomorrow, and I’d like to try to make it through it without fighting each other for food. Hand over the protein bars, and we’ll add them to our community pile for tomorrow. You’ve all already had your rations for today.”

Everyone grumbled, and Abby handed over the protein bars for them to munch on in the morning. Slowly, everyone made their way back to bed. Tonya also retired, as did Pauline and Dot. Pauline seemed rather shaken up by Mika’s commentary yet again, which left Kendell alone with Betsy once the stars finally came out.

Betsy sat in front of the fire, a flashlight in hand as she observed the map. Kendell watched her curiously as she continued looking from the map to the sky. Betsy would stare up at the sky for several minutes, holding her hand up to do a visual measurement of the distance between the stars or from stars to the horizon. “You really think you can figure out where we are based on the stars?” Kendell asked.

A big smile appeared on Betsy’s face. “Think? I believe I already have,” she said and pulled a pen out from behind her ear, making a mark on the map. She came over and sat by Kendell, eager to show someone what she had discovered. “See that constellation there?” Betsy said, pointing. “That right there should be northwest of Alice Springs. Based off its distance from the horizon, I’m betting that this is where we’re at.” Betsy tapped the map. “And, if you look right here—”

“A watering hole,” Kendell said with a grin, licking her dry lips. “Do you think that’s safe?”

“Hopefully it’ll be safe enough,” Betsy said.

“That’s really cool that you know how to do that,” Kendell said.

“It’ll be even cooler if this actually leads us to a watering hole tomorrow where we can hydrate and cool off,” Betsy said. “And if we can find the watering hole, I’ll be able to get us to Uluru. And from Uluru, back to Alice Springs.”

“Thank God,” Kendell said, glancing up at the sky. The stars looked incredible against the black backdrop. “So…do you think you could give me a sort of rudimentary lesson on star navigation? I think that’s just so cool. I live in New York City… You just don’t see stuff like this there,” Kendell said while waving her hands up at the stars. “I have literally never seen this many stars in my life. It’s incredible.”

Betsy smiled. “You really want to learn?”

“I mean, maybe just some basics?” Kendell asked.

“Well, I think I can point out some constellations to you,” Betsy said. “I never thought this little skill of mine would come in handy outside of my work for the marine biologist.”

They sat by the fire talking about stars and how to use them to navigate at night. Kendell listened to a few tales about Betsy’s time at sea and how she had gotten seasick far too often to make a permanent career out of it. “What did you do when you realized that wasn’t going to be for you?” Kendell asked.

“I started working with a group called AVIP in their research department, but realized research wasn’t really my style. I liked being out in the field or helping to preserve Australian wildlife. I met Riley during a conference in Alice Springs, and he was just getting started on his show. I was invited on as their official wildlife expert to help out with writing scripts for Riley, and I finally felt like I was making a difference.”

Kendell smiled. “Well, I am glad you found something you enjoy,” Kendell said, then yawned. “Okay, bedtime. Hopefully we’ll find that watering hole first thing in the morning.”

“That’s what I’m praying for,” Betsy said, and she too retired to her tent for the night.

9

“Remember—only bring the necessities!” Betsy called out over the noise of everyone digging through bags. Betsy, who had become the unofficial leader of this trip, was put in charge of food and water. They were down to a single bottle of water to share between them, but Kendell and Betsy were both hopeful that they would locate the watering hole early that morning.

A slight scuffle of mostly words broke out when Joe tried to put his camera in his backpack, wasting space. Mika was the one most perturbed by this. “You’re the only man here, and you’re obviously stronger than all of us. You can’t be wasting space in your bag with a stupid camera.”

Abby perked up. “This is our livelihood,” she argued. “We need the camera.”

“You really don’t,” Tonya said. “Plus, it’s getting on everyone else’s nerves. We need that large bag to carry rolled up tents.”

“Fine,” Joe said, and Abby looked mortified. “I’ll use the bag for materials we might need, but I’m still bringing the camera. I’ll just carry it if that makes you all feel better. I can carry it. If I get too tired to carry it, I’ll ditch it.”

Abby looked mortified by that as well. “You can’t ditch that in the middle of the outback. Think of all the footage we’ve gotten.”

“Are you for real?” Mika asked.

“This is my job, so yeah, I’m for real,” Abby said. “This is going to be a good story, and I’m right in the middle of it. That’s gold to people like me.”

“Okay, everyone, that’s enough,” Betsy insisted. “Joe, if you want to carry it, you can carry it, but they’re right. You’re the biggest one we got, and you’re going to carry a fair load of supplies. Let’s get going.”

“Do you even know where to go?” Mika asked. “I’m starting to feel like we’re going to be walking in circles again. That’s what we’ve been doing since we left our campsite, at least.”

“We haven’t been going in circles,” Betsy argued. “And I’ve got a map now. I was able to pinpoint about where we are, and I believe there is a large watering hole not too far from here. If we can get there, we can cool down, take some time to boil some water, and I am confident I can get us to Uluru from there.”

“What happens if we miss it because you’re off by a few miles?” Abby asked.

Betsy nervously tugged at her shirt collar. “Well, we could wind up walking right past Uluru and end up lost in the outback, if I’m being honest.”

“Perfect,” Abby snarled.

“Hey!” Kendell called over the group. “Guys, Betsy is doing the best that she can, okay? I don’t see any of you coming up with any better ideas. So, let’s get going. We’re behind you, Betsy.”

Betsy smiled. “Thanks, Kendell,” she said, and after checking her compass and map one last time, they began walking.

Pauline was given a light load to carry, and Dot walked right beside her, panting most of the way. It didn’t take long into their journey before Kendell wound up carrying Dot because the dehydrated little dog was lagging behind. They walked for close to an hour, and by then, everyone was sweaty and exhausted. But, at last, they spotted something promising up ahead.

It was still far away as they could see a considerable distance away in the flat lands surrounding them, but they could all clearly see the watering hole before them. The group cheered with raspy, dry voices. Pauline let out a loud, exaggerated exclamation. “I’m getting too old for this sort of nonsense,” she said. “I can’t wait to sit down and put my feet up. They’re starting to swell up.”

“You’re one tough lady,” Joe said, panting a bit.

“I try,” Pauline said with a laugh. “I just feel awful that Kendell is having to carry my little Dot around in this heat.”

“It’s okay, Pauline,” Kendell said. “I’ve grown attached to your little pooch, so if I can help the poor thing out, I will.”

With the promise of water and rest up ahead, everyone’s spirits seemed to lift. Within fifteen minutes, they were standing by the watering hole, and Betsy and Tonya were knelt on the ground trying to start a fire so that they could boil water to ensure it was safe to drink. The rest of them, however, plopped down in the dirt and removed their shoes, sticking their feet in the water to cool themselves.

“Careful!” Betsy called. “Watch out for snakes!”

“Believe me, we are,” Mika assured her. “I don’t think I’ll ever look at a snake the same way again after seeing Riley in his tent like that.”

“Amen,” Joe grumbled, putting down the camera and the oversized backpack he had been trapped with carrying as such a large man. He had two tents and a pot shoved into the back of his bag, making his load much larger than everyone else’s.

Kendell was able to put Dot down, and the little dog splashed around in the water and gulped a bunch down before walking around the ledge of the lake, sniffing the ground in search of food. The group listened to Betsy and Tonya grumbling about their difficulties in trying to get a spark started for their fire, resulting in Betsy getting slightly emotional and talking about how much she wished Riley was there or how she wished she had picked up this particular skillset from him.

“You’ll get it,” Abby said from where she was seated by the water. “You started a fire last night. It just took a minute.”

“I wish I had flint,” Betsy said. “That would make this easier.”

“Oh, my goodness!” Pauline suddenly yelped in a hushed tone, smacking Kendell’s arm.

Glancing toward where Dot had wandered, they saw her sniffing around a large kangaroo that was leaning down sniffing her curiously. Everyone grew quiet. The large kangaroo was not paying them any mind as it seemed far too interested in the little white furball sniffing around it not too far from them. Kendell scurried for her cellphone. Her phone was nearly dead, but much to Kendell’s joy, she was able to snap a picture just as a little joey poked its head out of the mother kangaroo’s pouch just as Dot came up on her hind legs, resulting in the little dog giving the joey a kiss on the nose.

“Oh, my goodness… Oh, my goodness…” Pauline kept saying excitedly, shaking to see the precious moment between Dot and the beautiful, wild creature.

Then, the kangaroo reached down and picked Dot right up. Now, Pauline looked nervous. Dot seemed quite excited by this, but everyone seemed rather anxious at what the creature would do. Betsy took a slow step forward, and the kangaroo seemed to at last notice them. It slowly put Dot down and continued staring at them all. Dot let out a quiet bark and came trotting back to Pauline, who quickly picked up her dog before the kangaroo proceeded to bounce off, doing so gently with her little joey in her pouch.

“Wow!” Abby shrieked and turned to Joe. “Please tell me you got that?”

“Of course,” Joe said as Kendell turned to see that the man was holding up the camera he had put down earlier. It was as though the device was never too far from him.

“Fire!” Betsy called out, and Kendell and Pauline both jumped excitedly. “Okay, Joe, would you bring me that pot from your bag? I’m going to go ahead and start boiling water, and we’ll fill up all of our containers before we continue toward Uluru.”

Joe stood up, finding a safe place for his camera before digging through his backpack for the pot. “You really think you will be able to find Uluru from here?”

“It’s not far from here,” Betsy said with a smile. “I know we will be able to find it without a problem. It’s going to take us a while on foot, but we will be there by this afternoon, and we’ll be able to camp out there tonight.”

“Excellent,” Pauline said, she and Kendell getting up to go sit by Betsy to watch as she boiled the water to sanitize it. “I was really hoping I’d get to see Uluru. I know that should really be the least of my concerns with everything that has gone on, but I’m looking forward to seeing a sunset there. I’ve been told it’s beautiful.”

“It really is,” Betsy said in agreement, sighing a bit.

Joe brought over the pot, now full of water from the lake. Dot followed him, barking excitedly as though she knew they were all pleased with the fire being started. Mika followed as well, leaving Abby alone by the water. The woman was now rolling up her pants to dip more of her leg into the water. “Geez, I wish I had worn shorts,” she moaned.

Kendell smirked from where she sat by the fire. “You know, it might just be worth it to cut your pants legs off.”

At first, Abby scrunched up her face at the thought, but then her face softened. “Does…anyone have a knife?”

“Aren’t those your nice dress pants?” Joe asked.

“It’s too hot,” Abby moaned.

Kendell pulled her backpack to her. “I might have grabbed something from the jeep before we left. Let me look.”

Joe laughed. “She chose to wear her best reporting outfit for this because she felt like it was going to be the career-breaking story. She already ditched her blazer at the jeep, now she’s going to cut into her pants.”

“I’m burning up,” Abby groaned. “That was my best blazer, but honestly at this point, I don’t have much of a choice.”

“You know,” Betsy said. “It might be pretty cool tonight at Uluru. You might wind up regretting it.”

“Wait, I have shorts!” Pauline yelped before Kendell could find her knife. “They’re going to be very large on you, darling, but they might fit. I kept them as a blanket for Dot because I knew it might get cool at night. Hold on.” Pauline pulled out a pair of bright, floral shorts.

Slowly, Abby stood up in the water. Her face looked mortified at the idea of wearing the granny shorts, but Kendell imagined Abby felt that it would be better than destroying her best pair of pants. As the woman began to walk toward them, Betsy jumped up and suddenly shrieked, “Abby, don’t move!”

Everyone looked in Abby’s direction in time to see an enormous creature walk between where they were all seated and where Abby was standing up in the water. The thing looked like a lizard, but it was larger than a full-grown hound as it slithered low to the ground—making a sound that sounded almost like a snarl. Its mouth was opened wide, and it was hissing up in Abby’s direction. The thing had seemed to come out of nowhere, and now it was staring Abby down as though it was eager to protect its territory from her.

“What the heck?” Kendell muttered.

“It’s a Komodo dragon,” Tonya whispered in horror. “Their bites are deadly.”

Abby slowly backed into the water away from the creature, but that didn’t seem to deter its temper and attention from her. It snarled yet again, taking several steps toward the reporter.

10

Just when they all thought Abby was going to be a goner, Dot darted over, barking loudly. “Dot, no!” Pauline cried as the little dog jumped out of her lap, thinking that the lizard would probably eat the poor thing in one bite. Dot barked viciously, as viciously as a small white ball of fur could, that was.

The Komodo dragon seemed rather taken back by the dog’s sudden barking. The thing paused, stopped hissing, and appeared to stare unblinkingly at Dot. Dot continued barking loudly, yelping over and over like the yappy little dog she could often be. The Komodo dragon’s tongue slithered once, and then it turned around in such a way that it merely seemed annoyed with Dot and not so much intimidated, and off it went toward the other side of the watering hole to avoid the little annoyance. Abby exhaled heavily, her shoulders slumped, and Kendell could see her visibly shaking as she hurried back to them, picking Dot up as she came. “Good girl, very good girl,” Abby said to Dot, who was still yelping in the Komodo dragon’s direction.

When Abby put Dot down, the little dog pranced over to Pauline as though she was very proud of chasing off the big beast. “You should really count yourself lucky there, Abby,” Betsy said, breathing heavily. “For a second there, I thought we were going to have to tell the search and rescue team to locate a second body when we got back to Alice Springs,” Betsy said. “Komodo dragons are among some of the most poisonous creatures on the planet, you realize that?”

“Forget the poison, that thing was so huge it looked like it could have bitten my foot clear off my leg!” Abby exclaimed, laughing nervously as she said this.

Joe smirked. “I’m a terrible person,” he said, and then held up his camera.

“Are you kidding me?” Abby asked. “You were filming?”

Kendell couldn’t help it; she started laughing. “Seriously?” Kendell asked. “She could have died, and you would have had it on film, you creep.”

“I had it with me. I just thought that Abby would have wanted that,” he said.

“Quit talking like it killed me, Joe,” Abby said, shaking her head. “This is what I get, I suppose. I’m always on your back about making sure you’re glued to that thing.”

Everyone had a good laugh about this. Once they had boiled enough water to fill up every one of their spare bottles and canteens, Betsy was ready to march them onward. It was going to be a considerably longer walk, so none of them were looking forward to it when they had the comfort of the watering hole so close. But once Betsy pointed out that the watering hole was bound to attract more creatures like the Komodo dragon that had nearly bitten off Abby’s feet, they were all a bit more willing to press forward.

The walk that day was far worse than the one of the early morning, but at least now they had plenty of water. Food was still scarce, so their stomachs growled greedily. They finished off the last of their rations by the afternoon, but it was around this time that they at last arrived at Uluru. The scenery was indescribable. The large red walls of the rock formation immediately captivated each of them as the sun began to set around them. It was the only landmark within sight, so it looked all the grander when compared to the flat region around it.

“I can’t believe we finally made it,” Joe groaned, throwing down his bag and collapsing at the base of the half a mile-high mountain-like stone.

“So, what’s the plan now?” Mika asked, taking Joe’s lead to collapse on the ground. “Wait for the next tour to come through?”

“We didn’t have another tour scheduled on the books for two weeks, and I don’t know if there are any other businesses coming through here,” Betsy said, causing them all to moan. “But I know the way back from here.”

“Yeah, but how long is that going to take by foot?” Joe asked.

“I’m confident that you don’t want to know the answer to that question,” Betsy said, and Kendell felt herself collapse onto her knees and then her belly, admittedly being a bit dramatic, but she could not imagine having to walk all day the next morning on an empty stomach.

“We need to find a source of food,” Kendell said. “I don’t think I have another walk like that in me.”

“I know I don’t,” Abby said. “My stomach is growling.”

“We’ll figure something out,” Betsy assured them. “We are not too far from a road. The road is usually fairly deserted out this far, but tour buses come through often. Once we get to the road, it will take us straight back into Alice Springs, and chances are we will run into someone willing to pull over for a group of stranded travelers. A tour bus, most likely.”

“Thank God,” Pauline said. She had found refuge on a large stone she was now using as a chair.

They all quickly got to work on pitching tents, each of them eager for sleep. Kendell’s legs were throbbing by the time their tents were set. “I’m too tired to even think about climbing to the top of Uluru,” Pauline groaned, looking up at the formation. “It’s too bad, though. I would have liked to watch the sunset from up there.”

“You’re not really supposed to climb it,” Tonya said with a tired yawn. “To the aboriginals, it’s a spiritual place. They get pretty upset about tourists wanting to climb it.”

“But…there are guardrails,” Pauline said, pointing to one side of Uluru where there was the beginning of what appeared to be a very obvious walking trail.

“Yeah, the government put that in to keep stupid tourists from breaking their necks,” Mika said. “But Tonya’s right. It’s considered disrespectful if you climb it. Not that I haven’t before…”

“Of course you have,” Abby grumbled. “The Tjukurpa and Anangu people don’t climb it, but they are somewhat understanding about outsiders wanting to climb. They aren’t going to stone you or anything, but they politely ask people not to. It’s only used for ritualistic purposes.”

“Well, I had no idea,” Pauline said. “I would never have even thought about climbing it if I knew I’d be insulting the aboriginals. You learn something new every day, I suppose.”

Slowly, they all headed off to their tents, but before Kendell could retire, Abby and Joe nabbed her to conduct her official interview. “We’ll probably be back to Alice Springs tomorrow,” Abby said. “And that sunset behind Uluru is hard to resist as a backdrop to our interview. Are you up for it?”

Kendell sighed. Truthfully, she was tired of Joe’s camera, but this interview was why Abby and Joe had tagged along and gotten themselves dragged into this mess in the first place. So, Kendell sucked it up and sat on the stone Pauline had been using when they had first arrived. She did her best to look presentable after having trudged around and sweated in the hot sun all day, and with the camera rolling, she answered any and all of Abby’s questions she had for her regarding her blog. Eventually, though, the sun was too low behind Uluru for them to get decent footage with such limited equipment, so the three of them at last followed everyone else’s lead and headed to sleep.

Kendell was out cold within seconds of her head hitting the hard ground inside hers and Pauline’s tent, and the next thing she knew, she was being awakened by Pauline’s exasperated cries. “Dot! Dot, baby girl! Where are you?”

Kendell could hardly believe it was daytime already. Slowly, she dragged herself out of the tent where she could see half of their camping party all looking around for their little white mascot, Dot. “What happened?” Kendell asked.

“The flap to the tent was open, and Dot must have gotten out last night. I can’t find her anywhere,” Pauline said, and Kendell could tell the old woman was hysterical. She had been crying a bit, and it was enough to evoke sympathy in even Mika, who was now walking around Uluru calling out for the little dog she had spent the day before refusing to give water to.

Soon, they were all searching for Dot, but the little dog was nowhere to be found. They wasted nearly an hour, and Kendell was starting to feel increasingly guilty as she had been the one to have opened the flaps to the tent and had failed to close them when she went to sleep, allowing Dot to escape. Eventually, Betsy, their unspoken leader, had to make the call. “Pauline, I’m so sorry, but we can’t keep looking for her,” Betsy said, causing Pauline’s lip to quiver. “We haven’t had hardly a thing to eat, and I have no idea when the next tour will be coming through. We have to start heading back to Alice Springs.”

Everyone expressed their sympathies, but they were left with little choice. “Do you think…a snake got her?” Mika asked hesitantly, causing Pauline to get even more upset.

Betsy shushed Mika, but she certainly did not deny the possibility. It took an incredible amount of convincing, but eventually, Pauline relented and followed them to the road that would lead them back to Alice Springs. It was a very quiet walk to the road, but they all felt quite relieved once they found it—even Pauline, who was still acting mortified that her lovable pooch was AWOL. Kendell had never felt so awful. “I’m so sorry, Pauline,” Kendell said for what had to be the twentieth time that morning. “I can’t believe that I forgot to close the flap.”

“Yeah, you’d think that after Riley got mauled by snakes from leaving his tent open, you would remember to do that,” Mika said, causing Tonya to punch the woman in the arm.

“You’re not helping,” Tonya snapped.

The walk was a lot less grueling once they were on pavement. It was a lot easier on their knees, most certainly. Pauline was doing fairly well for a woman her age, but between sobs about the little dog her grandson had given her, she would occasionally complain about her sore feet or back. Kendell helped to distract her by promising to let Pauline use the hotel bathroom first—the woman very much intended to take a long, hot bath once they finally arrived.

After walking for what felt like hours, they spotted a car in the distance—causing much excitement. Kendell had spotted it first, and she began jumping and waving and shouting. The rest of them quickly followed her lead, and much to their pleasure, it was a search and rescue vehicle. The vehicle pulled over, and the passenger jumped out, on the phone, “We found them! They’re on the main road, yeah!”

The driver jumped out as well. “You’re all alive,” he said, sounding relieved. “I can’t believe it. Hang tight, everyone. Let me get you all some water. You’re the group who was with Riley Jones, right?”

“That’s us,” Betsy said, sighing with great relief.

The passenger of the vehicle, once off the phone, hurried to check each of them. He went for Pauline first and escorted her straight to the vehicle to sit down in the air conditioning. The driver was laughing slightly. “I’m glad to see that you’re all okay, but man! Do you realize a tour arrived at your campsite and found Riley Jones probably just a few hours after he died?”

They all groaned together. “So,” Kendell said, positively exasperated. “You’re telling me that if we had just stayed put…I’d probably be sitting in my hotel room with a full stomach and taking a nap right now?”

The driver nodded, a half-smile on his face. “Yeah, pretty much.”

11

Kendell and the rest of the campers spent the next several hours at the police station answering questions about what had happened to Riley and how they had wound up on the road not too far from Uluru. For the most part, the police believed that this was some sort of terrible accident. Kendell, however, was not so convinced.

She and Pauline soon found themselves standing outside of the station, and Pauline was attempting to wave down a taxi to take them back to the hotel now that they had been released. “I need a shower,” Pauline mumbled. “Or just a long, long bath. My legs hurt so bad…then I just want to sleep. Maybe I’ll wake up and find out this was just a terrible dream. I miss my little Dot.”

“I’m so sorry, Pauline,” Kendell said. “I am especially sorry about leaving the tent open. I wish there was something that I could do.”

Pauline waved her off slightly. “You can’t really blame yourself, dear. It was an accident. I don’t blame you. I’m just upset about my little poochie-poo.”

“I have this terrible feeling in the pit of my stomach. Something just doesn’t feel right about all of this. I mean, I know Riley wasn’t exactly a wildlife expert, but even Tonya was moaning about us losing our camping professional. He knew all about camping and outdoor experiences, even if he didn’t know much about animals. He would have known not to leave his tent flaps open like that. He would have known what would attract snakes. He would at least have some basic knowledge about that, right?” Kendell asked as a taxi at last pulled up.

“I think you’re right,” Pauline agreed. “I’m not sure who, but someone definitely put those snakes in his tent.”

“Maybe we shouldn’t head straight to the hotel,” Kendell suggested as they loaded up into the back of the taxi. “Maybe we do a little bit of investigation, if you’re up for it.” Kendell looked up at the driver. “How far are we from the local morgue?”

“Ten-minute drive,” the man said, and Kendell looked to Pauline for confirmation.

“I really do need a shower, but while we’re out, we might as well,” she said. “Go on, let’s get to the nearest morgue. No doubt that’s where Riley is right now. Not sure how I can stomach looking at a body that has been dead for several days and left out in the heat.”

“I don’t intend to look,” Kendell assured her. “I just want to talk to the forensic pathologist to see if they can tell us anything.”

Pauline nodded in agreement, and she told the driver to hurry up as she wanted to make this visit to the morgue quick, muttering something else about needing to take a long hot bath to wash off the stink. There was a part of Kendell that wanted to head directly to the hotel just to wash off, but there was something urging her on. A part of her wondered if it was the fact that she wanted this to turn out to be something more so that it would make a better story for her blog. But then she realized that wasn’t it at all. She was looking for someone to blame for Dot going missing other than herself. If Riley hadn’t died, then they wouldn’t have been wandering around in the outback for a few days, and Kendell wouldn’t have been so exhausted and wouldn’t have forgotten to close the tent. In a way, Kendell almost felt like this was a means of finding the perpetrator to Dot’s misfortune. A little dog like that was bound to get eaten by something, and if not eaten, she would likely die of dehydration. It made Kendell sick to her stomach, and that made her want to pursue this even further. To give her someone other than herself to point the blame toward.

They arrived outside the morgue and entered through the lobby, where a man in a white lab-coat was talking to a woman in a pantsuit at the front desk. “Yes, please get this file to them as quickly as possible. I want it faxed over before lunch,” the man was saying as he handed the woman the file.

The man in the white coat glanced up at them. “May I help you?” he asked.

“We are looking for the head of the forensic pathologist team?” Kendell asked. “Would that be you, sir?”

“It would,” he said, stepping forward. “Doctor Monroe. What is it that I can do for you ladies?”

“Is this the morgue where Riley Jones was taken?” Kendell asked, and the doctor frowned.

“I’m afraid I am unable to divulge that information to the public,” he said. “High-profile cases like that—”

“We were with him when he died,” Pauline said. “Well, we were at the campsite.”

“Oh!” Dr. Monroe exclaimed. “You two were part of the tour group that went out? Are you all right?” He looked them up and down. Kendell knew they looked like they had just come out of the wilderness—covered in dirt and grime with unwashed and unmaintained hair.

“Better now,” Pauline said. “I know there is some privacy concerns, but we thought that because we were with the man when he was bitten that you might make an exception. We just want to know what happened to the poor man.”

Dr. Monroe nodded. “I think I can tell you just what you already know, and that is that he was bitten by multiple species of snakes.”

“Were you able to tell what kind?” Kendell asked. “I know I saw a brown snake, a yellow one, and a few others.”

Dr. Monroe smiled. “I think if you could tell me a bit more about what you saw, we might be able to narrow it down based off what I saw during the autopsy.”

Kendell agreed, and soon they were sitting down with Dr. Monroe in his private office, which was thankfully very far away from the observation room. Kendell described the snakes in detail, and based off the bite marks that Dr. Monroe had found, they were able to identify two of the four distinct types of bites that Riley Jones had suffered: the tiger snake and the eastern brown snake. “I’m pretty much a hundred percent on those two. Very poisonous snakes,” Dr. Monroe said. “Australia is home to nine of the ten deadliest snakes in the world. You really have to be careful.” Dr. Monroe looked at some photographs he had printed out of some of Riley’s bite marks, and he showed them a pair of marks on his legs. “These two I’m having a bit more difficultly identifying. Possibly some sort of taipan snake.”

“Is it normal for snakes of different breeds to just hang out like this to where they would all follow each other into his tent?” Kendell asked.

“Not without something luring them all there,” Dr. Monroe said.

“Do you know if the police found anything when they found Riley’s tent?” Kendell asked.

“No, not a thing—nothing that would attract snakes,” Dr. Monroe said.

“So, what do you feel are the chances that they just slithered into his tent on their own?” Kendell asked.

“As I am going to be telling the police when I file my report—zero,” he said, crossing his arms. “I am confident that someone had to have put the snakes in his tent. This was no accident.”

“That’s what I thought,” Kendell said. “Someone had to have obtained poisonous snakes and placed them in there to kill Riley. Only thing is who.”

“Yes, unfortunately, it looks like a good number of people in our group might have had motive,” Pauline said, shaking her head.

“Well, thank you for taking the time to talk to us,” Kendell said to Dr. Monroe.

“Thank you for coming by,” he replied. “Your descriptions of what you saw when you looked in his tent were very helpful. I’ll be able to give the police a more thorough report thanks to you.”

Kendell smiled and shook the man’s hand before the two of them headed out. “He sure did seem apprehensive at first about us, but I’m glad he came around,” Kendell said.

“Oh, the taxi driver left!” Paulin exclaimed. “I asked him to wait.”

“We must have taken too long for him,” Kendell said with an eye-roll.

“You ladies want to share a ride back to the hotel?” a voice behind them said, and Kendell turned to see Abby and Joe standing before them near a taxi of their own. “Plus, I need to give Pauline her shorts back.” Abby shook her head, nodding down at the brightly-colored floral shorts that were practically hanging off her.

Pauline smirked slightly, and Kendell was glad to see that the woman could still smile with her little dog missing. “Yes, they don’t really appear to fit you, now do they?” Pauline asked. “What are you doing all the way out here?”

“Same as you,” Abby said. “Investigating. That’s what we journalists do. Except they wouldn’t answer any of our questions when they realized we are journalists.”

That’s why he seemed apprehensive at first, Kendell thought with a smirk.

“So, do you two want a ride?” Joe asked. “Spare you some cab fare? We got to go back to the studio to collect our van first, and then we would be happy to give you a ride to the hotel from there.”

“That sounds just lovely,” Pauline said gleefully, probably eager to avoid having to do any more walking in search of a cab or bus.

They loaded up into the cab together and headed back toward the studio where they had started this terrible camping excursion that had quickly gone awry. They arrived at the same time as Mika, Betsy, and Tonya, who had been last to leave the station that day. The three of them had been escorted by police so that they could pick up their vehicles. Kendell waved passively at her unlikely survival companions, who nodded back in her direction.

12

“Before we go back to the hotel, I’m going to swing inside the studio,” Kendell said. “I wanted to ask around and see if I can find out if the show is doing anything in memory of Riley, like a fundraiser or something. That way I can post a link to it on my blog.”

“That’s very sweet of you,” Abby said, then leaned toward Joe. “We’ll have to add that into the story when we air it. Joe, why don’t you go ahead and crank up the car so that when we’re driving back to the hotel, the AC is running really nice? I’m planning on taking advantage of air conditioning as much as possible after our little parade around the Outback.”

Pauline nodded in agreement. “Want to come with me, Pauline?” Kendell asked.

The older woman simply shrugged and shook her head no. Kendell frowned. She didn’t like seeing Pauline this way. She was so torn up about Dot, and frankly, Kendell felt quite similar about the missing dog. Mostly, though, she felt guilty for leaving the tent flap open. You would think that after seeing what happened to Riley, I would have remembered to close the tent up tight! Kendell scolded herself the entire way into the station thinking about it. She had really grown attached to that little purse dog of Pauline’s, and to think she might be lost or hurt or worse nauseated her.

She entered the large building and was immediately met by a horrid smell. The whole place wreaked of animal droppings. There were people bustling about, all whispering and talking to one another nervously—probably all wondering whether or not they were going to be out of a job now that Riley Jones was dead. There were animals set up in various habitats for filming purposes.

She overheard two men talking, and she perked up when she heard Betsy’s name. “I think Betsy is going to be our best bet,” one of the men said.

“She’s so fugly, though,” he said.

“People don’t want the show for a pretty face,” the first man said. “They watch it for the animals. We just need someone who knows what they’re talking about. If worst comes to worst, she can fill in for Riley temporarily to keep us on filming schedule, and if we have to, we’ll find someone to replace Riley long term.”

“I don’t think viewers will like all that jumping around. If we’re going with Betsy, we need to go with Betsy and stick to that decision. Maybe we could start with a memorial episode. She’s been on the show a couple of times alongside Riley, so people are at least familiar with her,” the second man said. “I guess that’s our best bet at saving the show. Betsy knows what she’s talking about, and she’s pretty personable. We can have Betsy start out by hosting a memorial show, show some clips of the two of them together so that Betsy seems like a more familiar face. That might lure viewers back in and get them used to the idea of Betsy.”

Kendell cleared her throat. “Um, excuse me,” she said, and the men turned to her. “Are you two producers for the show?”

The first man nodded. “I am. I’m Martin. This is my assistant, Kyle. Is there something we can help you with?” Martin looked her up and down as though wondering why she looked so rugged.

“My name is Kendell McDonald. I’ve got a fairly popular blog, and I’m planning on doing a segment about my time with Riley in the outback. I was one of the people on the tour,” she explained, and this seemed to give them some understanding of her appearance. “So, what I am trying to say is that I was wondering if there was anything you will be doing in Riley’s memory. Like maybe a fundraiser for the shelter he volunteered at or something that I can add a link to my blog to let people know how they can help?”

Martin smiled. “That’s awfully kind of you, Miss McDonald. Let me get your information, and I’ll send it to you once we’ve figured something out. I’m sure we will be doing something for him. He was the heart and soul of this show.”

“Thank you,” Kendell said, and she borrowed some paper and a pen to write down her information for the producer. “I’m really sorry that this happened,” Kendell said. “I’m guessing by what everyone was talking about that you all already know what happened to Riley.”

“Yes, it made the news last night,” Martin said. “Though it hasn’t quite hit that you all were rescued. Is everyone okay? Did Betsy make it back?”

“Betsy is alive and well. Thanks to her, we managed to survive in the middle of the Australian Outback,” Kendell said. “I think she’d be a good choice as a replacement for Riley, but that’s just my personal opinion.”

“Thank you for your input,” Kevin said, grumbling somewhat about her opinion. He was far too focused on Betsy’s appearance, and Kendell didn’t care for that attitude.

“I know Betsy is very devastated,” Kendell said. “Losing her boyfriend and co-worker like that.”

“Boyfriend?” Martin asked.

“Riley?” Kendell asked. “She told me that they were dating.”

“I didn’t know that,” Martin said. “I mean, they do work pretty close together. Probably a new thing.”

“Yes, she said they were a pretty new item,” Kendell said. “Well, I’ll be out of your hair. Thank you for taking my information. I hope you will contact me so that I can let people know?”

“Of course,” Martin said, then he turned back to Kevin. “We need to decide what we’re going to do about next week’s episode. We got all the material filmed, but I think it would be in bad taste to air it since Riley was killed by snakes.”

Kendell raised a brow. “Why would that be in bad taste?”

Martin glanced over his shoulder. “Because the last episode we filmed was all about snakes. After finding out this week that he was killed by snakes, it probably isn’t a good idea to air him sitting around with a bunch of poisonous snakes. What do you think?”

“No, I’d have to agree with you. It would be poor taste,” Kendell said. “You say it was poisonous snakes?”

“Yes, that’s right,” Martin said.

“What did they look like?” Kendell asked.

Kyle thought for a moment. “Well, we had a bunch of snakes. Eastern brown snakes. A few coastal taipans. The tiger snake, pretty little guys. And we also had some inland taipans—really poisonous, that one. Deadliest land snake in the world.”

“Four different breeds?” Kendell asked. “Was that filmed here on location?”

“Yes, actually,” Martin said.

“And where are the snakes now?” Kendell questioned.

“In their cages,” Martin said.

“Do you mind if I look at them? Take some pictures…for my blog?” Kendell asked.

The two men looked at each other for a moment, but finally Martin nodded. “Yes, I guess so. Not like we’re going to be filming today. We could use some additional publicity for the show if you’re planning on talking about us on the blog?”

“I can do that,” Kendell assured the man, and Martin happily escorted her to a back room.

They walked down a hall and entered a room full of cages with various snakes. “Wait…” Martin said as he approached one of the cages lit up by a heat lamp. “The tiger snakes aren’t in their cages…” Martin continued looking around. “Neither are either of the taipan species or the eastern brown snake? That’s strange…”

“Who has access to this room?” Kendell asked.

“Pretty much anyone,” Martin said. “Not like we keep it locked. Normally the giant sign that reads Warning Venomous Snakes is enough to keep people out.”

“Can you show me a picture of the missing breeds?” Kendell asked.

Martin shrugged and pulled out his phone. He typed in the tiger snake to show her a picture of what one would look like, and her stomach dropped. “How long have these snakes been missing?” Kendell asked.

“I’m not sure,” Martin said. “I’ll have to find out, but I’m sure they’ve probably just been taken back into the wild by one of our animal caretakers. Why?”

“I’m pretty sure that’s one of the breeds of snakes that killed Riley,” Kendell said. “I spoke with the forensic pathologist earlier, and he said he identified one of the bites as a tiger snake and another as an eastern brown. He said he wasn’t sure about the other two types of bites but thought they might be taipan.”

Martin, intrigued, pulled up some pictures of the other missing species on his phone. “What about these?”

Kendell nodded. “I’m no snake expert, but I did get a look at them through the tent’s window. I recognize these snakes…”

Martin stared back at her blankly. “Are you telling me that you think someone planted those snakes in Riley’s tent? You think they stole our snakes and set them loose on him?”

“Yes, that’s exactly what I think,” Kendell said. “I can confirm with Betsy and Tonya about what breeds of snakes were in his tent because I’m no expert, but I’m pretty positive that they were the same breeds. I knew this looked very suspicious from the get-go. Whoever killed Riley is the same person who stole the snakes from the studio.”

13

Kendell and Pauline rode with Abby and Joe on their way back to the hotel, and during the ride, Kendell filled them in on what she had learned. Abby and Joe didn’t seem to have any motive, but Kendell could certainly pinpoint this on Betsy or Tonya. “Betsy might be getting a promotion thanks to Riley’s death,” Kendell said. “Plus, she might have been a little bitter about having to write Riley’s scripts because he wasn’t as informed as she was. And if she knew how those producers talked about how she was too ugly for their show, she might have wanted to put them in a predicament to have to place her in front of the camera.”

“She was dating Riley, though, you really think she killed him for his spot on a television show?” Joe asked.

“Maybe,” Kendell said. “But, honestly, I’m not sure if they actually were dating. The producers certainly didn’t know about it when I talked to them. What if she made it up to make herself look more innocent?”

“My money is on Tonya,” Abby said. “She hated Riley. And she even said something about wanting Betsy to be the new face of the show. Tonya spent the entire first day of our trip talking about what an idiot he was and how he didn’t deserve to be getting famous. She was jealous, too. It was pretty obvious.”

“What about Mika?” Pauline asked. “She droned on and on about wanting all these exotic pets. What if she stole the snakes from the set wanting them as pets and they just got loose and bit Riley?”

“I don’t know about that,” Kendell said. “Mika was more into the cutesy animals. She just ate up that koala bear because of how cute she thought it was—same with the kangaroos.”

“You know,” Joe said in a somewhat sing-songy voice. “We have a lot of footage from our adventures this week. Maybe we can review the footage and see if there is anything that stands out? Weird conversations or statements we didn’t catch the first time around?”

“That might be a good idea, actually,” Kendell said. “But can we all get showered first?”

“Amen,” Pauline moaned.

Once they arrived back at the hotel, Kendell and Pauline invited Joe and Abby to join them in their room. Pauline got first dibs on the shower while Kendell, Abby, and Joe connected the camera to Kendell’s computer to allow them to start sifting through footage. “This is awfully exciting,” Abby said. “I have been doing nothing but human-interest pieces lately. I feel like I’m back to my days of reporting crime stories.”

“Glad you’re enjoying yourself,” Kendell said, shaking her head.

Eventually, Pauline exited the bathroom, dressed in clean clothes and smelling significantly better than before. “You’re up next,” Abby said, scratching her dirty head. “Your hotel room. You get first dibs.”

“Thanks,” Kendell said, and she very eagerly headed into the bathroom, turning on the hot water and jumping into the shower as quickly as possible.

The dirt and grime rinsed off her, and the water at her feet turned brownish-red from all the dust, dirt, and mud that had caked onto her from wandering around in the desert. “Gross,” she moaned as the hot water hit her shoulders. “My feet are killing me.” She lathered herself up as much as possible, washing her hair twice to make sure all the filth was removed. At last, she stepped out of the shower feeling incredibly relieved.

Once dressed, she headed out, and Abby called dibs on the next shower. “Find anything yet?” Kendell asked as the footage played on her laptop.

“Not really,” Joe said.

Kendell glanced up to see that Pauline had flopped down on the couch and was now passed out. “Poor Pauline,” Kendell said. “I got to say, she’s one tough cookie walking around the Outback at her age.”

“Her feet are a little swollen,” Joe said. “Not much worse than mine, though. I’d keep an eye on her the next few days, though. Make sure she takes it easy.”

“I will,” Kendell assured him.

They continued watching footage for several minutes before Abby exited, now wearing her long dress pants. “What, you ditched the floral shorts?” Joe asked, and she grimaced.

“Yes, I ditched the floral shorts, and there better not be any footage of me wearing the shorts in the final cut,” Abby warned.

Joe laughed, standing up. “Okay, shower,” he said. “I’m up.”

Kendell sat next to Abby, and the two watched the footage together. After several more minutes, they eventually came across a portion in the film the night before Riley was killed. The camera was put down by Joe, and it seemed as though he hadn’t realized it was still running as he had walked off, leaving the camera sitting in the dirt outside his tent. “Got to take a whiz,” they heard him say on the film.

“Nice,” Kendell said.

“Men,” Abby groaned. “I should fast-forward through this, otherwise we might get a glimpse of something we don’t want to—”

“Wait,” Kendell said as she heard Betsy’s raised voice in the film, sounding as though it was a bit far off, so it was difficult to hear.

“People wouldn’t be able to tell if she was my assistant or one of the animals?” Betsy snarled. “I can’t believe you actually wrote that about me!”

“It was just guy humor, Betsy,” Riley’s voice came through a bit clearer.

“You think that’s just guy humor? That’s just being mean. You know I’ve been trying to get in on the show, to be taken seriously by the producers,” Betsy snapped. “I can’t believe you’d talk that way about your own girlfriend.”

“Girlfriend?” Riley laughed. “Two dates doesn’t mean that you’re my girlfriend. I went on a date last night with one of the tech girls, Betsy. Didn’t realize you thought we were exclusive.”

“Are you kidding me, Riley?!” Betsy roared.

“Can you just stop?” Riley said. “We got stuff to take care of. And don’t forget to drop those snakes off. I don’t like riding around with those things in the jeep. Make sure they’re far enough away from camp, would you?”

“Why don’t you do it, since you’re apparently the animal expert?”

“Come on, you know I don’t do snakes,” Riley said.

“You don’t do anything,” Betsy hissed. “You can’t even pronounce marsupial right the first time.”

“Whatever,” was all Riley said in response, and it seemed that they had both wandered too far from the camera.

A few minutes went by, and Joe was picking up the camera, grumbling to himself about leaving it turned on before the next set of footage started. “Oh, wow,” Abby said. “So, the snakes were in the jeep?”

“Martin, one of the show’s producers, said one of the animal experts must have taken the snakes from the studio to return to the education facility they came from,” Kendell said. “Maybe Betsy hadn’t been planning to kill Riley until they had this fight. Then, she saw an opportunity. She had the poisonous snakes she was supposed to return, and when Riley headed off to sleep in his tent, she just…let them in.”

Joe exited the bathroom, now freshly showered. Abby kept looking through footage while Kendell explained to Joe what they had just seen. Pauline was waking herself up on the couch, so she was able to hear what Kendell had to say as well just when the sound of gentle yelping was heard on the screen. Pauline jumped up. “Oh, is that my little Dot?” she asked, looking over Abby’s shoulder.

“Yeah, we got some footage of her playing around camp,” Abby said. “You want me to turn this off, Pauline? I don’t want to get you upset.”

“No, it’s all right,” Pauline said, smiling at the computer screen where Dot was running around the night before she had gone missing.

“Look that little dog. Oh, shoot, look, Abby, kangaroos,” Joe’s voice came from the laptop.

“Oh, I almost forgot we saw some kangaroos that night,” Joe said.

It was difficult to see since it was rather dark on the camera, but sure enough, there was Dot hanging out with some kangaroos again. “Wait, is that the same kangaroo we saw at the watering hole? Did they follow us?” Kendell asked as she watched the video.

Pauline’s voice could be heard coming from the laptop calling—“Come here, Dot! Bedtime!”—followed by Dot running off camera.

“I wonder…” Kendell said. “Those kangaroos sure were interested in Dot. You don’t think they took her, do you?”

Pauline yelped. “Oh, dear! What if they hurt her? They can be aggressive, can’t they?”

“I don’t know, Pauline,” Abby said. “That might would be a question for Betsy or Tonya.”

“Speaking of which…” Kendell said. “Based off what we saw on that video, I think that’s more than enough to bring to the police. I’m pretty sure that Betsy released those snakes into Riley’s tent while he was sleeping.”

“Agreed,” Joe said, unplugging his camera from the laptop.

They all headed out, and Abby volunteered to drive them to the station. While Abby drove, Kendell pulled out her phone that had been charging at the hotel. “There is something I have been meaning to look up,” she said.

“What’s that?” Pauline asked.

“Well, Betsy had mentioned being a part of some group before she stared working with Riley on the show,” Kendell said. “AVIP. I wasn’t sure what that was.”

“AVIP?” Abby asked. “You mean the Australian Venomous Injury Project? They work on finding cures for snakebites.”

Kendell’s jaw dropped. If she had been able to find that out earlier, it was practically a confession. Betsy knew all about snakes and their venoms from working with the AVIP—she would have known that the snakes they were releasing would have killed Riley far too quickly for him to get help. “I have no doubt about Betsy putting those snakes in Riley’s tent,” Kendell said. “I’m going to call the studio and see if she is still there, and we can have the police just meet us there.”

“Good idea,” Abby agreed.

“Martin gave me his number before we left. I’ll just call him,” she said, pulling out her phone. Martin thankfully answered, and she simply asked him whether or not Betsy was still at the studio.

“No, actually,” Martin said. “They’ve headed out to Uluru to get some shots for our memorial episode next week. Betsy’s going to be hosting it.”

“Thanks for the information, Martin,” Kendell said, quickly hanging up the phone. She then called the local police station, informing them on what they had discovered, and she was informed that an officer was now on his way to Uluru to apprehend Betsy.

“So, what do we do?” Pauline asked.

“Um, I don’t know about you two ladies, but I’m following this story!” Abby exclaimed. “For Joe and I, it’s Uluru or bust. We’ve got a little bit of a head start on the police. Maybe if we’re lucky, we can get Betsy’s arrest on camera!”

“Wow,” Kendell said, shaking her head. “You sure are committed to your job.”

“It’s what I love,” Abby said. “I’m sure you know how it feels to be passionate about something.”

Kendell smiled. “Yes, actually.”

“So, am I dropping you ladies off or are you coming with?” Abby asked.

Kendell looked to Pauline, who smiled slightly back at her. “I believe we’re coming with,” Kendell said, and Abby sped up as soon as they got outside of the city limits.

“Make sure you stay on the highway,” Pauline insisted. “I don’t want to get lost in the outback again!”

14

They pulled up at Uluru after speeding down the highway for a considerable amount of time. The ride seemed even longer this time around thanks to the antsy feeling in the pit of Kendell’s stomach. “I can’t wait to nab that woman,” Pauline said angrily. “It’s her fault, you know? It’s thanks to her decision that my little Dot is out there all alone!”

“Don’t worry, Pauline,” Abby said from the driver’s seat. “We’re going to make sure she sees justice for her actions.”

“Good,” Kendell said, glad that Pauline was blaming Betsy instead of her.

When they pulled up not far from the rock formation, they could see that a considerable section of the base at Uluru was taped off for filming purposes; there were several trailers set up as well. “Looks like they’re filming their memorial episode,” Kendell said.

“I texted Mika and Tonya,” Joe said. “They’re coming too. Said they just can’t wait to see Betsy in cuffs.”

“Why do you have their numbers?” Abby asked.

“They spent several days in the outback with no other guy to look at but me. By comparison, I think I started looking pretty attractive,” Joe teased.

“By comparison to what, the Komodo dragon?” Abby asked, and Joe let loose a loud, fake laugh.

“Cute,” he said. “They’re not too far behind us.”

They stepped out of the vehicle, looking up ahead at the set. “Anyone see Betsy?” Kendell asked softly. She looked around. “Police aren’t here yet. We better not let her know why we are here just yet. Maybe we play it off like we came to support her first day of filming?”

“Good idea,” Abby said. “I mean, I might have actually come up here for that reason if we hadn’t found out she had unleashed snakes on her co-star.”

Kendell glanced down the road. She could see a vehicle approaching, but it was a good distance away. With such flat landscapes surrounding them, you could see for miles in either direction. “I don’t think that’s the police.”

“I think it’s Mika and Tonya,” Joe said, looking at his phone. “They said they’re almost here.”

“I’m surprised those two are able to survive a car ride alone together,” Kendell said. “The animal rights activist and the illegal poacher’s girlfriend.”

“I’m sure they’re going back and forth,” Joe said. “Want to wait on them before we approach the set?”

“Safety in numbers, I suppose,” Abby said.

They had to wait several minutes, but eventually, Tonya and Mika exited the small truck, and much to everyone’s surprise, they were laughing and giggling like they had just enjoyed their brief road trip together. Tonya approached, all smiles. “You guys ready for this?” Tonya asked.

“Shouldn’t we wait on the police?” Mika asked.

“Where is she going to go?” Tonya asked. “It’s flat land for miles. I kind of want to see her squirm.”

“I feel kind of bad,” Mika said. “To be this excited, you know? She did help us get out of the wilderness.”

“Did she, though?” Pauline asked. “For all we know, she got us lost intentionally. For the story. To make herself more famous… To make it look like she was some incredible hero who got us all home. They’ll probably talk about it in the show.”

“I didn’t even think of that,” Tonya said. “But you’re probably right.”

Slowly, the group made their way toward the set. The cameras were all rolling, and Betsy was eating it up. She had a wedge-tailed eagle perched on her arm as she spoke into the camera. They were about to release the bird into the wild, and it was a rather exciting moment for the cast as the bird had been in the rehabilitation center that Riley was fond of. It would make a good memorial to Riley to release one of his beloved animals back into its natural habitat.

“This little device here will allow us to keep track of Jon-Jon,” Betsy was saying as they walked up. Her face lit up. “Hold on a second, Martin,” she said, nodding toward them. “We should get some shots with this group right here. They were the ones on the tour when Riley died. Maybe they could all say something about Riley? If they’re up for it, and they can help me release Jon-Jon.”

“Incredible idea, Betsy!” Martin said, jumping down and smiling at Kendell. “I believe you and I have already met,” he said.

“That’s right,” Kendell said with a slight smile. “I came by the studio.”

Pauline grinned. “Tell Betsy what we found out at the studio,” she said, evidently deciding on her own that they were not going to wait for the police.

“Oh?” Betsy asked, stroking the eagle with her free hand.

Kendell decided not to falter. “We found out that some snakes went missing—the same breeds of snakes that bit Riley.”

“Seriously?” Betsy asked, though Kendell could tell that this revelation rattled her. “Are you sure? That’s awfully coincidental, don’t you think?”

“Not if someone took the snakes from the studio and put them in Riley’s tent,” Kendell said.

“Yeah,” Mika said, taking a step forward. “Like someone who wanted to take his spot on his show.”

“Or someone who was bitter that he was keeping the fact they were dating a secret so that he could date other women,” Joe added.

“Or someone he said was too ugly for television,” Abby added.

Martin spun around on his heels, looking dead at Betsy. The rest of the crew was starting to gather around, all muttering. “Police are on their way,” Pauline said. “So, I think you should—”

Before anything more could be said, Betsy abruptly thrust the poor bird at Mika. Mika yelped and somehow managed to catch it gently enough that it was not injured. Everyone shouted in surprise as the bird evidently had sensitivity problems with its wings, but Mika thankfully handled the bird carefully. “I got you, big guy,” she said, her eyes wide in shock that she now had a large eagle in her arms. Strangely enough, the bird seemed quite fine with this.

Betsy had taken off toward Uluru, and Kendell shook her head. Like they had said earlier, there really wasn’t anywhere for her to run. If anything, she could hide out at the top of Uluru for a bit until the police got there, but that was only going to make things more difficult for her. If she made it to a car, they would likely be the only vehicle for miles and a chopper would locate her quickly. Kendell could already hear sirens in the distance. “Don’t run, Betsy! It’s not going to do you any good!” she shouted, watching as Betsy sprinted toward Uluru.

“Don’t let her get away!” Martin shouted. “She killed Riley!”

“Where is she going to go, boss?” one of the cameramen said with a laugh.

Betsy made her way around one of the trailers, but when she returned, she was carrying a large tranquilizer gun. “Crud,” Kendell said, wishing now that someone had bothered to sprint after her. She pointed the gun in their direction, and everyone jumped back.

“Betsy, easy, that thing is meant for pretty big animals,” Martin called.

“Someone give me their car keys—now!” she snapped.

“They’ll catch you out on the road, Betsy,” Kendell said.

“I know the outback better than anyone,” she hissed. “I seriously doubt they would find me.”

“I knew it,” Pauline said. “She did get us lost on purpose!”

“Shut up, you old hag!” Betsy snarled. “Car keys, now, or I swear I’ll shoot every one of you!”

Martin started digging around in his pockets. “Hold on, I got it. I swear, Betsy, you’re not getting away with this one. I can’t believe you killed Riley! After everything you two have been through together.”

“What? A few shows, me writing his lines for him and him getting all the credit?” she asked. “No, I don’t think so. Give me your keys!”

Betsy snatched the keys from Martin, the gun still pointed. She grinned and pointed the gun right at Kendell. “No doubt our little detective blogger figured this one out, right?” she asked, and Kendell braced herself, pretty sure she was about to get shot with a tranquilizer dart.

Then something tapped Betsy’s shoulder. Kendell could hardly believe it, but it was a full-grown kangaroo. It had hopped right up to camp. “What in the world!” Betsy exclaimed, quickly receiving a jab in the nose from the kangaroo before it went back on its tail and kicked her square in the stomach, sending her flying back.

“Oh, my gosh!” Abby cried. “Joe, please tell me you got that!”

“You know it, Abby!” Joe called back.

The police had arrived and were quickly running over to Betsy, who was lying flat on her back with the wind knocked out of her. One of them started to shoo the clearly aggressive kangaroo away when they suddenly heard a slight yapping noise. “Dot?” Kendell asked. Slowly, a little ball of white fluff poked its head out of the kangaroo’s pouch alongside a small joey. “Dot! Pauline, the kangaroo has Dot!”

“My baby!” Pauline yelped.

Dot barked happily as the kangaroo reached into its pouch and pulled her right out, setting her down. The kangaroo patted Dot on the head, seemed to almost nod approvingly in their direction, and off she went. Dot barked happily after the kangaroo before turning and sprinting toward Pauline, who picked her up, leaving everyone staring with their mouths hanging open at what they had just witnessed. “You naughty little doggie! Don’t you ever run away from Mommy again! Oh my goodness, I cannot believe you’ve been playing with your little kangaroo friends this whole time!”

Kendell watched as Abby turned to Joe, mouth still hanging open wide as he gave her a thumbs up to let her know that he had also captured this incredible moment on film. Betsy was taken away by police, leaving the film crew behind scratching their heads.

“Now what?” Kyle asked.

“There is no way we’re going to get this done in time,” Martin said. “Riley deserved a good sendoff—a memorial episode that actually aired on time.”

Kendell cleared her throat. “Um, I could make a recommendation for you,” she said.

Martin stared blankly at her. “Oh?”

Kendell pointed her thumb toward Tonya and Mika. Mika was cuddling up to the bird, and the creature was responding to her beautifully. “Us?” Tonya asked.

“Weren’t you the one saying that real wildlife experts should be the ones doing shows like this? And aren’t you just blogging right now?” Kendell asked. Kendell then turned to Mika. “And you love animals, right?”

“Of course!” Mika said perkily.

“Check this out,” Kendell said to Martin. “Picture this: a professional wildlife expert who was there when your former star died alongside the girlfriend of a convicted poacher who wants to help the Australian wildlife. The commentary practically writes itself.”

Mika’s eyes glistened. “I’d get to work with animals,” she said, looking at Martin pleadingly.

Martin stared back at them both. “We had been talking about catering to our female audience…two women co-stars would be… How are you two in front of a camera?”

“Why don’t you make some shots today for your memorial show and find out?” Kendell suggested. “Call it a trial run?”

Martin thought for a moment, looked at Tonya and Mika hesitantly for a moment, then clapped his hands. “Get these ladies in makeup, and let’s get ready for the sendoff!”

The crew immediately got to work. Kendell, Pauline, Abby, and Joe stuck around to watch as Tonya spoke professionally about each animal they were wanting to talk about in the show. Mika played off her so well as the less-professional but adorably-interested non-expert. They were naturals in front of the camera, and they had a knack for giving each other a hard time that resulted in some witty banter that the crew simply ate up.

“This is just perfect,” Martin whispered to Kendell. “I mean it. Riley, may he rest in peace, never had this sort of chemistry with anyone we ever brought on as a potential co-star. Good call, Miss Kendell.”

They called Abby, Joe, Kendell, Pauline, and even Dot in to go stand with the show’s new stars to release Jon-Jon the eagle in memory of Riley Jones. Kendell pet the bird’s head for a moment before Tonya, who had the bird on her arm under a thick leather glove to keep from being scratched, raised her arm up quickly, causing the bird to take off. “Whoa,” Kendell said as she watched the eagle fly off into a beautiful sunset.

She was so mesmerized by that moment that she hardly noticed Abby’s excited mutterings to Joe. “Tell me you got that? You got that, right?” This was followed by his reassurance that he had set up their camera before doing the shot for the studio.

15

“Yeah, of course I’ve seen it!” Jack’s voice came through clearly on Kendell’s phone while she and Pauline sat in the airport waiting for their flight out of Alice Springs. “Babe, the interview was great, and they’re going to be airing that memorial episode next week, right?”

“Yeah, that’s the plan,” Kendell said, smiling excitedly. “The interview Abby did with me…well, I was so nervous about it at first. I can’t believe what all has gone on in the past few days.”

“I was really starting to get worried about you when you weren’t answering any of my phone calls or texts. I guess being lost in the Australian Outback was a good enough excuse, right?” he asked behind nervous laughter. “I’m glad you’re okay, babe. You and Pauline sure do always manage to get yourselves into trouble, don’t you?”

“Bad mojo maybe?” Kendell suggested, smiling across the aisle at Pauline, who was kissing all over Dot. The woman had hardly allowed Dot any breathing room after her brief absence.

“Whatever you want to call it,” Jack said. “But are you enjoying your new career as a travel blogger? I can’t believe how quickly this thing has blown up.”

“Me either!” Kendell exclaimed. “And with Felicity’s offer, I don’t see why this won’t be possible to do full-time.”

“I’m so proud of you, Kendell,” Jack said. “And you know what I think you should do?”

“What’s that?”

“Quit your job,” he said. “The one at the airport, that is.”

“Seriously? You want me to quit?” Kendell asked.

Jack laughed. “Yeah, I know. Big jump from what I was spouting out before, but I think you can do this thing. And, honestly, now that I’ve started flight school, I get it now. This is way better than doing a job I can’t stand. It’s stupid not to pursue what we love just because we’re afraid. I want you to know that I’m going to support you a hundred percent. If this is what you want to do, I say go for it.”

Kendell smiled ear to ear. Jack had really come around. “You know what? I think I’m going to do it. I’m going to quit!” Pauline looked up and grinned. Kendell smiled back at her and continued speaking to Jack. “I’m going to call my supervisor. I was about out of vacation time anyway. I’m going to cash it all in and see where this takes me.”

“Perfect,” Jack said. “This is incredible. I’m really excited for you.”

“I have to tell you my biggest worry is you and me,” Kendell said. “What if I don’t get to see you as much?”

“We will figure all that out, Kendell. I’m willing to work at it if you are, and besides, you and I are both going to be crazy busy right now. There shouldn’t be too much pressure coming from either side with me starting school and you starting up your new career. We’ll make it work. Deal?” he asked.

“Deal,” she said. “Okay, it’s almost time for our flight. I got to let you go.”

“We’ll talk again soon,” Jack said. “Love you.”

“Love you too,” Kendell said, hanging up the phone.

Pauline beamed at her. “So, did we just become business partners?”

“Looks that way,” Kendell said, smirking. “You up for this?”

“I suppose so,” she said with a smile, petting Dot lovingly on the top of her head. “With Felicity wanting to invest in your blog, I think we are going to do well at this thing.”

“I can hardly believe this all started because you convinced me to stay in London for a show,” Kendell said. “Thinking back to our first trip together, it’s hard to believe how quickly things have progressed from us just having a bit of fun to this.”

“I must agree,” Pauline said. “You ready to make it official and quit your job? Are you sure you want to do that?”

“I’m sure,” Kendell said, whipping out her phone. “No turning back after this.”

Kendell made the call, deciding this was definitely going to be worth the international rates. She had always liked her supervisor, so there was very little anxiety about this discussion. She put in her notice, and since she still had some vacation days left, her supervisor agreed to simply send Kendell a bulk check with the remaining vacation days included. When Kendell hung up the phone, she felt a surge of relief and anxiety. “I just quit my job,” she said, hardly able to believe it.

“That you did,” Pauline said. “Looks like you are going to be stuck with me for a while.”

“I think I can live with that,” Kendell said with a smile. Soon they were called in to board their flight, and before she knew it, they were getting in their seats. Kendell slapped a sticker onto her carry-on bag of a kangaroo with the words Alice Springs printed across its pouch.

“That bag is getting full fast,” Pauline said with a slight giggle, taking the window seat. Dot was asleep in the woman’s lap. Kendell still had no idea how Pauline always managed to get past TSA with a dog. One of these days, she figured, they were bound to get themselves into some trouble.

Kendell sat in the aisle seat, and as soon as they were up in the air and the plane’s WiFi was accessible, she got her laptop out. She had already started on the blog about her trip in Alice Springs, but now she was able to upload her interview with Abby for her blog followers to watch. She also put information about the memorial episode she and Pauline were a part of that would be airing the following week, promising her readers that she would post a link once it aired.

“These pictures all turned out really well,” Kendell said, smiling.

“Your blog is very lovely, Kendell. You’ve done a great job with it,” Pauline said. “I’m very impressed. Oh, I just love looking back on some of these pictures. They are just too lovely. I love that picture of us underwater with the sharks in Hawaii.”

“You would love that,” Kendell said, cringing. “What about this one here from Nairobi? With the giraffes?”

“Of course! But I must say, I think my favorite might be that picture of Dot giving the baby kangaroo a kiss on the nose,” Pauline said. “I might just blow that one up and put it in my house in Georgia!”

“It is a really good one,” Kendell agreed and reached over and patted Dot on the head. “Glad you’re back, Dot. I sure was worried about you.”

Dot wagged her tail excitedly and rubbed up against Kendell’s arm. Kendell wasn’t sure what she would have done if Dot hadn’t been found by those kangaroos. The thought of the little dog dying by herself out in the outback was almost too much, but thankfully, Dot had made herself some animal friends who had apparently looked after her for a bit. Kendell continued working on her blog for several minutes, making sure everything was perfect. If she was going to be doing this for a career now, she felt she needed to take it much more seriously. Everything needed to be looked over multiple times before she submitted it, and it needed to sound like she knew what she was talking about. Because it was meant as a traveling blog, she made sure to include tips and tricks to vacationing in the different areas they visited alongside their fun travel stories. Once she had the latest post completed, she passed it off to Pauline for a second set of eyes to catch any mistakes she might have made.

Pauline pulled out some giant, oversized reading glasses that she put at the edge of her nose as she stared at Kendell’s laptop screen, giggling and smirking whenever she read something that sparked her interest. “Lovely,” she said occasionally. “Oh, how funny,” she would say, nudging Dot as though to tell the dog she needed to read it as well. “Yes, yes, love the way you phrased that right there.”

Kendell beamed. She was eager to get the new post up. “Oh, wait,” Pauline said suddenly. “I do see one problem. Have you updated it yet to tell your readers where we are headed next?”

“Oh, yes, almost forgot. Thanks for the reminder,” Kendell said, taking the laptop from Pauline. “Thanks for that. I knew I was forgetting something.”

“Yes, Felicity said to be sure to always let people know where we are going,” Pauline said. “Get them excited for the next location and all.”

“Right, right,” Kendell said as she excitedly went back into editing mode for her blog, typing in the words Tokyo, Japan in the upcoming adventures section. “That should do it,” she said proudly. “Next stop: Tokyo!”

Pauline squealed, clapping her hands together. Kendell leaned back in her seat, ready to relax a little bit on the flight as Dot curled up next to her, quickly falling fast asleep between the two, with another adventure behind them.

* * *

Tailed in Tokyo

Flight Risk Cozy Mystery, Book 9

1

In the past few months, Kendell McDonald’s life had changed rather drastically. Ever since meeting the elderly woman, Pauline, on a flight from New York to London. The woman had been on a retirement journey, and after hitting it off with Kendell, Pauline had invited her along for a few trips. Kendell, a workaholic by nature, had decided she needed a break and had taken the older woman up on her offer. That had been nearly two months ago, and Kendell had yet to leave the woman’s side. Pauline’s journey should have ended a few trips ago, but that was before the incident in Paris where the two of them, along with Kendell’s new fiancé, had uncovered a secret terroristic organization—a story that Kendell had blogged about. The online blog had blown up overnight, and she had obtained sponsors, including Pauline’s granddaughter, who had recently come into possession of a nearly priceless antique car that she had auctioned off. Felicity, the granddaughter, was now investing in them as travel bloggers. They were business partners.

Now, seated on a flight from Australia to Tokyo, Japan, Kendell was once again reviewing her blog page. “Hey, Pauline,” she said, nudging the woman, who jolted and caused her purse dog, a white furball named Dot, to yelp before curling back into Pauline’s lap.

“Yes, dear? Sorry, I was starting to fall asleep,” Pauline said, rubbing her eyes and fixing her curlers. Only Pauline would do her hair during a flight.

“Sorry, I know, but I just had to show this to you,” Kendell said, passing her laptop over to Pauline, thankful that the plane’s Wi-Fi was working. “Felicity has turned you into a meme.”

“A what?”

“A meme. Please tell me you know what—”

“I’m joking, dear. I have fourteen grandchildren and ten great-grandchildren. I know what a meme is,” Pauline said and looked at the picture of herself with a wide grin that was clearly forced as her eyes were scrunched up uncomfortably.

The caption read, When that one relative decides to go gluten-free the week before Thanksgiving…

Pauline laughed. “Now why on Earth would Felicity make a meme like that?”

“Because it’s blown up, and we own the rights to your face,” Kendell said, laughing. “We’re selling t-shirts on the blog now.”

“Gracious!” Pauline said. “I’m famous.”

“Pretty much,” Kendell said. “You should see the t-shirts Felicity made up with Dot.”

“Oh, show me!” Pauline said, clapping excitedly. The two of them began sifting through various t-shirts and mugs that Felicity had designed to sell on the blog, and they found themselves laughing at their own expense as Felicity had made fun of them terribly. “I love it, though,” Pauline said. “Good thing she knows her grandma has tough skin. People are really buying these?”

“Like hotcakes,” Kendell said, and this made Pauline positively giddy. “And would you look at the views I’ve gotten just on my blog from that video upload? I only uploaded it half an hour ago.” She pointed to the video from her televised interview in Australia, and people were loving it. After getting themselves lost in the outback along with a reporter with a camera, Kendell figured that tale was going to get them even more viewers.

“Well, well, well,” a familiar voice echoed in Kendell’s ear, as she was sitting in the aisle seat. “If it isn’t my favorite famous ginger. And that’s really saying something, considering the fact that your dumb butt got me hooked on Ed Sheeran.”

Kendell looked up and saw her friend Lil, dressed in a nice flight attendant suit, staring down at her. “Lil!” Kendell exclaimed. “What…what are you doing on this flight? This isn’t our airline.”

“Our airline?” Lil repeated. “Girl, you quit! Without warning, in fact.”

“Yeah, I know,” Kendell laughed.

“Go on, let me see it. Show me that ring, baby doll!” Lil demanded, snatching up Kendell’s hand to examine the engagement ring. Lil whistled excitedly. “Dang! Jack went all out, didn’t he?”

Kendell smirked. “I’ll have to tell you all about it.”

“Please, I already know all about it. You think I don’t follow that new blog of yours? I already bought me a t-shirt with that dog’s face on it,” Lil said. “I assume I’ll be getting a royalty check for the blog you did of my butt getting in trouble with you two psychos in Kenya, right?”

“But of course,” Kendell said, smirking. “Now, answer me this: what are you doing on this flight?”

“I followed your lead and quit,” Lil said. “That airline pushed me too far. I put in an application here, and la-tee-da, here I am working at a real airline that doesn’t dress me up like it’s nineteen-forty-five.”

Kendell laughed. “Well, you look good.”

“Girl, I know,” Lil said, then smiled at Pauline and winked. “You doing good, Pauline?”

“But of course,” Pauline said.

“You heard from Jesse lately?” Lil asked, referring to the third part of their female-trio back home in New York.

“No, why?” Kendell asked.

“She’s still in Texas,” Lil said.

Kendell raised a brow. “Are you serious? Pauline and I left her there almost a month ago!”

“Yeah,” Lil said. “Girl, she tells me she might quit the airline too. I think you might have inspired everyone to shoot for the stars. Jesse is getting serious with that Texan rancher she met, and she might just move to the South. Can you believe it? Jesse…in the South…on a ranch!”

“Whoa,” Kendell said.

“Well, it’s not surprising,” Pauline said, nudging Kendell playfully. “I’ve been trying to tell you ladies that the South is better ever since I first met you.”

“Sure, whatever you say, Pauline,” Kendell said, smirking. “So, Jesse…a potential future Texan? That’s pretty crazy.”

“Jesse was a sweetheart,” Pauline said, “but not exactly someone I can imagine living on a ranch. She was a little afraid of hard labor from what I recall.”

“Actually, she’s been helping out with the cattle run this year,” Lil said. “She’s learned to ride a horse and everything. She’s been sending me updates.”

“Wow, good for her,” Kendell said. “I can’t believe how much has changed since I left. How is Brandon doing?” she asked, referring to the ladies’ best guy-friend and fellow flight attendant.

“Better,” Lil said. “Things were pretty rough for a while there after his brother’s girlfriend was killed in Hawaii.”

Kendell remembered that well. She and Pauline’s adventure had taken them to Hawaii, and her friend Brandon had been there at the time visiting his brother. His brother had been dating a professional surfer who had been murdered for trying to break up a local drug ring. Kendell and Pauline had solved her murder, but it had affected Brandon and his family pretty harshly. “Is he back to work?” Kendell asked.

“Yeah. A little bummed out that his girls are all off on new adventures, though,” Lil said. “You and your blog, Jesse and her new boo, and me at a new airline. I think he is a little bummed.”

“We should invite him on our next trip,” Pauline said. “What do you think, Kendell?”

“I think we can do that,” Kendell said. “But it’s up to you.”

“Maybe we should ask our manager?” Pauline asked, referring to her granddaughter, Felicity.

“I’ll send her a message,” Kendell said. “Lil, you want to tag along in Tokyo?”

“Not this time,” Lil said. “Got a flight right back to New York I’m attending after this. Besides, the last time I vacationed with you two, I wound up fleeing local authorities with Pauline and nearly got mauled by a lion.”

“Don’t be so dramatic,” Pauline said. “The lion was just sleeping on the hood of our jeep. He wasn’t interested in dinner or anything.”

“That’s not how it went down when I tell that story,” Lil said, smirking as her way of admitting she exaggerated the tale. “It’s kind of cool getting recognized from your blog, by the way. I feel famous.”

Kendell nodded. “Yeah, it’s a new way of life I’m having to get used to.”

“Jack and I have been talking some,” Lil said, referring to Kendell’s fiancé back home in New York. “Your man is excited about starting school. I helped him out with the registration for flight school. No offense, but he’s a little dense. Can’t figure out paperwork to save his life.”

Kendell smiled. “Aw, thanks for helping him out, Lil!”

“Eh, you know me. Always the helper,” she said a bit sarcastically. “But now he won’t stop calling me to help him with stuff. He wants me to look over everything for him before he turns it in.”

“Is all his paperwork finalized?” Kendell asked.

“I think so,” Lil said. “He’ll be starting flight school officially at the beginning of the year.”

“You’re awesome,” Kendell said.

“Ahem!” someone called, holding their empty drink out into the aisle.

Lil huffed but put on a smile. “We need to catch up sometime when I’m not working.”

“Agreed,” Kendell said as Lil trotted off. Kendell snapped a picture of herself and Pauline and Dot, wanting to make sure to document Pauline’s decision to put curlers in her hair while on a flight.

“I’m going to have to get used to the whole world knowing what I’m up to all the time,” Pauline said. “You really going to upload a picture of me doing my hair?”

“With your permission, of course,” Kendell said. “The world wants to know what Pauline is up to, and they love you.”

“So silly,” Pauline laughed. “People can’t possibly be interested in the fact that I’m wearing curlers.”

“Knowing Felicity, she’ll make another meme out of it to put on t-shirts,” Kendell said, and Pauline laughed so hard that she slapped her knees excitedly. “Well, you mind if I upload the new photo?”

“Go for it,” Pauline said. “Make sure you put a funny caption with it, though.”

“That’s the spirit!” Kendell said and thought for a moment as she uploaded the picture to her blog. “Oh! I’m going to make a joke about you getting ready to perform as a geisha since we’re heading to Japan.”

Pauline laughed again. “Oh, upload a picture of an actual geisha beside it!”

Kendell snorted, then blushed with embarrassment. “Stop making me laugh!”

“I can’t help it. I’m hilarious,” Pauline said.

It was such a fun friendship Kendell had formed. Who would have thought that she, a young liberal New Yorker, would have become so incredibly close with this elderly conservative Georgia peach? The two of them had met by chance and had gotten in a bit of trouble together in London on a vacation. Kendell had merely stepped in to help an old woman with her luggage whom she had spoken to on the flight, and that had led to an invite to a play at the Globe Theater. That had led to them solving a murder case together, which had led to Pauline inviting Kendell along to help her out on her retirement trip. They had been complete and total strangers, but now Kendell could not possibly imagine a life without this woman.

Their flight would be touching down in less than an hour, so Kendell put up her laptop and decided to stop bothering Pauline for more pictures. They were both going to need plenty of sleep to avoid getting too bad of jetlag while in Japan. Japan was one of those places Kendell had always wanted to visit, and she was excited to finally be going. She leaned back a bit in her seat and closed her eyes after popping some headphones in to listen to some quiet, soothing music rather than the chatter of other flyers. Soon, Kendell drifted off into a deep sleep, having excited dreams that included Pauline dressed up as a Japanese geisha.

2

Kendell dragged her carry-on off the plane as she and Pauline exited into the Tokyo airport. They were a bit rattled at first trying to figure out which way to go as the airline was incredibly busy. Luckily, they found a little helper. Pauline shrieked in surprise as an adorable four-foot-tall robot with giant, anime-like eyes nearly bumped into them and then spit out an apology.

“Oh, my goodness!” Pauline exclaimed.

“Hello. I am Pepper,” the thing responded in a frightfully cute, somewhat shrill voice.

Kendell had never seen anything like this before in her life. The robot gestured with its arms as it spoke just as a person would, indicating the monitor on its chest. To top off its look, it wore a pilot’s hat. “Please, for your safety, use the elevator to the left and not the escalators to the right as they are out of order.”

“Um…thank you, Pepper?” Kendell said hesitantly.

“You are welcome,” Pepper the robot said, gesturing toward the elevators.

Dot had poked her head out of Pauline’s carrier and was staring at the thing even more wide-eyed than Pauline, which made Kendell laugh a bit. She looked at Pepper, feeling quite amused by the thing. “Pepper, I don’t suppose you could recommend a hotel that can book us last minute?” Kendell asked, only so confident that the thing would be able to do more than direct them, but Pauline had just finished telling her that they were going to have to figure out hotel accommodations a bit last minute this time around.

Pepper’s eyes seemed to light up like a small child who had just been assigned an important task. Images of a very traditional-looking Japanese building appeared on the screen. “I have confirmed that Sadachiyo has an opening in one of their most traditional suites.” A beautiful room was broadcast on the tablet-like chest of the robot, depicting beds frightfully low to the ground, and Pepper continued to talk as the slideshow of images passed by. “Sadachiyo is a ryokan, one of the many Japanese-style inns found throughout Japan. Staying at a ryokan presents an opportunity to experience traditional Japanese lifestyle and hospitality, incorporating styles such as tatami floors, futon beds, Japanese style baths, and local cuisine. Sadachiyo in particular has a lovely indoor spa and coffee service station. The ryokan also offers a rickshaw service for its guests.”

“Wow! Thank you, Pepper,” Kendell said, and the robot started to repeat everything it had just said in what Kendell was certain to be Japanese. “What do you think, Pauline?”

“I think Sadachiyo would be an excellent choice, especially for your blog. Your readers would love it. I’m just a little concerned about lying down on those futon beds. I think you’re going to wind up having to help me up and down off them every morning and evening while we’re here, so if you’re okay for that than this granny can take it,” Pauline said, and Kendell laughed in agreement.

They followed Pepper’s directions toward the elevator rather than the escalators. “You know,” Pauline said once they had loaded up on the elevator. “I find it rather silly that this airport can keep something spectacular like Pepper up and running but their escalators are down.”

Kendell had to cover her mouth to keep from laughing out loud. The next thing Kendell knew, they had arrived at Sadachiyo Ryokan, and Kendell was snapping pictures of the incredible Ukiyo-e artwork and antiques that were scattered about the lobby while Pauline got them checked into the available room Pepper had told them about.

Eventually, the kind hostess helped to bring their bags to their room, and Kendell excitedly snapped a few more pictures. She realized very quickly that Pauline’s concerns about the beds were quite legitimate. They were basically mattresses lying flat on the ground. “You know, we could try to find a more Americanized hotel if you want,” Kendell said nervously.

“I think I’ll be all right,” Pauline said, letting Dot run around a bit. “I mean, we are just arriving here from Australia, where I spent a good portion of our stay camping out in a sleeping bag in the middle of the Australian Outback. Compared to that, these beds should be quite a relief.”

“Good point,” Kendell said, still looking around excitedly. “We have balcony access!” she exclaimed, opening the sliding doors out onto the small balcony that overlooked the street. “Pauline, this place is just beautiful. I can tell I’m really going to enjoy Japan.” She returned to the room and helped Pauline sit on one of the beds so she could rest. Pauline usually needed a serious nap after a flight, and frankly, it had become a good habit of Kendell’s as well since she’d started traveling with the woman.

Kendell opened her laptop, smiling to see that the Australian news broadcast she had shared on her blog had gotten tons more hits since she last checked it. She had an email from Felicity as well with a picture of the new Dot t-shirts that had gone on sale that morning. They had sold fifty of them in under ten minutes. The pictures were a simple photo of Dot in her carrier with the words I’m just along for the ride at the top. Kendell laughed. “Look, Dot, Felicity made a shirt for you too.”

In the email, Felicity asked for them to send them the addresses of their next few locations because she had some things to send them, whatever that meant. Kendell had to get that information from Pauline as Pauline was their official trip-planner. Really, they tended to travel wherever Pauline’s heart desired. So far, this had worked out spectacularly.

Pauline had saved all of their upcoming hotel information in her phone, a new trick that Kendell had taught her that she was very proud to show off in that moment, so she handed the phone over to Kendell to send Felicity their travel plans. Kendell was rather excited to find herself in-the-know on their upcoming plans, since half the time, Pauline failed to tell her where they were going next until they were at the airport or even on the flight. “I feel like I’m getting insider information,” Kendell joked as Pauline laid her head down on one of the two futon-beds lying next to one another in the center of the room.

“Lucky you,” Pauline teased. She whipped out a brochure and handed it to Kendell. “This is where I want to go while we’re in Japan.”

“The island of Itsukushima in Hiroshima Bay,” Kendell said, looking at the pictures. “It looks beautiful.”

“I want to see the shrine. I think that’s my number one thing I want to do,” Pauline said.

“Hey, your granddaughter is footing the bill now,” Kendell said. “So, we do what you want to do… Wait… Pauline, Itsukushima is ten hours from Tokyo!”

“I know,” Pauline said as though this was a minor detail. “Which is exactly why I had Felicity book us a train ride at Edogawabashi station. We’ll have two days here in Tokyo before our trip to Itsukushima.”

Kendell felt her blood pressure rising a bit at the thought of a ten-hour train ride. They already spent an incredible amount of time on planes. A forever train ride was just adding to the madness. But if that’s what Pauline wanted to do, Kendell was certainly not going to argue. “Are you sure you’re up for that?” Kendell asked.

“Are you kidding me?” Pauline asked with a smirk. “I’ll be ready to go by then. We’ll spend today relaxing here at the ryokan, take advantage of the hotel spa and in-house dining. Rest. Then we’ll have another full day so we can enjoy Tokyo and rest a bit more before our train ride. I’ll probably take a nap on the train as well, so I’m sure we’ll be able to handle the trip. Plus, it’s a scenic route. We’ll get to see some of the loveliest views Japan has to offer.”

Kendell nodded. “That would certainly be good for the blog.”

“But, of course!” Pauline exclaimed. “And that’s the important part, isn’t it? We’re business partners. I know I’m the crazy old lady who is just having a good time, but I want this thing to succeed as much as you do, I promise.”

“I’m glad to hear you say that, Pauline,” Kendell said. “Now, I’m pretty sure Dot needs to be taken out for a bathroom break. So, why don’t you go ahead and get some rest, and I’ll take her out for a walk?”

“That sounds good,” Pauline said, yawning. “After my nap, I intend to take advantage of the spa, so if I’m not here when you get back, that’s where I’ll be. Sweating out the toxins.”

Kendell nodded and picked up Dot. She hooked on her bedazzled leash and they headed outside. She walked Dot around the building. There wasn’t really any grass areas around for Dot to do her business, so Kendell had to bag the mess and trash it before she and Dot were able to continue on their walk. This area in Tokyo was a rather fun blend of highly technological culture and old-fashioned traditions. The contrast was so extreme that Kendell felt like every other building was an advanced architectural feat of genius while the other looked like it had been standing there since the dawn of time. She loved it.

Deciding that with the language barrier, it was probably best not to travel too far from the hotel just yet, so she and Dot headed back. Pauline was still asleep when they got back to their room, and once Kendell undid Dot’s leash, the little white poof-ball jumped onto the other futon and curled up right in the middle. “I see you’re going to be using my bed as a nap,” Kendell said with an amused huff. “Fine. I could use a bath.”

She realized only then that she had yet to even look at the bathroom, and she was blown away. As a bath and general pampering enthusiast, Kendell was thrilled to fill the wooden-looking tub with water. The tub was enormous, squared off, and very deep. She felt almost like sitting in a hot tub. Someone had carved an interesting word onto the rim of the tub that Kendell decided to try to decipher. Unable to type Japanese letters into her phone, it took her a bit of time, but eventually she realized the lettering was Malay and not Japanese, likely written by a Singapore resident of the hotel. It was the word Shiok.

From what Kendell was able to understand from some basic online research, the word was a sort of slang word that had found its way into the official Malay language. It meant being absorbed in a state of bliss, of time-wasting, or a moment of joyful intoxication. After only spending a few seconds in that lovely bathtub, Kendell could see how someone would have been prompted to carve such a word into the rim of the bath. She snapped a picture of the carving and determined that she had a title for her first blog post she was going to write since arriving in Japan. Because she and Pauline had plans for a full day of relaxing, she figured that this would give her plenty of time to create a post all about Sadachiyo and their amazing accommodations. Felicity had sent her a viewer’s summary, and as it turned out, there were a lot of blog readers right in the heart of Japan, so the hotel would probably appreciate her promoting them online a bit. But, for the time being, Kendell put her phone away and leaned her head back against the rim of the tub after pouring in some Epsom salts, enjoying herself a bit of shiok time.

3

Kendell awoke the following morning feeling quite relieved. While in Australia, she had obtained more bug bites during their time lost in the outback than she ever had in her life. But it seemed as though the Epsom salt bath had been just what she needed to curb the itching. “Finally,” she groaned, sitting upright in her low bed.

“Thank God,” Pauline said. She was sitting up in the other bed. “I’ve been up for an hour, and I can’t get up.”

“Oh, geez, Pauline!” Kendell jumped up and hurried over, helping her up out of the low bed. Pauline immediately darted for the bathroom. “You could have woken me up!” Kendell called.

“I have to pee!” the elderly woman shouted, closing the sliding door behind her.

Kendell laughed. Pauline had a way of putting her in good spirits first thing in the morning. When Pauline emerged from the bathroom, looking quite relieved and refreshed, she clapped her hands. “So, are you ready to explore Tokyo?”

“How about breakfast first before we start jumping around town?” Kendell suggested.

Pauline agreed, and the two of them got dressed and ready. One of the hotel employees guided them to where they could get breakfast. Pauline groaned a bit, needing help getting down low on the little pillows in front of the tables. “How do the Japanese elderly get up and down?” Pauline complained. “My back is still hurting from our little camping trip in Australia. This is ridiculous.”

“I’m sure they’re just used to it,” Kendell said, laughing a bit at Pauline’s expense.

Unsure of what to order but knowing they wanted an authentic feel, Pauline merely asked the server to prepare for them a traditional Japanese breakfast. Kendell was actually a bit surprised at some of the foods the Japanese considered to be breakfast. They were brought small portions of steamed rice, miso soup, a bit of grilled fish, tsukemono (which were more or less Japanese pickles), and something the server called natto that after looking it up online, Kendell learned were fermented soybeans. “I like it,” Kendell said as they ate. The breakfast gave them energy—good energy, not like the traditional American sugar-filled breakfasts.

By the time they had eaten, they were eager to embark on the day’s adventures. Kendell was sure to take plenty of pictures of herself, Pauline, and Dot in the rickshaw that took them into town. The gentleman who had pulled the rickshaw posed with them for some pictures, laughing a bit and pointing at Kendell’s hair. Kendell was fairly certain the man had been trying to tell her that he recognized her and was hoping to make an appearance on her blog, something that excited her very much.

Their first stop of the day was Meiji Jingū Shrine. Kendell and Pauline paused to take pictures of Dot standing under the torii at the entrance of the shrine’s complex. She was rather photogenic for a little dog. Once inside, Kendell learned that the lovely shrine was dedicated to an Emperor Meji and his wife, Empress Shōken.

They explored the outer precinct of the shrine first, observing the Meiji Memorial Picture Gallery with much enthusiasm. There were large murals dedicated to some of the events lived by the emperor. There was also, to Kendell’s surprise, various sports facilities located here, including the Tokyo Olympic Stadium from the 1956 Olympic games—something she hadn’t expected to be located in the midst of a former emperor’s shrine. Kendell saw a wedding taking place in the traditional Shinto style, and once the ceremony was over, she got permission from the bride and groom to take a few photos for her blog. The bride was apparently a fan of hers.

The interior portion of the complex hosted a museum full of Japanese royal treasures along with murals and a lovely garden. And, most incredibly, was the sacred camphor tree—a wishing tree where people from all over the world came to write their deepest desires on wooden blocks to hang from the large tree in hopes that their dreams would come true. It was gorgeous, and the wooden plaques looked dazzling hanging all around the tree. Unable to resist, Kendell and Pauline each obtained a plaque for themselves to write on and hang from the tree. They took pictures of each other hanging up the plaques for Kendell’s blog.

By the time they had finished walking nearly the entire shrine, the two of them hardly had the energy to make it through Odaiba, the high-tech entertainment hub at Tokyo Bay. They went straight for the large Ferris wheel simply so they had some time to sit and rest. They enjoyed a late lunch at one of the many waterfront sushi bars before at last deciding they did not have the energy to continue and headed back to Sadachiyo Ryokan and returned to their room, where they each collapsed on one of the futons.

“Well, I think our travels might finally be catching up to us,” Pauline said. “Don’t get me wrong, working full-time as a professional vacationer and traveler is the ideal way for me to spend my retirement, but I think I’m going to need the rest of the afternoon and a good bit of the morning to recuperate.”

“You don’t hear me arguing now, do you?” Kendell asked with a laugh, pulling out her laptop to go ahead and upload all the pictures she had taken that day. “We have a ten-hour train ride to look forward to tomorrow afternoon.”

Pauline cringed. “That’s right… Probably not one of my best ideas, but at least I’ll be able to take a long nap on that train…” Pauline was passed out before she had time to say much more, and even Dot curled up next to the woman and fell fast asleep.

Kendell smiled, a part of her glad that Pauline had conked out so easily. The woman needed the rest. Kendell got right to work on her blog. She happily let her readers know about all the fun she and Pauline had had in Tokyo so far and went ahead and sent some advanced photos to her sponsors, who paid to get insider information before everyone else. It was time to send a batch of pictures from previous blog posts to her specialty readers who had signed up to be a part of Dot’s Division. They would be receiving pictures that no one else got to see, a perk for paying to be a part of the private group. Dot’s Division was mostly made up of people like Felicity or news organizations who liked to piggyback off her stories.

Kendell started pulling out pictures for the Dot’s Division sponsors, a bit excited to send them first to Felicity so that she could format them into a good blast email for the high-level sponsors. Kendell soon found herself laughing and giggling at some of the pictures she had taken from their past adventures, and soon she was falling deep into the rabbit hole. She couldn’t look away.

It had started in London with the madness at the Globe Theater. Then they had wound up in Nairobi, Africa alongside Kendell’s friend Lil. Their third trip had been Hawaii, where she had met her friend Brandon’s brother and had solved the murder of his brother’s girlfriend. She found several pictures of the woman, Makani, before she had died. Kendell sighed. Makani had been a real sweetheart.

Kendell pulled up a picture from the flight leaving Hawaii headed to Texas. She noticed an odd-looking man in the background sitting a few rows back from Kendell and Pauline and Dot, who were all posing together for a picture on the plane. Kendell’s friend, Jesse, had been on the flight, and Kendell could recall asking the woman to take the photo for them. Squinting a bit, she could see the man in the background glaring at them. He was an Asian man in a suit, and Kendell smirked a bit at his disgruntled expression. He probably wasn’t happy there was a dog on the plane.

Kendell had not taken many pictures in Texas. Just a few of them on the ranch where they had gotten trapped. They had missed their flight to Peru thanks to that storm. She found another picture of she and Pauline together at a road stop. After Texas, they had gotten a car and driven toward Georgia. At the truck stop, Kendell noticed an Asian man sitting a few booths away from them. Was it the same man?

“That’s weird,” she said under her breath.

Next up, Mississippi. Sure enough, the man in the suit seemed to appear again in the background of one of the pictures. He had been at the concert she and Pauline had attended! Next, she spotted him in another photograph during Kendell and Pauline’s visit with Felicity. The man was at the coffee shop down the street from Felicity’s shop. And, once again, after some careful searching, she found a picture of the same man, this time in a bit more casual attire, in Paris. And, finally, she found a picture of him at the airport in Australia.

“What…what is this?” Kendell stammered. She went back and looked at older pictures from London and Nairobi, but she was unable to find any pictures of the man there. Whatever this was, it had started in Hawaii. Kendell reached over and tapped Pauline several times, waking her up. “Pauline! Pauline, look at this!” she exclaimed, showing the woman the pictures. “Look at this guy in the background… Here he is leaving Hawaii with us. At a diner just outside of Dallas… Again in Mississippi… There he is near your granddaughter’s shop… And Paris… Even Australia! Pauline, we’re being followed!”

Pauline gave Kendell this very doubtful look. “I think you’re being paranoid,” she said. “You can hardly see the background in these pictures. I don’t know if it’s the same man in all these pictures, Kendell.”

“He’s wearing the same suit in half of these,” Kendell said.

Pauline shook her head. “I think you are being a bit paranoid, dear. I don’t think that’s the same man at all. How can you even tell? You can’t even really see his face in this one, and that one right there, he’s not in the same suit. He’s in blue jeans there.”

“He can change clothes, Pauline,” Kendell argued. “That’s the same man, I’m telling you! Someone has been following us since Hawaii… Maybe even earlier, and I just didn’t manage to snap an accidental picture of him before then.”

“I don’t know,” Pauline said again. “You would think we would have noticed an Asian man in a business suit following us around that closely.”

“But what if we didn’t?” Kendell retorted.

“Why would someone be following us, anyway?” Pauline asked. “That hardly makes any sense at all.”

“Yes, because you and I made nothing but friends and good memories during our trips,” Kendell said a bit sarcastically. “We’ve made some enemies, Pauline. Or have you forgotten what all has happened on our trips?”

“I haven’t forgotten,” Pauline said. “I just think you are being a little paranoid is all.”

Kendell stared at the pictures. She wasn’t so sure. Sure, the pictures were a bit blurry and the man’s face was being blocked in some of the photographs, but it really did look like the same man to her, and that put her on edge, making it very difficult to get some restful sleep that night.

4

It finally came time for the ten-hour train ride to Itsukushima, a trip Kendell had been dreading. Kendell soon found out that Pauline had been slightly misleading about the journey as there was evidently no direct path from Tokyo to Itsukushima. First, they took a train to Hiroshima, then to Miyajimaguchi. Perhaps if it had been one long ride, Kendell could have found herself falling asleep, but because of the changing of trains, she became a bit restless. The day seemed to drag on, and while the views from the windows of the train were spectacular, Kendell was beginning to feel bored and drowsy. Thankfully, she had brought her laptop with her and was able to do a bit of work on her blog. She had recently added an option for comments, so she was taking the time to respond to some of her fans. People seemed to get really excited when she responded to their comments directly, so since she seemed to have plenty of time jumping between trains, she took this opportunity to do so.

When the train finally arrived in Miyajimaguchi, Kendell had a new burst of energy. She and Pauline hopped off the train, and Kendell stretched her legs before taking Dot from Pauline to give the dog a chance to do her business. Pauline walked around the train station, taking pictures of things she found interesting. Pauline seemed to have dubbed herself the blog’s official photographer as she had snatched Kendell’s camera from her during the train ride.

“Okay, so how far are we from the Itsukushima Shrine?” Kendell asked. “Can we get there by rickshaw?”

“Oh, heavens no,” Pauline said, putting Dot in her carrier and throwing it over her shoulder. “We have to take a car ferry to Miyashima, and then we can walk from there.”

Kendell gritted her teeth and forced on a smile. Over half the day had been spent traveling. She was exhausted, but Pauline seemed to be bursting with energy. How does she do it, Kendell wondered, trying hard not to yawn. Pauline was up there in age, yet she acted like she had all the youth and energy in the world most days. Pauline paid for them to take a ferry to Miyashima Island. It was actually a very pleasant boat ride, and Kendell felt like she was able to get a little bit of rest here compared to the busy, bustling train.

At last, they arrived at Miyashima, and Kendell was geared up and ready to visit this shrine Pauline had been droning on and on about since they had first flown to Japan. Pauline had with her a handy English to Japanese translator that she insisted would help them on their journey. Kendell found, much to her displeasure, that Pauline’s attempts at communicating in Japanese were quite futile. “Tetsudatte itadakemasu ka?” Pauline asked one gentleman who seemed willing to assist. “Watashinonamaeha…” Pauline said this while staring into the translation guide. “Ooh, did I even say that right… Watashinonamaeha Pauline.”

The man smirked. “Pauline,” he said. “Amerikahito?”

Kendell couldn’t help herself. She pulled out her phone and videotaped this interaction of Pauline as she fumbled through the translation book trying to figure out what Amerikahito meant, though Kendell was fairly certain the man was just asking if she was an American.

“Ooh, American,” Pauline said excitedly. “Hay-ya.”

The man stared at her. “Hai?” he asked, and Pauline looked at her book again before responding, “Hai!”

Kendell smirked, trying to hold in a laugh. The conversation went back and forth like this for a while, Pauline looking up every single word she wanted to say and trying to do a direct translation. The man was all-smiles, clearly very entertained by Pauline’s poor attempts at communication. Kendell realized their conversation had drifted far from directions—the woman was having fun with her book. “Let’s see…gyanburu?” Pauline said with little confidence.

“Ah!” the man said and started to wave them on, walking.

“Shrine?” Pauline asked the man, unable to find the translation in her book.

“Gyanburu,” he said. “Yukō.”

Kendell followed Pauline, since she seemed confident that the man was going to show them how to get to the shrine. “What did you say to him?” Kendell asked.

“It’s this word the waitress at the hotel taught me. It’s an expression that means something like do your best or toughing it out… I was trying to tell him I was trying my best with the translation,” she said.

Kendell thought for a moment, trying to recall what conversation with the server at the hotel they had had in which Pauline had apparently learned this word. “Pauline, did you mean ganbaru?”

“Isn’t that what I said?” Pauline asked as the man brought them to this rather sketchy-looking building. “Ganbaru?”

“No, you said gyanburu,” Kendell said as the man happily opened the door for them. Kendell took the book from Pauline to look up what gyanburu meant.

“Ooh! Cards!” Pauline exclaimed, hurrying into the building and suddenly finding herself at a card table with a bunch of men in suits.

“Gyanburu…gambling…” Kendell said with an eye-roll. “Pauline!”

The man who had brought them there was now seated by Pauline at the card tables, laughing at the old woman and talking to his friends at the table about her. They all seemed incredibly amused by the little old white woman with the fluffy dog hanging at her side. Kendell shook her head. Of course, Pauline’s mispronunciation would bring them into the middle of what looked like a very sketchy, potentially illegal, casino. “Pauline,” Kendell muttered as she approached the table. “Why don’t you ask your friend where the shrine is so we can leave?”

“Leave! I’m about to learn a new card game,” Pauline said, waving Kendell off.

Kendell tried to smile at some of the men, covered head to toe in tattoos, as they laughed and joked around with the gentleman who had brought them there. “Sit,” one of the men at the table told Kendell, pulling her up a chair. “New game. Teach.”

Kendell sat down, glaring at Pauline for a moment before smiling. The men were being awfully hospitable, she supposed, so she decided not to judge too quickly. The man who brought them there ordered shots of some sort, and they were passed around. “Yakuza!” he called, and they all repeated the phrase, as did Pauline, before they drank, making all the men laugh.

The language barrier made learning this card game very difficult, but Pauline seemed to catch on quickly. The man who had brought them there even paid Pauline’s starting bid so she could play. Kendell, curious about what they had just been toasting to, looked up the word Yakuza on her phone rather than join in on the game. Her eyes widened as she discovered they had just toasted to a gang, the Yakuza. “Crap,” she said under her breath.

She stood up slowly, looking for a bathroom where she could calm herself down. These people were being very nice, so she didn’t want to appear nervous. On her way to what appeared to be a bathroom, she collided with a woman. “Sorry!” Kendell exclaimed.

The woman smiled. “Can I touch your hair?” she asked.

“Uh…” Kendell muttered, surprised at such a question. “Sure?”

The woman reached out and giggled a bit as she did so. “I’ve never seen red hair except in pictures. This town is very touristy, but I don’t get out much.”

Kendell smiled at the heavily-tattooed woman. “Well, I’m glad you like it,” she said.

“I am Haruyo,” she said, looking over at Pauline, who was attempting to communicate with her fellow gamblers using her translator book. “We don’t usually get a lot of tourists in here… Most locals tend to hide out as well, but I see my husband has made friends with your grandmother?”

“She’s just a friend,” Kendell said with a laugh. “That’s your husband?”

“Yes,” Haruyo said proudly. “Otōto is his name. He’s a shateigashira. I’m so proud of him.” She smiled perkily, looking longingly toward the man.

“What is shateigashira?” Kendell asked, hoping she wasn’t butchering the pronunciation.

Haruyo thought for a moment, trying her best to find the most appropriate English words to use. “Well, being shateigashira is like being a manager. He runs the local group.”

Kendell looked over to see the man dealing the cards, laughing at something Pauline had said as Otōto nearly spit his drink out. “I don’t mean to sound…flustered, but am I correct that the Yakuza is some sort of… I don’t know how to say this…”

“Gang?” Haruyo asked. “I suppose that’s how our government would categorize us.” She winked a bit as she said this. “The Yakuza are good people, I assure you. They are my family. You are Kendell McDonald, am I correct in that assumption?”

“You know me?”

“I read your blog,” she said, giggling. “I thought I recognized you and your friend…hard to miss between the red hair and the white purse dog, yes?”

Kendell laughed. “Yes, I suppose you’re right. We stick out.”

“Here especially,” Haruyo said and then whispered, “I bought a journal from your blog’s online shop. Do you think I could get you all to sign it?”

Kendell smiled. “Did you really?”

Haruyo nodded. “Hold on. It’s in the back, let me go get it!” She ran off, and Kendell found that she was significantly more relaxed than she had been when they had first arrived. Haruyo was a sweetheart, and she came hurrying back holding a journal with a picture of Dot on the cover.

This was the first time Kendell had actually seen any of the merchandise that Felicity had been selling on the blog. She had seen pictures, of course, but not the physical thing. Kendell signed the cover for Haruyo, and then Haruyo scurried over, politely interrupting Pauline so that she could sign the cover as well. Even Dot’s footprint, upon Pauline’s suggestion, was dipped on a stamp Haruyo managed to find so that she could autograph the cover. Haruyo spoke with the men at the table in Japanese for a moment, explaining who Pauline and Kendell were. They found this to be very exciting and encouraged them both to stay longer to play some more.

“Do you mind?” Pauline asked Kendell. “I think I’m finally getting to understand the game.”

Kendell grinned. “If you’re having fun, let’s stay. I don’t see why not.”

Kendell wound up sitting at the bar with Haruyo, educating herself on the Yakuza’s hierarchy. Haruyo’s husband Otōto was shateigashira, which meant that he was the most local mob boss. The gentleman dealing the cards was a man named Futoshi, a fellow shateigashira for a nearby regional gang who worked under the same wakagashira, the next up in the hierarchy. The wakagashira, slightly older than the young man Haruyo was married to, was seated on the other side of Pauline. The man, Kendell learned, was named Sho. Sho, being the wakagashira, oversaw a number of shateigashira like Haruyo’s husband Otōto and the dealer Futoshi.

“So above the average member, you got the shateigashira,” Kendell said to Haruyo, making sure she understood. “Next up the ladder is the wakagashira, and your husband’s wakagashira is Sho, the gentleman trying to get Pauline to play another round?”

Haruyo laughed. “Yes, Sho is a good man. He trained my husband.”

“So, who is next up the ladder above the wakagashiras?” Kendell asked.

“The wakagashira answers to the saikō-komon, the senior advisors to the leader of all the Yakuza, the kumicho,” Haruyo explained.

“Are there any saikō-komon here?” Kendell asked.

“Today, yes,” Haruyo said, looking around and nodding toward a much older man seated at another table. “That’s Mr. Yuto. He’s not normally in here, but I think he set up a meeting with the wakagashira, Sho, to talk about how Otōto and Futoshi have been doing with their positions as shateigashira. I do hope Sho has good things to say to Mr. Yuto.”

“I’m sure he will,” Kendell said, though truthfully, she had no idea. She had only just met these people, but Haruyo was very friendly.

As Kendell was enjoying their conversation, she spotted something in the reflection of the mirror hanging behind the bar. Spinning around, she locked eyes with a particular man in a suit.

The man she had seen in her pictures. She had no doubt that it was the same man, and he had followed them here.

5

Kendell turned to face Haruyo, her heart pounding. “That man in the corner, who is he?” Kendell asked.

By the time Haruyo turned in her chair to look, the man had moved. “What man?” she asked.

Kendell spun to look as well, and the man from the pictures was gone. “He was just… He was just right there.” She turned back to Haruyo. “Someone has been following Pauling and I since Hawaii.”

“Since Hawaii?” Haruyo asked, and she seemed to be thinking for a moment like she was concentrating on what Kendell had been writing about in her blog. “You mean to tell me someone followed you from Hawaii to the mainland, across the state lines, to Paris, to Australia, and is now here in Japan?”

“I don’t know where he went,” Kendell said nervously, “but I swear it was the same man. I didn’t realize we were being followed until the other day when I was looking through some old photographs from some of our trips, and I saw him in the background of a lot of pictures. He was all over the place. He was watching us in all of them. I swear it was the same man.”

Haruyo looked around. “Not any white men here,” she said. “Wait, is he white?”

“Asian man,” Kendell said. “Sorry, I’m not particularly keen on determining specific ethnicities.”

“Don’t apologize. Not like I could tell you what country you originate from…though with the red hair, I suspect you’re probably Celtic,” Haruyo said.

“Gaelic, actually,” Kendell said.

“See?” Haruyo laughed. “But…you are certain it was an Asian man?”

“I assumed Japanese when I first noticed him in the pictures, but I don’t know,” Kendell said. “But he’s definitely been following us, and I swear I just saw him in here, but I don’t know where he went. I think I should try to get Pauline out of here. This whole thing is making me nervous. I’m wondering if I might just be paranoid, but I’d rather be paranoid than in danger, you know?”

“Of course,” Haruyo said, looking around. “Though the only people here other than you and your friend are Yakuza. Not exactly a gambling hall that is open to the public. Unless the man who is following you was Yakuza, which I seriously doubt, then I do not believe you are in danger. Looks like my husband and his friends really like Pauline. We respect our kōrei-sha here. None of them would let anyone hurt that nice woman, so as odd as it sounds, if someone really is following you all, you are probably safest here with the Yakuza.”

Kendell smiled. “I suppose that’s reassuring,” she said. “You all do seem very nice. Honestly, I was a little nervous when we first got here.”

She laughed. “I imagine so. Is it the tattoos?” she asked, showing off her arm. “They are very important to the Yakuza culture.”

“Culture?” Kendell wondered aloud. “I thought…you said Yakuza was basically like the Japanese mob, right?”

“It’s more than that,” she said, laughing. “Oh, you have a lot to learn. Maybe you can talk about the Yakuza on your blog?”

“You want me to talk about Yakuza on my blog?” Kendell asked.

“Why not?” Haruyo replied. “I enjoy the blog. You do a wonderful job, and personally, I think good publicity would be good for Yakuza.”

Kendell agreed to think about it, but she wanted to hear from someone a little higher ranking in Yakuza before she started taking pictures of members and putting it on her blog. The last thing she wanted to do was upset Japanese mobsters. She stood up to head toward Pauline to remind her that they were wanting to visit the shrine when the lights in the building suddenly went out. There were a few surprised screams, mostly in Japanese. “What’s going on?” Kendell asked, reaching out for Haruyo.

“Someone is checking the breaker,” she assured Kendell. “Stay put.”

A few minutes ticked by, and the lights came back on. A few men clapped, others laughed. Haruyo, on the other hand, screamed. She released Kendell, darting toward the table where Pauline and the card players had all been sitting. Kendell could see Otōto face-down on the table, a large sword sticking out of his back. Pauline was fanning herself in shock, muttering, “Gracious! Gracious!”

Kendell hurried over as well, and she and Haruyo sat the man up. Haruyo was in hysterics, and though Kendell couldn’t understand what the men were saying to her exactly, she was fairly certain they were asking her to get Haruyo away. She encouraged the woman to step back while the men all frantically surrounded Otōto to check to see if he was still alive, but it was very clear that he was not. The sword had gone straight through his back. “What on earth!” Pauline finally worked up enough sense to get up from the table, and she came over to Kendell and Haruyo, who had found themselves a spot in a corner where Haruyo was crying her eyes out.

“He’s her husband,” Kendell explained.

Pauline looked as though she was experiencing sympathy pain, because her eyes welled up with tears. “You poor thing! You poor thing!” she said. “Sit down, dear. Sit, sit!” Pauline insisted, guiding her to the nearest table. Pauline scooped Dot out of her purse and handed her to Haruyo who, at first, seemed confused by this gesture, but after hugging the little dog, it seemed clear what Pauline was doing. Dot cuddled up with Haruyo, and Haruyo hugged the little dog close while she cried. Dot gave her kisses, and this actually seemed to calm Haruyo down.

“Good call,” Kendell said to Pauline.

Eventually, Otōto was removed from the room by members of the Yakuza, and the wakagashira came over to Haruyo, kneeling in front of her and putting his hand on her knee. The man, Sho, spoke to her calmly and reassuringly in Japanese for several minutes before pointing to Pauline and Kendell. Kendell assumed he wanted to know who these strangers were exactly that her husband had brought into their midst right before being killed. Haruyo, from what Kendell could gather, was vouching for them. He seemed interested in what Haruyo had to say, and after a moment, he wandered back to the group of men talking around the card table.

“What was he saying?” Kendell asked.

Haruyo wiped her eyes. “The sword came off the wall,” she said, pointing toward a mantle on the far side of the room where a group of samurai swords were hung up as decorative pieces. One was clearly missing, evident by the large space between two of the ones still hanging horizontally on the wall. “Someone must have grabbed it while the power was out to hurt my husband.”

“We’re so sorry, Haruyo,” Kendell said. “Are you going to be all right?”

“I have a little one at home,” she said, wiping her eyes. “Sho told me not to worry about our child. They’ll make sure to take care of us.”

Pauline nodded approvingly. “What a good man, that Sho,” she said.

“Sho told me that he is very upset. That Otōto was his favorite shateigashira,” Haruyo explained. “He was. Sho was like an older brother to my Otōto. Sho called me little sister.”

“How sweet,” Pauline said, pulling herself up a chair to sit by Haruyo and gently pat her hand that wasn’t stroking Dot’s fur. “I’m so sorry, sweetheart. This is just dreadful.”

“Sho asked about you two,” she said. “You are strangers here. He wanted to make sure you two could be trusted not to say anything.”

“What do you mean?” Kendell asked.

“Yakuza handle their own investigations when things like this happen,” she said. “We do not want you to go to the Japanese authorities…not that they would do anything if you did. They know we have our own authorities.”

They really are a mob, Kendell thought. “What did you say when he asked you this?”

“I told them that you would not say anything. That you understand our culture is different,” she said. “You know not to, yes?”

“Whatever you need, Haruyo,” Pauline decided for them.

“I just can’t believe this. Why would someone hurt my Otōto? He was a good man. He did so much for our community,” Haruyo said. “I mean, he’s killed a few men before, but that is the business, you see.”

Kendell and Pauline exchanged nervous glances. “So, your husband had some enemies?” Kendell asked.

“I mean, he is Yakuza,” she said. “We all have enemies, Kendell. This whole building is very illegal. But my husband was a good man. He did so much good. Good the government couldn’t do.”

“Is it possible some of the men your husband has killed in the past might have loved ones that are enacting revenge?” Pauline suggested.

Haruyo shrugged. “I don’t think so. Who would be dumb enough to go after Yakuza?”

Kendell didn’t know enough about the Yakuza to comment, but she was beginning to realize very quickly that she and Pauline had most certainly come to the wrong part of town on their journey to the shrine. “Perhaps we should let you be with your Yakuza family right now,” Kendell said, and she could see Pauline nodding along quickly to this idea. “Haruyo, I’m very sorry for what happened. I do hope your Yakuza friends can help you find out what happened to your husband.”

“Oh…yes…” she said, slowly and unwillingly handing Dot back over to Pauline. She wiped her eyes. “Thank you for letting me hold the little puppy… she is very sweet.” Haruyo pet the dog on the top of the head, smiling sadly at her. “Good girl, Dot. It was so nice meeting you all…” The woman’s eyes started to swell up again.

Pauline apparently couldn’t help herself. “Well… If you want to hold her a few more minutes, if it will help, we can stay for a bit.”

Kendell slowly sunk back into her seat, realizing that they weren’t going anywhere any time soon. The last thing she wanted to do was insult these people by darting out after one of their gang leaders were killed. She certainly didn’t want to give them reason to think that they were behind it. But, at the same time, she was very eager to get out of there as quickly as possible. There was this uncomfortable feeling in the pit of her stomach that told her this was going to be far too dangerous to get themselves involved in.

Several more minutes went by, and eventually, Sho sent a man over to speak to Haruyo. Sho wanted the man to take Haruyo home to get her out of the bar and away from the scene of her husband’s murder. The woman returned Dot to Pauline once again and followed her escort willingly. Thankful, Kendell and Pauline slowly started to make their way toward the door. “Hold on!” Sho called after them in a painfully thick accent. “Come here, Americans.”

6

Kendell and Pauline were escorted to an office-like room within the building and told to wait there. Two chairs were brought out for them, and they sat facing a large oak desk, then they were left alone in the room. “I don’t like this,” Kendell said, her foot tapping nervously against the blood-red carpet of the dimly-lit room. “We definitely should not have come in here.”

“They all seemed so friendly,” Pauline said.

“I mean, sure, but it was so obvious we had found ourselves in the middle of some gang meeting hall, and we actually were stupid enough to stay,” Kendell said, shaking her head. “As if our track records aren’t bad enough to where we should have known better. We have the worst luck, I’m telling you.”

“Think of it this way… It will make a great story for your blog,” Pauline said as though she honestly was trying to sound helpful.

“Forget about the blog! Pauline, what if they kill us?” Kendell exclaimed.

“Whatever for?” Pauline asked. “Not like we did anything.”

“They don’t know that,” Kendell said. “We are the strangers who were hanging around when one of their own were killed. With a samurai sword of all things! How cliché is that?”

“I think you are just getting nervous for no reason,” Pauline said. “You heard Haruyo. She said they handle their own investigations. They probably just don’t want us to leave until they interview us since we are possible witnesses, and since most of them don’t speak English, they’re probably trying to figure out the best way to communicate with us before they send us on our merry way. Stop being so paranoid.”

Kendell rolled her eyes. Sometimes Pauline’s glass half-full sort of mindset was too much for her. She was almost too positive. Kendell found herself looking around the room, remaining in her chair for fear of being caught snooping. There were old paintings on the walls and old-style weapons galore used as décor. A few photographs lined the desk, mostly of heavily-tattooed men. Eventually, the door opened, and Sho entered along with the other shateigashira Futoshi and the saikō-komon, Mr. Yuto.

Kendell tried to remember what Haruyo had said about the hierarchy of the gang. She knew her husband Otōto and Futoshi were both shateigashira, which meant that they each led their own local gangs. They both answered to the wakagashira who oversaw all the gang leaders in his region, and that was Sho. Sho answered to Mr. Yuto, the saikō-komon—second in command behind the leader of the entire crime syndicate whom Kendell had not yet had the pleasure (or displeasure) of meeting.

The three men—Futoshi, Sho, and Mr. Yuto—all stared at them. Mr. Yuto cleared his throat. “You are…investigators?” he asked.

“Well, not really,” Pauline said. “We’re blog writers.”

Mr. Yuto translated Pauline’s response to Sho before turning back to them. “But…you have solved many…crimes before?” Mr. Yuto asked. “Haruyo told Sho much about you. She reads your…blog…”

Kendell blushed. “We have solved some crimes before, yes, but we’re certainly not private investigators or anything like that.”

“You have a good track record,” Mr. Yuto said before translating again for Sho.

“I suppose you could say that,” Kendell said.

Sho nodded along and spoke to Mr. Yuto and Futoshi for a moment. This time, Futoshi spoke, though his English was very broken. “You. Are. Hired,” he said, in single word fragments.

Kendell stared blankly at Futoshi for a moment. “Pardon?” she asked.

Mr. Yuto straightened up his suit before speaking again to Sho in Japanese. The three men bowed to one another before Mr. Yuto spoke to Kendell and Pauline. “Sho wants to hire you,” Mr. Yuto said. “His favorite shateigashira is dead, and he is upset. I am letting him handle this how he sees fit. Now, I must return to headquarters.” With that, Mr. Yuto headed out.

Kendell and Pauline stared at one another. What were they supposed to do? Tell them no? “Are you sure you want to hire us?” Kendell asked. “Like I said, we’re not really detectives. We just write a travel blog, and we’ve gotten in trouble a few times and managed to get ourselves out…and we’ve only worked small homicide cases. Nothing high profile like this before.”

Futoshi had his phone open, and he turned it around to show Kendell what he had been reading. It was her blog article about the incident in Paris where they had stopped a coup against the Russian government with a headquarters based in France. “High…profile?” Futoshi smirked, and Kendell realized Futoshi knew good and well that they were trying to weasel their way out of working with Yakuza.

“Yes, I suppose that one was high profile, but that was mostly luck,” Kendell said, and Sho gave Futoshi a nudge, and Futoshi struggled to translate Kendell’s words exactly for the man.

Sho looked at Kendell and Pauline with a disgruntled look, but his face softened after a moment. “You interview,” he insisted. “Me first?”

Pauline shrugged. “I suppose that’s usually how we start, isn’t it? I’m guessing you, Futoshi, are going to translate?”

Futoshi nodded. So far, this so-called investigation seemed to be off to a rocky start. They asked a few questions, and Futoshi struggled with each and every translation. “Sho say Otōto is like little brother,” Futoshi began. “His heart, it is broken. He very sad. Want you to…find who did this.”

“Of course, we will try,” Kendell said.

Sho spoke for a moment. Futoshi continued. “No try. You do it,” he said firmly.

Dot growled up at Futoshi and Sho and let out a slight yelp. Sho smirked at the little dog and showed his teeth to the dog, who jumped back into Pauline’s purse as though he had been a mountain lion snarling at her rather than just a man making an unpleasant face. Kendell and Pauline had worked a number of cases before, but this was very new territory for them. They knew very little about Japanese culture. They certainly knew nothing about the Yakuza. And the language barrier was already presenting itself as a problem. And, it was clear that these men were not exactly giving them the option to say no to being hired.

Sho, after a moment of this back and forth, sighed. He pulled up a chair and sat it in front of the two of them. Kendell realized now that the man was indeed very sad, just like Futoshi had translated. He reached into his pocket, pulling out a wallet. He pulled an old, slightly-wrinkled picture from the wallet to show them. It was a photograph of a man and a young boy. The young man in the photograph was obviously Sho. He was covered in tattoos as he was now, and he was wearing a sleeveless shirt to show off his tattoo sleeve. Kendell guessed he was probably around twenty in the picture. “I was…shateigashira…” he said.

“This is before you became wakagashira?” Kendell asked.

“Yes,” he said, nodding. He pointed at the young boy in the picture, who was standing and smiling brightly at the camera. The boy, probably twelve or so, already had a few tattoos on his arms. The two of them looked very happy in the picture. “Otōto,” he said.

Kendell’s shoulders slumped. Sho was so very upset, and he was doing his best to hide it. “You two were very close?” she asked, and Futoshi translated for her.

“Yes,” Sho said and handed the picture to Kendell and Pauline to look at. “Please,” Sho said. “Help?”

Kendell and Pauline exchanged nervous glances once again. “We will help you,” Pauline said.

“Good,” Sho said and spoke to Futoshi for a moment. Whatever he was saying, Futoshi did not seem too pleased and seemed to argue with Sho, but Sho shot him down quick with what Kendell assumed to be some sort of threat. Futoshi bowed his head politely to Sho.

Futoshi turned to Kendell. “I am…to be…escort…” he said. “I translate. For you.”

“Oh, good,” Pauline said, then whispered to Kendell, “Just what I wanted. A personal escort! This will make our trip much more fun.”

“I’m pretty sure he’s not here to be our tour guide, Pauline,” Kendell said, resisting the urge to pop the woman in the side. “He’s here to babysit us to make sure we do the job we’ve been hired to do.”

“Yes, I am,” Futoshi said firmly.

“Great,” Pauline said.

Sho rose from his seat, taking the picture with him before putting it in his pocket. He thanked Kendell and Pauline before leaving to head back down into the gambling hall, leaving the women alone with Futoshi. “So, what can you tell us, Futoshi?” Kendell asked.

“About?”

“About Otōto,” Kendell began. “Did he have any enemies?”

“He is Yakuza,” Futoshi said. “He had many enemies.”

“Looks like we’re going to need a list,” Pauline said, and Futoshi nodded.

He sat down at the desk, and he seemed uncomfortable to do so. “This… Otōto’s desk. This his gambling hall,” Futoshi explained his discomfort. He shook it off before reaching into the desk and pulling out some paper. He seemed to be the type who needed to write to help himself think. He started naming off people and some of the crimes that Otōto had committed on behalf of Yakuza, talking to himself mostly about family members of people Otōto had had to deal with in the past. “Not stupid enough,” Futoshi said. “To go after Otōto…in his own gambling hall.”

“How about we talk about people who were actually here?” Kendell suggested. “Let’s start with you. How do you know Otōto?”

“Friend,” Futoshi said. “In same gang when boys. Both became shateigashira under Sho when his gang grew. Split into different…regiments.”

“So you two became shateigashira around the same time?” Kendell asked.

“Yes,” Futoshi said. “Otōto good at job. Well respected by Sho. His gang look up to him. Sho loves Otōto. Loves his gambling hall. Even Mr. Yuto loves Otōto gambling hall. He build this himself.”

“He built this building?” Kendell asked. “That is very impressive.”

Futoshi nodded. They continued their interview with Futoshi for a bit longer, but he did not seem to be able to give them too much information about who might want to hurt Otōto—at least not about anyone present at the gambling hall. Everyone there, he claimed, would not have had any motive. Kendell wasn’t so sure. She was certain that someone within the gang would have had to kill Otōto—who else would have been able to get access to him? The only non-gang members present at the time of the murder had been Kendell and Pauline. Unless someone had snuck in when the lights were out, which was doubtful, Kendell didn’t see another option. Futoshi strongly doubted a fellow Yakuza would have hurt Otōto, though.

“I think we need to take a different approach,” Pauline said. “Maybe we should look around. See if we can find any clues that might lead us in the right direction?”

“Good idea,” Kendell agreed, then looked to Futoshi. “Futoshi, is it all right if Pauline and I look around the gambling hall? See if we can find anything that might tell us who killed Otōto?”

“Yes,” Futoshi said. “I go with you.”

The three of them exited the room and headed back downstairs to the main room of the building that was now mostly cleared out. People didn’t seem to be in much of a mood to gamble anymore after what had happened. They began their search at the table where Otōto had been seated. The building was quite large, so Kendell imagined that they were going to be there for a while.

7

Kendell and Pauline searched every inch of the table where Otōto had been seated. As evidence went, there wasn’t much beyond some obvious stains from his bloody injury. Kendell even got down on her hands and knees and crawled around the table hoping to find something that would impress Futoshi, since the man made her very nervous. He was constantly staring at them with this judgmental gaze, expecting them to come back to him with some sort of huge breakthrough every few minutes, but they had only just begun. Pauline walked around and looked at the deck of cards and around the top of the table, but there was nothing on her end either.

Kendell got off the floor and turned to Futoshi. “Futoshi, can you tell us who all was seated here at the table with Otōto?”

Futoshi nodded and pointed to the chair on the end. “Sho,” he began and pointed at the next chair. “Pauline.” He pointed at the next one. “Otōto. Asahi. Tadeas.”

“Okay, where are Asahi and Tadeas?” Kendell asked.

Futoshi nodded toward one of the few remaining patrons in the gambling hall. Two young men were speaking nervously in a corner to one of the female servers, likely about what had taken place. Kendell and Pauline approached them, and both men nodded approvingly at Pauline, who had made for a fun gambling buddy earlier before the unfortunate death of their comrade. “Asahi and Tadeas?” Kendell asked. “Do either of you speak English?”

“I do,” Asahi said. “Tadeas does not know English, but I can translate. What can I do for you, Ms. McDonald?”

“I want to know how you knew Otōto,” Kendell began. “The wakagashira hired us to help find out what happened.”

Asahi nodded. “Otōto brought me in when I was a boy. Same with Tadeas. Tadeas is my brother. We were living in an alley when Otōto found us and invited us to join Yakuza. He gave us a home. Jobs. Family.” Tadeas spoke for a moment with his older brother, then Asahi translated. “My brother says to let us know who did this when you find out. We will handle him.”

Kendell cringed. “I’m sure the wakagashira is going to want to know first.”

Asahi seemed to agree with this sentiment. “Perhaps Tadeas and I should speak to him ourselves. I want first dibs at the guilty.”

Kendell backed away uncomfortably after thanking them for their help. Pauline, however, continued chatting away with Asahi and Tadeas. Kendell walked over to the bar, where she began looking around for anything that looked out of place. Nothing really seemed to stand out to her. There was a picture of Otōto and his wife behind the bar out in front of the building when it had likely seen better days. The woman looked so happy, and Kendell felt sad for her. She was pregnant in the picture, and Kendell recalled what she had said about having a little one at home. This put a sort of energy in Kendell. She wanted to find Otōto’s killer. The man had been a father, after all, despite whatever his affiliations had been.

Pauline met Kendell in the middle of the room, both looking a bit defeated. “They tell you anything more than they told me?” Kendell asked.

“Not particularly,” Pauline said. “We got a bit distracted talking about card games.”

“Honestly, Pauline.” Kendell shook her head. “Okay, let’s you and me talk. You were sitting right next to the victim. What can you remember?”

Pauline shrugged. “Not much. We were all laughing and talking about cards. Futoshi and Asahi were doing most of the translating as Sho didn’t seem to know much English, and Otōto and Tadeas didn’t know any. Frankly, I’m pretty sure they were just laughing about my card playing. They seemed to find me very interesting especially after Otōto’s wife had me sign that journal of hers.”

“Okay, were they all at the table the whole time?” Kendell asked.

“Hmm… I know Tadaes went to the bathroom at one point, but he came back. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary there… Oh! Otōto did get up at one point!” Pauline exclaimed.

“Did he go to the bathroom?” Kendell asked. “Close your eyes a second. Concentrate. Did you notice anything?”

Pauline did as she was told and thought long and hard. When she opened her eyes, she nodded. “I did, actually. He left wearing a suit jacket and returned without it.”

“Okay, let’s see if he left it in the bathroom,” Kendell said, but once there, they found that there was no jacket. They were quick to depart from the restroom. “Do you remember anything in their conversation before Otōto got up to leave?”

Pauline thought for a moment. “Well, they were speaking in Japanese…something about…hamaki?”

Kendell borrowed Pauline’s translator booklet. “Hamaki… Cigar?” Kendell asked.

“Oh! You know what, he did come back smelling a little funny,” Pauline said. “Maybe he went outside to smoke?”

Futoshi had wandered back over to them, looking a bit bored. “Find?” he asked.

“Not yet,” Kendell said. “Futoshi, do you know where Otōto would have gone for a smoke break?”

“Smoke?” Futoshi asked, then nodded. “In garden.”

They followed him down a back hallway. “We should check some of these rooms on our way back in,” Kendell said.

One door was cracked open, and when she reached toward it to see if there was anything inside, Futoshi stopped her. “Not. That. Room,” he said firmly, and she obeyed.

Kendell and Pauline headed out back where they found themselves in the midst of what had to be Otōto’s personal zen garden. There was a small metal bench and tea table set up at the edge of the garden, and sure enough, there was a suit jacket hanging on the back of the chair where Otōto must have left it. On top of the tea table was a tea set, a half-empty cup of tea, and a partially-smoked cigar. “Who had access out this way?” Kendell asked.

Futoshi shrugged. “Door unlocked. But it is Otōto’s personal rock garden.”

“Anyone ever come out here with him?” Pauline asked while Kendell picked up the recognizable jacket.

“Yes. Other shateigashira. Like me. Sho,” he said. “Sometimes he invite favorite kyodai. Never see shatei.”

“Kyodai? Shatei?” Pauline asked.

“Kyodai—older brother. Shatei—little brother. Part of Yakuza ranking under shateigashira,” Futoshi said.

Kendell nodded as though she understood but trying to wrap her head around all of these classifications of gang members was giving her a headache. Futoshi wound up sitting at the table, pulling out a cigarette, and smoking while Kendell and Pauline looked through Otōto’s jacket. Inside they found a picture of a young boy and an older man with a dragon tattoo. Looking up toward Futoshi, who was distracted with his cigarette, the women decided not to share this bit of evidence with him. Futoshi made them a bit nervous, and he seemed very annoyed that he had been tasked with this job of babysitting them.

“Do you know who they are?” Pauline asked. “The little boy looks familiar.”

“I don’t know…and where would you have seen that little boy?” Kendell asked.

“I don’t know,” Pauline said. “I’m just saying that he looks familiar.”

“I don’t recognize the man,” Kendell said. “I bet Haruyo would be able to tell us more about this picture.”

“I agree,” Pauline said, glancing back at Futoshi, who was still staring out at the zen garden, smoking his cigarette.

Kendell turned the old photograph over. “Whoa, look here. What’s this?”

There was some Japanese lettering scribbled on the back. It took them some time, but eventually, Kendell was able to identify the word with her phone as shinrai. Using Pauline’s pocket translator, they found that the Japanese symbol was the word for trust.

“We should ask Futoshi if he can take us to see Haruyo,” Pauline said.

“I agree, but before we do, there is something I need to tell you,” Kendell said.

“Yes, what is it?”

Kendell stared back at Futoshi for a second before looking right at Pauline. “You remember those pictures I showed you the other night at the hotel while we were in Tokyo?”

“Which ones?”

“The ones with the Asian man on the planes, at the airports, in Hawaii—the man I thought was following us?”

“Hard to forget that,” Pauline said with a wave.

“Pauline, I’m being serious here. I saw him,” Kendell said. “He was here at the gambling hall. I saw him hiding out in a corner watching us again. When I went to point him out to Haruyo, he had dipped out. Then, almost as soon as he had vanished, the lights went out. Next thing I know, Otōto is dead and our mystery stalker has pretty much disappeared.”

“You really believe it’s been the same man in all those pictures?” Pauline asked.

“I’m telling you it’s the same man. I know the pictures were blurry, but I got a few clear shots of him. I’m telling you right now, it’s the same guy,” Kendell insisted. “And he was there in the gambling hall right before Otōto was murdered. I’m going to see if Haruyo can identify the man in the pictures. He might just be responsible for what happened to Otōto.”

“Why would our stalker want to kill a Japanese mobster?” Pauline asked.

“I don’t know,” Kendell admitted, “but something doesn’t feel right. The man, when I saw him in the gambling hall, was standing all by himself in a corner just watching us.”

“Didn’t Haruyo say that there was no way anyone other than us and Yakuza were in the building?” Pauline pointed out. “We only got in because we were invited by Otōto. Do you think that the man snuck in without being noticed?”

“Maybe?”

“I doubt it,” Pauline said. “Which means our stalker is probably Yakuza.”

This made Kendell increasingly nervous. What were the chances of them happening across another Yakuza member after being stalked halfway around the world by one? “Okay, for now, let’s not tell our babysitter about this. I want to speak to Haruyo first. Agreed?”

“Agreed,” Pauline said.

Futoshi had just put out his cigarette. He wandered over to the two of them, looking a bit less edgy now that he had enjoyed his nicotine. “Find anything?” he asked yet again.

“Nothing yet,” Kendell said. “Are you going to let us look around some of the other rooms in the building?”

“Yes,” he said, leading them back inside.

He once again would not let Kendell near the door from before, saying it was off-limits. Kendell could swear she heard voices coming from inside the room and wondered what Futoshi didn’t want them to see. Kendell presumed that since they were dealing with a mob, it was probably something highly illegal, but it wasn’t like she was going to argue with him. After looking around the other rooms and coming up short, Kendell and Pauline decided to ask Futoshi to take them to see Haruyo. “You wish to bother…that poor woman?” he asked doubtfully.

“She probably knows him better than anyone,” Pauline said. “She might be able to tell us more about his personal life. Maybe if he had someone who might want to hurt him.”

Futoshi nodded and escorted them outside to where a few cars were parked. “Mine,” he said, pointing to one of the nicer vehicles.

Kendell and Pauline climbed into the backseat, and Futoshi put the car in drive. He put on some Japanese music that made Pauline rather bouncy. Futoshi glanced up at Pauline occasionally in the rearview mirror with a slight smirk. “Your friend, Ms. McDonald, she is very funny lady.”

Kendell laughed slightly. “Tell me about it.”

8

“Here,” Futoshi said as they pulled up in front of the small family home of Otōto.

“Is Haruyo here?” Kendell asked, and Futoshi nodded.

Kendell and Pauline, along with Dot, piled out of the car. There were men standing outside the house, and they seemed to be almost like a personal security team. As they approached the home, Kendell could see colorful tattoos on their necks, and she suspected their bodies were covered in tattoos like Futoshi and other Japanese mobsters they had already met. Futoshi walked behind Kendell and Pauline, and he spoke to the men guarding the household in Japanese for a moment before one of the men opened the door for them. “I will stay here,” Futoshi said, bumming a cigarette off one of the men.

“Good,” Pauline muttered, and the two women entered the house.

Haruyo was seated on the floor in her living room, a small child hardly able to walk was with her. “Kendell, Pauline!” Haruyo started to stand, but Kendell waved her off and joined her on the floor.

Pauline took a seat in a nearby chair. “How are you holding up?” Kendell asked. The little boy waddled over to Kendell, and he went straight for her bright red hair, grabbing it in his little fists. “Well, hello there, little guy,” Kendell said with a slight chuckle.

“Sho has been very kind to me,” Haruyo said. “Since we have no idea who hurt Otōto, he wanted to make sure I was safe. He ordered his men to watch after Asahi and I.”

“Is that this little guy?” Kendell asked, smiling at the little boy who was attempting to shove her hair into his mouth. “Hey, there, I’m still using that hair,” she said, and the boy seemed to find this very funny before he left her side and got down on the ground to crawl toward Pauline, who was cooing excitedly over the little baby.

“Yes, that is Asahi. Mine and Otōto’s son,” Haruyo said softly.

Dot jumped out of Pauline’s carrier, and the little dog began scurrying around the living room. “Dot, no, no!” Pauline called, but Haruyo assured her it was fine.

Asahi laughed hysterically in an adorable baby-like way, and Dot came closer to him to sniff about. The boy giggled and tried to grab the little dog by the ears. “Dot is just too sweet,” Haruyo said. “She certainly made me feel a little more level-headed earlier.”

“I’m glad,” Pauline said. “Dot keeps me sane most days.”

“You look like you are feeling a lot better than before,” Kendell said. “Are you holding up all right?”

“I suppose,” Haruyo said. “After the initial shock of it hit me, I’ve calmed down quite a bit. I love my Otōto. I cannot believe he is gone.”

“What can you tell us about Otōto’s relationship with other Yakuza members?” Kendell asked. “Sho has asked us to look into his death, so we want to try to get a good picture of what his relationship with other members was like.”

“You don’t think another Yakuza would have hurt him, do you?” she asked.

“There doesn’t seem to have been anyone other than Yakuza members at the bar,” Pauline said.

Haruyo nodded. “Yes, I suppose that is correct,” she said, shaking her head. “And that worries me terribly. The gang was his family. Honestly…there were times I felt like he treated them more like family than he did me and Asahi.”

“How did he come to join Yakuza?” Pauline asked.

“Otōto grew up on the streets. His parents abandoned him, and the Yakuza took him in. They gave him the family that he needed. Otōto was loyal to a fault. He would have done anything for the Yakuza. Which is why this is so strange to me. Who among the Yakuza would hate my husband who loved them all so dearly?” she said.

“Can you tell us about the weapon?” Kendell asked. “The sword came from the wall in his gambling hall. Maybe there was a reason someone chose that particular weapon?”

“It’s an authentic samurai sword,” Haruyo explained. “My husband was a strong believer in the bushidō code.”

“Bushidō code?” Pauline asked. When Kendell glanced at Haruyo, she saw that she had managed to get Asahi into her lap and was playfully bouncing him on her knee.

“It’s the code of the samurai. There are many members of Yakuza who believe firmly in the eight virtues of the samurai. Justice, courage, mercy, politeness, sincerity, honor, loyalty, and character. He practiced the code just as Sho taught it to him. He put up the swords in his shop as a reminder of the bushidō code,” she explained. “And it was very important to him. He would recite the code sometimes to Asahi. Most anything that was important to Sho was important to Otōto.”

“It sounds very honorable,” Kendell said.

“Yes, very honorable. That was my husband. He was an honorable man, and he did not deserve to die like this. It does not make any sense. I cannot understand why someone would ever want to hurt my Otōto,” she said. “I keep trying to think back to the moment it happened…where everyone was and who was nearest my husband, but the lights were out long enough to where anyone in the building could have easily gotten to him. Whoever it was will regret it soon enough. I know Sho will have their heads.”

“It sounds to me like Sho and your husband were very close,” Kendell said.

“Oh, absolutely!” she exclaimed. “Sho called my husband his little brother. He is the one who took him in. The one who brought him into Yakuza. The one who got him off the streets when he was young. My husband would have done anything for that man, and Sho would have done anything for him as well. You see those men out in front of my house! Even after my husband’s death, Sho is making sure that his family is well taken care of. I feel honored and blessed to be under the protection of Sho.”

“What about you now?” Kendell asked. “What will you do now that your husband is gone?”

“I have a home with the Yakuza,” she said. “I will continue to run my husband’s gambling hall, I am certain that Sho will allow it. I am Yakuza as much as my husband was.”

“I see,” Kendell said. “Right now, we’re trying to get some sort of suspect list. We feel like we don’t have much to go off of at the moment. Any idea if there was anyone within Yakuza who had maybe butted heads with Otōto in the past?”

Haruyo shrugged. “If so, he did not speak to me about it. He made it sound like he got along well with all of his Yakuza brothers. There was competition between the individual gangs of Yakuza occasionally, but Sho always struck that down rather quickly. He would say that a united Yakuza is better than a feuding one.”

“What kind of competition was there between the gangs?” Kendell asked.

“Mostly territorial,” Haruyo explained. “Like which corners you were allowed to work.”

“I see. Now, I’m going to have to ask you to be straight with me for a second, Haruyo,” Kendell said. “What kind of things—both of the legal and not-so-legal type—is Yakuza involved in?”

Haruyo shrugged. “Well, gambling and prostitution are Yakuza’s forte… My husband, as you saw, ran one of our local gambling halls. That was usually where his focus was. He has helped Sho with a few smuggling cases before, firearms and drugs, of course. He’s never handled the protection racket, so I do not believe there are any local businessmen who have it in for Otōto.”

“Protection racket?” Kendell repeated.

“You know, where local businesses pay us to protect them from other gangs,” she said matter-of-factly.

Kendell cleared her throat. “You mean…like…you blackmailed them?”

Haruyo shrugged. “If you want to call it that, I suppose. But Otōto didn’t do any of that. Not his job. He mostly just ran the gambling hall and sold a few drugs here and there for Sho—mostly to other Yakuza members, though. His gambling hall was used as a meeting place for other Yakuza groups other than the one my husband oversaw. We were thinking about getting into real estate.”

“Real estate?” Kendell asked.

“Just real estate, nothing illegal there, but a lot of Yakuza work in real estate and construction and various entertainment industries… We usually use money from our less than legal practices to fund startups. But, like I said, Otōto had not expanded too much into those sorts of practices,” she said. “The gambling hall was his pride and joy.”

“So gambling and drugs,” Kendell said. “That’s mostly what your husband had his hands in?”

“Yes,” she said. “He never had anything too traumatic take place. He’s had to kick a few people out of the gambling hall before because they got too out of hand. The drug transactions always went well. He never received any threats that I am aware of.”

“Do you think if he had received any threats that he would have shared that with you?” Kendell asked.

“I am not sure,” Haruyo admitted. “I would like to think that he would, but I suppose you never know. He was a very proud man. Liked to handle things himself. I suppose if things got out of hand, he might have just tried to handle everything himself. He preferred I stay out of a lot of Yakuza activity. I think he sometimes forgets that I’ve been Yakuza about as long as he has. I more or less retired from working Yakuza activities after we were married. Started doing the whole wife and mother things… It looks like Asahi really likes you, Pauline.”

“I just love babies!” Pauline said, cooing and tickling the little boy’s stomach. The child cackled and grabbed Pauline’s hand. “Oh, he is just such a little cutie! I love him already. Reminds me of some of my great-grandbabies. I didn’t get to see too many of them while we were in Senoia, and now I’m starting to miss them. You, little fella, are going to be a looker when you get older. The girls are going to fall all over you, I can tell.”

Haruyo laughed. “Yes, I suppose so. I am very sad for Asahi. His father is dead, and he is too young for me to be able to explain to him what happened. He will just wonder where his father is, and I cannot stand the thought of it. I cannot stand the idea of him growing up without Otōto.”

“We will find out what happened,” Kendell said confidently. “We will do what we can to get you some closure.”

“Thank you, Kendell,” Haruyo said, smiling sadly in Kendell’s direction.

Suddenly, they heard a distant ringing sound. Pauline glanced around the room curiously. “Is that a phone?” Kendell asked.

Haruyo looked quite surprised. “That’s… That’s Otōto’s ringtone?” She stood up, looking around.

“Where is it?” Kendell asked, and Pauline stood up as well, setting Asahi down. The little boy crawled back to where he had been playing with a few toys in the center of the room. Pauline, Kendell, and Haruyo split into three different directions.

Kendell thought she heard where it was coming from and headed toward a corner of the room where a chair was. She put her hands between the cushions, digging around for it. At last, she pulled out the phone, though not in time to answer the call. “Is this your husband’s?” Kendell asked.

“Yes, that is certainly his phone,” Haruyo said. “He must have left it this morning before going to the gambling hall!”

9

Haruyo took the phone from Kendell. “My husband never leaves his phone lying around,” she said. “It must have fallen out of his pocket and slid into the cushions.”

“I’m sure,” Kendell said. “But someone was trying to call him. Do you know that number?”

“No, I do not,” she said. “It is unfamiliar. There are text messages from the same number… I feel like I may be invading my husband’s privacy…”

“This is a murder investigation,” Kendell said, looking over Haruyo’s shoulder at the phone. “Can you translate that for us?”

“Yes,” Haruyo said. “The first message says, ‘I know you know’.”

“And your husband’s response?” Kendell pressed.

“‘You are making a mistake. Do not do this,’” Haruyo said. “The other number responds, ‘Stand in my way, and I will break you’.”

“Is that it?” Kendell asked, and Haruyo nodded. “Looks like they continued their conversation over the phone at that point. Do you mind if I take a picture of this for evidence? I know I can’t read it, but it would be good to have.”

“Whatever you need to do,” Haruyo said, handing the phone over to Kendell.

“Any idea what Otōto might be talking to our mystery caller about?” Pauline asked.

“I am afraid not,” Haruyo said. “I do not recognize this number. It looks like it may be a burner phone of some sort, as it is a strange cell number for the area.”

“So someone is contacting your husband via burner phone… This is from yesterday,” Kendell said. “The day before he is killed, he gets a very threatening message from a weird number. I would call that evidence, wouldn’t you, Pauline?”

“Most certainly!” Pauline said. “But the question is, who is it?”

“Let’s go over who all was at the gambling hall,” Kendell suggested. “It wasn’t particularly crowded when it happened… Let’s see… Haruyo and I were at the bar, and there was just one bartender.”

“The bartender is a nice girl,” Haruyo said. “And she has never interacted much with Otōto, so it would be strange for her to have some sort of vendetta against him. I usually did her scheduling and everything.”

“Not to mention that girl was super short,” Kendell said. “Doubt she would have been able to reach the samurai sword up on the wall without anyone hearing her. And she was talking to you at the bar most of the time during the blackout.”

“Okay, so very unlikely suspect,” Pauline said.

“Who all was at the table again?” Kendell asked.

“Myself, and obviously I didn’t do it. Futoshi was dealing. Then there was Asahi and Tadeas… Wait, Asahi?” Pauline spun around where little Asahi was playing on the floor.

“Yes, our little one is named after that Asahi,” Haruyo said. “My husband pulled Asahi into Yakuzo, and Asahi was very grateful for the opportunity. Asahi once took a bullet for my husband during a raid.”

“A raid?” Kendell asked.

“Stupid police came on our turf,” Haruyo said with a dismissive wave. “Asahi stepped between my husband and an officer who was trigger-happy. I was pregnant at the time. We named our child after him.”

“Chances of a guy taking a bullet for someone and then turning around and killing them a couple years later?” Kendell questioned out loud.

“I would say very slim,” Pauline said. “And Tadeas was Asahi’s brother, and if he was as loyal as Asahi to his shateigashira, then I really doubt either one of them could have had anything to do with this. And you heard the way they were talking. They were going to go speak to Sho to make sure they got first dibs at whoever we point the guilty finger at. I don’t even want to know what that means.”

“They probably want to kill whoever did it,” Haruyo said as though this should have been a rather obvious point.

“All right so nix on the bartender and on the happy-go-lucky brother duo,” Kendell said, shaking her head. “Who else was at the table with you, Pauline?”

“Sho,” Pauline said.

“Wakagashira Sho would not hurt my husband,” Haruyo said.

“We can’t just keep knocking people off the list. We’re never going to get anywhere that way,” Kendell said. “Maybe we should leave Tadeas and Asahi and Sho on our suspect list.”

“I doubt Asahi and Tadeas would,” Pauline said.

“And you think Sho is more capable of killing his little brother than Asahi and Tadeas of killing big brother, then?” Haruyo questioned.

“Wait, you’re not all related, are you?” Pauline asked.

“No, Pauline,” Kendell said, shaking her head. “Older members call younger members little brothers and younger members call older members big brothers. It’s like a family unit, which is why I imagine this is so upsetting and difficult for you to help us narrow it down, Haruyo.”

She nodded. “Yes, it really is.”

“So…so far, we’ve got Futoshi, Tadeas and Asahi, and Sho,” Kendell said. “We forgetting anyone?”

“The saikō-komon,” Pauline said. “Mr. Yuto. He was sitting off by himself right where the swords were displayed on the wall.”

“Why would Mr. Yuto want to…” Haruyo bit her lip. “I know, I know. I can’t just keep knocking suspects off your list because of how all of this makes me feel. It’s just very upsetting.”

“I think that’s just about everyone who was still at the bar when the lights went out,” Pauline said. “So, what is our suspect pool looking like?”

“Futoshi, Sho, Mr. Yuto, and the brothers Asahi and Tadeas,” Kendell said.

Pauline cleared her throat and nodded toward Haruyo. The woman obviously noticed. “I was by your redheaded friend the whole time, and I do not appreciate that,” she snapped.

“It’s true, she was,” Kendell said. “Pretty sure she wouldn’t be able to reach those swords very easily either.”

“Sorry, dear, but you never know,” Pauline said.

“I’m just grateful you are being thorough,” Haruyo said. “I want you to find who killed my husband and left my poor child fatherless.”

“Oh, I almost forgot about the picture,” Kendell said, reaching into her purse and pulling out the photograph that they had found at the bar. “We came across this picture at the gambling hall. It was inside a jacket that we believe belonged to your husband. It was left out by the stone garden in the back.” Kendell showed Haruyo the picture of the young man and the boy.

Haruyo nodded. “I have not seen this picture before, but I do know that little boy in the picture is my husband.”

“Can you tell us who the young man is?” Kendell asked. “Probably would be a bit elderly by now.”

“I do not recognize him,” Haruyo said. “He does not have very many tattoos in this picture. Must be early on in the man’s Yakuza career.”

“He wrote the word shinrai on the back. We translated it, we think, does it mean trust?” Kendell asked.

“That is correct,” Haruyo said. “Though I do not know what my husband would be doing with an old photograph of himself and a man I do not know with such a word written on it.”

“Well, it’s not Sho,” Pauline said. “He showed us a younger photograph of himself earlier today, remember? That picture of him and Otōto he keeps in his wallet?”

“See?” Haruyo said. “All of these people… They are brothers. Family. It makes no sense as to why any of them would want to hurt my Otōto. None at all,” she said and started to become a bit hysterical again. Dot let out a friendly yelp and came hurrying over, rubbing her little nose against Haruyo’s toes. “Oh, you sweet little thing!” she exclaimed, bending down to pick Dot up and snuggle her a bit. Little Asahi cooed from the floor, seeming to be a bit jealous his mother was showing something other than himself affection. She came and sat down on the floor by him, putting Dot down and picking up her child instead, who reached out and touched his mother’s face, giggling as he did so. “The young man in that picture… He seems almost familiar, but I cannot say for certain.”

“Right now, it’s the only lead we got,” Pauline said with a sigh, but then something occurred to Kendell rather suddenly.

“Wait… No, it’s not,” Kendell said and pulled out her phone, skimming through pictures.

“What are you looking for?” Pauline asked.

“Pauline, those pictures from our Hawaii trip, the pictures of our time in the states… Paris… Australia… The pictures with the strange man in the background?” Kendell asked. “The Asian man?”

“Are you on that again?” Pauline said. “I’m telling you it’s not the same man in all the pictures. I think you’re just being paranoid.”

“I’m not,” Kendell insisted. “Because I saw him at the bar right before the lights went out. I told you that. I didn’t see him again after Otōto was killed.”

“What man?” Haruyo asked. “Oh. I recall you asked about a man…but I didn’t see him.”

Kendell knelt beside her on the floor, showing her the photograph of herself and Pauline on a flight from Hawaii to Texas. “Do you see this man right here in the background?” Kendell asked, and Haruyo jumped.

“You know him?” Pauline asked, leaning in a bit as though she was tempted to get down on the ground with them just to look at the photograph again, but she thought better of it.

“No, not personally,” Haruyo said. “But I did see him at the gambling hall, at one point. I did not recognize him, which is the only reason he stood out to me at all. He’s not Japanese… Korean, maybe?” she ventured a guess. “He looked out of place to me. Before I had a chance to speak to him, though, he was gone.”

“So, I’m not crazy,” Kendell said. “What if this man killed Otōto? Like Haruyo said, everyone else in there was Yakuza, and it just doesn’t make sense. They’re family, right?”

“Right!” Haruyo said firmly. “Family. But, that man… I do not know him.”

“This doesn’t make sense,” Pauline said. “You’re telling me that some…possibly Korean man has been following us since Hawaii and he’s waited until we arrive in the middle of a Japanese mob’s gambling hall to decide to jab a man with a samurai sword?”

“I’m sure there is rhyme and reason behind it,” Kendell said. “But, Haruyo, you’re sure it’s the same man you saw?”

“Are you?” she asked Kendell.

“I was sure of it when I noticed him earlier before the lights went out. I saw him, turned around, and he was gone—gone right before it went dark. He could have snuck out, cut the power, and then snuck back in and jabbed Otōto, and because he had just blended into the background of the place and because no one knew him, he was able to dip out again without being noticed.”

“But why?” Pauline questioned. “What’s the motive? And why would he be following us?”

“I’m not sure,” Kendell said, putting her phone away. “But right now, it’s not like we have a whole lot of leads.”

“So, just to review our suspect list… We’ve got Mr. Yuto and Sho—the men who hired us to investigate. Asahi and his brother—men who call themselves Otōto’s little brothers, one of whom took a bullet for the man once. Futoshi—our current tour guide and translator for this case. And a complete and total stranger who is stalking us and had no business being here in the first place. Does that about sum it up?” Pauline asked.

“Well, when you say it like that, it sounds like we don’t really have any suspects at all,” Kendell said.

“You two always start off so poorly when you work cases?” Haruyo asked hesitantly.

Pauline laughed. “Most certainly, dear. I mean, you do read Kendell’s blog. Surely you realize that we have absolutely no idea what we’re doing!”

10

Kendell and Pauline had remained at a hotel not far from the gambling hall that night, and the following morning, Kendell realized that Futoshi was still fast asleep in the room next door. So far, they had not had much of an opportunity to enjoy the sights on the island, and this seemed to bother Pauline tremendously. So, against their better judgement, they left Futoshi a note and dipped out to go visit the Itsukushima Shrine.

“I am so excited,” Pauline said as they left the hotel. Even Dot seemed quite relieved to be rid of Futoshi after having been followed and carefully watched by them all afternoon the previous day. “I thought we would have a chance to visit Itsukushima yesterday, but we just ran out of time.”

“Pauline, it wasn’t so much a time restraint as it was us being held captive by the Japanese mob,” Kendell said, shaking her head. “Honestly, a part of me is a little nervous about ditching Futoshi. Just because we left him a note doesn’t really mean that he is going to be happy. He was put in charge of keeping an eye on us.”

“I thought he was just supposed to be our translator for when we were working the case,” Pauline said. “Who says we have to take him with us everywhere we go?”

“I’m pretty sure they just put him in charge of us to make sure that we don’t try to ditch town,” Kendell said.

They soon arrived at the entrance of the shrine, a large wooden structure known as the torii gate. As tourists, they were required to go through this gate prior to visiting the shrine to maintain the land’s purity. Because it was low tide, they were able to walk through the gate rather than steer a boat through it. It was large, red-tinted wood, and Kendell took several pictures as she and Pauline walked through the gate.

“It seems we came at the wrong time of year,” Pauline said a bit bitterly as they learned more about the shrine itself. The shrine was designed and built on a pier-like structure that rested just over the bay. The idea was that during high tide, it would appear to be floating on water. Usually the shrine needed to be approached by boat, but because it was low tide Kendell and Pauline were able to walk everywhere on wet, squishy sand. The pictures were a little less beautiful than they would have been during high tide, but it was still very interesting to report.

“This is where the travel blogger part of our new job comes in,” Kendell said as she took pictures of the lovely architecture. “Now my readers will know for themselves when the best time to visit the shrine will be.”

“Yeah, any time but now,” Pauline groaned.

“Oh, come on, don’t be such a downer,” Kendell said. “It’s still very pretty. I mean, just look at the way the rooftops slope. The red color is gorgeous. I know it probably would have looked pretty amazing during high tide, though.”

“Yes, I’m sure it would have,” Pauline said. “I was listening to one of the tour ladies, and I do believe she said it’s illegal to die on the island.”

“I’m sorry?” Kendell asked. “What does that even mean?”

“Something about maintaining the island’s pure properties,” Pauline said, rummaging through her translation guide.

Kendell was confident that Pauline had mistranslated, so she looked it up. Sure enough, Pauline was right. “No births or deaths are allowed to take place anywhere near the shrine,” Kendell said as she skimmed through the article she had found online. “Pregnant women must retreat to the mainland, and the terminally ill or elderly whose passing has become imminent must leave the island.”

“That’s quite interesting,” Pauline said.

“It’s to maintain purity of the place,” Kendell repeated, looking around at some of the pilgrims who had come to visit and pray. “It’s all so beautiful, really. The article I found said the shrine was built in dedication to the daughters of…Susano-o no Mikoto, the god of seas and storms. So there is a lot of religious significance to this place. Looks like it actually hasn’t been that long since tourists have even been allowed to come here.”

“Well, I’m glad they’ve opened it up to the public,” Pauline said. “It’s such a lovely place.”

“Kind of loses some of its authenticity when tourists like ourselves come marching in not even knowing why we’re here,” Kendell said somewhat sadly. “I should write about respecting local cultures and learning their practices before taking a trip. I should try to make that a focal point of my next blog when I talk about our trip here in Japan.”

“I think that is a grand idea, Kendell,” Pauline said. “I suppose we have not been the best sort of guests in all of these countries we have visited, now have we? We sort of just wing it and hope for the best instead of trying to learn about all of these incredible cultures we are being a part of.”

“Yeah, we could probably use some improvement when it comes to…” Kendell paused. Looking up ahead, she spotted him. The man from the pictures… The man who had been following them since Hawaii. “You!” Kendell shouted, and the man jumped and started to turn around, but Kendell took off in his direction. “Hold on, don’t you dare!” she shouted, and the man tried to get around a crowd that was walking by, but in fear of knocking into a bunch of people, he relented.

He turned just in time for Kendell to come toe-to-toe with him, Pauline bringing up the rear and darting over at a much slower pace. He held up his hands and smirked. “Took you long enough,” he said. “You only managed to realize I’ve been keeping an eye on you after I’ve followed you to five different countries.”

“Yeah, we’re not as clever as people seem to think,” Pauline admitted.

“Ha!” Kendell exclaimed. “Told you he was the same guy. Hawaii, the South, Paris, Australia, and now Japan—why have you been following us? Who are you, and what do you want?”

He smirked. “I don’t want anything now,” he said. “I am Tae.”

“Tae?” Kendell asked. “That’s Korean, isn’t it?”

“That’s right,” he said.

“Haruyo was right,” Pauline said. “So, why is there a Korean man following us halfway around the world?”

“I may be Korean, but I am Yakuza,” he said, pulling back his shirt collar and revealing a bluish neck tattoo. Rolling back his sleeve, he revealed additional Yakuza tattoos that he had kept hidden. “I am part of Yakuza’s Hawaiian territory.”

“Yakuza is in Hawaii?” Kendell asked.

“Yakuza has groups all over the world,” he said. “We use Hawaii as a midway station between Japan and the mainland states.”

“So, why are you following us?” Kendell asked.

“You are a brave little girl for talking to a man of Yakuza in such a way,” he said, huffing. “But you are helping Yakuza now, so I should be more polite, I suppose. You remember Johnny?”

“Goofy surfer dude who killed that poor girl?” Kendell asked. “Hard to forget. What about him?”

“The group Johnny was selling drugs for had been moving in on Yakuza territory in Hawaii for a while,” Tae explained. “When you two got involved, my wakagashira—the wakagashira of Hawaii—asked me to follow you two to see if I can find out if you learned anything about Yakuza. Ironically, I’ve followed you all the way here, and you wind up in the middle of a Yakuza den.”

“You were tasked with just keeping an eye on us?” Pauline asked.

“Trying to find out if you were enemy to Yakuza,” Tae said. “You sent our competition to prison, which made my wakagashira quite happy, but he was still very skeptical of you two. Wanted to see whether or not you two posed some sort of threat to us. Clearly, you two are just lucky. You’ve now been hired by another wakagashira to solve a crime on our behalf, which I will report back to my wakagashira in Hawaii to let him know that you two are not a threat.”

“You mean to tell us you followed us around the world just to keep an eye on us?” Kendell repeated, struggling to believe it. “Just to make sure we didn’t get ourselves into trouble, to make sure we didn’t know anything about Yakuza in Hawaii…only to then tell us all about Yakuza in Hawaii when we confronted you?”

“That is pretty much accurate,” Tae said.

“Why not just approach us and ask us what we knew?” Pauline asked. “Why follow us?”

Tae laughed. “Would you have told me the truth if you had known anything about Yakuza? I doubt it. I wasn’t really supposed to get caught.”

“So, what now?” Kendell asked.

“Now?” he repeated. “Now I let the local Yakuza gangs know that I am here and take advantage of their hospitality until I can get back to Hawaii. I have enjoyed the vacation time, I must admit. Now, I’m assuming you two are not here with Futoshi, because there is no reason for you to be visiting this shrine while on an investigation. Am I correct?”

“You know Futoshi?” Kendell asked.

“Know of him, yes,” Tae said. “And I know enough to know that when he realizes you two have managed to ditch him, that he is going to be very angry.”

“Perhaps we should head back to the hotel?” Kendell said as she turned to look directly as Pauline.

Pauline huffed. “Yes, I suppose that might be a good idea…or we can continue our investigation without him. Frankly, I find him to be rather distracting.”

“Maybe you can help us out, Tae?” Kendell asked. “Your English is a lot better than Futoshi’s”

“I do not know Japanese that well,” Tae said. “I am from South Korea. Not Japan.”

“How is it you came to be a part of Yakuza?” Kendell asked curiously.

“They took me in as a boy,” he said. “That is what Yakuza does. They are a notoriously organized and often violent group…but their hearts are perhaps just as well known. They take in outsiders. Children whose parents have abandoned them. Societal outcasts. That is the other side of Yakuza, Ms. Kendell.” The man nodded in their direction and turned to walk away, waving over his shoulder a bit at them. “I am off to enjoy the rest of this little…vacation of mine, now that I have gathered what information I need. You ladies enjoy the rest of your trip. And do try to stay out of trouble in the future. You two have quite a problem with attracting danger.”

“Tell me about it,” Kendell grumbled as Tae disappeared in the crowd. Kendell looked at Pauline, concerned. “Do you believe him?”

“I’m not sure,” Pauline said. “But based on those tattoos, I would say he is most certainly Yakuza.”

“Definitely,” Kendell said. “But that presents us with another problem.”

“And what would that be?” Pauline asked hesitantly.

“It means that every single person, apart from us, who was present during the murder were in fact Yakuza. That means someone in their family, whether it’s Tae or another Yakuza, is our killer,” Kendell said. “This is going to get really messy. If we accuse someone, we better be totally certain of it.”

“I agree,” Pauline said. “We’re going to need some pretty solid evidence before we present this to Sho, or he is going to have our heads.”

“That might be quite literal,” Kendell said nervously. “Let’s get back to…uh-oh…”

“What?” Pauline asked, a bit jumpy.

Kendell pointed off, and sure enough, Futoshi was standing off in the background, watching them with a dissatisfied grimace. “I think we might be in trouble.”

11

By the time Kendell and Pauline had caught up to Futoshi, he had already left the inner area of the shrine and had gone into a local tea shop. He was seated in a corner, sipping a drink and looking quite displeased by their presence in his moment of serenity. “Futoshi, did you follow us here?” Kendell asked.

He grunted. “Yes. Not…amused…”

“We’re sorry, Futoshi,” Kendell said. “I hope you know that we have been working on the case.”

“No. Playing,” he said with an eye-roll. “You are not working on case.”

“Well, dear, you do realize that we are here in Japan on vacation, don’t you?” Pauline said. “It’s not like you all gave us much of a choice, and frankly, this is how Kendell and I usually conduct ourselves.”

“You cannot solve cases by playing,” Futoshi said.

“That’s how we normally do it!” Pauline exclaimed.

“To be fair, Pauline, we’ve never really been specifically asked by anyone to help out on a case before,” Kendell said. “We probably should have taken this a bit more seriously. Futoshi, we are sorry for running off on you this morning, but honestly, we needed to take a step back for a while. But we’re back on the case now, okay?”

Futoshi huffed, but he nodded and took a sip of his tea. “Well?”

“Well, what?” Kendell asked.

“What now?” he asked.

“Well, I don’t suppose you saw that man we were speaking to when you came up, did you?” Kendell asked.

“Tae,” he said.

“Yes!” Kendell exclaimed. “So, you know him?”

“Met him yesterday,” Futoshi said. “At gambling hall. He in town from Hawaii.” He waved to the empty seats across the table from him, and Kendell and Pauline sat down. “I not speak to him much, but he say he here because of you two?”

“Yes,” Kendell said. “Or at least, it seems that way. You are sure he is part of your gang?”

“Yes,” Futoshi said. “I have heard of him. I oversaw shipment to Hawaii once, and we spoke on phone. Recognize voice.”

“So, looks like everyone who was at the gambling hall was Yakuza after all,” Kendell said. “This isn’t good, is it?”

“No,” Futoshi said, sighing. “A brother has killed a brother.”

“Is it normal for one of the gang leaders to send someone to spy on people like Tae did to us?” Kendell asked.

“Knowing what I have heard about Tae, it is probably very accurate,” Futoshi said. “Probably got what information he needed early and decided to take advantage of your travels. Free vacation paid by Yakuza.”

“Wow, so this whole time, I’ve gotten all paranoid and worked up over this creepy guy following us, and really we were just his ticket for a weekend trip to Paris?” Kendell groaned.

“Basically,” Futoshi said. “You paranoid, yes?”

“That’s what I keep telling her. She worries too much,” Pauline said.

“I hardly think that someone following us around the world and being worried about it makes me paranoid,” Kendell said. “For all I knew, he was assigned to kill us… Wait… He wasn’t assigned to kill us, was he?”

“See? Paranoid!” Pauline exclaimed. “She is just paranoid…right?”

“No one is trying to kill you,” Futoshi said.

Kendell shook her head. “Okay, well, thoughts? Pauline, Futoshi, what do you think? Do you think Tae could be our killer?”

“Doubtful,” Pauline said. “What would his motive be? It wouldn’t seem wise to come to Japan where the headquarters of his gang is located and then kill a random man in the middle of one of their gambling halls? Clearly he was here for us if he followed us all over the world, so I doubt it had anything to do with Otōto.”

“I feel like we are just walking in circles here,” Kendell said. “We haven’t made much progress other than to realize that our killer has to be Yakuza. And when we go to Sho and tell him we think the killer is Yakuza, he is going to get irate with us. You all are like brothers, right? A betrayal like this—”

“Will result in very terrible punishment,” Futoshi said bitterly. “They will die worst way possible.”

“Well, that’s reassuring,” Kendell said sarcastically. “Listen, can you tell me about this picture? We found it yesterday in Otōto’s jacket pocket. We didn’t show it to you at the time. But maybe you can identify who it is in the picture? We know the boy in the picture is Otōto when he was younger, but we don’t know who the young man is.” Kendell pulled out the picture. “Haruyo was able to identify her husband in the picture, but she wasn’t sure who the other man was.”

Futoshi took the picture from Kendell and studied it for a moment. He raised his brow. “This was in pocket?” Futoshi asked. “Looks worn…like he carried it often.”

“Yes, we thought so too,” Kendell said. “Can you tell us who the man is?”

Futoshi nodded. “Yes, I know who this young man is. It is the kumicho.”

“The kumicho!” Kendell exclaimed. “As in the ring leader of the entire Yakuza organization?”

“Yes, is him,” Futoshi said, handing them the picture back. “I did not know that Otōto knew him at all. This new information for me.”

“Interesting,” Kendell said. “I thought Sho brought him into the Yakuza?”

“Sho did,” Futoshi said. “But perhaps the kumicho was around at the time…”

“Didn’t you and Otōto join Yakuza around the same time? You two knew each other around this time, right? Did you know the kumicho?” Kendell asked.

“No, I did not, and I still do not. I have never met the kumicho personally. I have only seen him in passing,” Futoshi said. “He is private man. Does not come out much. He mostly just speak with Mr. Yuto about businesses of different wakagashira territories.”

“So, why would Otōto have a picture of himself with the leader of Yakuza in his pocket? If you didn’t even know they knew each other, how close could they have been?” Kendell wondered aloud. “And why would he write the word trust on the back of the picture?”

Futoshi shrugged and took another sip of his tea.

“Can you tell us more about the Yakuza?” Pauline asked after they had been quiet for a while.

“What do you need to know?” he questioned them.

“I don’t know exactly,” Pauline said. “Just tell us more about it. Maybe if we understand the group more, we can understand what might have motivated our killer?”

Futoshi shrugged slightly before answering them. “Loyalty is very important. We are outcasts and take in other outcasts. It is how Otōto and I both become part of Yakuza. They took us in. They gave us home, food, family. Loyalty to Yakuza is held above all else. We help our community when we can.”

“You make local businesses pay protection fees,” Kendell said bitterly.

“Yes,” he said. “But that money is used for good purposes.”

“Profit,” Kendell said.

“Yes, of course, but Yakuza has often sent aid to help in disaster relief efforts,” Yakuza said. “We donate money to homeless shelter.”

“Okay, so you’re a gang with charity work,” Pauline said. “What else can you tell us?”

Futoshi unbuttoned the top button of his shirt, revealing more of the colorful body tattoos. He showed them an image of a tiger. “This my irezumi. My tattoo. Tiger represents strength, courage, and long life.”

“It is a very beautiful tattoo,” Kendell said. “Do you mind if I take a picture of it for my blog?”

He shrugged and allowed her to snap a picture of the tattoo. “All members of Yakuza obtain irezumi tattoos.”

“What is irezumi?” Pauline asked.

“Irezumi is done by hand. Artist use wooden handles and metal needles attached by silk thread. It is painful and take much time, but is important part of Yakuza culture,” Futoshi said. “This is how I know man in picture despite not seeing him much. I met him only in old age. I know that is kumicho because of his tattoos. He has many more now, though. Many, many more.”

“Okay, Pauline, so what are you thinking?” Kendell asked, turning to look at the woman. “Do we pretty much have the same suspect list as before?”

“I think now that Haruyo is not here, we could probably keep her on the list,” Pauline said. “Plus Sho, the brothers from the gambling hall, Mr. Yuto, and Futoshi here.”

“Ah!” Futoshi exclaimed.

“Well, dear, you were there,” Pauline said. “And it’s not like we’ve been able to find any sort of motive for killing Otōto. So, we can’t really narrow anything down.”

“Do you know if there was anyone who was at the gambling hall who might have had it in for Otōto?” Kendell asked.

Futoshi shook his head. “No.”

“Okay, let’s start with someone specific. Haruyo,” Kendell said. “How was her marriage?”

“Good,” Futoshi said simply. “She love Otōto. Would die for that man. Fellow Yakuza, Haruyo.”

“No problems in paradise that you know of?” Pauline asked.

“No,” Futoshi said.

“Okay. Mr. Yuto. How well did Otōto know him?” Kendell asked.

“Not well,” Futoshi said. “He only speak to Sho. Otōto and I answer to Sho. We only see Mr. Yuto sometimes. Otōto would sometimes serve him in the gambling hall. Mr. Yuto sometimes use meeting rooms in gambling hall when speaking to different wakagashira.”

“The brothers? Asahi and Tadeas?” Kendell asked.

Futoshi again shrugged. “Loyal to Otōto.”

“Sho?” Kendell asked.

“He is big brother,” Futoshi said.

“Well, gee, that pretty much just leaves you, Futoshi,” Pauline said, and Futoshi did not seem to find this amusing at all. “Well, don’t give me that look,” Pauline said. “All everyone keeps telling us is how loyal all of you are to each other. Well, obviously that is not the case, because we have a dead body.”

“I’m sorry, Futoshi, but Pauline is right,” Kendell said. “We’re not going to get anywhere if we don’t learn about the bad side of Yakuza. The nasty side. The side that might have caused someone to want to hurt Otōto. If you can’t tell us that, then we are going to have to find someone else to talk to.”

“Well, why don’t we talk to this fellow?” Pauline asked, pointing toward the picture that Kendell was still holding of Otōto and the kumicho. “Maybe he can tell us more about Otōto. It certainly looks like they were close, even if it was secretly so. Otōto did carry a picture of him around in his jacket pocket.”

Futoshi laughed. “You are not going to be able to speak to the kumicho.”

“Well, what else are we supposed to do, Futoshi?” Pauline asked. “We don’t exactly have a lot of information right now. If the kumicho can help us solve this murder, then surely he can spare five minutes with us?”

Futoshi shrugged. “I can make phone call.”

“Then make the phone call,” Kendell said. “See if you can get us in to speak with the kumicho.”

Futoshi sighed and got up, heading outside while pulling his phone out. Kendell immediately started to feel a bit nervous about this decision. “Do you think meeting with the leader of one of the world’s largest crime syndicates is a good idea?”

“Probably not,” Pauline said. “But we are not exactly known for making the best decisions. Isn’t that what makes all this so fun?”

“I guess.”

“It certainly helps out with your readership,” Pauline said. “Isn’t that what makes your blog so much better? Because of all the trouble we get into?”

Kendell grinned. “Yeah, I suppose so. I’m guessing this latest adventure is going to get a lot of hits on the site.”

Pauline clapped her hands. “Oh, let’s hope so!”

12

Kendell and Pauline sat in the back of Futoshi’s car, heading back to the gambling hall. While their meeting with the kumicho had been denied because the man was far too busy, the saikō-komon Mr. Yuto was available and willing to meet with them. “I’m surprised he wants to meet us at the gambling hall,” Kendell said. “He seemed like he had been getting ready to head somewhere yesterday.”

“I believe he had meeting yesterday,” Futoshi said. “He is still in town. Mr. Yuto works directly under Yakuza’s kumicho. Mr. Yuto is second-in-command of the entire Yakuza. He knows much about the kumicho and his relationships with lower operating members of Yakuza. If the kumicho had some sort of special relationship with Otōto, I do not doubt that Mr. Yuto would be able to comment on it.”

“Thank you, Futoshi,” Kendell said. “And we appreciate the ride again. I’m sorry you got stuck with babysitting us.”

Futoshi laughed, and the sound surprised Kendell and Pauline. He had been rather quiet and unemotional during the entire time they had known him, except for being grumpy. “It has been…entertaining,” he said somberly as they pulled up in front of the gambling hall.

When they entered, they found that the place was mostly deserted. The bartender was behind the bar, but the building had hardly any people inside. It seemed like most of the Yakuza did not feel that hanging around where their fellow member had just been murdered was an appropriate way to show respect. Futoshi led them up the stairs to Otōto’s office, where they had first met with Sho and Mr. Yuto after Otōto’s murder the day before. “Stay here,” Futoshi said. “I get Mr. Yuto. He is in garden.” Futoshi disappeared, closing the door behind him on the way out.

Pauline looked around the room curiously, admiring all the artwork on the walls. “Otōto clearly enjoyed stories and folklore surrounding the samurai.”

“Definitely,” Kendell agreed. It seemed to be taking a while for Futoshi to return with Mr. Yuto, so Kendell wound up pulling out her phone. She was curious to learn more about the irezumi art, so she began looking up the symbolism for various irezumi tattoos, starting with the one that Futoshi had shown them. Just as he had said, the tiger was a symbol of strength, courage, and long life. She found a lovely illustration of an irezumi dragon tattoo, and she learned that it was a symbol of wisdom. “These tattoos are very beautiful,” Kendell said.

“Never was that into the idea of tattoos,” Pauline said. “Especially not those full-body tattoos the way the Yakuza do it. Looks like they cover just about every part of their bodies except their faces.”

“It is a little strange, but I enjoy the symbolism behind it,” Kendell said. “I should definitely talk about the tattoos in my blog. I wonder if Haruyo would be willing to let me take a few pictures of her tattoos? Maybe a few other members wouldn’t mind modeling for me a bit?”

“Maybe,” Pauline said. “But if we don’t solve this case for them, I don’t imagine they will be up for a photoshoot.”

“If we don’t solve this case for them, I’m worried I won’t have fingers to take pictures at all,” Kendell said nervously. “Like I said before, you and I were the only ones there who weren’t Yakuza. What if they start putting the blame on us? We can’t even get any of them to talk about each other. Everywhere else we have worked a case, there was always that one guy at least willing to throw everyone else under the bus. Sometimes it was a misdirection, but at least it was something. Here, though, it’s like they are all fearful to say anything negative about each other.”

Pauline looked over Kendell’s shoulder at some of the tattoos she was looking at. “Oh, I like that one!” Pauline said. “So elegant.”

“The koi fish—a symbol of one whose desire is to rise above the ranks in his social status or organization,” Kendell said. “Well, that’s interesting, I suppose. I definitely think I want to talk about the irezumi art when I do my blog. I sure do have a lot to talk about in this next blog I do. I hope my readers enjoy it.”

“It will certainly be one of the more colorful blog posts you’ve done with all the artwork you’ve taken pictures of,” Pauline said. “Japan has proven to be a very beautiful place.”

“Beautiful and a little scary, if you wind up in the middle of a gambling hall of an illegal gang,” Kendell said. “Next vacation spot, I get to decide what we do, because you keep putting us in the middle of situations like this.”

“Face it, Kendell, you would be bored without me,” Pauline said with a bit of laughter.

The door of the office opened, and Mr. Yuto entered and came and sat down at Otōto’s desk. “You need to speak?” he asked. “To me?” he added.

Kendell pulled out the picture they had found in Otōto’s jacket. “Can you tell us who this is in the picture?” Kendell asked, though she already knew the answer.

“A little Otōto and the kumicho,” he said, and he seemed surprised to see them photographed together at all.

“Did the kumicho and Otōto know each other well?” Kendell asked.

Mr. Yuto shook his head. “Otōto met kumicho,” Mr. Yuto said, pointing at the picture. “Sho introduce him when young. Sho proud of little Otōto.”

“So this is just a picture of Otōto getting to meet the big boss when he was a kid,” Kendell said. “They didn’t have much of a relationship outside of business dealings?”

Mr. Yuto shook his head. “No,” he said.

Kendell and Pauline asked Mr. Yuto several more questions about the bar, people who had access to it, and what he could remember from that evening Otōto had been killed. Unfortunately, most of his answers were given in very broken English and were not very helpful. “What about you, Mr. Yuto?” Kendell asked. “I hear you often meet here in the gambling hall?”

“Yes,” Mr. Yuto said. “I know. Many meetings.”

“Did Otōto ever sit in on those meetings?” Kendell asked.

Mr. Yuto snickered. “No. He only shateigashira… I meet with wakagashira… Gambling hall…convenient…lo-cation.”

“So, to you, Otōto was really just your barkeep?” Kendell asked.

Mr. Yuto shrugged, but he seemed to think about Kendell’s question for a moment. “Yes. Sho my little brother. Otōto is Sho’s. Distant family.”

“Okay, I hear you,” Kendell said, though she was not sure if she entirely understood what Mr. Yuto was trying to convey. She felt as though he meant that he did not know Otōto personally but mostly just through Sho.

A man popped his head into office, seemingly apologizing for the interruption. Mr. Yuto spoke with him for a moment before rising. “Excuse me,” Mr. Yuto said. “My wakagashiras need me. I return in moment.”

Kendell nodded, but she called after Mr. Yuto. “Mr. Yuto, when you return, would you mind if I took a picture of some of your tattoos?”

This seemed to amuse Mr. Yuto. “Why?” he asked.

“It’s for my blog,” Kendell said. “I want to talk about the Yakuza in the blog, if that is okay? I would love to do a whole section about the artwork I’ve seen since coming to Japan. Especially the irezumi tattoo art that I’ve seen on members of the Yakuza. It’s so intricate and beautiful, and it’s hard to believe it’s all done by hand. Would you mind?”

Mr. Yuto unbuttoned his shirt and opened it to reveal a large koi fish. “My irezumi,” he said proudly, and Kendell took a picture.

Mr. Yuto did not bother to re-button his shirt before following the other man out to go to his meeting. Kendell had read early on somewhere that exposing their tattoos to one another was common practice in Yakuza, so she did not find this behavior too strange. She sat down by Pauline and looked at the picture on her phone, a bit intrigued.

“What are you thinking?” Pauline asked.

“About koi fish,” Kendell said.

“Not quite as lovely as that irezumi artwork you were showing me earlier that you found online,” Pauline said.

“Speaking of which,” Kendell said, raising her brow slightly. “The koi fish… It was a sign of… What was it again? Wanting to rise above your ranks?”

“Well, Mr. Yuto certainly has,” Pauline said. “He is second-in-command of the entire Yakuza organization. He probably started from the bottom just like everyone else.”

“Yes, I am sure,” Kendell said. She stood and began looking around Otōto’s office. She opened his desk, rummaging through it. “Pauline, I know we’ve already looked through here before, but maybe we missed something.”

“But, of course, dear,” Pauline said, standing up. She put Dot down and let the little dog scurry around. “Plus, I was a little nervous to really do any snooping at all with Futoshi breathing down our necks the entire time.”

“Agreed,” Kendell said. She came across a sealed envelope that had been shoved between the pages of a book. “What’s this?” Kendell asked. “It looks like…it might be addressed to the kumicho!”

“Are you sure?” Pauline asked.

“It says Kumicho Hayato on the front,” Kendell said. “It’s from Otōto, but it looks like he never got the chance to send it.”

“And he had it hidden,” Pauline said. “I say open it.”

“I don’t know… I’m really worried about offending anyone here. Who knows what they will do? I mean, I read online when I was reading up on the Yakuza that they’re well known for removing parts of fingers to punish offenses,” Kendell said. “If they do that to their own brothers, what do you think they’d do to us if we disrespected one of their deceased?”

“Open the letter,” Pauline insisted. “Otherwise we’ll wind up standing here debating for five minutes, and you’ll just end up opening it anyways.”

“Geez, thanks,” Kendell said, but she conceded and opened it. Inside was nothing but a photograph of none other than Mr. Yuto. “Well, that’s strange.”

“Why would Otōto send him a picture of Mr. Yuto?” Pauline wondered aloud.

“There’s some Japanese writing on the back,” Kendell said. She showed Pauline the symbols.

信用できない

“Is it just me or does that look oddly familiar?” Pauline asked. “Where is that photo of Otōto and the kumicho?”

Kendell pulled out the old photograph she had been carrying around and flipped it over to show where the familiar symbol that translated to the word “trust” had been scribbled:

信頼

“Close, but not quite,” Kendell said.

“No, look at the first two symbols on the picture of Mr. Yuto,” Pauline insisted. “They match the ones on the picture of Otōto and the kumicho. So, this new picture doesn’t say shinrai, but it certainly says something close to it.”

“Where is your little pocket translator?” Kendell asked.

Pauline had been keeping it inside the carrier with Dot, so she laid it on the desk beside the pictures, and the two women began flipping through it. There was some sort of significance here, and they were determined to find exactly what it was. Unfortunately, Pauline’s pocket translator was not particularly good at deciphering things from Japanese to English, so Kendell had to take to the internet for some guidance. She managed to download an app that could take pictures of Japanese symbols, so she downloaded it and snapped a picture of the words written on the back of the photograph of Mr. Yuto since that was the phrase that was not already translated. She uploaded the picture to the app, and just as it started to download, Mr.Yuto returned.

13

Kendell was very tempted to look at her phone right away, but she instead quickly hid the photograph they had found in Otōto’s desk, sliding it into her back pocket. “Now we talk?” Mr. Yuto asked, sitting himself back down on the desk. Kendell realized then that she had left the book sitting out. Mr. Yuto looked down and picked up the book, examining it. “Yours?” he asked.

“No, it’s Otōto’s,” Kendell said. “We were looking around.”

“Oh,” he said, sounding displeased. “You dig through dead man’s desk?”

“Well, we were hired by Sho to investigate,” Kendell said. “So, yes, we were.”

“Find anything?” Mr. Yuto asked.

“No, nothing,” Kendell said as her phone buzzed. “Excuse me for a moment,” she said, looking at the phone. She had an app notification. The word had finished translating. Kendell’s eyes went wide, and she passed her phone to Pauline as casually as she could manage.

Pauline took the phone and peeked at the screen where the phrase “No Trust” was flashing. It seemed that Otōto had been trying to send a message to the kumicho right before his death. And it seemed very clear. That he was not to trust Mr. Yuto, his second-in-command.

“Well, er…” Kendell muttered, looking at Mr. Yuto. “I suppose we can make this quick. Is there anything else that you can tell us, Mr. Yuto, about Otōto?”

Mr. Yuto shook his head. “Not know him good.”

“But you were here at his gambling hall quite often, yes?” Kendell asked to confirm.

“Yes. Use meeting room upstairs,” Mr. Yuto said.

“And did Otōto ever attend those meetings?” Kendell asked again.

“No,” Mr. Yuto said firmly. “Above his…pay grade. I say before.”

“Oh, right. Yes. Understandable,” Pauline said. “So, what exactly would you meet about here?”

“Why it matter?” Mr. Yuto questioned. “I meet with my men on Yakuza business.”

“Yes, I’m sure it was very important Yakuza business, but we are wondering, perhaps, if anything might have ever been said at a meeting that if Otōto could have possibly overheard…something that could have put him in danger and made him a target?” Pauline asked.

Mr. Yuto’s eyes narrowed, and he looked at Pauline as though he already suspected something. It made sense now. The koi tattoo was essentially his written confession. Mr. Yuto’s goal was to rise above his ranks in the Yakuza, and he had done so. He had become second-in-command of the Yakuza. But that hadn’t been enough for him. He had been meeting in Otōto’s gambling hall. He had probably said something with Otōto nearby that had led Otōto to the conclusion that Kendell was reaching now: that Mr. Yuto intended to overthrow the kumicho. Realizing the kumicho was in danger, Otōto had tried to reach out to him. But Mr. Yuto had clearly caught wind of it. And, thinking back to the evening of the murder, Kendell knew that Mr. Yuto had been in very close proximity to the samurai sword on the wall. He was not too far off from the gamblers, either. He would have easily been able to take out Otōto, and being the second-in-command of Yakuza, he no doubt had followers. Mr. Yuto would not have had to leave his spot by the swords to cut the power because he would have just had one of his men do it. Kendell had no doubt in her mind. Mr. Yuto had killed Otōto.

“I not think so,” Mr. Yuto said firmly. “He is Yakuza. If he overhear something, he overhear something. We all Yakuza, yes?”

“Yes,” Kendell said, slowly starting to stand. “We thank you so much for taking the time to speak with us today, Mr. Yuto. I’m sorry we have not been more helpful thus far. I am worried about whether or not we will be able to find Otōto’s killer at all. But we will keep you and Mr. Sho informed.”

Pauline stood as well, as did Mr. Yuto, but the man paused. His gaze drifted down, and he bent to pick something up off the floor. Kendell looked back, and she realized to her horror that while she had remembered to hide the picture, she had let the envelope addressed to the kumicho drop to the floor and had not picked it up. Now, Mr. Yuto held the envelope in his hands. “What this?”

he asked, holding it out to them.

“Not sure…” Kendell said. “Is it a letter?”

“No, it empty,” Mr. Yuto said, and he looked to Kendell and Pauline with an infuriated gaze. “Come here.”

“Pauline…” Kendell said the woman’s name uneasily.

Pauline gave Kendell a nod. “Come here, Dot!” she called, and the little dog darted to her. Pauline scooped the little thing up, and both women darted out the door.

“Mr. Sho!” Kendell wailed as they ran out into the hallway. “Sho!”

Mr. Yuto was a fairly old man. He didn’t run after them, but his shouting in Japanese alerted several men who had been hanging around in the meeting rooms on the second floor. Men with guns came flying out just as Kendell and Pauline ran down the stairs. “Go, go!” Kendell called, and they nearly rammed into Futoshi as they reached the main room of the gambling hall. There were several others already in the gambling hall. Looking around, Kendell spotted Haruyo, baby Asahi, Asahi’s namesake and his brother Tadeas, Sho, and a monsoon of Yakuza members that Kendell had yet to meet. There were pictures of Otōto all over the place, and Kendell realized that they had just walked into a last-minute memorial service of sorts being held at Otōto’s gambling hall. They had evidently been getting set up while Kendell and Pauline had been interviewing Mr. Yuto.

“Kendell? Pauline?” Futoshi asked, grabbing Pauline by the elbow to keep the poor old woman from falling over.

“It’s Mr. Yuto!” Kendell shouted. “He killed Otōto because Otōto found out that he was going to try to overthrow the kumicho!”

Haruyo gasped, and she shouted in Japanese at the room full of people. They could hear footsteps upstairs, and the next thing Kendell knew, just about every person in the room suddenly had guns. “Oh, this isn’t good,” Kendell muttered to Pauline, fearing that they were about to be in the middle of a shootout between Mr. Yuto’s men upstairs and the loyal Yakuza in the gambling hall.

Thankfully, Futoshi acted quickly. He took hold of both women and ushered them out back toward the serenity garden. Haruyo was close behind, carrying the baby. “We must get to the kumicho!” Haruyo exclaimed, hugging little Asahi close.

“Yes,” Futoshi said, hustling them through the rock garden and out into the parking lot toward his car.

“Okay, I can walk on my own, thank you very much,” Pauline said, yanking her arm away as Futoshi opened the car door for them.

“Come, Haruyo, not safe here,” Futoshi told her, and she jumped into the passenger’s seat with little Asahi in her lap.

Kendell heard gunshots, and she yelped loudly as she jumped into the car next to Pauline. Futoshi wasted no time peeling out, and the next thing they knew, they were racing through the streets. “Where is the kumicho?” Haruyo asked. “Is he at headquarters in Kobe? If Mr. Yuto’s loyalists are going after the kumicho there, we will never get there in time to warn him. It is nearly four hours away.”

“No, he is not in Kobe,” Futoshi said. “He is on way here for memorial service.”

“The kumicho coming to my husband’s memorial service?” Haruyo asked, shocked. “My Otōto does not even know the kumicho!”

“No, he does,” Futoshi said a bit breathlessly. He adjusted his rearview mirror. “We have guests.”

Kendell spun around, looking out the back window to see that there were several cars chasing after them. Futoshi tossed a phone to Haruyo. “Call kumicho! Tell him he in danger!” Futoshi cried.

Haruyo did, still holding little Asahi tight. Her hands shook. “I have never spoken to the kumicho before,” she said. “What do I say?”

“Tell him you Otōto’s wife! He listen!” Futoshi insisted, and she did as she was told, speaking frantically into the phone in Japanese.

Kendell glanced over at Pauline who, calmly as ever, was flipping through her Japanese translator trying to figure out what Haruyo was saying. “Seriously?” Kendell exclaimed, and she heard gunshots followed by a dinging sound off the side of Futoshi’s car. “Now, right now, you are fiddling with your translation booklet?”

“Well, I don’t like not knowing what’s going on,” Pauline answered matter-of-factly.

“Right now, we are in a car chase!” Kendell snapped.

Haruyo and Futoshi kept speaking rapidly to each other in Japanese, leaving Kendell and Pauline to fill in the blanks themselves. The car jerked forward as one of the vehicles rammed them from behind. “They’re trying to knock us off the road!” Kendell cried.

Futoshi jerked the steering wheel. “That way, Futoshi!” Haruyo shouted, pointing down a road, and Futoshi turned. Haruyo spoke again in Japanese into the phone, and Asahi began to cry.

“Here, give him to me,” Pauline said, reaching forward and taking Asahi from Haruyo, who was speaking rapidly into the phone and trying to communicate to Futoshi and whoever she had gotten a hold of on the other line at once. “Hello, little Asahi!” Pauline said, happily bouncing the upset child in her lap. “We really should have gotten you a car seat… This is not safe for little baby.”

“We were kind of in a hurry, Pauline,” Kendell said. “In case you forgot, there are people chasing us and trying to kill us.”

“Yes, but safety first, as they say,” Pauline said, still coddling Asahi. “Sweet little thing, aren’t you? So sweet…”

Kendell shook her head. She locked eyes with Dot, and she was fairly certain the dog was rolling her eyes at Pauline. Suddenly, Futoshi whipped his car around and drove down an alleyway. Kendell watched as they bypassed a large black van sitting behind a building that, as soon as they passed it, drove right into the middle of the alleyway. The two vehicles that had been chasing them had to slam on their brakes to avoid a collision, and another large black van blocked the entrance to the alleyway. Futoshi smiled. “We got them,” he said, putting the car in park.

Kendell jumped out and looking back, she realized that Futoshi and Haruyo had been communicating with the people in the two large vans. They had trapped Mr. Yuto’s loyalists right in the middle of the alleyway with no means of escape, and currently there were men jumping out of the vans with guns pointed at the two cars in the center. Looking up on the rooftops on either side of them, Kendell could see additional men all pointing guns down at the men trapped in their cars.

“Ha!” Pauline shouted as she got out of the car and passed baby Asahi to his mother, who remained seated, though she had the door open so that could watch the scene unfold.

Slowly, approximately eight men made their way out of the trapped vehicles in the middle of the alleyway, their hands raised in surrender. Mr. Yuto was among them. Futoshi smiled and turned to Kendell and Pauline. “Good job, ladies,” he said.

Kendell removed the picture she had hidden in her pocket of Mr. Yuto. “This is what Otōto was going to send to the kumicho. Mr. Yuto must have found out that Otōto was going to try to warn him and decided to take him out.”

Futoshi took the picture and nodded approvingly. The traitors were currently being shoved into the back of one of the large vans. Futoshi smiled as he held the picture. “Come. We go visit Kumicho Hayato.”

14

Kendell watched as the large black vans drove off with Mr. Yuto and his followers, leaving herself, Pauline, Futoshi, Haruyo, and the little one in the alleyway. Futoshi was examining the back of his car where they had been hit, grumbling about the bullet hole in the side. “Futoshi?” Kendell asked, and the man turned to look at her. “Why didn’t you tell us that you knew Otōto had been close with the kumicho? We knew he was close with Sho, but we had no idea he had a strong relationship with the kumicho. It seems like you already knew this. You knew we were investigating the murder, so why not help us out?”

“Otōto’s friendship with the kumicho was secret. The kumicho used Otōto to spy on meetings that took place in gambling hall. Otōto have many cameras set up, and he report back to kumicho. I only find out few days ago when Otōto warn me not to go to a meeting with Mr. Yuto because Mr. Yuto want bring me to his side. I cancel meeting. Say I too busy. Not want to get mixed up with Mr. Yuto right before Otōto reveal what knew to kumicho.”

“You could have told us that,” Kendell said. “We would have brought that to Sho.”

“I not know if Sho involved,” Futoshi explained. “But he not. I not know what information Otōto bring to kumicho. Needed to find out first.”

“So, while we were conducting our investigation, you were conducting your own,” Pauline said. “What did you find?”

“Video,” Futoshi said. “Of Mr. Yuto plot. But it not have many details. I needed more time, but you scare Mr. Yuto into action today. Now he is caught. The kumicho will be pleased. Let’s go.” He opened the car door for Kendell and Pauline, and he did the same for Haruyo and the little one.

They continued driving for a while, and eventually, they arrived back at the gambling hall of all places. They entered the building, and Kendell could see that the memorial service had continued as originally planned. There was a bit of blood by the stairs, but Kendell decided it was probably best not to ask questions. The Yakuza would handle this themselves, she knew. From what she did learn from Asahi and Tadeas, who had remained behind with Sho and the others at the gambling hall, only one man had been shot and he was currently being taken to headquarters at Kobe along with Mr. Yuto and the others to be questioned. They needed to make sure that there were not any other loyalists to Mr. Yuto.

Kendell and Pauline sat in the back of the gambling hall by the bar, watching the memorial service for Otōto. Otōto would be cremated, Kendell learned, and the casket had been filled with flowers and other culturally significant items. The gambling hall was packed full of people coming to pay their respects to the fallen man, and each time someone came to pay their respects, the crowd standing near the memorial display would bow. It was a very touching display of affection for the deceased. Everyone was particularly friendly and loving to Haruyo and her son, and some even presented them with gifts.

What was most impressive was the older man in a suit who sat near the front of the service, a cane in his hand as he shook hands and spoke with the numerous mourners and occasionally offered words of comfort to Haruyo. This man, Kendell learned, was the kumicho. As things started to wind down a bit and people started drinking to Otōto’s memory, the man made his way to the back of the room toward Kendell and Pauline. He smiled at them and bowed politely, and they stood upright and returned the gesture. “I am Hayato, the kumicho. Sho tells me that you two are greatly responsible for bringing Otōto’s killer to justice. That, and you are quite responsible for stopping what could have been my assassination, had Mr. Yuto’s plan not been uncovered.”

“Futoshi and Haruyo had a lot to do with that as well,” Kendell assured the man. “But we were happy to help.”

“Haruyo tells me she enjoys your blog,” Kumicho Hayato said with a grin. “She was showing it to me earlier. Very…cute…”

Kendell smirked. “I appreciate it. People enjoy learning about the different cultures.”

The man nodded. “As head of Yakuza, would an interview with me benefit you at all?”

Kendell beamed. A personal interview with the leader of one of the world’s largest crime syndicates? That was the sort of thing that reporters could only dream of. “You would allow me to interview you for my blog?” Kendell asked.

“As you have probably learned through your investigation, Otōto and I were very close. I met him through Sho when we were all still quite young. Sho had brought him into Yakuza, but Sho was my favorite little brother for a long time. I got to know Otōto well when he was very small, though we have not spoken much in recent days as I am four hours away in Kobe most times and he was here spying on meetings for me. But I knew him well as a boy. I am very sad that Mr. Yuto’s greed has hurt him and his family so terribly, but you helped to put things right. You helped me to weed out disloyal men among us. To catch Mr. Yuto before he could hurt anyone else, including myself. If a simple interview will benefit you, I will be available after the memorial. Also, Ms. Pauline, I have been told that you were disappointed with your trip to the shrine. I thought I would inform you that it is now high tide, and if you would wait around until tomorrow, it would be an excellent time to visit.”

Pauline clasped her hands together. “Oh! Thank you so much, Mr. Hayato!”

He nodded. “After the memorial service, let’s do the interview in Otōto’s office. Feel free to take pictures or video, whatever you want, Ms. Kendell. Anything to help out a friend of the Yakuza.”

Kendell thanked him, and they bowed to one another. After a moment or so, Kendell and Pauline went ahead and headed up to Otōto’s office to prepare for the exclusive interview with Hayato. The kumicho himself, however, remained down by the bar for a bit longer to speak with other mourners about Otōto. Many of them had questions about why Mr. Yuto had targeted such a nice businessman of the Yakuza, and unfortunately, Hayato felt obligated to explain himself that Otōto had been keeping an eye on people for him. Hayato was glad, though, because this kept everyone a bit nervous wondering if he had additional little spies in lower ranks. It was really quite entertaining to the older man to see his high-ranking Yakuza members squirm a bit. Respect and loyalty were hard to come by in this world, but Yakuza was like a family, despite its rough exterior.

Kumicho Hayato took another drink when he spotted the out of place Korean man in the corner. He recognized him, since he’d had dealings with the Hawaiian resident before, and he approached him. “Tae,” Hayato said. “It has been a while. Sho and Futoshi told me that you have been following Ms. Kendell and Mrs. Pauline around for some time now?”

Tae nodded. “Yes,” he said nervously, clearly not having expected to bump into the kumicho during his trip to Japan.

“Tae, you were sent here by your wakagashira?”

“That’s right,” Tae said. “I was asked to tail the women to see if they knew anything about Yakuza.”

“It seems that they know quite a bit now,” Hayato said with a laugh.

“I would say so,” Tae said with a grin. “Though not in the way my wakagashira expected. He was worried they were going to cause us trouble, but it turns out they were more helpful than anything. They were able to help Otōto’s family and yourself. I will report to my wakagashira in Hawaii that they are of no trouble to us.”

“No trouble might be an exaggeration,” Hayato said grimly. “But do return to Hawaii soon. I’m sure your wakagashira will not be pleased with you when he realizes you’ve been vacationing.”

“Vacationing?” Tae repeated.

“Come now, Tae, I know that you must have realized that the women knew nothing of Yakuza fairly early on. There was no need for you to follow them across the United States, to Paris, to Australia, and now here. You have been playing,” Hayato said. “And I do think this reckless behavior is something your wakagashira should be aware of. As you know, I am quite old-fashioned…”

Tae’s face turned a bit pale, but he bowed his head to Hayato. “Yes, I should perform yubitsume when I return home to Hawaii.” Yubitsume was an older practice of the Yakuza that involved cutting off portions of one’s smallest finger to serve as an apology or sign of repentance.

“Good, I will be in contact with your wakagashira after your return to see how this went,” Hayato said. “Now, be on the first flight back to Hawaii. Do not take advantage of your wakagashira again.”

“Of course,” Tae said.

Hayato sighed. “Though, we should probably keep an eye on these two regardless. After what happened in Paris, they might be a bit more trouble than they seem. Though hiring someone to stalk them around the globe is a bit excessive, Tae. Now, I have an interview to get to.”

Hayato removed a nice china cup from the back of the bar and filled it with sake before going up the stairs to Otōto’s office, where Kendell, Pauline, and their little dog Dot were waiting for him. He sat himself down in a chair, and Kendell beamed at the man. “I would like to begin by offering you a sign of friendship,” Hayato said, showing them the cup of sake. “When a young boy joins Yakuza, he is taken in by a sort of foster parent, as Sho did for Otōto. The relationship between the older member and younger member is called oyabun-kobun. The oyabun is the sort of elder brother and the kobun the younger. A ceremony is done in which they drink from the same cup of sake, a sort of swearing of brotherhood relationship. I would like to offer you ladies a drink!” He laughed and took a sip.

Kendell and Pauline also drank from the cup, and Hayato laughed as they took pictures of the little ceremony they were performing in Otōto’s office. He clasped his hands together as Kendell set up her phone to record their interview. “Congratulations, ladies, you are honorary members of Yakuza. I am happy to be your oyabun.”

Pauline laughed. “How funny to call you big brother, sonny, you’re a good ten to twenty years younger than me!”

The man laughed. “I don’t think so. I’m quite old.”

They all laughed at this, and Kendell began asking him questions about Yakuza. He answered most of them fairly honestly, and he told her truthfully when there were questions he was not up for answering to the public. They laughed and talked and drank sake to Otōto’s memory. Overall, it was a good end to this rather hectic time in Japan.

15

Kendell and Pauline were thrilled that they’d had the opportunity to return to the shrine during high tide, and the pictures turned out wonderfully. But now their adventure in Japan was coming to an end. Kendell and Pauline had returned to Tokyo after visiting the shrine, and frankly, they were far too exhausted to do much more at that point and had spent their last day in Japan sleeping on their little futons. Kendell took advantage of the large bath in their room as well.

The night before their flight from Tokyo, Kendell stayed up late typing up her blog, which would include the video interview with the kumicho. She could hardly believe the man had been willing to sit down for an interview with her. The following morning, Kendell received a phone call from Felicity, and she stepped out onto the balcony so as not to bother Pauline, who was still sleeping. The woman had informed her the night before that she wanted to sleep in as long as possible before trying to catch their flight. “Felicity!” Kendell exclaimed. “These international calls are killing me, you know?”

Felicity laughed. “I don’t think you are going to have to worry about that. Have you looked at your blog today? It’s morning where you’re at, right?”

“That’s right,” Kendell said. “Why?”

“That man you interviewed… He’s really head of the Yakuza gang?” Felicity asked.

“Yeah, he really is,” Kendell said.

“Well, he just joined up as part of Dot’s Division as one of your sponsors,” Felicity said, and Kendell screamed excitedly. Dot’s Division meant they had an extra five hundred dollars a month to spend on flights and other travel expenses.

“Are you serious? I can’t believe the kumicho is funding my blog,” Kendell said once she calmed down.

“And your views have gone up like crazy. You have a huge following in Japan now,” Felicity said. “Like, you have no idea. You have people signing up for Kendell’s Crew like crazy now.”

“That’s amazing,” Kendell said.

“A handful of Pauline’s Posse sponsors too,” Felicity said. “I’m going to expand some of our marketing. And, by the way, the blog post about your Japan trip melted my heart. The pictures of little Asahi that his mother let you take of my grandmother and him are just precious! I love him. I’m going to send a care package in yours and my grandmother’s name to her and to the baby.”

“Include a lot of merchandise from the blog. She has a journal with Dot on it that she loves,” Kendell said. “And maybe some stuff for the baby, too?”

“Absolutely,” Felicity said. “You guys are amazing. And…is my grandmother holding up okay? I read the part about her having a hard time with the futon beds.”

“She hated them at first, but she is sleeping like a baby this morning. I think she’s getting used to them now, but we’ll be heading out soon. Maybe we should schedule her some sort of pampering during our next trip. Yeah, she could use a little bit of rest and relaxation,” Kendell said.

“Agreed. I don’t want her overexerting herself, and I’m sorry my grandmother got you involved with the Yakuza,” Felicity said. “I know you tried to not make it sound like her fault in the blog, but I can read between the lines pretty well. She followed a tattooed stranger into an illegal gambling hall and decided she needed to stay and gamble for a while, am I right?”

“Well, she does have a bit of a nose for trouble,” Kendell admitted.

“I wonder where I get it from…” Felicity said with a laugh. Kendell knew good and well that Felicity was so very much like her grandmother. Always looking for adventure and always getting herself into trouble. Felicity ran an event shop in Senoia, Georgia, as well as a detective agency out of the same building alongside her fiancé Jeffrey and friend Jack. The three of them were business geniuses and really good at what they did, and since Felicity had sold the classic car she had come to own, she had been investing that money into her shop and agency as well as into Kendell and Pauline’s travel blog.

“I couldn’t tell you,” Kendell joked. “Okay, I think I hear your grandmother waking up. She’ll probably need help getting up off that futon.”

“Good luck,” Felicity laughed.

“Felicity, I need to send some money out to New York for my fellow,” Kendell said before they could hang up. “He’s got some fees due for his flight school.”

“No worries,” Felicity said. “I’ll take care of it.”:

“Thanks!” Kendell said, hanging up the phone. She imagined that she was going to be getting a phone call from Jack before too long. He obviously hadn’t read the blog yet. He always called her after she posted a story about all the trouble they got into, usually getting onto her for putting herself into some sort of predicament, but he always complimented the blog posts too.

After packing and getting dressed, Kendell and Pauline headed downstairs where they enjoyed another traditional Japanese breakfast. They talked happily with the servers there and thanked them tremendously for their hospitality. Before they knew it, it was time to leave Tokyo behind. They took a cab to the airport, making sure to arrive in plenty of time, because they had a hard time finding their way around the airports in countries where they were unfamiliar with the language.

Eventually they settled down after finding the area where their flight would be boarding. “I got you something,” Pauline said, nudging Kendell and passing her a sticker.

Kendell smiled brightly. “I’m glad you always remember this for me,” she said and peeled the sticker depicting the Itsukushima Shrine and a map of Japan in the background. She placed it on her carry-on bag that she had purchased during one of her earliest adventures with Pauline, and she put it next to the sticker she had gotten in Australia. “There we go, another memory down.”

“Kendell and Pauline!” a man’s voice called, and Kendell spotted Tae walking toward them, a bag in tow.

Kendell stood. “Tae, what are you doing?”

Tae put his hand out to shake. “I am about to take a flight back to Hawaii, and I wanted to apologize to you both about scaring you so terribly,” he said. “The kumicho has informed me that I have greatly overstepped my bounds.”

Kendell shook the man’s hands, noticing something strange. “What did you do to your hand there, Tae?” she asked, noticing the bandage on his smallest finger.

“I cut the tip of my pinky off with a knife,” he said matter-of-factly.

“Ouch!” Pauline exclaimed from where she sat. “That’s terrible! Were you cooking or something?”

He shook his head. “No, it is a ceremonial sort of thing. I sent it to my wakagashira in Hawaii.”

“That is really gross,” Kendell said, mortified.

Tae waved his hand. “It is what it is,” he said. “I read your blog post, and my feelings are hurt as you did not put up a single picture of myself.”

Kendell smirked. “Actually, I was going to do an entire blog post while I was on the plane all about you stalking us.”

“Ha ha!! You make it sound so terrible!” he exclaimed.

“I have an idea. Come here, Pauline, let’s take a picture together with Tae,” Kendell said, pulling out her phone.

Tae seemed to really be pleased with this idea, and Pauline let him hold Dot as the three of them scrunched together for a selfie. He laughed and shook Pauline’s hand as well. He let Kendell take another picture of his hand, and he explained to her what the ceremony was all about, and she felt terrible he had gotten into so much trouble that he’d had to do something to redeem himself to his wakagashira in such a way, but he seemed to shrug it off like it was nothing. “You ladies have a wonderful flight,” he said and disappeared in the crowd.

Kendell’s phone started to go off. She smiled and answered it as Pauline sat herself back down. “Jack!” she exclaimed.

“The Yakuza!” he shrieked into the phone. “Are you serious, Kendell?! You can’t be serious.”

Kendell laughed. “You worry too much.”

“I don’t worry enough,” he said. “Clearly.” He sighed heavily. “You did a good job, Kendell. But I’m starting to wonder when Pauline is going to get you two killed.”

“We’re fine, and now we’re besties with the leader of an international crime syndicate,” Kendell said. “I’m sure that that might come in handy someday.”

“I really doubt it,” Jack said. “But I’m glad you’re okay. Mind telling me where you two are heading next so that I can go ahead and look up the numbers of all the local hospitals?” he asked jokingly.

Kendell laughed. “Very funny, Jack. We are currently gearing up to head to Alaska, actually… And, if I’m not mistaken, you have a little bit of time off before your spring classes start, am I right?”

“Yes,” he said. “What are you saying?”

“I’m saying get your butt on a flight and meet us in Alaska!” Kendell exclaimed. “It would be fun. I haven’t seen you since Paris when we got engaged.” Kendell looked at her hand, admiring her engagement ring. “I think you and I have a lot of stuff to talk about, like wedding stuff?”

“Definitely,” he said. “How long you two going to be in Alaska?”

“Probably a couple of weeks,” Kendell said.

“Perfect,” Jack said. “Okay, I think I can spare a few days to come see you, beautiful. Maybe you and I can plan an actual date for the wedding?”

“That sounds perfect,” Kendell said happily. “Hey, my flight is boarding. I got to let you go.”

“Okay, be safe. Love you,” he said.

“Love you too. See you in Alaska?” she asked.

“I’ll see you there,” he said. “Send me your hotel and flight information.”

“Will do. Bye, Jack,” she said, and she hung up the phone before helping Pauline up out of the low chairs.

The woman stretched her back, and they grabbed their bags and headed onto the plane. Before too long, they were seated, and Pauline was leaning her seat back as far as it could go—which wasn’t too far. “You think we can start flying first class before too long?” Pauline asked. “These international flights are just too much.”

“Maybe,” Kendell said. “I definitely wouldn’t mind a first-class ticket. If we keep getting sponsors like this, we might be able to afford it before too long.”

“Well, that is exciting to think about,” Pauline said with a yawn. Dot curled up in the woman’s lap, snuggling close and gearing up for a long nap like she always did on a flight.

Kendell, once the plane was up in the air, took out her laptop and got to work right away on a post about Tae. She found old pictures of them in which she had picked up on him in the background and used a photo edit to circle him so that readers could spot him easily. She wrote all about how he had followed them from Hawaii to Texas to Mississippi to Georgia to Paris to Australia and finally to Japan, where they finally confronted him. The last picture she included in the blog post was of the selfie they had taken together at the airport. Kendell laughed as she read the post to herself, finding herself to be quite humorous in describing this silly man known as Tae that had managed to get himself in a bit of trouble with his boss by following them around the world.

Kendell then rested her head. Japan had been quite an adventure.

* * *

Iced in Alaska

Flight Risk Cozy Mystery, Book 10

1

Kendell McDonald had been in the middle of a deep sleep when she jolted awake after being licked in the face by her companion’s purse dog. “For crying out loud,” Kendell muttered, picking up the little white dog, Dot, who had apparently managed to get out of her carrier during the flight. Glancing over, Kendell could see why: Pauline had fallen fast asleep with her face against the plane window. Checking the time, Kendell realized that they had to be getting close to descent time. She gave Pauline a slight nudge, and the elderly Southern belle snorted herself awake.

“Oh, sorry, dear, was I being loud?” Pauline asked, rubbing her eyes.

“No, nothing like that,” Kendell said. “But Dot got out of her carrier. I think we’re going to be landing soon.” Kendell passed Dot to Pauline, and the woman quietly scolded the little dog before putting her back in the carrier.

“Have you had a look at your blog since we took off?” Pauline asked.

“No, not yet,” Kendell said. “This has been quite a flight…” She yawned as she said this and proceeded to pull out her laptop. Life had gotten rather exciting for Kendell ever since starting her travel blog. She and Pauline had more adventures in the past several months since beginning this journey than Kendell had had in her entire life. “More views galore,” Kendell said with a smirk. “And your granddaughter messaged me. Wants me to call her as soon as we land…”

“Oh, I’m sure Felicity is up to something,” Pauline said. “I feel like every time we talk to her, she has something new up her sleeve.”

“The email says that once we touch down in Anchorage, we should look into the sled races. Looks like our visit is going to coincide a bit with that. Definitely something neat to cover while we’re in Alaska,” Kendell said. “I bet my readers would really love it.”

“But of course,” Pauline said. “I feel a bit frazzled. I’m not sure how my old bones are going to handle the weather out this way.”

“Yeah, you’re from Georgia… I bet you thought New York was cold!” Kendell exclaimed. She wished she had met up with Pauline sooner, just so she could have seen the Southern lady in New York, Kendell’s home.

“It wasn’t so bad,” Pauline said. “It was late summer. It certainly was a bit chillier than Georgia, I’ll tell you that.”

Soon the pilot was announcing their descent. The next thing they knew, they had at last arrived in Anchorage, Alaska, for their next great adventure. Once Pauline and Kendell had gathered their luggage, they located a spot to sit where Kendell could plug in her laptop for a videocall. She called Felicity, and after a few moments of her laptop freezing up a bit, the call finally connected and Felicity Overton, Pauline’s granddaughter, appeared on the screen. “Well, hello there!” Felicity exclaimed.

“Felicity,” Kendell said with a smile, and Pauline practically pushed her over trying to peer around to the screen.

“Hey, Grandmama!” Felicity said cheerfully.

Pauline beamed. “Felicity, you look so lovely. How are you, dear?”

“Doing pretty well,” Felicity said. “How was your flight?”

“Oh, it was wonderful,” Pauline said. “I think I slept through most of it. I needed that.”

“Well, I’m glad you got some rest,” Felicity said. “You probably will be due for a vacation from your vacationing soon, don’t you think?”

“Yes, I suppose a trip back home to Georgia wouldn’t hurt,” Pauline admitted. “I’m not as young as I used to be.”

“Is that what you wanted to talk about?” Kendell asked.

“Not exactly,” Felicity said with a grin. “I have a proposal for you… Hold on a second while I get your fella on the call.”

“Wait, what?” Kendell asked, but Felicity wasn’t paying her much mind as she worked to get another person in on the video chat.

After a moment, her screen split in two and she was looking at Felicity, who was stationed in Georgia, and her fiancé Jack, who was smiling back at her from his apartment in New York. “Whoa, what’s this about?” Kendell asked.

“What, we just skip the whole I-love-you and I-miss-you thing?” Jack asked, and Kendell laughed.

“Of course, I love you and miss you,” Kendell said. “I’m just wondering what’s going on.”

Jack looked excited and nervous all at once.

“Well, do you want to ask her or should I?” Felicity began.

Jack laughed. “Kendell, would you want to get married…like…now?”

“What?” Kendell asked. They hadn’t made much of a plan just yet. They hadn’t set a date or talked about location or anything. “What do you mean, now? Like, over video chat?”

“No!” Jack exclaimed, smirking. “I’m talking about while you’re in Alaska.”

“Before you freak out,” Felicity said with a laugh. “I’ve been in contact with some friends of yours. And I’ve obviously run it by Jack. I’ve got some time off, and I want to help throw you one heck of a destination wedding while you’re out in Alaska. It’ll be amazing for your blog. What do you think? And if this is a I-need-to-talk-to-my-fiancé or think about it kind of thing, I can log off.”

“What, no, you’re good,” Kendell said, smiling at Jack, who looked so excited and fidgety. “Jack, you really want to do this? Get married in the next week or so right here in Alaska?”

“Are you kidding?” Jack exclaimed. “I love you, Kendell, and I want to get married. The sooner the better, if you ask me!”

Kendell smiled at the screen. “Let’s do this,” she said, and Felicity squealed excitedly.

“Okay, get that flight booked, Jack,” Felicity said. “I’ve already got mine ready to go. I won’t be leaving for a few days, I’m afraid.”

“You already booked a flight?” Kendell asked. “How did you know I was going to say yes to this?”

“I just had a feeling,” Felicity said coyly.

“Honestly…” Jack said and suddenly held up a bag that Kendell recognized as his usual carry-on. “My flight to Ohio leaves in a couple of hours. Wasn’t able to get a direct flight out today, but I want to get there as soon as possible, so it’s Ohio or bust for me.”

“Oh my gosh!” Kendell laughed. “Well, glad you know me so well.”

“I have to finish getting packed,” Jack said. “I’ll see you soon. Love you!”

“Love you too! Both of you, text me your flight information!” Kendell said, and after a moment, the screen went blank. There was a long pause after she put away her laptop. She stared off into space for a moment before exclaiming, “I’m getting married!”

Pauline squealed right along with her. “Okay, first things first, let’s get to the hotel. I told Felicity you were going to say yes…”

“Wait, you knew about this?” Kendell asked.

“Jack had called me while we were in Tokyo,” Pauline said. “Ran the idea by me to see what I thought. They didn’t want you to feel pressured or anything, but since I’ve been the one spending the most time with you, they thought I’d have a better idea of how antsy you were about getting married.”

“Are you kidding? I’m down!” Kendell clapped her hands.

Pauline stood up, and the two hurried to get a cab. It was, as Kendell expected, freezing outside. They scrambled into the first cab they managed to flag down, and after giving the driver the address for their hotel, it zipped away. Gazing out the window during their drive, Kendell learned very quickly that Anchorage was quite the bustling city. Alaska was not considered to be a densely populated state for fairly obvious reasons, but this grand capital city, Kendell had learned, contained nearly forty percent of the entire state’s population. Even so, that meant just under three hundred thousand people lived there, which was nothing compared to the eight and a half million that made up her home in New York. Even from those little car windows, Kendell could see the grand mountains that made up the backdrop of the city, and she oohed and aahed at the lovely sight that was the reflective water of the Cook Inlet.

When at last they arrived at the Lakefront Anchorage Hotel, Kendell was absolutely taken away by the sight before her. She and Pauline tipped the cab driver and stood outside the enormous, cabin-feel hotel resort. “I haven’t even made it in the door yet, and I am already overwhelmed by the sight of it all,” Pauline said, staring out toward the mountain range.

“Look at the lake,” Kendell said. The hotel sat right on Lake Spenard, and the resort had its own private dock where a group of men, likely gearing up for some sort of fishing journey, were all preparing for their departure. “This is a good find. I’m kind of excited that your granddaughter has taken over our booking plans now that the blog has really taken off.”

Before they even made it through the door, they were greeted by a very excited hotel manager who introduced himself and shook their hands. Evidently, Felicity had somehow managed to obtain some sort of celebrity status with the hotel because the manager was acting like Elvis Presley had just entered the building. Kendell knew her blog had blown up rather quickly, but because she was constantly traveling, she had a hard time understanding just how popular it was. There was a large banner in the hotel lobby welcoming them, and they were informed that the hotel had called the local veterinarian as their “agent”—meaning Felicity—had mentioned that Dot was due for her vaccinations.

The manager scurried behind the counter, leaving Kendell and Pauline staring at one another in surprise. This was certainly the warmest welcome they had ever received, though it had been a while since their last visit to the United States, which seemed to be where the blog was most popular. Their luggage was taken up to their rooms before they were even checked in, and a woman from housekeeping presented Dot with a little doggy sweater that had the hotel’s emblem on the side to ensure she stayed warm during their local outings.

“Your agent, Ms. Overton, tells me that you’re thinking about peeking in on the Iditarod?” the manager said, positively beaming. He supplied them with all printable information the hotel had to offer on the sled racing and offered to escort them personally if they chose to watch the initial start of the race.

Eventually, they made it up to their hotel room, the hotel manager having walked them there himself. Kendell thanked the manager profusely for being so kind, and when he was finally gone, she felt as though she could finally breathe. She headed straight for the window; she always liked to get a picture of their hotel room’s view for the blog, and she was not disappointed. She snapped a few pictures, and the results were incredible. The sunlight was peeking through some evergreen trees that stood outside the suite’s window, and she was able to capture the greenery, the lake, and even a bit of the mountains in a single shot. “Beautiful,” she said, turning around just in time to see Pauline wrestling Dot into the blue doggie vest and matching hat. “That’s too cute,” Kendell said, hardly able to miss the giant hotel emblem on the side. It was clever. She was certain the hotel had the dog vest made just for Dot hoping some pictures of it would wind up on her blog for marketing purposes. She allowed herself to fall into it because she could not resist taking several pictures of the little dog in the dark blue sweater vest and matching knitted hat.

“My little Dot looks so precious,” Pauline said giddily.

“Well, Jack and Felicity won’t be here for a few days,” Kendell said. “What do you want to do with our time until then? I say we try to fit in one grand adventure before they all get here…because once they do, it’s going to be all about wedding prep… Wow. I can’t believe I’m getting married… It’s happening so fast…” Kendell shook a bit, but she was still thrilled despite the bit of nerves. “So, back to what I was saying… What do you want to do until they get here?”

Pauline grinned. “Oh, honey, you know me. Something relaxing.”

2

“This is not relaxing!” Kendell wailed as she gripped her flight harness.

“What, dear?” Pauline’s voice screeched in her ear. “I think you have your mic turned off.”

Kendell adjusted the headset she was wearing, though she did so with great caution as the small chopper they were flying in jerked to and fro. She felt like she would fall out at any moment. The cold wind whipped through the helicopter, causing them both to shake. Pauline, though she had complained of the cold a bit, seemed unmoved by their pilot, who couldn’t seem to keep them completely upright for more than a minute or two at a time. “I said this is not relaxing!” Kendell repeated.

“Aw, shucks,” the pilot’s voice said, screeching in her ear due to the poorly taken care of headsets. “Here, this will take the edge off.” His arm reached around behind him toward Kendell, and a flask landed in her hands.

Her eyes widened, and she took a sniff. “Booze!” Kendell cried. “Have you been drinking?! You’re flying!”

“Aw, just a little,” the pilot said. “Whoop, hold on…” He had to grab hold of the steering mechanisms quickly as another gust of wind came through, jerking them to the side once more.

The flask whipped right out of Kendell’s hands and went flying out of the helicopter. “Easy, Kendell,” Pauline said as calmly as ever. Dot, who was seated between the two women, was shivering in her little carrier. “Aw, Dot is cold,” Pauline said.

“Pretty sure she’s terrified!” Kendell exclaimed.

The pilot had started off flying decently enough. They had decided to take a flight from Anchorage to Katmai National Park, and Kendell had made the mistake of letting Pauline handle the travel arrangements. About thirty minutes into the freezing cold flight, the pilot had started getting a little shaky. Now that the flask had flown out the window, Kendell knew exactly why things had spiraled so quickly out of control. In fact, she was beginning to wonder if she was actually going to make it to her wedding day.

When at last the pilot announced they were going to be landing, Kendell gripped the strap holding her in, feeling as though her life depended on it. Finally, they made it to the ground. She jumped out and proceeded to dry-heave, thinking for a moment that she might actually lose her lunch. Thankfully, she managed to regain some composure, and after Pauline happily tipped the pilot, they were on their way.

Before they even made it to the wildlife tours, they immediately spotted a large moose crossing the street, and Pauline made the cab driver stop so they could get out and take pictures. Kendell snapped several photographs, and the cab driver evidently recognized Dot and pleaded to be a part of the photographing experience as well, making a comment about Kendell’s blog. Kendell felt quite ensured by this, and the driver thanked them profusely before dropping them off at a large touring facility.

They entered, and Kendell felt relieved by the warm air inside the welcome center where a few people were already beginning to gather for a tour around Katmai National Park. The tour would start by boat and become mostly a walking tour, but the kind-hearted guide, a bubbly blonde woman, assured them there would be plenty to see over the short distance they would be traveling. Kendell and Pauline, knowing they had a lot going on in the next few days, had elected to go small for this particular tour so they didn’t exhaust themselves prematurely.

As Kendell and Pauline lined up to get on the small tour boat, they wound up bumping into a woman who had with her a large husky. The dog kept stepping back to sniff at Pauline, who seemed quite interested in what she had in her bag - Dot. “Oh, no, not for you,” Pauline said, shaking her finger in the large dog’s face.

The woman laughed. “Echo!” the woman exclaimed. “No, no. Stop doing that. I’m so sorry, ma’am.” The woman then seemed to notice what her large dog was so interested in Pauline for. “Is that a little dog in your purse?”

Pauline positioned her hip out where Dot sat, and Dot stuck her nose out of the side of the bedazzled carrier. Echo, the husky, wagged its tale and licked Dot across the face. “Yes, this is Dot,” Pauline said.

“Dot?” the woman asked, then squealed. “You’re Pauline!” she said and looked to Kendell. “And that must make you Kendell! You’re the bloggers?”

“You know me?” Kendell asked, still always quite amused whenever someone recognized her.

“Yes, of course,” she said and stuck out her hand. “My name is Uki. And this is my sweetheart, Echo.”

“She’s a pretty dog,” Kendell said with a smile.

“She’s a racer,” Uki said.

“You’re a musher?” Kendell asked excitedly.

“That’s right,” Uki said. “Echo is one of my lead dogs. She’s my baby, right here. My tough girl.”

“Are you racing in the Iditarod?” Pauline asked hopefully.

“I am,” Uki said excitedly as the tour guide waved them on board. They wound up sitting right next to Uki and her dog. “I’m actually hoping to get in the record books. I’m racing with an all-female sled dog team.”

“All your dogs are girls?” Pauline asked.

“Yes,” Uki said. “We’ve had female mushers win before, but I thought it would be incredible to have an all-female dog team led by a female musher. I’ve been training my girls like you wouldn’t believe.”

“I’m sure,” Kendell said. “An all-female sled dog team? That’s pretty incredible. Has that ever been done before?”

“Not as far as I know,” she said. “I like working with female dogs. Always have. They have their own way of doing things, honestly. It takes a special kind of patience, though.”

“Do you mind if I take some pictures of you and Echo for my blog?” Kendell asked.

“Are you kidding? I’d love for you to do that. It would be great for my brand,” she said. “I get sponsors for my team.”

Kendell snapped several pictures of Uki and Echo. Echo was incredibly photogenic for a dog, and Kendell could tell Dot was getting a little jealous. They wound up taking Dot out of her carrier while on the lake portion of the tour and letting her pose in her little blue sweater with Uki.

“Look!” Pauline exclaimed while Kendell was busying herself with pictures of Echo and Dot.

Turning and looking over her shoulder, Kendell spied a collection of moose hanging out on the edge of the lake. “Whoa,” Kendell said. These moose looked twice the size of the one they had seen earlier. “That one we saw on the way here must have just been a baby! I didn’t realize how large they were.”

“Oh, yeah,” Uki said. “Alaskan moose are enormous. You should see them up close.”

“You’re local, then, Uki?” Pauline asked.

“Local and native,” she said proudly.

“And you’re taking a tour?” Kendell asked.

Uki laughed. “Not local to this part of Alaska. I’m traveling gradually to Anchorage to where the rest of my dogs are being kept. I had them flown out and sent to a caretaker a week ago, and Echo and I have been traveling across the state for a little bit of quality time. She’s my jealous one. I find she does better before a race if I’m a good dog-mom and show her a little bit of extra love.”

“Aw, so she’s your special girl, then?” Pauline asked, scratching Echo behind the ear.

“Yeah, I own thirty dogs, but Echo is my wingman…winglady,” Uki laughed. “Not that my other dogs don’t get plenty of love from me.”

“All thirty dogs are female?” Kendell asked.

“Oh, gosh, no,” she said. “But I am racing all ladies this year. Just trying something different.”

“I would love to write about you and your dogs,” Kendell said. “If you don’t mind maybe giving me an interview?”

“Are you kidding?” Uki exclaimed. “This coming from the woman who had a personal one-on-one interview with a leader of an international crime syndicate?”

Kendell blushed. “Well, when you put it that way…” Kendell laughed. “I like interviewing interesting people I meet along my travels, and I think an Alaskan native sled racer planning to race an all-female dog team is pretty interesting. I believe my readers will think so as well.”

“Though it might get a bit overshadowed,” Pauline said. “Kendell is getting married while we’re in Alaska.”

“I don’t know if Felicity wants us telling everyone that just yet, Pauline,” Kendell said, though the statement seemed rather silly since she was the one getting married. But Kendell relied a lot on Felicity when it came to publicity. The woman had a serious knack for it.

“Oh, I won’t tell anyone if it’s supposed to be a surprise for your readers,” Uki said. “But believe me, I do intend to tell everyone I bumped into you three. My cousin is a huge fan. I didn’t realize you all were going to be here in Alaska, so it’s pretty amazing I bumped into you. If you’re around the day of the race, my cousin is going to be in town… I bet she would love to meet you.”

Kendell smiled. “If we wind up coming to the start of the race, we’d love to.”

“Awesome!” Uki said. “She’s going to be livid when I tell her I ran into you three. I’ve got to know what it’s like. I mean, you became famous pretty much overnight.”

“Pretty much,” Kendell admitted. “It’s kind of crazy. I had just started my blog when all that craziness happened in Paris, and that story was huge. It made international headlines, and when people found out I had a blog, it got a lot of interest pretty quickly.”

“Look!” someone shouted as the boat docked. There were some large brown bears nearby, and Kendell was quick to take several pictures.

“Those turned out nice,” Kendell said. “I should really consider investing in a good camera, though. I mean, the pictures I take with my phone are pretty good, but if I want to take long-range shots, it’s not going to do the job it needs to do.”

“I bet Felicity will agree that that is in the company budget,” Pauline said.

They unloaded from the boat and began the small walk through a poorly-laid path. Kendell snapped several pictures, especially of Echo and Dot. The two of them looked so adorable next to one another that she couldn’t help it. The enormous husky next to the tiny white ball of fluff in the knitted doggie hat made quite a pair. “Oh, this is just so lovely,” Pauline sang as they walked with Uki, talking excitedly about Kendell’s upcoming wedding as well as the dog race. Kendell conducted an interview as they followed the tour, taking in the incredible scenery that was Alaska.

Kendell had a wonderful feeling as she walked the path through the enormous trees, occasionally catching glimpses of Alaskan wildlife. She knew then that this was going to be a trip she would not soon forget.

3

Rather than take the risky flight back to Anchorage, Kendell and Pauline were invited to go with Uki, who would be heading back to Anchorage by bus. It was a much longer journey, but the company was nice. Kendell and Pauline got to see a lot more of the lovely state this way, and they got to know Uki and Echo and learn more about the upcoming race.

“So, I’m part of the Inuit indigenous tribe here in Alaska,” Uki said. “Well, my grandmother was, at least. I’m named after her. My grandfather was actually Russian. They had my mum, who would one hundred percent refer to herself as an Inuit. My dad was Canadian.”

“I think that is just so interesting,” Pauline said.

“You two anywhere near the Lakefront Anchorage Hotel?” Uki asked.

“As a matter of fact, that’s where we’re staying,” Kendell said. “Why?”

“Excellent!” Uki exclaimed. “So, this evening, the hotel is hosting a little get-together for some of the racers. You ladies should stop by. There will probably be more dogs there like Echo. It would make for a great picture for your blog to pose Dot with a group of sled dogs.”

“That would be so cute!” Kendell said, clasping her hands together.

It was agreed that Kendell would sneak down to the party that evening, though Pauline was acting a bit tired and wasn’t sure if she was going to make it after their walking tour in the cold weather earlier that day. Several hours went by before they finally arrived back in Anchorage. The ladies parted ways, as Uki had to get to her own hotel that evening as she was not staying at the Lakefront. Kendell and Pauline unloaded at the front entrance of Lakefront Anchorage Hotel, and as soon as they entered the lobby, they were greeted with a rather unusual surprise.

“Felicity!” Pauline cried out.

“Jack!” was Kendell’s call, and Kendell and Pauline both darted up to the pair.

Jack wrapped his arms around Kendell, lifting her clear off her feet and planting a kiss on her cheek. “You two eaten?” Jack asked, holding Kendell’s hand.

“We got a table reserved at the hotel’s restaurant,” Felicity said, still hugging her grandmother.

“You two didn’t tell us you were flying in today!” Pauline exclaimed, clearly quite thrilled to see her granddaughter.

“We wanted it to be a surprise,” Jack said, giving Kendell another tight hug before leading them down a hallway toward the restaurant.

Jack gave the host their name when they arrived in the back, and Kendell was finding herself to be rather giddy. The host grinned and led them toward the back where a private room was setup for dining. When they opened the door, there was a loud shout of surprise, and Kendell nearly fell back at the shock of who else had arrived in Anchorage that day. Brandon was there, one of Kendell’s good friends from her recent days as a flight attendant. Standing next to him was Lil, another flight attendant, as well as Kendell’s good friend Jesse and her new boyfriend, Junior—a Texas rancher Kendell and Pauline had the pleasure of meeting during their stay in Dallas. Next to them was Haruyo and Futoshi along with Haruyo’s little toddler whom she was holding in her hands. She met those three during their recent stay in Japan. There was also Felicity’s fiancé Jefferson from Senoia, Kendell’s blogger friend Rodney that she had met on a flight to Paris and had greatly inspired her to start blogging, and, much to Kendell’s pleasure, her mother. “Mom!” Kendell yelped, and the woman scurried over and wrapped her arms around Kendell’s neck, her big bushel of red hair getting in her face.

“You think I was going to let you get married and not be here?” Mrs. McDonald said, then pulled a man over near her. “Kendell, this is Sam.”

“Sam! My mom has told me about you,” Kendell said, referring to the boyfriend her mother had emailed her some pictures of in recent days.

She was incredibly overwhelmed. She had not expected such a group. “Jefferson, good to see you again,” Kendell said.

“Of course,” he said. “Felicity was going to need some help to plan a wedding this quickly, so I wasn’t going to miss it.”

“Brandon, Lil, Jesse,” she said happily, hugging her three best friends in one giant group hug and giving Junior a nudge, joking about turning her uptight New Yorker gal-pal into a rancher.

“Don’t pick fun,” Jesse warned. “I helped birth a calf last week.”

“I don’t believe you,” Kendell said, but Junior confirmed it.

Perhaps the most surprising was Rodney, Haruyo, and Futoshi. She had only met them once, but there they were. Felicity explained. “I called them up and told them about you getting married. Seeing some faces from your previous blog posts I think would get your readers really excited, and when I told them we were paying for the flights, they were all pretty eager for a free vacation to come see you again.”

Haruyo put her son, Asahi, down and he immediately came walking over to Pauline, who couldn’t help but pick up the cute little boy. Haruyo was quick to scoop up Dot.

Rodney grinned. “I wasn’t going to miss a chance to support your blog,” he said. “Plus, I was hoping to convince you to put a link to my blog on yours. I can’t believe how much your blog has blown up!”

“Are you kidding? Of course I’ll promote your blog, Rodney,” Kendell said.

“I should be taking advice from you from now on,” he laughed.

Kendell smiled at Futoshi, who always had on the most serious of expressions. The shirt he was wearing was unbuttoned at the top, so she could see the tattoos all over his neck. He actually managed a smile. “You helped us,” Futoshi said. “I spare a weekend for your wedding.”

Kendell grinned as Jack pulled a chair out for her and the group of friends, family, and near strangers gathered around. Once the servers brought them all drinks, Jack stood up and held up a glass to toast. “I just want to tell all of you thank you so much for being here. I know this was really last minute—and that this whole thing is a little crazy—but I know it means a lot to my fiancée that you are all here for this special occasion. So, Felicity… When are we getting married exactly?”

Everyone laughed. “This Saturday, Jack.”

“Perfect,” he said with a wink. “Everyone, this is for you. Cheers!”

“Cheers!” the crowd cheered, and Kendell beamed. She rested her head on Jack’s shoulder when he sat back down. She could hardly believe it was finally happening. That Saturday, she would be getting married in Anchorage to the love of her life.

* * *

While the celebration had gone rather late, Kendell had not forgotten about her discussion with Uki and about attending the soiree the hotel was hosting for the mushers. She and Jack kissed good night, and he headed off with Jefferson and Rodney, with whom he was evidently bunking. Pauline too had not forgotten about their promise to Uki, and under the pretense of letting Dot see Echo again, the two ladies headed down to where the gathering of racers was taking place.

Uki spotted them entering the large ballroom and darted over to them, Echo right on her heels. “I’m so glad you two made it!” she exclaimed. “I was beginning to wonder.”

“My fiancé and Pauline’s granddaughter flew in and surprised us,” Kendell explained. “They brought a bunch of friends from all over the place and threw a little engagement party for us this evening, but we wanted to pop in on you before heading off to bed.”

“Yes, the party is winding down now,” Uki said sadly. “But I do have a few people I’d love for you to meet. There are all sorts of amazing mushers here.”

Eager to help Kendell with obtaining additional material, Uki dragged her and Pauline around the event introducing them to anyone she felt would make a good addition to Kendell’s blog. One man, a gentleman named Martin Forn, was a well-known musher who had ranked in the top ten racers for a number of years. “Martin is going to do great,” Uki said. “I can’t wait to see what he does now that he has taken up a more extensive training regimen.”

“Don’t let my head get too big, Uki,” Martin laughed. “What’s this I hear about you using an all-female dog team? Fact or fiction, Uki?”

“Fact,” Uki said. “All the dogs on my team this year are female.”

“I can’t say that I think that’s a good idea,” Martin said.

“What? Why?” Kendell asked.

“You sure none of them are in heat?” Martin asked.

“You really think I’m dumb enough to not check that out beforehand?” Uki snapped. “No, none of my racers are in heat, and if one of them winds up surprising me with that along the trail, I’ll remove her at one of the drops.”

“If one of the other teams’ dogs don’t jump her first,” Martin joked.

“One of the drops?” Pauline asked, but before Uki or Martin could explain, a woman butted in with a clearing of her throat.

“Ahem,” the woman said, and both Uki and Martin smiled at the woman. “The last thing race coordinators want is for one of the dogs to get seriously hurt. So when a dog can no longer handle the race or winds up with a mild injury, racers can pull some of their sled dogs out of the race. Happens at a lot of the checkpoints. Veterinarians are posted at all the checkpoints to ensure the safety of the dogs.”

“Kendell, here is a woman worth talking to for your blog,” Uki said, waving to the woman who had come over. “This is Susan. She watched Echo’s mother for me years ago when I had to drop her.”

“How does the drop work?” Kendell asked curiously.

Susan smirked. “The dogs who have to be dropped are well taken care of by women at Hiland Mountain Correctional Center. I was a prison inmate, and I was able to sign up for the dog watch program because of good behavior. I’m obviously not in prison anymore, but now I help manage the transfers from owners to the prison. It has become a real passion of mine.”

“You should interview her,” Martin said, pointing at Susan. “A wonderful life story. We all love Susan and her dog drop chain-gang.”

“Ha. Very funny, Martin,” Susan said with an eyeroll.

There was some commotion from the far side of the room. Uki grumbled. “Ugh, I didn’t know Rush was here.”

“Rush?” Kendell asked, glancing over to see a large, burly man laughing loudly with a group of other burly-looking mushers.

“Oscar ‘Rush’ Stenson,” Uki said. “I thought he was too good for these meet-and-greets.”

“He’s got Echo’s little boyfriend with him,” Martin said, pointing out the massive sled dog kneeling at Oscar’s side.

Uki laughed and explained to Kendell and Pauline that Oscar’s star dog had tried to mount Echo once, and her dog had bit a portion of the larger husky’s ear completely off. “Echo got suspended from the race,” Uki said. “But that suspension has lifted. Echo’s not usually a biter, but I guess she just didn’t like Sledger.”

“Who names their dog Sledger?” Pauline grumbled.

“The same kind of people who give themselves nicknames like Rush,” Susan said, rolling her eyes.

“I can tell you’re not a fan,” Kendell said.

“Not at all,” Susan said. “Personally, I think if you get a repeat suspension of animal abuse, you should get a lifetime ban from the race.”

“Whoa,” Kendell said. “Seriously?”

“Yeah, Rush has been suspended twice for overexerting his dogs,” Uki said. “No one is a fan, believe me. They say he’s backed off some since his last suspension, but he still trains his dogs pretty rough. About as much as you’re legally allowed to do.”

“As sketchy as his tactics are, they certainly heed results,” Martin said with dissatisfaction. “I’ll tell you this much: whether you lot like it or not, Rush’s dogs are the team to beat.”

4

Kendell arose the next morning feeling exceptionally refreshed despite the rather late evening she’d had. She knew that Felicity had her scheduled for a number of necessary appointments in order to get ready for the rather rapidly approaching wedding. Kendell could not imagine how Felicity was going to manage to pull this off, but knowing Felicity Overton, Kendell knew she would somehow manage.

Kendell and Pauline, despite having been up the latest of their large group of friends and loved ones, seemed to be the first up that morning. The entire hallway of the hotel where Kendell and Pauline were staying had been booked by Felicity for the wedding guests who had flown in, and Kendell could hear voices chatting about their plans for the day. She could hear Futoshi and Haruyo chatting in Japanese as they passed by one door, and she grinned when she heard Jack conversing with Jefferson at another.

Eventually, Kendell and Pauline loaded themselves into an elevator, eager to take advantage of the continental breakfast the hotel had to offer. However, once they reached the lobby, they found themselves wishing they had slept in a bit longer. There were police everywhere, and a number of sled racers they had met the night before were gathered in the lobby, all talking quickly and under their breaths in panicky tones.

One huddled group was standing near an officer. Someone pointed Kendell and Pauline out, and the officer broke away. “Oh dear,” Pauline said. “It seems we’ve managed to find ourselves in trouble once again.”

“Don’t jump to that conclusion so quickly, all right?” Kendell huffed as the officer approached.

“Were you two at the party last night for the sled racers?” the officer asked.

“Briefly, yes,” Kendell said. “We were invited by Uki. I’m a blog writer, and she kindly introduced me to some of the other racers so that I could interview them.”

The officer nodded and jotted down notes like this was some important detail to whatever it was he was investigating.

“Is everything all right?” Pauline asked.

“I’m afraid not, ma’am,” he said. “One of the racers was found dead right here in the lobby. We just moved his body before too many guests started coming down for the morning.”

“Gracious!” Pauline exclaimed. “Please tell me it wasn’t Uki, that poor girl?”

“She’s fine,” the officer said and threw his thumb back, pointing behind him a short way away where they could see Uki gathered in a corner with some of her fellow racers, looking just as stunned as the ones they had seen when they had first got off the elevator. “Oscar Stenson was our victim.”

“The gentleman who calls himself Rush?” Pauline asked.

“That’s the one,” the officer said. “He was expected to win, so as you can imagine this makes this investigation rather difficult. Every racer here had some sort of motive. Not to mention anyone in the hotel who might have had money on the event.”

“Is there anything we can do?” Kendell asked.

“I’m hoping so,” he said. “Since you two ladies were at the party and because you’re not involved with the race, I’m hoping you can give me an idea if anything stood out to you?”

Kendell shrugged. “I mean, we did speak with some of the racers about Oscar,” she said. “Everyone seemed friendly enough, though. They told us about how Oscar had been suspended before due to instances of animal abuse. No one seemed particularly fond of him because of that, but no one person really stands out in my mind. Do you mind if I ask how he was killed?”

“Slashed and bludgeoned,” he said. “With an axe.”

“An axe!” Kendell exclaimed.

“That’s right,” the officer said. “We are currently looking through all the musher’s gear to see who is missing their axe, as it was left at the scene of the crime.”

“That seems like a poor way of narrowing it down,” Pauline said. “How are you supposed to know whether or not every musher had an axe in their gear?”

“Because it’s required,” he said. “Race rules dictate they all have to have an axe as part of the mandated equipment. Since most of the racers who were at the party are staying here at the hotel, it’s pretty safe to assume most of them have already gotten all their gear. So, we’re looking to see who all has already gathered their gear and chances are if someone’s got everything but an axe, it’s going to lead us to our killer.”

“I suppose that makes sense,” Kendell said. “But don’t you think that’s a bit of a stretch?”

“Maybe a little,” the officer admitted. “But it’s a start, isn’t it? Now, I wanted to ask about Uki. I was told you ladies were seen with her, and your earlier comment about her wellbeing seems to confirm that.”

“What about Uki?” Pauline asked.

“She was seen having an argument with Oscar late in the evening,” the officer said. “She was one of the last people seen with him, and the way I understand it, the argument ended with some sort of threat. I haven’t spoken with her just yet, but if you can tell me anything—”

“I’m afraid we left the party before we saw anything like that take place,” Pauline said.

“Yeah, we didn’t stay too long,” Kendell said. “And we showed up kind of late too. We were only there for about an hour before we headed to bed, but by that point, a good number of people had cleared out.”

The officer scribbled everything down as they spoke, and eventually, he left them to go speak with Uki. Kendell and Pauline, taking this as a sign that they were allowed to go, decided to still try to make it to breakfast. They enjoyed some Canadian-style pancakes and a bit of bacon, but Kendell kept glancing toward the archway that led out into the lobby. She could see Uki from there, and it seemed like more and more officers kept gathering where she was speaking. Her dog, Echo, was at her side as always and by the way the dog’s ears kept shooting up and it kept switching which leg it was leaning most on, Kendell got the impression that the officers were making Echo rather nervous.

Dot growled from her carrier in Pauline’s lap, but she calmed down when Pauline slipped her a bit of bacon. “Hold on a second, Pauline,” Kendell said, standing. “I’ll be right back.”

She went over to Uki and the three officers currently speaking to her, and she gently placed a hand on Uki’s shoulder. “Everything good?” Kendell asked.

“Not particularly,” Uki said. “Apparently, me telling Oscar if he came near me or my dogs that I’d neuter him with a pocket knife is enough for them to think I killed with an axe.” She said this so calmly that Kendell nearly snorted.

“Why did you tell him that?” Kendell asked.

“He wanted Echo,” Uki explained, “for breeding, and I told him to back off. I would never give a man like that one of my dogs. I certainly didn’t think my threat would be taken so seriously, and I think they are being a little ridiculous— Officer, easy, Echo is a biter. You’re making her nervous.”

The officer standing nearest to the dog took a step back as Echo was now showing him her teeth. “You want me to let Echo come sit with Pauline, Dot, and me while you speak to the police?” Kendell asked.

Uki smiled. “That’s probably a good idea. Last thing I want is for her to bite one of them. Then I’ll really be in trouble, won’t I?”

One of the officers snickered slightly. “We’re just following protocol, Ms. Uki. If you were one of the last ones seen with the deceased, not to mention it was not on friendly terms, it would be poor judgment on our part not to at least question you.”

Uki shrugged. “I suppose that makes sense,” she said, huffing. “Yes, Kendell, would you mind taking Echo? She doesn’t really like men all that much, and I really don’t think her nipping at anyone is going to do me any good right now.”

Kendell took Echo with her, the obedient husky listening to Uki after she told her to go with her. Kendell sat back down at the table, and Echo politely curled up at Kendell’s feet, occasionally tilting her head up to peek at Dot across from them in Pauline’s lap. Dot kept poking her head out of the carrier to make happy, puppy-like noises at Echo, and occasionally Echo’s tail would wag in acknowledgement of the smaller dog’s presence.

Kendell and Pauline continued eating their breakfast, assuming that Uki’s conversation with the police would be over fairly soon when, suddenly, Kendell looked up to see Uki being placed in handcuffs. She looked very flustered, and Echo started to growl. “Easy, girl,” Kendell said, standing up. “Stay here. Pauline, you think you can watch her?”

“How is an old lady like me going to stop a dog that size if she wants to go somewhere?” Pauline asked with a laugh.

“She’s pretty obedient,” Kendell said with a slight smirk before heading out into the lobby, leaving Pauline alone with the two dogs.

Kendell exited into the lobby just in time to see Uki being taken out of the building. She approached one of the officers, a serious expression on her face. “What’s going on?” Kendell demanded of the officer, the same gentleman with whom she had first spoken to when they had arrived in the lobby that morning.

“Uki is being taken in for further questioning,” the officer said.

“In cuffs?” Kendell asked. “Are you arresting her?”

“Yes,” he said.

“For what?” Kendell demanded. “Because she got lippy with a guy who wanted to buy one of her dogs?”

“She threatened him,” the officer said. “Not only that, but when we went through her gear, as I mentioned earlier to you that we were doing with all the mushers, her axe was the only piece of gear missing from the mandated list of supplies.”

Kendell frowned. The officer had been right—that did sound a bit suspicious, as he had said earlier that it would. “What about the other racers?”

“None of the other racers were missing anything from their supplies except for one gentleman who has yet to purchase an appropriate flashlight,” he said. “Everyone else’s gear is completely accounted for except for Uki’s axe. We’re going to bring her in, take her prints, and compare them to anything the crime scene managed to get back from the axe itself.”

Kendell frowned and crossed her arms. “Okay, what about her dog?”

“Technically, we all saw her give you permission to watch the dog,” the officer said. “So, looks like you’re stuck with her.”

“What?” Kendell exclaimed. “I’ve got a wedding I’m planning in just a few days, I can’t be watching a giant husky!”

“It’s Alaska,” he said. “Everyone out here owns a husky. No one is going to pay that dog any mind. Now. If you’ll excuse me, I’ve got some work to do.”

5

Kendell sat in the corner of Jack’s hotel room, watching him as he sat on the edge of his bed staring blankly at Echo. “So…” Kendell said at last to break the silence that had befallen them. “We’re getting married in just a few days.”

“Yup,” he said, still staring at Echo, who was sitting and staring right back at him with her eyes narrowed as though intending to challenge him. Echo snorted slightly, forcing Jack to break eye contact and lose the odd staring contest that had been taking place between the two of them. “I’m really excited, but honestly, how are you going to get everything done that you need to get done taking care of some stranger’s prized husky?”

“I have no idea,” Kendell said. “And it’s not like you’re not really busy, and I would feel bad making Pauline watch her.”

“Well, it’s not like we don’t have plenty of people here at the hotel who could probably help out, I’m just not sure who to ask to watch her,” Jack said. “I was kind of hoping you and I could go out to lunch just the two of us.”

Kendell smiled. “I think that’s a good idea. I’m sure someone would be willing to watch Echo. I wonder if Rodney would do it? I think I remember him mentioning on one of his blogs about being a dog lover.”

“Doesn’t he do a food blog?” Jack asked.

“Yes, but it’s very personal. He talks about his life a little bit on it too,” Kendell said, laughing. They searched for Rodney, and sure enough, he was more than willing to watch after Echo so that Kendell and Jack could go out for lunch together and gather some much-needed alone time.

Before they left, however, Kendell wanted to make a quick stop by her room to talk to Pauline, who was just waking up from a nap. The woman smiled when she answered the knock as Kendell had left behind her room key. “Sweetie, I thought you and Jack were going to try to spend some alone time together?” Pauline asked.

“That’s the plan,” Kendell said. “But I wanted to snag myself a room key, and I had something I wanted to ask you.”

“Oh, of course, I saw that you left it sitting on the nightstand. Hold on a second.” Pauline disappeared for a second and returned promptly, holding out Kendell’s key. “What did you want to ask me?”

“I want you to be my matron of honor,” Kendell said, and Pauline’s face lit up.

“Me?” she gasped.

“That’s right,” Kendell said. “You’ve become my best friend, Pauline, and I would be honored if you would be my matron of honor.”

Pauline squealed. “Of course, dearie! I never thought at my age I’d be invited to be in a wedding as anything other than grandma!”

Kendell laughed. “Well, I’m glad you’re so excited! I already told Felicity I was going to ask you, so she’ll probably be giving you a call later to see what you said and to ask you your opinion on dresses.”

Pauline was smiling so big that Kendell worried the woman was going to crack a tooth. “Thank you so much, sweetie! I’m so honored.” She smiled at Jack, who was quietly standing behind Kendell. “And thank you, young man.”

Jack smirked, and soon Kendell and Jack were on their way out—leaving a very excitable Pauline behind. The two of them found a small hole in the wall type place called Moose and Munchies. Inside, the entire building was decorated gaudily—not a single thing hanging on the very heavily decorated wall failed to depict a moose or a pot leaf. “Well, this is interesting,” Jack said with a smirk, and Kendell agreed. They ordered from the specialty local menu, a section of the menu that had very Alaskan-themed cuisine. Kendell ordered salmon, and Jack decided to try the reindeer sausage, making Kendell cringe.

It was about halfway through their meal that Kendell recognized some voices cackling in the doorway and saw Brandon, Lil, and Jesse together speaking to the hostess, who was grabbing menus to get them seated. Of course, they wound up seated at a table rather close to them, and upon seeing them, Jesse got all giddy. “I didn’t realize this was where you two were going on your lunch date!” Jesse squealed. “Oh no, we’re invading their privacy, aren’t we?”

Jack laughed. “Not much has changed over the years with you three, has it?”

“Where’s Junior?” Kendell asked, referring to Jesse’s rancher boyfriend.

“Taking a nap,” she said. “The man can’t handle the jetlag.”

“He’s not a flight attendant like you, Jesse,” Brandon said. “Speaking of which, when are you coming back to New York? You going to pull a Kendell and wind up going on a vacation and never coming back?”

Jesse laughed. “Maybe,” she said. “Believe it or not, I’m turning into quite the rancher.”

Everyone had a good laugh at that. Jesse had always been the prissy one of the group. “I’m actually glad you three are here,” Kendell said. “So, I know this is not exactly a big-shot wedding and is totally last minute, but we are going to be doing bridesmaids. Felicity and I chatted a little bit last night at the dinner. I asked Pauline to be my matron of honor, but I want you two to be my bridesmaids.”

“I don’t know how I’ll look in a dress,” Brandon joked, earning himself a pop in the arm from Lil.

“Are you kidding, girl?” Lil said. “Of course, we will! What kind of question is that?”

“I’m a little hurt that I’m not maid of honor,” Jesse said, only half-joking.

“You and I both know that if she had picked you or Lil, you two would have had a hissy fit,” Brandon said. “Good choice, Kendell.”

Kendell smirked. Lil, however, turned her head to Jack. “Where are your buddies, then? Couldn’t make it out to Alaska?”

Jack huffed. “My friends are cheap losers,” he said. “Minute I told them I was doing a destination wedding, they ran for the hills. I guess I need better friends.”

“Oh, no!” Kendell said. “Jack, when Felicity mentioned bridesmaids, I didn’t even think about that. None of your friends from back home are here.”

“That’s fine,” Jack said. “I can substitute. Anyone here is probably better than Ricky or Noah. They’d be drunk before you even walked down the aisle, honestly…and the fact that weed is legal here would be an interesting combo that I’m sure those two morons couldn’t pass up.”

“You do need better friends,” Kendell griped.

Jack spun a bit in his chair, locking in on Brandon. “What do you say, Brandon? I know we’re not exactly buddies, but you’re Kendell’s friend and that’s good enough for me. Want to be my best man?”

This, clearly, took Brandon by surprise. There had been a sort of long-term understanding between the two of them. Jack had a history of grumbling about Kendell’s guy bestie as he had always been a little bit of the jealous type, so to be asked to be the man’s best friend had clearly thrown Brandon for a loop. “Wait, seriously?” Brandon asked.

“I mean, don’t read into it or anything,” Jack said with a laugh. “I know I’ve always given you a hard time, but you mean a lot to Kendell. So, as a sort of peace offering, I’d love for you to be my best man at our wedding.”

“Dude,” Brandon said. “Of course.”

“Aw, I must capture this moment!” Jesse exclaimed dramatically, whipping her phone out for a group selfie, forcing Jack and Brandon to scoot their chairs closer together between the two tables. “Perfect,” Jesse said, showing Kendell the picture. “That one might even be worthy of your blog. I’d prefer to get a better picture of myself on there anyway because everyone around the world thinks of me as the pink girl whining about her broken nail on a ranch in Texas. You better do a follow-up one day with pictures of me doing jumps on my horse.”

“You have a horse?” Kendell asked.

“Oh, yeah…well, Junior might have…”

“You do not own a horse,” Lil said, unable to believe it, and Jesse was forced to pull out her cellphone to bring up a video of her doing some show tricks on a beautiful black horse.

“Dang,” Brandon said. “So not only do you know how to ride a horse now, but you’re doing tricks? What happened to you in Texas? Six months ago, you wouldn’t even pet my cousin’s Pomeranian because you were worried about the last time he had a bath. Now you’re helping your boo scoop up horse crud out of a barn?”

“Shut up,” Jesse said, shoving him.

“Wait…” Brandon said suddenly. “Crap, you know what I just realized? If I’m the best man, that means I’m going to be walking Pauline down the aisle, aren’t I?”

Jack laughed, and for a moment, they all wondered if this had been Jack’s true motive all along. “So, what about the other two guys?” Lil asked. “I’m assuming you want to even it out. Who is going to be your other two groomsmen?”

“I kind of already talked to Felicity about it,” Jack said. “Since my friends are not willing to come out here, I have to find someone. She said it would be good for Kendell’s blog if I maybe asked some of the guys Kendell and Pauline have posted about on the blog before. I was going to see what that Futosho—”

“Futoshi,” Kendell corrected.

“Er, right,” Jack said. “Futoshi. I was going to see what Futoshi and Rodney thought about filling that role. Rodney is the one who helped Kendell out starting her blog, and let’s face it, everyone who has ever read your blog is going to recognize Futoshi immediately. Who else do you know who has tattoos going all the way up to his ears?”

“There is no way that guy is going to want to be in your wedding for you to put pictures of him all over the internet,” Lil argued.

“We’ll see,” Kendell said, also feeling a bit doubtful. However, when they all arrived back at the hotel and located both Rodney and Futoshi, who were hanging around in the hotel’s lobby engaged in a game of chess, they were surprised by both men’s reactions. Rodney was immediately game, practically jumping up and down in his seat with excitement—of course slipping in conversation that it would be great if Kendell mentioned his blog when she blogged about the wedding. Kendell agreed to this.

When Jack asked Futoshi, the man smiled big, showing off his new silver tooth that Kendell elected not to ask about. “Me?” he asked.

“Yeah,” Jack said. “I know it’s a little strange since we don’t know one another, but from what Kendell has told me, you were a huge help to her in Japan.”

“She big help to Yakuza,” Futoshi said, smiling up at Kendell. He stood up and shook Kendell’s hands and then Jack’s, bowing his head each time. “I would love to be in your wedding.”

He sat back down perkily, looking quite light as he and Rodney continued their game, talking excitedly to Brandon, who had joined them all in the hotel lobby to meet the other groomsmen. Kendell found herself laughing as she pictured her wedding day. It was certainly going to be a rather unusual assortment of individuals, but Kendell could not think of any better way to celebrate her and Jack’s wedding day.

While she was contemplating all of this, she received a text message from Felicity that had been sent in a group message to all the ladies. Kendell grinned. It was time to go dress shopping.

6

Kendell, her mother, Pauline, Lil, Jesse, and Felicity met outside the hotel just as a large, black bus pulled up. “Is that what I think it is?” Jesse asked. “Is that a party bus?!”

Felicity grinned. “Maybe.”

“Bachelorette party!” Jesse cried out, snatching Kendell by the wrist and dragging her onto the bus, nearly tripping them both in the process.

Kendell sat down in the back of the bus, and the next thing she knew, she was being forced to wear a large sash with the word BRIDE written in pink glitter. A pink and white feather boa was thrown over her shoulders, and to top off the look: a plastic, glittering tiara. “This is the most cliché thing ever,” Kendell said.

“You can stand to be a little cliché,” Mrs. McDonald said. “A wedding is something that takes time to plan, so you enjoy every moment. I don’t want you to regret doing something so quickly like this.”

“Thanks, Mom… I’m guessing the party bus was your idea, wasn’t it?” Kendell asked.

“I was going to get us a taxi,” Felicity admitted. “We’re going dress shopping, but your mother pointed out to me that because we’re doing all this so quickly that you were going to miss out on a lot of stuff. So this is your dress-shopping/dress-fitting/bachelorette party.”

“Perfect,” Kendell laughed. “No drinks until after we pick out the dresses, all right? I don’t want to pick out something gaudy because I’m a little tipsy.”

“Excellent point,” Jesse said, stopping herself from opening the bottle of champagne she had already snatched up greedily. They all had a good laugh about her deer-trapped-in-headlights look.

Soon they were pulling up outside the one and only dress shop Felicity had managed to find in Anchorage, but they were pleased to see that the place had a never-ending selection of both bridal gowns and bridesmaid dresses. “Mom, how about you and I head to the bridal dress section, and I’ll set Felicity off with my girls to pick out their dresses? Jesse and Lil know my style, and it’s not like Felicity hasn’t picked out a thousand dresses before for all the weddings she’s planned.”

“I do have an eye for this sort of thing,” Felicity said. “Now, Kendell, as a fair warning, this is going to be an outdoor wedding.”

“What?!” Mrs. McDonald exclaimed. “It’s freezing outside! There’s several inches of snow everywhere you look. What do you expect her to do, dress up in a giant coat?”

“She’s going to look fabulous, I promise you,” Felicity said.

“It’s for the blog,” Kendell explained. “I got the image in my head, too. Outdoor wedding with a beautiful snowy backdrop? I like it.”

“Just make sure you pick out closed-toe shoes,” Felicity called over her shoulder, leading the rest of the ladies off toward the bridesmaid dresses. Dot let out a slight yelp as Pauline turned with an excited jerk after her granddaughter.

Mrs. McDonald hooked arms with Kendell, leading her toward a group of bridal gowns. “I was talking to that Pauline woman—don’t think I haven’t been reading your blogs—and I have to say she is every bit as silly as you made her out to be in your writings.”

“She’s a special sort of person,” Kendell said with a laugh.

Kendell started trying on dress after dress, but she was having a hard time finding just what she wanted. In fact, she tried on around thirteen dresses before she finally opted for something a little less warm and cozy, and she knew the moment she saw herself in the mirror—and saw her mother’s rather tearful reaction—that she had found the dress. Problem was it was short-sleeved, and it was quite thin. In fact, it looked almost like a long, flowing ballerina dress—white but with a slight blush tone to it. “That’s the one, isn’t it?” her mother exclaimed as Felicity and the others rounded the corner, each carrying a lovely dark blue dress in their arms, ready to be fitted.

“Look, it fits perfectly, too… I don’t think it will need to be fitted at all,” Kendell said, twirling slightly in it.

“You’ll be freezing in that thing,” Lil said. “But it does look so good on you…”

Felicity thought for a moment. “Get the dress. I’ll come up with a solution for the weather.”

“Are you sure?” Kendell asked.

“It fits you perfectly,” Felicity said. “It’s too late to change venues, but maybe I can find something to go over it that doesn’t take away the look of the dress. Besides, the reception will be inside. It’s just the actual ceremony that’s outside.”

Kendell couldn’t help but squeal and thank Felicity for her hard work on making her special day just right. The ladies whipped out the champagne at this point as they were all going to need to be fitted. Even though her dress fit just about everywhere, Kendell wound up picking out some rather flat shoes and so needed the bottom hemmed a bit. Pauline threw on her blue dress, and she looked frightfully excited to be all dressed up.

The women all laughed and joked around with one another as the bridesmaid dresses they had selected seemed to fit them all slightly different—each in its own stunning way. Afterward, Felicity dipped out, taking the freshly-hemmed dress with her on her mission to locate something to go over it that would not take away from its look. Everyone else headed out for a day on the town—shopping, laughing. Everyone decided they just had to throw Kendell some sort of bridal shower, so eventually, Kendell too was given the boot for them to take advantage of the last hour and a half they had with the party bus so that they could go shopping without her to pick out wedding gifts. The party bus drove off after dropping her off at the hotel’s entrance, where she bumped into Jack.

“Did you just get kicked out of your own bachelorette party?” he teased, watching the party bus drive away.

“They’re going shopping for wedding gifts,” Kendell laughed.

“So, yes, you were?”

She punched him in the arm. “I suppose this is what happens when you plan a last-minute destination wedding, right?” she asked with a smirk. “Are we totally crazy for doing this?”

“Most definitely,” he said. “But I like being crazy every once in a while. So Rodney and Futoshi still have Echo, and the two of them are having way too much fun with her. They’re kind of cracking me up, but I think I need some space from my stand-in groomsmen.”

Kendell laughed. “How about an early dinner?”

“Excellent idea,” he said, leaning in and kissing her cheek. “I think first, though, we should stop by the station and speak to Uki. I’m not sure if she even knows for sure who has been watching her dog.”

“Yeah, I don’t know if Echo’s on a special diet or anything,” Kendell said. “If we’re going to be keeping an eye on her, we should go talk to her.”

As they seemed decided, they called for a cab and had it take them to the station where Uki was still being kept. When they arrived, the police present looked rather bored and uninterested in anything that they had to say, but eventually, one of them decided it was in fact acceptable for them to speak to Uki in her jail cell.

They were escorted back to where Uki was seated alone in a cell, looking more annoyed than anything else. When she spotted Kendell, she jumped up in surprise. “Kendell! What are you doing here? Where is Echo?”

“She’s fine,” Kendell assured her. “She is with some friends at the hotel. They’re keeping an eye on her for me for the time being.”

“Thank you so much,” Uki said. “I don’t know what I would have done if something had happened to Echo.”

“We wanted to stop by to see what we needed to know about Echo. We’re happy to keep an eye on her for a few days if you need us to,” Kendell said.

“You have no idea how much that means to me,” Uki said. “But I just paid bail. I’ll be released this afternoon. So, it won’t be necessary. I’ll come and pick Echo up as soon as I’m released.”

“Thank goodness,” Kendell said. “They set bail.”

“Yes,” Uki said. “But that is hardly the end of my problems. The race is in a few days, and I can’t leave town until my court date! The race only starts in Anchorage. I won’t be able to race if I can’t leave Anchorage.”

“Oh no!” Kendell said. “That’s terrible, Uki.”

“I didn’t kill Rush,” Uki said firmly. “And I’m pretty sure the police know that, too. Me getting into an argument with the man is not enough to make me a murderer. And the fact that I just happened to have not bought an axe yet for my kit is ridiculous. I had an axe, but I busted it last week at my house. I was going to buy a new one before the race while I was here in Anchorage but just hadn’t gotten to it yet. They have no way of connecting me to that axe that was used to kill Oscar. My lawyer said they couldn’t even pull prints off the thing. They have no case against me, but now because someone told them they saw me arguing with Oscar, I’m going to miss out on the race!”

“Not if we can find out who really killed Oscar,” Kendell said.

“The race is just days away,” Uki said.

“I know, but that doesn’t mean we can’t try,” Kendell said. “You have a really cool story here that I want to tell. If I can figure out what happened, then you’ll be able to race with your all-female dog sled team.”

Uki smiled. “I appreciate your willingness to help, but I just don’t see them allowing me to race this year.”

“You don’t know my girl, then,” Jack said with a wink. “You’re talking to the fiery redhead who broke up a Russian government coup while vacationing in Paris. I’ve seen firsthand what she can do, and it’s pretty incredible. I think she missed her calling as a detective.”

“Thanks, Jack,” Kendell said, grinning at him for a moment before turning back to Uki. “Echo will be waiting for you at the hotel when you get released this afternoon. In the meantime, we’ll see what we can find out about this case. For starters, what can you tell me about the night Oscar was killed?”

“I can tell you that he and I got into it just like everyone said,” Uki began. “He started in on me about my all-female sled team. He only uses his female dogs as breeders, which is fine. That’s what a lot of racers do. Echo, though, has apparently made an impression on him. He’s seen me training with her, and like most people, he’s never seen a more obedient dog. He wanted to buy her off me when he found out she hadn’t been spayed. I told him to take a hike and used a few more choice words.”

“Who else was there?” Jack asked.

Uki thought for a moment. “Martin was there. He got involved in our…debate…”

“Oh yeah?” Kendell asked. “Where did he stand on it?”

“He has female dogs on his team—most racers do,” Uki explained. “His are all spayed, though. And that was really the only point he wanted to make. He stuck up for me a bit, said my track record spoke for itself, and Oscar got a little ticked at him too because Oscar was really just trying to talk me into handing over Echo. That’s the thing about Oscar—he doesn’t care about his dogs. He views them as mere products. He didn’t get why I wouldn’t give up Echo… This year was going to be her last race. He thinks that since she’s retiring from racing that I had no reason to hold onto her, but she’s my best friend. Oscar just didn’t get it, and that’s why he got so mad.”

“I think we should go speak to Martin,” Jack said.

“I agree,” Kendell said. “Hold tight, Uki. We’re going to figure something out.”

7

After leaving the jail, Kendell and Jack headed back to the hotel. As it was dinnertime, a number of racers had emerged from their rooms and were filling themselves up at some of the restaurants the hotel had to offer. This made it rather easy to locate Martin, one of the racers Uki had introduced her to during the get-together the hotel had hosted for the racers. He was just leaving one of the restaurants when Kendell and Jack managed to corner him by the elevators. He stepped aside with them when they asked to chat, and they wound up seated in the lobby in front of a large, roaring fireplace that provided some much-needed warmth from the cold front that had just swept in.

“Weather like this,” he said as he sat himself down. “Pretty ideal for my dogs. They’re heavy coated, and they live to run. Some of the smaller husky breeds don’t do quite as well.”

“You think you might be able to pull off a win?” Jack asked.

“Maybe,” Martin said. “My odds have certainly gone up after what happened to Rush.”

Kendell raised a brow. “You think so?”

“I don’t mean anything by it,” Martin said, looking quite cozy by the fire. “The man breeds super-dogs.”

“Super-dogs?” Jack asked. “What do you mean?”

“The man comes from a long line of professional dog breeders and racers,” Martin explained. “Rush has taken a win before, and he was expected to win again this year. His old man is a past winner too. His grandfather I think was pretty notorious as well. Rush always said it was due to two things: good dog breeding and strict training regimens.”

“They’ve been breeding dogs for that long, huh?” Kendell asked.

“Yeah, a real long time,” he said. “They select every dog they’re going to breed with their champions. I’ve heard their dogs even have a bit of wolf ancestry in them. You should see them—huge huskies. I can’t think of what else they’ve got in their breeding history to make them that large.”

“Is bigger better in this field?” Kendell asked.

“Only if it doesn’t compromise speed and endurance,” Martin said. “Which it doesn’t seem to do with that family’s dogs. They are racers through and through. And, from what I hear, he was bringing in his big boys, his star dogs, this year. And since he had been on leave after being suspended, those dogs have been consistently training for a couple of years for this moment. I’m a little disappointed that I won’t be racing against them, but, hey, maybe now I can actually win!”

Kendell felt slightly discomforted by Martin’s attitude. He seemed far too excited over his prospects of winning, to the point he didn’t really seem to care about Oscar’s death at all. If anything, Martin was greeting the topic with a slight sense of morbid humor that made Kendell feel a bit nauseated. “Did you know Oscar well?” Kendell asked.

“Personally, not so much. But you can ask just about any of the regular racers, and they can tell you the man’s life story,” Martin said. “Like I said, he comes from a family of well-to-do mushers. After his father was put on suspension back in the seventies, he came back on fire, winning, I think, three or four races over the next five years. Crazy. I think everyone was a little worried that Rush was going to repeat his father’s winning streak.”

“His father was put on suspension before too?” Jack asked.

“Yeah, same old junk,” Martin said. “To the Stenson family, dogs aren’t pets. They’re products.”

“Uki said that too,” Kendell said.

“Of course, she did,” Martin said. “Rush liked to remind all the racers of that when they were too friendly to their dogs. Race dogs are race dogs—poodles are pets. He had a number of grunts he would muster up like that. Pampered pooches don’t place. They’re your workers, not your buddies. He would get outright irritated at other racers for being too nice to their sled teams. That was one of the things he’s gotten into with Uki before. She loves her dogs. Especially Echo. He hated how friendly she was to Echo, but he definitely saw something in Echo that intimidated him. He wanted to buy her off Uki, and she wouldn’t have it. That fight they got into the other night was actually hilarious. He just doesn’t get it. The man was Stenson through and through, though. Good racer, terrible pet owner.”

“So, why exactly was Oscar removed from racing in the past?” Kendell asked.

“Mostly pushing his dogs too hard,” Martin said. “While it’s rare, there’s always an investigation if a dog dies during the sled races. Now just to be clear, dog deaths during the races are few and far between. They are no more common than deaths of athletes during sport games. That being said, what do you think the chances of one racer losing two dogs during two different years of racing?”

“Highly unlikely,” Kendell said. “Two of his dogs died?”

“That’s right,” he said. “One about five years ago. Had a heart attack, the poor thing. It was looked into, but he was cleared of any wrongdoing. Two years later, he hit a dog in the head when it gave out between drop points, and another racer saw the whole thing. Dog died before the other racer could get the poor thing to the next drop point. Oscar had just kept going—tried to win the race before he got busted. It didn’t happen, though. He lost by a long shot because he had pushed his dogs too dang hard. They place pretty high up there, but he just about did the whole lot in that year. Come to find out, after the other racer reported Oscar for what happened, he had somehow managed to bypass checkpoints. Though that’s mostly rumored. Someone said he might have had one of the vets in his pocket.”

“That’s terrible,” Jack said.

“You’re not kidding,” Martin said. “Thing is, it really just doesn’t make sense as to why you would treat your runners like that. Dogs that are that stressed out do not make good racers, and Oscar has got to know that. He’s a third-generation musher! They work closely with these dogs, day in and day out all year long. Dogs that enjoy racing are the dogs that win at racing—not the dogs that are most terrified of their owners. It’s utter nonsense, really.”

“I can’t believe if he outright murdered one of his dogs that he’s been allowed back in the races at all,” Kendell said.

“He lawyered up, from what I hear,” Martin said. “The dog wasn’t looked at closely enough before he was taken back home by Oscar to be buried. The dog had definitely taken a blow to the head, and Oscar didn’t deny hitting the dog. It was just hard to prove that the hit to the head was what killed the dog and whether or not it was done with intent or if it was an accident, that sort of thing. There was a huge fuss about it. It was all in the papers, it made the local news, and then PETA got a hold of the story and tried to get the whole race shut down. I’m shocked they didn’t take it further than they did, but there was a thorough investigation of the breeding farm and of Oscar and pretty much his entire family. They agreed the suspension was enough.”

Another couple of racers had sat down during Martin’s conversation with Kendell and Jack, and they listened intently to the stories he told. Eventually, Martin headed back up to his room, and Kendell turned to one of the other racers who had plopped down on the large couch by the fire. “Is any of what Martin saying about Oscar true?” she asked.

“Oh, yeah,” the smaller of the two men said. “I was racing that year he killed his dog. I mean, he seemed pretty upset about what happened. My bet was that he probably got frustrated with the thing and didn’t really mean to kill it. Oscar had some good racing dogs and all, but I’ve always noticed they were pretty disobedient, generally speaking. He had to rein them in more than your average racer. Something went wrong in their breeding, I think. They focused all their energy into making sure their dogs had good endurance, strength, and speed that they bred the obedience level right out of them.”

The other man laughed. “Obedience can be trained into any breed, you idiot.”

“I don’t know,” the other argued. “I know a guy who had a litter of huskies he swore must have come from some bad line, and he was a professional trainer. Not all dogs are so easily trainable, and Oscar’s dogs have always been that way.”

“And what Martin said about Oscar’s father, it’s true? He was put on suspension once too?” Kendell asked.

“Yeah, and you can confirm that through records, if you want. It’s not a secret or anything,” the smaller man said. “The Stenson family are an embarrassment to this sport. Good mushers. Dedicated. Well trained. But their attitudes and the way they treat their dogs has not made them any friends amongst this crowd. Not by a long shot.” The two racers eventually rose and headed off to some sort of dinner plans they had.

Kendell sat back in her seat, her arms crossed as she meditated on what she had just learned from Martin and the nameless racers who had popped in to eavesdrop a bit on the conversation. Oscar had a terrible reputation amongst the other racers; they all seemed to strongly dislike him for his treatment of the animals they so much cherished. Martin especially had seemed so unmoved by Oscar’s death that it was almost morbid. Could his treatment of the dogs have been the motive behind his murder? He certainly made all of the racers look bad—especially if he had wound up on the news for his mistreatment of his racing dogs. If people like Oscar kept racing and kept causing incidents as traumatic as that, this grand historical race could one day get shut down. Especially if his actions had caught the attention of groups like PETA.

“What are you thinking?” Jack asked. “You got your serious face on right now.”

“Honestly, I’m thinking about going to bed now,” Kendell admitted. “It was a crazy day, and now I’m exhausted.”

Jack laughed. “Yeah, I bet. You didn’t party too hard at your makeshift bachelorette party, did you?”

“No,” Kendell said, smirking. “I mean, my matron of honor is Pauline, so I’m surprised nothing too crazy went down. She has a tendency to attract trouble.”

“Believe me, I’ve noticed,” Jack said. “Uki should be getting here fairly soon. She might have actually already been by and we just missed her. I should go see if she came and got Echo. If not, I’m sure Futoshi would appreciate me taking over for a bit on dog-sitter duty.”

Kendell smiled and stood up slowly, stretching her back. It really had been a long, draining day.

8

“Right here is a picture of what the bouquet is going to look like,” Felicity said the following morning, shoving a phone in Kendell’s face. “I went with the colors you wanted and tried to find something that would match well with the snow backdrop as well as the dresses your girls are going to be wearing. What do you think?”

Kendell smiled. “I think it’s beautiful. I like the extra bit of greenery you got in the bouquet, that’s going to go really well with all the snow.”

“I agree,” Felicity said proudly. She flipped through some pictures on her phone. “Okay, so the only thing left to do as far as flowers are concerned is to pick which arrangement you like better for your bridesmaids. This one right here is really just a miniature version of the one you have, but this one has a bit more of the baby blue flowers…”

“I like the second one,” Kendell said.

“Good, because I already told the florist to do that one,” Felicity said.

“What? Why?” Kendell asked.

“I’ve gotten pretty good at learning to read my brides’ tastes quickly,” Felicity explained. “And it helps that I somewhat know you.”

Kendell smiled. “Well, so far, I’m greatly pleased with your work both as my manager as well as my wedding planner.”

“I’m glad. I was worried you were going to think I was really stepping on your toes bringing everyone here,” Felicity said. “You are still down for this destination wedding I’ve plopped in your lap, right?”

“Absolutely,” Kendell said, smirking. “I mean, a destination wedding for a travel writer and a future pilot sounds ideal to me.”

“Excellent,” Felicity said, sitting upright. Her eyes seemed to catch something behind Kendell, and Kendell instinctively turned to see Pauline scurrying their way with Dot at her side, her pink, bedazzled leash extended out in front of Pauline as the dog seemed to be leading the way that morning. Also coming down for breakfast that morning was Jesse and her boyfriend, Junior, who seemed to finally be getting over his jetlag.

Kendell and Felicity promptly pulled up chairs for the group, and they all gathered around. Jesse sweetly hopped up and prepared herself and Junior a plate, which was met with grand thanks from Junior who gushed slightly at his little New Yorker. Felicity did the same for Pauline, and the woman bragged about how sweet her granddaughter was.

“So, Uki came and got Echo last night,” Pauline said. “I think Dot misses her already.”

“They did become buddies, didn’t they?” Kendell asked, allowing Dot to hop up into her lap now that she had finished her breakfast.

“Did you find anything out yesterday when you and Jack went to visit Uki? I bumped into him in the hall on his way up to check on Futoshi and Rodney last night,” Pauline said.

“Not a whole lot,” Kendell said. “She said the reason her supplies didn’t include an axe was because hers had broken and she was going to buy a new one here in Anchorage. She’s also worried because if they don’t clear her of all charges before the race in a couple of days, she won’t be able to race at all because she can’t leave the city until her initial court hearing, which isn’t until after the race.”

“Oh, heavens!” Pauline exclaimed. “That poor girl. I can tell the race is very important to her. I can’t imagine.”

“I know. I feel terrible for her, but I haven’t really gotten much more information that would help her. I learned from Martin a little more about Oscar’s history and how he got suspended from racing,” Kendell said.

Jesse huffed. “I heard. Pauline was just telling me on the way down here. Jack told her last night. The man killed one of his dogs trying to get it to keep running!”

“I hope that ain’t true,” Junior said. “I’m a rancher. We look at our animals as product, sure, but you wouldn’t dare see me beating one of my heifers!”

“I did a little bit of research after you went to bed last night,” Pauline said. “I found the address to the Stenson family breeding ranch. It’s just outside of Anchorage, and honestly, I was thinking about going by.”

“There is no way you’re doing that by yourself, Grandma!” Felicity exclaimed. “And I’ve got to take care of some final details for the wedding.”

“Don’t worry, I’ll go with her,” Kendell said. “I wouldn’t mind seeing some of this through myself. After what I learned last night from Martin, I’d like to see the place for myself.”

“Well, I’ve missed out on a lot of the action since we got here since I’ve been comatose,” Junior said, shoveling eggs into his mouth. “Why don’t you and I tag along, Jesse?”

“Ooh, yes please!” she exclaimed. “I would love to go see a bunch of pretty dogs. You were talking about getting another dog for your ranch?”

“I ain’t about to buy no expensive racing dog and have to pay to fly it back to Texas,” Junior said.

Once everyone had finished breakfast, Felicity went her own way while Kendell, Pauline, Dot, Junior, and Jesse headed out front and called for a taxi to take them out to the Stenson family dog ranch. It took over an hour to get there, but eventually, they were pulling up to a large piece of property made up of several log cabins. There was a giant sign that read “STENSON” hanging over the driveway’s entrance.

“Looks like we found the right place,” Kendell said as the car pulled up to the largest of the buildings. Looking more closely, the other buildings on the property seemed more like storage houses than actual homes. There was loud barking when they pulled up, and a large, burly elderly man came fumbling out of the house as they were unloading from the taxi.

“Who are you? You here to buy a dog?” the old man asked. “Our racers are pretty expensive, and we don’t have too many we’re selling right now.”

Kendell smiled. “You must be Mr. Stenson? Oscar’s father?”

The man frowned. “Yes, that’s me,” he said. “You knew my boy?”

“Not personally,” Kendell said. “My name’s Kendell McDonald, and this is Pauline. The two of us met your son shortly before he was killed. These are our friends, Jesse and Junior. We were hoping we could talk to you…about Oscar?”

Mr. Stenson’s sad expression allowed a slight break, a sullen smile creeping up on his face before he replaced it again with a frown. “What do you want to know?” he asked. The wind was blowing a bit, so he stepped up onto his porch. “Come on, I’m making stew.”

Though they had only eaten an hour ago, Junior readily accepted the man’s act of hospitality and chowed down on the stew. “We appreciate you being so willing to talk with us,” Kendell said as the group gathered around the man’s table.

Kendell jumped suddenly. A dog had placed its head on her knee. “That’s Reuben,” Mr. Stenson said. “Messed up his foot last week training. Vet says he’ll be good as new in another week.”

“He looks a little old to be racing still,” Junior said. “Whoa, he’s a big fella, ain’t he?”

“He’s got wolf in him,” Mr. Stenson explained. “Little more than what you’d find in most of my dogs.”

“Wolf?” Junior asked. “You’ve bred your dogs with wolves?”

“My grandfather, Oscar’s great-grandfather, introduced wolves into the breeders back in his day. We’ve only used mixed wolves, nothing purebred, since then. Makes them difficult to train, but worth it. The strength it gives them is incredible. It’ll be several more generations worth of dogs before we dare breed one with a wolf again.”

“That’s daring,” Kendell said.

“Daring ambitions make good racers,” Mr. Stenson said. “Over a hundred years’ worth of trial and error have gone into making the Stenson family racing dog. We keep around a hundred dogs on site at any given point in time, most of which become racers at one point or another whether it was for myself, Oscar, or one of his siblings…” Mr. Stenson sighed before continuing. “You know, I read this story about Russians trying to domesticate foxes—took them fifty years of breeding to get their temperament right. Fifty years just to give foxes an attitude adjustment. Well, that’s the sort of thing we’re doing here. The Stenson family has been at it for almost a century, I can’t imagine what my kids’ children will be racing with…” He looked rather glossy-eyed, like he felt like he was leaving behind a true dog breeding legacy with these odd-looking huskies.

“Sounds like you’ve about perfected your…recipe…” Jesse said.

“All but temperament, I’d say,” Mr. Stenson said. “They’re the strongest dogs in any race, their endurance is incredible, but we’ve got to start training them pretty young to make sure they’ll listen to us real well out in the field.” Mr. Stenson finished eating before standing upright. “So, what are you all here for anyhow? Just to talk about Oscar?”

“She’s a blogger,” Pauline said suddenly, pointing to Kendell. “Since we met Oscar during our travels here, we thought we should talk a bit about him and about what happened. She just wants to get an idea of who he was before writing about him. Couldn’t think of a better man to talk to than Oscar’s own father.”

Mr. Stenson beamed. “Well, why don’t I show you the lot? This place is where Oscar grew up. He worked here with his brothers and his sister. They’re all here, actually. They’re…” Mr. Stenson sighed. “Dividing up his dogs. None of us own dogs specifically, but we divide up responsibility on care and training. Now that Oscar has been killed, there’s twenty-seven dogs they’re going to have to take over care for between the three of them.”

“Are they all racers too?” Kendell asked, and they followed Mr. Stenson outside. Kendell glanced back at Reuben, whose ears were drooping. He looked rather sad. Kendell walked beside Pauline, and Kendell felt uneasy when she noticed how terribly Dot was shivering in Pauline’s carrier. It was like the little dog knew something they didn’t.

They arrived at the largest of the barns where they saw three men and a woman all standing together staring at a bunch of dogs in a perfect lineup, like the dogs were getting ready to salute. “Okay, who wants Dogo and Bingo? You know those two have been training together since they were pups,” the youngest looking of the three men said. “Probably should keep them under the same trainer.”

“Give them to me,” the sister said. “I got stuck with too many labeled breeding-only. I want some more racers.”

“Fair enough. Put one of Katie’s collars on Dogo and Bingo, would you?” the man said, tossing two purple collars to the youngest of the men who was standing with the dogs, removing bright red collars and replacing them with purple.

“This is how we keep track of who is in charge of which dogs,” Mr. Stenson said. “With over a hundred dogs in our care, dogs could easily get overlooked. Got to make sure they’re all in top shape. Kids, come here. This here is Ms. Kendell. She’s a blogger doing a story on your brother.”

Kendell smiled. For the most part, the Stensons seemed like a perfectly decent family, yet she had a terrible feeling in the pit of her stomach that just wouldn’t go away.

9

Kendell, Pauline, Jesse, and Junior stood and watched as the family divided up the large, husky-like dogs that had once belonged to Oscar, determining who was going to be in charge of which during training. It was a process as they wanted to carefully determine which ones would work best with the dogs they already looked after as well as which ones would be ideal candidates to breed with the dogs already under their care. There was a very specific way of doing things at the Stenson ranch, and a part of Kendell could appreciate the dedication they had in creating the perfect breed of racing dogs.

Mr. Stenson, growing tired of listening to his children bicker over the last three of Oscar’s dogs, invited them to take a look at the rest of the ranch. They walked about in the snow, talking about Oscar and his siblings and the many victories they’d had not only at the Iditarod but various other sled races that took place throughout the year. These people lived and breathed dog sled racing. “Oscar was our family’s champion,” Mr. Stenson said. “He wasn’t the only one racing this year, though. His youngest brother, this was going to be his second year doing the Iditarod. His oldest brother wasn’t going to be racing this year, though. He has a broken wrist and decided to opt out. My daughter pulled out last minute this year. The team she had been training caught something and it took out half her dogs for the season. Some stomach virus thing. They’re doing better now, but it would have been a bad idea to take them out this year. She’s ticked…”

“I didn’t notice Oscar’s brother at the racers’ gathering at the hotel,” Kendell said.

“Yeah, we don’t usually go to that sort of thing,” Mr. Stenson said. “Oscar would always drive into Anchorage for it. He liked to get a look early at some of the competition.”

“Was he not staying at the hotel?” Pauline asked.

Glancing over her shoulder, Kendell could see that Jesse and Junior had stopped walking. They had become distracted by a group of dogs that had started following them from some of the barns. “No,” Mr. Stenson said. “We’re only an hour away, and in Alaska time, that sort of drive is nothing. He just drove up for the party. When he didn’t come home that night, I just assumed he had had a bit to drink and had decided to book a room for the night…” Mr. Stenson’s eyes looked rather glossy, and he sighed. “Knowing Oscar, he probably got into a fight with one of the racers over a difference in principles. He was my strong-headed one.”

“We’re very sorry for your loss,” Kendell said. “But if you don’t mind me asking, if Oscar was staying here, would you be able to show us his supplies he had been planning on taking to the race?”

“I can,” he said, waving them back toward the homestead.

Kendell and Pauline followed, and suddenly, Dot managed to wriggle out of Pauline’s carrier. The little dog ran toward Junior and Jesse. “Don’t worry, we got her!” Junior called from the distance, picking up the little dog and stuffing her down in his coat, her little head poking out the front and making Junior look almost like a mama kangaroo. “Go on, we’ll see you inside!”

“Thanks, Junior!” Pauline called back and they continued following Mr. Stenson. “Honestly, I need to be more careful with that one. If she gets away from me like that, I really can’t chase her at my age.”

“Little thing looks like she’s still mostly puppy,” Mr. Stenson said. “Train her now, I say, or she’ll be real difficult later.”

“Thank you for the advice,” Pauline said as they entered the house.

Mr. Stenson walked them to a back room and opened the door. “The bag he had packed for the race is sitting on the bed.”

Kendell entered the room. A dog came moping out of the closet with a slight limp, and Kendell noted that it was not the dog from earlier. “Aw, what happened to you, buddy?” she asked.

“That’s Booster,” Mr. Stenson said. “Booster got into a fight with one of the other dogs last week. He lost.”

“Oh no!” Pauline said, leaning down. Booster came over and sniffed at Pauline, and its tail wagged very slowly as she scratched his head. “Does that happen a lot around here?”

“Not too much,” Mr. Stenson said. “When you’ve got around a hundred dogs on the same property, particularly ones bred to be natural competitors, you’ll get a little tussle every once in a while. We’re usually very careful to monitor our females for when they’re in heat, but when it’s close to racing time, we can admittedly lose track a bit. One of Oscar’s females was in heat and got a dog named Doofus and Booster here a little excited—even dogs fight over their girls. Doofus bit him pretty good on the leg.”

Kendell smirked, but she didn’t really notice anything on Booster that seemed to suggest a bite mark. If anything, it just looked like his ankle was sprained. She walked over to the bed where a duffle bag was seated. “Do you mind if I look?” she asked.

“Go ahead,” Mr. Stenson said.

She opened it up and dug through it; she pulled out her phone to look up the mandated equipment list for the Iditarod. He had every item on the list packed and ready for the race that weekend with the exception of one item: an axe. “Where is the axe?” Kendell asked.

Mr. Stenson came trotting over, and he glimpsed in the bag. “Hmmm…must have took it with him to Anchorage. He had said something, now that I think about it, about taking it to the man he had bought it from because the blade was loose. He had just bought it, so he was annoyed… He was going to ask the man to trade… I… I should have told the police he had his axe on him! I didn’t even think about it until just now…”

“It’s all right, Mr. Stenson,” Kendell said, standing upright. “You’ve been through a lot. You realize what this means, Pauline?”

“Let’s say I don’t.”

“It means that whoever killed Oscar probably did it with the man’s own axe,” Kendell said. “We’ll give the police a heads up, and maybe they can clear Uki.”

“They think that little native girl did this?” Mr. Stenson asked. “Oh, no, I seriously doubt it. The two of them have had spats in the past, but for the most part, they got along fine. And she’s half his size! Even if she did manage to beam him with an axe, I’d suspect he would have been able to get it from her.”

“I’ll have to agree with that sentiment,” Kendell said. “We want to try to help find your son’s true killer. Not to mention that Uki is not going to be able to race if we don’t clear her soon.”

“They’re not letting her race?” Mr. Stenson asked.

“No,” Kendell said. “She’s been told to stay in Anchorage because her court date is just a few days after the start of the race. If she can’t race beyond the start, she’s out.”

“That’s not right,” Mr. Stenson said, looking quite disappointed on the girl’s behalf. “That girl wouldn’t have killed my son.”

“So, you knew her?” Kendell asked.

“Not super personally or anything,” Mr. Stenson said. “But she was a good musher. I respect her.”

Junior abruptly poked his head into the room; he had Dot with him. “Hey, Kendell, a word?” he asked, handing Dot off to Pauline. The little dog was growling.

“Uh…sure. Excuse me for a second, Mr. Stenson.” Kendell followed Junior, who led her out on the front porch, the man clearly wanting to keep away from Mr. Stenson. “What’s going on?”

“I called the police,” Junior said. Jesse was coming up to them, looking quite alarmed.

“You called the police?” Kendell exclaimed.

“They’re on their way now. Junior, I found another one,” Jesse said, looking like she was just getting over some sort of fit.

“Found what?” Kendell asked.

“Needles,” Junior said, looking like he was ready to barge into the house and strangle Mr. Stenson. “They’re drugging their dogs—steroids, I suspect.”

“You’ve got to be kidding me,” Kendell said, fighting every instinct she had to not barge into that house and punch Mr. Stenson in the nose.

“A lot of these dogs are hurt pretty bad,” Junior said. “I don’t doubt they hit their dogs to keep them in line.”

Kendell could feel her cheeks and ears growing warm despite the freezing cold weather. “We should go,” Jesse said. “Police said to meet them out in front of the property.”

Kendell nodded and headed inside, putting on a smile. “Pauline! I called a cab driver, and he’s a little confused. Told him we’d meet him at the end of the driveway.”

“Oh, let me give you folks a ride up the driveway. It’s pretty long,” Mr. Stenson said, friendly as ever.

“No, that’s not necessary,” Kendell insisted. Pauline looked quite confused by this, but she took the hint and assured Mr. Stenson she needed the exercise.

They waited until they were about halfway up the driveway, far from any of the Stensons, before giving Pauline the real story as to why they had to leave so suddenly. “You’re kidding me!” Pauline yelped, and they hushed her. “I knew something was wrong. They have two injured dogs in the house, and the way Dot has been acting since we got here…”

Kendell glanced over to see the little dog shaking nervously in Pauline’s arms. “She never acts that way, and she should be pretty warm in that little sweater the hotel gave us,” Kendell said.

“Dot’s the one who tipped me off,” Junior said. “She jumped out of my coat, and Jesse and I ran after her. They’ve got a bunch of dogs in these really small crates in one of the barns. All female—their breeders, I’m assuming. We found the box of needles, and there’s a bunch of them strewn all over the place in the snow.”

“Good girl, Dot,” Pauline said, patting the little dog on the head.

Police and animal control arrived after nearly twenty minutes of waiting in the snow, and while Kendell and the others talked to one officer, the rest of the house was raided. Kendell could hear all of the Stensons screaming and cussing even from the end of the long driveway, and the next thing she knew, the dogs were being carted off—each looking quite relieved to be out of there. A news van pulled up, having caught wind of the story already.

Kendell watched as Mr. Stenson and his three surviving children were placed into the back of the patrol car, each wearing handcuffs to be carted off to jail, and they glared at Kendell and her friends. The police shook Junior’s hand, thanking him for the call. Animal control was particularly grateful, suspecting that they would be able to find quick homes for these dogs once they were all checked out. “Stenson is probably going to try to fight to keep his dogs, but it’s not going to happen. He has a record already,” the man in the animal control ballcap said. “We’ve been waiting on and praying for something to happen for us to be able to shut this place down. The needles are all the evidence we need. He’s not getting these dogs back.”

“Four generations!” Mr. Stenson shouted from the back of the cruiser, though they could barely understand him. “Four generations of my family breeding those dogs to perfection! Don’t you dare try to take my dogs! I’ll kill ya!”

“Nice,” one of the cops said with a smirk. “Hope everyone heard that.”

The reporter and her cameraman were eating this up. The reporter, a young man, kept telling his cameraman to film the officers and animal control responders as they kept bringing dogs out toward various vans. Kendell was surprised as more animal control vans arrived in record time. They really had been waiting for this moment. Mr. Stenson’s abuse of his animals was something that was well known but unproven, so for the local animal control, this was like a party they had been waiting on for a long time.

After a moment, the reporter suddenly seemed to recognize Kendell and Pauline, and he looked simply giddy over this. “You’re that blogger!” he exclaimed and practically begged them for an interview.

“Only if my friends Jesse and Junior are up for it,” Kendell said. “They’re the ones who found the steroid shots.”

Soon the camera was running, and the man acted like he was interviewing a famous diplomat or actor—someone Kendell felt would be more important than someone who had just become a mere internet celebrity. In the midst of the interview, Kendell couldn’t help herself. She blabbed, wanting the whole state of Alaska to hear it. “I’m just so thankful for the police and their hard work. The Alaskan police should be very proud of themselves. I’m so glad that my friend Uki will be able to race this weekend now that she will be cleared, since we realized that Oscar too was missing his axe from his supply bag and his father confirmed Oscar had had his axe on him. It seems to suggest that the infamous musher, Rush, was killed by his own axe. I’m sure the Anchorage police will make quick work to ensure that their initial mistake won’t result in ruining a good woman’s reputation. I’m really looking forward to watching Uki at the starting line this weekend. I’ll be writing a follow-up on my blog, and I’ll be sure once this is all over to thank the police for their quick work.”

Pauline snorted, and by the time the four of them were in a cab and headed back to the hotel in Anchorage, Kendell received a call from Felicity. “How do you two keep doing this?!” Felicity cried. “Uki has been cleared of all charges thanks to Kendell calling the police out on TV! All the racers at the hotel are talking about it—about the Stenson family finally getting taken down. They’re wanting us to help them head up a charity organization to help put together stricter guidelines for how racing dogs are treated and to help reinforce it. I’m thinking it would be great for your brand if we…”

Kendell smiled as she listened to Felicity get excited about their latest accidental publicity stunt. “I’m just glad the dogs are going to be okay now,” she said. “And that Uki has been cleared. But something is still bugging me. We know Uki didn’t kill Oscar. So, who did?”

10

Kendell felt rather relieved when the day came to a close and she and Pauline had at last started to settle down in the hotel room. She sat on the small couch, Dot in her lap, scratching the little fluff ball behind the ears. “Did you just help us save a bunch of big huskies? Yes, you did! Yes, you did,” Kendell said, realizing she was starting to sound like Pauline with the way the woman always baby-talked at Dot.

“That’s my little doggie girl,” Pauline said, and Dot’s tail wagged so fast that it slapped Kendell rather hard on the arm.

“All right, easy there,” Kendell said, smirking. “You’re going to give the dog a big head, Pauline.”

Pauline, who was seated at the little table by the sliding doors that led out onto their balcony, laughed. “I do spoil her,” Pauline admitted.

There was a knock on the door, and Kendell hopped up, sending Dot jumping down and darting straight to Pauline. Kendell went to answer the door, and immediately, a large husky darted into the room around Kendell and over to Pauline so that she could sniff Dot. “Whoa!” Kendell exclaimed. She had nearly been knocked over in the process.

“Sorry!” Uki said, smiling. “I just had to come by and say thank you. I’m staying here at the hotel now since I am actually going to be in the race.”

Kendell opened the door up a bit wider, inviting Uki in. “I’m so glad they cleared you so quickly.”

“Are you kidding? After your little speech during your interview about how amazing the Alaskan police are, they didn’t have much of a choice,” Uki said. “You have no idea how much it means to me that I’m going to be racing this weekend.”

Kendell smiled. “I’m glad you feel that way.”

“And let’s not forget the even bigger news from today,” Uki said, grinning ear to ear. “You finally got dirt on the Stensons! Racers have been trying to bust them for years, trying to get enough dirt on them to put a stop to their operations. Those dogs are going to go to good homes pretty quick, it sounds like. I mean, the Stensons sell those dogs for nearly eight grand a piece. When people learn they can get a hold of one for a two hundred-dollar adoption fee, they’re going to go nuts. Thinking about adopting one myself as a breeder. The dog adoption agency taking over the case is having everyone sign a statement saying the dogs are retiring from professional racing. We can train with them, but they don’t want to see them racing professionally again after all the trauma.”

“That’s a good idea,” Kendell said.

“Just not sure if I want to have a bunch of huskies with wolf in them,” she said. “If they’ve got too much of it, they won’t let them race.”

“Well, I’m just glad that’s over. The Stensons’ breeding ranch is gone, and I don’t think they’ll be at it again anytime soon,” Kendell said.

Uki thanked them again several times before calling Echo over to her. The happy husky gave Dot a quick kiss, then she followed Uki to the door. “Going to try to stay well rested this week,” Uki said. “The race is pretty demanding. You guys have a good night!” She headed out the door, waving good-bye with a smile etched on her face.

“The Stensons’ breeding ranch is gone,” Pauline said. “But even after learning about their dog abuse scandals, I still think they deserve to know what happened to Oscar.”

“I agree,” Kendell said. “Whoever killed Oscar, whatever the reason, needs to see justice. I just don’t know who would have done it. It could have been any number of those racers.”

“What if…what if the race itself wasn’t the issue?” Pauline asked. “Sure, Oscar was their biggest competition, but what if the main issue was the way he treated his dogs? I must admit, as a dog lover myself, I was tempted to smack Oscar’s father in the face today. And Mr. Stenson wasn’t even the one who had two dogs get seriously hurt during the races!”

“I haven’t really thought much about that. Honestly, thinking about it now, I would say the animal abuse is probably a much more blatant motive than the fact that he was just a better musher. I mean, there are so many racers. Just because Oscar had a reputation for winning doesn’t mean he was a sure win for this year. Taking him out would just take out one of the quality racers. I think I read that there are around sixty racers every year. Why target Oscar specifically if winning the race was the motive?”

“Exactly,” Pauline said. “I think Oscar was targeted because of the way he treats his dogs, not because of the fact that he was expected to win.”

“I’m not sure if that different mindset is really going to help us narrow it down, though,” Kendell said. “All of the racers seemed greatly offended by Oscar’s treatment of his dogs. Any one of the racers might have finally had enough of it.”

“Maybe,” Pauline said. “But whoever killed Oscar took it further than any of the other racers would have. There is this obvious respectful outlook the racers have—a whole man’s best friend, respect between man and beast type attitude. But Oscar’s death was awfully violent to have been committed by someone who just thought he was disrespecting the mushing community. It was so violent that it seemed almost personal. He was killed with an axe.”

Kendell pondered this for a moment. While they did not get a look at the crime scene nor had time to follow up with anyone who had investigated said crime scene, the rumors circulating throughout the hotel had given them enough information. She had learned that Oscar had been hit multiple times with the axe, and more than one person had said that police had mentioned that whoever killed Oscar had possibly kept hitting him with the axe long after he was dead. That, Kendell agreed, did sound rather personal. “I have a thought… What if it was about a specific dog?”

“One of the ones that died during his previous years in the Iditarod?” Pauline asked.

“That or just one that he abused before,” Kendell said. “The Iditarod officials keep records of this sort of thing. They would have to if dogs are dropped off at drop locations to be sent to that women’s prison to be taken care of. And I was told that there are a lot of safety stops that are required for the mushers to stop at for vets to look at the dogs.”

“They might have a record of specific vets that looked at Oscar’s abused dogs, or the name of the musher Martin told you about who brought the dog Oscar abandoned to the next drop-off point. They might even have records of any dogs Oscar had to drop off and who took care of them,” Pauline said, starting to sound excited.

“If we could get the name of the racer who picked up the dog Oscar hit in the head, I think we might have found someone who cares enough about the dogs to want to hurt him. Whoever did that probably hurt his own chances in the race to stop and pick up the dog and take it to the nearest vet check station. They might have even been a bit traumatized by the whole ordeal,” Kendell said.

“So, tomorrow, we go and talk to the race organizers?” Pauline asked.

“I think that’s the plan,” Kendell said, starting to catch Pauline’s excitement. “We just might be able to find out who killed Oscar.”

Pauline sighed. “This one feels a little bittersweet, doesn’t it?” Pauline asked, patting Dot on the head very gently and lovingly. “I don’t want to say he deserved it…but…well…”

“I know what you mean,” Kendell said. “But, at the end of the day, the Stenson family deserves closure just like anyone else. Right?”

Pauline nodded. “Right,” she said. “So, let’s do what we can. We need to find out what happened to Oscar, even if it had been a long time coming.”

“Easy there, Pauline,” Kendell said, shaking her head. She looked down at Dot and smiled at the happy little pup. “You know, you’ve really turned me into a dog person, Pauline.”

“You weren’t one before?” Pauline gasped, gripping her chest as though she had just learned a dirty little secret.

Kendell laughed. “Not really. I think before I met you, Jack and I would have wound up sharing an apartment with a cat after we got married.”

Pauline’s face scrunched up. “And now?”

“Don’t worry. I’m definitely a dog person.”

Pauline exhaled deeply. “Thank goodness!”

11

“I really appreciate this. You really have no idea,” Kendell said to the young woman who was one of the race coordinators for the Iditarod. Kendell had managed to locate where the race coordinators had been stationed, a small building in downtown Anchorage, for planning. A rather cheerful woman named Jamie had recognized Kendell, and the two of them had hit it off rather well. As Pauline’s joints had been aching that morning due to the increasingly cold weather, Kendell had elected to take this little adventure on her own.

Now the two of them, Jamie and Kendell, were seated at a large table inside a mildly-cramped room that was usually used for meetings between the various race coordinators. They had numerous stacks of files laid out before them that held a number of tidbits of information on racers from previous racing years. “It’s really not a problem,” Jamie said. “Honestly, I’ve been helping the police to comb through some of this anyway. They took copies of just about everything, and I’ve been a little curious to look at it myself. Not really sure what they’re looking for. That was a few days ago. They mostly took copies of Uki’s records, but I think that was really when they were looking at her as a suspect. But she’s been cleared now, so I imagine that they will be back soon to look at more of this.”

“I’m sure,” Kendell said, locating a file that held information that on-staff veterinarians kept track of during the races. She dug through the files, thankful the papers were organized by mushers’ names rather than by the names of the dogs, since that made it a bit easier to locate information on any dog Oscar had raced with. Oscar had a total of seven Iditarod races under his belt, and comparing his stack to those of other racers, Kendell saw that Oscar had an alarmingly high rate of dog injuries. “Whoa,” she said, sifting through the numbers of dogs who had been decreed unable to continue racing not due to overexertion, like many other racers’ dogs were, but due to some sort of injury. “How did your veterinarians not realize sooner that there was an abuse situation going on here? He was obviously hurting his dogs to keep them in line and to force them to keep pushing themselves past their breaking points,” Kendell asked.

“Our veterinarians are trained to look for this sort of thing,” Jamie said. “And, believe me, in recent racing years, we’ve kept an eye out on any of the Stensons extra carefully. We did eventually realize that there was a problem, and that’s why he was suspended from racing. His suspension finally ended this year, though. None of us were looking forward to having him back. Not that we haven’t had to deal with some of the other Stenson racers during his absence. They’ve been much more careful after their brother was suspended. No reported incidents.”

“I just hate that it took a dog dying for Oscar to finally be suspended,” Kendell said.

“Dog dying?” Jamie asked. “Oh, no, that dog didn’t die, but I know what you’re talking about.”

“What?” Kendell asked. “Martin, one of the racers, told me that Oscar hit a dog over the head and that another racer picked the dog up and took it to the next checkpoint, but that it was dead before they got there.”

“That’s the story we told the Stenson family,” Jamie said, then quickly added, “And that’s not something that needs to go in your blog.”

“Understood, but you’re going to need to give me more details than that if you want me to keep quiet,” Kendell said.

“Okay, what we did was pretty illegal,” she admitted. “But what happened to that dog was Oscar’s first real offense of animal abuse. We’ve suspected it for a long time, but we didn’t have much proof. Every mild injury that had been reported during the Iditarod had what most judges would consider a legitimate story behind it, though the sheer number of them did make us all suspect something more than a few accidents along the road were taking place. But we needed proof. This dog that was brought in had a witness and a serious injury that wasn’t caused by a trip-up in the racing line or another dog. It was obvious what had happened. We were finally able to suspend him. Problem is that because this was Oscar’s first official incident of animal abuse, he wanted his dog back. So…”

“You lied,” Kendell said. “You announced that the dog had died during transport. It made Oscar look even worse to confirm the race officials’ decision to suspend him, it put him in the spotlight so that animal control and animal rights groups would keep a closer eye on him, and it kept the dog safe from him. So, where did the dog wind up?”

“With the racer who picked him up, actually. He retired the dog, and from what I hear, the big old husky is enjoying his retirement as an oversized lapdog,” Jamie said.

“Who was the racer?” Kendell asked.

“Oh, I thought you must have known that. Martin was,” Jamie said. “He’s the one who picked the dog up. In the beginning, we told him it had died. That’s the story most racers heard, but once the dog was doing better, someone contacted Martin to see if he wanted to take on the responsibility because he had been so broken up over the whole thing. He was so relieved to hear that the dog was alive.”

“So, just to be clear, race officials essentially stole a man’s dog to keep it from being abused again? This is some pretty serious cover-up…and I don’t like that Martin misled me,” Kendell said.

“Martin’s name was never released to the public, and we advised him not to go telling everyone that he was the racer who witnessed the abuse,” Jamie explained. “The Stenson family are not exactly forgiving people.”

“Good to know, since me and my friends just got the whole lot of them arrested for animal cruelty and got their dogs taken away,” Kendell said, smirking. “So, was this dog dropped off and brought to the women’s prison as well?”

“No, not this one in particular,” Jamie said. “Though that’s what normally would happen to a good bit of Oscar’s dogs. He would argue with the veterinarians at the checkpoints when they would force him to pull a dog. He said it was inconvenient to have to get them back from the women’s prison, and he also said he didn’t like the way they pampered his dogs. But he didn’t have much of a choice when a vet deemed a dog unable to continue.”

“Do you have a record of who watched his dogs?” Kendell asked.

“Oh… I think you’d have to call the prison for those records,” she said. “We don’t hold onto those, but I’m sure the prison would still have a record of the women who participated in the drop. I know that Susan Flenn was a regular back in the day, and she still helps man the operation now that she’s out of prison.”

“Yeah, I’ve met her,” Kendell said. “Nice woman…”

Kendell didn’t stay with Jamie too much longer at the headquarters for the race. She felt like after talking to Jamie, however, that she had narrowed everything down to two suspects. Martin had lied to her about the injured dog, and frankly, Kendell was quite relieved to learn that the dog had not died but was living a secret, retired life with someone who actually cared about the poor thing. Then there was Susan. She clearly still cared about the racing dogs enough to continue working with the women’s group long after she had left prison herself.

When Kendell arrived back at the hotel, she did her best to locate either Martin or Susan, and she eventually cornered Martin as he was leaving the breakfast area. “Martin, a word?” Kendell demanded in such a way that she knew he felt he had no choice.

“Sure,” he said, stepping aside to chat.

“I want to talk to you about that racer you mentioned—the one who witnessed Oscar’s abuse during his last race before his suspension,” Kendell began, and he acted quite casually about this until she added, “I know it was you.”

He quickly lowered his voice. “How did you know that?”

“I spoke with a race official who spilled the beans,” Kendell said. “You lied to me, and I want to know why.”

“I lied to you because I was told to lie to everyone,” he said. “A dead dog is hard to ignore, and race officials were tired of not being able to pin Oscar with abuse. We all knew what was going on, so we did something about it. You going to tell everyone that? Because if so, you’re going to ruin a lot of people’s lives who were just trying to save that dog from having to go back to live with Oscar and his messed-up family.”

“No,” Kendell said. “But now I’m concerned that you might have had something to do with what happened to Oscar.”

Martin crossed his arms. He seemed to have an answer for this. “I left the party shortly after you did. I already told police, and you can confirm it with them, that I was out at a bar with some of the other racers. Restaurant has my card on file that proves I was far from the hotel when Oscar was killed. If you would like, I’d be happy to provide that information. I didn’t kill Oscar, and I’ve got an alibi that says so. I appreciate what you’re trying to do here, Kendell, and even though I didn’t kill the guy, I definitely agree that the world is better without him.”

Kendell, unwilling to back down just yet, huffed. “Yeah, I would like for you to provide me with that information.”

He gave her the name of the bar and the names of the other racers who had gone out with him that night. As soon as they went their separate ways, Kendell followed up first with the restaurant and then with the racers whose names Martin had given her. Sure enough, it all checked out. Martin’s alibi was as tight as could be. She sighed. “Well,” she said to herself. “Guess it’s time to talk to Susan…”

12

Kendell was able to find out from some of the mushers staying at the hotel that Susan lived in Anchorage and had not been staying at the hotel. So, she and Pauline headed out, Dot in tow, taking a cab to one of the neighborhoods in the city. They pulled up to an average home, bundling themselves up as they walked up the short driveway and rang the doorbell. Susan opened the door, and she smiled when she saw each of them. “Wasn’t expecting to see you two here,” she admitted, and she stepped aside to invite them in.

“Sorry about the intrusion,” Kendell said, glad to be out of the cold. “I thought we would come by to ask a few questions. We’re kind of looking into what happened to Oscar.”

“I figured you were,” Susan said. “Uki told me all about your blog, and I’ve been reading some of your older posts. Just got to your adventures in Georgia. Too fun.”

“Oh, I love that one,” Pauline said just as a husky made its way from behind a coffee table, sniffing Pauline and trying to get a good look at Dot snuggled up in her carrier.

“That’s Zip,” Susan said. “She’s a friendly girl. Retired from racing a few years ago, and I adopted her. Her musher was getting a little old himself and couldn’t take care of her the way he wanted to. So, what do you two need from me?” She sat down in the sitting room, and Zip jumped up and curled up against her. “Thinks she’s a lapdog…”

Pauline and Kendell sat down as well, and Dot poked her head out of the carrier, watching Zip curiously. “We were wondering if you could tell us more about the prison program for the dropped dogs,” Kendell began, and it was like the floodgates opened.

Susan droned on and on about her work with the women’s prison—how the women were selected, how many dogs were usually dropped off each year, and how much of a joy it had been working with the dogs while there and why she had chosen to keep helping out with the program after her release. “It just really does something to you when you’re in prison and you get an opportunity to care for such a sweet creature,” she said. “Dogs are dropped for their own safety, usually. Not every husky can handle that sort of length of the race, so if their dogs are just too tired, that’s the main reason they get dropped off. The race coordinators tag the dogs on their collar and keep track of which dogs go to which prisoner, and they are loved on for a few days until the race is over. Once the race is over, the dogs are reunited with their owners. It’s just another way to ensure the safety of the dogs during the sled races.”

“You seemed really personable with all the racers,” Pauline said. “Did you get to know a lot of them because of the program?”

“Uki especially,” Susan said. “I got Echo one year, and a number of other dogs she’s owned too. She specifically requested me for one of her dogs the last year I was in prison. I have a shoebox of thank-you letters some of the racers have sent me over the years for taking care of their dogs. I would get those while in prison usually within a month after the race. It would make my day. Some of them would even include pictures of their dogs for me.”

“That’s so sweet!” Pauline exclaimed.

“Do you happen to know who watched any of Oscar’s dogs?” Kendell asked.

Susan shrugged. “I have no idea. I did once,” she said. “Dog was exhausted, I can tell you that.”

“Was the dog injured?” Pauline asked.

“No, nothing like that,” Susan said. “Just really tired. He had definitely pushed it too far, but he warmed up to me after a day or so.”

“Did he ever write you a letter?” Kendell asked.

“Oscar didn’t really care about that sort of thing,” Susan said. “If anything, he was annoyed about having to arrange to come pick up his dogs.”

They chatted with Susan for a bit longer, but truthfully, Kendell didn’t feel any further along with her investigation than when she had first sat down. Susan kept getting distracted talking about some of the dogs, like Echo, she had watched over the years. She expressed her relief that Uki was going to be able to race, and she thanked Kendell and Pauline for their involvement in ensuring that Uki would be able to do so. Eventually, however, Kendell and Pauline departed. They didn’t want to stay out late. Kendell wanted to get plenty of rest because the following morning was not only the start of the race in Anchorage, but it was going to be the day of her wedding as well.

* * *

Kendell and Pauline arose the following morning bright and early as instructed by Felicity, her wedding planner and manager, and all the ladies met downstairs in the lobby, where Felicity handed each of them—Kendell, Pauline, Jesse, and Lil—a piece of paper with detailed instructions for their day. Where to go for hair, makeup, nails, photo ops, each with an address and contact for transportation. “Whoa,” Kendell said, looking at the list but pausing to smile when she saw that Felicity had scheduled plenty of time for her and Pauline to go see the start of the race that morning. Felicity, Kendell was sure, saw it as a good photo op for the blog and didn’t want Kendell and Pauline to miss out. For the first half of the day, it looked like Kendell and Pauline would be on their own before meeting up with Jesse and Lil when they were in countdown mode for the wedding.

After breakfast, as dictated by their schedule, Kendell and Pauline headed out to meet their Uber driver, who would be taking them to the race that morning. Pauline was simply giddy as she talked Kendell’s head off about the wedding and how thankful she was to be Kendell’s matron of honor. “I just can’t believe you asked me to be your matron of honor…” Pauline kept saying. “An old gal like me? I just can’t believe it…”

“I just texted Uki,” Kendell said, smiling at Pauline, who was still glowing uncontrollably at the thought of getting to be someone’s matron of honor at her age. “Wanted to get an idea of where we could stand to get a good glimpse of her when the race kicks off. Once the mushers all pass through, it’s not like we’re going to be following the race, so I want to make sure we get a good picture of Uki and Echo getting ready to take off for the blog since I’m going to be writing a good bit about her.”

“Wonderful!” Pauline said. “I know my little Dot would be thrilled to see Echo again. Oh! I haven’t even shown you what Felicity got for Dot, have I?”

“No?” Kendell said, and Pauline went digging around in one of the outside pockets of the bedazzled dog carrier, eventually pulling out a dark blue knitted doggie sweater that included a tutu and blue ribbons to tie into the fur on Dot’s ears. “She’s going to match the bridal party.”

“Oh my gosh!” Kendell cried. “That is just too cute. Wait… I wonder if it’s too late to pair Dot up with a guy?”

“I don’t know,” Pauline said. “What about Jefferson? You think he has a suit for the occasion?”

“I would hate for him to not match the rest of the groomsmen,” Kendell said. “I’ll mention the idea to Felicity. Maybe she can pull off some last-minute magic?” Kendell shot Felicity a text, assuring her not to fret if she wasn’t able to accomplish the feat, but based off the number of excited emojis she received back, she felt like Felicity would probably find a way to make it happen.

The traffic was a bit crowded that day with the race starting up, so the driver was taking a considerable amount of time getting them to the start of the race. Kendell was starting to realize why Felicity had scheduled them to leave so early—it seemed as though the world’s best event planner had predicted the influx of traffic. Kendell pulled out her cellphone, deciding to make use of this quiet time. She started typing in the names of some of the racers and various suspects she and Pauline had come up with into a search engine to see if she could locate any dirt on them.

She started with Martin and some of the other racers she had spoken to, but their search engine history seemed rather clean. Kendell found a number of arrest records for the entire Stenson family, including a domestic dispute situation with Mr. Stenson from ten years ago after having smacked some of his children around when they were teens. It seemed as though Mr. Stenson’s abuse was not restricted to the animals he looked after. “You think Mr. Stenson could have killed his own son?” Pauline asked.

“No, I don’t think so,” Kendell said. “Man was pretty fragile. Not to mention that the police probably already looked into this sort of thing. I’m sure we would have heard by now if he had been in Anchorage at the time of the murder.” Kendell then typed in Susan’s name, seeing if she could find out more about why the woman had been in prison in the first place. After scrolling past a few local online newspaper stories about Susan’s work with the dog drop programs, Kendell found exactly what she had been looking for, and it turned out to be a lot more telling than she had originally anticipated. “Pauline, you are never going to believe what I just found.”

“What?” Pauline asked, suddenly breaking off the conversation she had started up with the driver about Dot’s house-training adventures. The driver seemed quite relieved to not have to hear the end of the story of Dot’s brief period of bladder control problems.

“Susan, the reason she was in prison? She put her husband in a coma,” Kendell said.

“What on earth!” Pauline yelped. “How?”

“Hit him over the head with a frying pan,” Kendell said. “He had his airsoft rifle out and had been drinking. According to this article, he had already popped her a few times in the leg with the plastic bullets, irritating her. It started an argument, but it wasn’t anything serious until he shot one at the neighbor’s dog. The article says she ran right inside, grabbed the frying pan, and beamed him over the head four times!”

“For shooting the neighbor’s dog with an airsoft rifle?” Pauline asked. “My goodness, my son did that once to get the neighbor’s dog from going number two on his porch. You have no idea how many times he stepped in—”

“Pauline, I’m going to ask you not to finish that sentence, and why on earth would your son shoot a dog over that?!”

“Kendell, an airsoft rifle is a toy,” Pauline said. “It’s not a real gun. They shoot these tiny little pellets. Children in Georgia shoot them at each other all the time. It’s a game, kind of like paintball except the bullets are smaller and don’t explode and make a mess afterwards. It doesn’t exactly feel good, of course, so I’m sure it probably scared the dog a good bit, but it wouldn’t hurt the thing unless he managed to get it in the eye or something… Doesn’t hurt any more than a little ant bite.”

“Seriously?” Kendell asked, looking back at the article. “She hit her husband over the head four times with a frying pan and put him in a coma…over that? I mean, shooting a dog with an airsoft pellet is not nice at all, but it certainly wouldn’t merit trying to kill someone over what honestly probably felt no worse than a bee-sting, right?”

“Oh, I absolutely agree,” Pauline said. “That’s a bit excessive. Worst I did when I found out my son shot that dog with an airsoft pellet is scold him and tell him I hope it peed all over his leg next time he saw it.”

Kendell looked up the number for the prison, and she was fortunate enough to get a hold of someone who could tell her more about the dog drop program. The man on the other line was friendly, especially when Kendell revealed that she was Kendell McDonald, the now rather famous internet blogger. The man read her blog a bit obsessively, it seemed, and he willingly went out of his way to look up some records on the previous dog drops. “Yeah, I got Susan’s paperwork here. She watched a number of dogs over the years.”

“Any dogs belonging to a man named Oscar Stenson?” Kendell asked.

“Yeah… Let’s see…a total of nine. Whoa, that’s a lot,” he said. “We usually try to repeat, so if a racer puts a dog in at the drop two years in a row, for instance, we’ll try to send that dog to the same woman if she’s still here—even if it’s a different dog. The women like that, and it helps build healthy relationships for the prisoners outside of the prison. Looks like Susan was usually assigned Uki’s and Oscar’s dogs when they were dropped.”

“I appreciate it,” Kendell said. “I don’t suppose you have information on what condition the dogs were dropped off in?”

“No, if they were seriously hurt, they wouldn’t have been sent to the prison. Vet would have looked after them. But…hold up… Okay, so five years ago, one of Oscar’s dogs was sent in and was really skittish, and Susan reported it to the woman who oversaw the program back then. I’m sure that was probably just passed along to the people in charge of the race.”

“I appreciate it,” Kendell said, and eventually, she ended her conversation feeling a bit unsettled. “I think we need to talk to Susan again,” Kendell said. “She was in prison because she got worked up over dog abuse…then she sees it again firsthand. I’m thinking Susan might have seen Oscar at the party and decided to take him out.”

“I concur,” Pauline said. “You think she’ll be at the race start-off this morning?”

Kendell nodded. “I don’t doubt it for a second.”

13

Kendell and Pauline had to get out of their cab a considerable distance away from where the start of the race was being held. Pauline walked, scurrying along, with Dot under her arm inside her pink carrier. The little dog kept poking her head out then retreating, deciding it was too cold. By the time they reached the race, Kendell had already contacted local authorities about what she had learned regarding Susan. Her hope was that the police would handle following up on everything she had learned, but there was a part of Kendell that was almost certain they would wind up bumping into the woman at the race.

The snowy roadway was cleared of all vehicles, and there were signs and banners everywhere advertising all of the sponsors for the race. The mushers were already lining up, hooking their well-trained dogs into their harnesses. Uki spotted them a considerable distance off, and the woman waved them down.

Kendell and Pauline hurried over to watch Uki get her dogs ready, and Dot now seemed more willing to keep her head out of the carrier so she could watch Echo. Echo looked very excited to be amongst her fellow racing dogs, and she seemed to be the most obedient of the lot—even nipping at one of the dogs once when it wasn’t paying attention to Uki’s commands. “You got yourself a well-trained group of ladies there,” Kendell said.

“Yup, these are my girls,” she said, rubbing one of the dogs on top of the head. “This is Coco. It’s her first time racing the Iditarod.”

“Nice,” Kendell said.

“Been training hard,” Uki said. “But I think they’re all ready.”

“I should probably give you a heads up,” Kendell said. “Pauline and I think we know who killed Oscar.”

“Whoa,” she said. “Who was it?”

“Susan,” Pauline said. “And we’ve already alerted the police. But they don’t know where she is. Keep an eye out for her.”

“Susan?” Uki asked. “You think she killed Oscar?”

“We think so,” Kendell said. “There is definitely motive.”

Uki looked rather disturbed by this. “Okay, I’ll let you know if I see her.”

Kendell and Pauline had to get out of the street when race officials started to clear the area of everyone but the racers. There was a lot of excitement surrounding the race, and Kendell and Pauline were sure to take plenty of pictures for the blog. “Between this dog race and your wedding this evening, I don’t doubt your readers are going to have their favorite blog post yet,” Pauline said.

Kendell grinned. “I hope so. I’m starting to wonder if they are ever going to get tired of me.”

“They haven’t yet,” Pauline said. “I say ride it as long as you can.”

Kendell laughed, thinking that she would probably take Pauline’s advice. She was enjoying her life now thanks to her internet fame, so why not keep it going if she could? The unusual work schedule worked well for her and Jack right now. It only made sense to play it out while she could. To enjoy the moment while it lasted.

Someone in the crowd tapped Kendell on the shoulder, and she turned around only to be greeted by a smiling Susan. Pauline yelped, and Dot started growling. Kendell did her best not to look too taken aback. Obviously, the woman had no idea the police were looking for her or she wouldn’t be walking around in broad daylight looking so calm and collected. “Kendell, Pauline, Dot, I figured I would see you three here,” she said with a smile. “Though, I wasn’t sure. I saw on your blog that you’re supposed to be getting married today! Are you excited?”

“Very,” Kendell said, giving Pauline a telling look that she hoped the woman would interpret to mean don’t tip her off and don’t say anything about the case, but of course, as usual, Pauline greatly misread this.

“So, Susan, we found out something interesting,” Pauline began, and Kendell instinctually slapped her own forehead in reaction to Pauline’s poor reading of social cues. “We wound up calling the women’s prison, just to learn a bit more about the program you were a part of, and come to find out you had watched a number of Oscar’s dogs over the years.”

Susan tried to play this off as miniscule, but she did a terrible job at covering her surprise. “Oh, well, yes,” she said. “I suppose I must have at some point. I usually wound up with Uki’s dogs. I’m sure there was one or two.”

“Nine, actually,” Pauline said. “And it sounds like that was an unusually high number of dropped dogs over a period of five or so years, and you watched all nine of them.”

“I guess,” Susan said.

Kendell was looking around for any police in the area, and she saw a handful. They were all watching the lineup to make sure no one interfered with the racers getting ready. Kendell deduced that if she needed to, she could probably get their attention. “Don’t you think that’s a high number?” Pauline pressed Susan. “He must have been pushing his dogs very hard to have nine of them dropped off. From what we hear, there were a number of instances of abuse. As a matter of fact, the gentleman we spoke to at the prison said that you yourself reported one of Oscar’s dogs behaving strangely.”

Susan’s ears turned a bit red. “Yes,” she said, sounding angry. “I did do that. That poor dog was shaking in a corner the whole time I was watching him. Like he thought I was just going to snap on him or something. It was really obvious that he was traumatized, and Oscar was reported for animal abuse after that. But he got off for it, like he always does. A little slap on the wrist, then his dogs go right back to him! It’s just so wrong, honestly.” She crossed her arms, but a slight smile appeared on her face. “I saw the story on the news, though. About you taking down the Stenson family breeding ranch. Those dogs are going to be going to good homes now. I’m going to adopt one myself, I think. Maybe even two or three. I’m a big husky lover. I wouldn’t mind filling my house full of dogs, giving them a second chance home, you know?”

“I see we’re going to have to stop beating around the bush,” Pauline said at last. “We know the whole reason you were in prison in the first place, Susan. You nearly killed your husband over shooting a dog with a toy gun.”

Susan’s fists clenched at her side. “That dog didn’t do anything wrong. Just because it came wandering onto our property didn’t mean my stupid, drunk husband got to hurt it, even if it was just a little airsoft gun. It doesn’t matter. It was a defenseless little dog!”

“I agree,” Pauline said. “But nearly killing your husband with a frying pan was a bit of an overreaction. Between that and learning what we did from the prison, it seems to me that—”

“That what?” Susan snapped. “That I killed Oscar?” A twisted smile appeared on her face. “Prove it.”

Kendell knew instantly she was their killer. The smirk on her face…it was obvious. So, Kendell lied. “That’s the thing, Susan, we already did,” she said. “Stole a glass from your house so the police could compare prints on that axe. Results came back.”

Susan stared blankly at Kendell for a moment, but Kendell gazed back at her with an unmoving expression. It was an outright lie, but it shook the woman terribly. “Well, he deserved it!” Susan shouted. “He deserved it after all those dogs he’s hurt. It’s not right! He kills a dog, and he only gets suspended for it.”

“That dog wasn’t killed,” Kendell said. “Another musher adopted it.”

“Still, he wouldn’t’ have cared either way,” Susan said. “One of these days, he was going to kill one. For all we know, he already had and just dumped them by his ranch. Those dogs were being abused, it’s obvious! Everyone knows it now. I’m glad I did it. He can’t ever hurt another dog again!” With that, Susan turned to flee, but Kendell reached out and grabbed the woman’s elbow.

Susan flung her fist right into Kendell’s eye, and she yelped in surprise. Susan jumped the ropes blocking off the roads and ran through the array of dogs. “She’s crazy!” Kendell said, her hand over her eye. “I swear, if I have a black eye in my wedding photos…”

“She’s getting away!” Pauline shouted.

Jumping the line proved to be a terrible idea as it had immediately alerted the police to her, but by the time they saw her, she had already made her way to the front musher—Uki. “Sorry, sugar,” Susan said, jerking Uki back onto the icy ground and hopping right onto her sled.

Echo and the rest of Uki’s dogs took off running, Susan in tow. “My sled! My dogs!” Uki yelped, struggling to get up.

The sled zipped through the snow, leaving everyone quite befuddled. Kendell broke the line, shouting at the police who were slipping and sliding on the ice and snow trying to catch up to the rapidly-accelerating sled. “She killed Oscar Stenson!” Kendell shouted. “I got her confession recorded on my phone! Someone stop her!”

It seemed as though Susan was actually going to get away, on a dog sled of all things. There was a clear path ahead that would take her out into the Alaskan wilderness, where she could make her way to any number of smaller cities. Just when Kendell thought Susan was actually going to make off with Uki’s entire professional racing team, something rather miraculous happened.

“Dot! No, come here, girl!” Pauline yelped, and Kendell spun around to see that Dot had jumped out of her carrier and was now zipping past everyone after Susan.

The little dog, though greatly weighed down by a substantial amount of snow latching onto her fur, managed to catch the sled that had only just gained its momentum. Dot yelped, and all at once, the dogs seemed to stop, sending Susan fumbling all over herself, eventually falling off the side of the sled and into the snow. The police caught up, as did Uki, who checked over each of her dogs while the police put Susan in handcuffs.

Pauline scooped Dot up out of the snow, brushing her off. “That’s my girl!” Pauline exclaimed.

Kendell laughed, but when she checked the time, a wave of panic swept over her. They needed to get a move on if they were going to keep to Felicity’s tight schedule.

14

Kendell looked at herself in the mirror, feeling somewhat flushed by the ordeal. Her dress looked gorgeous on her, her hair was curled and pulled back, and her makeup done lightly with a bit of a glittery look to her nose. “Okay, finishing touch, you ready?” Felicity asked from behind a door, and she exited carrying a white, fur coat. “Just for the ceremony. You can take it off during the reception, but it is pretty cold out there.”

“It’s beautiful, Felicity!” Kendell exclaimed, taking the coat and draping it over herself.

Mrs. McDonald burst into tears. “My girl is getting married!”

Kendell turned around, laughing. She and all the ladies—including Haruyo, who had not made it into the wedding party—were all sitting around looking quite giddy. Pauline looked rather stunning in her matron of honor dress. It was a rather dated-looking dress—a long-sleeved dark blue gown that looked like a cross between a 1940s housewife getup and a homecoming gown. “I am so excited for you, dear, you have no idea,” Pauline said.

Dot yelped slightly, and Kendell looked down in time to see the little dog up on her back legs, doing a little twirl for her in her blue coat and matching tutu. “I can’t believe Jefferson agreed to walking a dog down the aisle,” Kendell said.

“Actually, we couldn’t get him a matching suit in time,” Felicity said, sighing. “But we found another solution.”

Haruyo giggled. “He’s coming. He’s with Futoshi.”

“What?” Kendell asked.

There was a knock on the door of the bridal room, and Futoshi entered dressed in a suit that hid the majority of his tattoos for once, apart for the ones on his neck and behind his ears. He entered, a young baby turned toddler at his side. Asahi, Haruyo’s son, came waddling into the room carrying a small blue pillow in his hands and giggling terribly.

“Oh my gosh!” Kendell exclaimed, because the little boy looked so cute, she could have fallen down over it.

“Meet your ring bearer and flower girl,” Felicity said, waving toward Asahi, who had found his way to Dot, giggling.

“That’s just too cute, I don’t think I can take it,” Kendell said. “Wait, who’s marrying us? This is so rushed, I feel like I don’t know anything about my own wedding!”

Mrs. McDonald stood and winked. “That would be me, sweetheart.”

“Wait, what?” Kendell asked.

“I got ordained. I am officially an ordained minister for the state of Alaska,” she said, laughing. “Amazing at what a few hours on the internet will allow you to do…”

Kendell smiled, feeling that this would be rather special. “That’s awesome!” she said, practically jumping. “I feel like I’ve just been so distracted with Uki and my blog that I haven’t even thought to let these things sink in, you know?”

“Well, this friend of yours has certainly thought of everything,” Mrs. McDonald said. “But there is one thing that I thought of. Show her the bouquet.”

Felicity smiled, disappeared for a moment from the room, and returned holding beautiful purple and white orchids. Tied to the bouquet was a locket that dangled from the flower stems. “What is it?” Kendell asked, reaching for the locket and turning it over to see a picture of her father, a man she loved and admired who had died in a car accident when she was fairly young. “Oh, Mom! Now you’re going to make me cry!” Kendell said, wiping her eyes. “I swear, this is why I don’t wear makeup.”

“I— Out,” Futoshi said, slipping out of the room quickly and making Kendell laugh slightly at the man’s discomfort.

Felicity fussed over Kendell’s face for a moment, retouching her cheeks that had gotten a bit of mascara on them. “You look so gorgeous,” Lil said, looking like the dark goddess she always claimed to be as she sashayed around in her bridesmaid dress.

“You too,” Kendell said with a smirk.

Jesse was paying them very little attention because she had found the mirror and was doing twirls in her 40s-style dress, a style they all knew she adored as she had been the only one of Kendell’s original girly trio to not have gotten mortified when the airlines made the switch to the old-style flight attendant garb.

Soon, it was time. Mrs. McDonald dipped out first, and the rest of them made their way into the building’s lobby where the bridal party would be exiting. “Now, just a little surprise for everyone… I don’t want to alarm any of you, but I think you should all know I’ve got cameras everywhere outside… We’re doing this live for Kendell’s blog,” Felicity said, and Kendell’s mouth fell open. “Sorry for the surprise, but it was my sister’s idea. Iris flew in last night and set everything up. She’ll be monitoring everything on her laptop, switching camera angles for the viewers to enjoy.”

“Oh my gosh!” Kendell exclaimed.

“Well, we don’t exactly have an audience for you,” Felicity said. “But…well…the world is tuning in now.”

Kendell smiled. “Wow,” she said. “You guys really have thought of everything!”

Pauline was just giddy to hear that another one of her granddaughters was present. Felicity, who was now wearing a headset, clicked the side of it and said, “You guys ready out there, Iris? Jack and Mrs. McDonald are in place? Oh! No, I didn’t know Jack’s parents had made it… You got them a place to sit? Perfect!”

“My in-laws are here?” Kendell asked and then corrected, “Er, future in-laws?”

“We didn’t think they were going to make it,” Felicity said. “They told Jack they couldn’t make the flight, but I called them up and paid for the flight with some of the money we’ve been making off the new merchandise line.”

“Felicity, you’re a doll,” Kendell said.

“Okay, we are a go for Futoshi and Lil,” Felicity said as a side door opened, and the boys in suits came marching out looking rather proud of themselves.

Kendell raised a brow to see Futoshi, Rodney, and Jefferson. Futoshi and Lil met up and marched out the door and up the aisle. Then Rodney and Jesse. Finally, Jefferson put his arm out for Pauline. “Oh, so you’re best man now?” Pauline asked.

“Hope you don’t mind, Grandmama,” Jefferson said with a wink to his girl’s grandmother.

“Of course!” Pauline said, and soon she was out the door.

“I thought you didn’t find another suit?” Kendell asked Felicity.

“We didn’t,” Felicity said. “But Jack had an idea and made Brandon give his suit to Jefferson.”

“Oh, did he give Brandon the boot or something?” Kendell asked.

“Nope,” Brandon said, stepping out of the side room and smiling at Kendell. He was wearing a different suit from the rest of the wedding party, but his tie matched Kendell’s bouquet perfectly. “I’m wearing Jefferson’s suit. Jack thought you might like it if I walked you down the aisle?”

Kendell’s cheeks turned red. “Oh, geez, you guys are going to make me cry again.”

Brandon came over to her and smiled, hardly able to take his eyes off her. “You are so beautiful, you know that?” he asked and put his arm out for her to take.

“Go on, Asahi,” Felicity was saying to Asahi, who was tugging on Dot’s leash. The little boy and dog both took off running up the aisle. “Easy, Asahi! Not so fast!” Felicity called after the excited boy who could just barely walk and was now struggling through the ice.

Kendell wrapped her arms around Brandon’s neck, smacking him in the face with her bouquet. “Sorry,” she said, suddenly finding herself to be quite nervous.

“I’m not,” Brandon said. “You’re my best friend, Kendell. I’m glad I get to do this…even if it means getting beaned in the face with some orchids.”

“This was really Jack’s idea?” she asked.

“It was,” Brandon said. “I know he and I have never exactly been best buds but let me say this: you got a good guy there, Kendell. I mean that.”

She smiled. “Thanks, Brandon.”

Felicity came hurrying over, pausing a moment to fix Kendell’s bouquet to where the locket hung facing outward. She opened the doors, and Kendell stared out toward a beautiful view. The only thing in the background was a beautiful snow-covered landscape—a crystal lake surrounded by a mountainous view that seemed to stretch on for miles. The sun was setting behind the rocky formations, making the sky a bright pink and the mountains themselves seem almost purple in color.

She locked eyes with Jack, who was standing at the end of the aisle looking back at her with watery eyes and a big, goofy grin. Kendell walked, her toes already freezing cold—though she hardly noticed it, and Brandon leading her. “Five bucks says he’s bawling like a baby through his vows,” Brandon said.

“Oh no…vows… I didn’t write my vows,” Kendell whispered, and Brandon slipped her a piece of paper.

“I can’t use something someone else wrote,” she said.

“You wrote that,” he said. “It’s a letter you wrote Jack when you guys first started dating… Your mom snagged it from his apartment before she flew out. Your words. Use them or improvise.”

Kendell smiled and soon she was standing facing Jack. Her friends and family really had thought of everything. She had never felt so loved. She held Jack’s hands, hardly able to hear a word her mother was saying because she was so overwhelmed. A flash of light went off in her face, and she heard Jesse scolding Junior for blinding her. He was apparently their photographer. She read her letter to Jack, and he teared up during the vows, and she made a mental note she was going to have to slip Brandon five dollars later. She added a bit to her vows outside of the letter, talking about their next grand adventure together. Jack spoke through shaky lips, and she could hardly believe how happy he looked.

They kissed, and the whole wedding party lost it as she and Jack sprinted back down the aisle, holding hands and very eager to get out of the cold. Soon they were all standing in the lobby, all talking excitedly about the ceremony that had just taken place. Iris, Felicity’s young sister, had her laptop with her and a headset on her head as well. “You guys… You’re not going to believe this, but there were over five hundred thousand people live-streaming your wedding…”

“Wait, what?” Jack asked.

“Didn’t you know it, Jack?” Felicity joked. “Your wife is famous.”

Jack smiled. “Wife,” he said. “I like the way that sounds, you know?”

“We’re going to live-stream part of the reception too,” Felicity said. “So get ready.”

Soon they were in the midst of a large ballroom, and much to Kendell’s surprise, half of the mushers from the Iditarod were there, including Uki. “What are you doing here?” Kendell wailed. “You’re supposed to be racing!”

“The start at Anchorage is just for show,” she said. “The real race doesn’t start until tomorrow. We’re here to party! We got an invite from your manager.”

Kendell laughed hysterically as the reception hall seemed to fill up with both dogs and people. Music started, and she and Jack danced. She could hardly believe it. She and Jack were married.

Finally.

15

Kendell slowly slipped out of her and Jack’s room, making her way down for breakfast. She decided she wanted to eat early and then bring him some breakfast in bed. It was their first official day as a married couple, so she wanted to start it out right. Much to her pleasure, she spied Pauline, Felicity, and Iris all seated in the hotel’s breakfast area. “Morning!” Kendell called to them.

“What’s up!” Felicity exclaimed. “Did you have a good night?”

Kendell laughed before sitting herself down. Dot jumped from Pauline’s lap to Kendell’s. “Hard to believe I’m actually married now.”

“You should see the number of people who logged in for the reception,” Iris exclaimed. “Not quite as many as for the ceremony, but pretty dang close.”

“I appreciate you doing that,” Kendell said. “I’m still trying to get used to this whole fame thing. It’s kind of weird.”

“Well, you’re rocking it,” Iris said. “Now, tell her the big surprise, Felicity.”

“What big surprise?” Kendell asked.

“The honeymoon, of course,” Pauline said with a big grin.

“Oh, wow,” Kendell said. “I honestly hadn’t even thought about it.”

“With the amount of stuff we threw on you so last minute, I would have been surprised if you did,” Felicity said. “We’re sending you and Jack to Peru.”

“You’re paying for our honeymoon?” Kendell asked.

“We’re not,” she said. “Your business is. You’re still a travel blogger. Grandmama thinks she needs some time to recuperate anyway, so she’ll be flying home with us to Georgia this afternoon. You and Jack, however, are off on your first grand adventure as husband and wife.”

“Does Jack know about this?” Kendell asked.

“Of course,” Felicity said. “We helped him get everything set up at work and such. And your flight leaves tonight, so you better get packing.”

“A few weeks without Pauline?” Kendell said, making a rather dramatic frown. “I don’t know how I will manage.”

“I think you’ll be just fine,” Pauline said and stood up to get herself some breakfast from the buffet. She leaned over to give Kendell a quick hug around the neck before departing, and Dot jumped down to follow Pauline.

Kendell ate her breakfast before making Jack a plate and heading toward the elevator, where she bumped into Rodney. Rodney smiled, hopping onto the elevator with a plate full of food in his hands as well. “Glad I ran into you,” he said as the elevator doors closed. “I have something I’ve been wanting to talk to you about all week, but I wanted to wait until after the wedding because I didn’t want to give you anything else to stress about.”

“Stress? Do I want to have this conversation?” she asked.

“You need to,” he said, becoming quite serious. “I’ve been in contact with our friends from Paris lately.”

“You mean the former примета members?” Kendell asked.

“That’s the ones,” he said. “They were friends with my brother, Aaron, after all. I wanted to learn more about him, so I’ve been emailing and talking on the phone some. They send their love, by the way.”

“Good to know I’m on the right side of former trained assassins,” she said.

“Yes, well, they wanted me to give you a warning. There’s been some…whispers…lately in their circles,” he said.

“Whispers? What do you mean?” she asked.

“I’m not sure, exactly. Rumor is there is still a slight fragment of примета in Russia,” he said.

“I’m sure there are still a few members hiding in a hole somewhere,” Kendell said.

“I think it might be more than just a few,” he said. “But our friends have been keeping an eye out on any chatter surrounding the organization.” They both stepped off the elevator and began walking down the hall. Up ahead, Kendell smiled and nodded at Futoshi as she passed by the man, half-asleep as he made his way toward the elevator for breakfast himself. “All I’m saying is that примета might still have some loyal members circling around. And they know you and they know Pauline, and as you can imagine, they’re not big fans of yours. There’s some rumor going around that they might be doing some meeting in New York.”

“New York?” Kendell repeated. “Who could they possibly be meeting in New York?”

“Don’t know,” Rodney said. “I just know that’s where you’re from and that makes me really nervous.” He stopped in front of a door and began fumbling for his hotel key. “Just promise me you and Pauline will at least try to stay out of trouble?”

“Thanks for the warning, Rodney. We will,” she said, and he disappeared inside his room. Glancing back, she could see Futoshi staring down the hall at her for a moment before slipping onto the elevator.

* * *

It soon came time for their departure, and Kendell was rather amazed at how sad she was to say good-bye to Pauline and everyone else at the airport. She hugged Haruyo and little Asahi, and she even gave Futoshi a quick peck on the cheek, much to his displeasure. She said her good-byes to Rodney, who would be heading back to Chicago, as well as to Jesse and Junior, who were destined for Texas. Lil gave her a near-death-like squeeze. Her mother cried violently as she followed Lil. Their flights to New York were first to leave, and Jack’s parents shook their heads and laughed before following them. Finally, Kendell stood facing Pauline, Felicity, Iris, and Jefferson. She held Dot in her arms, giving the little dog several kisses.

“We’ll see each other soon,” Pauline said. “Don’t you dare get me all worked up. Oh! I’ve got a little something for you…” The woman reached into her bag and pulled out a sticker for Kendell’s carry-on. It was a sticker of a beautiful Alaskan landscape with the words “GOT HITCHED IN ANCHORAGE” across the front in gold glitter.

Kendell laughed. “I love it!”

“Cute,” Jack said, laughing and putting an arm around her. “You ready for this?”

“I think so,” Kendell said and gave Dot several kisses.

“I’ll see you in two weeks,” Pauline said. “I’ll see you in Peru then.”

“Sounds like a plan,” Kendell said. “Enjoy your time off in Georgia with the family.”

“Oh, I will,” Pauline said, and Kendell watched her leave with Iris.

Felicity lingered back for a moment to give Kendell a quick hug. “Check your email when you get on the plane. You’ll be good to go for your next blog post.”

She and Jack waved good-bye to Felicity, and soon it was just the two of them. “We better go. Our flight is going to be boarding soon,” he said, pausing to help her put her Anchorage, Alaska, sticker on her bag.

“Can’t believe we’re going to Peru for our honeymoon… I can’t believe Felicity gave me an itinerary…” Kendell laughed.

“I can definitely believe that,” he said, taking her by the hand. “I can’t believe I’m married to you.”

“Awful, isn’t it?” she teased, and he nudged her slightly, all smiles.

“I love you,” he said, his face practically glowing.

When they were finally seated on the plane, they continued holding hands, staring back at each other happily. The plane took off, and once the WiFi was on, Kendell scurried to open her laptop. She squealed to see that Junior had spent the evening before editing a few wedding photos for them to enjoy. “I didn’t realize he was so handy with a camera,” Kendell said. “I thought he ate, slept, and breathed ranching.”

“What do you know, the cowboy has a hobby outside of birthing calves,” Jack said, and his face turned a bright crimson color when he saw a picture of himself crying like a baby at the altar. “Oh, please don’t put that one on your blog.”

“You know I have to,” she said, leaning over to kiss his cheek. She stretched out her hands, popping her knuckles as she began to type out her latest adventure. Without a doubt, it was her favorite blog post yet. When she finished typing the first draft, she let it sit for a while so that she and Jack could talk a bit about what they wanted to do in Peru. They talked about their future as well as their past and what led them to this moment. It really was hard to believe that they were married and headed off to a honeymoon.

Jack fell asleep after a while, so Kendell finished her post—loading it with pictures of their adventures in Anchorage, pulling quite a few from the photo collection that Junior had sent her. She posted the blog and then closed her laptop, placing it under her seat. She leaned her head on Jack’s shoulder, and soon she was drifting off to sleep as well—a sleep filled with dreams about the next grand adventure that lay ahead.

* * *

Mayhem in Mexico

Flight Risk Cozy Mystery, Book 11

1

Kendell stood in the middle of the airport with her arms wrapped around her new husband. He was gently kissing her forehead and squeezing her tight. “I’m really going to miss you,” Jack groaned, his flight near ready to leave without him.

“I’ll see you in about a month,” she said, and the words made her stomach twist. A month! The thought of not seeing Jack for an entire month after having two blissful weeks together alone in the capital of Peru, their honeymoon destination, made her a bit queasy.

But this was the life they had chosen. It would be this way for now, at least. Jack was in flight school, and Kendell was a rather famous travel writer. Until Jack finished school, there were going to be times when they went a significant period without seeing one another face-to-face. Once he had his pilot’s license and a steady job, they had some plans set in motion that would make things easier. For now, though, Jack did not seem so willing to jump on his plane and leave knowing it would be about a month before their next chance to see each other.

Kendell gave him another kiss. “Go before you miss your flight.”

He sighed and bent down, picking up his carry-on bag with a pout on his face. “I had so much fun with you these past two weeks.”

Kendell had to agree. Lima had been a beautiful spot for a honeymoon. They had visited the town plaza countless times, touring the presidential palace during one of their excursions away from their lovely hotel room, as well as the Lima Cathedral. They had seen the Basílica y Convento de San Francisco de Lima, where they had spent a considerable amount of time in the library. Lima’s nightlife was fun and charming, and the food was incredible. One evening, they had even gone to a dinner theater show that consisted of traditional dance and music. And during one of their more daring outings, they had gone paragliding over the beach. It was hard to believe that it was finally over.

A few more kisses as well as an abundant amount of I-love-yous were exchanged before Kendell and Jack said their final good-bye, and he boarded his plane. She sighed, clutching her laptop case. She headed to one of the airport’s restaurants where she ordered a local dish, ceviche, that she had rapidly acquired a taste for. It would be another hour before Pauline, her blogging partner, would arrive by plane. So, she figured she would use the time to eat and update her blog.

Kendell had already updated her blog once over the honeymoon—her readers really wanted to know what she and Jack had been up to on their honeymoon in Peru. It was sort of the lost destination for her and Pauline; they had been trying to get to Peru during one of their adventures months ago but had wound up in Texas instead. Now that she was finally there, her blog followers were losing their minds. They all seemed to be counting down the hours until Pauline would at last arrive in Peru to rejoin Kendell.

“One more hour, guys,” Kendell said out loud as she typed the words into the live chat section that Felicity, her manager and Pauline’s granddaughter, had added to her website. Kendell still could not believe the amount of support she and her blog had gotten from people all around the world. They were instant internet famous, and the memes that had come out of it were being turned into t-shirts and coffee mugs for all to enjoy.

Almost as soon as she had posted the comment, her video feed started going off just as the waiter put the plate of ceviche in front of her. Kendell thanked the man before opening her video chat, plugging in her ear buds so as not to bother anyone sitting nearby. “Felicity,” Kendell said, smiling. “Good to see you.”

“Saw that you were online. I was monitoring the live chat page,” Felicity said.

“How do you find time to do this and run a detective agency and event shop on top of everything else?” Kendell asked.

“I’m good at delegating,” Felicity said, smirking. “Things are looking good, Kendell. Have you had a chance to look at the new line of merchandise? Probably not, you’ve been on a honeymoon, for crying out loud. Just finished reading you last blog update, by the way. Love the pictures of you and Jack paragliding.”

“Thanks,” Kendell said warmly. “What sort of new merchandise are you coming out with?”

“Stuffed animals,” Felicity said, and she immediately sent Kendell a link.

A white, fluffy stuffed dog appeared on the screen that looked just like Pauline’s trusty canine companion, Dot. “That is too stinkin’ cute,” Kendell laughed. “Has your grandmother seen this?”

“Oh, yes, believe me,” Felicity said. “Dropped her off at the airport this morning, and she wound up taking a few with her to give out to people in Peru. She’s really excited. I sent you some pictures of my grandmother and Dot at the airport in Atlanta. Thought you could upload them to get your readers excited.”

“Doing it now,” Kendell said, and her readers immediately started sharing the blog page to tell their friends and family that Pauline was on her way to Peru.

“I had a thought I want to run by you,” Felicity said. “It might sound a little crazy, and it’s way in the future…”

“Okay?” Kendell asked.

“I know you and Jack are going to want to spend more time together once he is out of school. What do you think about investing in a jet?”

Kendell nearly choked on her food. “A what?”

“A private jet,” Felicity said. “Hear me out. He could be your official pilot and go with you and Pauline on the trips. While you and Pauline are busy with your blogging stuff, we can hire Jack out to do private flights between trips to help pay for the investment.”

“That’s a serious investment, Felicity!” Kendell yelped. “Like, a several million-dollar investment. We don’t have that kind of money to invest in something like that.”

“I’m talking about hiring Jack, once he’s well trained, to be my pilot for my private jet,” Felicity said. “To fly rich people around, of course, who are too good to fly coach, and to fly you guys around too when you’re ready to relocate.”

“You’re talking about starting another business,” Kendell said. “A private jet for hire?”

“Exactly,” Felicity said. “It would help this current business, but really, it would be a launch for Jack’s career as well.”

“Flying a private jet?” Kendell said. “That’s a whole different licensing program, you know?”

“Which is a serious investment of time and money, I know,” Felicity said. “But it’s a great business opportunity—one that would allow you to keep doing what you’re doing for a lot longer as well as jumpstart Jack’s career far beyond what he would be starting out in otherwise.”

“Wow,” Kendell said, hardly able to believe it. “Do we really have the money to invest in something like this?”

“You don’t,” Felicity said. “I do. I sold that Cobra I was gifted, remember? Sold it for millions, and I don’t intend to just blow that money on something stupid. I want to invest. Jefferson, my Jack, and I are already working on starting up a second Overton Family of Companies location, and the private jet rental would be an addition to Overton Family of Companies. The blog is your own thing, but because it’s you and my grandmother, we’ll continue to mesh our resources for as long as you are comfortable with it.”

“I think my blog, if you’re up for it, should become a part of Overton Family of Companies,” Kendell said. “If we’re going to continue working together like this long-term, and if you’re talking about buying my husband a jet, I think it’s going to be easier in the long run.”

Felicity’s eyes glistened. “Wait, really? You want to become a part of my brand?”

“The blog is only as successful as it is because of you,” Kendell said. “I have to talk to Jack first to see if he would be willing to get on board, but if he is, I think that is a conversation we should definitely have.”

Felicity clapped her hands. “Excellent! Okay, well, I’ve kept you long enough, and I can see you’re eating. I’ve given you a lot to think about, so I’ll let you go.”

“That’s sounds perfect,” Kendell said and thanked Felicity before closed the chat. She exhaled heavily. A private jet? Felicity Overton was certainly the type of woman who liked to go big or go home.

Kendell found that she had a missed called from her friend Rodney, a fellow blogger who had attended hers and Jack’s wedding, so she hit him up for a video chat as well. His face appeared on her screen. “What’s up, newlywed?” he sang.

“Rodney, always good to see you,” she said. “I saw that you had tried reaching out. You know I’ve been on my honeymoon, right?” she teased.

“But of course,” he said. “Sorry about that. I figured you would call back when you were free.”

“I’m assuming it’s important?” Kendell asked.

“Yeah,” he said. “Look, it’s about something that went down while we were in Alaska.”

Kendell paused, thinking of her wedding and the fun and trouble they had all enjoyed. “Oh?”

“It’s about Futoshi,” he said.

“Futoshi?” Kendell asked. Futoshi was a member of a gang she and Pauline had gotten involved with while in Tokyo. He had wound up showing up and filling in as a groomsman. While she counted Futoshi as a friend, she knew such a friendship spelled trouble. “Is everything okay?”

“Remember how I mentioned to you that I had heard rumors about the Russian gang still having some members around the globe?” he asked.

“Yeah?”

“Well, I overheard Futoshi speaking on the phone to someone in French,” he said.

“French?” Kendell repeated. Futoshi’s native tongue was Japanese, and his English was fairly fluent, but she had never heard him speaking French. “Are you sure?”

“Definitely,” he said. “I don’t speak French, so I have no idea what he was saying. It was just a little weird, you know? And after the Yakuza had one of their members trailing you in France once before, I couldn’t help but feel weird about it.”

“I agree it’s weird,” Kendell said. “But Futoshi is a friend.”

“He’s part of one of the world’s deadliest crime syndicates,” Rodney said. “I don’t know. Something just doesn’t feel right.”

“I’ll keep an eye out on things,” Kendell said. “And if you hear any whispers from your brother’s former allies, will you let me know?”

“I will,” he said. “Stay safe out there.”

“You too,” she said, and she closed her laptop. Looking at the time, she realized her hour had been spent. She quickly paid her bill and hurried across the airport to where she knew Pauline’s flight would be arriving any minute. Kendell waited for only twenty minutes or so before she heard the familiar yapping of Dot, Pauline’s dog.

“Kendell!” Pauline cried, scurrying through the crowd in her direction. “Oh, I just hate that my flight didn’t get in until after Jack’s left,” she said. “I would have loved to have seen him. You are going to have to tell me all about your honeymoon!”

“Of course,” Kendell said, smiling. “And I want to hear about your time back home in Georgia. I’ve missed you, Pauline!”

2

The relaxing nature of Kendell’s honeymoon time came to a crashing halt upon the arrival of Pauline and Dot, but Kendell was glad to be back in the groove of things. Day one, Pauline spent very little time resting in the hotel room. As she put it, she’d had two weeks back home in Georgia to rest and reenergize from all their travels. She immediately got to work on deciding what they were going to do with their remaining time in Peru, and she decided they had to get out of Lima. So, they headed for Machu Picchu.

After checking out of their hotel, they took a cab for the start of their latest adventure. Pauline managed to book them a seven-day tour of the Incan trails that included comfortable nightly stays in various lodges. It was quite luxurious, and it seemed that Pauline was ready to jump right back into things after her two-week break. They began at their Cusco hotel, where a driver met them for the start of their adventure. After a short drive, they stopped at the ruins of Tarawasi not far from the town of Limatambo. They took several pictures with Dot on the trails, and eventually, they were driven to the village of Mollepata and then to Marcoccasa, where they, along with their excited group of travelers, met the official trek team for their first day of hiking.

They began by following the Camino Real, or “Royal Path” as they learned it was called, and the rest of the day was spent walking the long trail. Kendell found that her breathing was a bit raspy as she got used to the high altitude, which was something they had been warned early on. The end of their day landed them in Soraypampa, the first mountain lodge they would get to enjoy on their journey. The pictures they took there took Kendell’s breath away as it overlooked the highest peak in the region.

Kendell and Pauline spent day two of their journey in the beautiful town of Soraypampa, where they enjoyed mountain lake views and a various assortment of activities offered by the lodge. The next day was a bit more challenging of a hike as they trekked up the Rio Blanco Valley across what was known as the Salkantay Pass. While the tour allowed for time to rest, Kendell and Pauline both felt rather tired that day. It was quite a jump back into their adventurous lifestyle. When the tour guides told them they were beginning their descent to the next lodge, Kendell felt relieved and began watching for the Wayra Lodge where dinner would soon be served.

The following day was much less challenging, though the sights were even more incredible. They walked mostly downhill, overlooking the Salkantay River though extravagant green scenery. The next lodge was only a three-hour walk, and Kendell was thankful for the quick arrival where they were able to enjoy a lunch served in Pachamanca style. The tour guide explained that Pachamanca-style lunches were prepared entirely in an underground stone oven.

Kendell and Pauline both required a nap after the morning walk and filling lunch, but they spent the rest of the day enjoying the lodge’s outdoor hot tub that overlooked the nearby mountains. They were told that there was an orchid trail, but Kendell and Pauline passed this up for some leisure time. Pauline’s feet could only handle so much walking in one day.

By day five, Kendell was close to pulling her hair out over Pauline’s choice in adventure. They were required to get up early for breakfast before starting their hike toward Santa Teresa Valley. Upon arrival, Kendell could see coffee plantations and orchards filled with bananas and granadillas, and they were able to enjoy some of the crop and snack on bananas during their walk. They stopped along the river for lunch and relaxed a bit before they were told a vehicle would meet them soon. Kendell smiled, secretly glad to get a ride. After the half-hour drive, they at last arrived at the beginning of the Llactapata Inca Trail. It was only a half-hour walk from there to the next lodge, but it was a steep incline that left everyone in the group looking rather exhausted. They learned a lot more about the coffee plantations during this walk, and it included a tour of the farmland. Kendell conked out that night in the hotel, opting out of dinner entirely so that she could retire early. Pauline wasn’t too far behind her.

Their early bedtime was just what they needed, because they each awoke feeling refreshed the next morning and ready for their two-and-a-half-hour uphill walk to Llactapata Pass. At the peak of their travels that morning, they could at last see the Machu Picchu citadel in the distance. They explored the Llactapata ruins and ate lunch at the on-site observatory.

They began their final descent to the Aobamba River through bamboo forests and orchards and more plantations. At last, they arrived at a train station where they were able to sit and enjoy the rapidly-passing views until they arrived at the town of Aguas Calientes, where they checked into a hotel and enjoyed a dinner. The tourists chatted excitedly together about their final leg of the journey the following day.

First thing in the morning, after breakfast, they began their tour of the Machu Picchu citadel. From there, they took a short bus ride up the mountain to the hidden ruins they had been waiting to see since the start of their journey. “Oh my goodness!” Pauline exclaimed, wiping sweat from her brow as they exited the bus and got their first up close look of the abandoned Incan city.

“It’s beautiful,” Kendell said, finally feeling as though the ridiculous amount of walking they had done over the past seven days was certainly worth it.

The tour guides walked them around the ruins, telling them all they knew about the Incan tribes that had once inhabited this city. The smaller ruins they had seen along the way were nothing compared to the absolutely incredible construction of Machu Picchu. They visited the Incan citadels, the Sun Temple, and the Royal Temple. Kendell took so many pictures that her phone wound up overheating, and she had to turn it off for a while.

“This is the most amazing thing I’ve ever seen, and I’ve seen a lot,” Kendell said. “No wonder you were so adamant about coming here, Pauline.”

“It really is beautiful, isn’t it?” Pauline asked, snapping a picture of Dot sitting at the base of the Sun Temple, having taken over after Kendell’s phone had decided to die on them.

“I was going crazy from all of that walking,” Kendell said. “But, honestly, this was totally worth it.”

“I’ve been wanting to come here since I was a little girl, honestly,” Pauline said. “I read about it in a book, and I saw pictures. It just looked so incredible to me. To think about what little technology these people had, but what they were able to do, it’s simply amazing. I’m so glad I finally got to see the place, Kendell. I really am. Thank you so much for going on this journey with me.”

Kendell had someone from one of the other tours take a picture of them along with their guides and fellow travelers. Eventually, though, it came to an end. They boarded a bus that took them to the original hotel they had stayed at seven days before. Pauline fell asleep during the drive back, and Kendell used the opportunity to work on a draft for her next blog post.

She decided which pictures to use, which took the majority of her drive back because there were so many good ones. Kendell felt herself becoming giddy, eager to show the world what she and Pauline had been up to that week. They had given out some of the Dot stuffed dogs to some of the other tourists. One of her favorite pictures was of the tour guides posing with both the real Dot and a stuffed Dot outside of the Sun Temple.

“Peru has been fun,” Kendell said aloud as she typed up the draft. “But after three weeks here, I’m ready for our next adventure. It’s kind of strange, really, to have spent this much time in one place and to have managed to stay out of trouble. Jack and I had fun on the honeymoon, and I was so happy to see Pauline flying in a week ago for us to continue our adventures.” She wrote out what they had done and seen, using humor in her writing as she had become known for doing.

Once they were back to the hotel and settled in, Kendell went ahead and uploaded her latest blog post along with the pictures she had selected. People started commenting and sharing the post immediately. The live chat section of the blog started going off like mad, and she noticed a few people comment that they were glad that the Kendell-Pauline team was back in business. Kendell laughed, and she realized she was quite glad herself. She had missed the crazy old lady who had rapidly become her best friend. She looked back on some of the older posts, particularly the most recent trip to Alaska—Kendell’s wedding destination. Pauline had been so thrilled to have been asked to be Kendell’s matron of honor, and the woman had really rocked the dress. Dot, who had been deemed her flower girl, looked adorable in her dress too.

Kendell took a moment to review the sales page, and she laughed to see that the Dot stuffed dogs now came with accessories—the first of which was the doggie flower girl dress modeled after the one Dot had actually worn.

“So, Pauline,” Kendell called, and the woman glanced up from where she had been half-asleep on her hotel bed. “Where are we going next? I need to let my readers know.”

Pauline sat upright, looking quite excited to discuss this. “Well, tomorrow, we’re going to head out and visit the Riviera Maya and enjoy a quiet evening on the town. But after tomorrow, we’ll get up the next morning to catch our flight to Mexico!”

“Mexico,” Kendell said, smiling. “That sounds like fun. I’ve actually never been, not even during my flight attendant days.”

“Glad those are behind you?” Pauline asked with a laugh. “I’m so glad you’re not like me. I was a flight attendant for years, you know? Never actually left—”

“—the airports,” Kendell finished for her. It was a conversation they’d had plenty of times before. They had both been that way. They became flight attendants so they could travel the world, except they would just hop from one flight to the next, becoming workaholics. Pauline had done it her whole life, but she had started to travel after her husband passed away. Kendell had come close to being that way as well. She had been a flight attendant for five years and had never once left the airports to explore until she had bumped into Pauline one fateful day on a flight from New York, Kendell’s home, to London. Kendell smiled. She was so grateful to have met Pauline and to have started this incredible journey together. Their blog had become an internet sensation, and now she was doing exactly what she had always wanted to do—actually travel. She was seeing the world, exploring new cultures, and it was the most incredible thing that had ever happened to her.

3

Kendell was quite thankful that they didn’t have an early morning flight. Pauline had dragged her all over the Riviera Maya for a day visit before tracking back to the nearest airport to catch their flight. She was starting to consider her time spent on planes as relaxing compared the go-go-go of their constant travels. Once the plane had hit a cruising altitude, Kendell pulled out her laptop to check in on her blog. She liked to spend a little bit of time each day responding to some of the comments. She could never respond to all of them, but she did what she could to remain active on the discussion boards to keep her fans happy.

“Interesting,” Kendell said suddenly, stirring Pauline.

“What, dear?” Pauline asked, letting Dot out of her carrier to sit directly in her lap. Dot curled up and almost instantly fell asleep on top of Pauline.

“Oh, it’s just about the blog. I’ve noticed that Peru didn’t get quite as many views as previous blog posts,” Kendell explained. “Probably because it’s newer, I’m assuming, but I feel like the views have gone up faster in the past. Perhaps we’re finally running out of juice? That, or everyone just missed you.”

“Maybe,” Pauline said with the wave. “It’s a little early to be worrying about that already.”

“I just don’t want us to run out of steam,” Kendell said. “I would love to keep doing this for a good, long time, you know?”

“I only have so many more miles of this left in me,” Pauline said. “But we just have to take it day by day.”

Kendell nodded and then placed a Peru sticker on the side of her carry-on. It depicted Incan ruins and even had the word “Honeymooners” scribbled across the front. At last, their flight touched down, and Pauline was absolutely giddy as they made their way off the plane.

“Mexico City!” Pauline exclaimed, Dot swinging at her side in her bedazzled carrier. “I’ve heard such wonderful things about this city.”

Looking out the window of the airport, Kendell could see the sun already beginning to set. “First things first, we need to get checked into our hotel,” Kendell said. “I don’t know about you, but my sleeping patterns are all off. I’ve been doing good as far as jetlag is considered, but right now, I feel exhausted. Especially after all of that walking we did this past week. A seven-day walking trail! What were we thinking?”

Pauline laughed. “I suppose you’re right. A little bit of R and R should have us up and ready to go in the morning!”

It was as though they were just destined to prove Pauline wrong. They checked into the hotel, and when the two of them headed to their respective beds, they wound up in a deep, comatose-like sleep. When Kendell was finally waking up, her stomach was growling. “What… What time is it?” she murmured, rubbing her eyes. She had a slight crick in her neck, a sign that she had slept far beyond what she normally would.

Kendell exited her bedroom and walked to the hotel lobby, looking around feeling a bit dazed and confused. She had four missed calls from Felicity and one from Jack. Looking at the window, time seemed to have stood still as the sun appeared to be in the same spot in the sky as it had been when she had fallen asleep. “No way,” Kendell said and checked the date and time on her phone. They had slept for twenty-one hours straight.

Pauline came moseying out of her room around this time as well, looking frightfully refreshed. “Morning!” she called. “Look at that sunrise!”

“Sunset,” Kendell said.

“What?”

“Pauline, we’ve been asleep for over twenty hours!” Kendell yelped, hurrying to call Jack back first so he wouldn’t worry. After a few minutes of video chatting, him laughing his head off at the two of them sleeping for so long, she video called Felicity as well.

“You two scared me for a minute there,” Felicity said, shaking her head. “You’ve really been asleep since you checked into your hotel?”

“We did take a seven-day walking tour through a mountain trek,” Pauline said over Kendell’s shoulder.

“Yeah, about that,” Felicity said, looking stern. “Grandma, I think you need to take it easy on this trip. I know you were all energized after breaking for two weeks in Georgia, but you didn’t need to go hit the pavement so hard with a seven-day hike!”

“I’m not as young as I used to be,” Pauline admitted.

“Young isn’t helping me any,” Kendell said. “I slept for twenty-one hours too, you know?”

“Are you two good?” Felicity asked.

“I’m starving,” Kendell said.

“Me too,” Pauline said, looking out the window. “Looks like we’re going to get a chance to see a bit of Mexico City’s nightlife. We have got to get some dinner in us.”

“Agreed,” Kendell groaned. They bid farewell to Felicity, and then they showered and dressed up in some of their nicest clothes they had with them. Kendell wore a bright green blouse that shimmered along with a long, black skirt and matching heels. She braided her shiny red hair, slapped on a bit of lipstick, and soon felt ready to go.

The two ladies headed out, Dot in tow. Once Dot emptied her bladder on the lawn of the hotel, they called for a cab and headed into the city. Not having done much research for this particular trip, Pauline asked the cab driver for some advice. She wanted to go somewhere that served good food and played mariachi music. The cab driver smiled. “Me abuela owns a place,” he said. “Hole in the wall joint.”

“Ooh, those are the best kinds,” Pauline said, clapping her hands.

They drove through town, and after a few moments, Kendell felt like the cab driver had taken them to the wrong side of the tracks, but when they pulled up outside of the lovely bar and grill, she felt a bit more confident in their decision to follow the driver’s lead. They thanked him and headed inside, where they were instantly greeted by the serenading sounds of a mariachi band. They started ordering appetizers almost as soon as they sat down, and the server grinned at them as they did so. Kendell couldn’t resist ordering herself a margarita, and Pauline wound up doing the same after putting a bit of food in her stomach. Kendell ordered a plate of enchiladas while Pauline ordered some brisket tacos, and they also ordered a plate of tamales to split. They laughed and swayed in their seats to the music. One of the servers recognized them from their blog, and half the bar and grill’s employees wound up taking a group photo with them.

“We still have a week in Mexico,” Kendell said. “I’m thinking we should head back to the hotel and rest tonight to try to get on the right sleeping schedule.”

Pauline, wiping her face with a napkin after having scarfed down the last of the tamales, nodded in agreement. “Yes, I think that would be for the best.”

“I’m hoping once we’re settled into the hotel, we can do some research on some exciting places to visit,” Kendell said. “I want to make sure we have something interesting for my blog followers to read. I checked the blog post from Peru again before we left the hotel, and it’s still not doing as great as some of the others.”

“You know what,” Pauline said suddenly. “I just thought of something that was different about Peru other than me not being there for the entirety of the trip.”

“Oh? What’s that?” Kendell asked.

“Well, we didn’t get into any trouble,” Pauline said. “Would you like me to see if I can get us into some trouble tomorrow?”

Kendell shook her head. “You are out of your mind,” she said as they exited the bar and grill. “The last thing I want is to get into trouble.”

They headed down the back alleyway to get to the main road as they had exited the rear entrance. When the door closed, the sound of the mariachi faded. Then, they heard a loud boom, and Kendell knew it was a gunshot. “Oh!” Kendell yelped in surprise just as they saw a man running in their direction, a gun in his hands.

Kendell and Pauline froze slightly, but they both ducked when the man shot several rounds of bullets in their direction as he fled. “Gracious!” Pauline screamed, but the man was long gone. “Terrible aim! He’d never last a day in a Georgia shooting range!”

The two of them stood upright, shaking a bit from the experience. “What was that about?!” Kendell exclaimed, checking herself over as though she feared shock would prevent her from feeling a wound. But, much to her relief, she and Pauline and Dot all seemed to be perfectly fine.

“He seemed to be running from something,” Pauline said, and she suddenly put her hands to her cheek and let out an exasperated cry. “Look! Someone’s lying on the ground!”

“Oh no,” Kendell said under her breath, and the two of them hurried over where they found a woman lying dead in the alleyway, a bullet wound in the chest.

“Help! Ayuadame!” Kendell shouted, and a handful of people made their way into the alley.

The authorities were immediately called, and they arrived in only a few short minutes. The woman was confirmed dead and removed from the scene, and two Mexican policemen stood attempting to talk to Kendell and Pauline, but it seemed neither of them spoke English and Kendell was only fluent in English and French. A few more minutes went by, and one of the officers were soon handing Kendell a cell phone. “Um…hello?” she asked.

“Miss, this is Officer Maria Alejo. I’m going to need you to come with my fellow officers to the station so that we can talk about what you saw,” she said. “You are Americans?”

“Yes,” Kendell said. “My name is Kendell, and my friend with me is named Pauline.”

“Please allow my fellow officers to escort you to me so that we can talk,” the woman said.

“Okay, we will,” Kendell said, not wanting to argue. It seemed that they had managed to find trouble after all.

4

Kendell sat next to Pauline in the middle of a dimly-lit interrogation room, feeling rather nervous as they waited for Officer Maria to enter. Kendell could hear voices speaking loudly in Spanish just outside the room, and she was really starting to wish she had taken Spanish instead of French during her college years. “Do you think we’re in some sort of trouble?” Kendell asked. “They just brought us in to question us because we are witnesses, right? They don’t think we did this or anything, do they?”

“I don’t think so,” Pauline said. “Those men who drove us here were awfully polite. If they thought we were responsible for what happened to that poor woman, I think they wouldn’t have been so friendly.”

“She had to be probably in her forties or something. She looked like a nice lady, I don’t know…” Kendell said with a groan. “I feel like this was a random shooting…maybe a robbery?”

The door opened, and a woman in a tight-fitted Mexican police uniform entered and sat across from them. She smiled warmly, and Kendell instantly felt a slight singe of relief. This was an interview, not an interrogation. “I am truly thankful you were willing to come down here to speak to me,” she began. “My name is Officer Maria. We spoke on the phone.”

“I’m Kendell, and this is my friend Pauline. The little white furball is Dot,” Kendell said, and Maria reached across the table to shake both of their hands, smiling slightly at Dot.

“Wait,” Maria said, pointing at Kendell. “Red hair…white fluffy dog…elderly woman… You’re those bloggers!”

Kendell blushed. “I see you’re a reader.”

“Somewhat,” she said. “My sister bought me one of those little white stuffed dogs from your website. Very cute.”

“Oh!” Pauline said excitedly and started digging through the doggie carrier. “If you have one of the dogs, you should take this.” She pulled out the little blue doggie-doll dress that Felicity had made up as an accessory for the stuffed dogs.

Maria laughed and thanked Pauline, taking the dress. “From your Alaskan trip?” she asked. “That was the first of your blogs I actually read. I used to just look at the memes, but now I read the blogs.”

“Well, I appreciate the support,” Kendell said.

“Don’t thank me just yet,” Maria said, her face growing suddenly serious. “It seems to me like trouble follows you everywhere you go. If I didn’t know any better, I’d say you ladies go looking for trouble for your blog.”

“No!” Kendell yelped, and Pauline laughed.

“We were just talking about that, weren’t we, Kendell?” Pauline asked, and Kendell slapped the woman in the arm.

“Seriously, Pauline?” Kendell exclaimed and turned back to Maria. “We swear we don’t go looking for trouble. It just sort of falls into our laps, if I’m honest. We did make a joke earlier this evening about how our blog posts do better when we are in some sort of trouble, but that was just a joke. We didn’t want to stumble across a crime scene.”

“I have some pictures,” Maria said, unfazed by Kendell’s sudden onset of nerves. She laid out five pictures of young men. “Can you tell me if any of these look like the shooter?”

“No,” Pauline said.

“No,” Kendell agreed.

Maria removed the pictures and laid out four more. “How about these?”

Both Kendell and Pauline pointed to the fourth mugshot in the lineup. “That’s the guy!” Kendell said, and as if to agree, Dot let out a slight yelp.

“Daniel Francisco,” Maria said, putting up all the pictures except for the one of the young man they had seen fleeing the alleyway. “Usually a pretty good shot. You’re lucky he didn’t take you both out.”

“Who is he?” Pauline asked.

“A brat is what he is,” Maria huffed. “There’s this new up-and-coming gang in the area. We’re doing our best to chase them out of the city, but they like to hit hard. Daniel is the young nephew of the ringleader. The gang is rather extensive for such a new crime syndicate. They’ve been trying to make their mark all over Mexico, and now they’ve arrived at the doorsteps of the capital.”

“What’s the deal with this new group?” Kendell asked.

“They call themselves Presagio,” Maria said. “They fight hard and dirty. You’re both lucky to have made it out of that alleyway. The fact you’re both still breathing after witnessing a Presagio shooting leads me to believe that Daniel was acting alone. But he saw your faces. Presagio has resources unlike anything we’ve ever seen. Especially for a new group.”

“Resources?” Kendell asked.

“Money and bodies,” Maria said. “They have guns and people planted all over the place. Presagio is ruthless, and they’re going to be coming back for you now that you’ve managed to identify the shooter.”

“Oh, well, that’s just great,” Kendell said, crossing her arms.

“They don’t leave witnesses. Which is why we are ensuring that you two get out of Mexico immediately,” Maria said. “I have already sent officers to your hotel to gather your things.” She slid a tablet in front of Kendell. “These are all the flights out of Mexico in the next twenty-four hours. Pick one.”

“Are you serious right now?” Kendell asked. “We’re on vacation.”

“Presagio will kill you if you stay here in Mexico,” Maria said. “I mean that. And, as a reader of your blog, I can say that you have probably had enough experience with gangs, wouldn’t you agree?”

Kendell cringed slightly as she thought about Yakuza and Nримета. They had more or less befriended the Yakuza, but Nримета, they had helped bring to their knees. Kendell wasn’t so sure if she wanted to press their luck for a third time. “Okay,” Kendell said.

“Wait, really?” Pauline asked. “You’re going to let this ruin our time?”

“Yes, as a matter of fact,” Kendell said. “Besides, your granddaughter would strangle me if I let you get blown up by a Mexican gang.”

“Smart,” Maria said. “Mexico doesn’t need the bad publicity right now. Last thing we need is a couple of Americans getting themselves killed while on vacation. We want you gone and out of our way while we handle this. We would, however, appreciate you ladies staying in contact. Having two witnesses when we take down a creep like Daniel Francisco would be just what we need. The gang is new, though powerful, so we want to get rid of them as soon as possible.”

“We would be happy to be witnesses,” Kendell said. “But, for now, I agreed that it would be best we get out of town until he’s actually apprehended.”

“So we are agreed, then?” Maria asked.

“Definitely. Looks like there is a flight for Dallas leaving first thing in the morning. We could have Jesse and Junior pick us up at the airport. What do you think, Pauline?” Kendell asked.

“I suppose if our Mexico trip is being cut short, visiting with friends would not be the worst backup plan,” Pauline said. “I wouldn’t mind seeing how the ranch is doing anyhow.”

“Good,” Kendell said and immediately booked them the flight. “So, how does this work?”

“You’re not going back to the hotel,” Maria said. “If they’ve managed to identify you two, they’ll track you down there. You ladies get to bunk here with me tonight. Then first thing in the morning, you’ll get a police escort to the airport.”

“Any idea why this woman was targeted?” Kendell asked. “Why Daniel Francisco would want to hurt her?”

“Yes, actually,” Maria said. “There was a second body in the next alley over that night. We believe the unidentified woman was a witness to the crime and that she was chased down by Daniel. Like I said, this group doesn’t leave witnesses.”

“So, she was a witness to another shooting?” Kendell asked. “Who was the first person shot?”

“A gentleman named Rene,” Officer Maria said.

“Why Rene?” Kendell asked.

“Rene is part of a competing group called Zetas,” she said. “Rather high-ranking member, in fact.”

“Zetas…” Pauline said thoughtfully. “I’ve heard of that group. I read about them in an online article. They’re one of the most powerful cartels in Mexico.”

“Which is rather concerning for a number of reasons,” Maria said. “Because it looks like Presagio is trying to start a turf war. Which means one of two things.”

“What would that be?” Pauline asked.

“Either they are complete idiots trying to go up with the most well-connected cartel Mexico has ever seen and are looking to get themselves killed, or they have more resources than we thought and believe they can take on Zetas. Either way, there is going to be a bloodbath in the streets when Zetas finds out who killed Rene.” Maria stood upright, shaking her head. “Just be glad, ladies, that you are getting out of Mexico City right now. You are not going to want to have anything to do with this. There is going to be war in the street. The nephew of the leader of Presagio killing one of the ringleaders of Zetas… It’s going to be a mad house.”

Maria headed toward the door, which she opened wide. “Come with me. I wish we had better accommodations for you this evening, but we’re going to be camping out in an empty jail cell until your flight in the morning. We don’t want to risk leaving the station until we have to, lest Presagio comes after you. For all we know, Zetas might already be after you as well.”

“Great,” Kendell said, standing up. “Just how I wanted to kick off our trip to Mexico. Ticking off two feuding gangs.”

“Well… It will make a great addition to your blog, won’t it?” Pauline asked, her phone rising to snap a picture of Maria.

Maria practically slapped the phone out of Pauline’s hands. “I think putting a picture of any of my officers on social media would be a terrible idea if Presagio and Zetas are involved. I don’t know if you noticed, but a lot of my officers wear masks when they work the streets. The gangs around here are serious. They will seek revenge to anyone who wounds them. For their own safety, I must ask that you not take any pictures of my officers for your blog.”

“Yes, ma’am,” Kendell said as Maria led them to a back room.

“The less officers who know you’re here the better,” Maria said as she opened one of the jail cells. “Zetas especially has ears everywhere. Including here at the station.”

“Are we sure that the station is the safest place for us to be staying then?” Kendell asked.

“It is definitely safer than your hotel, if that’s what you’re wondering,” Maria said. “I’ll have extra blankets and pillows brought in for you, ladies. My officers should be arriving back from the hotel soon with your belongings. For now, get comfortable. You are going to need to get some rest. You ladies have an early morning flight to catch.” Maria spun on her heels and marched back to the front of the station, leaving Kendell and Pauline sitting alone in an unlocked jail cell.

“Well, this is cozy,” Pauline said as Dot proceeded to sniff around the room curiously.

“Funny,” Kendell said, shaking her head. “Well, this is what we get for listening to random cab drivers about where to eat.”

“Maybe from now on we just let Felicity book all of our activities?” Pauline suggested.

Kendell laughed. “I could not possibly agree with you more.”

5

“Honestly,” Pauline said the next morning as Kendell did her best to try to drag the woman out of the police station. Pauline had apparently awoken that morning with a change of heart; she felt that they should stay in Mexico.

“Come on, Pauline, last thing we need right now is to miss our flight to Texas,” Kendell said. “I’ve already told Jesse and Junior to be expecting us, and they’re going to be picking us up at the airport.”

“I know, but I just don’t understand it,” Pauline said as they loaded up into the back of a Mexican police vehicle. Maria was at the wheel, shaking her head at Pauline.

“Good to know how grateful you are, Pauline,” Maria said before speaking in Spanish into her walkie-talkie, discussing plans with other officers who would be driving various other police vehicles. They had a whole team escorting them to the airport that.

“She is grateful,” Kendell insisted. “She’s just stubborn and upset about her vacation getting ruined.”

“Would you have preferred us to leave you at the hotel? Some known Zetas members showed up last night right after our police left the scene. So that means both gangs know about you two already. Congratulations,” Maria said. “You’ve managed to tick off two major cartel groups in a matter of hours.”

“We didn’t do it on purpose,” Kendell grunted as Maria pulled out of the parking lot of the police station. “We were just in the wrong place at the wrong time.”

“That seems to be consistent with the rest of the nonsense on your blog,” Maria said, and Kendell huffed.

Maria was helping them, so she knew she needed to act thankful, but the woman had a bit of an attitude toward them that did not go unnoticed. Even Dot seemed to huff at everything Maria had to say. Kendell stared out the window at the various police cars driving about. “Is this really necessary just to take us to the airport?” Kendell asked.

“You don’t know Zetas. I’m not sure why they’re looking for you, but they usually get what they want. And the fact that you’ve identified a Presagio member makes things all the more difficult. Presagio is more unpredictable, and they’re pretty violent. Believe me, this is quite necessary.”

“I’m just wondering why you’re wanting to bolt out of here so quickly, Kendell,” Pauline said. “We’ve certainly handled worse—the Yakuza, for instance.”

“You made friends with Yakuza,” Kendell reminded her. “This is different. This isn’t us making buddy-buddy over you gambling with a bunch of young Japanese gangsters. We saw one of Presagio’s guys kill someone. They want to take us out so we can’t act as witnesses. Speaking of which… Maria, did your people ever identify the woman that was killed in the alleyway?”

“Yes,” Maria said. “But that’s our problem now, not yours, and I don’t want any of this investigation winding up on your blog.”

“Fine,” Kendell said, crossing her arms.

Eventually, Kendell spotted the airport in the distance. She would be glad to get out of Mexico if it meant avoiding Zetas and Presagio. She was done with meddling in the inner workings of various crime syndicates.

They were just entering the parking lot of the airport when they heard a loud, shattering sound. Maria slammed on her brakes, flinging Kendell forward. Tires squealed, and suddenly, she was whipping the car around. “What was that?” Kendell shouted as a second thundering noise erupted.

Maria was yelling into her walkie-talkie in Spanish, and a moment later, a voice returned her distress call in just as loud and screeching of a tone. “Crud,” Maria muttered and threw on her lights, speeding away from the airport.

“What? What was…” Kendell glanced out the back window and could see smoke coming from the airport. “Oh, you’ve got to be kidding me.”

“Presagio,” Maria said. “Known members were spotted lurking around outside the airport this morning. They knew we were coming here, and a bomb just went off! They must have gotten poor intel. Good thing, or we would have been in the parking deck when that bomb went off.”

“Bomb!” Kendell yelped. “Are you telling me they just tried to blow us up?”

“Looks like it,” Maria said.

“Look out!” Kendell yelped, seeing another police car zipping in their direction as they pulled down a road.

The car hit them on the passenger’s side, but thankfully a bit more toward the front—any further back, and Kendell was certain she would have been crushed. The car spun around rapidly before colliding with a nearby building. “Gracious!” Pauline screamed, pulling Dot’s carrier close to her chest once everything had slowed down.

“Stay here,” Maria demanded, her gun drawn as she jumped out of the car.

“That police car came out of nowhere,” Kendell said. “Probably responding to the bombing at the airport—”

They immediately heard gunshots and looking out her now-shattered window, she could see Maria firing back at the two officers from the other vehicles. “What is going on?!” Kendell wailed, and she could see Maria retreating after having taken a shot to the shoulder. She shot back, and one of the other officers went down. The other ducked for cover, giving Maria time to hop into the driver’s seat and peel out, zipping back down the road.

“They were shooting at you!” Kendell exclaimed.

“Shut up for a second,” Maria snapped. She called in what had just happened, speaking in Spanish to whoever answered her call. She set her phone down and checked her rearview. “You two okay?” she asked.

“Yeah, I think so,” Kendell said. “Why were those police officers shooting at us?”

“Obviously they’re working with either Zetas or Presagio,” Maria said, groaning a bit.

“You’ve been shot,” Kendell said. “We need to get you to a hospital.”

“It just grazed me,” Maria said. “What we need to do is find a place that Zetas or Presagio can’t find you two. Then I’ll worry about me. I’m not bleeding that bad.”

Maria made a few more phone calls, eventually driving her patrol car into a warehouse so that no one would spot them. Kendell and Pauline sat quietly in the back. Poor Dot was shivering. Maria started yelling at someone on the phone, swearing at them from what Kendell could tell—she admittedly only knew Spanish swear words that she had picked up during an immature time in her life. Eventually, Maria threw her cellphone down and punched the steering wheel. “Bad news, ladies,” Maria said. “Looks like that bombing has got the chief of police running scared. There weren’t any casualties, but there was some serious injuries at the airlines. The airport is closed down, and they’re evacuating everyone there to make sure there weren’t any more bombs.”

“At least they didn’t manage to kill anyone,” Kendell said.

“The chief wants to make a public announcement that you two have flown the coop,” Maria said. “Because he doesn’t want Presagio going after any more of his officers.”

“So…publicly, Presagio is going to think that we’re on our own?” Kendell asked. “So what are we doing privately?”

“I don’t know,” Maria said bitterly. “Chief is giving me half an hour to figure something out.”

“Half an hour!” Pauline exclaimed. “This airport plan took you all night to put together and round up officers you thought you could trust, and you’re telling me that he’s giving you thirty minutes to find out what to do with us before, what, you all turn your backs on us? We didn’t do anything wrong! We even agreed to come back and act as witnesses if you needed us.”

“The cartels have a pretty strong hold right now,” Maria said, and she seemed to be thinking very seriously for a moment. “I have a plan.”

Without saying much more, she zipped her car out of the warehouse and continued driving quickly through Mexico City. In fact, Maria seemed to be heading out of town. She made another call, and whoever she was speaking to she was able to talk with in a much calmer demeanor. “Gracias! Gracias!” she exclaimed, eventually hanging up the phone.

Gracious was one word Kendell did know that wasn’t a swear, and she felt somewhat reassured that Maria was thanking someone. “So, who was that?”

“A friend of mine named Tony,” she said. “He owns a shop not far outside of Mexico City. He can hide you out for a few hours until the caravan reaches Mexico City.”

“Caravan?” Kendell asked.

“Pilgrims. Travelers,” Maria said. “This particular group has about two hundred people traveling north.”

“North? For what?” Pauline asked.

“Oh, Dios mío, what do you think?” Maria asked. “They’re headed to the border to enter into the United States.”

“You want us to join up with border hoppers?” Pauline exclaimed.

“I mean, it’s not like immigration is going to stop you two once you get to the border,” Maria said. “If the group is willing to take you in, then shut up and keep your heads down, and you just might be able to make it back to the United States. There is no way that Presagio or Zetas would ever expect a couple of Americans to be hiding out in a caravan.”

“That’s probably true,” Kendell said, trying to imagine how long it would take a group of two hundred people to walk from Mexico City to the American-Mexican border. “This sounds like a really bad, really dangerous idea.”

“Oh, it is,” Maria said. “But it’s going to be a lot safer than staying here in Mexico City. It’s a move that Presagio and Zetas wouldn’t see coming. There’s safety in numbers. If you two tried traveling on your own, things could be a lot worse. And you’re more likely to stand out. I mean, you’re a white girl with bright red hair and an old lady carrying a white purse dog in a bedazzled carrier.”

“She has a point,” Pauline said. “How far are we from your friend Tony’s shop?”

“Twenty minutes,” she said. “And once I drop you ladies off, I’m going to head to a hospital on the other side of Mexico City. No doubt the officer I didn’t manage to shoot already told his superior that I’m wounded. I don’t want them piecing together where I might have dropped you ladies off.”

“Are you sure you can make it to the other side of Mexico City?” Kendell asked uncertainly. “You have lost a good bit of blood now. Your arm looks terrible.”

“I told you. The bullet just grazed me. It doesn’t feel good, but I’m not lightheaded or anything,” Maria said. “I’m a tough girl.”

“I can tell,” Pauline said, petting Dot soothingly. “Never thought I’d be traveling with a group of refugees through the Mexican dessert.”

Kendell shook her head, stifling a weak laugh. “Pauline, there are a lot of things I never thought I’d do before I met you. I’m still exhausted after our seven-day hike in Peru. I’m not sure how well I’ll handle a march through Mexico.”

“Honestly, you need to exercise more,” Pauline said. “I feel fine.”

“Don’t let the grandma one-up you, Ms. McDonald,” Maria joked slightly, and it was the first sign of a sense of humor Kendell had seen from the woman.

Kendell shook her head. “Yeah, well, I guess I’ll have to up my game then, won’t I?”

Soon they were pulling into the parking lot of a small knickknack shop on a rather abandoned-looking road just outside of Mexico City. Kendell cringed slightly at the thought of what they were about to embark on. Hey, she thought in an attempt to reassure herself, at least my readers are going to love it.

6

Kendell stared out the opened door of the train cart, the rather desolate landscape passing by rapidly. The train clicked and clacked as it sped them far away from Mexico City. Maria had dropped them off with her friend Tony in a hurry, and the man had hidden them in a backroom until the caravan of travelers arrived. Tony had spoken on their behalf with some of the leaders of the massive group of people, specifically a man named Gerado who seemed to be the unofficial leader of the group. He had decided that they could travel with them, but he had told them to keep their heads down and to not cause trouble.

Trouble seems to be something that comes rather naturally to us, Kendell thought, feeling slightly bitter. Pauline was asleep next to a handful of small children who had found Pauline to be interesting and Dot even more so. The train car they were in was stuffed full of people. Kendell had been told she was lucky to have gotten a spot inside the train car, because a number of people were actually seated on top of the car, mostly younger men.

Just when Kendell felt herself falling asleep, there came a loud shouting in Spanish from above. “Huh?” Kendell groaned, rubbing her eyes. “What’s going on?”

“Wake up, silly,” a young woman, who Kendell had learned was named Ana Maria, gave her a slight shove. “Time to jump.”

“I’m sorry?” Kendell said.

Everyone was suddenly standing up. Looking out, Kendell could see a bunch of men running alongside of the slowing train. Children were tossed freely out of the train that had slowed down ever-so-slightly, and the men snatched them before they could hit the ground. The children giggled when they were tossed, but Kendell’s heart was racing. The train had slowed down a lot, but the thought of jumping from a moving train was more than just a little alarming. “You’ve got to be kidding me,” she said under her breath just as Ana Maria threw herself from the car right in front of her, gripping a man’s hands who flung her to the side to help her land somewhat gracefully.

The young man running near the side of the car looked at Kendell with a perplexed expression for a moment, probably wondering what a young white girl with bright red hair was doing traveling with the caravan, but he helped her down all the same. Kendell grabbed the man’s hands as she had seen Ana Maria do, and he jerked her down with stiff arms, pulling her gracefully to the ground. She took two quick steps to keep from falling over, but sure enough, she managed to stay upright. Looking up, she decided to run along with the men, wanting to make sure Pauline made it out okay.

She saw Dot’s carrier go flying first, and a man caught it and brought it down along with several bags of luggage belonging to Kendell, Pauline, and various other people in the group. Eventually, Pauline was up, and the woman actually looked somewhat alarmed. Kendell never knew Pauline to look concerned, but her look of worry didn’t deter her from leaping out of the train and into the arms of two young men who helped her to land gracefully on her feet.

Kendell caught up to her. “We just jumped out of a moving train,” Kendell said with a smirk.

“Too bad, I was just starting to fall asleep!” Pauline said.

Eventually, everyone had gotten off the train, and the group was slowly gathering near a small grove of trees. The man they had met before, Gerado, addressed the crowd in Spanish. Ana Maria nudged Kendell. “We’re camping out here for the night. The tracks turn west after this point, and we don’t want to head in the wrong direction,” she explained.

Kendell was just thankful they had gotten to ride the train such a significant way that night. It made the grueling task of traveling through Mexico seem slightly less jarring. Gerado approached them after his little speech, smiling. “We did not get to speak much earlier,” he began.

“We just appreciate you allowing us to come with everyone,” Kendell said.

He nodded. “Yes, well, the group is not too large. It is Kendell and Pauline, yes?”

“That’s right,” Kendell said.

“I am going to repeat what I said earlier: do not let anyone know you are in trouble with Zetas, or they will force my hand, and you will have to travel on your own,” Gerado said.

A younger man came over, smiling. “Papa, are these the Americans?”

“Do they look Mexican to you, Manuel?” Gerado asked, smirking slightly. “This is Pauline and Kendell, and the dog is…what was it…Dot?”

Kendell smirked. “That’s right,” she said. “Dot won’t be any trouble. We promise. She is really well behaved.”

Manuel shook their hands. “We have extra blankets. I will go and get them for you. Ground is a little hard, and I do not wish to see Ms. Pauline sleeping uncomfortably, especially. I will make sure to grab you an extra one. Don’t want you sleeping on a rock by mistake.”

“So sweet,” Pauline said as she watched Manuel scurry off. “What a kind boy you’ve got there, Gerado.”

“Not so much a boy any longer. He’s my oldest. Got a few other boys running around here somewhere tonight. As for you two, make sure you stay together,” Gerado told them. “I cannot account for every person here and whether or not they are safe to be around.”

“Understood,” Kendell said just as Manuel made his way back toward them, carrying armfuls of blankest. “Thank you so much,” Kendell said, and Manuel followed his father throughout the crowd of pilgrims, checking in to make sure no one had been injured during their jump from the train.

“This hasn’t been too terrible so far,” Pauline said as she and Kendell began laying out the blankets that Manuel had given them. “I mean, sleeping on the ground on these soft blankets isn’t any worse than those beds we slept on in Tokyo.”

“Yeah, but we weren’t running from two different rival gangs,” Kendell said, not sure how she felt about Pauline’s nonchalant attitude. “This is serious, you know that, right?”

“I know, I know,” Pauline said, already sitting herself down in preparation to curl up with Dot for a good night’s rest.

Kendell gazed out at the group of people. She could see some younger boys following Manuel around like a couple of little shadows. By the way they interacted, she suspected they were younger siblings. Ana Maria, the young woman who had been seated near them on the train, came prancing over, all smiles. “Settling in well?” she asked.

“Yes, thank you so much, Ana Maria,” Pauline said. “You’ve been too kind.”

“I’m not sure what is going on with you two and why you are here, but if there is anything I can do for you, I hate to see older ladies travelling like this,” Ana Maria said.

“Pretty sure she is doing better than me,” Kendell said with a smirk. “Pauline may be an old lady, but she’s tough as nails.”

“I can see that,” Ana Maria said, giggling a bit. She pointed across the camp toward an older couple. “If you need anything, I’ll be over there with my parents. Mi papa es Arturo, and mi madre es Josefina.”

“Arturo and Josefina,” Kendell repeated, storing the names in her head. “I think I saw your dad running alongside the train helping to catch the kids when they were jumping out.”

“Yes,” Ana Maria said, smirking. “He is too old to be chasing a train like that, but if you were to try telling him that, he would tell you off!”

“I think I know someone just like that,” Kendell said, glancing in Pauline’s direction.

“Don’t you start,” Pauline warned, laying down. Dot curled up with Pauline, and the two of them seemed to go to sleep rather quickly.

“Funny woman,” Ana Maria said.

“Oh, you have absolutely no idea,” Kendell said. “She won’t ever admit it, but she likes getting us in trouble from time to time.”

“I imagine that trouble is the reason you have wound up here with us,” Ana Maria said. “Well, I have a few more things I need to take care of. You two rest well.”

Kendell glanced over at Pauline, who was now snoring loudly, and shook her head while stifling a slight laugh. It had been one seriously hectic day—one for the record books. She was fairly certain it had to be well past two in the morning now, though. Kendell thanked Ana Maria again before she trotted off toward her parents, who were still handing out blankets to everyone in the caravan. Each person thanked them several times, grateful for the kind gesture.

Kendell dug through her bag, thankful that she’d had her carry-on in the back of Maria’s patrol car when the attack had happened. It had her laptop and camera inside—everything she needed for her job. Plus, she was rather partial to her carry-on bag. She had gotten it in London while shopping with Pauline during their first trip together. Since then, she had put stickers on the side of the bag for every location they had visited together: England, Africa, Hawaii, Texas, Mississippi, Georgia, France, Australia, Japan, Alaska, Peru, and now Mexico. Each one told its own unique story. Despite the unfortunate circumstances they had now found themselves in, Kendell had somehow managed to hold onto this bag, and she was grateful for that.

She kept the bag close to her as she curled up on the blanket they had been given. She laid out on her back, and through the loosely scattered trees, she could see stars stretched across the sky. They were far from a city or any amount of artificial light, which made the stars seem all the brighter and grander. She snapped a picture of the stars. It was hard to believe how many of them she could see. You don’t see stuff like that in New York, she thought fondly.

Things had changed dramatically since that first trip in London. For one thing, she was married now. She had quit her job as a flight attendant and had started a new business as a travel writer and blogger. It was a huge change. She thought about her home in New York and how she hadn’t seen it in months. She didn’t miss the apartment so much as the people. Her lease would be up soon, and she and Jack would need to get a place together—not that she would be there too often with all the traveling she needed to do for the new job. She thought of her last conversation with Felicity as well and smiled. The idea of Jack becoming her official pilot was exciting.

Kendell began blinking her eyes slowly. Somehow in all the chaos of what had taken place in the past twenty-four hours, Kendell felt incredibly relaxed. How could she not feel at ease? They were far from the dangers of the cartels, and she was in the midst of an interesting group of people she probably would have never met under any other circumstances. She closed her eyes, and after only a moment, sleep met her like an old friend.

7

Everyone was still in a dead sleep when the sound of a gunshot went off, and the entire group of nearly two hundred people were sent into a panic. Kendell and Pauline both jolted, and Kendell was nearly kicked in the head by a panicky young boy who was darting across the camp toward his younger siblings. It seemed that no one had been on watch, and because everyone had been asleep, there was some difficulty discerning where the gunshot had come from.

“Calm down!” Manuel shouted over the crowd. “¡Cálmese!”

Kendell stood upright, and she and Pauline slowly gathered with the crowd that was starting to circle about Manuel. The four little boys Kendell had seen the night before chasing Manuel were standing close to him; he looked like a large, mother bear protecting its young from an imposing danger with the way his arms stretched out over the boys, who came up to his hips or chest at most. “Manuel, ¿dónde está papá?” one of the younger boys asked.

The entire crowd seemed to have heard the frightened boy’s plea to his elder brother because heads started to swivel. Manuel uttered something to the tallest of the four boys, who took over Manuel’s position as guard, pulling the younger ones close to him while Manuel split from the pack. “Manuel,” a stern man’s voice beckoned him over to where the family had been sleeping.

Kendell turned to see what had caused the sudden onset of exclamatory shouts, and sure enough, Gerado, Manuel’s father, had been found. He was lying flat on the quilt he had set up for his sleeping mat, and there was blood on top of him. Manuel knelt, and the man looked positively mortified. “¡Está muerto! ¡Le han disparado!”

The crowd roared in horror at what Manuel had just said. Kendell didn’t have to know a lick of Spanish to piece it together. Gerado, the kind man who had permitted her and Pauline to come aboard the group of travelers, was dead. Someone had shot him. Manuel let out a cry of anguish before standing upright. He whispered something to the man who had found Gerado, and he hurried back to Manuel’s younger siblings, escorting them as far away from the gruesome scene as possible.

They were out in the middle of nowhere, and the entire group had awoken abruptly after the shot. There was no doubt in Kendell’s mind that the killer was among them. And based off what took place next, it seemed that everyone suspected they knew who it was. “Arturo, come here!” Manuel roared, storming past a small crowd to the older gentleman Kendell had seen passing out blankets the night before—Ana Maria’s father.

Arturo had been standing with an arm around his wife Josefina and his daughter Ana Maria when Manuel approached, and Arturo instinctually pushed the two women behind him. “Don’t start, Manuel,” Arturo said.

“Tú lo mataste.”

Arturo glared back at Manuel. “No,” he said firmly. “I wouldn’t.”

“Tú lo mataste.”

“No,” Arturo said again. “Say that to me again, boy!”

The crowd listening in on the confrontation between Manuel and Arturo started to get upset. They all began whispering to one another at once. “Es Arturo…”

“El lo hizo…”

“¡Mató a Manuel!” one man shouted at last, and the crowd seemed to start moving in on Arturo and his family.

Kendell felt anxiety wash over her. Arturo bucked at Manuel. “I didn’t, Manuel!” he shouted, and he seemed to come too close for comfort because Manuel struck the older man, sending him back into his wife and nearly knocking them both over. Ana Maria shrieked and jumped between them.

“Don’t you dare!” Ana Maria said, and the crowd had started to move in as though they intended to detain them and assert revenge on their leader’s behalf at once.

Manuel, however, seemed to suddenly realize the gravity of the situation and what might happen if he continued shouting accusations. The panicked crowd could take over, and that was the last thing they needed. “Arturo, come here. Everyone, calm down! ¡Cálmese!”

The crowd stiffened a bit, but no one approached Arturo or his family. Arturo was currently rubbing his jaw, but he didn’t dare disobey their deceased leader’s eldest boy. Arturo stood before the young man, and instantly Manuel started to search him. Arturo looked bothered by this, like he was fighting every instinct to not punch him. Manuel shouted at a man in the crowd in Spanish, and the man dipped out to search Arturo’s belongings. Manuel pulled from Arturo’s person two pocketknives, a set of brass knuckles, and an old-fashioned dagger—but no guns. He told Josefina to stand by as well, and he had a woman come and search her and Ana Maria as well. Between the two women, three knives were also found, but again, not one gun turned up. The man who had searched their belongings reported back that a gun had indeed been found. He held it in his hands, and at the discovery of the gun in Arturo’s travel bag, the crowd started shouting again.

“No!” Manuel called. “El arma no ha sido disparada recientemente. Esta no es la pistola que mató a mi padre.”

The crowd once again calmed itself. Manuel had all of Arturo’s family’s weapons, which were likely present only for their safety, stored away in a satchel that Manuel seemed intent on keeping. “You take my family’s protection!” Ana Maria accused. “Manuel, you just said the gun had not been fired! That it could not have been used to kill your father!”

“I don’t trust your father,” Manuel hissed. “But I will not accuse him without proof.”

Manuel turned his back on Ana Maria and her parents and passed through the crowd, shouting commands to group about packing up their belongings. He, along with a couple of middle-aged men he seemed to trust, approached his father’s body. Kendell could not help herself. It was like a first instinct these days to get herself into the midst of this sort of thing. She followed him, and Pauline and Dot were not too far behind him. “Manuel, I am so sorry about your father,” Kendell said. “We haven’t known him long, but he was a good man from what we could tell.”

Manuel nodded in hesitant appreciation. He was looking around the camp. “Someone killed him. Now I have to explain this to my little brothers.”

“Why did you think it was Arturo in the first place?” Kendell asked.

“He and my father have a long history,” Manuel said. “I was surprised that my father even allowed Arturo’s family to embark on this journey with us. But, I suppose, at the end of the day…you help your neighbor whether you like them or not. So, I do not believe Arturo did this…but then again, their history is rooted in much hate.”

“What can we do?” Kendell asked.

Manuel stared at her. “I do not think it is a good idea for me to put the Americans in our group in charge of helping me weed out who did this. It will stir everyone too much. There are already whispers that they are concerned you may work for border patrol, and since the border is our destination, I do not want to give these people more of a reason to distrust you.”

“Understood,” Kendell said.

Manuel waved at the middle-aged men. “These are my father’s closest friends. I’ve told them to search everyone’s belongings for guns before we depart.”

“What about your father?” Kendell asked.

Manuel’s shoulders slumped. “We bury him here,” he said.

“What! Manuel, no!” Kendell exclaimed. “Surely we can do something more for him than bury him in the middle of the forest?”

“We must keep moving on schedule,” Manuel said. “My father mapped out this journey carefully. With large crowds like this, supplies will run low quickly. His plan has us taking a number of trains and relying on the help of strangers on a very specific schedule. If I delay, I could wind up breaking up this caravan. There is safety in numbers, Ms. McDonald. Especially when attempting what we are about to attempt.”

Kendell nodded. “You are a good man, Manuel. If there is anything we can do, I hope you know we are here.”

“I appreciate that, miss,” Manuel said.

Kendell knelt, and she spotted something shimmer from Gerado’s hand. “He’s holding something,” Kendell said, glancing up at Manuel to see if he didn’t mind her touching his father’s body. He nodded approvingly, and she gently opened his fingers. “It’s a locket,” Kendell said as she stood upright. She started to open it up, but Manuel reached out rather desperately for it.

“It was my mother’s,” Manuel said, taking it into his hands and holding it close to him. “I did not know he had this with him.”

“Poor man must have reached for it after he had been shot,” Pauline said. “Something to hold onto when he died, I suppose.”

Manuel shivered slightly before stuffing the find away in his pocket. “Thank you,” he said. He instructed the middle-aged men about what to do with his father before allowing his shoulders to slump. “I have to go speak to my little brothers,” he said hesitantly, and he slowly walked off in the direction he had sent the younger boys.

Kendell watched the men slowly pull Gerado back away from camp, looking for a spot that was to be the man’s final resting place. “So now we’re traveling with a killer, it seems,” Kendell said with a shiver.

“I don’t like this,” Pauline said, looking toward where Arturo now stood with his wife and daughter, whispering.

“You think he did it?” Kendell asked. “If he was smart, he wouldn’t have put the murder weapon back in his bag, I don’t think. And it’s not like he didn’t seem to have a surplus of weapons. Knives, a dagger, brass knuckles, and a gun. How did Manuel know it wasn’t that gun that was fired?”

“I don’t know much Spanish, but I believe he said it hadn’t been fired recently. Maybe it wasn’t warm or it didn’t have any residue from a recent shot?” Pauline suggested.

“You know a little Spanish?” Kendell asked.

“A woman who helped out with my husband when he got too difficult to take care of when he got sick, she was a Spanish speaker. I picked up a few things but only because she talked to herself so much,” Pauline said. “But that’s about the extent on my knowledge. I certainly can’t speak it, but I pick up on a few words here and there.”

Kendell and Pauline slowly made their way through camp toward Arturo and his family. “Are you three all right?” Kendell asked.

Arturo shrugged. Ana Maria spoke for them. “I think we should consider ourselves lucky,” Ana Maria admitted. “If Manuel hadn’t calmed everyone down, we might have been shot and left here in the trees. The caravan leader, which seems to be Manuel now, is judge, jury, and executioner if he needs to be.”

Arturo huffed. “Wouldn’t have needed to calm the crowd down, Ana Maria, if he hadn’t gotten them worked up in the first place.”

Josefina touched her husband’s arm. “Arturo…”

Arturo rolled his eyes. “I suppose I understand. He was upset…needed someone to blame in the heat of the moment. But taking our weapons? Now we must rely on strangers to keep us safe.”

“It could have been so much worse, Papa,” Ana Maria said. “Besides, I trust these people. They will all keep us safe.”

“Gerado trusted these people too, Ana Maria,” Arturo said. “And look where that got him?”

8

The group wasted very little time that morning. Once Gerado was buried, his shallow grave covered in stones the group had collected from nearby, Manuel started them on their several mile-long journey through fairly deserted terrain along the side of a highway. Thankfully, as the area was mostly paved road, they had little to worry about in regards to difficult walking. And, in the past hour, they had only seen three cars.

The sun was shining, but there was a nice breeze out, which made the weather rather pleasant despite the graveness of their current predicament. They were traveling with a murderer, after all, so everyone was on edge. Ana Maria walked with Kendell and Pauline, carrying Dot’s carrier to give Pauline some relief from her current burden. “You two seem to have found yourself in a rather unusual predicament,” Ana Maria was saying as they walked. “I am very curious as to how you came to be here.”

“We were asked by Gerado not to go broadcasting our history to everyone at the camp,” Kendell said. “Not like we don’t stick out enough already.”

“I can keep a secret,” Ana Maria said. “I am curious as to how a couple of random Americans came to be in a caravan whose goal is to cross the border. If you do not have money to travel, how did you come to be in Mexico to begin with?”

“Vacation,” Kendell said.

“You have money to vacation but not money to take you home,” Ana Maria said a bit sarcastically. “Sounds like you live outside of your means.”

Kendell laughed slightly. “Well, if you say it like that, yes, it is a little bit ridiculous. Truthfully, we’re okay on money. It’s safety we’re concerned about.”

“And you cannot go to the authorities for safety?” Ana Maria asked. “To get you out of Mexico?”

“No,” Kendell said. “We tried that already, at least, so now we’re traveling with you all to try to get out unnoticed.”

“What an odd history, indeed,” Ana Maria said. “Eventually, I’m going to get it out of you what it is you are running from, yes?”

“Maybe,” Kendell said. “Though, I honestly have a question for you.”

“Me?” Ana Maria smirked. “What sort of question?”

“I want to know why Manuel was so quick to accuse your father of something so terrible as murder,” Kendell said.

“Emotions were pretty high this morning,” Pauline said. “And Manuel seemed convinced that your father was the guilty party. Why?”

Ana Maria frowned. “I think that would be a question for my parents to answer.”

“Fine then,” Kendell said as she walked, scanning the crowd for Josefina and Arturo. Eventually, she spotted the older couple a few paces ahead of them, so she excused herself from Ana Maria and Pauline before catching up to the older couple. “Excuse me,” Kendell said softly as she came along beside them.

“What?” Arturo asked, his voice riddled with bitterness that made Kendell hesitate to question him, but only for a moment.

“My name is Kendell,” she began. “I wanted to see how you two are holding up? It was an awfully hectic morning, but your family seemed to take the brunt of it.”

Arturo scowled at her. “We’re fine,” he insisted and decided to stomp ahead, leaving Kendell and his wife behind.

“You will have to excuse him,” Josefina said, shaking her head. “He is very upset about Manuel having our weapons taken away.”

“I imagine that is difficult,” Kendell said. “Especially knowing that there is a killer among us.”

Josefina nodded. She looked like a woman carrying a very serious burden. “I understand why Manuel would make such an assumption,” she said. “Our families have a very complicated history. But he knows us well enough, I would have liked to have believed, to know that my husband is no killer.”

“How exactly do you know one another? I think someone mentioned you were neighbors?” Kendell asked.

“Yes,” Josefina said, her voice low. “It is a bit more complicated than that. I feel so…guilty. Gerado and I were together once, many years ago, before Manuel was born.”

“Oh,” Kendell said. “Did things not work out or did you just leave him for Arturo?”

Her cheeks turned bright red. “No. He left me for his wife, for Manuel’s mother.”

“Oh, I’m sorry,” Kendell said. “I didn’t know. Has that caused some resentment?”

“I loved Gerado very much. And, if I am being honest with you and with myself, I was still a bit bitter about him leaving me for Manuel’s mother. I love Arturo, of course, and I love our family. We have had a happy life up until some recent hardships. I suppose my feelings toward Gerado never truly went away, though. And, I think… I think sometimes my husband knows. I try to hide it, but sometimes, I cannot. Arturo was always bitter toward Gerado because of our past relationship, and it has caused more than a handful of fights in the past.”

“I appreciate your honesty, Josefina,” Kendell said, looking up toward Arturo who was practically pushing over people who dared to stand too close to him during the group march down the highway. “I’m sorry if this has opened up some old wounds for you.”

“I am just sad for Manuel and his young brothers now,” she said. “We are all traveling to America because we have run out of options here. He only just recently lost his mother, and now his father too? And all of those little brothers… I cannot imagine the future that is in store for that family now. Manuel is a good boy. Gerado raised him right. He is going to take good care of those little boys, but it is a heavy burden. At least I have my husband and my daughter. We are all together still.”

“That is a good thing to keep in mind,” Kendell said, and she looked up to see that Arturo was slowing down a bit, seemingly deciding that he had better continue walking with his wife instead of stomping about like a fool. “Are you all right, Arturo?” Kendell asked as he allowed them to approach.

“Fine,” he growled. “Josefina, where is our daughter?”

“Back there with the old American woman,” Josefina said. “She likes the dog.” Arturo grumbled to himself, and Kendell knew fairly well that the man didn’t want to talk to her.

Kendell started making her way toward the back of the travelers where she had left Pauline and Ana Maria moments ago, but instead, she decided to press forward a bit to speak with Manuel. Up ahead, Manuel was marching four little boys onward—each of them looking tired and upset by the morning’s events. She could not imagine being so young and being told that someone murdered your father and that now you had to get up and walk several miles up the side of a highway. “Manuel,” Kendell said, letting him know that she had joined him at the front of the march.

He nodded when he saw her. “Yes, hello,” he said, holding the smallest of the boy’s hands as he walked.

“Little guy looks tired,” Kendell said. “How is he holding up?”

“Paulo, say hello,” Manuel said to the littlest of his siblings.

“Hello,” Paulo said.

“He’s precious,” Kendell said, smiling down at him. “How old are you, Paulo?”

The boy stared blankly back at her. “¿Cuantos años tienes?” Manuel asked.

Paulo shyly held up four fingers, and Kendell smiled back at him for a moment before looking up at Manuel. “I just wanted to express again how sorry I am about what happened this morning. You have a lot on your shoulders leading this group and watching after your younger brothers. If there is anything I can do to make it easier on you, I wanted to offer again.”

Manuel nodded. “You can help me keep an eye out on everyone. I do not know everyone here particularly well. My father was well known in our community amongst the fellow impoverished groups. He is the one who planned this entire journey out. Made preparations that ensure that we would be fed and clothed during the journey. He had it all on a strict time schedule—one that I must keep us on if we’re going to reach the boarder safely. Many people kept joining in when they heard my father would be leading this excursion. Strangers. I’m worried for the safety of everyone, especially my little brothers.”

“I understand,” Kendell said. “Do you really believe Arturo might have had something to do with this?”

“Maybe,” Manuel said. “I admittedly jumped to conclusions quickly. Arturo and my father have a history.”

“Josefina mentioned to me that she and your father had been together once. Is that the cause of a lot of the tension?” Kendell asked.

“I would say all of it,” Manuel said. “Arturo couldn’t stand my father. Looked at him as though he was competition for his wife’s affection. Josefina, I know, tried to hide it, but she certainly still felt something for my father even after all these years. My father’s heart, it belonged to my mother, though. The two of them were very happy together, no matter their circumstances. Arturo is just a jealous old man. But despite their differences, my father still trusted to bring Arturo and his family along on this journey, and I trust my father’s judgement. My accusation this morning was uncalled for. I know Arturo. He’s bitter and a bit grouchy, but he wouldn’t have killed my father.”

“Is there anyone you can think of who would?” Kendell asked. “Did you father have any enemies? People who might have wanted to hurt him?”

“I don’t believe so,” Manuel said. “But this is why we are leaving. This is why we are going to America. Innocent people are getting hurt because of these drug wars. That new cartel that has come in are merciless. And they’re trying to start a war with Zetas. When Zetas goes to war, it ends badly for innocent people who get caught in the crossfire. Like my mother.”

“Your mother was killed by gang violence?” Kendell asked.

“That’s right,” Manuel said. “Her and so many others we know.”

“The other gang you’re talking about, is it Presagio?” Kendell asked.

“I’m impressed you have even heard of them,” Manuel said. “You being an American. I didn’t realize the group has gotten the attention of the American government already as well? They are very new.”

“Yeah, well, I’m pretty good with current events,” Kendell said, fibbing slightly. “Your mother died from gang-on-gang violence?”

“Just another innocent street victim,” Manuel said. “That’s the way it has been for many people you see here. There are areas in Mexico that are still safe, but many people here are witnesses to various crimes. Zetas has resources like you would not believe. The safest thing for these people is for them to just get out. Some of them are witnesses for early Presagio crimes as well. And while Presagio is still a small and growing group, they too seem to have impressive resources, and they’re brutal. We all just want to get away. To bring our families somewhere safer. Here, it is not safe.”

“I understand,” Kendell said. She pulled her bag around to her front and began rummaging through it for a moment. She smiled as she came across some candies that she had snagged from the airport in Alaska that she had yet to eat. “Do you mind if I give these to your brothers?” she asked. “After this morning, I think they deserve a little treat.”

Manuel nodded, and Kendell passed out the small bag of treats to his younger brothers, who all smiled and thanked her in Spanish. Slowly, she trickled toward the back of the crowd where Pauline was chatting away to a group of older travelers that Kendell was fairly certain couldn’t understand a word she was saying.

9

Kendell felt absolutely exhausted by the time the sun reached such a low point in the sky that Manuel called for them to set up camp for the night. Manuel spoke with several older men in the crowd, assigning them guard positions throughout the night and creating a rotation. He was not going to have another dead body on his hands. All children were brought to the very center of camp, their families around them, then childless families, and finally the stragglers who had joined were placed on the outskirts of the camp. This meant that Kendell and Pauline were told to set up camp with the least trustworthy crowd on the outer circle.

The guards that Manuel had assigned would be walking about the camp through these various circles, keeping an eye on everyone as they slept. Kendell didn’t feel quite as safe on the outer banks of the group, but she understood the reasoning. They wanted to keep the children and young families safe, and she and Pauline did not exactly qualify as exceptionally trustworthy since only Gerado knew who they were or why they were really there, and now he was dead.

Kendell cleared the ground of any rocks or sticks before setting out their blankets, giving Pauline an extra one so that the ground would be a bit softer for her. “I sure am getting used to sleeping so low to the ground,” Pauline teased. “During our next time at home, I just might get myself one of those futon beds like we slept on in Japan.”

Kendell laughed slightly as Pauline made herself comfortable. Soon it was dark out, and the only bit of light they had was from two campfires they had started that brought them very little heat. Thankfully, though, it was fairly warm out. Kendell had expected it to be significantly colder than it was after the crisp breeze they had enjoyed all day, but it was moderately comfortable as she laid there on her back. “Dang it,” she grumbled suddenly.

“What’s is it, dear?” Pauline asked softly. Almost everyone around them seemed asleep.

“I have to pee,” Kendell groaned, not liking the idea of squatting behind a tree somewhere, but she didn’t have much of a choice. She grabbed her bag and stood, and she was immediately questioned by one of the older gentlemen standing guard, but the man did not speak any English and Kendell didn’t know a lick of Spanish. Pauline, half-asleep, grumbled up at the man, “Baño” before rolling back over.

“Oh!” he said, looking embarrassed to have gotten so uptight with Kendell. He pointed toward some trees nearby. “Lo siento, lo siento,” he said, laughing at himself slightly.

“It’s okay,” Kendell said and hurried toward the trees where she was able to do what she needed to do. “This is not going on the blog,” she grumbled to herself as she stood upright. Just as she was about to head back to camp, she heard whispers.

Squinting through the trees, she spotted an unusual and unexpected pairing: Manuel and Ana Maria, snuggling rather closely, Ana Maria leaned up against a tree. “Oh…” Kendell said under her breath, looking around as though to nudge someone nearby to reassure her that she was seeing what she believed she was seeing.

Ana Maria seemed to be playing the part of a temptress as Manuel would occasionally pull back, his face red, and mutter something in Spanish—like he was telling her he had someplace else to be, but he just couldn’t bring himself to leave her side. When she started nibbling on his ear, Kendell decided it was time to hightail it out of there—she had clearly invaded upon a private moment—but of course her foot snapped on a twig and the young couple jumped nearly a foot off the ground in surprise.

“It’s just one of the Americans,” Ana Maria said, though she did look rather embarrassed.

Manuel didn’t find the least bit reassuring. “What are you doing out here?” he whispered angrily.

“Um…sorry,” Kendell said. “I had to use the restroom…so whatever you two were doing, don’t do it over here…”

Ana Maria laughed. Manuel did not. “It’s not funny, Ana Maria,” he snarled. “My watch starts in ten minutes.” And, just like that, he stormed off. Ana Maria watched him go with a look of longing.

“Everything all right?” Kendell asked.

“Not particularly,” she said.

“Are you two…you know…together?” Kendell asked.

“Somewhat,” she said. “I thought now that his father was gone, he would not be so hesitant, but I feel that I might have been awfully insensitive.”

“I’m guessing his dad didn’t know about you two?” Kendell asked.

“No, definitely not,” Ana Maria said. “Our fathers hate each other. Manuel had grown up hearing his father tell him to ‘stay away from that girl, her family is no good,’ and I heard the same about him many times.”

“Kids—you tell them they can’t have something, and then they want nothing but,” Kendell said with a small smile. “Is he giving you the cold shoulder?”

“A little,” she said. “I believe he is worried that he would be insulting his father by being with me. His mother too did not care for me much since I am Josefina’s daughter. Now Manuel feels conflicted.”

“I’m sorry, Ana Maria,” Kendell said.

The young woman shrugged. “We will just have to see what happens, won’t we? I don’t expect much right now. Who is to say once we reach America, we would even wind up anywhere near one another? It’s foolish of me to get in my head about it all right now.”

“Hope is a good thing to hold onto, though,” Kendell said.

Ana Maria nodded. “Yes, I suppose so.” She pranced back off toward camp, locating her parents.

Kendell too headed back to where she and Pauline were set up, and she laid down on her blankets. Dot decided she wanted to curl up next to Kendell’s head, so she let the dog get comfortable in her hair for a bit. “Did you make it?” Pauline teased.

“I’m fine, thank you very much,” Kendell said. “Just busted Manuel and Ana Maria making out a bit in the trees, though. Sounds like they’ve been in a secret relationship for a while, but Manuel’s backing off a bit now that his father has been killed.”

“That’s awfully juicy gossip, don’t you think?” Pauline asked, rolling onto her side to look in Kendell’s direction. “Who do you think killed Gerado?”

“I don’t know,” Kendell said. “Anyone at this camp could have done it. Arturo was clearly intimidated by Gerado, the man used to date his wife when they were younger. If they got into an argument that was heated enough, maybe it could have pushed the man over the edge?”

“What about Josefina?” Pauline asked. “You were saying something earlier about her and Gerado?”

“She admitted to being jealous,” Kendell said. “That she was jealous of Gerado’s new wife. That she was pretty bitter about Gerado leaving her even to this day. That’s a long time to hold onto resentment.”

“What about Ana Maria?” Pauline whispered.

Kendell thought about this for a moment. She really liked Ana Maria, so she didn’t want to think that she could have done something like this. “She did just tell me she thought that now that Gerado was gone, Manuel would be more open to a relationship with her. She might have taken him out to put Manuel in easier reach.”

“Looks like that whole family has managed to make it onto our suspect list,” Pauline said.

“You’re doing it again.”

“Doing what?”

“Sounding like a detective,” Kendell laughed. “But you’re right. It looks like Arturo’s family is the only ones we’ve managed to pin down as having any possible motive, but there are about two hundred people in this group. We just now joined in, so it’s not like we know any of the inner workings or what sort of relationships all these people have with each other.”

“Then maybe that’s something we need to look into,” Pauline said. “Tomorrow morning, you and I need to split up and start talking to people.”

“Most of these people don’t speak any English, and I don’t know any Spanish,” Kendell said. “Not sure how we’re going to do that.”

“I know a little,” Pauline said. “Maybe you can find someone who knows a little English to help you out so that we can double-team? Otherwise there is very little chance we’ll be able to interview two hundred people in the next couple of days.”

“True,” Kendell said. “I suppose it’s worth a shot. We just need to find out how everyone knew Gerado.”

Pauline nodded in agreement. “Looks like we have a game plan. With any luck, we just might be able to find out what happened to Gerado.”

Kendell sighed as Dot scratched the top of her head, attempting to make a burrow for herself. “Dot, knock it off,” Kendell warned. She sighed, staring up at the dark, cloudy sky. Her legs were killing her; she could only imagine how Pauline felt. When we get back to America, I’m checking us into the nearest hotel and am taking a bath, Kendell decided, and the thought soothed her enough to where she was able to fall fast asleep.

10

The caravan at last arrived at its first destination, which was a large village nearly one hundred miles north of Mexico City. The group settled down just outside of the village in the middle of the day, and Kendell felt a sense of relief when Manuel told everyone their journey would not continue for another day and a half. Here, they would rest and recuperate and take advantage of some of his father’s contacts. First, though, he insisted they prepare their camp. Everyone got to work, this time pulling out tents rather than merely laying down mats. Though the weather seemed as though it was going to remain fairly comfortable, Manuel wanted to ensure that they were prepared since they would be here longer than any previous stop.

Kendell and Pauline were given one of the smaller tents to pitch, but Kendell was grateful. Most everyone had a single tent per family, and singles were sharing the small tents upwards to eight grown men. Once Kendell and Pauline had their little tent set up, Kendell was then asked to help with setting up one of their campfires. Though it was midday, Manuel insisted on all preparations for their overnight stay, plus they needed to boil some water that another group was collecting from the nearby creek.

Kendell was not much of a camper, so she was mostly just helping to clear the sites where others were building the fires. Soon they had several fires going, and not long after, they were able to fill all the canteens available amongst the campers. Only then was Manuel satisfied and told the group that they were free to roam about.

“Do you want to visit the village?” Pauline asked almost as soon as they were granted permission to relax a bit.

“I want to rest my feet, honestly,” Kendell said. “Are you sure that you would even be up to visiting the village?”

“Maybe,” Pauline said from where she sat just outside of the tent on the small pile of blankets that had been assigned to them. “You know what day it is today, don’t you?”

“Um, no?” Kendell asked.

“It’s Good Friday,” Pauline said. “I’ve been told the Mexican celebrations during Holy Week are just wonderful. It’s one of the reasons I was hoping we would be in Mexico City during Easter, but that doesn’t seem to be in the cards seeing as how we are currently fleeing the country with a group looking to hop the border in a few days. So, I’d like to see at least what some of the smaller cities do for celebration.”

“You are talking about Good Friday celebrations?” Manuel asked as he walked by toting some additional blankets that he was handing out for those just now finishing with their setup.

“I know they do a lot in Mexico City for the celebrations. What about out this way?” Pauline asked.

“This village, I have heard, does something very similar to what they do in Mexico City,” Manuel said. “Frankly, with the rough times that this group has gone through, I’ve considered encouraging them to go in and participate.”

“That might would be a good idea,” Kendell said. “Keep morale up.”

“Exactly,” Manuel said. “We have to cover a lot of ground tomorrow afternoon very quickly if we are going to stay on schedule. It’s going to be a lot for everyone to handle, which is one of the reasons I wanted to get here early so that everyone could rest. I think I need a bit of rest myself.”

“Why don’t you go with us?” Pauline suggested excitedly.

“No, I am needed here,” he said. “That’s what my father would have wanted me to do—to stay with the camp. To keep an eye on things. That’s what he would have done, so that’s what I will do.”

“You need rest too,” Kendell said.

“I will rest,” he said. “But I will rest here.”

“Manuel, is there anything we can do?” Kendell asked.

“For once since we have started this journey, I think we are settled in and will not have much to worry about,” he said.

“How long have you been on this journey?” Kendell asked.

“Same as you,” he said. “My father sent out word from Mexico City to let people know that he was leading a group up north. We waited in Mexico City for another caravan to meet up with us before we began our journey. A lot of these people have been traveling for weeks from further south, and they joined with us under my father’s leadership when they reached Mexico City.”

“I didn’t realize you were from Mexico City,” Kendell said.

“Not originally,” he said. “We’re from further south, but we arrived in Mexico City a few months ago along with about fifty others. During that time, we worked, saved money, and we made plans for the rest of this journey and reached out to others who needed to make the journey as well.”

“This has been incredibly thought-out, hasn’t it?” Kendell asked.

“Every train route and stop has been carefully planned by my father,” Manuel said. “He wanted to make sure we were all as safe as we could possibly be.”

“Your father sounds like he had been an incredibly clever man,” Kendell said, and Manuel grunted. She raised a brow slightly. “Is something wrong?”

“No, nothing is wrong,” he said.

“You sound resentful,” Pauline said. “Did you and your father have a spat before he died?”

“Something like that,” he said. “He and my mother did. The two of them got into a terrible argument before our departure. He threw her out of the house, and she never came back. Got caught between two rival gangs. She was killed all because of a petty argument between the two of them. He knew how dangerous our area of Mexico City was… To throw his wife out of the house! It was only to make a point. To show that he was the man of the house and that he wasn’t going to take any backtalk from her. It was childish behavior. That’s all it was. It was him trying to show his boys who was in charge.” He shook his head. “Utter nonsense. My father regretted it terribly, of course, and I was very angry with him. Very angry. Now I just feel conflicted.”

“You’re upset that he’s gone, but you were still angry at him when he was killed?” Pauline asked.

“Yes,” Manuel said. “I had told him I believed it was his fault our mother was killed. I know it wasn’t his intentions, but a part of me still feels that way. I just wish my father and I had made amends before he was killed as well. This all seemed to have happened incredibly fast. Mother’s death. Then this journey. Then my father. I am handling it the best that I can, but it is my little brothers I am most concerned for. I don’t know what to say to them. Especially little Paulo.”

“They’re lucky to have you,” Pauline said. “That much, I can say for certain.”

Manuel smiled. “You two Americans are frightfully easy to talk to,” he said. “Pardon me for dumping all of that on you. I have some work to do, so if you will excuse me…” He walked off, seeming to be carrying himself a bit higher now that he had gotten all of that off his chest.

“That was interesting,” Pauline said with a slight frown. “I feel like that was a bit incriminating, don’t you think?”

“Incriminating?” Kendell asked.

“I mean to say that he just confessed to having been very bitter toward his father—that he blamed his father for his mother’s death,” Pauline said. “Do you think he might have blamed him enough to have killed him? Who better to get away with it than Manuel? He must have known the camp would all look to him for leadership if something happened to Gerado. He would be able to cover it up very easily. We could have called the police. It wouldn’t have been good for you and me, probably, but it’s not like these people are a bunch of criminals. Manuel is the one who decided to just leave his father’s body behind and to press onward—to not call in authorities to investigate.”

“That’s a good point,” Kendell said. “But I feel like he made that call just because he didn’t want to stray from his father’s careful planning. Waiting around on a police investigation would have delayed us enough to ruin all of his father’s work. Manuel sent his father’s men into the city to collect supplies from people Gerado had already contacted ahead of time about food and clothing. Waiting around would have ruined all of this, like the train we have to catch tomorrow.”

“I know, I know,” Pauline said and slowly stood up. “But it doesn’t look too great. I don’t think we can just ignore the fact that Manuel has a bit of motive. Even his relationship with Ana Maria would be motive, wouldn’t it? His father didn’t want him near her. Between that and losing his mother, it looks like Manuel is just as viable of a suspect as Arturo, Josefina, and Ana Maria.”

“I guess you’re right… Where are you going?” Kendell asked as Pauline was already prancing off.

“Into the village, of course!” she exclaimed. Dot jumped up and began walking alongside Pauline, so Pauline bent down and hooked the little pink leash up to her.

“You seriously want to go into the village?” Kendell asked, walking alongside Pauline.

“Despite everything, this is still vacation to me,” Pauline said with a wave. “I like to look for the good in the bad. Sure, we are on the run from two rival gangs who are worried about us acting as witnesses to their nefarious crimes, but we are in Mexico during Holy Week! We should take advantage of that and see some of the celebrations!”

“I suppose that is one way to look at our current predicament,” Kendell said, fighting off a grin.

The village was bustling. People were running about in Biblical period clothing, dressed the part of mourners. From what Pauline could gather from her small knowledge of Spanish while speaking to locals, the town had kicked off its Holy Week celebration the previous Sunday by sending a statue of Jesus through the streets on the back of a donkey while everyone tossed palm branches in its path. Now, another statue was being lifted up onto a cross and taken through town in a parade of sorts, while those in costume followed and played the part of mourners. They even had a person dressed as Pontius Pilot talking to the crowds as he passed by. As the parade came to its end, a man stood at the town square by the enormous crucifix reading scripture and leading the entire village in prayer.

Kendell took several pictures, and the following morning the festivities continued. It was Holy Saturday, and the town commemorated this day by putting up an enormous statue of Judas and setting it on fire in the town square. Unfortunately, they would not be able to remain another day for the Easter celebrations. They had a train to catch.

11

Kendell was really getting tired of all the walking. The next day, they had been woken up first thing in the morning to get going on their journey once more. Kendell felt as though she had not had nearly enough sleep, and she rubbed her eyes frequently. “Happy Easter,” Pauline said to her suddenly, giving her a nudge.

“Huh?” Kendell asked with a yawn. “Oh, yeah, I guess it is.”

Pauline was as perky as ever. How did a woman in her eighties have so much energy? They had walked for seven days in Peru, and now they had been marching through the heart of Mexico for a few days. It was incredible to see a woman Pauline’s age doing as well as she was, although not without the occasional complaint about her swollen ankles or her tired back.

“Well, Happy Easter to you as well, Pauline,” Kendell said just as she heard some panicky shouts coming from the front of the group.

“Patrulla Fronteriza!” someone was screaming.

“Patrulla Fronteriza?” Kendell repeated. “Pauline, what does that mean?”

Pauline thought for a moment, taking note of the panic drifting through the crowd. “I do believe it means border patrol.”

“Are you kidding me?” Kendell groaned.

They had been walking along a train track for miles. The evening before, they had caught a train that had taken them a considerable distance north and had had to abandon it in a similar fashion as before. Now, though, they were frightfully close to the border. They were not currently breaking the law, of course, but a group of travelers this size was bound to be noticed.

“What are we going to do?” Kendell asked Manuel, who was clearly trying to think fast. Dust was being kicked up by border patrol vehicles far off in the distance. Clearly someone had tipped them off about this particular group headed for the border. What would they even do if they were caught? Send them back? They hadn’t crossed the border yet, but that didn’t mean everyone in the group wasn’t already panicking.

The train tracks began to shake beneath their feet. Looking back, Kendell could see a train rapidly approaching. “I’ve got an idea!” Pauline said. “Manuel, tell everyone to get on the other side of the tracks and start running to catch the train. I’ll stay here.”

“Pauline, what are you going to do?” Kendell asked.

“We,” Pauline corrected. “Come on!” Pauline grabbed Kendell by the wrist, and the two of them covered themselves with their hoods and proceeded to walk in the opposite direction that they had been headed moments ago. The rest of the caravan crossed the tracks and began walking the same way toward the oncoming train.

“What are we doing?” Kendell asked. “Distracting them?”

“Exactly,” Pauline said, just as a couple of men on all-terrain vehicles came whipping toward them.

One of them reached for Kendell immediately. “Hey!” she yelped when the man jumped down from his vehicle and grabbed her by the arm.

“Tienes que volver. No puedes estar aqui. Wait—” The man immediately let go of Kendell when her hood fell down and her shimmering red hair fell all over the place.

“You better let go of me before I bust your nose open,” Kendell snapped, jerking her arm away from the confused-looking Mexican gentleman.

“Americans?” the other man asked as Pauline stood there with a cross expression. “Where are the others?” he snapped as the train continued to zip by.

“What others?” Kendell asked. “My friend and I are on vacation!” Kendell shouted, catching on to what Pauline was up to now. “What are you doing? Can we not walk here?”

The two men exchanged glances and spoke to each other in Spanish for a moment. “What are you two doing along this train track?” one of them asked. “Did you see a group of people?”

“What group of people?” Pauline asked. “I’m sorry, I’m having a hard time understanding your accent.”

The men looked annoyed as the train disappeared in the distance. Kendell cringed. The caravan was gone. That was their ticket to getting out of here safely, and they had just spent five minutes arguing with border patrol while their ticket home zoomed off. Eventually, the men set off, deciding that Kendell and Pauline were indeed Americans based off their passports. Kendell frowned. “Now what?” Kendell asked. “I have no idea where we are at, you know? What are we going to do?”

“Oh, calm down,” Pauline said. “I know where they are headed. But if they had all gotten busted by border patrol and sent back in the opposite direction, what would have happened to us then?”

“Where are they headed?” Kendell asked. “How do you know?”

“I’ve been listening,” Pauline insisted, readjusting her dog carrier. Dot was fast asleep inside, not making a peep except for an occasional, gentle snore. “There is a town just a few miles north of here. If we hurry, we might be able to catch them.”

“I can’t believe Manuel managed to get the entire caravan onto that train while it was moving before it passed by,” Kendell said as they began their long walk. “How many miles north are we going exactly?”

“About two,” Pauline said.

“That’s not too bad,” Kendell said perkily. “I’m sure the caravan probably already hopped off the train too because this one turns west. I remember hearing Ana Maria say that when someone asked her why we were walking the train track instead of trying to hop another carrier cart.”

“See? Pauline knows what she’s doing,” the woman said, pointing a thumb at her chest. “You don’t have a thing to worry about when I’m around.”

“Clearly not,” Kendell said and looked up at the sky. The sun was beating down. It was painfully hot out that day. “Two days ago, it wasn’t nearly this hot. Where did this weather come from all of a sudden?”

“I have no idea, but the sooner we get to this town, the sooner we can reconvene with Manuel and the others. From what I understand, they were planning on setting up camp just outside of town. If we book it, we might even run into them before they reach the destination. Look, the train tracks are already turning west. They probably rode it a good way after the turn, though, to avoid being spotted by border patrol,” Pauline said.

“We must have traveled a lot further than I originally thought if we are already bumping into border patrol agents,” Kendell said.

“We’re at least a hundred miles south of the border,” Pauline said. “But that’s still a pretty significant distance. The occasional train rides have helped cut back on travel time. Gerado planned this trip exceedingly well. We might just be in America in a few days’ time.”

“Excellent,” Kendell said, and they continued marching through what appeared to be desert terrain void of everything except a railroad track. “I wish I had a compass. I’m afraid once we lose these tracks, we’re going to head in the wrong direction.”

“Just keep straight,” Pauline said as they moved away from the tracks. “And let’s just pay attention to the sun. It’s to our left, let’s make sure we keep it that way. Hopefully, we won’t miss the town.”

The sun continued to set, and by the time the clouds above were a soft pink color to their one side and a dark purple to the other, Kendell and Pauline spotted flickering lights in the distance. Soon, they heard voices and could even see the backdrop of a remote village beyond the lights. Sure enough, they had arrived at the caravan’s campsite. “Pauline! Kendell!” The entire crowd applauded their arrival.

Ana Maria jumped up and scurried over to them, taking Dot’s carrier from Pauline and Kendell’s carry-on bag from her and leading the women over to a spare tent and blanket that had already been set up for them. “We were hoping you would make it,” Ana Maria said. “We were so worried about you two.”

“So much for keeping our heads down,” Kendell muttered. The entire caravan was now fully aware of the two Americans in their midst. “You all were worried about us?”

“Manuel told the crowd how you had run out to distract the border patrol for us,” Ana Maria said. “Very brave women. You helped us. We could have gotten set back for days and missed our final ride to the border. We could have been detained, and our food supplies would have gone bad. You are such good ladies.”

“We try,” Kendell said with a smile as Ana Maria took Dot to use the restroom and set the rest of their belongings down.

“Such a sweet girl,” Pauline said.

One of the men sitting nearby pointed to the nearest bonfire, and Kendell was fairly certain he was saying something about food. Pauline thanked him, and the two of them went and sat by the bonfire as the last bit of sun dipped below the horizon, and the stars seemed to come out all at once.

As soon as they sat down, plates were set in their lap. “Thanks!” Kendell said. “Gracias.”

“Well, looks like we’ve made a bunch of friends now,” Pauline said, giggling.

“Well, you did prevent them from being harassed by a couple of border patrol,” Kendell said. “What would they have been able to do, though, really? There were only two of them and there’s nearly two hundred of us. I suppose if they had spotted the group, they would have called in backup.”

“Exactly,” Pauline said. “A group this size has probably attracted some attention. Border patrol probably knows we’re headed this way and are on the lookout. The agents probably just spotted you and me and were in charge of keeping an eye on the train tracks. Who knows.”

Kendell ate her food happily, glad to know that they were getting closer to their destination. Once they crossed the border, they would be safe to catch a bus to Dallas where they could meet up with Jesse and her boyfriend, Junior. From there, they could contact Felicity and get themselves back on track, and she could take an evening at the ranch to write up a blog post about all the craziness of the past few days. Her readers were probably wondering where she was.

Person by person, the camp started to wind down until it was just Kendell and Pauline seated by the campfire finishing their dinner. Ana Maria had already brought Dot back before retiring to bed herself. Just as Kendell was scraping the bottom of her plate, Manuel came and plopped down across the fire from them, smiling. “I wanted to come by sooner,” he said, “but I was trying to get my little brothers to sleep. They’re antsy because they know we are almost to the border. Everything we’ve been planning is going to come to fruition soon.”

“How are you holding up?” Pauline asked him. “Last time we spoke, you seemed a bit…conflicted…”

“Conflicted hardly covers the emotions I’ve been going through,” Manuel admitted. “I’m angry still, I suppose. My father is dead, and truthfully…” He looked at Kendell. “You obviously know about Ana Maria and me now. We have been together for a while now, you see. I care about her.”

“Then don’t let your feelings about your father get in the way of your relationship with her,” Kendell said. “There is no need. You don’t need to worry about that. Your father, I imagine, would have wanted you to be happy. Am I right?”

“That’s not what I’m antsy about,” Manuel said. “I am still…concerned that Ana Maria’s father might have killed my father.”

“Well, that certainly does complicate things,” Pauline said. “Don’t want to date the daughter of your father’s killer, is that right?”

Manuel huffed slightly. “No, I really don’t. Can you blame me, Ms. Pauline?”

“You don’t have any evidence to suggest that Arturo killed your father, Manuel,” Kendell said. “I know that they had a history, but after all this time, do you think that this is what Arturo would do? That Arturo would kill your father in his sleep?”

“It’s possible,” Manuel said. “But I don’t want to believe it. He does not seem like a cowardly man. If he wanted to kill my father, I think he would have done it in a fight. That’s the sort of man Arturo is…but I still can’t help but wonder if he might have done it. He has been bitter toward my father for a very long time.”

“Yes, we know,” Pauline said, finishing her food and setting it on top of Kendell’s plate.

“I suppose I will probably never know,” Manuel said. “And that bothers me more than anything else. I know that my mother was killed by shoot-off between rival gangs. I don’t know anything about what happened to my father. Just that some coward shot him in his sleep. And I am probably leading his killer to freedom where he will never suffer the consequences of his actions.”

Kendell frowned, and she suspected strongly that Manuel had nothing to do with his father’s death. “Maybe, Manuel, we can—”

There was shouting a short distance off, and Manuel jumped up quickly, followed by Kendell. She followed Manuel closely, and they immediately found the cause of the noise. A large, burly man had Arturo in a headlock, and Josefina and Ana Maria were both screaming and trying to hit the man.

“Oye!” Manuel shouted. “¡Lo dejó ir!” He reached out and grabbed the large man, pulling him back. “What is this about?” Manuel demanded.

“Él tenía un cuchillo en él, lo vi!” the burly man shouted.

Manuel turned to Arturo. “You are not to have weapons!”

Pauline, who had just arrived at Kendell’s side, gasped. “Wait, what?” Kendell muttered.

“The man said Arturo had a knife on him,” Pauline said.

“Arturo, your weapons were taken away from you for a reason,” Manuel said.

A group of men, Manuel’s father’s friends, had swarmed. The next thing Kendell knew, Arturo’s wrists were bound, and the entire camp was looking to Manuel for what to do to him. His inability to follow the rule Manuel had passed down on him seemed to confirm in everyone’s heads that Arturo had killed their leader, and by the fury in Manuel’s face, Kendell was worried he was about to play the part of judge, jury, and executioner.

12

Kendell couldn’t help herself. The fact that Arturo had a knife on him did not necessarily mean he had killed Gerado, and she was worried that Manuel was about to do something he would regret. She had to intervene. She stepped forward, quickly stationing herself beside Manuel. “Manuel,” she said, tapping his shoulder. “I think you need to take a step back for a second.”

Arturo was being marched off to the outskirts of camp where he was forced to sit down in the dirt while some of Gerado’s friends stood around him like private guards, scowls on their faces. Manuel turned to Kendell; he was breathing heavy, and his shoulders were tense. “I told them to take all his weapons away. I told him to surrender his weapons, but he didn’t listen. Why?”

“You said it yourself that this road we’re traveling is dangerous. Your father told me when I first met him that we had a lot of things to worry about—that pilgrimages like this presented a number of dangers. Arturo probably held onto the knife because he was fearful just like everyone else here. He doesn’t know all of these people here in this group, does he? He doesn’t know these people much better than Pauline and I do. The fact he had a knife on him doesn’t mean he’s the one who shot your father.”

Manuel exhaled deeply. “I am at a crossroads, Ms. Kendell. I cannot call the police. If I do, it might lead American border agents to us. The border patrol know we’re coming and will be on the lookout. Plus, it might put a number of people here in trouble with Mexican police as well. And, well, I do not know what to do.”

“The only reason you think Arturo might have done it is because of some rocky history he had with your father,” Pauline said, stepping forward and speaking in a whisper despite the fact that most everyone around them didn’t speak English. “You think that just because your father dated Arturo’s wife when they were young that he decided to kill him in his sleep? Think about it. Gerado was the person who was supposed to lead Arturo and his family to asylum. To safety. Killing Gerado wouldn’t be in his interest.”

“I am tired of worrying,” Manuel said. “He had a knife on him. How am I supposed to reason doing nothing? If I don’t do something, no one at this camp will take me seriously.”

“And just what are you going to do, Manuel?” Kendell asked. “Have him killed? That’s Ana Maria’s father.”

“I intend to do something,” Manuel said. “Not something so dramatic as that. But if you’re so worried about him, maybe you should see if you can figure out what happened to my father, then? Because I am done with Arturo, and I am not going to let my father’s killer get free passage into America without facing consequences.”

“But you don’t know if it was Arturo,” Kendell said, emphasizing her words as much as possible. “You have no idea who killed your father. Are you going to punish an innocent man just because he was worried about protecting himself and his family and decided to hold onto a knife?”

“I do not believe he is innocent,” Manuel snapped. “But it is late. I am not going to do anything tonight. I will think it over. That much, I can promise. I will not allow myself to act too rashly.”

“Good,” Kendell said as Manuel stomped off to go speak with the men guarding Arturo. She turned to Pauline. “That gives us a little bit of time. We need to find out who killed Gerado before Manuel winds up sticking Arturo’s head on a post and crucifying him for something he didn’t do.”

“Agreed,” Pauline said. “It’s late…but I don’t think this can wait, can it?”

“No, I don’t think so,” Kendell said. “Let’s go back and talk to everyone who is still up. Maybe someone saw something and is just afraid to come forward. We need to figure out what happened to Arturo and soon.”

The two women made their way through camp. Kendell decided to start going through people’s belongings while most of the camp was asleep, and Pauline would interview those who were still up since she knew a bit of Spanish. Gerado’s friends had conducted a halfhearted search of the camp right after Gerado’s death, but it had been rushed so as to keep everyone on schedule. Now, Kendell quietly crept from tent to tent in search of the potential murder weapon.

She came to Manuel’s tent, which was still empty since Manuel was still berating Arturo and speaking with the man’s makeshift guards about what to do with him. Kendell knew that the chances of Manuel being the guilty party were slim, but he did have a bit of motive, so she wasn’t about to overlook his belongings. His little brothers were all asleep, blissfully unaware that one of the suspects to their father’s murder was bound up and being shoved around a bit on the outskirts of camp. Kendell began digging through Manuel’s bags, but she didn’t find anything even remotely suspicious.

Paulo let out a soft exhale, and Kendell glanced in the little boy’s direction to see that his little hand had just released the locket that had been found on Gerado’s person. She reached for it, picking it up carefully. She hadn’t gotten a chance to see it because Manuel had snatched it up rather quickly. She opened the locket and saw a lovely picture of a mother, father, and their oldest son, Manuel, looking much younger in the photograph than he was now. She froze, though, as her eyes fell on the face of the mother.

“No way,” she said, and she bolted from the tent.

Pauline spotted her and scurried over, raising a brow. “Found something?” she asked, and Kendell handed the locket over to the woman just as Manuel came marching up. He clearly had caught Kendell leaving his tent.

“What are you doing?” he snapped in a hush tone.

“Your mother… She was killed the day before the caravan left Mexico City?” Kendell demanded.

He stared blankly at her for a moment. “Yes… How did you know that? We haven’t spoken much about my mother.”

Pauline held up the locket, and he immediately snatched it from her. “Did you take this from my tent?” he hissed.

“We saw who killed your mother,” Kendell snapped. “This is why we are here. Why we are on the run. Your mother was killed by a man whose face we saw our first night in Mexico City. She’s the woman from the alleyway. Your mother was killed by a member of Presagio.”

“I know this,” Manuel said. “Mother called our father that night in the alleyway right before she was shot. Told him she saw who shot Rene. He is part of Zetas.”

Kendell stomped her foot. “I didn’t realize your mother had died so recently!”

“It is a fresh wound,” Manuel said. “I was not broadcasting what happened to a group of strangers. Why does this concern you so much?”

“Think about it,” Kendell said. “Your mother is killed because she was a witness to the murder of Rene. Did your father tell you what your mother said during that phone call?”

“Only that there was a shooting between gangs,” Manuel said. “But I do not know who shot her. I was under the impression that she was just caught between rival gangs… I didn’t realize she was a witness to a crime. My father must have known then… He probably knew who killed our mother as well.”

“It was a man named Daniel Francisco,” Kendell said. “The nephew of the leader of Presagio. Presagio doesn’t leave witnesses. If Daniel knew your mother called your father…”

“He would have followed us,” Manuel said, looking quite alarmed. He lowered his voice. “And you saw Daniel Francisco killed my mother?”

“We did,” Kendell said. “That’s why we’re on the run with all of you. Presagio blew up a parking deck trying to get to us, and the cop escorting us was shot up by cops on Presagio’s payroll.”

“You think that someone from Presagio is at this camp?” Manuel asked. “That they killed my father in case my mother revealed to him who shot Rene?”

“Exactly,” Kendell said. “And if they’re here, they know we’re here now too after our stunt today with border patrol. And if they went after your father, chances are, they’re going to go after you and your brothers too since they obviously know your mother made that phone call to your father. They don’t want anyone to be able to say they know who shot that Rene guy. They’re protecting their boss’s nephew.”

“There are almost two hundred people here,” Manuel said, running his fingers through his hair nervously as he looked around at the camp of sleeping travelers. “How are we supposed to find out who is part of Presagio and who isn’t?”

“I’m not sure,” Kendell said. “But we’ve got to figure something out. Point is, I’m pretty sure Arturo didn’t have anything to do with your father’s death. Presagio sent someone here to take care of witnesses.”

“Including us,” Pauline said, nervously looking over her shoulder. “What do we do?”

“We keep our guard up tonight,” Manuel said. “Make sure no one leaves camp. In the morning, we gather everyone. See if we can’t weed out our Presagio culprit.”

“So, you believe us, then?” Kendell asked. “You believe that Arturo is innocent?”

“I don’t know why I didn’t think about Presagio before,” he said. “But, yes, I believe you. This isn’t a coincidence that my mother and father would die days apart. My mother saw something she shouldn’t have, and she used her final moments to inform our father who was after her. It makes sense now.”

“We’re going to weed out the culprit,” Kendell said. “And we’re going to do it quickly, because I know we’ve got one more train to catch.”

13

Kendell hardly got any sleep that night. She was far too worried about a member of Presagio sneaking into her tent and taking them out in the middle of the night. She and Pauline had been given a gun by Manuel and told to sleep in shifts—one sleeping while the other sat outside the tent with their gun ready just in case. But with Arturo tied up, they suspected that their killer was biding his time. Arturo was already suspected of murdering Gerado, so obviously whoever was at that camp on behalf of Presagio wasn’t going to want to draw attention away from Arturo just yet.

However, when Manuel had Gerado’s friends gather the whole camp around and everyone saw Arturo stationed with a gun in his hands as though he was one of the official “police” of the caravan, the people started to murmur nervously. Manuel addressed the crowd loudly, his voice roaring over the group with a hint of anger and frustration in his tone. Kendell stood, unsure of exactly what was being said, but she felt like she was getting the gist of it.

Pauline, who was standing near Kendell at the front of the crowd facing the angry and ranting Manuel, leaned in. “I believe he’s telling everyone that Arturo is innocent,” Pauline said.

“I gathered that much,” Kendell said. “The large gun in the man’s hands pretty much told me that.”

“Yes, I believe he is getting the message across nicely,” Ana Maria whispered, and Kendell jumped slightly. The young woman had snuck up beside them.

“Tenemos razones para creer que una membe de Presagio está aquí,” Manuel exclaimed, and there were a few panicked shouts from the crowd.

Kendell glanced around, waiting to see if anyone moved or decided that it was time to bolt, but there were just too many people to keep an eye on. “Is Manuel serious?” Ana Maria asked them, seeming to assume that they would be experts on the matter. “I heard you speaking with Manuel last night outside his tent about his mother. I wasn’t sure what it was about, exactly… Why would Presagio be here?”

“So, you’ve heard of Presagio?” Kendell asked.

“Everyone in Mexico has heard of Presagio,” Ana Maria said nervously. “Mexico has never seen a cartel rise so quickly before. It’s very frightening. Even Zetas is concerned.”

“¡Cálmese! Todos, necesito que todos me escuchen,” Manuel continued to address the crowd.

Ana Maria shook her head. “Why would Presagio be here?” she asked. Manuel continued speaking rapidly, and it seemed that Pauline was having a hard time keeping up. Kendell was relying on the elderly woman to give her a rundown later about what was said.

Kendell looked to Ana Maria. “Mind telling us what is being said?” Kendell asked. “Pauline only knows a little bit of Spanish.”

“Oh, of course,” Ana Maria said. “He is saying that they will have everyone who arrived at camp alone without families searched first. He is asking all of the single men to come forward to be re-searched for guns and to be questioned. He says they want to do this quickly as we have a train to catch to get us through this last stretch before we reach the border on foot tonight under the cover of darkness.”

“We will be reaching the border tonight?” Kendell asked.

“That is the hope, it seems,” Ana Maria said. “He is telling the men to come forward now.”

The crowd seemed to sift slowly. Kendell did not need a translation any longer because Manuel was waving her over. “Anyone who has had contact with Presagio is asked to come forward,” Ana Maria was saying, but Kendell and Pauline were already being summoned by Manuel. “Wait, you two have come in contact with Presagio?”

“Why else do you think we’re on the run?” Kendell muttered before coming forward and lining up with a group of four others who apparently had had the unfortunate luck of bumping into Presagio members before.

“We need you five to tell us if you recognize any faces amongst the group of single men who came in,” Manuel said. “We will do the same with women, but I think it is a safe bet to search the men first.”

Kendell watched as what was nearly fifty men come forward. Each in Kendell’s lineup studied the men’s faces as they revealed their bags and permitted Gerado’s friends to help Manuel in searching their person for weapons. Halfway through the line, one young man stood out to Kendell before she even saw his face. He was standing with his head down, his bag held out casually as Gerado’s men searched it. They looked through the bag, but they did not come across any weapons. They checked his pockets and located a gun. Manuel seemed to ask the young man about the gun, and he answered casually, evidently telling Manuel it was for protection.

“Tell him to look up at me,” Pauline said suddenly.

Manuel tapped the young man on the shoulder, and the young man looked up. Kendell and Pauline both jumped at once. “Daniel Francisco!” Kendell shouted, and the young man snatched his gun from Manuel and turned it on him before any of Gerado’s men could react.

Daniel Francisco had Manuel in a headlock, standing behind him with the gun pointed at Manuel’s temple. “Dame la pelirroja y la anciana y le ahorraré,” Daniel shouted.

Kendell wasn’t exactly sure what had just been said, but she recognized the word pelirroja because a number of people had been calling her that all week. She was pretty sure it meant “redhead.” Was Daniel trying to negotiate Manuel’s life for hers?

“No,” Manuel snapped.

“¡Cállate!” Daniel hissed just as Manuel stomped the man’s foot.

Daniel screamed. The moment he released Manuel, he raised his gun and pointed it at Kendell. Manuel shoved Daniel’s arm upward, and Kendell felt Arturo grab her arm and pull them out of the line of fire. Looking over her shoulder, she could see Daniel’s gun go sliding across the ground.

“¡Lo tengo!” Ana Maria shouted as she dove for the gun and picked it up.

“I am Presagio!” Daniel roared, daring to step toward her as though he didn’t believe for a second that she would point the gun at him. “Presagio will have Zetas overrun before you know it, and you will bow to us all!”

“Well, that’s extra-level crazy,” Pauline said as Daniel jumped Ana Maria. She fired the gun at him, but she missed and merely shot the ground.

He raised the gun at Ana Maria just as he was abruptly beamed in the head with a rock. Daniel looked up to see Josefina standing there tossing a rock up and catching it, prepared to throw another one. “Stupid woman!” Daniel snapped, turning toward her with the gun now as another rock hit him—this time in his shoulder. He turned, and it seemed to hit Kendell all at once. Every person around them seemed to have found a rock.

Daniel pointed his gun, but he looked like a stupid little child throwing a tantrum as he waved his gun around. It was loaded, Kendell knew, yet everyone was standing there with their rocks. Manuel helped Ana Maria stand from where Daniel had shoved her down when he took the gun. Manuel put Ana Maria behind him. “Can’t shoot us all,” Manuel said with a smirk and picked up a rock, following the crowd’s lead.

Daniel looked like a trapped tiger in a cage.

“I really recommend putting that gun down,” Pauline said at last. “Death by public stoning… That’s old-fashioned even for me.”

Daniel looked sick to his stomach. “Todos ustedes no tienen idea de lo que puede hacer el presagio, lo que haremos. ¡Todos lamentarán esto!” And he turned the gun on himself.

Kendell looked away, and she heard the sound of nearly two hundred rocks being dropped to the ground. Daniel was covered up, and Manuel encouraged everyone to get away from the horrid scene. “What…what did he say before he shot himself?” Kendell asked, and Ana Maria shook slightly.

“He said, ‘you all have no idea what Presagio can do. What we will do. You will regret this.’ I don’t suppose anyone knows what that means?” Ana Maria asked nervously.

“No,” Manuel said. “But believe me, I don’t intend to find out. We have half an hour to get to our next destination before the train leaves.”

The group packed up their campsite and left Daniel Francisco behind. Kendell had an unsettled feeling in her stomach. She didn’t expect her investigation into Gerado’s murder to end like this. No one had, evidently. They all knew now that Daniel Francisco had been sent there to kill Gerado and make sure no one knew who had killed Rene, a member of Zetas. He had probably, Kendell decided, not expected to bump into her and Pauline there. It was probably a consolation prize to him. He would have been able to come back and tell his boss, his uncle, that he had managed to track them all down so that there were no witnesses to what had happened that night in the alley. But he had failed. He had failed, and he had been so fearful of what that meant that he had taken his own life. That bothered Kendell terribly. What sort of group was this Presagio that the leader’s nephew would be so afraid of failure?

She put it out of her mind, knowing that dwelling on what had just taken place would not help anything. Soon, that evening if everything went according to plan, they would arrive back in the United States. Frankly, she was thinking about taking Pauline’s lead—the woman had only just gotten back from home in Georgia, and she seemed to have more energy than anyone else at the caravan. Kendell felt that it was probably time. She needed a vacation from her vacation. When she got back to America, she wanted to get on the first flight destined for New York.

14

Kendell and Pauline stood in the group of pilgrims, their bags in their arms and feeling an odd sense of loss. Manuel was smiling and, surprisingly enough, holding Ana Maria’s hand. Arturo stood on his other side, his arm around his wife Josefina. Manuel’s little brothers were gathered around as well, grinning up at the two of them. They were less than a mile from where Manuel’s people were going to begin crossing the border. This was where they needed to be most careful lest they get snatched up by border patrol agents. They would be departing from this point in small groups, led by some of Gerado’s contacts he had made over the years.

But this would be where they said their good-byes. Kendell and Pauline would be taking the scenic route through customs. There wasn’t much of a need for them to sneak back into their own country at this point, far from Presagio’s reach. Besides, someone had to tell the authorities what had taken place with Daniel Francisco and where to locate the man’s body. “We are really going to miss all of you,” Kendell said, and some of the nameless faces she had gotten to know over the past weeks smiled and nodded. “Ana Maria, you’ve been to kind to us, especially. Thank you.”

Ana Maria giggled. Pauline held Dot up for Ana Maria to get one last pet in when the woman suddenly snapped her fingers and went digging through the one bag she had managed to hold on to throughout the past several weeks’ worth of insanity. She pulled out a small, stuffed, white Dot and handed it to Manuel’s youngest brother, Paulo. The boy beamed and squeezed it tight in his arms. Pauline stood upright and smiled at Manuel. “Your father would have been so proud of you, Manuel, for getting all these people through the Mexican desert safely.”

“Could not have done it without you two,” Manuel said. “I wish I knew where we were going to wind up once we crossed the border so that I could tell you how to reach me.”

“On it,” Kendell said, pulling a notebook from her carry-on. She scribbled her information and passed it along to Manuel. “Besides, I might want to do a follow-up interview with some of you in the future for my blog.”

“Oh!” Josefina suddenly exclaimed and began waving frantically at one of the men in the crowd who scurried forward. “I almost forgot to give this to you. We picked it up when we were at our last stop in the border village.” She pulled out a small sticker depicting Christ riding on the back of a donkey and a Mexican flag in the background. “It says Happy Easter in Spanish. We all noticed your bag and how you keep mementos to your travels. We certainly want you to remember all of us.”

Kendell beamed as she took the sticker and slapped it on the side of her bag. “Thank you so much. After everything, I figured I would have forgotten.”

Manuel exhaled. “Well, we have to continue on our journey.” He pointed toward where the sun was rising. “Follow the sun. You’ll bump right into a border town, and they should be able to direct you to the border crossing…the legal one, that is.”

Kendell gave Manuel a hug, Ana Maria too, and Pauline did the same. Soon the caravan and themselves were headed in opposite directions. It grew quiet rather quickly as the caravan disappeared in the distance. “Well, now I’m just sad,” Pauline said. “Plus, it sure was nice having all those people carry my luggage for me.”

“I’ve got you,” Kendell said, picking up Pauline’s suitcase and throwing it over her shoulder. Pauline thanked her and continued to just hold onto Dot’s carrier. The little dog was whining terribly. “Don’t worry, Dot, we’ll get you some good food and some water when we get to town. I still got a few pesos on me.”

Much to their delight, it didn’t take them long to get to the border town. They stopped at the first restaurant they could find to scarf down some hearty food and get Dot some rest. She slept under the patio table next to a cup of water while the two women ate. Pauline did her best to communicate with the friendly server about how to get to the border crossing, and they tipped her well. After letting Dot recuperate for a bit longer while Kendell’s cellphone charged, they placed the little dog inside Pauline’s carrier. “I surprisingly only have one missed phone call from Jack and a text saying he’s about finished getting me moved out of my apartment.”

“Oh!” Pauline exclaimed. “He must not have known about what happened in Mexico City then, otherwise he would have been trying to blow your phone up all week.”

“No, I elected not to share that tidbit with him…” Kendell said. “I suppose that wasn’t very honest, but I didn’t want him to worry. I was going to call him when we touched down in Dallas, but that didn’t happen. I’ll wait until we cross the border, and then I’ll give him a call. I’m going to send him a text, though, and let him know where we’re at.”

They managed to win themselves a cab that took them all the way to the checkpoint. They located a Mexican-American officer and requested a sit-down, and he borrowed an office at the checkpoint to chat. Half an hour into their conversation, the man was calling up Mexico City police to confirm their story. After speaking in Spanish for several minutes, he put the phone on speaker. “Ladies?” a familiar voice rang through in the office.

“Officer Maria!” Kendell yelped, recognizing it immediately.

“You made it out of Mexico?” she asked. “That was incredibly quick, actually.”

“How is your arm, dear?” Pauline asked.

“Better,” Maria said. “And we’ve been weeding out Presagio informants from our station all week. Thanks to their failed assassination attempt on you two, they’ve let themselves be known in the department. Thanks for that one, ladies.”

“Almost getting blown up and shot wasn’t exactly our intention,” Kendell said. “But we’re glad it at least managed to help you guys out.”

“I feel terribly guilty I wasn’t able to do more for you ladies, but when I realized Presagio had managed to get their fingers in my station, I knew that it wouldn’t be safe for you to stay in police custody,” she said.

“We’re thankful for it,” Kendell said.

“And my friend, Officer Adam, tells me that Daniel Francisco is dead?” she asked.

“He was sneaking around in the caravan trying to kill off people he viewed as a threat to Presagio. When he realized he wasn’t going to be able to take us down, he killed himself,” Kendell said. “It was awfully dramatic.”

“Sounds that way,” Maria said. “There is going to be an investigation into this incident. Can I trust you ladies to cooperate with it?”

“Whatever you need,” Pauline said.

“I’m going to be sending some men out to try to locate Francisco’s body,” she said. “Thank you, ladies, for the assist. Get yourselves looked at, would you?”

“I think I just need a shower,” Kendell laughed.

“Me too,” Pauline groaned, and Dot yelped in agreement.

Soon they were headed out after thanking Officer Adam for connecting them with Officer Maria. When they were at last in Texas, Kendell called Jack. “Kendell! I was wondering when I was going to hear from you,” he said. “I figured you were just really busy or something…”

“Yeah, long story, but we wound up traveling with a Mexican caravan looking to cross the border,” Kendell said, and Jack laughed like he thought it was a joke. “I’m serious,” she said.

“Okay, I’m guessing there is a whole story there, am I right?” he asked.

“One I’d like to tell you in person,” she said. “I’m thinking I need a vacation from my vacations. I’m going to see what Felicity and Pauline think about making our next stop New York City.”

“Seriously?” he asked excitedly.

“Been doing this nonstop for months now,” Kendell said. “I would love to come home to you for a bit.”

“I would love that too,” he said. “Tell Pauline I hope she’ll tag along.”

“I will,” Kendell said, hanging up the phone.

The first thing the two ladies did now that they were in Texas was to call Jesse to let her know what had happened and that they were safe back in the United States and would not be popping in on her and her boyfriend’s family anytime soon. Next, they located a hotel. Kendell let Pauline have first dibs at a shower, and while she was waiting, Kendell immediately pulled out her laptop to start working on a draft for her blog. There was a lot to cover—everything from arriving in Mexico, the shooting, the explosion at the airport, and of course, all her travels with the caravan. Just no names or pictures that might compromise anyone in the Mexico City police or the caravan.

As Pauline was getting out of the shower, her hair still wrapped in a towel, Kendell went ahead and called Felicity to run her idea of going to New York for a bit by the woman. “I think it’s a great idea!” Felicity said. “You probably could use a breather, and after everything you’re telling me that took place in Mexico, I’m sure my grandma could too. I can set her up with a hotel near yours and Jack’s place.”

“That won’t be necessary,” Kendell said. “We’re moving into Jack’s place, and he has a spare room. He told me he was setting his old bed up in there and moving mine into the master, so she’ll be good to go.”

“Are you sure, dear?” Pauline asked. “You are newlyweds, after all. I don’t want to intrude.”

“There is no reason for you to go to a hotel when Jack and I have the room,” Kendell assured her. “I know you’ve been to New York before, Pauline, but this time, you’ll have an actual New Yorker with you acting as your guide. While Jack is at flight school, I can show you around some local hotspots.”

“Oh, wonderful!” Pauline said, clapping her hands.

“Well, I’ll set up the flight arrangements. I’ll wait to set you ladies up on a flight until the day after tomorrow, so you have time to chill in the hotel for a few days. Try to avoid going out, would you? You two need to rest,” Felicity said.

“We promise,” Kendell said, laughing as they hung up.

Kendell wasted no time in getting into that shower. Weeks worth of dirt and grime came off her, and she washed her hair three times for good measure. She threw on some comfortable clothes and pulled her wet hair up in a bun before plopping down on the hotel sofa next to Pauline, who was casually watching a news story about the president wanting strict border control policies that, after their adventure, made them both roll their eyes.

“I know we just ate less than three hours ago,” Pauline said. “But I could use something outright American. My stomach is ready to get something less spicy inside after Peru and Mexico back to back.”

“I think they have a little burger joint downstairs,” Kendell said, and Pauline agreed wholeheartedly to go as soon as she bathed Dot, who was also looking a little unkept.

Once Dot was dry and looking like her fabulous little self once again, they went down to the hotel’s restaurant where they each ordered a burger and fries. “Do you think that you and I can ever go anywhere without getting into at least a little bit of trouble?” Kendell laughed as two plates were placed in front of them.

“We behaved ourselves fairly well in Peru, I would say,” Pauline said with a wink. “But, no, I think we’re natural-born troublemakers.”

“I must agree,” a familiar voice said from a nearby table.

Kendell spun in her chair as the gentleman at the table next to them lowered his menu and smiled. Kendell jumped slightly. It was Futoshi. “Futoshi? What in the world… What are you doing here?”

“Vacation,” he said casually.

“And you just so happened to be at the same hotel as us?” Kendell asked.

“Life funny, yes?” he asked and winked at them. “I traveling United States.”

Kendell wasn’t buying it. What were the chances of bumping into Futoshi as soon as they crossed the border back into the United States? She felt like he had to have been waiting for them. “Oh, it’s so good to see you!” Pauline exclaimed. “I mean, honestly, I wasn’t expecting to see a familiar face so soon. How have you been?”

“Well,” Futoshi said. “Been around Alaska and Texas.”

“Your English sounds less choppy,” Pauline said, and Kendell rolled her eyes. The woman had no filter.

“Practice,” he said.

Kendell was thinking of her conversation with Rodney, and she was starting to feel quite nervous. Futoshi had proven to be a good friend in the past, but he was still part of an international crime syndicate that had at one point hired someone to stalk them around the globe. Surely, Futoshi had known they were going to be here somehow and this wasn’t some coincidence? Plus, he didn’t exactly seem like the vacation type.

“Where are you headed to next?” Pauline asked.

“Not sure,” he said. “Wish to see more of the United States.”

“New York!” Pauline exclaimed, and Kendell’s stomach tightened. “Oh, you simply must join us in New York. That’s where we’re going to be heading in a few days.”

Futoshi smiled. “Yes,” he said. “I think it a good idea. New York City, yes?”

“That’s right,” Pauline said, and Kendell was tempted to kick the woman under the table, but it was too late. Something told her that whether they invited Futoshi along or not, he would somehow end up in New York City anyhow.

In a few days’ time, Kendell found herself sitting right behind Futoshi on a flight from Texas to New York. She was messaging Rodney back and forth on her laptop, asking him if he felt like Futoshi was a danger to them. He wasn’t sure. He only knew what he had already told her weeks before. There was an unsettling feeling in Kendell’s stomach. She glanced down at her carry-on bag, the Easter image with the Mexican flag staring back at her. She exhaled deeply, and she decided that she was just being paranoid. Futoshi happening to speak French wasn’t exactly something she felt was worth fretting over. Besides, she was heading home to New York City. She hadn’t been home in months, and frankly, she couldn’t wait.

15

“Say cheese!” Jack called out as Kendell, Pauline, and Futoshi scrunched together for a group photo, with Lady Liberty standing tall and proud in the background.

There was something quite ridiculous about the current situation. It was either Pauline’s giant “I HEART NEW YORK” t-shirt or the fact that Futoshi, dressed in his usual business suit, was wearing a giant Lady Liberty hat like he was actually on vacation.

“Well, that was fun,” Kendell said. They had just finished walking up to the top of the Statue of Liberty, where they had taken a number of pictures—an activity that Pauline had insisted upon. “You still up for a real New York deep dish pizza before the show tonight?” Kendell asked, thinking fondly of the Broadway show they had purchased tickets for.

They had been in New York for about a week now. It had been surprisingly relaxing. They had mostly sat around the apartment working on some interior decorating and unpacking her belongings. It was nice not living out of a suitcase for a while. She had really missed Jack, but things had lined up really well since he was on spring vacation and his classes wouldn’t start back for another week. Futoshi, who had booked himself a hotel room near their apartment, had been rather pleasant. She was starting to believe that the man really was just on vacation.

“Yes, please!” Pauline exclaimed, and soon they were hailing a cab, too tired to walk after the journey up to the top of the Statue of Liberty.

“That walk was exhausting,” Jack said from where he sat squished against the window in the back of the cab.

“Um, no,” Kendell said. “You do not get to complain about walking after what Pauline and I endured in Peru and Mexico. Seven straight days of walking in Peru up mountain terrain followed by a week and a half of marching up through the Mexican desert.”

“Yeah, but I’m lazy and not used to it,” Jack said, earning himself a friendly pop in the arm by Pauline.

“Honestly,” Pauline said.

“Where are you two going to be going next?” Jack asked. “Planning on hanging out in New York for the rest of my vacation, I hope?”

“That’s the plan,” Kendell said, smiling. “We just have to figure out where to go next. Felicity told us to pick a place we’ve been wanting to see. I don’t even know! Maybe Egypt?”

“Ooh, that would be fun,” Pauline said.

“With your luck, ladies, you will wind up buried in Egyptian pyramid,” Futoshi said, grinning slightly as he fidgeted and tried to make himself more comfortable, obviously feeling a bit cramped in the taxi.

Pauline laughed loudly. “Oh, that does sound about right now, doesn’t it? Honestly!”

“Ireland?” Kendell asked.

“You’ll discover that there is indeed a Loch Ness monster and solving some mystery and unmasking a crazy villain like you’re Daphne from Scooby Doo,” Jack said, and Pauline smacked him in the leg again, causing him to laugh.

“Loch Ness is in Scotland,” Kendell commented.

“What about China?” Pauline asked.

“Yes, you encounter samurai sword in Japan with me. In China, ancient dynasty ghost kill a man,” Futoshi teased, getting in on Jack’s game.

“You two are just awful,” Kendell said as they exited the cab and headed inside to get themselves a bite to eat before the show that evening.

The group dined on deep dish New York Style pizza, laughing and chatting about the various pizzas they had all ordered. Their conversations drifted from pizza to the show, and soon they were chatting about Kendell’s blog and how well it was doing. They talked about some of their past adventures, laughing and talking in a bit of shock that they had managed to make it through as much as they had.

When they got onto the topic of Kendell and Jack’s wedding in Alaska, Kendell paused for a moment when the conversation lulled and finally forced it out. “So, Futoshi, I got an interesting call from Rodney a while back. Said he overheard you on the phone while we were in Alaska, speaking in French. I didn’t know you spoke French?”

Futoshi smiled, and there didn’t seem to be anything deceptive about to take place. He merely shrugged and said, “I am talented man.”

Kendell smiled back at him. “Who were you talking to who knows French?” she asked.

“Yakuza, as you know, has members all over world,” Futoshi explained. “Speaking to a companion located in France.”

This seemed to make perfect sense to Kendell. They had already met a Yakuza man from Hawaii, and he had been Korean rather than Japanese. Yakuza had members around the globe, so it would make sense for some members to be multilingual so that they could communicate amongst the various groups. There wasn’t anything extraordinarily unusual taking place apart from the fact Futoshi was a member of one of the world’s deadliest crime syndicates, but that she had already known and accepted. It was a strange friendship to have made, sure, but she didn’t feel like Rodney’s worries had any merit.

Futoshi dug around in his suit for a moment, pulling out a cigarette. “Oy! Do that outside, buddy!” a man behind the counter snapped.

Futoshi shook his head. “Was planning to,” he said. “Excuse me,” he said to his dinner companions and stepped outside.

Kendell turned and watched him exit. She could see him standing outside through the windows overlooking the streets. She turned back, facing Jack and Pauline and smiled. “I have to be honest, I wasn’t sure how I felt about Futoshi hanging around, but he’s actually a pretty cool guy,” she said.

“Oh, I agree,” Jack said. “I mean, he was one of my groomsmen at the wedding. It was pretty cool of him to fly all the way out to Alaska for the wedding just to help out your blog, and then to get pulled in and be willing to step up as a groomsman too! That was pretty cool. I mean, he’s different… The tattoos all over his neck usually surprise people a bit, but hey, we’re in New York. Everybody here is a little weird.”

“I suppose you’re right,” Kendell said. “I think I let some of Rodney’s paranoia get the better of me. I should apologize to Futoshi. I’m sure he sensed some of it.”

“We all did, dear,” Pauline said with a wave before breaking off a bit of her pizza and stuffing it into her carrier for Dot to nibble on.

Kendell smiled at Jack and Pauline when she suddenly saw both of them jolt in their seats. Jack, in fact, jumped up. She spun around to see a couple of men tussling with Futoshi outside. “Oh my gosh!” Kendell cried as Jack bolted out the door to go to their friend’s aid. Kendell stood up to follow, but a server was walking by and they collided. Kendell slipped on the spilled water the woman had been carrying and struggled to her feet.

She bolted out the door, throwing an apology over her shoulder, with Pauline right behind her. She made it out onto the sidewalk just in time to see both Futoshi and Jack being thrown into the back of a black van. “Stop!” Kendell screamed, but it was too late. She watched the van zip down the road and out of sight. She could hear Pauline shouting into her phone, having whipped it out to call the police about the sudden kidnapping. Kendell’s hands instinctively grabbed hold of her hair. She wanted to scream. “Jack! Futoshi!” she called, as though shouting their names was actually going to do something.

“Yes, a black van… No, I didn’t see the license plate… There were at least five men who took them, plus a driver…” Pauline was saying. “Yes, we’ll wait here. Please hurry.” Pauline put her phone down, staring down the street in the direction that the strangers had driven off with Jack and Futoshi. “Well, this isn’t good,” Pauline said. “We’re certainly going to miss that Broadway show… Why would someone take Jack and Futoshi?”

Kendell’s heart was racing. Her husband had just been kidnapped straight off the streets along with a good friend of theirs. She was trying to formulate a reason as to why, but she had no idea. All she knew was that she was scared, and angry. “I don’t know, Pauline,” Kendell said. “But you better believe we’re going to find out.”

* * *

Nabbed in New York

Flight Risk Cozy Mystery, Book 12

1

“Say cheese!” Jack called out as Kendell, Pauline, and Futoshi scrunched together for a group photo, with Lady Liberty standing tall and proud in the background.

There was something quite ridiculous about the current situation. It was either Pauline’s giant “I HEART NEW YORK” t-shirt or the fact that Futoshi, dressed in his usual business suit, was wearing a giant Lady Liberty hat like he was actually on vacation. He was usually quite a stiff individual. He was an unlikely friend they had made during hers and Pauline’s trip to Japan, and he was a member of an international crime syndicate known as Yakuza, but he was a lot friendly than that would suggest.

“Well, that was fun,” Kendell said. They had just finished walking up to the top of the Statue of Liberty where they had taken a number of pictures—an activity that Pauline had insisted upon. “You still up for a real New York deep dish pizza before the show tonight?” Kendell asked, thinking fondly of the Broadway show they had purchased tickets for.

They had been in New York for about a week now. It had been surprisingly relaxing. They had mostly sat around the apartment working on some interior decorating and unpacking her belongings. It was nice not living out of a suitcase for a while. For the past several months, Kendell had been in constant motion after she and an elderly woman from Georgia had struck up a conversation during a flight from New York to London. It had changed her life.

The two of them had become friends—her a young New York liberal and Pauline an elderly conservative from the Deep South. The two of them, along with Pauline’s purse dog Dot, had been traveling the world ever since. They had started an online blog that had become an internet sensation overnight due to all the trouble the two of them managed to get into. They had solved murders, helped local police in various investigations, and had even managed to break up a Russian sleeper program that had been kidnapping children from a French orphanage. It had been insane. More recently, Kendell and her boyfriend Jack had gotten married in a destination wedding in Alaska and apart from their honeymoon in Peru, they hadn’t been able to see too much of each other.

She had really missed Jack, but things had lined up really well at the moment because he was on spring vacation and his classes wouldn’t start up again for another week. And Futoshi, who had booked himself a hotel room near their apartment, had been rather pleasant. She was starting to believe that the man really was just on vacation.

“Yes, please!” Pauline exclaimed, and soon they were hailing a cab, too tired to walk after the journey up to the top of the Statue of Liberty.

“That walk was exhausting,” Jack said from where he sat squished against the window in the back of the cab.

“Um, no,” Kendell said. “You do not get to complain about walking after what Pauline and I endured in Peru and Mexico. Seven straight days of walking in Peru up mountain terrain followed by a week and a half of marching through the Mexican desert.”

“Yeah, but I’m lazy and not used to it,” Jack said, earning himself a friendly pop in the arm by Pauline.

“Honestly,” Pauline said.

“Where are you two going to be going next?” Jack asked. “Planning on hanging out in New York for the rest of my vacation, I hope?”

“That’s the plan,” Kendell said, smiling. “We just have to figure out where to go next. Felicity told us to pick a place we’ve been wanting to see. I don’t even know! Maybe Egypt?”

“Ooh, that would be fun,” Pauline said.

“With your luck, ladies, you will wind up buried in an Egyptian pyramid,” Futoshi said, grinning slightly as he fidgeted and tried to make himself more comfortable, obviously feeling a bit cramped in the taxi.

Pauline laughed loudly. “Oh, that does sound about right now, doesn’t it? Honestly!”

“Ireland?” Kendell asked.

“You’ll discover that there is indeed a Loch Ness monster and end up solving some mystery and unmasking a crazy villain like you’re Daphne from Scooby Doo,” Jack said, and Pauline smacked him in the leg again, causing him to laugh.

“Loch Ness is in Scotland,” Kendell commented.

“What about China?” Pauline asked.

“Yes, you encounter samurai sword in Japan with me. In China, ancient dynasty ghost kill a man,” Futoshi teased, getting in on Jack’s game.

“You two are just awful,” Kendell said as they exited the cab and headed inside to get themselves a bite to eat before the show that evening.

The group dined on deep-dish New York Style pizza, laughing and chatting about the various pizzas they had all ordered. Their conversations drifted from pizza to the show, and soon they were chatting about Kendell’s blog and how well it was doing. They talked about some of their past adventures, laughing and in a bit of shock that they had managed to make it through as much as they did.

“Felicity just texted me,” Kendell said. “My latest blog post about our time in Mexico just reach a million views.”

“Whoa, that was fast,” Jack said.

“And it looks like a news outlet wants to interview us about coming face to face with that Presagio member,” Kendell said, referring to the member of the cartel group they had encountered in Mexico. He had tried to kill them. It had all been quite dramatic. She put her phone down and went for her pizza instead. “It sure has been one crazy ride. Did Felicity mention her idea to you, by the way?”

“The one where she wants to buy me my own airplane to fly?” Jack asked. “Yeah, she mentioned that. Is that not insane?”

“Oh, it’s totally insane,” Kendell said. “What if the blog falters?”

“I suppose then you become my personal flight crew and we keep flying rich people around,” Jack said, and they both laughed.

“As long as we don’t stay at the airport,” Kendell said. It had become her mantra. She and Pauline were both former flight attendants—women who had traveled the world and never left the airports to actually see the world they were traveling. Now they were right in the heart of it all and actually experiencing the cultures of the world.

“As long as we don’t stay at the airport,” Jack repeated in agreement. “It would be one heck of a backup plan if your blog ever starts to lose interest, not that I think it will.”

“You have much faith in your wife,” Futoshi said. “Good for you.”

“Speaking of which, I got you something, Jack,” Kendell said, digging through her purse. She pulled out small, carefully-wrapped box that she slid across the table toward him.

“You got me something?” Jack asked, smiling. He opened it, revealing a Rolex watch. “Whoa!”

“Money has been good,” Kendell said with a wink. “The blog is really taking off. The sponsors have been incredible this past month, and I never really got you a wedding present.”

“You’re amazing,” Jack said, jumping up from his seat for a moment to give her a kiss on the cheek. “Look at that! It’s got our wedding date engraved on it inside the state of Alaska!”

“Well, we did get married there,” Kendell said, grinning. “I’m glad you like it.”

“I like you two,” Futoshi said, still wearing his Statue of Liberty hat.

“You know, you always take me by surprise, Futoshi,” Pauline said. “I must admit I had you in a little box of expectations. Here you are, though, elbows on the table, scarfing down a deep-dish pizza with a goofy hat on your head.”

He grinned and leaned forward. “Yakuza know how have fun too, Pauline.”

Kendell laughed. There was something very blissful and innocent about watching Futoshi cutting loose. “I like watch,” Futoshi said. “Alaska state engraving—good touch.”

“Thank you,” Kendell said.

“Gosh, I miss Alaska,” Jack said. “I didn’t think I’d like it so much, but the scenery was just incredible. We should go back sometime.”

Kendell nodded as she thought back to their time in Alaska. It had been a wonderful experience, but it brought back a particular memory—something that her fellow blogger, Rodney, had told her. “So, Futoshi, I got an interesting call from Rodney a while back. Said he overheard you on the phone while we were in Alaska—said you were speaking in French. I didn’t know you spoke French?”

Futoshi smiled, and there didn’t seem to be anything deceptive about to take place. He merely shrugged and said, “I am talented man.”

Kendell smiled back at him. “Who were you talking to who knows French?” she asked.

“Yakuza, as you know, has members all over world,” Futoshi explained. “Speaking to a companion located in France.”

This seemed to make perfect sense to Kendell. They had already met a Yakuza man from Hawaii, and he had been Korean rather than Japanese. Yakuza had members around the globe, so it would make sense for some members to be multilingual so that they could communicate amongst the various groups. There wasn’t anything extraordinarily unusual taking place apart from the fact Futoshi was a member of one of the world’s deadliest crime syndicates and was acting like a normal human being eating deep-dish pizza and touring New York city, but that fact she had already known and accepted. It was a strange friendship to have made, sure, but she didn’t feel like Rodney’s worries had any merit.

Futoshi dug around in his suit for a moment, pulling out a cigarette. “Oy! Do that outside, buddy!” a man behind the counter where they had ordered their pizzas snapped.

Futoshi shook his head. “Was planning to,” he said. “Excuse me,” he said to his dinner companions and stepped outside.

Kendell turned and watched him exit. She could see him standing outside through the windows overlooking the streets. She turned back, facing Jack and Pauline, and smiled. “I have to be honest, I wasn’t sure how I felt about Futoshi hanging around, but he’s actually a pretty cool guy,” she said.

“Oh, I agree,” Jack said. “I mean, he was one of my groomsmen at the wedding. It was pretty cool of him to fly all the way out to Alaska for the wedding just to help out your blog, and then to get pulled in and be willing to step up as a groomsman too! That was pretty cool. I mean, he’s different… The tattoos all over his neck usually surprise people a bit, but hey, we’re in New York. Everybody here is a little weird.”

“I suppose you’re right,” Kendell said. “I think I let some of Rodney’s paranoia get the better of me. I should apologize to Futoshi. I’m sure he sensed some of it.”

“We all did, dear,” Pauline said with a wave before breaking off a bit of her pizza and stuffing it into her carrier for Dot to nibble on.

Kendell smiled at Jack and Pauline when she suddenly saw both of them jolt in their seats. Jack, in fact, jumped up. She spun around to see a couple of men tussling with Futoshi outside. “Oh my gosh!” Kendell cried as Jack ran by and bolted out the door to go to their friend’s aid. Kendell stood up to follow, but a server was walking by and they collided into one another. Kendell slipped on the spilt water the woman had been carrying and struggled to her feet.

She bolted out the door, throwing an apology over her shoulder, with Pauline right behind her. She made it out onto the sidewalk just in time to see both Futoshi and Jack being thrown into the back of a black van. “Stop!” Kendell screamed, but it was too late. She watched the van zip down the road and out of sight. She could hear Pauline shouting into her phone, having whipped it out to call the police about the sudden kidnapping. Kendell’s hands instinctively grabbed hold of her hair. She wanted to scream. “Jack! Futoshi!” she called, as though shouting their names was actually going to do something.

“Yes, a black van… No, I didn’t see the license plate… There were at least five men who took them, plus a driver…” Pauline was saying. “Yes, we’ll wait here. Please hurry.” Pauline put her phone down, staring off down the street in the direction that the strangers had driven off with Jack and Futoshi. “Well, this isn’t good,” Pauline said. “We’re certainly going to miss that Broadway show. Why would someone take Jack and Futoshi?”

Kendell’s heart was racing. Her husband had just been kidnapped straight off the streets along with a good friend of theirs. She was trying to formulate a reason as to why, but she had no idea. All she knew was that she was scared, and angry. “I don’t know, Pauline,” Kendell said. “But you better believe we’re going to find out.”

2

Jack somewhat regretted jumping up so quickly to help Futoshi, even though he knew he wouldn’t have done differently given the chance. Sure, Futoshi was a rather sketchy individual as a member of Yakuza, but the man had been kind to him in the past. He had helped Kendall out of a dire situation in Japan as well when the Yakuza had hired her and Pauline to solve a murder amongst their ranks. So, Jack had not hesitated when he saw Futoshi in trouble. He just wished things had turned out differently.

Seated in the back of a van, his wrists were bound with zip ties and a black sack had been thrown over his head. On more than one occasion, he had felt the cold welcome of a gun’s barrel at the back of his neck, and a man warned him against making any sort of noise or complaint. It gave him plenty of time to contemplate the situation. He could hear Futoshi speaking in Japanese, and he sounded angry and, though it was well hidden, a bit frightened. “You are shateigashira,” one of their captors said, and Jack heard what he assumed to be a punch in the gut followed by a moan from Futoshi. The rest of the ride was mostly silently.

Shateigashira, Jack thought. The word sounded familiar to him. He thought for a moment, and he was certain he had read the word a few times on Kendell’s blog post about their time in Japan. He remembered her writing about the hierarchy of Yakuza, and he was able to recall that it was Futoshi’s title. It meant that he oversaw a group of entry-level gang members. He would report to a man called the wakagashira, who oversaw multiple groups. The various wakagashira would answer to the various senior advisors such the saikō-komon, and at the very top was the kumicho—a man who had allowed Kendell to interview him for her blog. It had been one of the best responses she’d ever gotten from her readers. A new blogger out of the woodworks interviewed the leader of one of the largest crime syndicates in the world—not to mention he had allowed them take part in a friendship ceremony that marked them as “little sisters” to Kumicho Hayato. It had been quite the extravagant moment, and Jack felt the need to try to recall all of this. These men, though he could not see their faces, were speaking Japanese. Surely this had something to do with Yakuza? Did Yakuza have members in New York? They had members in Hawaii, he knew. Tae, a Korean fellow stationed in Hawaii, had stalked Kendell and Pauline all over the world before getting busted in Japan.

“You all right, Futoshi?” Jack whispered, sensing that no one was right next to him.

“Silence would do us good,” Futoshi warned, and Jack obeyed. It wasn’t as though he had ever been in a situation like this before, and Futoshi’s calm demeanor made Jack feel like the man probably knew what he was talking about.

Jack felt a few bumps in the road, and he tried to mentally map out where they were. He was a native New Yorker, after all. He wished they hadn’t thrown the black bag over his head—it was hard to breathe—but with it, he was able to rather easily concentrate on where they were going. They made a few twists and turns, and after a while, he felt rather lost. However, there was a familiar stench that greeted his nostrils when they were forced out of the van.

Jack was pushed rather aggressively, and he struggled to maintain his balance. The smell currently tickling his nose was of fish and a bit of mildew, so he suspected they were near the harbor. They were marched around a good bit, and Jack was nowhere near brave enough to call out for help when he could not see where they were. For all he knew, there was no one within earshot, and he was obviously a liability. Futoshi was who these men had been after, so that would make Jack rather expendable. Frankly, he counted himself lucky that they didn’t shoot him right there in front of the diner.

There were pushed and shoved, and Jack could feel beneath the weight of his shoes that they were no longer outside on the concrete. The air was not flowing quite as it had been before, so the men must have brought them inside somewhere. Perhaps a warehouse by the harbor? He couldn’t be sure. At last, he was shoved down, and he could hear the men punching Futoshi. The man let out a slight yelp, and Jack was certain he had fallen and that the men were kicking him. Jack, thinking about how kind Futoshi—though a mere stranger—had been to them in Alaska, became angry. “Knock it off!” Jack roared, and he was punched in the jaw.

He heard the shuffling of feet, the muttering of distant laughter, and finally the sound of a door shutting. “Futoshi? Are you good?”

“Fine,” Futoshi snarled, and Jack heard him spitting.

“They take your hood off?” Jack asked.

“Yes,” Futoshi said, and Jack could hear the man struggling to sit up. “Still restrained.”

“Can you help me get this bag off my head? I feel like I’m going to suffocate,” Jack said.

“One moment,” Futoshi groaned. Jack could hear him struggling to scoot toward him.

Jack felt the man right up against him for a moment, and then Futoshi bit down on the bag—snagging a good bit of Jack’s hair in the process. “Ow!” Jack snapped.

“Don’t ow, Jack,” Futoshi said as he spit the bag out and onto the ground in front of them.

Jack’s eyes burned for a moment, and he was thankful that the room was fairly dim—lit only by a single lightbulb overhead. Jack looked at Futoshi and could see that the man had obviously taken a few punches to the face, a bit of blood between his teeth and a small amount forming around one nostril. “Sorry,” Jack said, blinking several times. Futoshi sat with his arms behind him as well, and it made Jack rather angry to learn he had taken that beating bound up and unable to defend himself. “Are you sure you’re all right?”

“Fine,” Futoshi said.

Jack looked around. There were shelves all around them, and he frowned, realizing they were in an oversized broom closet with mops in one corner, shelves of toilet paper and paper towels to one side, and a few variants of disinfectants and soaps here and there. “Where the heck are we?”

“I do not know. They kept bag on head until thrown in this room,” Futoshi said.

“I thought we might be near some docks,” Jack said. “I smelled rotting fish when we pulled up. This place stinks…”

“I do not know,” Futoshi said again. “We are in trouble, though.”

“Yes, I figured that much,” Jack said. “You want to tell me what this is about?”

“I do not know.”

“I don’t believe you,” Jack said. “I heard you speaking to those people in the van. You were speaking Japanese. Is this Yakuza related?”

“Not all Japanese-speakers are Yakuza, Jack,” Futoshi said matter-of-factly.

“I’m aware of that, Futoshi,” Jack snapped. “But you can’t honestly tell me that we were just coincidentally abducted in New York City by some random people who happen to speak Japanese and who know you were a shiteigashira.”

“Shateigashira,” Futoshi said bitterly. “Say it right.”

“Oh, boohoo,” Jack said.

“I speak your language well enough, you can say one word correctly,” Futoshi snapped.

“I’m a lot more concerned with the fact that we’ve been tied up and shoved into a broom closet than how to pronounce your title,” Jack exclaimed. “We can worry about that later. How are we going to get out of here?”

“In body-bags, most likely,” Futoshi said.

“I really don’t like your sense of humor.”

“I was not trying to be humorous,” Futoshi said, scooting closer to the far wall. He pressed his back against it and slowly worked his way up until he was upright. Once he was on his feet, Jack began scooting toward the wall in an attempt to follow Futoshi’s lead.

Halfway there, he spotted a puddle of blood that most certainly did not belong to either one of them. “Perfect,” Jack grumbled as he scooted past it. He pushed himself against the back of the wall and began pushing himself up. “See anything that can get these ties off us?”

“Here,” Futoshi said, nodding toward one of the wooden shelves where some wood was split. Futoshi leaned against it and began attempting to cut the plastic around his wrists with the broken bit of wood. Futoshi winced a few times, but he did eventually free himself, though his wrists were cut up a bit from the splinters. “I help you,” he said, bringing Jack over and doing the same, though a bit more cautious to try to avoid slicing him up as well.

At last, Jack’s hands were free with minimal damage. He rubbed his wrists. He began looking around and was pleased to find a first aid kit. He tore it open for Futoshi and made him clean up his face and bandage his sliced wrists. “Okay, all doctored up,” Jack said after helping Futoshi tie one of the bandages around his wrists. “Now what?”

They both looked around the empty room. They really were just inside a supply closet. Jack jiggled the doorknob. “Did you really think they would leave it unlocked?” Futoshi asked bitterly.

“Oh, shut up,” Jack snapped, putting his ear to the door. “It doesn’t sound like anyone is out there.”

“If you are going to try to break down the door, I suspect they will hear it,” Futoshi said.

Jack sighed, tempted to punch the door—but he didn’t want to attract unwanted attention and send men in there to tie them back up. Or worse. He rubbed his jaw where he had been punched. It hurt something terrible, but he wasn’t going to complain, seeing as how Futoshi had obviously suffered worse.

They heard a loud boom and looked up. Jack could see the air conditioning had kicked on. There was a large vent in a corner of the closet. Why was there an air vent in a closet? Looking around, Jack realized that the closet had been an addition, based off the fact one of the walls was made of entirely different materials from the rest, which explained the vent. He pointed up, and Futoshi frowned. “That’s our way out,” Jack said.

Futoshi nodded. “Yes, I think so.”

3

“Kendell McDonald-Fletcher?” the officer dressed in slacks and a blue button-up asked, carrying a clipboard in a way that made it seem like he believed himself to be exceptionally important.

“That’s right,” Kendell said, her arms crossed.

There were several officers standing around, and this man, Detective Rupert, lacked all the urgency that Kendell felt was needed. Her husband and friend had just been kidnapped in broad daylight by a group of sketchy men driving a black van. It had been horrifying, and he seemed like the most relaxed individual she’d ever met. “You are Jack Fletcher’s wife, correct?”

“Yes,” Kendell said.

“And you are the grandmother?” Rupert asked.

“No, a friend,” Pauline said. “And Futoshi was the other gentleman, but we do not know his last name.”

“And he flew in to New York to see you? A man whose last name you don’t even know?” Detective Rupert asked, scratching at his neatly-trimmed beard.

“It’s a fairly complicated friendship,” Kendell said. “Look, I don’t know how any of this is going to be helpful. I told you that a bunch of strangers came and abducted them.”

“How am I supposed to help you, Mrs. Fletcher, if I don’t even know who we’re looking for?” he asked. “You said they went after this Futoshi fellow first? It sounds like your husband was taken just because he was trying to defend your friend, so to find who might have wanted to kidnap Futoshi, I might need to know a little bit more about him, don’t you think?”

“I have a friend I can call to get more information,” Kendell said. “She’s in Japan, though. I can see what I can find out for you.”

“Thatta girl,” he said bitterly, and Dot growled at him.

“Detective Rupert!” A uniformed officer came hurrying out of the diner. “They got footage!”

Kendell and Pauline followed Detective Rupert inside the diner, which thankfully had a single camera set up outside after having had a window smashed a few weeks ago. They watched the video, and Kendell frowned. The picture was ridiculously fuzzy—not to mention the kidnappers seemed to know about the cameras and mostly kept their heads down. The quick flashes of the abductor’s faces weren’t much to go on because of the poor camera quality, but Detective Rupert had the diner’s owner hand over the video nevertheless, saying he would take a closer look at it once they got to the station.

“I think I recognized one of the men on the footage,” Rupert whispered to the uniformed officer. He then looked directly at Pauline and Kendell. “Would you two ladies mind coming downtown with me to look at some photographs? To see if you can confirm my suspicions?”

“Absolutely,” Kendell said.

Soon, she and Pauline were sitting in an interrogation room silently waiting for Detective Rupert to return. Kendell felt herself trembling at the thought of Jack being in trouble. Rupert had been right—the men had been after Futoshi, that much she was certain of. Could that mean that Jack was expendable? That he was just baggage they could get rid of? The thought was terrifying. Pauline, evidently sensing her nerves, reached over and patted her shoulder reassuringly. Dot hopped over from Pauline’s lap to Kendell’s. Kendell smiled. “Thanks, ladies.”

The door opened, and Rupert entered carrying a file. He laid out a number of photographs, mostly mugshots. “Recognize any of these men?” he asked.

“No,” Kendell and Pauline said together.

He laid out some more. “How about these?”

Kendell examined the faces and shook her head. Finally, he laid out four additional photographs. “These?”

“Yes!” Kendell said, pointing directly at a man with dark hair and almost black eyes. “I saw him. He was with the group.”

“Him too,” Pauline said, pointing to another picture. “That fellow was driving the van. I saw him look back at us as the van turned a corner.”

“I was afraid of that,” Detective Rupert said.

“So, who are they?” Kendell asked. “And what do they want with Futoshi and Jack?”

“Not sure,” Detective Rupert said, sitting down across from them at last. “These guys are just runners for a new gang that’s been cropping up around here. They broke off from the mafia.”

“Whoa,” Kendell said. “As in the mafia?”

“As in Bonanno, Colombo, Gambino, Genovese, and Lucchese. Yeah, that mafia,” Rupert said. “About this time last year, there was some sort break. We don’t know the details. Some nieces and nephews of some of the big bosses started getting together. Started calling themselves Auspicio, and they’ve been hitting back at the New York mafia like you wouldn’t believe.”

“Seriously? Some new gang is trying to take on the New York crime families?” Kendell asked.

“And they’re doing it pretty well,” Rupert said. “It’s the strangest thing I’ve ever seen. They came out of the woodworks with manpower and resources out of nowhere.”

“That’s sounds familiar,” Pauline said. “Isn’t that the same thing that happened in Mexico?”

“That’s the exact same thing that happened in Mexico,” Kendell said.

“What are you two talking about?” Detective Rupert asked.

“There is this new gang who broke off from a big Mexican cartel that has been causing problems for police in Mexico City. We had the unfortunate luck of running into the new group’s nephew while we were down there. One of the officers we spoke to said that the new group, Presagio, had come into money and resources all of a sudden and had broken ties with the cartel,” Kendell explained.

“I doubt that it has anything to do with what’s happening here,” Rupert said. “Though it is probably worth looking into.”

“What can we do now?” Kendell asked. “We want to help.”

“I understand that,” Detective Rupert said. “But we will be taking it from here. And, Mrs. Fletcher, I’m going to have to insist you not write about this incident on your little blog.”

Kendell frowned. “You read my blog?”

“You’re a New Yorker, and you became famous overnight. Everyone around here has seen your blog, and the last thing I want is you making us look like a bunch of incompetent officers like you do with all of your other little misadventures.”

“Incompetent?” Kendell repeated. “I don’t make any officers I’ve worked with in the past sound incompetent.”

“How do you think it looks, Mrs. Fletcher, for you to be writing about what all you did under the nose of various authority figures? You’re not going to make us look that stupid, so don’t you even start,” Detective Rupert said. “We have this handled. What I need you to do is go home and wait on our call.”

Soon, Kendell and Pauline were standing outside of the station, scowling with frustration. “He’s more worried about me making him look stupid than about finding Futoshi and Jack.”

“He didn’t really ask a lot of follow-up questions, now did he?” Pauline asked as she attempted to hail a cab.

“No, he didn’t,” Kendell grumbled. “I don’t know who he thinks he is, but I’m not going to just sit idly by when my husband is missing!”

They climbed into the back of a cab, and Pauline gave the driver Kendell’s address. They were not really sure where to go from here. Detective Rupert hadn’t given them much to go on. He hadn’t even told them the names of the men they had identified from the photographic lineup. All she had learned was the name of the new mafia-inspired group, Auspicio. It wasn’t much. Kendell slumped on her living room sofa, unable to think about much more than that van that had carted Jack and Futoshi away and the angry men in suits who had shoved them into the back. No, she certainly was not just going to sit there and do nothing. She would not be having any of that.

“Well,” Pauline said to herself as she rummaged through Kendell’s pantries for a snack. “Don’t think we will be going to a Broadway show tonight. No, no, definitely not. Not with our friends missing, now will we?” Pauline spoke directly to Dot as though the dog was responding. “That’s right, those bad men took our Jackie and Futoshi, didn’t they? Ruined our evening too. We’ll find them, though, Dot. Don’t you worry.” After discovering a bag of pretzels, Pauline came and sat next to Kendell. “So, what’s our next step, dear?”

Kendell wasn’t sure, so she did what she always did when she wasn’t sure what next step to take. She pulled out her laptop.

4

Jack stared up at the vent. It was small. “Do you think we can even fit into that thing?” Jack asked, looking at Futoshi.

“Yes, I think so,” Futoshi said and pointed toward some shelving. “If we move this, we can climb.”

“We need to be quiet about it,” Jack said. “If they hear us, the last thing I want is for them to come marching in here and start beating you again.”

“Or shoot you,” Futoshi said.

Jack cringed. “Shoot me?”

“They try to take me, not you,” Futoshi pointed out. “I not know why they want me. But they after me, yes? We saw that at diner. They come for me, and they only take you because you try to stop them. What if they think you expendable?”

“For crying out loud…” Jack grumbled, not wanting to think about that right now. Not any more than he already had. “Let’s just get this thing moved.”

They started removing items from the shelf, not wanting everything to fall when they started moving it and to attract attention. They elected the largest of the metal shelves so it would bring them closer to the ceiling. The ceilings were oddly high in the closet. Once the shelf was empty, they each grabbed one side and lifted. The shelf was lighter than Jack expected. “You think this thing is going to hold us?” Jack asked.

“You first,” Futoshi said. “I keep shelf still while you climb.”

Jack nodded. “Let’s hope this works,” Jack said and began to climb. The shelf swayed terribly even with Futoshi holding it. He stopped and jumped down. “No,” Jack said. “This isn’t going to work. How are you supposed to get up this thing if no one is holding it still for you?”

Futoshi poked Jack’s chest. “You climb. Find way to come get me if I not able to climb out,” Futoshi said. “Go up.”

Jack frowned, but he listened. Futoshi held the shelf to keep it balanced, and Jack made his way up. He could just barely reach the ceiling, but once he was there, he smiled to see that the vent was likely large enough for him to fit through. He pulled himself up, and the vent was just large enough to turn around with a bit of struggle. He peered back down into the closet. “Your turn.” Futoshi nodded and began to carefully climb the shaky shelve. Jack could see it swaying. “Easy, man.”

Futoshi remained still for a moment, allowing the shelf to balance itself out before he continued. Futoshi was about halfway up, and Jack reached down. “One more step up, and I’ve got you,” Jack told him.

Futoshi raised a foot, and the shelf tumbled down. Futoshi went falling back into another shelf, and everything fell on top of him. The metal shelf itself landed hard, causing a loud bang. Futoshi looked up at Jack. “Go, Jack. Go, now! Get help!” Futoshi cried.

Jack felt horrid, but both of them getting caught was not going to help. “I’m sorry,” Jack said and began to crawl rapidly through the vents. He didn’t make it far before he could hear loud, angry voices echoing from behind him. He heard the unmistakable sounds of fists hitting flesh and knew that Futoshi was now paying for his escape.

The vent seemed to grow narrower. He had to crawl by pulling himself forward on his stomach. He heard a creaking sound, and then it happened. The floor gave way, and Jack went tumbling down as two parts of the venting system came unhinged from one another. He broke through the ceiling and landed hard on the ground, making far more noise than the falling shelf had done moments ago. The air was knocked out of his lungs, and Jack couldn’t move for a moment. He saw a door and cringed, knowing that the men who took them would come busting in on him any moment.

But no one came. By sheer dumb luck, no one had been near enough to have heard the noise. After regaining his breath, he stood upright and looked around. He walked toward the door and started to reach for the knob, but then he heard voices outside the room. “Oh, crud,” he said and looked around frantically, eventually noticing a large crate in the corner. He ran toward it and started to climb in. He cringed, realizing the crate was full of semi-automatic weapons. “You’ve got to be kidding me,” he said, making room for himself between what he hoped to be bullet-less guns.

Men entered the room. “What the heck happened here?” one voice said in a strong Italian accent.

“They said Futoshi’s friend escaped,” said a voice that sounded almost…Russian? The Russian man then spoke, still in a Russian accent, in Spanish. “El escape,” he said.

“Gracias pero entiendo,” said another voice.

“Ochita ni chigainai,” said yet another.

“He said he must have fallen,” the Russian man translated, evidently a highly-skilled man.

“No kidding,” said the Italian. “He couldn’t have gotten far. He’s on the barge somewhere. Tell everyone to go looking for him.”

Slowly, the room cleared out. Jack peered up out of the crate, his nerves even worse now. Now everyone knew he was missing. Futoshi was in trouble—probably being abused even worse. Possibly being interrogated regarding his whereabouts, for all Jack knew. He needed to get help, that much Jack was certain of.

He slipped out of the crate and slowly made his way to the door. He put his ear up to it and listened, and there didn’t to be anyone hanging around outside. He slipped out and walked down a hall when he suddenly felt an odd sensation in his stomach that made him rather sick. He frowned. Was the room…moving? He shook off the sensation and continued down the hall until he came to a door at the end that had a glass window. Sunlight was coming through the window. Jack smiled. He had found a way outside of the building. He felt close to getting help.

He opened the door slowly and looked around, instantly greeted by a smell so terrible he had to close his eyes for a moment because they burned. He pulled his shirt up over his nose. “Oh, geez…” he grumbled and blinked several times as his eyes began to water.

He stepped out, and through his blurred vision, he saw water. The harbor. He thought for a moment they were being held in a warehouse as he had suspected earlier, but this new smell was something much worse than rotting fish. He blinked again, clearing his vision as he heard the loud, alarming sound of a boat’s horn. Jack jumped in surprise, and he looked out to see mountains of trash.

He walked around the trash, and he felt the wobbly motion in his legs and stomach again. “Oh, crud,” Jack said. They were in the middle of the harbor, slowly floating further and further away from the city. He could see Lady Liberty—the beautiful symbol of his home state where he and his new wife had been earlier that day with friends. “We’re on a garbage barge!” Jack exclaimed. How could they possibly escape? There were other boats in the harbor—perhaps he could signal them? He looked around, staring down into the mountains of garbage, hoping to see perhaps a white sheet that he could wave and alert another passing ship. They were only getting further and further away from the mainland. Based on the size of this barge, he imagined it had a long journey before it dumped its contents. He wanted to scream.

“There he is!” a voice roared, and Jack turned to see a number of men looking down at him from a higher deck. “Shoot his head off!”

Jack cringed. Futoshi had been right; he was definitely expendable. Jack bolted, and he heard bullets hitting the metallic ground behind him. He ran around the edge of the small deck, imagining what was in store for him. If they managed to shoot him, what then? He was a liability now. He was too dangerous to keep around because he might flee and tell someone where Futoshi, their true prize, was being held. They were definitely going to kill him. Kill him and probably dump his body in the ocean with the rest of the garbage.

He came to the edge of the deck. There were men coming through the same door he had emerged from only moments ago. Jack thought about Kendell. He looked out toward the Statue of Liberty; she seemed to be beckoning him. Determined to see his wife again and with no other options presenting themselves, Jack jumped.

5

Kendell found herself deep in research on this new group, Auspicio. So far, there wasn’t much that old faithful, the internet, could tell her. She spent hours going through webpage after webpage, and pretty soon, Pauline and Dot both were passed out on the couch beside her. Dot had curled up right on Pauline’s shoulder and was acting almost like a headrest for the woman, keeping her neck from craning too much.

“Come on… There has got to be more than a bunch of conspiracy theories out there,” Kendell muttered, and the sound of her voice caused Pauline to snort slightly in her sleep. Kendell smirked. Pauline was not her grandmother—or related at all—but she felt like the woman was at times. She had pounced into her life, and they had thrown caution to the wind without ever looking back. Now, though, knowing that her friendship with Futoshi had put her husband in danger, she wondered if she would do it all again, if she could go back.

So far, all she had found was a few names popping up occasionally. There was a lot of speculation about how Auspicio had formed and why they had broken away from the New York mafia families who ran the show. A grand-nephew of one of the top bosses was responsible for the big split, it seemed—a man named Anthony Spina, who was thought to be the head honcho of the newly-formed group. He had recruited members from all five of the mafia families, and now they were competing against the mafia. This new mob had surfaced after Anthony was long thought dead, and he had the money and guns to back up his big talk about taking over the streets of New York. But where the money had come from was the big question. Some said drugs, others said theft, and there were those who thought he must be striking deals with the state government.

Auspicio ran most of its affairs even more privately than the traditional mafia, but most researchers seemed to agree that Anthony had set up the infrastructure of his group similar to that of the original, with himself at the top. A former concigliere, or advisor, of one of the top five mobster families was rumored to be Anthony’s underboss. The man’s exact identity was unknown, and that seemed to be all anyone was sure of. The name of the boss, the fact he had recruited members of the mafia, and that he had come into money rather abruptly.

“I have more questions than answers,” Kendell muttered as she typed in Auspicio into another search engine to see if she came up with any additional results. A bit of fumbling with her computer’s mousepad accidentally turned on the search engine’s translator.

Auspicio, she learned, was an Italian word for omen. Kendell raised a brow. Omen? Kendell reset the search engine’s translator to English to Russian. She typed in the word omen, and a familiar word popped up: примета. The name of the crime syndicate Kendell and Pauline had foiled during their time in the Paris—the group who had been kidnapping children from a French orphanage, making sure that one twin was adopted out to well-to-do families while the other was taken in for training. The group примета had murdered Rodney’s twin brother, the assassin sibling he had never had the pleasure of meeting after he and a group of the kidnapped twins, now adults, had fled. Kendell and Pauline had exposed the whole thing and put a stop to the group that had been created after the fall of the KGB.

“It can’t be a coincidence,” Kendell whispered. She changed the setting to go from English to Spanish this time, typing in the word omen once again. The Spanish word to pop up was Presagio. Kendell gulped, now thinking of the gang that had recently split from the Mexican cartel. “What is happening,” she whispered to herself, feeling a bit raspy.

Kendell now did the same with Yakuza, and she was almost relieved to see that there was not an English translation for the word. Yakuza, the name at least, came from a Japanese card game. Even if Yakuza did not mean omen in English, Kendell could not believe for a second that it was a mere coincidence that the three crime organizations she and Pauline had bumped into that year all meant the same thing. Presagio, Auspicio, and примета were all considerably new groups compared to Yakuza, she knew.

Doing some additional research, she learned that Yakuza had been around since the 1600s. From her previous experience with the group, she recalled that примета had come around during the fall of the KGB, which a search told her was 1991. Both Presagio and Auspicio were only a couple of years old.

There was some sort of connection Kendell couldn’t figure out. Something was bothering her about the whole thing. Kendell set her laptop down and went back into the bedroom, snagging her cellphone and leaving Pauline and Dot undisturbed. She called her friend Rodney, a food blogger whom she had met during her solo flight to Paris—the one whose brother, Aaron, had been killed trying to protect him from примета before the group’s downfall.

A few rings, and Rodney’s voice picked up on the other line. “Well, well, well, if it isn’t my second-favorite blogger,” he sang.

“Cute,” Kendell said. “Rodney, I wish I was calling under better circumstances, but I need your help.”

“My help?” he asked. “What do you need?”

“Information,” Kendell said. “Last time we spoke, you mentioned you were still in contact with former примета members. Mind telling me who you were talking about specifically?”

“Same group you’ve met,” he said. “Demi, Talia, Sahib, and Jim—plus Katie and Wyetta, Demi and Talia’s non-lethal twins.”

“Interesting way of phrasing that,” Kendell said.

“Well, Talia was able to kick Jack square in the face,” Rodney said, and Kendell smirked slightly at the memory. “So, what do you need from a bunch of retired super-spies, exactly?”

“I need to know whether or not примета is still active,” Kendell said. “I mean, I need to know for sure.”

“I’ve told you before that you and Pauline pretty much broke up the group for good. There’s still a few members scattered about the globe and all, but they know they’re finished. They’re all in hiding while the American, French, and Russian governments work on weeding the rest of them out,” Rodney explained. “Oh, by the way, Demi, Talia, Sahib, and Jim wanted me to tell you’re they’re sorry they missed the wedding.”

Kendell nodded. “Yes, it was a shame I couldn’t add Russian assassins to my list of unusual party guests. Look, I need to know for sure whether or not the group is trying to start something up again. Specifically, I need to know if they have any connection with these new groups that are popping up. A group out of Mexico City called Presagio, and a breakoff of the Italian mob called Auspicio. I know it probably sounds like a conspiracy theory, but my hunches are normally pretty good. Also, whether or not Yakuza members have ever worked with them before too.”

“That’s a lot of questions you’re asking there, Kendell,” Rodney said. “Why the sudden interest in these groups?”

Kendell sighed heavily. “It’s Jack,” she said. “Jack was kidnapped along with our Yakuza friend Futoshi. The New York police seem to think that this new group called Auspicio had something to do with it. Thing is, I think it’s more than that. Why would a brand-new version of the New York mafia kidnap a high-profile member of a Japanese crime syndicate? It just doesn’t feel right. And, I know this sounds kind of stupid, but I don’t believe that it’s a coincidence that примета, Presagio, and Auspicio all mean the same thing: omen.”

There was a long pause from Rodney’s end before he spoke again. “I didn’t realize Jack was in trouble. And the Yakuza guy, Futoshi… That’s the guy who was in the wedding, right? The one I heard speaking in French on the phone?”

“That’s the one,” Kendell said. “Although he tells me he was speaking with someone from Yakuza. I don’t know if that’s true or not or if Futoshi was lying to cover something up. I don’t know what’s going on here, but I need your help, Rodney. Can you please just make some calls? Talk to Demi and Talia and see if they’ve heard anything. Sahib and Jim too… Heck, call Katie and Wyetta and see if they’ve heard anything. Exhaust whatever resources you’ve got. I’ve got to find my husband.”

“I’ll do whatever you need me to do,” Rodney said. “I want Jack to come home to you safe, Kendell. Give me some time. I’ll make some calls and see what I can dig up.”

“Thanks, Rodney,” Kendell said. “I’m getting so anxious just sitting here hoping that something comes up. I’ve got to find Jack. Futoshi too. I just don’t even know where to begin, and I have the terrible feeling that the police don’t know what to do either.”

“I’ll see what I can do,” Rodney promised, and Kendell thanked him before they bid one another farewell. Kendell made her way back out to the living room, and she gently tapped on Pauline’s leg that was propped up on the coffee table, waking the woman up.

“Why don’t you go get in bed? It’s getting kind of late,” Kendell suggested.

Pauline rubbed her eyes. “I don’t know if I can sleep until we find Jack.”

“You were just asleep,” Kendell said.

“Oh, hush, I’m old,” Pauline said, yawning. “I’m sorry, dear. It’s been a hectic day, and I’m not as young as I used to be. Have you found anything out during your research?”

“Possibly,” Kendell said. “Well, not really. Just a bunch of conspiracy theories that I can fill you in on in the morning.”

Pauline nodded and stood up slowly, stretching her tired back. “I suppose that can wait until morning. Kendell, dear, I don’t want you to give out hope just yet. We’re going to find Jack and Futoshi. I just know it.”

“Thanks, Pauline,” Kendell said as she watched the old woman make her way toward the guest room, a tired and borderline delirious-looking Dot trailing behind. Kendell sighed, put away her laptop and notes, and dragged herself off to hers and Jack’s bedroom. She sat on the edge of the bed, feeling almost dirty at the idea of sleeping there without knowing whether or not Jack was even alive. It made her sick to her stomach.

She tossed and turned for much of the night, not falling asleep until around two in the morning. Even then her sleep was plagued with nightmares that depicted the worry and anxiety she was feeling for Jack and Futoshi.

6

The sensation of cold gripped him as he dove head first into the water below. He wouldn’t allow himself to come up for air while the bullets zipped past him. They’re shooting at me! They are actually shooting at me! He was a mediocre swimmer. Growing up in New York, there weren’t exactly a lot of clean swimming holes he could go to while growing up. There were a handful of pools you could use if you paid for a membership, but that wasn’t something he had invested much in. In fact, the most swimming Jack had really ever done was a few summers with his dad when the man would take him out fishing.

The water here was incredibly murky. The pollution made it dark even just below the surface, and it stung his eyes. His lungs started to burn, but he wouldn’t allow himself to go above the water until he had put as much distance between himself and the barge as possible. He heard the sound of a ship’s horn, and he knew it wasn’t the barge. Peering through the water that still burned his pupils, he could see a ship approaching. He needed to go deeper to avoid it. As the ship went by overhead, the waves it created tossed and turned him. At one point, he was completely upside-down, and his ears popped something fierce.

Now that the ship was between him and the barge, he felt it was safe to come up for a breath, but he was out of energy. Don’t panic, he told himself, knowing that if he did, he would likely find himself running out of air quicker. A few gentle waving motions with his arms, and at last, his face broke the surface. He gasped, and the air in his lungs burned almost as much as it had been before. He coughed up a bit of water and spotted a buoy not far off. “Thank God,” he rasped and began swimming toward it.

The thing was almost impossible to hold onto, but he managed. It allowed him a break, if only for a moment, because that swimming sprint had exhausted him beyond measure, and the nearest bit of land, the Statue of Liberty, was still incredibly far off. It was early morning, making the water even colder. He was already shaking. He hid behind the buoy as the ship that had blocked him from view of the barge had already passed. There was quiet. He couldn’t hear any shouting or additional gunshots, but he remained hidden for several more minutes just in case. Surely, they would think he’d drowned.

I might still drown, Jack thought as he looked back toward the Statue of Liberty. The coast guard was nowhere in sight, and apart from the one ship that had acted as his saving grace by keeping him hidden, there didn’t seem to be any additional boats around that morning. After contemplating for several more minutes, he decided it was time to make his move. He began his swim toward the island. The water seemed to be working against him most of the way, but he fought onward.

Jack lost track of time. All he knew was that the sun was up now, while it had only just begun to poke itself over the horizon when he had first started his swim. He was dunked under the water several times, and there were moments when he thought for sure he was going to drown. Finally, as he felt the island was in reach, he heard someone shouting. “Oh my gosh! There’s a man over there! A man in the water!”

Suddenly, there were people all around, and he felt hands grabbing him and pulling him out of the water. The next thing Jack knew, he was lying flat on his back, panting for breath while staring up at Lady Liberty as a small crowd gathered all around him. “I’m going to call the paramedics…” someone was saying, but Jack waved them off.

“I’m fine,” he said, gasping slightly. “I’ll be fine.”

One man, a gentleman wearing a giant ‘I heart NY’ t-shirt, helped him sit upright. “Man, what happened?” he asked.

Jack shook him off, panting. “Long story.”

“Oh, for the love of God! Jack?” a voice exclaimed. Glancing up, he saw, of all people, Rodney staring down at him. Rodney was in a business suit, looking perturbed by Jack’s sudden appearance.

“Rodney?” Jack questioned as the man knelt beside him.

Rodney waved the crowd off. “I’ll take it from here, everyone. This guy’s a friend of mine,” Rodney told them. “Jack, what happened? What were you doing in the water?”

“What am I doing? You come to New York and don’t give us a call?” Jack said, feeling up for a bit of playful banter now that he was looking into the eyes of a familiar face.

“I was going to call,” Rodney said, laughing and shaking his head. “It was supposed to be a surprise. What are you doing swimming around the harbor?”

“Long story,” Jack said. “But we have to get to the police now. Futoshi is in trouble.”

“Futoshi?” Rodney asked, helping Jack to stand upright.

“Yeah,” Jack said, glad to be on his feet again. He took a few more deep breaths and shivered slightly. Rodney removed his coat, draping it over Jack. “Futoshi and I were snagged by some guys… I don’t know what it’s about, but we need to let someone know where Futoshi is being held. I think these guys are going to hurt him.”

“All right, come on,” Rodney said, marching Jack off. “I have a rental car. I’ll take you to your apartment, and we’ll call the police from there.”

“Thanks, Rodney,” Jack said.

“I spoke to Kendell on the phone,” Rodney said. “She told me you had been kidnapped… You and Futoshi, I mean.”

They walked a considerable distance, eventually arriving at a fairly empty parking lot behind an abandoned building. Rodney pointed toward a rental car. Jack headed that way as the car beeped when Rodney unlocked it . “I know she’s got to be freaking out,” Jack said. “I wasn’t sure if I was going to make it back to her for a second there.”

Abruptly, Jack felt something hit him hard on the back of the head. He fell against the car, slamming his face into the side before tumbling to the ground. He groaned and looked up, seeing Rodney standing over him, his right hand still balled in a fist.

“Sorry, Jack,” Rodney said, and his foot came down on his face.

The next thing Jack knew, he was blinking his eyes open. He could see Rodney, his hands around the wheel of a small speedboat. Jack blinked again. He could feel dried blood around his broken nose. He was lying on his side, wrists and ankles zip-tied. He drifted out again, and when he opened his eyes, he was lying flat on his side on cold, hard ground. Jack groaned. His back ached, and his head felt like someone had attacked him with a drill.

“About time,” a familiar voice said, and Jack spun his head around.

Futoshi, beaten and bruised, was sitting with his back against the wall staring at him. Futoshi’s hands were bound once again, as were his ankles. He shook his head as Jack sat up slowly, looking around in horror to see that he was back in the storage closet aboard the barge. The shelves had been moved out and looking up, he could see that a bit of wood had been nailed over the vent to prevent a second escape.

“Oh, you have got to be kidding me,” Jack said, attempting to rub some of the dried blood off his nose. It stung something terrible, and he knew instantly that it was broken. “Rodney…”

“Rodney?” Futoshi repeated.

“Rodney, the blogger,” Jack said. “I don’t know how, but he’s involved in this crap somehow.”

“Rodney?” Futoshi asked again, like he didn’t believe it all. “The food blogger?”

“That’s the one,” Jack said. “I made it to the Statue of Liberty.”

“Huh?”

“We’re on a barge,” Jack said, and Futoshi turned a bit green at this bit of information. “I made the swim to the Statue of Liberty, where Rodney found me. He told me he was going to take me back to my apartment so that I could call the police and tell them where you were, and I believed him because…well, because why not? What could Rodney possibly be up to?”

“We are in trouble,” Futoshi said bitterly. “We are in trouble…”

“Yes, I would say so…” Jack groaned. There was no way out of this room now, and they were probably watching them much more closely than before. “I don’t know what’s going to happen now, Futoshi. Please, can you tell me anything? Anything at all? Who are these people? I know you know something.”

Futoshi nodded. “That’s the problem, Jack. I know too much. Far too much. That’s why they want to kill me.”

“Who are these people, Futoshi?” Jack demanded.

“Who are they?” Futoshi smirked. “That’s the question, yes? They go by many names.”

“Futoshi, tell me what’s going on,” Jack said, trying hard not to start yelling. “Who are all these people? What do they want? Why did they take you? Why did Rodney bring me back? Futoshi, I’m serious. Who are they?”

“Omen,” Futoshi said. “They are Omen.”

Jack stared at him. Futoshi said this in such a way that it sent a chill up Jack’s spine. “Omen?” he repeated.

“Yes,” Futoshi said, looking down and away from Jack for a moment. “And they are going to kill us both. That much, I am quite certain of.”

7

The following day, Kendell wasted very little time. She had convinced herself that there was some sort of higher conspiracy going on behind closed doors other than Futoshi being the random victim of a mafia assault. If this new group had really spun off from the real New York mafia, then this certainly was not random. The mafia was a smart, conniving group. Surely some of that would have rubbed off on this new group? Plus, Kendell had a hard time believing that all of these groups popping up, all of which were named ‘omen,’ had nothing to do with one another.

Kendell started making calls. First thing in the morning, she called Haruyo. Haruyo was a woman they had met during their time in Japan; her husband had worked alongside Futoshi before he had been killed, so she knew quite a bit about the inner-workings of Yakuza. If she was lucky, Haruyo would be able to tell her something. They set up a video call, and soon Haruyo appeared on the screen, her little son Asahi sitting in her lap and smiling back at the camera. “Kendell,” the little boy said.

“Aww!” Kendell said giddily. “You have been practicing that one, huh?”

The toddler giggled, and Haruyo put him down before sitting upright, grinning. “Wasn’t expecting a call from you, Ms. Kendell. Saw on your blog that you are back in New York for a couple of weeks. Having fun back at home for a bit before starting up your adventures around the globe with Ms. Pauline again?”

“Sort of,” Kendell said. “Listen, I wish I could say I was just calling to catch up, but it’s a bit more complicated than that. Jack is in trouble.”

“Oh!” Haruyo exclaimed. “Oh, that is not good. Why? What happened?”

“Have you heard anything about Futoshi?” Kendell asked.

“Futoshi? No, why? I have not seen him in a while,” she said. “He has been traveling abroad.”

“Yes,” Kendell said. “He was here in New York visiting.”

Haruyo smiled. “Oh, how fun!”

“Not exactly,” Kendell said. “Futoshi was kidnapped, and so was Jack. They were jumped outside a diner in broad daylight, and they were shoved into the back of a van. That happened yesterday, and we haven’t heard from them since. We’re really worried.”

“Futoshi? He was taken!” Haruyo cried. “What… By who?”

“I’m afraid we don’t know that,” Kendell said. “I was wondering if you had heard anything.”

“No, certainly not,” she said.

“Do you know why Futoshi was traveling abroad?” Kendell asked.

“I do not,” Haruyo said. “I can try to find out?”

“Please do,” Kendell said. “I’m worried. And, as crazy as it sounds, I think I’ve stumbled upon something kind of crazy. There are all these new gangs popping up—splitting off from other worldwide crime syndicates, and I think they’re all related somehow. They are all calling themselves omen or something of that nature.”

“Like the Russian group you located in Paris?” Haruyo asked.

“Exactly,” Kendell said. “Do you think you could hang around and listen out for anything suspicious? With one of these new groups having snatched up Futoshi, I can’t help but to think that Yakuza might be involved somehow.”

“Of course,” Haruyo said. “Anything for Futoshi and Jack. I’ll make some calls and let you know if I hear anything.”

“Thanks, Haruyo,” Kendell said, smiling.

Kendell didn’t stop at Haruyo. She called a man she knew named Tae who was stationed in Hawaii. He was a Korean man who ran one of the smaller Yakuza groups in the Americas. She gave him the same spiel she had given Haruyo, and he told her he would reach out to some of the other local gangs in Hawaii to see if they had heard anything out of the ordinary. “I do not like hearing that my friend Futoshi is missing,” Tae said bitterly. “I am sorry too about your husband… Thank you for the wedding invite, by the way…” he said just as bitterly.

“Sorry, Tae,” Kendell said, shaking her head. “I’m not the one who sent out the invitations, and frankly after you had to cut off part of your finger to give to your boss, I wasn’t so sure you would have wanted to come anyhow.”

Tae laughed. “That is my own fault, isn’t it? I will see what I can find out for you, Ms. Kendell. I am confident we will find Futoshi and your husband.”

Next, she called Rodney. Rodney was unavailable for a video chat, but he answered his cellphone. “Rodney,” Kendell said a bit breathlessly after her long-winded discussion with Tae. She asked if he had heard anything from his Russian contacts, but he said he hadn’t heard anything yet.

“I’m…er… Hold on a second,” he said, talking to someone in the background. She couldn’t hear what was being said, but when he came back, she felt he was in a hurry to get off the phone. “Kendell, I’ll call you back in a few hours, all right? I’m still waiting to hear back. I should hear something today, okay?”

“Thanks, Rodney,” she said. “Sounds like you’re at work? Detroit treating you well?”

“As well as it could be,” Rodney said. “Don’t worry, Jack is going to be fine. I know it.”

“Thanks, Rodney,” she said, and he hung up the phone with the promise that he would call her later that day.

Kendell then called the last of her contacts, Officer Maria of Mexico City, Mexico. “Kendell… Wasn’t expecting to hear from you at all,” she said. “You calling to tell me you want to gear up for the court date you promised me?” she asked, teasing slightly. “The sooner we get you in to talk about Presagio, the better.”

“I already told you I’m happy to come to court as a witness against Presagio,” Kendell said. “But I’m calling about something else…though partially related. Yesterday, my husband Jack and a member of a Japanese gang called Yakuza were kidnapped in broad daylight by a group called Auspicio. And, so you know, Auspicio is Italian for omen. Just like Presagio is Spanish for omen… I think there is a connection, because omen was the name of the group Pauline and I broke up in Paris, the Russian group. I think there is something big happening right under our noses, but I don’t know what.”

“You think the Presagio creeps I’ve been dealing with might have ties to New York?” Maria asked.

“I think so,” Kendell said. “I know it sounds like some crazy conspiracy theory, but I just don’t believe in coincidences. Not this many, at least. Something is definitely up, and I don’t like it—especially since my friend Futoshi and my husband are now missing because of all this mess.”

“What do you need from me?” Maria asked.

“I need you to find out everything you can about Presagio and let me know,” Kendell said. “Please. Anything you’ve got, I would appreciate it.”

“That’s a lot of private information Mexico City police have been gathering,” Maria said.

“Please,” Kendell said. “I need help. My husband is missing, and I think someone at Presagio might know why.”

“I’ll make some calls,” Maria said. “I’ll see what I can do.”

“Thanks, Maria,” Kendell said, and soon they too were hanging up.

Kendell leaned back in her seat, feeling uneasy. She had been making phone calls all morning, and she didn’t feel like she had made much progress. “Jack…” she said, shaking her head and placing her hand over her forehead. “Where are you?”

Pauline exited the guest room, her hair wrapped up in a towel. “Any luck?” she asked.

Kendell sighed and shook her head. “I have people looking into things. We’ll see if they find anything for me.”

8

Kendell and Pauline were not getting much information from the police that day, and it was becoming a growing source of agitation. Other than the videos taken from the diner’s storefront, there didn’t seem to be any clues left behind. The internet wasn’t much use either because Auspicio was such a new group. It seemed like the police were keeping all of the information regarding the group to themselves.

Because of the increasing uncertainty, Kendell didn’t wait around for Rodney to call back. She went ahead and pulled out her phone, calling him via video chat. The phone rang for a bit, and after a moment, his face appeared on the screen, a lovely blue sky in the background. “Kendell?” he said, sounding a bit confused. “Everything all right?”

“I know I was just talking to you a few hours ago,” Kendell said. “But I feel like my hands are totally tied here. I feel like I can’t do anything.”

“You’ve done all sorts of crazy stuff in the past,” Rodney told her reassuringly. “I’ve read your blogs. You are always on top of things like this, right?”

“I guess, but I usually feel further along, you know?” Kendell asked. “Jack is in trouble, and I just don’t know what to do. I haven’t found anything! Nothing except a crazy conspiracy theory that might possibly link a few gangs, but that’s not doing anything to help me find Jack and Futoshi. The guys who took them were quick, and they didn’t leave any evidence behind. How am I supposed to help if the police won’t tell me anything? I guess I was hoping you would have something for me by now.”

“Sorry. Still waiting to hear back from my contacts,” he said.

Kendell sighed. “Yeah, I figured as much. So, how is Detroit?”

Rodney shrugged. “It’s no Alaska. Thinking about visiting again. I appreciated the wedding invite, you know? Beautiful state. Detroit is just…well, Detroit.”

“I know the feeling,” Kendell said. “I love New York, but it’s nice to get out and visit some natural wonders on occasion.” She sighed again. “I’m sorry. I just can’t get Jack and Futoshi off my mind.”

“You should try reading a book,” Rodney said. “You sound like you’re driving yourself crazy. Sometimes you can’t be Superwoman. Sounds like you might have to let the police handle this one.”

Kendell shook her head. “There is no way I could just sit and read a book right now.”

“I’m a fan of Lemony Snicket,” he said suddenly.

Kendell laughed. “Who?”

“Oh, come on, you know Lemony Snicket. He wrote A Series of Unfortunate Events,” Rodney said.

“Isn’t that a children’s book series?” Kendell asked.

“It is,” he said. “But it’s a very clever book series. Three orphans using their knowledge and skills to outfit a nefarious villain… The third book is my favorite.”

“What’s so special about the third one?” Kendell asked. She had read the book series when she was significantly younger, but she could hardly remember it at all.

“The third one,” Rodney said, smiling. “Well, they go to live with a distant relative who is super paranoid and afraid of literally everything. And she pretty much worships grammar.”

“Grammar?” Kendell asked.

“Right, grammar,” Rodney said. “So this grammar lady winds up faking her own suicide, and she leaves behind a suicide note. But she cleverly puts in a lot of grammatical and spelling errors to leave behind a coded message. The kids know that something is up because she loved grammar so much, and they’re able to decode the message to find out where she is hiding out.”

“And this is the book you think I should read?” Kendell asked.

“No, not really,” Rodney laughed. “I was honestly just trying to distract you for a minute with a tale about one of my favorite books as a kid.”

Kendell smiled. “I appreciate it, Rodney. I just don’t know what to do. I am really stressed out, and—”

“I know,” Rodney said. “You’re worried about your husband and your friend. That’s pretty normal given the circumstances, but sometimes you just have to accept that a situation is out of your control.”

“Yeah, I guess,” Kendell said, sighing. “I feel so useless…” She shook her head. “Okay, I’ll let you go. I’m sure you’re busy.”

“I’ll let you know if I hear anything, I promise,” Rodney said. “I’ll talk to you later.”

“Okay. Bye, Rodney,” she said, and as Rodney went to hang up, he fumbled with his phone slightly and Kendell saw, quite clearly in the background, the Statue of Liberty.

She stared as her screen went blank. Had she been seeing things? Rodney was in Detroit, wasn’t he? She shook her head. No, she had definitely seen the Statue of Liberty in the background. Why would Rodney lie to her about being in Detroit? Why didn’t he tell her he was in New York? She suddenly had a bad feeling in the pit of her stomach.

“Everything all right, dear?” Pauline asked. She was playing around in their kitchen, Dot running around her feet. She was trying to come up with something for them to eat for lunch.

“I think Rodney is here in New York,” Kendell said, raising a brow. “Why wouldn’t he tell me he was in New York?”

“Maybe he is working or something and knew he wouldn’t have time to meet up,” Pauline suggested.

“Maybe…” Kendell grumbled. “I’m going to reach out to Talia.”

“Talia?” Pauline asked. “As in the Russian assassin from Paris? I thought Rodney was reaching out to all of them for you.”

“Exactly,” Kendell said, setting up her laptop. “I wonder if he has actually reached out to them.”

“I think you are being paranoid just because Rodney didn’t want you to know he was in New York,” Pauline said, coming over and sitting by her, placing two plates on the coffee table, a simple peanut butter and jelly sandwich on each.

“Maybe,” Kendell said. “I’m just wanting to make sure.”

Before long, Kendell had managed to make contact with Talia. The woman’s face appeared on her screen moments later, and her twin sister Wyetta was with her. “Well, well, well,” Talia said, smirking. It was always easy to tell the twin sisters apart—Talia always looked slightly meaner, whether she wanted to or not. “Wasn’t expecting to hear from you! Long time no see. Is that Pauline next to you?”

Kendell adjusted the laptop so the sisters could see them both. “Bonjour from Paris, ladies!” Wyetta said, beaming.

“How’s Frasier doing, Wyetta?” Kendell asked, referring to Wyetta’s husband.

Wyetta smiled. “He’s doing fantastic, actually,” she said, smiling.

“You just calling to catch up?” Talia asked.

“I wish,” Kendell said. “I know Rodney has already reached out to you, but—”

“Reached out?” Talia interrupted. “What do you mean?”

“He told me he was going to reach out to you guys for me,” Kendell said.

“Um, we haven’t heard from him,” Wyetta said. “Do you think he meant us?”

“If the others had heard from Rodney, I would know,” Talia insisted. “Why? What’s going on?”

Kendell’s blood started boiling. Rodney hadn’t bothered calling them yet? He hadn’t called them, then told her that he had? “Jack was kidnapped along with a friend of ours named Futoshi,” Kendell said. “By a group of people called Auspicio, the Italian word for omen.”

“Omen?” Talia asked, looking a bit worried. “Like nримета?”

“Exactly,” Kendell said. “And there is another group in Paris called Presagio that we ran into—also means omen. Futoshi is involved with a group called Yakuza, but that doesn’t mean omen. But there is something going on. These gangs and organizations are popping up, and then Futoshi and Jack get kidnapped by one? It’s unsettling.”

“I agree,” Talia said. “What do you need from us?”

“Reach out to any contacts you have. Find out if your organization is still around or if it’s really gone. And find out if they have groups in places other than Russia and Paris,” Pauline said, taking a bite of her sandwich.

“We can do that,” Wyetta said, glancing sidelong at her sister. “Right? We can do that?”

“Of course,” Talia said. “I liked Jack, even if I did kick him in the nose.”

Kendell smirked. “Thanks, Talia.”

“Anytime, Red,” Talia said.

They took only a brief amount of time to catch up. Talia was acting antsy to get going; she liked having a mission, it seemed. Her life had probably gotten a little too quiet after Kendell and Pauline had helped them break up nримета.

Once they said good-byes, Pauline forced Kendell to eat her sandwich, putting the plate in her lap. “You need to eat something, dear. I know you’re worried about Jack, but starving yourself isn’t going to help.”

Kendell nodded and ate her sandwich, thinking hard the entire time. Rodney had lied to her about where he was and about whether or not he had already reached out to the former nримета members. There was something going on. A part of her wondered if it could have anything to do with Jack’s kidnapping, but she felt like that was a push. But with absolutely nothing else to go on, she came to the conclusion that she needed to track down Rodney. Maybe, just maybe, he might know something else that he was keeping from her.

“You know…” Pauline said. “I think you need to share with the police what you’ve found.”

“What I’ve found?” Kendell asked. “What do you mean? I haven’t found anything but theories.”

“Exactly,” Pauline said. “What if your little theory, that all these groups are connected, is correct? The police are keeping you out of the investigation. They’re making it pretty clear they’re supposedly handling things. They have all the information; we don’t. So, if you can provide them with information that might help track down your husband and Futoshi, then I think you should.”

Kendell sighed. She knew Pauline was right. They were the ones holding all the cards. They were the ones with the information. If she could help them find Jack, she should. So long as Jack came home to her at the end of the day, it didn’t matter whether it was her or them who tracked him down. Despite her reservations about the man, she pulled out the business card Detective Rupert had given her.

She called the number. “Detective Rupert,” he answered, already sounding in a hurry.

“Detective Rupert, this is Kendell McDonald-Fletcher,” she said.

“Joy,” he said grumpily. “Mrs. Fletcher, I told you already that if we find anything that you will be the first to know. We are working diligently at finding your husband and friend.”

“I know,” Kendell said. “Thing is, I came across something that I think might help.”

“Oh?”

“The group you told me about here in New York, Auspicio, the name, it’s Italian for omen,” Kendell said.

“So?”

“So, the group from Paris that was broken up earlier this year? I’m sure you saw that on the news. They were called Nримета, which is Russian for omen. Then the new drug cartel that started up in Mexico City this year, they go by Presagio, which is Spanish for omen. I don’t know if it means anything, but I am not one to believe in coincidences,” Kendell explained.

There was a long pause on the other line. “Interesting,” Detective Rupert said, and he seemed to mean it. “All right, ma’am, I’ll look into it. I don’t know if it means anything, but I agree. I’m not one for coincidences either.”

9

Once Kendell and Pauline finished their peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, Kendell rose from her seat and hurried to get herself dressed. She wasn’t quite sure where to begin, but she and Pauline had both agreed that their next step would be to track down Rodney. It was more of a hunch than anything, she knew, but she was running out of things to do. She wanted to help, but she felt like she had hit a brick wall. Just as she had finished getting dressed and was waiting on Pauline, her phone started to ring.

“Hello?” she answered, sitting on the couch.

“Hola, señorita— Sorry, señora,” a familiar voice said. It was Officer Maria from Mexico.

“Maria?” Kendell smiled. “Please tell me you’ve found something for me?”

“Possibly,” she said. “But I figured I’d tell you face to face. I’m at a New York police station with a stack of files I want to show you before I hand this crap off to your stupid cops.”

“You’re in New York!” Kendell exclaimed.

“I snagged up everything I had on Presagio and hopped on the first direct flight. I’m here to help,” she said.

“We’re on our way! We’ll be there soon,” Kendell said.

“Do hurry because there are a lot of stiffs around here, and I don’t want them to start asking me questions just yet,” Maria said, hanging.

Kendell shouted a bit excitedly at the door to the guest room, and a few minutes later, Pauline emerged with Dot in the carrier hanging from her shoulder. “You’re telling me that Maria is here?” Pauline asked, puffing up her hair a bit.

“Yes, and she’s waiting on us, so we better get moving,” Kendell said, and they hurried down to the ground floor of her apartment building. They took a taxi to the station where, as promised, Maria was waiting for them.

Kendell hurried over, and she realized that she hadn’t seen the woman since she had taken a bullet for them—keeping them safe from Presagio and helping to smuggle them out of Mexico with a group headed for the border. “How are you?” Pauline asked. “How is your shoulder, dear?”

“Healing up nicely,” Maria said, smiling. “And things have simmered down a bit in Mexico City since you ladies came through. With Presagio’s leader’s nephew killing himself, I think they’ve paused to regroup.”

“I’m glad things have simmered down,” Kendell said. “So, what do you have for me?”

“We managed to follow the money, as they say,” Maria said, handing a disappointingly small file to Kendell.

Kendell opened it up, and she could see some financial transactions. “What am I looking at?”

“You can see where Presagio’s money has been coming from, though the ‘who’ we’re not sure about. We just know the money transfers were coming from right here in your backyard—from New York City,” Maria explained. “Presagio’s sudden influx of cash has been coming from here.”

“Auspicio,” Pauline said. “But that still leaves the question as to where Auspicio has been getting their money. The police here told us that the group appeared out of nowhere fully funded, just like Presagio.”

“Maybe Auspicio is just a little closer to home to the money source?” Officer Maria suggested.

“Or maybe Auspicio is the one sending Presagio money, and a third source from who knows where is having Auspicio provide Presagio the cash they need?” Kendell asked. “From what it sounds like, Auspicio has been around a little longer than Presagio.”

“True, Presagio is still a pretty fresh wound for the Mexico populace,” Maria said. “Of course, this is still assuming Auspicio and Presagio are connected somehow.”

“Feds! Always the freaking Feds!” a familiar voice was growling on his way out the door. It was Detective Rupert, and he stopped on the front steps of the station when he spotted them. “Oh, great, now what?” he asked, stomping toward them. “Kendell, I told you we are handling it…and now the feds are here. This is what I get for listening to you.”

“The Feds?” Pauline asked. “Are you telling me the FBI is involved?”

Rupert grunted. “Chief made some call when I came to him with Kendell’s conspiracy theory, and then the FBI showed up and commandeered my office!”

“The FBI?” Kendell asked. “You’re joking.”

Another man came hurrying out of the station. This gentleman was dressed in a suit, and he looked quite serious. “Detective Rupert!” the man snapped. “I suggest you not storm out on me again!”

Detective Rupert crossed his arms, and Kendell was given the impression of a small child throwing a tantrum over not being allowed to play in his father’s office. “Yeah, okay,” Rupert said.

The man in the suit stopped, staring at Kendell, Pauline, and Maria. “Who are these ladies?” he demanded.

Rupert waved his hand toward Kendell. “This is Kendell, the woman whose husband was taken, and her…business partner, Pauline.”

The man in the suit then stared at Maria. “And you are?”

“Officer Maria,” she said. “Of Mexico City, Mexico.”

“Vacationing, are you?” the man asked.

Maria bucked up slightly. “Here to help a friend, actually. And who are you, exactly?”

“Agent Martin Frankford,” he said. “FBI.”

“Of course you are,” Kendell mumbled. “Please tell me you are going to help me find my husband and our friend?”

“That’s the plan, Mrs. Fletcher,” he said.

“Why have the FBI been called in for a kidnapping?” Kendell asked.

“That’s our concern,” he said, then pointed at the file. “And what is this?”

“A file on Presagio, a breakoff of a Mexican cartel,” Maria said. “Some research I had been doing for Kendell and Pauline.”

Agent Frankford snatched the file right out of Kendell’s hands and flopped it open, taking a look. He raised a brow. “You traced Presagio’s funds to here in New York?” he asked.

“That’s right,” Maria said, then smirked. “So, as a representative of Mexico City, I do expect you to be cooperative with our investigation, yes?”

“Our investigation,” Agent Frankford said.

“Ours,” Detective Rupert said. “This kidnapping is not—”

“Oh, all of you, shut up for a second,” Kendell hissed. “I don’t know why this is FBI territory all of a sudden, but frankly, I don’t care who helps me find my husband so long as someone does!”

Agent Frankford smiled. “Couldn’t agree more.”

“I’m worried that these new groups might be connected to nримета,” Kendell said. “And now I’m especially concerned after a phone call I got from a friend of mine earlier today. His name is Rodney. His twin brother died during the incident in Paris when the group was broken up. Because of his twin, he’s got some interesting connections with the former members of nримета. Come to find out, he’s been lying to me about reaching out to them, and I noticed in our last video that he was at the Statue of Liberty after having told me he was in Detroit.”

“Rodney,” Agent Frankford said for a moment. “One of the twins adopted out from the French orphanage that was connected to nримета?”

“You seem educated on the topic,” Pauline said, and Dot growled from under her arm.

Agent Frankford shrugged. “I’m FBI,” he said matter-of-factly. “It’s my job to know these things. You’re saying he’s here in New York? I hardly think that’s coincidental.”

“Me either,” Kendell said. “Pauline and I are going to the Statue of Liberty. For all I know, he’s still there. It wasn’t too long ago I spoke with him. I’m hoping to track him down. He might have some answer for me.”

There was a pause before Agent Frankford nodded and said, “Well, I’ll be coming with you. I believe it might be worth looking into. The rest of my team will remain here at the station. Detective Rupert, would you care to attend?”

This seemed to please Detective Rupert. “Of course,” he said, straightening himself up.

Agent Frankford glanced at Maria as well. “Off the books, of course, Officer Maria?”

“Of course,” Maria said, and the next thing Kendell knew, she was seated in the back of an FBI van, Agent Frankford at the wheel.

As it was New York, it took them a horrendous amount of time to get from the station to the Statue of Liberty. They boarded the first ferry to the statue, and Agent Frankford was not shy about flashing his badge to get people to back off and give them room to look about. “So,” Kendell said to Frankford, having somehow gotten stuck with him as a search partner when Pauline had trotted off with Maria and Rupert. “Why is it that the FBI has suddenly got involved? Don’t get me wrong, I’m glad to have as many eyes looking for my husband and our friend as possible, but I didn’t think a kidnapping of an adult New York citizen and a Yakuza gang member a top priority of the FBI?”

“The New York City Police Chief is a friend of mine,” Agent Frankford said. “Detective Rupert went to him about your little find—your inkling of a suspicion that these groups of yours might be connected. The chief goes straight to me when something seems out of the ordinary, and I felt it was worth investigating.”

“Really?” Kendell asked. “That’s it? That’s all it took?”

He shrugged. “We were in the area.”

Kendell was almost positive this man was not telling her the whole story, but she wasn’t going to push it. Jack and Futoshi now had the FBI looking for them. That had to count for something. As they walked about, Kendell tried to imagine the video call she’d had with Rodney only a few hours ago. Closing her eyes for a moment to visualize the camera angle, she felt like she knew about where he had been seated when she had spotted the Statue of Liberty in the background. She found a bench, and there sitting on the edge of the seat, she spotted a shiny watch. “Jack,” she said under her breath, hurrying to snag up the watch before someone decided to swipe up the expensive wedding gift. The watch was sitting on top of a book, A Series of Unfortunate Events: The Wide Window.

“Does that mean anything to you?” Agent Frankford asked.

“Yes, actually,” Kendell said. “This is my husband’s watch.”

“How can you be sure?”

“I gave it to him just before he was taken,” Kendell said. “He was wearing it. You can see the engraving on the inside—the state of Alaska with our wedding date inside.”

“Yes, you were married there, correct?” Agent Frankford asked, and Kendell stared. He shrugged. “I may have read your blog a few times.”

She smirked. She hadn’t expected to find a fan amongst the FBI. “Yes, well, this is his.”

“The book?” Agent Frankford asked next.

“Rodney told me it was one of his favorites,” Kendell said.

“A children’s book?” The agent sounded dubious.

“Yeah, well, he said it was a good story,” Kendell said. “I knew something was wrong when I realized Rodney had lied to me about being here in New York. He was right here, Rodney was. And somehow, he wound up with my husband’s watch… If he found something out about Jack… Why wouldn’t he call me? Rodney is supposed to be my friend. I don’t understand why he wouldn’t just tell me what’s going on.”

Agent Frankford sighed heavily, taking the book from her to examine it and shaking his head pitifully when he realized there wasn’t much more to it other than simply being a book. “He didn’t write in it…” Agent Frankford said bitterly.

Kendell stared. “Why would he?”

“Thought maybe he would be trying to send us a message,” Agent Frankford said.

“Why would Rodney be trying to send us a message?” Kendell asked.

Agent Frankford exhaled heavily. “I believe, Mrs. Fletcher, that it’s time we filled you in on what is really going on.”

10

“What do you mean by ‘what’s really going on,’ Agent Frankford?” Kendell asked pointedly, crossing her arms.

Pauline, Officer Maria, and Detective Rupert all seemed to have gathered nearby, somehow having sensed that they had found something important. “What did you find?” Pauline asked, and Kendell handed Pauline the watch and the book.

“Odd,” Pauline said. “Oh, dear, this is Jack’s watch! Was the book with it?”

“Yeah,” Kendell said, still eyeing Frankford in a distrusting manner. “Rodney had mentioned the book to me when we chatted earlier today—when I saw the Statue of Liberty in the background of his video. Agent Frankford here started going through it like he thought Rodney had left some coded message in it, and he was apparently going to tell me what was really going on here. Whatever that means.”

“Leave it to the Feds to keep everyone out of the loop,” Detective Rupert said snidely.

“You mean like what you were doing with Ms. Kendell and I?” Pauline countered.

Rupert rolled his eyes. “Yes, I suppose.”

“So, Agent Frankford, why has the FBI gotten involved? You in a sharing mood now or what?” Kendell asked.

Agent Frankford rolled his eyes now. “If you want to continue to be so unappreciative, I can keep my lips shut.”

Kendell glared at him. “No, please, do tell.”

“Rodney has been working for us,” Frankford said.

“What? For the FBI?” Kendell asked. “For what reason? Since when?”

“Shortly after your trip to Alaska, actually,” Agent Frankford said. “The FBI has had reason to believe that nримета still had some members operating in the shadows. That perhaps they still had some funds left behind after our initials raids following your little Paris incident.”

“So, nримета might still be around?”

“‘Might’ is no longer the question. The question is how big they’ve managed to have gotten while operating in the shadows. We brought Rodney in because we needed an inside man,” Agent Frankford said. “He has been pretending to be his dead twin, Aaron.”

“Oh, for crying out loud,” Kendell said, slapping her forehead. “You had Rodney, a Detroit-based food blogger, infiltrate an underground crime syndicate? You have him pretending to be Aaron?”

“Exactly,” Agent Frankford said. “It was quite easy to convince them he was the same man. They all found it rather hard to believe that Aaron had been one-upped by that loon who was running the orphanage.”

“But that doesn’t make any sense,” Pauline said. “Even if they believe he’s Aaron, Aaron had betrayed the group. He and Talia and the others had abandoned nримета to save their twins.”

“A hurdle we managed to get past,” Agent Frankford said. “Rodney did an excellent job. He convinced them that he wanted back in, that he had followed Talia and the others to Paris to infiltrate their rebellion. To find out what Talia and the others were up to. They bought the story, and they believed that Rodney—or rather, that Aaron—had set up his own twin to be targeted by nримета because he was so loyal and deep undercover for them to try to stop Talia and the others.”

“That’s a really screwed-up backstory you set up for him,” Kendell said. “Are you sure that they bought it?”

“Rodney has managed to get us a lot of information in very little time,” Frankford said. “However, locating your husband’s watch with a book you say Rodney had spoken to you about is alarming. Rodney is either hiding Jack from nримета or he has helped in the kidnapping somehow… Perhaps Jack even managed to escape and…maybe Rodney returned him?”

“What if…” Kendell said, her stomach doing flips at the thought. “What if Rodney switched sides on you? What if he joined his brother’s old organization, and now Jack is in serious trouble? Have you heard from him at all since Jack was taken?”

“No, and that is another reason I’m feeling a bit concerned right now,” Agent Frankford said. “Rodney has gone radio silent. Rodney is a civilian. We don’t make a habit of sending in civilians for undercover assignments, but he was confident. He wanted to help take down the organization that took out the brother he never got to meet. But suddenly, a few days ago, we stopped receiving intel. We assumed it was because it was too difficult for him to make contact, but then we find out he’s spoken to you…and now the watch… The watch being here makes me feel a bit uneasy. It means Rodney has been with Jack. Jack could have made contact with Rodney or Rodney could have kept his cover by taking Jack to them if the man managed to escape. If the latter is the case, he’s breaking some serious protocol. We don’t put civilians in danger to maintain cover—not like that, at least.”

“How did you make contact with him previously?” Maria asked. “If you needed to talk to him?”

“Video messages occasionally,” Frankford replied. “There were certain places he would regularly go to lunch around New York for us to meet up at, but he hasn’t dropped in for days. We have a twenty-four-hour rule, and he’s long past that.”

“You think Rodney could be in trouble too?” Pauline asked.

“I have no way of knowing,” Agent Frankford said. “But something is certainly not right.”

“So, what do you know about nримета, then?” Kendell demanded. “What can you tell us?”

Agent Frankford seemed to be contemplating this. He stared out into the harbor, a concentrated look about him. “I suppose if you’re going to be of any use to us, I should tell you. Rodney was able to find out that a lot more than a miniscule number of nримета remained. In fact, since they had been forced into the limelight thanks to your Paris stunt, the group began reaching out to other organizations. They contacted a gentleman named Jon Francisco.”

“Jon Francisco?” Kendell asked. “Any relation to Daniel Francisco?”

“Daniel is Jon’s nephew,” Officer Maria said. “You had the luck of meeting Daniel in Mexico before he shot himself. Jon is the leader of Presagio.”

“Yes,” Agent Frankford said. “Nримета reached out to the cartel, and they sent money directly to Jon to lead a revolt within the organization. The cartel split in two: those loyal to the original Zetas and those who wanted to follow Jon, who had partnered with nримета.”

“So, I was right,” Officer Maria said. “Someone has been sending them funds to help them get going.”

“Same thing here in New York with the mafia?” Detective Rupert asked. “Auspicio had to have gotten their startup money from somewhere.”

“Exactly,” Agent Frankford said. “Nримета has been uniting gangs and crime organizations all over the globe under a single name.”

“Omen,” Kendell said. “And it all started with nримета. What about Yakuza?”

“Yakuza has been contacted,” Agent Frankford said. “They would be a huge win for nримета if they could get someone to betray the kumicho. Even if only a third of Yakuza followed whoever nримета picked out, then it would probably double their numbers.”

“Kumicho Hayato prides himself on the loyalty of his men,” Kendell said, having had the unique pleasure of meeting the leader of the enormous crime syndicate. “Wait… What if they already tried?”

“What do you mean?” Pauline asked.

“Pauline, when you and I were in Japan…when one of the members were assassinated? There was an attempt to overthrow the kumicho then! Mr. Yuto must have been the one nримета contacted! We were right in the middle of another nримета attack and didn’t even know it!” Kendell exclaimed.

“Would you be able to identify Mr. Yuto for me if I showed you a picture?” Frankford asked, flipping through pictures on his phone.

“Of course,” Kendell said, then almost vomited at the picture of a decapitated head. “What the… Son of… Why?! I didn’t need to see that! You could have warned me!” Pauline, who did not have the pleasure of looking at the picture, laughed. “Okay, so he’s dead, apparently!” Kendell yelped. “Why do you have a picture of that on your phone?!”

“Rodney sent it to me,” Agent Frankford said. “Said it was sent to nримета leaders from Yakuza.”

“Yes, that was Mr. Yuto,” Kendell said, shaking herself off a bit from the shock. “Apparently, Kumicho Hayato found out who was the brains behind Mr. Yuto’s betrayal and decided to send them a message.”

“So now what, they took Futoshi? Probably to get intel on Yakuza to try to find out if there was anyone other than Mr. Yuto who might be useful to overthrowing Kumicho Hayato,” Pauline said.

“You ladies have gotten yourself involved in some serious business, haven’t you?” Detective Rupert said, shaking his head. “Honestly… So, why New York?”

“Seems to be their new headquarters,” Agent Frankford said. “After their Russian and French locations were compromised thanks to these ladies, they had to find a new place to call home. Auspicio has had the greatest success rate as far as the number of people they’ve managed to pull into their fold, so they probably felt safest setting up camp here.”

“What’s their long-term goal, then?” Kendell asked.

“Complete, global control over organized crime, it seems,” Agent Frankford said. “And that’s something that will be nearly impossible for us to fight. So far, they’ve got a pretty good track record. Rodney has been getting names for us…but like I said, he’s gone quiet.”

“What now?” Kendell asked. “What’s the next step?”

“Next step is to find Futoshi, Jack, and Rodney,” Frankford said. “And, now, you have the FBI at your full disposal, so how about just this once, folks, we stop worrying about jurisdictions and lines in the sand and actually put our heads together on this one? Otherwise, New York is about to become the crime capital of the entire world, and something tells me none of you are going to want that to happen.”

“Better than Mexico City,” Officer Maria said under her breath. “But, no, I don’t want this growing. It’s already hit us pretty hard. Let’s put a stop to this thing before it really starts to snowball.”

“Fine,” Detective Rupert said. “Not like you’re giving us much of a choice. I’m not about to let my city get turned into a kingdom for this… What did you call them? Nримета?”

“Omen,” Kendell said. “They’re Omen. And we’re going to put a stop to them before they get out of hand.”

“Agreed,” Pauline said, and Dot seemed to bark in agreement. “Let’s make a stance here and now that this little group is not welcomed on American shores—or Mexico, of course, Maria. Don’t want to leave you out there. I would like to think that Rodney has not betrayed us here. Plus, why leave behind the watch and the book if he wasn’t trying to send some sort of message?”

“Good question,” Agent Frankford said. “This book must mean something. I’ll have my team analyze it. It doesn’t appear to have any markings, but you never know. Rodney is a smart man. He might have come up with something.”

11

Kendell and Pauline spent most of the day at the station along with Officer Maria, Detective Rupert, and Agent Frankford. They analyzed the book over and over again, but there didn’t seem to be any sort of hidden message within it. They looked at security cameras all over the city, trying to find out which way the black van had gone. Finally, they traced it to a warehouse, only to find it abandoned. The police had commandeered the vehicle and searched it with a fine-toothed comb, but not a sliver of evidence had been left behind.

Eventually, the hour had gotten rather late. Poor Pauline had only just passed out on a bench in the lobby when Kendell headed over to wake her and suggest they head back to her apartment for the night. Not sleeping was not going to find Jack, Futoshi, and Rodney. Pauline sat up on the bench, rubbing her eyes. Dot was still asleep near where her feet had been moments ago. “Oh!” Pauline whined. “I feel like we haven’t gotten any further along. I feel like we haven’t done anything.”

“I know the feeling,” Kendell admitted.

The ladies bid farewell to Detective Rupert and Agent Frankford, and they invited Maria along with them as she had no place to stay after arriving in town so last minute. The three of them, along with Dot, headed up to the second-floor apartment. It was rather late by the time they got home, so it was dark as they entered.

Immediately, an arm seized Kendell in a headlock, and she and the unknown assailant went stumbling into the apartment. Pauline flicked on the lights, and Maria came bursting into the room. A large, burly man had jumped her and was currently choking her, but Kendell didn’t have to worry for too long because Maria tackled them both, sending them flying into the coffee table with the two women on top of the man.

Dot got loose and ran around the now-broken coffee table, barking. The man roared, jumping up rather quickly with his arms up. Maria, who had gotten up faster than him, held her hands up and managed to punch the stranger one good time in the nose before he bolted toward her, only to be hit in the head by Pauline’s handbag.

“Get ‘im! Get ‘im!” was all Pauline could manage to say in her excitement and surprise. She kept hitting the man on the head while he attempted to swing on Maria.

“Knock it off, grannie!” he snapped. “What do you got in there, bricks?”

Maria punched him in the nose again, and now it was bloodied. He rammed her, so Kendell reached out and grabbed the man by his hair, pulling him back. The three of them—the man, Kendell, and Maria—staggered around, all grabbing onto one another. Kendell managed to bite the man once.

He at last threw them off and seemed prepared to ram into Maria once again when he suddenly yet out a horrid yelp and fell flat on his face on the ground, twitching. Kendell, who had managed to receive a busted lip and a twisted ankle during the assault, glanced up from where she now sat on the floor next to the twitching man to see Pauline standing over him holding a Taser.

“Let go of the button!” Maria said. Pauline dropped the little gun, and the man stopped twitching. He now lay passed out on the floor, prongs from the Taser sticking out of the back of his neck.

“Why do you have that in your purse?!” Maria exclaimed.

“Are you complaining?” Pauline asked. “I’m an old lady. Got to protect myself somehow.”

“Don’t tell me you’ve had that thing the entire time we’ve been travelling,” Kendell said. “How did you manage to sneak that onto a plane?”

“Forget about the Taser,” Maria said, pushing the man onto his back with his boot and wiping a bit of blood from her nose. “Who is this idiot?”

“I’m going to call Agent Frankford,” Pauline said, scurrying into the kitchen. Dot didn’t follow her as Kendell expected. Instead, the little dog hopped right up onto the man’s chest and proceeded to pee on him before hurrying after her owner.

“Nice,” Kendell said, smirking at the little dog, who seemed quite proud of herself.

Maria pulled a phone out of the man’s pocket. “He’s got a message,” Maria said and then frowned. “Kendell, check your blog.”

“Huh?” Kendell asked.

“That’s the message. It says: Kendell, check your blog,” Maria said, worried.

Kendell hurried to her computer that had thankfully been sitting on the end table and not the coffee table where she usually left it. Less than three seconds ago, she had received a message through her blog. It was a video. She nervously clicked on it.

There, she saw Rodney, smirking at the camera. It was dark out, and she could see a tired Jack in the background crouched on his knees, his wrists behind his back while a man stood looming over him, a gun at his back. Next to Jack was Futoshi in a similar posture. Rodney smiled. “Kendell, if you’re seeing this, then our little abduction failed as I predicted,” Rodney said. “I told my superiors you were more trouble than you look.” He nodded at someone standing off camera, and the man came over to Futoshi, pulling him to his feet. He and the man who had been standing over him dragged him to the side, and the camera zoomed out, revealing that they were on a barge. Rodney held up a gun, walked over to a shaking Futoshi, and shot him in the chest before pushing him over the side and into the dark water below.

“No!” Kendell wailed, and she could hear Jack shouting the same thing in the video.

Rodney smiled again at the camera. “There’s an address in my friend’s phone. You and Pauline are to come alone, or your husband will be joining your little Japanese gangster. You have forty-eight hours. Let’s not have any more unfortunate events on our hands, shall we?” The video ended, and Kendell covered her mouth in despair.

Looking up, she could see Pauline staring blankly back from the kitchen, the phone to her ear. “Was that what I think? Did he shoot Futoshi?” Pauline asked, tossing the phone to Maria, who had watched the video with Kendell. Pauline re-watched the video, looking mortified. “He did it! Rodney shot Futoshi!”

Maria was speaking frantically on the phone with Agent Frankford, telling him everything that had just transpired from the attempted abduction to the video. Kendell sat frozen on the couch. What did Omen want with her and Pauline? She shook her head. Revenge. She and Pauline had broadcasted their existence to the world, broken up their organization, stopped the takeover of Yakuza, and were witnesses against their Mexican Presagio group. The group wanted to silence them.

The next thing Kendell knew, her apartment was flooded with FBI agents along with Detective Rupert, who seemed to like to feel important. The man who had assaulted them had hit his head hard and was now being taken to a hospital, escorted by a local officer who was to wait with him until he woke up from his little coma. Her living room became the FBI’s new station for this current investigation.

Agent Frankford was on the phone. “Yes, find that barge! I’m serious! A man’s life is at stake, do you hear me? I want choppers searching the water for the body too…”

Kendell shuddered. She could not believe what she had just seen. She felt the need to distract herself from the madness. She locked herself up in her room and opened her laptop. She pulled up her blog, wanting to look at pictures from the wedding—to see Jack in his handsome suit. She smiled at a picture of the two of them holding each other close and smiling wildly at the camera. A picture popped up of Rodney, and she was tempted to slam the thing shut, but she didn’t. “How could you?” she accused as a picture of Rodney and Futoshi appeared, toasting and laughing at some shared joke from their time spent in Alaska as part of the makeshift bridal party.

What had changed? He had obviously betrayed the FBI, but why? Rodney, the guy who had introduced her to the world of blogging! The guy who had taught her and helped her… The guy who had helped bring down Omen in Paris and had flown out to Alaska just to help her blog look good for her wedding! What changed?

She started looking back at old pictures. She found the first picture she had ever taken of herself on Rodney, which had been on that fateful plane ride from Georgia to Paris where Pauline had elected to remain behind, Kendell not having known that Jack was waiting for her in Paris to propose. She and Rodney had sat next to each other on that flight, and a friendship had sprung out of that conversation about blogging. She had started her blog then and there with his help. She looked at the picture of the two of them on the plane, making faces at the camera. Then, she stopped. “That’s not…not him…” she said. She started looking at later pictures. Pictures from their time together in Paris. Pictures from Alaska. No, the man in the first picture… It was a different person. “No… No way… Wait…”

It hit her suddenly. That day on the plane was the one and only time she had ever met Rodney. That brief moment on the plane where he had shown her his blog and taught her how to make a successful business with her own was the last time she had ever spoken to Rodney because…the real Rodney had died in Paris.

“Oh…my…gosh…” Kendell said. The man she had come to know and love as the spunky travel blogger—the one who had bravely faced Omen in Paris—that wasn’t Rodney. That was Aaron.

She jolted off her bed and burst into the living room, where Pauline was speaking with Maria, Rupert, and Frankford. “Rodney’s dead!” Kendell cried.

“Don’t worry, we’ll get him, hon,” Maria said.

“No,” she said, revealing her laptop. “I mean he’s dead! He was killed! A long time ago.”

“What are you talking about?” Pauline asked.

“We had it wrong, Pauline,” Kendell said. “Aaron didn’t die in Paris. Rodney did!” She showed them the photos. The differences were subtle, but no one denied it. “Aaron, after Rodney was killed, took his brother’s identity and fled from Omen! Then the FBI hired Aaron thinking he was Rodney, but he really was Aaron! You guys gave him a backstory—the backstory he needed to convince Omen he was still loyal. He’s back with his old organization!”

“I’m so confused… So we thought Aaron, the Russian assassin, was the one who was killed in Paris, but it was really Rodney? And Aaron, who had betrayed Omen, decided to take his brother’s identity to hide from Omen? Then the FBI shows up thinking he’s Rodney and offers him a way back in, and he takes it?!” Pauline exclaimed. “This is the most insane thing I’ve ever seen.”

“This is madness!” Maria said.

“Wait until your readers hear about this one, Kendell,” Pauline said. “Turns out you had a real-life Russian assassin in your wedding party!”

“Pauline!” Kendell yelped. “Not the time!”

12

It felt as though half the night had gone rather quickly. Kendell and Pauline hovered alongside the FBI agents who had gathered in her home, looking over their shoulders as they worked on their computers analyzing data of all kinds—particularly street cameras in their attempt to track down the men who still had Jack. One agent was on the phone with local police who were conducting a search of the harbor for Futoshi’s body.

Officer Maria had set herself up in one corner, and she was constantly on the phone with contacts in Mexico, trying to gather additional intel on Presagio. Detective Rupert was doing the same in regard to Auspicio. For the most part, Kendell was starting to feel quite helpless and useless. The barge had been located. Evidence of their presence had been found but nothing that was able to aid in their search. Kendell was beginning to feel that the only way she was going to see her husband again was in a body-bag, and the thought mortified her. Instead of sinking into herself, though, she rolled up her sleeves and pulled back her hair to help herself focus. While at the moment she felt as though her hands were a tied, she wanted to be ready and levelheaded when she saw a moment to do something.

“Anything new?” Kendell asked Agent Frankford for the tenth time in the past hour.

He was just getting off the phone and shook his head. “Nothing yet,” he said. “I was on the phone with the officer overseeing the search for Futoshi, but they haven’t found anything.”

Kendell’s blood was still boiling. She was sad and angry and hurt. Rodney, or rather Aaron, had betrayed them. He had apparently gotten bored playing the role of his innocent blogger brother. The man had left Omen to protect Rodney from them, though he had evidently been unsuccessful, so to learn that he had turned on them and was working for Omen, the people who had ordered the death of Rodney to begin with, well, it made her sick.

There was a sudden knock on her door, and the apartment seemed to go quiet all at once. Agent Frankford looked around, seeming to be doing a mental check of who all was present and noting that no one seemed to be missing. Pauline had scurried over to the door. “Pauline, I wouldn’t,” Kendell said as the woman peered through the peephole.

“What in the world?!” Pauline exclaimed and flung open the door.

And there, soaking wet and clutching his chest, was Futoshi. “Futoshi!” Kendell exclaimed, and Futoshi looked rather nervous as she ushered him into the room. He glanced around, not liking being surprised by a room full of FBI agents and New York City cops.

“I’m fine,” he assured her.

Officer Maria hurried over. “Hold up, let me take a look at you. I’ll be the judge of that!” she declared, unbuttoning his shirt to reveal a lightweight, bulletproof vest.

“What?” Kendell asked, bewildered. “How are you alive?”

With his shirt off and the bulletproof vest removed, Kendell could see the detailed tattoos that covered his entire neck and torso. Right in the center of his chest, where in the video Aaron had shot him, was an enormous bruise. “The vest, obviously,” Futoshi said, rubbing his chest where the bruise was.

“I’m so glad you’re okay,” Kendell said, and she sat down on the couch by the man and hugged him. Futoshi seemed quite uncomfortable with the physical affection, but he let her hug him anyway.

“Let’s get the man some dry clothes,” Pauline said, scurrying off and returning shortly with some of Jack’s clothes.

“Thank you,” Futoshi said, standing up.

“Hold on just a second,” Agent Frankford said, preventing him from walking to the hall bath. “We’re going to need an explanation.”

Pauline popped Agent Frankford in the arm. “Let him get into some dry clothes, would you?”

“Thank you,” Futoshi said again, and he made quick work of getting himself dried off and changed. He arrived a moment later, still rubbing his chest.

“What happened?” Kendell asked.

“Rodney… I mean, Aaron,” Futoshi said, “came to me and Jack in the holding room. Made me put on vest, explained he was going to help. Then he shot me, and I fell into water.”

“He got you out of there,” Kendell said.

Futoshi grunted. “After putting Jack back in. Jack escaped. Aaron take him back to make himself look good to them.”

“That is greatly against protocol,” Agent Frankford assured them. “So, he is still helping us?”

“If he was helping you, why would he bring Jack back to these people?” Kendell snapped.

“He said it was to make him look good in front of Omen. To get them to trust him,” Futoshi said.

“And how did Jack feel about that?” Kendell asked.

“He punched Aaron in nose,” Futoshi said. “But he promised to keep his mouth shut for Aaron in front of Omen.”

“Glad he punched him in the nose. I hope it’s broken!” Kendell snapped.

“Me too,” Pauline said.

Agent Frankford hovered near them, staring Futoshi down. “And what is your involvement exactly? Why did Omen take you?”

“Omen tried to get Mr. Yuto to join them,” Futoshi said. “Just like they did with New York mafia and with Mexican cartel. They wanted to cause a split in Yakuza.”

“I was right,” Kendell said, a little surprised at herself. “Mr. Yuto was working for Omen this whole time.”

“Yes,” Futoshi said. “They kidnap me because they wanted to kill me. They were going to kill me until they saw Jack. They have hit out on Pauline and Kendell too, so they hold Jack so they can get to Kendell and Pauline. Kendell and Pauline broke up their organization in Paris. They messed up deal with Yakuza, and because of them, Presagio’s leader’s nephew killed himself. They want you two more than they wanted me. If they had known you were in the diner that day, they would have come and gotten you and left Jack on the street.”

“Do you have any idea where they were headed?” Frankford asked. “Before they shot you?”

“They were moving from barge,” Futoshi said. “But I do not know where.”

Kendell crossed her arms, unsure of what to feel now. Aaron had saved Futoshi, but he had also put Jack in danger. She wasn’t sure what to think, but she was certainly glad that Futoshi was back and out of danger. Was Aaron on their side? Or was this just another play of his? Surely there was something more she could do.

13

Kendell had set Futoshi up in her guest room shortly after Agent Frankford finished badgering him with several detailed questions. The man was exhausted, and he looked so peaceful when Kendell peeked in on him and found him asleep a little while later. He was a rather uptight man, so it was odd seeing him in this state. His face was terribly bruised, and Kendell couldn’t allow herself to think that way. She needed to focus.

She closed the door behind her, looking around the living area where the FBI was still set up. Even with the arrival of Futoshi, she felt as though they were no further along than they had been before. Futoshi hadn’t been able to give them much to go off of, and that had only led to further frustrations. She could hear Pauline arguing with Detective Rupert and Agent Frankford, acting as a middle-woman between the hot-tempered men who seemed to have different opinions on what actions to take next.

Feeling frustrated that the past several hours had not brought any results, Kendell slipped into her bedroom and reopened her laptop. Sitting cross-legged on the bed, she placed the laptop on her legs and began looking through her blog again—eyeing pictures of Aaron, formerly thought to be his twin brother Rodney. It felt rather strange. She had apparently only met the real Rodney one time on that plane ride. After that, the real Rodney had been murdered the night she and Jack had gotten engaged. They had thought Aaron had died, but Aaron had evidently seized an opportunity to do just what he had been trained to do: play the part of his non-assassin twin. He had done it not for Omen but for his own benefit to get away from the organization that was crumbling around him. But then when the FBI presented him with an opportunity to get back into Omen, he took it. The question now was: why? Did he really want revenge against Omen for killing the twin brother he had never known or did he really want back in?

“Since it’s really Aaron…” Kendell pondered to herself. “Maybe he is just using his training as an assassin to do the work the FBI sent him to do? He just doesn’t need their help, so that’s why he hasn’t been checking in?”

She sighed. She pulled up Rodney’s food blog, skimming through it. It seemed that Aaron had continued his brother’s blog, completely wrapped up in his new identity. Kendell skimmed through some of the newer entries. Now that she knew the truth, she wondered why she hadn’t realized something was up before. The older blogs, written by Rodney, were flawless. Well organized, well thought out, filled with pictures of the food he was reviewing. The later blogs, the ones written by Aaron pretending to be his brother, were simply horrid.

“Geez, Aaron, did they not teach you to spell in Russia?” Kendell wondered aloud. “Sloppy writing…spelling errors…grammar errors…” Kendell sat upright. “Grammar…”

She took her laptop with her and scurried out into the living room, marching over to the table they had set up on one wall—the table of evidence such as Jack’s watch and the book Aaron had left behind. After setting the laptop down, she picked up the book and flipped through it. She found the chapter in which the orphaned children decoded their relative’s suicide note to find the location she had made into her hideaway. She skimmed through the chapter, taking note of what the orphaned children had done to decode the note. “No freaking way…” she said, then raised her voice for the room to hear. “Yo! Someone get me a pencil and paper!”

Agent Frankford, who had been standing nearby, reached into his suit jacket and pulled out a pen. Pauline located a small notebook and passed it to her as well. Putting the book down, Kendell turned her attention to the latest blog post Aaron had made less than six hours ago. “What did you find?” Frankford asked.

“I think Aaron is still working for you, Agent Frankford,” Kendell said. “I think he used his brother’s blog to send you a message.”

She had to take it slow to catch the errors in the review he had done of a hot dog stand there in New York. She noticed in the first line an uppercase J in the middle of a sentence. She wrote it down. A typo next, “Big Aaple.” The extra A. Hot dog cart spelt Ckart. “Jack,” she said confidently and continued working her way through the blog.

Officer Maria took over with the pen, writing down letters as Kendell called them out. “A… B…” Kendell paused, double-checking herself. “E…” she said, noticing a comma out of place. “R… D and an E… Another E… N… H… O…” She paused again, double-checking. “T… E… l…”

“Jack. Aberdeen Hotel!” Maria exclaimed.

Kendell stood upright, looking directly at Agent Frankford. “My husband is being held captive,” Kendell said, “at the Aberdeen Hotel!”

14

“The address Aaron left you is really close to that hotel,” Officer Maria said. “They must be planning on dragging you off to the hotel too. They must have some sort of base in there they are operating out of.”

“I did a tour of the Aberdeen Hotel the first time I came to New York,” Pauline said dreamily, as though this was the perfect time for reflection.

“We know where they are holding Jack,” Kendell said. “Aaron is still on our side, it seems.”

“Maybe,” Agent Frankford said uncertainly. “He broke protocol.”

“He broke protocol because he knew what he was doing and could handle it just fine without you,” Detective Rupert said from where he sat chomping on some Chinese takeout on Kendell’s sofa. “You accidentally hired a trained Russian assassin.”

“I believe that Aaron wants revenge against Omen,” Kendell said. “He wants revenge against Omen for the same reason we thought Rodney would have wanted it: because they killed his brother. We can trust his intel.”

“Aaron has been trained up from birth by these people,” Frankford said. “He was taken from that orphanage when he was just a baby. The amount of mental manipulation he has gone through… I don’t know if we can trust him. When I thought he was Rodney, I was a bit more willing to trust. Rodney was raised an American citizen. He was, well, one of us.”

“Americans…” Officer Maria said with an eyeroll.

“The whole reason Aaron was even in Paris the day I met him was because he was there with the sole purpose of protecting Rodney,” Kendell said. “A brother he never even had the opportunity to know. Someone he was taken from at birth. Aaron and the others we met in Paris, the ones from Omen, they all had hits out on them for one reason: because they refused to take advantage of their family members. Omen wanted them to kill their twins and infiltrate their lives. The twins had been adopted into prominent families, Rodney included. Aaron was running from Omen when I met him because he refused to hurt his brother. I think we can trust that he wants to take Omen down. Whether we can trust him with anything else or not, I’m not sure.”

A side door opened, and Futoshi came walking into the room, still looking tired. “Aaron saved my life,” Futoshi said, trying to stand upright despite the pain from the beatings he had taken. “He saved me so that I could tell Kendell that Aaron was on our side.”

Kendell came and stood by Futoshi, and he put his hand on her shoulder for balance. Kendell nodded in agreement. “Not only that, but he’s been trying to send me clues this whole time. Even in that video of him shooting Futoshi, he referenced unfortunate events because he wanted me to remember the conversation we had had about the book, in case him leaving the book behind wasn’t enough of a hint. He wanted to be sure. And he did a review online so that he could reach out to me and to you. Agent Frankford, you said that he broke protocol because he wasn’t checking in, but he was! He was checking in through his blog using coded messages because it wasn’t safe for him to do it in any other way.”

“I agree with her assessment,” Detective Rupert said, and Kendell was quite pleased the officer wasn’t still acting snippety with her. “Aaron can be trusted.”

“I agree,” Officer Maria said. “And if Jack is still being held captive at the Aberdeen Hotel, then we need to make sure we get to him before anything worse happens.”

Frankford nodded. “They gave you forty-eight hours,” he said. “Let’s make use of some of that time.” He pointed toward an agent. “I need you looking at any of Aaron’s blog posts in the last seventy-two hours to see if he has been sending us messages this whole time. Detective Rupert, can you get me the blueprints to the Aberdeen Hotel?”

“On it,” Rupert said, jumping up.

“Kendell, I need you to do something quite difficult for me,” Agent Frankford said, going and picking up the cellphone that had been left behind by the man Pauline had managed to take out with her stun-gun. “I need you to call the number on here and ask for proof of life.”

Kendell felt her stomach flip. “Proof of life?” she asked. “You think they might have—”

“No,” he said. “But I want them to believe you are playing into their game for now.”

Kendell nodded. “Now?” she asked.

“Right now,” Frankford said. “And I don’t want a single one of you to make a sound. If we’re lucky, we can trace the call.” He nodded toward an agent who was on her computer in a flash, ready to try to trace the call.

Maria and Pauline stood on either side of Kendell. “You got this, girly,” Pauline assured her.

Kendell dialed the last number that had come in through the phone—the same number that had sent Kendell the address of a parking garage not far from the hotel. The phone rang only twice. “Travis?” the voice on the other line asked.

“Good to know the name of the idiot you sent to snatch us up,” Kendell said. “Couldn’t take on me and an elderly woman. Might want to be more careful about who you hire to do your dirty work.”

Agent Frankford shook his head, letting Kendell know not to push the man on the other line. “Ah! Mrs. Fletcher,” the voice sang in what Kendell thought was a Spanish accent. “Did you get our message?”

Officer Maria scribbled something on a piece of paper, telling Kendell what to say. Kendell read it out loud. “Yes, you killed Futoshi. Why?”

“He got in the way,” the voice said. “I’m sure you knew all about our friend, Mr. Yuto. If Omen had managed to gain even a fraction of Yakuza, our numbers would have gone up drastically. Now, if you’re on the phone, I’m assuming you got the address we sent you? Tick-tock, Mrs. Fletcher.”

“How do I know my husband is still alive?” Kendell asked. “What do you even want with me and Pauline?”

“Right now? Just to talk,” the voice said. “You’ve gotten in our way far too many times, Mrs. Fletcher.”

Kendell gritted her teeth. “Fine. I’ll come play. But you’re going to need to prove to me that my husband is still alive, or I’ll march right down to the station and tell the police about the idiot you sent after me!”

“I highly recommend you do not involve the police,” the man said. “But if you want proof of life, that much we can manage for you.”

There was silence. The agent who had been trying to track the location of the call sat upright suddenly, grinning and shooting Kendell a thumbs-up. They had the location of the call. “Kendell?” a familiar voice came through from the other side. It was Jack, and Kendell felt as though all the air had been pulled from her lungs.

“Jack!” she exclaimed. “I love you so much… Are you okay? Are you hurt?” She heard a cry of pain come from him, and she jolted. Her body shook, and her hand clenched tightly around the phone as she held it out in front of her. “Don’t you dare!” Kendell shouted.

In the background, they could hear Jack calling out, “Don’t come! Don’t come, Kendell! Don’t do it!” followed by a muffled groan.

“Satisfied, Mrs. Fletcher?” the voice asked.

“Who are you?” Kendell demanded.

“My name? I am Jon Francisco,” he said. “I believe you met my nephew during your adventure through the Mexican desert. And, because of you, he’s dead.”

“Your nephew killed himself,” Kendell snapped. “That’s not on me.”

“Come and get your husband, Ms. Kendell. Because there are a number of men here who are quite agitated at you who would love to take it out on him. You have thirty-nine hours left to comply.” Jon Francisco hung up the phone.

“Aaron’s intel was good,” the woman agent behind the computer said. “They’re at the Aberdeen.”

“If Jon Francisco is at the Aberdeen…” Officer Maria said, muttering a bit to herself. “Do you think other leaders from Omen are there as well? Why else would Jon be here from Mexico?”

“There is a big move taking place soon,” Futoshi said. “Maybe Omen is gathering leaders?”

This seemed like a rather exciting prospect for Agent Frankford. He glanced to the agent he had put in charge of decoding Aaron’s blog posts. “Anything?” he asked.

“Yeah,” the man said, smirking. “He’s been sending us names… Looks like all the big dogs have come out to play this weekend. Futoshi’s right. There is some sort of negotiation, some sort of deal, taking place right here in New York.”

There was a knock on the door. “Rupert must be back,” Frankford said as another agent went to answer the door.

Detective Rupert stood in the doorway, a rolled-up blueprint in his arms. Someone was gripping him by his shoulder. “Umm…” Rupert said nervously. “Ran into some friends of yours on my way back…”

Kendell glanced around Officer Maria to see an Asian man in a suit forcing the detective into the room. The agents all drew their guns, but the man in the suit immediately released Rupert and looked around the room. He smiled when he saw Futoshi. “Friends!” Futoshi shouted. “Don’t shoot!”

Slipping in right behind the man was a more familiar face, and Kendell could hardly believe who was standing in her apartment building. “Kumicho Hayato?” Kendell asked, and the old Asian man smiled and bowed his head just as a young woman came flying around him and into the room. It was Haruyo, and she ran straight for Futoshi, wrapped her arms around his neck, and kissed him. Futoshi seemed to almost melt around the woman.

“Oh, that’s new,” Pauline whispered to Kendell.

“Not the time,” Kendell said.

Agent Frankford seemed at a loss for what to do as several more Yakuza members simply welcomed themselves onto the scene of his operations. “So,” Agent Frankford said, staring at the kumicho. “You are the famous Hayato, leader of one of the world’s largest crime syndicates, and you just come walking onto American soil, for what?”

“Just visiting my kobun,” he said, smiling at Kendell. He then looked back at Agent Frankford with a most serious expression. “And to help.”

“Not going to happen,” Frankford said.

Hayato smirked. He pointed at the man who had first arrived with Detective Rupert. “This is Ren. He has been contacted by Omen, and he has been playing the role of a traitor for my benefit to get information about this group that keeps trying to infiltrate Yakuza.”

Ren grinned. “I invited to visit Omen for big meeting in New York.”

Agent Frankford’s wheels were clearly turning as he contemplated the magnitude of this. “Really?” he asked.

“Really,” Hayato said, cracking his knuckles slightly. “I am kumicho of Yakuza. Omen is like a dog who likes to bite. This time, Omen has bitten an opponent who will bite back much harder.”

Ren nodded. “What Omen plans, it will be bad for both of us.”

“We have thirty-nine hours,” Agent Frankford said. “Let’s see what we can come up with.”

15

Kendell and Pauline walked alongside one another as they entered the parking garage down the road from the Aberdeen Hotel. It was dark and fairly deserted apart from the cars parked along either side of them. It was also frightfully quiet, apart from the occasional chattering in her ear as she waited for instructions from Agent Frankford. “Ladies, Ren just finished his scope of the hotel. They’ve already moved Jack. Looks like you’re going in.”

Kendell exhaled heavily. The FBI had agents in civilian clothes all over the hotel, ready to take down the members of Omen who had come out for the meeting. Plan A had been for them to remove Jack with a quiet strike team, but it seemed like Omen had already moved him out. That meant Plan B. Kendell and Pauline were going to have to actually meet face to face with the kidnappers and hope that they had Jack with them. There were FBI agents hiding out nearby, but that didn’t make Kendell feel too much safer.

“No, bad dog… Stop that,” Agent Frankford’s voice echoed in his ear. Dot had been left behind with the agent in the van.

“Don’t you dare,” Pauline warned. “You’re supposed to be taking care of my baby.”

“Focus, Pauline,” Frankford said.

“These things in my ears are very uncomfortable,” Pauline grumbled.

“Oh no,” Kendell said, looking up ahead. There was Aaron along with five other men in suits.

While Kendell had put her confidence in Aaron’s intel, she hadn’t expected him to be here as part of the meetup. She trusted him, but not entirely. “What do we do?” Pauline whispered.

“Act like you feel betrayed by him,” Agent Frankford said. “As far as these other members of Omen believe, you still think this guy is Rodney.”

Kendell and Pauline arrived, holding up their hands. “Where’s my husband?” Kendell demanded.

The man in the center of the group smirked. “You two?” he asked as though he was quite surprised. He turned to Aaron. “These ladies right here? These are the ones that have been causing all the trouble?”

“Those are the ones,” Aaron said confidently, though Kendell felt she sensed a bit of nerves in him. “Real troublemakers. Sorry about Futoshi, by the way.”

“Where is my husband?” she asked again.

The man who had spoken first went to a car and popped open the trunk. He reached in, grabbing the unfortunate passenger by his torn-up shirt, and jerked him out of the car in one swift motion, causing him to fall onto the pavement. Kendell’s heart leaped. She wanted to run straight to him, but she thought better of it. Jack remained lying on his side at the man’s feet. His arms were bound behind his back, and a strip of cloth had been used as a gag. When Jack glanced up, she could see his face had taken a bit of abuse. He looked mortified to see her there. “Mmm…” he muttered from beneath his gag, shaking his head.

“Now, unless you want us to finish him off, we’re all going to take a ride,” the man said.

“Do not—I repeat—do not get into the car with them!” Agent Frankford’s voice rang out in their ears. “Agents are on the way.”

Kendell glared at the man. “I’m not about to do that,” Kendell said, scanning the group. “When I spoke with Jon Francisco on the phone, he said you all just wanted to talk. You think I’m going to let you drag me off to another location?”

“Smart girl,” the man said, drawing a gun and pointing it at Jack. “In the car, ladies. The heads of Omen are just dying to get their hands on you.”

He went to fire on Jack. “No!” Kendell cried, and she felt Pauline grab her and hold her back. She heard a gun go off, but it wasn’t the man’s.

In fact, the man fumbled back, clutching his chest, and he fell. Looking to her side, she could see Aaron holding a gun of his own. He smiled and shrugged as his fellow Omen members looked at him, befuddled by what had just taken place. “Guess I’m made,” he said in a thick Russian accent.

One man jumped him, wrestling the gun from his hands, but Aaron went full spy on them. He lunged forward, flipping the man over his shoulder. Kendell and Pauline ran to Jack, and they helped him sit up. Kendell untied his gag as Pauline fumbled to free Jack’s wrists. Kendell held Jack’s face in her hands. “Thank God,” she said before she kissed him.

She heard Aaron let out a slight grunt, and she glanced over—even with his training, he wasn’t holding his own super well against four men. She jumped up to her feet. “Don’t you dare,” Jack said, but she ran over and leaped onto one man’s back, reaching around and jabbing her fingers into his eyes.

“Leave him alone!” she shouted. The man threw Kendell off, and after she landed on the pavement, he kicked her hard in the stomach. She was certain she was going to throw up for a moment.

Jack, evidently free after Pauline had thought to use Kendell’s apartment keys to cut through the tie, bolted over and hit the man who had dared kicked Kendell so hard in the face that he toppled over completely. A gun went off, and Aaron fell to the ground, gripping his stomach. The man with the gun turned toward Jack and Kendell. Jack’s arms went around Kendell, and she felt him pull her back and out of the way, but the man didn’t have time to fire. A car came out of nowhere, running straight into the man, who went up and over the vehicle before landing unconscious on the ground.

The last two men, realizing they were now greatly outnumbered, bolted. The doors to the car flung open, and Agent Frankford along with Officer Maria came hurrying out. Maria tackled the nearest man who was trying to make his getaway, and Agent Frankford bolted after the first when Pauline stepped out from behind a car and flung her arm out, clotheslining the runner by the throat.

“No way,” was all Kendell managed to say as the man landed flat on his back and gripped his throat, gagging.

Jack too stood with his mouth gaping open as Dot came running out of the car toward Pauline, barking and growling at the man now choking on his own saliva. Agent Frankford turned the man onto his stomach and placed him in cuffs as Dot latched onto the man’s ankle. Pauline whistled, and the little dog followed after her as she approached Kendell and Jack. “That was exhilarating!” Pauline said, holding her wrist.

“Pauline! Did you break your wrist?” Kendell asked.

“Maybe,” she said. “Probably just bruised it pretty good… Oh, dear, Aaron!”

Kendell, after having almost watched her husband get shot right in front of her, had almost forgotten that Aaron had taken a bullet first. She hurried to his side, as did Jack. Aaron had sat himself up and was currently gripping his side. “I’m fine…” Aaron said, smirking. “When did you figure out who I really was?”

“A pretty recent discovery,” Kendell said, rolling up his shirt to get a good look at the wound. “You need to lay down.”

Aaron nodded, and he allowed Kendell and Jack to help him onto his back. Officer Maria, once ensuring all the goons who had arrived on scene were detained and confirmed the one that Rodney had shot was dead, hurried over to Aaron’s side to look at the wound. “Not bad. Entry and exit wounds. Easy fix…”

“Thanks, lovely,” Aaron said. He looked at Kendell. “Futoshi?” he asked.

“He made the swim to shore,” Kendell said, and Aaron exhaled in relief.“He could have drowned, you know,” Kendell added.

“I gave him a chance, didn’t I?” Aaron asked.

“You didn’t have to bring Jack back, you jerk,” Kendell said. “I know he escaped. The watch…”

“They let me into their inner circle after that,” Aaron said and went digging around in his pocket while Officer Maria tended to his wound. He revealed a small flash drive as Agent Frankford arrived beside them, having just gotten off the phone with 911, requesting an ambulance for Aaron. Aaron held the drive up to Frankford.

“Names of every single member of Omen around the globe. Every. Single. One,” Aaron said. “And the identities of the twin siblings for anyone involved in the original program and where they live.”

“There’s… There’s more of you?” Agent Frankford asked.

“Hundreds,” Aaron said. “And the twins who didn’t get taken by Omen need to know they’re in danger because not all of their siblings turned their backs on Omen like me. Every last one of them are on that drive.”

Agent Frankford nodded. “Excellent work, Aaron.”

Aaron smirked. “Sorry I lied about who I was.”

“What’s going on at the hotel?” Kendell asked, looking up at the agent.

He smiled. “The leaders of Omen are getting quite a shock from New York SWAT,” he said. “Good job, Aaron. Jack, a pleasure to finally meet you.”

Jack smiled at the man, and Kendell covered her mouth to see he was missing a tooth. “What did they do to you?” she cried.

“I’m fine,” Jack promised as he pulled her into a hug. “Nothing a dentist can’t fix.”

Agent Frankford sighed. “I’m going to regret saying this,” he uttered, “but would you like me to take a picture of all of you for your blog before Aaron gets rushed off to the hospital?”

“Seriously?” Jack asked. Pauline was already handing the man her phone.

“Make sure to smile wide,” Officer Maria said. “Show off that missing tooth of yours.”

“Perfect,” Jack grumbled, and they all smiled for a picture.

Pauline laughed. “Oh, what an adventure!”

* * *

It had been several months since the incident in New York. Needless to say, Kendell and Pauline had elected to postpone their travels for a while, but her readers were getting antsy. The morning before, Kendell had picked Pauline up at the airport. The woman had spent this in-between season in Georgia with her family, which included a very flabbergasted granddaughter, Felicity, who couldn’t believe the woman had indeed broken her wrist clotheslining a member of Omen. She had insisted on a long break for her grandmother before the women continued with their blogging adventures.

The good news was, though, that this break had allowed her and Jack to spend some quality time together. He had picked up some extra courses, and he had finally passed all the necessary tests and field time to at last be able to fly his own jet, which Felicity had waiting for them at a local airfield. “Unbelievable,” Jack said, holding Kendell’s hand as they exited the cab that had taken them and Pauline and Dot back to the airport. “I can’t believe that’s mine.”

They were looking up at it—the private jet. “Ours,” Kendell said. “And by ours, I mean me and Pauline. You’re just the pilot, darling.”

“Nice,” Jack said. “Whatever happened to what’s mine is yours and what’s yours is mine?”

“I’m teasing you,” Kendell said.

“Your blog seriously makes enough to afford this?” Jack asked.

“Not exactly,” Kendell said. “Remember, we’re going to be paying for it mostly through private flights. Pauline and I are going to be flight attendants for whoever rents the thing out to help save on money for a flight crew. I hope you like your co-pilot, by the way…”

Jack smirked. “I still can’t believe I didn’t know until a month ago that Brandon was getting his pilot license too.”

“I didn’t know either,” Kendell admitted. “But you needed a co-pilot.”

“You really okay with being a flight attendant again?” Jack asked.

“This is a little different,” Kendell said. “For one thing, people know this isn’t a big airline. Also, it’s not going to be like last time. The real job is the blog. Flight attending is just going to save us a little bit of money in the long haul.”

They at last boarded the plane. It was all very exciting. The wealthy customers who had rented the jet boarded, all wanting to take pictures with Pauline and Kendell. Ever since Kendell’s book release a month before, her blog’s readership had nearly doubled. She could hardly go anywhere these days without someone recognizing her.

It really wasn’t like before. Half the time, the clients they flew for now wanted Kendell and Pauline to sit down with them, to talk and have a drink. Some of them offered Kendell and Pauline deals with their companies, while many wanted autographed copies of the book she and Felicity had written together about her and Pauline’s adventures. She had titled it Flight Risk, as per Pauline’s suggestion, and people were loving it. Everyone wanted to know all about how the former flight attendants had managed to take down an international crime organization. The picture Agent Frankford had taken for them on Pauline’s phone was one of the last pictures found in the book.

The flight took off, and after making sure their clients were good to go, she headed into the cockpit where Jack and Brandon were chatting, keeping them safe and airborne as they did so. “First flight for the new business. How you boys holding up?” Kendell asked.

“Everything is looking perfect,” Brandon said. “Thanks for including me in this one, guys.”

“Want to take over, co-pilot?” Jack asked.

“On it,” Brandon said, and after a moment, Jack was able to stand up and turn around, giving Kendell a kiss.

“Aww, that’s so much better now that you got your tooth fixed,” she said.

“Ha, very funny,” he said somewhat bitterly. “You excited to get back into the game?”

“I’m excited that Pauline and I get to do this with you now, too,” Kendell said. “It’s like a brand-new sort of adventure.”

“I’m really glad you bumped into that old lady, you know that?” Jack said.

“Heard that!” Pauline said, walking in. “Supper’s ready, boys. Eat up.”

“Thanks, Pauline,” Jack said, taking the food.

Pauline dipped out, and after giving Jack another kiss, Kendell followed the woman to the back of the plane where their station away from their clients was set up. “You excited?” Kendell asked. “I’ve heard Egypt is really nice this time of year.”

Pauline beamed. “Oh, absolutely. Though, with our luck, we’re bound to bump into a couple of Egyptian mummies.”

Kendell laughed. “Maybe. You certain we can find some trouble in Egypt?”

“I hope so,” Pauline said, and they both laughed. Dot whined, and Pauline bent down and picked the dog up, petting her. “You know, Kendell, I’m not going to be able to do this forever.”

“I know, Pauline,” Kendell said. “How’s your wrist?”

“Better,” she said, shaking it out. “I hope you keep doing this long after I’m gone.”

“Don’t go getting me all emotional, now. Today is supposed to be a happy day,” Kendell said.

“Oh, don’t worry, I’m not going anywhere anytime soon,” Pauline said. “I just want to know that you’re going to be able to keep this up when I finally have to take a step back. I’m not getting any younger, you know?”

“I know, I know,” Kendell said and sighed slightly. “Pauline, I owe this whole new life of mine to you. I’m so glad I met you…and you too, Dot.”

The dog barked. “Well, I don’t believe these drinks are going to fix themselves, now are they?” Pauline said, straightening herself up. The women got right to work, and before they knew it, they had at last arrived in Egypt.

Their next great adventure stood before them.

Epilogue

Monica Hale bolted out of her driveway early in the morning, her hair a mess, but at least she had all the pieces to her uniform in place. It was a thirty-minute drive to the airport from where she lived, and she had overslept. By some sheer measure of dumb luck, she found herself pulling up only a few minutes later than she had hoped.

She walked rapidly into the airport, pulling her hair back as she walked. Monica had been working as a flight attendant for about eight years now. She was still fairly young and had a large, adventurous spirit that was not really being fed these days. “You’re late,” a familiar voice sang as she checked herself in and hurried toward the boarding zone where she was supposed to already be on the plane gearing up to welcome customers.

“Not today, Eddie,” she warned her friend, who laughed and waved her on.

She sped through the airport, checking her watch every thirty seconds. “Not too late… Not too late…”

Just as she was looking up from her watch, she tripped over someone’s cream-colored bag. She stumbled over it and landed with a smack on the tile floor. “Umph!” she exclaimed.

“Oh, my goodness!” the old woman who had crossed in front of her path exclaimed. “Sweetie, are you all right?” she asked, offering Monica a hand.

“I’m fine, I’m fine,” Monica said, but she accepted the old woman’s hand. She stood upright and fixed her pants that now felt somehow crooked after the fall. “I’m so sorry. I wasn’t looking where I was going.” She got her first good look at the elderly woman.

She was somewhat thin, wore some rather stylish glasses, and she kept her snow-white hair pulled up in a neat bun. She carried a pink bag over her shoulder in addition to her carry-on that was covered almost completely in stickers of places she had traveled. “I’ve never been to this airport,” the woman said, smiling at her. “Could you point me toward my gate? I’m worried I’m going to miss my flight…”

“Um…of course,” Monica said, taking a look at the woman’s ticket. “Oh, we’re going in the same direction. I’ll walk with you.” Monica kindly picked up the woman’s carry-on bag for her, and they walked together. At least now if her supervisor saw her coming in late, she could use the excuse that she was helping an elderly passenger with her bags.

“You sure did seem to be in quite a hurry,” the old woman said.

“I was running a bit late. Not as late as I thought, though. Look, we’re here already,” Monica said. “And I can see the plane is already boarding. Let me help you on.” She then heard a short bark. “Is that… Is that a dog in your purse?”

“She’s an emotional support animal,” the old woman said, and a little black dog stuck its head out of the pink, bedazzled bag. “This is Spot. Say hello, Spot.” The dog tilted its head to the side, its tongue hanging out of its mouth.

“Aww, so cute,” Monica said, smiling.

She helped the elderly woman find her seat, and the woman thanked her profusely several times. Monica headed toward the back of the plane, where she was berated by her supervisor as she had expected, but she used the old woman as the perfect excuse for her tardiness and this seemed to placate the man. Soon the plane was in the air, and it turned out to be another miserable flight. Eight years she had dedicated to this company, and she was starting to feel like it was all nonsensical. Hadn’t she started this job for the adventure? And how many adventures had she had exactly? “None,” she muttered to herself.

After a few hours, nearly everyone on the plane was asleep, it seemed like. She walked up the aisle again, catching eyes with the elderly woman who was seated by herself. The woman smiled and suddenly patted the empty seat next to her. This was odd to Monica. She had never been asked to sit down by a customer before. She glanced around, deciding that since just about everyone was snoozing away on this flight, it was not going to look too unprofessional.

Monica sat. “Are you enjoying your flight?”

“Oh, certainly,” the woman said, petting the dog that was passed out in her lap. “I just hate my friend wasn’t able to make it. She’s as old as me, and she had a slight medical problem crop up, I’m afraid.”

“Oh no,” Monica said. “Is she okay?”

The woman waved. “She’s a tough old bat,” she said. “Felicity is her name. Thought we’d have a nice little week vacation. Lost my husband last year. Good man. Lived a long life together, you know? This was going to be my first trip again since I lost him, though. So far, I’ve been to a few different countries on this leg around the globe. I hate that my friend wasn’t able to make it. Felicity would have adored Canada. That’s where I was last.”

“You and your husband used to travel together a lot?” Monica asked.

The woman grinned. “Oh, you have no idea.” She exhaled, looking sad for a moment before smiling brightly. “Spent most of our lives seeing the world together, actually. Though it had been a few years since our last adventure. His health kept us at home a lot in the past few years. He asked me to spread his ashes for him around the globe.” She patted her bag, and Monica cringed.

She’s crazy, Monica thought. “Is your husband…in the bag?” she asked.

“Well, I left a good bit of him behind in Alaska,” she said. “It’s where we got married, you see. Sprinkled a bit in Peru—honeymoon. Some in Australia—where our son was born. Little bit in Dubai too—where our daughter was born. Got a little bit of his ashes left, and that I’m finishing off in Egypt.”

“Why Egypt?” Monica asked, now finding herself being drawn into this woman’s story.

“Oh, Egypt was always one of our favorites,” she said. “It’s a bit complicated. It wasn’t our first trip together by any means, but it was the first place he flew to when he joined in on my personal business. He was a pilot, and we invested in a personal jet. He had just finished up his licensing. Something about that flight from New York to Egypt was always very special to him. It was our first time, you see, that we were really a team.”

“That’s so sweet,” Monica said a bit dreamily. She had always found elderly couples to be so adorably charming. They wound up talking for hours about some of the adventures this woman had had in her youth. Frankly, Monica wasn’t sure if they were all true or just the ramblings of a senile old woman, but either way, it was one of the most interesting flights Monica had ever had the pleasure of being on. In fact, she was quite sad to see the woman leave.

Monica went and grabbed herself something to eat at the airport, getting some rest before the flight back to America. She scurried across the airport after eating, geared up and rested and ready for the long flight back, when she saw a bunch of the other flight attendants gathering around. “What’s going on?” she asked as they all looked rather disgruntled.

“Something’s wrong with the plane,” one of them said. “It’s staying here until they can get it checked out, so now we all got to get flights home ourselves.”

“Are you serious?” Monica asked, rolling her eyes.

She wandered off, eventually slumping in a chair and pulling out her phone. She started looking up flight information, and she was not pleased with anything she was finding that was left so last minute. There were no direct flights back home, and this irritated her. She heard the sound of panting, and she glanced down to see a little black dog sitting and looking up at her. “Um… Hello again,” Monica said, snatching the little thing up before it could run off. It was a cute, fluffy little thing. She looked around, and she eventually heard a distant voice, “Spot! Spot!”

“Over here!” Monica called, and she spotted the elderly woman from the plane.

“Oh, thank you so much! She got away from me,” the woman said, sitting down right beside her and taking the dog. “No, no, Ms. Spot, that’s a no-no!” the woman said, shaking her head. “She gets so fidgety after we eat.”

“You ate at the airport too?” she asked.

“Yes, my hotel room wasn’t ready, but it should be now,” the woman said. “Aren’t you supposed to be on a flight back home by now?”

“Yes, that was the plan,” Monica said, shrugging. “But looks like I’m going to be stuck here for at least a few hours.”

“Can I ask you something, Ms. Monica?” Monica nodded. “How long have you been a flight attendant?”

“Eight years,” she said.

“Been all over the world, have you?”

“Everywhere.”

“Have you…experienced the world, though?” the lady asked.

Monica frowned. “I guess… No, not really.”

The old woman nodded. “You know, dear… If you’re going to be stuck here in Egypt, you might as well view some of the sights.”

“I might take your advice. Then again, I might be able to get a flight home soon,” Monica said.

“Or you could call and tell your boss you’re taking a vacation,” she said, waving her hand, and an idea seemed to suddenly come to the old woman. “Oh! Well, this is just perfect. Just perfect! You know, I mentioned my friend, Felicity, who wasn’t able to attend? I’ve got two rooms booked, two spa appointments, and a tour for two booked for tomorrow of the pyramids.”

Monica stared. Was this woman being serious? “And?” Monica asked.

“And, you should come with me,” the woman said, popping the younger woman on the arm. “Honestly, I don’t see why all that extra space should go to waste. Too late to get a refund now.”

Monica tapped her phone a bit nervously. “I don’t know. I’m sort of expected back.”

“I used to be a flight attendant…” the old woman said a bit dreamily. “Before I realized I never really experienced much of anything. Started that job because I wanted adventure. All I did was serve drinks to people who were actually going on adventures.”

Monica frowned. “Yeah, I know the feeling… I don’t know about taking advantage of you like that, though.”

Her elderly companion laughed. “I’m old. I really shouldn’t be traveling by myself at this age anyhow. Besides, it’s not taking advantage. It’s already paid for, you see.”

Monica stared at the woman. She was so kind, but Monica wasn’t so sure. Could she really just up and leave like that? Throw caution to the wind? The older woman nudged her. “What do you say, sweetie? Care to go with an old bat to see the pyramids?”

“I… I don’t know…” Monica said, but she already found herself typing in her supervisor’s number to let them know she wanted to use up some vacation time.

The woman giggled a bit. “Thatta girl,” she said, realizing what Monica was doing.

Monica did it. She called the number. Told her boss that since the plane was broken down and she couldn’t find any immediate flights out that she was just going to use some of her vacation days. It was approved. Monica grinned. “I can’t believe I’m doing this…” she said, laughing at herself. “I don’t even know you…”

The woman stuck out her hand. “My name, dear, is Kendell McDonald-Fletcher. And you know what?” she asked, grinning ear to ear. “You are going to be so happy that you decided to leave the airport.”

“Oh? And how do you know that?”

“Because,” Kendell said, standing upright and ready to go. “I certainly was.”

* * *

Thanks for reading the Flight Risk Cozy Mystery Boxed Set, Books 1-12. I hope you enjoyed reading the stories as much as I enjoyed writing them. If you did (or even if you didn’t), it would be awesome if you left a review for me on Amazon and/or Goodreads. That really helps me know how I’m doing.

This is the end of the adventure for the girls, at least for now. There are several more series that I think you might like. Below are links for books in several other series.

Check out the Senoia Cozy Mystery series here:

amazon.com/gp/product/B078N92XRR

Check out the Back Room Bookstore Cozy Mystery series here:

amazon.com/gp/product/B07K2LBSSG

If you would like to know about future cozy mysteries by me and the other authors at Fairfield Publishing, make sure to sign up for our Cozy Mystery Newsletter. We will send you our FREE Cozy Mystery Starter Library just for signing up. All the details are on the next page.

FAIRFIELD COZY MYSTERY NEWSLETTER

Make sure you sign up for the Fairfield Cozy Mystery Newsletter so you can keep up with our latest releases. When you sign up, we will send you our FREE Cozy Mystery Starter Library!

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