Лейганн Доббс - A Twist In The Tail

I’d also had the distinct feeling someone… or something… was following me when I left the post office earlier that day. I hadn’t seen anyone when I did a tricky glance over my shoulders and the Weatherbys car was parked and cold (yes, I felt the hood) when I got back to the guesthouse, so it wasn’t them. What if they weren’t the killers and it was the real killer who was following me?

The cats had been acting strangely too. They bolted into the house a few minutes after I got home and had been staring at me the whole time. Now all of a sudden they’d disappeared. A creak on the stairs brought me out of my reverie.

‘Oh, hi, Josie. Huh, I saw Flora cleaning in here earlier.’ Ron looked at me suspiciously. ‘How often do you have to dust this place?’

‘One can never have things too clean!’ I chirped. ‘Old houses collect lots of dust.’

‘Ahem. Right. Well the Mrs. and I are just going for a walk.’ Ron held up the camera that dangled around his neck. ‘Going to see if we can spot a blue-billed horn-swallow.’

‘They have those around here?’ I’d never actually heard of one. Was he making it up? If he was the killer, then he probably was. I remembered how Mike had said that he thought it was odd that Ron had the specifications of his camera wrong, maybe he'd been lying then too? Maybe if I'd listened to Mike, I would have realized Ron could be the killer sooner. Of course, I would never tell Mike that.

‘They are very rare, but we’re hopeful!’ Iona pulled Ron out the door and I stared out the window as they headed off to the path at the edge of the estate property. It wound up the hill above the Smugglers Bay Inn, then over to the cliffs near the gulls. I tossed down my feather duster and followed.

I’d always liked the serenity of walking in the woods with only the chipmunks and birds as company. The smell of pine and the dapples of sunlight filtering through the leaves can be magical. Except for today. Today the woods had an ominous feeling and being alone wasn’t quite so serene.

I came to a fork in the path. Now, which trail had they taken? I squinted down the path on the right and caught sight of something red moving in between the trees. Iona’s shirt. I picked up the pace. Something dark ran in front of me, almost tripping me.

‘Whoa!’

Mew! Nero leapt onto a rock and preened.

‘Hey, watch it.’ I whispered because I didn’t want to alert the Weatherbys to my presence.

Purrr. Marlowe did circle-eights around my ankles.

‘Get lost. Shoo. I’m busy.’ I stepped over her and continued on the path, slowing when I came to the corner. I didn’t want the Weatherbys to see me if they’d slowed down. And surely they must have slowed, because we were going uphill. I know I felt like slowing down, and they were a lot older. I could probably take my time and let them get to the cliffs and still see them doing something nefarious. But what if they also did something along the way? I didn’t want to miss that.

Meow! Nero shot ahead of me on the path then stopped, almost blocking it.

‘Look out,’ I whispered, stepping over him again. Darn cats were going to ruin everything.

I turned the corner. No Weatherbys. I went a little faster, now afraid I might miss out on something.

Nero and Marlowe trotted in front of me in the most annoying way possible. It was almost as if they were trying to trip me.

Another splash of red! They were just ahead. I didn’t want to lose them now, but also couldn’t let them know that I was here.

I continued on, craning to see ahead. They were probably around the next corner. I rounded cautiously.

No one was there.

I picked up the pace. Maybe the next corner.

Nope. Where were they? Had I lost them? And where were the cats? They’d run off and—

‘Josie. What brings you out here?’

I spun around to see Ron and Iona Weatherby blocking the path.

‘Josie. What a surprise!’ Iona really did look surprised, but how had they gotten behind me without seeing me on the path? And why would they double back and then come back up? Had they seen me following them and come to confront me? Would I be their next victim? I tensed, ready to flee. Too bad they were blocking the way. I had nowhere to go but toward the cliff. Images of my body smashed on the rocks came to mind.

Mew.

Nero, the traitor, was threading between Iona’s ankles and she bent down to pet him. ‘We didn’t realize you were a nature lover.’ Ron stepped closer, a look of suspicion on his face.

‘I am. Really. But I don’t get much time to enjoy it what with all my duties at the Guesthouse.’ I stuttered as I tried to plan my escape. I could dart around the big pine, jump over that fallen oak and crash through the woods to connect with the trail below. They were old, I could outrun them.

Meow! Nero trotted over to Ron and gave him the same purring ankle rubbing routine.

‘Yes, of course.’ Ron said. ‘But you do come out here often?’

‘Uh huh… Yep.’

‘I suppose you go up to the cliff?’ Iona straightened from where she’d crouched to pet the cat and brushed her hands together. ‘The view is outstanding.’

‘Yes, of course. Who wouldn’t? Is that where you go?’ While I was stuck here, I might as well ask them some questions and see if I could trip them up.

‘Oh yes.’ Ron hefted the camera. ‘Bird watching.’

‘The gulls?’ I tried to keep my voice casual.

Ron’s brow furrowed. ‘What do you know about the gulls?’

Aha! I could tell by the way he asked that he was worried. His tone definitely indicated guilt. But I had to be careful. If they had killed Charles as I suspected, they probably wouldn’t hesitate to kill me.

I shrugged as if I had no suspicions at all. ‘They nest up there. It’s sad what’s happening to them, but that’s nature I guess.’

‘What do you mean?’ Iona asked innocently.

Trying to play dumb? Well, two could play at that game. ‘They’re dying at an alarming rate. I guess it’s just a cycle of nature? Not enough food to support the growth of the colony.’

Ron and Iona exchanged a glance. Had I fooled them? Now was my chance to get away.

Nero and Marlowe had trotted back on the path and were looking over their shoulders at me. Yep, that was my cue to leave.

‘Oh, look at the time!’ I glanced at my wrist. ‘The cats are signaling that they need their afternoon meal.’ I pointed toward the two cats who were staring at us.

Ron and Iona looked dubious but they stood aside. ‘Of course, dear. You shouldn’t delay their feeding. Too bad you won’t make it to the cliff. Seems a waste to come halfway up and not get to the top.’

Yeah, too bad because that would be a great place to push me off. ‘I know, but I live here so I get to go anytime I want. You two enjoy!’ I hurried off without looking back.

Only when I was a safe distance away did I turn around. Judging by the way those two had been acting, my suspicions were confirmed that there were the culprits. But what should I do about that? I couldn’t tell Seth Chamberlain until I had some concrete proof. He’d never listen, especially after I’d messed up by pointing the finger at Tony. I was going to have to resort to breaking into their rooms and looking around.

Eighteen

Later that afternoon, I made sure the Weatherbys saw the big coupon for the senior special at Salty’s Crab Shack that night. Since I didn’t serve dinner it was a sure bet they’d be dining out. I waited a few minutes after they drove off just to make sure they didn’t turn back.

Once all the guests were out to dinner, I rushed up the stairs, tamping down the guilt that was spreading in my chest as I fingered the spare key to the Weatherbys room. I’d only ever used the room key for cleaning, and this felt like a violation. I reminded myself that the nice old couple could be hardened killers and looking in their room was necessary to find evidence.