Something Suspicious in Sask (12 page)

“Good idea,” Katie agreed. Then she decided to get right down to business. “Can I ask you a couple of questions?”

Cliff smiled indulgently. “I hear you're a bit of a detective. Okay, two questions it is; then I need to get back to work.”

“Do you think all the bad stuff that's happened is just by accident?”

“No. I said it before and I'll say it again. I think Scott's behind all of our problems.”

“Why Scott?”

“I don't trust him; he's a sneaky character.”

“But, why would he go to all that trouble?”

“I told you before. Revenge.”

“But that doesn't make sense.”

“Why not?” Cliff's face turned angry and he stepped toward Katie.

When she stepped back he smiled again, as if he suddenly realized he was frightening her. “Don't worry, little girl, I'm not going to hurt you. But you really should stay out of this. I have a feeling Scott can be dangerous if he doesn't get what he wants.”

“Can I ask you just one more question?” she asked.

“Seems to me you've already asked more than two.

But if you'll get out of here and let me get back to work. Deal.”

Katie nodded. “All right then. It's about Megan's cell phone. How do you think it got out there by the road?”

Cliff shrugged. “I don't know. Maybe she lent it to Scott and dropped it later, after he gave it back. That girl is getting more scatterbrained by the day.”

“Why would she lend it to Scott?”

“Who knows? Maybe Scott said he needed to make a call—he's very inventive. Has anyone checked the outgoing calls?”

Katie nodded. “We did.”

“We who? What did you find?”

“Rusty and me. But, all we found was a bunch of numbers.”

“Not one to your aunt?”

Katie shrugged “I'm not sure, why?”

“I hope you didn't delete them.”

She shook her head. This was going all wrong.

She was supposed to ask the questions.

“Okay, time's up. You've passed your quota of questions.” Cliff pulled his ear protectors up from his neck.

“Okay,” she shouted, “thanks.” She started for the door. A phone rang. Realizing Cliff might not hear it, Katie glanced around.

“It's you,” Cliff said, holding the protectors away from his ears. “Your pocket's ringing.”

She grabbed her cell. “Hello?”

“Hey, is that like, Katie?”

“Yes.”

“So, I'm thinking, I can pick you up at like, twelve.

Scott will be at his house for lunch. Can you and Rusty come over then to, like, ask your questions?”

“Sure, thanks, Emily. I'll go tell Rusty.”

After the call, with her cell in one hand and her notebook in the other, Katie started again for the door.

“What was that all about?” Cliff wanted to know.

“It was just Emily. She promised to take us out today.”

“Out where?”

“Just around, kind of a sightseeing tour. Anyway, thanks for your help. I have to go now.”

16

An old truck, the color of a prairie sky, turned off the dirt road, rattled along the short driveway and stopped in front of a long ranch-style house with wide windows facing the road. The truck engine coughed once and then chugged into silence.

Seated between Emily and Rusty, Katie looked out at the house and the tall teenaged boy who stepped onto the covered porch to meet them. He waved. “Hey, Em!”

Katie followed Rusty out the passenger side.

“Hi, Scott,” Emily called as she slid down from the driver's seat. “These are, like, Megan's cousins, Katie and Rusty.”

“Hi, kids,” Scott said. “C'mon in.” He led them down a short hallway to a large modern kitchen. They settled around a square kitchen table next to a sliding glass door. Beyond the door a field of grain rippled into the distance like ocean waves in a gentle breeze.

Scott opened the fridge and pulled out a plate with three thick sandwiches on it. “If you don't mind,” he said, “I'll eat my lunch while we talk. My mom left them here for me.” He poured himself a tall glass of milk.

Watching him, Katie realized how hungry she was.

She licked her lips.

“You guys hungry?” Scott asked.

“No.” Emily shook her head. “We won't share your lunch. You've been, like, working hard all morning.

Milk would be good though, if you've got lots.”

Scott chuckled. “Please! Drink milk! All of you.

We've got more than we know what to do with already, and the cows just won't quit.”

Emily went over to help him. She poured three glasses of milk while Scott opened a cookie tin and placed it on the table.

Minutes later, after wolfing down his first sandwich, Scott rested his forearms on the table and leaned toward Katie. “So, Em says you've got questions? What about? Is Megan in trouble? How can I help?”

“Whoa!” Rusty said. “You ask more questions than Katie!”

Katie shot him an angry look but Scott laughed. He was kind of cute, Katie decided, with his wide dark eyes, straight brown eyebrows and his hair that was blond on top but dark where it was cut so short over his ears. He had a narrow friendly face and a smile that made his eyes crinkle.

“Aunt Margaret's in trouble,” Katie said. “And I'm not sure what's wrong with Megan.”

“Megs has her problems.” Scott's tone implied he didn't want to discuss it. He glanced at his watch and picked up the second sandwich. “What do you want to know? I need to get back to work soon. Mom and Dad are in town for the day, and I've got tons of stuff that needs doing around here.”

“Okay, I only have a few questions. First, do you know how Megan's cell phone ended up in the grass near the place you parked your truck last night?”

He swallowed. “No! Why would I? I didn't even know it was there.” He glanced from Katie to Rusty.

“So it was you guys who answered her cell last night?”

Katie nodded and made a quick note. “Cliff said you stole it from the house.”

“What?” He had been about to drink some milk but thumped the glass down hard. “Why would I? If I took Megan's cell, why would I have phoned it? Why would I want it anyway?”

“Did Megan have it with her when she met you?”

He shook his head. “No. She forgot to clip it back on her belt after she recharged the battery. Megan forgets a lot of stuff these days.”

Katie scribbled a quick note and glanced up at Scott. “What about the necklace?”

“Necklace?” His face flushed bright red. “I never took it. I never stole anything in my life! Besides, if I did take it, why would I be stupid enough to leave it under the bed where someone would be sure to find it?”

“That's what I wondered.”

“Are we almost done?” Scott drained his glass and picked up his final sandwich.

“Uh, not quite. I wondered if you knew how that chicken wire got in the field?”

His shoulders slumped. “Megan thinks it's her fault. She likes making those nest baskets, you know? She's a volunteer for the Wildlife Federation. Ever since she was little, she made nest baskets with her dad. Anyhow, I helped her do some last spring, before I got fired, but Megan made that one by the hay field herself. She's always been careful to pick everything up before she leaves.”

“What about the one near the place where you always park?”

“I only parked there once.” He shrugged. “I didn't know there was a nest basket there. Megan must have done it.”

Katie recognized the lie. “Didn't you park there two nights ago?” she asked. “Rusty and I saw you drive away.”

Rusty nodded agreement. “We saw you up near the house too.”

“Oh that.” Scott rubbed his hand over the top of his head, making his blond hair stand up on end. “Yeah, okay, you got me. I was there. I couldn't get in touch with Megan. I even risked making her mom mad by phoning the house, but no one answered. So I wanted to make sure she was all right.”

“Why wouldn't she be?”

“She told me she couldn't take it anymore. I was afraid she might run away.”

“Run away?” Katie thought back to that day. Soon after they first arrived Cliff drove up with a fuming Megan and her bulging backpack. “I think maybe she did, run away, I mean. I think Cliff brought her back.”

Scott scratched his head. “He keeps a close eye on her. She hates that.”

Katie made another note. “One more question,” she said. “Did you phone Aunt Margaret and tell her you knew she grew GM canola in her field?”

Scott jumped to his feet. He walked to the sliding door and stared out at the wide yellow field, his hands on his hips. “I haven't a clue what you're talking about. Mrs. Piercy would never have anything to do with GM seed.”

“But you know about GM canola?”

“Of course, who doesn't? Cliff talked my parents into planting GM canola seed two years ago. He said it was the way of the future. He said we'd get two-thirds more yield per acre and cut down on herbicides at the same time.”

“Was he right?”

Scott turned around. “Yes, for the first year. Last year the yield was down. Now we're using more and more herbicides because the weeds have become resistant.” He shifted nervously from one foot to the other. “Your aunt thinks genetic engineering is dangerous. She says GM traits will spread to other crops and contaminate every farm in Saskatchewan.”

“You mean, like superweeds?” Rusty asked.

Scott scowled. “Where'd you hear that?”

Rusty looked surprised, and Katie realized it was time to ask her most important question before Scott stopped answering altogether. “Did you know someone threatened to call a snitch line on Aunt Margaret?”

Scott turned pale. He sank onto his chair and his fingers twitched nervously over his last sandwich.

“What's the big deal about a snitch line?” Rusty asked.

“If GM plants are found on a farm that didn't buy the seed, farmers can be sued 'til they have nothing left but their socks.” Scott grinned down at his big toe peeking out of his sock. “And they'll have holes in them.”

Katie realized she had at least one more question, but Scott was looking restless. He'd gobbled his sandwich and checked his watch again. So she plunged right in. “You said Cliff talked your parents into trying GM canola. What's he got to do with them?”

“Cliff? He worked here for years. Mom and Dad liked him, and he worked really hard. He was saving his money to buy his own farm one day. But after they modernized our farm and bought an air seeder, they didn't need him anymore. Truth is, they couldn't afford to pay him and buy the new equipment at the same time. And I was old enough to do the job by then, so they let him go.”

“Poor Cliff!”

“Yeah, but things worked out okay. He's been at the Piercy place ever since. He might even take over their farm one day, which would be good for all of them.”

“How?”

“Well, Megan can't wait to get away. She'd love to go to university next year.”

“Exactly,” Emily spoke up. “Megan's wanted to be a wildlife biologist since, like, forever. And her mom is so, like, sick of the farm she's totally freaked out.”

“If they had enough money, they'd be gone just like that.” Scott snapped his fingers.

“Then,” Rusty asked, “why don't they sell the farm to Cliff and move to Victoria? I mean, it's huge! It must be worth millions.”

Scott and Emily shook their heads sadly.

“The thing is,” Scott said, “even if they sold the house and every acre of the farm, they wouldn't have enough to buy a house in Victoria. Their machinery is too old to be worth much either. But still, Cliff doesn't have enough money to buy the land.”

“Reality check,” Emily said. “We're all stuck here forever, whether we like it or not.”

“So how come Cliff wants to stay?” Rusty asked.

“He's not stuck here.”

“Cliff's one of those people who loves farming. It's in his blood. He figures he can rent out one section to a Hutterite colony and farm the rest himself. His parents sell farm equipment, so they'd help “Okay, I just have one more question,” Katie said. him out with that.” Scott stood up abruptly. “I've got work to do.”

“If Cliff could rent to the Hutterites, why can't Aunt Margaret? She could rent out the whole farm and go wherever she wants.”

It was Emily who answered. “She thought of that last year. She even talked to the farm manager at the nearest Hutterite colony. But she decided it wouldn't be fair to Cliff. He's helped them so much and he thinks he'll have enough money by next year, so she agreed to wait. Besides, this way Megan gets to finish school here.”

“Is that what Megan wants?”

Emily sighed. “Who knows?”

17

“None of this makes any sense,” Katie said on the drive back to the Piercy farm. “At first I thought Scott was behind the accidents, like Cliff says, because he wants to get revenge. Then I wondered if it was Cliff, but he doesn't have a motive. Finally I decided Megan caused all three accidents because each one happened in a place she had just been working. But Megan didn't make those phone calls, so now I'm back to Scott.

What if he's trying to make Megan look guilty?”

Emily shook her head. “Scott would never do that to Megan. They've been friends for, like, forever.”

“Maybe it was both of them,” Rusty suggested.

“Absent-minded Megan caused the accidents because, well, because her mind is absent. Scott made the phone calls because he's mad about getting fired and because Aunt Margaret won't let him see Megan anymore. I bet they're in cahoots.”

Katie snorted. “Cahoots? That's a weird word!”

“I think it's a cool word. Look it up!”

“You'll never find cahoots in a dictionary.”