Unraveled (10 page)

Kelly glanced around the circle of friends and saw their expressions. Pete and Jennifer looked sympathetic. Lisa looked sad. Megan frowned, while Greg and Marty looked resigned. Kelly threw in the towel. Time for this drama to stop before it went any further.

“Okay, okay, I’ll say yes the next time he asks me. So, now can we change the subject, Doctor?”

“Absolutely,” Jennifer said with an encouraging grin. “Who’s interested in joining the Lambspun Wedding Dress pool? We’re all taking bets on what Megan will wear to the wedding. I have my money on the white sheet. Kelly’s betting on softball jerseys and cleats. We’ve got three bets on lace and another three on jeans and tee shirt. Who’s in?”

Seven

Kelly
walked across the gravel driveway in the lightly falling snow. Instead of heading toward the knitting shop’s front door, she chose to take the winding path through the garden patio behind Pete’s Porch Café. March was usually Colorado’s snowiest month, so there were a few inches of snow remaining on the ground from last week’s storm. Still, March meant spring was only a month away. And the hope of spring was alive inside every bud. The promise of warm weather, plants pushing upward through the soil, flowers bursting into bloom. And what was best—spring led to summer. Kelly’s favorite season.

She fingered some of the tightly wrapped buds on the adjacent bushes in the garden. Spring was inside. She pushed a snowy tree branch to the side as she walked, and it shook snowflakes over her bright red ski jacket. That reminded her. She had only gone skiing with her friends once this winter. Increased client demands on her time had kept Kelly working on several winter weekends, while her friends took off for the mountains.

Kelly missed going with them, but skiing would also bring back a lot of memories, too. Memories of Steve and her on the slopes together, skiing together, relaxing in the lodge afterward, clumping around on their ski boots, poking through ski resort towns, finding great cafés, and simply being together. Kelly wasn’t sure she wanted to have all those memories reinvade her mind. She’d worked very hard to cordon off all those painful bittersweet images and keep them in the very back of her mind, where they wouldn’t bother her—too much.

She hurried up the stairs to the front door of Pete’s café, stamping snow from her boots once she was inside the warmth. Customers were scattered at practically every table. Windows surrounded the café on all three sides so that even on cloudy days Pete’s café was bright inside.

The tempting aroma of breakfast food lingered in the air. Bacon, sausage, eggs, pancakes, all versions of yummy. All of it inviting Kelly to taste. Breakfast food was one of her many weaknesses.

“Morning, Kelly,” one of the waitresses greeted. “Sit down, and I’ll get you some coffee after I’ve served this table.” She balanced a tray with four plates of temptation.

“Thanks, Julie. You could read my mind.” Kelly dug her coffee mug from her knitting bag. Noticing Burt waving at her from across the café, Kelly headed his way.

“Hey, Kelly, c’mon over here and keep me company,” Burt said. “Maybe you can share this last pancake with me so I won’t eat it all myself.”

Kelly laughed as she tossed her jacket on the back of a chair and sat down. “Oh, no, Burt. I’ve already had breakfast. I’m not going to save you from those pancakes.”

“Darn . . .” Burt frowned at the temptation on his plate. “I really hate to leave food on the plate. It’s not right.”

“I know. But it’s better on the plate than on you,” she teased. “I allow myself pancakes on the weekends only. The rest of the time it’s lots of fruit, yogurt, and nuts for me.”

Burt shook his head and dropped his paper napkin to his plate. “Okay, you convinced me. Or made me feel guilty, whatever. You can take it away, Julie. Kelly’s persuaded me to be good. For today.”

Julie poured a black stream of the café’s black nectar into Kelly’s mug. The grill cook, Eduardo, made coffee the same way Kelly did. Strong and dark. Not for the weakhearted, this brew. Only the brave dared drink it. “Can I get you anything else, Kelly?” Julie asked.

“No, I’m good, thanks anyway.” Kelly glanced around the café. “Jennifer still here or left for her office already?”

“I think she had to go in and talk with her broker about that listing up in the canyon. You know, the one where the guy died.” Julie made a face. “I don’t know if it’ll sell now. Who’d want a place where a guy blew his brains out?”

Watching the young waitress move to another table, Kelly had to agree with her. “Julie’s got a point, Burt. I’m wondering if my client Housemann will change his mind about the deal. He hasn’t had much to say since it happened. In fact, he acted like he didn’t want to talk about it when I mentioned hearing about Turner’s death. He went all quiet on the phone, so I didn’t ask again.”

“Did you mention that you and Jennifer are the ones who found Turner dead?”

“Lord, no,” Kelly replied, before taking a deep drink of Eduardo’s steaming-hot brew.

Burt sipped his own coffee, then leaned over the table. “You know, I heard from my friend Paul on Tuesday. The medical examiner finished his report, and it was a surprise to say the least. Turns out that Fred Turner may not have blown his brains out after all. Someone may have done it for him.”

Kelly’s mug stopped at her lips. She stared at Burt over the rim. “What? Dan thinks someone
killed
Turner?”

Burt nodded. “The examination found injuries to the back of his head that they believe came from Turner being hit from behind by a hard object, maybe the gun or even a rock. It doesn’t look like suicide anymore. Peterson and the guys will investigate it as a possible homicide now.”

Kelly leaned back in the chair, holding the mug against her chest. The warmth penetrated even her knitted wool winter sweater. “Did the gun have any prints?”

“Nary a one.”

“So that means the killer probably wore gloves.”

Burt nodded, then sipped his coffee.

“Whoa . . . Fred Turner had a whole bunch of enemies from what I’ve heard this last week. I was down in Denver yesterday and the developers said they couldn’t stand him. Sounds like Turner had enemies all over northern Colorado.” She wagged her head. “Boy, the cops are going to have their hands full trying to weed through all the people who had a grudge against him.”

Another little thought buzzed in the back of Kelly’s mind, insistent. It hadn’t come into focus yet. She took a long drink of coffee and let it buzz.

“Paul said they’ve already started interviewing people. Colleagues, business associates, what friends the man had.”

“It didn’t sound like he had any friends, only enemies. Peterson will be interviewing for days. I wonder if my client Housemann will be interviewed. After all, they were in a contract together.”

“I imagine Housemann will be interviewed, too. Along with anyone who was in a contract with him recently.”

Kelly took a deep sip of coffee while the insistent little thought buzzed closer. Finally, it focused in the front of her mind. “I just remembered something, Burt. Jennifer got a call from Turner’s office when we were driving up into the canyon. His assistant told Jennifer that some British guy had called and left a message about the property. Name of Birmingham. Apparently he was really anxious to see it and said he’d top any offer on the table. The assistant said Turner made an appointment to see him at the property that same morning.”

Burt’s eyebrows raised. “Really? Well, I’ll mention it to Paul. Peterson can ask the assistant when he interviews her. For all we know, he may have already learned about this guy.”

“I’ll be interested in hearing what he finds out.” Kelly drained her mug.

“Don’t worry, Kelly. I’ll keep you informed. Oh, and Paul said the scary guy you spotted in the bushes was the neighbor, Benjamin Marlow. He owns the property beside Turner’s and has lived in the canyon for years. Kind of closemouthed and didn’t have much to say, according to Paul.”

“That’s strange. He certainly looked nosy when I saw him.”

“Well, Paul said he was a recluse and tries to keep to himself. Apparently he didn’t see anything.” Burt looked across the café and waved. “Hey, Jayleen. C’mon over.” He beckoned her over as he rose from his chair.

Jayleen strode to the table and doffed her Stetson. “Hey, folks, glad to see you. I was hoping Kelly would be here. How’re you doing, Burt?” she asked with a smile.

“I’m doing good, Jayleen. You take my chair because I’ve got to go out front and help Mimi. Rosa couldn’t come in this morning.”

“Thanks, Burt. Tell Mimi I’ll stop by and say hi in a few minutes,” Jayleen said as she settled into the chair Burt offered.

Burt hurried from the café and toward the hallway that led to the knitting shop. Kelly signaled Julie and the coffeepot. “You want some coffee, Jayleen? You look like you’ve got a lot on your mind.” She couldn’t help noticing her friend’s worried expression.

“Thanks, Julie.” Jayleen held out her cup as the waitress poured the coffee. “You’re right, Kelly. I’ve got a whole lot on my mind.” She paused until Julie headed to another table. “I’m worried about my friend, Renee Turner.”

Kelly took a long drink.
Oh, brother
. Someone else who did not wish Turner well. That guy had enemies on all sides. “Yeah, I remember your telling me about her. Burt just said the cops are now investigating Turner’s death as a homicide. Apparently they found injuries on the back of his head. He must have been hit from behind.”

Jayleen shook her head sadly. “That’s what Renee told me. She called me this morning. The cops came over to question her late yesterday evening. She’s a wreck. Turns out she went up to that cabin right before you gals came and found Fred dead on the floor. Renee said she panicked and ran outta there. Problem is, someone must have seen her driving away from the place and told the police.”

Kelly didn’t volunteer anything, only saying, “Uh-oh. That’s not good. Did the police tell her she was seen?”

“Not at first. They asked her where she was at that time last Saturday. And Renee, fool that she was, told them she was at home on the computer. Alone.” Jayleen gave a disgusted look. “That’s when they told Renee they had a witness who saw her driving her car out of the driveway back onto the canyon road at that time.”

“Ohhhh, boy. They caught her in a lie,” Kelly said. “That is definitely not good.”

“You’re tellin’ me. Of course, Renee got all frightened and flustered after that. She told the cops she panicked when they first asked her because she’d been to the cabin and found Fred. And she drove away as fast as she could.”

“I’m sure they asked her why she went up there.” Kelly was curious about Renee’s answer.

“You bet. They wanted to know why she went and how she found out he was there. And that opened up a whole new can of worms.” Jayleen looked at the floor. “Renee said she asked Fred’s assistant where he was. Then she tried to explain to the cops that she’d heard about some new buyer who was interested in the property, and she went up there to make sure Fred knew that she was keeping track of the sale.”

Kelly couldn’t believe what she was hearing. “So, Renee basically admitted she went up to the canyon to confront Turner. That makes her look even guiltier. What was that woman thinking?”

“She wasn’t,” Jayleen said with a grimace. “That’s why she called me first thing this morning. Renee’s scared to death the cops are gonna suspect her in Fred’s death. She lied about her whereabouts, and the cops can prove she was there around the time he was shot. And everybody in town knows the two of them have been fightin’ like cats and dogs over money and the divorce.”

“Boy, Jayleen, I’ve got to be honest. It doesn’t sound good for your friend.”

“Don’t I know it.” Jayleen stared out into the café. “I wish I knew how to help her. If she’d called me over the weekend, I would’ve been able to talk to her, get her to go to the police, and report Fred’s death. Get on top of the situation.”

Kelly hated to say it, but she had to. “You know, Jayleen. There may be good reason why Renee didn’t call you. She may have actually killed her husband. Accidentally, of course. Who knows? Maybe she went up there with a gun to threaten him, and things got out of hand.” Kelly shrugged. She knew that scenario didn’t really make sense, but it was the only reason she could offer Jayleen. Lame, though it was.

Jayleen looked Kelly straight in the eye. “I know how it looks, Kelly. But I’ve known Renee for over ten years. She’s hotheaded, sure, but so was Fred. They had a stormy marriage. But Renee couldn’t kill Fred, no matter how mad she got at him.”

“Didn’t you tell me that Renee had threatened to ‘plug’ him, meaning Fred? Now, you’re not the only one who heard that most probably. So, the police are going to find out about that as well. It’s a verbal threat. She even made it in front of other people.” This time Kelly shook her head. “I tell you, Jayleen, it doesn’t look good for Renee. She’s bound to make it to the top of Lieutenant Peterson’s list of suspects.”

Jayleen flinched. “I hear what you’re sayin’ Kelly, but I just cannot for the life of me believe that Renee would kill Fred. She wouldn’t cold-bloodedly knock him on the head then shoot him while he lay there. That’s cowardly, and Renee’s not a coward.”

Kelly gave her a rueful smile of her own. “I’m not sure that’s a good defense, Jayleen.”

“I know, I know. . . .” Jayleen stared off into the café again.

Kelly debated for a long minute, then decided she had to tell Jayleen the whole story. She was a friend, and you were always honest with your friends.

“You know about the witness who saw Renee drive away from the property last Saturday?” she said. “Well, there were actually two witnesses.”

“What?” Jayleen looked up in surprise. “How do you know? Did Peterson tell you?”

“Jennifer and I were the two witnesses, Jayleen. We saw a blue truck pulling out of the property’s driveway as we were driving down the canyon road. Jennifer recognized Renee Turner as the truck drove past us. Jennifer said she’d seen Renee at Turner’s office. Her real estate office is in the same building as Turner’s. She said Renee came over there several times and had loud confrontations with him.” Kelly watched the shock register on Jayleen’s face. “So, we were the ones who told Detective Peterson about Renee. I wanted you to know.”