Costume Catastrophe (Zoe Donovan Mystery Book 21) (3 page)

“I have the events committee meeting this morning and then I’m planning to head into work. Tiffany has to leave early, so I’ll be at the Zoo until five. After that I’m picking Ellie up at the boathouse and we’re going out to the haunted house to help Levi decorate. He has football practice until five, so we should all get there at about the same time. I thought I’d pick up some sandwiches. Do you want to come and help? I’m sure my mom would watch the kids.”

“I’d love to help. I should be done at the Academy at around five as well. I plan to pick up Scooter when he gets out of school at three and then drop him at soccer. Alex and I will both be done at the Academy by five, and Scooter finishes soccer at the same time, so we’ll pick him up and then I’ll drop the kids at your parents’ if you can arrange it. I’ll want to change clothes before heading out to decorate, so I’ll just meet you here.”

“Sounds like we have a plan. It’ll be easier when Jeremy is back at work next week. I can go back to carting the kids around and you can go back to running the Academy.”

“It has been a little crazy the past couple of weeks, but we’re handling it. Other than your upsetting note, how was your night out with Ellie?”

“It was okay.” I looked behind myself to make sure neither she nor one of the kids had wandered downstairs. “She still hasn’t told Levi about the baby and that’s beginning to concern me.” Zak was the only other person who knew Ellie’s secret. “I get why she’s scared. I’m scared too.”

“Why are you scared?”

“I’m scared that once Levi knows the result of his brief moment of indiscretion, the best friend triad will be beyond saving. I really don’t know how I’m going to deal with that, so there’s a part of me that’s nervous for Ellie to share her secret. But keeping the secret much longer isn’t going to be an option. She’s starting to show and eventually someone is going to notice.”

“The longer she waits the harder it’s going to be.”

“I know. She said she’d talk to him after the game, so I guess we’ll just have to wait and see. Hopefully it will all be out in the open before Halloween and we won’t have to walk on eggshells the entire weekend. To be honest, all the waiting is turning me into a bit of a wreck.”

“I doubt you’ll have to wait much longer. If Ellie doesn’t work up the courage to talk to Levi pretty soon I have a feeling Levi and everyone else will figure it out on their own.”

“I did point that out to her. Listen: while we’re on the subject of Ellie, if my grandfather agrees to let us do it, what would you think about building an addition onto the boathouse?”

Zak took a sip of his coffee. “You’re thinking of building an extra bedroom for the baby?”

“Actually, I was thinking about building a couple of bedrooms and a second bath downstairs. That loft is so tiny, and it doesn’t make sense to have to carry a baby up and down those steep stairs. Ellie told me she’s thinking about looking for a bigger place after the baby comes, but I really love having her so close. Besides, if she moved out we’d need to rent to someone else or return it to my grandfather to sell, and both of those options are depressing.”

Zak paused as he appeared to be considering my request. “I think an addition would work well. The boathouse is on a large, flat piece of property, so it shouldn’t be a problem. The kitchen and living area is basically one large room. It wouldn’t be hard to build a wing off the living room. In fact, we might want to enlarge the living area while we’re at it. Why don’t you just ask your grandfather to sell us the property? We probably should have bought it from him a long time ago. If we own the parcel that’ll make the remodel easier.”

I reached over and hugged Zak. “You know I love you so, so much.”

Zak kissed me on the forehead. “And you know I love you too.”

I sat back and returned to my breakfast, which, by the way, was delicious.

“Did you find a costume for the party?” Zak asked me.

“No. I spent the whole time trying to help Ellie find something. I’ll go back sometime later this week. Do you know if Alex has decided about the dance?”

Zimmerman Academy was holding a Halloween dance on October 28, but Alex wasn’t sure she wanted to go. I really hoped she would. I knew she’d have fun and she both knew and got along well with the other kids, but she was the youngest student at the Academy by two years and had shared with me that she felt out of place in social situations. Ensuring that she’d fit in was one of the main reasons Zak and I had started the school in the first place. The problem was, due to the short building season that resulted from our heavy winters, we’d elected to start out small, with only high school students to begin with. Alex was more than capable of keeping up with the others academically, but she was only twelve, and the student closest to her in age was fourteen.

“She still can’t decide,” Zak answered. “I’ve tried to talk her into it, the other kids have tried to talk her into it; maybe you can talk to her.”

“I will. In fact, I should go wake everyone up. If she isn’t too groggy I’ll see what I can find out.”

Zak started breakfast for the rest of the Zimmerman crew. I could hear Ellie in the bathroom and I’d passed Shep on the stairs, so I knew she was up. I went in to Scooter’s room and turned on his television, which helped him wake in a slow, even way, and then headed to Alex’s.

“Wake up, sleepyhead,” I said cheerily as I moved the cats who slept with Alex to the floor to make room for me to sit.

“I’m awake.” Alex yawned. “Did you have fun with Ellie last night?”

“I did. We had so much fun that she spent the night. Zak is making breakfast for everyone, so you’ll need to hurry and get dressed.”

“Okay.” Alex rolled out of bed and plodded over to the closet.

“When I was at the costume shop last night I wondered if you’d decided to go to the Halloween dance. If you’re going, we’ll need to get you a costume before they all get picked over.”

“I know I need to decide. I want to go and everyone wants me to go, but it’s turned into kind of a date thing.”

“I see. And there isn’t anyone you want to go with?”

Alex pulled a green sweater out of the closet to go with the new jeans she’d already laid out on the bed. “No. There is. It’s just that…”

“He hasn’t asked you,” I realized.

“I get it. I’m twelve and he’s fourteen. It makes sense that he would want to take one of the older girls.”

“Has he asked one of them?”

Alex opened her drawer and began to dig for socks. “No. Not yet.”

“Twelve is a little young to date, but if this boy hasn’t asked anyone yet, maybe you can go as friends. You are friends?”

“Yes. Best friends.”

“Is it Tony?”

Alex blushed.

“Maybe you can casually mention to him that you’re thinking of going to the dance and ask him if he’d like a ride. If he has other plans at least you’ll know, and if he does want to go with you but is too shy to ask you’ll be giving him an opening.”

Alex sat down on the bed next to me. “You think I should ask him?”

“Not in a datelike way. Just casually. You know, something like ‘I’m going; if you’re going, do you want to hang?’”

Alex lay her head on my shoulder. “This growing-up stuff is complicated.”

I patted her head. “I know, baby. I know.”

The Ashton Falls Events Committee was made up of ten community members who met weekly to plan and implement activities geared toward bringing tourists up the mountain to spend their hard-earned dollars in our small community. The fund-raisers also served to provide funds for community services and projects not covered by other means. The membership of the committee had changed a bit over time, but Levi, Ellie, and I were longtime members, along with my dad, Hank Donovan, and a few others.

“We need to make this a brief meeting,” committee chair Willa Walton announced. “I have a busy morning, but with the influx of visitors who are expected this week for the big game as well as the Hamlet, I wanted to be sure we were on track for all the events. Hank, how are we doing with volunteers for the zombie run?”

“I think we’re all set,” my dad answered. “It took a bit of doing, but I managed to get more than enough bodies lined up.”

“Excellent. And Levi, how are plans for the haunted house coming along?”

“We’re on track. I haven’t been out to the house yet, but I had Joey Waverly go by to check out the wiring yesterday and I plan to head out after football practice today. Zoe, Ellie, and a few others are coming along to help me get started with the decorating.”

“Perfect.” Willa smiled. “And the food vendors?” she asked Tawny Upton, owner of Over the Rainbow Preschool.

“We’re all set. I have about half the vendors starting on Friday afternoon and we’ll be at full speed by Saturday morning.”

Willa continued to go down her list, asking for updates from each event chairperson. Luckily, everyone was organized and on schedule, so the meeting was short and sweet. As soon as it was over I said my good-byes and Charlie and I headed out to my car, which was covered with yellow leaves from the aspen tree I’d parked under. I love fall in Ashton Falls. The mountains are painted in red, yellow, and orange as the deciduous trees that cover the hillside change color. The temperature is normally crisp and cool, with slightly warmer days followed by chilly nights that make it a perfect time to curl up in front of a roaring fire with a loved one. We’d closed in our indoor/outdoor pool and stacked quartered logs on the deck near the fire pit in preparation for autumn evenings under the stars.

“Looks like that tree decided to dump all her leaves on your car,” Ellie commented as she came out of the restaurant.

“I know. Isn’t it pretty? I sort of hate to drive away.”

“I don’t know if you noticed, but that big sugar maple behind the boathouse is dressed out in full color.”

“That always was my favorite tree. I’ll have to make sure to take a look when I pick you up this evening.”

Ellie gave me a hug. “Okay, see you then.”

Being at the Zoo full-time while Jeremy had been on his honeymoon had been both wonderful and difficult. On one hand, since I’d made Jeremy a full-time manager and I’d taken on the responsibility of the kids and the Academy, not to mention all the amateur sleuthing I seemed to be forever getting pulled into, I really hadn’t been spending as much time at the shelter as I liked. Being back full-time and really being a part of the everyday operation reminded me why I’d wanted to do this in the first place.

On the other hand, Zak had been doing double duty the past couple of weeks. Triple duty, if you really thought about it. While our principal, Phyllis King, was responsible for the daily decisions regarding Zimmerman Academy, and we had a full staff of wonderfully talented teachers, Zak still liked to have a presence at the facility on most days to oversee things, so when you threw in the software company he still owned and running the kids around town, he really did have a full plate.

“Thanks for covering while I was at the events committee meeting,” I said to Tiffany when Charlie and I arrived at the shelter.

“How’d it go?”

“Pretty well. It seems like things are on track for Haunted Hamlet. We’re hoping for a really good turnout this year. Attendance was down last year after we had to shut down the haunted house.”

“Is the haunted house ready for the grand opening?”

“Not yet, but we will be, although we’re really going to have to work hard to get it open on Friday. Did the man who adopted that little sheltie make it in?”

“He did. I think she’ll be very happy with him. I also called the woman who was interested in the golden that was brought in a few days ago. She’s going to come by to fill out an application this afternoon. She indicated she’d be by at around three. I hope that’s okay.”

“That’s fine. I plan to stay until five.”

“I really appreciate your letting me leave early today.”

“No problem. You’ve been putting in a ton of extra hours while Jeremy has been gone.”

Tiffany shrugged. “I like to help out when I can. You know how much this job means to me. I feel bad leaving you on your own, but my brother is in town and I haven’t spent any time with him in what seems like forever.”

“I’ll be fine on my own. If I have to go out on a call I’ll just put a note on the door.”

“The cleaning is completely done on the domestic animal side and I cleaned the bear cages, but Sunny was in a foul mood, so I decided to let you do the honors of cleaning his cage.”

Sunny was our resident cougar, who did indeed have a bad temper but for some reason seemed to like me. I had no idea why, but when I encouraged him to transfer from one cage to another so we could clean or feed him, he cooperated like a house cat. When Tiffany made the same request he growled at her.

“Any new arrivals?” I asked.

“No, but I did receive a call from a woman looking for her lost dog. He’s a little black Schipperke named Stefan who escaped when one of the neighbor kids left her back gate open after they went into her yard to retrieve a baseball. I had her send over a photo. I put a copy on the Web Site as well as the bulletin board and the desk. I planned to stop by the library, market, and post office on my way home to post photos. I encouraged her to make the rounds as well.”

“Sounds like you handled it perfectly. I’ll keep an eye out. We should probably let the woman know to drive through the campgrounds. All that food cooking over open fires tends to attract strays.”

“I did suggest that. I also told her to post flyers in the bathrooms at the campgrounds nearest to her home.” Tiffany began gathering her things. “If you need me to come in early tomorrow just let me know. I figure you might be late decorating tonight and want to sleep in or maybe take the kids to school. I might not answer my phone, but you can text me and I’ll get it.”

“Thanks. I’ll keep that in mind. Are you doing anything special with your brother today?”

“He wants to take the paddleboards down to the lake, and then I think we’re going to hike up Sunset Trail for the sunset. I haven’t asked him about dinner yet, but I know there are a couple of places he likes to go when he’s in town.”