Murder Fir Christmas (8 page)

He glanced at the wolf pup, a frown between his eyes. “A wolf pup? Where did it come from?”

“I’ll explain over cider after I’ve had a chance to change clothes and get my feet warm. I hope I don’t have frostbite on my toes. I’m exhausted, starving, and freezing. Everything else can wait a while.”

Rose had already made lunch. Bonnie went to her old room and changed out of her cold, wet clothes. She put on some sweatpants and a sweater. Her toes were fine when she put on double pairs of wool socks and let out a sigh of relief. At least that part of getting home was over.

With a hearty pot pie on the table, they sat down for lunch, and Bonnie told them about everything that had happened since she’d gotten to Sweet Pepper.

“That’s terrible,” her mother said. “Harvey’s family is only two farms down. He was such a young man and had those two children, Abigail and Gerald. Who would want to kill him?”

“Maybe it was an accident,” Eric suggested. “Maybe someone was hunting on the island. Is that what happened to the wolf pup?”

“I don’t know yet,” Bonnie said, opening a hot corn muffin and slathering butter on it. “Nothing is getting done because of the weather.”

“Except for criminal activity,” Rose reminded her. “Sweet Pepper isn’t big enough for those kinds of things to go on.”

“I met someone interesting while I was working,” Bonnie told her. “Remember when you used to tell me about Eric Gamlyn, the old Sweet Pepper fire chief?”

Rose appeared confused for a moment, but her frown passed, and her blue eyes lit up. “Of course. We probably would have been married if he hadn’t left town so suddenly. He wasn’t the fire chief then, and his family didn’t have much money. He came to see me the night before he left and asked me to wait for him. I might have too, if it wouldn’t have been your father, Eric. He swept me off my feet. You were born the next year.”

“Probably just as well,” her brother said. “At least we had a good insurance business while my father was alive to subsidize the tree farm.”

“Well, anyway.” Bonnie tried to bring the conversation back. “They say the old fire chief haunts the fire brigade, and the new chief, Stella Griffin, says she can see and talk to the ghost of the old chief.”

Eric, always pragmatic, made a spitting sound like ice hitting the window. “There’s no such thing as ghosts. She was just pulling your leg—you know, making fun of the new person.”

“No,” Rose said. “I believe it. If anyone could come back from the dead, it would be Eric Gamlyn. He was so strong and always did what he said he was going to do. I heard he made his fortune digging for gold in the Yukon or some such. He was quite the character.”

“It seems odd that you named our Eric after him.” Bonnie smiled as she finished eating.

“Oh, that.” Rose waved her hand. “It was a family name from Wendel’s side. It had nothing to do with the other Eric.”

After all of his complaining, Eric’s plane had been grounded until the next day. Bonnie was glad it happened. She needed a truck to fulfill her promise to Chief Rogers and notify Harvey’s family. She wasn’t happy about going out again, but she had no choice. His name was being withheld from the media until his next of kin were told.

She got dressed, and Eric offered to go with her. It gave them a chance to talk about their mother and everything Bonnie needed to know about the farm.

“Mom’s holding her own right now,” he said as he drove to the Shelton place. “She has some bad days, but she takes her meds. She’s hanging in there, fighting as hard as she can.”

“You left all her information somewhere for me, right?”

“That and everything else—what I’ve done with the trees this year and planting instructions for next year. I hire two people that help out. If you can’t do that on your salary, let me know, and I’ll help you. It’s too big a job for one person with a day job.”

“How have sales been this year?”

“Brisk. Starting the sleigh ride into the fields was a good idea, but it added a horse on the payroll. I think people really like it. It would be nice if we had some other things going on here besides the general store and the Christmas House. A few people are talking about adding some lights to Main Street and getting visitors to come at night for them. I don’t see that happening without a hotel down here so people don’t have to leave. No one wants to come down the mountain in the dark.”

“I understand that.” She glanced up at the mountain she’d come down with Matthew.

“Anyway, we’re members of the co-op. I already told them that you’re taking my place on the board. You’ll have to help make those decisions. Any questions or problems, you can call me. I know you won’t because you’re so stubborn. But I’m there if you need me.”

They touched on Eric’s recent divorce after ten years of marriage.

“Julie moved back to Knoxville. I got to see her and Annie right before the storm hit.” Annie was his three-year-old daughter.

Bonnie squeezed his arm. “I’m sorry. I know it’s hard. That’s really why you’re leaving, isn’t it? You’ve been offered promotions before and never took them because it meant not being here.”

“I just decided it was time for you to come home.” He smiled at her. “What about that man you liked in Alabama—the cook with the white gator? Why didn’t he come with you?”

“The relationship just never got that far.” She thought about Saul Chase, but there wasn’t enough between them for her to mourn. She’d enjoyed his company, but he was a free spirit. He didn’t seem interested in a commitment. “I would’ve enjoyed him being here on the long, cold nights. Mom would like him. He’s a great cook.”

He patted her shoulder. “You’ll find someone if you can let go of the past.”

“I don’t want to talk about that. There’s the Shelton place.” She pointed, glancing at the address on her cell phone. “Don’t pass it.”

“Forget I said that about the past, little sister. You just need to stop being so bossy. No man wants a woman to tell him what to do.”

“Never mind.” She took a deep breath as he parked the truck. “I have to do this.”

In a clean, dry, brown Wildlife Agent uniform, Bonnie went up to the door, leaving Eric in the truck. She squared her shoulders as she knocked. Children’s Christmas decorations were on the windows, and Mr. and Mrs. Santa Claus were in matching rockers on the porch.

Mrs. Shelton opened the door. A younger man and woman stood behind her. They both had the same pale blue eyes as Harvey—his kids. Children screeched in the background, with the sound of little feet running through the house.

“Oh my God,” Mrs. Shelton said, tears beginning to stream down her face. “I knew something was wrong. When Harvey didn’t call, I knew something bad had happened.”

Bonnie cleared her throat. “I’m sorry, ma’am. Agent Shelton has been shot and killed.”

Mrs. Shelton’s legs gave out. Her son and daughter supported her and helped her into the living room. Bonnie followed them, closing the door behind her. The Shelton women held each other and cried, while Gerald stood stoically behind them, staring at a blank spot on the wall.

Bonnie stood quietly but didn’t know what to do with her hands, finally settling on clasping them in front of her. She had only made one other death notification in her career, and that had only been as a second party with a sheriff. It wasn’t an easy or pleasant thing to do. Somehow it seemed worse at this time of year.

“Would you like some coffee?” Abigail asked after several minutes, tears still in her eyes.

“Yes, please,” Bonnie said, corners of her mouth turned down. She sat in the cozy room with them. A fire was crackling in the hearth that was hung with red stockings.

“Tell me what happened,” Mrs. Shelton said in a voice devoid of emotion.

Bonnie explained the situation and what had happened as far as she knew. She left out the part about not being able to find Harvey’s body. It didn’t seem important or appropriate for the grieving family.

Mrs. Shelton sobbed as her son put his arm around her. He looked just like his father.

“I’m sorry, but I need to ask you a few questions,” Bonnie said as Abigail brought in cups of coffee for all of them on a large Christmas tray.

“That’s all right,” Gerald replied. “We want to help.”

“Do you know if Agent Shelton had any enemies?” Bonnie took out a scrap of paper and had to borrow a pen. She wasn’t prepared for this.

“Harvey didn’t have an enemy in the world,” his wife said. “As far as I know, everyone thought the world of him.”

Her children agreed with her. Bonnie hadn’t expected anything different from them.

“Why was Harvey retiring so early?” Maybe it didn’t have anything to do with his death, but she’d wondered from the beginning.

“No specific reason,” Mrs. Shelton said as she wiped her tears away. “He just came home one day and said he thought it was time.”

“He wasn’t sick? Decided the job was too much for him?”

“No. We talked about doing some traveling. His brother lives out west.”

So nothing there either. “Has he mentioned any problems that have to do with the job? What was the last thing he did?”

Mrs. Shelton shook her head. “I can’t remember right now. I wish I’d paid more attention. I’m sorry, Agent Tuttle. But I’m so glad you’re here to take his place. He loved the area, and I know he’d want someone like you to take care of it.”

She started sobbing again. Bonnie knew it was time to leave. She didn’t have any printed cards yet but wrote her cell phone number on a piece of paper and left it for Harvey’s family in case they thought of anything else.

“What about my father’s body?” Gerald asked as he walked her to the door.

“The coroner will have it for a while. Someone will be in touch with you when you can make arrangements. Do you know if your father had an extra set of keys for the office and the Hummer?”

“Sure. Let me get those for you.” He studied her face. “My mother might need some time to get out of here, Agent Tuttle. I know this house belongs to the Wildlife Agency.”

“Don’t worry about it. I’m living with my mother anyway. Tell her she can take all the time she needs.”

Bonnie was glad to walk out of the small cottage with the Hummer’s spare keys. She wondered where his office was located. She could probably look that up without asking anyone.

“How’d it go?” Eric asked when she got in his truck.

“About like you’d expect.” She closed the door on the frigid air and let out a breath she didn’t realize she’d been holding. “Let’s get back. There’s nothing more I can do today. Tomorrow was supposed to be my first day working. I think that’s what I’m shooting for now.”

But it wasn’t easy to get Harvey’s death off her mind. Bonnie spent the evening playing scrabble with her mother and brother. She went to bed early and found the wolf pup wide awake. He growled at her as she put on her gloves and started smoothing the salve Matthew had given her on him. He calmed down right away, as though he knew she was trying to help him.

She looked into his intelligent, brown eyes as his gaze followed her every move. “You’re awfully tame for a wild pup, aren’t you?”

He opened his mouth and let out a weak howling sound.

“Well, that was something.” She stroked his head. “Just don’t get too attached. I have to let you go in the wild as soon as I can. I can’t believe Matthew thought you needed a name. That’s kind of crazy, isn’t it?”

The wolf howled again but settled down in her jacket.

“I’m not kidding,” she told him. “When you’re better, you’re out of here. You’ll see.”

Chapter Nine

The next morning dawned bright and clear. The sun glistened on the snow as it began to melt it in earnest. The roads were full of puddles, and snow dripped into icicles that hung from the roof. It was a picturesque scene throughout the valley.

Eric’s flight was leaving early. His truck was staying—good thing, since Bonnie’s truck was mostly dead and she didn’t want to drive the Hummer when she wasn’t working. The gas alone would kill her. She was only allowed a certain amount every month.

She and her brother continued talking about the tree farm and upcoming events that she’d have to take over. Groups of people came randomly to cut their own trees and take them home, but the real money was in special parties that included food and games. She would have to be home for those, working them into her schedule. That was barring emergencies, of course. Bonnie hoped everything would fit together.

“I love you, sis.” Eric gave her a big hug and kiss before he left. “If anything at all gets messed up, give me a call.”

“I will.” Bonnie hugged him tightly. This might be the closest she and her brother had ever been. With such a wide age gap between them, they weren’t close when she was a child. It was too bad that his leaving had brought them together.

Driving his pickup back from Sevierville, Bonnie thought again about Harvey. She also had to decide how she was going to get Eric’s truck and hers home, as well as bringing the Hummer down the mountain.

She stopped on the side of the road as she saw a group of older children with sticks poking at an animal. At first she thought it was a dog but soon realized it was a red fox. Not only could they be hurt by the fox, the fox could be hurt too.

The sign near the abandoned convenient store said she was in Frog Pond, another community mostly served by Sweet Pepper fire and police. Her own jurisdiction was much broader, including several counties in the area. Not that jurisdiction would have stopped her from dealing with the fox problem.

“Hey.” She approached the group. “What’s going on? You know that fox isn’t tame. He could take on all of you and come up the winner. He wouldn’t hesitate to bite you, and he could have rabies.”

The two smaller children dropped their sticks and ran away. But the older boys gazed at her arrogantly.

“What’s it to you?” one of them asked.

She pulled back the lapel on her brown jacket so they could see her badge on her uniform. “I’m the new Federal Wildlife Agent. You know what that means?”

The second boy threw down his stick but didn’t leave. “It means you protect animals.”