The Silence of the Llamas (10 page)

“I think we should keep her covered so the animals that are out at night won’t bother her.”

Matt crouched down and helped her secure the covering. “Good idea. An agent from the county’s animal control department will come tomorrow to collect the body. They’ll do the autopsy and send me the information.”

Ben crossed his arms over his chest. “I know it’s necessary, but we all know what happened. Ridley snuck over here, when he knew Dot was back in the barn. He must have been waiting, watching from somewhere in the woods, on his side of the
property. When he saw his chance, he came over and stabbed Daphne. Plain and simple.”

Ellie didn’t respond; she took a long deep breath and glanced at Dot. Dot came to her feet and looked down at the ground. Lucy thought that perhaps Ben’s explanation made her feel guilty. As if she’d neglected the animals or failed to protect them. Again.

Ellie took a step closer and put her arm around Dot’s shoulder. “Dot . . . it’s not your fault. This was senseless, crazy cruelty. I’m glad you didn’t see the person who did this. You could have been hurt, too.”

“That’s right,” Ben agreed. “I’m glad you weren’t out here. Who knows what could have happened. Believe me, the police will say the same thing.”

He’d no sooner mentioned the police than Lucy saw the blue flashing lights of a cruiser out on the road, rolling past the pasture fence. The car pulled through the gate, passed the house, and drove up the dirt road to the pasture.

A uniformed officer got out of the passenger side. His blue hat topped a tan, weathered face and a fringe of sandy, grayish hair. A bit of paunch hung over his leather belt. A younger officer, with the wide shoulders of a weight lifter, got out of the driver’s side.

Ben walked over to meet them at the pasture gate. Lucy could see he was explaining what had happened. The older officer asked all the questions and took notes on a small pad. A short time later, they walked over to Daphne’s body, covered by the tarp.

“I’m Officer Hanson,” the older policeman said, looking
around the group. “This is my partner, Officer Stahl.” He looked down at the blue heap on the ground. “This is the animal?” he asked Ben.

Ben nodded. “We thought it was best to cover the body. It can’t be removed until tomorrow.”

Officer Hanson leaned over and pulled off the covering, then squatted down to look at the wound. “Looks like she was sliced with a knife. A fast, clean cut.” He shook his head and stood up. “Who found her?”

“I did, Officer.” Dot stepped forward. She explained again how she had been in the barn, with the other llamas, and returned to get Daphne. Then realized the llama was hurt.

“Did you see or hear anything unusual while you were in the barn, or while coming outside again?”

“I don’t think so.” She paused and stared down at the ground a moment. “I did hear the dogs over at the neighbor’s house fussing and barking.” Dot pointed to Ridley’s property. “By the time I came out here, they’d stopped.”

“Of course they were barking,” Ben cut in abruptly. “They’re tied up in his yard, and he passed by and they wanted to go with him. But he was on a solo mission. He didn’t need his dogs to hunt down poor Daphne . . .”

“Sir?” Officer Hanson turned to Ben. He seemed confused but interested in Ben’s rambling. “You’re talking about your neighbor now?”

“Yes, our neighbor Justin Ridley. That’s his property, right over there.” Ben pointed to Ridley’s land. “He could have easily come over here, stabbed Daphne, and gone back through those trees without anyone seeing him.”

The police officer made notes. Then he looked over at the low stone wall that marked the property line and the thick trees just beyond the Kruegers’ side. There was a fence around the portion of the pasture where the llamas grazed. It was not high, just a corral height, easy to scale coming and going, Lucy thought.

“Want me to go take a look around over there?” Officer Stahl offered. “I might find something.”

“All right, but don’t disturb anything,” Hanson told him.

As the younger officer trotted off with a flashlight, Officer Hanson turned back to Ben. Lucy thought it was too dark to find much evidence, but maybe the dried grass and ground were soft enough for someone to have left a trail of entry and retreat.

Officer Hanson turned back to Ben. “Go on, Mr. Krueger. Any idea why your neighbor would do something like this?”

“He hates us. He wants to scare us off this farm. He’s been harassing us since we moved in, back in July.”

The officer looked at Ben quizzically. “Harassing you? How?”

Ben recounted the incidents, including the paint ball attack on Saturday. “We should have called the police after that. We thought about it. We just weren’t sure what to do. We believed it would stop. We’re new here. We don’t want to cause trouble with our neighbors . . .”

“Slow down a minute. These incidents have been going on for weeks and you haven’t reported them?”

“We should have. I can see that now,” Ben said with regret. “But we didn’t want to make a big drama out it. We’re just starting a business out here. We didn’t want a lot of bad publicity.”

Ellie bowed her head. Lucy could see she felt contrite now, even foolish.

The police officer stared at them both a long moment, then checked his pad again. “I need to ask you a few more questions for my report. Then I’m going to call this in. Detectives from the county will come out to follow up. Might be later tonight or even tomorrow. It’s hard to say.” He glanced down at Daphne again. “Don’t disturb anything in this field. Keep the other animals out of here until the property has been examined for evidence. We’re going to secure the area with tape.”

“Do you have to?” Ellie sounded upset. “I mean, people will be able to see that from the road. Is it really necessary?”

“This is a crime, ma’am. A felony. Whoever did this could get up to five years in jail.”

“They deserve fifty,” Ben said loudly.

Officer Hanson didn’t reply. He flipped his pad closed and stuck it in his back pocket. “I hate to see animals hurt. I hear llamas can be pretty good pets. Gentle creatures.”

“Oh, yes, they are. She was very dear. We’re going to miss her,” Ellie said quietly. She dabbed her eyes again.

The younger officer returned—looking eager to report, Lucy noticed. “There are some scuff marks on the fence. They show up pretty well on the white paint. And some footprints nearby. Over there, the side of the corral facing the woods.” He pointed with his light.

Officer Hanson didn’t seem surprised. “Okay, show me.” He left the group and headed across the pasture with his partner.

As the two officers walked away, Lucy noticed Ben looked
suddenly alert. She followed his gaze and noticed a tall, thin figure at the edge of the woods—a man in a military-style camouflage jacket and a black baseball cap pulled down over his brow. He stood still and straight, blending in with the trees and brush.

Lucy blinked, wondering if she was just imagining him there. She wondered how long he’d been watching them. She would never have noticed if it hadn’t been for the sudden change in Ben’s body language.

Lucy stepped closer to Matt. “That must be Justin Ridley,” she whispered. She touched his shoulder and showed him where to look.

“Just stay right here.” Matt gripped her arm and drew her closer. “Don’t go near them.”

Ben had already started marching across the pasture, the beam of his flashlight fixed on Ridley, like a spotlight on a black stage.

Ridley didn’t flinch. He barely moved. Only lifted his chin a notch higher, staring straight into the light.

“Returned to the scene of the crime, did you?” Ben shouted as he marched toward his nemesis. “There he is. That’s the guy.” He pointed at Ridley as he called to the police officers, who were now on the side of the corral facing the road.

Lucy saw Officer Hanson turn. His gaze darted between the two men.

“Come on out here, you coward,” Ben shouted at Ridley. “Come on. The police want to talk to you. You’re not getting away with this, you cold-blooded killer.”

Ben was now only a few yards from the stone wall but still
behind the corral fence, inside the pasture. Ridley stood on the other side of the wall but took a few steps out of the shadows.

Lucy could now see that something was tucked under his arm. A hunting rifle, she realized. Her breath caught in her throat.

“You’re crazy, Krueger. I have no idea what you’re talking about,” Ridley called back.

“You lie, Ridley. You’re a black-hearted liar,” Ben shouted.

Officer Hanson and his partner were now running along the outside of the corral—trying to end the argument before it went any further, Lucy imagined.

“Matt . . . this is getting scary,” she whispered.

“I know. . . . These guys aren’t fooling around. They really hate each other, and Ben has a temper,” he added quietly.

“And Ridley has a gun,” Lucy whispered back. “A really bad combination . . .”

“Don’t blame me if your damn llama died. I’m not surprised,” Ridley taunted Ben. “You don’t know the back end of an animal from its front. It’s a wonder they all don’t die on you.”

“You crazy, paranoid freak . . . get out of my sight. Before I choke you with my bare hands . . .” Ben started climbing over the corral. Officer Stahl rushed to the other side and pushed him back.

Officer Hanson ran in Ridley’s direction. “All right, that’s enough,” the police officer ordered. “We don’t want any more problems here tonight. Break it up. Or you’ll both ride back to the station with me.”

Justin Ridley didn’t move. “I’m on my own property, Officer. Any law against that?”

Officer Hanson ignored his question. “There was an incident here tonight. I need to talk to you, Mr. Ridley.”

“No problem,” Ridley replied in his low, flat voice. “That man and his wife, they’re the problem,” he shouted theatrically. “Just sitting on that property until they can cash in. They won’t give a damn about those animals after that . . .”

Officer Hanson walked even closer to Ridley, then stepped over the stone wall. They talked for a few minutes more. No one could hear what they were saying.

Officer Stahl finally persuaded Ben to turn his back on Ridley and walk to the other side of the pasture. By now, Ellie and Dot were waiting for him at the corral gate, along with Lucy and Matt. He walked by everyone and glanced at Ellie.

“Ben . . . what in the world were you doing out there? Do you want to get killed, too?”

“I’m sorry, Ellie. I saw him and just lost my head.” He let out a long breath and glanced over at Officer Stahl. “I’m sorry, Officer. Thanks for breaking it up.”

“You’ve got to stay away from your neighbor, Mr. Krueger. Let the police handle this now,” the young man advised.

Officer Hanson walked toward them. “Stahl is right. You’re lucky we were here. This situation is going to be investigated, Mr. Krueger. It will take some time, but we’ll figure out who killed your livestock. Just let us do our job and stay out of Mr. Ridley’s way. I just warned him, and now I’m warning you,” he said firmly.

Ben nodded, looking embarrassed and contrite. “I understand, Officer. I’m sorry. I was just so upset about Daphne. . . . I won’t go near the guy. I promise. If I see him, I’ll go back inside.”

Officer Hanson gave him a look. Lucy wasn’t sure if he believed Ben, but he didn’t belabor his point. “All right, everyone clear out of here. We need to seal off the area.”

Officer Stahl had already returned from the squad car with a roll of orange crime scene tape and begun the task. Officer Hanson took down Matt and Lucy’s contact information.

“The detectives assigned to this case might have more questions for you,” he told them.

“That’s fine. They can call anytime,” Matt replied. Matt and Lucy said good night to the Kruegers and Dot and then headed back to the village.

Lucy looked out the window as they drove back down the dirt road that cut across the farm and led to the main road. Darkness shrouded the landscape. The large lanterns and policemen’s flashlights eerily illuminated the scene. The canvas-covered mound, the tarp covering Daphne’s body, could still be seen clearly on the ground, in the center of the pasture. The orange crime scene tape now circled around the corral and cordoned off a swath of the pasture, between the corral and the woods on Ridley’s side of the property.

“You must feel bad,” Lucy said as the truck bounced down the dirt road and past the barn. She reached over and rested her hand on Matt’s shoulder.

“I do. The wound was in an odd place. It was almost as if someone had tried to just slash her, thinking she’d bleed but it wouldn’t be really dangerous. I mean, if you were a real hunter—like they say Justin Ridley is—you would stab an animal in a truly critical place. Across the throat or in the heart. Or even the gut. But this cut was just across the shoulder.
Not really going for the kill,” he explained. “Maybe the knife slipped and it just went too deep. Deeper than the attacker intended? But once the blade severed the artery, there was no way to save her.” He turned to Lucy, looking sad and pale. “I’ve rarely seen an animal maliciously and fatally injured like that. There’s something very wrong with anyone who could do that. I hope that person ends up in jail a long time. But they hardly ever do. Usually, they just get off with a fine.”

Matt’s voice was strained with anger and frustration. Lucy shared his outrage and disgust. But his observations also made good sense. Did Ridley actually attack Daphne, as the Kruegers believed? Or had it been someone else? Someone who lacked real hunting skills. And intended to just injure her but accidentally dealt a mortal blow?

Whatever the truth was about Daphne’s death, Ridley was definitely a scary guy. There was no question in Lucy’s mind about that.