“Well, that’s certainly one theory.”
“Lisa said she saw him bringing out a bottle of liquor to the deck last night. Any signs that he was drinking?” Kelly pressed.
“We’re interviewing the ranch staff about that very subject,” Peterson said as he flipped his notepad closed and turned to approach the others. “This was the first time any of you had been to this ranch or met Cal Everett?” he asked them.
“Yes, Detective,” Dr. Norcross replied as heads nodded behind her.
“You were all seated around the campfire last night. Was Everett alone on the deck the entire time? Did any of you see someone with him? A visitor, perhaps?” he asked as he drew nearer the women, Kelly following behind.
Dr. Norcross and the others all answered.
“He was alone.”
“I didn’t see anyone.”
“All by himself.”
Kelly couldn’t help adding, “He was on the phone a lot.”
“Dr. Norcross, do you recall who was the last person sitting beside the campfire last night?” the detective asked.
Dr. Norcross pondered that question for a moment. “I believe I was, Detective. Greta Baldwin, the other graduate student, and I were the last ones to leave the fire. In fact, it was about nine o’clock when we doused the fire and returned to our cabins.”
“Did you see anyone else out and about when you retired for the evening?” Peterson asked, jotting in his notepad again.
“No, sir, I didn’t see anyone. You can ask Greta. She’s the short brunette with the green sweatshirt standing next to the tall blonde woman, Dawn.” Dr. Norcross pointed across the barnyard.
“Thank you, Dr. Norcross. You’ve been very helpful. And the rest of you as well.” Peterson nodded to everyone in the circle around him. “I think you folks will be able to leave pretty soon. One of the officers will let you know, okay?”
“Thanks, Detective Peterson,” Kelly called as he walked toward the next cluster of women standing in the barnyard.
“Well, that was painless,” Jane said, watching Peterson approach Dawn and Greta. “You must have answered all his questions, Kelly.”
“Well, I didn’t answer so much as give him my opinions,” she confessed.
“Why are we not surprised?” Lisa observed. “What’d you tell him?”
“I said I thought Everett got drunk and fell off the deck. I’m sure I wasn’t the first one to say it.”
“For sure. I told him the same thing.” Jane gave an emphatic nod.
“Well, I did mention Everett’s drinking,” Dr. Norcross agreed. “I spoke with him before leaving the campfire last night, and he smelled of liquor then. He also had a full glass in his hand, I might add.”
“I told the blond officer that I saw him taking a full bottle out to the deck last night,” Lisa added. “I’m sure we’re not the only ones who noticed.”
“You know, I passed by Donny when the officer was questioning him, and I swear I heard Donny say he found an empty whiskey bottle on the deck this morning,” Sue added.
“Told you. He probably sat on the edge of the railing and
whoosh
. . .” Jane made a swan dive motion with her hands.
“Well, ladies, I think we should all start gathering our things so we’ll be ready to leave when the police tell us,” Dr. Norcross advised.
“Good idea,” Lisa said. “Kelly, why don’t you and Jen start while I help Dr. Norcross tell the others?”
“Okay, we’ll meet out here in the barnyard,” Kelly said as she and Jennifer set off toward the lodge.
As they walked in silence together, a stray memory surfaced in Kelly’s mind. “By the way, Jen. Did you notice anyone near the deck last night when you were taking your walk? I figured you’d say something if you did.”
Jennifer stared at the ground as she walked. “No, I didn’t see anyone.”
“How long were you out?”
“About an hour . . . I guess,” Jennifer mumbled, then hastened ahead of Kelly toward the cabin.
Kelly stared after her friend, glad that they would be leaving soon. Jennifer needed to return home.
Seven
Kelly
grabbed her coffee mug and followed Steve to the cottage front door. “Will you be able to join us in Old Town for dinner tonight, or will those meetings run long?”
Steve slipped on his leather jacket. “I’ll try. But when you start talking about money, everything takes longer.” He hastened through the door and down the steps.
“Tell me about it,” Kelly said as she followed after him. “I’ll go ahead and order pizza, so show up when you can.” She gave him a quick kiss as he paused in front of his big red monster truck.
Steve reached out and grabbed Kelly around the waist, bringing her next to him. “Hey, I need a better kiss than that. These bankers aren’t too friendly right now.”
Kelly slid her arms around Steve’s neck and gave him a better kiss. Much better. “Good luck,” she whispered after their lips parted. “I’ve got my fingers crossed.”
“Keep them crossed,” he said as he released her. “It’s getting really bad out there. Buyers have gone to ground.” He climbed into the truck and slammed the door.
“It’ll get better,” Kelly said, more hopefully than she felt.
The normally robust Fort Conner housing market was continuing its downward turn. Not a good time to be a builder or developer. New home construction had slowed almost to a standstill. There was still too much inventory on the market, and prices were spiraling lower.
Kelly was grateful Steve had branched out into some “mixed-use” development in the Old Town section of Fort Connor. Mixing retail with rooftops, so to speak. Last year, he’d renovated and remodeled a century-old warehouse and turned it into retail shops below with spacious lofts above. With views of the Cache La Poudre River meandering nearby, his Baker Street lofts had sold quickly in last year’s better market. It was also the project closest to Steve’s heart. He’d been imagining what could be done with that old warehouse ever since he was a college student.
Steve gave her a wave, and the truck engine rumbled into life as he drove off. Kelly continued across the gravel driveway to Pete’s café, located at the rear of the knitting shop. Caffeine beckoned.
“Hey, Julie,” she said as she entered the back door. “Fill ’er up, would you, please?”
“Sure thing, Kelly,” the college-aged waitress said as she poured a dark stream into Kelly’s mug. “Have a seat in my section. Jennifer is slammed. Burt’s over here already.”
Kelly spotted the gray-haired retired police detective seated near the bay windows, the remnants of a cinnamon roll on a plate before him. “Hey, Burt,” she said as she approached. “Got any plans for that last bite of cinnamon roll? We ran out of breakfast stuff this morning, so Steve and I have been running on coffee.”
Burt looked up, his lined face spreading with a warm smile. “You kids have got to slow down long enough to go to the grocery store.”
“Yeah, I know. It’s on my to-do list today.” She swiped the morsel of pastry and popped it into her mouth.
Yum
. Brown sugar and cinnamon and butter and lemon cream cheese frosting all came together into a deadly mix of high taste and high calories.
Was there any other kind?
“I was hoping you’d come by this morning, Kelly. Lisa called Mimi last night and told her what happened at the canyon retreat this weekend. I’m counting on you to provide the details. It sounds like something out of a movie.”
Kelly nodded, then took a deep drink of coffee. “It was intense, I’ll say that. I mean, we’d barely arrived Friday when this guy, Cal Everett, saunters out of the barn to talk to everyone. We were all standing around in the barnyard. Jennifer took one look and froze.”
“I can imagine. Did she tell you it was him?”
“Yeah, it kind of slipped out, I think. Anyway, Everett didn’t see Jen because she ducked down behind Lisa and me. She wanted to head home right that minute. I was going to drive her, but Jen’s therapist, Dr. Norcross, started talking to her. They went for a walk while Lisa and I set up the cabin. When they came back after an hour, Jennifer seemed better. Apparently Dr. Norcross told her it was all right to go home if she wanted. Or, she could stay and listen to the workshop sessions. Or . . . she could stay and share with the others in the sessions.” Kelly caught Burt’s gaze over the coffee cup. “Jennifer chose to stay and share, in case it could help someone else. I was so proud of her, Burt.”
Burt sipped his coffee. “That took a lot of guts.”
“Yeah, it did.” Kelly toyed with the cup rim. “And tell Mimi that Jennifer used the fiber sessions to start talking.”
Burt grinned. “You’re kidding?”
“Nope. It was a stroke of genius, too. According to Jen and Dr. Norcross, the women weren’t opening up in the workshops and talking. But once they got out to the deck where we had yarns spread all over, they loosened up. You know, touching all that soft yarn, they couldn’t wait to start knitting and crocheting. After a few minutes, you could see them relax. That’s when Jennifer started sharing. And sure enough, once she did, others opened up as well. We must have spent three hours outside on the deck that Friday afternoon.”
His face clouded. “Did that Everett try to say anything to Jennifer during the weekend?”
“No way. He barely showed his face after Dr. Norcross chewed him out. She confronted Everett after she and Jen talked outside. Dr. Norcross told him she was aware of what happened with Jennifer and warned Everett she didn’t want him anywhere near the women at the workshop. His ranch helpers could handle it. After that, we barely saw him except late at night on the deck where he was drinking and talking on the phone.”
Burt stared out the window, a small frown puckering his face. “He must have been drinking a whole heckuva lot to fall off his own deck. I wonder how he managed that.”
Kelly shrugged, then drained her coffee. “I dunno, but I remember hearing his voice getting louder and louder late Saturday night when he was out there. Lisa saw him taking a full bottle of liquor to the deck, and apparently the ranch staff found an empty bottle there the next morning. So he must have been totally wasted. The slope beneath the deck is pretty steep and rocky.”
“Did Peterson head up the investigation? I figured he would, since it’s the county.”
Kelly nodded. “He and his men questioned everyone. He even took me aside for the ‘local color’ as he called it.”
Burt chuckled. “Well, you and he have some history. This is the second time you’ve found a dead body in the canyon.”
“Detective Peterson pointed that out,” Kelly said with a smile. “And I kind of did my best to steer him away from questioning Jennifer.”
Burt’s smile disappeared. His Skeptical Cop expression appeared. “Oh? And how did you manage that, may I ask?”
“Well, I kind of glossed over an answer or two.”
Burt’s eyebrows shot up. “Can you give me an example of this glossing over?”
“Peterson asked me if I had ever met Everett before, and I was able to say ‘no’ truthfully. But I wanted to keep him from asking that same question of Jennifer, because then she’d have to admit her . . . well, her earlier encounter. Soooo, I told Peterson that I thought Everett was probably a stranger to everyone at the retreat because Dr. Norcross made all the arrangements.” She sneaked a peek at Burt. He was giving her one of those looks he used whenever she “pushed the edges.” Something Kelly was inordinately fond of doing.
“Kelly . . .” he chided softly.
“Hey, I said ‘probably,’ so it wasn’t completely false.” She held up her hands in a surrender gesture. “But it worked. Peterson asked all of them at the same time if they’d ever met Everett or been to the ranch before this weekend, so it was easier for Jennifer to kind of fade into the background.”
Burt didn’t scold again, simply shook his head. “I have to admit, I’m not feeling sorry for Everett at all. Sounds like the bastard got what he deserved.”
“Yeah, I feel the same way. I know it’s not good to speak ill of the dead, but with this scumbag, I say good riddance.”
Burt glanced toward the other part of the café, where Jennifer was busy with her customers. “Jennifer seems a little quieter than usual today. That’s not surprising, considering what she went through over the weekend.”
Kelly watched Jennifer smile and talk with her customers. Outwardly, she appeared her usual self. Only close friends recognized she was more subdued. “Yeah, she was quiet all the way home when we drove back yesterday. And she immediately went to help Pete with some catering job that afternoon. I haven’t had a chance to talk with her since we left the ranch.”
“I imagine it will take some time. She’s still seeing that therapist, right?” Burt asked before upending his cup.
“Yeah. I figure Jen will be talking with her again this week.” Kelly drained her coffee. “She’ll be okay.” Kelly wished she felt as positive as her words.
Burt leaned back in his chair and folded his arms. “I’m just glad she’s found someone who can help her. I know what a difference a good counselor can make. People go through rough times in life. Everyone needs a little help sometimes.” He gave a crooked smile. “I pulled Jennifer aside back in February right after the assault and gave her a check. I told her I wanted her to schedule as many sessions with that psychologist as she needed, and I wasn’t taking ‘no’ for an answer.”
“That was sweet of you, Burt,” Kelly said, not admitting she had made Jennifer the very same offer.
“Well, she burst into tears, Kelly,” Burt said, shaking his head. “She told me that Dr. Norcross had gotten calls from Curt Stackhouse, Steve, Pete, Lisa, Greg, Megan, and Marty. All saying they would pay her bills anonymously. She was overwhelmed.”
Kelly stared into Burt’s kind eyes. She had never discussed her own actions with her friends. All of Jennifer’s friends had quietly come to her aid at the same time. “Whoa. That’s amazing. I did the same thing right after she made her first appointment. I guess all of us did.”