Mystery at Saddle Creek (5 page)

5

 

THE MOON AND THE STARS

Out of breath, Tan reached his campsite and darted under the rigged-up canopy, his back to the rocks. In one hand he held tightly to his slingshot and with the other he grappled for a heavy, large stone. That coyote had followed him, for sure. It was small but fierce. Tan distrusted all coyotes. They were sly and persistent and brave around people. They also stole his food from under his nose and killed rabbits before he had a chance. But this one was worse. It seemed to have a personal vendetta. Tan must not fall asleep tonight. Again.

THE TWO VEHICLES STOPPED in front of the house at exactly the same moment. Bird and Julia watched the action through the window. It was nine-thirty and the sun had just set. Hannah and Paul spoke with the two police officers, one male and one female. Bird guessed that Officers Paris and O'Hare were still at the meeting.

Hannah's gaze followed the beam of the female officer's flashlight to the footprints under the windows. Paul put his hand reassuringly on her shoulder.

Julia gasped as she realized why the police were there. “There really
was
somebody trying to get in?”

“Yeah. I called 911 when you were running the beaters.”

“And you didn't tell me?”

“You were already scared enough.”

“Bird! You should've said something!”

“And had you screaming in the corner until the police came?”

Julia frowned. “Okay, maybe, but still ...”

“I should tell them where I really was tonight,” Bird whispered.

“They're going to freak if they find out I was alone!”

“But I can't lie to the police.”

“They won't ask! And I lied, too. When Aunt Hannah asked me where you were, I told her you were in the barn with the cat. I don't want to get in trouble.”

“You'd be in far less trouble than me, Julia.”

“I guess.”

“Okay. If they don't ask I won't tell, but if they do, I will. That way I don't lie, and there's a chance we don't get in trouble.”

“Sounds good.”

The front door opened and Hannah, Paul and the two officers entered. Hannah hugged the girls tightly. Lucky jumped all over them, wagging his tail.

“You poor kids! To think we were at a meeting about this horrible event and the man we're looking for was here, trying to get in. I don't even want to imagine what might've happened!”

“Hannah.” Paul's voice was calm. “The police have told us not to jump to any conclusions. We don't know that this is the same man. It might've been an attempted burglary.” He looked at the girls. “Are you two all right?”

Julia and Bird nodded. “I ... we ... didn't know he was out there,” Julia said. “Lucky barked his head off for a bit, and then stopped. It was Bird who saw the footprints under the windows when she came back from ...” Julia stopped herself just in time.

“From checking it out. I went outside to see why Lucky was barking and I saw the footprints,” Bird jumped in. “I didn't want Julia to be upset so I called 911 when she was busy making cookies.”

The female officer — her name tag read Beth Richardson — spoke. “That was the right thing to do. You were also very smart to have locked the windows, which he tried to open. There are hand smears all over them. Most people lock the doors and forget about the windows.” She took out her pencil and pad. “What time did the dog start barking?”

Bird looked at Julia. Julia hesitated. “Well, Aunt Hannah left around quarter to seven,so it was probably around eight o'clock?” She looked at Bird for support.

Bird nodded. “Probably.” So far, so good.

“Eight?” the officer asked. “Why did you wait until nine to call?”

Bird opened her mouth to answer, but nothing came out. Oh no, she thought. Not this again. She tried again. Nothing.

Julia answered for her. “She didn't go out to look until then.”

Bird wanted to hug her sister but she didn't dare make eye contact.

“Is that why?” Officer Richardson asked Bird pointedly.

Bird nodded.

The male officer, Lou Polito, addressed Bird. “Your Aunt Hannah told us that you've seen a ‘wild' man around. Can you tell us more about that?”

They were on safer ground now, and Bird relaxed. Her vocal chords worked. She spoke rapidly in case they stopped cooperating again. “Yesterday after dinner, when my horse and I were out on the trails, a man jumped right out of nowhere. He wanted to talk, I could tell, but Sunny spooked and raced home. Later I realized that he looked like the police sketch. I was so glad that my horse ran away! And, today, I think someone was in the bushes when I was riding out there.” Bird gestured to the front paddock.

Hannah gasped. “You didn't tell me that! I would never have left you girls alone!”

Bird felt another stab of guilt. She
had
known, and she'd left her little sister alone.

“What made you think that someone was here earlier today?” asked Officer Polito.

“My horse ... spooked.” She could hardly tell them that Sunny had
told
her.

Officer Richardson looked up from her pad.“Can you describe this man?”

“Yes. Well, he looked homeless. And lost. Wild. Dirty. Scruffy. Rough dark hair, dark eyes, dirty skin. He was mostly naked. Except for dark blue gym shorts and old white sneakers.”

Officer Richardson smiled at Bird kindly. “Thank you.”

Officer Polito finished the interview. “We'll look around outside the house, take footprint casts and dust for fingerprints before we leave. We may bring a dog over to follow the scent, if it's not too dry. Call if there's any reason, big or small. We can be here in minutes. Here's my card. Put it beside the phone. Call me directly at any hour.”

“Thanks, officers,” said Hannah as she walked them out. “We'll stay inside and keep all the doors locked. And windows,” she added quickly.

Officers Polito and Richardson went to the car. They took their kits out of the trunk and began the careful work of retrieving evidence.

An hour later, the cruiser finally drove away. The family sat around the kitchen table with tall glasses of milk and Julia's cooled, freshly made cookies.

“How was the meeting?” asked Bird innocently, steering the conversation away from the evening's events at Saddle Creek.

Paul thought for a moment. “It may have done more harm than good. People got angry and upset.”

“They're scared,” added Hannah. “They fear for their safety.”

“You were back sooner than we thought,” said Bird. “I called the police because I didn't know when you'd be home.”

“It was the right thing to do. If there's ever a problem, that's who to call.” Hannah pointed at Officer Polito's card, stuck on the bulletin board over the phone. She put the empty glasses in the dishwasher and wiped the counter. “I don't know about you folks, but I'm beat. I'm ready for bed.”

“Me,too,”said Julia,yawning.“Bird,can I sleep in your room tonight?”

“Of course. I need the company.”

Hannah motioned to Julia. “Come on. I'll help you with the futon.”

They headed up the stairs, Hannah's arm around Julia's shoulders, leaving Bird and Paul downstairs to lock up. They let Lucky out, and stood together at the kitchen door. The moon was large and bright in the clear night sky.

“You know, when the moon is full, its brightness obscures the stars, even though they're up there, too,” said Paul. “We see them only after the moon begins to dim.”

“That's totally poetic!”

“I try.” He smiled,then looked surprised. “Did you hear what I just said?”

“The brightness of the moon obscures the stars?”

“It just came to me! Sometimes what appears to be obvious obscures the actual truth.”

Bird thought about that. “You can't see the forest for the trees?”

“Almost, but not quite.”

“Okay. What are you talking about?”

“The meeting tonight. It looks obvious to most people that Pierre Hall is the culprit. He's got a violent reputation and it was his ex-wife who was the victim.”

“And to us it looks obvious that it's the wild man. He's so weird. He's creeping me out.” Bird shivered.

Paul put his hand on her shoulder. “And yet, neither one has been proven guilty. We might have to look past the moon and examine the stars before we find the truth. Just a thought.”

Bird nodded slowly, thinking it out. “It's a good thought.” Lucky came back, wagging his tail and quite content. Paul locked the door behind him and began to turn off the lights.

“You go on up to bed, Bird. You've had a long day.” He ruffled her hair fondly as she scooted past him to the stairs.

6

 

PIERRE HALL

Tan watched as the lights turned on, room by room, from the upstairs down. In spite of the coyote, he'd been drawn back to the farmhouse. He had to tell the girl what happened. He couldn't trust anyone else, and he would try until he succeeded. But a man—the man from next door who neglected his horses—was making a racket at the front door. The echoes of his fist against the wood reverberated in the still night air, and Tan covered his ears to block out the sound. Thankfully, nobody had come looking for him. Yet. He was still free. And freedom was everything. The coyote wasn't near, for the moment, and the night was young. He would be patient. He would wait.

JUST AS BIRD had slipped under her covers, a loud banging sound got her attention. She jumped up and looked out her bedroom window at the stoop below. “Julia!” she whispered. “You'll never guess who's at the door!”

“Who?”

“Look for yourself.”

Julia crouched down beside Bird to see. She gasped. “Pierre from next door! What's he doing here?”

“Let's find out.”

Bird and Julia waited until Paul and Hannah had hurried downstairs in their robes, then crept silently down the stairs. They hid behind the stairwell, where they could observe the action.

Pierre Hall pounded relentlessly on the door.

Neither girl knew Pierre well. He worked next door and lived in an apartment above the barn. They'd often seen him around, but there was something about him that they instinctively avoided. He was odd, simple as that.

Paul opened the door. “Pierre! What can we do for you?”

“I got something to show you.” Pierre looked blurry-eyed and dishevelled. By his demeanour and his breath, Bird figured that he'd had quite a few beers. She could smell it from all the way across the hall.

Paul and Hannah ushered him into the kitchen and closed the hall door, probably hoping not to wake the sleeping girls. Bird and Julia crept closer to listen.

“They left me this.” Bird heard paper crumpling. “Cowards! Didn't dare show themselves.”

There was a pause. Bird assumed Paul and Hannah were reading whatever Pierre was showing them.

“It was tacked to my door. I was having a few with my pals at the bar. I found it when I came back.”

“Have you called the police?” Paul asked.

“No. And I'm not going to. They think I killed my ex with a tire iron! They took DNA. I didn't do it! But I don't have an alibi.” Pierre sounded miserable. “Let's have a drink.”

Bird listened to Hannah's slippered feet cross the kitchen floor. The tap ran and a glass was filled. “This note is threatening,” she said. “The police should know about it.”

“They wouldn't do anything.”

Paul's chair creaked. “You don't know that, Pierre.”

The glass slid across the table with a rumble. “You have something better than this?”

Hannah answered, “Not tonight.”

Paul's chair scraped. “Pierre, call the police about that note. There's nothing we can do that the police wouldn't do better.”

“You could protect me!”

“How?” asked Paul.

“Let me stay here tonight.”

Bird was taken aback. The idea of their smelly, drunken neighbour sleeping on the couch didn't appeal to her at all.

“Look, I'll be no trouble. Where's your can?” With no warning, Pierre pushed open the kitchen door and immediately tripped over Bird and Julia. They yelped in surprise and tried to scramble out of his way.

“Damn kids!” he yelled.

Lucky began to bark loudly, and he rushed along the hall to Bird and Julia. Pierre, who'd just got to his feet, was knocked over again by the dog.

“Damn dog!” He kicked out and missed Lucky by a few inches.

Lucky growled.

Hannah grabbed the dog by his collar and stood between Pierre and the girls. “Pierre, you're drunk. I don't want you staying here tonight.”

“You read that note! They're coming to get me!”

“Call the police. They'll protect you.”

“They think I'm guilty!”

Paul spoke. “You're frightening everybody, including the dog.”

“What if Pierre stays in the barn tonight?” asked Bird helpfully. “We could give him that blow-up mattress and some blankets.”

“The barn?” sniffed Pierre. “Like some am ... mi ... nal? Animal?”

“It's not so bad,” said Bird. “We sleep up there lots of times, when we're waiting to help with a birthing—it's actually quite nice.”

“It's damp and noisy, with all the snorting and farting of horses.” Pierre drew himself up from the floor. “Seems I can't count on my neighbours. Thanks for nothing.”

Paul opened the front door. “Pierre, don't make us the bad guys. The choice is yours. Call the police or stay in the barn.”

Pierre walked outside with great dignity. He turned around, shook his fist and repeated, “Thanks for nothing!” He slammed the door behind him.

They all stood staring at the closed door.

“Holy smoke,” said Julia.

“That was upsetting,” added Hannah.

“What does the note say?” Bird asked. “Is it still in the kitchen?”

Paul nodded. “I think so. He forgot to take it.”

Bird dashed to the kitchen and snatched up the note. She read aloud:

“Pierre Hall, you're a bully and a drunk. You're going to feel what it's like to have a tire iron across the head. Be afraid.”

“This is awful.” Bird dropped the note and wiped her hands on her pajamas, as if it was contaminated. “We have to call the police ourselves. Pierre won't.”

Hannah nodded and picked up the phone. She punched in the numbers from Officer Polito's card and waited. The voice mail was on, so Hannah left him the details of Pierre's visit.

She put down the receiver with a worried frown. “That's all we can do tonight. Let's try to get some sleep.”