6 Murder at the Art & Craft Fair Page 17

I wasn’t quick enough. Lou bellowed it out before I could stop him. I cringed. I knew what was coming next.

  “So, you’re saying that it was near where we found your car?”

  Before I could imply that it was at least a couple of miles from there, Lou belted out a, “That’s right.”

  “So, why didn’t you come out when I sounded the siren when we got there around 2:00?”

  Again, I tried to sneak through the crowd, away from Lou. A smelly hand grabbed my shirt by the collar. An odorous armpit hovered nearby. Once he had me where I couldn’t get away, he slithered up next to me.

  “So, it was all a dream,” he whispered in my ear.

  “She should have sounded it a second time. Everyone knows it takes the first noise to wake you, and the second one to alert you as to what is going on. Besides, I thought you had the first watch.”

  Lou let my watch comment pass, but he let me know that I was the one that pushed the door lock when we both got out of Lightning to fix the second flat. Not only did he let me know, he let me know a little too loudly. George overheard him.

  “So, why didn’t you two call a cop? Or Pop-A-Lock? Oh, that’s right. Your phone is at home.”

  Sometimes nightmares last into the next day. This was one of those times. The ribbing continued until I informed the group that Lou and I needed to go home and clean up, and then pursue a murderer. Everyone quickly agreed that we definitely needed to clean up. George recommended an industrial-strength car wash, with lots of chemicals and big brushes.

  +++

  Jennifer called and found out Lightning was ready. Thelma Lou dropped me off at the garage, and I headed in one direction, while Lou took the girls home before heading back to his apartment so that he could look and smell a little better. There wasn’t a lot of hope for Lou, but at least a shower would make him easier to tolerate when he went back out in public. The two of us got our heads together briefly before the three of them took off. We agreed that both of us needed to go home and clean up. We also agreed that we needed a little time to sit and spend time with God, trying to get back on his good side. We even decided that we could skip Wiiing for one day. Lou told me that when I finished all of that to give him a call and we would talk about how to proceed on the case. I thought about shooting each of our suspects in the leg until one of them confessed. Lou thought that was a little harsh, but that I might consider pistol whipping them. He also told me I could do whatever I wanted to the delinquent who drove nails in Lightning’s tires. I was all for that, but the delinquent would have to come to me. There was no way I wanted to make another trip out that road. If Lou told me that that day’s clue was “another nightmare,” I planned to retire for good. A middle-aged man can only stand so many nightmares in a row. Even one nightmare in a row is a little much.

  Chapter Thirty

  As I showered, I thought about what to do next. I think it took the hot water and soap to get me focused on the case again. We had talked to everyone except Delbert Cross, the vendor who left early, and George and Myra Ingram, the couple who worked security. I was sure they would tell me that nothing happened on their watch, and I figured they would be telling the truth, but I had to hear it from them. Once we had talked to Cross and got his side of the story, I wanted to talk to Joan Arrington again, to see what she had to say about Earl Clements saying he had given her his Statue of Liberty to return. She had neglected to share that with me. I could see only two reasons why she would have done that. One, he never gave it to her. And two, she had used it to whack Tom Kincaid over the head. For the moment, my money was on Clements as the liar, but I reserved the right to change my mind. From everything I’d heard, she had been smitten with Kincaid.

  +++

  I called Lou and told him we were ready to roll. He told me that was much better than rocking, unless it was on the front porch in a rocking chair. Since neither of us had a front porch large enough to accommodate a rocking chair, we decided to get to work and pursue the murderer. Before I hung up I asked him what God’s word was for the day. He told me it had already come true. The words were, “Rescue me.” That reminded me of the song by the same name. I sang it on the way out to Lightning, but not until after I had checked to make sure none of the neighbors were watching.

  +++

  Not being good at one thing at a time, let alone two, I quit singing until I’d backed Lightning out of the driveway and started off toward Lou’s place. As soon as I headed off down my street, I sang again, and continued to do so as long as I was sure no one could hear my melodious voice or see my gyrations. I didn’t care what Lou thought. I’d made a fool of myself in front of him on many occasions, and he had returned the favor. I continued to sing as he rushed toward Lightning. I didn’t quit until Lou ripped the door open, sighed, and stood there clutching the door.

  “Don’t like my singing?”

  “Let’s just say that none of the judges will think you have talent.”

  He shut up, but made no move to get in the car.

  “What’s wrong with you?”

  “I just wanted to make sure I got in before you got out and locked the door.”

  “Then why haven’t you gotten in?”

  “I’m just waiting to make sure you’re through crying for help.”

  I thought about locking the doors and rushing off to see if Heather wanted to help me apprehend a murderer. Then, I realized that I couldn’t move quickly enough to keep Lou out, and Heather wasn’t my main squeeze. Jennifer was.

  “So, what are we going to do, Cy?”

  “First, one of us is going to choke the other, and then the choker will be off to look for the murderer.”

  He lunged for me in an effort to get his hands around my throat, mouthing as he moved toward me.

  “Thanks for reminding me that I owe you one.”

  I deflected his comment and drove on.

  “Let’s stop and get something to eat first, and then go question that security couple, provided we can find them. Oh, by the way, I tried to get ahold of Cross again. He still isn’t answering his phone. How long do funerals last, anyway? At any rate, if I can’t get ahold of him tonight, tomorrow you and I are off to West Liberty to see if he’s there. After all, he’s still as much of a suspect as any of these other turkeys.”

  +++

  We downed our second lunch of the day and headed to George and Myra Ingram’s abode. We found it, but not George and Myra. We knocked on a few doors until we found a neighbor who didn’t molest us, berate us, try to shoot us, or pound nails in Lightning’s tires. Finally, we located the neighborhood watchdog and found out that Mr. and Mrs. Security should be home within an hour. With nothing else to do, we stopped by my house and called to see if the girls wanted to do some short term necking. Jennifer responded, “Depends on who it’s with.” When I told her, “Me,” she said, “I’ll pay for any speeding tickets.”

  I had an idea. We had a murder to solve, and I had a woman to romance, so on the way over to Thelma Lou’s I shared my idea with Lou. He seconded my emotion. We arrived at Thelma Lou’s and allowed ourselves five minutes for affection before sharing my idea with the girls.

  “Girls, I’ve got a proposition for you.”

  Jennifer raised her eyebrows as if she were thinking, “What have you got up your sleeve now?”

  “Lou and I have to go question the couple who worked security on the night Tom Kincaid was murdered. Sometime tonight or tomorrow, we have to go to West Liberty to question a suspect, and then go to Danville to ask a couple of questions of the woman whose tent was next to Kincaid’s. I could call her, but I want to eyeball her, see if I can figure out if she’s telling us the truth. I’m sure there’s a motel around West Liberty somewhere, so I was wondering if the two of you might want to go with us, sort of a road trip.”

  Thelma Lou chimed in.

  “What he’s really saying, Jennifer, is that he and Lou need some back up.”

  “Cy, are you sure you wouldn’t rather take Heather?
I saw how much you enjoyed her hug after we rescued you.”

  All I could get out was, “Now, that you mention it,” before a couch pillow came sailing toward me.

  The four of us discussed it, and Jennifer decided that if I was going to eyeball another woman she wanted to be there, so the girls agreed to go as long as there was a motel, and it had a couple of rooms with two double or queen-size beds. I was all for the two beds in a room. There was no way I was sharing a bed with Lou. Thelma Lou and Jennifer might not mind sharing a bed, but Lou and I had already bonded more in that outhouse than I ever wanted to bond with any man, best friend or not.

  I used my trusted friend Google and found out there was one motel in West Liberty, a Days Inn. We booked two rooms, said we’d get there sometime around 7:00 or a little after. I checked on Google Maps, and found that the best way to get there was to go through Morehead. So, we would stop somewhere in Morehead for dinner, then head on to West Liberty, check in at the motel. Lou and I would leave the girls there and head to find Cross and see why he hadn’t answered any of our calls. I doubted if he’d gone on vacation, or if he stayed and grieved a while longer after the funeral. But I was getting ahead of myself. The Ingrams were due home around 4:00. Lou and I would stop by my house and his apartment, throw some things in a bag, and head to see what we could learn from the couple who worked security on the night of the murder. If either of them confessed to murdering Kincaid, then we would cancel our reservations.

  +++

  We arrived at George and Myra Ingram’s house just as a couple was getting out of a car. I hoped it was the Ingrams.

  “Are you the Ingrams?”

  “We are. What can we do for you?”

  I introduced myself and Lou.

  “I like your car. Is that what the department issues these days? If so, I might check and see if you have any openings. See, I work security part time.”

  As proud as I am of Lightning, it was Lou’s car George Ingram was bragging about. See, before we went to their house, Lou and I had gone to his house to rescue clean clothes, and whatever else he needed to look his best the next morning. Then, he got in his car and followed me to my house. We left my car there and took his to go talk to the Ingrams. I’ve often wondered why no one other than single young women ever brag about my car. I floated that around in my mind for a moment, and then realized that I’d rather have some good-looking, young, single female brag on my car than some middle-aged, slightly overweight guy who works security at night. I looked at Lou and smiled. He smiled back, but I knew what I was thinking and what he was thinking were not the same thing. I quit smiling and turned back to the Ingrams. I asked if we could talk to them privately. Ingram looked around like it was already fairly private, but invited us inside. I’m sure he also wondered why in the world the police wanted to talk to him. And then a light came on in his head.

  “Is this about that guy who was murdered?”

  “So, you heard about it.”

  “Maureen Eidorn called and told us. We were shocked.”

  “What can you tell us about that night?”

  “Not much of anything. Since we never saw anyone the entire night, my guess is that he was already dead before we got there.”

  “And what time was that?”

  “About five till 9:00. We were scheduled to work from 9:00 until 7:00. Didn’t see anyone the entire night. Well, some cars drove by, but we didn’t see anyone in the park.”

  “What about the parking lot? Did you check it?”

  “No, we mainly hung out under the Information tent. It got a little cold, but we had a portable heater. Then, ever so often we walked the property, but mainly just the area where the vendors’ tents were. The only vehicles in the parking lot were campers of some sort. The only time we were down that way was when we had to use the facilities. The porta-potties were down that way. Didn’t see anything out of line when we went, didn’t hear nothing, either.”

  His mention of the porta-potties brought back our nightmare from the night before. I looked at Lou. He looked uncomfortable too, so I moved on as quickly as I could.

  “Do you know which tent was Kincaid’s tent?”

  “Not really. Maureen said it was on the last row, but I’m not sure which one it was.”

  “Do you remember a vacant space on that row?”

  “Vaguely.”

  I’d gotten out of the Ingrams exactly what I expected to get out of them. I hoped to find Cross, and hoped he could tell us more. I was sure he could. I hoped he would. I thanked the Ingrams for their time and headed to those two good-looking women who had rescued Lou and me earlier. Well, actually, I was only heading to one of them. I was giving the other one to Lou. I’m nice that way.

  Chapter Thirty-One

  Lou pulled into Thelma Lou’s driveway and the two of us got out of the car. Jennifer was looking for us and opened the front door to let us in. Lou and I did the chivalrous thing and picked up the girls’ luggage and toted it out to let it bond in the trunk with our belongings. I planned to do some bonding with Jennifer while Lou drove. Some road trips are better than others. Jennifer and I did our best to imitate a young couple at the drive-in minus the movie. Lou kept looking in the rear-view mirror and clearing his throat.

  Because it had taken a few minutes to question the security couple and to pack for our road trip, it was almost 6:00 by the time we got to Morehead. I didn’t want to roust Cross out of bed around midnight, so we chose some place quick to eat. The girls didn’t seem to mind. They were just glad Lou and I didn’t have to spend another night in an outhouse. I thought about it as we ate, and on second thought, I wouldn’t have minded taking longer to eat, and having to get Cross out of bed. After all, his not answering his phone was the reason we had to make this road trip after all. And then I thought of our new recruits. Maybe the road wasn’t so bad.

  We left Morehead again, went through a wide spot in the road known as Clearfield, and over Clack Mountain. If at some point I decided to ask Jennifer to marry me, Clack Mountain looked like a good place to pop the question. We followed 519 all the way, and a little over a half hour later we were in West Liberty. We checked the girls in at the motel, and Lou and I headed off to see if Cross was back in town, and still alive.

  +++

  Lou pulled up in front of a house that matched the address we were given for Cross. There was a truck in the driveway, and a light on inside the house. Maybe the elusive Mr. Cross was home after all. We got out and walked up to the small frame house. I didn’t see a doorbell, so I knocked. I could see through the curtain on the door. A man was lying back in a recliner, asleep with the TV on. I knocked again, louder. The man jumped, looked over at the door, put the footrest of the recliner down, and walked over to see who had awakened him.

  “Delbert Cross?”

  “That’s right. You here to buy something?”

  “I don’t know. What are you selling?”

  He laughed.

  “I guess you’re not here to buy something. What can I help you with?”

  “I’m Lt. Dekker. This is Sgt. Murdock. We’re with the Hilldale Police Department.”

  “No kidding. I was just in Hilldale.”

  “I know. That’s why we’re here. May we come in?”

  He opened the door, curious as to why we were there.

  “Wait a minute. You said police. No police would come all this way for something like a traffic ticket. It has to be something more than that, like robbery or murder. Don’t tell me that guy next to me told you I stole something of his?”

  “No, guess again.”

  “I’m afraid I’m not very good at guessing. Why don’t you tell me?”

  “So, you admit you were in Hilldale. And you admit you know Tom Kincaid. So, tell me. Why did you leave early? The fair wasn’t over until Sunday.”

  “Just wasn’t selling all that much. I couldn’t see any reason why I should hang around there another day, when I could save myself from getting a motel room a
nd come on home.”

  “So, there wasn’t any funeral?”

  “Evidently you’ve been talking to someone. No, there wasn’t any funeral, but places like that have a hissy fit if you pack up and leave before it’s over, so I made up a story that I got a call and had to leave because of a death in the family.”

  “So, you didn’t book a motel room before you got there?”

  “Nope. Sometimes I wait to see how I do the first day. No use spending money on a motel if I don’t do no good. This was my first year there, and I didn’t do diddly. That guy you talked about cleaned up, though, and after he damaged some of my merchandise. I guess life isn’t fair after all.”

  “You didn’t by any chance stay in Tom Kincaid’s motel room, did you?”

  “Are you kidding? I didn’t even like the guy. Why would I stay with him?”

  “Didn’t?”

  “Excuse me.”

  “You said, didn’t like him, rather than don’t like him.”

  “Okay, I still don’t like him. Is that better? What’s this all about? He’s not claiming that I stole something of his, is he? Cause if so, he lying.”

  “No, Mr. Cross, he’s not claiming anything, and you’re right, he is lying.”

  “I don’t understand. You’ve confused me.”

  “Let’s take this a little slower, Mr. Cross. What was your problem with Mr. Kincaid?”

  “I got there, set up early Friday, and was gone by the time he got there to set up. Evidently, when he set up he got a little carried away and bumped into my tent and knocked some of my stuff off the table, damaged some of it. When I confronted him after I found some of my stuff on the ground Saturday morning, he denied it. It had to be him. It was on a table that was right smack dab next to his tent. There were no other tents on the side where my damaged merchandise was, and no extra room for anyone to walk between tents. Anyway, I reported him. I don’t think they did nothing to him, and nobody offered to pay for the damage.”

  “Well, you’re right about one thing, Mr. Cross.”