Chapter 9
The next day, Cal accompanied Wyatt, who had his own questions for Jules, to the gift shop on the Enchanted Highway. He spotted Jules’s car behind the gift shop, as expected, and parked next to her.
“That her car?” Wyatt asked, pointing to the old sedan.
Instead, he just nodded and climbed out of his Jeep into the bright sun. Today would be another warmer-than-usual day by the looks of it.
Wyatt followed him to the back door of the shop and waited while Cal knocked.
Cal swept his gaze around the lot, looking for signs anything had changed since yesterday.
Tire tracks in the dirt. A bit of trash.
Flattened grass at the edge of the lot that could mean someone had tromped through the weeds.
A quiet buzzing brought his attention to a paper plate just down from the back door.
Flies and a lone bee swarmed around what appeared to be the remnants of some kind of brown mush.
Next to the dirty plate was a chipped bowl with water.
She was still feeding the stray then. He smiled, recognizing this kindness to a stray as an indication of Jules’s tender heart.
Jules answered the door a few seconds later, looking lovely despite the dark smudges under her eyes that suggested she hadn’t slept well.
She gave Cal a suspicious scowl, but when she turned to Wyatt, her expression brightened to a welcoming smile.
“Hello there. Let me guess. You’re Sheriff Colton’s brother, the police detective. You have the same eyes.”
Wyatt tapped a finger to his nose. “Good guess.” He offered his hand. “Detective Wyatt Colton. And you’d be Jules Bailey?”
Her smile brightened as she tapped her own nose, then gripped Wyatt’s hand. “How can I help you, Detective?”
Cal frowned as he watched the cordial exchange. What was happening here? Where was the snarky woman he’d met yesterday?
“I know you’ve already talked with the sheriff, but I’d like to ask my own questions, if you have a few minutes?”
“Certainly. Come in, please.” She stood back and waved Wyatt inside. When Cal followed his brother, she gave him a wry look. “You always tag along with your little brother?”
There she was. Miss Sarcasm was back.
He met her jibe with a cocky you-can’t-rile-me grin. “When official business calls for it.”
She rolled her eyes, then led Wyatt to the break room. “Can I get you something to drink, Detective? Coffee? A soft drink?”
“No thanks,” Wyatt said, settling at the rickety Formica table where Cal had sat yesterday to interview her.
“I’d love a cup of coffee. Black,” Cal said, testing her.
She gave him a flat look, then hitched her head to the counter where the coffee maker sat, the pot a quarter full. “Knock yourself out.”
He arched an eyebrow. Why was Wyatt getting the red carpet and glowing reception that he most certainly had not? And why did he care?
She took the chair across from Wyatt, her expression open and pleasant. “Fire away, Detective. What questions do you have?”
Wyatt put a small digital recording device on the table, then stated his name, the date, time and location and asked Jules to state her full name. “Does the name John Harper mean anything to you?”
“Not before yesterday. Cal told me that’s who they identified the man found dead by the sculpture to be.”
Wyatt cast a glance toward him, lifting one eyebrow. “Cal told you that, did he?” His brother’s expression and emphasis on his name told Cal it was her familiar use of his first name that intrigued him more than his divulging case information to Jules.
“Yes,” she said.
“Had you seen John Harper before his body was discovered yesterday?” Wyatt asked.
She nodded. “As I told Sheriff Colton yesterday, I recognized the dead man, because he’d come into the gift shop at closing time the night before.”
“Alone?”
“At first. Then another man came in and spoke to him for about thirty seconds before he left again. Then Harper left a minute or so after that without buying anything or speaking to me. That was the only time I ever saw him until the next morning, when he was found dead.” She cocked her head to one side.
“I already told your brother all of this. Didn’t he share his notes with you? ”
“He did, but I wanted to verify some facts and dig a little deeper,” Wyatt said.
She flashed an agreeable, maybe even flirtatious, smile. “And I’d wager you’re also checking to see if my story changes, eh, Detective?”
“Just striving for accuracy and some more detail. Right now, you’re our best lead, since you saw the man that was last seen with Harper.”
Jules nodded. “Understood. Except I don’t know how valuable my description of the man could be. I couldn’t see him clearly because the hood of his sweatshirt shielded his face, and he kept his back to me.”
“You’d be surprised how even seemingly insignificant bits of information can be the piece of the puzzle that brings a case together. Don’t underestimate the usefulness of your statement.”
She smiled again, and Cal’s breath lodged in his lungs. The warmth in her face eased the fatigue that seemed to cling to her. Her eyes sparkled, and her cheeks glowed. She was stunning. “In that case, please proceed.”
Leaning his hip against the counter where the coffee pot gurgled, Cal folded his arms over his chest and frowned as he watched Jules answer Wyatt’s questions cheerfully, thoroughly and willingly.
While he was glad his brother was getting a deeper understanding of minutia regarding the case, he couldn’t help wondering what the actual heck was going on here?
He’d never had reason to be jealous of Wyatt before, but…
Cal shook his head briskly. Nope. He wasn’t jealous. That was ridiculous.
Over the next thirty minutes, Jules gave a detailed description of the second man, reiterated that she’d seen nothing suspicious before the men arrived or when she left the shop that night, and provided a timeline of when she’d moved to Red Grove and taken the position at the gift shop.
No, she hadn’t heard enough of the second man’s voice to recognize it again.
Yes, she was sure the hoodie had said UNLV.
No, she couldn’t really say how tall he was. Just…average height.
“Last question,” Wyatt said. “In the three months that you’ve worked here at the gift shop, have you seen anything to indicate that there were regular drug deals happening on the grounds or near the Geese sculpture?”
She seemed rattled by this question, as if the suggestion that such illicit transactions and unsavory characters operating under her nose and unbeknownst to her frightened her.
“Not to my knowledge,” she said, a frown denting her brow. “During the hours I’m at the shop, I generally only see tourists. Families, guided groups, school field trips, that sort of thing. No one I’d ever considered suspicious.”
Wyatt rubbed his chin and considered her answer, then bobbed a nod. “All right then. I think that covers it. If you remember anything else you believe could be helpful—”
“I’ll be sure to call you, Detective.” Rallying her composure, she flashed a bright grin that made Cal’s pulse tick and stumble. She was beautiful all the time, but when she smiled…damn!
When she glanced his way, her eyebrows were raised as if to ask did you see that? See how helpful I was for him? Cal’s muscles tensed in irritation.
The little vixen was toying with him…
Cal quickly schooled his annoyance and gave her a wink that wiped the smug look from her face.
“Thank you for your time, Jules. I know how busy you are,” he said.
Her expression darkened, and she scoffed. “You do remember the shop’s still closed. I’m bored spitless.”
Cal turned to his brother. “Wyatt? What do you think? Does Forensics need anything else here?”
“I think it’ll be safe for you to reopen tomorrow. I’ll double-check with the team, but you should be back in business soon,” Wyatt said.
As if she had a light switch turning her expression off and on, Jules glanced back at his brother with delight. “Oh, that would be wonderful. Thank you, Detective.”
Geez, Louise. He had to get out of here before she saw how her mercurial mood got under his skin.
Five minutes and a few more flirtatious words for Wyatt later, Cal and his brother were back in his Jeep headed into Red Grove.
“So it’s Cal, is it?” Wyatt asked, his tone teasing.
“I told her she could call me that. I didn’t see the harm, since I’m not leading the investigation,” Cal replied innocently. Then, because he couldn’t help planting his flag to warn his brother away, he added, “I thought it would make her more comfortable when we had dinner together last night.”
Wyatt laughed. “Now I get it. You must have done something to tick her off on your date, based on the cold shoulder she gave you back there.”
“Hmm. You’d think, but…” He blew out a speculative breath. “She’s been chippy with me from the beginning. Frosty from the moment I introduced myself at the crime scene yesterday morning.”
“Well, I guess it’s just your winning personality and devastating charms then,” Wyatt said, a bit too amused for Cal’s liking. “You should invite her to the family barbecue this weekend. She said she’s new in town, so she might like to meet some more people.”
He chewed on the idea. He did want to spend some more time with Jules, and the family’s Fourth of July gathering was a good excuse.
Wyatt snorted and playfully punched him on the arm. “If you’re thinking I’ll try to steal her from you at the barbecue, I promise not to be too interesting and endearing around her. You know, to give you a fighting chance.”
Cal’s answering laugh was interrupted by the trill of his cell phone.
He pulled over to the shoulder in order to take the call.
The caller ID said it was the mayor of Red Grove calling, and he breezily greeted the man who was like another brother to him.
“Teddy, my man, how’s it going? Are we going to see you at the family get-together on Saturday? ”
Ted Barrett, who’d been raised in the Colton household after his grandmother passed away, seemed caught off guard by the question. “Um, yeah. I’ll be there. I, uh…” Teddy cleared his throat, and in a steadier voice said, “That’s not why I’m calling, though.”
“Oh? Do tell?”
“I need to see you in my office. ASAP.”
Now Cal stumbled, startled by the mayor’s stern edict. “Well…sure. Something wrong?” He glanced at Wyatt, who only shrugged.
“We’ll discuss it when you get here. Can you come today? After lunch? I can work you in between afternoon appointments.”
Cal considered teasing Teddy about being so important that his schedule was packed but decided Ted’s tone proved the mayor was in no mood for playful banter. “I’ll be there at two o’clock, if that works.”
“Two o’clock then.”