“What’s mine is yours, including my words. Have them.”
I chuckled and made a mental note to update my site once I’d wrapped the investigation. I then took time to explain the scene last night in greater detail than I’d given him earlier. I also told him about our investigation so far that day and my hunch that somehow the deer were important.
“I don’t know, Angie,” my fianc? said after a long pause. “She fell and hit her head? That sounds like an accident to me. The police may be right on this one.”
“Something just seems off about it all. I can’t shake the feeling, you know?” I sighed. I’d really been hoping he would pick up on some small detail I’d missed, that by simply confiding in Charles I’d crack the case wide open.
“I do know. I just don’t have any suggestions on where to look next.” His response was earnest, but he also seemed a little disappointed in his inability to assist with this one. “Think of all the clues you’ve found. The camera didn’t have film. The bootprints matched the ones Officer Bouchard was wearing, and the flashlights at night were only seen by your cat. We know he’s not the most reliable. What if he made it up to have some fun at your expense?”
“He wouldn’t do that,” I said, even though we both knew he would—and had many times before. Was I embarking on a wild goose chase here? And was the gut feeling I had more of a guilty conscience than a detective’s hunch?
Charles seemed to think so.“Well, then maybe he got confused about what he saw? Maybe it was all a bad dream?”
I picked at the skin on my elbow. Even though everyone else seemed quick to brush this case aside, I still knew something wasn’t right next door. Something had happened, and I wouldn’t rest until I found out whether or not that something was murder.
14
I clipped Paisley onto the leash I kept in my car, then the two of us headed inside. This pet shop was much smaller than the bigger chain store a couple cities over. The only adoptable pets it sported were various types of freshwater fish, seeing as the retail shop mainly seemed to focus on pet supplies and not pets themselves.
The storefront was narrow with three long aisles that stretched toward the back. An empty counter stood in front of a large tropical fish tank, an old-fashioned cash register stationed on top.
Paisley tugged hard at the lead, and I followed her down the center aisle, right to a display of dog treats.“Can I have one, Mommy? Can I?” she begged, standing on her hind legs and waving her front paws at me repeatedly.
“Yes, once we find what we came here for,” I promised, hoping she would at least choose something size-appropriate this time. While it was adorable watching the little dog gnaw on a bone twice her size, I ultimately had to throw away her last chew when it started to stink up the house.
“Can I help you?” A man I hadn’t seen before popped his head out from the far aisle and beamed over at me. For a moment I worried he’d overheard me talking with my dog, but then I remembered I was in the company of another pet person. Pet people never questioned someone talking to their animals, and I also hadn’t said anything that made it too obvious that Paisley was talking back. My secret was still safe, at least when it came to this particular stranger.
“Hi,” I answered with a friendly wave. “I’m Angie. I noticed your shop was new in town and thought I’d come in to check it out and say hello.” The store had popped up several weeks ago and I was pretty sure Nan had been in, but I hadn’t yet made it by. Judging by the lack of any othercustomers, things weren’t going too well. I’d need to make more of an effort to support local businesses—being as I was a small business owner myself.
“Hello,” the man replied with an overenthusiastic wave back. “I’m Frank, and before you can ask, yes, Beans is most definitely around here somewhere.”
“Beans?” I asked in a higher pitch than I liked.
“Yes, that’s why the store is called Frank and Beans. My mother said it would only confuse people, but I think it’s cute. Don’t you?”
“Yes. Oh, yes, definitely. Drew me right in.” Truthfully, I hadn’t even noticed the name of the shop before entering. Some shrewd detective I was.
Frank joined me in the dog supply aisle, and I got a good look at him for the first time. He wore a graphic T-shirt over a long sleeve collared shirt with checks. He also had on khakis that were just a little too long, judging by the bottoms that were torn up and covered in dirt. I didn’t recognize the anime on his T-shirt, so I couldn’t say for sure, but the busty character with pouted lips and a flirtatious wink hardly seemed appropriate work attire. I shuddered for the single women of Blueberry Bay.
“Is Beans your dog?” I asked conversationally, unable to tear my eyes away from the cartoon cleavage splashed across his chest.
“Nope, Beans is a cat!” Frank caught me looking and blushed, then placed both hands on top of his shirt to hide the graphic. “His full name is Toby Toe Beans McGillicutty. He’s a little shy, but I can go get him if you want to say hello.”
“Actually I’m a bit short on time, but I was hoping I could ask you a quick question before I go. I will definitely be back to meet Toe Beans though, I promise.” It seemed the friendly thing to offer. Whether or not I liked his T-shirt, Frank still seemed like a nice enough guy. There was absolutely no reason to be rude, especially since I had my diamond engagement ring to show off my status as a taken woman.
“Just Beans,” Frank corrected, drawing my attention back to his face.
“Right.” I nodded once, twice.
He dropped his hands from his chest and used them to make big sweeping gestures as he spoke.“Okay, yeah. So what’s your question? I’m happy to help however I can. Mom says it won’t be easy competing with the big national chain, but I say that nothing worth doing is ever easy.”
“Yes, totally agree with you there.” I reached down and grabbed a bag of treats for Paisley, and she immediately began whimpering in anticipation. “I’m getting this. And I was also hoping to pick up some deer feed. I live by the forest and have quite a few wander through my yard day to day,so I thought it would be nice to make friends.”
“Ah, yes, deer are such remarkable creatures.” He waved his arms around wildly and knocked a small bag of treats from the shelf. “I’d love to help. And if you come back closer to Christmas I’ll be able to. Haven’t got any feed in stock now, what with the regulations and all.”
I raised an eyebrow as Frank bent down to scoop up the fallen merchandise.“Regulations?”
“It’s hunting season, which means feeding the deer is not allowed until the season is over. Otherwise we’d have a whole gaggle of gunners baiting the poor things and then blasting their heads off.” He made finger guns and pointed them at me, then frowned and shoved his hands into his pockets.
“Not a fan of hunting, I take it?” I ventured.
“No sirree. Or rather, no ma’am. I’m a proud vegetarian. Although I do make an exception for Beans. It’s not healthy to force a carnivore out of its natural diet. He’s a pescatarian.”
That poor cat. Octo-Cat did enjoy his shrimp, tuna, and lobster rolls, but he’d have my head if I tried to restrict his diet in any way. The one time I bought him reduced calorie food, he made it a point to puke at the foot of my bed every single day until I switched him back to the full-fat stuff.
“Do you know where I might be able to pick up some feed?” I prompted, attempting to steer our conversation back to where I needed it to go.
“Oh, perhaps I didn’t explain myself very well. Mother says I’m always talking too fast and going off the rails, which is a pretty weird expression, right? What have conversations got to do with trains? Anyway, I can’t sell you any deer feed right now. No one can, as buying and selling the feed is currently illegal.” Frank sniffed and ran a hand through his longish hair. I couldn’t tell if he was actively growing it out or if he’d just missed one too many haircuts.