Word Has It (Wordplay Mysteries Book 1) Read online

  Wanda jumped to her feet.

  Minutes passed. Nothing. Silence.

  Wanda closed her eyes to pray. She felt Melissa’s cold hand grasp hers. Slowly one by one the others moved into the huddle and bowed their heads in silence as well. Off in the distance, a lonesome whippoorwill cooed its mournful cry.

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  Footsteps thudded out of the maze. Everyone turned with their mouths open.

  Jerry stood at the entrance, his eyes wide with excitement, his chest heaving as if out of breath.

  “They got them. It’s over.”

  “Is Todd okay?” Wanda heard her voice wobble. Unshed tears stung her eyes.

  “Yes, but Adam was hit in the arm. Nothing serious, I’m sure.”

  “And Carl?”

  Jerry shook his head. “I don’t know. He went down. So did the other guy.”

  Sirens blared into the night air. Their warning grew closer as they bounced into the lane leading to the mansion. The local fire truck, two EMS vehicles, and another squad car dashed over the curb and onto the grass. Red lights whipped off the building, casting an eerie glow in the moonlight.

  The county sheriff’s cruiser arrived as well. They all stopped in a half circle about fifty yards from the maze. The EMT’s jumped out and pulled gurneys from the vehicles. Firemen ran alongside, carrying red cases of life-saving equipment.

  Todd emerged, walking slowly with his head toward the ground. He raised his gaze, nodded to Wanda, and then headed to speak with the other officials. After what seemed like an hour, but probably was only a minute or two, the county men and EMTs pushed into the entrance in the hedges.

  Wanda bit her lip. She waited as Todd took his sweet time wandering over to her. Her anxiousness melted as he drew closer. He appeared worn out, the burden of the past week draped over his shoulders. A rookie cop, he had seen way too much violence in a short time. It had to weigh on his nerves.

  Her heart opened and she went to him, wrapping him in a hug.

  One of the sheriff’s men appeared with a large thermos and cups. Todd gratefully took some water and guzzled it down, then wiped his mouth.

  Chief Brooks and Jim Bob emerged and swaggered over to greet him. They grabbed some cups of water as well.

  Chief Brooks pointed to the house. “Better get forensics over to the mansion. There is a skeleton hidden in one of the panels of the wine cellar. We found it trying to locate the cave entrance. It’s obviously been there a while.”

  Wanda and the others gasped.

  “Who is it?” Evelyn’s voice came up from behind. Then Wanda caught a whiff of Betty Sue’s lavender scent and felt her warm arms wrap her shoulders. She grasped her best friend’s hand and leaned against her.

  “Don’t know, Evelyn.” Jim Bob pushed his cowboy hat back from his forehead and wiped his brow. “Think it is a man, though. Maybe a teenager.”

  Murmurs filtered through the crowd. Who on earth could it be? And how long had it been there?

  Wanda swiveled to Betty Sue and Evelyn. They all spoke out the same thought.

  “Panel” had been one of the Scrabble words.

  Todd stared in unbelief. “Well, I’ll be.”

  Chapter Thirty

  The crowd grew silent as the gurneys exited the maze. Two were carrying zipped bags. One carried Adam, half propped with one arm bandaged and an IV drip in the other.

  Wanda trotted over to him. “Are you all right?”

  He grabbed her hand and smiled. “I will be. The bullet may have shattered the bone. I think they are taking me to surgery.”

  Wanda gazed up at the attendant who nodded.

  “Then I will be there when you come out of recovery. Promise. Do you want me to call your wife?”

  He sighed. “She will be fit to be tied, but yes. If you don’t, the hospital will. I’d rather she hear it from a friend.”

  “Of course.” She followed alongside the gurney until it got to the EMS van. Then she waved as it drove away.

  Todd drew her to him. “He’s a tough old bird. He’ll be fine.”

  She nodded with a sigh. “I know. I feel responsible, though.”

  “Me, too. I should have shielded him better.”

  She swung around. “No. Then you’d be in there.” She pointed to the emergency vehicle headed back to the lane.

  “Sorry, I didn’t believe you about those Scrabble words.” He began to walk her to her car. Evelyn and Betty Sue followed as the police began to cordon off the maze and the mansion as a crime scene.

  “It’s all right, Todd. Half the time I didn’t believe it either.”

  They both chuckled and strolled away with the rest of the dispersing crowd.

  Wanda waited until Adam’s wife arrived at the hospital a few hours later, her cheeks tear-stained. They hugged.

  “He is out of surgery and in recovery. They will take him to a room soon. The doc said everything is fine. They removed the bullet and put in some screws in his humerus bone.” She pointed to her left upper arm.

  “Bullet?” Mrs. Archer trembled. “What exactly happened, Wanda?”

  Wanda hesitated, wondering how much to say and if Adam’s wife would blame her for getting him involved in all of this.

  About that time, Chief Brooks wandered over and greeted them. He sat down on the other side and explained the whole thing. “Adam became a hero tonight. He assisted us in a manhunt, knowing we are short-staffed in this town to handle such a thing. He was doing what he could to protect the citizens of this community and I plan to suggest to the mayor that Adam receive a medal of honor.”

  As Mrs. Archer dabbed her eyes, the Chief raised his gaze to meet Wanda’s questioning face and then returned his attention to Mrs. Archer.

  Wanda’s dignity became bruised. Did she not matter to him? Maybe his pride wouldn’t let him admit she had helped. He had made it clear he was not in favor of a neighborhood watch, or her meddling, as he called it.

  That tiny voice in her soul asked if perhaps he was protecting her by not bringing her into the whole thing. She sighed, convicted. She needed to start thinking better of people and not get her feelings battered.

  As the Chief rose to leave, he reached out and took her hand then whispered into her ear. “I will recommend one for you, as well. Wanda. You’ve earned it. Thanks.”

  Wanda sat back in astonishment. Wonders never ceased.

  Wanda returned to her house as the pre-sunrise’s pink glow came over the horizon to shoo away the dark. Never had she recalled being so weary. A frantic Sophie greeted her, bouncing and whining. Wanda patted her, gave her some milk bones, and waddled off to have a long, hot shower.

  She barely recalled folding back the covers before she slumped onto the bed and fell asleep.

  About noon, she awoke. Her muscles ached and her stomach growled. Sophie sat next to her, inches from her face, her head cocked and soft brown eyes searching.

  “Okay. Okay. I am fine. Let’s go get you breakfast before you dig up my flowers again.”

  As Sophie slurped and slopped up her food, Wanda fixed herself a huge breakfast of scrambled cheesy eggs, sausage, and French toast.

  As if he could smell it, Todd knocked on her back door. “Aw, good. You’re up.”

  He edged inside and eyed her plate.

  “Come in. Have you eaten? There’s plenty.”

  “Not in a while. Thanks.” He grabbed a plate and spooned some eggs and sausage onto it. Then he sat across from her. She divided her French toast and gave him half.

  For a moment, the only sounds he made were happy grunts as he shoveled in the hot breakfast. Then he sat back, wiped his mouth, and sighed. “Guess you deserve to be filled in since you were instrumental in capturing those thieves.”

  She set her fork down. “Oh?”

  He rose, grabbed the coffee carafe, and topped off her mug before pouring one for himself. Then he took his time swirling in some cream and sugar.

  Wanda bit the inside of her lip trying to remain ca
lm.

  A smirk eased over his face. He was playing with her.

  “Todd.”

  He leaned back in the chair and stretched his legs under the table. “One of the bodies was identified as Butch McClain. They found the jewels, well most of them, in the cave hidden behind some rocks. It seems Aurora had pawned a few trinkets in Fort Worth to buy them supplies.”

  “So, she and Carl were involved. I knew it. Do you think he bumped off Robert so he could have her?”

  Todd gazed at her and said nothing.

  “Well, the bullets matched, remember?”

  He played with the half-folded napkin. “Yep. That they did. Same rifle. But she isn’t talking. She has lawyered up.”

  “And Carl?”

  “Dead.”

  Wanda looked to her plate. “Oh, I see. I figured as much when I saw the body bags coming out of the maze.”

  Todd scooted his chair closer to the table and learned forward. “Here’s the kicker. The guy on the gurney was Colton, not Carl. Carl’s remains were behind the panel.”

  “What?” Her heart stopped beating for a nanosecond. She grabbed her chest.

  “Remember when Carl came back and everyone marveled how much he had changed in college? More confident. And a bit more devious in his business dealings. A bit boisterous, too. Though he never broke the law he kinda bent it to build his little car empire.”

  “Yes, so?”

  “It was Colton all along.”

  Wanda’s hand flew to cover her gaped mouth.

  “That’s right. As near as we can figure it, Colton killed Carl, stuffed his body in a gunny sack filled with lye and shoved it behind a panel in the wine cellar. Coroner believes his remains have been there going on twenty years or more.”

  “So that means he was killed right out of high school?”

  “More like out of college, which would have been about 2002. Doubt if Colton had the smarts enough to pull off the great grades that Carl apparently earned. Though several years apart, the two resembled each other a good deal.”

  “I remember that.”

  “Colton had been involved in petty crimes in three states since he ran away from military school. Jailed twice on minor charges. Never incarcerated more than two years or so. The rest of the times the detectives couldn’t get any charges to stick. But he could only remain in the shadows for so long. He knew the police would nail him eventually.”

  “As they did Butch McClain in 2002. The year you suspect Carl was killed.”

  “Right. We figure he saw a chance to turn over a new leaf and took it. He returned to Scrub Oak as the good brother and made a life for himself.”

  The French toast in her stomach jumped into her esophagus. And to think Colton had fooled everyone for two decades. “I guess Butch contacted him when he was released?”

  Todd got up and put their plates in the sink. As he rinsed them off and put them in the dishwasher, he finished telling her the rest. “Don’t know for sure. We figure that Tommy and Bubba had gotten in with Butch. They were positively identified as the three burglars on the closed-circuit television video tape. My guess is that Tommy told them about the cave and how it would make a good hideout. Then one of them must have recognized Colton in town.”

  “So, he killed them, in the name of ridding Scrub Oak of wanted criminals when in fact he only wanted to keep his identity a secret.”

  Todd closed the dishwasher and leaned his backside against it. “Possibly. Somehow, he got involved with Butch, though. Maybe he was all along and bumped off his old buddies so he could have a bigger share. We’ll never know for sure.”

  She shook her head in disbelief. “All this time, it’s been Colton living here? Unbelievable.”

  “I know. Sounds like a TV mystery plot, right?”

  “And Aurora didn’t figure this out? Or Adam?”

  Todd shrugged. “Adam didn’t. But there had been so much hurt in that situation, I don’t think they were ever close.”

  “No, they never saw eye to eye. Adam Arthur is too by-the-book. Carl liked to shade the black to dark gray.”

  “Good description, Aunt Wanda. They tried to avoid each other in public as much as possible. I know that much.” Todd returned to his chair.

  “Still, Adam felt an obligation to him. He told me as much last night.”

  “Hmmm.” Todd took a sip of coffee. “As for Aurora? Maybe she did figure it out. She always had a thing for Colton from what I understand. She played up to Carl to get Colton to notice her in school. Then he was expelled. Who knows?”

  Wanda tried to sort through all this information her nephew had tossed at her. “Too many loose ends.”

  “I know. Trust me, the State investigators are all over it now. They are looking into Robert’s shooting and petitioning the county courts to change his death from accidental to suspicious. Eventually they will unravel it all.”

  “I hope so.”

  Wanda got up and went in search for her notebook. She sat back down as Todd poured himself the last of the coffee.

  “What is that?”

  “The Scrabble words. Maybe they can help.”

  He laughed. “Couldn’t hurt. Though I haven’t told the chief about these yet. I like my job.”

  She rolled her eyes. “Okay, so we know jewels, woods, escape, and perp all fit.”

  Todd edged closer to read her handwriting. “As do bushes and cave. There was a circle of small bushes in the center of the maze surrounding a statue of the original Ferguson patriarch. If you shoved the statue’s base to the side, it revealed the entrance to the cave underneath.”

  “Wow. So, the entry point was under the statue. That word now fits. We know panel matches and so does Candy. That was Aurora’s nickname in high school. Evidently she had a huge sweet tooth.”

  “I see. Interesting. And lying fits because that is what Colton did all along.”

  Wanda slapped her forehead. “And all this time I took it as lying, as in a body position.”

  “Easy mistake. What about the words zero, auto, and reduce?”

  Wanda rubbed her temples. “I have no idea. We thought auto referred to Otto Ford who had bought the dairy farm and built the resort. His nickname was Auto like a car. Did you know he sold the resort to Robert Stewart a few years ago?”

  “Really? That is an interesting piece of information. I will pass it along. But perhaps auto referred to the business Carl, ergo Colton, went into.”

  Wanda felt a wave of stupidity splash over her. “Of course. But what about the word zero?”

  Todd scrunched his mouth to one side. “This may be a long shot, but as we neared the mansion, I noticed that the zero in the address, 101, had come dislodged. It was at an angle.” His eyes widened. “By golly. It pointed to the maze.”

  “Seriously? Todd this is beyond weird.”

  They stared at her page. Only one word remained―reduce.

  “Could it mean that Carl’s body was reduced to remains?”

  “Aunt Wanda, that is a long shot, don’t you think?”

  She agreed. “I can’t figure how it relates to anything. Unless it is Betty Sue always nagging at me to eat healthy and lose some weight.”

  Todd rose and kissed her on the cheek. “Maybe we will figure it out in the end. In the meantime, I think we should switch to a word game like hangman. It might be safer. We played that a lot when I was little.”

  She hugged him around the neck and laughed.

  Chapter Thirty-One

  The next Saturday at nine in the morning, everyone gathered at the courthouse steps. Red, white, and blue buntings flapped in the breeze. United States and Texas flags waved in the hands of the crowd. Under an arch of red, white, and blue balloons stood a podium on a small stage at the top of the stairs that lead into the building. The mayor and Chief Brooks sat on one side, with Wanda and Adam Archer, still in a sling, on the other.

  After a short speech, which was a blessing from God because the temperature already hovered at ninet
y degrees, the mayor presented them each with a medal of honor.

  The townsfolk cheered as the high school band struck up a chorus of “For He’s a Jolly Good Fellow,” led by retired principal Fred Ballinger on trombone. Wanda didn’t mind the male reference. She knew it was for both her and Adam.

  On the front row stood Hazel, Betty Sue, Evelyn, and Todd. They rose to lead the standing ovation. One by one, her neighbors stood as well. The Suntychs, Frank, Beverly, the Kings, Sally and her sister Priscilla, Barbara the librarian, Zelda and Vlad, and Fix-It Finn. All of the neighborhood watch volunteers were there. On the back row she eyed Mr. Baker clapping and smiling. Aurora was nowhere in sight, but Wanda hardly expected her to attend. The brunch had obviously been cancelled.

  As she gazed out on the happy faces, Wanda’s heart swelled so big she feared it would burst.

  Ben Bolton gave both her and Fire Chief Archer gift certificates for five free dinners at Big B BBQ. Then they each got a coupon for a hundred-dollars’ worth of groceries from the Grocery Mart, a bouquet of red roses from Kay’s Flowers, and Wanda received a year’s worth of free hair stylings from A Cut Above.

  Tom Jacobs snapped photos of them for the front page of the Gazette. Pastor Thomas then followed with a prayer of praise and thanksgiving.

  Finally, the mayor presented Wanda with six signs to be placed around town as soon as the poles were erected, designating the town as a neighborhood watch community.

  Someone cried out “Speech.”

  The mayor stepped back and handed her the microphone.

  Wanda cleared her throat. “I do not know what to say. Which is a rarity.”

  Laughter waved through the crowd.

  “I have no words to express my gratitude. Your honoring me today has reduced me to tears.”

  Suddenly her hand went to her mouth. She gazed at Todd, who glanced at Betty Sue and Evelyn. They all roared with laughter.

  “Sorry.” She waved her hand. “Inside joke. Seriously though, I am speechless. All I can say is thank you for supporting me. I know our town is in safe hands with our wonderful police department and fire department guarding it. It is my privilege, along with my fellow neighborhood watch volunteers, to support them in any way we can so we can reduce crime in our town.”