The Mystery Before Christmas

Thursday

No one was more shocked than I was when Cass officially brought Ford Fisher in for questioning concerning Buford Norris’s murder. We’d talked about the fact that Ford had been withdrawn since Buford’s death, but Cass had seemed certain that Ford was not the killer he was looking for, assuming there even was a killer. Unfortunately, even the coroner couldn’t say for certain what had caused the blow to Buford’s head or even if the blow was the stimulus that caused him to pass out and freeze to death. The last I’d heard, it had been deemed equally likely that Buford had died as the result of an accident as it was that he’d been murdered.

“I know I was the one to say that some of the guys at the lodge suspected that something was up with Ford due to his odd behavior, but I really never believed he would kill one of his best friends.” Tom shook his head in disbelief as he, Aunt Gracie, and I discussed the situation over breakfast.

“So far, all I heard is that Cass brought him in for questioning,” I pointed out. “That doesn’t mean that he plans to arrest him. When I spoke to Cass about it before, he didn’t think Ford was guilty.”

“Maybe he found new evidence,” Gracie said.

“Perhaps or maybe he just stumbled across some information he needed to follow up on,” I countered.

“If it was as simple as that, why not just go to his house and chat with him?” Tom asked. “Why bring him into the station? That act alone makes him look guilty of something.”

“That’s true,” I admitted. “I haven’t spoken to Cass. I only know about the situation at all because I spoke to Hope, who’d found out from Rafe, that Ford had been brought in.”

Rafe Conway was one of Cass’s assistant deputies.

“I know that Cass planned to have a discussion with a man named Rupert Wooly yesterday. Maybe Rupert had new information that cast suspicion on Ford,” I suggested.

“Rupert and Ford are friends of sorts,” Tom acknowledged. “I suppose if Ford is somehow involved in whatever is going on with Buford, Rupert might know about it. Unlike a lot of the guys, who live in the area full-time, Rupert tends to be a drifter who moves in and out of town on a whim, but when he is in town, he does tend to hang out with the gang from the bar.”

“Was he in town when Buford died?” I asked.

Tom nodded slowly. “I seem to recall he was. I think he left shortly after. I wasn’t even aware he was back.”

“Somehow, Cass knew,” I informed the others. “He asked Naomi to track him down.”

“Yup,” Tom picked up his coffee mug. “That makes sense. For some reason unbeknownst to me, Rupert and Naomi are close. If anyone would know where to find the old coot, it would be her.”

“Maybe you can stop in and talk to Cass later,” Gracie suggested. “Find out what is going on. I have to admit to being curious.”

“I’ll stop by Cass’s office after my appointment with Mary Anderson.”

“Are you still trying to track down Secret Santa?” Tom asked.

I nodded. “Trying, but not having much success, I’m afraid. Honestly, Mary is my last Secret Santa suspect, and even I have to admit that she is a weak lead.”

“And what if it turns out Mary is not Secret Santa?” Gracie asked.

I nibbled on my lower lip. “I do have one other idea. I guess you heard that the clinic got a new x-ray machine. Now, that is a costly gift. If Mary doesn’t admit to being Secret Santa, I think I’m going to stop by and talk to Doctor Nolan. An x-ray machine isn’t the sort of thing one just orders from an online catalog. I feel like Doctor Nolan had to have been in on the decision as to which machine to get.”

“I agree,” Gracie said. “It does seem that the machine is one gift the recipient would have to have been in on from the beginning.”

I glanced at the clock. “I’d better head upstairs and get ready.” I picked up my plate and utensils and stood up. “Do you need me to bring anything back from town?”

“If you wouldn’t mind running by the market for potatoes, that would be wonderful,” Gracie said.

I set my dishes in the sink. “I’d be happy to. How many do you need?”

“Just get ten pounds. I’m making chowder for dinner, but I’m sure I’ll use the rest in the next couple of weeks with the holiday and all.”

I went back to the table and gathered up my coffee mug and napkin. “Anything else?”

“No. That is all I can think of. Will you be home for dinner tonight?”

“I will. Paisley is coming over after school. I’ll see if she wants to stay for chowder as well.”

“I spoke to Ethel yesterday when I dropped Paisley off at home after her piano lesson. She mentioned that both she and Paisley are doing better. I guess they’ve settled into a routine that seems to work for both of them.”

“That’s wonderful,” I grinned. “I will admit that I’ve been worried about the situation.”

“Ethel thanked me for helping out. She said that Paisley really adores you, and she thinks that having you to talk to is really helping her through this difficult time.”

I set my mug in the sink. “You know I’m happy to help out. Paisley is a great kid. I really enjoy spending time with her. In fact, in many ways, I feel like her being here and wanting piano lessons is what encouraged me to move on from my own loss. I guess I owe her quite a lot.”

“I think the two of you were meant to help each other during this difficult time in both your lives.”

I had to agree with that. It did my heart good that I’d been able to help Paisley, but I knew in my heart that she had helped me as well.

After I showered and dressed, I checked my phone for messages. Surprisingly, there was one from Martin Simpson letting me know that he had been able to confirm that Justice Bodine was still in Europe, so I shouldn’t go to all the effort of trying to track him down. Aw, not only was it sweet of him to take the time to track Bodine down but to take the time to track me down as well.

There was also a message from Cass letting me know that he’d spoken to both Naomi and Haviland about Barkley and that Barkley was going to spend some time with Haviland to determine if the two were compatible. I thought about the seemingly lonely man and the even lonelier dog and prayed that it would work out for both of them.

As long as I was at it, I flipped over to my email app. Most of what I had was junk, but there was an email from a woman I’d known in New York, who wanted to speak to me about a job offer. There had been a time when I’d considered returning to New York and looking for a job, but I was happy here. I knew in my heart that Foxtail Lake was where I was destined to build a life. I hit return and let my friend know that, while I was honored she’d thought of me, I’d decided not to return to the East Coast.

After checking my mail, I tossed my phone on the bed and started getting ready for the day ahead of me. My first interview would be with Mrs. Anderson. After that, I hoped to chat with Cass and then… I really had no idea. If Mary didn’t turn out to be Secret Santa, I supposed I’d need to widen my search parameters. I just wished I had a better idea of exactly how to do that.