Town in a Maple Madness Read online

  The first thing she saw was Random’s dirtied paws and muzzle on the other side. He backed away and ruffed low in his throat as he saw her. “Hi, there,” she said, and stuck her own nose out, so she could take in a few deep breaths of untainted air before she drew back and studied the opening she’d made.

  It was admittedly a small space, but Random had loosened up some of the ground underneath, which she was able to scrape away with her hands, and she thought if she could get her head and shoulders through, she might be able to wiggle her way out.

  As she ducked her head low and turned it slightly so it would fit through the opening, which was wider at the bottom, she felt a wave of heat hit her body. Her eyes flicked around, just before her head slipped under the wood panels, and she caught a glimpse of the garage behind her. It was almost totally consumed by the flames. She hesitated no more, needing no further encouragement. She went headfirst, and she had to contort her shoulders to the point she nearly wrenched them out of their sockets, but she got them through. The hips were almost as tough, but again, she wiggled around until she managed to free herself. She pulled her legs out quickly behind her just in time, as the flames were literally licking at her boots.

  She scooted backward on her hands and feet until she was half a dozen yards away, back in the shelter of the trees, some distance from the garage, which was now fully engulfed in flames. Random was all over her, sniffing and nudging and licking her. She tried to acknowledge him but she was mesmerized by the fire. The flames were out of control, licking and stretching upward. Black smoke roiled into the air. The heat was intense. She’d made it out just as the place was about to come down.

  As if in response to her thought, part of the garage’s roof collapsed with a great crunch of timbers and metal. That triggered an instability in the building, and one of the side walls fell inward, crashing on top of the two vehicles inside. And the back wall—the one she’d just come through—looked as if it was about to fall also, but in her direction. She didn’t think she was far enough away, and realized she still could get caught in the flames, if not struck down by waves of heat.

  She heard a bark behind her then, and a brief scuffle, and felt a hand clamp down on her shoulder. Another hand wrapped around her waist and pulled her backward involuntarily. She let out a yelp of surprise as she struggled to twist around, to see who had such a tight grip on her. She saw a black sleeve and black pants. “We need to get you away from here!” a familiar voice shouted in her ear.

  She wheeled her head around. “Judicious?”

  She allowed herself to be pulled back then, and in fact she helped, pushing at the ground with her feet to propel the both of them farther backward and away from the fire. The building had gone up quickly, as she’d expected, but she hadn’t expected how intense it would be, and how close she’d come to being consumed by those flames, along with everything else.

  “Are you okay?” asked Judicious F. P. Bosworth, who had appeared out of nowhere to help get her to safety. “I was walking along the river and I . . .”

  But there was too much confusion to answer. The flames were still roaring, rapidly destroying the building. It had folded into itself, three of the four walls, as well as the roof, curling inward and downward like the fingers of a claw. But the back wall had not yet come down; it still leaned at a ninety-degree angle as it burned. She and Judicious and Random were a safe distance away, though, and all they could do was watch.

  Judicious spoke up again. “Do you need an ambulance? Are you hurt? Did you get burned anywhere?” He was breathing heavily, sitting down, spread-eagle, with her lying between his legs, leaning up against his chest. His hand was still wrapped around her waist. It felt almost comforting. Random was hovering nearby, turning back and forth, not quite sure what to do.

  “No, no,” she said, sitting up. “I . . . I think I’m okay.” She looked around. They were back in the relative shelter of the woods, though she had no doubt the flames could spread quickly into this area, leaping from tree to tree. Behind them, shadows were gathering. She hadn’t realized how quickly the light was fading—perhaps because the area in front of them was lit up like high noon. But even as she turned back toward the building, she realized the fire was beginning to die down, its fuel consumed, the garage’s charred skeleton all that remained, though she could still hear several loud snaps and pops, and the crackle of the flames.

  She turned again, and finally got a good look at the person who had helped rescue her. She saw the familiar straight nose, the intense eyes, the unshaven face framed by long dark hair, which was covered in part by a wide-brimmed floppy hat made of grayish-green felt. “Judicious, what are you doing here?” she asked.

  He didn’t answer right away, but his hand around her waist loosened. They separated a bit as she rubbed at her shoulders and legs.

  “I was . . . I was passing by,” he said finally. He sounded a little stunned, though he recovered quickly. “It was just a whim. I’ve been trying to figure out what’s been going on around here, same as you, and thought I’d take a look. Then I noticed the smoke, and heard the barking, and thought I should check it out.”

  “I’m glad you did, but how did you—” She broke off as a sudden thought rose over all the others going through her mind. Frantically her head shifted back and forth, her eyes searching. “Did you see her?” she asked Judicious.

  “See who?”

  “Ginny. Just now. Where’s Ginny?”

  “Ginny?”

  “Ginny Milbright. She—” But Candy halted again. She didn’t know for sure Ginny Milbright had locked her inside the garage and lit the place ablaze. It could have been someone else—someone who had driven away just moments ago.

  “Did you see a vehicle parked around here?” she asked Judicious. “Anything at all? It left here moments ago.”

  Again, Judicious hesitated before he answered, as if trying to focus his thoughts. “A car,” he said finally. “There was a car here. I saw it drive away.”

  “What kind of car? Can you describe it?”

  “An old white SUV of some sort. Like a Ford, maybe.”

  “Ginny Milbright’s Ford Explorer,” Candy filled in.

  Judicious nodded. “I’ve seen it around here a few times over the past three or four weeks, driving up and down the road.”

  “You’re sure that’s what it was? A white Ford?”

  When Judicious confirmed that it was, to the best of his recollection, she said, “Did you see which way it went?” As she spoke, she pushed herself to her feet, brushing herself off as she did so.

  “Back toward town, I think. I could see its taillights through the trees. It was headed south.”

  “South,” Candy repeated, “toward town.”

  “That’s right,” said Judicious, and he rose also. Random was all around their feet then, sniffing and jumping up a little. Candy leaned down and gave him a grateful hug. “You’re my best friend right now, you know that?” she told him affectionately. But she kept her praise brief, as her next move filled her thoughts. She made a decision quickly.

  As she straightened, she pulled her phone out of her pocket and held it out toward Judicious. “Do you know how to use one of these things?”

  As a low-tech person, Judicious didn’t own a mobile phone, as far as she knew. Or a landline. Or a TV. Or a car. He was a recluse, a mystic, and a bit of an enigma who lived a simple life. And he was always full of surprises. “Of course,” he said, as if it was the most elementary thing in the world.

  She handed it to him. “Call the police,” she told him. “Ask for Chief Durr, or Molly Prospect, or anyone, really. Tell them what happened here, and have them send a fire truck ASAP. The garage is gone but we don’t want the embers spreading to the other cabins, or into the woods. And they need to get a forensics teams out here right away. There’s evidence that needs to be collected. Tell them I think Ginny Mil
bright is behind all this, and perhaps Mick’s death as well. And tell them we think she’s headed toward town, for whatever reason.”

  Candy paused, her mind racing, trying to tick off everything she could think of. “Then call my dad. His number’s on there. Tell him I’ll meet him at the bonfire in Town Park in fifteen minutes. Tell him to keep an eye out for that white Ford Explorer, and to get the word out to all the villagers. And tell him to be careful—Ginny might be armed, and she’s certainly dangerous.”

  “Why?” Judicious asked as he took the phone from her. “What are you going to do?”

  Candy gave him a hard look. “I’m going after her.”

  FORTY-EIGHT

  She drove as fast as she dared, her foot to the floor, a madwoman behind the wheel.

  She gripped the steering wheel with both hands, because she was worried that if she didn’t, they’d start shaking uncontrollably. She kept her gaze focused on the road ahead, on the lookout for a white Ford Explorer. She wasn’t quite sure what she’d do if she caught up with it. She still wasn’t completely sure Ginny Milbright was the culprit. But she knew she was getting closer to finding out who had murdered Mick—and who had tried to murder her, twice.

  She had a hard time wrapping her head around all that had just happened. Questions swirled, with a big one standing out above all the others: Why would Ginny have done any of this, if she was truly the person behind it? What could she hope to gain? Perhaps more accurately, what was she trying to hide? Had she murdered Mick? If so, for what reason? And why set up Neil—or her own husband, for that matter—to take the blame?

  As she pondered these questions, her gaze shifted to her right. Random once again sat next to her in the passenger seat, riding shotgun, as he’d done for most of the day. Initially she’d thought of leaving him behind at the Pooley cabin, in the care of Judicious, but decided that would be a foolish decision. For one thing, Random had just rescued her from a burning building. He’d saved her life. At the very least, he had earned the spot next to her. It wouldn’t have been fair to leave him behind. He deserved to see this thing through to the end as much as anyone.

  And he just might save my life again, she’d told herself. Or help flush out a killer.

  That last thought was reinforced by what had happened a little earlier, before she’d left the Pooley place. Once she’d made the decision to take Random with her into town, she’d had a difficult time getting him back into the Jeep. He’d hovered around the cabin, his nose down, sniffing at the ground, angling back and forth in a preoccupied manner.

  He’d found something familiar, she realized, a scent he recognized. But he discovered more than that. He’d come across a large bootprint with a blocky pattern on the bottom, made up of geometric shapes. She quickly scanned the area and saw a number of similar bootprints in the soft earth. They all looked freshly made.

  That was the final clue she needed. It had all clicked into place in a matter of seconds. She thought she knew, finally, what must have happened, though she still didn’t know the reasons behind it. But that would come soon enough.

  And Random, with that sensitive nose of his, just might be her secret weapon.

  After some calling and hand clapping, she’d finally managed to get the shaggy dog to respond. Again, before he climbed into the Jeep, she’d cleaned him up a little, but now, as she looked over at him, she noticed there were still traces of mud and dirt on his paws and muzzle. She reached over to brush off his fur, and he looked at her gratefully, his soulful eyes full of expression. She wondered what he might say if he could speak. She thought she knew. It was as if he understood what was at stake. And he was anxious to get on with it.

  So was she.

  At that moment, she couldn’t imagine anyone else she’d rather have in the seat beside her.

  Traffic was dodgy, especially once they crossed back over Route 1 and were headed south on the Coastal Loop with the rest of the weekend and tourist traffic. The road was busier than usual, approaching levels seen only during the summer months. It appeared, Candy thought with a small bit of satisfaction, that the village’s attempt at an early spring festival was a success. There would be a good crowd in Town Park this evening for the bonfire and marshmallow roast. Good for the town, good for the local merchants, vendors, and shop owners, and good for the villagers themselves. But more difficult for her, since the crowds could complicate her search for Ginny. It would make it easier for the other woman to blend in with the rest of the tourists, if that was her goal.

  What was she after? Candy wondered. What did she intend to do? Candy hoped, by putting out the word through her father, that multiple pairs of eyes were on the lookout right now, and that whatever Ginny intended, they could stop her in time.

  Candy had never hesitated in handing her phone over to Judicious. He needed it to communicate with the authorities from the Pooley cabin, and by sending word ahead, she could easily meet up with her father and use his phone if she had to. Only when they were halfway to town did she realize she’d forgotten to check the text messages that had arrived when she’d been hiding in the garage. Fleetingly she wondered who they’d been from, and what they’d been about, but she’d have to find out later. There was no point in worrying about it now.

  They were nearing town when a fire truck, lights blaring and sirens screaming, zoomed past in the opposite lane, headed northward up the cape—to the smoldering garage by the river, no doubt. It was followed in quick succession by two police cars, also with their light bars aglow and sirens blaring. Minutes later she passed the police station on her right. She wanted to slow, wanted to turn in, walk through the double glass doors, and tell whoever was behind the front desk that she needed to see Chief Durr right away.

  But she didn’t do any of that. He probably wasn’t there anyway, she rationalized, not with the call that had just come in from Judicious, and not with all the activity in Town Park. More than likely he was at the park right now, and not at the station anyway. She was sure she’d find at least a few police officers in the village. She’d rather talk to them there, since she didn’t want to get bogged down at the station, answering endless questions and getting nowhere.

  So onward she drove, into town.

  FORTY-NINE

  As she expected, the line of cars heading into the downtown area was backed up north of Edgewood Road, which marked the village’s northern boundary. After that, it was stop-and-go into the village center.

  Her foot rode the brake pedal as she peered ahead as best she could. She knew, from previous events, that most of the cars would get directed, either by signs or volunteer traffic controllers, into the high school’s parking lot, which was one of a number of designated parking areas around the village. Parking was also available at the elementary school, which was several blocks away, and in various smaller lots around town, between and behind the buildings. Briefly she considered pulling into the high school lot and walking the rest of the way, but she decided to take her chances and see if she could find something closer in.

  She avoided the small parking area at the community center on her left, as she thought it would probably be jammed, and a quick glance in that direction as she passed by confirmed her guess. It reminded her of the parking lot at the Lobster Shack on Fourth of July weekend—a chaos of cars.

  She decided, instead, to try Main Street, and ran into a bit of luck when she spotted a car in front of her, halfway down the street, backing out of its spot just as she turned the corner. An old Mercedes challenged her for the spot but she would not be deterred. She’d driven in Boston. She had some skill at these sorts of maneuvers. She claimed the space for her own with a smile and a wave.

  Random had been on his feet the moment they’d hit the edge of town, perhaps spurred by all the activity. He knew something was up. She had no intention of leaving him behind this time; she wanted him at her side. Her only concern was how to control him. She str
ongly wished for a leash, but she checked the back again and found none in the Jeep. Not even a length of rope she could use. Instead, after digging under the seats and in the cargo space in back, all she came up with was a couple of old scarves, which she’d tossed into the backseat at some point during the winter. Might as well put them to good use, she decided.

  She considered tying the ends of the scarves together to form one long scarf she could use as a leash, but knew that would pull apart too easily, considering how big and strong Random was, so she decided to use only one of the scarves. She chose the longest one and looped it halfway through the dog’s collar, while he waited dutifully for her to fiddle with him. Then she took both ends of the scarf together in her fist, wrapping them around her palm several times. It was admittedly a short leash, but it would work for now. She had the dog exit on the driver’s side with her, locked up the Jeep, and they were off.

  The sun was falling toward the tops of the trees to the west, and the village’s antique-style streetlights were just starting to come on. The storefronts were all lit up, decked out with festive displays and colorful decorations, warm and welcoming as the cool evening approached. The streets were filled with buzzing couples and families, seniors and teens, all enjoying the activities, few aware of the danger that lurked in their midst.

  As she walked briskly down Main Street, Random practically glued up against her side—more from his own preference than from the short makeshift leash—she kept her gaze in a continual roving pattern, on the lookout for any signs of a white Ford Explorer driven by Ginny Milbright. She saw a few vehicles that were similar in appearance, but none was the one she sought.

  She passed by the Black Forest Bakery on her left, dark now with a CLOSED sign hanging in its window, and just past that she crossed the street and headed down Ocean Avenue toward Town Park, the Lightkeeper’s Inn, and the oceanfront.