Total pages in book: 95
Estimated words: 90472 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 452(@200wpm)___ 362(@250wpm)___ 302(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 90472 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 452(@200wpm)___ 362(@250wpm)___ 302(@300wpm)
“Do those same men still work for you?”
“No, none of the men who worked for me thirty-five years ago still work here. They came and went through the years, though I have a few now that have been here for twenty years. Back then I hired quite a few college kids for the summer. Because of losing the college kids in late August, one of my foremen at the time hired some guys to fill in. They didn’t last long, weren’t really interested in work, just enough money in their pockets for liquor and no doubt drugs.”
“Did Sheriff Barrett have them interviewed?”
“I believe so, though one or two may have left before the murder took place. You think the murderer could have been someone just passing through town?” William asked.
“I don’t know,” I said, annoyed that I had more possible suspects, ones I would never locate, than clues.
“I wish I could be of more help, Pepper, but so many men have come and gone here that I don’t remember all their names or faces. Funny thing is, I never thought Travis killed Rita. He loved her and from what I saw he treated her well.”
“What makes you say that?”
“Travis worked part-time at the garage that serviced my work vehicles. They sent him one time when the usual fellow couldn’t make it. Any vehicle he worked on ran great and so I requested him each time. I thought about hiring him on straight out of high school to be a full-time mechanic for the company, but he made it clear that he had no intentions of staying in Willow Lake past graduation.”
I drove home, the snow falling steadily but not heavily. I had texted Ian I was on my way home and popped an earbud in so I could talk with Danny about my meeting with Burke as I drove since my truck was too old to have Bluetooth.
“That’s a low offer. We could lose the property,” Danny said as soon as he heard what I’d offered.
“Nonsense,” I heard Kelly say. “It’s called negotiation.”
“Don’t worry, Danny, we’ll get the property,” I assured him. “You’ll have your gardens and I’ll have more than enough extra veggies to freeze and can.”
“Trust your sister,” Kelly said. “She got this land for a bargain and the business is growing in leaps and bounds. She has a good head for business.”
“I can’t take the credit. Amy was the brains behind it, running down the numbers and projecting possibilities for the garden center. Her detailed plan gave me the confidence to go for it.”
“Did you talk with her before negotiating with Burke?” Danny was quick to ask.
“I didn’t need to. When we bought the land for the garden center, Amy advised purchasing the land when it came up for sale. She worked up prices for me, factoring in possible inflation.”
“Okay, now I feel better,” Danny said.
“Oh, you trust Amy but not your sister?” I asked.
“When it comes to numbers, yes,” Danny said.
I jumped at the sudden sounds of a siren.
“Are you being pulled over? Don’t tell me you’re driving while talking on your cell,” Danny scolded.
I glanced in my rearview mirror at the police car nearly on top of me and got a look at who was driving.
“It’s Josh,” I said.
“What did you do this time?” Danny asked.
“Retaliated,” I said, laughing.
“Go get him, Pepper,” Kelly encouraged.
“Don’t tell her that, she’ll start a war she can’t win,” Danny said.
I laughed again as I pulled over. “I’ve already won.”
No sooner as I ended the call then my cell rang. It was Ian. I had barely enough time to answer quickly and tell him I’d just been pulled over and I’d get back to him.
“I have bail money. Call me.”
I was laughing when Josh approached my window.
“You’re not going to be laughing for long,” Josh warned.
“It was a joke, though I don’t know how you found out so fast, I just left Burke. Besides, the glances you and Kate exchanged when you first met were sparked with the interest in each other. Burke doesn’t stand a chance.”
“You think Kate is interested in me? And what do you mean Burke doesn’t stand a chance?”
It was obvious we weren’t talking about the same thing.
“Burke heard Kate was attractive and I told him not to waste his time that you were interested in her.”
“I should arrest you for meddling in my love life, Pepper,” Josh warned.
“There’s no such charge and you have no love life, only random dates and se—”
“Don’t even think of going there,” Josh threatened. “Though you are right about Burke not standing a chance against me.” He shook his head. “You’ve got me way off course here, Pepper.”
“What I said to Burke isn’t why you stopped me?” I asked, though I knew it wasn’t. Something else was going on.
“No, it isn’t,” Josh said.