Scene of the Crime: Black Creek. Carla Cassidy
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wedding-bell alarm that rang in their heads by their thirtieth birthday, but Cassie didn’t appear to be the norm. She didn’t seem to possess the desperate “I’m thirty and not married” madness.
“You hungry?” he now asked, breaking the long silence of the trip as they reached the outskirts of the small town of Cobb’s Corners.
“Starving,” she replied, and then pointed out the window to the left. “There it is.”
The Dew Drop Café had a red awning announcing the establishment. It didn’t appear too busy at this time of day and Mick pulled into a parking space directly in front.
“I’m not sure what I’m more eager for, information on the crimes or a big juicy cheeseburger,” he said as he turned off the car engine.
“I definitely know what I’m eager for. Information that will let us get this job done quickly and successfully.” She opened her car door and got out.
Mick did the same, the humid July heat slapping him in the face like a spurned lover. He was grateful for the dorky tourist shirt he wore. At least it was lightweight and breathed.
The Dew Drop Café was less charming inside than it had looked on the outside. The interior paint was old and peeling, the red bar stools sported rips, and the red vinyl booths also showed signs of wear and tear. Even though there were half a dozen people inside it was easy to spot Sheriff Edward Lambert, despite the fact that he wasn’t in uniform.
The older man, with a shock of white hair, sat at the back of the restaurant facing the door, intelligent brown eyes taking in everything and everyone in the room. Those eyes widened slightly as he caught sight of Mick and Cassie.
They approached his table, introductions were made, orders were taken by a waitress and then Cassie excused herself for the restroom.
“Ambience stinks but the food is great,” he said.
“That’s good to know,” Mick replied.
“I wanted to meet you two here instead of someplace in Black Creek so that we can keep this whole operation under wraps,” Lambert said as he wrapped big hands around the coffee mug in front of him. “Even though we’re a tourist trap and are still fighting over what the name of the town is eventually going to be, we’re also a small town where secrets are sometimes hard to keep. This whole thing won’t work if word gets out that the two of you are FBI agents.”
Mick nodded. “I completely agree.” The two men small-talked about the drive and the hot weather and by that time Cassie returned to the table.
“There’s no question that the two of you make the perfect bait physically,” Lambert said.
“Have you figured out if the killer’s trigger is something more than physical appearance?” Cassie asked as she reached out to align the salt and pepper shakers next to each other in the center of the table.
“Nothing so far. What we have learned is that the two couples pretty much followed the same kind of schedules while they were in town. I’ve got a list of places they visited and activities they did. I’ll give you each a copy before we leave here.”
“I read in the file that Jim Armond was an insurance salesman from Oklahoma, and Bill Tanner was a mechanic from Missouri. Any indication that the couples knew each other?” Cassie asked.
“None,” Sheriff Lambert replied. “At least none that we’ve been able to find so far. I’ve got a six-man force, all good men who have been working overtime to figure this out.” He stopped talking as the waitress appeared with their orders.
The decor inside the café might be questionable, but Mick eyed the thick cheeseburger and order of fries in front of him with appreciation. Cassie had ordered a salad, dressing on the side and Ed Lambert had ordered a piece of pie to go along with his coffee.
“I’ve got to admit that I’m understaffed and pretty much over my head with these murders,” the sheriff continued as the waitress moved away from the table. “I’ve been understaffed for the last couple of years as the town has gained more of a reputation as a hot spot for honeymooning couples.” He frowned. “When Mayor John Jamison got his bright idea about this Honeymoon Haven nonsense he turned our quaint little town into a mess.”
He paused and took a sip of his coffee. “There’s plenty of money flying around town, but none of it has allowed me to hire on more deputies and the petty crime rate has tripled.”
“Sounds tough,” Mick said.
The older man shrugged. “We do the best we can, but I want to assure you these murders are on the top of our priority list. Unfortunately, they aren’t the only things we can focus on with all my manpower. Your boss has assigned another couple to help with the investigation. They’ll be staying at the Super Eight Motel just north of town. Director Forbes indicated they would be your contact if you stumble across any information that might be useful.”
“Their names?” Mick asked.
“Agents Rick Burgess and David Ellsworth. They’ll be working with me and my team, but flying under the radar. The mayor is insistent that we keep this all as low-key as possible. Needless to say, we’re not eager for any publicity concerning the murders.”
Mick nodded. He was glad to know there were two agents working with the sheriff. He knew both agents, had worked cases with them before and trusted them. He had cell phone numbers for both of them and would check in with them once he and Cassie got settled in town.
“Your tech support team arrived this morning,” Ed continued. “Three men checked into the cabin next to yours. They let me know that they had their audio in place and were ready for your arrival.”
“Audio?” Cassie looked from the sheriff to Mick, who shrugged.
“According to the agent I spoke to early this morning they have placed listening devices in the room where you’ll be staying. They’ll be able to hear anything that happens, but also told me to let you know they didn’t bug the bathroom.”
Mick smiled at Cassie. “That means if you decide to verbally abuse me it will be all over headquarters before the day is over.”
“I have no intention of verbally abusing you,” she replied with a flash of her brilliant blue eyes. “Unless you need it,” she added under her breath.
Sheriff Lambert cleared his throat. “The good news is that if somehow, someway, the killer gets into your premises, your agents will hear everything that is going on and can get inside within seconds.”
Cassie’s eyes turned somber and Mick wondered if she’d really considered how badly this assignment could go. They were intentionally putting themselves in the direct path of a killer or killers. If the killer did manage to get into their room it would only take him seconds to shoot Mick and stab Cassie.
What Mick had no intention of telling her was that while he was being hunted, he intended to do a little hunting of his own. Although their job was merely to act the part of newlyweds, to draw the attention of the killer and allow their support team to make an arrest, Mick would investigate independently to find the killer. Even knowing Burgess and Ellsworth were assigned to the case wouldn’t stop him from working on his own.
He wasn’t about to get trapped in a honeymoon cabin with a killer and depend on a team to rescue him. He’d find the killer long before the game went on that long.
He’d only been blindsided once in his life, and that had been by a woman with blue eyes and a dark soul. He’d never let a woman close to him again, and he wasn’t about to allow a killer to get the upper hand on him either.
Chapter Three
It was just after three-thirty when Mick and Cassie were back in the car and headed toward Black Creek, aka Honeymoon Haven.
Cassie pulled out the list of the places the murdered honeymooning couples had visited before their deaths and stared at it