Merry Wrath Mysteries Boxed Set Volume III (Books 7-9) Page 44

  And I'd go see Riley. He was supposed to see if any of my enemies were in play. It was possible this was an attack from someone who wanted to get back at me. As soon as I could ditch these two and send the folks to the hotel, I'd head over there.

  "Good job, guys," I said without a trace of sarcasm. "What's the next move?"

  Ted frowned. "I guess I'll run down those alibis."

  Kevin looked up at us with a fistful of bacon seasoned with cat hair and shrugged.

  The brain trust was obviously on it.

  "Sounds good," I said. "I think I'll head over to Ferguson Taxidermy and see if Rex's family has heard anything."

  Everyone liked this idea because, presumably, it kept me out of trouble. Little did they know that when it came to Rex, I'd be chasing trouble to the ends of the earth. Ted shook my hand, and after four attempts to get Kevin up from the breakfast bar, the two men left.

  "Do you need me to go with you to see the twins?" Mom asked. She'd already cleaned up almost everything.

  Philby was glaring at the remaining bacon as if attempting to use the Force to make it fly into his mouth.

  Without missing a beat, Mom broke one strip in half and handed each to the cats before throwing the rest in the garbage. Leonard almost had a stroke. I bet I'd be coming home to garbage all over the floor.

  "No thanks." I smiled. "I think I've got this."

  I needed to do this alone. There was one twin I needed to talk to about handing out keys to my future house to angry redheads who hated me.

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  "Merry!" Randi dropped the peacock head she'd been carrying and threw her arms around me. "How are you holding up? Isn't this awful?" She released me and patted my arm. "I'm sure Rexley is okay."

  Rexley was Rex's real name. He hadn't told me (and made me stop saying it after I spent three days calling him Rexley). The twins had told me about his real name. He wasn't happy about that, nor my idea that we get tattoos with each other's names. What he didn't know was that I had registered everything on our honeymoon, from the hotel to the scuba diving, under Rexley.

  I felt a pang of remorse. It seemed wrong making fun of him when he wasn't here to get annoyed. A lingering ache in my gut had been growing since the moment he went missing. Where was he?

  "You haven't heard anything?" I wasn't too surprised. Even though we'd used their place as a headquarters, I was pretty sure that with my connections, I'd be the first to find him.

  The short, pleasantly plump woman shook her head. "I'm so sorry."

  An awkward silence hung heavy in the air between us. Which was really saying something, since right next to me was a remote controlled llama on wheels, who wore a blanket that said Rex & Merry 4-Ever! The twins had planned to use it at our reception. It was one of the few taxidermied things I was looking forward to.

  I looked around the shop. "Is Ronni here? I need to talk to her about something."

  Randi hesitated. "You want to talk to her?" She looked me up and down, no doubt checking for weapons. I wanted to tell her that the dislike was one-sided and I bore Ronni no ill will, but that wasn't exactly accurate since the woman had given Juliette a key to Rex's house and told her I'd kidnapped him.

  "Yup," I said. "I ran into someone a couple of days ago in Rex's house. Turns out your twin gave her the key."

  There was a flash of dark hair in the doorway. As if Ronni had heard me and jumped back to hide.

  The nice twin frowned—for maybe the first time since I'd met her. "Ronni gave someone a key to Rexley's house? I didn't even know we had a key, or I'd have surprised him with something."

  She waved to the dioramas that surrounded us.

  "Ronni?" she called out.

  There was no response, but I saw a clump of dark, unruly hair sticking out of the doorway.

  "Ronni? Could you come here please?" She urged in a sugary tone. I'd be willing to bet that Randi cowed her sister with niceties to get her to do stuff.

  "I'm busy," came the response from the doorway. "In the basement."

  "You are?" Randi asked. "You sound really close."

  The voice snapped, "Insanely busy! Trying to finish that order of ring-tailed lemurs for the Norwegians!"

  "Oh." Randi sounded disappointed. "Well, if you're too busy…"

  I'd had enough of this nonsense.

  "You're in the doorway," I called out. "I can actually see you."

  The clump of hair vanished. "No, I'm not."

  I stomped over there and dragged her into the room where her sister stood, mouth open.

  "Did you have a key to Rex's?" Randi asked. She looked worried that I would do something to her twin.

  Ronni looked down at the dead stuffed chicken in her arms and started stroking its head. "No."

  I was just about to grab two weasels fencing in a duel and use them as a torture device, when Randi looked over her glasses at her sister.

  "Ronni?" she asked expectantly.

  I waited, armed weasels in hand, to see if she could get her twin to talk.

  "Fine!" The petite woman threw her arms up in the air and rolled her eyes. "I made a copy. What's wrong with that?"

  "Well," I said evenly. "It's breaking and entering if your brother didn't give you a key."

  Ronni glared at the two of us as she started to crush the chicken in her hands. Good thing it was already dead.

  "What do you have to say for yourself?" Randi nudged.

  It was an unusual dynamic. Randi appeared to be the sweet one and the nurturer. Ronni was the constantly angry one who hated everything and everyone. With the exception of Juliette Dowd, of course.

  I couldn't wait. "You gave the key to the woman who might have kidnapped him! I caught her rummaging around in the middle of the night!"

  Randi looked worried. Ronni looked murderous.

  "Juliette would never hurt Rex! She thinks you did it! I gave her the key to look for clues!"

  Her words packed a wallop, and I sat down in the nearest chair—which happened to be a grizzly bear in the seated position with his arms out. He was very comfortable.

  "That's outrageous!" Randi shrieked, turning an alarming shade of purple. "Why on earth would Merry kidnap Rex? Have you lost your mind?"

  Ronni's face went slack, and I guessed this was the first time her twin had ever blown up on her. The crushed chicken dropped to the floor as she stood there with her mouth open, gawking at Randi.

  "I've put up with this long enough!" Randi started pacing. "Juliette is out of the picture! Rex chose Merry!"

  I joined Ronni in gaping at Randi.

  "If you don't stop acting like this, I'll…I'll…" She looked around and grabbed a wooden meat tenderizer from the table. "You'll get it!"

  Ronni seemed to regain her fury, and she scooped up the mangled chicken and ran out of the room.

  I arched one eyebrow. "A meat tenderizer?"

  Randi took a deep breath and within seconds was back to being sugar and spice. "She's afraid of these." She looked at the tool in her hand. "A kid on the playground, when we were little, brought one down on her foot. I've used this for years to keep her in line. I have one stashed in every room."

  She handed it to me, and I took it. Made of solid oak, this would be a formidable weapon. I set down the armed weasels.

  "Keep it!" Randi smiled. "I've got a whole gross of them stashed in the attic."

  As I walked to my car, it hit me. Juliette was doing the same thing I was. She was looking for Rex too. She was worried about him. For a very brief moment, I toyed with the idea of teaming up with her. And then I regained my senses.

  I unlocked my minivan and sat down. Just as I was about to put the key into the ignition, I noticed an envelope on the passenger seat. It was blank. That was odd. I didn't remember it being here earlier. But then, I've been loopy these past few days. It was probably some of the girls' MISSING posters. I picked it up and tore it open. Two pieces of paper fell out. One was a blank crossword puzzle with some of the boxes highlighted i
n yellow.

  The second had writing on it:

  Weddings make a family out of two…Let's add in Something New.

  I froze. Very gingerly, I set down the envelope and using a pen, shoved the puzzle and clue aside. Then I called Ted.

  * * *

  "Was your van locked when you went inside?" Officer Weir held up the clue with gloved hands and squinted at it.

  I nodded. "It was. I remember having to unlock it when I came out." I shivered, but not from the cold. "I wasn't even in the shop very long. How could someone break in to my van? I can't find any damage."

  Randi and Ronni appeared when the siren came closer. Officer Kevin Dooley pulled into the lot and pulled up next to my van. We stood there, waiting for him to get out, but he didn't. For a second, I thought I saw Ted roll his eyes. Poor guy.

  "Officer Dooley." The exasperation was clear in his voice. "Would you join me, please?"

  Kevin got out of the car, holding a box of donuts that he did not share with the rest of us.

  Ronni scoffed and went back inside, while Randi remained on the porch, wringing her hands.

  "The envelope will have my fingerprints on it," I said, ignoring Kevin and talking directly to Ted. "But I didn't touch the other two pieces of paper."

  He put them into two separate baggies and ran his hands over the doors of the van.

  "This is the same guy," I insisted. "Can I see the crossword again?"

  The officer shook his head. "I'm sorry. We need to check it for fingerprints. That's the priority."

  "Yes, I get that," I argued. "But we may not have much time to solve this clue."

  "I'm really sorry, Merry. I'll get it to you as fast as I can." He set the baggies with the clue and envelope on the hood of the van and asked me to lock and then unlock it. I motioned to Randi on the porch. She came over.

  "Do you have a copier?" I whispered.

  The woman nodded.

  "I think you should bring the nice man a cup of tea."

  Randi looked at me and grinned as I slipped her the baggie with the note. Then she disappeared back into the house.

  I stepped up to the van. "Try popping the hood," I said. "Maybe they messed with the locking mechanism."

  Ted nodded and hit the button inside before walking around and opening the hood. Randi returned momentarily with the note and once I replaced it, offered Officer Weir a cup of tea.

  "You know," she offered, "my uncle was a mechanic and taught me all about cars."

  He did?

  "Why don't I help you take a look?" she asked sweetly.

  I shoved the crossword into my pocket as he closed the hood.

  "Merry," Ted warned. "I'll get it to you as fast as I can. But I really think we have a good chance of finding fingerprints or DNA. Unfortunately, it's New Year's Eve, so I don't know if anyone will be around."

  It was New Year's Eve? "Of course. I can wait." How did I miss that? Oh right, Rex and I were supposed to be celebrating the holiday on a beach.

  Officer Dooley started to dust the van for prints. Unfortunately, the powder from the donuts got mixed in with the print powder, and as a result, he found nothing.

  "I'm going back inside." I rubbed my arms vigorously. "I'm freezing."

  Ted waved me off, and I went back into the shop.

  "Here you go." Randi handed me a piece of paper, with one eye on the window.

  "Thanks." I unfolded it.

  "It's a crossword puzzle." Randi studied it. "I'm terrible at these things."

  I smiled. "That's okay, because I know someone who's not."

  * * *

  One thing that really bothered me as I drove to Linda's condo, was how the kidnapper got into my van. I didn't tell the police this, but I'd installed some extra security a few months ago, which included biometric scanning throughout the exterior of the car.

  It had been a pain in the butt when I'd made everyone I know come over and rub their fingers over the van. I'd wanted to make sure my fiancé, best friend, and Girl Scout troop wouldn't be shut out. That, and I didn't want them disabled by the high-pitched squeal the van emitted when it didn't recognize a handprint on the door.

  But there'd been no sound. Whoever'd gotten in managed to bypass my security. That pretty much ruled Juliette out. She didn't seem patient or tech savvy enough to avoid detection. So how did the envelope get into my van?

  While I'd been doped in my bed for a day, my van had been in my garage. Mom and Dad wouldn't have had any reason to go in there, and the doors had been closed and locked. In fact, I didn't think the envelope had been on the passenger seat when I drove over to Ferguson Taxidermy—Where Your Pet Lives On Forever!

  That could only mean that someone got it in there during the ten minutes I was inside the shop. Without tripping the alarm system. Without a key.

  A key! Was it someone I knew? Someone who knew about my system and had a copy of my key made? It seemed unlikely, but then again, so was the idea that my big, strong, and smart fiancé could be kidnapped.

  I arrived at Linda's with more questions than answers. She met me at the door and led me to her kitchen. If she was surprised when I told her about the break-in, she didn't show it.

  "This isn't the original?" she asked as she studied the puzzle.

  I shook my head. "It's a copy."

  She read aloud, "Weddings make a family of two…Let's add in Something New. The clues seem easy enough," she said. "But it still might take a little while." She pulled a sharp pencil from a drawer and sat down to work.

  "What do you think it means…something new?" I asked.

  Linda looked up at me. "It's the second line of the poem. The clues are going in order." She shrugged. "Mr. Spitz was old. That's how he tied in to the clue. I'm not sure about new though."

  "Maybe it's tied to the wedding? We found Leonard Spitz in the first pew on the day of the rehearsal."

  The retired teacher thought of this. "The next clue should be about something borrowed. That might have to do with the ceremony. Do you think there's a chance that the next surprise is at the church?"

  We called Kelly on the way, and she met us there. The doors were unlocked because the pastor had a meeting. For a moment I stopped to stare at the altar in the rosy, dimming light of a winter afternoon. It really was a pretty church.

  My stomach clenched. Someday we were going to get married here. I promised myself it would happen.

  "I don't see anything." Kelly came from the front of the church, disrupting my thoughts.

  I started walking the aisle, pausing to look under each bench. Linda helped us search the rest of the church. After ten minutes, we called it.

  "I guess that would've been too easy." I sighed as we got back into my van. "I'm sorry. I got a little carried away by running off to the church. I should've guessed there were no shortcuts." I just wanted to find Rex. But it looked like this baddie wanted me to stick to his rules.

  "The kidnapper doesn't want it to be easy," Linda said. "That's why the puzzle."

  My stomach grumbled, and I realized I hadn't had any lunch.

  "Why don't we pick up some food at Oleo's," my fourth-grade teacher said. "We'll work better on full stomachs."

  "It's New Year's Eve," I said slowly. "If you have plans, I can…" Can what? I didn't have any plans. I guess I could hang out with my parents.

  Linda studied me. "I was going to go to a party, but I'd much rather stay in and help you."

  I tried not to cry. I really did. This was too much. This nice lady wanted to help me, a kid she hadn't seen in years. I looked over at Kelly as the tears ran down my face.

  She shook her head. "I don't have anything better to do either. Robert's sister and her family are visiting. They will have a great time with Finn. I'll stay with you."

  How did I end up with such great friends? I wiped the tears away and nodded. Kelly understood.

  Twenty minutes later, after dodging many drunken revelers at the restaurant, we were back at the condo. It started to sno
w outside as darkness fell. Linda set the table in the kitchen, and Kelly and I opened the cartons. Kelly and Linda had salads. I had the biggest burger they had—the Artery Clogger 2000. Meat always made me feel better.

  As we ate, we took turns looking at the crossword. It looked like a normal puzzle to me. Riley and I worked on them a lot when on surveillance. But some of the boxes were highlighted in this puzzle. I'd never seen that before. Solving the crossword wouldn't be enough. Linda would have a word scramble to deal with once she was finished.

  "These are such short clues," Kelly said, frustrated. "How can you get an answer out of 'egg'?"

  Our former teacher nodded. "That's the trick. And often the answer isn't what you think it is." She picked up her pencil. "For example, it could mean the way the egg is cooked, like fried, over easy, or poached. Or it's referring to the animal who lays it. Or it's a reference to human reproduction."

  "One word could mean all that?" Kelly asked.

  She nodded. "And then there are synonyms, antonyms…thousands of other options. So you look at how many letters you need. In this case, it's three. So I'm going to say 'roe.'"

  "Fish eggs?" I asked.

  "That's the only thing I can think of that has three letters. It could be 'eat,' or 'fry,' but I think that's a bit of a reach. Now I could be wrong, but we have to finish the puzzle to find out. When you find a word you know is the right answer, then you can judge connecting words."

  Kelly and I ate and watched in awe as Linda Willard started to fill in the blanks. On a pad of paper, she kept a running list of other possible answers to the clues. Every rare now and then, she'd erase an answer and try another word. She was right. This was going to take a while.

  We cleared the table. I even took out the trash, stomping through an inch of the powder. I lingered in the doorway on my way back. It was so pretty when it snowed at night. Rex and I would go out on his covered deck and curl up on a wicker sofa and watch it all come down.

  I missed him. And I was sure he missed me. I knew he was counting on me to find him. Rex wasn't the kind of guy who needed to be macho all the time. He was okay with my particular skill set—unless I used it to get in his way. Right now, I'd do anything to have him lecture me on interfering with his investigations.