Cold Wind by Paige Shelton

Author:Paige Shelton
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: St. Martin's Publishing Group

Twenty-Two

It wasn’t quite time for me to head to Randy’s, but I decided to be a little early. It had snowed some since I’d last been at his house, but only barely enough to cover my tracks. Though twilight was coming, casting deeper and darker shadows everywhere, I was slightly concerned that Randy would know he’d had an earlier visitor. His truck hadn’t been in front of the mercantile, so I predicted I would find him already at home. My concern transformed and deepened as the house came fully into sight. Something was very wrong.

Two trucks and the van that was kept at the airport were parked there, with their lights illuminating the front of the house. The trucks belonged to Gril and Donner, but I didn’t immediately know who’d driven the van.

“Shit,” I said as I pulled up next to Gril’s vehicle. I couldn’t figure out how any of this had anything to do with me, but it was impossible not to think I might have somehow been behind this gathering. Had I disturbed something to criminal proportions?

Gril walked out of the house and noticed me.

“What are you doing here?” he asked as I stepped out of my truck.

“I asked for a tour of Randy’s house. He invited me over.”

“Invitation’s been rescinded. Go home, Beth,” Gril said.

“What’s going on?”

“Nothing that’s any of your business.”

I stood beside my truck, thinking about confessing my earlier trespassing.

“Gril…” I began.

But I was interrupted as Donner and Randy came out of the house together. Randy wasn’t handcuffed, but there was no mistaking the terrified and confused look on his face as Donner held on to his arm. Randy didn’t want to go with Donner; he had no choice. I didn’t think he even noticed I was there.

“Gril?” I said again.

He looked at me, hesitated a moment, and then said, “You’ll hear soon enough anyway. The dead body might be Randy’s wife, and Christine confirmed that the woman was murdered, strangled.”

“Oh no,” I said. “Might be his wife?”

“Fits her description. We need Randy to … confirm. Christine came to get him; she’s taking him back to Juneau.”

Christine followed the others out of Randy’s house. She pulled the door closed and then stood on the porch, her hands on her hips as she surveyed the scene. She hiked up her snow pants and sent me a distinct frown.

My earlier trespassing didn’t matter. They weren’t here for that.

“He lives alone?” I said.

“As far as I know, he’s been alone since his wife ‘left.’” Gril didn’t make finger quotes in the air, but I heard them in his voice.

“That’s horrible. But wasn’t the body frozen? Has it been that way for six years?”

“How do you know how long his wife has been gone?” Gril asked.

“Believe it or not, just this morning I was talking to Randy about her. She came up in conversation.”

“Maybe she’s been on his mind.”

“You think he killed her?” I asked.

“Unknown at this time.” Gril turned away.

I interjected, “Where has the body been? Where was it frozen?”

“We’re working on that,” he said over his shoulder.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.