Local Foods 05 Mulch Ado about Murder by Edith Maxwell

Author:Edith Maxwell [Maxwell, Edith]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781496700292
Publisher: Kensington
Published: 2017-04-02T21:00:00+00:00

Chapter 18

At the farm, Cam first grabbed Dasha’s bed and filled his dinner bowl. She headed for the barn and let the dog out, leaving his bed in a corner near some hay bales. He ran to a tree to relieve himself, then trotted back to Cam.

“How you doing, big guy?” She rubbed his head and received a kiss on the hand in return. “Sorry about having to stay in the barn. It’s only until Tuesday.” Or whenever Pete came to pick up Dasha. Pete. She hadn’t heard from him all day. That was kind of unusual, especially when she had his dog. He must be busy with the case in Salem.

She secured the chickens in the coop. She headed into the hoophouse to water her seedlings in the soft, early evening light as Dasha sat and observed. The gentle spray from the watering wand arched over the table to wet the infant plants. Watering was definitely meditative for Cam. Watching the spray calmed and cleaned her jangled thoughts. Smelling the wet soil reassured her that life continues, that despite the apparent murder of a fellow grower, the cycle of growth was universal and never-ending.

Despite her attraction to sleuthing, her job was to nourish her plants, big and small. Ivan’s job was to sort out who killed Nicole Kingsbury. Thinking about Nicole, though, reminded Cam of what Bobby had said yesterday. Rudin had claimed to be broken up about losing his wife. So why was he already with another woman, and a gorgeous one, at that? He could have been lying to Bobby—but why?

As she watered, Cam remembered the flats of basil she’d brought to Nicole. She needed to call the station and make sure she could get into the greenhouse and pick up her flats. Cam turned off the hose and connected with the Westbury police, asking for Ruth. Miracle of miracles, she was at the station. She came on the line.

“Ruthie, Ivan said I could go into the greenhouse and get my seedlings. I was on my way to deliver a couple of flats to Nicole when I found her dead, and I wanted to bring those home.”

“Sure,” Ruth said. “I’ll meet you at the greenhouse in twenty?”

Cam thanked her and disconnected. “Come on, Dasha. It’s back to the hotel for you.” He followed her to the barn but stopped short of the door. He planted his feet and barked into the twilight. He looked at Cam and barked again.

“What is it?” She looked all around. The sun had descended behind the row of trees to the west, but some light lingered. “Is it a coyote, or a fox?” She’d seen both on the property, one reason she made sure her chicken girls were snug inside every night. She didn’t hear a rustling or any sign of predators. No living shadows lurked behind the trees or headed for the coop—not that she could detect, anyway.

Dasha barked again, then let out a long howl. Cam shivered as she knelt next to him and stroked his head.

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