F is for Fred by Sean Black Rebecca Cantrell

Author:Sean Black Rebecca Cantrell [Rebecca Cantrell, Sean Black]
Language: eng
Format: mobi
Tags: Cozy Mystery
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

19

Sofia leaned toward Brendan’s window, trying to overhear the phone call. He hit the speakerphone button. “Hello?”

“Have Half Pint Detective walk out to the pier. Alone.” The voice sounded altered, but maybe Aidan could clean it up electronically. “She should be carrying the envelope of money in her right hand.”

That was oddly specific. She flexed her right hand, wondering about the request.

“Will do.” Brendan peered up at her, silently asking if she was ready.

A butterfly fluttered in her stomach, but it was just stage fright. She’d dealt with that a thousand times.

It was a bright sunny day at the beach. Families, dogs, and tourists milled about everywhere. It seemed like the least sinister place on earth.

The caller hung up.

“Can we figure out the blocked number?” she asked.

“Aidan has some stuff set up and we’ll check it. It’s probably a burner, but we might get lucky. You never want to underestimate the stupidity of your general criminal.” Brendan was in cop mode, his face expressionless and his eyes roving over the parking lot.

She pulled her hair back into a ponytail. That should keep it from getting in the way if things got weird. And, with this case, everything was weird. A quick glance overhead for Fred. No gulls at all. Weird.

A quick thumbs-up for Brendan and she walked across the parking lot. Her phone bounced in her pocket, pulling her shirt in a weird way. But fashion wasn’t her biggest concern right now. Sound quality was. As instructed, she angled her body slightly so the phone’s microphone wasn’t pointing into the wind.

Aidan had peeled off when Brendan’s phone rang. He was supposed to station himself at the near end of the pier to film the encounter and she wanted to give him plenty of time to get into place. It shouldn’t take him long, but maybe he’d have to text Priscilla a couple of times to make sure he was doing it right.

One foot in front of the other. Nobody looked familiar in the parking lot or on the pier, but she wasn’t close enough to be sure. Cars. Trucks. Surfers. Dogs. When she got to the near end of the pier she recognized Aidan. He was in place. Camera on a tripod and pointing down the wooden pier toward the café at the far end. One hand hung by his side. He brought his thumb and finger together in a circle so that only she could see it. The OK gesture.

Everything was ready to go. Time for her to play her role. She rolled her shoulders, took a deep breath, and stepped onto the pier. Last time she’d been here she’d been happy and relaxed, enjoying the sunshine and looking for Fred. This time, she was decidedly tense. She did another shoulder roll to keep her shoulders from inching up to her ears.

As Brendan had taught her, she did a quick sweep of the pier. Tourists. Fishermen. Old guy pushing a walker with tennis balls on the bottom. Little kid holding a bag of what might be popcorn.

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