Adventures in Funeral Crashing (13 page)

“Hi, Detective Dixon,” Ethan said.

Detective Dixon slowed his pace and walked up
to us, “So, you want to tell me what the two of you are doing
here?”

“We could ask you the same thing,” I
quipped.

Ethan shot me a warning look and turned to
the detective, “Investigating my sister’s murder.”

Detective Dixon shook his head, “You’re not
supposed to be here. The police are looking into the situation.
Leave it alone. You don’t want to get in over your heads. Drug
dealers are not nice people.”

“But Liz didn’t do drugs,” Ethan reminded
him. “Did you look into Troy Matthews yet?”

“Yes, and he’s clear,” Detective Dixon said,
almost too quickly.

Ethan shot me a look and I could see that
neither of us believed that the detective had looked into Troy at
all. He was still looking for some sort of a drug ring and here I
had hoped, that maybe just maybe, he had given the murder angle
some actual thought.

“Are you even supposed to be here?” I asked.
“Isn’t it in bad taste for the police to interrogate the victim’s
relatives at the funeral?”

Detective Dixon frowned at me, “I’m here to
pay my respects and make sure that people like the two of you don’t
crash the funeral. This is a serious matter. I don’t want to
disrupt the family in any way. The two of you shouldn’t be
here.”

I nodded, but I didn’t believe him. Detective
Dixon was definitely at the funeral for a reason. He was
investigating the case.

“The police have this under control,”
Detective Dixon said again. “Go home.”

“We were just about to,” Ethan said,
unlocking the car doors.

We both got in the car in silence. Detective
Dixon watched us back out of our spot and drive out of the parking
lot. Ethan and I rode in silence. I watched Detective Dixon out of
the side mirror. As soon as we turned out of the parking lot, the
detective walked back inside the funeral home.

“All clear,” I said.

Ethan took the next opportunity to make a
u-turn and head over to The Pie Shop across the street. Hopefully
the detective wouldn’t be going for pie after the wake too.

“I think the detective was looking for
something,” I said.

“Oh, he definitely was,” Ethan snuck a quick
glance away from the road and looked at me.

I wondered what evidence Detective Dixon and
the police force might have found and if it would help Ethan and I
in our own investigation. If only we could collaborate with the
police. I knew Ethan and I had something. What exactly, I wasn’t
sure, since I was not completely convinced that it was going to be
as easy as Troy Matthews committing all the murders. It could be,
but I couldn’t be sure yet. Obviously, though, collaboration with
the police was not going to be possible. Detective Dixon literally
thought we were meddling teenagers. Hadn’t he seen
Scooby
Doo
? Or watched the TV show
Veronica Mars
? Obviously
sometimes meddling teenagers had good ideas and were able to solve
crimes.

I know this wasn’t television. And, I’m no
Veronica Mars or Nancy Drew. Still, hopefully, Jenna Martin would
be able to give us some clues. I wanted to solve this case.

I had devoured
my piece of chocolate peanut butter pie (still not as good as
Wired’s peanut butter banana milkshake!) and was sipping on a hot
chocolate by the time Jenna Martin joined Ethan and I at The Pie
Shop.

The Pie Shop was a diner, but they
specialized in pies. If their peanut butter chocolate one was any
sort of representation, they did make pretty excellent pies. Ethan
had opted for a burger and fries instead of desert, but I was fine
with having a slice of pie for dinner. I knew I had just eaten a
bunch of cookies and maybe following that with pie wasn’t the best
idea ever, but I could eat healthy at home. I wanted to spend my
money on something yummy and besides, canned soup and TV dinners
were waiting for me at home if I wanted them.

“How’s the pie?” Ethan asked between bites of
his burger.

“Great,” I managed, between my own
mouthfuls.

It was silent for a moment and I wondered if
without the murder to talk about if we’d even have anything in
common. I decided to find out, “So, I noticed a guitar in your
room. Do you play?”

“I try to when I have time. I took lessons in
junior high, but I’ve just been messing around since,” Ethan said,
chewing on a fry.

“What kind of music?” I asked, making sure my
mouth wasn’t full before I spoke.

Ethan thought for a moment, “Indie rock
mostly, although punk rock is fun, maybe a little folk rock too.
I’m a big fan of Green Day. I know they’re getting up there, but
they’re fun. And, I like Bob Dylan. He’s classic.”

I didn’t know much about music, but I could
hear the love he had for it in his voice, “Are you in a band?”

Ethan shook his head, “Not right now. No time
between school, sports, and college prep stuff. Maybe eventually. I
write my own songs too, so it keeps me going.”

“What kind of songs do you write?” I was
curious.

Ethan shrugged, “Usually stuff that’s going
on in my life. Sometimes love songs. The usual.”

Now I was more curious, “Love songs?”

Ethan laughed, “You’re such a girl. Yeah. I
mean, not really about anyone or anything, but what I think real
love should be like, you know? Hey, it worked for the Beatles.”

I smiled, “Yeah. Do you ever play them for
anyone?”

Ethan thought for a moment, “Not really. Some
of them are kind of personal. Maybe eventually, when they’re ready,
but I haven’t even tried the whole band thing or playing live or
anything. So, eventually is my answer.”

I nodded, “Just make sure you keep it up.
It’s important to do the things you love.”

Ethan smiled at me, “So, what do you love to
do besides crash funerals and solve murder mysteries?”

I thought for a moment, “As boring as it
sounds, I mostly read and watch movies.”

Ethan shrugged, “That’s not boring. I like
those things too. What’s your favorite movie?”

“All time favorite? That’s hard,” I thought
for a moment, “But if I had to choose, probably
Gone With the
Wind
.”

“That’s a classic,” Ethan grinned.

“And, a chick flick. You wanted to say,” I
retorted, “But I like it because it was my mom’s favorite movie and
her favorite book. Now, it’s mine. Second on the list would be
Star Wars,
by the way and it’s a very close second.”

Ethan laughed, “
Bladerunner
is at the
top of my list.”

“Also a classic,” I said.

It was really nice talking to Ethan, not
about the murder investigation for once, but about normal stuff
like movies and music. It was a nice change of pace. I was really
interested in what Ethan had to say too. And, no, not because he
was cute, but because he was actually cool. So, it was too bad that
the moment was interrupted by Jenna.

Jenna had obviously come straight from the
funeral home, still in her black dress and sexy stockings. We were
still in our funeral garb too, but Ethan had left his jacket in the
car.

“Hi,” Jenna said, sliding into the booth next
to Ethan.

I was sitting across from them and trying not
to notice how close she sat to Ethan. “I’m Kait.”

“Jenna,” Jenna said as she held a tight
smile. “So, I guess I should just start. I don’t want to do the
usual bullshit talking about stuff that doesn’t really matter. You
both think my sister was murdered?”

“We’re not trying to freak you out, Jenna,”
Ethan had turned to her, with concern.

“Oh, I’m not freaking out,” Jenna said, “I’ve
been thinking about it since we talked and I think you could be
right. But I think you could be wrong too. I mean, we’ve had a
couple of crappy years.”

I nodded. Ethan did the same. There was an
awkward silence. I watched Jenna fidget in her chair. It was so
bizarre to see her sitting across from us very much alive when her
twin was across the street in a coffin. They looked so much alike.
This had to be horrible for Jenna. Still, we had to start this
before Jenna changed her mind.

“So, what exactly happened to Vanessa the
night she died?” I asked after a moment.

It had to be asked and I knew it would be
hard for Jenna to talk about, but all Ethan and I knew was what his
mom had overheard and what was in the obituary. We had to ask. At
least that’s what I kept telling myself even though I felt guilty
about it.

“Well,” Jenna said, and then seemed to
collect herself. “It was pretty much a normal day. I mean, I didn’t
see Vanessa in the morning. She liked to sleep in. I went to work.
Then I came home around four. Vanessa and I argued for a second and
then I went out with some friends. My mom found her a few hours
later in the bedroom.”

“What did you argue about?” I asked as Ethan
shot me a warning look. I ignored him.

Jenna sighed, “She sucked at taking messages
and someone called for me, but she couldn’t remember who. So, I got
mad at her. I mean, if it was someone really important they would
have called my cell, but still. Write it down, Vanessa.”

I nodded. Ethan was quiet. Jenna looked
sad.

“So, did anything happen before your mom
found her in the bedroom?” I asked.

Jenna shook her head, “No. My mom was
downstairs making lasagna and watching TV. She went upstairs to
find out if Vanessa wanted some and found her dead.”

“And you were out with friends?” I asked
again. Was there anything else Jenna knew that she wasn’t saying?
Any detail could mean something.

“Yeah. You can check if you like,” Jenna said
looking at me, challenging me to ask her for proof of her
whereabouts.

“No, it’s okay,” Ethan said for me.

I shot him a look. We might have to check on
them, but for now I decided to try a different tactic. We needed to
know about this anyway.

“Do you know if Vanessa knew a guy named Troy
Matthews?” I asked.

Jenna thought for a moment, fidgeting
uneasily. “Well, I don’t know if it’s the same guy, but she did
date a guy named Troy right after we graduated high school. That
was forever ago, though.”

Ethan and I exchanged a glance. It was very
likely our Troy knew the latest victim too! It was all becoming a
very, very big coincidence. He had to be the murderer!

“Are you sure?” I had to ask again, just to
be positive.

Jenna looked straight at me with the same
intense brown eyes her sister must have shared, “I remember her
talking about a Troy a lot. I met him once at a party. He seemed
okay. But, I can’t tell you his last name. She dated a lot of guys.
I didn’t keep much track of her love life. I have my own to worry
about, you know.”

“But do you know what he looked like?
Anything?” Ethan asked, wanting to be sure too.

“I mean, he was a guy. Cute. Blonde hair, I
think. Maybe light brown? Built. She liked the muscular guys,”
Jenna shrugged.

“Anything else?” I asked.

Jenna continued, “Truthfully, if we could
help it, Vanessa and I never brought boyfriends home. My mom was
having a lot of issues, my dad was going to jail, and we kept
family and everything else very, very separate. And, even though
Vanessa and I were twins, we were not very close. We’re totally
different. She only mentioned Troy to me a couple of times.”

“And you remember his name?” I asked. This
could be the key to our investigation! Troy seemed to be very much
the common denominator. It had to be the same guy.

“Vanessa was crying in her room. I could hear
it through my wall. She thought maybe she had found someone to
finally be serious about. Turned out he wasn’t serious,” Jenna
frowned and looked at her hands, which she had clasped together,
anxiously.

“Did he break up with her or something?” I
asked, taking my last bite of pie.

“He cheated on her with another girl,” Jenna
looked really, really angry for her sister.

It was just like Liz. This guy was a player.
He dated a girl, cheated on her, and then she died. So, now we just
needed to figure out Troy’s motive.

Jenna paused for a moment and then said, “Do
you think this guy Troy has something to do with this then?”

“Yes,” I nodded looking at Ethan, who nodded
too.

Jenna had settled it for us. Troy Matthews
was our prime suspect.

“So, what are you going to do about it?”
Jenna asked, watching us with an intense gaze.

I looked at Ethan. He looked back at me. We
had no idea.

The next day at school, Ethan and I planned
to meet for lunch. It was a date! Okay, not really.

After talking with Jenna Martin, Ethan and I
knew that we had to find Troy Matthews. Jenna was not completely
convinced her sister had been murdered and she split pretty quickly
after we talked about Troy, but it was all understandable – her
sister wasn’t even buried yet. With more time, we knew she’d be on
our side. Regardless, Ethan and I felt like we were definitely on
the right track. If we could get something, anything on Troy, maybe
Detective Dixon would listen to us. Even if he started an
investigation of Troy as the head of some drug ring, it would at
least be a step in the right general direction.

Ethan found me at lunch again and sat across
from me, “So, I was looking through my sister’s things last night
and I think I found something that might help us.”

“What?” I asked.

Ethan pulled out a sheet of paper, “Troy
Matthews’ class schedule.”

I grabbed the schedule from his hand and
looked at it, “How did you find this?”

“I was looking through her backpack. They
must’ve exchanged schedules at some point. Maybe to meet between
classes or something,” Ethan was looking over the top of the paper.
“How do you feel about ditching school tomorrow?”