Minnie Crockwell - Will Travel for Trouble 03 - Trouble at Glacier (5 page)

Jackson jotted some things down in a notepad before looking up again.
 

“Don’t go back outside tonight, miss,” Schwin said. “We’ll have to capture the bear and see if he killed Mr. Nash, but I’m pretty sure that wasn’t a bear attack.”

“Nash? Is that his last name?” What I really wanted to ask was ‘if it wasn’t a bear attack, then what did that to him?’ but I didn’t.

“Does his wife know?” I asked. “Amanda?”

Jackson looked up sharply.

“Did you know them?” he asked.

“Well, I just met them this afternoon. They came by looking for Amanda’s uncle, said he had an RV a lot like mine, and that they were expecting him.”

“I’m not sure. We can’t find his wife. She’s not in her RV. You said there’s an uncle? Where is he?” Jackson asked.

I shrugged. “I don’t know. I met a man in the next campsite to the right, and he has an RV that looks a lot like mine. I wondered if that was the uncle.”

“Which RV? Show us.” Schwin opened the door and stepped down. Jackson followed.

“Well, you can’t see it from here, but it’s that way.” I descended to the top step and pointed to the right.

“Okay, thanks,” Schwin said. “Stay inside! Lock the door.”

I watched him flick on a flashlight as he and Jackson strode off to the right.
 

“I wish I could see what’s going on. I wonder where Amanda is.”

And you would like me to discover what is happening, I take it.

I gave the air above me a sheepish grin.

“Oh, Ben, would you?”

Of course,
he said with a sigh.
I find it hard to deny you anything, madam.

I knew he was gone, and I shut the door, locked it, and waited on my couch.
 

He returned much sooner than I expected.

The handsome and charming Rangers Jackson and Schwin knock to no avail. The purported uncle is absent from his vehicle.

“Where could they be? Maybe they’re both at the scene, and the rangers just missed them. It’s so hard to see in the dark.”

Perhaps. I shall find out.

He left again, and I opened the door again to peer into the night. I could still see flashing red and blue lights, and several stronger white lights like spotlights. Of course, they would have to light up the area.

Ben returned quickly.

Young Amanda and the man we believe to be the uncle are not at the scene, however, men and women in various uniforms wander the area as if searching for something. The deceased has been loaded onto a large white vehicle topped by red and blue lights.

I nodded. “An ambulance. I wonder what everyone is looking for.”

I overheard a discussion noting the absence of paw prints. It seems likely that the bear was indeed not the culprit.

“Well, what on earth would do that to the poor guy?”

A human?

I gasped and slammed the door shut.
 

“Ben! Surely not! How?” I shuddered as I conjured up the image of John’s neck again. “Ack! No!”

It could be done, I suppose,
Ben mused.
That Ranger Schwin noted the claw marks did not go deep enough might suggest a weaker force than a bear attacked poor John. A human with some sort of clawed instrument perhaps?

“Okay, this is gruesome!” I actually put my hands over my ears although I always heard Ben’s voice in my head, not externally.

 
Yes, I am sorry. I must stop speculating. It is distressing to you. The authorities will uncover the truth. I am certain of it.

“It could have been a bird of prey or something, couldn’t it?”

It is possible, Minerva, but I think unlikely.

“So, you’re saying you think he was murdered?”

That is my supposition, yes.

I shook my head.

“Neither Jackson nor Schwin said anything about murder.”

Perhaps they did not wish to distress you.

“What a gruesome way to kill someone! And why John?”

I cannot say.

“I’m not going to be able to sleep a wink tonight.” I settled onto my couch, grabbed a warm throw and pulled my knees to my chest. “I’ll just wait here for morning. Everything looks better in daylight. It always does.”

I hope that you are right, Minerva.

I kept a wall sconce on for soft lighting and dozed fitfully throughout the rest of the night, jumping up occasionally in response to the odd sound here and there. Nothing specific, just sounds.

I was awake when soft lavender light, visible through a window over my door, finally broke the darkness.

Dawn! Thank goodness! I rose and washed my face before making strong coffee. I couldn’t resist the temptation to look outside any longer, and I opened the door quietly.
 

“I know you’re going to tell me to stay inside, Ben,” I whispered, “but whatever happened is probably over. I can’t hide inside my RV for the entire week.”

Just until the bear is captured or villain is apprehended, whichever the case may be.
Ben probably spoke to my back as I had already descended the steps to look around.
 

The forest smelled wonderful with that heady scent of pine. The air was cool, and my breath came out in puffs of white steam. It seemed hard to believe that a horrible tragedy had occurred in this peaceful setting so close to my RV.
 

“We should head over Going-to-the-Sun road this morning since I’m up so early. I still have to unhitch the car.”

Yes, a splendid idea!
Ben said.
Let us leave this misfortune behind.

“I will,” I stated firmly. “I can’t get dragged into another possible murder. I won’t!”
 

Excellent! I am pleased to hear you say that, Minerva.

“Well, not ‘dragged,’” I said. “I know I rushed headlong into the last two, asking questions where I shouldn’t, being a busybody.”

I did not wish to say that.
 

I smiled at the polite tone in Ben’s voice. Of course, he wanted to say that, but he was far too well mannered to call me a busybody.

A flash of red color to my left caught my attention. Amanda!

I set my coffee cup down on the picnic table as Amanda approached. I couldn’t tell if she needed a hug or just someone to talk to. I was up for both.

No, you are not normally ‘dragged’ into these situations, are you?
Ben said in an ironic tone.

Hush!
I said silently.

Chapter Three

Tears streamed down Amanda’s face, and she rushed into my arms. A hug it would be then. She sobbed against my shoulder for some moments, mumbling words I didn’t understand. I patted her back and held her, murmuring gentle words of sympathy until she eventually calmed and pulled away. She produced a tissue and blew her nose.

“I’m so sorry, Amanda. I’m so, so sorry.” I was near to tears myself but managed to hold them back.

She sank down on the picnic table bench, and I joined her.

“Is there anything I can do?”

Amanda shook her head.
 

“He should have known better than to startle a bear into attacking,” she said in a watery voice. “We both worked for the Park Service. We’ve had plenty of experience with bears. We both know better.”

I bit my lower lip. So, she didn’t know that the police suspected it wasn’t a bear attack. I was surprised to hear she had worked for the Park Service as well. She hadn’t mentioned it yesterday when John spoke of his own history.

“Is that what happened?” I asked. Maybe she knew something I didn’t. Maybe something had changed in the night, and the rangers had revised their opinions.

“Well, of course, it was a bear attack. I heard you were the one who found him. Did you see the marks on John’s neck? Claw marks!”

I hadn’t realized she’d seen the body either. Poor girl! She looked wan and pale.

“You saw him then?” I asked gently.
 

She nodded. “Yes, before they took his b-body away.” She caught her breath. “I was in the shower house when it happened. If only I’d been with him… I think he might have been heading to the bathroom himself when he was attacked.”

Though most RVs had toilet and shower facilities, many campers were reluctant to use them and continued to use campground facilities. Clearly, Amanda and John were among those who did. Or John
had
.

I shook my head in sympathy.

“Did they find the bear yet? Did you hear?”

She shook her head and looked toward the woods at nothing in particular.
 

“No, not yet. They say he’s a regular and has never caused any problems, but a bear is a bear. Wild animals, you know? They’re unpredictable.”

I reached for her hand and squeezed it. The skin was cold.

“Would you like some coffee?”

She shook her head. “No.” She returned her gaze to my face. “My uncle is here. He made a pot last night. I’m pretty full up on coffee. I didn’t sleep at all.”

“Is that your uncle there?” I nodded in the direction of the RV barely visible through the trees to my right.

“Yes, that’s him. He got here yesterday afternoon.”

“I met him,” I said.

She stilled, pulled her hand from mine and looked up at me out of the corner of her eye.

“How?”

“Oh, he was in the woods across the road. Said he was looking for the bear. I was walking by and saw him when he came out of the woods.”

“Looking for the bear?” She gave me an incredulous look. “I doubt that. He’s seen plenty of bears in his time. There are lots of bears in Michigan. He’s got a huge collection of bear claws and stuff hanging in his house.”

“Oh, I thought you said he was from Washington,” I said, instantly regretting the words. She obviously had a lot on her mind. It hardly mattered where he was from.

“Did I?” she asked in a bemused tone. “I don’t remember saying that. He grew up in Michigan but he lives in Washington State now.”

I nodded. Of course. Made sense. Hardly important.

“It’s lucky that he is here right now for you.”

She stiffened and turned to me with reddened eyes.
 

“Yes, it is.”

Had I said something wrong? I didn’t know. Maybe ‘lucky’ hadn’t been the right word to use.

“I wish I could offer you some real words of comfort, Amanda, but I can only sympathize. I can’t imagine what you’re going through right now.”

She shook her head. “Thanks, but there’s nothing anyone can do. Nothing.”

Poor sad young woman,
Ben said.
My heart aches for her.

Mine too,
I said.

Amanda rose.

“Well, I’d better get over to my uncle’s RV. He’s making some breakfast. I can’t eat a thing, but…” She almost toppled over as she stood, and I jumped up to catch her. As I did so, I noticed bruises on the knuckles of her right hand.
 

“Sorry! I’m just so tired,” she said. Tears slipped down her face. Not that they’d ever really stopped.
 

I put an arm around her waist.

“Here, let me help you. You look exhausted.”

“Oh, you don’t need to,” Amanda said. “It’s not far.”

“I
do
need to. I can’t turn my back on you and let you teeter totter off into the woods.”

Amanda gave me a small smile and allowed me to walk her toward her uncle’s RV. I tapped on the door, and it swung open in response.

To say that her uncle was surprised to see me toting his niece was an understatement. His eyes rounded, and he hurried down the steps.

“What’s going on?” he said harshly.
 

At my gasp, he changed his tone. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to bark. What’s going on?” he said on a milder note.

I understood that everyone was grieving and under a great deal of stress, and I forgave him instantly.

“Amanda stopped by my RV for a few minutes, but she looked so unsteady on her feet that I thought I’d help her walk over here.”

Amanda looked toward her uncle with an expression I couldn’t decipher. Was it fear? Anger? Dismay? I shook my head. No, I was imagining things, thanks to the events of the past few months. Amanda just looked terribly sad.

“I think two of the park rangers came to see you last night,” I said to her uncle without thinking.
 

He blinked again and took Amanda from me, rather harshly in my opinion. I hoped he wasn’t an abusive relative. She seemed delicate.

 
“What makes you say that?”

“Well, they came to see me because I found the bo—” I bit my tongue. “I found John, and when they couldn’t find Amanda, I suggested she might be with you. I thought you might be the uncle she mentioned.”