“It was Lorenzo.” Stanton continued our phone conversation. “He signed a confession…of sorts. When we read him the wine report Phil gave us, it did the trick. He swears killing Eric was an accident. They got into a shoving match over the report and Eric got caught on the edge of a table, fell backward, and hit his head on a stone counter. The blow killed him. Lorenzo put the body in Eric’s truck, along with a bicycle, and drove it to where it went off the road. He got out, unloaded the bike, put the vehicle in gear, and jumped out of the way. He pedaled home.”
“What explanation did he have for locking me up?” I asked.
“He said he only wanted to scare you.”
Which he did.
“He wanted you to stop investigating. Claims he planned on letting you go.”
I shook my head. “Yeah, right. After admitting he’d stolen the wine.”
“He said the wine theft was a prank and he realized it was a mistake. He knew there’d be consequences but certainly would never kill someone over what those might be.”
“And shooting at me?”
“Same excuse. Claims he could have shot you if he had wanted to. He’s a world-class marksman. That might be true on a gun range, but not in a speeding sports car. He’ll have trouble convincing a jury with that story.”
“So, if I understood Phil correctly, Lorenzo’s been making cheap wine and selling it as something else with a high price tag.”
“Right. Needed the money for his real estate venture. He’d served it to a number of people and no one noticed, no one until Phil, that is. Figured he could get away with it.”
“Was his father in on the scheme?” I asked.
“There’s no indication of that, but we’ll investigate him and the others at the winery.”
I took a deep breath. “I’m happy it’s over, Bill.”
I enjoyed using his first name to emphasize we had all the answers we’d been looking for.
“Me, too. I’ll be able to keep my date with Tommy tomorrow to help him with his project.”
“See you then.”
We hung up, and I rose and stretched. I leaned over a lavender plant and inhaled deeply. It was over.
Wonderful, welcome words.
Time to share the good news. I headed back to the barn to find the Sentinels. It was almost five, and people were streaming to the parking lot. The group had gathered at the door and were talking to a few last guests.
I stood off to the side and waited. The people thanked the Sentinels and headed away. The five seniors turned and looked at me and I joined them.
“Stanton knows who killed Eric. It was Lorenzo Sagatini.”
There was a group sigh.
“I have a feeling you have a lot to share, my dear,” the Professor said.
“I do.”
“I have an idea,” Gertie said. “Let’s meet in the morning before the food event. We can disassemble the War Room and make it back into the Silver Sentinels’ Conference Room and you can tell us about it then.”
Ivan rarely appeared tired, but today was an exception with his bloodshot eyes and more noticeable wrinkles. “Tomorrow good idea.”
“It’s been a long day,” Mary said. “We have our culprits. That’s what counts.”
Rudy nodded. “We decided to skip the dinner tonight and rest up for tomorrow.”
The excitement had taken the edge off my tiredness, but now it returned with renewed clout as my shoulders sagged. “I agree. What time do you want to meet?”
“The event starts at noon,” Mary said. “Let’s plan on nine thirty and we can wear our costumes to the inn.”
“I forgot about your costumes for the Wild West event. What are you all going to be?” I asked.
“Surprise tomorrow,” Ivan said.
“Fair enough. See you then,” I replied.
The group headed for the Professor’s gold Mercedes. I did a quick scan of the barn but still saw no sign of Scott. Just as well. A good night’s sleep would put me in better form to tell him what had happened.
* * * *
The next morning after Helen and I finished delivering the baskets, I saw her preparing a full breakfast of bacon and eggs, along with hash browns. A loaf of homemade bread rested on the cutting board.
“That looks like a Stanton breakfast,” I commented.
Helen nodded. “I’m making some for Tommy, too. He said he wanted to eat what Bill was eating.”
“Cute. I think the relationship benefits both of them.”
“I do too. Bill never married, has no family nearby, and has a very demanding job. Tommy and Fred are pretty good at getting people to smile, and Bill is no exception.”
The dynamic duo, as I called them, never ceased to brighten my day either.
With that thought still echoing, Tommy bounded in, along with Fred on his heels. He carried a paper bag.
“Is it okay if I put out my project now?” he asked his mom.
Helen looked a question at me.
“Sure. I don’t need the space,” I said.
Tommy enthusiastically began spreading colored pieces of paper, stickers, clean popsicle sticks, and a myriad of other items on the table.
“What are you making?” I asked.
“A Spanish mission like in the days of early California.”
The sound of crunching gravel heralded the arrival of Deputy Stanton in a black pickup truck. He’d been over often enough he knew he didn’t need to knock. He entered wearing jeans and a denim shirt.
Helen handed him a cup of coffee. “Hi, Bill. Glad you could make it today.”
“Me, too.”
Fred put his paws on the deputy’s boots.
“Good morning, Fred.” He patted the basset hound then sat at the counter.
Tommy immediately sat next to him. “Thank you for helping with my project. It’s always more fun to make things when I do it with you.”
Stanton blinked a couple of times. It occurred to me those were words he might never have heard spoken to him before.
Julie entered the room carrying her breakfast basket, along with several books, Rex at her side. She set the remains of her meal on the counter. “Good morning, everyone.” She turned to Helen. “Those cranberry muffins were delicious. That’s another recipe I’d like to have.”
“I’ll do a trade for the chili one,” Helen replied.
“Deal.” She held up the books and looked at me. “These are cookbooks. I want to take you up on your offer to make copies. I’ve put markers on the recipes I’d like to have.”
“It just so happens our official copier is here,” I said.
“That’s me,” Tommy said. “Miss Kelly gave me the job so I could earn some extra money.”
“Tommy,” Helen said, “it’ll be a few minutes before breakfast is ready. Why don’t you start on them now?”
“Okay.” He jumped up, took the books from Julie, and ran toward the office.
Fred trotted behind him.
“How are you doing?” Stanton asked Julie.
Julie smiled. “Much better. Cooking with Sebastian helped me get back into the swing of things.”
“And you?” he asked me.
“Fine. Having all the answers to our puzzles gave me some of my energy back.”
As well as a feeling that all is well again.
Helen smiled at me as she put plates on the counter. When I’d gotten home yesterday, I told her everything that happened. We worked as a team, and I felt it was important to keep her in the loop. I didn’t want her to find out yesterday’s events from someone else.
The bacon began to sizzle. Its smell reminded me of breakfast on the ranch. Mom cooked for all the cowboys as well as the family. Each morning she made sure everyone had a full stomach. Here, I mostly ate cereal or toast, and Helen usually didn’t cook a traditional breakfast. Tommy normally had things like granola, yogurt, and fruit. Thinking of my family helped bring another layer of contentment to my day.
Phil knocked on the back door and I waved him in. He put his basket next to Julie’s.
“Same exceptional food as always,” he said to Helen. “Morning, Deputy Stanton,” he said as he turned toward us.
“Thanks for helping us with Lorenzo,” Stanton said. “That report got him to confess.”
“Glad to hear it, and I’m especially glad all the charges against me have been dropped.”
“You’ll receive a call about getting your van back.” He reached into his pocket. “Kelly, before I forget, here are your knife and Jeep keys.”
He placed them on the counter.
Tommy came back in with the copies and handed them to Julie.
“I put my time on the sheet next to the copy machine like you asked me to,” Tommy said to me.
“Thanks. You’re a very efficient worker,” I said.
“Perfect timing,” Helen said. “We’re ready to eat.”
While we’d been talking, she’d taken out the bacon and drained it on paper towels and finished making scrambled eggs. Helen, too, knew how to garnish and the eggs had what appeared to be a sprinkling of minced chives. She placed warm, sliced bread and homemade strawberry jam from Gertie on the table.
Tommy again climbed on the stool next to Stanton and watched the deputy out of the corner of his eye. The officer unfolded his napkin and put it on his lap. Tommy did exactly the same thing. Stanton sipped his coffee, Tommy his milk.
Stanton might have acquired family he didn’t know about.
Julie excused herself and said she’d be back in a bit. She and Sebastian would be gathering their food and heading to the center. I went to change, knowing the Sentinels would arrive soon. My western “costume” was as before…clothes I’d worn on the ranch. I changed into new boot-cut black jeans and one of my favorite blouses with pearlescent snaps and the yoke pattern on the back. My sister had picked it out for me, saying its color would do wonders for my green eyes.
I took my cowboy boots out of the closet. Tommy had polished them as one of his jobs to earn extra money. He’d done a beautiful job, and they looked almost new. I added my belt with the large silver and gold barrel racing buckle I’d won at the Wyoming Stampede. I had been so proud of my buckskin mare, Lucy, that day.
My cowboy hat rested on a shelf in the closet. I pulled it down by the two-foot-long braided horsehair stampede string which I used to cinch the hat tight when riding. My family gave me the hat as a gift when I moved to Redwood Cove to manage the inn. My two brothers, sister, Mom and Dad, and Grandpa each contributed something to it.
As I held the hat, I thought about my family. It represented them, and it would be nice to have them with me today. I wasn’t ready to put it on and face the dreaded “hat hair,” as my sister called the dents created by wearing it. I slipped my head through the stampede string and let the hat dangle down my back.
Ready for the event, I returned to the kitchen. Breakfast was over, and Stanton and Tommy were sorting through project parts. A delivery truck arrived and the driver placed a box on the back deck.
Tommy jumped up. “I’ll go get it.”
“Get ready, you two,” Helen said. “I think you’re going to be deluged with a ten-year-old’s over-the-top excitement.”
Tommy came running back in. “It’s here. It’s here,” he shouted. “My Furbo is here.”
Stanton looked at Helen quizzically.
She opened the box with a cutter. “You’ll know in a minute,” she said. “Be careful, Tommy,” she admonished as he began to tear out the packing paper.
The boy pulled out a box and opened it. He began unpacking an assortment of equipment at the far end of the table.
“It’s so cool.” Tommy held up the box so Stanton could see the photo on the side. “It’s a machine that lets me watch Fred when I’m away.” He put it on the table. “And I can even feed him treats with it when I’m at school.” He looked at his mom. “But only during lunch.”
Stanton shook his head and laughed. “Amazing. I’ve never heard of such a thing.”
Helen came and stood next to Stanton. “It’s why Tommy has been wanting to work so he could buy it. It was on sale, so I loaned him the money.”
“I’m guessing we have another project to do, and the Furbo is the one we’ll start with first.” Stanton joined Tommy and picked up the directions sheet.
Helen surveyed the table. “With all that’s here, Bill, you might be here through lunch.”
“Fine with me. I have the whole day off and there’s nowhere I’d rather be.”
Helen blushed and began to finish the dishes.
Stanton and Tommy had their heads together as they began to assemble the machine.
The Professor’s gold Mercedes rolled by the side window. He parked next to Stanton’s truck. The group emerged, walked up the back steps, and paraded in.
We all stopped what we’d been doing when they entered.
Tommy’s jaw dropped and his eyes widened.
The Wild West had arrived.