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KATY LOCKED UP THE Wickedly Good Sand-Witch Shop to finish cleaning. “Valentine, are you going over to the Community Day event?”
“I might pass. I’m thinking a glass of wine, a nice hot, bubble bath, and a good book will round out my evening plans,” she said. She wiped the counter one last time to make sure any last crumbs were removed.
“Not just for a little while? They have a couple of bands and fireworks tonight. I know we missed the afternoon fun, but there’s no reason we can’t still enjoy some of the event. We could grab a snack, chat, kick back, it could be fun.” Katy nudged her friend and co-worker. “It will be good for you. Why not enjoy some of the entertainment?”
“I don’t know, Katy, it’s been a long day.” Valentine picked up her purse from under the counter and slung it over her shoulder.
“Come on, just for a little while? I’d love the company. Chip is working overtime and doing security for the event. It’s been ages since I’ve sat and listened to a band.” A little pleading never hurt the situation.
Valentine sighed. “I suppose I could go for a short while. It is a nice way to kick off the warmer weather. Okay, I’ll go, but just for a little bit. Let me send a text to Cheryl first. I told her I’d call her when I get home.”
Katy clapped her hands. “Yes! Come on, let’s wrap up and we can walk over together.”
Once they’d finished with the last little details, Katy flipped off the lights. They let themselves out the back, before Katy turned to lock the door behind them. They’d be back for their cars later...well, Valentine’s car and Katy’s moped. The women walked the couple of blocks over to Memorial Park, where Normal Town Community Day was still in full swing.
Normal Town wasn’t a large place, and most events took place over at the same park. While the location sat near the beach, things grew more crowded with the summer swell, but otherwise the interior neighborhoods weren’t packed to the gill. Without heavy industrial work nearby, small businesses dotted the landscape.
Memorial Park was a gathering square for the town folk. The large park sprawled with green grass, a few benches, bushes, and trees. There were a couple of lamp posts around the main area where a gazebo stood at one end. For the current event, they strung rows of twinkle lights hoisted up by stakes in the ground, making it look like a clothes line for tiny white lights. It was enough for ambiance, but not enough to amplify the area in brightness.
During the summer, people walked their dogs at the park, went for walks, while kids and teenagers tossed Frisbees and played ball.
When Katy and Valentine arrived, the party was still in full swing. People danced to the music, food vendors sold food from their little booths, and blankets dotted the ground, along with folding outdoor chairs.
“I’m going to check-in with Chip to let him know we’re here, and then I’ll meet you. Do you want me to grab you anything? I might stop and get a corn dog. We need to find a good spot.” Katy glanced around. “I think over by the big oak tree there’s space. It’s still pretty crowded.”
Valentine looked over to the area that Katy pointed out. “That looks good. There’s less people that far back. I’m going to get a bag of kettle corn, and then I’ll meet you over by the oak tree.”
After they solidified their plans, Katy turned to leave and find her husband. She needed to make a pit stop at the corn dog booth, too. She hadn’t had one since last summer and was long overdue. The smell of carnival type goodies dotted the air.
Valentine got in line for her snack. Once she had her popcorn in hand, she strolled over to the large oak tree. It was a quieter spot, more toward the back of the park. Most people were crowding the front, closer to the make-shift stage. Valentine turned her attention to the music. A couple of people danced, others clapped along.
As the group wrapped their last song, a new band took to the stage and introduced themselves before playing. Twisted Tango was there to rock.
Loud music filled the air. Drums, bass, and electric guitars blared from the four foot speakers beside the stage. The singer blew into the microphone, then squealed, howled, and broke into their first song.
A low voice came from behind Valentine, catching her off-guard. “I’m so glad you could make it. I’ve been waiting for you. Can you tell me what the sandwich special of the day is?”
She knew the voice. Ice coursed through her veins. Valentine dropped her bag of kettle corn to the ground. The popcorn spilled at her feet. Before she could spin around to confront the person, the damage was done. Life slowly drained from the woman’s face.
The killer wrapped an arm around Valentine’s waist and caught her body before it dropped to the ground. The silencer helped to suppress the noise, but they had to give credit where credit was due. The band’s loud crashing and banging was the perfect backdrop. They couldn’t have asked for more. They thought they might have to wait for the fireworks at the end of the event, but Valentine had shown up sooner than they’d expected. There was no guarantee she’d even go to the big community event, but the second they saw her, their plan was set into motion.
A simple shot, close range, and not a single person seemed to notice. Everybody was lost in their own world, focused on the music in front of them, and nobody was the wiser. The killer gently placed her on the ground against the tree, then stepped away. They’d been careful to wear a hat, gloves, and dark clothing to blend in. They had no interest in leaving extra DNA behind. It would have happened eventually, but today turned out to be the perfect opportunity.
Before anybody noticed, they blended into the crowd and tucked their weapon into the bag they’d carried with them. As casually as they’d walked over, then simply turned and walked away.
A scream pierced the air as Valentine’s body tipped over. While propped, she wasn’t stable, and gravity did the rest. She fell to the ground beside the oak tree. The woman nearest to her first suspected the woman had drank too much, until she noticed the woman’s frozen expression. There was nothing natural about the shock on her face. She let out a high-pitched squeal that broke through the noise of the band’s massive speakers.
By the time that Katy got back from checking in with Chip and grabbing her corn dog, it was too late. She made her way to the oak tree, noticing a crowd had gathered around it. Odd, it wasn’t that crowded there earlier. Her curiosity grew.
The news moved swiftly. Cops and security ran to the scene of the crime, coming out of the woodwork. Surely, somebody had to have seen something.
Katy seized when she saw who the victim was. She tried to press her way in closer. Her heart came to a stop as she gasped for air. “No! Valentine!”
The band stopped playing. Security pushed back the crowd. It was time to clear out the event and leave the police to investigate. People gathered in the parking lot as officers asked for any information people might have seen or heard. Statements were taken. Amid the confusion, not a single smidge of information shed light on who killed Valentine Colby.
As frustrating as it was having a large group of people without witnesses, it told them a few things. The woman didn’t scream, so she might have known the suspect, and the shooting was at close range, which again doubled back to her possibly of her knowing the killer, even though they shot her from behind, based on the exit wound.
Luckily, with it being Community Day, most on and off-duty officers were nearby, along with the Sheriff and a few of his deputies. There was certainly no lack of help.
One of the cops pointed to the ground, not far from the victim. “We’ve got a casing.”
Chief Wallace, Katy’s husband, went over to where the officer stood and stooped down to collect the evidence. “Mark the spot for me.”
One of the homicide officers who was at the park with his family sent them home, but not before pulling a travel kit from the car. He placed a small placard down where the bullet casing was found. “I’ve got it. We can rule out a revolver. We’re looking at an automatic.”
Katy’s knees buckled, leaving her wobbly like jelly. Slowly, she backed up and found a spot to sit. She wasn’t going anywhere until she learned more. She’d wait and go home with Chip.
Out of the corner of his eye, Chip saw his wife crumble. He asked one of his officers to take over for a minute. He stepped away from the scene and settled next to his wife. He spoke softly, “How are you doing?”
Katy looked at Chip, her eyes wet with tears, and leaned her head against his shoulder. “This can’t be real.”
He wrapped his arm over her. “Probably not a good idea for you to stay here. Why don’t I have one of the guys take you home?”
She shook her head. “Not yet, okay?”
He nodded.
“I can’t keep doing this,” she whispered. “And this is all my fault. She wanted to go home. I’m the one that convinced her to come here with me tonight. If she’d gone home...”
“We don’t know what would have happened,” he said, trying to soothe his wife’s nerves.
“She’d still be alive,” she croaked out.
Chip held his wife. She trembled with heartache as she clung to him.
“Why would anybody want to hurt Valentine? She was such a warm, caring person.” Katy wanted to go back in time and undo the night.
When the coroner and ambulance arrived, things were declared, and times were listed. Once they’d taken crime scene photos and scribbled down what notes they had, it was time to get to business.
“How about I run you home? I’m going to be here for a while.” This was the part of his job he hated the most. He couldn’t stay in the doting husband mode when he knew minutes mattered.
Katy nodded. She still didn’t want to go home, but there was no point sitting in the grass at the park. “I think I’m going to close the deli for a few days. I need to absorb the shock of everything.”
“Okay,” Chip said. “Can we afford to close it?”
“A few days won’t kill us...” Katy cringed at her choice of words. “We’ll be fine.”
“You said she wasn’t planning on coming to Community Day, right? It leads me to think it was a spontaneous act. Somebody saw an opportunity and took advantage. If it wasn’t here, I think it would have been somewhere else soon enough. Valentine was living on borrowed time. The question is who wanted her dead?” He was talking aloud, almost to himself. “Katy, do you know any of her friends or enemies?”
“I only know about her teaching friend, but her family isn’t from this area. She moved here something like ten years ago. I forget how long it’s been. She told me a while back, but I don’t remember the exact amount of time. One of her close friends teaches over at the elementary school. I only know her first name, Cheryl. If you go to the school and ask around, she’s the one who does the fun spelling bees. She has friends dress up in costumes to host them. I don’t know a lot about her, just the few things Valentine mentioned, which wasn’t a lot. I don’t know anything about their friendship otherwise, or how they came to be friends.”
“Okay, I’ll send somebody over to talk with the teacher tomorrow. Thanks,” he said. “Come on, let’s get you home.”
She nodded. Chip offered his hand. Katy pulled herself up and followed Chip to his truck. “My moped is at the deli.”
“We’ll get it later. I don’t want you driving right now.”
