CHAPTER 26
M y heart pounds like mad, not from excitement, but from the realization that the killer of Blythe Betty could be right here among the festivities in the thick of the crowd that’s enjoying our annual Thanksgiving parade.
I rewind that conversation I just had with Magda Cooper. She mentioned that Blythe lent a friend some money to keep their business from going under. That Blythe’s own bank accounts were nearly empty to her surprise, and that she suspected Beau of having an affair with one of her friends. That’s a lot to take in.
I guess I should start at the beginning. A friend asked Blythe for a loan, but which friend?
Another float starts to roll past in a kaleidoscope of colors and with a bevy of cheerful faces waving to the crowd, and the banner over the side reads Seniors Can Soar, Dedicated to the Memory of Blythe Betty.
It’s my mother and her friends on a behemoth wonder strewn with autumn leaves, and it even has a glorious hot air balloon tethered to it as it drifts a good fifteen feet above the float itself.
And as good luck or bad luck would have it, my mother and Georgie are in that balloon!
Oh my word.
I squeeze my eyes shut for a moment, hoping I was imagining things. But when I open them, I still see my mother and Georgie up there, hanging on for dear life.
Good grief. Whose big idea was this, anyway?
Georgie lets out a wild whoop and more or less answers the question for me.
If anything goes wrong, those poor women could go tumbling to their deaths—and on the yummiest holiday of the year no less.
And yet someone close to my mother did pass away, poor Blythe. I’m sure she enjoyed Thanksgiving, too. I know she enjoyed these adorable pooches.
Acorn is right. We should act now.
If I sit on my hands for another second and give the killer a free pass to enjoy the holiday, it wouldn’t be fair to Blythe.
I look back into the street where Mom’s friends are waving at the crowd from their perch on the float, greeting the crowd with their wooden pageant waves, and I’ll admit, it looks a bit comical. Most of Mom’s friends are familiar faces to me, especially Claudia and Vera.
I’m about to wave in their direction as well when it hits me.
Claudia and Vera own the Quirky Crafters Shop, and Magda mentioned that they were close to losing their shirts.
Wait a minute… If they were close to losing their shirts, the odds are good that they went to Blythe for a loan!
My breathing picks up as all sorts of wild thoughts swirl in my brain.
The float starts to pass and an inexplicable urge washes over me. I have a sudden and very strong craving to confront them.
I push through the crowd, my feet moving almost of their own accord.
Bizzy? Fish yowls as she hangs halfway out of my tote bag. What’s happening? Why do you look panicked? Where are we going?
Don’t you get it? Acorn gives a happy little yip. We’re going to catch a killer!
Woo-hoo! Chestnut barks and howls with glee. So who’s the killer, Bizzy?
“I’m not quite sure,” I pant as we thread our way through the crowd. “But I have a feeling we’ll know soon enough.”
I step past the people sitting on the curb and make my way toward the float.
Bizzy, this is dangerous! Sherlock barks. Leave the killer to Jasper.
A whistle goes off to my right and I look over to see an officer motioning for me to get out of the street.
“Will do,” I say as the float slows down, giving me the perfect opportunity to get out of the street indeed. I leap onto the float, landing rather ungracefully face-first into a pile of faux leaves strewn over a bale of hay.
“Bizzy?” a woman’s voice calls out and I look up and cringe as I wave to my mother.
“What on earth are you thinking?” she howls from the basket dangling on the end of that hot air balloon, but no one else seems to notice.
Some electronic pop song is playing at full blast, and that coupled with the wind picking up, I can hardly hear my own thoughts, let alone someone else’s.
This megalodon of a ship is decked out as an autumn wonderland in every direction you look, complete with a pumpkin patch, oversized inflated turkey, and more than a few sinister scarecrows scattered about, too.
But it’s two women in particular who occupy this float that I came to see.
I give a quick look around and spot Magda instead. She’s waving like a pro, turning to her left, then right, before she turns in my direction and her hand freezes mid-air.
Her mouth contorts for a moment with surprise. Then she waves my way and smiles before getting back to her duties.
I’m about to make my way to the other side of the float when a familiar silver-haired maven crops up in front of me.
“Bizzy?” Claudia offers an open-mouthed smile. “I didn’t know you were on the float. Isn’t this something?” She glances down at the pooches at my feet. “Oh, happy day! You’ve brought the doggies with you.”
“And a cat,” I say, hoisting my shoulder up, showing off Fish in the process.
“The more the merrier!” she sings as she gives Fish a quick scratch behind the ears.
She’s about to take off and I step in front of her.
“Not so fast.”