Free Town in a Pumpkin Bash by B. B. Haywood Page B

are
     only a few days left until Halloween, and Sunday tends to be one of our biggest days
     of the week.”
    “We have a lot of pumpkins we have to clear out of here by midweek,” Candy added,
     aware that Halloween—and her birthday—fell on a Wednesday this year. After that, the
     demand for pumpkins would disappear—and she would have to face the fact that she was
     on the north side of forty, as Tristan had called it. “We’d sure like to open up tomorrow.
     Is that possible?”
    The chief tugged off his hat and ran a hand through his graying hair. “It all depends
     on the forensics team,” he replied, replacing the hat firmly on his head. “It’s their
     call. Best I can tell you is it’ll be a day-to-day decision. We’ll see what the morning
     brings. But for now, I’d like the cooperation of you three, since you’re the primary
     ones who found and uncovered the body.”
    He turned his gaze on Maggie. “Ms. Tremont, as I told you back in the other field,
     I’d like to see the printouts of all your e-mail exchanges with Sebastian Quinn, and
     detailsabout your phone conversations with him as well. I need you to gather all that information
     together and drop it off at the station this afternoon.”
    Maggie clicked her heels together and saluted. “Aye, aye, Captain. I’m glad to help
     out.”
    His gaze lingered on her for only a moment, as he quickly decided to let her theatrics
     pass without comment. “And, Ms. Holliday and Mr. Pruitt, I’ll need you both at the
     station Monday morning to review and sign your statements, and answer any additional
     questions we might have. We hope to get this investigation wrapped up as quickly as
     possible, so if any of you think of anything else that might help us out, get in touch
     with us pronto. Got it?”
    They said they did, and once he had their assurances, he gave them all a brusque nod,
     climbed back into his car, and drove off.
    “Well, I guess that does it for today,” Maggie said. “We’d better close this place
     up and do as the chief says.” She stuffed the final few bills into the money box,
     shut the lid, and looked up at the sky. “Besides, he’s right—the weather’s not cooperating.
     Looks like we would’ve gotten rained out anyway.”
    Working quickly, they covered some of the items in the stand, tucked others behind
     the counter, and packed the most valuable ones into the back of Candy’s teal-colored
     Jeep, which she’d pulled up next to the farm stand. The Jeep was showing its age,
     and bubbles of rust were beginning to attack the rear wheel wells and lower running
     boards, but it still managed to get her where she was going.
    As Maggie finished stowing away items at the farm stand, Tristan helped Candy carry
     the last few boxes and bags to the Jeep. They worked in silence, Candy deep in her
     thoughts, until Tristan, gauging her somber mood, said softly, “Rough morning, huh?”
    Something in the way he’d said it made her mood lighten just a bit. “Well, to be honest,
     it’s not what I expected whenI got out of bed this morning.” She paused, noticing the concerned look in his eyes.
     “It’s just that—well, we’d been expecting him…Sebastian, I mean. He was scheduled
     to meet us this morning here in the pumpkin patch to pick up the keys to Sapphire
     Vine’s old house. He wanted to rent it for a couple of weeks and…”
    Her voice trailed off as another thought came to her. She narrowed her gaze on Tristan.
     “But you’re here, too, aren’t you?” she said, not in an accusatory way, but more as
     if she’d only just recalled the real purpose for his sudden appearance in the pumpkin
     patch that morning.
    He responded with a lopsided grin. “My timing is impeccable, it seems.”
    She stuck to her point. “But you came out here for a reason, didn’t you? Something
     about a haunted house?”
    The grin disappeared, and his eyes took on a guarded look. “Yes, that’s right. Sapphire