Free Murder! Too Close To Home by J. T. Lewis

ours.
    Starting with lunch at Lenny’s, we would enjoy a piece of pie at Mona’s bakery in the afternoon and supper at the Black Olive for some Italian, finishing up at the Dairy Mart for an ice cream dessert. In between the gluttony we would visit every Antique shop in the county, Betty being an avid collector of old furniture and knick-knacks.
    We had decided to forgo a day ending visit to the pub in favor of a romantic evening of drinks in front of the fireplace. This was my only personal contribution to the day’s schedule, and one that Betty readily agreed to when I had mentioned it.
    It was indeed a wonderful day, following a schedule but having no schedule. I believe we must have looked at everything over fifty years old that the county had to offer, at the same time enjoying each others company like we were still dating.
    Arriving back home about seven o’clock, we were plenty tired but looking forward to our time together in front of the fire. I pulled together some old newspaper and kindling and started on the fire, then went off and took a quick shower, returning just in time to put some bigger logs on and get a good blaze going.
    Betty said she would be back in a little while, as she was going to take a bubble bath and soak for a little while. Leaning over and kissing me gently, she moved her lips to my ear and whispered, “Don’t worry; it will be worth the wait.” Smiling alluringly, she sashayed off to her date with our claw foot tub.
    “I love you” I called out after her as she disappeared around the corner.
    “Back at cha buddy,” she called out from the hall, her typical response whenever I told her I loved her.
    When we had first started dating, she had just finished with a nasty divorce. Determined not to ever fall in love again, she was nonetheless taken aback by her growing feelings for me. To hold up her end of the bargain with herself, she started using the response whenever I told her I loved her. After awhile it seemed quite a normal response and I had determined to let it ride for as long as we were together.
    I went to the sideboard and made Betty a drink, taking it over to the couch before sitting down in front of the now blazing logs to enjoy the warmth. Leaning my head back on the cushions, I closed my eyes and enjoyed the feeling of the heat on my face.
    I was surprised when I found myself back in my mysterious room, the warmth of that fire also feeling good on my skin. I took my usual place at the chair and picked up my coffee, inhaling the aroma before greedily taking a long draw of the liquid.
    Glancing over at the chess board, I saw that my defensive move of earlier had held up and effectively detained the hordes for now.
    Instantly seeing my next move, I moved my knight to the position I had laid out in my head earlier in the day. Feeling pretty proud of myself, I again leaned back in the chair and savored both the quiet and the coffee.
    Leaning my head back into the pillow of the chair and closing my eyes, when I reopened I found that I was suddenly transported to a quiet country road.
    As I looked around, the subtle odor of cigar smoke nudged for my attention. I was trying to discover the source of the scent when I noticed a house to my left. An older house, it had a large front porch that was draped with an American flag. Back in the shadows there appeared a small orange-red glow, growing brighter for a few seconds before it diminished until it was barely noticeable.
    A noise caught my attention on the opposite side of the road. It sounded like a door closing, but no one was visible at the house sitting directly across from the first. A rustling noise then came from the side of the house as I made out a person walking. Head down, they were headed toward the road carrying something wrapped in what looked like a garbage bag. The dark hood of a coat or sweatshirt masked their identity from me.
    Making it to the road, he or she turned away from me and made their way down the road