Free Night of the Living Thread (A Threadville Mystery) by Janet Bolin Page B

we’re only doing a water rescue drill in a realistic setting. I wish I’d made the base of that skirt from wood though, instead of steel.”
    “We had no idea this would happen.” I clung to him. “I thought you were driving your cousin home.”
    “He wasn’t at the truck when I got there. I waited for him, but he didn’t show up, so I was about to look for you and your dogs when the emergency call came in. I was outside the fire station, so when a few of the others arrived, I drove the fire truck here.”
    “Did you hear or see anything unusual while you were waiting for Dare?”
    “No.”
    I clamped my lips shut. I wasn’t about to tell him that I may have seen Dare, in his black slacks and jacket, on the trail shortly before I heard the woman shout,
Don’t push me!
    Another siren came closer. Elderberry Bay’s police cruiser sped down Lake Street and slammed to a halt.
    Leaving her car’s spotlight trained on the riverbank, Police Chief Vicki Smallwood ran down the hill. Her uniform was tidy, and she wore her neatly combed ponytail low to accommodate her police hat. She always looked younger than she was. Once, it had seemed to bother her that she was shorter than Haylee and I were, but she must have realized that we respected her abilities and authority as Elderberry Bay’s only police officer.
    She asked me, “You called this in, Willow?”
    I nodded.
    She asked Clay, “Do you need me at the moment, or can I have a few minutes to talk to Willow?”
    He didn’t remove his gaze from the divers. “We’ve got it under control, I hope, but thanks for coming. I’ll whistle if we need you.” His arms dropped from me, leaving me colder than ever. Back straight, sleeves rolled up, he walked downriver toward the divers. I wished I could go with him.
    Lenny edged away as if guessing that Vicki wanted to talk to me alone, but before he got very far, she asked him if he was okay and if he wanted to warm up in her car.
    He gave her a very nice smile. “I’m fine. I’m more concerned about those divers. I’m trained to watch other rescuers.” He turned the smile on me. “Like she does. Thanks, by the way.”
    “You’re welcome.” I thanked him for helping.
    Vicki told him to let us know if he needed anything.
    Lenny nodded, pulled his shiny blanket around himself, and ambled like a person, not a zombie, to the riverbank.
    Vicki opened her notebook. “Okay, Willow, let’s hear it.”
    I told her about the screams, the sound like wheels clattering on the boat launch, the pops and flashes, the lights going out, the enormous skirt settling near the bottom of the river, the wet marks like partial footprints heading up the ramp and disappearing in the grass, and the sound of hard-soled shoes as someone ran up Lake Street, away from the scene.
    She held up a hand to halt my breathless monologue. “This sounds potentially serious. I’m going to call the state police for backup. Wait here, and I’ll get all the details from you in a minute.” She frowned up toward the bandstand. “We’re not sure that a crime has been committed or that anyone has been injured, but I’ll tape off the scene anyway.” Talking into her radio, Vicki jogged to the boat ramp, examined it with her flashlight, and then returned to her cruiser.
    I took the dogs down the hill to where Lenny stood watching the divers.
    Keeping Lenny, the dogs, and me outside her taped area, Vicki tied yellow tape to a weeping willow on the riverbank and strung the tape around the uphill side of the bandstand, then back down the hill to a tree downriver from the divers’ current position, already way beyond the boat ramp.
    Stubbornly, my phone refused to ring. Why didn’t Edna return our messages? My mouth was drier than cotton.
    An ambulance barreled to a stop outside the tape on the road to the boat ramp. Clay directed the two technicians to Lenny. They checked him quickly and agreed with him that he was fine, then he went with the technicians