The Mystery Before Christmas
- Автор: Дэйли Кэти
- Серия: A Cat In The Attic Mystery #2
- Год: 2019
- Язык: английский
- Год: Kathi Daley Books
- Жанр: Другие детективы
Электронная книга - «The Mystery Before Christmas». Краткое содержание книги:
“Did Dex finally give you a desk?” Gabby asked after walking in from somewhere down the hallway.
“No. I stopped by to turn in my Secret Santa story, and he asked me if I could write a feature about the tree lighting. He just wanted something short to go with the photos he took, so I told him I would write something up while I was here.”
She sat on the corner of the desk. “So how’d Dex like the piece you wrote on Secret Santa?”
“He liked it. He is going to let me run with the rest of the series.”
“That’s wonderful.” Gabby leaned forward slightly. “I might have a piece of information to share.”
I leaned in even further. “Do tell.”
“One of the women who goes to the same gym I do, told me that she heard from her hairdresser that Carolyn Worthington received a large shipment of flowers from a wholesale place in Denver and then the very next day, the church received an anonymous donation of red and white flowers for their advent service.”
“So, Carolyn received an order of red and white flowers?” I asked.
“Actually, the woman I spoke to didn’t know if the flowers Carolyn ordered were red and white. They came in boxes, so there is no way to know if they are the same flowers that were donated to the church. And even if Carolyn did donate the flowers, that doesn’t necessarily mean that she is Secret Santa since a donation of flowers to a church is a whole lot different than making a down payment for someone on a restaurant, but I still thought it was worth mentioning.”
“It was, and thank you. Carolyn is on my list of people to talk to, so I’ll try to make a point to ask her about the flowers.”
Once I completed my piece about the tree lighting, I turned it in to Dex and then headed toward the bank. I needed to identify Secret Santa, so even though I wasn’t overly confident that the people at the bank would or could tell me what I needed to know, starting with the individuals who’d processed Connie’s loan and Grover’s mortgage payment seemed as good a place as any to start. After that, I supposed I’d start figuring out a way to run into my main Secret Santa suspects. Carolyn was in town often, so she wouldn’t be too hard to corner, and Dean and Martin were friends with Cass, so I could ask him to arrange a meeting with them. Haviland Hargrove’s name had been brought up, although I doubted he was Secret Santa. Still, he was usually hanging out at the lodge or at the bar, so I figured I could track him down fairly easily.
Once I arrived at the bank, I asked to speak to Randy Trainer. I’d never met Randy, but I figured I could pretend to be interested in a loan of some sort, and then once the ice was broken, ask what I was really here to ask. I planned to jump in by asking about Connie’s down payment and then segue into a discussion about Grover’s mortgage.
“Can I help you?” one of the women behind the teller’s counter asked. There were two women at the counter today, but there were windows to accommodate three.
“Yes. My name is Calliope Collins. I’d like to speak to Mr. Trainer if he is available.” I glanced toward the hallway, which featured doors to several offices.
“I’ll see if he is available. Have you spoken to Mr. Trainer previously?”
“No. This is the first time. I grew up in Foxtail Lake but moved away after high school. I’ve only recently moved back.”
“Of course. You must be Gracie’s niece.”
“Yes. That’s right. Do you know my aunt?” Of course, she knew Gracie. It was a small town. Everyone knew Gracie.
“I do. She was already a customer when I started working here. Please have a seat, and I’ll check with Mr. Trainer.”
The waiting area was small but really nice. There were several long sofas arranged in a U-shape, which framed a river rock fireplace. The nearby picture window looked out onto a wooded area. As far as bank waiting areas that I’d been in, this was by far the nicest. The fire was warm and cheery. I was sure customers here on actual business would find that the pleasant atmosphere at least partially helped with any stress they might be experiencing.
“Mr. Trainer will see you now,” the woman said. “Please follow me.”
I stood up and ran a hand down the front of my thick forest green sweater. The sweater was nice, but glancing down at the rest of my attire, I realized I probably should have worn something a bit nicer than faded jeans and heavy snow boots. Of course, this was Foxtail Lake, and folks tended to dress down even if they were applying for a loan, which in reality, I wasn’t.
“Ms. Collins,” Trainer came out from behind his desk to shake my hand. “How can I help you today?”
“Honestly? I’m here to talk to you about Secret Santa. I spoke to Connie Denton, and she gave me your name. I understand you were helping her with her loan for the diner when Secret Santa provided the down payment.”
The man motioned for me to take a chair. “Yes. That is correct.”
“Connie told me that you received a cashier’s check, which was sent to you anonymously, along with a note letting you know where to apply the money.”
“Yes, that is correct, as well.”
I crossed my legs and leaned forward just a bit. “I don’t suppose you have any idea as to the source of the check?”
The man paused and then answered. “As you’ve already indicated, the check was delivered anonymously. I did verify that it was legitimate before depositing it into an escrow account, but I really can’t tell you any more than that.”
“Because you don’t know more or because you aren’t at liberty to say?”
“Both actually. I honestly don’t know who sent the check, but even if I did, I wouldn’t tell you or anyone for that matter. I’m sure you understand that all banking transactions are confidential.”
I did understand that and was even expecting that response, but I figured I had to ask.
“And Grover Wood’s mortgage? Was that also caught up by an anonymous donor?”
“The fact that you are asking indicates to me that you know it was. Is there a particular reason you are asking these questions?”
I knew it was a bad idea to tell the man I was researching a story, but it was the truth, and if he didn’t know that now, he would figure it out when tomorrow’s newspaper came out. “I am writing a series of articles for the newspaper about Secret Santa. The first article about the recipients of the Secret Santa gifts will come out tomorrow. I am currently researching the gift giver. There are a lot of opinions out there as to who Secret Santa might actually be, so tracking down the person responsible for all the generous gifts won’t be easy. It occurred to me to ask those people who received the money from Secret Santa in exchange for goods and services for others, or in this case, in exchange for help with individual loans.”
He leaned his elbows on the desk. “I see. I can’t fault you for your logic, but as I’ve already said, I really can’t help you.”
I stood up. “Thank you for your time. I guess I knew you probably couldn’t help me, but I had to try.”
“Why are you trying to unmask Secret Santa anyway?”
“Like I said, I’m writing a series of articles.”
He tilted his head slightly. “I know what you said, but why are you taking that approach. It seems to me that Secret Santa is a good person who is doing a good thing for the community and wants to remain anonymous. Why not let his identity remain a secret? I would think that if you simply focus on the recipients of the gifts and the positive effect those gifts have made on their lives, you will have plenty to write about.”
“Actually, I agree with you. The problem is that my boss wants to publish a tell-all. I really love my job, which by the way, I’m brand new at, and therefore I really want to do a good job for him.”
“I understand. Good luck with your story.”