Fish Fry and a Murder Read online

  Her eyes took on a look of suspicion as Cade removed his badge from inside his coat and showed it to her. She relaxed when she saw it and then she glanced at me but didn’t ask who I was. “Yes? What can I help you with?” she asked Cade.

  “May I—I mean, may we come in?” he asked.

  “Who’s she?” she asked now.

  He glanced at me, looking perturbed. “This is Rainey Daye. Mrs. Zumbro, may we come in for a moment?”

  “Rainey Daye? Didn’t I go to school with you?” she asked, peering at me. “I thought you looked familiar. I’m Sarah. My maiden name was Shaw.”

  Recognition dawned on me. “Oh, yes. I remember you. I think you were a year ahead of me. You were on the debate team, weren’t you?”

  She smiled and nodded. “Yes, three years. Why don’t you come in?”

  I hated that Sarah Zumbro was suddenly delighted at seeing an old classmate since we had such terrible news for her. It had been years since I had seen her, but I hadn’t known her well in school. She was one of the smart kids and being a year ahead, I didn’t hang around with her crowd.

  She showed us to the couch in the living room and we took a seat. I inhaled deeply, bracing for what was coming and now regretting that I had taken a drive down here this morning. In the night I had decided the story I had made up about his wife having left him was true, and I thought I was going to take a look around a vacant house, not deliver bad news to a very present wife.

  “Mrs. Zumbro,” Cade began gently. “Can you tell me, when was the last time you saw your husband, Rob?”

  “Please, call me Sarah.” Her brow furrowed and then she smiled. “I guess it was early September. Labor Day, in fact. Why?”

  I tried to hide my surprise, but I was pretty sure I didn’t do a very good job of it. Her husband had been missing for four months and she was sitting here smiling about it?

  I think this news might have stumped Cade because he hesitated a few moments. “Can you tell me where you think he’s been these past four months?”

  Sarah looked confused for a moment. “Well, I think he’s been out fishing. Why do you ask?”

  I desperately wanted to look at Cade for his reaction, but I forced myself not to. Something weird was going on here and I didn’t want to miss a bit of it.

  “Fishing for four months?” he asked. The confusion was spreading.

  She chuckled and nodded. “You know how those avid anglers are. They fish night and day. You can’t keep them away from the water.”

  “Indeed, I love to fish myself,” he said and turned his head just the slightest bit toward me, then turned back to her. “But four months seems like a really long fishing trip. Do you mean he was out on the lake here?” He pointed in the direction of the lake her husband’s body had been pulled out of.

  “What? No. He’s been traveling all over the country and fishing. Well, I think he’s really been staying around Idaho, and maybe Montana and Wyoming.”

  Cade was silent a moment before continuing. “Sarah, I have some bad news, I’m afraid. There was a body pulled from the lake yesterday and one of the officers thought it was your husband, Rob. We need you to identify the body. I’m very sorry.”

  Sarah stared at Cade. It was a moment before she spoke, “I don’t see how that’s possible. He’s on a fishing trip. I’m sure he hasn’t even been in the area in weeks. Months maybe.” She looked at me, disbelief showing on her face. “He withdrew ten thousand dollars a few days before he left. He said he was going to buy an RV and drive around the country and fish the best waters America has to offer. He wanted me to go with him, but I’m not living in any RV.”

  “When was the last time you spoke to him? Did he give you his itinerary?” Cade asked.

  She shook her head slowly. “No. I haven’t spoken to him since September. I’m not sure exactly where he was headed.”

  “You haven’t spoken to your husband in four months?” I asked. I didn’t mean to say it, but it was out of my mouth before I knew it. It didn’t make sense and I couldn’t understand why she was being so calm about not seeing or speaking to her husband in months.

  She looked at me, her face going pale. She nodded. “He always wanted to be a pro-angler. I told him it wasn’t feasible. We had bills to pay. But Rob didn’t want to grow up and—,” she trailed off. She swallowed and continued, “I couldn’t live in an RV. I have a job—I’m a teacher. That’s why I stayed home.”

  “Didn’t you think it strange that you hadn’t heard from him since September?” Cade asked.

  She nodded, her eyes going to her hands clasped in her lap. “We had a fight,” she said, looking up at Cade again. “He insisted he could make it pro. That there would be endorsements and he could make a living that way. I thought it was idiocy. I guess I wasn’t very nice about it, and we had a fight. He had inherited a large sum of money when his parents died and he wanted to blow it on fishing equipment and take a few years off work to try to make it big. It was a crazy idea.” She shook her head and looked at me imploringly.

  I nodded and smiled sadly, wishing I had something constructive to say. “I’m sorry,” is all I could manage.

  “You didn’t think it was odd that he didn’t call you during this time? Were you having marital problems before this?” Cade asked, still sounding confused.

  She took a deep breath before continuing. “Yes, we were having some trouble, mostly money trouble. I wanted to pay off the house with the money he inherited, but he wanted to run all over the country and fish. But it wasn’t like we were having terrible fights all the time. We just couldn’t seem to agree on how to use the money. He stormed off, saying he was going to live his life the way he wanted. I thought he’d be back, but when I tried to call him on his cell phone the next day, it went to voicemail. I thought he was being childish, and that he would come around in a day or two. He didn’t, and he never called me.”

  “Why didn’t you report him as a missing person to the police?” Cade asked, jotting her story down in his notebook.

  She sighed. “He was making regular withdrawals from his bank account. I’m not on the account, but I have his online password, so I check it regularly. It wasn’t huge amounts of money, just a few hundred or a thousand dollars at a time. I figured he was doing what he said he was going to do. Fishing. I thought he would come to his senses sooner or later and come home. Or at least call me.” She looked at me helplessly.

  Cade sat back on the couch, seemingly stunned by what she was saying. “So, no contact with him at all for four months?” he asked.

  She shook her him and began to cry. “I guess you think I’m an idiot.”

  “I think I’m just a little surprised is all,” Cade said.

  I didn’t blame Cade for being surprised. Who sat by while their husband disappeared without at least trying to find him?

  “Does he have other family?” I asked her.

  She nodded. “Yes, he has two older brothers and an uncle here in town. I know he has several cousins and aunts and uncles in neighboring states. That’s why I thought he was somewhere nearby.” She turned to Cade. “This body, did it—did he—drown?”

  “We’ll have to wait for the autopsy, but there was a head injury.”

  Her brow furrowed in thought. “Is it possible it happened after he fell into the water?” she asked.

  “It’s hard to say at this point. The medical examiner will need to take a look at him,” Cade said gently.

  “Didn’t his family think it was odd that he just disappeared?” I asked.

  That question ignited a fire in her eyes. “He didn’t disappear—he went on a trip. Fishing. I asked his brothers if they had heard from him, but they said they hadn’t.” She snorted and sat back on the loveseat. “Like those two would tell me anything. We moved to this side of the lake to put a little distance between them and us. It’s not much, but being out here feels like you’re living out in the wild and it gave both my husband and me such peace of mind.”

 
“Where were the withdrawals done?” Cade asked, sounding business-like.

  “At both local ATMs and ATMs in areas where his relatives live. I figured his brothers were lying to me about not seeing him and that he was occasionally coming back to town and staying with them. He was stubborn, and I just knew he didn’t want to admit to me that he was wrong about going pro.”

  “When was the last withdrawal done?” he asked.

  “A week ago,” she said. “In Billings.”

  He nodded. “We still need you to make a positive ID to make sure it’s him. I’ll set it up. Again, I’m sorry,” Cade said.

  She nodded and looked away. “If something happened to him. If someone did something to him—then you might speak to his brother Zack. He was always looking for a fight with Rob.”

  Chapter Five

  “That was weird,” I said to Cade. Since I had taken it upon myself to just show up at the Zumbros’ house, we each drove our own cars and met at my friend Agatha Broome’s coffee shop, the British Coffee and Tea Company.

  “Indeed,” he said, taking a sip of his coffee. “I wish you wouldn’t just show up unannounced like that.”

  I shrugged. “Sorry. I really thought the house would be abandoned,” I said and took a slug of my mocha latte. “But really, who isn’t concerned when their husband just disappears for four months?”

  “I don’t know. It is weird,” he agreed and glanced around the shop. “Where’s our friend, Agatha?”

  “I don’t know,” I said, “she’s usually here. You didn’t tell me Rob Zumbro had a head wound. Was it bad? Do you really think it’s possible he got the wound after he fell into the water?” I wasn’t going to let him change the subject before I got more information.

  “No, I don’t. You know how things move in water. There would be too much resistance unless he was thrown in there with a lot of force and I can’t imagine what would do that. Unless a motorboat was involved.”

  “And a motorboat wouldn’t be on the lake this time of year. What about if he slipped on the ice and hit his head? That could cause a head wound,” I said as my imagination took hold again.

  “And then the ice cracked, and he slipped beneath it and it froze over him?”

  I narrowed my eyes at him. “It could happen. You never know.”

  He shrugged. “That would be some freak accident, but I guess everything is wide open right now.”

  I nodded. “I’m going with slipping on the ice. The ice cracked open, and he fell, hit his head, and slipped into the water. Eventually the ice would seal itself by melting and then refreezing.”

  “I’m so glad I have you around to tell me what I would never think of.” He grinned. “But like I said, that would be a freak accident. Sarah is going to come down to the station later this afternoon and identify the body.”

  I winced. “I can’t imagine having to do that with a loved one. Is she going to see his body? I mean, like up close and personal?” The thought made me nauseous.

  He smiled. “No, we’ll do it from closed-circuit TV. He’s down at the morgue, and she’ll be at the station.”

  “What if she wants to see his body in person?” I asked. “I could definitely see someone wanting to do that. I couldn’t do it, but I could see someone else wanting to do it.”

  He chuckled. “That mind of yours is something else. If she really wants to see him, she can. But I would suggest she wait until the funeral director does his magic. A body that’s been in the water for four months isn’t pretty.”

  I sighed. “When do we go and talk to his brother, Zack?”

  “We don’t. I will, but you won’t.” He took another drink of his coffee.

  I sighed again, this time with a little more flair so he’d know I was annoyed. “You know I’m going to ask around about Rob and what he was up to before he disappeared, and you know you like it when I do.”

  He chuckled, and we looked up as Agatha walked into the coffee shop. She spotted us immediately and headed over. “There you two are! I was wondering where you’d gotten off to. It’s been at least a week since you stopped by. My feelings are hurt.” She pulled up a chair and sat down.

  “You’re exaggerating. We were here on Friday,” I reminded her.

  She laughed, “Oh, you. You know I can’t remember a thing. I think I’m getting old.”

  “Nonsense. You’re don’t look a day over twenty,” Cade said.

  She looked at him and brushed away the comment with her hand. “This one’s a keeper, Rainey,” she said to me. I didn’t know exactly how old Agatha was, but I thought she must be at least in her early seventies. She was a British transplant, but her accent was as clean and crisp as the day she landed in America.

  “I agree,” I said. “He’s kind of cute and he does grow on you.”

  Cade chuckled.

  “Tell me, you two,” she said glancing over her shoulder. “I heard there were a number of police cars and an ambulance at the lake yesterday. What’s going on?”

  I glanced at Cade. “There was an accident,” I said.

  “Don’t tell me someone fell through the ice? Those crazy ice fishers are always taking chances,” she said and removed the purple scarf she wore. She folded it up and tucked it into her purse. “Those people should have their heads examined.”

  “See?” I said to Cade. “Everyone knows it’s dangerous out there!”

  He snorted. “You lived to tell the tale. Quit complaining.” He gave me a wink.

  She eyed Cade, then leaned forward. “Who was it?” she whispered. “Someone we know?”

  “On that note, I’ve got to get back to work,” Cade said. He turned to Agatha. “We don’t know anything definite yet.” Then he looked at me pointedly.

  “Goodbye, Cade,” I said, suppressing a smile.

  “Goodbye, Ladies,” he said and picked up his coffee, leaned over and gave me a quick kiss, and then headed for the door.

  When Cade was safely out of the shop, Agatha looked at me. “Well?”

  I felt guilty telling Agatha, but she was going to find out anyway. Even if she didn’t get it from me, Sparrow was a small town and bad news traveled fast around here.

  “We went ice fishing yesterday morning and there was a body beneath the ice,” I whispered. “But you’ve got to keep it quiet for now. Cade will never let me help him on another case if he finds out I told you.”

  “You know I’ll keep it to myself. Do you know who the victim is?”

  I shook my head. “I really can’t say. The next of kin still has to identify the body.”

  She thought this over. “Ice fishing is dangerous. I can’t believe you agreed to go. I bet the poor fellow fell through the ice and it froze over the top of him.” She shook her head sadly. “It’s a shame. All in the name of catching a few fish.”

  “You know how those fishermen are,” I said. “I told Cade we could just go to the grocery store and buy some fish fillets, but he insisted we catch the fish ourselves.” I decided not to fill her in on the fact that the victim had a head wound. It was too early to know if he died as a result of that or drowned.

  “Oh, look who’s here,” Agatha said.

  I looked up as my mother walked through the door. “Hey, Mom,” I said when she spotted us and headed over.

  “Rainey Jane Daye, I can’t believe I have to hear from a stranger that you had an accident out on the lake yesterday. Are you okay?” Mom scolded.

  “I didn’t have an accident,” I said. “Who told you that?”

  “Bernice Johns. She lives on the other side of the lake and she said she saw you and a handsome man ice fishing on the lake. She said before she knew it a bunch of police cars and an ambulance showed up. Why didn’t you call me?” She removed her scarf and hung it on the back of the chair Cade had just vacated and sat down.

  “It was only two police cars and an ambulance and I did not have an accident,” I repeated.

  “What happened? And where is that handsome man?” she said looking aroun
d the shop. “When is he going to marry you? I need another son-in-law. I love Bob, but I’d like to add Cade to my collection of sons-in-law. Or son-in-laws. However you say it.”

  “Stop it, Mom. You aren’t getting a new son-in-law,” I said and took a sip of my drink. Mom was determined that Cade and I should get married, but I wasn’t rushing anything. I was enjoying dating Cade.

  “She and Cade found a dead body beneath the ice,” Agatha whispered. “But we have to keep it quiet.”

  Mom gasped and looked at me. “Is that true Rainey?”