Bad Moon Rising

By Helen Haught Fanick

The town of Pine Summit is so quiet it seems that nothing exciting could ever happen there. Yet when Andrea Flynn and her sister Kathleen are around, murder and mayhem are the order of the day. It's lucky for the locals that the sisters enjoy investigating, because Andrea has a logical mind that's perfect for solving mysteries. Kathleen is there to encourage her and to tell their stories.

In the first of these three short mysteries, the sisters solve the murder of Pine Summit's philandering mayor—while putting their own lives in danger. In another story, Andrea rents her garage apartment to a strange couple and ends up saving a life and losing her rental income. Then there's Aunt Libby, who dies after drinking a margarita. Was it a stroke, or did someone do her in, someone who's interested in her will and the valuable timber on her property? Leave it to the sisters to find out what really happened to their cranky old aunt and to discover who did it.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Helen Haught Fanick
• Release date: Feb 23, 2015
• ISBN: 9781507051429

Book preview

BAD MOON RISING

Three Stories

By

Helen Haught Fanick

EPIGRAPH

What the detective story is about is not murder

but the restoration of order.

P. D. James

TABLE OF CONTENTS

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BAD MOON RISING

HALF-MOON

DARK OF THE MOON

MOON SIGNS EXCERPT

MOONLIGHT MAYHEM EXCERPT

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Copyright © 2012 by Helen Haught Fanick

Cover photo copyright © 2012 by Ben Rehder

All rights reserved.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination, or, if real, used fictitiously. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without the express written permission of the author or publisher, except where permitted by law.

For Polly, Betty, and Carole

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

My family includes several writers, and I’m grateful to all of them for their endless love, support, and encouragement. Books have always been important to me, and I can thank my family for this, too—the parents and aunts who read to me when I was young, and those who always made sure there were books in our house. My gratitude also goes to those who have read my work in manuscript form and suggested corrections and changes. Included are Ben Rehder, Ed Fanick, and Vernon and Marguerite Shettle. Thanks to pixelstudio for the cover design.

BAD MOON RISING

By

Helen Haught Fanick

––––––––

My sister Andrea and I suspected the mayor was having an affair; what we never dreamed was that this would lead to his murder. At least, I immediately began assuming it was the affair that resulted in his death. Andrea is more cautious and wants evidence before she makes a decision about anything of this sort. She’s a retired math teacher, and logical thinking is a way of life with her.

Because Andrea is so logical, she doesn’t believe our lives are influenced by the stages of the moon. Our Grandmother Flynn taught us everything she knew, but her ideas about the moon and its effect on our affairs didn’t take with Andrea. When I pointed out to her that the murder had occurred when the moon was only a sliver, going on dark, she merely smiled to humor me. She refuses to believe this is a time of trouble and turmoil in spite of the mayor’s death.

Of course, murder isn’t common in our little town of Pine Summit. The day after the mayor died, the police chief announced that this was the first in thirty-seven years. The whole town was buzzing with the news that Henry Wilson had been shot in the chest and the head while on his early-morning jog in Summit Park, a lovely hilltop green space surrounding a frame farmhouse, the former home of the settlers of our town and now our Community Center. The killer had held the gun to the side of Henry’s head and fired, probably after the shot to the chest had disabled him.

A few people living near the park had heard a shot, but no one thought anything of it since hunting season began last weekend, our town is surrounded by woods, and a few over-eager hunters occasionally take a shot before it’s fully light. The fact that all the witnesses claimed to have heard one shot while the victim had been shot twice only added to the mystery.

The mayor’s wife assumed he had gone straight on to City Hall after his jog and wasn’t concerned about him; at least that was her story. The two employees at City Hall weren’t worried either, since he never kept a regular schedule. Being mayor of Pine Summit isn’t that big a challenge. It wasn’t till Twila Estep, one of my quilting buddies, went for a mid-morning walk that the body was found.

Andrea isn’t one to gossip, but she mentioned to me a while back that she had seen Henry go into the home of Susie Adams, who lives in a house that sits just below Andrea’s place. Our whole town is built on a hill, with winding streets connecting our modest homes. Andrea is one of the few people in town who have a deck, and her deck overlooks Susie’s house.

I couldn’t sleep past four o’clock this morning, she told me a few weeks ago. I went out on the deck with a cup of coffee, and about five I saw someone go into Susie’s house without knocking.

I was intrigued. You couldn’t tell who it was?

I’m not positive, but I think it was Henry Wilson.

What would he be doing . . . oh, my gosh!

I’m not positive it was him. Don’t say anything.

Asking me not to say anything about a potential affair involving our mayor is like putting me in a padded cell in a strait jacket, but I would never reveal anything Andrea asked me not to tell, so I agreed.

Two weeks later, Andrea reported the same sort of incident. This time it was lighter, so I’m positive it was Henry.

That’s unbelievable! His wife thinks he’s jogging up the hill to the park, and he’s stopping off at Susie’s.

Andrea just nodded and didn’t say anything. Speculation about these incidents wasn’t something she’d indulge in, since she’s somewhat straight-laced. I, on the other hand, was ready to speculate away. "How long