The Angel Lake Murders: A Jess & Fiona Mystery, #2

By Barbara Diederich

Who is killing Angel Lake residents? Why are Russian assassins interested in the tiny little community? Will Jack’s beautiful visitor steal him away from Jess?

Peace and quiet. That’s all she wanted! Jess’s move to her cabin nestled by a lake in the beautiful forests of Northern Saskatchewan was meant to simplify life. Instead, she was contemplating buying a gun. How had it come to this?

And what did Fiona hope to find when she moved in with Jess? Peace and quiet weren’t really her thing but she could do with a little less excitement! And even though life without a man to cater to was fabulous, her bachelor existence was at risk... Will the handsome RCMP officer succeed in winning Fiona’s heart or does she opt for life as a single woman?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Barbara Diederich
• Release date: Jun 7, 2017
• ISBN: 9781386347194

Barbara Diederich

Barbara Diederich lives in a small Saskatchewan community with her beloved pets. Her days are spent writing, gardening, cleaning up after her furry friends and when time allows, painting landscapes. Barbara has been employed as an insurance adjuster, vocational consultant, pastoral associate, and continues to work as a personal injury consultant. Writing stories is a dream come true! Born and raised in Saskatchewan she is content to remain where the sky is big and the people kind.

Book preview

TITLE PAGE

The Angel Lake Murders

Book 2 in the Jess & Fiona Mystery Series

THE ANGEL LAKE MURDERS

A Jess & Fiona Mystery

Book 2

Barbara Diederich

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Who is killing Angel Lake residents? Why are Russian assassins interested in the tiny little community? Will Jack’s beautiful visitor steal him away from Jess?

Peace and quiet. That’s all she wanted! Jess’s move to her cabin nestled by a lake in the beautiful forests of Northern Saskatchewan was meant to simplify life. Instead, she was contemplating buying a gun. How had it come to this?

And what did Fiona hope to find when she moved in with Jess? Peace and quiet weren’t really her thing but she could do with a little less excitement! And even though life without a man to cater to was fabulous, her bachelor existence was at risk... Will the handsome RCMP officer succeed in winning Fiona’s heart or does she opt for life as a single woman?

COPYRIGHT

Copyright @ 2016 Barb Diederich

All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the publisher except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

First e-book edition, 2016

[e-mail]

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Cover created with Canva

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Edited by: Brenda Dumonceaux

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Any errors found in this book are my fault only. Despite multiple edits, mistakes are inevitable. Please let me know when you find something amiss by e-mailing me at [e-mail]

DISCLAIMER

Northern Saskatchewan really exists but Ella and Angel Lake are figments of the author’s imagination. None of the characters are real either. That’s why it’s called fiction! Also, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) are a very competent police force and don’t really require Jess and Fiona’s help - it just makes the story more interesting!

Prologue

Life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all.

Helen Keller

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Dead leaves chased by gusts of wind swept through the deserted streets, others were trapped and swirled in dark corners along with bits of paper and other debris. The communist era apartment buildings appeared abandoned. Murky darkness camouflaged cracks in the cement walls and broken windows were masked by sheets of punctured plywood. Sunrise would reveal more blemishes in the shoddily built structures and as people living within rose to greet another day their faces would reflect the depressed condition of their surroundings. Other than rustling leaves, stillness reigned over the deserted neighbourhood. Even the heavily armed man emerging from the shadows, outfitted in military style vest and helmet, made no sound as he advanced toward his target.

Heavy footsteps echoed throughout the multi-family complex waking its slumbering occupants. Frightened people huddled in their beds wondering if the footsteps were coming for them. Raking over everything they’d recently said or done, each wondered if this statement or that, was enough to mark them as enemies of an overly sensitive government.

Boris didn’t have to wonder. He knew they were looking for him and his wife.

Shaking Anna awake he whispered, a slight tremor in his voice. Quickly. They’re here.

Anna rubbed her eyes and looked at her husband. Not yet fully awake she scrambled to the closet, slid open the hidden door and disappeared. Closing it behind her Boris rearranged several hanging garments to camouflage the exit before grabbing a gun which was propped in the corner.

Boris knew there wasn’t time to follow his wife.

Standing motionless, he gripped a Russian made assault rifle. This was probably the end for him but maybe he’d get lucky. More importantly, he’d hold them off long enough to give Anna a chance. Boris knew what they’d do to her if she was caught - it defied imagination. Clenching his teeth he waited until the sound of heavy footsteps stopped outside his door. Finger poised over the trigger, Boris waited... watched the door swing open but he didn’t get a chance to fire.

The window behind him splintered. He dropped to his knees...

A sniper located in an apartment opposite Boris and Anna Petrov’s third floor dwelling glimpsed his target... and fired. He’d done what he was sent to do. A man and woman who were huddled behind him in a corner of the room avoided eye contact with the intruder. He looked in their direction, winked, smiled and walked out the door. 

*

Anna sat in the all-night coffee shop and waited. There were only two other patrons in the small, dimly lit café - both men and both drunk. In their altered state of mind a beautiful woman alone late at night was fair game. When they approached her table spouting lewd comments, the proprietor erupted from a backroom waving a meat cleaver and uttering threats. The inebriated pair beat a path out the door leaving Anna alone.

Her breath was ragged with fear. She’d waited for Boris as long as possible but he didn’t come.

He is dead - or they have him and he soon will be.

Tears trickled down her cheeks. She was to go on alone if the worst should happen and he couldn’t join her.

Oh my God, how can I live without him?

The grief started in her belly, a wrenching twisting pain that worked its way up to her throat culminating in a muffled groan.

*

Let’s get out of here. Liam finished stuffing jewelry into his knapsack before heading for the door.

Right behind you. Patrick was getting edgy. He had a bad feeling about this.

Darting across the room, Liam headed for the stairs, grabbed the handrail and took the steps down to the main level of the house two at a time. He didn’t notice a seam in his glove had split open, exposing his thumb. His only thought was to get out... fast!

Not as nimble as Liam, Patrick tripped. The next thing he knew he was laying at the bottom of the stairs. Although momentarily stunned he recovered quickly only to discover, after an unsuccessful attempt to put weight on his leg, he was injured. My ankle’s buggered. Give me a hand, he called out to his partner, who was long gone.

Liam didn’t stop, didn’t even look back. Flashing red light seeped through the window coverings and lit up the night. Escape was his only consideration. He never gave Patrick a second thought and was completely unmoved by his friend’s predicament. Bursting through the back door he disappeared into the night before police had even parked their cruisers.

Liam’s clumsy counterpart wasn’t as fortunate. Dragging his leg he limped toward the nearest exit but was stopped short... by a great, big cop. In Patrick’s attempt to elude capture, he took an unexpected swing at the cop and connected with his jaw. He even surprised himself. Patrick wondered what the sentence was for punching a cop.

Maybe crime did pay. After all, Patrick was awarded more than a decade of free accommodations, paid for by The People. Much of his sentence was spent planning how he’d get back at Liam for leaving him to take the rap. Twelve years - that’s what Liam cost him - eight for the home invasion and four for punching a cop in the face and breaking his jaw.

Unfortunately he didn’t know Liam’s whereabouts and because of his rent-free accommodations his search was confined to the internet. Now that he was out, Patrick thought about hiring an investigator to track the jerk down. Time enough for that later. Tracing Liam was his main goal in life even though he had no idea what he would do when he found him.

His mind went back to his first meeting with his ex-friend. While robbing the same house they ran into each other - literally. Liam was upstairs in a bedroom looking for valuables while his future partner-in-crime was in the dining room checking out a silver tea service and accidentally dropped the sugar bowl. The noise was loud enough to cause Liam to jump and drop a jewelry box he was about to empty into his back-pack. All activity ceased. Patrick and Liam froze. They had no knowledge of the other’s presence and mistakenly believed the owners were home. In perfect synchronicity the thieves decided to cut their losses and get out before the police showed up. Liam flew down the stairs which emptied into the foyer; Patrick tumbled through the dining room door which also emptied into the foyer. Arriving in the same location at the same time proved disastrous or hilarious, depending on your point of view. Impact was sufficient to send them both tripping backwards before landing hard on their backsides. It was a good thing neither man carried a gun or else they’d have shot each other. And because crooks like the company of other crooks, they soon struck up a superficial friendship which apparently didn’t extend to helping your buddy out of a tight spot.

The ex-con ground his teeth and made a growling sound that originated deep in his throat. They’d had a good thing going. For three years he and Liam targeted high class homes, stealing only money, jewelry and other treasures which were easy to carry.

Finally he was free and hoping his cache of cash was still where he’d left it. Searching the riverbank Patrick found the immovable landmarks that triangulated and pointed to the location of his stash. After scanning the area to make sure he was alone, the thief began digging.

Undoubtedly the jewelry he and Liam squirreled away in a different location all those years ago would be long gone, just like his faithless friend. If the tables were turned, that’s what he’d do. His demeanor changed whenever he thought of Liam spending all that money without him.

The tip of the shovel struck something solid. On his knees now, he began digging with his bare hands. The lid to a strong box peeked through the last remnants of dirt. Finally something was going his way.

First things first. He had money and now he needed a home - somewhere he could start over.

While Patrick sat in jail Liam Adamchuk enjoyed life; he’d changed his name and eventually found a safe place to live. Sometimes he felt bad for leaving his buddy behind but what was he to do? Get caught with him? That was just stupid. So he ran away.

Fencing the loot allowed him to purchase a life.

Chapter 1

Happiness is good health and a bad memory.

Ingrid Bergman

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As Jess was pouring her second cup of tea she heard the shower turn on. Flicking the switch to start the coffee dripping she settled back down to watch the news. It would be ready for Fiona when she emerged from the bathroom.  Her best friend moved in several weeks ago after selling her house in Saskatoon and Jess loved having her under the same roof. Fiona’s life took a left turn recently when she’d learned of her husband’s repeated infidelities. That alone would have been enough to end the marriage, but to top it off, he’d hit her. Fiona wasn’t prepared to entertain his suggestion they try again.

That coffee smells good! Fiona filled her cup and with eyes closed inhaled the heady fumes before taking her first sip.  Aaah. I needed that.

Jess smiled at Fiona’s reaction to the caffeine laced liquid.  Not much of a coffee drinker herself, Jess preferred tea with cream and sugar.

I don’t know about you but I’m worn out from all the manual labour. A shopping trip sounds like a much needed vacation. Jess said.

Redecoration of her family cabin was well underway. With Fiona’s help most of the preparations were finished. Tearing out old carpets and scraping the leftover glue from the plywood sub-floor was exhausting. A much anticipated overnight shopping trip to Saskatoon to order new flooring, counter tops and tile, lifted their spirits.

But before installing new floors a fresh coat of paint was required. Built in the seventies when cedar was popular, the place had never been painted. Jess liked the cabin-y feel, but the wood made the home dark and over the years smoke from wood fires and cooking residue had deepened the color even more. Fortunately her roommate was a professional painter and knew all the tricks.

The place was a mess and Jess knew she’d get very little - if any - work done. Since relocating to Angel Lake in the spring, she’d been earning a meager living creating crossword puzzles and selling them to various publications. To date she had five steady customers and in order to fulfill her contractual obligations, Jess had created several puzzles in advance, anticipating the chaos. For now she needed a break.

After a couple of hours watching Jess flit from room to room and back to the couch, Fiona couldn’t stand it any longer. Let’s go visit Melissa. Maybe you can sit still then - you’re getting on my nerves. A smile lit up her face.

Jess knew her nervous energy was annoying Fiona but she just couldn’t seem to settle. A change of scenery sounded like a good idea. I’m not having a sweet though. No point pushing my luck. I’ve gained five pounds since moving here. It’s time to take control.

Jess was tallish and slender, her physique athletic. She couldn’t be described as beautiful but she had a glow about her that more than made up for her nose, a tiny bit too big and eyes, a tad deeply set. Jess considered her long thick shiny brown hair her best feature.

Get off it. You could use a few pounds. I’m the one who should be worried. Fiona was a short curvy redhead. Born in Italy, she’d immigrated to Canada as a young child with her parents. Her folks moved back to their country of birth a couple of years ago; their longing for home never diminished despite living in Canada for over two decades. Although she missed them Saskatchewan was her home and Fiona didn’t want to leave, so they made do with yearly visits. The Ferranti’s still didn’t know their only child was divorced. Catholic from the cradle, they didn’t believe in breaking up a marriage - for any reason. A commitment was a commitment! She dreaded the day she’d have to tell them.

Jess’s weight wasn’t a problem however she strove to eat healthier and since moving to the lake, cake had become a staple in her diet. She found her resolve to quit eating sweets diminish even as they discussed the matter. The more she thought about it, the stronger the argument to indulge one last time. Another piece wouldn’t make a difference - would it?

Melissa’s store and café were located on the opposite side of the campground. The women walked in silence; speaking would shatter the fairytale-like enchantment of their surroundings. Contributing to the overall effect was a glassy lake which reflected the clouds as they slowly crawled across the sky leaving wisps of themselves behind. Very few leaves still clung to the trees, most had settled on the ground, yet the odd one floated through the air chased by a wintry breeze. Thick frost covered everything and sparkled like jewels in the morning sun. Perfection!

Seasons in the prairies were highly defined. Summers hot and dry, winters cold and snowy, spring and autumn windy - temperatures variable. Jess thought it would be boring to live where seasons melded instead of changed; she loved variety, yet each year when autumn waved goodbye to make way for winter, her feelings were mixed.  Saskatchewan winters were long and cold.  Often the first snowfall occurred in October with the last of the white stuff appearing well into April.  Even though she liked the season, she knew she’d tire of it long before the first harbingers of spring. Spring’s arrival didn’t guarantee gentle breezes and warm showers either. Jess could remember a snowfall in May that made it impossible to get out of her garage without the help of a shovel.  Thankfully spring snow melted quickly and within a day or two, the landscape was green again. Saskatchewan weather was never boring.

All the other lakefront cabins were deserted once again, their owners preferring warmer temperatures. The solitude was soothing, not lonely. Jess reveled in it. Emerging from the campground the scene before them changed from dreamlike to a Norman Rockwell painting. Rows of houses with large yards came into view; smoke from wood fires curled heavenward, but the scent lingered.

A bell tinkled over the door to the café and general store, the cause of all their dietary bad habits. An appetite inducing aroma filled the room. Melissa popped her head out of the kitchen to greet her customers. A smile lit up her face. Delicate features, shoulder length sandy brown hair, and a light dusting of freckles were an attractive combination. She wore clothing which reminded Jess of photos she’d seen of the sixties. Full skirt, Birkenstock sandals, paisley blouse. Somehow it suited the gentle store owner. When she saw Jess and Fiona inhaling the air she shook her head - Jess warned her they were turning over a new leaf.

Good morning. Come for cake? Melissa smirked.

You guessed it. Fiona pulled out a chair and seated herself at a table with a view of the lake. What do you have for us today?

Boston Cream Pie. Melissa answered.

Pie! What about cake? Fiona looked disappointed.

Boston Cream Pie is cake. Melissa snorted.

Why didn’t I know about this? Fiona asked.

It’s not Italian. Jess interjected.

It can’t be that good then. Fiona teased.

Wait till you taste it. Melissa disappeared. When she returned and set two plates in front of her customers she stood back and waited. Try it.

Oh my gosh! It’s incredible. Fiona slowly savored the mouthful of cake, cream, chocolate and almonds. We have to make this Jess. She couldn’t believe such a delicious confection had previously escaped her notice.

Jess picked up her fork. This was the last time... for at least a week.

Thanks Fiona. Melissa poured herself a cup of coffee and sat down for a visit. I have news. Big news.

What? Jess looked at her expectantly.

I’m getting married.

Chapter 2

Women might be able to fake orgasms. But men can fake a whole relationship.

Sharon Stone

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Married! I didn’t even know you had a boyfriend! Jess exclaimed.

He lives in that big place on the far west corner of the village. I don’t think you’ve met him yet, he’s a bit of a recluse. She grinned. We dated on and off for awhile before you moved back, but he didn’t want the commitment that goes along with a marriage certificate so I cut him loose. I’m not a kid anymore and I might want children some day.

Let me guess. He realized what he lost and came crawling back with a big diamond in his pocket. Fiona wanted to hear a romantic story with a happy ending for a change.

No diamond. But you guessed the rest! Melissa glowed. I’ll need to hire someone to help out around here after we’re married; I won’t be able to keep the same hours. Smiling she added, Jason says we need a life.

Alone at the end of the day, Melissa repeated over and over, Mrs. Jason Beatty. It just didn’t suit. She planned on keeping her maiden name. Surely Jason would have no objection.

After an unsettled sleep, Melissa awoke in a listless mood. Gently rubbing her hair with a fluffy white towel she tried not to add more knots to the already tangled mess. After raking a comb through her locks she reached for her hairdryer but it wasn’t hanging in its usual place. Then she remembered she’d left it at Jason’s. Sighing she looked in the mirror again trying to decide if she could make do without it - she didn’t feel like going out on a chilly dark morning with wet hair.

The smell of coffee filled her little apartment - she’d have a cup and then decide whether or not to go for an early morning stroll. She was tired - if the caffeine didn’t revive her, the fresh air might. Draining her cup she rummaged through a wooden bench next to the door. A few items were rejected until she found what she was looking for - a toque. Pulling her hair into a makeshift bun on the top of her head, she secured it with the knitted hat. Gloves were the next thing to be located, preferably two that matched.

The air had a bite to it this morning; she loved filling her lungs with oxygen untainted by gas fumes or industrial discharge. It was hard to believe there were places in the world where one had to wear a mask because of noxious particles in the air. Terrifying!

Jason’s cabin was set back from the rest of the village; the large cedar structure seemed to dominate his half-acre lot. In the summer it was very private but after the trees shed their summer leaves, a neighbour was visible from his eastside windows. Trudy Stephenson lived next door to Jason yet Melissa barely knew her. She seemed to stay close to home. She’d tried to befriend the shy woman to no avail. On the odd occasion when they bumped into each other Trudy remained polite but distant and eventually Melissa gave up trying. 

Jason smiled as he watched his neighbour transport another bucket of garbage to a corner of her back yard - she called it composting. He thought it ridiculous to go to all that mess and trouble when, with a simple phone call, a truck full of manure would be at your door. Turning from the window he topped off his coffee and strolled