Chapter 3

CHAPTER 3

A ndi resisted the urge to run toward the woman, to check her pulse.

The woman was clearly dead. Her face was blue and covered with snow. Her body lay unmoving.

Peppermint . . . the friend Juniper had mentioned earlier. This was her.

What had happened?

Juniper climbed the fence, landed in the snow, and fell on the ground beside the woman. Tears tried to roll down her cheeks but froze before escaping her eyelids. “No . . . not Peppermint. No!”

Andi grabbed her phone to call 911. The police needed to come ASAP.

As Juniper sobbed beside her friend, one of the reindeer walked over and nudged her.

Juniper sniffled as she glanced up at the creature. “Oh, Starla. Why do bad things keep happening? This is my fault, isn’t it?”

The reindeer rubbed her nose against Juniper’s face.

Andi stared at the woman buried in the snow. She looked young—Juniper’s age—with pale skin and long, dark hair. Her cheeks and nose were frosty, but she almost looked peaceful despite that—in a sickeningly serene sense.

“When was the last time you spoke to your friend?” Andi asked Juniper softly.

“She called me at eight this morning. She said she was going to stop by and talk to me about something. I couldn’t figure out why she wasn’t here yet—” Her voice cracked, ending with another sob.

As Juniper dug her hands into the snow, Andi realized she could be ruining evidence.

Duke seemed to pick up on that also. Instead of jumping the fence like Juniper had, he walked around to the gate, went inside the pen and gently tugged Juniper away from her friend. As he did, Simmy crept closer to the fence and placed her hand on Juniper’s shoulder.

“What could have happened?” Juniper whispered, her voice hoarse with emotion.

Andi observed Peppermint. The woman had probably only been dead for a few hours if her calculations were correct. She saw no blood or bruises—no signs of how the woman had died.

Someone had clearly left her like this. People didn’t just die in a pasture, perfectly laid out in the snow with their arms folded across their chest.

“We’ll get to the bottom of this,” Andi murmured.

Juniper sniffled again. “And why would she be here with the reindeer? She usually comes to my place. She’s my—was my—best friend.”

As another round of sobs began, Simmy entered the pen, moved closer to Juniper, and wrapped an arm around her.

Then something caught Andi’s eye. She knew she shouldn’t touch the body.

But . . . was that a paper in her hands? The white slip blended in with the snow and Pepper’s white jacket and gloves.

She glanced at Duke and saw he had gone back to check on Emmett. Upon finding Pepper, the man had temporarily been forgotten.

With Duke occupied, Andi was on her own.

After a moment of contemplation, she stepped through the gate and leaned closer to Pepper’s body. She used her sleeve to brush away some snow.

Yes, it was definitely a paper in Pepper’s gloved hand.

Andi didn’t want to mess up any evidence, but she knew how to be careful.

She picked it up and turned it over.

The words on the other side made her blood go cold.

I told you this would happen.

What in the world did that mean?

This wasn’t the start Andi had envisioned to this investigation.

Not even close.

Duke saw Andi’s expression. Saw the paper in her hands.

He stood from where he’d been kneeling near Emmett. “Andi . . . ?”

She showed him the note, and his breath caught. What did that mean?

Andi turned toward Juniper. “Any idea what this is about? It was in her hand.”

Juniper looked at it, and her face went pale. “No, I have no idea. Peppermint was holding that?”

“She was,” Andi said.

She practically collapsed into Simmy. “Why is this happening to me?”

As Emmett moaned, Duke turned back to the man, who still lay on the ground. The man had clearly fallen and hurt himself, even if he tried to deny he was in pain.

“Your name is Emmett, right?” Duke started.

He grimaced but nodded. “That’s right.”

“You’re the manager?”

“Been here five years. I was making a run to the reindeer shed when I thought I saw something in the snow. I took a closer look and . . .” He grimaced again. “I wasn’t expecting to see Peppermint. Suddenly, I was lightheaded and then . . .”

“Where does it hurt?” Duke looked him up and down for any clues. He wore a heavy black snowsuit that made it hard to see much.

“When I slipped on the ice, I heard a snap. I think I may have broken something.”

Duke knelt beside the man. “What hurts?”

“My leg.” Emmett reached for his right calf and winced.

Duke gently felt along the man’s leg, pausing at a protrusion. “Your fibula is definitely broken. I’m no expert, but it feels like a compound fracture.”

“Don’t worry about me.” Emmett’s face pinched with pain. “I’ll be okay. It’s Juniper I’m worried about. Her parents would want me to watch out for her.”

“You won’t be okay if you don’t seek medical attention,” Duke told him. “This isn’t going to heal on its own—not properly, at least. A doctor or nurse will need to set the bone and check for tissue damage. Plus, you don’t want infection to set in.”

Emmett opened his mouth as if about to argue again. Then he closed it and nodded with resignation. “You’re right.”

“Matthew.” Duke looked behind him to where Matthew stood, trying to stay out of the way. “Let’s see if we can get him out of the snow and somewhere warm until help arrives. We’ll need to be careful with a break like this and secure it first.”

“I’ll stay with the ladies,” Ranger said before quietly adding, “just in case.”

Duke knew what that meant. Foul play was involved.

No one should be left alone, not until they knew what had happened to Pepper.

The note made him especially curious.

It took some effort, but Duke and Matthew managed get Emmett inside Juniper’s cabin and onto the couch.

“Before the ambulance gets here . . .” Emmett winced as if each word was agony. “I need to tell you something.”

Duke leaned over him as he sprawled on the couch. “Whatever it is, it can wait.”

He gripped Duke’s arm, his eyes widening with intensity. “You don’t understand. I need . . . to tell you . . . something. Something—important. Couldn’t say . . . in front of Juniper.”

“What’s on your mind?”

His face wrinkled with pain. “Someone . . . did this.”

“Did what? Broke your leg?”

“No . . .” Emmett pressed his eyes closed. “Killed . . . Pepper.”

“Emmett . . .” Duke paused. “Did you see something?”

He shook his head, appearing to give the motion every last ounce of his energy. “No, but . . . maybe.”

“What do you mean?” The man wasn’t making sense.

“I mean—” Before Emmett finished his statement, his hands jerked forward. He clutched his heart and let out a moan. Sweat spread across his forehead as his eyes widened.

This man was having a heart attack, Duke realized. He checked for a pulse but found none.

Wasting no time, he began CPR.