Murder in the Devil's Cauldron by Kate Ryan

cold it made the bones in his
forehead hurt. Nor was the humidity so high tonight that if felt
like the inside of a steam room.
    Then he caught himself and shook his head. It
was pathetic how he had learned to be grateful for such things, he
thought as he crossed the park, the restaurant lights beckoning
from the other side.
    He suddenly stopped dead in his tracks. It was pathetic, now that he put the thought into words. He'd
managed to live with the way things were here for much too long.
Ignoring the weather and the phony Minnesota "nice" was probably
the only way he had managed to stay sane. Granted Minnesota had
proved to be fertile ground, but it was a hell of a place to
live.
    Fowler thought about his trip to the North
Shore and the possibilities it had presented. If everything went
smoothly, he not only would be rich, he could finally live
someplace where the weather was actually reasonable. He'd never
have to be grateful for teeny favors from the weather gods again.
And he'd never have to drive in Minneapolis again for any reason
whatsoever.
    As he stood in the dark, he saw his dinner
companion waiting for him at a table near the window. His smile
grew slowly as he studied her and went over his plan in his mind.
It would work. Unless something went drastically wrong, it could
really work. And considering he hadn't had a con go bad since that
unfortunate incident over fifteen years ago, this was practically a
no-brainer.
    Jubilation rising with each step, Fowler
entered the restaurant and slid into the seat across from Vivian.
She smiled at him provocatively as he reached across the table and
took her hand.
    "I have the perfect job for you," he told
her.
    "Does it have anything to do with fishing or
camping?" she asked cautiously.
    "Not this time," he said, grinning. "Plus,
there's a lot of money in it for you."
    "How much?"
    "Let's just say that you could retire after
this job if you wanted to."
    Now her smile broadened. "I just love it when
you talk money like that. Tell me everything."
    "Food first," he said, looking around for a
waiter.
    "Philistine."
    "Ahh, but a Philistine who is going to be
very, very rich in just a few weeks. I suspect that gobs of money
erase a good many sins, don't you think?"
    He could see that not only was she intrigued,
but she was firmly on the hook. Fowler just loved it when things
went well. He smiled happily as the waiter came over. "I think
champagne is in order tonight," he said.
     
     
* * * * *
     
     

Chapter 11
     
    When Starr woke up, it was barely light. She
was still dressed, but was now under the covers and the light had
been turned off. She vaguely remembered waking up freezing cold at
some point and crawling under the covers, but didn't remember
turning out the lights. Then she remembered where she was and
bolted upright, tossing the covers out of her way.
    She pulled on a sweatshirt, crawled into the
closet and hauled her camera out of its hiding place. Her mother's
door was closed, but Starr tiptoed down the hall anyway. She took
her jacket just in case and then stepped out onto the porch. Easing
the door closed, she locked it and then took a moment to drink in
the scenery around her.
    Because it was so early, the light filtering
through the dark trees was soft and diffuse. Starr could barely see
the outlines of the individual trees as they were still a feathery
dark blot. Nothing moved in the early morning stillness and she
felt as if she had been transported to another world altogether.
Starr was a big fan of Harry Potter and in this atmosphere, she
could easily believe that magic existed. It would be so much fun if
she had a wand and could try. She didn't know if she had magical
blood, but if it could happen, it would be here.
    She giggled a little at her fantasy, tied her
jacket around her waist and hurried down the path towards the lake.
She wanted to run, but the path was bathed in shadows and she
didn't want to trip and break the camera. But walking was much