Snowmen are Murder - Part #20

Cozy Mystery

Recap: Paisley & Ellie survived an avalanche but are no closer to finding the killer.

This is the 5th book in the cozy mystery series, which means four other mysteries with Paisley & Ellie are out! You can find them on Amazon. They are fun, fast short reads. I write them under my pen name, Ann Audree. You can read about the series ON MY WEBSITE.

If you’re new to Snowmen are Murder, start at Part #1.

The Fit Girls: Snowmen are Murder - Part #20

“From the avalanche into the fire.”

Ellie whispered to Paisley, finding no comfort in returning to the ski resort lobby; however, that’s where they were, along with Inspector Fontana and all of the guests.

It hadn’t taken long for Inspector Fontana to reach the ski slope, where she took Nico Barnes into custody. She bound his hands and threatened to do the same to his mouth if he didn’t stop pestering them with insults.

After getting everyone back to the resort, they’d learned the road to town would open soon. Good news, since it meant more help was on the way. Until other officers arrived, Fontana had been ordered to keep everyone safe in one spot, which she interpreted as bringing everyone to the lobby. The guests were free to move around, but Nico was tied to a straight-back chair under the Inspector’s watchful eye.

Paisley had hung nearby and overheard some yelling in Italian through the Inspector’s cell phone. She guessed a higher-ranking officer wasn’t happy. However, it didn’t seem clear how Fontana could have averted any of the developments.

Glancing around the lobby, Paisley quickly noticed that Ziggy was missing. She silently counted, figuring he was the only unaccounted person.

“Don’t say anything,” Ellie whispered.

“I’m letting it go,” Paisley promised. “How’s your head? You aren’t seeing double or anything, are you?”

Ellie rolled her eyes. She loved that Paisley cared, but it was too much—almost worse than being trapped under snow. She’d lost count of how often she’d assured her friend that she felt fine. The constant asking was giving her a headache. “I’m fine. And that’s the last time I’m telling you.”

“You don’t look fine.” Paisley frowned, assessing the blush in Ellie’s cheeks. It could be a sign of hypothermia or just natural color from the whole ordeal. “I’ll feel better when you see a doctor.”

Ellie huffed a heavy sigh. “I’ll feel better when you relax.”

“I can’t relax,’ Paisley admitted. “One of these people is a killer. It’s making my skin crawl.”

“Someone in the lobby?” Ellie lowered her voice. “But Ziggy is missing.” She had noticed, too.

“Is he?” Paisley asked.

They scanned those gathered in the lobby. Quiet conversations hummed around the space, guests sitting with their family or friends. The chef mingled amongst them, offering coffee, tea or water. For the most part, the guests were waiting to get off the mountain and put the whole nightmare behind them.

Paisley couldn’t help but think that the killer, more than anyone present, was quietly biding his time. He was so close to pulling it off. His confidence had to be high. He was close to walking out the front door, none the wiser. They’d been told a bus was coming to take them to the valley. Everyone would be questioned, then released.

A fire crackled in the massive stone hearth, adding a bit of warmth. Ellie sat the closest, but her body temperature had returned to normal. She raised a hand to get Fontana’s attention. “Can we move away from the fire, now?” Ellie asked. “I’m warm enough.”

Inspector Fontana nodded, and the girls moved a few feet away. It allowed some of the other guests to move closer. Among them was Archie Cantwell, the British skier who’d helped Ziggy keep the generator going all night.

“Where’s Ziggy?” Paisley asked him, keeping her tone friendly.

He shrugged. “I don’t know.” With a frown, he went to tend the fire and added another log. The dying embers flicked around it, making the bark crackle.

Paisley didn’t let him off the hook. “How did Ziggy know you could help with the generator?”

Archie’s eyes looked her up and down. “I gave him my card, with my mobile. He knew a bloke for backwoods skiing.”

Raising an eyebrow, Paisley didn’t have to say he hadn’t really answered her question.

With a laugh, Archie shook his head. “I’m assuming you mean well, pet.”

Paisley noticed that Ellie had doubled back, sticking close to her friend. She sent her a look that suggested Paisley should cease and desist any investigating, especially with Inspector Fontana only a few feet away.

“I don’t like being fooled,” Paisley said. “Do you?”

“Don’t be draft,” Archie grunted. “My card says I’m a mechanic. One engine is much like another. When Ziggy called me to help, I helped. I hope this nonsense is over soon because the snow is perfect. Did you see the powder?”

Paisley had seen too much of it. “Up close and personal.”

Archie put a finger over his lips. “Ah, the avalanche. Nasty that.”

Moving away from him, Paisley couldn’t help but look back at the man. Ellie joined her, worried. “What are you doing?”

“Being friendly.”

Ellie knew that was a lie. “Maybe you should let it go. We’ve got Nico and Archie in the same room,” she whispered, referring to Paisley’s theory that they were the same person. “How many wrong assumptions can you make?”

“At least one more,” Paisley shrugged, laughing at herself. “I was wrong about Nico, but not Ziggy.”

Inspector Fontana cleared her throat, making Paisley look over. She caught the officer’s eye, seeing an unasked question in the stare. Had she overheard them?

“What?” Paisley mouthed the word, making no sound.

Fontana took a step forward. “We finally have everyone here. In one room, as you asked, Miss Summerhill. Can you solve the murder?”

It’s the last question Paisley expected. “I can.”

The other guests perked up. Everyone in the lobby had heard the exchange.

“What?” Ellie coughed, shocked but excited. “You’re giving her the green light to finally solve this?” She gawked at Fontana.

“I believe I am.” The Inspector said, extending her hand and gesturing that Paisley had the floor.

With wide eyes to Ellie, Paisley’s stomach dropped. She’d been waiting for this moment, and now that it had arrived, her body shimmered with doubt. No one in law enforcement had ever let her take the lead.

Ellie bit her lip. “I believe in you.”

Paisley faced the guests. Twenty-three people, except Ziggy. She couldn’t help but think it was like that moment in old movies where the private detective brings all the suspects together… and suddenly found it hard not to smile. She actually believed in herself, too, appreciating that Ellie always had her back.

“Ziggy’s missing,” Paisley started, schooling her face into a neutral expression. She wasn’t about to give anything away. The story had to be told in the proper order. “He’s not in the lobby, so he must be missing. Or so we are to believe.”

Eyes shifted to Nico. He sat straighter, shaking his head, but Fontana’s stern expression kept him silent.

“Nico, how much money did you steal from his uncle?” Paisley called out the thief.

“I didn’t—” Nico sputtered.

“Now’s not the time to lie,” Paisley interrupted. “Unless you want to be charged with murder.”

Nico’s cunning eyes looked around the room. “Just small amounts,” Nico said. “It was more of a joke.”

“Is everything a joke to you?” Ellie muttered, annoyed.

He made a sound of derision.

“Small amounts,” Paisley said, understanding his crime more. “But something made Pietro Ricci question who’d been on his computer, and if Nico had been taking small amounts for several years…” she paused to get Nico’s nod of agreement to the duration… “then he only noticed your theft due to larger amounts leaving the company ledgers.”

Nico made a face, clearly trying to indicate it wasn’t him.

“But it wasn’t Nico?” Ellie asked.

“He had the opportunity,” Paisley said, not letting Nico off the hook. “Where were you when your uncle died?”

“In a cabin. I’ve been hiding out for days.” Nico said. “I only went to the ski patrol lodge today because I got a message.”

Paisley walked closer to the fireplace. “Nico was a petty thief, like his pranks. The larger stolen amounts were bolder, like the pranks that harmed people—the snowman and the avalanche.”

“Two pranksters?” Inspector Fontana posed the question.

Pacing a few steps, Paisley nodded in agreement. “It all started with the pranks at Ellie’s college because that whole incident set up the perfect scapegoat,” Paisley pointed at Nico.

“That’s what I’ve been saying,” Nico insisted.

Fontana didn’t want to release her best suspect. “You have proof?”

Holding up a finger, Paisley stalled answering that question. “Pietro put an app on his computer that took pictures of everyone who used it. I’m sure he could tie the log-ins to the unauthorized withdrawals.” Paisley looked around the room. “Which is why he was killed. He discovered the thefts and locked his bank account, probably before the killer could drain them and run.”

“Who was caught on the computer?” Fontana asked.

“Nico,” Paisley said, “but also Ziggy.”

“So, you are back to the concierge?” Fontana sounded disappointed.

“I was with him,” Archie said, horrified. He stood near the fireplace, although the warmth didn’t seem to make him comfortable. “We tended the generator all night. He never left my side. How could he have done all this madness?”

“He could if you helped him,” Ellie hissed.

“Who is Ziggy?” Nico asked.

“The concierge,” Fontana snapped.

Nico didn’t know who she meant.

“Ziggy isn’t Ziggy,” Paisley told Nico. “He’s probably a relative, so you’d be able to give us his real name. Someone with a twisted tooth, like your uncle. Someone unwelcome in your family who had a vendetta and would relish hiding in plain sight, tricking Pietro. Stealing from him and crippling his business.”

A hush fell over the guests. Most had been safely shut off from any danger in their rooms. Hearing what had really been going on was a shock.

“Oh,” Nico mumbled. “I know who you mean. My other uncle. He taught me many pranks. It was our thing.”

“What is his name?” Inspector Fontana asked.

Before Nico could answer, Paisley raised her voice. “Pietro discovered the betrayal, locked his brother out of the computer, filmed him trying to access the company bank account, and was going to expose the crime. But you killed him first, didn’t you, Archie?”

Paisley turned to Archie Cantwell. The flames from the fireplace licked out behind him, making a sinister backdrop. Archie smiled. “Now I’m the dodgy one? Isn’t amateur hour over, Inspector?” His British accent was clipped and not amused.

Ellie sighed because she’d noticed something about Archie. “His teeth are straight.”

“It’s part of his disguise,” Paisley said. “On closer inspection, I don’t think it will hold up because when I stood near him, I could see he had on a wig. And the teeth are a little too white, not to mention the accent. It’s too British.”

Ellie’s eyes opened wider, and she mouthed to Paisley: Too British? Paisley shrugged. She was winging it and needed to spark a reaction,

Many of the guests angled for a better look at the newest suspect.

“She’s bonkers,” Archie complained.

“Do Brits really say bonkers?” Paisley asked. She stepped back so everyone could get a good look at Archie. “I see a family resemblance around his eyes, don’t you?”

Nico points, frantically jabbing his finger!

“Nico sees it,” Ellie said, satisfied, despite thinking her college menace was a total jerk.

Paisley squinted, reading something else behind Nico’s reaction. “The log!” she shouted, recalling one of the oldest pranks—an exploding log.

But her warning came too late.

A flash brightened the room as the log exploded. Bits of bark, fire, and embers shot outward. Guests screamed, startled to their feet, and everyone seemed to move at once. Paisley turned her back as a burst of fire shot in her direction, pulling Ellie with her as Archie surged toward the exit.

Inspector Fontana drew her weapon…

… and a gunshot echoed throughout the lobby.