A Flicker of Doubt (Book 4 in the Candlemaking Mysteries) by Tim Myers Page B

an
accident”
    “ Maybe. What else did you
want to talk to me about?”
    “ We need to discuss the
situation with Cyrus.”
    That got my attention. “What about him? Is
he all right?”
    Morton said, “Slow down. He’s fine, as far
as I can tell. He wants you to leave him alone.” The words rushed
out, and I could tell how much the sheriff hated having to say
them.
    “ Wait a second, let me get
this straight. You’re here to give me a message like that? You’ve
got to be kidding.”
    His glare burned right through me. “Does it
look like I’m kidding? If you bother him anymore, he told me to
tell you that he’ll press charges for trespassing and stalking and
harassment and anything else I can come up with. Harrison, the
man’s old and he’s tired. Leave him alone.”
    I couldn’t believe what I was hearing.
“Morton, we’ve been friends since I took over this place, at least
I thought we were. Runion started sniffing around Cyrus’s land and
I went to see him. The first time I was there he wouldn’t come out
and face me. When I came back the next time, he had some kind of
bodyguard at the door. I don’t get it”
    “ He doesn’t want to see you,
or anyone else. Don’t take it personally, Harrison, the guy’s
allowed to be a little eccentric, as old and as rich as he
is.”
    Morton started for the door, but I stepped
in his way. “Did you see him face-to-face? I just want to know that
he’s all right”
    The sheriff looked annoyed. “No, he called
me on the phone. I’m doing this for you as much as I am for .him.
He’s serious, Harrison.”
    It wasn’t good enough for me, though. “So he
picks up the telephone and you hop right over here. He’s got you
trained pretty well, doesn’t he?”
    I saw Morton’s jaw tighten and realized I’d
pushed the sheriff too far with my last comment. He took a few
seconds, gathered his calm, then said, “You’ve had a rough couple
of days, so I’m going to let that slide.” He headed for the door
again, and this time I stepped out of his way. Morton was just
about to leave when he turned back to me and said, “Cyrus and my
daddy used to be fishing buddies. I’ve known that man my entire
life, and you should know that I’d crawl through glass for
him.”
    “ Then you should be as
concerned as I am about him,” I said.
    “ Leave him alone,
Harrison.”
    Then the sheriff was gone.
    I took Morton’s warning seriously, but I
wasn’t going to give up on my friend. Cyrus’s behavior couldn’t be
passed off as an old man’s eccentricity. He’d been scared about
something when I’d visited him, and if Morton wasn’t willing to
look into it, I was going to have to add it to my list

    I was at Millie’s the next day for breakfast
collecting my orange slice muffins, when I saw Markum sitting alone
in one corner of the café. It was the earliest I’d ever seen him
awake, and I had to make up my mind in a heartbeat how I was going
to handle being around him after what we’d talked about the night
before.
    I decided he was too good a friend to lose
over what had been said. I walked straight to his table and said,
“I didn’t think your alarm clock worked this early.” I added a
smile to take the edge off my words.
    He looked relieved when I said it “If you
want to know the truth, I haven’t been to bed yet”
    I tapped his cup. “Here’s a tip. If you’re
trying to beat insomnia, coffee’s not going to be much help.”
    He laughed as he scooted out the chair
across from him. “Sit down.”
    “ I’ll be right back,” I said.
    Millie was at the counter with a pair of
orange slice muffins on a plate. I said, “Hey, I thought we agreed
on three.”
    She smiled. “Good morning to you, too,
Harrison.”
    “ Hi, Millie. So what
happened to my third muffin?”
    She pulled the plate back. “Honestly, I’m
beginning to think you should just get one.”
    I grabbed it before she could slide the
treats completely out of my reach. ‘Two sound