Dylan ignores the question and heads toward the curtains again.
My uncle calls out, “Hey. Are you forgetting who signs your paychecks?”
Dylan growls, “You need to stay put too, Mayor,” before he disappears behind the curtain.
That’s one of the things I love about Dylan. He won’t be threatened by anyone, even at the cost of losing his job.
My father seems recovered, and I don’t like being anywhere near my uncle, so I follow Dylan’s path to see what’s going on.
I push the curtain aside, slip behind it, and stop. Tina is lying on the wooden stage with her eyes open. Blood is pooling behind her head, and she doesn’t appear to be breathing. Now I really might lose my lunch. I lay a hand on a stack of boxes to support my wobbly knees until I can pull myself together again.
After my heart rate has settled, I glance at Tina again, but this time, I’m filled with sympathy. My dad dated Tina, but they recently had a friendly breakup. She’s a nice woman.
My friend, and the leader of my store’s book club, Admiral Wright, is by her side, so I ask, “What happened? Did she fall?”
He slowly meets my gaze. “I’m supposed to be keeping people away for Dylan, but I suppose you don’t count, being his girlfriend. Just don’t get too close, please, Sailor.”
He calls me Sailor instead of Sawyer for some unknown reason, and he used to date my mom. He’s either a genius retired Naval officer or losing the marbles he has left—no one is quite sure.
The Admiral stands and swipes the dust from his pressed slacks. He’s wearing his usual cardigan sweater and a familiar confused look in his eyes. He says, “She fell and hit her head. But she seemed to be in distress before she collapsed. A heart attack, perhaps? I was across the stage when I heard her yelp. By the time I got here to assist, she wasn’t moving.” The Admiral’s forehead crumples with sadness.
I don’t want to gawk at Tina, but I can’t help another look. She still has the big switch to pop the knives out in her right hand. When she fell, she must’ve hit the button for the last blade to pop out too soon.
I whisper, “Tina is barely in her fifties and seems fit. Way too young for a heart attack.”
“I agree.” The Admiral points to a pink rose lying beside Tina’s left hand. “I thought she yelped because she poked herself with a thorn. You can see there’s still a drop of blood there.” He points to Tina’s index finger. “But then her eyes grew wide, and I realized something else must be wrong. I regret I don’t move as fast as I used to. Perhaps I could’ve saved her from hitting her head.”
The tears in the Admiral’s eyes make mine mist too. I lay a hand on his back and give him a quick pat. “I’m sure there was nothing you could’ve done, Admiral. It sounds like it happened too fast.”
He slowly nods. “Maybe.”
Dylan and two paramedics arrive, so the Admiral and I move to the back where all the people helping with the show are lined up. Deputy Ben is asking everyone questions about Tina and if they saw anything before she collapsed.
Uncle Frank’s voice over the speakers out front announces my father will do more tricks outside to keep the crowd entertained. I should probably be a good assistant and help my father, but I feel compelled to stay in the back and help there if I can.
One of the paramedics says, “I’ve got a heartbeat, some shallow breathing.” They both spring into action to save Tina. I hope they can.
The Admiral leans close. “How is that possible? Her eyes are wide open, and she wasn’t blinking.”
Before I can tell him I have no clue, Dylan slips by my side and whispers, “How did Tina end up running the trick? I thought you were going to do it.”
“I was, but my dad’s assistant had a family emergency a few days ago, so he asked Tina if she’d run the back. Of course, he waited until this morning to ask me to help him out front, so I couldn’t say no.”
A frown creases Dylan’s forehead. “Who helped your dad set up this prop?”
“I don’t know. It was together when I got here.”
Pete, the local barber and the volunteer stage manager, joins us. “Couldn’t help but overhear your question, Sheriff. The mayor helped Max set up the trick.”
Pete is stout, has a handlebar mustache, and is the nosiest man I’ve ever met. There’s more gossip at his barbershop than at Pattie’s beauty parlor by far. And that’s saying a lot. But my uncle can’t stand my father, so I ask, “Why would Uncle Frank help Dad?”
Pete lifts a big shoulder. “Everyone else was busy, and Max was clogging up space with his parts. You know the mayor wouldn’t let anything stop his fundraiser from starting on schedule.”
That’s true. My uncle is a tyrant for his schedules.
After the paramedics rush Tina away, Pete gives his mustache a nervous twist. “They were having some electrical issues with the trick at first. But then they finally got it up and running. It was like the blind leading the blind, if you ask me.”
I ask Dylan, “Do you think Tina was electrocuted? Would that explain her eyes?”
“Not sure. Best to document the scene just in case.” Dylan turns to Pete. “Who had access to the backstage area before and during the show?”
“Well, let me think.” Pete chews his lower lip. “All the performers, the mayor, and the judges, of course.” He turns to me. “The ladies all stopped by to admire those beautiful flowers from your mom’s place.” He smiles and holds a hand toward a table at the rear.
“I can’t take any credit. The Admiral arranged them.” I turn to Dylan, “My uncle asked me to give the women judges and Tina bouquets of roses from
