Body In The Belfry

and sorbets.

She eased the car out of the driveway, knowing full well that it would take several belfry bells, or Benjamin 's cry, to awaken Tom, but she thought a little bit of stealth was appropriate to the scene. She wasn 't driving a sleek, fully equipped Aston Martin, but a dull, gray, very dependable Honda. It would have to do.

As Faith suspected, the parking lot at Friendly 's was filled with kids. Some were inside their cars, but, despite the nippy weather, more were sitting on the hoods, the tips of their cigarettes flickering in the dark. Marlboros and Mocha Chip. Great combination.

Faith sauntered over to the take-out window and ordered a small chocolate cone. It was like eating chicken feet in Chinese restaurants. One had to establish one's credentials in order to get the good stuff.

She recognized one of the church youth group members, Becky Sullivan, perched with a couple of other kids on the hood of a car. Faith walked over to them and they instantly ditched their smokes. It was things like this that forcibly reminded Faith she was indeed the minister's wife.

“ Hi,' she said, ' I got a sudden craving for ice cream. How are things ? “

The kids eyed her with unabashed curiosity. The person who had actually discovered the body !

Faith knew it was no good trying to bullshit seventeen-year-olds, not that she had had much luck with any age group. Even if they bought the ice cream story, they would find it hard to believe a conversation in which Mrs. Fairchild first asked them how school was, then wanted to know by the way who killed Cindy. So she decided to be direct.

“Look, you all know that Reverend Fairchild and I are very close to Dave. We're trying to help him. Dave didn 't kill Cindy, but obviously somebody did.'

“You found her, didn't you, Mrs. Fairchild?' one of the girls said.

Faith had expected someone would ask for an eyewitness account, and she went quickly through it all again. She was rewarded by their rapt attention, and while their eyes were still shining and directed at her, she moved smoothly to the matter at hand.

“What I want to ask you is if you ever saw Cindy with someone other than Dave, especially lately. Or maybe she talked about someone with one of you.”

Suddenly everyone was looking at the stars, the thin sliver of a moon, each other, everywhere but at her.

After a long moment, Becky spoke, ' Well, Mrs. Fairchild, Cindy didn't have, like a best friend. I mean, like Karen and I tell each other everything.' Pause while Karen giggled and some of the other kids said, ' Everything ? ' etc., etc.

“Anyway, Cindy had sort of friends. We were kind of her friends.' Becky seemed at a loss for words.

Faith helped her out. ' I don't think she would have been my best friend when I was your age. She always seemed to me like someone who was more concerned for herself than she would be for a friend.'

“A back-stabbing bitch,' called an anonymous voice from the next car hood.

Nobody denied it. Becky looked uncomfortable and one of the kids slid silently off the car into the darkness.

“ So none of you really know anything ? ' Faith was sure they knew a lot.

One of the boys spoke, 'She was older than we are, Mrs. Fairchild, although she did hang out here, but she was usually in a car or with Dave. ' He stopped, embarrassed at the obvious implications.

Faith nodded and persisted, ' When she was in a car was it with somebody in particular ? “

A pretty, brown-haired girl spoke bluntly in an angry voice. 'Mrs. Fairchild, she was scum. She'd go off just to get Dave upset. It wasn't that she cared about the person and it didn't matter who. Even,' she added bitterly, 'if it was somebody else's boyfriend.'

“So you really don 't have any theories about who killed her or why ? ' Faith sighed. Could it have been a tramp after all ?

The kids mumbled vague denials and Faith left them to light up again in peace. She really hadn 't expected to get much. It was just another lead to follow. Maybe it was true that they hadn 't known her that well, but more likely if they were onto something they might assume she would tell the police. Which she would, wouldn't she?

As she was leaving, she thought of one more thing and turned around. Everyone sat up a little straighter again. 'At the time Cindy was killed, Dave was walking by the railroad tracks and he saw one person, a guy riding a dirt bike. It would help if we could find him.'

“ I know someone with a bike and he rides down there a lot. He might know who it was.' It was the girl with the brown hair.

Faith smiled at her. 'That would be terrific, thank you. Would you let me know if you find out anything ? “

It wasn't much, but it was the first something she had turned up all day.

She climbed into her car and sat reflecting. They were all trying to help Dave, and the territories were defined. So let the kids do whatever they were doing and she would try to think of something she might have missed.

Not now, though. She was tired and couldn 't have investigated her way out of a cardboard box at the moment. Friendly 's was out in a mini-mall near the edge of town and the roads were deserted as she drove back. The darkness surrounded the car and she felt as though she had switched on automatic pilot and the machine was driving her. Gradually she became aware of the sound of another engine. She peered in the rearview mirror. Another car had appeared from nowhere behind her. They were close to the straight stretch of road bordering the Long Meadow conservation land. Faith pressed down on the accelerator. It was a totally irrational impulse.

Faith, she told herself, don 't be ridiculous ! It's probably some of the kids from the parking lot.

The car behind her speeded up, too.

Don 't tell me they think I want to drag ! She tried to laugh. Mrs. Fairchild burns rubber on local road.

She slowed down and whoever it was seemed content to follow her lead. She looked into the mirror again and could only make out the driver. If there were any passengers, they were out of sight in the backseat. At this point Faith hoped they were there, no matter what that might suggest. It was infinitely better than being followed by a solitary stranger.

This part of town certainly needs some streetlights, she thought as she drove cautiously in the pitch dark. There was evidently some old Yankee prejudice that if you were not home in bed where you belonged at this hour, you could take your chances. She resolved to call one of the town meeting members about it tomorrow and felt better thinking of that word, tomorrow.

Because, she admitted, she was more than a little nervous. She was inching through fright and close to panic. Why didn't the car pass her? It was right on her tail. She accelerated. Behind her the driver did the same.

Faith was sure now. She was definitely being followed.

She turned left on Liberty Lane.

So did the car behind her.

She glanced out the side window. The passenger side door was unlocked and she quickly reached across to lock it. As she did so, she realized the back was unlocked too. It was just out of her reach. She'd have to stop to lock it. And she didn 't want to stop.

All the Alfred Hitchcock Presents she and Hope had watched when their parents weren't around to tell them not to crowded into her consciousness. Was there somebody actually in her backseat?

Of course not. And there wouldn't be.

She was crossing the river and would soon be out of these dark, lifeless streets. The lights burning at the parsonage blinked a welcome to her. Faith was almost home.

She started to pull into the driveway, then abruptly turned the wheel in the other direction. Whoever it was could pull right in behind her and she would be trapped !

Calm down, Faith. What do they tell you to do in situations like this? What was it she used to urge those poor defenseless people on TV to do? Drive to the police station, of course.

Her pursuer either didn 't know the town or he was a lunatic. He followed her right up to the station.

Faith pulled as close to the station door as she could and the car stopped right behind her. She reached back