Competition Can Be Murder Read online

  A nasty growl, right in my ear, was the only response.

  “Drake! We’re almost at the edge!” I shouted.

  “Max, don’t do it.” The voice got Brankin’s attention and he turned slightly. Tolliver, with Alex and Duncan beside him, stood ten feet or so from the door to Colin’s office. “Hurting the lady won’t do you any good.”

  Brankin’s grip loosened a tiny bit but it was all I needed. I swung my right arm free and spun, catching him on the left ear. Drake rushed at me from the side, grabbing me around the waist and diving for the center of the helipad. We both went down, just in time to see Tolliver head toward his friend. Brankin, however, wasn’t going to be talked into surrendering. He regained his footing quickly and ran for the edge of the platform.

  We heard his scream as he plunged.

  Chapter 60

  Rain dripped off a dozen umbrellas as we stood around Brian’s coffin. The day was perfect, as funerals go. Such occasions fit gray, drizzly days when people gather for unhappy purposes. Our black clothing against the bright green grass in the churchyard made us look like a bunch of ravens waiting around the newest delicacy in a field. A spray of white roses draped the mahogany coffin and the only touch of color in the somber place came from the minister’s purple vestments worn over his black coat.

  Karen looked older, tired, emotionally void. A daughter stood beside her, a young woman of about twenty. I tried to remember if I’d been told her name, but couldn’t come up with it. At any rate, it probably wouldn’t matter after today.

  We’d booked a flight home at the end of the week, giving us a few more days to cram in any sightseeing we wanted to do, say goodbye to the friends we’d made here, and pack. Truthfully, I was looking forward to a long dose of New Mexico sunshine and the warm, doggy smell of a hug from Rusty.

  The minister finished with whatever he was saying and people began to file away, stopping to offer Karen their hugs, handshakes or warm wishes. Drake and I hung back until the end.

  “I don’t know if this helps,” I said, “but they’ve caught the killers.”

  Her mouth opened slightly as she looked at us through dark glasses.

  “Five men were arrested yesterday at the rig. Well, I should say four were arrested and one thoughtfully rid the world of his own presence.”

  “Of the men who were arrested,” Drake said, “one admitted to being the man who fired the shots from a boat.”

  “One of the guys pretty much told the whole story, about how the union leaders set up a campaign to get rid of the helicopter operators. They figured if they put strong intimidation on one, everyone else would back away and just let them have all the business. We were just unlucky enough to be the one they targeted.”

  “Did they say anything about . . .” Karen paused, looking for a good way to ask.

  “The money’s coming,” Drake said. “Colin Finnie gave his word that he’d see to it that you get paid for all the flight time actually done. Said the oil company likes to sound tough in their contracts, but they can’t really withhold payment.”

  “And most likely the insurance company will cover the downed aircraft. The CAA man told us it’s up to them to decide whether they want to try to bring it up and inspect it. His report will conclude that the craft went down due to an act of sabotage and that the perpetrators have been apprehended.”

  Her face crumpled. “Thank you so much,” she said. “You’ve both been so much help.”

  Her daughter put an arm around Karen’s shoulders. “Let’s go home, Mother,” she whispered.

  I looked up at Drake as we followed them toward their waiting limousine. “Yes, let’s.”

  Books in the Charlie Parker series:

  Deadly Gamble

  Vacations Can Be Murder

  Partnerships Can Be Murder

  Small Towns Can Be Murder

  Memories Can Be Murder

  Honeymoons Can Be Murder

  Reunions Can Be Murder

  Competition Can Be Murder

  Balloons Can Be Murder

  Obsessions Can Be Murder

  Gossip Can Be Murder

  Stardom Can Be Murder

  Books in the Samantha Sweet mystery series:

  Sweet Masterpiece

  Sweet’s Sweets

  Holiday Sweets (December 2011)

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  Contact by email: [email protected]

  Competition Can Be Murder

  Published by Secret Staircase Books, an imprint of

  Columbine Publishing Group

  PO Box 416, Angel Fire, NM 87710

  Copyright © 2004 Connie Shelton

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by an information storage and retrieval system without permission in writing from the publisher.

  This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental. Although the author and publisher have made every effort to ensure the accuracy and completeness of information contained in this book we assume no responsibility for errors, inaccuracies, omissions, or any inconsistency herein. Any slights of people, places or organizations are unintentional.

  Book layout and design by Secret Staircase Books

  Cover image © Thomas Adolfsson

  Cover background image © cekur

  Also published in trade paperback

  First trade paperback edition: July, 2010