Braxton Campus Mysteries Collection - Books 5-8

Chapter 3-1

Though intrigued by the shocker, I stepped away to give her privacy. Augie"s car engine roared while pulling into the far side of the driveway. April had found him an inexpensive yet reliable sedan after he"d passed his driver"s exam, then he decked it out with many improvements that suddenly made him über popular at school. Connor"s disruption was a good thing, principally since the kids didn"t understand there was something stronger than a friendship brewing between April and me.

April ended the call and squeezed my hand. “I"ve got to jet. Now there"s been an assault.”

“You"re kidding. The project kicks off tomorrow when they raze that decrepit old wing last rebuilt in the sixties,” I fussed, confused over what would cause such a ruckus at a college meeting.

“Neighbors with property abutting the construction site are still trying to persuade Judge Grey to issue an injunction that could block tomorrow"s groundbreaking.”

Braxton College"s president had already reasoned with the homeowners. It made no sense why the opponents continued to argue. She"d given them tons of concessions concerning the days and times the crew would engage in any noisy construction. My new house was close enough that I"d hear the racket too, but it was an important investment in the college"s future. “Ursula Power solved that problem. Who started the fight?” I attempted to sneak in a kiss, but April responded too quickly.

“I"m not entirely sure. Belinda Grey is against the new building. Damien Grey tried to stop his cousin, Calliope Nickels, from confronting your boss, who"s heavily in favor of the renovation. Calliope is fighting it because she"s Belinda"s niece and wants to back her family. Somehow, it escalated, and when Damien let go of Calliope, she supposedly accidentally popped Myriam Castle"s left eye.”

accidentallyOh, that would cause a major war. “I can"t believe someone hit my boss. I wish I could"ve been there. I guess I"ll see her shiner in the office tomorrow. Why is the reno unresolved again?”

“Belinda claims Hiram might grant a favorable ruling to their cause. There is a rumor he"s personally on his way to the site right now.”

“The amazing sheriff is back for ten minutes and already rescuing the county from itself. Good luck,” I yielded with a huff, disillusioned because we didn"t have a lengthier private moment together.

“I"ll call you later. We need to schedule a catch-up.” After our quick but tantalizing embrace, April briefly chatted with Augie on her walk down the driveway, then sped off to save the day.

By the time I checked on my renovation"s progress, fumes from the various paints and stains had made me woozy. While cracking open the bay window, I heard Augie and Ulan whispering on the front steps. Emma harbored out of earshot, pulling weeds at the end of the path—my little gardener.

“Why did you do it?” Augie cajoled Ulan, his voice heightened with alarming concern.

“I don"t like the place. Using the paint was a stupid idea, but there was no other way to stop him. What would you have done?” Ulan groaned and waited for Augie to respond.

“If Kellan finds out, he might ship you back to Africa. Is that your goal, dude?” Augie tried to reason with his friend, but it didn"t appear to be working.

Ulan gasped. “No. I guess I screwed up, huh? Come on, let"s see if he"s discovered it already.”

The front door opened, and the boys clomped into the hallway. I contained my shock and confusion, despite an eagerness to establish the subject of their conversation. Was Ulan intending to confess his role in leaving the red paint message on our basement door?

“I"m in the living room, guys,” I breezily called out, stepping further away from the window, in case they realized I might"ve overheard them. A heady front of sweaty teenage boys overwhelmed me.

Augie tossed his jacket on the spiral staircase banister leading to the second floor. Already as tall as me, he ran several fingers through his platinum-blond hair and belched obnoxiously. He had a buzz cut on the sides, and his pale skin and lime-green eyes, just like his sister April, made for a striking countenance. “Miss Eleanor sent me home with dinner, Dr. Ayrwick,” he stated, handing me a canvas bag with several to-go boxes and fidgeting with the waistband on his tapered sweatpants. They"d become a trendy style in the last few months in our town, strikingly among the under-thirty crowd. “She"s so cool. No plastic bags at her diner. Very conscious of Earth"s future. Emma ate already, but we brought an extra box for my sister. She just passed on it because of some emergency over a brawl.”

“You can call me Kellan, Augie. I appreciate your attempt at respect, but we"ve discussed this previously.” April had encouraged him to refer to others by using Mr. or Mrs. or using their title. Knowing she had few acquaintances, I was certain the only people she"d introduced Augie to were colleagues at the sheriff"s office. “I"m a friend, remember?”

KellanMr. or Mrs.As Augie gave a thumbs-up gesture, Emma animatedly rushed down the hall to wash her hands in the bathroom, claiming she"d touched something yucky in the flower bed. Ulan cautiously strolled into the room, his oval-shaped, dark-brown eyes darting to a pile of mail I"d left on a small makeshift table. “Hey, Kellan. How was your day, cousin?”

Should I ask about what I"d overheard or wait for him to confess? He hadn"t been around when Nicky showed me the message from the ghost or vagrant, nor had I spoken about it in front of Ulan when I"d updated Nana D and my mother. Nana D had specified he was studying at the library. “Good, but busy. I thought it"d be ideal for us to meet here tonight to chat about the big move next weekend.”

“Oh, yeah, sounds good,” he mumbled, walking toward the table to flip through the pile. Ulan also wore a pair of the popular sweatpants, despite my initial objection. Once Nana D raved about the abominable trend, I"d lost any chance of arguing with the kid or his Tarzan-like hair. The heather-gray color of the fabric offset his exceedingly tanned skin. Having spent a year in Africa working on a safari, he"d escaped our family"s normal aversion to the sun. “Anything about me? From my dad, I mean.”

I shook my head and turned my back to him while moving a heavy tool out of the way. “Not sure, I collected it from the mailbox but haven"t yet checked. Ready for your history test tomorrow?”

“Umm… not really. Need to like… read some more. Can I eat dinner in the kitchen and finish studying?” His head bobbed a few times, then scanned the room to focus anywhere but at me.

“Sure, no problem. You"ve got an hour, then we head to the cottage.” I could tell Ulan was nervous and didn"t want to engage with me. Perhaps Augie would share what they"d chatted about.

Emma dashed back in to jabber about her afternoon at the diner. Augie tossed a recyclable box of food at me and slumped on the couch. When Emma ceased talking, Augie excitedly revealed that he"d formally applied to four colleges and couldn"t wait to find out if he"d earn early acceptance from them. “Thanks again for writing me a recommendation letter. I"m hoping to attend Braxton.”

“You"ll get in,” I replied, deciding to mention his conversation with Ulan. “I heard you guys talking outside about me finding something out. Anything I need to know?” Smooth, real smooth. Despite being a parent, there was a monumental difference between raising a seven-year-old girl and a teenage boy. I hadn"t learned the fine art of dealing with puberty, mood swings, or kids keeping secrets.

“Ulan will tell you when he"s ready, I"m sure. Give him a day or so. The poor guy is still adjusting to the transition and getting to know you better.” Augie wolfed down the rest of his food, then trudged toward the door. “Gotta jet. April asked me to make sure the place is clean by the time she gets home.”

Was I now taking advice from a seventeen-year-old? Although Augie was mature for his age, he"d experienced a few tough years living with their father and occasionally made foolish decisions. After a physical altercation with another student in his first week at school this year, April met with the administration to discuss Augie"s behavior. Surprisingly, April had found the high school"s current principal, Belinda Grey, easy to partner with in their tête-à-tête. I"d only enjoyed the privilege of working with Belinda on the Fall Festival, which was not a pleasant experience by any acceptable standard.

enjoyedIf Ulan had written the message, we needed to confer about the reason and his apprehensions. I wouldn"t kick his butt back to Africa, but I"d set new ground rules that I should"ve already instituted. He was a good kid, yet he"d been accustomed to more freedom and less oversight when living with his father. “Okay, let"s head home. Baxter needs his walk.” While they all piled into the SUV, I locked the door, feeling an eerie sense that I was being watched—and not just by the nasty spider who"d returned. Goosebumps broke out all over my arms, highlighting the mounting concerns about the upcoming move. I drove home, constantly checking the rear-view mirror for ghoulish creatures trying to attack us.

While they escorted the puppy, I called April with news that my goblin"s name might be Ulan. She agreed with my plan to allow a couple of days for him to tell me whatever was on his mind. April also reminded me the construction workers had complained about their tools vanishing or moving between rooms. Ulan had not been at the house those days. With little explanation for the incidents, we expediently changed topics to the issue on campus regarding the Memorial Library renovations.

“Judge Grey never showed up. Maggie and Ursula pacified everyone for tonight. Several people vehemently opposed tomorrow"s groundbreaking,” April explained, citing that Belinda Grey and our former mayor, Bartleby Grosvalet, were the two loudest adversaries against the proposed renovations. One of Maggie"s student interns had also whacked Belinda in the shoulder over her attitude and ruthless attempt to stop progress. It had been a hotbed of animosity all evening.

“How does the new building impact Belinda and Bartleby?”

“Belinda shares a property line with the back of Memorial Library where most of the construction will occur this fall. She"ll deal with endless jack-hammering and excessive banging.” April recounted all the extra steps Ursula had implemented to minimize the impact, but it wouldn"t placate Belinda. “Demolishing an important piece of the college"s past annoyed Grosvalet. He"s been the town historian for years and wants to preserve the original wing of the library.”

Braxton College, soon to be Braxton University, was once the centerpiece of our quaint village, employing hundreds of citizens and teaching thousands of students each semester. Over the years, money had been diverted to the wrong departments, and the institution had suffered. Ursula was adamant about returning the college to its former glory. “That building is in terrible shape. Something had to be done about it.” I surmised that Bartleby Grosvalet had only opposed the plans after he"d finished his term as mayor. Prior to that, he"d been a proponent of the library"s renovations, if I recalled correctly. He"d retained a habit of switching his loyalties during the last election, usually dependent upon which wealthy family had lobbied him the hardest. What was the oddball man up to now?