M&M Surprise Murder: A Donut Hole Cozy Mystery - Book 17 by Susan Gillard

weren’t
they? Coach Hardy’s arrows. Did he leave them behind after your practice with
him? He looks like the careless type.”
    Jinx shook her head and stumbled back
a step. “Stop.”
    “So, you saw him there sitting or
standing and you decided that he had to pay. Am I right? Pay for what he did to
you. But you didn’t realize what you did to him.” Heather dropped her arms
slowly, confidence building in her chest.
    Amy stood on the bleachers, just
behind Jinx, Taser pointed at the murderer’s back.
    “Did to him? He ruined my career!”
Jessica yelled.
    “No,” Heather replied. “You ruined his
career. You and his wife. But that’s all over now because you took it into your
own hands. And now, you’ve ruined your entire life as a consequence. Take a
moment and let that sink in.” Heather nodded once and met Amy’s gaze. “Jinx.”
    Jessica let out a shriek. She let
loose the arrow. Heather dived into the grass and covered her head. Electricity
crackled and sparked. Something heavy hit the ground.
    “Heather?” Amy asked. “Oh my gosh,
Heather, are you okay?”
    Heather looked up from her spot on the
grass and stared at Jessica Laverne. The woman lay supine, chest rising and
falling slowly, eyes shut.
    “Is she okay?” Heather asked.
    Amy bent, then pressed her fingers to
Jessica’s throat. “Yeah, but I think she knocked her head when she fell. I
already called Ryan. He’s on his way.”
    “Good,” Heather said, then shuffled
onto her knees in the grass. “Mind helping me up?”
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     

Chapter 20
    “What did I miss?” Amy asked. She sat
down on the seat beside Heather and offered a donut from her tray.
    Heather accepted one, then handed it
to Eva, who gave it to Lilly next to her.
    “He’s only got one more round of
shooting. Then we’ll know,” Heather replied.
    Jung stood on the edge of the field
below, glaring at the targets at the far end of the range. Excitement rippled
through the crowd in the stands. It was almost over.
    Leticia Jackson sat at the far table,
eyes trained on the scoreboard. She bent over her tablet and made a correction,
then refocused. The sole judge. The bandages on her left arm shone white
beneath the morning sun.
    Heather took an M&M Surprise for
herself, then picked off the M&Ms. She inserted them between her lips, one
by one. “At least it’s over,” Heather said.
    “Heather Shepherd solves another
case,” Amy replied, then patted her on the leg. “Why do you look so upset,
though?”
    “I’ve just got a lot on my mind.”
    “Is the test bothering you, dear? The
exam, I mean. Because we all know you’ll pass. You should know that too.” Eva
patted Heather on the knee.
    “I still have a lot of studying to do
before I can claim that kind of confidence.” Heather smiled at her favorite
senior citizen. “But thanks for the support, Eva.”
    “C’mon, hon, you know you’re gonna
kick butt. You’ve solved every murder that Hillside Homicide has handled in the
last few months. Your success rate is crazy.” Amy bit into the M&M donut
and crunched on the sweet goodness. “Look, you can only do your best and if you
fail?”
    “I can’t investigate anymore if I
fail,” Heather said.
    “You won’t fail,” the two women said,
in unison.
    Lilly jumped up and clapped her hands.
“He’s about to go. He’s about to go!”
    Jung stepped forward and stopped in
front of his mark. He raised his bow and took aim. The crowd hushed. Nothing
moved in the silence, not the leaves on the distant trees nor Amy’s ever-donut
gobbling mouth.
    A buzzer went off. Jung released his
arrow.
    The projectile split the air, soared
toward the target and clunked into the board, just left off the center circle.
    The scores on the screen popped up
again. Jung dropped his bow to his side and stared up at them, shoulders
tensed.
    “Still in second place. He was the
last to go, right?” Amy asked.
    “Yeah, he was the last,”