Joanne Fluke - Plum Pudding Murder

Lake Eden, Minnesota
Ten Shopping Days Until Christmas

T here were nights like tonight, right after hed bet a bundle on the losing team, when Larry Jaeger wondered why hed ever come back to this dinky little town. When it came to money matters, people around here were clueless. Swindling them out of their savings was no contest at all. He preferred an even playing field where he could outwit the investors he thought of as his adversaries. It was a game, after all, and the game was boring if your opponents were pushovers.

In an effort to even the odds hed taken more risks than usual, but not a single one of the locals were suspicious, not even Mayor Bascomb, who prided himself on his business savvy. This was like counting the leaves on a three-leaf clover, and that wasnt his idea of fun. The thrill came from taking off with the money right before someone was about to catch on. These people werent about to catch on.

And then there was Courtney, his biggest investor, his partner, and his fiance. She owned fifty percent of the Crazy Elf Christmas Tree Loton paper.

Courtney had insisted on taking a room at the Lake Eden Inn, rather than staying with him in the double-wide trailer they called Elf Headquarters. She was afraid that people would talk because they werent married. She was right. They would talk. But that wouldnt bother him. His concern was that Courtney was living separately, and that gave her time to think. It was much easier to keep tabs on her when they were together twenty-four seven. She had some surprisingly good business instincts, unlike some of the other girlfriends hed had. Courtney might just have the smarts to compare the business hed fabricated for her on paper to what was actually happening right here in Lake Eden Park. If she did that, she might discover the inconsistencies that no one else had noticed.

The customers were long gone and the last employee had left the lot at least ten minutes ago. He was completely alone and once Hannah came to pick up her check, hed be alone for the rest of the night.

It was time to close up shop. He stepped out the back door of the trailer and walked to the pole that held the breaker box. It was cold tonight, now that the elves had turned off the standing heaters, and he shivered even though he was wearing a heavy sweater.

There were three switches inside the weather-proof box. The top one controlled the electricity for the buildings, tree tents, rides, and tall candy cane lampposts that illuminated the park. The second switch powered the bare bulbs that were strung in a crisscross pattern overhead. They were the night security lights and they kept the park dimly illuminated when the main lights were out. The third breaker controlled the electricity for Elf Headquarters, and that was permanently set in the on position. Hed told the electrician to rig it so that no misguided employee could cut the power to his television set in the middle of an important game.

The music was blaring as usual and it seemed even louder now that it wasnt tempered by noisy crowds and the squeals of children riding the attractions. His trailer wasnt soundproof, but hed learned to tune out the noise when he was inside. Now that the park was empty, the continuous loop of Christmas carols seemed ear-splitting.

Silent Night was playing as he clicked on the overhead security lights. Hed learned his lesson the first night hed spent in the park. Once the main lights were doused, it was impossible to see the second switch. Hed picked his way gingerly back to the trailer to get a flashlight to illuminate the second switch so that he could engage it.

Larry reached for the top switch as the music went into the chorus. Silent night, holy night. All is calm, all is