Page 7 of The Vampire and the Case of the Hellacious Hag

‘Thanks, April,’ we said together, then looked at each other and started laughing.

‘Well, at least you’re in sync.’ April plopped down her big handbag on her desk. ‘It was crazy here while you were at the academy.’

‘I’m so sorry!’ I said, and Sidnee echoed me.

April waved us away. ‘No worries, ladies. We knew why you were gone. Nothing we couldn’t handle.’ She grinned, ‘But as I said, happy as heck to see you again.’

‘Back at you. We’re heading out but if you need us, call!’ I insisted.

‘You got it!’

I grabbed Fluffy’s lead and Sidnee scooped up Shadow, who was almost too large to carry, then we climbed in the Nomo SUV and headed out to find ourselves a potentially randy bigfoot.

Chapter 5

Hayleigh lived in a modest ranch-style home with an attached garage adjoining a forested part of town. Her nearest neighbours were hidden by trees, so I could see how she might easily feel lonely and isolated.

When Sidnee and I knocked on her front door, she opened it with so much enthusiasm that she startled me. ‘I’m so glad you are here!’ She was almost bouncing on the balls of her feet as she motioned for us to enter, all the while scanning the area. Once we were inside, she shut the door so hurriedly that Fluffy almost lost his tail.

‘If you could show us…’ I started, but Hayleigh didn’t wait for me to finish my sentence

‘If you look out here, you’ll see where I keep seeing the bigfoot.’ She paused. ‘Well, eyes watching me. I haven’t actuallyseenit, per se.’

Now she tells us!I thought, but we were there now so we might as well check out the place.

We followed her to a large family room at the rear of thehouse with picture windows that framed the forest like a living portrait. ‘My ex-husband liked to look at the woods,’ she said, as though she needed to explain the view. ‘I’ve ordered blinds sohewon’t watch me.’

I looked at Sidnee then back at Hayleigh. ‘How about we search your house – make sure there aren’t any intruders – and then look into the woods out back?’ I suggested. ‘Does that sound okay?’

She looked relieved. ‘Yes, that would be good.’

‘Great. Is there anything else you’re concerned about?’

Hayleigh seemed to shrink into herself. ‘No, that’s all.’

I felt bad for her. Apparently her husband had left her and she was scared and alone. Life was tough sometimes.

‘Do you want to show us around, or just have us search? We’re happy to do whichever will make you the most comfortable,’ Sidnee said gently.

‘You go on ahead. I’ll wait here.’

‘Fluffy can stay with you, if you want,’ I offered.

Fluffy walked over to her and leaned against her legs as she lowered herself into a comfortable chair. She started to pat him. Hayleigh totally needed a big dog of her own; maybe it would help with the fear and the loneliness.

The house was spacious, though it wasn’t huge like Connor’s place, with three bedrooms and two bathrooms. It was tidy but cluttered withfurniture. The first bedroom was obviously for guests, and its mustiness suggested it was seldom used. We checked the closet and under the bed then moved on.

The next room was an office, but it looked like it had recently been stripped of its furniture. Dents in the carpet showed where a larger desk had once stood; now an old table and kitchen chair occupied the space. Maybe it had been her husband’s workspace.

I noticed a framed ‘Employee of the Month’ certificate on the wall from the Chrome Mine. ‘Hey,’ I said to Sidnee. ‘Look. I wonder if Hayleigh met Helmud.’

She raised her eyebrows. ‘Maybe she can shed some light on your dead guy.’

‘It might be worth asking her when we’ve dealt with her nantinaq issue,’ I agreed.

We checked the closet but nothing seemed out of place. The last room we checked was Hayleigh’s bedroom. Half the cupboards had been cleared out and she hadn’t moved anything into them yet. Sidnee and I shared a sympathetic glance. Poor woman: perhaps on some level she still hoped her husband would return.

Looking at her side of the bedroom quickly showed us why she was bigfoot obsessed. Her reading material took up her bedside table, the space next to and under thebed. She must have had the largest collection of bigfoot romance books ever.

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