CLUCKIN' CLUTCH COMMOTION (HARDCOVER)

Chapter 1

“Aww, Janice, seriously? This shirt is brand new!”

“Um, do you want some help?”

Angela Atkinson laughed as she turned away from filling the pigs’ trough only to find her boyfriend David Pemberly, yanking the now slob-covered sleeve from the little goat’s mouth while her sister Jetta stood on her hind hooves and nibbled at his collar in an effort to grab the milk bottle from his other hand.

Ruff McPaw, Angela’s trusty border collie, trotted over and gently nipped at their hooves until they backed away and shuffled back into their pen.

You goats! So silly. Stop pestering David. He’s one of the good ones.

Ruff yipped and licked David’s hand, only to be rewarded with a scratch between the ears. “Thanks, Ruff. You’re the best.”

I know.

Ruff glared at the goats as he allowed his tongue to hang out of his mouth.

Angela emptied the last remnants of the slope into the trough just in time for the black and white spotted pigs to plunge their noses in with two long, happy snorts. Setting the tin bucket to the side, she wandered over to the other part of the property, but David waved her away.

“No thanks, Ruff got it.” He pushed his glasses up on the bridge of his nose and flashed her a lopsided grin as he held up the sleeve of his sweater vest, a psychedelically colorful ensemble which was covered in hearts. When she had first begun dating David, she couldn’t stand his affinity for the uniquely unfashionable choice of attire. But the more she got to know him, the more she was swept away by his endearing quirkiness, charming personality, and unwavering loyalty. And somewhere along the way, she stopped caring so much about his lack of fashion sense and even began to find it endearing.

Now she cringed upon seeing the large hole just below his left wrist. “I guess I won’t be wearing this next year,” David laughed.

Snickering, Angela rested a hand on his shoulder and pecked his cheek. “Well, at least it’s summer, so you won’t have to worry about any of your students seeing you like that.”

He feigned a gasp. “Oh, the horror!” David was a teacher at Hummings Hollow Middle School. Most of his students loved him, but they were still preteens, and like any, none of them would miss an opportunity to make fun of their favorite teacher.

Angela helped him finish putting the goats back in their pen before they ventured to the henhouse together to gather the eggs. Angela started on the left while David started on the right and they met in the middle, at Eggatha’s stall.

The bossy little hen would usually prance around the yard like she owned the place, which, if Angela were honest, she did. But today she sat primly in her nest, preening her feathers, and looked listlessly at her food. Two little round heads popped out from beneath either of her wings. Angela smiled as she bent down to collect her eggs.

“Excuse me, ladies.”

The chicks chirped and cooed. One of them flapped her little wings and flopped adorably onto the straw bedding. She stumbled a few paces toward the edge of the coop before Angela scooped her up and placed her gently back beneath her mother’s open wing.
Eggatha clucked, though. Angela couldn’t be sure if it was in thanks or annoyance. “Don’t worry, girl,” she said, with a laugh. “I’ll make sure they don’t run out on you.”
David chuckled from behind her. “You know, we really ought to think of names for them.”

“Mm. We should. But what?”

He shrugged. “You’re the naming expert.”

Angela pursed her lips and thought, but after a minute came up empty-handed. “I guess I’ll just have to wait and see what comes to me.” They were only a couple of weeks old, after all. Eggatha had hatched them in early June, and it was nearly July now.

After all the chickens were fed, and just under a dozen eggs had been gathered, David and Angela ventured inside. But as David clicked on the frontmost burner of the stove, a high-pitched ringing echoed through the house.

“That’s not the smoke alarm, is it?”

Angela snorted and swatted him lightly on the arm. “No, it’s just my phone.” She fished through the pockets of her jeans and pulled out her cell, surprised when her brother’s name blinked up at her.

“That’s weird.”

David raised a brow, and she turned the screen toward him. Her brother’s name blinked up at them repeatedly in bold, bright letters.

“Wow.” He whistled softly as he cracked a fresh egg into the pan and glanced at the clock. It was barely after 8 a.m. “It’s a bit early for him to be awake, isn’t it?”

Angela nodded and her pulse sped up as she pressed her lips together and accepted the call. “Hey Will,” she said as she raised the phone to her ear. “Everything OK? You never call this early.”

“Hey Angie... I, um, I’m not really sure. How fast can you get up to the Henley’s farm?”

Ruff, who had trotted inside and was waiting for David to drop any remnants of bacon he had pulled out of the fridge onto the floor, whimpered and tilted his head to the side.

That doesn’t sound good. I wonder what’s going on.
Angela frowned and leaned her elbow on the counter.

“Pretty fast.”

The Henleys were an older couple who lived on another stretch of property just outside of town, but it was only about twenty minutes away from Angela’s house. If she really had to, though, she could get there in twelve.
“What do you need?” She didn’t like the way her little brother’s voice sounded. Like it was strained or far away and he couldn’t fully put a sentence together.

He swallowed and took a deep breath on the other end of the line. “Maybe nothing. Well, hopefully, nothing. It’s just... I was just talking to him, and suddenly he started freaking out and saying his car was out of control. I tried to ask what was happening, but I heard a crash. And then the line went dead.”

“Whoa, Will, slow down. Who were you talking to?” But even as she asked the question, Angela was already up on her feet and hurrying into the coat rack for her keys. She was pretty sure she left them in her jacket last night.

Oh no, is Will hurt?

Sensing her distress, Ruff abandoned his post-supervising breakfast and jogged after her as she gathered her purse.

“I was talking to Seth,” William explained. “He’s one of my new mechanics down at the shop. He was going to the Henleys to do some repair work on their fence. I guess he made friends with Wendy since he moved here a couple of months ago because he’s always doing odd jobs for them. He called me to ask if I knew anything about mending fences.”

Angela’s brow furrowed. “And he said he couldn’t control the car?”

“Yeah. Said he was trying to slow down. There’s a sharp corner on the way to the farm. He couldn’t get the car to cooperate. I heard him cuss and then a crash. Then the line went dead.”

Angela’s stomach dropped. “Oh, I’m so sorry.” She headed toward the front door. “Is there any chance it was an accident?”

Will paused, then clicked his tongue. “I don’t think so. Seth loves that car. He always keeps it as close to mint condition as possible. If something was wrong with the brakes, he would’ve known.”

“I see.”

Angela flashed David a grateful smile when she heard the burner turn off. He didn’t even ask questions, just flipped the egg over onto a plate, put the pan in the sink, and put the remaining food in the fridge before following Angela out to her car with Ruff on their heels.

“I’m headed out there right now. I don’t know what I’m gonna find and... I would feel better if you could come with me.”

“On my way.” She yanked open the doors of the SUV and Ruff jumped into the back seat while David took the passenger seat and Angela went behind the wheel.
William let out a sigh of relief. “Thanks, sis.”

They hung up, and David tossed her a worried glance as she put the car in drive, opened the gate, and backed out onto the street.

“What’s wrong?” he asked.

“I’m not sure.” Angela shook her head and explained the situation. “He’s not sure what he’s gonna find, but he wants me to come up there just in case.”

David cringed and shifted in his seat. “Oh my. I hope the mechanic is all right.”

Ruff barked in agreement from the backseat.

Angela nodded, but her lips set in a grim line. “Me too.”
A few minutes into the drive, the vibration of her phone echoed through the car. Glancing down at the caller ID, a thrill ran through her when she recognized Chief Helbar’s name, and she couldn’t help the giddy smile that blossomed on her lips.

She did her best to hide it though, as she always felt a little callous at the zap of adrenaline that seemed to overtake her every time she had a fresh case on her hands. Humming Hollow had been a quiet, sleepy little town, but ever since Angela had taken up her new post as a private detective, she seemed to find danger lurking around every corner. Not that she was complaining. The unknown made life exciting.

She hit a few buttons on her dashboard before tapping ACCEPT. “Hello?”

“Angela?” She nodded and Ruff barked from the backseat. “Yup. And Ruff.”

The chief grunted softly before continuing. “Good. I’m glad I caught you. The station just got a call about a car crash not far from the Henley’s farm. The witnesses said the man in front of them was driving a teal pickup truck whose brake light kept blinking. They turned left before they could see what happened, but they thought they heard a crash and wanted us to check it out. Said something didn’t look right.”

Angela exchanged a significant look at David. “I’m already on my way. Will just called me. I think the person driving was one of his mechanics.”

Chief Helbar hummed. “That’s good to know. I’ll meet you at the scene.”

Angela hung up and continued following the directions her phone’s GPS gave out in its smooth monotone voice. When the paved streets gave way to a gravel-ridden, dusty road, David swiveled in his seat and looked at her with a thoughtful expression.

“So, do you think it was really an accident?”

Angela shook her head as she thought about the last time she’d been called to the scene of a car crash. At first, it had looked like the victim had driven straight into a ravine, but upon closer inspection, they found holes in her tires that were the beginning of something much more sinister.

“It’s too soon to tell for sure,” she said as she flicked on her turn signal and rounded another bend. “But there’s only one way to find out.”