Retreat at Camel Lodge, the Final Chapter

This is the final segment of a collaborative work. Here are all of the previous installments: One, Two, Three, Four, Five, Six, Seven, Eight, Nine.

Enjoy!

*****

Calm down,” Reggie Lloyd shouted as everyone started speaking at once. “Quiet, please. I’m about to reveal the murderer.”

“What do YOU know about it?” Sophie snarled. “You’re just a . . . a nobody hunter.”

“Perhaps,” Reggie falsely admitted, knowing if Harpreet hadn’t been shot before he arrived, he would have been the one to do the deed. He was enjoying the chance to point out someone else’s crime for a change. He wasn't even sure who was truly responsible. He just wanted to stir the pot and see what boiled out of it. He continued, “Hunters are observant, and as an impartial outsider, I have been listening to all of your stories. I believe Harpreet was shot by the person she went into the snow with – Mr. Kevin Hall.” He pointed at Kevin.

“Whoa!” Kevin raised his hands. “I didn’t kill her. I don’t even have a gun. Sure, I followed her. I figured she had used her satellite phone to call for help, and I wanted to get out of here. She wasn’t very upset when I appeared either, because it was getting colder. She told me to find fallen trees for firewood while she sat on a stump like a spoiled princess. Then I heard shots. I dropped what little wood I had and went back and found her dead. I swear, I didn’t shoot her. The snow really started falling, and it was getting dark. I ended up toughing it out, hoping we could sort it out the next day.”

Denise’s furrowed brows indicated her opinion. “Why didn’t you say anything when you were found?”

Kevin shrugged, “I was cold, and I didn’t want to be accused. In retrospect, I should have said something, but I was scared.”

Martin Finch stood up, his head hanging low. “I don’t want the wrong man to be accused. I shot her.”

There was a collective gasp.

“No!” Rosie screamed, jumping to his side. “You don’t have to cover for me. I shot her.”

“No, really, Rosie,” Martin said, taking her hand. “She came on to me. I know she just did it to have leverage on me, but I was tired of her games. One of my friends told me about the Zone of Death, so I took advantage of it.” He neglected to admit that Harpreet had been blackmailing him when she discovered he was misappropriating funds from the company.

Rosie’s mouth dropped open, “But I shot her because I thought she was having an affair with you.”

“Wait a minute,” Armand chuckled, “I shot at her too. I wasn’t sure if I hit her, but I saw her fall. She kept claiming we had children together, but it wasn’t true.” He looked at his wife, Sondra, and then down at the floor. “I found out I can’t have children. I’m so sorry.”

Guy stood and muttered, ”Mon Dieu!” He began pacing as he said, “I was going to shoot her. I was never good enough for her. I gave her those children, but she kept claiming they were yours, Armand. She was nothing but a gold-digging whore. I barely made it out of the lodge when I heard the shots, so I returned to the kitchen.”

Sondra cackled. “Well, I tried to poison her, for all the good that did, but I’m glad you’re sterile, Armand. Now Daddy can’t force me...”

Armand interrupted, “Hold on! That’s why you came on to me? Because your dad wants you to have a child? Jeez, Sondra, I thought you actually wanted sex for a change.”

Sondra tipped her head and shrugged one shoulder. Her smug demeanor vanished when she realized she would have to worry about being pregnant with Guy’s child, and whether her father would still disinherit her.

Denise admitted, “That bitch wanted my job, so I shot her too.”

By then, everyone was laughing or scratching their heads.

Reggie Lloyd raised his eyebrows. “I wonder if Harpreet had more than two bullet holes. Instead of a ‘who-done-it,’ this is turning into more of a ‘who-didn’t-do-it.’ Is there anyone in this room who didn’t want her dead?”

Kevin raised his hand. “I didn’t really care one way or the other. We had some history together, but it was so far in the past, that it really wasn’t consequential.” Now he was chuckling too. “Don’t quit your hunting job, Mr. Lloyd. You don’t make a very good detective.”

Reggie shrugged. “We may never know whose bullet ultimately killed Harpreet, and we may be in the Zone of Death, but let’s agree that if any authorities are to question us, we should all say the shooting was a hunting accident. After all, nothing would come of a confession but a huge hassle.”

All heads nodded their approval.

The next day, the roads had been cleared, and everyone went back to civilization, knowing someone had gotten away with murder.