Wildcat Academy (Berkshire Hilltown Mysteries Book 4)

A Family Gathering. A Hidden Secret. A Deadly Fall.

When Boston library curator Kathryn Stinson visits the Berkshires during a reunion with her estranged mother, her mother’s new husband, and his daughter, Kathryn’s new stepsister, she doesn’t expect trouble. But that’s what she and her family get when her stepsister’s teenage son, a student at a secluded private academy, is found dead beneath a zipline—an area he feared, and a place he never should have been.

As suspicions swirl around the boy’s death, Kathryn is drawn into a tense search for the truth. Was it a tragic accident, or something more sinister? With resistance from the academy and locals alike, Kathryn must navigate layered family dynamics and hidden tensions, uncovering secrets that some will do anything to protect.

WILDCAT ACADEMY is the fourth atmospheric mystery in the Berkshire Hilltown Mysteries by award-winning author Leslie Wheeler—a compelling tale of family, fear, and the consequences of silence.

Start reading Wildcat Academy today and uncover what lies beneath the surface.

Excerpt from the book

What a pleasant surprise, Kathryn Stinson thought as she headed toward her car. The dinner she had fretted about was a success. So much so that their hosts, her partner Earl Barker and his teenage son, Pete, followed Kathryn, her mother, and her mother’s new husband, into the driveway, laughing and talking.

Kathryn smiled back at her mother, Eleanor, who went by the name Elle. She was taller than Kathryn remembered and had changed in other ways since Kathryn had last seen her fourteen years ago. Her childhood mother had long dark brown hair that hung lankly from her pale, drawn face, and sad hazel eyes. Now, Elle’s hair was streaked with gray, cut short, and fashionably styled, and her eyes lit up when she smiled. Kathryn’s childhood mother never smiled. Elle often smiled and was smiling at her husband, who walked hand in hand with her.

They made an attractive couple. Dr. Robert Pashgan, who went by Bob, was a handsome man with large, dark eyes the color of coffee, dark hair sprinkled with white, an olive complexion—her mother had mentioned he was Armenian—regular features, and a small, neat mustache.

At the car, Bob and Elle thanked Earl and Pete again for a lovely evening. “We enjoyed it too,” Earl said. “Have a great time tomorrow at parents’ weekend at your grandson’s high school.”

“Thanks, I’m sure we will,” Bob said. He had timed his and Elle’s visit with Kathryn to coincide with this event, which was held in mid-October every year.

“He’s at the Berkshire School, right?” Pete chimed in.

“Ah, no,” Bob said, “Wildcat Academy.”

“Wildcat Academy, huh,” Pete said. Frowning, he looked like he was about to say more, but Earl cut him off with a quick headshake.

“You must be familiar with the academy, since it’s right here in New Nottingham,” Bob said.

“I didn’t know there was a private high school in town,” Kathryn said.

“You wouldn’t,” Earl said. “The academy’s on a back road at the end of a long driveway. So, it’s easy for us townies to forget the school is even there.”

“Until something happens to make us aware of it,” Pete added, prompting another quick headshake from his dad.

There is something they aren’t telling us. Or rather that Earl doesn’t want Pete to tell us, Kathryn thought.

“Well, thanks again,” Bob said. They got into the car and drove down Rattlesnake Hill toward the Farley house that Kathryn rented. Instead of turning into the driveway, Bob bypassed it, continuing to the bottom of the hill.

“Where are we going, darling?” Elle asked.

“It’s a nice evening with a nearly full moon. I thought we would take a little drive. I’m curious to see just how secluded the academy is.”

“We are going there tomorrow. Can’t this wait until then?” Elle asked.

“Indulge me, sweetheart.”

“All right.”

“Okay with you, Kathryn?”

“Sure.” Kathryn’s curiosity was sparked by whatever Earl had prevented Pete from telling them about the school.