Read Online 6 Stone Barrington Novels by Stuart Woods - Free Book Online Page A

guesthouse, and gardens.
    â€œOne of them was,” Manolo said. “It was wide open, in a way it wouldn’t ordinarily be. Normally, it would either be closed, or both doors would be latched open.”
    â€œWhat happened next?”
    â€œMrs. Calder came running into the hall with the maid; she was wearing a robe and dripping water.”
    â€œWhat did she do or say?”
    â€œShe yelled out, ‘Vance!’ and then she got closer and saw the wound, and she backed away from him. She was making this noise, sort of like a scream, but not as loud, and she said, ‘No, no!’ a couple of times. I told Isabel to take her into the bedroom, that I would see to Mr. Calder and that an ambulance was on the way.”
    â€œManolo, when Mrs. Calder came in, did you smell anything?”
    â€œWell, yessir, I guess she smelled real sweet, having just got out of the tub.”
    Stone looked at the Saltillo tiles that formed the floor and saw a dark stain on the grout between the tiles.
    â€œI couldn’t get that out,” Manolo said. “I tried, but I couldn’t.”
    â€œWhat happened next, Manolo?”
    â€œTwo uniformed police officers arrived—they rang the bell, and I let them in the gate. They looked at Mr. Calder and felt his pulse, but they didn’t move him. One of them talked to somebody on a walkie-talkie. Not long after that, another police car arrived, this time, plainclothesmen. They went and talked to Mrs. Calder, and I followed them, but she wasn’t making any sense; she was hysterical and didn’t seem to know where she was or what had happened.”
    â€œShow me where the master suite is, please.”
    Manolo led him through the living room and through a set of double doors, then through a small foyer and into a large bedroom, which contained a king-size bed, a fireplace, and a sofa and chairs in front of a hearth. “Mrs. Calder’s dressing room and bath are through here,” he said, leading the way through a door to one side of the bed. There was another foyer, and to the left, a very large room, filled with hanging clothes, cubicles for sweaters and blouses, shoe racks, and a three-way mirror. To the right was a large bathroom with a big tub and a dressing table. On top of the dressing table was a large perfume bottle, emblazoned with the name “Chanel,” and next to that a bottle of bath oil with the same brand name. Stone smelled them both.
    â€œNow, can I see Mr. Calder’s dressing room?” Stone asked.
    â€œRight this way, sir.”
    They walked back into the bedroom, around the bed, and through another door. The arrangement was the same but both the dressing room and bath were smaller and decorated in a more masculine style.
    â€œWhere is Mr. Calder’s safe?” Stone asked.
    Manolo went to a mirror over a chest of drawers, pressed it, and it swung open to reveal a steel safe door, approximately fifteen by twenty inches, a size that would fit between the structural studs. An electronic keypad, not a combination lock, was imbedded in the door.
    â€œDo you know the combination?” Stone asked.
    â€œYessir, it’s one-five-three-eight. You press the star key first, then the numbers, then the pound key, then turn that knob.”
    Stone opened the safe, which was empty. “What did Mr. Calder keep in here?” he asked.
    â€œHe kept his jewelry box and a gun,” Manolo said.
    â€œDo you know what kind of gun it was?”
    â€œI don’t know the brand of it, but it was an automatic pistol. There was a box of ammunition, too, that said nine millimeter, but the police took that.”
    â€œWhat was in the jewelry box?”
    â€œWatches and other jewelry. Mr. Calder liked watches, and he had six or seven. There were some cuff links and studs, too; a nice selection.”
    â€œWhat did the box look like?”
    â€œIt was about a foot long by, I guess, eight inches wide, and maybe