Read Online A Wee Dose of Death by Fran Stewart - Free Book Online Page A

ready.”
    â€œAnd ye say I tell ye what to do. Now who is giving instructions?” With every indication of affronted dignity, he walked over to my wingback chair.
    â€œThat’s
my
chair. Why do you always have to sit in it?”
    Without missing a beat, Dirk—or whatever his name was—strode to the woodstove and wouldna—I mean would not—turn around to face me.
    Good. Now I could finish getting ready. I reached for my boots but got sidetracked straightening all the shoes piled beside my front door. How could anyone have so many shoes? The shawl kept hanging down in my way, so I crumpled it up, set it on the little table there in my entryway, and brought order to the chaos in a few minutes of concentrated effort.
    When I finished, I slipped on the right pair of boots and turned around.
    No ghost.
    I looked at the shawl crumpled on the table. I thought you had to
fold
it for him to go away.
    A tiny spider balanced on the edge of it. It shook one of itslittle front legs at me, like a minister in a pulpit saying,
Shame on you.
    *   *   *
    Emily answered on the first ring.
    â€œEm? This is Sandra. I’m sorry to call you so early, but I have bad news.”
    Emily recoiled from the phone. Bad news? She didn’t like bad news.
    â€œAre you there? Emily?”
    â€œYes. I’m here.”
    â€œSomebody broke into your house.”
    â€œBroke in? What do you mean?”
    â€œYour kitchen is okay, but the living room—the couch cushions are all askew. And in Mark’s office off the den? It looks like the books on the bookcase have been moved around, and I know Mark’s laptop was right in the middle of his desk yesterday afternoon when I came in to water the plants the way you asked me to. And it’s not there now. I looked around and I can’t find it anywhere. Do you want me to call the police now or do you want to come home first?”
    â€œNo!” Emily looked at the clock. Was it really only 8:20? She felt like she’d been up for half a day. “No, don’t call them. The kitchen is a mess. I didn’t straighten up before I left.”
    â€œEmily Wantstring, that’s ridiculous.”
    â€œJust wait. Once Mark gets home from his little ski trip, we’ll drive up there together.”
    â€œThere’s a whole pane of glass broken on the back door. It’s freezing cold in here.”
    â€œOh, dear. Can you tape a hand towel over it?”
    Sandra chuckled. “No, Emily, I can’t. I’ll clean up the broken glass and get Ron to put up a piece of plywood. That shouldhold it, but you really need to come up and be sure nothing else is gone.”
    Emily moved the notepad she kept next to the phone over about an inch and lined it up with the edge of the table. “All right. I’ll drive up there tomorrow.”
    â€œToday, Emmy. You have to come today, before more snow hits tomorrow. Driving will be safer.”
    â€œOh, fiddlesticks. All right.”
    They said their good-byes. Emily hoped against hope that Mark would get back. She didn’t like driving alone. But she knew he wouldn’t. He’d told her three days at least. She ran her hands up and down her arms, trying to make the cold go away. Hot chocolate would cure a lot of this, she thought. She’d whip some up and put it in a thermos to take with her.

11

    SRM20
    T he ScotShop was closed on Mondays, but Gilda and I had decided to spend a few hours stocking the shelves, taking advantage of a day without customers. We were making good progress, when Karaline pounded on the door. I could tell something important was going on by the look on her face, and I unlocked the door as fast as I could.
    She rushed in. Well, considering that she’d had a ruptured appendix two months ago, she was moving as fast as she could. “My second Univex died!”
    â€œI’m sorry to hear that, K. What the heck is a Univex? Do we need to