Read Online Broken Elements by Mia Marshall - Free Book Online

been covered with snow and ice and remains as steadfast as the trees.” She shook her head slightly, and the power vanished. Once again, she was a quiet and reserved graduate student. “This isn’t what killed him.”
    “But the soil from this area matched what was in his lungs. Could you check a few other areas, please?” I asked. She nodded, her face somber, and started moving around the campsite in a pattern only she could see, occasionally kneeling to touch the ground.
    I looked at the rest of the team Sera had gathered and considered. Simon sat in the Bronco, cleaning his nails with a small piece of paper, steadfastly ignoring the rest of us and showing no inclination to be part of the investigation. “Sera, why did you invite Simon to join us?”
    “I’m right here,” he pointed out. “And capable of speech.”
    “He owed me.”
    “Yes, but what can he do? How can he help us solve this?” I knew that ignoring him would rile him up. I was counting on it.
    “Still right here.”
    Sera didn’t even glance at him. She’d immediately figured out my plan and played along without batting an eye. “Well, you know, he’s a cat. He’s pretty cute when he’s furry, and when he’s around I don’t have to worry about mice in the house.”
    Simon decided the conversation had gone too far. “Do you really have so little imagination as that? I’m a cat. A black cat. I am small, dark, quiet, and able to jump several times my body height. Can any of the rest of you do that? There are few places I cannot sneak into—and out of—with ease. I am the perfect scout. Also, I’m cute all the time, as you are well aware.” He climbed out of the car and stood as tall as his 5’9” would allow.
    “You’re like the world’s most egotistical ninja,” offered Brian.
    “Exactly,” said Simon, without a hint of offense. “I am the only one here who can scale a tree and survey the entire area.” He removed his sweater and began folding it neatly into a pile. The shoes and jeans followed. Standing in just his underwear, he turned to face me. “And that is why Sera invited me.” I nodded soberly. As usual, my intended expression was not what anyone else saw. Simon sighed. “You could have simply asked me to scan the area.”
    “Yeah, but this was more fun. And involved you volunteering.”
    Simon rolled his eyes but apparently found himself without a retort. He shimmied out of his boxer briefs and placed them on top of his pile of clothes. A moment later, he was running along the branches above us, reviewing the area.
    “What does he owe you?” I asked, curious.
    Sera snorted. “He was a theater student at Southern Oregon University. He was here last summer for the Shakespeare festival at Incline. That’s how we met. Let’s just say there was an incident involving too many White Russians, an unplanned shift, and a naked drunk on my roof early one morning. I got him back to his hotel without anyone finding out.”
    I tried very hard not to smile. I didn’t succeed, but I did try. “How did he make it all the way to your house?” Incline Village was quite a distance from the cabin.
    “I was living in a different house. You know I try to only live here in the summer. I was renting on the Nevada side last year. I came back as soon as I heard about the first body.”
    “So we’re staying in…?”
    “My house,” said Mac. “I rent it to her, and I live out back. I thought I was renting to some rich college girl without a care in the world, and it turns out she’s running an independent murder investigation.” He smiled at me, far too pleased with what he was about to say. “So, this morning, I actually was breaking my own shit.”
    “Yeah, well. You were still an ass.” I turned to him, as if a light bulb had just gone off. “Hey, you don’t turn into a donkey, do you?”
    Brian guffawed, and Mac narrowed his eyes. I had no doubt I’d be paying for that comment later.
    At the moment, though, I was