Read Online Delicious and Suspicious by Riley Adams - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Riley Adams
Ads: Link
all the time, and it’s rubbed off,” said Sara. She pursed her lips in thought.
“I don’t think it’s anything all that complicated,” said Lulu. “Maybe she’s just constipated. Lots of people are, you know,” she said defensively as Sara groaned. “That MaxLax stuff works pretty well. Maybe we need to go out to Costco and get her a pallet of it.”
They looked out the window with some trepidation. Hail fell from of the sky. Cherry calmly tucked her bouffant hairdo up into her helmet. “Someday y’all will come round to my way of thinking,” she said. “That there hail is going to bounce clean off my helmet. And my hair won’t get a drop on it.”
The same couldn’t be said for Tony, Lulu, and Sara as they bolted for Sara’s car in the parking deck. “Almost like divine retribution,” muttered Lulu. But she couldn’t decide who had triggered this vengeance. She hoped, since she was on her way to offer what she felt was a sincere, if abbreviated, apology, that it might be Rebecca Adrian who had caused the celestial distress.
Sure enough, the Cooking Channel van was in the Peabody’s parking deck. Sara parked as close as she could to the entrance, and they hurried inside as the hail continued to fall and the thunder rumbled nearby. Tony’s face flushed with irritation. “There’s no excuse,” he kept muttering. And, “Wait till the boss talks to her about this. She won’t try something like this again.”
It was past five o’clock so the lobby was empty of tourists. Sara twisted strands of red blond hair around her finger as they rode up the elevator. Tony glowered, and Lulu felt queasy. She was not a fan of scenes, and there had been far too many over the past twenty-four hours.
Tony led the way down the third-floor hallway and thumped on one of the doors. “Rebecca!” he bellowed. He waited and then thumped his fist on the door again. “Rebecca! I want to talk to you.”
There was only silence from the room.
Tony tried the door, but of course, it was locked. He thumped loudly on her door again, and a couple of doors opened farther down the hall as people curiously peeped out.
“Are you sure this is the right room?” asked Lulu.
“Absolutely. My room is just next door.”
Sara looked uncomfortable as other guests continued looking out their doors. “Can’t we ask the hotel manager to let us in? Or security?”
“You don’t think,” asked Lulu as a thought popped into her head, “she killed herself, do you?”
“No way. She loves herself way too much. Besides, being banned from Aunt Pat’s wouldn’t have made her suicidal, you know.”
“When you put it that way, it does sound a little silly.”
“I’ll run get the manager,” said Tony. “He’ll probably check on her since I’m her coworker and everything.”
Ten minutes later Tony was back with the manager and one of the hotel’s security men. The manager inserted a master key and cautiously opened the door a crack. “Miss Adrian?” He waited, listening hard but hearing no response. He pushed the door open farther. “Miss Adrian?”
He stepped into the room, then backed up a step. The security man pushed them back into the hall, but Lulu was able to see a sprawled figure on the floor of the room: Rebecca Adrian—quite obviously dead.
Chapter 4
“Do you think,” asked Lulu in a hushed tone appropriate for being in the vicinity of a dead body, “this is a natural-causes kind of dead or a murdered-in-her-sleep kind of dead?”
“Well, it sure as heck didn’t look natural to me,” said Sara. Her freckles stood out like polka dots against her suddenly white face. “Upchuck everywhere, her body crumpled at a crazy angle.”
Tony, whose olive complexion had turned as pale as it could get, wandered away to report to the Cooking Channel producers that Rebecca had actually had a fairly good excuse for being out of pocket for the afternoon.
The police and a forensic team, complete with cameras, hastily
“I don’t think it’s anything all that complicated,” said Lulu. “Maybe she’s just constipated. Lots of people are, you know,” she said defensively as Sara groaned. “That MaxLax stuff works pretty well. Maybe we need to go out to Costco and get her a pallet of it.”
They looked out the window with some trepidation. Hail fell from of the sky. Cherry calmly tucked her bouffant hairdo up into her helmet. “Someday y’all will come round to my way of thinking,” she said. “That there hail is going to bounce clean off my helmet. And my hair won’t get a drop on it.”
The same couldn’t be said for Tony, Lulu, and Sara as they bolted for Sara’s car in the parking deck. “Almost like divine retribution,” muttered Lulu. But she couldn’t decide who had triggered this vengeance. She hoped, since she was on her way to offer what she felt was a sincere, if abbreviated, apology, that it might be Rebecca Adrian who had caused the celestial distress.
Sure enough, the Cooking Channel van was in the Peabody’s parking deck. Sara parked as close as she could to the entrance, and they hurried inside as the hail continued to fall and the thunder rumbled nearby. Tony’s face flushed with irritation. “There’s no excuse,” he kept muttering. And, “Wait till the boss talks to her about this. She won’t try something like this again.”
It was past five o’clock so the lobby was empty of tourists. Sara twisted strands of red blond hair around her finger as they rode up the elevator. Tony glowered, and Lulu felt queasy. She was not a fan of scenes, and there had been far too many over the past twenty-four hours.
Tony led the way down the third-floor hallway and thumped on one of the doors. “Rebecca!” he bellowed. He waited and then thumped his fist on the door again. “Rebecca! I want to talk to you.”
There was only silence from the room.
Tony tried the door, but of course, it was locked. He thumped loudly on her door again, and a couple of doors opened farther down the hall as people curiously peeped out.
“Are you sure this is the right room?” asked Lulu.
“Absolutely. My room is just next door.”
Sara looked uncomfortable as other guests continued looking out their doors. “Can’t we ask the hotel manager to let us in? Or security?”
“You don’t think,” asked Lulu as a thought popped into her head, “she killed herself, do you?”
“No way. She loves herself way too much. Besides, being banned from Aunt Pat’s wouldn’t have made her suicidal, you know.”
“When you put it that way, it does sound a little silly.”
“I’ll run get the manager,” said Tony. “He’ll probably check on her since I’m her coworker and everything.”
Ten minutes later Tony was back with the manager and one of the hotel’s security men. The manager inserted a master key and cautiously opened the door a crack. “Miss Adrian?” He waited, listening hard but hearing no response. He pushed the door open farther. “Miss Adrian?”
He stepped into the room, then backed up a step. The security man pushed them back into the hall, but Lulu was able to see a sprawled figure on the floor of the room: Rebecca Adrian—quite obviously dead.
Chapter 4
“Do you think,” asked Lulu in a hushed tone appropriate for being in the vicinity of a dead body, “this is a natural-causes kind of dead or a murdered-in-her-sleep kind of dead?”
“Well, it sure as heck didn’t look natural to me,” said Sara. Her freckles stood out like polka dots against her suddenly white face. “Upchuck everywhere, her body crumpled at a crazy angle.”
Tony, whose olive complexion had turned as pale as it could get, wandered away to report to the Cooking Channel producers that Rebecca had actually had a fairly good excuse for being out of pocket for the afternoon.
The police and a forensic team, complete with cameras, hastily
Similar Books
