Read Online Dread on Arrival by Claudia Bishop - Free Book Online Page A

cat. Come on, Biz. Come to Mamma. What have you got there? Whatever it is, drop it.”
    Quill caught it just before whatever it was fell and bounced down the fire escape. “It’s the lightbulb from the carriage lamp.”
    Bismarck jumped up and batted it out of her hands.
    “So that’s why it’s so dark out here.” Clare clutched the cat by the scruff of the neck, “Oof, he’s heavy. Here, Quill. I’ve got him. Close the door before he scoots off again.” Clare backed into the hallway, Bismarck clutched awkwardly around his middle. His forepaws dangled over her arms and his hindquarters bumped gently against Clare’s knees. He regarded Quill placidly. There was tuna fish on his nose.
    Clare straightened up with a whoosh of air. “Jeez. He’s either getting fatter or I’m aging faster than I should. I’ll put him down and get the lightbulb.”
    “That’s okay. I’ve got to give Mike a call anyway. We’ve got to replace the bulbs on the landings or we’ll be in violation of some darn code or another. There’s this special screwdriver that opens the carriage lamps and …” She broke off. “On second thought, maybe I ought to give Davy Kiddermeister a call.”
    “The sheriff? Why in the world would you want to call the sheriff about a missing lightbulb?”
    Quill patted her skirt pocket and found a tissue. “Fingerprints.” The lightbulb sat on the top of the stairway. She stepped out and picked it up, careful to avoid touching the surface with her bare hands.
    “O-o-o-kay,” Clare said dubiously.
    Quill wrapped the bulb in the tissue and stowed it in her pocket. “I’ll put it in a Baggie, just to be sure.” She came back inside and closed the fire door behind her. “Did you park in front or in the back?”
    “Just now? I parked in the front and came in the front door. How come?”
    “Did you meet a car coming down the driveway?”
    “I met a couple of cars coming down the driveway. Your kitchens close at ten on weekdays. It’s ten twenty, now. A bunch of people were headed out. Why? What’s going on?”
    “Somebody just left down the fire escape.”
    “From here?”
    “Well, of course, from here,” Quill said.
    “You mean, somebody was sneaking around like a burglar?”
    “Well. No. He, she, whatever didn’t sneak, exactly. But why leave by the fire escape?”
    “Umm … because I waited and waited for the elevator and it didn’t come and whoever it was got tired of waiting for the elevator, too?”
    Quill sighed. “That’d be the charming Mr. Edmund Tree. We put him on the second floor, in the Provencal suite.”
    “That’s the one with the blue-and-yellow-print fabric on the bedspread and the drapes. I just love that room, Quill.”
    “Whatever. I mean, thank you. And yes, it’s our most expensive room. Anyhow, Mr. Tree doesn’t like having to wait for the elevator, so he wedges it open so it’s always available and housekeeping comes along and unwedges it and he wedges it back again.”
    “Oh, Lord. One of those.” Clare wrinkled her nose. It didn’t take long for people in the hospitality business to realize a fair number of patrons were hell on wheels to deal with. “How long is he staying?”
    “Two weeks. At least he’s going to be away from here most of the time. The preliminary auditions for the antiques show begin tomorrow, and then there’s the shoot itself, and of course, the wedding. Anyway—that’s probably why the elevator didn’t come. But how come my burglar didn’t use the inside stairs?”
    “Why not use the fire escape if the fire door was closer?” Clare asked reasonably. “Really, Quill. A burglar at ten o’clock in the evening? With half the dining room filled with happy eaters? I don’t think so.”
    “But the lightbulbs have been removed from the carriage lamps.”
    “Was Mike doing building maintenance today?”
    “Mike’s always doing building maintenance.”
    “Well, there you are. Honestly, I think you’re worried about