Read Online Horoscope: The Astrology Murders by Georgia Frontiere - Free Book Online Page A

Kelly’s telescope, which she’d set up at the window, angled over the low building next door.
    At the moment, Mark was at the telescope. He’d taken off his blazer and loosened his tie and was bending his tall frame so that he could gaze through the eyepiece. “Jesus! The moon lookslike it’s next door. But it looks cold! Not the kind of place I’d like to live.”
    Michelle poured herself another half glass of wine. “No one’s asking you to move there, silly!” She took a sip of the cabernet and then added teasingly: “On second thought, that might not be a bad idea. You’re always saying the house is too noisy. It would be very quiet on the moon.”
    “I see a couple of stars, too,” Mark said amiably. “Maybe it would be better if I moved to one of them.”
    Kelly laughed. “They’re probably not stars. They’re probably Venus and Saturn.”
    Mark continued looking through the telescope. “Well, whatever they are, I see them. But that doesn’t mean I believe they influence my life.”
    Michelle gave him a gentle poke in the butt. “That’s not very nice, Mark.”
    “That’s okay, Mich,” Kelly told her. “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never harm me.”
    Mark straightened up his lanky body and turned to Kelly. “I don’t believe that. Words are powerful, and they can hurt you. Not that I meant to hurt you with what I said about astrology.”
    “Of course not,” Michelle said. “You’re just a wiseass. He reads your column every week, Kelly.”
    “Just for entertainment,” Mark corrected her. “I don’t actually pay attention to it.”
    “Well, I do. In fact, I planned our vacation for the time Kelly said it would be good to travel. And we had a fabulous time, didn’t we?”
    “Yes, we did,” Mark conceded.
    Kelly heard her friends talking in the kidding way they always did, but she wasn’t really paying attention. She was lookingat the phone she’d answered in the early-morning darkness and remembering what she’d heard.
    “And if I recall,” Michelle told her husband, “you waited till Kelly said it was a good time to sign contracts before signing your last book contract.”
    Mark snorted dismissively. “That was a coincidence. I would’ve signed it right away, but I misplaced it, and—”
    “The dog ate your homework, right?” Michelle countered. “He pays attention to every word you write.” She looked at Kelly and noticed that her friend was preoccupied. “You’re not taking him seriously, Kell, are you?”
    Kelly attempted a smile. “Of course not.”
    “Good. Nobody should ever take him seriously.”
    “I concur,” Mark said emphatically. “I don’t even take myself seriously.”
    Michelle saw that Kelly had withdrawn into herself again. She walked over and took her hand. “What is it, Kelly?”
    Kelly looked at her friends. “I was just thinking about what you said, Mark. About how words can hurt you.” She felt her chest tighten and took a deep breath before continuing. “A man called me the other night. Four in the morning. I asked him if he knew what time it was, and he said, ‘You’re the one who doesn’t know what time it is.’ It wasn’t just the words. It was the way he said it. It scared me.”
    Mark’s ruddy face was serious now. “Did you call the police?”
    Kelly nodded. “They said it was probably nothing. But if he calls again, they’ll monitor my phone.”
    Michelle put her arms around her and hugged her tightly. She hadn’t realized how thin Kelly was; it made her seem more fragile than she appeared. “Why didn’t you tell us before?”
    Kelly broke away from Michelle’s embrace and looked at herand Mark. “I keep trying to convince myself I’m overreacting.” She saw the caring in her friends’ eyes and knew that if she was ready to, she could tell them not just about the phone call, but about the fear that was confining her to her home. She felt her chest tighten again and took another deep