Read Online If Catfish Had Nine Lives (Country Cooking School Mystery) by Paige Shelton - Free Book Online Page B

anger—why did no one think to call an ambulance or get Teddy some quick medical attention?
    “Okay, I’ll get the full story later, but right now I need to get you to a doctor,” I said.
    “No, Betts, not yet,” Teddy said.
    “What?”
    “I wanted to take him to a doctor,” Orly said, “but he wouldn’t let me.”
    “I don’t understand.”
    “We found him earlier and got him awake quickly. Just like now, he didn’t remember much, but one of our cowgirls did—the cowgirl that found him in the woods, in fact. She said she’d seen him late yesterday evening in an argument with someone who’d been hanging around us and asking us all kinds of writing questions. I put all the pieces together and realized that the person your brother was arguing with was Norman Bytheway.”
    “Oh . . . he was the one who was . . .” I said.
    “Yes, ma’am, he was the one killed this morning. When your brother and I got to talking, I thought maybe I should do as he asked and bring you out here before we did anything else.”
    I nodded at Orly and then squinted at my beaten brother. My anger and fear weren’t mellowing, exactly, but I knew I needed to get a clear head, and quick.
    “Oh, Teddy,” I said.
    “I know—what the hell happened?” he said, quoting the words I’d spoken only moments ago, and a million times before.

Chapter 8

    “I was just hanging out, Betts, I promise,” Teddy said as I inspected his face.
    I looked at Orly; he shrugged. “Dunno.
I
didn’t see him and Norman arguing. I don’t know if anyone other than the cowgirl saw them. I can try to round up some people if you’d like me to, but I didn’t want anyone to feel compelled to come forward, or worry that they should run to the police too quickly.”
    “Were you arguing with Norman Bytheway?” I asked Teddy.
    “I don’t know,” he said, with hesitation. “I remember him, but I don’t remember arguing.”
    “You said you don’t remember everything clearly,” Orly said.
    Teddy looked at me through his one barely open eye. “That’s true.”
    I was torn by Orly’s seemingly fast loyalty to me and his protecting Teddy; I was both relieved and uncomfortable. Sure, he and I had bonded, but what he’d done could get him in trouble. Of course, I’d do what I could to make sure that didn’t happen, but I knew what we should be doing. We should be—as Orly would probably put it—hightailing it to a doctor, calling the police on the way so they could meet us and get a statement from Teddy.
    However, here I was, still in the tent, still trying to understand what happened before I took any steps to do what I was supposed to do.
    “Teddy, who was the girl?” I asked. No one had mentioned a girl in
that
context yet, but when Teddy was involved, there was always a girl. “Was it the”—I looked at Orly—“cowgirl?”
    Teddy sighed and looked away from me and to the floor of the tent.
    “I’m not sure if she’s the same girl that Orly is talking about, but I think I remember someone named Esther.”
    I looked at Orly, who shook his head. I said, “The girl who found him wasn’t Esther?”
    “No, ma’am,” Orly said.
    “Go on, Teddy,” I said. I wondered how many Esthers were at the convention. I hoped that Teddy wasn’t talking about the same one I’d just seen ask Jake out on a dinner date, but I was sure he was.
    “I don’t remember much else about her at this point. I wasn’t here to meet girls, Betts, I promise. And I was minding my own business. She came on to me. I’m pretty sure. And I don’t think Norman was upset by that at all, but I kind of remember him being there at the same time. I think. Shoot, I’m just not sure.”
    It was my turn to sigh. If he was remembering anything correctly, I doubted he was lying about the bits and pieces. He wasn’t adept at lying, which was mostly a good thing.
    “And you just went along with it, with her?” I said.
    “Not really. I’m not . . . I’m not