Read Online Killer Run by Lynn Cahoon - Free Book Online

happened? Are you okay?”
    Aunt Jackie stepped away from the group, leading me with her. “I’m fine, dear. Poor Josh was feeling a bit faint. I’m sure he didn’t eat this morning like I told him to, but you know men. You can’t tell them anything.”
    â€œSo, Josh got faint and . . . ?” I rolled my hand, hoping my aunt would get to the point and tell me who was dead, since it obviously wasn’t the antique dealer who appeared to be freaked out but fine. Or at least as fine as he could be after walking daily for the last week. My aunt’s fitness craze could kill the guy.
    â€œHe fell on that terrible woman.” Aunt Jackie rolled her eyes.
    â€œWhat terrible woman? And he killed her by falling on her?” I’d never heard of death by fat guy, but I guess it was possible in a freak-accident kind of way.
    â€œNo, he didn’t kill her. She was already dead. Sandra Ashford, the woman from that PR team. She’s the dead one.” My aunt looked at me like I was slow. But then a smile crept onto her face. “It reminded me of the scene in the Wizard of Oz —where the house falls on the witch? All you could see were her feet in those knock-off designer shoes.”
    Greg came up to us and put his arm around my aunt. “You okay there?”
    I saw the tears fill my aunt’s eyes and quickly get blinked away. “I’m perfectly fine. The question is, how is Josh?”
    â€œI’m sending him to the hospital to be checked out. The EMT guys are a little worried about his blood pressure.” Greg looked at me. “I’m trying to keep this off the grid until the race is complete. The official line right now is that two racers are being taken to the hospital.”
    â€œTwo?” I looked at my aunt.
    â€œNot Jackie. Doc Ames is taking the body out using the ambulance. We think it’s the best solution to try to keep this under wraps.” Greg lowered his voice. “I need you to take Jackie out like you two were walking the race and tell Darla what happened. I don’t want her to be left in the dark in case the press grabs hold of this.”
    â€œWe can do that.” I peered around Greg as the EMTs loaded the body onto the cart, an oxygen mask set on the dead woman’s face. “Are you sure they’ll think she’s alive?”
    â€œAs long as they don’t see the high heels, we should be fine. By this time, the runners are through the course and the walkers are starting to feel the pain. They’ll be focused on their own progress, not the fallen around them.” Greg waved Toby over to his side. “Set these two back on the path, then help Doc get the body to the ambulance. We’ll come back for Josh.”
    â€œI’m not riding in the same van as that woman,” Josh muttered.
    Greg rolled his eyes, then turned toward the antique dealer. “We’ve ordered a special bariatric-equipped ambulance from Bakerstown. You don’t have to share your ambulance, but you do have to wait for a few minutes. One of the EMTs will stay with you until the second one arrives.”
    Toby started toward the race path, but I stayed next to Greg. “You’re sure it’s Sandra Ashford? I mean, why would she even be out here?”
    â€œI don’t think she was out here. Not for the race, that is. It looks like a body dump. But yeah, it’s her. The local chamber in Bakerstown will have her fingerprints on file when they set up their business. Apparently a new process for those who are in a consulting type of activity.” Greg nodded to the retreating Toby and Jackie. “Besides, she has one of those paper name tags plastered on her dress. From a meeting or something. You’d better catch up.”
    I nodded and quickly caught up to Aunt Jackie. We didn’t talk at all on the way back to the finish line. Between Toby’s determination and my aunt’s focus, we were at