Read Online Mahjonged (An Alex Harris Mystery) by Elaine Macko - Free Book Online Page A

have you?”
    “Oh, hi, Alex. No. She called in sick this morning. Must be that bug going around. I have two other front desk personnel out today as well.
    “Okay. I’ll try to catch up with her next week.” I turned the treadmill speed up a notch and raised the incline. I suddenly needed to burn up some energy.
    So Connie had called in sick. She hadn’t seemed sick to me last night, but then we were all pretty tired. Maybe she just needed to sleep in or maybe the ordeal of being trapped in a house all night with a dead body had been too much for her. Or…my mind began to race as I turned the treadmill up another notch, maybe Connie was at this very second packing a bag and planning to flee the country after she snatched Bert out of the county jail. But why would she? She and Bert planned to divorce, but something told me a divorce wasn’t set in stone.
    Twenty minutes later, with sweat bathing my face, I headed for the showers. I let the warm water rush over me soothing away the stress of the night before while I idly went through all that had transpired. What were the chances someone would come into my house and kill one of my guests? Or better yet, what were the chances someone I had intentionally invited would kill another invitee? I would have thought slim to none but then I should have known better. Indian Cove and the surrounding towns didn’t see murder too often, but for some reason I seemed to be involved in quite a few lately.
    I don’t know how long I stood there, basking in the warmth of the shower, but all of a sudden the water wasn’t so warm anymore. I looked around and didn’t see anyone else in the locker room. Good. I sheepishly turned off the faucet and got dressed and out of there before someone came in and charged me for using all the hot water, or worse yet, cancelled my membership.
    I drove the few miles from the club to the center of Indian Cove. All along the highway uprooted trees left behind huge craters in the earth. It resembled what I imaged the surface of the moon to be like. The sun shone brightly, but the destruction left by the storm devastated this part of town. Luckily the city center had been spared. Tree branches covered the town green but other than that everything looked okay.
    Born in Indian Cove I’ve lived here all my life. I would probably stay until I died and this thought felt both comforting and bothersome. What did it say about me? Was I dull? Unadventurous? Boring? I don’t know what other parts of the country were like, but living in Indian Cove the last couple of years had been anything but boring. Between my job as part owner of a temporary agency and my new career solving murder, I was one busy girl. This thought brightened my mood considerably as I pulled into a parking space conveniently located in front of Kruger’s Market.
    I’m a frugal person. Being a New Englander frugalness and a good dose of quirky came with the territory, but for some reason, I loved shopping at Kruger’s. The original owner, Mr. Kruger, had sold the store a couple of years ago when his children showed no interest in taking his place. The new owners kept the name and in fact, didn’t make too many changes at all much to my delight. The prices were scandalous and my sister thought I was crazy for shopping here, but I just really enjoyed the old-fashioned store. I liked the slightly musty smell of it and in summer, when mixed with the scent of suntan lotion, the whole place felt very beachy. The aisles were narrow and only one person could go down them at a time. It made it inconvenient but that was a part of the place as well. And I loved their cold cuts counter that couldn’t be beat and I headed there now to get some liverwurst and salami for lunch. Before I left my house, I packed a small bag and planned to stay the night with my parents. As a matter of fact, I wasn’t going home until John called. The police had a key and I knew they planned on going back in to scour the