Read Online Murder At The Bed & Breakfast by Dianne Harman - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Dianne Harman
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been seeing someone, but it sounds like a little more than that. Secondly, why didn't he tell Renee about the phone call? Doesn't seem like he's being very straightforward with her, and I don't think it's very good to withhold things like that in a relationship, particularly when you’re married, which makes me think, Mr. Langley, is there something I should know about you that you haven't told me?”
“Fraid not, sweetheart. What you see is what you got. You know I was married. You know my wife died from cancer, and you know that you were the first woman I started seeing after her. Not much of a story there.”
“I’ll take your word for it, but I have to tell you it does make me feel better, anyway, back to Bob and Renee. I had a long conversation with her this morning. Here's what I found out.” She told him about Renee's long-time relationship with Mitch Warren and how close he was to her father as well as the breakdown of her relationship with her father due to her involvement with Bob.
“Roger, I think we have multiple suspects here, but I'm getting the sense the killer could be someone trying to get back at Renee or Bob, rather than someone hating Laura. The only one who might hate Laura would be her ex-husband, and we don't even know if he was in or out of the Serenity Center when she was killed. What we do know is that there were a couple of people who felt they had reason to want to harm either Bob or Renee, and maybe Laura was simply the means to the end.
“Looks like the reverend or any one of his supporters or church members might have hated Bob enough to want to kill him for getting elected and beating the reverend out of the seat he'd tried for several times. Then again maybe Mitch Warren snapped when Renee told him she was going to marry Bob after their very long relationship. We should know something about each of those possibilities after Sean does some research, but I'm having a niggle about something else.”
“A year ago I would have laughed if anyone had told me they had a niggle about something, but after your niggle helped solve the last couple of cases, I'm not laughing. What's your niggle?” he asked.
“Renee told me how close she and her father remained even after her parents were divorced. It's somewhat unusual that a daughter would be very close to both of her parents after their divorce, particularly given the fact that her father has been remarried for years. From what Renee told me, her stepmother idolized her father, and when he decided he would have nothing more to do with Renee, she followed his lead and did the same. When Laura told their father that she was going to live with Bob and Renee and take care of their newborn, Renee's father became estranged from Laura as well and because of Bob's Mexican heritage, refused to even see his granddaughter. I have no idea why I have a niggle, but it's enough I'd like to see what I can find out about her father and stepmother. Think I'll pay her a visit tomorrow.”
“I agree that it's unusual. I know parents often don't approve of a child's spouse, but usually they reconcile. If you have a niggle, go for it, but I do have a request. I know I sound like some recording, but there has been a murder, and people will soon know that you're sleuthing again. Actually, I'm sure the police chief has already told all of the customers at Gertie's about it. Anyway, I want you to carry the gun you have, and I want Winston to be with you wherever you go. I won’t try and stop you from doing this, plus I have to say you're pretty good at it, but please be careful. Remember, you're a married woman now, and I sure as heck don't want to go through the death of another wife. Understand?" he asked, giving her the most solemn look he could muster.
“Roger, I promise I'll take Winston and my gun with me. You just mentioned Gertie's, and I think it might be a good thing if we go to breakfast there tomorrow morning. That woman knows more about what's
“Fraid not, sweetheart. What you see is what you got. You know I was married. You know my wife died from cancer, and you know that you were the first woman I started seeing after her. Not much of a story there.”
“I’ll take your word for it, but I have to tell you it does make me feel better, anyway, back to Bob and Renee. I had a long conversation with her this morning. Here's what I found out.” She told him about Renee's long-time relationship with Mitch Warren and how close he was to her father as well as the breakdown of her relationship with her father due to her involvement with Bob.
“Roger, I think we have multiple suspects here, but I'm getting the sense the killer could be someone trying to get back at Renee or Bob, rather than someone hating Laura. The only one who might hate Laura would be her ex-husband, and we don't even know if he was in or out of the Serenity Center when she was killed. What we do know is that there were a couple of people who felt they had reason to want to harm either Bob or Renee, and maybe Laura was simply the means to the end.
“Looks like the reverend or any one of his supporters or church members might have hated Bob enough to want to kill him for getting elected and beating the reverend out of the seat he'd tried for several times. Then again maybe Mitch Warren snapped when Renee told him she was going to marry Bob after their very long relationship. We should know something about each of those possibilities after Sean does some research, but I'm having a niggle about something else.”
“A year ago I would have laughed if anyone had told me they had a niggle about something, but after your niggle helped solve the last couple of cases, I'm not laughing. What's your niggle?” he asked.
“Renee told me how close she and her father remained even after her parents were divorced. It's somewhat unusual that a daughter would be very close to both of her parents after their divorce, particularly given the fact that her father has been remarried for years. From what Renee told me, her stepmother idolized her father, and when he decided he would have nothing more to do with Renee, she followed his lead and did the same. When Laura told their father that she was going to live with Bob and Renee and take care of their newborn, Renee's father became estranged from Laura as well and because of Bob's Mexican heritage, refused to even see his granddaughter. I have no idea why I have a niggle, but it's enough I'd like to see what I can find out about her father and stepmother. Think I'll pay her a visit tomorrow.”
“I agree that it's unusual. I know parents often don't approve of a child's spouse, but usually they reconcile. If you have a niggle, go for it, but I do have a request. I know I sound like some recording, but there has been a murder, and people will soon know that you're sleuthing again. Actually, I'm sure the police chief has already told all of the customers at Gertie's about it. Anyway, I want you to carry the gun you have, and I want Winston to be with you wherever you go. I won’t try and stop you from doing this, plus I have to say you're pretty good at it, but please be careful. Remember, you're a married woman now, and I sure as heck don't want to go through the death of another wife. Understand?" he asked, giving her the most solemn look he could muster.
“Roger, I promise I'll take Winston and my gun with me. You just mentioned Gertie's, and I think it might be a good thing if we go to breakfast there tomorrow morning. That woman knows more about what's
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