digestive system, so we had to drive with the windows wide open.
“Where is Cora Mae?” I asked Kitty.
“Shacking up,” she said. “And don’t you think I should be driving? What if Blaze sees you?”
“We made a deal. He won’t bother me.” Just in time, too, because I didn’t want Kitty messing up my truck.
“Cora Mae has a way of gravitating toward bad boys,” Kitty pointed out.
“She’s dated a killer or two,” I agreed.
“So my bet is that Chet Hanson killed Harry Aho.”
“I’m not so sure. The same person shellacked both Harry Aho and Frank Hanson,” I said, getting in my word for the second time in one day.
“Indubitably,” my know-it-all friend said.
“No conundrum here,” I answered. “And quit vaunting your vocabulary.”
“I’m not bragging.”
“You are too.”
“I just think you should pick harder words to study. I mean, shellacking? Really?”
I’ve never been able to figure out how Kitty gets a hold of the words I pick for my word of the day. I used to write them down on paper and thought she was finding them that way, but these days, they are all in my head. I don’t leave a trace of a clue for her to follow.
“Shellacking,” she said with a snicker.
“That is NOT my word for the day,” I lied. “Getting back to business, I’m not convinced that Frank killed Harry. Although it sure does look like the Hansons were getting payback.”
“I took the liberty of calling the Ahos,” Kitty said. “To see if they still wanted us working on Chet. Martin said yes.”
“Same killer both times,” I announced.
“What makes you so sure there’s only one killer?” Kitty said over Fred’s head, rolling down her window a bit more. Fred turned and slurped her cheek.
“Same MO. Sneaking up on his victims, headshots, dead-on aim.”
“But everybody around here is a good shot, and we’re all sneaky.”
“I just have a feeling it’s the same person.”
“Then we better find a connection between the Hansons and Ahos, other than their ongoing feud. The only thing that could possibly bring them together would be money.”
“You’re a smart woman, Kitty.”
By then we were at Chet’s place. Cora Mae came trotting out with a big satisfied smile on her face. We managed to cram her in between Fred and Kitty. Good thing she’s a little thing and doesn’t take up much space.
“We want details,” Kitty said to her the minute the door was closed. “And I don’t mean the personal stuff.”
“You’ve had more of my personal information than you deserve,” Cora Mae said, putting some huff into her voice, but too content to really pull it off. “I think I’m in love.”
“He’s the killer for sure,” Kitty said to me.
Cora Mae was my all-time best friend and, as I mentioned before, she was always scouting for possibilities, but I’d only heard her mention love the three times she’d actually married the guys. The black widow had her sights on a possible keeper. I hoped he’d already lived a long, full life for both of their sakes. And I also really hoped they didn’t spend their lives together communicating through prison bars.
“We better find a different suspect,” I said. “And fast.”
“I didn’t say I was in love for sure. But I might be.”
Then I told Cora Mae about last night, which she’d already heard about when Blaze came early in the morning to inform Chet. But now she had my side of it, a whole lot more information than she’d had before.
“It couldn’t have been Chet,” she said. “And I told Blaze that. I’m Chet’s alibi.”
“Aw, isn’t that sweet,” Kitty said. “Bet you’ve never been an alibi before.”
“Besides, he wouldn’t kill his own cousin,” Cora Mae said.
“Second cousin,” Kitty corrected her. “And he might have murdered him just for being in cahoots with an Aho.”
“But I was with Chet the entire night.”
I didn’t point out that Cora Mae slept like a hibernating she bear. Once
“Where is Cora Mae?” I asked Kitty.
“Shacking up,” she said. “And don’t you think I should be driving? What if Blaze sees you?”
“We made a deal. He won’t bother me.” Just in time, too, because I didn’t want Kitty messing up my truck.
“Cora Mae has a way of gravitating toward bad boys,” Kitty pointed out.
“She’s dated a killer or two,” I agreed.
“So my bet is that Chet Hanson killed Harry Aho.”
“I’m not so sure. The same person shellacked both Harry Aho and Frank Hanson,” I said, getting in my word for the second time in one day.
“Indubitably,” my know-it-all friend said.
“No conundrum here,” I answered. “And quit vaunting your vocabulary.”
“I’m not bragging.”
“You are too.”
“I just think you should pick harder words to study. I mean, shellacking? Really?”
I’ve never been able to figure out how Kitty gets a hold of the words I pick for my word of the day. I used to write them down on paper and thought she was finding them that way, but these days, they are all in my head. I don’t leave a trace of a clue for her to follow.
“Shellacking,” she said with a snicker.
“That is NOT my word for the day,” I lied. “Getting back to business, I’m not convinced that Frank killed Harry. Although it sure does look like the Hansons were getting payback.”
“I took the liberty of calling the Ahos,” Kitty said. “To see if they still wanted us working on Chet. Martin said yes.”
“Same killer both times,” I announced.
“What makes you so sure there’s only one killer?” Kitty said over Fred’s head, rolling down her window a bit more. Fred turned and slurped her cheek.
“Same MO. Sneaking up on his victims, headshots, dead-on aim.”
“But everybody around here is a good shot, and we’re all sneaky.”
“I just have a feeling it’s the same person.”
“Then we better find a connection between the Hansons and Ahos, other than their ongoing feud. The only thing that could possibly bring them together would be money.”
“You’re a smart woman, Kitty.”
By then we were at Chet’s place. Cora Mae came trotting out with a big satisfied smile on her face. We managed to cram her in between Fred and Kitty. Good thing she’s a little thing and doesn’t take up much space.
“We want details,” Kitty said to her the minute the door was closed. “And I don’t mean the personal stuff.”
“You’ve had more of my personal information than you deserve,” Cora Mae said, putting some huff into her voice, but too content to really pull it off. “I think I’m in love.”
“He’s the killer for sure,” Kitty said to me.
Cora Mae was my all-time best friend and, as I mentioned before, she was always scouting for possibilities, but I’d only heard her mention love the three times she’d actually married the guys. The black widow had her sights on a possible keeper. I hoped he’d already lived a long, full life for both of their sakes. And I also really hoped they didn’t spend their lives together communicating through prison bars.
“We better find a different suspect,” I said. “And fast.”
“I didn’t say I was in love for sure. But I might be.”
Then I told Cora Mae about last night, which she’d already heard about when Blaze came early in the morning to inform Chet. But now she had my side of it, a whole lot more information than she’d had before.
“It couldn’t have been Chet,” she said. “And I told Blaze that. I’m Chet’s alibi.”
“Aw, isn’t that sweet,” Kitty said. “Bet you’ve never been an alibi before.”
“Besides, he wouldn’t kill his own cousin,” Cora Mae said.
“Second cousin,” Kitty corrected her. “And he might have murdered him just for being in cahoots with an Aho.”
“But I was with Chet the entire night.”
I didn’t point out that Cora Mae slept like a hibernating she bear. Once
Similar Books
