Read Online Murder Misread by P.M. Carlson - Free Book Online Page B

had sitting on the desk. Joking about what a clumsy old
codger he was, about how he’d mop up every drop. It was a very
upbeat kind of apology, if you see what I mean.”
    “ Did he tell you what he
was celebrating?”
    “ No, just that—” She
stopped abruptly and stepped back.
    Anne had to step back too
as Sergeant Hines strode into the room, followed closely by Officer
Porter. The officer was carrying a large cardboard box and several
sealed plastic bags. Evidence bags, Anne realized with a tightening
of her stomach. She couldn’t see the contents clearly, even though
she was near as he rested his burdens on Cindy’s desk. Little white
plugs—cigarette butts. A little spiral-bound notebook. Something
else—was it a pipe?
    Hines said, “Ladies and
gentlemen, I’d appreciate it if you could all go to your offices.
There are some items here I’d like you to try to identify, and I’d
rather have each person react individually.”
    Maggie said, “I’m told my
office isn’t ready yet. And Professor Chandler’s is in the French
department across campus.”
    Hines said, “I’ll be
talking to Mrs. Chandler at home later. Is there an office Ms. Ryan
can use?” Automatically, he looked at the right authority: Cindy,
not Bernie Reinalter.
    She said, “Dr. Ryan will
be using the corner office in Professor Fielding’s wing. Room 104.
It’s empty, it’s just that the floor hasn’t been waxed. Might as
well use it.”
    “ Fine,” Hines agreed.
“We’ll start with Ms. Ryan, then.”
    Cindy selected one of the
keys in her desk drawer and handed it to Maggie, making a note on a
card. Anne was impressed that she had followed procedures even
under this pressure. The ideal secretary for Bernie.
    Cindy was eyeing Porter’s
plastic-wrapped items on her desk, and Anne saw her lips curve a
little as Porter picked them up carefully. Had she recognized
something? Anne saw her gazing thoughtfully at the people by the
hall door.
    “ Well, Charlie,” Cindy
inquired mildly, “did you drop something?”

6
    Damn Cindy!
    An adrenaline sweat of
rage, fear, and mystification flooded Charlie. In the murky swill
of his memory childish horrors stirred: Dad’s rigid accusing
shoulders, the fly on Aunt Babs’s dead staring face, Lorraine
naked, holding a white sock, eyes boring into him like Cindy’s now.
A Hitchcock moment, shocking ancient fears from sleep, even though
he’d half expected it. He’d glimpsed the little spiral-bound memo
book too, with its black-and-white Chaplin design glimmering inside
the plastic bag. Surprised, he’d reached in his jacket for his own
memo book. Not there. He’d slithered his fingers through his
pockets in desperate hope. But it was gone. No one else had a book
like that, not around here. But how could his book be in an
evidence bag? And then came Cindy with her insinuations, in front
of the cops, Tal’s formidable wife, the department chairman! What
the hell was going on?
    Well, stay cool when
attacked, Coach Wilhelm used to say. No need to feel defensive
anyway. The explanation, whatever it turned out to be, couldn’t
hurt him. He tried to keep his voice light as he said, “Maybe I did
lose something. You’ve probably misplaced things yourself, Cindy,
sometimes.”
    The skin tensed around her
pale blue eyes, but the little smile on her face didn’t change. He
noticed that Maggie was studying both of them with unconcealed
interest.
    More to the point, so were
Hines and Walensky.
    Hines said, “There’s
something here of yours, Mr. Fielding?”
    “ Now Reggie,” said
Walensky, “let’s go slow. He can’t tell you the answer to that
until he sees the items, now, can he?”
    “ That’s right, Wayne,”
said Hines, his jaw tight. “So let’s go let him have a look. Mrs.
Chandler, I’ll see you right after. We’ll look at your husband’s
office together. Professor Fielding, what’s your office
number?”
    “ 103,” said Charlie.
“Around the corner, down the