Read Online Murder Under the Covered Bridge by Elizabeth Perona - Free Book Online Page A

day.
    â€œDo you know how your cousin is doing?” Alice asked. She stooped over and picked up loose change that had been dislodged from the cash register tray, holding back a lock of her graying hair so she could see where it had landed.
    â€œI made a call to his wife once we got in cell phone range. I didn’t learn much other than he was in a coma.”
    â€œOh. You’ll be wanting to go visit him this afternoon, won’t you?” There was a hint of disappointment in Mary Ruth’s voice. She double-checked that the stove and the fryer were turned off and didn’t make eye contact with Francine.
    â€œI’m sorry, but yes, I do need to go as soon as we finish up here. Jonathan should have turned in the horse and buggy and driven here by then.” It was clear Mary Ruth needed her, but William was family and besides, it was the right thing to do.
    â€œI understand, of course,” Mary Ruth said.
    Francine knew it was the truth. She wiped down the stainless countertop. “I’ll come back as soon as I feel I can leave the hospital. I’ll see if I can persuade Jonathan to stay an extra night. That way you’ll have both of us to help once we get back. If today is anything like tomorrow, you’ll need an extra hand.”
    â€œThat would be nice.”
    â€œSo what do we do now?” Joy asked. She leaned against the countertop.
    â€œFirst, we head back to the house, make out a deposit slip, and get that cash in the bank,” Mary Ruth said. “Rule number one of catering: deposit the money. Then we plan for tomorrow and head off for the store. We’re going to need to do a lot more cooking and prep work. But I guess we have all afternoon now as well as the evening.”
    â€œWe can’t leave until Charlotte gets back,” Francine said.
    Mary Ruth put a hand to her hip. “And where is she?”
    Francine pointed to the tent behind her. “Getting her fortune told by the Great Merlina.”
    â€œGreat.”
    â€œHow did Merlina end up getting booth space right next to you?”
    â€œI have no idea. They didn’t tell me who’d be around me when they offered me the space. All I knew was it was free, so I didn’t ask many questions. I think they’re trying to build up a food tradition here in Rockville since they don’t actually have a covered bridge. They don’t like the idea that Bridgeton and Mansfield get most of the action.”

    Since Mary Ruth didn’t want to wait for Charlotte, Toby agreed to stay behind with the truck. The house was in walking distance of the booth for most of them, but not Charlotte, not with her bad knee. “I’ll find something to keep me happy,” he assured them. When they left, he was plugged into his phone and seemed content to wait however long it might take.
    Francine made a call to Jonathan and found he was stuck in traffic not too far from them. “I’ll come to you,” Francine said, “and then we’ll head for Clinton.” She told him that’s where William had been taken.
    â€œThat’s fine. I don’t expect to move from this spot. Not anytime soon.” Francine walked up two blocks, found him, and got in his truck. She directed him around on side streets.
    â€œI found out a few things,” he said. “The person who owns the cornfield by the Roseville Bridge is named Zedediah Matthew. It’s a large property, over three hundred acres. Apparently Mr. Matthew is very protective of his land and has a history of running people off his property. He probably pursued William, but we have no proof of that.”
    â€œWhy would William chance an encounter with someone like him?”
    â€œProbably for the fortune that’s supposedly buried somewhere on the property. Zedediah bought the land from Doc Wheat, who acquired it in the 1920s. During the Depression he developed an interest in herbalism. At one time his home