Read Online Second Grave on the Left by Darynda Jones - Free Book Online

us if she tries to get in touch with you.” His tone held the slightest hint of warning. I tried not to giggle.
    “Absolutely,” I said, leading them back out. I stopped before opening the door that separated Cookie’s office and mine. “Sorry I couldn’t be of more help, and you have to leave now.”
    Foster cleared his throat uncomfortably when I hesitated a moment more. “Right, okay. We’ll be in touch if we need anything else.”
    As they stood waiting behind me, I turned the knob slowly, jiggled it a little, then opened the door. Cookie was typing away at her computer. If I knew her, she’d been listening in on our conversation through the speakerphone.
    “Ms. Davidson,” Foster said, tipping an invisible hat as they walked past.
    After the agents left, Cookie turned an exasperated expression on me. “Jiggling the knob? That was subtle.”
    “Oh, yeah, grace. Could you have knocked anything else over?”
    She cringed at the reminder. “Do you think they suspected anything?”
    So many possibilities came to mind: Duh. Ya think? Only if they weren’t complete idiots. “Yes,” I said instead, the lack of inflection in my voice insinuating all of the above.
    “But, shouldn’t we be working with them instead of against them?” she asked.
    “Not at this precise moment in time.”
    “Why not?”
    “Mostly ’cause they’re not FBI agents.”
    She sucked in a soft breath. “How do you know?”
    “Really?” I asked. The last thing I wanted to explain was how I could tell when someone was lying. For the thousandth time.
    “Right,” she said, shaking her head, “sorry.” Then she gasped. “You knew they weren’t real FBI agents?”
    “I had my suspicions.”
    “And you led them into your office anyway? Alone?”
    “My suspicions don’t always pan out.”
    She thought about that a moment and calmed. “True. Remember that time you tackled the mailman and—”
    I held up a hand to stop her. Some things were just better left unsaid. “Cancel looking into the business stuff,” I said, thinking out loud. “I’d bet my virtual farm that’s a dead end. Concentrate on finding a connection between Mimi and Janelle York.”
    “Besides the fact that they went to high school together?” she asked.
    “No. Let’s start there. Dig into both their backgrounds, see if anything stands out.”
    Just then, Uncle Bob walked into the office. Or, well, stormed into the office. He was always so stressed. It was probably time for us to have the talk. He needed a girlfriend before he stroked. Or maybe a blowup doll.
    “If you’re going to be a grumpy bear,” I said, pointing to the door, “you can just leave the same way you came in, Mr. Man.” I twirled my finger in circles, motioning for him to do an about-face, make like a sheep, and get the flock outta there.
    He stopped short, eyeing me with a mixture of confusion and annoyance. “I’m not grumpy.” He sounded offended. It was funny. “I just want to know what you’ve gotten yourself into now.”
    It was my turn to be offended. “What?” I asked. “Why I never—”
    “No time for your theatrics,” he said, shaking a finger. That’d teach me. “How do you know Warren Jacobs?”
    What the heck? Word traveled fast in the crime-fighting world. “I just met him this morning. Why?”
    “Because he’s asking for you. Not only is his wife missing, but a car dealer he stalked and threatened to kill was found dead last night. Call me crazy, but I think there might be a connection.”
    Son of a bitch, I thought with a heavy sigh. “Instead of plain old Crazy, can I call you Crazy Bob?”
    “No.”
    “CB for short?” When I only got a glare, I asked, “Then can I see him?”
    “He’s being questioned right now and he’ll probably lawyer up any second. What’s going on?”
    Cookie and I glanced at each other then spilled our guts like frogs in biology lab.
    We told Uncle Bob everything, even the writing-on-the-wall thing. He took out his