Read Online Shot Through Velvet by Ellen Byerrum - Free Book Online

was floating a trial balloon to see if anyone bit. Still, Rod Gibbs trussed up like a blue pig was unsettling. People wanted answers. They wanted to be reassured. They wanted to know that a crime like this didn’t really happen to good people. The only comfort Lacey could find so far was that Gibbs was not considered a good person.
    “Hey, Will.” Sykes tapped on the reporter’s shoulder and pointed. “Tom Nicholson just walked into the bar. No, don’t look. I understand he’s got some inside info on the Blue Devil’s death. He might be a source , you know.”
    “They’re calling Rod Gibbs the Blue Devil?” Adler’s eyes opened wide.
    “You heard it here first,” Hank confided. “Old Tom knows all about it.”
    Adler abruptly stood up. “Thanks for the tip.” Adler stalked off, a reporter in search of his story. And a clue. The rest of the crew at Lacey’s table laughed at how easy it was to play with cub reporters. Sykes started chuckling. She raised an eyebrow at him.
    “Was that nice?” Lacey asked, laughing too. She wondered how many times she had jumped when someone was leading her astray. Probably way too many.
    “That boy’s got no sense of humor,” Blythe said. “We’re just having some fun.”
    “Got him out of our hair for a while and into someone else’s,” Sykes added.
    “Tell me, Blythe, everybody, why I am so lucky to have your attention?” Lacey asked, glancing from one to another.
    “Because you’re a friend of Damon’s. Like us. And we’re thinking about trusting you.”
    So Blythe Harrington thought she was a friend of Damon’s? Blythe felt like she knew Damon because she read his Web site every day? Well, Lacey thought, it was time Damon Newhouse returned the favor and opened a few doors for her, instead of the other way around.
    “I’m sure Damon would appreciate that,” Lacey said. “You know, Damon’s such an interesting character. I know him better than almost anyone . Why, the stories I could tell you . . .”

Chapter 6
    “Dyed blue and hung out to dry. Who do you all think disposed of Rod Gibbs in such a cruel and unusual manner?” Vic turned the conversation back to the victim. “I might as well ask. That’s what everyone wants to know, isn’t it?”
    Faces turned toward Vic. He looked deceptively casual, but Lacey knew he felt bad that someone had died on his watch. Almost his watch.
    Blythe’s expression lit up, as if Vic had introduced a party game. “It’s got to be someone who knows the factory. That’s obvious.”
    “How many people are we talking about?”
    “Just a handful now, we’re the very last. But there have been hundreds over the years,” Kira said. “It’s a lot of suspects.”
    Lacey and Vic exchanged a look. “Gibbs couldn’t have made everyone hate him,” Lacey said. “That’s not possible.”
    “You don’t know Rod Gibbs like we know him,” Sykes said. “The killer was some knight-errant, a stranger who rode into town last night on his stallion, or his Harley, and did us all a big favor. Like one of those comic book superheroes.”
    “A stranger on a stallion?” Lacey said.
    “More than a stranger. An avenger! That’s right, a Velvet Avenger who decided to right a wrong, and that wrong was Rod Gibbs. It’s perfect that way.” Sykes lifted his glass in a toast to their anonymous savior. “To the Velvet Avenger. Long may he avenge .”
    “Sounds good to me,” Hank cracked. “To the Avenger.” He clinked glasses with Sykes.
    “I’m serious, Hank. Not about the horse or the bike,” Sykes said. “But I’m thinking someone targeted Rod for death to do the world some good.”
    “Like one of those stories on DeadFed,” Blythe said.
    “That’s right,” Inez said. “I mean, Rod had such a reputation, it could have been anyone. Someone we don’t even know.”
    “Maybe we should ask Damon Newhouse if he’s heard about anything like this,” Blythe said. “Post a question on his blog at DeadFed or