Read Online This Old Souse by Mary Daheim - Free Book Online Page B

yourself.”
    Trash gave her a wary look. “You’re a bundle of fun. Watch your mouth, Mrs.”—he glanced at the license—“Flynn. Hey,” he said to Glenn, “there used to be aFlynn in the squad, but I heard he croaked. You remember the guy?”
    â€œOnly the name,” Glenn replied. “It was before my time. Wasn’t his wife a drunk? You’re no relation, I assume, Mrs. Flynn?”
    â€œNot to his drunken wife,” Judith snapped. “I’m the second Mrs. Flynn, and I assure you, Joe is alive and well.”
    â€œOh.” Glenn seemed unfazed. “Where and when did you find the victim?”
    â€œHere.” Judith pointed to the Subaru, where the trunk was now closed. More than two dozen people, including Falstaff employees, were standing beyond the yellow tape. Out on the avenue, vehicles were slowing down to rubberneck. “Kippi, the courtesy clerk, and I found the body when we went to load my groceries.”
    â€œWhere’s this Kippi now?” Glenn asked, scanning the bystanders.
    Phil spoke up. “She’s resting in the employee lounge. She’s barely sixteen, and she’s had a terrible shock.”
    Glenn, as seemed to be his wont, was unmoved. “We still have to talk to her. Trash,” he said over his shoulder, “go into the store and interrogate the Kippi witness.”
    â€œStairs,” Trash muttered. “Why don’t you interview her?” He didn’t wait for answer. “Right, right, you’re the big shot, direct from L.A. I’ll bet I’m going to have to climb stairs.” With his raincoat flapping behind him, Trash lumbered toward the entrance.
    Judith tapped Glenn’s shoulder. “May I get my belongings out of the car now?”
    Glenn shook his head. “We can’t permit that. Your car is a crime scene.”
    â€œBut there’s fresh chicken and corn and…” Judith took a deep breath. “They’re not in the trunk, for heaven’s sake! They’re inside the car and they were put there after Vern got killed.”
    â€œVern?” For the first time, Glenn’s expression altered slightly. “You know the victim?”
    Judith looked pugnacious. “I’m not telling you another thing until I get my food and those toys. I refuse to disappoint my grandsons!”
    â€œDisappointment’s good for children,” Glenn declared. “It builds character. Your car’s off-limits. You ought to know that, being married to a cop.”
    Judith narrowed her dark eyes. She was almost as tall as Glenn and stood on her tiptoes to look at him head-on. “Okay. But may I leave for a few minutes to replace my purchases?”
    â€œNo.” Glenn’s lean jaw was set.
    Judith squared her wide shoulders. “May I sue you for harassment?”
    â€œIf you like. Everybody else does,” he added on a sour note.
    â€œMay I use the bathroom?”
    Glenn considered. “Yes. But be back here in five minutes.”
    Judith returned in fifty-five minutes, huffing and puffing. She had gone into Falstaff’s via the parking lot, acquired a shopping cart, and exited through the street entrance. Feeling like a bag lady, she walked the block and a half to Toys-O’-Joy. Fending off queries from the salespeople, she had bought duplicate presents for the grandchildren, returned to Falstaff’s, and replicated the grocery purchases.
    Additional patrol officers had been brought in for crowd control. After being thoroughly checked, customers were being allowed to leave, but no one was permitted to enter. Phil was at the parking-lot entrance, wringing his hands and making profuse apologies. Glenn and Trash were standing by the Subaru with a half-dozen men and women. Judith figured they were the crime-scene unit and perhaps backup from the homicide division. She stood off to one side of the entrance with her cart and fervently