Read Online Wrapped Up in Crosswords by Nero Blanc - Free Book Online Page B

night. I’ll give you odds on that.”
    Martha raised an ironic eyebrow, but she and the other employees fanned out to investigate. The cash register was checked, although no money ever remained from the day before. The safe appeared untouched, but Mr. Lawson would be the one to confirm that. Kenny and Martha then walked into the kitchen and examined the commercial refrigerator and freezer. Nothing appeared disturbed there either.
    â€œWe’ll have to call the cops,” Kenny said. “And the boss. How to ruin your day off in one easy lesson.”
    â€œEnough of the NPD will be here for breakfast the moment we unlock the door,” Martha wisecracked. “We’ll describe the situation while they’re wolfing down their hash and eggs. The boys and girls in blue always work better when their bellies are full.”
    â€œIt’s our duty to report any suspicions of wrongdoing,” was Kenny’s stern response. “Do you want to call nine-one-one, or should I?”
    â€œNothing’s missing, Dr. K. Maybe it was only the wind last night—or the Ghost of Christmas Past.”
    â€œThe police should decide that.”
    â€œWhatever you say, your majesty. Knock yourself out. As for me, I’m going to get that coffee brewing. It’s never a pretty sight when these caffeine fiends turn rabid.”
    â€œThis is not a joking matter, Marth,” Kenny said in admonition.
    â€œAnd facing a roomful of java-deprived cops who’ve spent all night on their ‘dogs’ is?”
    T HE break-in was duly reported, and the two police officers who responded to the call were then treated to Lawson’s enormous breakfasts while several groups of regular patrons speculated as to the perpetrator and cause of the crime. As far as anyone could assess, nothing was missing, as Martha had asserted. The assumption was that Kenny’s early arrival had forced the culprit to flee before completing whatever felony he or she had intended.
    â€œAll I can say,” Martha concluded as she poured a third round of coffee for a table of regulars, “is that whoever had the gall to break in wasn’t from around here. There’s nothing down in the basement but canned beans and coffee.”
    â€œI’ll bet you can find more to say if you put your mind to it,” one of her patrons quipped.
    â€œYou want your coffee in your cup or you want it in your lap?” was her swift response, but another of the group interrupted.
    â€œWhat makes you think it had to be a stranger, Martha? We have our fair share of shifty folks right here in town.”
    â€œAnyone who knows Newcastle knows that Kenny’s a nut for punctuality. Come this summer, he will have been here for thirty years. Thirty years of arriving at half-past five, rain or snow or sleet or whatever other muck the Bay State throws at us … That’s why I’m saying the perp wasn’t a local. Plus, who’d mess with Dr. K.? The guy’s six-foot-four, for Pete’s sake. He might look and act like an emperor in disguise, but he’s one tough hombre.”
    W HEN the breakfast rush had died down and the official police visit had ended, Kenny left his post in the kitchen and ensconced himself at one of the banquette tables where Martha served him coffee and juice accompanied by a running account of that morning’s news and gossip. This was their longstanding tradition, but this time Kenny didn’t return her bantering tone. “Why are you always joking around?” he asked instead. “You can’t laugh off every incident, you know. This could be a very severe situation.”
    â€œHey, you want hangdog, I can do that. Should I march about with a sign reading ‘The End Is Near?’”
    â€œI’m serious, Marth.”
    â€œSo am I. Life’s too short to go around acting glum and gloomy.”
    â€œI’m not talking about behaving in a dejected manner,