A Deadly Encounter (A Seagrove Cozy Mystery Book 3) Read Online Free PDF Page A

turned to him, silent now, mouths hanging open.
     
    “But we haven’t done anything illegal,” the round-faced woman said. “You can’t arrest us.”
     
    “Obstructing an officer in the performance of his duties. Obstructing an ongoing investigation. Loud and disorderly behavior in a public place.” The chief raised an eyebrow at her. “Would you like me to go on?”
     
    Her eyes got wide and she shook her head without saying a word.
     
    “Thank you,” the chief said. “Now”—he looked pointedly at Alex—“you need to tell me how you know Victor Rumsfeld is dead.”
     
    Alex blanched. He grin slid from his face. “I have a police scanner, and a friend in the coroner’s office.”
     
    When the chief raised an eyebrow, Alex started to stutter.
     
    “I heard the call on the scanner,” he said. “And I called my friend who told me that it was Victor the cops found murdered.”
     
    There was a collective gasp from the group and the word “murder” escaped from several mouths. The attention shifted from Alex to the chief, which is where Sadie thought it should have been from the beginning.
     
    The chief had his notebook out. “I’ll need the name of your contact at the coroner’s office,” he said.
     
    The color drained from Alex’s face. “He’ll lose his job,” he said in a hoarse voice.
     
    “And that would serve him right for leaking information during an active investigation,” the chief said. “You can either give me his name here, or I can take you down to the station and your lawyer can advise you to give me his name. You do realize that by refusing to give me the name you are implicating yourself in the murder?”
     
    “Oliver Olander,” Alex said, the words coming out in a rush. “I didn’t kill Victor, I swear. I may not care that he’s dead, but I’m not a murderer.”
     
    “We’ll see,” the chief said. He looked around the table. “I take it no one else here knew of Victor’s death until a few minutes ago?” There was a general shaking of heads. “I apologize for the way you learned the news. I would have told you in a more civilized manner than your friend here.” He waved his hand at Alex, who was looking studiously at the table. “I would like each of your names and contact information in case we need more information about Victor.”
     
    Girard pulled a piece of paper from his briefcase and wrote his contact information. Then he passed it to Gerry. While the list made its way around the table, the chief passed out business cards.
     
    “If you think of anything that might help us in our investigation,” he said, “please contact me.”
     
    There was agreement at the table, but Sadie noticed that neither Alex nor Girard joined the group of nodding heads.
     
    “I will send an officer to speak with each of you,” the chief said. “If you have out-of-town plans, please contact my office before you go. Again, I’m sorry for your loss and for the manner in which you learned about it.”  He looked pointedly at Alex, who had the decency to blush.
     
    The chief walked Sadie and Mr. B back to her car.
     
    “Where are you headed now?” he asked.
     
    “I thought maybe I’d go see the town mortician now. I want to ask him about the altercation he had with Victor. You never know, it might shed some light on his death.”
     
    “I hope he tells you more than he told my officers. He was pretty tight-lipped with them. But then everyone tells you more than my officers.” He leaned in through the window and kissed her lightly on the lips. “Take care of yourself.”
     
    Sadie watched the chief walk away. She was finding it harder and harder to tell the difference between when she should call him the chief and when she should call him Zack. The chief wasn’t supposed to kiss her, only Zack did that, and yet, he did. It was a self-imposed rule, but that only made it harder when she couldn’t follow it. She needed consistency, damn it.
     
    She was