A Line To Murder (A Puget Sound Mystery) Read Online Free PDF Page B

table. I sat gratefully and enjoyed the relative quiet. Bees dipped in and out of the flowers; birds alternately crowded around a feeder or took a dip in a cement birdbath. The house and yard were full of people, emotions and life.
    When my sobs threatened to break out, I took a deep breath and held it. We’d been friends, Isca and I, accepting our differences, respecting, even enjoying them. We’d laughed and gossiped, argued sometimes, drifted apart and drifted back, like the last lazy recoils of a bungee cord. Inside, the extended Haines family drew together, comforted and seeking comfort from each other. For an extremely selfish moment, my loss felt greater than theirs.
    “Mercedes?” Behind me, Andy closed the door and took the empty seat on the other side of the table. “Are you okay?”
    I blinked the tears down onto my cheeks so I could see him better. “I was just about to leave but I did want to ask if I can I keep Jose, for a while?”
    “Excuse me?”
    “Jose. Can I hold on to him for a bit? I’ll give him to Dominic—he’s Dominic’s really, but he’s surprisingly good company. At least, he was when Isca had him.”
    “Yeah, I guess. I mean, I don’t think anyone else has given him any thought. Parrots are choosey about the people they bond with, you know. If you think you’ve, well, bonded, then sure, hold onto him for a while.”
    “Bonded!” I snorted. “What a stupid word.”
    Andy put his cup of coffee on the table. “Mercedes, I need to talk to you. Did you give your statement?”
    “Yes. Last night. Didn’t you?”
    “Yes. Last night and again this morning.”
    “Huh? How come?”
    “Listen. Do you remember how careful we were not to touch anything?”
    “Of course. You used that hanky. Why?”
    “You remember the hanky? Good. Now, do you remember Dominic’s room?”
    “I’d hardly be likely to forget.” In spite of the warmth, I shuddered involuntarily.
    “The door, I mean, whether I covered my hand or not.”
    I thought back. He’d seemed angry, for some reason, and pushed the door harder than necessary. He’d been impatient by then, anxious to leave. All those papers in the car probably. Then the flies buzzing in an orgasmic frenzy around the blood. The sound filling the silence as they lit and retreated, again and again. More of them, coming from nowhere, everywhere. Their wings were louder and louder….
    “Hey!” Andy jumped up and pushed my head down toward my knees. “Hey, don’t faint.”
    As he spoke, the buzzing sound faded. The blood was already rushing back. The scene in Isca’s bedroom began to slip away. After a moment, I sat up warily. The air felt strangely cold against the sheen of sweat on my face.
    “Thank you.”
    “I’m sorry.” He leaned against the railing. “I didn’t mean to upset you. But listen, I’m in trouble. I don’t think I opened Dominic’s door with my hanky. The latch never worked right and you didn’t need to turn the knob, just push the door. My print is on the door. The police found it sometime last night and came to see me early this morning.”
    “It could be an old print.”
    He ran his hand through his hair. “That’s why I need to know if you remember my doing that or not.”
    I thought for a moment. The whole scene was still indelibly etched in my brain. Perhaps because I’d trailed several steps behind him in the hall I remembered his extended hand clearly on every door, on every door but Dominic’s. I was slightly behind his left shoulder. The knob was on his right, waist-high. The door opened quickly and bounced off a metal stop, but I didn’t see how it was opened. My eyes were riveted on the bed. The foul odor of the room and Isca’s dead body cut my soul.
    I shook my head regretfully. “No, I don’t remember. I’m sorry. I guess I was too busy getting ready for the worst.”
    “Well, that’s that then. I’d hoped, but anyway…Well, and now I’m doubly screwed because when the police ask if you