Death in a Beach Chair Read Online Free PDF Page A

prevented Jed from finishing. He opened the door to discover that the wanderer had returned.
    “Jerry was walking on the beach!” Kathleen announced, appearing at her husband’s side.
    “I didn’t mean to make anyone worry—especially this anyone. I thought I would be back before the kayakers returned,” Jerry said, putting his arm around his wife’s shoulder and pulling her closer.
    “How is the beach?” Jed asked, grabbing a paperback from the pile by the bed.
    “Gorgeous. We should all head up there after lunch, but right now I’m going for a quick dip in the pool and then taking a nap. I’m exhausted.”
    “Must be this fresh air,” Susan said, following her husband’s example and choosing some reading material before following him out of the cottage. “I’m planning on reading for a while, swimming for a while, and then, perhaps, I’ll feel as though I deserve to nap,” she explained.
    “James reserved the four lounges right outside our cabin for us,” Kathleen said, heading in that direction.
    “That’s awfully sunny. Why don’t we sit down by the pool? Those umbrellas will keep us from getting baked,” Jerry suggested.
    “I think there are only three lounges available down there,” Susan said, counting.
    “I’ll take a chair and you three can lie down,” Jerry offered, starting off to the pool. “Last one in the water buys the rum punch!” he called back over his shoulder.
    Jed hurried after his friend, but Susan waited a moment. Kathleen didn’t seem in a hurry to join them. “Kath? Are you coming?” she prompted when her friend didn’t move.
    “I . . .” Kathleen looked up toward the bright blue cabin she and Jerry shared. “I think I’ll call home first. I just want to make sure Jerry’s mom knows where I keep the—the boxed fruit juice.”
    “Are you all right?” Susan asked.
    “Yes. Definitely. I just want to make sure everything at home is okay. You know how it is.”
    Susan smiled. She did know. It was sensational to be away from your children for a while, but that didn’t mean that they weren’t missed. “We’ll see you down by the pool then.”
    The freshwater swimming pool had been built on a large deck overlooking the ocean. Lined with bright blue tiles, the pool had a mosaic of a coconut palm tree decorating its bottom. Jed was busy arranging the beach towels to his satisfaction. Jerry was already in the water, lying on a bright orange float with his eyes closed. Susan chose a coral-colored lounge near her husband and looked around for a side table to place between them. An attractive, young black man, who apparently could read minds, appeared with two side tables and put one on either side of the Henshaws. “Did you have a good kayak trip?” he asked politely.
    “Yes, excellent.” Susan smiled up at him and placed her book, sunglasses, and two tubes of sunscreen on the closest table. “Don’t you think we should be tipping all these helpful people?” she asked her husband, when they were alone again.
    “Why don’t we tip them all on the day we leave? Otherwise we’ll be passing out money every time we turn around.”
    Susan leaned back in her seat, adjusted her sunglasses, picked up the latest Katherine Hall Page mystery, sighed twice, closed her eyes, and fell asleep.
    When she woke up a bit later, she was vaguely aware of being in a strange place. The skin across her shoulders was hot from the sun, but the air was soft and balmy. She picked out familiar voices from the hum around her. Jed and Jerry might be on vacation, but they seemed to be discussing a colleague from the office. She opened her mouth to protest and then shut it again. Everyone had his or her own way to relax. If they wanted to chat about the problems they had left behind, fine. She had her own ideas. A notice on the dresser in their cottage had explained how to make reservations for a massage. Her arms, stiff from the few hours she’d spent paddling around in the kayak, could