Fillet of Murder Read Online Free PDF Page A

flu she’d endured this past winter. She hated to admit it, but Turnbull frightened her.
    Which was ridiculous, when she thought about it. Turnbullwas a bully, and bullies were cowards in disguise. Besides, even if her ultimatum bombed, what could he do? Scream? Wave his arms? Toss her out?
    Oh, for pity’s sake, get it over with. You’ll feel so much better after it’s done.
    Talia hitched her purse straps securely onto her shoulder and, with her head high, marched up to the front entrance of Classic Radiance. Her legs felt shaky, as if her kneecaps had been suddenly removed and replaced with dollops of Bea’s mushy peas. Cupping her hand over her eyes, she peered through the diamond-patterned glass ensconced within the top half of the wooden door. The store was dark, but she could see the myriad outlines of the lamps and chandeliers that populated the showroom. A faint glow emanated from somewhere in the rear of the store. If a light was on in one of the back rooms, then Turnbull must be there.
    Talia swallowed back the knob of dread that was forming in her throat. She was about to bang on the door when she decided to try the handle. To her surprise, the curved iron bar that served as the doorknob turned easily. She pushed open the door and stepped inside to a musical, tinkling sound. “Mr. Turnbull?” she called out. “Are you here?”
    No answer.
    Talia closed the door behind her. She skimmed her gaze over the showroom. The room wasn’t pitch dark, but the low level of ambient lighting made everything look murky. For a few moments she stood there, motionless, fearful that if she moved in the wrong direction, she might knock over an expensive lamp. She hated to think of Turnbull’s reaction if she were to break something.
    â€œMr. Turnbull?” she called again, a bit louder this time. “It’s Talia. Talia Marby.”
    Still no answer.
    Frustrated, she blew out a breath. After mulling her choices, she decided she had two. She could slink out of the store and pretend she’d never been there. Or she could head on down to the back of the store, find Turnbull, and have a little confab with him. It suddenly occurred to her that he might be in the bathroom. Which meant that even if he’d heard her yelling his name, he might not be in a position to—
    The musical sound of the door made Talia jump.
    â€œTalia?” The loud whisper came from behind her.
    Talia knew that voice. She whirled around. “Bea! What are you doing here? You scared the liver out of me!”
    â€œA better question is, what are
you
doing here?” Bea stuck her hands on her hips and gawked at Talia. “I’d just poked my head out to see what the weather was doing when I saw you open the door and come in here! How did you know the door would be open?”
    â€œI didn’t. It was sheer luck.” By now Talia’s eyes were beginning to adjust to the darkened showroom. With a sigh, she quickly laid out her plan for Bea. “I didn’t want to tell you because I knew you’d want to come with me, and you have enough on your plate as it is.”
    Bea shook her black-tinted curls and grinned. “You crazy girl.” The last word came out
gehhllll
. “Well, now that I’m here, there’s no need for you to go in there alone. Let’s go find Turn
bully
and give him a piece of our collective mind. Or is it minds?”
    â€œIf he’s heard us,” Talia said wryly, “he’s probably already called nine-one-one.”
    Bea peered toward the rear of the store. “Is that a light on in the back?”
    â€œI’m not sure. It’s awfully faint. I called out Turnbull’s name a few times, but he obviously didn’t hear me.”
    Talia now saw that they were standing in a central aisle, about four feet wide, covered with a plush oriental runner. The runner led from the front of the showroom all the way to the rear of the