Hour Game Read Online Free PDF

like you, Michelle.”
    Michelle smiled. Harry
was
quite the gentleman, and a charmer.
    He insisted on making them tea and served it in delicately worn china cups with matching saucers. Then he settled down between them.
    “Junior Deaver,” prompted King.
    “And the Battles,” said Harry.
    “Sounds like an odd couple,” remarked Michelle.
    “The oddest,” agreed Harry. “Bobby Battle was brilliant and as tough as nails. He made his fortune through his own sweat and brains. His wife, Remmy, is as fine a lady as I know. And she’s made of steel too. She’d have to be, being married to Bobby.”
    Michelle looked at him curiously. “You said ‘was.’ Is Bobby Battle deceased?”
    “No, but he suffered a massive stroke recently. Not too long before the incident Junior is accused of, in fact. Not sure of his recovery prospects just yet.”
    “Is that the whole family, Bobby and Remmy?” asked Michelle.
    “No, there’s a son, Edward Lee Battle, though everybody calls him Eddie. He’s about forty. Bobby’s full name is Robert E. Lee Battle. We aren’t related. Lee was a given name for him, quite common in these parts, as I’m sure you can understand. There was another son, Bobby Jr., Eddie’s twin. He died of cancer when he was a teenager.”
    “Then there’s Eddie’s wife, Dorothea. And Eddie’s younger sister, Savannah,” added King. “She just finished up college, I understand.”
    “You said Eddie’s about forty and yet Savannah just graduated from college?” asked Michelle.
    Harry said, “Well, Savannah was somewhat of a surprise. Remmy was over forty when that little bundle of joy arrived. Ironically, Remmy and Bobby were separated for some time before Savannah was born, and looked headed toward divorce.”
    “What was the problem?” asked King.
    “Remmy caught him with another woman, a prostitute. It wasn’t the first time; Bobby had an appalling affinity for those types. That was all hushed up back then. I really thought that was going to be the last straw, but then they patched things up.”
    “A baby will do that for you,” said King.
    “Do they all live together?” asked Michelle.
    Harry shook his head. “Bobby, Remmy and Savannah live in the big house. Eddie and Dorothea live next door in what was the estate’s carriage house, but which is now a separate piece of property. I’ve heard rumors that Savannah may move away.”
    “I imagine some of her trust fund is due upon her college graduation,” said King.
    “And probably none too soon for her,” said Harry.
    “I take it she doesn’t get along with her parents?” said Michelle.
    “Let’s put it this way: Bobby was very much an absent father, and she and Remmy are both strong, independent women, meaning they don’t agree on much.”
    “What do Eddie and Dorothea do?” asked Michelle.
    Harry answered. “Eddie’s a professional artist and avid Civil War reenactor. Dorothea has her own real estate firm and does quite well.” Harry gave Michelle a mischievous grin. “Folks in the Battles’ social circle change domestic partners at an alarming rate and thus are often in the market for new and ever more luxurious housing. While good to Dorothea’s pocketbook, it must give the woman fits remembering who’s with whom on a day-to-day basis.”
    “Sounds a little like Peyton Place,” said Michelle.
    “Oh, we left Peyton Place in the dust years ago,” said Harry.
    “And now we come to Junior,” added King.
    Harry put down his teacup and reached for a file on his desk. “Junior was doing some construction work for the Battles. Specifically, work in Remmy’s bedroom closet. He’s good; he’s even done some work for me here, and for lots of people in the area.”
    “And the crime he’s accused of?” asked King.
    “Burglary. There was a hidden cupboard in Remmy’s closet where she kept jewelry, cash and other valuables. It was burglarized and the contents emptied. And there was also a secret cache in Bobby’s