Marty Ambrose - Mango Bay 01 - Peril in Paradise Read Online Free PDF

morning. Nothing had changed or
been disturbed.

    Except me.
    I’d come to Coral Island because I wanted to start a
new life, find some sense of stability in my existence.
Put roots down for a change. But nothing was turning out
like I’d planned.
    “Hey, Mallie”
    I peered through the darkness to see Wanda Sue
strolling toward me, her neon spandex shorts with
matching top forming a beacon in the night. She was the
owner of Twin Palms RV Resort and, from what I’d
been able to observe, one of the biggest all-time gossips
on the island. “Hi”
    “I heard about Jack Hillman. Can you believe it?
Someone actually killed him.” She clucked her tongue
and shook her head, the upswept beehive hairdo remaining firmly in place.
    I blinked in amazement, both at her words and the
bright yellow color of her outfit. It radiated more wattage
than a three-way bulb. “How did you hear about it already?”
    “My friend, Joanna, works at the fire department.
She heard it from the guys.”
    “Oh” What could I say? It was a small island.
    “Nothing like that ever happens on quiet ole Coral
Island. You could’ve knocked me down with a feather
when I heard the news.”
    “Me too”
    “And you were the one to find him?” Her voice
turned sympathetic.

    “Joanna told you that too?”
    She nodded. “Poor you” Her voice turned sympathetic. “That must’ve been a shock like all getout. Why, I
would’ve been shaking in my shoes and scared half out of
my wits.”
    “It was pretty upsetting.” If I turned into a motor
mouth when I was excited or nervous, Wanda Sue turned
into a cliche convention when she latched onto a juicy
tidbit of scandal.
    “I gotta tell ya, I’m not surprised, though”
    “What do you mean?”
    Wanda Sue leaned in closer, her voice lowering into
hushed tones. “It was only a matter of time before
someone did Hillman in.”
    “Really?” My interest sparked. “He had a lot of enemies on the island?”
    “Enemies? Honey, they were practically hanging
from the trees like snipers. If I’d been him, I would’ve
never left my house without one of them bullet-proof
vests that SWAT-team guys wear.”
    “I heard he had a reputation as a womanizer.” I
dropped the words as if they were a baited hook, just
waiting for Wanda Sue to chomp and take off.
    “Womanizer?” She laughed with a loud, short laugh.
“That man had more women than a dog has fleas. And
they weren’t all his, if you get my meaning.”
    “Can you give me any names?”
    Wanda Sue tapped her chin. “He has some young
blond writer hanging around now-“

    “Chrissy?”
    “Yep, that’s her name. But before her, there was Nora Cresswell-wife of a local fisherman. Her husband,
Pete, ran a shrimp boat” She reached into her shirt
pocket and pulled out a roll of Lifesavers. “Unfortunately, he hired some guys who did illegal fishing and
the Coast Guard arrested the lot of them. When Pete
was in jail, Hillman moved in on Nora”
    “Nice timing.”
    “She wasn’t the first” Wanda Sue popped a wintergreen mint into her mouth.
    “What happened to Nora?”
    “She’s living on her own-“
    A scratching sound interrupted our conversation.
    “Ohmygosh, I forgot about Kong,” I exclaimed, reaching for the door of my Airstream. As soon as I opened it,
my tiny apricot-colored teacup poodle bounded down
the stairs and started circling Wanda Sue as he growled
low in his throat, at least what could pass for a growl
from a three-pound hairy mop of a pooch. “I’m sorry. He
gets a little crazed when he’s cooped up too long.”
    I grabbed the leash that I’d left on the picnic table
and hooked it on his collar.
    “Of course he does, honey. You take him for a walk
and put that scoundrel Hillman right out of your mind,”
Wanda Sue said. She leaned down and attempted to pat
him on the head. He growled louder. “What a sweet
doggie.”
    He stomped his miniscule paws on her feet.

    “Kong, stop