Murder and Salutations Read Online Free PDF

said, “Guess what? We’re going to stay at Lillian’s tonight.”
    Oggie protested with a yowl and bolted from the room. I looked at Nash and asked, “Aren’t you going to follow suit?”
    I was ignored once again, so I took advantage of it and gathered up a few of my own things before putting them in their carriers. By the time I was ready to go, Sara Lynn had undoubtedly reconsidered her offer.
    “ You’re probably right,” she said as we walked out of the house. “I don’t think your cats would enjoy my place.”
    “ They appreciate your offer, though,” I said. Lying to my sister was getting to be a habit tonight. My two bandits could not have cared less for my sister’s generosity.
    After I got the cats situated in the backseat of my Gremlin, we were ready to go. When we got to Sara Lynn’s house, I hit the dome light and saw that both cats were sound asleep. Sometimes traveling in their carriers agitated them. When I was lucky, though, the motion of the car, coupled with the darkness, acted like a rocking bassinet on a baby and knocked them out cold. They were absolutely adorable, especially when they were sound asleep. I locked the car and joined Sara Lynn at her front door. It appeared that every light in her house was turned on, lighting it up like a luminary at Christmas.
    “ Wow, I’d hate to see your electric bill this month,” I said, then I looked at my sister. “Sara Lynn, what’s wrong?”
    “ When I left here tonight, every light in the house was turned off.”

Chapter 3

    That was hard to imagine, given the current state of illumination. “Are you sure?”
    She didn’t even offer me a withering look— something that spoke volumes. “I’m positive.”
    “ Could Bailey have come by after you two talked tonight at Hurley’s?”
    “ No, he gave me his keys yesterday when he left. That was part of our arrangement. He isn’t supposed to enter the house again unless I’m here.”
    I couldn’t imagine Bailey defying her. My sister might have been petite, but she had a tongue sharp enough to wilt kudzu.
    She hesitated, her key hovering near the lock. I put my hand on hers. “Listen, if you’re worried about it, we can call Bradford. I’m sure he’ll come right over.”
    Sara Lynn paused a moment, then said, “No, he’s got enough to worry about tonight without trotting over here. I’m sure it’s all perfectly innocent.”
    She unlocked her front door and pushed it in. I was right behind her, but I suddenly wished I’d brought my softball bat along with us for protection. It was amazing how the heft of that aluminum club could fill me with confidence. My sister wasn’t empty-handed, though. As soon as the door was unlocked, she dove into her handbag and pulled out a vial of pepper spray with one hand and a stun gun with the other. Maybe I wouldn’t need my bat after all.
    For some reason I’d been expecting the living room to be trashed, as if the burglars had turned on every light in the house while they ransacked it. Instead, it was as neat as it had ever been, and I felt myself relax. Sara Lynn wasn’t quite so trusting though. I followed my older sister from room to room until we were both satisfied that nothing had been touched and no one was lurking in a corner for us. It was pretty clear she was still troubled by the lights, but since nothing else appeared to have been disturbed, I was ready to write it off as one of her senior moments of forgetfulness. She went through the house, flipping switches off as she neatly packed an overnight bag, and we were at the door ready to leave when she said, “I need to check one more thing before we go.”
    “ Sara Lynn, we looked under every bed and inside every closet. There’s nobody here.”
    “ Be patient, Jennifer, this will just take a second.” She walked into the kitchen, so I followed her, curious to see what place she felt we’d ignored in our search. She stopped at her pantry—really nothing more than a small