Murder in the Devil's Cauldron Read Online Free PDF

and
decided to empty it now. No point giving her mother something else
to get upset about.
    She hadn't really packed the duffel bag
carefully. It had simply been a handy place to toss all the small
stuff and last minute things. So now she simply tipped the bag out
onto the bed so she could sort through everything. Only then did
she remember she had tossed her jar of coins in there. She dropped
the bag immediately, but it was too late. The jar hit the bed and
money scattered everywhere - under the bed, the desk and into the
closet.
    "Rats!"
    She checked the time. Maybe if she worked
really fast, she could have it all picked up before her mother
returned. Hoping she wouldn't come back early, Starr began by
dragging the desk away from the wall and scooped up several
quarters and dimes. Then she pulled the bookcase away from the wall
and picked up the coins that had hidden there. However, when she
tried to move the bed, it was too heavy. Getting down on her hands
and knees, she peered underneath and saw glints of silver just out
of reach. She flattened herself onto her tummy and wriggled under
the bed. It was a bit of a stretch, but she finally managed to snag
everything. As she started wriggling back out, she heard her
mother's voice screeching at her.
    "What in the hell have you been doing!"
    Startled, Starr bumped her head. She hadn't
had time to put everything back yet and as she emerged from under
the bed, she realized it looked as if a mini tornado had ripped
through her room.
    "I dropped my coin jar," she said as she sat
up and pushed her hair out of her face. "I'll put everything
back."
    "Jesus Christ." Her mother put one hand up,
covering her eyes. She sighed and then looked at Starr. "Honestly,
Stella. I can't even leave you alone for an hour. You're a disaster
waiting to happen. God!" She looked at her watch and sighed again.
"Jesus! Get washed up. You'll have to take care of all this after
dinner."
    Chastened, Starr washed her hands and
followed her mother up to the Lodge. Now that it was getting dark,
little solar powered lights were coming on to mark the way. As they
came around a bend, Starr saw that the Lodge was outlined with
strands of fairy lights that made it look like it was floating on a
dark sea like a castle out of a story.
    The entry door was carved and heavy and she
half expected it to creak madly when her mother pulled it open, but
it swung open quietly, exposing dark wooden beams and thick
oriental rugs that made it feel even more like a castle.
Overwhelmed, Starr tried to look everywhere at the same time, but
there was too much to see and all she really got was an impression
of elegance and size.
    She could see the dining room straight ahead,
but her mother led her down a hallway next to the front desk. Starr
could hear the rattle of pans as they passed a set of double doors
and several waiters came bursting out carrying huge platters,
crossed the hall and then went into what she figured out was
probably the main dining room. At the end of the hallway, Starr saw
a small room with a buffet.
    "This is where you'll pick up your meals,"
her mother told her. "You need to pay attention because you'll be
on your own for breakfast and lunch."
    She opened a door across from the end of the
buffet line and Starr saw a small area with tables. Beyond it she
could see the main dining room. "This is the only place you're
allowed to sit," her mother said. "I don't ever want to catch you
in the big dining room. That's only for guests."
    There weren't very many tables and Starr
looked at them doubtfully. "What if all the tables are full?" she
asked.
    "Then take your tray back to the cabin and
eat there. We'll eat here tonight, but most of the time we'll bring
dinner back to the cabin."
    "Why don't we eat dinner here, too?" Starr
asked. She liked the cozy tables and homey atmosphere. Plus, eating
dinner with her mother was like trying to walk through her old
neighborhood without getting beaten up. It would be a lot nicer