Murder in the Mist Read Online Free PDF Page A

with Corbin. Apparently, clothes and a suitcase were missing, and some money stolen from her mother’s cookie jar”—Phyllis shrugged—“that sort of thing.”
    “What happened? Didn’t her parents pursue it further?”
    “Nothing happened. Sally was a change-of-life baby. Her parents were in their late fifties when she was born. By the time she disappeared, they were on the high side of seventy. Mr. Wentworth slipped and hit his head down at the fishing docks. Never regained consciousness. Mrs. Wentworth left Cole Harbor shortly after the funeral. We all thought the strain of losing her daughter and her husband was too much, and she went back to wherever they had come from. Case closed and, subsequently, forgotten. But Sally’s disappearance stuck in my mind.” Phyllis grimaced. “I always had visions of Corbin cutting poor Sally into pieces and feeding her to the sharks. My teenage imagination working overtime, I suppose.”
    Laura felt a quick sympathy for the sorrow she saw in her aunt’s eyes, and warmed toward her. “Have you tried searching on the Internet?”
    “I have not.”
    “Don’t you use a computer for your business?”
    “It takes a while for an old war horse to get into the race. I’m taking lessons at the library. Once I feel comfortable with what I’m doing, I may buy a computer. Until then, I’ll depend on you to search for Sally.”
    Laura opened the laptop to a search engine and typed in the girl’s name. When no hits came up, she tried another tactic. “Hmm, nothing comes up for Sally Wentworth. Let me try white pages?”
    “Humor your ole aunt. What is—white pages?”
    Laura offered a squinty smile. “It’s an informational site that lists the names, addresses and phone numbers of individuals and businesses. In fact, it also shows a map for people to find you. I’ll bet both you and the bookstore are listed.”
    “By Godfrey, is nothing sacred anymore?”
    Laura ignored the question. In the search space she typed Corbin Drake. “Aha. Mystery solved. Prepare to be disappointed.”
    “So quick. The wonders of modern technology.” A frown wrinkled Phyllis’ forehead. “Why should I be disappointed?”
    Laura turned the computer for her aunt to view the screen. She came around the desk, and leaned over to point at the page. “Corbin Drake. Living in the same household: spouse, Sally Wentworth Drake. Approximate age, sixty-five. Address: Washington State.” She patted her aunt on the shoulder. “Sorry, it appears your mystery girl and her bad-biker boyfriend eloped and are living happily ever after.”
    Phyllis huffed. “By Godfrey, this frustrates me to no end. It proves Maudie’s theory was right. She will never let me live this down.”
    Laura drifted to the large picture window. “Who is the man sitting in the gazebo?”
    Phyllis frowned as she followed Laura’s gaze. “Benjamin Noone. He’s the city groundskeeper and handyman. I once called him Ben, and he let me know right quick-like that his name is Benjamin. Strange duck.”
    “How so?”
    “A loner, mostly. Comes into the bookstore once in a while. Mostly, I think he comes in for the heat in winter and air conditioning in summer. Seems to enjoy reading about flowers and fertilizers.” She wrinkled her nose and gave an exaggerated shudder. “He should actually do a study on the benefits of taking a bath. Whenever people greet him, sometimes he’ll respond, other times not. Lives in an old cabin close to the national park. He moved here about ten years ago. On occasion, he’ll show up at one of the festivals, or the Christmas program at the church over there—for the free food, is my guess. For whatever reason, Maudie takes pity on him. Every morning she walks out to the gazebo with a cup of coffee and a bagel. And every morning, for at least an hour, he sits in the gazebo and stares out over the bay.
    “I can say one thing in his favor, he is an excellent gardener and keeps the town square clean as a