Sinister Sudoku Read Online Free PDF

driveway. “Take it easy, Rusty,” she said. “I should be home in a little while.” All she got was a muffled woof from under the couch.
    Outside it was still cold, and that “snow is on the way” dampness just about smacked her in the face, backed up by an insistent breeze. Besides cutting right through her dressy clothes, it also blew her hair all over the place.
    “You look great,” Kevin said, rushing over to give her his arm.
    “I look like Cousin It from The Addams Family ,” Liza groused, tucking her arm through the crook of his elbow and huddling close, trying to use him as a windbreak.
    Flipping down the vanity mirror on her side, she tried to repair the damage as Kevin drove along the coastal highway toward the inn. Branches on the evergreens were already whipping around. The water of Killamook Bay looked as if it had been transformed to lead, except for the white-caps lashed up by the now howling wind.
    Snow began falling when they were about three-quarters of the way there. And this wasn’t the cute, lacey variety. No, these snowflakes were little white pellets that struck the rear windshield like tiny machine gun bullets.
    “I hope you don’t take offense,” Liza told Kevin, “but I think the sooner we finish supper, the better.”
    A sort of rough-hewn porte cochere protected them from the buffeting wind when they pulled up at the Killamook Inn’s main building. Kevin let one of the valets take his SUV and ushered Liza inside. The reception area was large, rustic, and blessedly warm. They had just stepped onto a rich length of carpeting on their way to the dining room when the assistant manager came rushing over from behind the reception desk.
    “Er, Kevin, we’ve got someone who registered—kind of a special guest—he’d like to meet with you, discuss the operation.” Kevin’s usually unflappable assistant looked as if his blazer didn’t fit right. He handed over a business card. Liza craned her head to get a look.
    “Frederick ‘Fritz’ Tarleton, Tarleton Tours,” she read aloud. “Father of our little Ritz, I suppose.”
    “Head of one of the biggest high-end tourism outfits in the country.” Kevin glanced from the card to Liza and actually bit his lip. Liza could see the conflict—business versus having a personal life. If he sat down in the dining room with Tarleton, he lost his time with Liza, and maybe the wonderful lamb dish if the big shot was demanding enough.
    With a quick glance at his watch, Kevin asked, “Where is Mr. Tarleton?”
    “In his room,” the assistant replied.
    Kevin nodded. “Let’s see if I can catch him there.” He turned to Liza. “Would you mind waiting a little bit?”
    “Hey, in my previous life, that was part of the job description,” she assured him. She left Kevin, who walked back to the reception area with his number-two man while shooting his sleeves—Kevin’s equivalent of girding his loins for business battle.
    Liza went to the dining room entrance and checked her coat. Glancing into the large room, she saw only a couple of tables occupied. The oversized fireplace in the far wall held an enormous log surrounded by kindling, but it hadn’t been lit yet.
    “Not enough of an audience for the floor show,” she muttered. Well, that was the way Kevin described the nightly fireplace ritual.
    The maitre d’ approached with his usual effusive greeting, and Liza raised both hands. “Kevin has to take care of something,” she said. “I think I’ll wait in the bar.” Liza managed to sidestep into the bar, preventing the man from turning her arrival into an “entrance.” The long, dimly lit room also had customers, people enjoying predinner drinks or looking for some cocktail camaraderie.
    She avoided the bar itself, heading to the row of tables down the wall where she hoped to find an inconspicuous seat. The farther along she got, the dimmer the lights became. Liza stopped, resting her hand on the back of a seat.
    “Sorry,” a