The Suspect Read Online Free PDF Page B

the bedroom."
    George looked at him sharply. "Is it dead, too?"
    Gainer was nonplussed. "No, sir, " he said. "It's fine, I think."
    "What are you going to do with it?" George demanded.
    Alberg watched him, curious.
    Gainer glanced at the staff sergeant. "Call the S.P.C.A., I guess. Unless he—Mr. Burke—maybe he's got a friend, or a relative—" '
    "We'll take care of it,” said Alberg.
    George turned away from them. "That's it," he said. "Can't tell you anything else.”
    "Okay, then, Mr. Wilcox. We can get out of here now.”
    "Fingerprints,” said George, on the front steps. "You'll want my fingerprints, I guess. For comparison."
    Alberg led him up the path toward the hedge and stopped halfway to the gate. He could see the police investigation ribbon strung across it. "First of all, Mr. Wilcox," he said, "why did you happen to call on Mr. Burke today? You say you don't come here often. Why today?"
    George Wilcox shrugged. "Spur of the moment. It was one of those spur-of-the-moment things.”
    "Did you bring him a salmon? On the spur of the moment?"
    George looked astonished. "What would I be doing with a salmon?"
    "Maybe you caught it. Do you fish, Mr. Wilcox?"
    "I'm a gardener, Staff Sergeant, not a fisherman. I'm not fond of fish, myself."
    "Okay," said Alberg equally. "Now, would you tell us, please, where you were today, and what you were doing, before you came here to see Mr. Burke."
    Gainer pulled a notebook from his jacket and clicked open his ballpoint pen. George, hearing this, shot him an irritated glance.
    "It would be a great help," said Alberg smoothly. "Start from when you got up and just go through your day for us."
    George shoved his hands in his pockets and looked down at the gravel path. "I got up early. Around seven. Went out to turn the sprinkler on in my garden." He looked up. "Best time of the day to water, early morning. You wait until the sun's hot, the plants get burned.”
    Alberg stored this information away. It might be useful, in the unlikely event that he should ever find it necessary to water his jungle.
    "Let's see." George Wilcox looked up at the sky. "Then I had breakfast. A bun and some coffee and I think an orange. By this time the paper had come, so I had some more coffee and read it." He looked at Alberg. "You really want to hear all this?"
    Alberg smiled. "Please.”
    "He's not writing much of it down.” He glared at Freddie Gainer.
    "I use a kind of shorthand,” said Gainer apologetically.
    "What time was it when you finished your second cup of coffee?" said Alberg.
    George thought about this. "Must have been about nine o'clock. Then I turned on the radio. I don't want to hear anybody talking to me until I've had two cups of coffee and read the paper. Then, it's okay, it's company. So I turned on the radio. And then what did I do." He considered. He turned quickly to Alberg. "I forgot to tell you. When I went out to get the paper, I turned off the sprinkler. That would be about eight o'clock. An hour's plenty of watering? He looked relaxed, almost mischievous, and Alberg felt a spurt of annoyance.
    "Very good, Mr. Wilcox," he said calmly. "And how did you spend the rest of your morning?"
    George turned away restlessly, as though suddenly tired of the game. "I worked out in my garden, that's what I did. I weeded and dead-headed, planted some more annuals. Used to grow my own annuals, when I had a greenhouse. Anyway, I planted some, mostly in the back, and—oh, I sprayed, too. Got some aphids on the goddamn roses, and the broccoli. Came inside at noontime, washed up, changed my clothes, got me some lunch—you want to know what I ate?" he said, aggressively.
    Alberg, who didn't, said that he did.
    "Vegetable soup, four soda crackers, three pieces of cheese, and a glass of milk," said George Wilcox, angry. "And I took my vitamins then, too, in case you're interested. Did my dishes. It'd be about one o'clock now, I guess. Then I lay down for an hour. I usually lie down for an hour,