Yarned and Dangerous Read Online Free PDF Page A

clothes. Today, she’d rolled off the couch, brushed her teeth and splashed some water on her face, and thrown her hair back into a ponytail. She felt a little naked, but it was liberating at the same time.
    Josie pulled the list she’d made last night out of her pocket and reviewed. Number one item for getting this shop closed down: Set up computer. She opened her laptop and set it on the counter. She hunted around until she located a phone jack and plugged in. Hoping Cora had an Internet connection (and that somebody had paid the bill for it since she’d been gone), Josie booted up and crossed her fingers. Bingo! She was online—a feat that had proved impossible at the farmhouse, so far. If Cora had installed Internet capabilities at the house, Eb didn’t know about it. Or was too ornery to tell her.
    Number two, start making an inventory of the store goods. Eb had told her there was a back room on the first floor, as well as an empty apartment upstairs where Cora might have stashed her excess. A glance around told Josie there was only one interior doorway, so that must lead to the storeroom. Taking a deep breath, she opened the door and flipped on the lights.
    To her left was a bathroom. Thank goodness. Now she wouldn’t have to walk down to Lorna’s when the need arose. Beyond that was a large room lined in shelves. Cardboard boxes full of old books, patterns, and various types of yarn were stacked on the shelves. As she moved around the room, her heart sank. This was a huge job, and she had no idea how to put a price on any of the stock. But there was nothing for it but to get down to work.
    In one dim corner stood a tower of boxes as tall as she was, all marked C ASHMERE in black ink. Mmm, cashmere sweaters . So soft, light, and warm. That seemed as good a place to start as any. Pulling the top box off the stack, she set it on the floor. The movement must have disturbed the balance of the stack because it began to teeter. Josie put out her arms to try to steady it, then jumped back as the boxes tumbled over. She landed hard on her bottom on the unforgiving wooden floor.
    There was no time to worry about whether she’d broken anything. She was too shocked at what had been uncovered when the tower fell. Scrambling to her feet, she moved closer.
    A woman lay atop a bier of open boxes. Face pale and still as that of a statue, her gray head rested on a pillow made of skeins of fluffy yarn. A blue, tightly twisted cord was wrapped around her neck, the tassel end fanned out and situated precisely in the center of her ample bosom.
    Josie stifled the urge to scream. She’d met this woman, if only briefly, the day before. Lillian Woodruff. One of the women who’d tried to buy the shop. The one who’d accused Josie of taking advantage of Uncle Eb. Josie ran to the front of the store and punched 911 into the keypad of the phone on the counter. “Send an ambulance to Miss Marple Knits. And hurry.”

Chapter 4
    J osie’s stomach roiled as she disconnected the call and returned, reluctantly, to the storeroom. Could she help the woman? She had no first-aid skills beyond basic peel-and-stick bandages. To her untrained eye, the woman appeared stone dead. Lillian’s skin was as gray as her hair, her chest was not rising and falling, and she hadn’t so much as twitched. Should Josie cover her up? Start CPR? Mouth-to-mouth? She shuddered, then looked at her watch, a gift from Otto to her last Christmas. How long would it take for someone with medical skills to get here? She shouldn’t disturb the crime scene, that much she knew.
    The sound of the bells at the front door caused her heart to jump into her throat, but then she breathed a sigh of relief and headed for the front. A uniformed police officer stood there. The woman was petite, with her dark hair pulled back into a rather severe bun. She unzipped her winter jacket and put her gloves in the pockets.
    â€œThe