02 - Still Waters by Tami Hoag

Author:Tami Hoag [Hoag, Tami]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Suspense, Fiction, Mystery Fiction, Police Procedural, Mystery & Detective, General, Kidnapping, Minnesota, Romance, Contemporary, Divorced Women - Minnesota, Reporters and Reporting, Women Newspaper Editors - Minnesota
ISBN: 9780553292725
Google: Ce_5LemIyJMC
Amazon: 0553292722
Publisher: Bantam
Published: 1976-01-02T06:00:00+00:00

ELIZABETH WHEELED HER ELDORADO INTO THE SERVICE drive of Shafer Motors and cut the engine. The business was located on the southwest side of town along the highway, to help attract customers, Elizabeth suspected, but there wasn’t any sign that the location was doing good today. In fact, most of the town had looked deserted as she drove down Main Street, devoid of locals at any rate. Two tour buses were parked in front of the Coffee Cup, and she had spotted a gaggle of tourists gawking and pointing as an Amish buggy clomped toward Hardware Hank’s. But the crowd was down at Our Savior to see Jarrold Jarvis put into the ground, and to feast on ham salad and German chocolate cake in the church basement afterward. All things considered, Elizabeth had decided it prudent to send Jo to observe the ritual.

She climbed out of the Caddy and took a long look at what Garth Shafer had done for himself after the partnership with Jarvis had gone awry. The building that housed the Ford dealership was by no means new or fancy. In fact, the cinder-block building looked badly in need of paint, the sea-green walls having turned a polluted shade over the years. A new gray Thunderbird was parked in the showroom window, but most of the cars on the lot appeared used.

The sign in the door proclaimed the place open, and Elizabeth let herself in quietly, hoping to get a look around before anyone came to sell her a car. The sound of power tools whined and wheezed from what was presumably the service garage. The manager’s office stood open and empty. Shafer himself was probably at the funeral with all the other hypocrites, Elizabeth thought, edging toward the office. She was wrong.

He came up behind her, quiet as a cat as she leaned into the office. Suddenly his reflection appeared in the window glass and Elizabeth jumped, clutching her heart, nearly crashing into him. He took a step away and she stumbled around and backed toward the Thunderbird, scrambling to compose herself as her heart rammed into her ribs like a paddleball.

“Oh, my Lord in heaven, you startled me!” she gasped, trying to laugh it off and seem friendly and innocent all at once.

He didn’t apologize, but stood there with a frighteningly large wrench in his hands and a carefully blank look in his dark eyes. He was a tall man, late forties to early fifties, who bore an unfortunate resemblance to Jack Palance. Unbidden, the lines from City Slickers came to Elizabeth’s mind: “Kill anyone today, Curly?” . . . Jack Palance smiles that chilling smile. “Day ain’t over yet.”

She rubbed her hand over the purse that rested against her hip, trying to take reassurance from the solid weight of the Desert Eagle tucked inside, trying not to imagine a situation where she would actually have to use it.

“Can I help you with something?”

“Well—a—you just might, sugar,” she said, pasting on a bright smile. “I might be in the market for a car soon.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.