A Ghostly Affair- Murder at Midnight by Mary Jane Forbes

Author:Mary Jane Forbes [Forbes, Mary Jane]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2019-03-09T22:00:00+00:00

Chapter 28

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LIZ ROLLED HER ORANGE lollipop back in the wrapper and dropped it in her shoulder bag. At the same time she retrieved the picture of Alexander Nicholas lying in the morgue and a slip of paper with a list of costume rental shops in the Daytona Beach area. If she didn’t hit pay dirt this morning she planned to widen the search into adjacent cities and towns.

Applying a fresh coat of raspberry stain to her lips, and with a smack, she smiled and trotted to the first shop on the list.

It was a bust. The manager was out of sorts and told her he didn’t have now and never had a Yogi Bear costume, and he never heard of a Grinch, green or any other color. Liz left the shop thinking all he had to do was look in the mirror to see a Grinch. Not missing a beat she strode in and out of the next three costume shops receiving the same message. However, the last shopkeeper suggested another costume rental place on Beach Street, in the back of the parking lot. A quick look at her cell for the time, she decided to hoof it.

The jingle of a tiny brass bell announced that she had entered the shop. The place was disorganized, boxes and pieces of costumes stashed helter-skelter—masks, boots, hats, pants, wigs, and much more.

“Yoo-hoo. Anybody here? Yoo-hoo.”

“Coming. One moment please.”

A young man, late twenties Liz guessed, emerged from behind a curtain of beads. He was juggling several boxes and a ballerina tutu under his arm. Liz made a note to tell the Springers about the beads. A curtain of beads would be a nice touch on the door to a very private psychic reading room.

“Can I help you? Sorry about the mess. My dad’s on vacation with my mom. He hired a temp, she kept screwing up, so things are—”

“Chaotic would be a good word,” Liz said politely with a warm smile. “I’m looking for two costumes—Yogi Bear and a Grinch. Would you happen to have them in stock?”

“My dad prides himself on having one of everything, or at least he can get it from other shops along the coast. Of course, Halloween is over. It’s our busiest day of the year you know, followed by New Year’s Eve.”

“I understand. Let’s start with Yogi Bear.”

“The problem is, my folks were caught in a tropical storm near Jamaica on their cruise. Terrible. So he wasn’t—”

“I understand—he wasn’t here on your busiest day. Is there any way of looking the costumes up? A sales receipt? A record of who rented what? My name is Liz, by the way.”

“Ahh, yes, I’m Jimmy. Who are you looking for…the name of the person who rented a costume?”

“Actually, it’s the other way around. Do you remember Yogi Bear? You know a big cartoon character? Or a Grinch, kinda large, very tall, bright green?”

“I think so. The way our bookkeeping works…I think if we look down the column for the costume there will be a name.

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