Bed & Breakfast 15 - Creeps Suzette by Mary Daheim

Author:Mary Daheim [Daheim, Mary]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Mary Daheim
Publisher: Unknown
Published: 2010-03-22T04:00:00+00:00

“You bet. It’s pretty soft, if you don’t mind putting up with a lot of guff from the swells. The pay’s not bad, the Christmas bonuses are good, especially the ones that come in a big fancy bottle from the liquor store, and there are some other bennies, too, if you know what I mean.”

“Like what?”

“Oh—I guess you could call ’em tokens of appreciation. No big deal, but it’s the thought that counts, right?”

“So tell me about last night. Is that your log?”

“Yeah. The deputy told me to bring it along. Wanna see it?”

“That’s the general idea,” Edwina said sarcastically. There was a pause, apparently for the transfer of the log. Judith twisted around, trying to get a different view. She saw the partial outline of a hefty man in jeans and a denim jacket.

“I see several names I don’t recognize,” Edwina said. “Apparently, they went to other homes in Sunset Cliffs.”

“Yeah, visitors. I don’t log the regulars, I just wave ’em through.”

“Can you recall which members of the Burgess family came through the gatehouse during your shift?”

Another pause ensued. “Mr. Burgess—Wayne Burgess—came in about six, a little earlier than usual. He works late downtown most nights. He had his driver and the limo. The limo went back out about ten minutes later.”

“Without Wayne Burgess?”

CREEPS SUZETTE / 153

“I guess. It’s got those tinted windows. It’s hard to tell, especially after it starts getting dark.”

“Who else?”

“The young guy, Mrs. Hillman’s son, walked through a few minutes after the limo went out. That must’ve been about six-thirty.”

“Walked through?”

“Right. He don’t drive. He takes the bus when he comes from his place in town. Hell, the bus stop ain’t that far from here.”

“Did he go out again last night?”

“Nope.”

“Who was next?”

“Um…the redheaded kid with the pizza truck. That was later, eight, eight-thirty. Bop, they call him. Real friendly, not all snooty like the rest of ’em. Oh—and the girl. She lives up north. I forget her name.”

“She drove?”

Jack chuckled, a rumbling sound that ended in a cough.

“Would you believe it? She doesn’t drive, either, so she hitchhikes. I always wonder if somebody who picked her up would find out how much money there was in the family and hold her for ransom.”

“Hitchhiking is dangerous,” Edwina allowed. “But it does explain why we never found her car. What time did Caroline Flaherty arrive?”

“That’s her name? I guess I still think of her as Carrie Ward. I remember when her dad got killed by that hit-andrun driver. She was real tore up.”

“The time?” Edwina persisted.

“Time? Oh—Carrie. Ten, ten-thirty, maybe? I’m not real sure. I was getting kind of beat.”

“Anyone else?”

“The doctor. He don’t live here, but he might as well. I always wave him through, just like family.”

“What time?”

“Uh—eleven-thirty, eleven-forty-five?”

154 / Mary Daheim

“No. That’s wrong. Dr. Moss was dead by then. Think again.”

“Well, then it must have been more like eleven-fifteen.” A truculent note had edged into Moody’s voice.

“Do you recall anybody else?”

“The cops. The medics. All those emergency types. Then Hank Ferguson came along for the midnight to six shift, so I took off.

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