Dead Case in Deadwood by Ann Charles

Author:Ann Charles
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Publisher: Corvallis Press
Published: 2012-03-11T00:03:59+00:00

Chapter Fourteen

“God damn it, Harvey,” I growled under my breath and snapped the old bugger’s suspenders. “You scared the bejeezus out of me.”

His two gold teeth gleamed in the flashlight’s beam. “Anyone ever tell you that you’re lousy at sneakin’ around in the dark?”

“I was doing just fine before you crept up on me.”

He snatched my flashlight away and shut it off. “If you were good at this, you would’ve heard me comin’.”

I had heard something crash earlier, but I hadn’t wanted to let my imagination wander while tip-toeing around alone in the dark outside a funeral parlor.

“And I suppose you’re a real pro at it.” I whispered.

“Damned straight.”

I grabbed my flashlight back, catching a whiff of something sweet with a hint of lemon. I sniffed in his direction. “What’s that smell?”

“I got carried away with the lemon meringue.”

My stomach gurgled, reminding me that I hadn’t eaten anything since lunch with Mona. “I love Miss Geary’s pies.”

“I’m not talking about pie. This was some of that homemade love gel.”

Before he could explain in greater detail, I told him, “No. Don’t tell me.” I didn’t want him to ruin all future lemon meringue pies for me. “Let’s get out of here.”

“We’re not done yet.”

“Yes, we are.” I glanced around the corner of the garage again, feeling sweatier and more paranoid with Harvey standing next to me. The last thing I needed was to be caught creeping around in the dark behind Mudder Brothers with Detective Cooper’s uncle.

“Did you take a look-see inside this place yet?” He knocked on the wall of the garage.

“Shhhh.” I grabbed Harvey’s hand mid-knock. “Mostly. The only thing suspicious is a basket full of scorched surgical parts.”

“I always wondered what George did with all of the stuff that didn’t burn.”

“Now you know.” I tugged on his hand. “Let’s get out of here before someone hears us and tattles to your nephew.”

He didn’t budge. “Nobody is out here sneaking around but us, and Cooper’s too busy right now to care.”

Knowing Cooper’s squinty-eye glare as well as I did, I doubted Harvey. “What do you mean he’s too busy?”

“He’s in the middle of a poker game with that lousy, good-for-nothing sheriff.”

“The one who stole the love of your life and married her?”

“She wasn’t the love of my life.”

“Then what’s with this big grudge of yours?”

I heard more than saw him scratch his whiskers. “A man needs to have something to hang on to and growl about all of his life.”

“Death and taxes aren’t enough for you?”

“You can’t pick fights with either of those things.”

“But you can with the county sheriff?” I preferred to run from the law, not throw punches at it.

“You betcha. Just the sound of his name gets me all riled up—huffin’ and puffin’, jabbin’, dodgin’.” His clothes rustled in the shadows as he showed me his version of Mohammed Ali.

I crossed my arms over my chest, chuckling when he did a spin move that had him stumbling into the back of the garage. “Huffing and jabbing

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