Fatal Flaw by Warren C. Easley

Author:Warren C. Easley
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Mystery - Thriller
Publisher: Warren C. Easley
Published: 2023-02-14T02:36:08+00:00

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Zoe was no better the next morning, which only ratcheted up my concern. I went over to her place and made a poached egg on dry toast and a pot of Earl Grey tea and brought it in to her. She looked flushed and complained of achiness. Her temperature was a hundred point two, but her breathing was okay. “Looks like a garden variety flu,” I offered, trying to put a positive spin on it.

“Yeah,” she said with a weak smile. “Never thought I’d be hoping I had the flu.” She went on to insist I go about my business, adding, “I’ll manage lunch, and don’t tell Aunt Gertie I’m sick. She’ll insist on coming over, and I don’t want to expose her.”

I told her I’d check in on her that evening and left feeling only slightly less anxious.

I had no meetings booked that day so I decided to head into Portland, figuring I would stop by the gun shop where Donny Romano worked and see if he would talk to me. Stuart Burgess, my mole at Spectro Systems, called on my way into the city. He said he had an errand to run in town and could drop by at lunch. I suggested we meet at Cartopia and he agreed. “I’ve got some new information,” he promised.

I was unexpectedly busy at Caffeine Central that morning and didn’t get around to calling Zoe until I left to meet Stuart Burgess. “I’m no worse, she told me. “Slept all morning.”

I took that as a positive sign. “I’ll fix you something nutritious tonight,” I said. “I’ll be back early.” We left it at that.

The food pod was moderately busy. Willow was featuring a crowd favorite—French onion soup and Croque Madame—and the line at the Plat du Jour was putting the other carts to shame. Stuart arrived shortly after Archie and me, and we queued up after I told my dog to stay at our table. When it was our turn to order, I introduced Stuart to Willow.

“We met at a Spectro Systems picnic once,” he said to her as a broad smile spread across his face.

“We did?” she said, and then looked embarrassed at having not remembered him.

Food in hand, we took our seats under the warmth of a raised heater. Like Harmon Scott, Stuart was an immediate convert to the Plat de Jour. He slurped some soup and held up his sandwich after a big bite. “This is outstanding. These pods are a treasure, I mean they add so much to the Portland vibe.”

I nodded in agreement. “Judging from the lines, Willow’s got quite a following. It’s all French today, but she blends French and Northwest cuisines in some creative ways.”

We talked Portland food for a while. “I was a chem major but when I got out of college, I wanted to be a chef,” he said at one point. “But I couldn’t earn enough as an apprentice to make my student loan payments, so I took the Spectro Systems job.

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