Murdered by Country Music: A High Desert Cozy Mystery by Dianne Harman

Author:Dianne Harman [Harman, Dianne]
Language: eng
Format: azw3
Published: 2016-05-18T04:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 16

Much as she hated to, Marty went to the locked desk drawer where she kept her small pistol and put it in her purse. She took Duke out for a commune with nature and then she looked on Google maps for the location of the address Jeff had given her for Rita Billings.

Downtown Palm Springs was about a thirty-minute drive from the compound. The residents of the compound all liked the quiet solitude of living in a rural area away from Palm Springs which oftentimes provided a second home for the wealthy and a place where the snowbirds gathered in the winter. The wealthy homeowners of the city were the main reason Marty’s appraisal business had done so well in the short time she’d lived in the area. Wealthy people tended to surround themselves with things of value and insurance companies often required appraisals before they would insure them, all of which was a very good thing for Marty.

She waved to John and Max as they pulled out of the driveway in the Pony. A half hour later she found the address Jeff had given her and parked her car at the curb in front of the house. When she looked at the house her first thought was it reminded her of a woman who had been beautiful when she was younger but hadn’t aged well at all. The lawn was nothing but dried grass. Withered flowers peeked out of pots next to the front door whose blue coat of paint was peeling. The shutters next to the windows needed to be remounted, and the driveway was filled with holes and cracks. Lonely weeds had sprung to life in them. She couldn’t help but wonder about the people who lived in the house, based on its exterior.

Marty walked up to the front door and rang the doorbell which had pulled loose from its frame and was hanging on a thin wire next to the front door. The door was open and through the screen Marty could see flickering figures on a television screen. A few moments later a woman came to the door and said, “What can I do for you?”

“I’m looking for Rita Billings. Are you Rita?”

“Maybe I am, and maybe I’m not. Why do you want to know?”

“As you’re probably aware, Jacques Ruchon was recently murdered. Although I’m not with the sheriff’s department, I’m helping some law enforcement personnel get information about him. We know your husband was working with him. If you have a minute, I’d like to talk to you.”

The woman was clearly hesitant to let Marty in, but finally she said, “I’m Rita. I don’t think there’s anything I can tell you about Jacques, but come on in. I can’t talk too long. I’m a hairdresser, and I have several clients coming to the shop this afternoon. I just came home for lunch.”

Marty walked in and said, “Thanks. I appreciate this. I won’t keep you long. I was wondering if your husband and Jacques were partners?”

“Yeah.

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.