The Reluctant Detective: A C.T. Ferguson Private Investigator Mystery (The C.T. Ferguson Mystery Novels Book 1) by Tom Fowler

Author:Tom Fowler [Fowler, Tom]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Tom Fowler
Published: 2017-10-05T22:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER TWELVE

"I know I heard something," Margaret said.

"I didn't," Vinnie said.

"It sounded like it came from the basement." Footsteps pounded toward the door. I considered going down the stairs. They could be old and creaky, which would give me away even more. Of course, if Margaret opened the door, I had a big problem. Vinnie wouldn't let me talk my way out of this one. Stairs are noisiest and creakiest in their centers. I kept to the side and backed down, trying to be as quiet as possible while still getting to the basement floor at a good pace.

"You probably have a rat. Everyone in Baltimore has rats in their basement."

"I do not have rats in my basement," Margaret said, her voice full of indignation. Vinnie had to be careful, or there wouldn't be any negotiation of raises tonight. I got to the bottom of the stairs and crawled off to one side.

"Do you want me to go down there and see what it is?"

A set of wooden walls, open at the rear, framed the staircase. I crawled under the stairs. I didn't see anything I could use to cover myself. If anyone came down, I had to hope they didn't see me. There was plenty of room under the steps, so I situated myself as far into the shadows as I could.

"Could you, Vinnie?"

"Sure."

The door opened. Vinnie flipped on a switch. The stairs were off center in the basement. The bulb was off to one side. Luckily for me, it happened to be the far side. It didn't shed a lot of light on the other side. I could see the ceiling was barely high enough for someone of average height, let alone someone as tall as me. Good thing I had been crouching the whole time.

Vinnie came down. I heard him reach the bottom and walk toward the light. I still couldn't see him; the wooden walls under the stairs blocked my view of most of the basement. I pulled my sweater up over the lower half of my face. The .45 dug into my hip. I hoped I wouldn't need it. Vinnie prowled around the far side of the basement, passed in front of the stairs, then and puttered about on the near side for a minute. "There's nothing here," he said.

"I was sure I heard something."

"I'm telling you there's nothing down here."

"All right, come on up, then. I opened a bottle of wine."

Vinnie bounded up the steps and closed the basement door behind him. He didn't even turn the light off. I let out a breath I had been holding. "Looks like a nice red," Vinnie said when he got back to the kitchen.

"It seemed like a nice way to begin negotiations."

I rolled my eyes. They chatted for a few more minutes as they drank wine. Then they retired to the second floor. At that point, I couldn't hear them anymore. I crawled out from under the stairs and stood up as far as I could. This basement had been made for someone five-eight; I stood six inches too tall for it.

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