Death on Sunset Hill (A Tommy St. James Mystery Novella Book 2) by Kristi Belcamino

Author:Kristi Belcamino [Belcamino, Kristi]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: minneapolis, photojournalist, Crime Fiction, women sleuth, Mystery
Publisher: Kristi Belcamino
Published: 2017-12-15T22:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

Tommy pulled up in front of the small house where Timothy Bender had lived with his parents. It was the last place on earth she wanted to be right then.

But when she had arrived in the newsroom this morning, Sandoval had taken her aside when she asked for her assignments for the day.

“I’m sorry, but it appears you are being punished for your, uh, scoop the other day. The managing editor requested you specifically go to Timothy Bender’s house with Parker to meet with his father. The head honchos are hoping a story setting the record straight might stave off a lawsuit. I think we’re getting sued every which way from Tuesday, but that’s my opinion. If they want to waste ink on a correction disguised as a story fine by me.”

The paper had already run an above-the-fold apology to the Bender family in today’s paper. In the newspaper business, this was unheard of. Extremely humiliating for Tommy, but even more so for Parker.

She’d avoided Parker since the terse meeting yesterday. Now, in her car in front of the Bender house, she scanned the parked cars for his little sports car. Nope. She beat him here. Well, she wasn’t getting out of her car until he was here, too, she told herself. Besides, what if Mr. Bender had a gun or something? He’d looked mad enough to kill on the news.

Her stomach was flopping around like there was a beached fish inside it. She hoped she didn’t vomit.

Parker’s Alpha Romeo zipped into a parking spot with a flourish.

He jumped out, stuck a reporter’s notebook in his back pocket and hurried over to Tommy. She noticed the long lick of hair over one eye was still damp.

“Rough night?”

“Always, Snap. Always. Got to keep the ladies happy.”

“Hardy har. Let’s do this,” she said. She cast a glance up at him. He hadn’t mentioned the other day. Maybe he wasn’t such a big ass after all.

He cleared his throat and Tommy realized he was nervous as they walked up to the house. It was a small squat home with no flowers, but neatly trimmed bushes lined up underneath the windows. The beige siding had a few cracks in it, revealing the pink insulation underneath, but the grass was freshly mowed.

Tommy let Parker go first. She stood a bit behind his shoulder as he rapped on the peeling green paint on the front door. Okay, she admitted it to herself, it was in case the knock was answered with a shotgun blast when the father saw who was there. A shadow flittered past the small glass window in the middle of the door. The door slowly swung open.

Nobody said anything for a second, but then Parker spoke up, his voice containing a small squeak Tommy had never heard before. “Mr. Bender, I’m Cameron Parker and this is Tommy St. James.”

The man stepped out into the light. His barrel-chest was clad in a worn plaid shirt and the stubble on his jowly chin was gray.

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