Murder at Goodwill: Gertrude, Gumshoe, #2 by Robin Merrill

Author:Robin Merrill
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: funny cozy mystery, quirky cozy mystery, cheap cozy mystery, cozy mystery set in Maine, cozy mystery with cats, cat cozy, older sleuth
Publisher: New Creation Publishing
Published: 2016-12-30T00:00:00+00:00

10

GERTRUDE DIDN’T HAVE to work on the weekend, but still she called the CAP bus first thing Saturday morning.

When the large van pulled up in front of her trailer, she was disheartened to see that Andrea was driving. Andrea took her job a little too seriously, in Gertrude’s opinion.

“Destination?” Andrea said as Gertrude slid into the van.

“County jail,” Gertrude answered.

Andrea turned toward her and looked at her suspiciously. “I can only take you to necessary stops. Why do you need to go to the jail?”

“I need to pay a fine,” Gertrude lied.

“Fines are paid at the courthouse,” Andrea said, unblinkingly.

“You know what?! You need to get a life!” Gertrude cried.

“And you need to get a driver’s license!” Andrea gave it right back.

“I can’t. I’m disabled.”

Andrea turned around in her seat and stared out the windshield. “You can get out now. I’m not taking you to the jail. Why on earth would you want to go to the jail anyway?”

Gertrude gritted her teeth. Then she said, slowly, emphatically, and not a little menacingly, “I need to go to the jail because I’m having a steamy affair with a hardened criminal who happens to be staying there right now. If you don’t take me to him, right now, I will tell him that you are the reason I missed our date. I will tell him where you live and I will make sure he pays you a visit when he gets out.”

Andrea looked at her in the rearview mirror. She didn’t look convinced. She also looked a little scared. Wordlessly, she put the van in drive and headed toward the jail. The two women stayed silent for the ride, and for disembarkation. Gertrude noted, with some satisfaction, that Andrea did not log this particular ride on her infuriatingly neat clipboard.

Gertrude entered the clean lobby of the Somerset County Jail and wondered at what a nice place it was. It looked more like an office building than a jail, and the large welcome desk sat empty before her. She rang the call bell. No one materialized. She rang it again. And again. Soon, an annoyed-looking young man in uniform appeared. “Can I help you?” he asked tersely.

“I’m here to visit one of your prisoners.”

The man sat down. “No visitations on weekends.” He pointed to a sign on the counter that read just that.

“Oh doodlebug!” Gertrude exclaimed.

The man frowned.

“So I have to wait till Monday?”

The man nodded, still frowning. “And you’ll need to have an appointment,” he said, pointing at the sign again, which also included this information.

“Fine. Then I need to make an appointment please,” Gertrude said.

“All right,” the man said, and tapped a few keys on the computer in front of him. “And who would you like to visit?”

“Roderick.”

The man looked up. “Roderick who?”

“I don’t know,” Gertrude admitted.

“Well, we need a last name in order to schedule an appointment.”

“Oh piffle! How many Rodericks were arrested for murder yesterday?”

A look of recognition flashed across the guard’s face. “I’m sorry, I’ll need a last name.

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