The Pryce of Greed: An Historical Ghost Cozy Mystery (The Pryce of Murder Book 3) by Kari Bovée

Author:Kari Bovée [Bovée, Kari]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Bosque Publishing
Published: 2023-12-25T16:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 17

“He must have been stealing a horse to get out of town,” Cordelia said.

“He obviously didn’t want to wait for Mr. Parkhurst to return from the bank,” the doctor added. He took the bag from Mr. Valdez’s hand and handed it to me. I opened it and started to go through it. There was a change of clothing, some toiletries, and other personal items. My gaze fell on the tiny edge of a piece of paper peeking out from the bottom panel of the bag. How odd. I reached in, and though it took some effort, I carefully pulled the panel up. Lying inside were several bundles of cash.

“It has a false bottom,” I murmured. As a child, I had been in a play where the antagonist of the story, a thief, had just such a bag.

“What are you going on about?” Dr. Tate asked.

“Neither Mrs. Stewart’s bank book nor missing jewelry are here, but look at this,” I said, holding the bag open for the group to see.

“Wow. That looks like a substantial amount of cash,” Mr. Parkhurst said.

“Yes, but I don’t think Mr. Valdez killed Mr. Stewart.”

“What do you mean, Arabella?” Cordelia asked.

“Look.” I pointed to the gold chain around his neck. The medal rested on his throat. “He was telling the truth about not being in Mr. Stewart’s room the night of the murder. How could he be wearing his medal if I have it?”

Cordelia frowned. “Where did the medal we found in Mr. Stewart’s room come from, then?”

Mr. Parkhurst glanced around our small group. “What’s this about?” I relayed the details of our searching Ralph Stewart’s room. “Maybe the medal belonged to Mr. Stewart,” he said.

I shook my head. “His wife said they were not religious.”

“It could have belonged to the person who last stayed in the room. Before Mr. Stewart,” Mr. Parkhurst guessed.

“No,” I said. “Maggie is meticulous in her cleaning. Even if one of the other maids cleans a room, she always gives it an inspection. She makes a point of looking under the bed. You wouldn’t believe what she has found under them on occasion—clothing, jewelry, books. She even found a gun once.”

Dr. Tate looked at the medal. “I saw one of those in Archer’s Dry Goods the other day. I was shopping for some supplies for the infirmary.”

“You don’t say?” Cordelia said. “Was it exactly the same as this one?”

“I couldn’t say for certain, but they sure look the same.”

My mind was racing now. “Mr. Valdez wore it quite prominently. Anyone who spoke to him would’ve seen it. What if someone purchased the one in the shop and planted it in Mr. Stewart’s room to make Mr. Valdez look guilty of the murder?”

“But why would they shove it under the bed like that?” Cordelia said.

I shrugged. “Whoever planted it surely didn’t want Mr. Stewart to see it.”

The doctor released an audible breath. “I’ve got to get Mr. Valdez’s body to the infirmary to better examine him.”

“I’ll hook up a wagon for you,” Mr.

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