1 Target of Death Read Free Page B

girls think?”
    I smiled. “Not really my type, but I
suppose I might say yes if I were closer to his age.”
    “So, what is your type exactly, girl? Or do
you already have a man?”
    “Nope. I’m as single as they come.”
    She dared a look in Dixie’s direction. “No
girlfriend either, then?”
    “Don’t look at me,” Dixie said. “We’re not
like that. I’m not saying there is anything wrong with it if you are, mind you.
I just like men, is all.”
    “Me, too.”
    “Well, then. If you girls are finished
eating, I’d be happy to show you to your room. I don’t have too much space, but
I can squeeze you in. I have a bedroom with two beds. That shouldn’t make
either of you too uncomfortable. Perhaps we can chat later about the murder and
what we’re going to do to get you girls off that suspect list. My sister is
sort of a sleuth in East Tawas, you know. Eleanor Mason. I don’t get a chance
to see her much, but we’re as close as two sisters can be who live hundreds of
miles apart from one another.”
    We followed Margarita up the stairs to
where it opened up into quite a lovely living room. The yellow couches looked
quite worn, but they were covered with mauve and cream-colored knitted afghans.
There were antique end tables and a china cabinet filled with blue and white
china trimmed with gold. I knew real china when I saw it. My grandmother had
plenty that was real, for sure, and not my crazy grandmother on my mother’s
side. I crossed myself before my mind started going down that dark road. It’s
best not to think about the past and what my family has gone centuries trying
to conceal.
    Next we were led through a sizable kitchen
with oak cabinets and a simple table that had only room for two. Once we were
in the bedroom, I was amazed at how spacious it was. The two full-sized beds
were covered with pink quilts and four pillows each, which made me more than a
little happy. In my opinion, the more pillows, the better. Perhaps that’s why I
didn’t mind so much being alone, but back home, I never felt alone with the
croaking of frogs lulling me to sleep. From the sound of traffic whipping by
now, I could see it would be much harder to sleep here. Luckily for me I had packed
my alarm clock with a feature where you could set it to play cricket or frog
sounds. You can’t take the Bayou out of me.
    “I hope you girls like the room.”
    “Of course, but please don’t be overly
concerned with what we like or don’t. We take a bit of getting used to. I don’t
mean to come off so harsh, but I’ve never been a woman to hold anything back,”
I said.
    “Me, either. I’m not harboring any
fugitives, am I? I mean, I sure hope neither of you girls are a hardened
criminal, or—”
    “We didn’t kill that man the cops found,
no. We just arrived and slipped into a ditch.”
    “Funny thing was that Daniel Adams pulled
us out of the ditch,” Dixie added. “Do you know he had the nerve to suggest we
were responsible for the murder? If it hadn’t been for him, I doubt the cops
would have gone through our belongings like they did.”
    “So they came up on you after—or
before—you were out of that ditch?”
    “After,” I said. “Does it really matter?”
    “Well, if I was the cops and found two
vehicles parked alongside the road, I’d want to search them, too. What else
would they have to go on?”
    I wrinkled my brow. “How about footprints?”
    “In the snow, dear? There might not have
been any. None to take an impression of, that is. I wonder if a hunter was in
the vicinity and possibly killed the victim by mistake.”
    “I don’t believe it’s hunting season, or am
I wrong?”
    Margarita crossed her eyes. “That doesn’t
matter to folks around here. Plus, there’s an archery competition soon, and at
this point, I imagine that anyone who plans to sign up for the competition
might be a suspect.”
    That made sense. “I guess that’s a job for
the cops to find out.”
    “Oh, and you’re