2 A Deadly Beef Read Free Page A

coming up in the east every morning.
    When
Greg saw that the tension between my grandfather and me was gone, he asked,
"If you don’t mind me asking, who are your suspects so far?"
    Moose
started to tell him when I interrupted.  "It doesn’t bother
you if we do this, does it, Greg?"
    "Are
you kidding?  If you hadn’t decided to do it yourselves, I was going
to urge you both to find the killer.  This could destroy the diner if
folks think one of us killed Wally Bain, and the questions the sheriff is going
to be asking around town aren’t going to help matters any."
    "Does
that mean that you’re not worried about me?" I asked him.
    "Of
course I am," he answered quickly, "but you’re a grown woman,
and your grandfather has grown even more.  That’s only fair, since
he’s been here a whole lot longer than you have."  He added
the last bit with a slight grin.
    "What
is that supposed to mean?" Moose asked him.
    "That
if we cut you in half and counted your rings, I’d probably get tired
before we got from the middle to the outside edge."
    "Is
that a comment on my age, or your math skills?" Moose asked with a smile
of his own.
    "Maybe
a little bit of both, to be honest with you," my husband answered with a
laugh.  The two of them were so close that it was hard to believe
sometimes that they were only related through Greg’s marriage to
me. 
    "Okay
you two," I said.  "Enough with the semi-witty banter."
    "Come
on, Victoria," Moose said.  "We were just getting warmed
up."
    "Sorry,
but you’ll have to save it for another day."  I looked
intently at Moose as I asked, "Should we call a family meeting, or should
we just assume that everyone else will be fine with our investigation?"
    "I
say we act first and apologize later," Moose said happily.
    "Greg?"
I asked.
    "If
you ask me, you should take three minutes to call your mom and dad before you
do anything," he said to me, and then he turned to Moose. 
"You, on the other hand, might need a little more time to persuade
Martha, but it will be well spent, if I know your wife at all."
    Moose
nodded as his smile faded.  "When you’re right, you’re
right.  I’ll be back."
    I
would have loved to have heard what he was going to say to my grandmother, but
I had two calls of my own to make.
    Once
Mom and Dad heard the circumstances of Wally’s murder, and how we were
all tied into it, they gave me their blessing to investigate, with the two
reservations that Moose and I be careful, and that I look out for my
grandfather.  I assured them that I would, hoping that I’d be able
to keep the promise that we’d be careful, but with Moose, it didn’t
do to ever take anything for granted.
     

 
     
     
     
    Chapter 2
     
     
    Moose
came back into the kitchen a minute after I hung up with my father. 
"We’re all clear," he said as he gave me a thumbs-up.
    "Did
Martha insist on any restrictions?" I asked.  I knew my grandmother
too well, and she didn’t suffer fools gladly, even when Moose played the
part from time to time.
    "I’m
supposed to keep you safe," he admitted reluctantly.  "How
about you?"
    "I’ve
been instructed to watch out for you, too," I said with a grin.
    "Good
luck with that," Moose said laughing.  "Better folks than you
have tried over the years, and the only thing that they had in common was that
they all failed miserably."
    "Well,
I’ll just have to do my best," I said, and then I turned back to my
husband.  "Greg, I’m going to see if Jenny can come in early
to watch the front so Moose and I can start digging."  Jenny
Hollister was our late afternoon-early evening server, working from four to
seven at the diner.  That schedule allowed her to go to college nearby
during the day, work a little at the diner for some spending money, and still
have her late evenings free.  I wished yet again that I had her energy,
but I didn’t envy anything else about her life, though she clearly
thrived on her hectic schedule.
    After
ten rings, Jenny’s cell