A Deadly Vineyard Holiday Read Free Page B

as a member of the experimental eating group.”
    The girl took a breath. “I’m not really Mary Jones,” she said. “I’m somebody else.”
    â€œYou’re Cricket,” said Zee. “I’ve seen your picture.”
    Cricket Callahan nodded. “I’m Cricket.”
    â€œShe stepped out of her house for some fresh air,” I said. “Before she goes home, we decided we’d eat. Cricket, this is my wife, Zee.”
    Cricket gave Zee a good look. “Oh,” she said. “You’re the model. You’re on the cover of that magazine in there. Or are you a movie star or something?”
    â€œI’m not a model or a movie star,” said Zee. “I’m a nurse up at the Vineyard hospital.”
    â€œShe just looks like a movie star,” I said to Cricket. “Now, while you two tend to the vittles, I’m going to make a phone call to let your folks know where you areand that you’re okay. By that time, we’ll be ready to put on the feed bag.”
    â€œOkay,” said the girl with a sigh. “I guess that’s what you have to do. But I wish you didn’t.”
    I went into the living room and phoned the chief of the Edgartown police at his home. His wife, Annie, answered and told me he’d gotten a call early and was at the station.
    Terrific. I could imagine what the call was about. I phoned the station. The chief was busy. I told the officer to interrupt him, especially if he was talking with some Secret Service people.
    She said, “Wait a minute,” and went away. Not much later, the chief was on the phone.
    â€œWhat?”
    â€œCricket Callahan is cooking blueberry pancakes at my place with Zee and me.” I told him how it had come about. “She’s fine, and in no danger whatsoever,” I said. “Tell whoever comes to get her to be quiet about it. I don’t want a Normandy invasion down here. Get in touch with an agent named Walter Pomerlieu. He seems to have his head screwed on straighter than some other feds I’ve met.”
    â€œHe’s right here,” said the chief. “I’ll give him your message. Don’t let the girl leave.”
    â€œI don’t keep prisoners or slaves,” I said. “I won’t tie her to a tree, but I think she’ll still be here when her keepers show up. Tell Pomerlieu we plan to finish breakfast before he takes her home.”
    I rang off and got back to the kitchen in time for my first stack of pancakes. I smeared them with butter and maple syrup and took a bite. Cricket, the breakfast chef, watched, her head slightly tipped to one side. Zee looked at both of us.
    I chewed, swallowed, took a sip of coffee, and nodded. “Good.”
    Cricket smiled. Then she looked at Zee. “You want some?”
    â€œDoes a wolf bay at the moon?” Zee sat down and slipped two pancakes from the tray onto her plate.
    Cricket poured batter into the frying pan and added more cakes to the tray as they came out of the pan. Then, while she ate, I cooked. Between her and Zee, the pancakes disappeared rapidly. When the last cake was on the tray, I heard a car coming down the driveway. I put the cake on Cricket’s plate. “Eat it up. That’ll be your father’s people, come to take you home to your folks.”
    â€œI don’t want to go home,” said Cricket. “I like it here, where there aren’t any people watching everything I do.”
    Zee put a hand on her arm. “You can come back anytime you want to.”
    Cricket looked at me as I got up. “Maybe we can go fishing again?”
    â€œWhy not?” I said. “You seem to have the makings of an island girl: You can land a bluefish and cook up a damned good pancake. That’s more than a lot of people can manage.”
    I went outside as the chief’s cruiser and a second car pulled into the yard and stopped. Out of the backseat popped Ted and the