J.M. Griffin - Vinnie Esposito 06 - Death Gone Awry Read Free Page A

preacher man from one of them there new-age church communities. You know them guys who need money to drive a Mercedes and live high off the hog while some little old lady is eating cat food after she’s given him her last damned dime?”
    This seemed a sore subject for Bill. I wondered what caused his snippiness concerning the preacher. Let me say that I am a Roman Catholic, born and raised. A non-practicing Roman Catholic, but I’m still one all the same. My parents are Italian and are also Roman Catholic. My entire family is of the Roman Catholic faith, all but one aunt who strayed from Catholicism into the Episcopal Church. I didn’t consider it too far a stretch, but the family thought she had committed an almighty sin. I guess it’s all in how you perceive religion.
    Believing is enough for me. Plain and simple as it seems, I try to stay away from discussions of faith, politics, other people’s money, and their kids. Each to his own, is my motto and I try to stick to it. Not so easy a task all the time, but I try nonetheless.
    “How did you find out about his preacher status?” I asked Bill.
    “He gave his information to the EMT on the rescue once he became coherent. I remembered his name from a newspaper article a while back. He’s no better’n them sinners he spouts off about.” With that, Bill harrumphed. He nestled back into the chair at the kitchen counter and held up his cup for more coffee.
    Bill is a decent guy. His personality has a few wrinkles, but I figured he’d earned them over the years. I poured a fresh cup of coffee for him, and offered him the next to last pastry from Lola’s cache. Bill took one and Marcus ate the last one before asking for a coffee refill.
    Curious about the man, I asked, “What was Tim Slaggard doing at the reservoir? Did he say?”
    “Well, that’s the strange thing, he just said he slipped and fell into the water.” Bill shook his head slowly. “Don’t ya wonder if he really did? Nobody in their right mind would be out on the reservoir, especially not in this cold weather.”
    A shrewd gleam entered Marcus’s eyes.
    “You think he lied?” Marcus asked the elder man.
    “It does seem odd that he’d be out there at this time of year. Folks come to take lots of photographs, especially them School of Design kids, but when the EMT asked if he was doing the photography thing, he said no.” Bill took a deep swallow of his coffee and clunked the cup onto the counter. “Vin, did you see anyone at all?”
    Was no one listening? I had answered that question over and over until I wanted to scream. With a deep breath, I said, “No, just him in the water, with a bloody halo.”
    “Strange, huh?” Bill wondered aloud.
    “Indeed.” In an effort to quell the gossip that would run through town faster than wildfire in a wicked wind, I refrained from my theory of another person at the scene. If Bill thought there was a would-be murderer handy, he’d be the first one to tell all and scare residents out of their wits. A good man, our Bill, but an avid gossip monger, too.
    Finished with the pastry and coffee, Bill said he had to be going and left with the same hustle as he had arrived. I smiled when the door closed and glanced at Marcus.
    “Tell me, Vinnie, why you didn’t share the second person theory with Bill?” His smile said he knew the answer.
    I grinned. “Some things are better left untold. That’s the motto of the FBI and State Police, isn’t it?”
    “Mmm, sort of.” Marcus smirked. “It’s more of a need to know basis. You never said he’d been struck on the head.”
    I shrugged. “I thought he may have hit his head on the way into the water. Why are you here anyway? I need to know.” I rubbed my hands across his well-muscled chest and stepped closer to him. I only asked since he was in uniform. It usually meant police business, so my curiosity hiked a notch.
    Curiosity is a wonderful thing, unless of course you happen to have an overabundance of it.