Murder in the Aisles Read Free Page A

her waist, the full rise of round lush breasts, long sinewy neck and a face that could easily grace the cover of any magazine.
    The angelic siren stuck out her hand.
    â€œDr. Felicia Swift. Senior Research Librarian. I’m the one who found the body,” she added with the lift of her chin.
    Mark swallowed. Librarian! They sure don’t make ’em like they used to . His hand enveloped hers. It was soft, smooth but strong. Her grip was as no nonsense as her demeanor.
    â€œDetective Rizzo. You wanna show me?”
    â€œOf course. Follow me.”
    With pleasure… Nope, they sure don’t make ’em like they used to .
    She started off and Mark had to force himself to focus on what lay ahead and not the soft sway of her hips and those endlessly long legs.
    She made a sharp right turn into the cavernous room and headed down the aisle. She stopped halfway and pointed. “He’s right there.”
    Mark slowly walked past her and caught a whiff of her perfume. Felicia stepped to the side, pressing her back against the shelf of books, and folded her arms.
    Mark leaned down to take a look, then walked around the body, observing from several angles. He made note of the small pool of blood near his head. He stood, glanced upward at the ladder that rose to the top of the shelves. He turned to Felicia.
    â€œLooks like he took a fall off the ladder.” He jerked at his tie. He hated ties. “Accident,” he said in a dismissive tone. He pulled his cell phone out of his pocket, called the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner and relayed the details. When he finished with his call, he turned to Felicia and took out a notepad. “The medical investigator is on the way to document the scene.” He glanced at the prone body. “What’s his name?”
    â€œDr. Dresden. Paul Dresden.”
    â€œA doctor?” He frowned. “What was he doing here?”
    Felicia pursed her lips in disgust. “Yes,a doctor. He worked here. He is…was the head of the linguistic department.”
    â€œLinguist, huh?” He murmured something under his breath. “When’s the last time you saw him?”
    â€œAround three yesterday.”
    â€œWhat time does this joint close?” He gazed upward at the cathedral ceiling and ornate moldings that looked to be finished in gold leaf. Musta cost a mint.
    â€œLast night we closed at nine-thirty.”
    He focused on Felicia. “Did you leave at closing?”
    â€œYesterday was my early day. I left at four.”
    Mark took down all the information, not that it really mattered, he thought. This was a pretty open and shut case. Some old guy climbs up on a ladder, gets dizzy, falls, end of story.
    â€œWell, the medical investigator should be here shortly. If you think of anything, you can always give me a call.”
    â€œThat’s it. That’s all you’re going to do?”
    He shrugged. “There’s not much I can do until the ME does the full exam. Right now there is no clear indication of foul play. Looks like it was an unfortunate accident. At least right now,” he added to appease her. “I’ll run what I have by the ME when they get here.”
    She dropped her hands to her sides and took several steps forward. She glanced in the direction of the body, then straight into Mark’s dark eyes. “This was not an accident, Detective.”
    He flashed her a patronizing grin. “And why would you say that, Miss…Dr. Swift?” He slid his hands into the pockets of his wool coat.
    â€œDetective,” she said as if speaking to a slow child. “Someone killed him and put him here. Dr. Dresden wouldn’t be caught dead in the aisles of astronomy and astrophysics.” She gave him a hard look. “No pun intended.”
    Two tight lines formed between his brows. “What are you talking about?”
    She huffed. “Dr. Dresden specialized in languages, ancient languages