Murder in the Winter Read Free

anyone in my driveway earlier today, Miss
Humphert?”
    “As a matter of fact, I did, Cyrus. It was about 4:37
this morning. Twinkle Toes barked, and I got up to see what she was barking
about. I looked out and saw a hunchbacked old man sneaking away from your
house. I started to come over and alert you, but it was so late, and I wasn’t
sure whether to wake you, or not.”
    “I’m sure glad you didn’t, Miss Humphert. My old
ticker isn’t what it used to be. I’m not sure if it would’ve held up seeing you
at my door in the middle of the night. By the way, I don’t guess you could
recognize the old man if you saw him again.”
    “No, Cyrus. I’m sorry, but I can’t. I just know he was
old, hunchbacked, and not too tall, and he was bundled up to where I couldn’t
see his face.”
    “That’s okay. I just thought you might have followed
him and invited him over for meatloaf. Well, I’d love to stay and chat, Miss
Humphert, but, as you can see, I have work to do. Maybe we can make a snowman
some other time.”
    I had no intention of making anything with that woman,
but if I saw her below me in a snowstorm, only my Christian upbringing would
keep me from stomping my foot and starting an avalanche.
    As I continued my evil thoughts about my neighbor, she
turned and walked away, taking her white rat with her.
    After she left my field of vision, my thoughts turned
back to the case at hand, and I wondered how I would maneuver Lightning through
such heavy snow. I had no intention of shoveling my driveway. I could think of
other ways of bringing on a coronary. Work was not something I was accustomed
to doing, especially hard work.
    I was sure that whoever left the note wouldn’t wait until
the snow melted before he or she committed murder, so I needed someone to plow
my driveway. No sooner had the thought entered my mind than Mark, the boy who mows
my yard, rakes my leaves, and shovels my snow, hollered at me from the top of
the driveway.
    “I assume you want me to shovel your walk, Lieutenant.”
    “Yes, but could you do my driveway first? I need to
get to work.”
    “Sure thing, Lieutenant,” and he wasted no time digging
the shovel into the snow.
    I knew it would take him a while to complete his task.
While I waited for him to clear a path for Lightning, I went in the house to
call and make reservations for Lou and me at the Overlook Inn. Within minutes, I
had reserved two rooms for us and called the good sergeant to let him know. A
half an hour later, Mark rang the doorbell to let me know that the driveway was
finished. I slipped him two twenties and left to pick up Lou and start the day
with a good breakfast at the Blue Moon Diner. After all, we wouldn’t be able to
check in at the Overlook Inn until sometime in the early afternoon, and a body
needs to eat.
    Lou and I eat most of our meals out, and our favorite
place to dine is the Blue Moon Diner. We are there so often that two stools at
the counter still have our impressions in place when we return for the next
meal. Rosie, our waitress for breakfast and lunch, and Thelma, who brings us
our supper, are always delighted  to see our smiling faces, and that isn’t only
because we are good tippers. Both Rosie and Thelma are widows. Rosie, a
lifelong resident of Hilldale, and Tom never had children, while Thelma
recently moved to Hilldale to be close to her grandson who attends college in
the area. Both women love knowing that what they do each day is making someone
else’s day better, and I don’t know what Lou and I would do without them.

 
    2
     
     
    On a typical day Lou and I arrive at the Blue Moon after
all the regulars have left, so we mosey up to the counter, plop down on a
couple of stools, and because we leave one stool between us, we have room to
sprawl out, put our elbows on the counter, and eat to our heart’s content.
Never quite sure how much food it takes to make our hearts content, we do our
best not to come up a little short. Unless we