Murder on a Silver Platter (A Red Carpet Catering Mystery Book 1) Read Free

Penelope noticed Officer Jenkins had quite a bicep under her brown uniform shirt. And if she wasn’t mistaken, fake boobs. The woman obviously spent a lot of time at the gym. And the tanning salon, based on the orange glow of her skin.
    “Okay, ladies. Thank you for your statements. The detective will have some questions for you, I’m sure,” Officer Jenkins said. Her frosted pink lips settled into a tight line on her tanned face, creating two sets of parentheses beside her mouth. Penelope wondered if the woman ever smiled. She certainly hadn’t in front of them, even during her half-hearted attempts at comforting them.
    “More questions? I don’t know if I can. We both have early calls tomorrow and—”
    “It won’t take long, Miss Madison. We appreciate your cooperation,” Officer Jenkins said, a tone of finality in her voice.
    Arlena sighed and leaned closer to Penelope, shrugging farther under the blanket over her shoulders and crossing her arms tightly across her chest.
    Zazoo stood up on his bed and let out a series of excited yaps, the bark he reserved for anyone he didn’t know who came into the house. Detective Baglioni strode into the kitchen, glancing all around the room, looking everywhere but at the two women sitting behind the granite topped kitchen island.
    “Hello, Detective,” Officer Jenkins said, looking at the floor. Her hands were clasped tightly behind her back and she rocked gently on her steel-toed boots.
    “Jenkins,” the man replied.
    Penelope saw his eyes move across her face and noticed the slight upturn of a smile on his lips. She got the sense of familiarity there, beyond them just passing each other in a squad room. Detective Baglioni had deep green eyes with gold flecks in them, set slightly close on his face, a strong jaw bone and a perfect nose, like the ones she’d seen on marble statues at the Met. A hint of stubble brushed his chin and Penelope absently rubbed her cheek as he spoke.
    “Thank you for taking the time to speak with us, ladies. I’m Detective Joseph Baglioni.” He addressed Arlena first and then he glanced at Penelope, pausing a beat to study her face. Something about the detective rang a distant bell with Penelope, but she couldn’t quite place it.
    “Is there anything you can think of beyond what you’ve told Officer Jenkins?”
    Penelope glanced sideways at Arlena, who was shaking her head. “I don’t think so.”
    A muscle twitched in his jaw and he glanced behind them at the dark wood cabinets.
    “What happened to that girl? Did she get hit by a car or run over by a snow plow?” Arlena asked.
    Penelope put an arm around Arlena’s shoulders, worried she might get hysterical again like she did when they first found the girl. And then again when they got home and were trying to get themselves together to call the police, fumbling with the alarm and their phones and trying to quiet Zazoo’s torrent of barking.
    Tears crowded the corners of Arlena’s eyes.
    “Maybe. But there’s no sign of an accident, no fresh tire marks leading to or from the snow bank. Of course a plow might have wiped any evidence of them away. It looks like she may have suffered a blow to the head. Do either of you recognize the girl from the neighborhood?”
    Arlena and Penelope shook their heads again. The welling tears flopped out of Arlena’s eyes and down her cheeks in pretty little streams. Penelope always marveled at how Arlena looked beautiful even when she cried. When Penelope cried, it was all red-faced and messy, definitely not film-worthy.
    “You’re saying someone might have attacked that girl out on our street and then left her out there to die in the cold? Does that mean it’s dangerous to be in our neighborhood right now?” Arlena’s mood had shifted to indignation laced with a touch of fear. “What are you going to do about it?”
    “We’re doing what we can, Miss Madison. Our team is outside, processing the scene and questioning your