The Alpine Xanadu Read Free Page A

nickname she claimed to hate, “I don’t know if Liza wants me back in the fold. She’s leaning that way since she dumped the guy who filled in for me while I stepped out of the house for the past sixteen years.”
    Vida stiffened in her chair. “Another divorce?”
    Leo sighed. “I didn’t know until I went down to Santa Maria on Thanksgiving that they were never married. After we divorced years ago, she told me they’d tied the knot. But Liza’s a good Catholic girl and she wanted to keep up appearances of a legal union.”
    “Oh, how ridiculous!” Vida exclaimed. “Some Catholics,” she went on, darting a look at me, “don’t care what people think.”
    The conversation was going downhill fast. I stood up, shrugging out of my jacket. “Did Bill mention Blackwell’s latest allegations?”
    “No,” Vida admitted. “But if someone wants to kill him, it’s Patti Marsh. I can’t believe they parted after so many years of … doing whatever they did together. There must be another woman. Jack was her meal ticket. They’re no spring chickens. Milo probably hopes someone will shoot Blackwell. They’ve never gotten along.”
    “That’s Jack’s fault,” I said, edging toward my office. “Back when the sheriff was elected, Jack ran against Milo because he didn’t like the way the murder investigation of Patti’s former son-in-law was being handled. He got his rear end kicked at the ballot box.”
    “It goes further than that,” Vida declared. “Those two have gone head-to-head since Milo got back from Vietnam.”
    I stopped backpedaling. “How so?”
    Vida lifted her chin. “If Milo hasn’t told you, it’s not my place to talk about it. You know I don’t gossip.”
    And beavers don’t build dams on Goblin Creek
, I thought. Vida’s attitude on this gloomy Wednesday was beginning to annoy me. All I needed was Amanda rushing off to throw up—again. Now that she was past the first trimester of pregnancy, I hoped that problem would go away.
    “Maybe,” Kip said, finally breaking his silence, “Blackwell thinks Ed’s after him. Didn’t he want to get appointed to Alfred Cobb’s county commissioner’s post instead of Jack?”
    Vida waved a hand in disgust. “Oh, there was never any chance Ed would get that job. I thought they’d let Alfred’s son stay on. He’d been doing most of his father’s work after Alfred became gaga. I suppose Myron didn’t want the responsibility. He’s in his seventies, you know.”
    Leo grinned. “Ed’s too lazy to go after anything but McDonald’s takeout. I shouldn’t bad-mouth him. He makes me look good.”
    “You are good,” I said. “Ed was bad. The first couple of years I thought we’d go broke. We still can, in this current toxic economy.” On that dismal note, I retreated to my office.
    By noon I’d set up appointments with RestHaven’s chief of staff, Dr. Woo, and short-term care’s Jennifer Hood. I could’ve let Mitch handle the interviews, but I felt I needed to show my face. I’d already confirmed dates with the rehab unit’s Iain Farrell and Rosalie Reed, who was in charge of psych patients. Our special edition was shaping up.
    I asked Vida if she wanted to eat at the Venison Inn, but she was skipping lunch. “Buck gave me a lovely box of Russell Stover chocolates for Valentine’s Day,” she explained, referring to her longtime companion, who had recently moved from Startup to a condo at Pines Villa. “I can’t resist them, which means I have to watch what I eat for a while.”
    I accepted the excuse, though Vida’s weight never seemed to vary no matter what she ate. My Valentine’s Day had been passed alone, though Milo did call to tell me Tanya had plugged up the kitchen sink.
    Having been rejected by Vida, I realized that I should go home and change. My caramel slacks and crimson sweater weren’t appropriate for Delia Rafferty’s funeral. I could forage for food in my fridge.
    While I ate a ham sandwich, I started a