A Killer Collection by J. B. Stanley Read Free Book Online Page B

“Or I
might have heard it while he was stuffing his face with cookies. Either way, it
seemed common knowledge.”
    Marie asked, "Did he look
healthy?"
    "No. He was overweight and
sweating a lot. He kept dabbing at his face with a handkerchief. Plus, he was
drinking tea and eating every sugary snack to be had like it was his last
meal."
    "Sweet tea?'
    Molly laughed. "Boy, you give
away that you're not from around here when you ask that. Of course it was sweet
tea! Is there any other kind?"
    Matt ignored her teasing. "It
doesn’t sound like he treated himself too well."
    "Not in that regard."
She proceeded to fill him in on the gossip about his affairs and his unusual
marriage, pleased that she felt so comfortable talking to him. "The
Stauntons," she concluded, "were a couple divided by his pottery
collection. He put a great deal of time and energy into collecting. She hated
everything he brought home."
    "Well, I don't collect stuff,
unless you count my beer bottle collection or my jar of wine corks. Does that
mean I have to marry someone who likes beer bottles?"
    Molly laughed. "I don't think
that all married couples have that problem. After all, it's much more
economical if only one person is spending money on eBay."
    "I'm a cheapskate bachelor,
so no problem there." He grinned and returned his attention to his legal
pad.
    A bachelor! Did he say that to let
her know he was available? Molly tried to decipher the glimmer in Matt’s light
blue eyes but he was concentrating on his notes.
    "Okay," he began, still
looking at what he’d written. "I’m going to call in a favor from a friend
over at Asheboro General. I'll find out the medical details. If there is something suspicious about this guy's death, and I'm not saying there is,
medical science will bring it to light. Swanson wants this piece out on Monday,
so why don't you start the article and I'll give you the filler you need by
tonight? We could ..." Molly watched as Matt stumbled for words and a
ruddy blush crept up his cheeks.
    "Order Chinese," she
suggested quickly.
    "Great." He smiled, and
Molly returned to her desk and began typing up her article with a zippy rhythm.
     
    ~~~~~
     
    By dinnertime, Molly was growing tired. Matt stopped by
her desk as she was stifling a yawn.
    "You'd better knock off for
tonight," he said kindly. "We can go to that fondue restaurant next
door. I'll write it off as a business expense."
    "Yes, please. I can finish
this up in the morning," she agreed gratefully.
    After the waiter took their order
for spicy cheese fondue, house salads, and an entree of meat and seafood
fondue, Matt seemed to grow fidgety. He crumpled and smoothed his napkin and
glanced around the room, looking everywhere but at Molly.
    "Did you talk to your friend
at Asheboro General?" Molly asked, hoping to make him comfortable by
sticking to work topics.
    "Yes. Turns out that is the
hospital where your collector was taken. My friend was doing his rotation in
the ER when they brought him in, DOA."
    Molly looked at him blankly. What
did that string of acronyms mean?
    "DOA?"
    Matt laughed. "Oh, sorry. It
means Dead On Arrival."
    "George-Bradley didn't even
make it to the hospital?" Molly was surprised. So the customer at C. C.'s
who’d said that an ambulance leaving without its sirens blaring meant the
patient was already dead had been correct.
    "No. And guess what his cause
of death was?"
    "I don't know. Heart
attack?"
    "No."
    Molly thought about what else
might have afflicted an overweight man. "Stroke?"
    "No."
    "Brain aneurysm?"
    "Nope." Matt shook his
head, his blue eyes smiling.
    Molly lifted a skewered piece of
bread dripping cheese onto her plate. Was Matt being playful with her? To test
him, she replied in an exasperated voice, "Intensive probing by
aliens?"
    Matt raised his brows. "I'll
give you a hint. It relates to the condition that you mentioned."
    "Diabetes?"
    "Yes."
    "I don't know anything about
diabetes, except that you have to take insulin, right?"