Ashes to Dust (Las Vegas Mystery) by Rex Kusler Read Free Book Online Page A

his left arm out dramatically in a welcoming gesture. “Welcome to my castle,” he said. Then he raised his beer can. “Cold one?”
    Alice and Snow stepped inside.
    “No. We’re fine,” Snow said. “Why don’t we sit down?”
    “That sounds like a plan, boss,” Dole said. “How about the living room? Go ahead and seat yourselves while I replace this empty.” He tipped the can to his mouth and chugged the remainder of its contents. Then he flung it toward the wastebasket, banking it off the side of the cabinet and in.
    “Nice shot,” Alice said. “I can tell you’ve been practicing.”
    “With diligence. I could hit that thing with my eyes closed,” Dole declared on the way to the refrigerator. He swung the door open, reached inside, and brought out a fresh can of beer. Popping it open, he carried it into the living room and fell backwards into the recliner. He leaned back in it, forcing the leg rest up. With his beer can resting on his stomach, his eyes focused between his sneakers at Alice and Snow, he belched and said, “Alright—I’m in the suspect interrogation position. Fire away.”
    Alice and Snow looked at each other, then back at Dole.
    “To start with,” Snow began, “we want you know that we’re on your side, and we’re here to help you.”
    Dole’s expression remained unaffected. “How so?”
    “I expect that you had nothing to do with Laura Roberts’s murder?”
    “I’m completely innocent,” Dole declared.
    “Well, after we uncover evidence leading to the perpetrator, he’ll be arrested, and you’ll be in the clear.”
    Dole took a swallow of beer. “That sounds good, boss. But if you expect that I’m innocent, why are you here talking to me instead of the suspects?”
    “We don’t really have any suspects at this point. So we’re starting out by talking to anyone who knew Laura and might be able to give us helpful information.”
    “And what sort of helpful information would you like me to give you?”
    Snow leaned forward and spread his hands. “Is there anyone you know of who might have wanted her dead?”
    In one smooth motion, Dole leaned forward, kicking the leg rest down. He gripped the beer can in both hands, his elbows resting on the arms of the recliner. His eyes narrowing, he said, “I don’t like speaking ill of the deceased, but I can tell you for a fact, anyone who ever exchanged words with that woman might have wanted her dead—at least for a few minutes. Or even a few seconds.”
    “Why do you say that?”
    “She had a knack for firing insults that could drive a comatose lobotomy patient into a rage. And it happened, at least with me, anytime she wasn’t getting the answers she wanted to hear. There were times she got so bad she reminded me of that possessed girl in The Exorcist . But the thing is, it wasn’t just the things she said. It was her expressions, her delivery, that would make you want to toss her off a bridge.”
    Sitting on the sofa next to Snow, Alice gave Dole a thoughtful look and crossed her legs, smoothing out her skirt with her fingers. “Sounds pretty bad,” she said. “And how did you react to her?”
    Lowering an eyebrow, Dole said, “Cool. I don’t let people like that bother me. Just let it flow past me. It doesn’t pay to lose your cool just because some asshole wants to ruin your day even worse than it already is.”
    “And how have your days been recently?” Alice asked.
    Dole took a slug of beer, lowered the can, and crumpled it slightly, making it pop. He nodded. “Pretty fucking bad.”
    Alice said nothing. She waited.
    He took another pull on the beer and continued. “I work construction. April and I moved down here six years ago from Sioux Falls, South Dakota. Things weren’t that lucrative up there, and we heard it was booming in Vegas. It was. I was making a lot of money for a few years. But it all came to a screeching halt.
    “I got laid off five months ago; some of my buddies have been out of work