Becklaw's Murder Mystery Tour (Jo Anderson Series) by Dane McCaslin Read Free Book Online Page B

thought about the different costume sizes that Leslie had chosen and packed, and I sincerely hoped that there would be one to accommodate her, well, extremely ample figure on top.
    Miss Bea welcomed Josie to the troupe, introducing her to the others as the ‘gal who would play the “lady of the night”.’ I could see that the menfolk approved of that role. Josie liked it as well, preening her blonde head slightly as she acknowledged Miss Bea’s announcement.
    We spent the next half hour discussing the storyline, checking and doublechecking for obvious holes in the plot. Chuckling, Miss Bea assigned the murderer’s role to Julian and that of the victim to Josie.
    ‘I clean forgot to have a murderer in my Murder Mystery Tour last show, so let’s get it straight right now, shall we?’ We all nodded, wanting this to be an A1 performance of which Miss Bea would be proud. Well, I knew that was the way that LJ, Derek, Leslie, and I felt; it was my fervent desire that these four newcomers would feel the same.
    Finally it felt like all bases were covered and that all holes had been plugged. We agreed to meet at the fairground near the front entrance and have a practice that afternoon before the evening’s engagement. I could feel the slightest movement of butterfly wings in the pit of my stomach; this audience would be much larger than the one at the Moose Lodge and I didn’t want anything to go wrong.
    Looking back, I can see that we missed the warning signs right from the get-go.
    They were flashing neon bright and none of us, me included, had an inkling of the trouble that would take place before we left Manchester.
    But that was all in hindsight, which, as everyone knows, is 20/20.
    Amazingly, I was hungry again and ready for lunch. Thankfully, I wasn’t the only one who had enjoyed our breakfast, and we loaded up the wagon and headed to the same restaurant.
    Lunchtime was a bit more crowded and we had to wait for a table, but we were all perfectly content to do so. The hostess, a college-age girl in a gingham shirt, tight blue jeans, and cowboy boots handed us a menu to browse through so we could order as soon as we were seated. All around us, others were doing the same; who was I to break a local custom?
    The menu featured full-color pictures of fruit pies portioned onto thick white china plates, topped à la mode or with a slab of cheddar, and thickly cut steaks that had been grilled to perfection, served with loaded baked potatoes or cottage fries, and coleslaw or macaroni salad. When I think about this time, it is the food that is the most memorable. I had come to Colorado to be an actress and had found Food Heaven.
    We were seated next to the large window that looked out over the main thoroughfare. Noontime traffic was in full swing, meaning that a total of six cars were counted as we ate lunch. Foot traffic was much more common, and the neat sidewalks were full of people meandering to lunch dates or to one of the cute little stores that lined the street.
    I thoroughly enjoyed my lunch. I had ordered the grilled prawns and scallops on a bed of linguine, the whole thing drizzled in a garlic butter. I could tell it was real butter, too; none of that faintly oily taste that I associate with vegetable spread was apparent. It came with a Caesar salad and garlic breadsticks, and I ate every bite, using my bread to sop up the last of the butter sauce. Delicious!
    Once again stuffed to the brim, I silently promised myself to start eating more wisely. What that entailed, I didn’t define too clearly, but I figured if I left off the bread and only had butter once a day, I’d be in good shape.
    Speaking of shapes, Leslie was having a difficult time matching a dress up with Josie’s buxom figure. The bottom of the dress would be fine, but the top was way too tight. Finally, with help from Miss Bea, she decided to have Josie leave the bustier unlaced and add a lacy camisole under it. That was the only possible way to get