COZY MYSTERY: Murder At The Festival: A Cozy Mystery in the Mountains (Book 4) by Liz Turner Read Free Book Online Page A

dating him because she felt like they could share everything and that these days, she had to censor herself all the time before talking to him.”
    “Why did she feel that way?”
    “She’d told me about it. I guess it was because he had bad grades and she didn’t. I think Jay was a little jealous. He knew she’d get into a college, and he would be left behind. I think...” Byron looked sorrowful. “I think I always hoped she and I would get into the same college together.”
    “Did she ever talk to you about wanting to run away?” Victoria asked.
    “No. Never,” Byron said. “We mostly just talked about laptops and stuff. She was fascinated with forensics. She told me that when she grew up, she’d work with the CSI. Plus, we talked about hackathons; we even entered one together but didn’t make the cut.”
    “What’s a hackathon?”
    “It’s like, collaborative computer programming,” Byron said. “She and I were working on this cool project together for class. A program to create music on the computer.”
    “So she was happy here?” Victoria asked. “Her mother thought she never fitted in.”
    “I mean, she wasn’t exactly as popular as a cheerleader or something, but she wasn’t a total loser like Jay,” Byron said.
    “Ah.” There was that word again. Loser. So dismissive. So hurtful. Imagine being branded that at 17. Did it keep Jay up at night, the thought that he was worthless, a loser? Did it make him jealous and afraid of losing his girlfriend?
    “I mean, the people Jay hung out with are like all failing class,” Byron said. “Margie wasn’t a straight-A student, but she was in the upper tiers. Their relationship was bound to implode eventually. I guess it was a good thing she broke up with him when she did.”
    “Did he react badly that night?”
    “He was ok,” Byron said. “He tried to hold her hand when she walked away, but she shook him off. If he’d taken a few more seconds to release it, I think I’d have been on him. The thing is, it’s way too suspicious, isn’t it? Margie breaks up with him, and then goes missing the very next day? Maybe even the same night? He has to be involved somehow.”
    “Maybe she ran away because she was really upset about the breakup,” Victoria said.
    “That’s not true. I think breaking up with him was a relief to her. Margie was happy, I tell you. Although…” Byron paused.
    “What?”
    “It could be nothing… but… the last few weeks, she did bring up death a lot.”
    “Death?” Alarm bells started to ring in Victoria’s head.
    “Yeah. Like, she told me about her father. About how he’d died of an insulin overdose, and how she sometimes wondered if it was suicide. She said she wished she had a way of being inside his brain, of seeing how his mind worked. She once asked me if I thought suicide was ever acceptable.”
    “What did you say?”
    “I told her it was a sin.” Byron shrugged. “A terrible way to waste life.”
    “Do you think there’s a chance she was thinking of committing suicide?” Victoria asked.
    “She couldn’t be,” Byron said. “It was just talk, wasn’t it? Was it? Should I have reported it?” He looked horrified at the thought. “I never even imagined she could have…”
    The door slammed shut, and Vanilla gave a bark. Annie was back, and for now, their talk would have to cease.

Chapter 9
    Karen and Annie both walked in, with Karen whistling a merry tune.
    “What’s this, what’s this? Cinnamon cookies!” Karen laughed. “You’ve been holding out on us! Come on Annie, let’s attack that plate.”
    “Hold it, let it cool.” Victoria protested.
    But Karen had already brought out glasses and poured the milk. The four were soon seated at the table chomping on the cookies. Victoria sneaked a few to Vanilla. Karen’s good cheer seemed to have swept Annie up so that she was looking much happier now, though she kept stealing glances at Byron.
    “So, guess who’s getting an award from