Honeysuckle Homicide (Trash-to-Treasure Crafting Mystery) by Rose Pressey Read Free Book Online Page A

for the TV I’d recently gotten back from the pawn shop. It had been Ross’ TV, but at least I’d gotten something out of the divorce. That and Ross’ beloved Mustang. Anyway, I’d removed the doors on the front of the dresser and added cute accent baskets to store items on the shelves.
    The rest of the afternoon was spent writing the article. I finished just in time to make dinner of baked tilapia and tomato salad. The rest of the evening I spent reading a mystery novel on the front porch until the sun disappeared.
    Kent called me as I stepped inside the door. I didn’t tell him about the noise I heard in the backyard as we talked on the phone. Thank goodness I hadn’t heard it while outside. I figured as long as no one broke into my house, I was safe. I wasn’t going to step outside to investigate the noise either. I couldn’t help but wonder if it had been Doreen snooping around.
    The next morning after making a batch of muffins, I emailed the article to Claire Ann. As I nibbled on the fresh-baked blueberry muffin, I stared at the computer screen. That bloody card was still on my mind. What motive would Ross have to murder Luke? Nothing that I could think of, so who would have a motive? Luke had argued with this ex-girlfriend Julian minutes before his murder. And Kent had seen that with his own eyes. How could I find out more about Luke’s ex? The waitress at the restaurant seemed to know a lot about her.
    I jumped up and changed into a pair of pale yellow knee-length shorts, a white blouse and a pair of yellow flip-flops. The temperature today was supposed to be somewhere around hotter than hell , so I wanted to dress for the heat.
    Of course , I wasn’t prepared for the information the waitress gave me. It had come as a shock that Luke’s ex-girlfriend worked for Darcy Parish, the other realtor. Darcy had given me her card and said to contact her if I was interested in selling the house. I wasn’t interested, but that would give me an excuse to stop in her office. It would be a perfect reason to talk with the ex-girlfriend too. Should I ask Darcy how her card had ended up with blood on it in the Dumpster? Maybe I should let Kent handle that.
    When I stepped into the office, no one was behind the fron t desk. Behind the desk and down a small hallway were a couple of closed doors. I assumed one was Darcy’s office. The other was probably a meeting room. On the right was a tiny sitting area with a small beige-colored sofa and a couple brown upholstered chairs. In the middle was a glass coffee table with magazines and various real estate books. Apprehension had settled in and I thought about rushing out of there before anyone saw me. Would I be able to pretend I was actually interested in selling my house?
    A woman emerged from behind a closed door. Once she was closer , I recognized Luke’s ex-girlfriend. Her name, Julian Montgomery, was displayed by a little wood and gold plaque sitting on the desk. She smiled widely as she approached. Her blonde hair was pulled back into a neat ponytail and she wore black slacks and a black and white striped blouse.
    “I’m sorry that I kept you waiting. How may I help you?” she asked.
    “Ms. Parish gave me her card and said if I wanted to discuss selling my home that I should stop in and see her,” I said , looking around the room.
    “I’m sorry , but she’s not here at the moment. Would you like to have a seat and I can take down your information and let her get in touch as soon as she returns?”
    This was probably for the best. Maybe Darcy would forget to call me. Now I could talk with Julian with no interruptions.
    Julian gestured toward one of the wooden chairs in front of her desk. I sat down and scanned the area again. What I was looking for I wasn’t sure. Julian had a framed photo on the corner of her desk. I was shocked to see that it was of herself.
    She pulled out a pad of paper and a pen to take notes. I gave her my name and address. What else was