Killerfind by Sharon Woods Hopkins Read Free Book Online Page A

morning, they decided
to stay home. In the middle of Rhetta’s shower Saturday morning, the power went
off and the whole-house backup generator kicked on. The outage lasted until
Sunday afternoon.
    She felt like they hadn’t had any down time at all.
Tuesday made the third straight day of the heavens splitting open with storms
and torrential rains.
    Rhetta had forgotten her umbrella, so she sprinted
across the parking lot. Woody was already parked in the slot closest to the
door. “The reward for getting here early,” he’d probably chirp, if she groused
that she wanted that spot for herself. They’d had that discussion before. He
didn’t think her position as manager earned her the spot unless she got there
before him.
    He held the door for her. “You went looking for
trouble, didn’t you? Bank and post office, my broken foot.” He pointed to his
foot that had, until a few weeks ago, sported a walking cast.
    Rhetta ignored him and carried her triple espresso
mocha light to her desk, setting it down gingerly. Some splashed over the top
of the cup and on to her desk. She snatched the napkin and blotted quickly. The
coffee smelled heavenly. She shook her soaked hair, tossing rain droplets
across her desk, then reached for her cup to savor the first sip.
    “Where’s LuEllen?” she said, glancing at the empty
reception desk. Beyond LuEllen’s desk, Rhetta had a clear view out the window
at the solid sheet of rain pelting the building.
    Woody ignored her question and instead, shook the newspaper
at her. “It’s all here in gory detail on the front page.”
    “How many times do I have to tell you I don’t read
the local paper?” She tossed the St. Louis Post-Dispatch down on her desk.
“Mercifully, no one in St. Louis cares about this, so I don’t have to read
about it.” She riffled through her desk calendar, changing the month, and
tapping the date. “Is LuEllen off? There’s nothing on the calendar about her
being off today.”
    Woody dropped into the guest chair in front of her
desk and laid the newspaper beside her coffee. “She called and said she’ll be
in late. Something about a dentist appointment. Meanwhile, I’m waiting. Spill
it.” He rubbed his head.
    “Are you upset? You sound as though you’re
disappointed that you weren’t there when we found the body.” She rearranged her
desk, set her purse down on the corner and picked up the local paper. She
scanned it, then handed it back to Woody. Her arm knocked her purse over,
dumping everything on the floor. “Crap.” She bent over to retrieve the spilled
contents.
    “I’m not upset.”
    “Yes, you are.” She stuffed her phone, wallet,
notebook and an envelope of papers back into her purse. A small sheet floated
to the desk. “There’s the receipt for the vacuum sweeper I took to be repaired.
I knew it had it.” She crammed the paperwork back in her purse.
    Woody tapped the newspaper. “I’m not upset, but yes,
I did want to go out there with you. After all, I’m the one who suspected that
wrench had dried blood on it.” He held the paper up for her. “It appears I may
be right.”
    Rhetta peered at the headlines. Front page coverage.
    Cape
Girardeau County Sheriff Talbot Reasoner issued a statement today about the
body found in a barn last week in Gordonville. Reasoner confirmed that the
remains were that of a male, but positive identification won’t be made until
test results are available. Preliminary lab results performed over the weekend
indicated there was blood found on various items discovered by Ms. Victoria
Lane inside a vintage Camaro that she was restoring. Ms. Lane had located the
car inside the barn, which sits on property now being developed by Mr. Jeremy
Spears. Spears is the son of the late Willard Spears, who had been partners
with Malcom Griffith in G & S Development, a well-known developer in the
area. Griffith disappeared fifteen years ago. Sheriff Reasoner confirmed that
he did not expect test results for