Murder of a Needled Knitter by Denise Swanson Read Free Book Online Page B

can’t. We didn’t have any more to drink than we do on a normal Saturday night at the bowling alley or the VFW.”
    â€œBut that motion sickness pill you took exacerbates the effects of alcohol,” Skye pointed out, then asked, “Did Dad take a Dramamine, too?”
    â€œOf course not.” May harrumphed. “Your father was in the navy, for heaven’s sake. It was a court-martialing offense to get seasick.”
    â€œBack to the incident,” Officer Trencher said, clearing her throat. She had a bemused look on her face, but hastily resumed her neutral expression and asked, “How exactly did Ms. Stallings make this pass at your husband, Mrs. Denison?”
    â€œShe took his hand and pressed it to her boobies.” May’s voice rose. “Supposedly, she wanted him to feel how soft the crepe merino yarn was that she had used to knit her shawl, but if that was the case, all she had to do was take the dang thing off and give it to him.”
    â€œOh.” For a second, Officer Trencher appeared to be at a loss for words. Then she asked, “And that was when you poured your drink over her head?”
    â€œNo.” May narrowed her eyes. “I stood up and told her she had five seconds to take her cotton-picking hands off my husband.” May gritted her teeth. “But instead of letting him go, she pushed me aside and kissed him.”
    â€œYou know, to some people a kiss is just a handshake with lips.” Although Skye herself was a little shocked at Guinevere’s actions, she tried to make light of the incident in order to defuse her mother’s anger.
    May harrumphed, her eyes cold.
    â€œSo the kiss was the last straw for you?” Officer Trencher persisted, apparently wanting to get all the facts straight, no matter how difficult it was to keep May focused on her story. “But why pour your Bloody Mary on her?”
    â€œI was aiming at Jed and she got in the way.” May raised her chin. “Tomato juice is the only thing that gets rid of the stink of a skunk.”
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    â€œHave a seat.” Skye ushered her parents and the Fraynes into her suite. When she and May had emerged from Lucille Trencher’s office, they had found Wally, Jed, Trixie, and Owen waiting for them at the passenger services counter. May had wanted to go to a nearby bar to hear a Frank Sinatra impersonator, but Skye had put her foot down and led everyone to her and Wally’s cabin.
    â€œWow!” May gazed around the spacious stateroom. “This is real nice.”
    â€œYep.” Jed moved to one of two sets of sliding glass doors and opened it. “We don’t have a window, let alone a balcony.” He disappeared out into the darkness, but his voice drifted back into the cabin. “Ma, you gotta see this.”
    May ignored her husband, trailing her fingers on the sofa’s rich upholstery. She paused to caress the smooth marble and glass coffee table, then strolled into the bathroom.
    â€œI’m surprised Mom hasn’t laid into Dad for letting Guinevere kiss him.” Skye shook her head, then added, “But I bet she does once she gets him alone.”
    â€œThat woman kissed Jed?” Wally stopped in midstride, halfway to the wet bar. “Right in front of his wife?”
    â€œI think goading Mom may have been the whole reason she was flirting with Dad in the first place.” With her parents out of the room, Skye hurriedly told him and the Fraynes what her mother had revealed about Guinevere, then outlined the security officer’s response to May’s fight with the group leader.
    â€œSeriously?” Trixie flopped into an armchair after accepting the glass of wine that Wally offered her. “Guinevere was hitting on your dad?” She ran her hands through her hair, making the short brown strands stand up like quills on a porcupine. “No offense, but why? Jed’s