Murder of a Wedding Belle by Denise Swanson Read Free Book Online Page A

cabin four was half-open, which is unusual considering there’s tens of thousands of dollars’ worth of goods being stored inside.”
    “So you’re thinking maybe whatever happened to Belle started while she was working inside number four.” Wally had removed his arm from around her to take notes.
    “It makes sense.” Skye gestured over her shoulder with her thumb. “Since it’s right there.”
    “I’ll take a look while we wait for the crime techs and the coroner. Why don’t you check and see if Martinez is doing okay.”
    “How’s she working out?”
    “So far, so good.” Wally took Skye’s hands to help her stand. “But she’s only been here a little over a week, and this is her first job after college.”
    Skye nodded. Like small-town schools, small-town police departments often hired new graduates because they couldn’t afford more experienced officers.
    As Wally walked over to number four, Skye approached Officer Martinez, who had taken up a position in the center of the parking lot where she could see all the cabins. “Hi. Everyone behaving?”
    “More or less. They complained about having to stay in their rooms. It seems several have hangovers and are in desperate need of caffeine.”
    “Mmm. We may be able to use that to our advantage when we question them.” Skye shook her head. “Who knew that Uncle Charlie’s refusal to provide coffeepots in the rooms would turn out to our advantage?”
    “I don’t know,” Zelda deadpanned. “Withholding caffeine might be considered torture.”
    Skye lips twitched. It appeared that Zelda had quickly learned that cops, like mental health workers, often used humor to cope with the grim reality of their jobs. “Guess there’s not much we can do until the forensic team shows up.”
    Zelda adjusted her sunglasses. “I checked out the rooms, and I know they don’t have back doors, but do you think any of them are desperate enough to try and climb out the bathroom window?”
    “Those windows are pretty small,” Skye pointed out. “But how about I do a roll call to make sure everyone is still where they’re supposed to be?”
    “Sounds like a plan.” Zelda nodded. “Just yell if you need me.”
    Skye started with Zack and Paige in cabin one, then worked her way around the circle. Zelda had been right about the group being unhappy with their confinement, but Skye soothed them with promises of coffee after they’d answered a few questions for the police.
    No one answered the door to number ten. Frowning, she checked her list. Hallie Jordan was supposed to be occupying that cabin. She remembered that Hallie and her brother were the only guests who hadn’t shown up when the ambulance arrived.
    Hale was assigned to number eleven, so Skye moved on to that cottage. When there was no response to her knock there either, she decided she’d better let Wally know that the twins were AWOL.
    She found him conferring with Simon Reid next to the cooling unit. Besides being the county coroner, Simon owned the local funeral home and the town bowling alley—which his mother, Bunny, managed. He was also Skye’s ex-boyfriend.
    They had dated on and off for nearly three years, until Skye caught Simon cheating on her. Actually, he really wasn’t, but he’d been too stubborn to explain. Shortly afterward, Wally and Skye became an item. To say that the three of them working together presented an awkward situation was an understatement.
    As Skye approached them, both men turned toward her, and as soon as she was near enough, Wally put his arm around her shoulders and said, “Everything okay?”
    At the same instant, Simon took her free hand and asked, “Are you all right? Anything I can do?” In appearance, Simon was the antithesis of Wally, tall and lean with stylishly cut auburn hair and golden hazel eyes.
    “She’s fine,” Wally said, stepping back and bringing Skye with him, which caused her hand to slip from Simon’s. “I’ve got it covered.”
    The two