Prosecco Pink by Traci Angrighetti Read Free Book Online Page A

liquor-flavored lip gloss? No wonder someone up and killed her."
    Veronica and I exchanged a look.
    "Anyway," Delta continued, "that lip gloss is one of the things that makes me think this wasn't a suicide. If this Ivanna woman was just some nutcase who wanted to recreate Evangeline's deathbed look, then why in the world would she be holding a bottle of lip gloss instead of an oleander flower?""
    I held up the picture of Ivanna. "Did the bottle match the shade of red she was wearing?"
    "No, it was coral pink. Just like her dress."
    I bit my lip. "That's odd."
    "Indeed," Delta conceded.
    "What about the cup of tea?" Veronica asked.
    "There was no tea. But since there was no obvious cause of death, the coroner's office is testing for poison among other things."
    Veronica flipped through the police report. "I don't see any interrogation records. Have the police questioned your employees?"
    "They haven't bothered because they think it was suicide and because the plantation was closed at the time of death. But that's another thing that makes me think this was a murder. We have an alarm system at the plantation, and it was on the night this happened. Yet this woman got inside without setting it off."
    I had to agree with Delta. Unless Ivanna had somehow managed to get a key to the plantation and the code to the alarm, then someone had let her in.
    "Has anyone from Ivanna's family contacted you?" Veronica asked.
    "Not so far. I don't even think the police have talked to them yet. From what I understand, her father is overseas."
    "We'll need to talk to your employees," Veronica said. "When would be a good time for us to come to Oleander Place?"
    "It'll have to be tomorrow." She glanced at a diamond-encrusted silver watch. "In about an hour we have to start setting up for a dinner. Fortunately, the charity hosting the event didn't cancel on us, but they did demand a discount, the cheap bastards. Anyhow, it's getting late, so I'd best be on my way."
    As if on cue, David popped around the doorjamb with her fur coat.
    She scowled at him as she rose to her feet and snatched the coat from his hand.
    Seeing Delta's fur reminded me of something we'd forgotten to ask. "Wait. I have one more question."
    "Make it quick," she snapped as she slipped on her coat.
    "Did you find Ivanna's clothes at the scene?"
    She blinked. "No, just her purse. Like I told you before."
    "Thanks," I said, puzzled. That implied that Ivanna had arrived at Oleander Place already wearing the dress, which raised a lot more questions than it answered.
    "Now, you girls can come to the plantation at one o'clock tomorrow," she said. Then she narrowed her eyes and pointed a bony finger at Veronica and me. "But come alone. And don't even think about talking to the press."
    I watched in a mixture of awe and fear as she spun on her heels and exited the room, her fur flying behind her. The second I heard the lobby door slam shut I turned to David. "So, those dogs you saw in Delta's car…they weren't Dalmatians, were they?"
     
    *  *  *
     
    I tugged at the handle of my front door to make sure it was locked and then headed across the street to Thibodeaux's Tavern. As I walked, I averted my gaze to avoid seeing the spooky cemetery that was next to the bar. It might sound childish, but living by tombs, sarcophagi, obelisks, and gothic statues didn't exactly raise your spirits. In fact, some days it damn near drove me to drink. But for reasons I simply couldn't fathom, Veronica had no problem with it, which is why she arranged for me to live next door to her in Glenda's fourplex. If I'd known about the burial ground before I'd signed the lease, I would have told her to go straight to hell.
    The sounds of Amy Winehouse's "Rehab" greeted me as I arrived at the bar and pulled open the heavy wooden door. Once inside, I scanned the dimly lit room for Veronica, but there was no sign of her. It was ten after six, and we'd agreed to meet at six o'clock for dinner. Unlike me, Veronica made