Scone Cold Dead by Kaitlyn Dunnett Read Free Book Online Page B

sometimes. Not exactly politically correct. But I can’t think of a single reason why anyone would want to kill him.”
    â€œYou may know more than you think, Ms. MacCrimmon. After all, you are familiar with all the members of the dance company.”
    She’d been afraid that was where he was going with this. “You think one of them murdered Victor?”
    â€œI think that’s a more likely explanation than it having been a random act by someone local who’d never met him before last night.”
    He had a point.
    Tandy set his empty coffee mug aside. “I’ll level with you, Ms. MacCrimmon. My predecessor here in Carrabassett County did not cover himself with glory investigating the last murder in these parts. You, on the other hand, came up with several viable leads and eventually discovered the killer’s identity.”
    She grimaced. “I didn’t have much choice. Your idiot of a predecessor was convinced I was the one he was after. He didn’t look for anyone else.” In retrospect, Liss wished she hadn’t, either. She hadn’t liked what she’d found.
    Then those compelling dark eyes locked on hers. “I don’t intend to make the same mistakes he did, and it has been suggested to me, by the person who had the foresight to look for the missing EpiPen, that you may be able to help me avoid some of them.”
    A harsh jangle from the wall phone interrupted Tandy in midpitch.
    â€œExcuse me,” Liss said, and grabbed it on the second ring.
    Fiona’s voice, agitated, exploded in her ear. “Do you have any idea what’s going on?” she demanded. “I’m getting the runaround from these people. They won’t let me have Victor’s body.”
    â€œThey’re probably still trying to locate next of kin.”
    Tandy’s eyes narrowed when he overheard Liss’s words.
    â€œHe had no kin left,” Fiona said. “Look, all I want is to arrange for a memorial service on Monday morning so we can all attend before we leave.”
    â€œFiona, I’m going to give you to a state police detective. His name is Gordon Tandy.” She put her hand over the receiver. “This is Fiona Carlson.” As Fiona was the senior member of the company, it made sense she’d be filling in for Victor to handle practical details. She’d helped out before with bookkeeping, scheduling, and other management tasks.
    Liss refilled both her coffee mug and Tandy’s while he explained the situation to Fiona. She heard him tell Fiona it would be helpful if she could make arrangements for the troupe to stay in the area longer. Liss expected he’d get an argument about that, but to judge by the one side of the conversation she could hear, Fiona readily agreed to cancel Monday night’s show in Lowell, Massachusetts.
    After asking Fiona not to tell anyone yet that Victor had been murdered—he wanted to break that news to each individual himself—Tandy handed the phone back to Liss. She assured Fiona she could make arrangements to hang on to the rooms the members of Strathspey currently occupied. It made sense for her to handle that, since she’d been the one to make the reservations in the first place.
    â€œWas Ms. Carlson close to Victor Owens?” Tandy asked when she hung up.
    â€œNot the way you mean. They worked together.”
    â€œOkay. No romantic overtones. So noted. That’s the sort of information it’s helpful for me to have. I can get personnel records but you’re acquainted with these people. You can help me understand them. You may even be able to persuade them to be honest with me if they’re inclined to leave out a detail or two.”
    For a moment Liss just stared at him. All the air seemed to have been sucked out of the room. Her chest felt tight. “You want me to . . . ? What do you want me to do?”
    â€œYou’d be a liaison.”
    â€œAnd that entails