Streak of Lightning by Clare O'Donohue Read Free Book Online Page B

station and unlocked Joe’s cell, I don’t think either of them could have strangled him. Joe would have been able to stop it. And Greg would have heard it.”
    â€œAnd Larry was at the garage all yesterday,” I pointed out.
    â€œAre we suspecting Larry?” Eleanor asked.
    â€œNo, but he was the only other person who went back to the jail cell before the paramedics got there.”
    â€œBut Greg said Joe was dead before Larry arrived,” Carrie pointed out. “So we’re back to Greg.”
    â€œHe does make a great suspect.” Jesse got up and stretched. It was a good idea, but I was too tired to move. “It’s that darn bruise. I can’t see Greg strangling him. And when he arrested him, he said he didn’t get rough, just sort of chased him around. I was rougher on Joe than that.” He stopped, stared into space for a second, and then turned to me, his eyes wide. “Nell, show me again where Larry said the bruise was.”
    I touched the base of my throat, and as I did, Jesse’s expression changed.
    â€œWell, that’s it,” he said. “It wasn’t Greg.”
    I jumped up. “Who was it?”
    â€œIt was me.”
    Carrie turned to him. “You murdered Joe?”
    Jesse laughed. “No. I stopped him from attacking Rich. I held him back. He was strong. I think I caused the bruise when I was pushing my hand against his chest, trying to hold him back.”
    â€œSo it wasn’t a murder at all. It was a heart attack like Lori said?” Eleanor asked.
    Jesse shrugged. “Or it was those pills she brought to the police station. Either way, it wasn’t Greg. I’ll call Terri in the morning and tell her what happened, and let Greg know he’s on duty tomorrow night.”
    We closed up shop and headed home. As I lay in bed that night, I felt almost silly. We had worried ourselves for nothing. A simple explanation for a non-strangling bruise, and our friend’s freedom and career were once again safe.
    I had a good night’s sleep, and the next day as I sewed the blocks for my streak of lightning quilt, I felt a rush of happiness. The year hadn’t started off the way I’d planned, but it at least felt like the clouds had parted and everything would be lovely and bright again.
    Then Jesse called. And like a flash of light in a dark sky, it was clear that the storm wasn’t over.

Chapter 13
    â€œHe wasn’t strangled,” Jesse told me over the phone.
    â€œWe knew that.”
    â€œAnd it wasn’t a heart attack.”
    It was the only other choice left, and though it was what we had suspected, it made me a little sad. “So Lori poisoned him.”
    â€œNo, not that either. The state police found the bottle of pills in Joe’s jail cell, and according to their forensics, they are just what Lori said: blood pressure meds. Besides, the coroner did a preliminary autopsy this morning, and poisoned or not, those pills didn’t kill Joe.”
    â€œBut he knows the cause of death?”
    â€œHematoma. A ruptured blood vessel caused by blunt force trauma to the head.”
    â€œSomebody hit Joe.”
    â€œAnd hard. On the back of the head,” he said. “So we’re back to it being Greg. Terri is here now, and she says that she can delay filing her report until this afternoon, but . . .”
    â€œYou have to suspend Greg.”
    â€œI decided to give him the day off so I can suspend him tomorrow, not that it matters. I think Terri plans to arrest him this afternoon,” Jesse said. “So if you have any ideas . . .”
    I didn’t. When we hung up, I looked back at the progress I’d made on my quilt. As I sewed the blocks together, the simple strips made a beautiful log cabin block, with one side blue and the other a creamy white. Once the blocks were sewn together in a zigzag pattern, the whole quilt top did look quite complicated. If,