The Grudge by Kathi Daley Read Free Book Online Page B

type of reunion.”
    “Did anyone show up?”
    “No. He took the bottle over to that table in the corner and had one drink. Next thing I know, he’s staggering out of here. Left the rest of the bottle on the table. No one ever did show up to drink the rest.”
    “Do you still have it?”
    “I put it behind the bar. Figured the guy paid for it, maybe he’d be back for it when he sobered up. When I found out he was dead I credited his charge card and put the bottle back into inventory.”
    “Do you think it’s odd that the guy was staggering after only one drink?’
    “Some people are lightweights. That stuff is strong. Figured he could have been drinking before he wandered in here and the scotch put him over the top.”
    “I’d like to buy the rest of the bottle.” Alyson whipped out her credit card. “I’m not going to drink it. It’s a gift for my dad.”
    “I don’t know. You’re underage.”
    “Come on, Hank,” Andi pleaded. “We won’t tell and we won’t drink it, I promise. Alyson told me earlier that she was looking for the perfect gift for her dad. It’s his fortieth birthday. A forty-year-old bottle of scotch would be perfect.”
    “It has been opened,” Hank reminded them.
    “My dad won’t care about that,” Alyson assured him.
    “Well, okay. But if anyone asks, I know nothing about this transaction.”
    “What transaction?” Andi bagged the scotch as Hank ran Alyson’s card.
    “I know you didn’t really buy the scotch for your dad. So what’s with the expensive souvenir?” Mac asked Alyson after they left the bar.
    “Evidence. The whole thing is just too odd. Think about it: Bruce Long went into a bar and ordered an expensive bottle of scotch the bartender doesn’t even know he had. He told the bartender he was going to meet some friends who never showed up, had one drink, and ended up dead in a snowbank.”
    “You think the scotch was drugged,” Devon guessed.
    “Bingo. Furthermore, I think someone planted the scotch, either because they knew it was the victim’s preference, or they somehow instructed the victim to buy that particular brand and year.”
    “So who planted the scotch and what happened to the friends he was supposed to be meeting?” Eli asked.
    “Both good questions. But is there a way we can test this scotch for drugs?” Alyson asked Andi.
    “Dr. Mark might have a way, but I don’t know how we’d get him to test it without telling him why we want it done.”
    “Do you do pre-employment drug testing?” Mac asked.
    “Yeah, and random tests on all safety-sensitive personnel.”
    “Are the tests done locally?”
    “They’re sent over to the lab.”
    “So all we need to do is break in again and find a drug kit. I can do the test. It’s really pretty easy. We can test the victim’s blood while we’re at it.”
    “Blood?” Andi asked. “How are you going to get his blood?”
    “We’ll have to draw it. It’ll be hard on someone who’s been dead for twenty-four hours but not impossible.”
    “Are you thinking of performing this procedure before or after we indulge in Cookie’s epicurean delights?” Eli asked.
    “After,” Mac answered. “We want to be sure no one is around. The later the better.”
    Andi turned pale. “Okay, but if my dinner ends up on Dr. Mark’s floor don’t say I didn’t warn you.”
    “You can wait in the hall or in one of the other rooms. I’ll really only need one person to help me after we find the kits.”
    “I’ll do it,” Eli volunteered. “Where my woman goes, I go.”
    “Your woman?” Mac asked.
    “A little too chauvinistic?”
    “A lot too chauvinistic. But you can help anyway.”
    “It’s almost two o’clock. We can head over to the security offices if you want,” Andi interrupted.
    “Okay, let’s go.” Alyson nodded. “The more we investigate these so-called accidents, the more convinced I am they weren’t.”
    They once again piled into the SUV and headed across the resort. Alyson had