Sheriff
Clayton Nazzaro did not feel comfortable with his newest investigator’s
decision to go infiltrate Malcolm Sinclair’s book club. In the end he had to
agree with Inv. Pepper Black. it was the best way to find out if Malcolm knew
anything about Margie Webster’s murder.
Clayton was to meet Pepper back at the station a half an hour after the book club ended. If she wasn’t back by 9:30 PM, he would go look for her. In the mean time, he would go over to the Lamont Café and see if they still had fish left from the night before.
Clayton was to meet Pepper back at the station a half an hour after the book club ended. If she wasn’t back by 9:30 PM, he would go look for her. In the mean time, he would go over to the Lamont Café and see if they still had fish left from the night before.
The café was
in its usual state of buzz on a Saturday night. He went over and sat on a round
swivel stool at the counter. No need for a menu. He knew everything they sold
by heart. It only threw him when they changed the price. Clayton was a victim
of single guy syndrome.
Beth walked
over and set a cup of black coffee down in front of him. “Didn’t sell as many
fish fries as normal last night with some of the regulars out of town. Do you
want the rundown of what we have?”
“You read my
mind, as usual, Beth,” Clayton said. What do you have?”
Beth looked
up as if reading inside her brain. “Shrimp in a basket, but that’s a standard;
perch, northern pike, and halibut.
All served of course with your choice of two sides, salad, mashed potatoes,
macaroni salad, French fr …”
“I know the
sides, Beth,” Clayton said with a smile. He knew, that she knew, that he knew
them all. “Fries and mac salad will be fine. And I’ll take the halibut.”
Beth took her
order to the cook and came back with a fresh pot of coffee to top off his cup.
Clayton took
a sip from his mug. “So where was everyone last night? You said a bunch of
folks were out of town.”
“Oh those book
club people went off on some field trip. They all stopped here for coffee and
such before they headed out.” Beth set extra creamer pods on the table.
“Did you
happen to see Margie Webster in the group?”
“Oh yeah,
poor Margie, huh? Of course you would be working on that. Yes, she was with
them,” Beth said. She set the pot on the table. “She looked rather jumpy. I remember
because I didn’t think she needed any more coffee, you know?”
“Was she
talking with anyone in particular in the group?”
“She was
standing with that new guy, Malcolm, from up at the lake. Creepy that one is.”
The bell over the Lamont Café jingled. She grabbed the pot. “Got to go, customer. The quicker I am
the bigger the tip.”
He needed to
catch Beth at a slow time to talk with her again. Clayton poured a fresh creamer
into his cup and mindlessly stirred it. Note to self—whenever there’s a murder,
stop at the café. The waitress knows all.
***
Today's word - H is for Halibut - is brought to you by Phoebe Scalf
If you would like to catch up, here is my 2013 A to Z Mystery Recap.
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I'm on the edge of my seat!
ReplyDeleteHello! This is a great scene. I want to know what happens next! What else does the waitress know?! Nice writing!
ReplyDeleteHappy A to Z-ing! from Laura Marcella @ Wavy Lines
I LIKE this blog! A to Z lead me hear!
ReplyDeleteAnd "here" as well!
ReplyDeleteOf course the waitress knows all.
ReplyDeleteI'm catching up on the story today. I like to read more than one entry at a time. :)