Agony of the Leaves: Tea Shop Mystery #13 (36 page)

Was Kimber just goofing off? Carmela wondered. Was she being a pill and trying to rattle poor Raleigh?

But something didn’t sit right with Carmela. From her perspective, Kimber had looked…terrified. “No, put the balcony feed up on the other monitor!” she cried to Raleigh. “Something’s wrong!”

He shook his head. “Can’t. The klieg’s down. No light out there.”

Carmela stood motionless for one more second, knowing it wasn’t her place to interfere. Then she quickly reconsidered and pushed her way through the impervious, partying crowd and out onto the balcony.

Arriving, slightly breathless on the littlehalf-circle balcony that hung out over the street, Carmela stopped dead in her tracks. Bizarrely, Kimber was nowhere to be found.

Huh? Where on earth did she disappear to?

Carmela blinked and glanced around again.

Kidnapped by aliens?

She saw only two cameras, locked in place, their dark lenses andall-seeing red eyes staring directly at her.

As Carmela fought to figure out what strange trick had just been played, shrill screams echoed from the street below. Startled now, she turned and glanced down. An enormous pink-and-gold dragon float was rolling by, the dragon’sten-foot-wide gaping mouth spewing smoke and shooting sparks, while an enormous tail wagged back and forth across the entire width of the street. Perched high atop the dragon’s spiky back were at least fortywhite-robed Krewe members tossing strands of silver beads to the screaming, deliriously happy crowd.

But still the screams persisted. And now the crowd wasn’t just crying out for beads! Now, horrified faces were upturned.

Looking at me?

Puzzled, Carmela glanced down and saw a fat black cord snaked tightly over the balcony railing.

Leading to… ?

Her heart did a slow-motionflip-flop. Then, with a feeling of dread and a swirl of vertigo, Carmela leaned farther out over the narrow wrought iron balcony and gazed straight down.

That’s when Carmela saw Kimber’s lifeless body dangling ten feet below her. Kimber’s face was a massive purple clot; one slender high heel hung from her foot, the other foot was
completely bare. Then a spotlight from the dragon float suddenly angled its bright light upward, revealing Kimber’s twisting body. And Carmela’s scream rose in a frantic plea, mingling with the hysterical shrieks from the crowd.

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A Mardi Gras murder prompts a flurry of spooky postcards to Carmela. Is this a crueltrick—or a dire warning?

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A grisly murder in a blinding snowstorm leaves the townspeople of Kindred badly shaken. And right in the middle of the Fire & Ice Festival, inquiring minds want toknow—will the ladies of the Cackleberry Club dare pursue this creepy killer?

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