Barbara Graham - Quilted 03 - Murder by Music (8 page)

“Theo?” The cadence of the soft female voice behind her was a pleasing drawl.

“I'm down here admiring your fireplace.”

With only a little clicking of her customary three inch high-heeled shoes, Beth Trimble made her entrance. Theo grinned at her, admiring her dedication to her own fashion sense. Theo probably only noticed it because it was so far from her own lack of it. Beth Trimble believed in being noticed. Today's high heels were red, matching her red leather mini-skirt. Theo wondered if she had borrowed her flowered tank top from a child, a small child. Topping it all was a hairdo requiring lots of hairspray and time.

“Welcome.” Beth approached Theo, arms wide. Running a hotel was the perfect occupation for Beth. She never met a stranger, and everyone was her best friend.

After the brief hug, Theo stepped away. “Thanks, Beth. Are you ready to do this again?”

“Absolutely! We love having the quilters.” She glanced at her heavily-laden nephew standing at the top of the steps like a beast of burden. “Hey there, Gavin. Anything you don't need to bring down here, take to her room. I'm putting her in room seven.”

Theo pointed to her small bag. “I can take it myself. That's the only thing for my room.” She smiled at Beth when the large young man ignored her and dashed off with the little bag. “What about your other guests? Have they been warned that there will be lots of laughter coming from the lobby?”

“There's only a few of them, and we explained the lounge area will not be available. They all seemed fine with it. If not,” she said with a shrug, “they don't have to come back.”

“Well, I doubt any of us would mind if they just wander through and look, as long as they don't stay too long.”

“Come see how we've set up for you.” Beth led the way through the comfortable seating area to an open space. “We have lots of extension cords and power strips in there.” She pointed to a cardboard box in one corner. “Several folding tables. Just tell Gavin or Art where you want them set up.”

“It looks great, as always, Beth. The only thing that comes to mind right now is that we'll need more light.”

“Of course. I know some of your group will bring their own, but we have eight floor lamps in this little closet. If you need more, we'll just bring them down from the empty rooms.” Beth pulled a note from her pocket. “We'll put out snacks this evening, but not dinner. You are welcome to use the kitchen any time.” She grinned. “I know you ladies love to eat at odd times up here. We are cooking three meals tomorrow and brunch on Sunday. Is that right?”

“Perfect.” Theo pulled out a list of her own. “We need seven rooms.”

“Seven? Last I heard, there were only going to be twelve of you this year.”

“There are, but no one, including me, wants to share with Eleanor.”

“Eleanor Liston is coming here?” Beth's look of horror was almost comic. “I'll put her next to the stairs on the second floor. The wind howls through there and makes horrible shrieking sounds. She should feel right at home.” Opening the drawer in the desk, Beth pulled out a roll of tape and a pen.

“As long as you are prepared to listen to her bitching about it, it doesn't bother me.” Theo handed her the list. “I have bracketed the ones who are sharing. Except for Eleanor, we should be a merry group. Although I don't know much about our guest teacher, Scarlet LaFleur. She also booked a private room.”

“I'll put her upstairs next to Eleanor.” Beth paused. “Speaking of upstairs, the railing on the verandah is being repaired. There's a temporary barrier, but you might want to warn your ladies.”

Theo nodded and watched as Beth taped the list onto the desktop.

“I'll just leave the key drawer open until everyone arrives. That way they can just check this and not have to wait.” Beth wrote room numbers on the paper using a red marking pen. Her numbers were practically big enough to read across the room. “We'll bring out Martha's birthday cake out whenever you want.”

“I brought up some champagne. Do you think you could serve it with the cake? Tea too, for those of us not imbibing.”

Beth chewed on the side of one finger, careful not to chip the nail polish that matched her skirt. “Sure, we can.”

Theo dug two bottles out of one of the bags stacked in the lounge and handed them to Beth.

As Beth turned to leave, she paused and pointed to a button under the counter. “Ring the bell if you need help at any time, day or night. It rings in our apartment.”

“Thanks for your help.”

“No, problem.” High heels clicking, Beth headed for the kitchen.

Tony made it back to his office in record time in spite of a quick stop at the library. He carried with him a book about knots and several cords for practice. As long as he was waiting for phone calls, he might as well hone his skills.

Tony was working with his knots and cords when Wade arrived, bleary eyed but reasonably alert. He had worked long hours at the house looking for fingerprints.

“I can tell you Blossom turned on the dishwasher. Her prints matched exactly.” He yawned. “Some partial prints on the medicine bottles look like hers, but I can't say for sure.”

Tony frowned.

“But, partial prints most likely belonging to Mr. Beasley were on the bottles too.”

“Telling us?” Tony untied his knots and picked up his pen.

“Well, it tells us either or both of them could have supplied the overdose.”

“And?”

“And maybe because of the smudges, someone else wore gloves and handled the bottles.”

“Fabulous.” Tony tossed the pen across the room and reached for the antacids.

Theo wasn't surprised the first arrivals were Susan and Melissa. The young women drove up at about three o'clock, laughing and dragging bag after bag into the lobby. Giddy from escaping their preschool children, they explored every nook and cranny of the hotel, laughing the whole time. Melissa finally insisted they sit for a while and talk to Theo.

About the time they settled down in the lobby, a vintage Ford pulled up in front and Dottie and Betty climbed out. The driver, a thin, freckle-faced boy with shocking purple hair, jumped out and started unloading their gear. Gavin was soon lending a hand, looking a bit surprised by the weight of the bags. Linking arms, the ladies strolled into the hotel like a pair of queens with two serfs behind them staggering under the volume of luggage. The boy stacked his load by the desk, kissed Dottie's wrinkled cheek and bolted for the door. “Have fun, Grandma. I'll be back on Sunday about noon.” And he was gone.

Four of them came together. Lucinda, Freddie, Ruth and Holly were inseparable. This weekend, they planned to work on a quilt in a frame. They sent their luggage to the rooms with Gavin. “Just stack it all in one of the rooms, sugar,” said Freddie, the spokeswoman. “We'll sort it out later.”

“Do you need any help?” Beth Trimble stood at the top of the stairs. It looked like her hair had grown even bigger. “I can send Gavin and Art in to help.”

“Thanks, Beth, but we do this all the time. We can arrange it ourselves.” Theo sent her away.

The older ladies, Dottie and Betty, made their way into the lobby, carefully negotiating the stairs, and headed for the corner where Susan, Melissa and Theo were sitting. Melissa and Susan jumped up and began moving chairs into an open U. Once they had everything arranged they were able to sit and chat.

“Who else is coming?” asked Holly.

“Martha and Jane will come up together sometime later. They have to wait until Jane gets off work. With Martha teaching, Jane seems to feel she has to be at the museum all the time. Even if they aren't open to visitors yet.” Theo paused. “Eleanor will show up whenever it suits her, I guess.”

Someone whispered, “I wish that witch would drop dead.”

“What about Scarlet LaFleur?” said Susan. “I'm excited to learn her embroidery techniques. Wouldn't it be gorgeous on an appliqué project?”

“You know who she was before she changed her name, don't you?” One of the older ladies muttered as she settled at the frame. She announced the answer to the woman next to her.

Theo thought everyone looked stunned, which surprised her. She thought it was common knowledge. Scarlet was the former Christmas Poinsettia Flowers. Country music star Elf's older sister.

Tony had just about tied himself to his desk chair with a very complicated series of knots when Ruth Ann interrupted him. Stepping into the doorway of his office, she said, “You'll be interested to know, Sheriff, Mike just called in from Ruby's Café.”

Tony had a step-by-step instruction book about knots open on his desk. If he had known anything about these knots before, he had forgotten it, and he had only a few hours left to learn them. “And?” Tony didn't look up from his project. When Ruth Ann didn't say more, he was forced to move his eyes away from the end of the recalcitrant cord to look at her. “So, now he can operate the phone?” Acid dripped from each syllable.

Ruth Ann waved her fingers, drying the latest shade of polish. It looked purple to him. “There was an altercation on the premises. It's under control.”

“What?” Tony went back to work on his project.

“You know. A fight.” She didn't flinch when a paper clip sailed within inches of her nose, but a look of disdain curled her lip.

“I know what one is, and you know it.” He narrowed his eyes and glared at her. “Dammit Ruth Ann, just tell me what's going on.” Tony had neatly tied himself to his desk while practicing his knot-tying for Chris's scout meeting. He was sure the boys would do a better job if he just handed out photocopies of the instructions and sat off to the side and offered encouraging words.

His phone rang.

“Ruth Ann! Will you get that please?” When she actually answered the phone and identified herself, he decided she needed a raise. “Thank you.”

She put the caller on hold. “Blossom wants to know if you've got her money.”

“Her what?” Tony stared at the Gordian knot at his ankles.

“Money. As in paycheck.” Ruth Ann studied him. “Put the end through there and then push it through this hole.” She pointed to a small space near his ankle bone with a glistening wet fingernail.

It worked. The knot was transformed into a neat, useable piece of string art. “How'd you know to do that?”

“I practice on my mother-in-law all the time.” Ruth Ann waved her hand again, sending the aroma of polish into his nostrils. “If I don't tie her up from time to time, I'll have to kill her.”

Tony glanced up. He couldn't tell from her expression if she was kidding or not. “What's the latest with Walter? Any change?” Ruth Ann's husband had been injured over a year previous, and her mother-in-law had moved in to “help out.”

Ruth Ann's smile illuminated the room. “After months of therapy, he suddenly seems to be making great progress. It's like the message has finally gotten to his brain, and he's making clay figures.”

For a man whose hands had been lying useless in his lap for months, it
was
a miracle. “So is his mama leaving any time soon?”

“I sincerely hope so.” Ruth Ann sighed. “Oh-oh. I left Blossom on hold.”

“I am hopelessly tied up.” Tony released the knot. “Tell her I can't do anything until Carl Lee gets back into town. Thanks to you I'm ready to be the entertainment at tonight's meeting.”

Ruth Ann used the telephone on his desk then turned and strolled away. She smiled at him over her shoulder. “Have a fun weekend with the boys.”

“You have a fun one too. Maybe you can find your mother-in-law's suitcase.”

“Not a problem.” Ruth Ann paused at the door. “I put it under her bed the day she arrived.”

“Wait, you didn't tell me about Mike.” Tony began working on the next knot in the book.

“He said that Elmer Smith and Dudley Thomas got into a knockdown, drag out fight at the counter in Ruby's. Elmer evidently told Dudley if he didn't mend his ways and become a better person he was going to end up dead, just like Mr. Beasley.” Ruth Ann walked closer, leaned forward and pointed to the loose end of the cord. “It needs to come back up through here.”

“Thanks.” Tony did as she indicated and the new knot slid perfectly into place. “Does Mike need any help?” When Ruth Ann shook her head in negation, Tony relaxed. “What else happened?”

“I guess Dudley didn't feel like improving himself, although I wish he would. His nickname isn't Dud because he's so ambitious. Anyway, he tossed Elmer onto the floor along with a considerable number of dishes, and Ruby flipped out and called it in and Mike answered the call. When Mike arrived, Elmer was unconscious on the floor in the middle of the café and Dudley was holding a piece of a broken plate against Elmer's throat.”

Tony started untying the knots as Ruth Ann continued. “To make a long story short, Mike is bringing Dudley in now. Doc Nash is fixing Elmer up, and Ruby won't let either man back into her café.” She touched the edge of her fingernail checking it for dryness. Smiling with satisfaction, she sauntered out of his office.

Still holding the cord, Tony leaned back in his chair, his thoughts on Dudley Thomas. Dudley had spent some time in the county jail and was certainly no saint. His main crimes were usually drunk and disorderly behavior, public intoxication and car theft. The car theft charges were what Dudley preferred to think of as borrowing what he couldn't afford to buy. His target victims were almost always tourists from out of state who parked in Ruby's parking lot. It was strictly a matter of convenience for him. Dudley worked sporadically at his brothers' gas station. The station next door to Ruby's. On the occasions when he did work, he was the best auto mechanic in three states. Even he failed to fix Theo's minivan.

Tony knew when Mike arrived with Dudley. He could hear Dudley swearing in the back seat of the patrol car as it pulled into the parking bay. Tony met them in the interrogation room. “Did Mike read you your rights?” From across the room, he could smell Dudley. His odor was an unpleasant combination of sweat, grease and beer. The navy blue jumpsuit he wore had enough grease on the front of it to lubricate every hinge in Park County.

“Yeah, he did, like I'm not smart enough to know what they are without him going on and on about it. I got me a terrible headache.” Dud whined. “Can I leave now?”