Read Thoroughly 03 - Who Invited the Dead Man? Online
Authors: Patricia Sprinkle
Thoroughly 03 - Who Invited the Dead Man?
BOOK: Thoroughly 03 - Who Invited the Dead Man?
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Table of Contents
Praise for the previous mysteries of Patricia Sprinkle . . .
“Light touches of humor and the charming interplay between MacLaren and her magistrate husband make this a fun read for mystery fans.”—
Library Journal
Library Journal
“Sparkling . . . witty . . . a real treat and as refreshing as a mint julep, a true Southern pleasure.”—
Romantic Times
Romantic Times
“Sparkles with verve, charm, wit, and insight. I loved it.”
—Carolyn Hart
“Engaging . . . compelling . . . a delightful thriller.”
—
Peachtree Magazine
Peachtree Magazine
“The sort of light entertainment we could use more of in the hot summer days to come.”—
The Denver Post
The Denver Post
“[Sprinkle] just keeps getting better.”
—
The Post & Courier
(Charleston, SC)
The Post & Courier
(Charleston, SC)
SIGNET
Published by New American Library, a division of
Penguin Putnam Inc., 375 Hudson Street,
New York, New York 10014, U.S.A.
Penguin Books Ltd, 80 Strand,
London WC2R 0RL, England
Penguin Books Australia Ltd, Ringwood,
Victoria, Australia
Penguin Books Canada Ltd, 10 Alcorn Avenue,
Toronto, Ontario, Canada M4V 3B2
Penguin Books (N.Z.) Ltd, 182-190 Wairau Road,
Auckland 10, New Zealand
Published by New American Library, a division of
Penguin Putnam Inc., 375 Hudson Street,
New York, New York 10014, U.S.A.
Penguin Books Ltd, 80 Strand,
London WC2R 0RL, England
Penguin Books Australia Ltd, Ringwood,
Victoria, Australia
Penguin Books Canada Ltd, 10 Alcorn Avenue,
Toronto, Ontario, Canada M4V 3B2
Penguin Books (N.Z.) Ltd, 182-190 Wairau Road,
Auckland 10, New Zealand
Penguin Books Ltd, Registered Offices:
Harmondsworth, Middlesex, England
Harmondsworth, Middlesex, England
First published by Signet, an imprint of New American Library, a division of Penguin Putnam Inc.
First Printing, July 2002
Who Left That Body In The Rain?
copyright © Patricia Sprinkle, 2002
eISBN : 978-1-101-08831-9
All rights reserved
REGISTERED TRADEMARK—MARCA REGISTRADAWithout limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise), without the prior written permission of both the copyright owner and the above publisher of this book.
PUBLISHER’S NOTE
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
BOOKS ARE AVAILABLE AT QUANTITY DISCOUNTS WHEN USED TO PROMOTE PRODUCTS OR SERVICES. FOR INFORMATION PLEASE WRITE TO PREMIUM MARKETING DIVISION, PENGUIN PUTNAM INC., 375 HUDSON STREET, NEW YORK, NEW YORK 10014.
THANKS TO:
Robert Bremm, of Parrot Jungle, Miami, Florida, for his invaluable information about parrots, particularly scarlet macaws, and for giving me the chance to meet a parrot face-to-face.
Helen Rhea Stumbo, founder of Camellia and Main gift store and catalogue, who explained the fascinating world of catalogue merchandising.
Donna Van Lier, who frankly shared her own experience dealing with a husband with Traumatic Brain Injury, and steered me toward two excellent books:
Where Is the Mango Princess?
by Cathy Crimmins (New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2000) and
Over My Head: A Doctor’s Own Story of Brain Injury from the Inside Looking Out
by Claudia L. Osborn (Kansas City: Andrews McMeel Publishing, 1998).
Where Is the Mango Princess?
by Cathy Crimmins (New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2000) and
Over My Head: A Doctor’s Own Story of Brain Injury from the Inside Looking Out
by Claudia L. Osborn (Kansas City: Andrews McMeel Publishing, 1998).
Dorothy Cowling, who proofread and suggested good changes in the book. Judge Curt St. Germaine, chief magistrate of Burke County, Georgia, and Judge Mildred Anne Palmer, Mac’s inspiration and consultant on being a Georgia magistrate.
The expertise in these fields is theirs; any errors in their fields are my own.
CAST OF CHARACTERS
MacLaren Yarbrough
: amateur sleuth, Georgia magistrate, co-owner of Yarbrough’s Feed, Seed and Nursery
: amateur sleuth, Georgia magistrate, co-owner of Yarbrough’s Feed, Seed and Nursery
Joe Riddley Yarbrough
: MacLaren’s husband, a former magistrate, co-owner of YFS&N
: MacLaren’s husband, a former magistrate, co-owner of YFS&N
Clarinda Williams
: cook for MacLaren and Joe Riddley
: cook for MacLaren and Joe Riddley
Ridd
: the Yarbroughs’ older son, a high school math teacher and small farmer
: the Yarbroughs’ older son, a high school math teacher and small farmer
Martha
: Ridd’s wife, an emergency room supervisor Cricket (3) and Bethany (16): their children
: Ridd’s wife, an emergency room supervisor Cricket (3) and Bethany (16): their children
Walker
: the Yarbroughs’ younger son, an insurance salesman
: the Yarbroughs’ younger son, an insurance salesman
Cindy
: his ornamental wife Tad (9) and Jessica (11): their children
: his ornamental wife Tad (9) and Jessica (11): their children
Augusta Wainwright
: autocratic leader of Hopemore society
: autocratic leader of Hopemore society
Meriwether Wainwright
: her granddaughter
: her granddaughter
Alice Fulton
: Augusta’s personal secretary and companion
: Augusta’s personal secretary and companion
Florine Jackson
: Augusta’s housekeeper and cook
: Augusta’s housekeeper and cook
Winifred “Pooh” DuBose
: Augusta Wainwright’s oldest friend, a widow
: Augusta Wainwright’s oldest friend, a widow
Lottie and Otis Raeburn
: Pooh’s cook-housekeeper and driver-yard man, respectively
: Pooh’s cook-housekeeper and driver-yard man, respectively
Slade Rutherford
: new editor of the
Hopemore Statesman,
a weekly paper
: new editor of the
Hopemore Statesman,
a weekly paper
Kelly Keane
: newspaper reporter
: newspaper reporter
Darren Hernandez
: Joe Riddley’s physical therapist
: Joe Riddley’s physical therapist
Hiram Blaine
: local character who carries a parrot and believes in aliens
: local character who carries a parrot and believes in aliens
Hector
: Hiram’s brother, convinced the Confederate treasury is buried on his land
: Hiram’s brother, convinced the Confederate treasury is buried on his land
Jed
: their nephew, an Atlanta lawyer
: their nephew, an Atlanta lawyer
Hubert Spence
: MacLaren and Joe Riddley’s nearest neighbor and old friend
: MacLaren and Joe Riddley’s nearest neighbor and old friend
Maynard
: Hubert’s son, the Hope County Museum curator
: Hubert’s son, the Hope County Museum curator
Selena Jones
: Maynard’s girlfriend and a nurse
: Maynard’s girlfriend and a nurse
Police Chief Charlie Muggins
Sheriff Bailey “Buster” Gibbons
It is unfortunate when you are a newly appointed judge, and the chief of police finds a dead man at your party.
It is downright mortifying when the last words out of your mouth were, “Don’t look behind that screen. You know good and well I put it there to hide things I don’t want seen.”
File that under Life Moments I Would Rather Forget.
1
SEPTEMBER
Knowing where to begin this story is like finding the end of a ball of yarn after it spends an hour with my beagle Lulu. Maybe the best place to begin is with the first death, which was as unexpected as the second, but not half as mystifying.
Garlon Wainwright dropped dead on the seventeenth hole at the Hopemore Country Club during the Labor Day Tournament. Poor Garlon was in the lead for the first time in his life, and some said his heart just couldn’t stand the excitement.
According to his obituary in the
Hopemore Statesman
, Garlon was “fifty-five, only child of Augusta and the late Lamar Wainwright of Wainwright Mills, survived by his mother, one daughter, Meriwether, and his second wife, Candi (35).” I suspected Gusta had a hand in writing it. Nobody was surprised after the funeral to see Gusta and Meriwether riding to the cemetery in the first Cadillac and Candi, alone, in the second.
Hopemore Statesman
, Garlon was “fifty-five, only child of Augusta and the late Lamar Wainwright of Wainwright Mills, survived by his mother, one daughter, Meriwether, and his second wife, Candi (35).” I suspected Gusta had a hand in writing it. Nobody was surprised after the funeral to see Gusta and Meriwether riding to the cemetery in the first Cadillac and Candi, alone, in the second.
I kept meaning to get over to see Gusta after the funeral, but couldn’t find a minute. That was the autumn after my husband, Joe Riddley Yarbrough, got shot in the head. He’d survived, but recovery from a head wound is slow, uphill work. I was busier than a bird dog in hunting season between driving him to various kinds of therapies and running Yarbrough’s Feed, Seed and Nursery without him. As if that weren’t enough, I’d agreed to serve as a Georgia magistrate in his place, and while I was used to watching Joe Riddley fit that in around work at the store, I hadn’t realized quite how much time it took.
On Wednesday morning a whole week after Garlon’s funeral, I was pushing Joe Riddley’s wheelchair up the back porch ramp after physical therapy when I heard the phone.
“You gotta answer,” our cook, Clarinda, called through the open screened door. “I’m makin’ rolls and my hands’re covered with grease and flour.” Clarinda came to help me when our older son, Ridd, was born forty years ago, and has worked for—and bossed—me ever since.
The voice on the other end was chillier than a healthy dog’s nose on a frosty morning. “MacLaren? I need you here right away.” I knew it was Gusta. Anybody else in town would have told me who they were. Even my sons announce “Mama, this is Ridd” or “Hey, it’s Walker.” Gusta belonged to that highly self-confident elite who believe the rest of us have so few friends we will always recognize their voices.
BOOK: Thoroughly 03 - Who Invited the Dead Man?
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