Finding Answers

by Kathi Daley

  “Not to mention the risk of a forest fire,” I added. “There’s a reason fireworks other than the show put on by the town are illegal in Ashton Falls.”

  Nona nodded. “Yeah, I guess there’s that as well.”

  “So back to your involvement with Elvis #3…” I said persuasively.

  “The rocket war got pretty heated, and the next thing I know fists are flying and the Elvises all started punching one another. My Elvis didn’t want to ruin his very expensive costume, so he suggested we take the party somewhere else. He didn’t have a car, so he rode with me on my hog. I’m still not sure how I ended up back at his room, but he had plenty of whiskey, and we were having a good time, so I didn’t resist the idea when he suggested it. I didn’t intend to spend the entire night with the guy, but it got late and I started to feel dizzy, so I decided it wasn’t a good idea to drive. At some point I guess I passed out. When I woke up this morning Elvis was laying on top of the covers fully clothed, the same as me. Unlike me, however, Elvis was dead.”

  “So, are we thinking the guy had partied a bit too much, bringing on a heart attack?”

  Nona shook her head. “No, not a heart attack. Someone stuck a big ol’ knife in his chest.”

  “A knife?” I asked. “He was stabbed in the chest with a knife?”

  Nona frowned at me. “You need to learn to pay more attention when folks are talking. I just said the man had a knife in his chest.”

  “And you have no idea how it got there?”

  Nona shook her head once again. “Not a clue. I’ll admit it was kind of odd that a man could have been stabbed to death on the opposite side of the bed from where I was sleeping without me waking up.”

  My brows furrowed. “Odd isn’t exactly the word I’d use. Are you sure you don’t remember hearing or seeing anyone come in?”

  “I’m sure. The last thing I remember was Elvis turning on the television. I decided to lay down for just a minute to see if the dizziness would go away. The next thing I knew, it was morning and Elvis was dead.”

  Okay, Zoe. Don’t freak out. I’m sure this isn’t as bad as it sounds. Just take a deep breath and try to figure out what to do next. “So, what exactly does the sheriff think happened?”

  Nona shrugged. “As far as I know he doesn’t know a thing about any of this.”

  “You didn’t call 911 when you realized Elvis had been murdered?”

  “’Course not. The fuzz are going to think I did it. When I woke up and saw Elvis I came straight over here. I didn’t touch anything or talk to anyone. You have to help me. No one is going to believe I slept right through a murder.”

  Nona made another good point. Even if she’d drunk a lot you’d think a man being stabbed to death would be a noisy enough event to wake even the drunkest individual. “Okay. Let’s go over to the motel where you left Elvis. We’ll assess the situation and then call Salinger. He’ll know what to do.”

  “Sheriff Salinger isn’t in town.”

  I frowned. “What do you mean, he isn’t in town?”

  “I got pulled over for going fifty in a twenty-five. I guess I might have said some disrespectful things to the young’un, who didn’t look old enough to shave, let alone be a cop. Guess he took offense, because he threatened to arrest me for reckless driving. I tried to tell the punk that I was good friends with Sherriff Salinger and that if he just called him, he’d vouch for me, but the kid told me Salinger was off finding himself and he was filling in.”

  Oh, that wasn’t good. Not good at all. Sherriff Salinger and I had become good friends after a rocky start years ago. I’d helped him out and he’d helped me. He knew Nona, quirks and all, and most likely would have given her the benefit of the doubt. But some new deputy just starting out and most likely looking for that one case that would help to put his name on the map? A dead Elvis found lying on the bed next to a Harley-riding, free-loving, heavy-drinking grandma would be just the thing a young deputy would love to sink his claws in to. Add to the mix the fact that the very popular Dirk Pendleton was the one sponsoring the contest and you had just the sort of news item that made it to national platforms. There was no doubt about it: If what Nona said was true, we were going to have to deal with the specifics of the situation very carefully indeed.

  ******

  The Nickelodeon was a midrange motel with a decent reputation smack dab in the middle of town. Nona had left the Do Not Disturb sign on the door so the maid wouldn’t think the room was empty and wander in. She’d kept the key so we’d be able to get back into the room when we arrived. I felt my stomach knot as Nona opened the door. If Nona had been a witness to a death, even an unconscious one, we needed to tell someone what we knew.

  “Well, that’s odd,” Nona said.

  I entered the room behind her. It was empty. I mean, completely empty. And it had been cleaned. There was no visible evidence that anyone had ever been there. “Are you sure this is the right room?”

  “I’m sure. Number fourteen.” Nona held up the key. “I have the key to number fourteen and it opened the door. Maybe the maid came in, even though I left the Do Not Disturb sign on the door. Maybe the motel manager called the cops and they came and took the body away.”

  “No,” I answered. “If the cops were called in response to a murder this whole area would be taped off. If there actually was a dead man in this room someone else moved him, then cleaned things up.”

  “If there was a dead man in this room? Are you doubting me?”

  “You did say you were drunk enough to pass out,” I reminded Nona.

  “I may have been drunk last night, but I wasn’t drunk when I woke up this morning.”

  “Maybe you were groggy after your long night,” I suggested. “I know I’m pretty much worthless until I have my second cup of coffee. Ask Zak; he’ll tell you.”

  “I wasn’t groggy. I didn’t imagine that the man I spent the night with was dead. I’m telling you, I know what I saw. The guy was laying right here with a knife through his chest. The bed was covered with blood. His blood.”

  I pulled back the covers. “It looks fine now.”

  Nona rolled her eyes. “Obviously, someone cleaned the room and changed the sheets.”

  I wanted to believe Nona. Strike that: I didn’t want to believe Nona. I hoped with all my might that she’d been hungover and maybe a bit delirious, or perhaps age had finally caught up with her and she’d simply forgotten what she’d seen. Maybe a man had been stabbed in the movie they’d watched last night and she’d dreamed about it. Or perhaps she was making this whole thing up to get back at me for suggesting she might be getting a bit too old to go running around the country on a pink Harley.

  “I can prove it,” Nona said when I didn’t answer for a while.

  “How?”

  “We’ll go to the Elvis competition. Instead of twelve contestants there’ll be eleven. Not only will that prove my Elvis was murdered while I slept, but we’ll be able to find out who the guy really was.”

  I supposed it couldn’t hurt to head over to the competition. Even if there was a missing Elvis, that didn’t prove he was murdered while laying two feet away from Nona, but if all the Elvises were accounted for it did suggest Nona was mistaken and no one had died. I used my phone and took as many photos of the room as I could from every angle before we left. If there was a missing Elvis the photos could provide us with a clue to help solve the case, should we at some point lose access to the room. Boy, I sure hoped Dirk had all twelve of his Elvises accounted for.

  Books by Kathi Daley

  Come for the murder, stay for the romance.

  Zoe Donovan Cozy Mystery:

  Halloween Hijinks

  The Trouble With Turkeys

  Christmas Crazy

  Cupid’s Curse

  Big Bunny Bump-off

  Beach Blanket Barbie

  Maui Madness

  Derby Divas

  Haunted Hamlet

  Turkeys, Tuxes, and Tabbies

  Ch
ristmas Cozy

  Alaskan Alliance

  Matrimony Meltdown

  Soul Surrender

  Heavenly Honeymoon

  Hopscotch Homicide

  Ghostly Graveyard

  Santa Sleuth

  Shamrock Shenanigans

  Kitten Kaboodle

  Costume Catastrophe

  Candy Cane Caper

  Holiday Hangover

  Easter Escapade

  Camp Carter

  Trick or Treason

  Reindeer Roundup

  Hippity Hoppity Homicide

  Firework Fiasco – June 2018

  Zimmerman Academy The New Normal

  Ashton Falls Cozy Cookbook

  Tj Jensen Paradise Lake Mysteries by Henery Press:

  Pumpkins in Paradise

  Snowmen in Paradise

  Bikinis in Paradise

  Christmas in Paradise

  Puppies in Paradise

  Halloween in Paradise

  Treasure in Paradise

  Fireworks in Paradise

  Beaches in Paradise – July 2018

  Whales and Tails Cozy Mystery:

  Romeow and Juliet

  The Mad Catter

  Grimm’s Furry Tail

  Much Ado About Felines

  Legend of Tabby Hollow

  Cat of Christmas Past

  A Tale of Two Tabbies

  The Great Catsby

  Count Catula

  The Cat of Christmas Present

  A Winter’s Tail

  The Taming of the Tabby

  Frankencat

  The Cat of Christmas Future

  Farewell to Felines

  A Whisker in Time – August 2018

  Writers’ Retreat Southern Seashore Mystery:

  First Case

  Second Look

  Third Strike

  Fourth Victim

  Fifth Night

  Sixth Cabin

  Seventh Chapter – August 2018

  Rescue Alaska Paranormal Mystery:

  Finding Justice

  Finding Answers

  Finding Courage – September 2018

  A Tess and Tilly Mystery:

  The Christmas Letter

  The Valentine Mystery

  The Mother’s Day Mishap

  The Halloween House – July 2018

  Haunting by the Sea:

  Homecoming by the Sea

  Secrets by the Sea – June 2018

  Sand and Sea Hawaiian Mystery:

  Murder at Dolphin Bay

  Murder at Sunrise Beach

  Murder at the Witching Hour

  Murder at Christmas

  Murder at Turtle Cove

  Murder at Water’s Edge

  Murder at Midnight

  Seacliff High Mystery:

  The Secret

  The Curse

  The Relic

  The Conspiracy

  The Grudge

  The Shadow

  The Haunting

  Road to Christmas Romance:

  Road to Christmas Past

  USA Today best-selling author Kathi Daley lives in beautiful Lake Tahoe with her husband Ken. When she isn’t writing, she likes spending time hiking the miles of desolate trails surrounding her home. She has authored more than seventy-five books in eight series, including Zoe Donovan Cozy Mysteries, Whales and Tails Island Mysteries, Sand and Sea Hawaiian Mysteries, Tj Jensen Paradise Lake Series, Writers’ Retreat Southern Seashore Mysteries, Rescue Alaska Paranormal Mysteries, and Seacliff High Teen Mysteries. Find out more about her books at www.kathidaley.com

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