Tails, You Lose (A Witch City Mystery Book 2)
Page 32
“You’re right,” I agreed. “But teachers get the summer off, and I’m planning to spend some of this one furnishing a new apartment.”
“Well, you couldn’t go wrong with that bureau,” she said. “Good-looking, useful, and secret compartments to boot.”
“I know. I had one exactly like it when I was a kid. Mine burned up in a fire.”
“No kidding. What a shame. The cabinetmaker made just three that we know of. If yours is gone, there may be only two left—mine and one I saw in a New York shop, where the dealer showed me how it worked. I’d never have figured it out by myself.” She parted the beaded curtains. “I found this one at an estate sale, and I don’t think the owner even knew about the secret spaces. Come on back here and take a look.”
I followed her into a back room. What a nostalgia rush! It was as though my own bureau had been magically restored, every curlicue and knob exactly as I remembered. I reached out and stroked the polished top.
“This is it,” I said. “How much?”
The price she quoted was steep, but not unreasonable.
“If you’ll throw in those white ironstone coffee mugs over there,” I said, remembering Aunt Ibby’s plea, “you’ve got a deal. Is a credit card okay?”
“It’s a deal, and a credit card is fine.”
“Will you hold on to the bureau for a day or so, while I round up a truck and some extra muscle to help me get it home?”
I wasn’t sure where the truck was going to come from, but I knew Detective Pete Mondello would be ready and willing to lend the muscle. Pete and I had become kind of a steady item since I’d come home, and I was pretty sure he was looking forward to me having a place of my own as much as I was!
“No worries about that,” she said. “My delivery guy is due here any minute. You’ll have your bureau by this afternoon. No extra charge. You’re sure you remember where all the compartments are?”
“I think so.” I touched each spot that I thought might hide a tiny chamber. “That’s where mine were. Is it the same?”
“Sure is.” She handed me a card. “Just write down your address. And in case you forget, I’ll put the directions for opening all of them in the top drawer.”
“Perfect,” I said.
While I swiped my card she wrapped four mugs in lavender tissue, put them into a purple bag, and handed it to me. “Come back again soon, Lee.”
“You can count on it, Shea.”
“I will.” She smiled. “By the way, there is one thing I guess I should tell you.”
“What’s that?” I asked.
“The estate your bureau came from . . . A kind of famous murder happened there. That doesn’t bother you, does it?”
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KENSINGTON BOOKS are published by
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Copyright © 2015 by Carol J. Perry
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any means without the prior written consent of the Publisher, excepting brief quotes used in reviews.
If you purchased this book without a cover, you should be aware that this book is stolen property. It was reported as “unsold and destroyed” to the Publisher and neither the Author nor the Publisher has received any payment for this “stripped book.”
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ISBN: 978-1-6177-3371-0
First Kensington Mass Market Edition: April 2015
eISBN-13: 978-1-61773-372-7
eISBN-10: 1-61773-372-5
First Kensington Electronic Edition: April 2015
Table of Contents
Books by Carol J. Perry
Title Page
Table of Contents
Dedication
CHAPTER 1
CHAPTER 2
CHAPTER 3
CHAPTER 4
CHAPTER 5
CHAPTER 6
CHAPTER 7
CHAPTER 8
CHAPTER 9
CHAPTER 10
CHAPTER 11
CHAPTER 12
CHAPTER 13
CHAPTER 14
CHAPTER 15
CHAPTER 16
CHAPTER 17
CHAPTER 18
CHAPTER 19
CHAPTER 20
CHAPTER 21
CHAPTER 22
CHAPTER 23
CHAPTER 24
CHAPTER 25
CHAPTER 26
CHAPTER 27
CHAPTER 28
CHAPTER 29
CHAPTER 30
CHAPTER 31
CHAPTER 32
CHAPTER 33
CHAPTER 34
EPILOGUE
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Teaser chapter
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Copyright Page