18f44de3c41a3c8943c05e9ff1c1336f

Lynnette pressed her perfect lips together until they formed a thin line.ôNonsense. The first inkling I had that Franco was cheating on me was when Rex told me he found them in bed together this afternoon. He said the moment he saw FrancoÆs hairy ass sticking out from between MarciaÆs legsàö She looked away. ôLetÆs just say I never for one moment saw this one coming, detective, and that is GodÆs honest truth. And now if youÆll excuse me,ö she said, getting up, ôI have twenty bowling balls to destroy!ö

Chapter 23

ôWhy was FrancoÆs hairy ass sticking out from between his neighborÆs legs, Max?ö asked Dooley.

We were in Uncle AlecÆs office, with the Chief, his niece and Chase discussing recent events, and I could tell that Dooley had been thinking about this question ever since the interviews had ended.

ôIÆve been trying to picture the scene,ö said my friend, ôand IÆm having trouble with the logistics. So his ass was there, and her legs were there, but where was the rest of them?ö

ôI really donÆt think you need to concern yourself with this, Dooley,ö I said, not feeling particularly in the mood to get into a detailed description of æthe deed,Æ to be honest.

ôNo, but if they were kissing, then why was his assùö

ôLetÆs talk about this some other time, shall we?ö I suggested.

ôOh, all right,ö he said, but I could tell he wasnÆt satisfied with my prevarications.

ôOkay, so what have we got?ö said the Chief, ôapart from two cheaters and two furious wives and what looks like a lot of cuckolded husbands, a dozen of whom are members of our local archery club, and one of whom runs our local gun store.ö

ôI just hope there wonÆt be thirteen murders about to be committed,ö said Chase with a frown. ôTwelve with bow and arrow and one by shotgun.ö

ôYes, well, letÆs deal with that if and when it happens. For now weÆll focus on Valina FawnÆs murder. Who are our suspects and where are we with alibis and such?ö

ôOkay, so ChaseÆs people have cross-referenced the membership list of ValinaÆs site with that of the Brookwell Archery Club,ö said Odelia, ôand came up with two dozen names.ö

Chief Alec grabbed his thinning mane and pulled hard.ôThis case is killing me!ö

ôOf those two dozen weÆve already interviewed a dozen, and so far weÆve managed to eliminate all of them,ö said Chase. ôSo only an even dozen left.ö

ôThough of course,ö said Odelia, ôour killer could be someone else entirely. Someone who is neither a member of the site or the archery club.ö

More hair-pulling was going on, and we all looked on with a touch of concern. The Chief doesnÆt have a lot of hair left to begin with, and this wasnÆt helping matters in that department. ôWhen even the Mayor of this town is a suspect,ö said the big guy, ôI think itÆs safe to say weÆre in trouble.ö

ôCharlene is not a suspect, Chief,ö Chase assured him. ôWe talked to her and sheÆs fine.ö

ôOkay, so that still leaves too many balls in the air. We need to narrow it down, people,ö said Uncle Alec, pounding his desk with his fist. ôAnd we need to do it fast. The longer this investigation drags on, the more difficult it becomes to nail our perp.ö

Two heads bowed as one, and both Chase and Odelia looked appropriately chastised.

ôOkay, so if his ass was between her legs, where was his head, Max?ö asked Dooley.

ôLicking her toes, probably,ö I murmured as I gave this baffling case some thought.

ôDid you say toes?ö asked my friend.

ôNo, I didnÆt.ö

ôI thought you said toes. Which is impossible, since if he was licking her toes, then she wasà licking his toes andà is this really what humans get up to, Max? I mean, you hear strange stories, but this is justà plain weird.ö

ôI know, Dooley,ö I said with a sigh. ôI know.ö

ôWeÆve got people going through the Valina Fawn membership list with a fine-tooth comb,ö now Chase intoned. ôLooking at anything out of the ordinary: criminal records, financial records, phone recordsàö

ôYou canÆt get away from the fact that whoever killed Valina gained access to the place by using Norwell KulhanekÆs key card,ö said Uncle Alec. ôAnd that the key card was returned to the desk of ValinaÆs personal assistant the following day.ö

ôOr even the night of the murder,ö said Odelia. ôSince you only need a key card to access the building, not to leave it. So as I see it, the killer used NorwellÆs card to enter the building at one-fifteen, then left it on MeghanÆs desk after the murder.ö

Uncle Alec nodded.ôOkay, so even though trawling through the siteÆs membership list is a good idea, what we need here is focus. We need to narrow our search, not widen it. Who had access to Norwell on the day of the murder? Since we know he had his key card on him that morning, whoever took it must have snatchedit on the day.ö