Free Death of a Dapper Snowman by Angela Pepper Page A

comes for me next? What if he’s going house by house?”
    “Wait a minute. Serial killer? What are you talking about? Are there other bodies?”
    “How should I know?” she snapped. “I’m not the expert. I don’t even watch those TV shows about the serial killers. Your father watches all of them, of course. He loves to get his thrills. I can’t even go into the room when he’s watching such things. Too much sex and violence.”
    “Pam, when did the police talk to you? Did they ask you about Dad having arguments with Mr. Michaels?”
    What I wanted to know was if Pam was the witness Tony had been referring to in our conversation. If it was just her rambling about nonsense, then it was, as I suspected, nothing to worry about.
    “Of course I told them everything,” she said with impatience. “They’re just being thorough. It certainly doesn’t mean your father strangled that poor man. I didn’t say he did. Exactly what are you accusing him of?”
    “Calm down!” I said, which made Jeffrey squirm in my arms. Softer, I said, “Take it easy, Pam. Nobody’s accusing anybody of anything. I’m sure they’ll have this figured out before Dad even hears about it.”
    “He will not be pleased,” she said with a snort.
    “I just told those crime scene investigators to look into a rumor about a daughter. It seems suspicious to me that this daughter shows up in his life right before he gets himself killed.”
    “Daughter? You must be mistaken. He didn’t have any children.”
    “That’s not what I heard today.” I went on to explain what I’d learned at the veterinarian’s that afternoon, finishing with, “But it might not be true at all. Plenty of gossip flies around this town, and people are always getting the facts mixed up.”
    Pam got very quiet, then abruptly pushed her chair back and stood up. “I’m going to bed.”
    “But it’s barely dinner time. And don’t you want to see your cat? He’s very happy to be back home again.”
    “Actually, I’m not going to bed, but I am going. I can’t sleep in this house tonight. I’m a very light sleeper, and even the slightest noise will wake me up. I’ll pack a bag and go to my sister’s.”
    “Were you planning to take Jeffrey with you? He won’t like getting jostled around again in the pet carrier. He probably wants to recover here in his own house.”
    “Why do you keep calling her Jeffrey?”
    “I told you, Pam. She’s a he.”
    She snorted. “Sounds to me like you two have quite the bond.” She came around the table and reached for him, but he gave her a sleepy-sounding hiss that made her step back.
    “Sorry,” I said on his behalf. “Maybe if you turn the light on, he’ll feel more comfortable.”
    She turned on her heel and left the room, muttering under her breath about the ungratefulness of cats.
    Once she was gone, Jeffrey stoked up his purr engine to high gear.
    I rubbed his chin and whispered, “She’s going through a tough time today. Be patient with her. She’s not always like that. We shared a bottle of wine at the paint-your-ceramics place once, and we had quite a nice evening.” I kissed his shining, dark nose. “Try giving her some wine. Everyone’s more tolerable after a glass or two. You can have catnip. Do you like catnip?”
    Five minutes later, I was still petting Jeffrey in the dark dining room and saying increasingly ridiculous things about catnip parties and such.
    He startled in my arms, hearing her before I did. Pam came thumping down the hallway with a wheeled suitcase and stopped at the arched doorway, an imposing shadowy figure.
    “I’ll be at my sister’s for the night,” she said, and then she was gone.
    “I know,” I said softly to Jeffrey. “She’s always so dramatic. Everything’s life or death with Pam. Heaven forbid you get a haircut without checking in with her. You know, she’s probably mad at you because you changed into a boy without her permission.”
    I snickered at my joke, and