Free Pepperoni Pizza Can Be Murder by Chris Cavender Page B

me.”
    Without a moment’s hesitation, Maddy said, “Swing by and get me on your way. I’m going with you.”
    “I’d hate to interrupt your party,” I said, though I’d been hoping that would be my sister’s reaction to the news.
    “I can’t drive myself, I’ve had a bit too much to drink, but if you don’t pick me up, I’m going to risk it anyway.”
    “I’ll be there in six minutes,” I said, hanging up as I reached for a pair of blue jeans and a T-shirt.
    I made it in five, and Maddy was out front waiting for me.
    “What took you so long?” she asked as she got into the Subaru.
    “I had to get dressed first, unlike some people,” I said.
    As I drove to the pizzeria, Maddy said, “It’s just awful about what happened, isn’t it? I can’t believe Greg’s brother is dead.”
    “From what I’ve been hearing about the guy lately, I’m a little surprised that it took someone this long to get rid of him.” I immediately regretted my flip choice of words. I didn’t even know the young man, and here I was slamming his memory. “Strike that,” I said. “My only excuse is that I’m still half-asleep and completely exhausted. I hated the way Wade jerked Greg around, but that’s no excuse for being so callous about his death.”
    “It’s okay if you talk that way to me, goodness knows I’ve said plenty of worse things about our fellow citizens, but I wouldn’t say anything like that to the police chief.”
    “I’m not that crazy,” I said. “I just wish I knew where Greg was.”
    “It doesn’t look good for him, does it?”
    I glanced over at Maddy, who was watching the road as intently as I had just been. Somehow she had managed to sober up from her party night. Finding out about a murder had probably done the trick, and if that hadn’t been enough, having Greg as the number one suspect was probably enough to manage it. “Maddy, you don’t actually think Greg had anything to do with this, do you?”
    “Come on, Eleanor, we both like him, but we have to face facts. First there’s the dispute over his grandparents’ estate, and then Katy gets caught with Wade on the couch, and that all just happened this evening. Who knows what any of us would do when we’re pushed that hard?”
    “I don’t believe it,” I said. “Greg wouldn’t kill anybody.”
    Maddy stroked my arm. “In my heart I don’t believe it either, but we have to tell Kevin what we know.”
    I slowed the car so I could look at her. “Why should we tell him anything? He prides himself on his great detecting skills. Let him figure it out for himself.”
    “If we’re the ones who tell him, we can try to give it a little positive spin. If he finds out on his own, it could be much worse.”
    “I don’t see how,” I said as I resumed driving.
    “Really? Tell me you can’t see Katy Johnson blubbering all over Kevin about how this whole thing is her fault. She’ll make this all about her, that Greg killed Wade out of his love for her. Is that a notion we want the police entertaining for one second?”
    “No, I guess you’re right. It just feels like I’m being disloyal to Greg,” I said.
    “When in fact, it’s just the opposite.”
    I parked in front of the shop, despite my ingrained routine of parking in back, and saw that three police cruisers had ignored the parking lot completely and were on the brick promenade itself. There was plenty of room there, since the space had originally been a road before the city fathers had covered it with pavers and converted it into a parklike atmosphere.
    “This isn’t going to be pretty,” I said as Maddy and I approached the rest of the way on foot.
    “At least we’ve got each other,” she said.
    Officer Garvin was out front, evidently waiting for us. “The chief wants to see you inside,” he said.
    “Thanks,” I said as Maddy and I walked into the pizzeria.
    Kevin was standing by the door, examining the wooden frame. “Did you lock up tonight?”
    “I’m