Free Petticoat Detective by Margaret Brownley

Lillian’s eyes widened. “Are you saying that Rose had something to do with the Gunnysack Bandit?”
    “It’s possible she didn’t even know it. We were hoping she could tell us where she got the stolen bills.” After a pause, she added, “The truth is, I shouldn’t even be telling you this.”
    “It’s a good thing you did. Is that what you were doing outside the other night with Mr. Colton? Detecting?”
    Blue eyes and a crooked smile flashed through Amy’s mind and a warm, pleasant feeling crept up her neck. “Yes.”
    “My word. You don’t think that he—”
    “I honestly don’t know.” She didn’t want to believe that Colton was the bandit, but neither could she discount it. At this point of the investigation, everyone was suspect. Thinking she heard a sound, she jumped up and tore open the door. Mr. Beavers the cat scooted into the room and disappeared under the desk.
    She closed the door but kept her hand on the brass knob. “There were only two guests here the other night when Rose was killed—Mr. Colton and one other.”
    “Mr. Pepper, owner of the Pepper Hardware and Medical Dispensary,” Miss Lillian said.
    “Mr. Colton was with me.” At least part of the time.
    “And Mr. Pepper was with Buttercup.”
    Buttercup had said as much to the marshal. “Were the outside doors locked during this time? The back door, too?”
    “Oh yes, I always keep the doors locked at night. You can’t be too safe these days. I once hired a bouncer, but he kept falling asleep while on duty.”
    “Who else has a key?”
    “Why, no one.” She lifted the key chain from around her waist and jiggled it. “I keep them with me at all times.”
    “So no one can come or go without your knowledge. Is that correct?”
    “Absolutely.”
    Amy hesitated. “When was the last time you saw Rose alive?”
    “I didn’t actually see her. I spoke to her through the door. Told her Mr. Colton wanted to talk to her. She said to send him up.”
    Prior to Mr. Colton entering the room, Amy remembered hearing someone in the hallway. She was fairly certain now that it had been Miss Lillian.
    “Did Rose’s voice sound normal?”
    Miss Lillian was quiet a moment. “Far as I could tell.”
    “How much time passed between sending Mr. Colton upstairs and discovering Rose’s body?”
    “I don’t know. Not long. A few minutes.”
    “Who found the body?”
    “I did. I have strict rules about preserving guest privacy. When I noticed Rose’s door ajar, I went to close it. That’s when I saw her on the floor.”
    Amy chewed on her lip as a worrisome thought crossed her mind. Did Mr. Colton kill Rose? What if instead of entering the room across from Rose’s in error as he claimed, he had been looking for a means of escape?
    If he was Rose’s killer, he could also be the Gunnysack Bandit. Standing more than six feet tall, he certainly fit the description physically, at least according to witness accounts.
    As much as she hated to think Colton guilty of anything but an attractive smile, she couldn’t ignore the possibility that he was the man she’d been sent to track down.
    “Did you know that Rose planned on leaving?”
    “I’m not surprised. They all buck at the halter eventually. But most come back. It’s a hard world out there.”
    “There’s talk that Rose planned to marry.”
    “Really?” Miss Lillian shrugged. “Like I said, a hard world.”
    “Some would say this life is hard,” Amy said.
    “Some people might say the same about being a woman detective.”
    Amy would be the first to admit her life
was
difficult. Her job made it impossible to marry or maintain a home of her own, but at least she could look God in the eye. She couldn’t say this out loud, of course. She needed the madam’s help. It wouldn’t do to alienate her, so she abruptly changed the subject.
    “I have a room at the hotel. If you would allow me to work here undercover, I’ll be able to watch your guests. One of them could be the