Free Scottsdale Squeeze: a romantic light-hearted murder mystery (Laura Black Mysteries Book 2) by B A Trimmer Page B

boom and colorful burst of sparks shooting off in all directions. The teenagers shot them over the sea and it made for a very colorful distraction.
    Jackie made a pot of coffee for Sophie and Annie. They both had to get back to Scottsdale and we had decided Sophie would take my car. Jackie was driving back to Scottsdale in the morning and she said it was no problem if I spent the night at her place. This was good with me. Now I had found her, I didn’t want to have her disappear again.
    I went out to my car and grabbed the small overnight bag I keep in the trunk for such occasions. We made up a bed in one of the guest bedrooms. I then opened the widow and fell asleep to the sound of the ocean.
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    I woke to the sound of sea gulls fighting over some scrap of food they had found on the deck. I was a little stiff from sleeping on the overly hard bed but overall I felt good. The sun hadn’t come up yet, although there was soft red glow on the horizon. I got dressed and left a note on the door saying I was on the beach.
    I love taking an early morning walk along the shore. The sky in the east slowly turned bright orange as I strolled down the beach. The smell of the ocean and the feel of the wet sand was wonderfully soothing. An occasional jogger ran past as I enjoyed the solitude of the sea and the gentle pounding of the waves. Before I got back to Jackie’s house, I found a beautiful pink and white spiral shell. It made a nice souvenir of our trip to Mexico. 
    Jackie made us a quick breakfast while I was in the shower and then she got ready while I did the dishes. The drive up through Mexico was uneventful and the wait at the border was mercifully short.
    As we were driving back, I got a chance to talk with Jackie and learn about her life. She was one of those women who had done everything and been everywhere. Meeting people like Jackie is one of the things that keep my job interesting. It’s also one of the reasons I usually can’t walk into a bar in Scottsdale without running into someone I know.
    As we were driving through the Goldwater bombing range, I asked her about the phone call. I hated to upset her, but I needed to find out what was going on.
    “The phone call doesn’t make sense,” I said. “Why would anyone want to kill you? Do you have any enemies? Even if it was the man you think it was on the phone, did you ever do anything to piss him off?”
    “It’s what I’ve been asking myself all week. Truthfully, I’ve been expecting someday to get a call from an angry mother who’s upset I deflowered her twenty-one year old son, but I have no idea where this came from. It was so sudden and he sounded so angry. I just don’t know what to make of it.”
    “I agree, staying with your friend will help, but it’s only a short term fix. You can’t hide forever.”
    “I know, but I’m not sure what else to do.”
    “I work at a law firm run by a guy who has a lot of connections within the Scottsdale bureaucracy,” I said. “If you wanted to have him look into it, maybe he could get the police involved at a higher level. Then they won’t just think you’re a hysterical woman calling in a crank phone call. He’s kinda expensive, but it could be an option.”
    “Money isn’t a problem. Roger sends me three times what I need to live on. Most of the money he sends me just goes straight to the bank. Maybe I’ll take you up on it. I’m really not sure what else to do.”
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    We got into Scottsdale about noon. The temperature was in the mid-eighties, there was only the faintest hint of a breeze, and there wasn’t a cloud in the sky. You gotta love living in Arizona.
    “I need to grab a couple of things from the house before I head to Pammy’s,” Jackie said. “Would you mind coming with me? I really don’t want to be alone until we figure out what’s going on. I’ll drop you off wherever you want after that.”
    ~~~~
    We pulled into Jackie’s driveway and she hit the button for the garage