5 Buried By Buttercups Read Online Free Page B

officers out to check on it. It was one of the reasons she frequently didn’t set the alarm.
    Paul and Steve both called her since their names were on the contact list with the security company for emergencies. She had to take several minutes to explain to both of them, in front of Al and the officers, that nothing was wrong.
    Al dismissed the two officers. “I’ll walk through the house with you just to make sure everything is okay.”
    Peggy protested. She felt foolish enough about the event as it was. “You don’t have to do that. I’m sure it’s all fine.”
    Shakespeare was barking so hard, Peggy was afraid he was going to have a heart attack. His fangs were showing and the hackles on his neck and back were up. He was foaming at the mouth a little too. She wiped his mouth and hugged him, reassuring him. He was a little too high-strung to be such a big dog.
    “There’s nothing you can say that’s going to prevent me from walking through the house,” Al told her once Shakespeare was quiet. “It’s probably nothing, but I want to make sure. So if you have any secret plant stuff going on in here, now’s the time to tell me.”
    “What kind of secret plant stuff could I be doing?”
    He shrugged. “I don’t know. Some new, weird kind of marijuana or something. John used to tell me crazy stories about your experiments in the basement.”
    She laughed. “There’s nothing you can’t see. And if you insist on searching the house, that’s fine. I’m grateful for your diligence.”
    “You’re sure, huh?” He grinned. “Let’s get going. I don’t have all day.”
    Al and Peggy walked through the main part of the two-story house, through the dining room, parlor and living room. There was nothing unusual or out of place.
    They walked up the wide, curved staircase to the bedrooms. It allowed a perfect view of the thirty-foot blue spruce growing up to the skylight.
    “John never wanted this house, you know,” Al said as they walked. “He said it was too old and drafty. He even called it creepy once. He didn’t grow up here. It was his birthright. He loved it once he’d moved in with you. He was sorry Paul wouldn’t be able to raise his family here.”
    Peggy smoothed her hand along the wood banister. “It might be old and drafty and in constant need of attention, but I can’t imagine living anywhere else. It’s a wonderful house. I’ve spent most of my life here. I’m glad John’s nephew doesn’t want to settle down yet. I hate the idea of leaving.”
    “How does Steve feel about living here?”
    “He sold his house two doors down after we were married.” She shrugged as they walked through three bedrooms that weren’t being used, their antique furniture shrouded with white sheets. “I suppose he’s all right with it.”
    Al smiled. “I think the man is just plain crazy about you and he wouldn’t care if you lived in a shack. That’s what I think.”
    “I hope that’s it,” she agreed. “We can always look for a new place when the time comes. It doesn’t make John’s family very happy that I’m still here even though John is gone. The house would be empty without me, waiting for John’s nephew. That’s never a good thing.”
    They went down to the basement and Peggy let Shakespeare outside for a few minutes. Al snooped through her experiments. Nothing seemed unusual or out of place there either.
    “I don’t know what half of this stuff is,” he said.
    “Mary does,” she replied. “She was here a few months ago getting some cuttings from a new white azalea I’m growing.”
    He knew that was true. “Oh yeah. If there are plants involved, my wife is all over it.”
    His cell phone rang and he stepped away to take the call. Peggy let Shakespeare back in. The dog wasn’t happy about being called away from the nice weather and the distractions he’d found in the backyard.
    Al said he had to go. “We may have had a break in the case. It seems one of our victims wasn’t as