Bad Medicine Read Online Free
Author: Jude Pittman
mused. "I'll let Mrs. Lawrence know I'm taking it to Alex. We'll see what he knows about this Ed Parker."
An hour of searching turned up nothing more of interest. Jesse put the envelope and the brochure in his jacket pocket and left the room.
Downstairs he waited at the doorway to the parlor while the credits for The Young and The Restless flashed across the screen. The girls were on the floor in front of the television. They lay, chins propped in hands, with six legs swinging choreographed kicks. When the show switched to commercials Jesse spoke.
"Hi ladies. Anyone up for questions?"
Three heads swung to focus questioning eyes on Jesse.
"I promise I don't bite." He smiled and showed his teeth.
"I'm Amy Grant." A chubby redhead stood up and matched his smile with a tentative one of her own. "We decided I should be the one to answer questions since I knew Shannon best." She motioned to the other girls who nodded their agreement.
"Sounds great. How about we go back up to Shannon 's room. Is that okay?"
Amy followed Jesse up the stairs. "I can sit here," she said, perching on the side of the bed and leaving the chair for Jesse.
"Thank you Amy. I appreciate you talking to me. Perhaps you can tell me about Shannon from a friend's viewpoint. I've talked to Alex, but he's her brother. Brothers see their sisters differently than friends. Friends usually know them better."
"I guess." Amy frowned. " Shannon was kind of funny."
"Funny?"
"Yeah. She didn't socialize with the girls much. She didn't like people 'getting into her business'. That's how she used to put it."
"But she liked you?"
"Well. I don't know if she liked me that much. She needed somebody to keep her up with stuff and cover for her, sort of. I guess she kind of tolerated me."
Jesse smiled. "I'm sure it was more than that. So how did Shannon spend her free time, do you know that?"
Amy looked up at him with a quizzical expression in her eyes. She seemed to be debating something.
"I'm sure you're worried about telling Shannon 's secrets. I know I would be if it was my friend. But hard as it is to accept, somebody murdered her. She was your friend and keeping secrets might just be helping her killer, not Shannon. You don't want that, do you?"
Amy bowed her head and Jesse leaned forward, watching her face. She lifted her eyes to meet his gaze and tears blinked on her lashes. "No," she whispered. "I don't want that."
"Did Shannon have some secrets that might be considered bad? Is that what you're afraid of telling?"
"I feel so awful." Amy's voice broke on a sob.
"Don't feel bad. You can tell me Amy. I promise I won't tell anyone unless it involves the killer, and then I'll protect Shannon as much as I can." Jesse reached out and patted her hand.
" Shannon slept with men for money," Amy blurted.
"I see." Jesse noted the frightened look on Amy's face. "It's okay Amy. You can tell me what you know."
"I'm sorry," she sobbed. "It's just that I don't want people to think bad things about Shannon because I told."
"They won't. Someone murdered Shannon . What you're telling me could make the difference between us catching her killer or his getting away with murder."
She pulled a tissue out of the box on Shannon 's dressing table, blew her nose, and turned her attention back to Jesse. "I'm okay now."
"Good. Now were there many men, or was it one particular man?"
"I don't know. Shannon liked to exaggerate sometimes. She'd say things just to see how I'd react. But she did meet someone last Monday, because I saw him."
"You did? This is important Amy. No one has seen Shannon since Monday night, so the man you saw her with may have been the killer, or at least the last person to see her alive."
"No I saw her Tuesday morning. She snuck in to change her clothes and she asked me not to tell anyone."
"When was this?"
"Just before lunch time, maybe 11:30. I had a cold so I skipped my morning class. I was lying in bed when someone knocked on my window."
"Your window?
An hour of searching turned up nothing more of interest. Jesse put the envelope and the brochure in his jacket pocket and left the room.
Downstairs he waited at the doorway to the parlor while the credits for The Young and The Restless flashed across the screen. The girls were on the floor in front of the television. They lay, chins propped in hands, with six legs swinging choreographed kicks. When the show switched to commercials Jesse spoke.
"Hi ladies. Anyone up for questions?"
Three heads swung to focus questioning eyes on Jesse.
"I promise I don't bite." He smiled and showed his teeth.
"I'm Amy Grant." A chubby redhead stood up and matched his smile with a tentative one of her own. "We decided I should be the one to answer questions since I knew Shannon best." She motioned to the other girls who nodded their agreement.
"Sounds great. How about we go back up to Shannon 's room. Is that okay?"
Amy followed Jesse up the stairs. "I can sit here," she said, perching on the side of the bed and leaving the chair for Jesse.
"Thank you Amy. I appreciate you talking to me. Perhaps you can tell me about Shannon from a friend's viewpoint. I've talked to Alex, but he's her brother. Brothers see their sisters differently than friends. Friends usually know them better."
"I guess." Amy frowned. " Shannon was kind of funny."
"Funny?"
"Yeah. She didn't socialize with the girls much. She didn't like people 'getting into her business'. That's how she used to put it."
"But she liked you?"
"Well. I don't know if she liked me that much. She needed somebody to keep her up with stuff and cover for her, sort of. I guess she kind of tolerated me."
Jesse smiled. "I'm sure it was more than that. So how did Shannon spend her free time, do you know that?"
Amy looked up at him with a quizzical expression in her eyes. She seemed to be debating something.
"I'm sure you're worried about telling Shannon 's secrets. I know I would be if it was my friend. But hard as it is to accept, somebody murdered her. She was your friend and keeping secrets might just be helping her killer, not Shannon. You don't want that, do you?"
Amy bowed her head and Jesse leaned forward, watching her face. She lifted her eyes to meet his gaze and tears blinked on her lashes. "No," she whispered. "I don't want that."
"Did Shannon have some secrets that might be considered bad? Is that what you're afraid of telling?"
"I feel so awful." Amy's voice broke on a sob.
"Don't feel bad. You can tell me Amy. I promise I won't tell anyone unless it involves the killer, and then I'll protect Shannon as much as I can." Jesse reached out and patted her hand.
" Shannon slept with men for money," Amy blurted.
"I see." Jesse noted the frightened look on Amy's face. "It's okay Amy. You can tell me what you know."
"I'm sorry," she sobbed. "It's just that I don't want people to think bad things about Shannon because I told."
"They won't. Someone murdered Shannon . What you're telling me could make the difference between us catching her killer or his getting away with murder."
She pulled a tissue out of the box on Shannon 's dressing table, blew her nose, and turned her attention back to Jesse. "I'm okay now."
"Good. Now were there many men, or was it one particular man?"
"I don't know. Shannon liked to exaggerate sometimes. She'd say things just to see how I'd react. But she did meet someone last Monday, because I saw him."
"You did? This is important Amy. No one has seen Shannon since Monday night, so the man you saw her with may have been the killer, or at least the last person to see her alive."
"No I saw her Tuesday morning. She snuck in to change her clothes and she asked me not to tell anyone."
"When was this?"
"Just before lunch time, maybe 11:30. I had a cold so I skipped my morning class. I was lying in bed when someone knocked on my window."
"Your window?
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