The Alpine Uproar Read Online Free Page B

they’d just gotten served when all hell broke loose. She and Gus took off. Delphine says nobody was dead when they left. Anyway, she doesn’t want me or anybody else mentioning that she was at the tavern. Too embarrassing, I guess, to show up at the place owned by her ex-boyfriend. It’s dumb. Who cares?”
    “Well …” I munched on some lettuce. “Delphine isn’t the type who’d usually hang out at the ICT no matter who owned it. I suppose Gus goes there because it’s close to the dealership.”
    “So?”
    I shrugged. “I can kind of see her point. She’s a businesswoman. She’s done quite well for herself since the divorce. That was—what? Fifteen, sixteen years ago? She and Randy had already broken up when I moved to Alpine.”
    “I still say it’s dumb. Everybody in town probably already knows who was at the tavern that night. Hell, you can’t keep something like that a secret around here.”
    “You’re right,” I agreed. “So are you going to dinner with her?”
    “I don’t know. It depends on how I feel at the end of the day.” He shook more salt onto what was left of his fries. “I don’t much like driving all the way into Monroe for dinner. Does Delphine want to get out of town so people don’t talk about the two of us?”
    “Possibly.” I couldn’t resist a gibe. “Next week Vida could mention in ‘Scene’ that the sheriff and the florist enjoyed a scrumptious meal at the Sailfish Grill in Monroe. The restaurant might buy an ad from Leo.”
    Milo’s hazel eyes flickered with what might’ve been amusement—or mockery. “Fleetwood’s not sharing ads from Monroe with you since he got FCC approval for more broadcasting range?”
    The query rankled. “He’s steered a couple of businesses our way. We’ve been doing co-op advertising for several years, even before KSKY got the new license.” My mood, which had been buoyed by the clear autumn air and quelled hunger pangs, began to darken again. “Let’s change the subject. What’s Clive Berentsen going to get for whacking Alvin De Muth with a pool cue?”
    “Oh …” Milo finished his burger and gazed up at the grease-stained ceiling. “Ten to fifteen, probably. Eligible for parole in seven.”
    “What if the case goes to trial?”
    The sheriff looked at me curiously. “Why would it?”
    “Well,” I said, wishing I hadn’t raised the issue, “it was a fight. Berentsen says it was self-defense, right?” I paused as Milo nodded faintly. “If it can be proved that Clive was defending himself, why shouldn’t he—or his lawyer—hope to get him off? You don’t have a final autopsy report from Snohomish County, do you?”
    Milo went on the defensive. “Do I need one? Doc Dewey says De Muth was killed by a blow to the head. End of story.”
    “So why did you ship the body to Everett for a second opinion?”
    The sheriff shot me a stern look. “Doc doesn’t have the technology or the time to make a thorough diagnosis. I like to touch all the bases.”
    I nodded. “I know. Skykomish County doesn’t have the money for anything beyond the bare necessities. When will you hear back from the ME in Everett?”
    Milo appeared to be ruminating. “Tomorrow, or Friday? They get backed up over there in Everett. Too damned many people in that county and too many autopsies.”
    “Okay.” I put aside the remnants of my beef dip. Only half of it was rare; the rest was dried out around the edges. “So if …?” I left the question unfinished.
    Milo sighed. “Let’s hope there’s no if. I want this one out of the way real quick. Hell, Emma, it’s just another drunken brawl. They happen. I’m not looking for trouble.”
    “Of course not,” I said. But I knew the sheriff all too well. A quick glance at him indicated he was uneasy. I guessed Milo realized that not looking for trouble didn’t mean he couldn’t find it.

THREE
    U NTIL ALMOST FIVE O’CLOCK, THE REST OF W EDNESDAY’S workday passed in relative calm. I’d