Colorful Death Read Online Free

evidence do you have about Miss Acker’s murder?”
    “I…well, the night she was murdered, I’d just gotten home, and I saw someone out in the road, staring at me. When I went out to investigate, I saw that it was Maddox Smith—and that he had scratches on his arms.”
    “Mm.” The policeman took down the notes, his eyes darting to where the tape recorder whirred softly. “And what time did this occur?”
    Jade frowned.
    “Right around dusk?”
    “Mm-hmm. And you say you had just gotten home.”
    “Yes?”
    “And why were you out that afternoon?”
    “Grocery shopping.”
    “I see. And were you, by chance, walking out in the woods?”
    “Not in the woods—on the road. My car broke down and…” Jade frowned. “Look, why do you want to know?”
    “Miss Ruiz, could you provide any evidence that your car did indeed break down?”
    “I called the towing company a bit before I saw Mr. Smith outside,” Jade said, nettled. Why wasn’t he focusing on the accusation? Why would he…
    It slammed into place the next moment.
    “He told you I did it, didn’t he?” she demanded.

Chapter Four
    Jade curled under the covers and listened to the wind howl around the cottage. The rain had not returned, but the countryside had managed to produce a storm nonetheless, and she was beginning to worry that it would blow the thatching right off the roof.
    That, however, was the least of her worries. Jade had been driven home by one of the police officers, a man who managed to make it seem like he both suspected her and considered her far too weak to bludgeon anyone to death. She had limped out of the car on her blistered feet with as much dignity as she could manage and slammed the door to the cottage, which relieved her feelings somewhat.
    The indignity of being accused had, as she prepared tea and a sandwich for dinner, turned into full-blown fury. Maddox had accused her of being the murderer? Her ? She hadn’t even known Vera Acker! She showed up one day earlier and he thought she’d gone tramping across hill and dale to, what, beat an old woman to death, not thinking for a moment that she would be suspicious for showing up only one day earlier?
    She hadn’t thought before that she might seem suspicious. She decided to hate Maddox for that, too. And anyway, she told herself, it wasn’t as if he actually thought she was the murderer. He was trying to cover his tracks, nothing more. He wanted her to take the fall for his murder and then he’d sell off the paintings he had. Or something.
    That didn’t worry her much. What really worried her was the idea that he might have found out she turned him in. She hadn’t thought that through. She should have stayed at the little bed and breakfast in town for the night, where there would be plenty of people around to hear her if she screamed. Now she was very aware that she was stuck in the wilderness with a potential murderer as her closest neighbor and a dead woman as the next closest.
    She didn’t want to go to bed. On the other hand, there was only so much to do now that she had no TV or computer, and her body was beginning to yawn traitorously. Sooner or later she was going to fall asleep and she’d be defenseless.
    Well, not if she had anything to say about it. Jade switched off the lights and dragged the heavy armchair across the floor so she could wedge it into position by the door. Whoever tried to open the door would at least make a lot of noise. Of course, there was also the back door. She put a bunch of spoons on one of the little tables and set it just where it would tip over and make a large crash.
    Of course, a few moments’ notice was hardly going to save her if someone was really determined. Jade rummaged through the drawers until she found a steak knife. It was very old, and looked better suited to cutting butter than steak, but it would have to do. She grabbed the phone and crept to bed, her finger poised over the buttons.
    Now was the most dangerous time,