Lemons 03 Stroke of Genius Read Online Free Page B

“you said earlier that the maid found his body. I’m confused about the timeline. How long had he been gone before he was found dead?”
    “Not too long. Maybe a little over two hours or so? We had been up all night. When he left the table it had to have been after 6am. The hotel said the maids start their rounds at 8am.”
    “Okay. So why do you think it wasn’t an accident?”
    “Because I’ve known the guy for years. We were roommates. I think I would know if he was a pervert.”
    I interrupted, “So, what you’re saying is; your friend wasn’t known for masturbating…INXS?” I looked around the room, trying hard not to giggle at my clever, and rather hilarious, joke, seeing if anyone else got it. Apparently they did not. Alright then. “I heard you guys write Skinemax flicks. Is this true?”
    He returned his look to me, “Yes, that’s true, but just because we write that ridiculous crap doesn’t mean we’re pervs. Believe me, it wasn’t our lifelong dream to write that dreck, we wanted to write real movies, we just never got a break. Titty flicks were our starting point. They were easy enough to write and the money was decent. That’s not the point…”
    “I know, I wasn’t implying anything. I was actually, ya know, impressed by it. Those movies have gotten me through many a sleepless night.”
    “I’m flattered, but listen; he didn’t do this to himself. I know it.”
    “Let me ask you, how had he been acting recently? Was anything bothering him? Was he depressed or anything like that?”
    “No, not at all. Like I said, we just sold another script. It was a real gem called Throbbin’ Hood.”
    “God damn, that sounds amazing. What other movies have you guys written? You’d be surprised, I might just know them. I don’t get much sleep these days.”
    “Hmm, well have you seen The Rodfather?”
    “Yes! Oh my god! Any others?”
    “Yeah, a lot. We’ve been doing this a while. Let’s see. We did, um, Lost in Penetration, A Few Hard Men, Fatal Erection, Hatchet Wound, Lick-Ass, Throw Momma in the Train, Apollo 13 Inches, Rambone-‘
    “Gentlemen!” Elise interrupted! “Seriously! This is unnecessary!” She turned to me with her angry eyes, “Stay on track, Archie.”
    “You’re right.” I said, and then turned back to Vince. “I’m sorry. I guess I was a little star struck. Back to business.”
    “Yeah,” Vince said. “My bad.”
    “So your friend seemed fine, yes?”
    “Yes, absolutely. It wasn’t suicide if that’s what you’re thinking.”
    “No, not at all. Just routine questions.”
    “I just know he didn’t do this. It wasn’t his style. I know it.”
    “Did you tell this to the police, Mr. Maxwell?” Elise asked.
    “Yes, but they didn’t seem to care too much. They ruled it as accidental and that was that. Look, Balls was no idiot who would accidentally kill himself. He was valedictorian of his high school class, which was nothing compared to graduating with honors from Harvard six years ago. He’s a genius. I’m sure he could figure out that strangling himself could lead to death. I just want you guys to snoop around a bit. Put a little effort into it, because the cops sure didn’t. If you can’t find anything wrong, then I’ll let it go, but I just have a feeling in my gut that it’s not right. I wouldn’t even know where to start. That’s why I’m coming to you.”
    I was busy scribbling notes into my notebook, trying to work out the timeline of events and put together a quick profile of both parties involved, but I still managed to giggle at his choice of words at the end, there. Vince continued talking to Elise, but I was too engrossed in the paper in front of me to pay much attention. Bottom line was I was finally going to get my trip to Vegas. Oh, and a hilarious new case to solve. Things were finally looking up for me. Now all I had to do was scrounge up some gambling money. I doubt I could do much with my ninety-six cents.
    “I don’t