by Noreen Wald
Had anyone seen them come in here? Was Marlene looking for them?
Since Kate couldn’t see Olivia, she had to keep her talking.
“It was all about your mother, right?” Kate spoke with authority, suddenly certain of what she said. “Whitey realized you’d tried to kill Suzanna. That you had Jocko fix her brakes. So after the four of you left Sunday night, you returned to Whitey’s bathroom and killed him.”
“You’re a nosy old biddy, Mrs. Kennedy.”
“Then you had to kill Freddie and Carl. They could prove you went back, couldn’t they?” Kate stopped, feeling the gun against her ribs. “Or did Jocko shoot them for you?”
Olivia’s hand, its finger probably on the trigger, shook.
“Are you okay?” a young male voice asked. Another flashlight shone in Kate’s face. “We were in the car in front of you. We were worried when you and the kid didn’t come out.”
“Run, Billy, ran straight ahead!” She let go of the boy’s hand and pushed him forward. “Run toward the man.”
Olivia staggered as the man’s flashlight moved over her face. Her flashlight fell to the ground.
Kate swung from the right and punched Olivia in the face, hearing her nose crack.
The gun went off.
Epilogue
They sat in the shade of a gaudy umbrella at a round table outside the flea market bakery. Billy, resilient in the way that only small children can be, was eating a jelly doughnut and sporting a milk mustache.
While Marlene and Kate talked, Linda and Billy played Go Fish.
Marlene said, “Billy believes everything that happened was part of the Tunnel of Terror ride. He told me he’ll never go on it again.”
“Neither will I.” Kate thought about the bullet hole in her silver belt buckle. The belt had been bagged as evidence. She hoped her slacks would stay up.
“Okay, Jocko had a major crush on Olivia. When she decided to get rid of her mother, he did the dirty work, right?” Marlene took a bite of her own jelly doughnut.
“Why did Olivia kill Whitey?” Linda looked up from her cards.
Kate shook her head. “Based on what I heard Olivia tell Nick, Whitey discovered she’d tried to murder her mother, and during their pre-pillow talk—Olivia never did get him into bed—he let that slip. So she killed him.”
Linda sighed. “Something Sean said convinced me he’d killed Whitey to prevent him from exposing Jocko’s animal abuse. That’s what I wanted to tell Detective Carbone today.”
“Who shot Carl and Freddie?” Marlene drained her coffee cup and reached for another doughnut.
“Jocko. For a price. Olivia had agreed to marry him.” Kate hardly believed her own words. “Carl was killed because, though confused, he’d told Olivia about seeing her leave twice.”
“What about Freddie? Was it because of those photographs that could prove when the suspects came and went?” Linda ignored Billy’s “Go fish.”
“No, no, he’d been long gone before Olivia’s second time around. And the compromising shot of her and Whitey wasn’t a motive either. Olivia said she’d have been proud to show that photo to the entire world.”
“Then why was Freddie murdered?” Marlene was losing patience.
“Because he stumbled on Jocko shooting Carl in the sword swallower’s bed,” Kate said.
“So the animal abuse and its cover-up had nothing to do with the murders?” Linda asked.
“No. But animal abuse charges have been filed against Jocko and Sean. The Cunninghams are out of business. The Palmetto Beach Flea Market no longer has a circus.”
“What about the animals?” Billy looked anxious.
Linda smiled. “I’ll buy the circus. Precious and I like it here. I’ll even let Suzanna work in the corridor. And of course, you ladies will always have a spot. Billy too.”
Billy waved his cards at Linda. “I win.”
About the Author
Noreen Wald lives in downtown Sarasota, Florida with her husband, Steve. Their sons visit often. Hey, surf and sun are great lures. She has served terms as a local chapter president for Mystery Writers of America, as well as Executive VP and Secretary for their National Board of Directors. A winning contestant on seven television game shows—including Jeopardy!—Noreen later worked for Goodson-Todman and Merv Griffin Productions. She’s lectured at the Smithsonian, the CIA , the National Press Club and aboard the QE II. Her Ghostwriter Series was a Mystery Guild selection and praised in The New York Daily News, The Sun-Sentinel, and hit #1 on The Dallas Morning News bestseller list.
The Kate Kennedy Mystery Series
By Noreen Wald
DEATH WITH AN OCEAN VIEW (#1)
DEATH OF THE SWAMI SCHWARTZ (#2)
DEATH IS A BARGAIN (#3)
DEATH STORMS THE SHORE (#4)
DEATH RIDES THE SURF (#5)
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