Page 55 of Rest In Pink

“You'd be surprised at the stupid things people do,” Olson said.

Actually, I wouldn’t. But this wasn’t right. “How did the carbon monoxide go from here to Thacker’s room?”

Olson shook his head. “We’ll have to do a thorough inspection.”

“Who reported it?” I asked.

“Fire alarm went off on the other side,” Olson said, indicating the wall opposite Thacker’s room.

“Why didn’t the one in here or Thacker’s go off?” I asked. I was amazed the fire alarms worked in any room in this dump.

“We’ll have to investigate,” Olson said.

“Who was registered in this room?” I asked. I could sense Olson getting a little irritated.

“No one."

I went back into Thacker’s room. “Where’s his laptop and cell phone?”

Olson shrugged. “My men just checked to see if he was alive.”

“Who was first in here?” George asked.

“Mac was,” Olson said. “He said there was no chance of resuscitation.”

I looked around, but the laptop and the bag Thacker had on the passenger seat of his car were nowhere to be found. Nor was his cell phone.

I heard a commotion out front and left the room. Detective Bartlett was arguing with Rain. I was tempted to stand back and let it play out, but this wasn’t the time or place to watch Rain whittle the idiot down to a nub. We had a dead body she needed to see. She had her big bag in one hand and was dressed in black slacks and turtleneck, which she pulled off much better than Cash.

“Bartlett.”

He looked over his shoulder. That was when I realized he was wearing pajamas under his leather police jacket. He was not a man who was prepared for emergencies. Of course my wrists were still a little sore, but that was different.

“Let her through. She’s part of the team and she outranks you.”

Rain brushed past him.

“You got here fast.”

“You got an idiot in your force.”

“He’s our number two detective.” But I could tell she was vibrating to see the vic. “And hello to you, too.”

She smiled because she was in her element. “You have a body?”

“We do indeed. And it’s an interesting scene.”

“I love those.”

She went toward the open door, and I followed her, thinking about how smoke could get from one room to another, and who was grilling in that room if it wasn’t rented, and what the fuck was happening to my town.

MONDAY

Posted on BurneyCommunityNews on Facebook, Monday 9AM:

Fortunately, we will not be bothered any more by those irritating posts due to an unfortunate turn of events. Our Page Administrator, MaryLou Blue, has asked me to post that she has removed her GoFundMe page because of the horrible people who kept posting in the comments. She didn’t give an address, but I’m pretty sure you can just send money to MaryLou Blue, c/o the River City Correctional Center.

Thank you, Faye Blue, Page Administrator Pro Tem

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