Page 137 - Labelle Gramercy, Detective

Airtight

“I wonder how you could prove you didn’t assassinate her,” asked
Waldo. “You seem to have had both motive and opportunity. The
police cannot ignore that.”
“Oh, stop being so hard on her, Waldo!” I couldn’t help myself.
“She’s still here, isn’t she? Obviously Lt. Gramercy believed her.
Anyway, if she wanted to ruin the project by killing somebody, why
wait until the very end?”
“Relax, Kelly,” said Larry. “You have to understand Waldo. He’s
hard on people, but he really isn’t accusing her. Why, Blanche and
Waldo were good friends in the dome. They used to play cards
together—didn’t you?”
His attempt at peace-making flopped. Blanche returned to the
Kleenex box and Waldo just sat and fiddled with his coffee cup. I
couldn’t stand the silence. “I’m going to the bathroom,” I
announced, and left them to stew. Maybe we’d all be in a better
mood when I came back, maybe not.
After checking my hair and makeup in the bathroom mirror, I
made a slight detour to my office. Coffee was not what I needed.
That policewoman was leaving no stone unturned, and I shuddered
to think what secrets she might uncover next. Fortified I trudged
back to the conference room, being careful to tiptoe past the
interrogation room. I uttered a brief prayer of thanks that Ben had
not skimped on the soundproofing in these rooms. Nothing could be
heard out in the hall. I opened the conference room door to find the
guard had changed in my absence: Ray was back. And he looked like
he was about to explode.

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“Something funny is going on here,” Ray began, his usually florid
face drained of all color. I had never seen him in such a dangerous
mood. He didn’t sit down, but started pacing back and forth, waving
his arms. He was talking to himself as much as to the rest of us. “She
didn’t use the word, but I smell a conspiracy. Not just a conspiracy to
kill Dr. Reath, but to ruin our experiment—maybe ruin Cyborganics,
as well. I can’t believe it. After all the work we’ve put into this.”
“Whoa, there, buddy.” Waldo held his hands out in a gesture of
placation. “What did she say? What’s this all about?”

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