Read Board Stiff (An Elliott Lisbon Mystery) for Free Online Page B

changed. I’ve changed.”
    “Elliott, you have a nine gallon barrel of hand-sanitizer on your desk. You aren’t ready to get this dirty.”
    “I guess we’ll see,” I said and stood. “Now, if you’ve finished mocking me, I’d like to get back to work.”
    He slowly picked up his jacket. “I’m not mocking you, Elliott. I’m serious. This investigation doesn’t concern you.”
    “Have you not been listening? Of course it concerns me. You are questioning one board member about the murder of another. This isn’t a job, Ransom, it’s my life. The Ballantynes treat me like a daughter; they’re my only family. They were there for me when my parents died. You left. They were all I had. I won’t let you shred their reputation while you witch hunt my board. Besides, your chief called my chief last night.” I stabbed his chest with my finger. Twice. “I’m in this.”
    Ransom stepped forward, his jaw tight. “What did you say?”
    “Mr. Ballantyne asked me to find out who killed Leo Hirschorn and I’m going to.” So maybe not exactly what Mr. Ballantyne asked, I thought, but close enough. The extra investigation hours could go toward my PI license, and that also helped the Ballantyne. “I don’t answer to you. We’ve always had the cooperation of the Sea Pine Police, and based on my phone call, this won’t be any different.”
    “It will be on my terms,” he said, an edge in his voice.
    “If you’d like to think that, have at it. Now, when I said afternoons spent by the pool, I didn’t mean me. I have a job.” I walked along the path by the garden toward the front. “I really liked Lieutenant Sully,” I muttered.
    “Maybe you’ll like me, too,” he said over my shoulder. “Just stay out of my way and we’ll be fine.”
    “You do the same, Lieutenant.”
    I left him in the parking lot and stalked up the front steps, irritated he called me out on my forensic fainting. I may be squeamish, but it’s not as if I was performing Leo’s autopsy. I just needed to find his killer before Ransom arrested Jane and ruined my life. I’m going to need real help, I thought as I marched back to my office. So I’m going to do what any self-respecting woman would do in this situation. I’m going to beg Sully to come back.
    FIVE

       
    It looked as though the board meeting finally adjourned; the parlor was empty and members gathered in the halls. I tracked down Zibby Archibald outside the ladies room on the first floor. I wanted to get her peccadillo settled and move on to the Hirschorn murder right away. Ransom’s investigation was in the fast lane and mine was still in the parking lot.
    Zibby accepted my invitation to lunch at Molly’s in an hour. It gave her time to dash home and walk her Pomeranians, and me time to make four quick calls.
    I flipped through the Rolodex on the corner of my desk. Tod tried to get me to computerize the index cards, but I had so many of them, the task seemed too monumental. I found the card I wanted and dialed the phone.
    “Where the hell are you and when are you coming back?” I asked when Lieutenant Sullivan answered. “By the way, it’s Elliott Lisbon from the Ballantyne Foundation.”
    “Didn’t they tell you? I retired. I live in Key Biscayne now.”
    “How do you retire from an island? Aren’t you already halfway there?”
    He laughed the boisterous laugh of the unencumbered. “Me and Ginny were visiting her sister last month. She’s got a stilt house right on the water. A twenty-two foot Wellcraft ten feet from the house. We had a great time. Fishing like I’ve never seen. Turns out the place next door was for sale.”
    “But Sully, why so fast? You may not know this, but we’ve got fishing right here. And boats, too.” I fiddled with a paper clip while I spoke, unwinding it until it was straight.
    “Yes, but Ginny’s sister is alone and not doing so great, getting along in years. Likes to have us around.” He cleared his throat. “Now what’s