Read Deadly Dye and a Soy Chai: a Danger Cove Hair Salon Mystery (Danger Cove Mysteries Book 5) for Free Online Page B

It's no secret that stuff is toxic." She pulled a handful of chips from the bag and then shoved it toward me. "Want some? They're dill pickle flavored."
    I wrinkled my nose. "No, but that reminds me. I've heard of elderly people losing their sense of taste. What if she didn't know it was dye?"
    "Then why order a soy chai latte and not just plain tea?" Gia popped a chip into her mouth. "If you ask me, the real question is whether Miss Appleby's death had anything to do with Vinnie's murder. I mean, we know those two were connected, if you get what I'm saying."
    I got it, all right. My stomach churned at the possibility—and at the pun. "That seems like a stretch, but I'll bet the police look into it. After all, there are two active crime scenes in the house."
    Gia chewed another chip. "So, what are you going to do about it?"
    "The only thing I can do—wait while the authorities handle it."
    "Cassidi!" she exclaimed in a bite-your-tongue tone. "You're half Italian!"
    "And?"
    "Show some passion!" She sprung to her feet on the bed, producing a flurry of wing flapping, and began punching the air. "Find your fighting spirit!"
    I gave her my best blank stare. "To be honest, I've always identified more with my German side."
    "Well, stop it, Claudia Schiffer." She punched a fist in my direction. "You can be all logical and practical at school. Right now you have to react."
    Gia had a point, albeit an ethnically inappropriate one. Lucy's freedom was at stake, and everything I had was on the line. This wasn't the time to play it safe, particularly when one of the cops on the case was grasping at straws. I had to do my part to prove Lucy's innocence, protect my home, and save the salon. With any luck, I'd resuscitate the Conti reputation in the process. "You're right. I need to do something."
    "OMG! You're admitting that I'm right?" She held up her arms and fell backward onto the bed. "Have I died and gone to heaven?"
    I smirked. "Don't get carried away—by those wings of yours."
    She hopped up and sat cross-legged on the bed. "So, what's the plan? Are you going to be like Jessica Fletcher and go around Danger Cove investigating people?"
    I shifted in my seat. "I hadn't really thought about it. But if I did, I'd like to be someone younger, like Veronica Mars."
    "Well, whoever you are, you can totally count on me to be your sleuthing sidekick—you know I never miss an episode of 48 Hours . And Amy could help with library research. With three brilliant criminal minds like ours on the case, it'll be a piece of cake," she said with a snap of her fingers.
    Criminal minds? Okay, so I had my doubts about Gia's abilities, but Amy was a genius. She could probably solve this case with her brain waves alone.
    "And who knows?" she continued. "Maybe we could solve Vinnie's murder too."
    I stared at her, surprised. It had never occurred to me to look into my uncle's death—I guess because I'd just assumed that the police would have solved the mystery of his murder by now. "Sure," I said, although I was anything but. "Now, if I'm going to sleuth, I've got to sleep." I rolled from the chair. "No more hammering, okay?"
    She gave the thumbs-up sign. "You got it, cug ," she said, using an abbreviation of the Italian word cugina , or "cousin," which everyone always thought was short for Cujo .
    No sooner had I crossed the hallway than my resolve waned. As I climbed into bed, I wondered what I was getting myself into. I was already trying to get established in a new town, run a salon, and earn a business degree, and I was failing at all three. Plus, the closest I'd ever come to detective work was when I tracked down a missing skirt at the drycleaners. So, investigating a suspicious death seemed more than a little outside my area of expertise.
    And what if Margaret had been murdered like my uncle? And what if their deaths were related?
    I shivered and pulled the covers up to my chin.
    Uh-uh. I couldn't go around town questioning people and poking into