Read Scottsdale Squeeze: a romantic light-hearted murder mystery (Laura Black Mysteries Book 2) for Free Online Page A

brunette.
    “Pammy, this is Laura. Laura, this is Pam.”
    Pam was in her forties, tall, and athletic. She had short brunette hair and bright blue-green eyes. She had the perfectly toned body that comes from having a personal trainer, a healthy lifestyle, and great family genes. She was dressed in a stylish blue cocktail dress. On her fingers were several sparkly gold and diamond rings and around her neck was a gold rope chain with a large sapphire pendant. She was wearing some type of expensive perfume I couldn’t place. My first impression was she was one of the wealthy single women I occasionally see shopping in the Scottsdale Fashion Plaza. One of the ones who always seem to have four or five bags from the high-end stores swinging from their arms.
    I held out my hand and Pam shook it.
    “I’m glad I caught up with you,” I said to Annie. We need to talk. The last time we met, we didn’t get around to discussing what I do for a living. I’m an investigator for a law firm here in Scottsdale.”
    Pam and Annie both turned to look at each either, shock and surprise on their faces, then they both turned back to me.
    “You’re looking for Jackie!” they both said at once.
    They saw the surprise on my face.
    “Wow,” I said. “Yes, I am. What do you know about it?”
    “We haven’t seen or heard from Jackie in a week,” Pam said. At first we thought she’d hooked up with someone and we’d hear from her in a day or two.”
    “Yeah,” Annie said, talking over Pam. “When she’s with someone, we usually don’t see her for a couple of days. But even then, she’ll still send out some texts or tweets. But there hasn’t been anything since last Monday.”
    “When’s the last time you saw her?”
    “We all went to the Roxy last Saturday night. There was a band Jackie wanted to catch.” Pam said.
    “Dog Farts?” I asked.
    Annie wrinkled her nose. “Isn’t that the grossest name for a band?”
    “She had planned on hooking up with the singer after the show, so we all went,” Pam said. “Even Elle and Shannon went and they both hate Terry Lennox. Elle was with him a couple of times last year but now she says his singing voice reminds her of cats having sex. Jackie and Terry took off together after the show and it’s the last time we saw her. She sent out a couple of texts and she was on Twitter Monday but nothing since.
    I pulled out the picture of Jackie Terry Lennox had given me. I showed it to Annie and Pam.
    “Annie is this the woman I met with you at Jeannie’s a couple of months ago? When I met her, she was made up and had big hair. This picture is from a distance and her hair is wet but it looks like her.”
    “Sure,” said Annie. That’s Jackie. I took the picture the last time we all went down to Rocky Point, maybe a month ago. Jackie leases a house in Las Conchas and we’d been there at the beach all afternoon.”
    “Do you think she could be there now?”
    “I doubt it,” Pam said. “Mexico is safe enough when you go down in a group, but I couldn’t see Jackie going down by herself.”
    “I’ve already talked to Terry Lennox,” I said. “He says Jackie’s his girlfriend.”
    At that, both Pam and Annie burst out in laughter. Annie laughed so hard she couldn’t breathe and tears began to roll down her face. She finally stopped, looked at Pam, then they both started laughing again.
    “Boyfriend?” Pam said, still laughing. “Terry isn’t exactly the kind of guy you would want to be with long-term.”
    “Yeah,” Annie said. “And with Terry, long-term would be anything more than about an hour. You said you’ve talked with him. Then you’ll know the man is as stupid as a rock.”
    “So true,” Pam said with a smile. “Terry is clueless but Jackie said he was good enough for what she wanted him for.”
    “Sooo, you wouldn’t say they were dating?” I asked.
    “Terry was only a hook up,” Annie said. They’d been together four or five times in the past month.