Death Knell In The Alps (A Samantha Jamison Mystery)
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Authors: Peggy A. Edelheit
Death Knell In The Alps
(The tolling of a bell to mark someone’s death)
A Samantha
Jamison
Mystery
Volume 6
by
Peggy A.
Edelheit
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or to actual events or locales is entirely coincidental.
Death Knell In The Alps, A Samantha Jamison Mystery, Volume 6
This eBook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This eBook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you’re reading this eBook and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then you should return it and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of the author.
Copyright © 2013 Peggy A.
Edelheit
. All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this book, or portions thereof, in any form. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical without the express written permission of the author. The scanning, uploading, and distribution of this book via the Internet or via any other means without the permission of the publisher is illegal and punishable by law. Please purchase only authorized electronic editions and do not participate in or encourage electronic piracy of copyrighted materials.
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Cover Designed by Telemachus Press, LLC
Cover Art:
Copyright © 20309834/bephotographers
Edited by Winslow Eliot
Published by Telemachus Press, LLC
http://www.telemachuspress.com
Visit the author website:
http://www.samanthajamison.com
ISBN: 978-1-939927-22-4 (eBook)
Version 2014.01.18
Other Books by Peggy A.
Edelheit
The Samantha Jamison Mystery Series
Without Any Warning (Volume 2)
A Samantha Jamison Detour
Chase your Dreams
& Remember,
Every Day is a Blessing
This book is dedicated to the memory of
Our dearly loved 14 yr. old Miniature Schnauzer
Samantha I
With love to my husband
My biggest supporter and confidant
& my three sons
Acknowledgment
& Special Thanks To
My Editor
Winslow Eliot
My Publisher
Telemachus Press
Steven & Terri Himes
Steven & Claudia Jackson
Death Knell In The Alps
Volume 6
Chapter 1
Think This Is Random?
I swear, this was worse than stealing my manuscript.
I stood back, surveying the scattered mess strewn across my hotel bed. “Okay, who took my
Spanx
?”
“What are
Spanx
?” asked Martha, my partner in crime.
“A girl’s best friend: a
bodyshaper
that hides unsightly bulges. I buy it one size too small, hence my size 2/4. Of course, sometimes it’s hard to breathe, but I try to time it, you know, like how long you can wear certain shoes: one, two, three hours or, if you’re lucky, the whole evening.”
“But you’re in your thirties and already thin,” she said.
I scanned her spiky white hair, seventyish attitude and skinny frame.
Hmm… She could’ve taken it just for spite.
Then I eyed our two
librarianish
(
my editor will have a field day with that one)
friends, also in their seventies, who initially fooled you (
including yours truly
) by their proper, old-fashioned behavior. They perfectly counterbalanced the impulsive and in-your-face Martha. Bottom line: they were all adept at sleuthing and I trusted them implicitly.
Betty smoothed back some gray strands of her upswept bun. “Now, do I look like a candidate for your
Spanx
?”
I stared at Betty’s tall, reedy body then at plump, height-challenged and curly, gray-haired Hazel, who laughed.
“I couldn’t get that over my pinky. I’d strangle myself.”
I shook my head. “We left here right after checking in to grab a quick lunch downstairs and came right back.”
Betty rushed for the bathroom. “I had too much tea.” In seconds she rushed right back in, gasping, “I found it!”
“Found what?” I asked, startled by her outburst.
“The one thing you can’t live without,” she said.
“Now, why would you bring up Clay?” chided Martha. “I was enjoying this lively repartee we had going on here.”
“What does Clay have to do with any of this?” I asked.
I’ve heard some authors have trouble with dialogue. Not me. All I had to do was talk to these three and it flowed.
Betty pulled me along with her, as the others followed.
Barely hanging onto the showerhead was my missing
Spanx
, sliced and shredded to pieces.
A knife? A razor?
Hazel stepped back, shocked. “Who’d do such a thing?”
Martha frowned. “Maybe it’s some kind of message.”
I touched the ruined softness. “…A message?”
“Think this is random?” Betty asked. “Better call Clay.”
“If this is connected to Clay,” said Martha, “he would know. He’s the one that invited all of us over here.”
My anger rose. “But why…?” Mystified, I stared at the mutilated spectacle before me.
Was she right: a message?
“Well?” said Martha. “Are you calling Clay or am I?”
“Call the concierge first and order a replacement.”
Martha picked up the phone. “For you or the
Spanx
?”
“We’ll find out, won’t we? Call that concierge. I’ll deal with Clay personally when I see him after he arrives.”
This sure looked intentional, but why?
Chapter 2
Well… That Almost Explains Everything
Annoyed, I sat there glaring at the phone. I had just hung up from talking to Clay, who’d be arriving four days late. Not because of his bookshop, The Bookworm, back in Highlands, North Carolina, but from his PI sideline.
That gumshoe owed me a nice dinner for all this stress.
Was that mutilation somehow connected to Clay? Was I over-reading it? Initially, Clay alleged he needed my help, but with
what?
“All expenses paid,” he’d said. “Bring along the
girls
.”
That last part should have made me skeptical. But after all we’ve been through in the past, including my husband’s suspicious death, and afterward our
extremely
personal on-and-off relationship, I agreed. Now after seeing that visual in my shower, I was having second thoughts about this trip.
I recalled our shared history and being involved in and eventually solving a few mysteries since we met. If you’d asked me about my
trust factor
back when I first met Clay, I would’ve said you’re crazy.
Was Clay testing that trust again?
First off, why did Clay invite me to the Swiss Alps? He said, “Bring your skis.” I didn’t own any. Oh, I’ve skied many times before, but never took it seriously. I couldn’t even throw snowballs straight. The one thing I could do was ride a sled, but even then the odds weren’t always in my favor. I was usually one curve away from disaster.
While questions lingered about Clay’s unusual invite to Switzerland, my curiosity kicked in too. By this point, I was becoming more intrigued than outraged by this creepy in-your-face message hanging in my shower. Like many times before, it was usually the
why
that drew me in. Plus, Clay stressed
‘do not’
report the
Spanx
episode
because he said I
must
keep a low profile. He’d explain later.
Hmm…
Instead, I might want to take some professional ski lessons to improve my skills so I wouldn’t get bored while waiting for his late arrival. Clay’s friend, Peter, who sidelined as a ski instructor, would tutor me. Besides, these slopes were not only scenic, but might prove more challenging than I was used to. I should take advantage of Peter’s expertise.
I asked him what was Peter’s
main
job? Was it similar to Clay’s: a private investigator? With Clay absent, and my body armor sliced and diced, I felt exposed and was now on the lookout for some nut with an aversion to
bodyshapers
.
As usual, Clay glossed right over that question claiming that the ladies were accomplished skiers and I wasn’t. What would I do while they were all out having a great time?
Clay finally won me over by conveniently bribing, I mean
offering
, to FedEx a
Spanx
replacement and a spare. That man knew just how to get on my good side. Plus, he had killer good looks, soft lips, and those hands of his…
I smiled. …If I added this delay to his accumulating payback tab,
why he’d be reimbursing me forever.
Clay signed off with the fact that he’d booked his
own
room, which surprised me, but then didn’t. I already knew my suite had been registered in my name. So I figured my rooming arrangements with the ladies would be explained later and the real reason why all of us were there. I was flexible. I could just switch rooms when he arrived. In the meantime, skiing was the perfect distraction. I could do the vacation thing until then. Clay would be there soon enough.
Besides, what else could possibly happen in four days?