Read Death on Heels Online

Authors: Ellen Byerrum

Tags: #Literature & Fiction, #United States, #Mystery; Thriller & Suspense, #Mystery, #Women Sleuths, #Private Investigators

Death on Heels

BOOK: Death on Heels
10.62Mb size Format: txt, pdf, ePub
ads

Praise for the Crime of Fashion Mysteries—
The Series That Inspired Two Lifetime Movies

“Devilishly funny…Lacey is intelligent, insightful and spunky…thoroughly likable.”


The Sun
(Bremerton, WA)

“Laced with wicked wit.”


SouthCoastToday.com

“Byerrum spins a mystery out of (very luxurious) whole cloth with the best of them.”

—Chick Lit Books

“Fun and witty…with a great female sleuth.”

—Fresh Fiction

Shot Through Velvet

“First-rate…A serious look at the decline of the U.S. textile and newspaper industries provides much food for thought.”


Publishers Weekly
(starred review)

“Great fun, with lots of interesting tidbits about the history of the U.S. fashion industry.”


Suspense Magazine

“A thoughtful mystery with an energetic, very likable heroine that will attract new readers to this established series.”

—The Mystery Reader (four stars)

Armed and Glamorous

“Whether readers are fashion divas or hopelessly fashion challenged, there’s a lot to like about being
Armed and Glamorous
.”


BookPleasures.com

“Fans will relish
Armed and Glamorous
, a cozy starring a fashionable trench coat, essential killer heels, and designer whipping pearls.”


Midwest Book Review

Grave Apparel

“A truly intriguing mystery.”

—Armchair Reader

“A fine whodunit…a humorous cozy.”

—The Best Reviews

“Fun and enjoyable…Lacey’s a likable, sassy, and savvy heroine, and the Washington D.C. setting is a plus.”

—The Romance Readers Connection

“Wonderful.”

—Gumshoe

Raiders of the Lost Corset

“A hilarious crime caper.…Readers will find themselves laughing out loud.…Ellen Byerrum has a hit series on her hands with her latest tale.”

—The Best Reviews

“I love this series. Lacey is such a wonderful character.…The plot has many twists and turns to keep you turning the pages to discover the truth. I highly recommend this book and series.”

—Spinetingler Magazine

“Wow. A simplistic word but one that describes this book perfectly. I loved it! I could not put it down!…Lacey is a scream and she’s not nearly as wild and funny as some of her friends.…I loved everything about the book from the characters to the plot to the fast-paced and witty writing.”

—Roundtable Reviews

Hostile Makeover
Also a Lifetime Movie

“Byerrum pulls another superlative Crime of Fashion out of her vintage cloche.”

—Chick Lit Books

“The read is as smooth as fine-grade cashmere.”


Publishers Weekly

“Totally delightful…a fun and witty read.”

—Fresh Fiction

Designer Knockoff

“Byerrum intersperses the book with witty excerpts from Lacey’s ‘Fashion Bites’ columns, such as ‘When Bad Clothes Happen to Good People’ and ‘Thank Heavens It’s Not Code Taupe.’…quirky…interesting plot twists.”


The Sun
(Bremerton, WA)

“Clever wordplay, snappy patter, and intriguing clues make this politics-meets-high-fashion whodunit a cut above the ordinary.”


Romantic Times

“A very talented writer with an offbeat sense of humor.”

—The Best Reviews

Killer Hair
Also a Lifetime Movie

“[A] rippling debut. Peppered with girlfriends you’d love to have, smoldering romance you can’t resist, and Beltway insider insights you’ve got to read,
Killer Hair
adds a crazy twist to the concept of ‘capital murder.’ ”

—Sarah Strohmeyer, Agatha Award–winning author
of
Kindred Spirits
and
the Bubbles Yablonsky novels

“Ellen Byerrum tailors her debut mystery with a sharp murder plot, entertaining fashion commentary, and gutsy characters.”

—Nancy J. Cohen, author of the
Bad Hair Day mysteries

“A load of stylish fun.”

—Scripps Howard News Service

“Lacey slays and sashays thru Washington politics, scandal, and Fourth Estate slime, while uncovering whodunit, and dunit and dunit again.”

—Chloe Green, author of the Dallas O’Connor
Fashion mysteries


Killer Hair
is a shear delight.”

—Elaine Viets, national bestselling author of
Pumped for Murder

Other Crime of Fashion Mysteries
by Ellen Byerrum

Killer Hair

Designer Knockoff

Hostile Makeover

Raiders of the Lost Corset

Grave Apparel

Armed and Glamorous

Shot Through Velvet

Death on Heels
A CRIME OF FASHION MYSTERY
Ellen Byerrum

AN OBSIDIAN MYSTERY

OBSIDIAN

Published by New American Library, a division of

Penguin Group (USA) Inc., 375 Hudson Street,

New York, New York 10014, USA

Penguin Group (Canada), 90 Eglinton Avenue East, Suite 700, Toronto,

Ontario M4P 2Y3, Canada (a division of Pearson Penguin Canada Inc.)

Penguin Books Ltd., 80 Strand, London WC2R 0RL, England

Penguin Ireland, 25 St. Stephen’s Green, Dublin 2,

Ireland (a division of Penguin Books Ltd.)

Penguin Group (Australia), 250 Camberwell Road, Camberwell, Victoria 3124,

Australia (a division of Pearson Australia Group Pty. Ltd.)

Penguin Books India Pvt. Ltd., 11 Community Centre, Panchsheel Park,

New Delhi-110 017, India

Penguin Group (NZ), 67 Apollo Drive, Rosedale, Auckland 0632,

New Zealand (a division of Pearson New Zealand Ltd.)

Penguin Books (South Africa) (Pty.) Ltd., 24 Sturdee Avenue,

Rosebank, Johannesburg 2196, South Africa

Penguin Books Ltd., Registered Offices:

80 Strand, London WC2R 0RL, England

First published by Obsidian, an imprint of New American Library,

a division of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.

First Printing, February 2012

10  9  8  7  6  5  4  3  2  1

Copyright © Ellen Byerrum, 2012

All rights reserved

EISBN: 9781101575048

OBSIDIAN and logo are trademarks of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.

Printed in the United States of America

Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise), without the prior written permission of both the copyright owner and the above publisher of this book.

PUBLISHER’S NOTE

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

    The publisher does not have any control over and does not assume any responsibility for author or third-party Web sites or their content.

    If you purchased this book without a cover you should be aware that this book is stolen property. It was reported as “unsold and destroyed” to the publisher and neither the author nor the publisher has received any payment for this “stripped book.”

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. Your support of the author’s rights is appreciated.

A
CKNOWLEDGMENTS

Sagebrush, Colorado, does not exist, except on the page, though it may resemble a town or two out West and incorporate a memory or two of my own. I am indebted to several people who helped me bring this fictitious town and its people to life. The name
Muldoon
comes from
The Solid Muldoon
, a freewheeling and spirited newspaper in Ouray, Colorado, in the late 1800s, but nearly forgotten today.

I owe a debt of gratitude to legendary cowboy Monty Sheridan and his gracious wife, Ruth Sheridan, for sharing tales of ranching in northwest Colorado and giving me insights into the daunting and challenging life of a modern cowboy. My thanks also go to David Blackstun of the Bureau of Land Management, who was very generous with his time and information.

My husband, Bob Williams, has been by my side through the entire process: from walking with me through miles of dusty sagebrush to get a feel for the territory, to proofing, copyediting, and challenging me every step of the way on this manuscript.
Death on Heels
wouldn’t be the work it is without him. Thanks are never quite enough.

As always, any mistakes in the book are mine, or possibly, creative acts of fiction.

Table of Contents

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Chapter 19

Chapter 20

Chapter 21

Chapter 22

Chapter 23

Chapter 24

Chapter 25

Chapter 26

Chapter 27

Chapter 28

Chapter 29

Chapter 30

Chapter 31

Chapter 32

Chapter 33

Chapter 34

Chapter 1

“Dying with your boots on is a point of pride in the West, Vic. But these women died barefoot,” Lacey said. “And that grieves me.”

Digging around the bottom of her small closet, she hunted for her cowboy boots. Lacey wasn’t going to be caught unaware and unshod. Not like those three women.

Colorado rancher Cole Tucker had been arrested for murder, so fashion reporter Lacey Smithsonian was heading back to the last place on earth she swore she’d ever return: Sagebrush. That meant she would need, among other things, her best, dandified, make-a-statement cowboy boots. And more than a little guts. Lacey was afraid she was really going to stick her foot in it this time. She needed the most fearsome footwear she owned to wade through all the mud. And the mudslinging.

Tucker can’t be a killer
, she kept saying to herself.
I loved him. That cowboy wanted to marry me.

“Where are you going?” Her current boyfriend, Vic Donovan, was right behind her at the closet door. “Is there a secret passage in there I don’t know about?”

Lacey crawled farther into her closet on her hands and knees, into that dark limbo where old clothes went in disgrace, until they might be useful—or fashionable—again. Vic watched her, fidgeting. It wasn’t like him to wait behind, but there wasn’t room in that dark recess for him. There was barely enough space for Lacey. She stretched full length on the floor and finally felt her fingertips brush one of those half-forgotten boots, tucked
into the farthest corner.
I must have been crazy when I bought these,
she thought. However, the boots were surprisingly comfortable, with their stitched, pointed toes and two-inch stacked leather heels. Lacey loved the lift they gave her. And maybe they would also give her courage to—

“Darn it! Where’s the other one?” She looked at the single boot in the light and tossed it furiously over her shoulder. “I hate this closet!”

Vic Donovan dodged the boot. “Really, sweetheart, I don’t think you ought to be going back to Sagebrush anyway—”

She ignored him. Somewhere in that cramped cave was her other boot: handmade, calf-high, Western-style, pale green and golden brown leather, with elaborate green and gold stitching that resembled filigree. Showy and cowgirly, they were just worn enough to pass out West for serious boots. Lacey hadn’t tried them on since she’d left that shabby Western boomtown for a better reporting job in Washington, D.C.

The boots had nothing to do with Cole Tucker’s arrest, and yet somehow they were a tangible link to her life back then. They were solid, stylish, American-made reassurance in tough times. Like Cole. He was a rancher who knew his way around horses, and boots. But not murder.

Lacey threw more shoes over her shoulder in Vic’s general direction, high heels, sandals, pumps. Vic caught one red high-heeled shoe by its slender leather strap and stared at its worn-down heel.

“Lacey, you are death on heels, you know that?”

“Hilarious. I’ll show you death on heels if I don’t find my other cowboy boot. I’m wearing them on the plane tomorrow. Both of them.” She blindly chucked another red shoe. Vic ducked.

BOOK: Death on Heels
10.62Mb size Format: txt, pdf, ePub
ads

Other books

Promise by Dani Wyatt
Love You Moore by Melissa Carter
Hockey Confidential by Bob McKenzie
The Lamp of the Wicked by Phil Rickman
Soldiers in Hiding by Richard Wiley
Hold Me by Betsy Horvath
Marrying Mari by Elyse Snow
Gudsriki by Ari Bach
Afterlife (Afterlife Saga) by Hudson, Stephanie
The Moon In Its Flight by Sorrentino, Gilbert