Page 51
Story: Corpse at Captain's Seat
“Of course.” Ellery hunted for a towel to dry off Watson. He couldn’t help teasing, “Sleep okay?”
Tosh laughed, staring at the coffee perking in the machine. Then she looked up, said earnestly, “I really like Jack.”
Ellery, kneeling beside Watson, replied, “Me, too.”
“I wasn’t sure at first because he seems so...so...”
“Serious?” Ellery suggested wryly.
“Well, yeah. But I think he’s serious in a good way. He’s...authentic.”
Ellery had never particularly thought about it, but yeah, if byauthenticshe meant Jack was honest and unpretentious, then Jack was authentic.
Watson rewarded his efforts with a quick kiss. Ellery rose and opened the fridge to get Watson’s food out.
Tosh said, “I mean,reliablemay not sound sexy, but when you’ve been with someone whoisn’treliable...”
Ellery wasn’t sure if Tosh meant Freddie because Freddie had been a long time ago and Tosh had dated plenty since. In fact, Tosh probablydidn’tmean Freddie. She probably meant Brandon or Todd. And there she had nailed it.
Besides, reliable or not, Jack was totally sexy. Reliability was just icing on the cake.
He finished preparing Watson’s food, set the metal bowl on the floor, and Watson proceeded to give a stirring portrayal of a pup who hadn’t eaten in months.
Tosh poured the coffee into the mugs. “But also, it’s pretty clear that whatever you want is fine with Jack.”
“Wellll, I wouldn’t gothatfar,” Ellery had plenty of experience with Jack expressing his feelings when hewasn’tfine with what Ellery wanted.
Tosh finished doctoring the coffee and picked up the mugs. “Anyway, thisone is a keeper.”
“I’m going to do my best.”
They exchanged grins, and Tosh started upstairs, Watson, having already gulped down his breakfast, following.
Ellery spent a couple of minutes deciding what to feed the human members of the house party, eventually deciding on bacon and gruyere egg bites, fruit, and pastries. While the bacon cooked, he began phoning the people he’d invited to the housewarming to let them know the party was off.
There was a flattering consensus of expressed disappointment, but no real surprise.
Nora said, “It’s the right decision, dearie. Especially with more snow on the way.”
“Isthere more snow on the way?” Unhappily, Ellery glanced out the kitchen windows.
“According to popular opinion.”
“Or unpopular opinion.”
Nora said bracingly, “It’s always fun to share adventures with good friends. Next time you get together you’ll be able to reminisce about the time you were snowed in at an isolated country house with an axe murderer on the loose.”
Ellery only heard one part of that sentence. “Is there reason to think Edwin Dolph is still on the loose?”
“No, no. But we can’t be sure that heisn’t.”
She sounded unreasonably upbeat about it.
Ellery phoned Dylan next.
“I figured that was coming,” Dylan said. “But if you have to be snowed in, these are probably the best possible circumstances.”
“True. Other than the possibility of an axe murderer roaming the countryside.”
Table of Contents
- Page 1
- Page 2
- Page 3
- Page 4
- Page 5
- Page 6
- Page 7
- Page 8
- Page 9
- Page 10
- Page 11
- Page 12
- Page 13
- Page 14
- Page 15
- Page 16
- Page 17
- Page 18
- Page 19
- Page 20
- Page 21
- Page 22
- Page 23
- Page 24
- Page 25
- Page 26
- Page 27
- Page 28
- Page 29
- Page 30
- Page 31
- Page 32
- Page 33
- Page 34
- Page 35
- Page 36
- Page 37
- Page 38
- Page 39
- Page 40
- Page 41
- Page 42
- Page 43
- Page 44
- Page 45
- Page 46
- Page 47
- Page 48
- Page 49
- Page 50
- Page 51
- Page 52
- Page 53
- Page 54
- Page 55
- Page 56
- Page 57
- Page 58
- Page 59
- Page 60
- Page 61
- Page 62
- Page 63
- Page 64
- Page 65
- Page 66
- Page 67
- Page 68
- Page 69
- Page 70
- Page 71
- Page 72
- Page 73
- Page 74
- Page 75
- Page 76
- Page 77
- Page 78
- Page 79
- Page 80
- Page 81
- Page 82
- Page 83
- Page 84
- Page 85
- Page 86
- Page 87
- Page 88
- Page 89
- Page 90
- Page 91