Page 76 of Dead Serious Case 4 Professor Prometheus Plume

“Couldn’t even do that right, could you?”

“How dare you!” Ruby cries in outrage. “I’d never hurt my husband. I loved him.”

“Loved him so much you were schtupping Greyson left, right, and centre,” Mr Meadow comments.

Mrs Snow smirks. “He was going to divorce you, you know.”

“You’re lying.” Ruby’s eyes narrow.

“I’m not,” she continues. “I overheard him on the phone to his solicitor just before Christmas.”

I hear a loud crunch, and I shift my gaze over to find Skid the punk rocker leaning on the counter beside Dusty and holding a large bag of popcorn in one hand while he shoves a handful into his mouth.

“What did I miss?” he mumbles around a mouthful, directing his question to Dusty.

She starts pointing at everyone in turn. “That one fucked over that one and is now fucking that one over there. And they’ve all been fucked over by the dead guy.”

“Huh.” Skid nods as he runs his tongue over his teeth. “Right on.” He holds up the bag to Dusty, who takes a dainty handful of popcorn.

“Thank you, Skid.”

“You’re welcome, Miss Dusty.” He smiles at her.

I blink and decide not to even give that any brain space. Turning back to the still-arguing actors, I’m amazed at how the hell they managed to work together at all given the level of hostility and bitchiness. And I’m also wondering if we should hide the rest of Aggie’s knives… just in case.

Danny takes a deep breath and pinches the bridge of his nose as he searches for his patience. “Alright, that’s enough,” he says firmly.

This is not what either of us had planned for our romantic getaway.

“I think we’ve established that you all have ample motive,” Danny says. “So I think we should move swiftly on to opportunity. We know Professor Plume was alive when we all sat down to dinner, and he left sometime after that.”

“It was just before dessert,” I tell him. “I saw him leave. He received a phone call and excused himself. He never came back to the table after that.”

“Aggie? What time was dessert served?” Danny asks the cook.

“Oh, oh! I know this one!” Ellis jumps up and down with his hand in the air. “Rosie and I served the desserts at eight-thirty. I ran into Professor Plume as he was leaving and I was coming in with the plates. Tristan is right, he was on the phone.”

“Does anyone know who called him? Did he say when he excused himself from the table?” Danny looks at Ruby and Mr Meadow, who were sitting closest to Professor Plume, but they both shake their heads.

“Okay, we should check his phone log,” Danny says to me.

“I left his personal effects with the body for the local coroner to collect once they can reach the hotel,” I reply. “I would imagine his phone is probably in one of his pockets.”

Danny nods and takes my hand. “Let’s you and I go back to the study then.”

Heading back out of the kitchen, we reach the lobby and glance behind us to find the assembled company of staff, guests, and actors once again trailing along behind us like a herd.

Reaching the study, Danny opens the door. One step over the threshold and we stop abruptly, making everyone bottleneck in the doorway behind us.

“What the hell?” We move further inside, vaguely aware of the people filtering in behind us as we register their gasps of shock.

My mouth falls open as I stare down at the empty Aubusson rug still stained with blood.

“Where’s the body gone?”

19

“It’s going to take me forever to get that bloodstain out of the rug,” John the Maid grumbles. His hulking form towers over me as he looks down at the now empty floor.