Murder by the Book by Melanie Jackson Page A

obvious that was all he was going to say on the matter, so I lost interest.
    “If you don’t mind,” I said, “I have a wedding reception to attend.”
    “Yes, you may leave now, Boston,” the Chief said, “but keep your cellphone turned on and on your person at all times.”
    I let myself out of his office. Apparently Gordon had been made so busy by the murder cases that he didn’t have time to swing by and listen at the keyhole. I stepped outside into the late afternoon sunshine to collect Blue and get on my tricycle.
    You’d have thought the fact I was in a dress would have tipped me off earlier. Of course, I had no Blue and no tricycle because Alex had dropped me off earlier. I stood and pondered what to do. I ultimately determined that it would show better form to catch a lift with someone from the station than to pull anyone away from the wedding reception.
    I turned and walked back into the station. The first thing that I saw when I entered was Eddie Springer stepping out of the Chief’s office. I instantly felt my hackles rise as my own door closed behind me. Eddie looked one way, then the other before walking in my direction. When he finally looked up and saw me he stopped dead in his tracks. A look of surprise and then fear spread across his features. I started toward him as fast as my heels would allow, which wasn’t fast enough. Eddie turned and ran back to the Chief’s office. He let himself in and slammed the door shut behind himself . I was right on his heels.
    Before Eddie could throw the lock on the door I had it open. The Chief and Agent Stillwell were sitting around the Chief’s desk examining a map of the Rankles and Edwards construction site. Several pictures of the site were also strewn across the table. They looked up to see what was causing the commotion. Eddie was backing across the small office frantically looking for a place to hide.
    “Keep that woman away from me,” Eddie insisted, pointing at me. “I don’t want her to know that I’m here.”
    “Boston, what the blazes are you doing in here?”
    “I’d like to ask the same question of you,” I replied without much thought.
    Then I gave it some thought, a great deal of thought. Unlike the slow grinding process of ANALYTICO, I’m sometimes struck by moments of intuition that make everything clear in an instant. This was one such instant. Eddie Springer was Randolph Rankles son, he was also vehemently opposed to his father’s recent construction project in Hope Falls, the Chief was conducting an investigation of Rankles and Edwards Construction, and Eddie. …
    “You’re a snitch,” I said to Eddie. “That’s what’s been so wrong with you all this time. You’re spying on your father, who is being investigated by the Chief and the FBI. That’s what I’ve been picking up on.”
    Wow, I thought as I came to realize the significance of what I’d just said. If what I said was true, the last thing I should have done was busted into the Chief’s office hurling accusations.
    “I told you she’d find out,” the Chief reminded the FBI agent. “Boston, get inside this room and close that door before everyone in the station knows about this,” he instructed.
    I heard someone clear his throat and turned to find Gordon standing behind me.
    “I just happened to be passing by,” Gordon explained.
    “So, now he knows too?” Eddie cried indignantly.
    “Gordon, you get in here too,” the Chief ordered. “Eddie, lighten up and relax.”
    “They know,” Eddie declared.
    Eddie dropped to the floor in a squat and draped his arms over his head. I couldn’t determine whether he was still trying to hide from me or if he was just acting out the process of curling up and dying. I stepped inside the room and heard Gordon close the door.
    “You know, Agent Stillwell, Chloe finding out about this mess could end up being a good thing.”
    “We’re aware of Ms. Boston’s peculiar talent,” the agent said.
    There was that