Murder & The Monkey Band: High Desert Cozy Mystery Series by Dianne Harman Page A

and Laura and turned to Rosa.
“If you have any more avocados and fruit, I would love some. I haven’t had time
for lunch, and it looks like it’s going to be a busy afternoon.”
    “I have plenty. I’ll be
right back.” Jeff sat down at the table, “Well ladies, how was your morning?”
    “Pretty unbelievable. You
should have been here,” Marty said. She told him about the diamond ring, how
Laura had a vision of where it was hidden, and Carl’s reaction to it.
    “I’m with Carl, but I have
to admire him for staying in the room. No offense, Laura, but if you’d walked
into a room where I was with a butcher’s knife, I’m not sure I would have
stayed around to see what was in the wig stand. That’s pretty unbelievable. I’m
kind of sorry I missed it. Would have made a great water cooler story.”
    Rosa set a place for him
and put a luncheon plate in front of him along with a big glass of the rickey.
He took a huge sip. “Rosa, that’s not only delicious, but it’s one of the most
refreshing things I’ve ever had.”
    “I agree, Rosa. If you
have time, I know someone who would love to have that recipe,” Marty said. She
turned to Laura and Jeff. “Here’s another one I can see being served at The Red
Pony.”
    “Certainly, Ms. Morgan.
Mrs. Jensen has a copy machine in her office. I’ll make a photocopy for you.”
    “Thanks. Jeff, how was
your morning?” Marty asked.
    He put one of his hands
out in front of him, palm facing down, and wiggled it back and forth as if to
say, so-so. “I called Henry Siegelman early this morning and told him I wanted
to meet with him this morning. The nice thing about being a detective is that a
person will generally agree to see you. The not so nice thing about being a
detective is that the smart ones have their attorney there and don’t answer
many questions on the attorney’s advice. Henry is one of the smart ones.”
    “I’m picking up that his
attorney was there when you arrived. Would I be right?” Laura asked.
    “You don’t need to be a
psychic to figure that out. Yes. Of course Henry denied any involvement in Mrs.
Jensen’s death. He said he’d approached her several times about buying the
three pieces of the Meissen Monkey Band that his collection lacked. He said
she’d told him she had no intention of ever selling them. I asked him if I
could see his set. He showed it to me, and I have to say, I don’t know a thing
about antiques, but the Monkey Band is kind of cute. These little monkeys, and
I mean little, they’re only about five inches high or so, are charming in their
little 18 th century outfits and playing their various different
musical instruments. I can see where he’d want to complete the set.”
    “So what do you do now?”
Marty asked.
    “There’s not much I can do
unless something breaks. I have an appointment with Pam’s son, Jim Warren, this
afternoon. I’d like to know where he was the night of the murder. I’m also
curious how he’s taking the news that his mother signed a Will which nullified
the one he has, and he stands to inherit half of what he thought he was going
to get.”
    “I’m glad you’re the one
who will be talking to him and not me. He’d probably be number one on my list
of suspects,” Laura said.
    “Coming from anyone but
you, I’d take that lightly. With what I’ve seen and I’m hearing about you, I
kind of wish you hadn’t said that,” Jeff chuckled. “Since you feel that way,
I’ll be very careful when I interview him, although people tend to put on their
best face when the detective comes calling.” Rosa walked over to the table and
put a plate of cookies on it. “Rosa, if you have a couple of minutes, I’d like
to talk to you. You may know something that’s more important than you think.”
    “Certainly, Detective
Combs. May I clear the dishes first?”
    “Of course. While you’re
doing that, we can enjoy these cookies. They look delicious. I never met Mrs.
Jensen, but from the