A Dentist, A Murder, and a Devilishly Handsome P.I.
absolute nerve! And that disguise, all that effort just to get cozy with my competition?” She was tapping her foot impatiently, but offbeat, like freestyle jazz. I didn’t care for it. The next part was strictly confidential, and I won’t lie, I’ve got a lot of enemies. So I got up and shut the blinds before turning back around to look her squarely in the eye, illuminated by the light of a single flickering bulb in my desk lamp. She eyed the lamp suspiciously, “You might want to get an electrician to come to look at that before a fire–” but I cut her off. “Word on the street is she’s got a secret weapon,” I said in a low voice, and she leaned forward, intrigued. “What’s that?” I opened my trenchcoat and pulled something out of my pocket: a little neat set of papers all bound together. She raised her eyebrows when I handed it to her. “What’s this?” she asked. “ 10 Ways to Whiten Your Teeth Naturally? Grandma Shoemaker’s Birthday Shindig? A crossword puzzle? What’s the meaning of this?” She looked flummoxed, and I couldn’t say I blamed her. “It’s a newsletter, ma’am. People are talking about how she’s got herself a ghostwriter to help make a personal connection with her audience. Some fat cats out of Boise are helping her with everything — right down to the design and production. She doesn’t even have to lift a finger to steal your clients right out from under you.” Dr. Pumpernickel rose in a huff, her doctor’s coat fluttering around. The light from the hallway cast an angular yellow glow across her face as she went to open the door, and she turned to me. “Figure out who these ghostwriters are, Shuck. I want to know what I’m up against.” Just like that, she was gone, out into the cold dark world in nothing more than a thin white coat. I watched her scuttle to her black Toyota and speed off, water spraying off the wheels like it often does when it rains.
2
Made with FlippingBook Ebook Creator