Ashes to Dust (Las Vegas Mystery)

“There was no doubt about that happening.”
    “I want to thank you for returning my message on Facebook.”
    “It’s no problem,” Holly said. “I’m glad to help out. Plus I was a little curious; you said this concerned Crystal Olson, right?”
    “Yes, that’s right.”
    “Is she in some sort of trouble?”
    “No,” Alice said. “We tend to cast a pretty wide net during our investigations so we don’t miss anything.”
    “What sort of investigation is it?”
    “It’s a murder,” Alice said.
    “Oh!” Holly said. “That sounds interesting.” She hesitated. “Well…unless…Crystal—did she know the victim very well?”
    “Well,” Alice said, “yes, she did. They were friends. And you said in your e-mail you and Crystal were friends in high school?”
    “Yes,” Holly said. “We were best buddies because of softball, and also we seemed to migrate toward each other.”
    “How so?”
    “Crystal was very quiet and standoffish. And so was I. We weren’t joiners. Other than softball, we never participated in any other activities in high school.”
    “Why was that?” Alice asked.
    Holly sighed. “I think Crystal was just wired that way. But for me it was hard. My parents worked for a funeral home while my sister and I were growing up. They were both morticians—in fact, that was how they met. Eventually the owner retired, and my parents took the funeral home over from him, and my sister and I both went to work there too. After high school, we both got associate degrees in mortuary science. We’re both licensed.”
    “So you’re…”
    “Yes,” she said. “We’re both morticians. My sister’s a year older than me, so she started school first, and she liked it, so I went. We’re a lot alike. And after my parents retire, we’ll probably take over the business ourselves.
    “You know, people think it’s really gross working with dead people, but that’s only because they’re never around them at all. The only time they ever see one is at a funeral or a wake. But my sister and I grew up around the deceased. Every day. It’s no big deal when you’ve seen them on a regular basis from day one. And the great thing about it is, while you’re working with them, since they’re dead, they don’t give you any trouble. And the family members are always subdued, so it’s a very peaceful work environment. There’s no stress involved. You may have noticed funeral directors are usually very calm and collected?”
    “I have noticed that,” Alice said.
    “Well, of course they have to be that way to lend comfort to the family. But it’s also because the family members are so depressed they hardly ever get on your case about anything.”
    “That’s interesting,” Alice said.
    “But getting back to the original point I wanted to make,” Holly said. “When people know you work in a funeral home—or even if it’s only that your parents do—they don’t want to be around you. They don’t even want to touch you. So my sister and I couldn’t get dates with anybody decent. The guy who took me to the senior prom had a face full of zits I couldn’t bear to look at. And even he wouldn’t kiss me goodnight when he got me home, which was right after the dance ended.
    “And my sister and I still live at home with my parents. She’s twenty-seven and I’m twenty-six. We’ll probably end up old maids.”
    “That’s too bad,” Alice said.
    “Yes, it is,” Holly said. “But you know, I’m not going to give up a profession I love just so I can meet the standards of some guy. And I’m a firm believer in fate. Someday I’ll meet my soul mate. And he won’t care what I do for a living. He’s out there somewhere, I can feel it.”
    “That’s encouraging,” Alice said. “Now, about Crystal. You said she had trouble getting along with people—”
    “No,” Holly said. “I didn’t say that. I said she was standoffish. She was shy around people. I think she had a hard time relating to them. She had her own thing going on, and I also think she was easily frustrated by the things people say and do.”
    “I see. And how did she express that frustration?”
    “She mostly just kept her mouth shut and kept it inside.”
    “Were there times when she didn’t?”
    Holly hesitated. “There were a few times when it came boiling out. One time, in school, she was passing another girl in the hallway. The girl insulted her. I don’t even know what she said. Crystal spun around and