Buried In Buttercream
out. And if I find out it was them, you’re off the hook. Otherwise, we’re gonna investigate every nook and cranny of your sorry life.”
“And how much you wanna bet,” Savannah said, “that we can come up with something that’ll make sure you don’t get out of here until you’re way too old and feeble to do any of those ‘bitches’ of yours any good at all?”
Arlo’s wispy goatee trembled just a bit as he shot them both evil looks. His hands twisted against the manacles as he fidgeted in his chair.
“It mighta been Francie,” he finally said. “Or she mighta got some guy there at the bar to do it for her. She really, really hated Madeline.”
“Okay, who else?” Dirk prompted him.
“Maybe Madeline’s old man, Ethan.”
“Ah, yes, Ethan, your best friend, right?” Savannah said. “Your bosom buddy who caught you in a compromising position with his wife.”
“It was just a regular missionary position. Nothing kinky or compromising about it.”
“Well, I’m sure you explained that to him at the time and it made everything much better.” For just a moment, Savannah had a mental image of this guy and Madeline together, and she got rid of it as quickly as possible. With all her faults, Madeline had seemed semi-classy. Not the sort to go for a hay roll with a guy like this.
But there was no accounting for taste.
“Why do you think Ethan might have killed her?” Dirk asked him.
“Well, the obvious. She left him for me ... you know ... before she found out that I didn’t want her. At least not that way. I wasn’t about to marry her or anything like that.”
“ She left him ?” Dirk said. “Didn’t he throw her out when he caught you two together?”
“No, he didn’t. Go figure.” Arlo put his hands behind his head and rocked on the rear two legs of his chair, an unpleasant, nonchalant expression on his face. “If I’d been him, I’d have beaten the crap outta her and tossed her to the curb, but nooo. He ran off to his mommy’s house and stayed there, pouting like a little boy, for a few days. And when he came crawling back to Madeline, he found his stuff in suitcases on the front porch and the door locks changed.”
“That’s a little hard to believe,” Savannah told him.
“Hey, for me, too,” he replied. “But it’s what happened. She called me and told me that she’d kicked him out so that I could leave Francie and come live with her. I told her no way that was gonna happen.”
“And how’d she take that?” Dirk asked.
“She gave me an ultimatum. Told me I had twenty-four hours to tell Francie about us and leave her, or she’d pay her a visit and fill her in on all the gory details.”
“I’d say that’d be a good motive for murder there, buddy,” Dirk observed.
Arlo nodded solemnly. “I thought about it. I admit it. I did. But instead, I told Francie, as sweet and gentle as I could.”
“And?” Savannah asked.
“And she tied into me like a wildcat. Started kicking and clawing and trying to scratch my eyes out. I smacked her a time or two just to settle her down, and that’s when the neighbors called the cops.” He sighed. “I guess they could tell by looking at her that she’d got the worst of it, so they arrested my ass.”
“So, this isn’t your first domestic violence offense ... the one you’re serving now,” Savannah observed.
Dirk chuckled. “Arlo’s a fast learner.”
“Hey, if you were married to a gal like Francie, you’d have to take a hand to her once in a while, too. She’s always chasin’ after other guys. And no man with any dignity’s gonna take that lying down.”
“Is that what this last fight was about?” Dirk asked. “The one you’re serving time for now? Some other guy?”
“Yeah. I saw her making eyes at him in a bar and I couldn’t let that go. I smacked her around a little bit, she acted like I was some kind of abuser or something, and here I sit.”
“That’s a sad tale, Arlo,” Savannah said sarcastically.
“Ain’t it though?” Arlo gave her a goofy half smile that made her realize he’d missed the sarcastic part of her statement.
It was no fun to insult people when your zinger flew right over their heads.
“Makes me wanna tune up and have myself a big ol’ boo-hoo right here and now,” she added.
He got it that time. “Screw you,” he said, flashing hate from his eyes, his goatee twitching.
“No, thanks,” Savannah replied. “I’ll leave that to your honey bunny
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