Room for Murder (Book 4 in the Lighthouse Inn Mysteries) by Tim Myers Page A

calls.”
    Alex said, “I’m worried about Tracy. How is
the campaign going?”
    Shantara said, “Oxford Hitchcock was bad
enough, but running against Conner is turning out to be a real
nightmare. Have you seen his latest stunt?”
    When Alex said he hadn’t,
Shantara reached behind the counter and pulled out a poster. All it
said was shook in
bold white letters with a green background.
    “ So? That’s one of Tracy’s,
isn’t it?”
    Shantara said, “Don’t I wish. No, we used
red on our first run. He went to the same printer over in Hickory,
used everything we did, but he changed the color. Folks around here
are going to be voting for the Red Shook or the Green one.”
    “ I don’t see how it can
help him, since it doesn’t say which Shook to vote for.”
    “ Alex, he’s been telling
everybody that Green means Go for Connor, and Red means stop Tracy
from ruining Elkton Falls.”
    A sudden thought struck Alex. “Okay, here’s
a way to turn it around on him. Green also means untried and
inexperienced. Use that against Conner.”
    Shantara smiled. “I knew there was a reason
I kept you around. We’ll do just that Maybe we’ll switch to a gold
background for Tracy and throw his whole attack plan off.”
    Alex asked, “Whatever happened to the
issues, or to a candidate’s qualifications? Doesn’t anybody even
have a platform anymore?”
    “ Alex, they still do, but
that’s not what gets the voters excited. We’re trying to come up
with some flair to get their attention. Once they know we’re out
there, then they’ll listen to what we stand for.”
    “ If you say so,” he
said.
    Shantara said, “Just leave it to me, Alex.
I’ll teach Conner Shook not to come after us.”
    As Alex drove back to the inn, he marveled
at the different hues of Shook posters around town.
    No matter what color the poster was, there
was no doubt in his mind; Tracy was the only Shook he’d be voting
for come Election Day.

Chapter 10

    Alex found Lenora MacLeod waiting for him in
the lobby when he got back to Hatteras West. She had her sketch pad
tucked under one arm and an expectant expression on her face.
    Up until that moment, he’d forgotten
completely about their earlier discussion. “Hi, Lenora. Is there
something I can help you with?”
    “ Alex, I hope your answer
is yes. I would love for you to pose for me. It shan’t take long, I
promise.”
    Alex said, “I’m kind of busy right now. Why
don’t you get Corki and Jan to pose for you? I bet they’d love to
do it.”
    Lenora said, “It’s you I’m interested in,
Alex.”
    “ Sorry, I didn’t mean to
interrupt,” Elise said as she came up behind him.
    “ You’re not interrupting
anything,” Alex said hastily. “If you’ll excuse me,” he added to
Lenora as he followed Elise to the laundry area.
    She said, “Alex, you don’t have to curtail
your conversations around here on my account.”
    Alex said with a smile, “She just wants me
for my body.”
    Elise shook her head. “That’s not
funny.”
    “ Hey, I was just teasing.”
Elise had already run one batch of sheets through the wash and had
popped them in the dryer earlier. It was a constant job, washing
and folding sheets and towels for their guests. As they worked, he
added, “Aren’t you going to ask about Emma?”
    “ I already heard all about
it. The mayor was out here again while you were gone. He said he
was in town talking to Sandra about raising more money for the
covered bridge when you called her.”
    “ What was he doing out here
anyway, looking for more donations?”
    Elise said, “Ever since he’s announced his
retirement, Grady’s been hovering everywhere. Irma Bean told me
he’s been hanging out at the restaurant just about every night. Do
you want to know the truth? I think the poor man’s just
lonely.”
    Alex said, “Don’t worry about him. He’ll be
fine.” As Alex took a sheet from the dryer, he said, “Last I heard,
Grady’s going to do his retirement up in