“That’s a good idea. Let’s see if she’s in her office.”
When they got to Sally’s office just off the kitchen, she was on the phone. Hannah and Andrea sat down in the chairs facing her desk and waited for her to end her conversation.
“They just walked in. Hold on a second and I’ll ask her.” Sally turned to Hannah. “Did you find your parka yet?”
“No.”
“No, she didn’t,” Sally said into the phone. She listened for a moment and then she smiled. “I’m sure she’d appreciate it. Come right out.”
Hannah waited until Sally had hung up the phone before she spoke. “That was Lisa, she found my parka, and she’s bringing it out to me?”
“No, no, and yes. It was your mother, she didn’t find your parka, but she bought you a new one and she’s bringing it out to you because she’s afraid you’ll catch a cold.”
“You don’t catch a cold from the cold,” Andrea said. “I heard that on television last night. You have to be exposed to some kind of virus.”
Sally nodded. “I heard that, too. It was on the medical segment of the KCOW Evening News.” She turned to Hannah. “Andrea told me you girls were investing the hospital murder last night. I’m guessing you’re here to talk to the band. Am I right?”
“You’re right.”
“Who do you want to talk to first?”
“You,” Hannah said, pulling out her steno notebook and turning to a fresh page. “Tell me your impression of the band.”
“Together as a group, or individually?”
“Individually.”
“Shall I include the newest band member?”
“There’s a new band member?”
“Yes. They held an audition, and they found a new keyboard player. He’ll be playing with them at the show tonight. I saw Eric in the hall right after the audition and he said the new guy was even better than Buddy.”
“Is it someone local?” Andrea asked.
“It certainly is!”
Sally gave a smile that reminded Hannah of one of the phrases Delores used in her Regency Romance books. She looked like
“Devin Murphy. Bridget called me a little while ago and made a reservation for ten. The whole Murphy clan is coming out here tonight to hear him.”
“That’s just wonderful!” Hannah turned to Andrea. “You’d better call Michelle to let her know. She’s going to be very excited. And will you ask her to call Lisa and tell her that the band is going to play tonight? Her dad and Marge want to come out here for dinner and stay to hear them.”
“Sure.” Andrea pulled out her cell phone and got up from her chair. “I’ll call from the lobby. The reception’s better out there.”
“The band certainly moved fast,” Hannah commented.
“I’ll say! But that’s not surprising. Lee told me they’ve been looking for a replacement keyboard player.”
“Buddy Neiman was leaving the band?”
“That’s right. He gave notice the day after Dick and I heard them in Minneapolis. They were so good, we booked them to headline our jazz festival.”
“Did Buddy give any reason for leaving?”
“Not specifically. He told Lee he wanted to get out of the Minneapolis area for personal reasons, and he refused to discuss them. He wanted to leave right away, but Lee talked him into giving them two months to find another keyboard player.”
“How long ago did you hear them play in Minneapolis?”
“Give me a minute and I can tell you exactly.” Sally flipped pages on her date book and then she looked up. “Here it is. We went to Club Nineteen on the second Saturday in February.”
Hannah calculated quickly. “So Buddy was leaving the band right after they played here?”
“That’s when the notice Buddy gave Lee was up. So, yes. Unless Buddy reconsidered and he hadn’t told Lee yet, he was leaving the band right after they finished our gig.”
Hannah scribbled a few notes, and then she flipped to a fresh page in her notebook. It was time to move on to another subject. “I know they’ve been here for less than a day, but will you give me your impressions of the band members so far?”
“Of course,” Sally agreed quickly. “For what it’s worth, I like Tommy the best.”
“Tommy Asch,” Hannah said and waited until Sally nodded. “Why do you like him best?”
“He seems the most genuine, and he doesn’t have an oversize ego like Karl does.”
“Karl’s too full of himself?” Hannah used an expression that was common in Lake Eden.
“I’ll say! That young man thinks he’s Art Blakey and Max Roach all rolled into one, and he doesn’t have one tenth the talent they did.”
Hannah understood. She knew a bit about the legendary jazz drummers. “What do you think of Tommy’s wife?”
“Annie’s as sweet as they come. She told me she helped the bus driver rescue the puppy.” Sally stopped and looked slightly worried. “She also told me that you took him. How’s that working out?”
“It couldn’t be working better. Lisa adopted him.”
“That’s perfect! The last time she was out here with Herb, she told me that Dillon needed a companion dog.”
Hannah glanced down at her sheet again. “How about Conrad Bergen?”
“Connie’s okay, and he’s going to be very popular out here. He’s so handsome, he’ll have plenty of the Lake Eden girls trying to pick him up. I know a couple of my younger waitresses tried last night, but that didn’t work. Lynnette stuck out her claws and ran them off.”
“Let’s talk about Lynnette.”
“That girl is big trouble. Last night she was hanging all over Connie, but this morning she switched her attention to Karl. I was there at rehearsal, and there was some heavy tension going on between Connie and Karl. Lynnette seemed to enjoy setting the two of them against each other. She’s an instigator, pure and simple.”
Sally stopped speaking, and her eyes seemed to focus at a point just above Hannah’s head. She gave a little nod, and then she made a thumbs-up gesture.
Hannah stared at her, thoroughly mystified. “What does
“It means I approve.”
“You approve of the fact that Lynnette is an instigator?”
“No!” Sally gave a little laugh. “Did you forget that the window behind you looks out on the kitchen?”
“I forgot all about that window. Did someone show you something?”
“Yes. It was a Pucker Up Lemon Cake, and it looked just wonderful. They have to check with me before I’ll let them put it on the dessert cart.”
Hannah made a note to try the cake the next time she came out to the Inn for dinner. Then she got back to business. “Let’s talk about Eric. What do you think of him?”
“I didn’t really get any strong impression of him. He’s not sinfully good looking like Connie, but he’s not bad looking, and my waitresses seem to like him. A couple of them told me he was really funny. I know he cracks jokes during their performances, and I don’t think they’re rehearsed. He’s just really quick on his feet.”
“How about Drake?” Hannah asked, since Sally hadn’t mentioned him.
“I’m not sure. Drake seems to be a nice boy, and I know he’s the youngest member of the band. He’s talented, and he seems very serious about his music. He’d be a handsome guy if he lost a little weight, but I don’t think he really cares that he doesn’t get very much female attention. I don’t know if that’s because he discourages it, or because he’s totally focused on the music.”
“Lee’s next. Tell me about him.”
Sally’s eyes narrowed, and she frowned slightly. “I don’t like him,” she said.
