At the Drop of a Hat

At the Drop of a Hat by Jenn McKinlay

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Authors: Jenn McKinlay
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all.”
    Franks blew a breath out of his nostrils. “We’re going to want to have a look at his flat.”
    â€œOf course,” she said. She gestured to the stairs on the far side of the room. “The door should be unlocked.”
    It made sense that it would be unlocked because he hadn’t come back down through it, and while none of us said as much, I knew we were all thinking it.
    The inspector called in a few people from the yard and they all disappeared up the stairs while Ariana and I were left to wait in the main room. A stiff breeze was blowing in through the open front door and I shivered, longing for the little bit of sunshine I’d gotten earlier.
    â€œDo you want me to call someone for you?” I asked. “You could use my phone.”
    â€œOh, thank you,” Ariana said. “I’d like to call my fiancé, but I don’t think I should use the office phone. Mr. Russo didn’t allow personal calls on the business line.”
    â€œAnd you’d feel odd doing it now that he’s dead,” I said.
    She nodded. I handed her my phone and she tapped in her fiancé’s number. She didn’t appear to be getting an answer, and when she spoke rapidly into the phone, it was clear she was leaving a message.
    I glanced away to give her an illusion of privacy because, really, in such a small room I could hear everything she was saying. She sounded weepy but she didn’t cry. When she was done, I turned back to her and she handed me the phone.
    â€œThank you,” she said.
    â€œDo you think he’ll come right here?” I asked.
    â€œI don’t know,” she said. “If he gets the message, I suppose he will.”
    I nodded. I wasn’t sure how long I was supposed to stay. It felt awkward to leave her like this, but then again, it felt pretty darn awkward staying. I supposed I should ask Inspector Franks if he needed me any longer, but I couldn’t help but feel as if I was abandoning Ariana if I left.
    â€œMiss Jackson,” Inspector Franks said as he came down the stairs from the flat above. “I’ll need you to come down to the station to file an official report.”
    â€œWhat?” Ariana looked shocked. “Leave? But who will mind the office?”
    â€œThe crime scene investigators—” he began but Ariana interrupted.
    â€œCrime scene?” she asked. I wouldn’t have thought she could get any paler but she did. “Do you think someone did this to him?”
    She glanced around the room as if looking for a bad man to be lurking in a corner, and I found myself doing the same.
    â€œWe can’t determine that as yet,” Inspector Franks said. The look in his eyes was gentle as if he understood how terrifying this all was for her. “It is highly unusual for a person to fall off the top of a three-story building, however, so our assignment will be to determine how he came to be on the roof and what caused him to pitch off of it. Perhaps he is a drinker?”
    Ariana shook her head. “Not during work hours, at least, not so that I ever noticed.”
    Inspector Franks nodded. “If it’s not an accident, then we have to consider the likelihood of him being pushed, or whether he jumped.”
    â€œMurder,” Ariana said. “Or suicide? I can’t believe that. I just can’t.”
    â€œWell, as you say, he wasn’t a drinker,” Inspector Franks said. “We’ll need to determine how it happened that he fell to his death. I think it’ll be easier for you to make a formal statement at the station.”
    Ariana glanced around the room, looking lost and uncertain.
    â€œI’ll go with you, if that helps,” I said.
    The words were out of my mouth before my common sense had a chance to filter them. Darn it. The last thing I wanted to do was spend my day at the police station, but the poor girl looked so undone by everything that was happening

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