Death Knell In The Alps (A Samantha Jamison Mystery) by Peggy A. Edelheit Page A

been learning to ski like you suggested. And that Olaf…”
    By this time he had managed to stand up, but shook his head like he was trying to clear his mind. He held up his hand to stop me. “…Whoa! Back up,” he said.
    I stared at him blankly. “…To where? Which part?”
    “The part about you meeting Olaf. Who is he?”

 
     
     
    Chapter 28
    Whoa!
     
     
    “Whoa, yourself!” I replied.
    That was a golden nugget I wasn’t expecting.
    “What did you mean, who is Olaf?” I said.
    Clay crooked an eye at me, the good one. “I believe I spoke English. But I’ll give it another shot. Who is Olaf?”
    I had a sinking feeling in my stomach. If Clay sent me to Peter, and then Peter introduced me to Olaf as his partner, and Clay and Peter were working together…
    Seeing my concern, Clay grabbed my shoulder. “What?”
    “…Are you sure you don’t know who Olaf is?”
    Clay sighed a familiar sigh: one of impatience.
    So I dove in. “Peter said Olaf was his business partner.”
    “Business partner?”
    “You know, like in skiing lessons?”
    “Funny, Peter never mentioned Olaf before.”
    “Maybe he forgot to mention it?” I ventured.
    “…Could be.”
    “But you’re not feeling it, are you?” I asked.
    “No, I’m not. Still it might be an oversight on his part.”
    Or was it something to be concerned about?
    Clay touched his head and winced. “Let me check this.”
    I quickly said, “What’s to see? Nothing but a scratch.”
    He looked skeptical. “As usual, you’re mouth is saying one thing, but your eyes are saying something different.”
    I smiled innocently. “…Well, maybe a small bandaid .”
    Clay aimed straight for the bathroom mirror. “Oh, no!”
    I came up behind him and peered my head around his shoulder. “…Well, maybe a shiner too.”
    By this time he was cleaning the blood off his face.
    “…Let me do that for you,” I suggested sympathetically.
    He jerked away. “No! I value my other eye.”
    I threw in my perfected teary-eyed look. “…Please?”
    His shoulders slumped and he sat on the toilet seat.
    “Clay, I’m so sorry about all this,” I said, then started to gently kiss him all around his eye, then the tip of his nose. He started to grin. Then I ever-so-softly kissed all around his lips and came in for a killer kiss of my own. He actually swooned and my lips curved upward, still attached to his.
    Next thing I knew his hands were on my hips and he drew me onto his lap, whispering softly, “Great anesthetic.”
    “I thought so,” I whispered back.
    “When is everyone coming back from skiing?”
    I chuckled. “Why, Clay! What are you suggesting?”
    “I think I’m going to need more than bandaids .”
    “Does it hurt that bad?”
    “More than you will ever know. How about it?”
    I grinned. “They should be back soon.”
    He whisked me up and carried me to the bedroom.
    “Which one is yours?” he asked. “We’re on the clock.”
    I pointed. And that’s when his words hit me.
    …How’d he know they were out skiing?

 
     
     
    Chapter 29
    Aha! I Knew It!
     
     
    “Stop right there and put me down, now!” I demanded.
    Then I pushed Clay away from me and scowled.
    Clay threw his hands up in the air. “Now what?”
    “What did you mean, ‘when is everyone coming back?’”
    He lowered his hands. “…Oh, so you caught that slip.”
    “I sure did. And I’m waiting to hear how you knew.”
    He hesitated. “I haven’t been all that far from you.”
    I stomped my foot. “Aha! I knew it! Where were you?”
    “I was using one of the hotel’s apartments in the back.”
    “For what purpose may I ask?”
    “Surveillance.”
    “Herr Kraus, right?”
    “How did you know that?”
    “Peter.”
    “Funny, like Olaf, he never mentioned that either.”
    “Does it really matter now that he told me?”
    “I guess not. Not after getting caught here by you.”
    “By the way, how’d you get in here?” I asked.
    “I had a key, a bad headache