Takedown Twenty (Stephanie Plum 20)

Eleanor Krautz pushed her way through the crowd and stage-whispered to Grandma, “Who’s the hottie with your granddaughter?”

“That’s Ranger,” Grandma stage-whispered back at Eleanor. “I don’t think Stephanie knows what to do with him.”

“I’d know what to do with him,” Eleanor said.

“Jeez Louise,” I said. “We can hear this conversation.”

Ranger looked down at me. “I could make suggestions if you’re really in the dark.”

I did a mental eye roll. “Your ten-minute countdown clock is ticking away,” I said to Ranger.

We said goodbye to Grandma and Eleanor and slipped out the side door that led to the parking lot. Three minutes later we were in the Porsche and headed for my apartment.

“Talk to me,” Ranger said.

“I don’t know if it means anything, but all of the murdered women played Bingo. Two regularly played at the Senior Center, and Bitsy Muddle played at the firehouse.”

“Anything else?”

“I spoke to a lot of women while I was making my way through the lobby to the deceased, but I only spoke to one woman who knew all three. She knew them because she played Bingo five days a week. Tuesdays and Wednesdays at the Senior Center, and Thursdays and Fridays at the firehouse.”

“What about Monday?” Ranger asked.

“Online Bingo.”

“Did the three murder victims play online?”

“I don’t know.”

Ranger stopped for a light. “What about their social life? Mutual friends besides the Bingo addict?”

“The last time Melvina went to Bingo she told everyone she had a boyfriend, but no one knew his name or anything about him. It sounded like dating was unusual for her.”

“Ruppert didn’t mention a boyfriend,” Ranger said.

“Did you go through Melvina’s apartment?”

“Yes, but I didn’t come up with anything. It’s estimated that the time of death was around midnight. She was found early the next morning. The police sealed her apartment at ten A.M.”

The thought that some creep was out there murdering women and discarding them like garbage wasn’t sitting great in my stomach.

“I’m feeling queasy,” I said to Ranger. “Could you take it easy on the corners?”

“Are you sick?”

“It’s been a long day, and I’m not good with the whole killing women and throwing them into Dumpsters thing.”

“If it makes you feel any better, the women were all nicely wrapped in a sheet, and the killer left a note on the Dumpster each time so the women would be found.”

“What did the note say?”

Ranger pulled into the parking lot to my apartment building. “ ‘Body inside.’ ”

This was so completely lacking in remorse, and so impersonal, that it annoyed me more than if nothing had been left.

Ranger parked and turned to me. “How would you like to go to Bingo at the Senior Center tomorrow night?”

“Is this another date?”