Underwriting is Murder

Margie yelled out, “No, don’t shoot!”  She grabbed Henry’s arm as he was taking aim; instinctively he swung around. There was a loud explosion as the gun went off. Margie’s body plummeted to the floor. Henry dropped to his knees beside her and began crying out, “Oh my god, what have I done?” In shock and disbelief, Mel watched from her vantage point outside the window. She knew she had to quickly distance herself from what she had just seen.  Jumping off the crate where she was standing, Mel raced around to the side of the trailer and back towards her truck. She darted between parked cars and trailers that led her to a dirt-packed passageway. Running faster, she could feel the extra surge of adrenaline pumping through her body.  Soon the pounding in her ears from her overexerted heart became so loud that nothing else could be heard. Nothing, that is, until two Rottweilers came bounding from around the corner of a nearby trailer, barking wildly.  Mel was caught off guard. A man holding their leashes was being dragged behind the large dogs. “Hey, what’s going on?” he yelled. “Stop!” When the man could no longer hold his dogs back, they broke free from his grip. After a brief chase they caught up and quickly lunged at Mel.  One bit into her hoodie, barely missing her head. The other was able to grab hold of her glove, and bit down ferociously on it.  As soon as the canine’s teeth reached the hand inside the glove, the dog clenched down even harder making it impossible for Mel to get loose. No matter how hard she hit him he would not ease up.  Mel reached into her jacket with her free hand and quickly pulled out her Mace pepper spray. Directing it towards the animal’s eyes she began spraying.  Then she turned to the second dog and squirted him as well. He began yelping and running around in circles.  It seemed like an eternity before the first dog’s jaws loosened up enough for Mel to get her hand out. Finally free, Mel ran faster than ever towards her truck. The owner of the Rottweilers caught up with his pets. He was incensed that someone would be able to stop his animals, and began the chase again without their assistance.  Grossly overweight and breathing heavily, he finally had to stop. The man slumped down with his hands pressed against his knees in an effort to catch his breath. He knew he would never be able to keep up.  Looking after the fleeing suspect in disgust, he turned to go back and take care of his pets.  All of the noise did little to disturb the slumber of the trailer occupants. It was a place where fights between husbands and wives, boyfriends and girlfriends, and sleepover guests were commonplace. Even an occasional shootout was nothing to lose sleep over.  Only from the window of one trailer did its occupant raise a single slat in the hanging blind to watch the goings-on. Melinda Anne Matherne, better known as Mel, was an underwriter for a Baton Rouge insurance company. Longing to one day own her own detective agency, she had begun taking on cases in the evenings and on weekends as a private investigator. Recently she was hired by Dr. Seth Hinckley to see if his wife, Dr. Marguerite “Margie” Hinckley, was having an affair.  Unknown to Mel, the horror just witnessed was only a preview of what was to come, as she is thrown into the middle of what may be the strangest and most bizarre murder investigation she will likely ever encounter.