Murder And Salutations Part 22

Once she had the tight circle, I took mine and said, "Now you can loosen the coil for whatever shape you'd like." I pinched one edge, let the other loosen a little, then pinched the other. "Make several of these and you've got a flower," I said. Lillian's result was not as crisp as mine was, but she was clearly delighted with the technique. "I've seen those hearts you make," she said. "Show me how to do them."

"They're really easy," I said, getting into the spirit of the lesson. I explained as I worked. "First you crease the paper along the short axis in the center of the strip. Then coil one side tightly all the way to the crease, and let it go. The paper will retain the shape. Do the other side, and you've got a perfect heart. All it needs is a little glue to secure it, and you're ready to add it to a card."

"It can't be as easy as you make it look," Lillian said.

"All you need are the right supplies and a little practice," I said. We made enough flowers and hearts to satisfy St. Valentine himself, having a great deal of fun as we worked.

By the time I looked out the window, I saw that the rain had stopped and the sun was actually trying to come out. to come out.

"That was fun," I told Lillian. "It's good having you here."

"It's good to be here," she said.

We were still basking in the warmth of our cardmaking session when the front door opened. I was surprised to see Kaye Jansen walk in.

"Good morning," she said before I could say a word. "Do you have any thank-you cards?"

"Of course," I said as I led her to them. "I'm surprised you don't have anything at the drugstore."

"I want something nicer than what we carry. George doesn't like to carry too much inventory he's afraid he won't be able to move."

"How do you like working for your father-in-law?" I asked.

"I'm not an employee, Jennifer," she snapped. "I own a piece of it, too. Now about those cards."

"We have a good selection over here," I said as I showed her some boxes. "If it's something special, I'd be delighted to help you make a personalized card yourself."

She rolled her eyes. "Thanks, but I don't think so. Your cards are cute and all, but not all of us have the time to fritter away making them." She grabbed a box of manufactured cards I carried and said, "These will do nicely. I'm giving them as thank you notes to everyone who donated something for the flowers. I'm sure you won't mind donating these to such a good cause," she said as she started to put them in her purse. you won't mind donating these to such a good cause," she said as she started to put them in her purse.

"I'll give them to you at cost," I said, "but I still have to pay for them myself. By the way, is that new?"

I pointed to a gold chain around her neck, adorned with a modest diamond pendant. She said, "This? No, it's been in the family for years. I just don't wear it that often."

"Oh, my mistake. It looks expensive. So, will you be paying with cash or a credit card?"

Kaye looked at me for a second like she didn't believe me, and I knew she was waiting for me to back down. She could wait until I howled at the moon, but wasn't getting them for free.

Finally, reluctantly, she asked, "How much do you have to have?"

"Just give me half of the sticker price and we'll call it even."

"I think I'm in the wrong business," she said as she pushed a five on me.

At the door, she stopped and turned back. "Did you find Luke in time?"

"He changed his mind about leaving town," I said though I didn't mention that I'd twisted his arm to secure his stay.

"How odd," Kaye said. "I thought we'd seen the last of him. Oh, if you're still looking for Polly, she came back this morning."

"That's earlier than you expected, isn't it?"

"She said something about it raining the entire time I just thought you'd like to know."

Before she could leave, I had a sudden thought. "I heard you were talking to Bailey the night of the banquet."

"I don't know who told you that, but they're lying."

"Are you sure? He mentioned something to me before he died about seeing you. I must have been mistaken. Sorry."

"You should get your facts straight before you say anything," Kaye said, and then bolted out of the shop; After she was gone, Lillian asked, "When did you find that out? I had no idea Bailey had talked to her.

"Maybe because it's not true," I admitted. "But Bailey saw someone that night, I'm sure of it. I wanted to test Kaye's reaction.

"She wasn't too pleased with it," Lillian said. "How much do you want to bet you won't be getting one of those cards?"

I waved the five in the air. "Her contribution was more than I'd hoped for."

Lillian laughed. "I thought she was going to have a stroke when you asked her to actually pay for them."

"Hey, I gave them to her at cost. Don't I get credit for that?"

"Of course you do. I don't blame you a bit. I hate when people try to strong-arm me into doing something."

I looked at her to see if she was kidding. My aunt was the queen of that particular technique, and pity the poor soul who caved into it even once, because from there on out, she'd own them.

I grabbed my jacket and asked, "Do you mind watching the shop? I'd like to talk to Polly."

"Do you still think she might have done it?"

"There's always a chance. Besides, it would be refres.h.i.+ng to be able to eliminate one of my suspects."

"Go, but don't stay too long. I thought we might go to The Lunch Box at noon."

"Lillian, you know how I hate to close the store."

She lowered her chin. "And yet you have no compunction about leaving me here alone to fend for myself."

"Fine, we can have lunch out. But I'm picking up the check."

"Not with that measly five, you won't."

I put the money in the register before I left. "I wouldn't dream of it."

"You should frame that instead of putting it into circulation," Lillian said. "You know how tight Kaye is with her money."

"Just for charity," I said. "She had a lot of nerve, asking for donations when she was wearing that fancy necklace. Anyway, I'll be back by lunch."

"You'd better, or I'm going without you."

"You wouldn't do that," I said with a smile.

"And why not?"

"Because I'm buying, and you wouldn't miss that for the world."

"Of that I'm guilty."

I found Polly going through a book of real estate listings. The frown that was plastered to her face didn't break when she saw me standing at her desk.

"What do you want, Jennifer?"

"Gosh, I came by to look at houses, but now I'm not so sure I want to."

She studied me for a second, then forced a smile to her face. "Come on, don't hold that against me. I didn't mean to be curt with you. Of course I'd be delighted to show you some of my listings."

"You're back in town early, aren't you? I heard your trip was cut short because of rain."

"You've just got to love small towns," she said as she flipped through her book. "Now here's a property that would be just perfect for you."

Out of idle curiosity, I looked at the listing. "This has four bedrooms," I said. "That would leave an extra room even if I gave each cat their own s.p.a.ce."

She glanced at the page, then said, "I'm sorry, that's the wrong one." The next one she flipped to had one bedroom, and barely had enough square footage to turn around in.

"What was this before," I asked, "a telephone booth?"

"No, the owner bought one of those garage kits and made it into a getaway. It's charming, isn't it?"

"All I can say from this is that it's tiny. Anyway I've got a new place to live. I guess there's no rush."

"Where are you staying? That was a tragedy at Whispering Oak, wasn't it?"

I looked at her steadily. "How did you hear about that? I thought you were out of town."

Polly lowered her voice. "Please. I had breakfast at The Lunch Box. Do you honestly think anyone in town was talking about anything else? I'm so sorry for your loss. How's Sara Lynn taking it?"

"She's holding up," I said, uncomfortable with the way our conversation had s.h.i.+fted. At least Kaye had kept her empty condolences to herself. "Did you know Bailey very well?"

"Enough to speak to him in the grocery store or at a ball game, but nothing beyond that. Why do you ask?"

"I heard you knew him better than that," I said, stretching the truth beyond all recognition. "You spoke with him the night of the banquet, didn't you?"

"I saw a great many people that night," Polly said as she slammed the book shut. "Do you know what? I'm late for a showing. I nearly forgot all about it. Good-bye, Jennifer."

"We'll talk again later," I said.

"There's nothing left to discuss." Before she bolted away, she handed me a card. "If you change your mind about that garage, let me know."

"Oh, I will," I said. After she was gone, I threw her card away in her own trash can so she'd know exactly how I felt.

I wanted to tweak Reggie, Addie and Luke with the same statement, but my growling stomach insisted I take care of it first, so I headed back to the card shop to get Lillian.

When I walked in the door, one of my suspects was already there, and from the look on Reggie's face, he wasn't any happier to see me than I was to lay eyes on him.

"There you are," he snapped at me.

"Hi, Reggie. Did you come to buy a card?" My sweetness was purely artificial, and we both knew it.

"I came here to tell you to leave my mother alone."

"Is that an order? Because in case you didn't realize it, you don't get to tell me what to do." I saw Lillian smile at that, but I had to stay focused on Reggie.

"I'm warning you," he said gravely.

I never got to find out what he was warning me about, because Gail walked in the shop just then. She looked confused to see Reggie there, but it only took her a heartbeat to catch up. "There you are," she said. "I thought you were meeting me at the square."

"I am," Reggie snapped. "There was something I had to take care of first."

Gail looked at him, then s.h.i.+fted her gaze to me. "Has he been bothering you again?"

"We were just talking," I said. The last thing I wanted to do was come between Gail and her boyfriend.

"Jennifer Shane, I asked you a question. Don't make me repeat myself. What did he say?"

I kept silent, so Lillian piped up happily, "He just threatened her, actually. He demanded that Jennifer stay away from his mother, and when she refused, he was getting ready to push her, but you walked in first."

Gail looked at me for confirmation, and I nodded unhappily.

Then she turned to Reggie. "That's it, we're through."

"What are you talking about?"

"You can't threaten my best friend and expect me to forget about it. I won't date a man who doesn't respect women."

He wanted to say something, I could see it in his eyes, but finally he threw up his hands and said, "Forget it. You're not worth this kind of trouble, anyway."

After he was gone, I saw Gail sag a little. I put my arm around her and said, "He wasn't worth it."

"I know," she said, "but I had hopes."

"We all do, dear," Lillian said. "Now why don't I treat you ladies to lunch?"

"It's my turn to pay," I protested.

Gail said, "I should be the one picking up the check. I knew he was wrong for me, but I needed you two with me to break up with him. That should earn you each a free lunch, at the very least."

"Why don't we all go dutch?" I asked. "That way everyone gets to buy."

They both laughed, and the solemn mood was broken. It wasn't until we got to The Lunch Box that I realized I hadn't had a chance to confront Reggie about being with Bailey at the banquet. It would have to wait until another time, but not until he cooled down first. I didn't have that much time.