“Uh—Daddy. He was fixing a cup of coffee for Aunt Tally.”
“Then why isn't Aunt Tally dead?” Susan held up her hands in frustration.
“You know, people have been asking that question for years,” Harry devilishly replied.
“But that wasn't the bowl!” Murphy yowled.
“Save your energy,” Tucker advised.
“I can't believe I was so stupid.” Murphy was distraught.
“Don't be so hard on yourself, pussycat. Roger O'Bannon was sprawled on the floor with Little Mim yanking on his arm. That would get any cat's attention,” Tucker soothingly said.
“Right under my nose.” Murphy bent her head, putting her forehead on Tucker's chest.
“Hey, it's right under their noses, too. They haven't figured it out and they think their intelligence is superior to every other creature on the face of the earth.” Tucker levelly offered that criticism.
“Ha,” Pewter called out.
“Do you remember party guests walking into the kitchen?” Coop asked.
Brooks thought a moment. “Mrs. Sanburne, Little Mim, Aunt Tally, Sean—”
“Sean?”
“He came in to ask when the coffee would be ready. There might have been a lot of other people because I was carrying dishes out. Action central.”
“I believe that,” Miranda said.
“Anyone going into the kitchen passes through the large pantry for china and silver. The food pantry is on the other side of the kitchen.” Coop was thinking out loud. “Brooks, do you remember if all the silver bowls were used?”
“No, ma'am.”
Coop smiled. “Well, there's no reason for you to have noticed. How were any of us to know what would happen? Sometimes I think solving a crime is like putting together a mosaic, it's thousands and thousands of tiny bits of information until finally a picture emerges.”
“What an interesting thought.” Miranda passed the cookie dish over the counter.
Brooks happily ate one. Susan resisted, willpower to the max.
“You've questioned the chef, of course?” Tracy asked.
“Yes. I was impressed with his memory for detail, especially about food.” She smiled.
“Mind if I call Aunt Tally?” Harry asked.
“No,” Coop said.
Harry dialed.
Tally picked up, greeting the caller. “Queen Bee and it better be good.”
“Hi, Aunt Tally, it's Harry.”
“Do I have a package?”
“No, I'm here in the post office with Deputy Cooper, Miranda, and Tracy, Susan, and Brooks.”
“A little party.”
“It would be much livelier if you were here.”
“You're right about that.” She laughed. “Now, what's on your mind, Mary Minor Haristeen?”
“When you hosted the tea dance, you used your own silver, china, and crystal, right?”
“Of course.”
“How many silver sugar bowls do you have?”
“Two. One for white cube sugar and one for raw sugar. I use cubes because what people don't use that day I'll give to the horses.”
“And both were in use at the tea dance?”
“My, yes, I think I had just about everything out there on that table.”
“Ask her about her china!” Murphy hopped up on the table in the back and kept hopping, up and down.
“Calm down,” Harry admonished the cat.
“I am perfectly calm,” Tally answered.
“I'm sorry, Aunt Tally, I didn't mean you. Mrs. Murphy is pitching a fit and falling in it. Would you mind terribly going into your pantry and counting your sugar bowls, including china bowls if you have any?”
“No, but it will take me a minute.”
“That's fine.”
As Harry waited the others chatted. Mrs. Murphy anxiously ran over to Harry. She sat so she could hear Aunt Tally's response. As her hearing was acute she could hear if she was close to the receiver. She didn't have to have her ear smack on it.
“I'm back,” came the authoritative voice. “I have two silver sugar bowls. Same as when I started. It's a good thing, too, because they cost far too much to replace. I also have only one china sugar bowl, my breakfast set of china. Does that help?”
“Aunt Tally, you've been a major help. I'll see you tomorrow night at the ball.”
“Won't be the same without Roger. He'd get so loaded he'd start up equipment, make a mess, pass out on the railroad tracks. Everyone else will behave reasonably, I'm afraid.”
“You never know.”
Aunt Tally laughed. “Harry, in Crozet that's the truth, absolutely! Bye-bye.”
Harry hung up. “Her two silver sugar bowls are there. Her china bowl is there yet the china sugar bowl broke. How could we have missed that? It means the broken china bowl wasn't Aunt Tally's.” She smashed the palm of her hand to her forehead.
“We all did,” Murphy commiserated.
“That doesn't solve our problem but it gets us closer to understanding just how Roger was poisoned.” Miranda sighed.
“Roger was poisoned!” Brooks's voice squeaked.
“Yes, dear, now keep it to yourself.” Susan's tone ensured obedience.
“Are you going out to Lexington? Sounds like Bill Boojum needs a face-to-face interrogation.” Tracy thought any transaction stood a better chance of success if conducted in person.
“Next week. We know the three murders are tied together. We know Boojum knows something he's not willing to share but we still don't know why. If we just knew why.”
“Always comes down to that.” Tracy nodded his head.
“Drugs. The setup was perfect but Rick's not buying that. At least, not yet.” Coop drummed the countertop. “We need one little slipup, one tiny mistake. Just one.”
She was about to get it.
49
A light southerly breeze carried the fragrance of honeysuckle over meadows and mountains. The bumblebees showed up in full force, as did the carpenter bees. Tiny praying mantis babies crawled over trumpet vines, greening up nicely but no deep-orange blooms as yet.
A curving hill at the back of Harry's land provided the perfect spot for a picnic. Still not trusting the footing, she didn't drive the truck back there but loaded up the hamper and cooler with drinks on the John Deere tractor. She made it in one trip, spread out the checkered tablecloth blanket, and put a spray of thyme tied with ribbon in the middle of the blanket. A votive candle in a clear glass holder was next to the spray.
When Diego arrived he sat in the tractor seat while she stood in front of him, driving.
Tucker ambled along since she didn't pop out of second gear. Mrs. Murphy and Pewter stayed back, laying a trap for the blue jay. They carried sweet feed in their mouths to the lawn near the lilacs. They opened their mouths, dropping it. Three trips and they'd created an enticing pile. They repaired under the lilacs to wait.
Up on the hill, Harry and Diego chattered away, never experiencing that awkward lull that sometimes occurs when people are getting to know one another.
“. . . swollen from handshaking.” He recalled how Lottie introduced him to anyone and everyone at the alumni dinner.
“She was in her glory.”
“She was and she's good at it. She'll pry money out of those old men and maybe even some of the middle-aged ones. Oh, why does it take so long to make money?” He laughed. “We need it most when we're young.”
“You think?”
“Oh, yes, while we're still open for adventure, before we become too accustomed to creature comforts, before the children arrive.” He surveyed the pastoral scene. “Perfect.”
“That it is.” She leaned against the maple tree. “What adventures would you like to have before settling down?”
His eyes sparkled. “Rafting the rivers on the western side of the South Island of New Zealand. Riding through Patagonia at springtime. Hiking Wyoming's Grand Tetons and the Bighorn Mountains. Sailing throughout the Greek isles, although one could do that with children, I think. Ah, I'd love to play tennis in Cape Town, croquet in England, polo in Argentina. I want to see the aurora borealis and I want to have more picnics in Crozet, Virginia. What about you?”