Classic Revenge by Mitzi Kelly Page B

the desk in the only other chair in the
cramped room. "You remember my friends, Edna Radcliff and Trish Anderson, don't you?"
    I hope not, Trish thought to herself as she smiled
slightly and leaned against the door frame. She really
didn't want him remembering the burning mattress
episode.

    Edna, always the perfect lady, smiled brightly and
held out her hand. "How are you, Chief?"
    Henry leaned forward to shake her hand, nodding at
both her and Trish before leaning back in his chair.
"Again, what can I do for you? Are you having another
problem with your neighbor, Mrs. Morrow?"
    Millie waved her hand. "Call me Millie. And, no
thanks to you, I took care of that problem myself"
    Trish groaned silently. Great, make the chief mad
and let's see how willing he is to help us.
    Henry cocked his head. "We talked to Mr. Greenburg
several times, and he swore he wasn't looking in your
windows. He said he was only working in his garden"
    "I know what he told you, but he didn't plant that garden until after his wife died, and isn't it coincidental that
it's on the side of his yard facing my bedroom window?"
    "I don't see anything strange about that at all"
    Trish listened to the conversation with interest. Sweet,
old Mr. Greenburg was a Peeping Tom? Of course, she
knew his wife had died many years before and he lived
in the big house alone now, but he had always worked
outside in his beloved gardens. She agreed with Henry:
it didn't seem strange at all. But why had she never
heard this story before?
    "Well, I think it was strange that every time I walked
into my bedroom I could see him right outside, and several times I caught him turning suddenly when he realized that I saw him."
    Henry sighed deeply. "So, how did you solve the
problem yourself?"
    "I stood my husband's old shotgun in the window
and placed a full box of shells on the window sill," Millie said smugly.

    Henry's eyebrows shot up. "You did what?"
    "I refuse to close all my blinds during the day and
live in darkness because a dirty old man is getting his
kicks by watching me. So I sent him a message that he
evidently understood. That particular garden bed is
now full of cactus that needs very little care"
    "The gun wasn't loaded, was it?" The chief's voice
was stern, but there was a twinkle in his eye.
    Millie ignored the question and plunged into the reason they were there. "Chief Espinoza, we're here to
help you"
    "You all want to help me? With what?"
    "You recently arrested a friend of ours, Sam Wiley,
and we need to talk to you about it," Edna said with a
gentle smile.
    Thank you, Edna, Trish thought to herself. It was
much too dangerous to let Millie keep babbling on.
    The twinkle disappeared from the chief's eyes.
"Ladies, that's really none of your business."
    Millie jumped up angrily. "That's where you're
wrong, Chief Espinoza! But I can see we're not going
to get any help from you. Let's get out of here, girls."
    Edna grabbed Millie's arm to keep her from storming out of the office. "Chief Espinoza," she said calmly,
..we don't want to interfere, but I think we have special
insight as to what could have happened. We would really
appreciate it if you would just hear us out."
    Henry paused. All he needed was a group of old
ladies telling him how to do his job. But Sam Wiley was
their friend-a friend they were willing to defend to him.
Maybe if he just patronized the women and listened to
their story, he could prevent his name from being dragged
through the mud.

    His glance settled on Millie Morrow. Scratch that, he
thought with resignation. His name was mud. "You've
got three minutes," he said, settling back in his chair
and crossing his arms over his chest.
    With a huff, Millie sat back down. "Okay, Trish, tell
him what we think."
    Trish coughed to hide her sudden discomfort as the
chief's gaze fell on her. Her theory had sounded so
commonsense, so cut-and-dried last night in the protection of her home, but now she had