rehearsed a number of times in her house.
"Oh, there's just one more thing," she said, turning around slowly. She'd learned it from watching old episodes of Columbo on Netflix. She wasn't sure what it would accomplish. Catching them off-guard perhaps? "You said she mumbled something. Was it something about her lawyer by any chance?"
"Her lawyer?" said Jenny. "As a matter of fact, I think—"
"I heard 'liar,'" interrupted Jill. "At least that's what I thought it was. But who knows? I thought I heard her say something about a 'liar.' She was incoherent."
"Thank you both."
"Anytime," said Jenny. "Come again soon."
Jill said nothing.
2
"Stick out your finger."
She and Del were in Allie's kitchen, having just finished a comfort meal Allie prepared in a fit of escapism. When all was beating down, when there were unanswered questions that poked their blurry faces in at you in the fog of insomnia, there was nothing like meatloaf and mashed potatoes to get you back to where you needed to be, at least for a little while.
"Why?" Del asked.
"Just indulge me."
"What do you want with my finger?"
"Just do it. I promise, nothing will happen."
Her friend did as she was told, and Allie took her gently by the wrist and smeared her finger with something that made Del's tongue protrude and a comical sound come from her throat.
"What the hell?"
"Now," Allie said, handing her a teacup, "do me a favor and wipe it off on the inside, just under the rim."
"What is this, can I ask?"
"It's honey, mixed with a little almond extract."
With a grimace, Del smeared her finger on the inside of the cup, just beneath the rim.
The kettle whistled. Allie took back the cup, dropped an infuser into it, brought the cup to the kettle and tilted out fresh, boiling water into it.
"Wait a minute then I want you to drink that."
"Do I have to?"
"It's just honey and almond extract. And jasmine tea. Smell that? Amazing, right?"
"It's breathtaking. What's this about again?"
Allie looked her friend in the eye. "Someone poisoned Tori Cardinal at my book club. It had to have happened right here in my house because the poison was only in her system for about five minutes before it killed her. Now I don’t know about you, but I don't take too kindly to people who poison folks at my book club. So I got to thinking who it could have been. It started with Jill asking me for honey, and ended with sugar ants."
Del reached into the air and mimed a tiny scene wherein she extracted a tiny scroll from the ether, unrolled it, and pretended to read. "Hmmm. Nope, nothing here. I'm afraid you're going to have to elucidate."
Allie sighed impatiently. "Did Tori bring her own sugar?"
"I don’t know. Did she?"
"No. Did she bring her own honey?"
Del shrugged.
"I know it sounds like something she would have done. But she didn't."
"Are you sure?" Del asked.
"Almost. You didn’t notice her putting honey in her tea?"
"I don’t remember," Del said apologetically.
"Well, someone put sugar or honey in her tea.
"Oh, there's just one more thing," she said, turning around slowly. She'd learned it from watching old episodes of Columbo on Netflix. She wasn't sure what it would accomplish. Catching them off-guard perhaps? "You said she mumbled something. Was it something about her lawyer by any chance?"
"Her lawyer?" said Jenny. "As a matter of fact, I think—"
"I heard 'liar,'" interrupted Jill. "At least that's what I thought it was. But who knows? I thought I heard her say something about a 'liar.' She was incoherent."
"Thank you both."
"Anytime," said Jenny. "Come again soon."
Jill said nothing.
2
"Stick out your finger."
She and Del were in Allie's kitchen, having just finished a comfort meal Allie prepared in a fit of escapism. When all was beating down, when there were unanswered questions that poked their blurry faces in at you in the fog of insomnia, there was nothing like meatloaf and mashed potatoes to get you back to where you needed to be, at least for a little while.
"Why?" Del asked.
"Just indulge me."
"What do you want with my finger?"
"Just do it. I promise, nothing will happen."
Her friend did as she was told, and Allie took her gently by the wrist and smeared her finger with something that made Del's tongue protrude and a comical sound come from her throat.
"What the hell?"
"Now," Allie said, handing her a teacup, "do me a favor and wipe it off on the inside, just under the rim."
"What is this, can I ask?"
"It's honey, mixed with a little almond extract."
With a grimace, Del smeared her finger on the inside of the cup, just beneath the rim.
The kettle whistled. Allie took back the cup, dropped an infuser into it, brought the cup to the kettle and tilted out fresh, boiling water into it.
"Wait a minute then I want you to drink that."
"Do I have to?"
"It's just honey and almond extract. And jasmine tea. Smell that? Amazing, right?"
"It's breathtaking. What's this about again?"
Allie looked her friend in the eye. "Someone poisoned Tori Cardinal at my book club. It had to have happened right here in my house because the poison was only in her system for about five minutes before it killed her. Now I don’t know about you, but I don't take too kindly to people who poison folks at my book club. So I got to thinking who it could have been. It started with Jill asking me for honey, and ended with sugar ants."
Del reached into the air and mimed a tiny scene wherein she extracted a tiny scroll from the ether, unrolled it, and pretended to read. "Hmmm. Nope, nothing here. I'm afraid you're going to have to elucidate."
Allie sighed impatiently. "Did Tori bring her own sugar?"
"I don’t know. Did she?"
"No. Did she bring her own honey?"
Del shrugged.
"I know it sounds like something she would have done. But she didn't."
"Are you sure?" Del asked.
"Almost. You didn’t notice her putting honey in her tea?"
"I don’t remember," Del said apologetically.
"Well, someone put sugar or honey in her tea.
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