Because one of those stains on the rug over there attracted a swarm of sugar ants. Jill asked me for honey. Tori collapsed while I was still in the kitchen looking for it. But I didn’t have any honey at all. Not a drop. I forgot to buy it."
"Some host you are."
"You don't see the implication of this."
"Not entirely, no."
"Sip your tea."
Del looked at her quizzically.
"Go ahead. Take a sip."
Del sipped carefully.
"What do you taste?"
"Jasmine tea. Maybe a little almond and/or honey, but I probably wouldn’t know it was there if you hadn’t told me."
Allie clapped her hands together. "Awesome. That's what I thought. Cyanide in the tea. The honey attracted the ants and the cyanide killed the little buggers! Listen. Here's how it went down. Pay attention. I had eight cups with pictures of the characters from the book on them. Do you remember which character you had?"
Del stared at her blankly.
"It's ok. I didn't expect you would. But I do. I gave you the Duchess. I gave Ben the White Rabbit."
"Any reason?"
"The characters of both suit you. It was my little game. I gave June Brody the Cheshire cat, because, well, because she's June Brody and she never smiles. I gave the twins Tweedledum and Tweedledee—technically not from Wonderland but from Through The Looking Glass —anyway because they're twins, get it? And I gave myself the Hatter because he's awesome and because I'm awesome. And Tori? I gave her the Queen of Hearts, of course."
"Why?"
Allie stared for a moment before it clicked. "You didn't read the book."
Del's eyes widened.
Allie slapped her arm. "I knew you wouldn’t read the book!"
" Ow! I saw the Disney film. Doesn't that count for something?
"Progress of a kind," said Allie, shaking her head in disapproval. "I can't believe you."
"Not for nothing," said Del, "but isn't Alice in Wonderland a book, like, for kids?"
"It's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland , and I hate you right now." She steeled herself with a deep breath. "I'm going to forget about this for now. Where was I?"
"You gave Tori the Queen of Hearts cup for some reason," said Del with a smile.
"Yes! Because the Queen is a horrible person! Keeps calling for everyone's heads. Ring a bell from the Cliffs Notes?"
Del rolled her eyes. "So what's the point?"
"The point is, when I went in to get the tea and Tori came in with her cup, I noticed it was one of the twins' cups. I thought in the commotion of switching things from the dining room to the living room things may have gotten a little topsy-turvy. Until I remembered how adamant Jill was in not wanting to switch things up. She must have known. She snatched up her twin cup like it was a family heirloom."
"Like..." said Del, not wanting to say the words.
Allie finished the thought for her: "Like it was already spiked with poison."
The two women stared at one another for a moment that seemed to scream with silence, as the weight of what had just been spoken pressed on their souls.
"How?" asked Del.
"You all arrived at the same time. Then at some point, one or more of you went in to have a look at my tablescape. There had to have been a time when one of those
"Some host you are."
"You don't see the implication of this."
"Not entirely, no."
"Sip your tea."
Del looked at her quizzically.
"Go ahead. Take a sip."
Del sipped carefully.
"What do you taste?"
"Jasmine tea. Maybe a little almond and/or honey, but I probably wouldn’t know it was there if you hadn’t told me."
Allie clapped her hands together. "Awesome. That's what I thought. Cyanide in the tea. The honey attracted the ants and the cyanide killed the little buggers! Listen. Here's how it went down. Pay attention. I had eight cups with pictures of the characters from the book on them. Do you remember which character you had?"
Del stared at her blankly.
"It's ok. I didn't expect you would. But I do. I gave you the Duchess. I gave Ben the White Rabbit."
"Any reason?"
"The characters of both suit you. It was my little game. I gave June Brody the Cheshire cat, because, well, because she's June Brody and she never smiles. I gave the twins Tweedledum and Tweedledee—technically not from Wonderland but from Through The Looking Glass —anyway because they're twins, get it? And I gave myself the Hatter because he's awesome and because I'm awesome. And Tori? I gave her the Queen of Hearts, of course."
"Why?"
Allie stared for a moment before it clicked. "You didn't read the book."
Del's eyes widened.
Allie slapped her arm. "I knew you wouldn’t read the book!"
" Ow! I saw the Disney film. Doesn't that count for something?
"Progress of a kind," said Allie, shaking her head in disapproval. "I can't believe you."
"Not for nothing," said Del, "but isn't Alice in Wonderland a book, like, for kids?"
"It's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland , and I hate you right now." She steeled herself with a deep breath. "I'm going to forget about this for now. Where was I?"
"You gave Tori the Queen of Hearts cup for some reason," said Del with a smile.
"Yes! Because the Queen is a horrible person! Keeps calling for everyone's heads. Ring a bell from the Cliffs Notes?"
Del rolled her eyes. "So what's the point?"
"The point is, when I went in to get the tea and Tori came in with her cup, I noticed it was one of the twins' cups. I thought in the commotion of switching things from the dining room to the living room things may have gotten a little topsy-turvy. Until I remembered how adamant Jill was in not wanting to switch things up. She must have known. She snatched up her twin cup like it was a family heirloom."
"Like..." said Del, not wanting to say the words.
Allie finished the thought for her: "Like it was already spiked with poison."
The two women stared at one another for a moment that seemed to scream with silence, as the weight of what had just been spoken pressed on their souls.
"How?" asked Del.
"You all arrived at the same time. Then at some point, one or more of you went in to have a look at my tablescape. There had to have been a time when one of those
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