Whisker of Evil by Rita Mae Brown Page A

uh, one’s by Fred Astaire and the other is by J. C. Smells, the Pennsylvania horse. But the mares are granddaughters of Secretariat. Everyone wants that blood, especially from the mares.”
    â€œMim is shrewd. Ran into her, too, and she said you had found Mary Patricia Reines’s class ring. I can’t believe you didn’t call me.”
    â€œI’m sorry.” And Harry was. “I’ve been on overload and I didn’t know who it belonged to when I found it. Took it to Coop only because I found it not far from where I found Barry, poor guy. And she took it to Aunt Tally. It’s a long story about why she took it there instead of to Rick, but, anyway, Big Mim knew. And Mary Pat’s initials are inside the ring plus the date, 1945. Oh, Coop and I came back here after Aunt Tally’s and used Mom’s big magnifying glass. The inscription, which is reversed so you can use the ring for stamping, is
Victuri te salutamus
.”
    â€œWe salute you, Victory?” Susan’s Latin was rusty but serviceable. “Or, we who are about to be victorious salute you?”
    â€œClose enough. The ring is worn but I think it’s
Victuri
. Could have been Victoria, she who conquers.”
    â€œVictoria, -ae, is conquest, victory,” Susan said. “Easy to remember since it’s first declension. I forget fourth and, well, if you don’t use it you lose it.”
    â€œMen say that, too.”
    They burst out laughing.
    â€œWell, victory is feminine but victor is masculine. It’s coming back. Victor, victoria.” Susan polished off the apple crisp. “That’s so good.”
    â€œIs there more?”
    â€œYes. I shouldn’t, but, well, the thing about temptation is, if you can resist something it’s because it’s not tempting enough.” She walked over to the counter. “What about you?”
    â€œI’m full.”
    â€œI’m never full.”
    â€œSusan, you’ve always been like that. You burn it off.”
    â€œI burned it off until I turned thirty-five. Then my metabolism changed. I don’t know why yours didn’t.”
    â€œFarm work.”
    â€œThank God you spend part of each day inside at the post office or you’d be rail thin.” She cut another large helping, using Harry’s spatula.
    Harry needed more kitchen utensils. Susan made note of that for future presents.
    â€œDidn’t we have fun putting in all those trees?”
    â€œFun? I about broke my back.”
    â€œI loved it.”
    â€œHarry, you love anything with a motor in it, and you and BoomBoom were in hog heaven. It’s so funny to see BoomBoom in the cab of that eighty-horsepower tractor. I mean, she really is one of the most beautiful, feminine women, and she works at it, too. But let her get in a car or a tractor and, like you, she’s as good as any gearhead. She
is
a gearhead!”
    â€œI’ve gained a new appreciation for BoomBoom. I think that ordeal we survived at the Clam turned me around.” Harry mentioned the big sports arena at University of Virginia, where they had been pursued by two criminals.
    They worked together, fought back, and lived. The cats and dog helped, too.
    â€œI’m glad. Before it slips my mind—where is Mary Pat’s ring?”
    â€œHere.” Harry removed it from her pinkie.
    â€œRick let you have it? I can’t believe it.”
    â€œI found it. Cooper took it to him first thing Monday morning. They dusted it and examined it and, as you would suspect, my prints, Aunt Tally’s. Obviously, no one expected much, but Rick went through the motions. Rick said I could have it. Coop brought it by on her way home last night. Finders keepers.”
    â€œThat’s good luck. Finding a ring is good luck, even if in the end she had bad luck. I guess we’ll never know. Back to our Latin. Finding a dismembered hand is good luck. It means power is coming to