Читаем A Whisker In The Dark полностью

They both ran to the kitchen. Just as I thought, my attempts at communication were getting better.

Flora walked in the front door just then, wearing a crocheted sweater with the sleeves rolled up to her elbows and her giant beige patent-leather purse hanging from her arm.

“Oh, Flora, there you are.”

She scowled at me. “Where else would I be?”

“Where have you been?”

Flora sighed and rolled her eyes, the thick round coke-bottle glasses giving this a comical effect. “I told you earlier. I was going to Irma Blazer’s to work on our cookies for the great-grandmothers of twins’ table.” She spoke slowly as if I was a dunce and couldn’t understand her. “I left shortly after Seth Chamberlain interrogated me.”

Now I remembered. Flora had mentioned that the other day, but with all the excitement going on, I’d forgotten.

“Oh right. How did that go with Seth anyway?” I asked.

Flora pursed her lips as she put her giant purse down on the table, shrugged out of her sweater and hung it on the coatrack. “That young man needs to learn some manners. Accusing his elders. I don’t know what the world is coming to.”

I bit back a smile. Seth had to be almost seventy and I didn’t think he was that much younger than Flora. Then again, she said she changed his diapers, so there must have been at least a decade and a few years between them.

“I don’t know what gives him cause to accuse you. You weren’t even out there digging, right?” Flora had been cagey about this before and I wanted to ask again because Flora was getting up there in years and maybe she was having some memory issues. Paula had claimed to have seen her. Myron had said Flora got the last shovel. Paula couldn’t actually be trusted to remember stuff right and Myron could have been lying, but why would he?

Flora pressed her lips together and fisted her hands on her hips. “I never said I wasn’t out there. I said I couldn’t very well clobber someone over the head. I don’t have the strength.” She bent her scrawny arm at the elbow again to make a muscle, as if to prove her point. “But just like everyone else in town I was curious about the treasure, so I wanted to see what was going on.”

I searched my memory banks for the previous conversation. Flora was right, she had said she couldn’t clobber someone. But I still got the impression she’d purposely avoided admitting she was out there. Maybe she was embarrassed about digging. Or afraid about being accused? But she hadn’t actually lied, I’d just misinterpreted what she’d said. That made me feel a lot better. “So you were digging?”

Flora looked appropriately embarrassed. “As much as I could. It’s hard work.”

That explained why Paula had seen her. But it didn’t explain something else I’d heard about her.

“Are you planning on going on a trip?” I asked.

Flora frowned at me. “No. What makes you ask that? Where would I get money for a trip?”

“Oh, I don’t know. I thought I heard from someone that you were taking one.” I didn’t want to rat out Annabel. No sense in making enemies out of someone you might want to get information from later.

Flora’s gigantic eyes assessed me as if she was considering having me committed. Butterflies swarmed in my gut. Either Annabel had gotten her wires crossed or Flora was a very good actress. And if it was the latter, then all the details of her being capable of hitting someone with a shovel could have been acting too.

“I would have asked for the time off if I was going on a trip, right? Did I ask for time off?” Flora reached into the closet and pulled out the feather duster.

“No. But if you want some time off you can have it.”

“Got no need for time off. Got no need for travel. Now, if you don’t mind, I have to get cleaning. Lots of work to do.” She shuffled off toward the stairs then stopped, turning to look at me. “By the way, don’t worry. I did clean that room for that nasty Arlene. You ask me, she doesn’t deserve it. The place was a pigsty. But that’s none of my business.”

“Thanks. And thanks for cleaning off the doily too.” I gestured toward the table. I didn’t mention she’d forgotten to pick up some of the dirt. With Flora you had to take what you get.

She gave me another one of those I-should-have-you-committed looks. “If you say so.”

Merup.

The cats had been sitting patiently watching us as if they understood every word we were saying. But now it appeared their patience had come to an end. They trotted toward the kitchen, glancing back at me every few steps. They wanted the food I’d promised earlier.

Flora was swatting at the railing with the duster as she ascended the stairs. I was glad she hadn’t lied about being out there last night. Paula probably had seen her but been confused about where and when. Okay, the thing about the trip was a little odd but maybe Flora didn’t want me to know she was planning one or maybe she was looking into it for one of her bazillion grandchildren.

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