Arsenic And Old Books

Wouldn’t be the first time that image had trumped ability in public office, I thought sourly. I really needed to pay more attention to state politics in order to make an informed decision come election day. Guiltily I recalled my father’s opinion on voting. If you don’t vote, Son, he told me on several occasions, you’ve got no right to complain when you disagree with what’s going on. As in many things, my father was absolutely right. Up until his final illness, when he was bedridden and couldn’t go to the polls, he had cast a vote in every election after he first became eligible.

My cell phone rang as I unlocked the front door. I waited to answer it until both Diesel and I were inside basking in the cool air of the house, with the door shut behind us. I recognized Kanesha Berry’s cell phone number on the screen.

After I answered and said hello, she got right to the point. “Good news. Those diaries will be back tomorrow morning.”

“That is good news,” I said, though it made my eyes tired and my head ache to think of reading through all those pages of Rachel Long’s handwriting.

“You made any progress with the other volume the mayor brought you?” Kanesha asked.

“I scanned all the pages, and I’ve been reading them today.”

“Find anything interesting that could possibly be related to the investigation?”

I hesitated. Should I wait to talk to Mrs. Long first? She had, after all, given the diaries to the archive without restriction on use—except, of course, for the grant of exclusive access to Marie Steverton, now moot.

“You must have found something.” Kanesha’s sharp tone made me realize she interpreted my hesitation correctly.

“Yes, I did,” I said. “I’m not sure it really has a bearing on the murder, but I think you should know, in case it turns out that it is important.”

“Good,” Kanesha said. “How about I swing by in about fifteen minutes? Are you still in the office?”

“No, I’m at home,” I said. “Got here right as you called. Fifteen minutes is fine.”

“I’ll be there.” She ended the call.

I put my cell phone away and removed Diesel’s leash and halter. “Come on, boy, let’s go have a snack.”

The words hardly left my mouth before the cat darted away. I knew his destination. Litter box first, then water and food.

I put a pot of coffee on because I knew Kanesha drank a lot of it. Must be an occupational hazard, I mused. I also found some of her mother’s cookies we could enjoy.

Kanesha turned up at the front door on the dot, and I let her in. She thanked me for the coffee and cookies, and she drank and munched while I told her what I found in Rachel’s diary.

Her expression remained enigmatic throughout my narration. When I finished, she said, “That was pretty clear. Sounds to me like Mr. Singletary may not be happy when he finds out about this. Although you’d think he’d already know.”

I shrugged. “I guess the family members who knew kept quiet about it, and the later generations didn’t find out.”

Kanesha frowned. “Still pretty odd, though. You’d think somebody outside the Longs and the Singletarys would have found out. Athena wasn’t a big town back then, and I’m sure it wasn’t any different then than it is now. Everybody seems to know everybody else’s business. How could they keep a thing like that secret all these years?”

TWENTY-SEVEN

“That’s a good point,” I said slowly. “I’d never heard anything much about the Singletarys, though, until all this election business started up.”

Kanesha frowned. “I don’t remember Mama talking much about them, either, and she knows all the old families in town.”

“Maybe I ought to give Miss An’gel and Miss Dickce a call,” I said. Diesel perked up when he heard those names. He chirped several times, and Kanesha smiled.

“He knows who you’re talking about, doesn’t he?” She stood. “Why don’t you talk to Miss An’gel and ask? They know a lot about families around here that they never let slip. I need to get back to the office.”

“I will.” I escorted her to the front door. “I hope something breaks soon so you can wrap this up. I don’t like to think about a killer running around free.”

“You think I do?” Kanesha regarded me grimly. “The president of the college is having fits over this, and the mayor is calling every couple of hours to hear the latest. There’s a lot of pressure to get this solved quickly.”

“Everybody wants results yesterday,” I said. “I know you’re doing the absolute best you can.”

Kanesha nodded. “Thanks. Let me hear from you if you come up with anything. I’ll take any lead I can get right now.” She turned and strode down the path to the street.

I shut the door and walked back into the kitchen. Diesel stood on his hind legs, one front paw extended toward the plate where a lone cookie sat.