Twelve Angry Librarians

“The little bit I got out of it,” Marisue said, “was that Gavin was angry over something the other man had done to him. Mr. X was taunting Gavin with it, and either Virginia or Ada Lou—sometimes I can’t remember which of them is which—repeated that line from Shakespeare about being hoist with your own petard. What play is it from, do you remember?”

With an actress daughter who adored Shakespeare, and as an admirer of the Bard myself, I told her. “It’s from Hamlet.” I could have told her more, but I didn’t want to sound like a know-it-all.

Marisue nodded. “Thanks. Anyway, one of them repeated it, and of course I’m not absolutely certain Mr. X said that to Gavin, or whether that was Ada Lou–Virginia’s interpretation. Do you think it could have any bearing on the murders?”

“I don’t know,” I said. “But Kanesha definitely needs to hear about this, and she will of course have to talk to these two women.”

“I really don’t want to have to go back down there to talk to the deputy again,” Marisue said. “I don’t mean to sound whiny, but between dealing with Randi and her broken arm and then spending nearly an hour being grilled, I’m ready to load up on a bottle or two of my favorite wine and do some serious chilling out.”

“I understand,” I said. “Spending time at the ER is a draining experience for anyone. Let me text Kanesha on your behalf. At the moment I’ll tell her she needs to talk to these two women and ask them about an argument they overheard. I can explain later—or rather, you can explain—what you overheard. Okay?”

“Sounds fine to me,” Marisue said. “I could kiss you, Charlie, but I’m too tired to get out of the chair and do it.” She grinned at me.

“I appreciate the thought.” I smiled in return as I got my phone out to message Kanesha.

She responded quickly to thank me and to say that she would follow up with me soon. The important thing now was for her to talk to Virginia and Ada Lou. Marisue could tell her about overhearing the women’s conversation later.

I nearly dropped my phone as a terrible thought occurred to me. “Marisue, do these women go around all the time, talking like that, as if nobody else is around them? Are they that oblivious to their surroundings?”

Marisue nodded. “When they really get going, I think they lose all sense of where they are and who might overhear them.” Then she realized what I was getting at. “Oh my stars, the killer could have heard them gabbling away, and they would never know they had put themselves in danger.” Her earlier lethargy disappeared, and now she was as on edge as I was.

“I’ll text Kanesha again,” I said. “Tell her it’s an emergency and to call me ASAP.”

“Do,” Marisue said. “Those silly old bats. I hope they’re okay.”

Kanesha responded within seconds of my 911 text. “Yes?” she said. She never wasted time.

I explained as quickly as I could about Virginia and Ada Lou, citing Marisue as a reference. When I finished, Kanesha said, “I’ll talk to them right away. I will make sure they’re safe.” The phone call ended.

I still felt agitated, even though I knew Kanesha would move quickly to protect the two elderly women. As long as the killer hasn’t gotten to them first. I banished that thought. They would be all right. Kanesha would find them, find out everything they knew, and then would make sure they were safe from the killer.

My heart rate began to return to normal. Marisue, however, still looked upset.

“I should have made Virginia and Ada Lou go with me right then and there to talk to the deputy.” Marisue thumped the arm of her chair with a tightly closed fist. “If anything has happened to them, I’ll never forgive myself.”

“Don’t start that,” I said. “You were tired. No surprise after the day you’ve had. You saw that it didn’t hit me right away, either. I’m sure Kanesha will find them and make sure they come to no harm.”

Diesel put a large paw on my knee, and I glanced down at him. He meowed twice, and I patted his head. “It’s okay, boy, we’re fine.” I spoke soothingly to him for a few moments longer, and he stretched out again by my feet.

“Is he okay?” Marisue asked.

I nodded. “He is now. He picks up on it when I get agitated or upset about something. When anyone around him does, really. Calming him down always helps me to keep myself from losing it.”

“How does he do around sick people?” Marisue asked. “Or, in this case, injured? I know Randi would get a kick out of seeing him for a few minutes, if she’s awake.”

“He would be fine with that. Actually, I’ve thought about getting involved in one of those therapy animal programs, because I think he would be great for that. He’s really sociable most of the time.”

“Why haven’t you?” Marisue asked.

“Lack of time, mostly, and of course with the current job, I have even less,” I said.

“That’s too bad.” Marisue pushed herself up and out of her chair. “Shall we go to Randi’s room?”

“Are you feeling up to it?”