On a normal spring day, the drive to Sophie's would be pleasant if Lettie's emotions hadn't been in a turmoil. The sun shone and the temperature was in the seventies. A typical May day found people in Stafford in their yards cleaning up debris deposited by winter storms and planting summer flowers. Lettie again tapped her foot impatiently as she waited for a stoplight to turn green. Peering at her watch, she noted that it was almost noon. It was amazing. Her stomach was not growling, for once. Could it be the chocolate doughnuts that had relieved her of her usual hunger pangs? If she believed that, she could make millions writing a diet book.
Realizing that she really should stop at the Ladybug Cafe to get some lunch before proceeding to Sophie's, she changed lanes to make the short detour. She found a parking place and headed down the alley leading to the cafe. Spying the Ladybug's list of daily specials on a blackboard in the front window caused her to slow and to read what tempting creations awaited her palate this day.
Mildred and Sally shouted hello as Lettie stepped through the door. She wasn't lonely when she ate at the Ladybug. All the waitresses knew her by name as she did them. She eased herself into a booth and placed her book on the blue and white checked table cloth. The decorations at the cafe would never appear in House Beautiful but were practical and cheerful. Glass cases behind the lunch counter contained the homemade pies of the day, and the smells emanating from the kitchen stirred Lettie's digestive juices. It took only minutes for her appetite to perk up.
Mildred, the Ladybug's owner, who doubled as a waitress during peak hours, placed silverware and glass of water on Lettie's table along with a menu.
"What are you having today, Lettie?"
"I'll have navy beans, cornbread, and iced tea."
"How about some peanut butter pie? It just came out of the oven."
"I'll pass." The Ladybug's famous peanut butter pie tempted her, but she decided chocolate doughnuts ought to be the only sweets she indulged in that day.
"Still worried about your figure?"
"I've already had doughnuts today."
Mildred, who weighed over 200 pounds, rolled her eyes. "I keep telling you that you have nothing to worry about."
After taking Lettie's order, Mildred asked her if she had heard about Charlotte. Lettie explained the events of the previous evening to Mildred leaving out her suspicions. Mildred felt it her civic duty to spread the local news to her customers. She never meant any harm and merely thought that part of her duties as owner of the Ladybug was to pass along the gossip of Stafford. She especially liked to "scoop" the local newspaper, the Times Beacon. Since Charlotte's body had been discovered so late in the evening, the Times Beacon didn't even have an obituary in today's paper. Mildred indeed served her community well this day.
Lettie picked up her mystery after Mildred left and began reading. The heroine in her book had been poisoned, so Lettie replaced reading with wondering how Charlotte could have been poisoned. Lettie plopped the book on the table and did not read further.
The beans and cornbread were delicious, but Lettie didn't fully enjoy her meal. Her theories occupied her mind. What would be the easiest way to poison Charlotte? Besides her painkillers, Lettie surmised that ingestion by food or drink would be the easiest way to administer a lethal dose. After all, everyone had to eat and drink. Anyone who knew Charlotte very well knew that she drank tea all the time.
That was it. Charlotte's tea had been poisoned. Lettie suddenly remembered the teacup that she had almost toppled. Since she drank many herbal blends, it would be easy to add something to the tea so that it wouldn't be noticed. Many people had easy access to her house.
"Lettie, are you sure you don't want dessert?"
"What?" "
I'm giving you another chance at dessert and to tempt you we have fresh strawberry pie."
After eating the food she hadn't enjoyed, she felt better now. Was it from the good food or the fact that she had a notion about how Charlotte was murdered? A reward was in order. "Bring me some of the strawberry pie."
"Whipped cream on the top?"
"I'll pass on the whipped cream. I'd rather not become completely decadent."
Thinking about the pie made Lettie's mouth water. She always had such good intentions about not eating dessert and then her willpower caved in. Oh well, hadn't Mitch said she looked great?
Mildred placed the strawberry pie on the table, and hastened to point out that the berries were fresh from the Weathers' farm north of Stafford. Fresh strawberries from the good soil that abounded in Walker County were the best Lettie had ever tasted. Of course, Florida and California would beg to differ with her. To her way of thinking Walker County berries were juicier and sweeter.
When she finished her pie, she picked up her things and headed to the front of the diner noticing that business had picked up since she arrived. The peak lunch hour crowd started arriving at noon and usually waned about 1:30 p.m. She knew many of the patrons and stopped to chat with a few. Even though Stafford was a metropolis compared to many communities, it kept its small town atmosphere. If the state university hadn't located in Stafford, it would have been just a tiny farming town in the Midwest.
Bidding Mildred goodbye, she vowed to see her soon. She walked back down the alley to her parked car, jumped in and drove to Sophie's. Lettie had to drive past Charlotte's house to get to the Lambert's house, and she slowed her van and stared just like the drivers on the freeways did when there was a wreck. The yellow crime scene tape surrounded the Downey property, and a uniformed policeman stood at the front door. Jeff should be home by now, but he wouldn't be allowed in his own home. Lettie wondered where he would go in the meantime.
The minute she turned into Sophie's driveway, Fluffy began her predictable barking. No one would ever break in Sophie's house Lettie thought. Fluffy not only was a good watchdog, but also she looked menacing because she weighed eighty pounds. A burglar would need to have a lot of courage to face this adversary.
Lettie remembered the day Sophie had rescued Fluffy from the pound only hours before she had been scheduled to be put to sleep. Sophie kept promising her boys a dog, and on that fateful day for Fluffy, she showed up at the pound to pick out a Christmas present for her sons. The Lambert family had never regretted that December day.
Sophie's lawn was awash with color. Sophie had a yardman to mow her lawn, but she prided herself on her beautiful flowers, which she lovingly tended. She had a particularly beautiful rose garden in the front near the driveway. Lettie stopped at one of the bushes to sniff.
Lettie knocked lightly and stepped into Sophie's large kitchen.
"Sophie, I'm here."
"Be down in a minute. I'm putting away laundry. Pour yourself some coffee and get a piece of apple pie."
Brother, more calorie-laden food. Did everyone have to tempt her today, Lettie thought? In her weakened emotional state it was not fair, but since she had just eaten at the Ladybug she wasn't hungry, thank goodness. Sophie's pies were legendary in Walker County having won several ribbons at the Covered Bridge Festival in the fall and at the county fair in the summer.
Lettie grabbed a mug from the rack on the wall, poured her coffee, and sat at the large kitchen table. Both her feet sounded like they were tapping "The Anvil Chorus." She wished Sophie would hurry. She considered taking her coffee and helping put the laundry away. About that time, Sophie came into the kitchen as if on cue. She wore jeans and a red and black checked flannel shirt. Lettie felt overdressed, as usual, around Sophie.
"My patience is wearing thin", Lettie stated. "It seemed like an eternity for you to put those clothes away, and it was only a few minutes."
"Gee, you really are jumpy, and I see you are as patient as ever."
"Well, sit down and let's talk. I've got a lot to tell you." Lettie related the information that Veronica Collins had told her concerning the phone call at the Harried Hare. "Personally, I think Amelia called, because she would have known where Charlotte got her hair done and when."
"Lettie, Char has gotten her hair done for years at the same time and place. Lots of people might know she was there. Most of the volunteers probably were aware that Char went directly to get her hair done after leaving the hospital. Also, I suppose Jeff and Ingrid, would have known. The list could go on and on."
"I guess you're right, but it seems to me that Amelia has so much to gain."
"But don't forget that Jeff has a lot to gain also", Sophie reminded.
"Of course, if we're going to be logical, we don't really know exactly who would gain more by Charlotte's death."
"Well, when I talk to Mitch, I'm going to pump him for as much information as I can. Maybe he will know about Char's will."
Sophie was anxious to fill Lettie in on her findings. "I called the volunteer office at the hospital and spoke to Phillipa Fellows, the director of volunteers. She saw Charlotte yesterday morning because all volunteers must sign in before they start their shift. Char arrived at 8:45, in good spirits, and began her shift at 9:00. She works the library cart, and if she had been sick, I can't imagine that she could have walked all over that huge place pushing a book cart."
"Did you find out anything else?" Lettie sounded disappointed.
"Nothing significant. She got off her shift around noon and ate lunch in the hospital cafeteria."
"How do you know that?"
"Phillipa said that all volunteers must sign out when they finish their shifts and said that Charlotte always ate at the cafeteria. Charlotte logged out at 12:08 on Wednesday and ate the free cafeteria lunch. She saw her there, as did several others. If she were very sick, I think she would have skipped lunch."
"Did you ask Phillipa what she ate?"
"No, why should I?"
"Well, it could have some bearing. If she weren't feeling well, she would have probably eaten light." "Nobody seemed to see anything unusual about her behavior yesterday, so I didn't think it was important."
"Of course you're right. She felt fine because she was poisoned later in the day. Amelia could have been the one who called her and summoned her to the house."
"You and your imagination have everything all figured out. You don't know Amelia came to the house, and you have your mind made up that Charlotte was poisoned."
"I'm beginning to believe it more and more. I wish Mitch would call, so we can find out what's going on."
Lettie picked up her knitting and started working on the intricate pattern. This would help her pass the time more comfortably.
At that moment Sophie's back door chime rang, Lettie almost jumped out of her chair.
"Wonder who that could be?" Sophie remarked.
She walked to the door to find an immaculately turned out Gloria Spencer.
"I was in the neighborhood and saw Lettie's car here, so I thought I would stop and chat with you two."
"Come in, Gloria, and join us for coffee. We were just discussing Charlotte's death."
"I noticed the yellow tape around Jeff's house. Poor Jeff what a horrendous thing to come home to. Lawrence and I played bridge with Charlotte and Jeff occasionally. We were at their house on Tuesday night, and they couldn't have been happier."
"I didn't know you knew the Downeys that well," remarked Lettie.
"We socialized infrequently. Lawrence and Jeff met at the Country Club the first year we lived here. They started playing golf together and Jeff started seeing Lawrence for his dental work. They aren't really close, but do see each other regularly for golf games. When I started playing cards with the Covered Bridgers, I met Charlotte. We found out that our husbands knew one another, and we started seeing each other every now and then for dinner or for bridge."
Lettie recalled how she and Gloria had become acquainted. Gloria's husband, a dentist, had a thriving practice in Greenwood, a town fifty miles north of Stafford. However, he felt stifled in a disagreeable partnership and desired a solo practice. Gloria had taken several fact-finding trips to towns within a one hundred-mile radius of Greenwood. She reported that Stafford would be a perfect spot to live. For several years Lawrence monitored the situation in Stafford and when old Doc Guilford retired, he bought the practice. That was five years ago.
Lettie had received Lawrence and Gloria's name from a national real estate relocation service. She happened to have floor duty when the call came in to the real estate company, so she got the people for clients.
Lettie discovered during the days of showing houses to the Spencers that Gloria played bridge. She had seemed like a nice person, so Lettie took her to play at Kathleen McNally's house that next Wednesday when a substitute was needed.
The Covered Bridgers always liked to play with a prospective member two or three times to see if they fit into the group. Composed of intermediate to extremely good bridge players, they always had a good time and didn't take the game too seriously. Therefore, any new member needed to have this same attitude to fit in with the group.
Gloria's first time with the group was nothing out of the ordinary, but she seemed to have a certain charm about her and blended in well with the regulars. They invited her to join the very next day. Of course, Kathleen McNally, being the founder, called everyone in the group to take a poll and no one had any objections.
Lettie couldn't believe that it had been five years since she had picked up Gloria at the Home and Hearth Inn, the Spencer family's temporary home until the house deal was closed. She had thought at the time that it would be awful to be cramped into a motel room with two children, but Gloria seemed to be taking it like a champ.
She had already enrolled her two boys in school, so she had a few hours to herself. That must be what keeps her sane, Lettie thought at the time.
Lettie hadn't seen the boys much over the years except when Gloria hosted the eight bridge buddies. Jonathan was now seventeen and Lawrence, Jr. was fifteen. On Wednesday, she had not seen either boy, but then she hadn't been at Gloria's house very long that night.
"Gloria, you must have noticed if anything seemed to be bothering Charlotte," said Lettie.
"Charlotte seemed to be a little tired Tuesday evening and mentioned that she had attended committee meetings all day. I never thought anything about it."
"Did she complain of feeling bad or anything like that?" queried Sophie.
"You know Charlotte wasn't a complainer, but, come to think of it, she did excuse herself to take an aspirin. She didn't say why she needed it. She just announced her intent. We had played a couple of rubbers by that time."
Lettie thought that Charlotte may have been feeling bad and just didn't say so. That could have been the case on Wednesday, also. Of course, taking an aspirin didn't mean anything. People take aspirin all the time, and they don't die.
The ringing of Lettie's cellular phone interrupted her thoughts. It had to be Mitch because she wasn't expecting anyone else. "Hello."
"Lettie, this is Mitch." Lettie's hands were cold and her heart was pounding against her chest. She looked at her watch. It was 2:10.
"Mitch, I thought you were never going to call." Lettie heard chuckling in the receiver.
"Why are you laughing?"
"I'm just amused to find out that you're as impatient as ever."
"That's not so funny. You know that I've been this way my entire life and haven't improved with age."
"I know. It's just one of the things that makes you so appealing."
The word "appealing" did not go unnoticed by Lettie.
"Okay, tell me what you know."
"I don't know what killed Charlotte, but her death was definitely not from natural causes. The coroner could find nothing physically wrong with her to cause sudden death."
Of course, Lettie thought. She had already surmised this from the information she had gathered and imagined.
"So she must have been poisoned."
"The evidence is pointing in that direction."
"Are you having her tea analyzed?"
"It's already at the university's chemistry department for analysis."
"Then you really think that someone poisoned her tea."
"That's the current theory."
"By the way, where is Jeff?"
"We have him here at the police station questioning him."
"Do you think he killed Char?"
"We suspect everyone for the time being. However, in a crime where there is a surviving spouse, they are normally prime suspects initially. Jeff has an extremely good alibi since he was out of town at the time of Charlotte's death, but we'll wait and see what he has to say. My partner is questioning him as we speak, so I don't know what his story is."
"He would have a lot to gain by her death, since she was the wealthy one in the family, but so would Amelia. I wish I knew what was in Charlotte's will."
"We'll find out all that information in due time."
"How long will it take you to find out if the tea was indeed poisoned?"
"I'm not sure, but Dr. Mathis said he would get on it right away. He has done work for us in the past and has been very prompt in getting the results to us. Sometimes though some of the tests take time. Meanwhile, the crime scene people are going over the Downey home with a fine toothed comb. Also, I'm afraid that we are going to have to fingerprint all of you who were at Charlotte's when the body was found."
"When are you going to do that?"
"As soon as possible. We need to identify all the prints in her bedroom and kitchen first. It will simplify the investigation the sooner we can identify all the prints. By the way, you can tell your friend, Sophie, to come down too. I also need to get in touch with the cleaning lady."
"My, I almost forgot about her. I really should call her and see how she is today. I felt so sorry for her last night."
"I need to be going, but I suppose you'll want to know what we find in the tea, if anything." "Of course, Mitch. You know I want to know everything."
"That may not be possible and don't you go snooping where you shouldn't. It could be dangerous, especially since we do think this is a murder." He was concerned about her. Of course, that was the way Mitch had always been. Why would he change?
"Mitch, would you like to come over for dinner at my place tonight? I think I still remember how to cook. Never mind, forget I said that. You're married, and that wouldn't be right."
"Belinda and I have been separated for six months."
"I’m so sorry, I didn’t know. But then why should I?”
"I would love to have dinner with you, but how about I cook dinner at my place?"
"That sounds great, but don't you need to get some rest?"
"I'll rest quite well after a good dinner. Why don't you come about seven. I live at Greenbriar Apartments. Do you know where they are?"
"Of course, silly, you forget I'm a realtor and know every inch of this town. I'll see you at seven."
"Oh, its apartment A7."
"I'll be there."
Lettie mused that things were looking promising on the personal front, but that she had to get to work solving Charlotte's murder.