poisonous berries and the nonpoisonous berries, but they eat them anyway. Thousands of people are poisoned every year that way.”
“Why did you question Dr. Underwood if you don’t think he had anything to do with it?”
“I guess so I could try to put the ladies’ minds at ease. They see murder in this, but I think it’s less likely than a tragic mistake.”
Mai followed Peggy past the tarp under which the group was preserving what they could find in the thick mud. She looked at the human remains around them and shook her head. “This place could be a nightmare if you’re trying to put together any kind of case! Where did all those bones come from?”
Peggy explained about Whitley Village and why the group was out there trying to preserve what they could. “They plan to bury whatever remains they find and keep the artifacts in the museum. You see what Jonathon meant about time being valuable. It won’t take a lot to ruin the site for another hundred years.”
“Let’s take a look at the spot where you found Mrs. Mullis,” Mai suggested. “I’d like to get out of here. This place gives me the creeps.”
Peggy laughed. “How can it bother you, with everything you’ve seen?”
“This is different. I see them before they get buried. All these coffin parts sticking up, it’s like a bad horror movie.”
Peggy took Mai to the old post office, explaining they knew the landmarks by the map Jonathon had of the village. “I actually wasn’t the first one to see Lois. Geneva Curtis found her, and then we all came over. The mud is a few feet thick in there, and she kept rolling over. Not on her own, mind you. I think she was in the less solid area. There’s a small creek running under the mud.”
“Have you seen any yew bushes yet?” Mai glanced around her. “I wouldn’t know one if it slapped me in the face.”
“I’ve seen a few bushes, but no berries.”
“Maybe she ate them all.”
“Maybe. They aren’t loaded with them, like blackberries or blueberries. Sometimes they don’t have any at all. Like any other plant, they have to be mature enough to grow them.” Peggy knelt beside the area where Lois’s ghastly face had appeared to her.
“So you and this other lady, Geneva, found Lois here.” Mai looked at the thick brown mud around what was left of the old post office. “What happened then?”
“We called 911. She looked like she was dressed to be here. I noticed her tennis shoes and jeans. I could tell she was wearing makeup, but the red on her lips was probably berry stains instead of lipstick.”
Mai walked carefully along the edge of the shore, looking for anything the police might have missed. Peggy checked the surrounding area for yew bushes. There were several, but none of them had berries. She snipped and saved a few branches. They appeared to have had berries and seeds, which were missing. It might be possible to match the seed to the plant if not the berry.
“I don’t see any red berry blotches,” Mai told her. “Though I can see where your theory about her eating them could come from.”
“The only thing that doesn’t make any sense is how she got out here.” Peggy sat down on a large rock beside the dry lake and looked across at the small hill that was visible in the middle of where the lake had been. “According to her friends, the taxi idea was out of the question, and none of her other friends or relatives drove her here. Her cars were still at her home.”
Mai sat down beside her. “I’d say that doesn’t make any sense either, but that’s not part of our job, remember? We’re just here to speculate on the cause of death. If Mrs. Mullis died from yew poisoning, we can’t rule that a natural cause. Then we have to find out if she mistook the plant, as you said, or if someone gave it to her.”
“How will we know the difference? It’s not like you can examine her and make that decision.”
“We’ll look again for signs of struggle or bruises that
“Why did you question Dr. Underwood if you don’t think he had anything to do with it?”
“I guess so I could try to put the ladies’ minds at ease. They see murder in this, but I think it’s less likely than a tragic mistake.”
Mai followed Peggy past the tarp under which the group was preserving what they could find in the thick mud. She looked at the human remains around them and shook her head. “This place could be a nightmare if you’re trying to put together any kind of case! Where did all those bones come from?”
Peggy explained about Whitley Village and why the group was out there trying to preserve what they could. “They plan to bury whatever remains they find and keep the artifacts in the museum. You see what Jonathon meant about time being valuable. It won’t take a lot to ruin the site for another hundred years.”
“Let’s take a look at the spot where you found Mrs. Mullis,” Mai suggested. “I’d like to get out of here. This place gives me the creeps.”
Peggy laughed. “How can it bother you, with everything you’ve seen?”
“This is different. I see them before they get buried. All these coffin parts sticking up, it’s like a bad horror movie.”
Peggy took Mai to the old post office, explaining they knew the landmarks by the map Jonathon had of the village. “I actually wasn’t the first one to see Lois. Geneva Curtis found her, and then we all came over. The mud is a few feet thick in there, and she kept rolling over. Not on her own, mind you. I think she was in the less solid area. There’s a small creek running under the mud.”
“Have you seen any yew bushes yet?” Mai glanced around her. “I wouldn’t know one if it slapped me in the face.”
“I’ve seen a few bushes, but no berries.”
“Maybe she ate them all.”
“Maybe. They aren’t loaded with them, like blackberries or blueberries. Sometimes they don’t have any at all. Like any other plant, they have to be mature enough to grow them.” Peggy knelt beside the area where Lois’s ghastly face had appeared to her.
“So you and this other lady, Geneva, found Lois here.” Mai looked at the thick brown mud around what was left of the old post office. “What happened then?”
“We called 911. She looked like she was dressed to be here. I noticed her tennis shoes and jeans. I could tell she was wearing makeup, but the red on her lips was probably berry stains instead of lipstick.”
Mai walked carefully along the edge of the shore, looking for anything the police might have missed. Peggy checked the surrounding area for yew bushes. There were several, but none of them had berries. She snipped and saved a few branches. They appeared to have had berries and seeds, which were missing. It might be possible to match the seed to the plant if not the berry.
“I don’t see any red berry blotches,” Mai told her. “Though I can see where your theory about her eating them could come from.”
“The only thing that doesn’t make any sense is how she got out here.” Peggy sat down on a large rock beside the dry lake and looked across at the small hill that was visible in the middle of where the lake had been. “According to her friends, the taxi idea was out of the question, and none of her other friends or relatives drove her here. Her cars were still at her home.”
Mai sat down beside her. “I’d say that doesn’t make any sense either, but that’s not part of our job, remember? We’re just here to speculate on the cause of death. If Mrs. Mullis died from yew poisoning, we can’t rule that a natural cause. Then we have to find out if she mistook the plant, as you said, or if someone gave it to her.”
“How will we know the difference? It’s not like you can examine her and make that decision.”
“We’ll look again for signs of struggle or bruises that
Similar Books
