perched on the bike seat.
“I think so.” Viv smiled. “I loved the last class we took.”
Mary said goodbye and rode away on her bicycle.
“Do you think Mary knows that Avery Holden got fired?” Viv asked her cousin.
“I sure do,” Lin replied. “What do you think?”
“I agree with you. It might be time to look up Avery Holden.”
Lin watched the activity still going on up by the house. “Anton must know Avery. I’ll ask him.”
The girls stood watching for a few more minutes when a woman walking past bumped into Lin and started to apologize profusely until she recognized who she’d run into. “Oh. Lin.” Claire Rollins’s blonde curls bobbed on her head shining under the light of the streetlamp. The young woman’s face muscles were taut and her eyes looked red-rimmed. “I was driving home. I pulled over.” She waved her hand and pointed down the street. “Nathan Long called to tell me what happened.” Her trembling fingers pushed a stray curl out of her eye. “I can’t believe it. Martha killed herself?”
“It could have been an accident.” Lin knew it wasn’t, but felt the need to offer the possibility.
“An accident?” Claire blinked.
“Maybe Martha drove home. Maybe she wasn’t feeling well and passed out in the car before she turned the engine off.”
“Oh.” Claire looked up the driveway to the garage. Two police officers stood in front of the structure. “Maybe that’s what happened. Poor Martha.”
Lin remembered that Viv and Claire had never met and introduced them to one another.
“Was there a board meeting this morning?” Lin asked. “Did you attend?”
Claire turned to Lin and nodded. “Martha was there.”
“Did she seem herself?”
Claire thought for several seconds. “She seemed normal. Nothing out of the ordinary. Nothing I noticed anyway.”
Viv spoke up. “Did she seem unwell?”
“What?” Claire took a deep breath. “I don’t think so.” She returned her attention to the officials bustling in and out of the house. Without looking at Lin, Claire said, “You got the contract, by the way, for the landscaping. We voted this morning. Nathan will call you.”
“Oh, okay. Thanks.” Lin wanted to ask if Martha voted against the project, but she knew the results were probably confidential and anyway, it seemed crass to ask how the dead woman had voted. “Nathan was here a few minutes ago.”
“He left?” Claire flicked her eyes to Lin for a second and then turned back to the scene.
Viv spoke up. “The police escorted him into Martha’s house.”
Claire looked at Viv. “Up to the house? Nathan’s inside? Why?”
Viv and Lin both shrugged.
“That’s odd, isn’t it?” Claire said. “It’s a crime scene. Wouldn’t bringing people inside contaminate the evidence?”
“They took him to the house,” Viv told her, “not into the garage.”
“Oh, well, I’d better get going.” Claire seemed twitchy and jumpy. She bit her lip and blinked a few times. Lin thought Claire was trying to keep herself from crying. “I’ll see you.” Claire nodded and headed off down the street.
“She’s pretty shook up.” Viv watched the young woman walk away.
“Claire is one of my clients now. Martha was at her house the other day.”
“She was married to that old guy, what was his name?” Viv asked. “They had like a fifty-year age difference between them, didn’t they?”
Lin smiled. “His name was Teddy Rollins. It was probably more like a forty-five- year age difference.”
“The guy was ancient. Yuck.” Viv shook her head thinking of marrying someone so much older.
“Yuck probably wasn’t what Claire said when she inherited old Teddy’s billions.”
Viv’s eyes widened. “Billions?”
“Yup. Now you’re seeing things in a new light?” Lin kidded her cousin.
“No pre-nup? No kids or other relatives?”
“Nothing. Just oodles of money. The word on the street is that everything went to Claire.”
“Well, well.
“I think so.” Viv smiled. “I loved the last class we took.”
Mary said goodbye and rode away on her bicycle.
“Do you think Mary knows that Avery Holden got fired?” Viv asked her cousin.
“I sure do,” Lin replied. “What do you think?”
“I agree with you. It might be time to look up Avery Holden.”
Lin watched the activity still going on up by the house. “Anton must know Avery. I’ll ask him.”
The girls stood watching for a few more minutes when a woman walking past bumped into Lin and started to apologize profusely until she recognized who she’d run into. “Oh. Lin.” Claire Rollins’s blonde curls bobbed on her head shining under the light of the streetlamp. The young woman’s face muscles were taut and her eyes looked red-rimmed. “I was driving home. I pulled over.” She waved her hand and pointed down the street. “Nathan Long called to tell me what happened.” Her trembling fingers pushed a stray curl out of her eye. “I can’t believe it. Martha killed herself?”
“It could have been an accident.” Lin knew it wasn’t, but felt the need to offer the possibility.
“An accident?” Claire blinked.
“Maybe Martha drove home. Maybe she wasn’t feeling well and passed out in the car before she turned the engine off.”
“Oh.” Claire looked up the driveway to the garage. Two police officers stood in front of the structure. “Maybe that’s what happened. Poor Martha.”
Lin remembered that Viv and Claire had never met and introduced them to one another.
“Was there a board meeting this morning?” Lin asked. “Did you attend?”
Claire turned to Lin and nodded. “Martha was there.”
“Did she seem herself?”
Claire thought for several seconds. “She seemed normal. Nothing out of the ordinary. Nothing I noticed anyway.”
Viv spoke up. “Did she seem unwell?”
“What?” Claire took a deep breath. “I don’t think so.” She returned her attention to the officials bustling in and out of the house. Without looking at Lin, Claire said, “You got the contract, by the way, for the landscaping. We voted this morning. Nathan will call you.”
“Oh, okay. Thanks.” Lin wanted to ask if Martha voted against the project, but she knew the results were probably confidential and anyway, it seemed crass to ask how the dead woman had voted. “Nathan was here a few minutes ago.”
“He left?” Claire flicked her eyes to Lin for a second and then turned back to the scene.
Viv spoke up. “The police escorted him into Martha’s house.”
Claire looked at Viv. “Up to the house? Nathan’s inside? Why?”
Viv and Lin both shrugged.
“That’s odd, isn’t it?” Claire said. “It’s a crime scene. Wouldn’t bringing people inside contaminate the evidence?”
“They took him to the house,” Viv told her, “not into the garage.”
“Oh, well, I’d better get going.” Claire seemed twitchy and jumpy. She bit her lip and blinked a few times. Lin thought Claire was trying to keep herself from crying. “I’ll see you.” Claire nodded and headed off down the street.
“She’s pretty shook up.” Viv watched the young woman walk away.
“Claire is one of my clients now. Martha was at her house the other day.”
“She was married to that old guy, what was his name?” Viv asked. “They had like a fifty-year age difference between them, didn’t they?”
Lin smiled. “His name was Teddy Rollins. It was probably more like a forty-five- year age difference.”
“The guy was ancient. Yuck.” Viv shook her head thinking of marrying someone so much older.
“Yuck probably wasn’t what Claire said when she inherited old Teddy’s billions.”
Viv’s eyes widened. “Billions?”
“Yup. Now you’re seeing things in a new light?” Lin kidded her cousin.
“No pre-nup? No kids or other relatives?”
“Nothing. Just oodles of money. The word on the street is that everything went to Claire.”
“Well, well.
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