Diva 01 _ Diva Runs Out of Thyme, The by Krista Davis Page B

tend to Mars. “Sophie, how could you?”

    Mom shrieked, “Craig, Humphrey, do something!”

    Wolf skirted the table to help Mars. “Call nine-one-one. Looks like a food allergy to me.”

    Mars didn’t have any allergies. But even I could see he was suffering from something more serious than ordinary food poisoning. I set the turkey on the table, ran for the phone, and called an ambulance.

    When I returned, Mars moaned and curled into the fetal position. He hacked and appeared to have trouble swallowing.

    Natasha stroked Mars’s head. “Please, Vicki, get Sophie to tell you what she gave him. Please?”

    “You’re being absurd. I didn’t give him anything. If I had poisoned the soup, everyone would be sick.” I was horrified to see more than one scared face. I threw my hands up in a hopeless gesture. “I didn’t poison anything!”

    The wail of the ambulance siren grew in strength. I gave up hope that I could be of assistance, flung open the front door, and ran into the street to flag them down.

    The sight of another rescue squad raised goose bumps on my arms. Surely Mars wouldn’t die, too. How could this be happening?

    They brought a stretcher into the dining room and radioed the hospital. Wolf’s presence made things easier. He knew the rescue crew and provided succinct answers to their questions.

    When they asked Natasha if Mars had any allergies, she sheepishly turned to me. I shook my head. Within minutes they carried Mars out of the house and loaded him into the ambulance.

    Natasha seized my arm and hissed into my ear, “I don’t know why you would want to hurt Mars but make no mistake. I’ll do anything to protect him.” Throwing me an angry glance, she rushed out to follow the ambulance in her car. Bernie offered to drive June and bring her back later. Vicki apologized for having to leave and ran after a visibly shaken Andrew, who yelled for her to hurry.

    I gazed around the yard at my remaining guests. The colonel, lonely heart Francie, pale Humphrey, creepy Craig, suspicious Wolf, my parents, and my sister. I wanted to go to the hospital with the others, but knew I shouldn’t.

    Dad slung an arm around my shoulders and squeezed. “He’ll be all right. There’s nothing you can do to help Mars now.”

    “We might as well get back inside and enjoy the turkey,” I said with feigned enthusiasm. When we returned to the dining room, a police technician surveyed the scene. In the commotion, I hadn’t noticed him arrive. Mom ushered everyone into the living room to wait.

    Everyone except MacArthur and Daisy, who were whimpering at the table. Then I realized that Mochie had taken advantage of the chaos to jump up and help himself to turkey. Tiny as he was, he had chomped down on a wing and he pulled on it like a little tiger. I picked him up, along with the chewed-up wing, and called the dogs into the kitchen so they could share Mochie’s ill-gotten treat. Wolf followed the dogs.

    “Did you call your buddy to test for poison?” I asked.

    He took a deep breath. “Be glad Mars had his reaction before we ate anything else.” Wolf tugged loose a crusty piece of stuffing stuck to a pan and munched on it. “At least he only had to test the appetizers and the soup. Unless . . . did Mars come in here and taste anything while you were cooking?”

    I tried to remember. “I don’t think so.” Various people had floated in and out of the kitchen. But the only one I could remember for sure was Natasha because she had been driving me crazy. So much for her theory about the cops suspecting Mars. Even they wouldn’t think he’d poisoned himself.

    Wolf picked at the stuffing pan again. “That’s presuming he was poisoned at all. Could have had a reaction to something. Even something he ate hours ago for breakfast. The results will probably put you in the clear—for this one anyway.”

    I set Mochie on a chair and looked around. The cop, who had already investigated the kitchen, had