Murder and Salutations by Elizabeth Bright Page B

so you can hear our conversation, but unless she’s trying to strangle me, I don’t want to see you come out of that pantry, do you understand? No matter how provoked you feel, you’re going to have to keep your mouth shut. Can you do that? If you don’t think you can, tell me now and you can slip out the back door.”
    The doorbell rang again. “Just let her in. I’ll be quiet.”
    “ No matter what?” Lillian asked again.
    “ Yes, now just go.”
    Lillian pulled the pantry door nearly closed, then I heard her high heels clicking on the hardwood floor as she went to let the realtor in. The only light I had was coming in through the narrow gap in the door. I was glad I didn’t get claustrophobic.
    Through the crack, I could see Polly as she walked into the kitchen. Her hair was dyed a shade of blond few people could naturally claim. She wore a dark blue suit, and a colorful scarf that added a blast of color. I could smell her perfume soon after she came in. Poor Lillian must have been overwhelmed by it if it was that strong in my confined space.
    Lillian said, “Why don’t you take a seat at the bar? This is my favorite room in the house.”
    Polly said, “I’ll need to look around later, but we can certainly start here. I see you’ve got a fireplace in the kitchen. That’s excellent, you know.”
    “ I enjoy it,” Lillian said. I could tell she was straining to keep her voice level. She had admitted that she wasn’t a big fan of Polly, so I knew how hard it was on Lillian to make it appear otherwise.
    I could see Lillian’s foot from where I stood, and if I strained, I could barely catch sight of Polly’s left arm.
    “ Lillian, do you mind if I ask why you’re moving? I never thought you’d leave Rebel Forge.”
    My aunt said, “Sometimes one needs a change.”
    Polly jumped all over that. “Now, dear, you mustn’t blame yourself for your relatives’ actions. We all know you had nothing to do with what happened the other night.”
    “ What exactly are you referring to?” Lillian asked.
    “ Why, the murder, of course. How difficult it must be to see your niece accused of the crime.”
    “ I hadn’t realized Bradford had made an arrest yet,” Lillian said. I could tell without even seeing my aunt’s expression that she was straining not to throw Polly out.
    “ Of course not, but everyone knows it’s just a matter of time. So you’ve finally decided to go out on your own again. Jennifer must be crushed by your decision to leave her. From what I’ve heard, she wouldn’t be able to run that little shop of hers without you.”
    “ Jennifer will be fine,” Lillian said. Her foot was nearly a blur, it was bobbing up and down so fast.
    “ Honestly, just between the two of us, she really did bite off more than she could chew. You’re propping her up, aren’t you? I can’t imagine she makes enough on her own to buy food for those two stray cats she has, let alone pay rent.”
    Despite my promise to Lillian, I was ready to rush out of the pantry and let Polly say those things to my face. Lillian must have sensed it, too.
    “ Since we’re letting our hair down,” Lillian said, “you must have mixed emotions about Eliza’s murder yourself.”
    “ Whatever do you mean?” Polly asked.
    “ Now that she’s out of the picture, I can’t imagine the chamber choosing anyone else but you to run the organization. It’s rather convenient, isn’t it?”
    “ I’m just as crushed as everyone else in Rebel Forge about what happened to Eliza,” Polly said.
    “ I’m sure you are,” Lillian replied. I doubted that Polly believed that she was being sincere. “So, have you already made your bid for her office, or are you going to wait a few days? You’d better not tarry, dear; you know how much power the president has.”
    “ It’s a great deal of work,” Polly said. “In fact, I often helped Eliza with the day-to-day operations.”
    “ Were you helping her the night of the banquet?”