me.
“Oh, I’m sorry. Of course, you didn’t.” I held out my hand and smiled. “My name is Mabel Wickles. I’m from a little town called Parson’s Cove - a long ways away from here. It’s much smaller than Yellow Rose, if you can imagine. I came down with my friend, Flori Flanders. Actually, Flori is sleeping right now at the hotel. I left a note saying I was going for a walk on the beach to collect shells and not to expect me back for at least an hour or more.” I looked at my watch. “My time is almost up and I seem to be babbling a bit, so I guess I’d better tell you.”
She frowned so hard, there was a wrinkle from the middle of her forehead right down to her chin.
“Tell me what? You are babbling and you ain’t makin’ much sense.”
“Grace was murdered. Maybe a week ago. I don’t know for sure when, because her body was dumped in the woods behind our nursing home.” My legs started feeling rubbery so I inhaled deeply and exhaled before continuing. “We only have one nursing home because as I said, Parson’s Cove is small.” My tongue seemed to keep moving without any help from me. “Anyway, someone found her body there. I won’t go into detail as to who found the body. Well, I’m the one who identified her. It was really a fluke because when I snuck into the morgue I had no idea I’d be looking at someone that I knew. Can you imagine the shock when I lifted the cloth and saw it was Grace? Well, I guess you can’t. Not many people go out of their way to look at dead bodies. I’m sort of weird that way.” I tried to attach a smile to my face. “As I mentioned, we were on a vacation in Las Vegas together. We both won it. I’d never met Grace or her friend, Andrea, before. ”
The wrinkle disappeared, as her eyes got bigger.
“Grace was murdered?” Her voice softened and her eyes watered. She swallowed. “How? How was she kilt?” She didn’t wait for an answer. “Did her good for nothing husband murder her?” Now her watery eyes blazed with anger. Again, she didn’t wait for an answer. “I knew it. I knew someday, he’d get into some kinda trouble. There was always somethin’ not right goin’ on in that house. Sinister lookin’ men and women, comin’ and goin’. More than once, I had to call the cops. Lotta good that did. Them two was plain no good. Not that I want to speak ill of the dead, you know.”
She sniffed a couple of times and shook her head before turning her attention back to me. “My goodness, darlin’, this has got to be awful for you. Imagine lookin’ at a dead body like that. Here,” she grabbed my arm and started pulling me along the fence beside her. When we reached the end, she said, “Can you come round to me all by yourself now, sweetheart?”
I almost said, “I think so, Flori.” Instead, I nodded. I walked out the gate on my own steam and she met me on the sidewalk.
She put her arm around me and half-carried me to her house. We walked up wooden steps with a wooden railing to the second floor. This time, I followed behind because this lady pretty much filled the space between the railings. There was a garage on the ground floor and perhaps some other rooms.
Her kitchen was dark and cool. She walked over to the sink and poured a glass of water.
“Here,” she said. “This will make you feel better.” It did help.
“Now,” she said, “what’s all this about Grace? Was it Cecile who kilt her?”
“Is Cecile her husband?”
She nodded. “He’s one of those cagey guys, you know. Always looks out the corner of his eyes at you. Wouldn’t trust him for a minute. Not that fellow. All he does is fix cars on the side. When I say, ‘on the side,’ you know what I’m sayin’?” She cocked her head to one side.
I shook my head. “No, what are you saying?”
“I’m sayin’ that’s a
“Oh, I’m sorry. Of course, you didn’t.” I held out my hand and smiled. “My name is Mabel Wickles. I’m from a little town called Parson’s Cove - a long ways away from here. It’s much smaller than Yellow Rose, if you can imagine. I came down with my friend, Flori Flanders. Actually, Flori is sleeping right now at the hotel. I left a note saying I was going for a walk on the beach to collect shells and not to expect me back for at least an hour or more.” I looked at my watch. “My time is almost up and I seem to be babbling a bit, so I guess I’d better tell you.”
She frowned so hard, there was a wrinkle from the middle of her forehead right down to her chin.
“Tell me what? You are babbling and you ain’t makin’ much sense.”
“Grace was murdered. Maybe a week ago. I don’t know for sure when, because her body was dumped in the woods behind our nursing home.” My legs started feeling rubbery so I inhaled deeply and exhaled before continuing. “We only have one nursing home because as I said, Parson’s Cove is small.” My tongue seemed to keep moving without any help from me. “Anyway, someone found her body there. I won’t go into detail as to who found the body. Well, I’m the one who identified her. It was really a fluke because when I snuck into the morgue I had no idea I’d be looking at someone that I knew. Can you imagine the shock when I lifted the cloth and saw it was Grace? Well, I guess you can’t. Not many people go out of their way to look at dead bodies. I’m sort of weird that way.” I tried to attach a smile to my face. “As I mentioned, we were on a vacation in Las Vegas together. We both won it. I’d never met Grace or her friend, Andrea, before. ”
The wrinkle disappeared, as her eyes got bigger.
“Grace was murdered?” Her voice softened and her eyes watered. She swallowed. “How? How was she kilt?” She didn’t wait for an answer. “Did her good for nothing husband murder her?” Now her watery eyes blazed with anger. Again, she didn’t wait for an answer. “I knew it. I knew someday, he’d get into some kinda trouble. There was always somethin’ not right goin’ on in that house. Sinister lookin’ men and women, comin’ and goin’. More than once, I had to call the cops. Lotta good that did. Them two was plain no good. Not that I want to speak ill of the dead, you know.”
She sniffed a couple of times and shook her head before turning her attention back to me. “My goodness, darlin’, this has got to be awful for you. Imagine lookin’ at a dead body like that. Here,” she grabbed my arm and started pulling me along the fence beside her. When we reached the end, she said, “Can you come round to me all by yourself now, sweetheart?”
I almost said, “I think so, Flori.” Instead, I nodded. I walked out the gate on my own steam and she met me on the sidewalk.
She put her arm around me and half-carried me to her house. We walked up wooden steps with a wooden railing to the second floor. This time, I followed behind because this lady pretty much filled the space between the railings. There was a garage on the ground floor and perhaps some other rooms.
Her kitchen was dark and cool. She walked over to the sink and poured a glass of water.
“Here,” she said. “This will make you feel better.” It did help.
“Now,” she said, “what’s all this about Grace? Was it Cecile who kilt her?”
“Is Cecile her husband?”
She nodded. “He’s one of those cagey guys, you know. Always looks out the corner of his eyes at you. Wouldn’t trust him for a minute. Not that fellow. All he does is fix cars on the side. When I say, ‘on the side,’ you know what I’m sayin’?” She cocked her head to one side.
I shook my head. “No, what are you saying?”
“I’m sayin’ that’s a
Similar Books
