banker. Mrs. Gelman offered her a puzzle.
“I’m not playing,” Sherry told her.
Mrs. Gelman smiled. “It doesn’t matter, dear. Everyone gets a puzzle, whether they’re playing or not.” She handed puzzles to Sherry, Aaron, and Becky and continued on around the room.
Sherry looked at her puzzle.
A swift glance showed the puzzle was simple enough for Sherry to finish in a matter of minutes. She folded it up, stuck it in her purse.
At the microphone, Harvey Beerbaum bellowed, “Are you ready? Then, ready, set, go!”
The dog howled.
At the tables, the papers were turned over. In some cases, pencils began flashing. In others, puzzles were stared at.
“Care to have a go at it?” Harvey Beerbaum smirked, sidling up behind Cora and holding up two puzzle sheets.
“I don’t think so,” Cora told him.
“Come on,” Harvey persisted. “A little friendly competition. Just you and me.”
“Don’t you have to keep time and say ‘Switch’?” Cora pointed out.
Harvey was not so easily dissuaded. “I could do that in my sleep. I bet I can still beat you, even with one eye on the clock. What do you say?”
“No, thank you.”
“Oh, but I insist.”
“What’s the matter?” Cora said irritably. “You think I can’t do it?”
The moment the words were out of her mouth, Cora wanted to call them back.
Harvey looked at her sharply.
Cora was suddenly seized with icy dread. She felt hollow. Exposed. In the grip of an anxiety attack.
“Some other time,” Cora mumbled. She fled from Harvey Beerbaum, caught Sherry’s attention, and beckoned her over.
“What is it?” Sherry whispered when she had reached her aunt.
“Sherry, I think I blew it.”
“What do you mean?”
“With Harvey Beerbaum. I think he
knows.
”
“Cora—”
CURIOUS CANINES
by Craig Carmichael
ACROSS
DOWN
1 Ways
1 Fake jewelry
6 Leers at
2 Genus of plant lice
11 B—F connection
3 Chaplin persona
14 Eliot’s cruelest month
4 Robbers’ roost
15 “Arthur” star
5 Congressman and Union
16 Possessed
army officer Henry
17 Sparring dog?
Warner
19 Bullfight cheer
6 17th century card game
20 Work record
7 Not bad
21 German field marshal
8 Bagels and___
Rommel
9 Before (Arch.)
23 Marry
10 Most peaceful
24 Shore of TV fame
11 Hungry dog?
26 Arbiter
12 Surrealist Salvador
27 Shoeless
13 Paradise
30 Fancy dude
18 Stinging insect
33 Handwoven wall hanging
22 English flyboys
24 Risks
34 Tiny Tim’s instrument
25 Retirement funds
35 Fuss
27 Payoff
36 Most kempt
28 Edible pod
38 Gun club
29 Mets or Yankees
39 Sass
30 Fellas cohorts
40 Desert people
31 Change text
41 Cheese
32 Scoreless dog?
42 Work obstruction
33 Saying
44 Clothing chain
36 Carole King album
46 “Goodnight,____”
37 Persia, now
47 Most comfy (Var.)
41 Letter
51 Dames
43 Before, in prefixes
53 Memento
44 Leaves
54 Oil paintings
45 Feature
55 Fashionable dog?
47 Gives up
58 Expire
48 Consumed
59 Hindu princess
49 Angles
60 Detective’s finds (Var.)
50 Curt
61 Corn unit
51 Green gemstone
62 Affirmatives
52 Operatic solo
63 Present, for instance
53 Leg joint
56 Actress____ Dawn Chong
57 Printers’ measures
“You don’t understand. He keeps asking me to do crossword puzzles.”
“Cora,” Sherry said in exasperation. “It’s a
crossword-puzzle
tournament. You expect him to ask you to
dance
?”
“No, but—”
“Cora, I just left Aaron Grant with Becky Baldwin to come over here. I have no time for this nonsense.”
Sherry turned and stalked back.
Cora snorted indignantly. Well, if that didn’t beat all. Just whose idea was it to keep up the Puzzle Lady pretense, anyway? If Sherry didn’t care, why should she?
Of course, Cora
did
care. She immediately looked to see if Harvey Beerbaum was watching her, but he wasn’t. Fine, she told herself. She was just imagining it, like Sherry said. She just had to calm down, get her mind on something else.
Like the murder. That was the ticket. That was just what the doctor ordered. What she needed
“I’m not playing,” Sherry told her.
Mrs. Gelman smiled. “It doesn’t matter, dear. Everyone gets a puzzle, whether they’re playing or not.” She handed puzzles to Sherry, Aaron, and Becky and continued on around the room.
Sherry looked at her puzzle.
A swift glance showed the puzzle was simple enough for Sherry to finish in a matter of minutes. She folded it up, stuck it in her purse.
At the microphone, Harvey Beerbaum bellowed, “Are you ready? Then, ready, set, go!”
The dog howled.
At the tables, the papers were turned over. In some cases, pencils began flashing. In others, puzzles were stared at.
“Care to have a go at it?” Harvey Beerbaum smirked, sidling up behind Cora and holding up two puzzle sheets.
“I don’t think so,” Cora told him.
“Come on,” Harvey persisted. “A little friendly competition. Just you and me.”
“Don’t you have to keep time and say ‘Switch’?” Cora pointed out.
Harvey was not so easily dissuaded. “I could do that in my sleep. I bet I can still beat you, even with one eye on the clock. What do you say?”
“No, thank you.”
“Oh, but I insist.”
“What’s the matter?” Cora said irritably. “You think I can’t do it?”
The moment the words were out of her mouth, Cora wanted to call them back.
Harvey looked at her sharply.
Cora was suddenly seized with icy dread. She felt hollow. Exposed. In the grip of an anxiety attack.
“Some other time,” Cora mumbled. She fled from Harvey Beerbaum, caught Sherry’s attention, and beckoned her over.
“What is it?” Sherry whispered when she had reached her aunt.
“Sherry, I think I blew it.”
“What do you mean?”
“With Harvey Beerbaum. I think he
knows.
”
“Cora—”
CURIOUS CANINES
by Craig Carmichael
ACROSS
DOWN
1 Ways
1 Fake jewelry
6 Leers at
2 Genus of plant lice
11 B—F connection
3 Chaplin persona
14 Eliot’s cruelest month
4 Robbers’ roost
15 “Arthur” star
5 Congressman and Union
16 Possessed
army officer Henry
17 Sparring dog?
Warner
19 Bullfight cheer
6 17th century card game
20 Work record
7 Not bad
21 German field marshal
8 Bagels and___
Rommel
9 Before (Arch.)
23 Marry
10 Most peaceful
24 Shore of TV fame
11 Hungry dog?
26 Arbiter
12 Surrealist Salvador
27 Shoeless
13 Paradise
30 Fancy dude
18 Stinging insect
33 Handwoven wall hanging
22 English flyboys
24 Risks
34 Tiny Tim’s instrument
25 Retirement funds
35 Fuss
27 Payoff
36 Most kempt
28 Edible pod
38 Gun club
29 Mets or Yankees
39 Sass
30 Fellas cohorts
40 Desert people
31 Change text
41 Cheese
32 Scoreless dog?
42 Work obstruction
33 Saying
44 Clothing chain
36 Carole King album
46 “Goodnight,____”
37 Persia, now
47 Most comfy (Var.)
41 Letter
51 Dames
43 Before, in prefixes
53 Memento
44 Leaves
54 Oil paintings
45 Feature
55 Fashionable dog?
47 Gives up
58 Expire
48 Consumed
59 Hindu princess
49 Angles
60 Detective’s finds (Var.)
50 Curt
61 Corn unit
51 Green gemstone
62 Affirmatives
52 Operatic solo
63 Present, for instance
53 Leg joint
56 Actress____ Dawn Chong
57 Printers’ measures
“You don’t understand. He keeps asking me to do crossword puzzles.”
“Cora,” Sherry said in exasperation. “It’s a
crossword-puzzle
tournament. You expect him to ask you to
dance
?”
“No, but—”
“Cora, I just left Aaron Grant with Becky Baldwin to come over here. I have no time for this nonsense.”
Sherry turned and stalked back.
Cora snorted indignantly. Well, if that didn’t beat all. Just whose idea was it to keep up the Puzzle Lady pretense, anyway? If Sherry didn’t care, why should she?
Of course, Cora
did
care. She immediately looked to see if Harvey Beerbaum was watching her, but he wasn’t. Fine, she told herself. She was just imagining it, like Sherry said. She just had to calm down, get her mind on something else.
Like the murder. That was the ticket. That was just what the doctor ordered. What she needed
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