began.
“Yeah,” I admitted reluctantly, “but I really can’t see any of them hurting her. What possible reason could they have for doing so?”
“What possible reason could anyone have for doing so?” Danny asked. “Maggie is opinionated and outspoken, but someone is poisoning her. It takes a real wacko to do something like that.”
“Or someone with a really good motive,” Tara inserted.
“Whoever is doing it must have at least a rudimentary knowledge of the poison and how it works,” Cody pointed out. “If not, she’d most likely be dead by now.”
Cody had a point. Someone had made sure that Maggie would become sick, but not too sick. I paused to think about the situation. The nearly full moon was reflecting off the water, which most times brought a sense of peace and contentment to my troubled thoughts. But not tonight. Tonight I was filled with fear for Maggie. Someone seemed to want her out of the way, though not necessarily dead.
“I’m going to go out on a limb and say that whoever killed Keith is also responsible for poisoning Maggie,” I stated.
“So we’re looking for someone who has access to Maggie’s food and also has access to the old cannery,” Danny summarized.
Not a single person came to mind. Camden Bradford had access to the cannery, but he certainly didn’t have access to Maggie’s food. Other than myself, Marley had the most access to Maggie’s food, but there was no way either of us did it. Something wasn’t adding up. I looked across the marina to see Tansy walking toward us with Romeo trotting along behind. Tansy lived nearby, but what in the heck was Romeo doing all the way over here? When I’d left home that morning he’d been safely locked in the cabin.
“It looks like Tansy found my vagabond cat,” I announced. “I’ll be back in a minute.”
I got up from my seat and hopped up onto the dock. It was a short walk down the wooden walkway to where Tansy was waiting.
“Where ever did you find Romeo?” I asked after giving the woman a quick hug.
“He came for me.”
“He came for you?”
“He knew you needed a nudge.”
“A nudge?” I asked.
“He wanted me to warn you about the tea.”
“The tea?” I remembered Romeo knocking Maggie’s cup of tea off the counter the previous morning. Maggie was the only one who ever drank the bitter brew.
“I need to call Finn.” I hugged Tansy. “Thank you so much. It makes perfect sense.”
“Don’t thank me; thank Romeo.”
Tansy bent down and picked up the cat. She gave him a scratch under his chin before handing him to me.
“I should go,” she informed me. She turned to walk away, then paused and turned back. “Just remember that things often are exactly what they seem.”
With that, she faded into the darkness.
I’d never been able to figure out how she managed that particular trick. I cuddled Romeo to my chest and headed back to the boat. My new plan for the evening was to call Finn and turn over the tea for testing, after which I’d head home and lie awake all night trying to figure out what Tansy’s last comment meant.
Chapter 11
Friday, May 22
The next morning I decided to pay a visit to Kim Darby. She’d been Keith Weaver’s receptionist for a number of years, and if anyone knew what was going on with the man prior to his murder, it would be her. Although Keith ran a one-man office, which would now be forced to close, Kim had kept the doors open temporarily to aid in the transfer of his clients to fellow Realtor Porter Wilson. As I hoped, she was sitting at her desk in the front office when I arrived at Weaver Real Estate.
Although Keith ran a small business, he was very successful in his endeavors, and his office was furnished to demonstrate that fact. While Porter Wilson’s office tended toward the tawdry, Keith provided clients with cherrywood tables, comfortable chairs, and expensive artwork to gaze upon while they filled out the mountains of paperwork demanded by each
“Yeah,” I admitted reluctantly, “but I really can’t see any of them hurting her. What possible reason could they have for doing so?”
“What possible reason could anyone have for doing so?” Danny asked. “Maggie is opinionated and outspoken, but someone is poisoning her. It takes a real wacko to do something like that.”
“Or someone with a really good motive,” Tara inserted.
“Whoever is doing it must have at least a rudimentary knowledge of the poison and how it works,” Cody pointed out. “If not, she’d most likely be dead by now.”
Cody had a point. Someone had made sure that Maggie would become sick, but not too sick. I paused to think about the situation. The nearly full moon was reflecting off the water, which most times brought a sense of peace and contentment to my troubled thoughts. But not tonight. Tonight I was filled with fear for Maggie. Someone seemed to want her out of the way, though not necessarily dead.
“I’m going to go out on a limb and say that whoever killed Keith is also responsible for poisoning Maggie,” I stated.
“So we’re looking for someone who has access to Maggie’s food and also has access to the old cannery,” Danny summarized.
Not a single person came to mind. Camden Bradford had access to the cannery, but he certainly didn’t have access to Maggie’s food. Other than myself, Marley had the most access to Maggie’s food, but there was no way either of us did it. Something wasn’t adding up. I looked across the marina to see Tansy walking toward us with Romeo trotting along behind. Tansy lived nearby, but what in the heck was Romeo doing all the way over here? When I’d left home that morning he’d been safely locked in the cabin.
“It looks like Tansy found my vagabond cat,” I announced. “I’ll be back in a minute.”
I got up from my seat and hopped up onto the dock. It was a short walk down the wooden walkway to where Tansy was waiting.
“Where ever did you find Romeo?” I asked after giving the woman a quick hug.
“He came for me.”
“He came for you?”
“He knew you needed a nudge.”
“A nudge?” I asked.
“He wanted me to warn you about the tea.”
“The tea?” I remembered Romeo knocking Maggie’s cup of tea off the counter the previous morning. Maggie was the only one who ever drank the bitter brew.
“I need to call Finn.” I hugged Tansy. “Thank you so much. It makes perfect sense.”
“Don’t thank me; thank Romeo.”
Tansy bent down and picked up the cat. She gave him a scratch under his chin before handing him to me.
“I should go,” she informed me. She turned to walk away, then paused and turned back. “Just remember that things often are exactly what they seem.”
With that, she faded into the darkness.
I’d never been able to figure out how she managed that particular trick. I cuddled Romeo to my chest and headed back to the boat. My new plan for the evening was to call Finn and turn over the tea for testing, after which I’d head home and lie awake all night trying to figure out what Tansy’s last comment meant.
Chapter 11
Friday, May 22
The next morning I decided to pay a visit to Kim Darby. She’d been Keith Weaver’s receptionist for a number of years, and if anyone knew what was going on with the man prior to his murder, it would be her. Although Keith ran a one-man office, which would now be forced to close, Kim had kept the doors open temporarily to aid in the transfer of his clients to fellow Realtor Porter Wilson. As I hoped, she was sitting at her desk in the front office when I arrived at Weaver Real Estate.
Although Keith ran a small business, he was very successful in his endeavors, and his office was furnished to demonstrate that fact. While Porter Wilson’s office tended toward the tawdry, Keith provided clients with cherrywood tables, comfortable chairs, and expensive artwork to gaze upon while they filled out the mountains of paperwork demanded by each
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