The Skeleton Takes a Bow (A Family Skeleton Mystery) by Leigh Perry Page A

period every day!”
    “Good news for your homework, maybe, but not so much for your test scores. Which are kind of important.”
    “I thought you didn’t believe in SATs.”
    “Of course I believe in them—they exist. I suspect that what you meant to say was that I didn’t agree with the way they’re administered. Which I don’t. I think it’s ridiculous that so much of a person’s future is dependent on a test score with no predictive validity other than a student’s performance in the first year of college. They’re a waste of time, energy, and money.”
    “So what’s the problem?”
    “A lot of things are a waste of time, energy, and money—like paying for gasoline and shaving my legs—but that doesn’t mean I can afford to ignore their existence. As long as most colleges require the SAT, then I want you to get as high a score as possible so you can get into the college you want.”
And maybe even get a scholarship,
I thought but didn’t say out loud. Madison had enough on her plate without worrying about my shaky finances.
    “Don’t worry. I test well. And you can help me, right?”
    “You remember what happened when I tried to teach you how to ride a bike? And the time you wanted help with a research paper?”
    “Oh. Right.”
    According to her teachers, Madison was an excellent student, and according to peer review and student feedback, I was a good teacher. Yet when I tried to teach her anything more complicated than how to make a bed, we invariably lost our patience. Come to think of it, the bed-making lesson hadn’t gone that well, either—I’d finally found a video on YouTube to show her how to make a hospital corner.
    I made a mental note to call the school the next day and see what the situation was. “So what’s the buzz today?”
    “If you mean our so-called murder investigation, nothing.”
    “Can’t a devoted mother ask her beloved daughter about her day without bringing murder into the conversation?”
    “Sorry. Sid has been so focused, and it’s kind of getting on my nerves. I asked him to race me on Mario Kart, but he wanted to go up and work on his dossier.”
    “Sid can be pretty single-minded,” I admitted. “So any non-murder-related news?”
    “Some new faces at school today. Well, actually they’re old ones. A bunch of former students showed up—they’re on spring break from college. I totally don’t get it. Don’t they have something better to do with their time than to visit the high school they probably couldn’t wait to get away from?”
    “Nostalgia starts early for some,” I said. “Besides, they want everybody to see how cool they are now. And some people like their teachers enough to visit them and tell them how they’re doing.”
    “But none of these people had a teacher as awesome as Dr. Georgia Thackery.”
    “A fair point.”
    “Anyway, Tristan’s big brother showed up at rehearsal, and he is nothing like Tristan.”
    “Is that good or bad?”
    “Bad. For one, he’s not too bright—he’s on his fifth year of college. Tristan says he comes home and parties just about every weekend, which is why his grades suck. Plus the guy is a total creep. He kept joking about drama fags.”
    “Are you serious?”
    Madison nodded. “Becca asked him to stop after the third time he said it, and he actually made a joke about it being her time of the month.”
    “I hope she let him have it.”
    “She was about to, but Tristan dragged him out of there even though rehearsal wasn’t over. He was so embarrassed to have him around that he left early.”
    “I can only imagine.”
    Madison paused. “I know you and Aunt Deborah don’t always get along, but did she—”
    “No. Deborah never made fun of me in public. Or vice versa. We have always kept our sniping private, or at least only in front of immediate family members.”
    “Good. I mean, I didn’t think she’d have done anything like that, but I’m glad to know she didn’t. I just felt so