White Colander Crime by Victoria Hamilton Page A

all has keys?”
    â€œMe, you, Jewel and I keep an extra hidden.”
    â€œHidden where?”
    He grimaced. “On top of the door frame, in case I forget mine or need someone to open up the storage for me.”
    So, not as secure as Jaymie had thought. Anyone could have known about the extra key, or have even seen him get it down. Including Cody, who had been working with Bill that very day, coming and going from the workshop.
    He patted her shoulder and turned to head away. “I’ll see you tomorrow, Jaymie, at the manor. You get some sleep now, and everything will look brighter in the morning.”
    â€¢Â Â Â â€¢Â Â Â â€¢
    I T WAS EARLY , but the day was going to be a busy one. The phone was ringing and Jaymie hopped back to her bedroom from the bathroom on one foot, her slipper coming off at the heel. She plunked down on her bed as Hoppy barked and wobbled up the steps to get up on her bed on his own. “Hello?”
    It was Valetta. “Jaymie, I just heard about last night. It’s terrible!”
    â€œIt was awful, Val. I can’t believe my rotten luck.”
    â€œWell, sure, but poor Shelby!”
    â€œOf course you’re right,” Jaymie said, chastened. She sat down on the bed and petted Hoppy with her free hand. “Actually, I’m grateful I found her, or she would have lain there all night and may have died.”
    â€œThe church is starting a donation to help Lori out.”
    â€œCount me in for whatever you need. I’ll check with the others and make sure Lori doesn’t have to work at the manor but still gets paid. I don’t want her to have to worry about anything but getting Shelby better.”
    â€œHold on a sec!” Valetta said. “I’ve got another call coming in.”
    The phone went silent. Jaymie pulled her slippers off and wandered around her room with the phone to her ear, putting away a book, a contemporary Christmas tale she had finished the night before when she couldn’t sleep, and getting out another to put by her bedside. A comfort read . . . Mary Balogh,
Christmas Beau
, an old Regency, and a second,
A Christmas Bride
. They would do. She selected the three books from her shelf and stacked them on her nightstand.
    She glanced out the window. It had snowed overnight, but only an inch or two; it was blowing around until she couldn’t even see her backyard at times. That made her clothing decision for the day easy. She would wear thermal leggings until she changed into her thirties-era housewife costume. This was a day she had been looking forward to for months, the official grand opening of the Queensville Historic Manor, but her enthusiasm was dampened as she thought of poor Shelby and her mom. The phone clicked again, and Valetta came back on the line.
    â€œThat was Dee,” she said. “Poor Shelby is in a coma.”
    Jaymie was shocked. “Oh,
no
! Is it medically induced?”
    â€œNo, it’s a result of a blow to the head, from what I understand. She was not only beaten, but hit her head on something.”
    â€œMaybe the workbench,” Jaymie said, remembering the blood on the edge of it. And the shred of fabric caught in a splinter.
    â€œShe was conscious when she got to the hospital but lapsed into a coma during the night, Dee says.”
    Jaymie squeezed her eyes shut and took a deep breath, whispering a prayer. She opened her eyes. “I hope she comes out of it.”
    â€œMe, too. I wonder if the police found out who did it yet?”
    â€œI was hoping she’d be able to tell them. Maybe she did before she became comatose.”
    â€œI guess we’ll know if they arrest someone. I have to get going. I’m picking up William and Eva to take them shopping so Brock can get some work done. Eva wants to buy her dad a Christmas gift. What the heck do I tell a nine-year-old to get for her father?”
    â€œGloves. There isn’t a man