Murder by Yew (4 page)

Before Edna could think too much more about it, Dee rose from the couch. Crossing the room, she stopped and reached out to rest a hand on Edna’s arm. “We need to stick together, Edna. As outsiders in this community, we need to support each other, don’t you think?”

Having no idea what had brought on this spurt of sentimentality, Edna pushed up from her own chair. “Why don’t I show you upstairs?” She wasn’t ready to become Dee’s close friend and confidante.

In the master bedroom, Dee moved at once to an oak dresser and picked up a wedding picture, a black-and-white photo of Edna and Albert smiling at the photographer as they’d come out of the church. Edna wore a wide, flowing gown of net and white satin; Albert was in a tux and top hat.

“
Where’s your husband?” Still holding the picture, Dee turned to Edna.

“
Chicago. He left this morning for a weekend conference.”

“
You didn’t go with him?” She raised her finely-shaped eyebrows.

“
No.” Edna hesitated. She didn’t think her fear of flying was any of this woman’s business. “There would have been nothing for me to do. I would probably have seen him only at night.” Apparently, her words didn’t sound as lame to Dee as they did to her.

“
That’s the dangerous time, the time when you should be with him. He’ll be looking for companionship.”

“
What’s that supposed to mean?” Edna felt her face redden at the implication.

Dee shrugged. “Men that age, retirement age, have a roving eye.”

“
Not Albert.”

“
Any man. Please forgive me for saying that you’re being naïve if you think otherwise.”

“
I trust Albert implicitly.” Edna bristled, then felt more pity than anger at this beautiful woman who’d apparently lost more than one husband. How many had died? Thinking of Joel Tolkheim, the question flew unbidden into Edna’s head just as Dee spoke again.

“
So, you think he’ll be back on Sunday?” Before Edna could answer, Dee looked down at the photo. “You were a very pretty bride. Was your hair auburn?”

The quick change of subject, along with the unexpected compliment, disconcerted Edna. “Why, yes.”

“
Have you thought of going back to that color? The gray is attractive, but I bet your husband would feel younger if you looked like the girl he once married. If he’s watching you,” she added with a wink, “you don’t need to watch him.” Lowering her voice, she added, “There are a lot of lonely widows out there.”

“
I really don’t think …” Edna started to protest.

Dee lifted her wrist and looked at a slender gold watch, nestled among at least five gold and silver bracelets. “Goodness, look at the time.” She set the wedding picture back on the bureau. “I really must be going.”

In silence, Edna followed Dee out to her car. Nobody had ever spoken to her quite as frankly as this impetuous woman. She thought again of how Tom had looked at Dee, the admiration in his eyes.

Edna’s visitor settled into the white leather driver’s seat and started the engine. “Thanks for the tour,” she called out the window as the car started down the broken shell driveway.

Watching the convertible disappear, Edna couldn’t decide whether she liked or disliked Dee Tolkheim. Walking back through the kitchen garden, she noticed the clump of rue lying on the wooden bench. Not surprised, she thought,
that wasn’t really why Dee came by today
.

Four

In the house, Edna grabbed a sketch pad and pencil and put her hat on before going out to the herb garden again. She found Benjamin stretched out on the wooden bench enjoying the sun, and she smiled at the picture of perfect contentment. Strolling up and down the paths, she began to consider the presentation she’d be giving in less than a month, but her mind kept wandering over the morning’s events. What a strange day it had been so far, and it was barely lunchtime.

First, there had been the disturbing arrest of Aleda Sharp across the street. The image of her neighbor’s bowed head in the back of the police cruiser haunted Edna still. And how had Mary known the officers were on their way? She had her father’s radio scanner, Edna remembered, from when he had been a volunteer fireman. That must have been at least thirty-five or forty years ago, Edna marveled, then wondered how Mary knew the private detective she had recommended to Tom.

A smile came to Edna’s lips as she thought about Tom and his excitement over finding his long-ago buddy. She almost laughed aloud thinking of Tom’s absurdly flirtatious behavior towards her. How fun to be teased by someone other than Albert. The thought reminded her of Dee’s blatant performance, and Edna frowned. What had been the woman’s purpose in stopping by this morning? Was the position in the garden club so important that Dee felt she must scout out the competition?

Edna thought of the comment Dee had made about being new to the community and that they must stick together. She herself wished to feel welcomed by her neighbors and wondered if the desire in Dee was that much stronger. Acceptance into the elite garden club would certainly be a big step in that direction.

Before she could consider the possibility further, Edna was startled by a blur of orange fur flying past her and streaking toward the stone wall that bordered the Davies’ property. Turning to see what had frightened her cat, she spotted Norm Wilkins walking toward her. A ball of fire grew in her chest as she watched him approach.

Albert thought she had been exaggerating when she complained about Norm’s rudeness towards her, because the man was always so polite and deferential to her husband. The few times she’d had to deal with Norm alone, she’d gotten the feeling she was of no more significance than a gnat, something to be swatted if she got in the man’s way. Norm both frightened and disgusted her.

Whatever brought him here must be critical to get him out of his chair. The owner of Honeydew Home Repairs was not known to exert himself, preferring to spend his days bossing others around from behind a desk.

“
Where’s Tom?” he growled at her without preamble, not bothering to remove the toothpick from his mouth when he spoke.

“
I have no idea.” She put a hand on the crown of her wide-brimmed straw hat and glared up at him, determined not to let the man know how much he intimidated her.

At six-foot-three, Norm was as tall as Tom but weighed about seventy pounds more, a good deal of which hung over his belt buckle. Tom had laughingly confided to Edna once, “The only thing my cousin likes almost as much as money is beer.” Norm’s body, clad in faded blue jeans and a wrinkled, white, button-down shirt, swayed from side to side as he walked, and he leaned slightly backward as if to offset the pull of gravity on his stomach.

“
Hah! I knew I’d catch him at it.” His eyes, small and close-set, glinted in triumph.

“
Catch him at what?” She tried to keep both the quiver and the disgust from her voice. Norm might own the company, but Tom was the one who did most of the work. According to the rumors around town, Norm wouldn’t have a company if it weren’t for Tom.

“
Told me he was working here today.” Norm grinned, repositioning the toothpick to the corner of his mouth. “Knowed he’s been lying to me.”

“
He came by earlier this morning to hang a screen.”

“
He say where he was off to after that?”

“
No,” she said curtly. “If you need to get hold of him, why don’t you just call?”

“
Did. Weren’t no answer at his place.” After a slight pause, he added, “Weren’t no answer here neither.”

Edna chose to overlook what sounded like an insinuation. “Doesn’t he have a cell phone?”

“
Bah! Ain’t providin’ him no cell phone. Waste of money. Besides, that don’t tell me where he is.”

“
Well, obviously, he’s not here.” Looking for a distraction, Edna leaned over to swap her sketchbook for a trowel and gardening gloves that lay beside a nearby planter. Trying hard to ignore Norm, she pinned the trowel against her side with one arm while she methodically pulled on the gloves, hoping he would take the hint and leave.

“
He’s probably off playing with that grandson of his.”

“
And why not?” She smiled at the thought and looked up at the clear, blue sky. “It’s a beautiful day.”

“
Bah,” Norm spat again. He took the pick out of his mouth and pointed it at her. “We’ll see when he turns in his hours. We’ll see.” Scowling, he jabbed the tiny stick back into his mouth. “You’re the one’ll get charged in the end.” He chuckled to himself as he started to turn around.

“
Tom gives us a detailed account of his time and materials, you know.” When Norm didn’t respond, Edna went on, wanting him to know he wouldn’t get the better of her. “I keep my own log of the time Tom spends here,” she lied, “and I’ll certainly notice if you charge us in excess of those hours.

“
You’re probably in cahoots.” Norm’s beady eyes narrowed as he glanced sideways at her. “I bet you pay him extra in cash.”

“
I think you’d better leave.” She bent toward a small potted plant, examining the leaves with a concentration she didn’t feel as she watched Norm out of the corner of her eye. Without another word, he ambled back toward the driveway and his ancient Ford pickup. She followed at a distance to the corner of the house, making sure Norm left her property. As she waited for her heart to stop thudding with anger at the man’s accusations, she wondered how two such different men could come from the same family.

Still on edge, Edna went to the kitchen to make a cup of tea. Since it was almost one o’clock, she made a sandwich, and after lunch, she felt as if her blood pressure had dropped back to normal. When she returned to weed the herb garden, the rest of the afternoon passed quickly.

She was deep in thought, mentally composing her garden club talk as she pulled the last weed in the patch she’d been working on. So engrossed was she that she didn’t hear Mary approach until her neighbor spoke.

“
Are you busy?”

Edna jumped, dropped her spade and spun around, her heart pounding. “You scared the life out of me.” The feeling of annoyance disappeared at once when she noticed Mary’s red and swollen eyes. “Oh dear, what’s the matter?”

Mary opened and shut her mouth several times, like a banked fish gasping for water, before finally squeaking, “Tom’s in the hospital.”

Edna frowned, uncertain she’d heard correctly. “You can’t mean Tom Greene.” She stared at her neighbor in disbelief, making no sense of the news.

Mary could only nod, her face a mask of misery. A single teardrop leaked from the corner of her eye, and she took a deep, unsteady breath. “It’s pretty bad.”

“
That can’t be.” Edna felt unaccountably angry. Mary was being absurd. She must be mistaken. “He was right here a few hours ago. He was fine. You saw him.”

Mary looked down at her feet and said nothing.

Slowly, anxiety began to replace Edna’s anger. “An accident?” she asked. Thinking about it, she couldn’t imagine what else it might be. “A car accident?” When Mary still didn’t speak, Edna scowled. “Is Danny all right? Was Tom’s grandson hurt, too?”

Mary shook her head, obviously trying to gain control of herself, then lifted a tear-soaked tissue and blew her nose.

“
What is it?” Edna felt her insides grow cold. She shook Mary gently but firmly. “Please … tell me what happened.”

“
They don’t know.” Tears filled Mary’s eyes and overflowed onto her cheeks. She made no move to wipe them away.

Edna, growing increasingly agitated by Mary’s seeming evasiveness, decided they both needed something to calm themselves. “I think we can use a cup of tea,” she said, putting an arm around Mary’s waist. Supporting the younger woman as they moved toward the mudroom gave Edna the momentary diversion she needed to quiet her own nerves. When she opened the back door, Benjamin scooted in ahead of them.

In the kitchen, she sat Mary at the table and moved a box of tissues within reach. The activity of brewing tea relaxed Edna even more, and the tightness in her chest began to subside. She thought again that Mary must be exaggerating. How bad could Tom be?

While the hot tea steeped, Edna threw out the rest of the iced tea, since there really wasn’t enough to keep, and washed the glass canning jar. Besides keeping herself occupied, she wanted to give Mary time to gain control of herself. When Edna finally turned around with a steaming mug in each hand, she saw that Benjamin was sitting in Mary’s lap.

Her neighbor seemed totally absorbed, gently stroking the cat while he purred loudly enough for Edna to hear halfway across the room. She watched the two, enjoying the peaceful moment. How does Benjamin always know when someone needs comforting, she wondered.

An idea came to her as she watched. “Have you ever had a pet?”

“
No,” Mary answered, then added in explanation. “Father wouldn’t allow it.”

“
Why? Was he allergic?”

“
I don’t think so. He always said animals were a nuisance.”

“
Did you ever ask him if you could have a cat or dog?”

“
I did once. I wanted a dog, but Father said no. Mother agreed with him, and Miss Hattie said she would quit if she had to take care of a dirty animal. Said she had enough on her hands taking care of me.” Mary smiled up at Edna. “I used to hide from her.”

Mary’s mischievous grin made Edna laugh, while at the same time she realized how Mary seemed to regress into childhood when she spoke of her parents. Edna could easily imagine the little red-headed girl causing her nanny no end of trouble. “Why don’t you get yourself a pet now?” she asked. “A cat or dog would be wonderful company.”

At first, Mary looked surprised, almost shocked, but then a thoughtful look came over her face before she bent her head and continued to stroke Benjamin’s fur. Watching her, Edna wondered if Mary would ever feel liberated from her parents or their rules. She didn’t press the pet idea but made a mental note to broach the subject again sometime.

Setting the cups on the table and sitting down next to Mary, she laid a hand on her neighbor’s wrist. “Why don’t you drink some tea? It’ll warm you.”

At Edna’s movements, Benjamin jumped down and moved off toward his dish of dry food. Mary sat still for another few minutes while Edna sipped her own tea and waited, struggling to keep her mind off Tom. Speculation would be worse than facts.

Finally, after taking a long, quivering breath, Mary spoke in a quiet voice. “He’s in a coma. He was already in a coma when the ambulance got to his house. It was Nancy who called nine-one-one. When I talked to her, she said her father complained of stomach pains as soon as he got home this afternoon and went right upstairs to lie down for a while. About an hour later, she went to check and found him on the bathroom floor. She could see he’d been pretty sick. That’s when she called emergency.”

Edna was stunned. For several seconds she could say nothing. Then she asked, “What’s being done for him?”

“
They pumped his stomach, but that didn’t seem to do any good.”

“
You said he’s in a coma?” Edna’s mind flipped through information she’d stored over the years of being a physician’s wife. She’d heard many strange stories, but couldn’t remember ever hearing of gastrointestinal distress leading to a coma. She switched her mind back to what Mary was saying.

“
Well, he was still in a coma a half hour ago when I left the hospital. I wanted to stay, but they said there’s nothing we can do. Nancy didn’t want to leave either, but she had to pick Danny up from the neighbor’s.” In a fresh burst of tears, Mary blurted, “I feel so helpless.”

“
I know, I know.” Edna put out a hand and gently rubbed Mary’s back. When the younger woman’s tears finally lessened, Edna picked up her tea mug with both hands and felt its heat travel through her palms and up her arms, soothing and calming her as she pictured the strong, handsome man lying helplessly in a hospital bed. After a few minutes of silence, she set the cup down and spoke aloud the words that had begun to fill her head. “Our Father,” she began, “who art in Heaven.”

“
Hallowed be Thy name.” Mary joined in.

Edna reached for Mary’s hand as they both sat and prayed for their friend.