Lemon Meringue Pie Murder (Hannah Swensen #4)(80)

"That doesn't matter." Beatrice gestured toward the wall phone in the kitchen. "I was planning on washing the floor tonight anyway. Ted likes a clean home. It's a nice contrast to all that dirt and grease out at the scrap yard. He makes a good living, though. Especially since he added the auto salvage. Go ahead, Hannah. I'll get you that towel and a cup of coffee. You look chilled to the bone."

Hannah accepted the towel Beatrice brought her and did

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her best to mop herself off. Then she called the lake cottage and Michelle answered the phone.

"Hi, Hannah. I'm so glad you're home. Mike and Norman were beginning to get worried. Hold on a second and I'll tell them."

Hannah opened her mouth to say she wasn't home, but Michelle had already set the phone down. She could hear her youngest sister talking in the background, conveying the message that Hannah was home and everything was fine.

"I told them," Michelle came back on the line. "The storm was pretty fierce out here. Did you run into much rain?"

"Oh yes," Hannah said, knowing that she was uttering a gross understatement. The rain was still drumming against Beatrice's windows with considerable force.

"Mike and Norman said they'll call you back. Mother's car got hit by lightning and the guys are going out to look at it."

Hannah thought fast. If Mike or Norman called her back at her apartment, they'd get her answer machine. "Tell them to give me at least forty-five minutes. I'm chilled and I'm going to take a hot shower."

"Okay, Hannah. I'll tell them. I'm really glad you got home okay. We were all worried."

"Here, Hannah." Beatrice presented Hannah with a cup of coffee the moment she'd hung up the phone.

"Thanks, Beatrice." Hannah took a sip of the hot brew and sighed gratefully. "This is just what I needed."

"The other thing you need is dry clothes. I'd give you some of mine, but I don't think they'd fit."

"Not on a bet." Hannah laughed. Beatrice was petite, about Michelle's size.

"I don't know ..." Beatrice cocked her head to the side and sized Hannah up. "You've lost a ton of weight. One of my skirts might be okay, but you're so much taller."

"Don't worry about it, Beatrice. Now that I'm toweled off, I'll dry in no time."

Beatrice looked doubtful. "You can't drive the rest of the

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way home in those wet clothes. You'll catch your death. How about something of Rhonda's? Her clothes are still in her closet and she was about your size."

"You haven't rented her apartment?" Hannah was surprised. Beatrice and Ted ran a nice apartment complex and there was always a waiting list of people who wanted to rent from them.

"I can't rent it out yet. Rhonda paid me for July. I can take a deposit now, but no one can move in until the beginning of August."

"That seems like a waste when you have a waiting list."

"I know, but that's the law. At least I won't have to work to get it in shape. We put in new carpet and repainted it in June, and Rhonda just finished redecorating. Her place looks wonderful, Hannah. It's just a shame her relatives don't want her things." ,

"They don't?" Hannah was surprised. "What are you going to do with them?"

"They said to sell her car and send the money to them in Colorado, but we can do whatever we want with the rest. I'm going to rent the place furnished and I'll let my tenants have first pick on everything else. That's why I said you should go up there and get something to wear... if you don't mind wearing her clothes, that is."

"Why would I mind wearing something of Rhonda's?"

"Because she's dead. You know, a lot of people are sensitive about things like that." ,

"It doesn't bother me," Hannah assured her. She'd hoped to get a peek inside Rhonda's apartment and this seemed like a gift from the gods.

"The only thing is, I can't go up there with you. Ted's at a meeting and he said he'd call right before he left for home to see if I needed anything. And I do. I want him to stop and pick up some laundry detergent."

Even better. Hannah tried not to look too excited. "That's okay, Beatrice. I can run up to Rhonda's apartment alone."

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"Are you sure you don't mind? I mean, with her being dead and all?"

"I don't mind," Hannah said, taking the key that Beatrice held out. "After all, she didn't die there. I'll grab something, put it on, and come right back down with the key."

"No hurry. Poke around a little and see if there's anything you can use. Everything she owned is up for grabs."

Hannah took a deep breath as she unlocked the door and stepped inside. She'd never been invited to Rhonda's apartment and it was little strange to be coming here now. It felt like intruding, but Hannah reminded herself that she had a perfect reason to search through Rhonda's things for clues since she was trying to solve her murder.

There was a switch by the inside of the door and Hannah flicked on the lights. Rhonda's apartment was pretty, like something out of a magazine, with color-coordinated cushions on the couch and a bowl of matching silk flowers on the coffee table. The kitchen was immaculate, but that was no surprise since Rhonda had been intending to leave on vacation.