Red Velvet Cupcake Murder (Hannah Swensen, #16)(62)

“That would be good. Doctor Bev and Roger’s furniture. They just finished delivering it.”

“Of course. I forgot all about it. Roger asked you to meet the delivery truck.”

Andrea accepted the glass of milk and took a sip before she nodded. “It’s gorgeous, Hannah. Just wait until you see it!”

“The furniture and not the delivery truck?”

“Right. White leather. Can you imagine? It’s just incredible against the midnight blue carpet. One piece is a twenty-two-foot curved sectional with four built-in recliners. That’s in front of the biggest flat-screen I’ve ever seen, even bigger than the one Mayor Bascomb bought for the Super Bowl. And the couches they bought to go in front of the fireplace are unbelievable! They’re the kind you see in old movies, the ones without arms that you could sleep on if you wanted to. Shrinks use them . . . you know.”

“Chaise lounges?”

“Yeah. Just like that. And the bed is up on a pedestal and it looks like something a queen would sleep in. Come with me right now. You’ve just got to see it! And the dome’s in now so we can go out and look at the things they bought for the rooftop garden. Don’t say no, Hannah. I need to take some pictures and post them on our website.”

Hannah began to frown. “Isn’t that a little invasive? It’s Roger’s furniture and I think you should ask him before you do something like that.”

Andrea stared at her in bewilderment for a moment and then she laughed. “Oh, no wonder you thought that! I forgot to tell you. Roger’s going to sell the penthouse furnished. He says he doesn’t want to live there now that Doctor Bev is gone. He was so sad when they delivered the furniture that he could only stay a minute or two. He’s a broken man, Hannah. I think he really loved her.”

“Hmmm.” Hannah made the most noncommittal sound she could think of. It seemed almost inconceivable that Roger hadn’t seen the nasty side of Doctor Bev, but she supposed it was possible.

“Come on.” Andrea stood up and jammed the one cookie that was left into her pocket. “Let’s go!”

Hannah grabbed her purse. “Okay, but that chocolate’s going to melt in this heat.”

“What chocolate?”

“The chocolate in the cookie you just put in your pocket.”

“Oh. You’re probably right.” Andrea removed the cookie from her pocket and gave a little shrug. “Don’t worry about it. I’ll eat it on the way to the car.”

Since the Albion Hotel was only a block and a half away, it took only a minute or two before Andrea was parking in the reserved area of the parking garage. “Come on, Hannah,” she said, getting out of her car and brushing cookie crumbs off her skirt.

Hannah smiled in amusement as she followed her sister into the lobby and across the floor to the private elevator that would take them to the penthouse. “How did you know where to put the furniture if Roger wasn’t there?” she asked.

“The delivery guys had a diagram and a man they called an executive account specialist drove in from Minneapolis to help. I really didn’t have to do anything except watch and lock up when they were finished.”

“So Roger never saw the penthouse with the furniture they chose in place?”

Andrea shook her head. “He said he couldn’t bear to see it, and that’s when he told me to keep the penthouse on the market and sell it furnished, that it would show better that way.”

“I guess that’s true.” Hannah followed Andrea into the elevator and watched her press the button for the penthouse. “I know it’s crazy, but this elevator makes me nervous. It shakes a little.”

“I know. I’m not that fond of it, either. But they inspected it and it’s perfectly safe.”

“What if the power goes out?”

“There’s a generator that’s supposed to kick in and take over if the main power fails.”

“You said it’s supposed to kick in. Do you have doubts?”

“Yes. The generator is old and Roger’s having it replaced with a new one in a couple of days, but for now all we have is the old one.”

“How about fire? You’re not supposed to use elevators in case of fire, are you?”

“No, but there’s a staircase. It’s like Sally’s old staircase that the servants used when the Inn was a private mansion. This one was for the maids and there’s a landing on every floor. The maids used it to carry up the linens when the Albion was first built. It’s right off the hallway by the regular elevator.”

“There’s no hallway on the penthouse floor. Where’s the door to the staircase?”

“In the kitchen. You probably didn’t notice it, because it looks just like another pantry door.”

“Interesting,” Hannah said as the elevator doors opened onto the foyer. They stepped into the living room and she gasped at the array of expensive furniture. Doctor Bev hadn’t been exaggerating when she’d said they’d spent the entire weekend shopping!

Andrea heard the gasp Hannah gave when she turned toward the living room fireplace. “I forgot to tell you about the grand piano. It’s a Steinway.”

“Did Doctor Bev play?”

“No, and neither does Roger. It’s just decoration.” Hannah was almost speechless. She’d never seen such luxury before. She’d always known that Roger and his father had money, but this was way over the line between sumptuous and conspicuous consumption.