The Other Lady Vanishes (Burning Cove #2)(94)
“Except that it looks like she had a visitor who murdered her. You said Paxton denied killing Zolanda, so obviously it must have been Leggett who did it. After all, she’s the one who ended up with the stash of blackmail secrets.”
“Paxton was convinced Leggett murdered Zolanda. That makes sense but it still leaves me with my question—what did Zolanda think she was doing when she gave that final prediction?”
“I have no idea. Let me know if you come up with any good theories.” Raina put down her cup and opened a desk drawer to take out a notebook. “Meanwhile, I’m going to start work on my new case.”
“You said you solved Luther Pell’s missing liquor problem.”
“I did.” Raina looked pleased. “There wasn’t much to it, really. But it turns out that handling Luther’s case made for some excellent word-of-mouth advertising. I got a call from Mr. O’Conner. He’s the head of security at the Burning Cove Hotel. He asked me to make some inquiries into the background of someone the hotel is considering for employment.”
Adelaide smiled. “You did it, Raina. You got your investigation business up and running. Congratulations.”
“What about you? Now that you’ve got access to your inheritance, surely you’re going to stop working at the tearoom.”
“I dropped in at the tearoom before I came here to see you. I wanted to let Florence know that I was back in town and that all was well. I told her I could work for her as long as she needed me and that I would continue to blend teas for people.”
Raina’s eyes widened. “What will you do when you’re not blending teas and tisanes?”
“I plan to establish a private library of herbals and other books on the medicinal uses of plants. It will be open to scholars and researchers.”
“Sounds like you’ve got a lot of new dreams,” Raina said. “What about Jake?”
“As it happens, he does have a job.”
Raina laughed. “Yes, I know, Luther told me that he writes those Cooper Boone spy novels. What I meant was, will he be staying here in Burning Cove?”
A sense of happiness sparkled through Adelaide. “Yes. He plans to stay in Burning Cove.”
“With you?” Raina asked.
“With me.”
“That is very good news,” Raina said. “We must get together soon and celebrate.”
“Great idea.”
“But not tonight,” Raina said. She smiled a small, secretive smile. “I’ve got plans for tonight.”
“Jake and I have plans for this evening, too, but maybe tomorrow . . . Wait. What do you mean you’ve got plans for tonight? Something to do with your new case?”
“No. I’ve been invited to the Paradise Club for cocktails and dinner.”
Adelaide raised her brows. “With Luther?”
“Yes.”
“I didn’t know the Paradise Club served dinner.”
“It doesn’t. Dinner will be in Luther’s private quarters above the club. He is sending a car to pick me up.”
“That,” Adelaide said, “sounds very interesting.”
Raina’s smiled widened. “I certainly thought so.”
Adelaide cleared her throat. “I’m sure you know what you’re doing, but as your friend I feel obliged to point out that Pell has a reputation for being connected to some dangerous people.”
“Look who’s talking. You’re not exactly dating a Boy Scout, are you?”
Adelaide laughed. “All right, you’ve got me there. And, to be fair, Luther and Jake aren’t dating Girl Scouts, are they? Look at us. We’re not the sort of high-class ladies that nice guys take home to meet their mothers. I’m an escapee from an insane asylum and you’re a private detective who investigates people with shady pasts.”
“The way I look at it, what we lack in polish and refinement we more than make up for with a quality that, I do believe, is highly valued by men like Luther and Jake.”
“Ah, yes.” Adelaide smiled. “We are interesting women.”
“Precisely. I doubt that they will ever find us dull or boring.”
“We can say the same about them, can’t we? They may be complicated at times. And stubborn. Even difficult.”
“But if either of us ever vanished, they would both walk into hell to find us.”
“Yes,” Adelaide said. She smiled. “Yes, they would.”
Chapter 52
She drove back to the cottage, parked in the small garage, and took the hatbox out of the trunk. It occurred to her as she went up the front steps that she could afford a larger place now. But she had grown oddly attached to the little house. Because Jake moved in with me, she thought. It was his presence that made the cottage feel like home.
Taking the key out of her handbag, she let herself into the small, cozy house. She headed for the kitchen, set the hatbox on the table, and put the kettle on the stove. Next she spooned her strongest tea into a pot. She needed to do some serious thinking.
While she waited for the water to boil, she lounged against the counter, folded her arms, and contemplated Madam Zolanda’s final prediction.
So many things had been explained, yet the circumstances of the blackmailer’s death remained murky. Why the melodramatic ending to her final performance?