Killing Weeds

by Joyce

“I had Dalton change alarm companies to the same one Brevard Court uses for the shops.” Peggy felt a flutter in her chest as she said it. “Does that mean whoever is doing this works at the alarm company?”

  “It’s possible.” Steve put his arm around her. “I’ve heard of cases like this before. I’m going to talk to someone at the company, and we’ll see what’s going on. Please stay here with your parents.”

  Peggy wrote the name of the company on a slip of paper. “Why? Whoever did this could have poisoned me at the same time but didn’t.”

  “Please.” Steve’s brown eyes stared into hers. “Let’s not take any chances.”

  The kettle whistled. She nodded. “All right.”

  Peggy stayed at the house with her parents. She spent the time on her computer looking up the names of the people she’d taken from the fur shop. If there was anything suspicious about them at all, she couldn’t find it. She also came up with a list of people who might hate her. The names were from cases she’d helped the police solve.

  She figured out the approximate amounts of hogweed to the other poison plants in the mixture that had killed Nita Honohan and texted it to Millie.

  At that point, her mind just wouldn’t let her go any farther. She sat, staring at her computer, until a chime sounded on her phone letting her know that she had a call.

  It was her friend, Nightflyer.

  “I’m so sorry,” he said. “I’ve been out of town.”

  “There was nothing you could do.”

  “Do you know who’s done these things?”

  “No. The police are still trying to figure it out. They don’t have much to go on.”

  “But you have a feeling?”

  “I have no idea who could hate me this much.”

  “You’re letting your emotions cloud your analytical skills.”

  “Maybe.”

  “You have to be sharp about this. I’ll do what I can to help from here.”

  “Where’s here?”

  “Hong Kong. And I only tell you that because I’m leaving.”

  “I’m sorry. Is there nowhere you can hide?”

  “No. And there is nowhere the woman stalking you can hide either. Not if you really look for her.”

  “Do you know who she is?”

  “No. I wish I did. Be careful. From the pattern of her actions, she wants you to be terrified before she kills you. Don’t give her that luxury.”

  “Thanks.”

  But there was no reply.

  Peggy had no idea who Nightflyer really was. She’d started playing online chess with him after John’s death. He’d told her they could never meet. Now she suspected he might know who actually killed John, and why.

  He’d been on the run the last few years after trying to get away from his past life. He never stayed anywhere for more than a day or two. She thought he might be a spy or some government official.

  She wished he would have had a better explanation for what had been happening to her. A lot of times he knew things before the police even though he was thousands of miles away. She pictured him in a room with dozens of computers and newsfeed coming in from all over the world keeping him updated.

  And yet it seemed he couldn’t even save himself. How did she expect him to know how to save her?

  For a while, before they were married, Peggy had suspected Steve of being Nightflyer. There was that night in the park across the street where she was supposed to meet her computer friend. Steve had been there, supposedly keeping an eye on her.

  Once they were married, Steve had such hard feelings about Nightflyer that she couldn’t imagine it was him anymore.

  “Get your head together, Peggy.” She looked at the people on the furrier’s list and the people on her list of possible suspects.

  What did they have in common?

  What was the one important clue she couldn’t tell from their names and addresses?

  “I can’t tell what you look like.” She circled the names of the three women on Stewart Purl’s list. The killer was careful with her identity. She went to great lengths to disguise herself from Paul and Sam. She could be anyone.

  She looked at the list of people she’d sent to jail. She’d barely known most of them—some of them not at all.

  “It can’t be one of those people. They’d only be guessing at what they could do to get back at me. This has to be someone who knows me personally.”

  Peggy circled the only name on the list that matched all the criteria—Ruth Sargent.

  Years ago a good friend of hers, a specialist in underwater forensics, had an affair and killed the man who loved her. The police had asked Peggy to look at a plant that was twined in the victim’s hair. She’d identified it as duckweed. Then she’d met her old friend, Ruth, who was working on the double homicide, also working for the police.

  Peggy hadn’t put the facts together until after everything was over. She’d realized that Ruth had killed her lover and his wife. Once she knew that Ruth had committed the perfect murders, and made a fool of her in the process, Peggy felt that she had to call the police.

  Ruth had been arrested and been charged with the murders. She was serving two life sentences somewhere in the state. She couldn’t be out of prison yet.

  Peggy called Al. She asked him about the case that had involved her old college friend.

  “Sure. I remember that. There’s no way she’s part of this. I can understand why you’d think she could be. But she’s still in prison.”

  “Are you sure? Is there any way to check?”

  “I can check with a phone call, Peggy. But there’s no way she’s out yet, not even for good behavior. I’ll call the prison and let you know for sure.”

  “Thanks, Al.”

  Peggy put her phone in her pocket and turned her mind to how it was possible to make the paste she’d found in the lining of Nita Honohan’s mink coat.

  Of course any plant, poisonous or not, could be made into salves and ointments. It was where the first medicines came from. All someone needed were the basic elements of the plant—flowers, leaves, berries, roots, or stems. Any of those could be, and had been, made into gels, powders, and other topical solutions.

  But if she was correct, and her stalker was Ruth, where did she get the idea? Ruth was clever, but she wasn’t a botanist. Putting together a poison solution to kill the tree she knew Peggy loved was one thing. Figuring out what to do with the giant hogweed was another.

  Still, it was possible. Ruth was intelligent and resourceful, as she’d found to her chagrin.

  Peggy looked through her journals that arrived monthly from various botanical groups and institutions. There were several mentions of hogweed and its march through the U.S. Everyone was worried about what would happen when it came into contact with larger numbers of people.

  She couldn’t find anything about experiments being done with hogweed. She checked everywhere she could think of online, but there was nothing.

  Her father brought her a cup of orange spice tea, one of her favorites.

  “How’s it going?” he asked.

  “I think it’s possible that I know who’s behind all of this. Ruth Sargent. She specializes in underwater forensics. I don’t know how much of a leap that would be into botany, but it makes sense.”

  Peggy explained about their friendship and turning Ruth over to the police. “Al says she’s still in prison, but he’s checking to make sure. Right now, she’s the only one that was my friend for many years, and would know all about me. I think she’d be capable of doing this.”

  “But if she’s in prison, Margaret, that wouldn’t make any sense.”

  “I know.” She sipped her tea. “We’ll see what Al has to say.”

  Her phone rang. It was Al.

  “Well, I found Ruth Sargent,” he said. “She’s not in prison.”

  Peggy’s heart fluttered as she carefully set down her cup of tea.

  “She escaped? Shouldn’t we have known about that?”

>   “You could say she escaped. Actually, she died last year.”

  Arrowhead

  Also known as Indian Potato because their tuberous roots can be eaten like potatoes. Native American women collected the plants by digging them out of the water with their toes. They were baked in fires and were a staple of their diet. Mostly wild today but also used as pond plants for indoor gardens.

  Chapter Nineteen

  “Are you sure?” Peggy asked.

  “Yeah. Pretty sure. She was killed in a knife fight at the prison. There was an autopsy and everything. She’s not our killer.”

  Ranson waited until Peggy said goodbye to Al.

  “So not the person you thought,” he guessed.

  “No.” Peggy thought hard about Ruth. “She was the only one I could think of. How could anyone else know where I lived, what I did, and exactly where to hurt me?”

  He hugged her. “You’ll come up with another name. There’s someone out there you’re not thinking about, honey. Maybe you should get off the computer for a while and come downstairs with your mother and me.”

  “You know, Dad. I think I’ll get away from the computer for a while, but I’m heading to The Potting Shed.”

  “There’s nothing you can do there right now. And you promised Steve you’d stay here so we know you’re safe.”

  “Dad, I—”

  Her phone rang again. This time it was Bobby Dean.

  “Peggy, I just wanted to give you a status update on your claim for The Potting Shed. The police have finished their investigation into the break-in and vandalism. They have no suspects at this time but have assured me that they will continue to look into it.”

  “Does that leave you clear to write me a check for the damages?”

  “There’s only one thing that still bites my butt. What happened to the alarm company? I haven’t been able to get any answers out of them. I’ve never had this problem before. I’m reluctant to release those funds until we know that your shop will be adequately protected.”

  “I understand. I’m reluctant to put new things in there, too, until a new alarm system is set up.”

  “If it wouldn’t be too much trouble, I was wondering if you could meet me at the shop today. The techs from the alarm company are supposed to be there surveying the damage and giving us an idea of what happened.”

  Peggy smiled at her father. “I’d be happy to meet you there, Bobby. What time?”

  “I’m headed that way now. Let’s say thirty minutes?”

  “That’s fine. It would be nice to get all of this out of the way.”

  “Thank you, Peggy. I’ll see you then.”

  “I suppose you’re proud of yourself,” Ranson said after she was finished on the phone. “You found a way out. But you’re not going alone. I’ll call Sam, Paul, and Al to meet us there. Maybe I’ll call Steve and Hunter too.”

  “That’s fine, Dad. I think they’ll be a little bored talking to my insurance adjuster, but call them all. Maybe Mom would like to go too.”

  “I could shake you sometimes.” He shook his head instead. “You’re as stubborn as your mother.”

  “Stubborn? What about you?”

  “I’m stubborn, but I have other redeeming qualities that offset it.”

  “Wait until I tell Mom that. I’m sure we’d both like to hear about your redeeming qualities.”

  “Well, no matter what, you’re not leaving this house alone. Just get used to it.”

  Peggy sighed and went downstairs with her father and Shakespeare at her heels.

  Lilla didn’t feel her presence would make much difference if someone wanted to kill her daughter. “I’ll stay here and keep an eye on things.”

  “And what are you going to do if the killer shows up at the door?” Peggy asked.

  Lilla pulled a small, pearl-handle revolver out of her handbag. “I’ve been shooting since I was a little girl. I’m not worried about killing someone who might be after my family. You two go on. I’ll hold down the fort here.”

  Ranson and Peggy left, meeting Walter as they walked out of the house.

  “I’m glad to see you,” he told Peggy. “I’ve been looking around all morning for any research where hogweed may have been used as a poison in a homicide before. No one has ever heard of such a thing. I’m hitting a dead end even at my conspiracy sites. Do you have any information?”

  “No, she doesn’t.” Ranson took Peggy’s arm as he started toward the car. “And if she did, she wouldn’t share it with you after you stole her job.”

  Peggy took her arm from her father and turned back to her friend. “I’ve been doing the same thing all morning, Walter. I’ve hit several dead ends with the poison and the suspect I had in mind. I don’t think I can help you right now.”

  Walter glanced up at Ranson’s lean body that was much taller than his. “Thank you for your help. Perhaps you could explain to others that I haven’t taken your position with the city. It is only for this case.”

  Her father didn’t respond. He got in the car on the passenger side and closed the door.

  Peggy got in the car too. “If I’m okay with what happened between me and Walter, you should be too. He didn’t know what he was doing this morning. But he made up for it by preparing me for the police raid on my basement.”

  No matter what she said, he was angry at her neighbor. Talk about being stubborn!

  They reached The Potting Shed at the same time as Bobby Dean and parked close together behind the shop. It was sad to see Brevard Court bustling and the garden shop closed. She had to remind herself that it wouldn’t be this way much longer.

  They let themselves in through the back door. There was no sign of the alarm company yet. Peggy left the door open to get some air inside. She couldn’t do the same with the front door, or she’d risk turning away customers.

  Everything was as they’d left it. The space looked oddly empty and sad after years of being filled to the brim. Peggy was excited to see the little lizard sitting on the side of the pond sunning himself. At least that hadn’t changed.

  If you could only talk, she considered.

  There was a knock at the front door. Two men in gray uniforms waited impatiently for her to open it.

  “We’re here from the alarm company.”

  “Yes.” She stood back and let them in.

  Bobby and Peggy introduced themselves to the men.

  “I have a few questions,” Bobby said. “Did you bring your supervisor with you?”

  The alarm company employees glanced at each other as though they had no idea what he was talking about.

  “No. We’re here to repair the alarm. No one mentioned answering questions. Our supervisor is out of town.”

  “I’m sorry, but I can’t allow you to repair this alarm and have it connected to the service again,” Bobby said. “At least not until we know why the alarm wasn’t triggered at your end when it was cut.”

  The two techs shrugged, clearly out of their depths.

  “Sorry,” the first tech said. “But if we don’t reconnect the alarm today, it could be a week before we’ll be back.”

  Bobby frowned. “I’m sorry, Peggy, but I just can’t authorize this.”

  “I guess that’s that.” She smiled at the men from the alarm service and handed them her business card. “Could you get someone to give me a call? I’d like to get this done, but I need the insurance company to be happy with it too.”

  One of the men took the card and stuffed it into his pocket. “You know all the alarms in Brevard court and Latta Arcade are with the same leasing company, and we do all their work. Eventually, you’ll have to hook up with us whether you like it or not.”

  Peggy wasn’t happy with his tone, but he wasn’t the one she needed to talk to. “Just have your supervisor give me a call when he’s back. Thanks.”

  They seemed dumbfounded at being turned away, but eventually they left, hurrying down the cobblestones toward their truck parked on the street.

&n
bsp; “Now what?” Ranson asked. “You can’t open your business again until this is settled?”

  Peggy and Ranson both stared at Bobby.

  He didn’t back down from his original statement. “I’m sorry. I’m going to meet with someone from the security firm again. I need to know that the alarm problem isn’t going to happen again. I’m sure you want that peace of mind too.”

  Peggy agreed that it was important. But so was getting The Potting Shed up and running again. She couldn’t restock a shelf or order more plants until this was settled.

  “I understand, even though I don’t like it. Thanks for your help.”

  “We’ll get through this, Peggy.” Bobby shook her hand. “Trust me. We want you back in business too.”

  Bobby nodded to Ranson and then left too.

  Peggy waved goodbye to him and took out her phone.

  “Calling Steve?” her father asked.

  “Maybe he’s got the answers we need from the alarm company.”

  But Steve didn’t answer, and Peggy had to leave him a message. She was ready to leave when Emil and Sofia came through the front door.

  “Oh my God!” Sofia threw her arms around Peggy. “What you’ve been through. No one should have to go through this. Come back with us to The Kozy Kettle. We’ll make you food, and you’ll feel better.”

  Lavender

  While lavender has been used for hundreds of years, it is considered unsafe to apply to the skin of young boys. Lavender oil has a hormonal effect that could disrupt the normal hormone balance in a boy's body. Lavender also has a calming effect on the central nervous system that may be harmful during surgery. Do not use at least two weeks prior to surgery.

  Chapter Twenty

  Emil’s thick gray mustache wiggled as he agreed with his wife. “You haven’t been eating. Look at you—wasting away because that worthless husband of yours can’t protect you. We have a cousin, Milo. He’s not much to look at, but he’s rich. You’d never have to work another day in your life.”

  Emil and Sofia had first met Peggy when she was alone, after John’s death. They had always tried to play matchmaker with her then, and the tradition continued. The couple had never grown to like Steve. They thought he was bad for her and that she should get rid of him to marry one of their many family members.