by Laura Childs
In that same split second, as everything hung in the balance, Theodosia brought her other hand around to grasp the pistol tightly. It was now or never. Time to roll the dice and hope she didn’t come up with snake eyes. She had one shot and it had to be perfect. Her aim had to be true and she couldn’t dare flinch.
At the very last millisecond, Alexis caught a flash of Theodosia’s hands snapping together, gripping the pistol, and taking aim. She barely had time to blink, to think what to do or adjust her own aim . . .
Theodosia squeezed the trigger.
BOOM!
31
The noise was deafening, reverberating and throbbing throughout the entire Great Hall. Glass cases rattled, people screamed. Fearing stray bullets or even a terrorist attack, many guests flung themselves down on the floor and covered their heads.
The pistol, which was heavy and clunky to begin with, bucked hard in Theodosia’s hands and threw off a galaxy of hot white sparks. Her inner ear registered a concussion of noise that rendered her practically deaf; the right side of her face absorbed a slight blowback of gunpowder, like a fine silk mist. The smell of sulfur burned strong in her nose.
Two seconds later, Theodosia blinked rapidly as she peered through a haze of smoke. Had her shot hit its mark? She wasn’t sure.
Alexis was still standing there, staring at her. Her mouth had dropped open, her eyes were steely bright like a pair of silver nickels.
What do I do now? was Theodosia’s first, panicked thought.
Then a red spot suddenly bloomed on Alexis’s white wool jacket. Like poppies on a dead soldier’s grave. The spot grew larger.
Alexis looked down at her jacket. “You . . .” she stammered. The horror of what had just happened slowly registered on her face. “You . . .”
“You shot her,” was Drayton’s whisper, hot in Theodosia’s ear. “Good work.”
Then everything happened at once. People screamed, Alexis dropped her gun, Aunt Libby wriggled free.
One second later, Pete Riley was there, talking softly to Theodosia, telling her it was over, trying to pry the pistol out of her frozen hands.
Bill Glass didn’t know what to do, so he started taking pictures, his strobe going boom, boom, boom, flashing as brilliantly as that first bomb at Trinity Site.
Alexis, still standing, and then slowly crumpling to the floor like the melting witch in The Wizard of Oz, finally thought to scream. “Help me, I’m shot! She shot me!”
Theodosia didn’t much care. She turned her back on Alexis, grabbed for Aunt Libby, and swept her into her arms. Aunt Libby stared at Theodosia, searching her niece’s face, first looking stunned, and then grateful.
“You saved me,” Aunt Libby whispered.
“Yes,” Theodosia murmured. “Of course.” She would have given her life for her. Pressing Aunt Libby’s head against her shoulder, she hugged her tight. Her aunt’s shoulders felt frail and narrow in her grasp. But she was alive and well.
“You daring girl,” Aunt Libby whispered. “So brave, just like your father.”
That was the one thing that finally brought hot tears to Theodosia’s eyes. Her dad, Aunt Libby’s brother, had been dead a dozen years or more, but was always in her heart. Maybe even watching over her.
32
They say it isn’t over until the fat lady sings. Or, in this case, a fat detective—Detective Burt Tidwell, to be exact—who showed up to declare the evening over.
Alexis had been taken away in an ambulance some ten minutes earlier, though Bill Glass had opted not to ride along with her. He seemed content to remain at the Heritage Society and annoy everyone by snapping pictures. When an officer asked him to quit it, he wandered around looking sad and discombobulated.
Names of guests were quickly recorded by a bevy of uniformed officers. The police would request formal witness statements at a later date.
Timothy rounded up his board of directors for a hasty meeting. They took a vote and decided to table the election of any new board members for the time being.
And Theodosia—well, Theodosia seemed to be at the center of the swirling maelstrom.
Betty Bates was the first to approach her. She sidled up to Theodosia and sneered, “Thanks to you I probably won’t be elected to the board of directors.” She hurled her words at Theodosia as if they were an accusation of treason.
“Say, now,” Tidwell said, cutting in to what was essentially a verbal attack. “You get away from her.” He made a shooing motion with his hands. “Officer Lowry?” He lowered a furry eyebrow at a uniformed officer who stood directly at his elbow. “Kindly remove this person from our presence.”
“You can’t do . . .” Betty began to burble a protest. But to no avail. The officer was bigger, stronger, and carried a gun.
“It was Aunt Libby who cracked the case,” Theodosia said to Tidwell. “Alexis was never on our radar at all.” She shook her head as Tidwell gazed sympathetically at her. “We thought it might be Sissy Lanier . . .”
“No, never her,” Tidwell said. “Lady didn’t have the guts for killing.”
“Or Jud Harker,” Theodosia continued.
“Harker’s only crime was being a lost soul,” Tidwell said, sounding almost philosophical.
“Or Bob Garver,” Theodosia said, rounding out her list.
Tidwell snapped an index finger at her. “Now, that fellow is in serious trouble. We’re not just talking felony here, we could be looking at multiple counts of fraud and breaking federal statutes.” He sounded almost gleeful as he rocked back on his heels and clasped his hands across his belly. “But not murder, though you were certainly on him for it like a foul stench on a skunk.” He stopped abruptly, aware that Theodosia might not be appreciating his particular brand of humor. “Miss Browning?” he said. “Are you feeling all right?” Tidwell had gone from rapturous gloating to solicitous concern.
Theodosia shook her head. “Not really. I’m feeling a little shaky.”
Tidwell raised a hand and made a twirling motion.
Detective Pete Riley was there in a heartbeat.
“Our Miss Browning is not feeling well,” Tidwell said. “Perhaps you could attend to her properly and then see that she is escorted home?”
“Of course,” Riley said. He put an arm around Theodosia and led her to one of the tables in the now-deserted bar area. His hands were gentle, as if he were caring for a precious Dresden doll. When they were both seated, Riley reached across the table and took both of Theodosia’s hands in his. “Are you okay?”
“No,” Theodosia said. Then, “Well, I will be. I think I just need to catch my breath.”
“Lots of excitement tonight. Probably too much.” Riley looked worried. As if he were about to call another ambulance.
Theodosia met his gaze. “Are you disappointed in me?” she asked. She hoped he wasn’t. She hoped he wouldn’t go all law enforcement on her and lecture her on taking foolish risks. Or discharging firearms in public. And she really hoped he wasn’t going to tell her they were finished. That tonight had been the final straw.
“No!” Riley said. “I’m not disappointed in you at all. I’m actually quite . . . impressed.”
“You mean because I had the guts to actually shoot someone?”
“I was thinking more about your aim.” Now a faint smile played across Riley’s handsome face. “I think I might put you up as a ringer in our next interdepartmental shooting match.”
Theodosia offered a smile of her own. “I did get some practice in tonight.”
They sat there in companionable silence then, watching everything wind down around them, seeing all the guests ushered out.
“What about this black-tie cat ball?” Riley finally asked her.
Theodosia nodded. “You mean the Hair Ball? Over at the Commodore Hotel?”
“Right,” Riley said. “Should I take you hom
e and then get changed into that monkey suit I rented? Do you still want to go?”
Theodosia peered at him carefully. “Do you want to go?”
“Not really,” Riley said almost sheepishly. “Black tie isn’t exactly my style, and that suit wasn’t engineered for comfort.”
“You know what?” Theodosia said. “I have a better idea.” She stood up, walked over to the bar, and grabbed an unopened bottle of champagne. Good French champagne. She came back and set it on the table. “Compliments of Timothy and the Heritage Society.”
“I like how you think,” Riley said with a grin. “Your house, kick back with a bottle of champagne in front of the fireplace . . . what else do you need?”
Theodosia smiled. “I can probably think of something.”
A WINTER NIGHT
BY SUNG DYNASTY POET TU HSIAO-SHAN
One winter night
A friend dropped in.
We drank not wine but tea.
The kettle hissed,
The charcoal glowed,
A bright moon shone outside.
The moon itself
Was nothing special—
But, ah, the plum-tree blossom!
FAVORITE RECIPES FROM
The Indigo Tea Shop
Haley’s Plum Crazy Plum Crisp
12 plums, pitted and chopped
1 cup sugar, divided
1 cup sifted flour
1½ tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
1 beaten egg
½ cup melted butter
PREHEAT oven to 350 degrees. Grease an 8-inch-by-8-inch baking dish. Spread plums into the baking dish and sprinkle with ¼ cup sugar. In a bowl, mix together ¾ cup sugar, flour, baking powder, and salt. Combine with beaten egg and spoon mixture over plums. Drizzle batter with melted butter. Bake in oven until topping is golden brown, about 40 minutes. Serve with cream, whipped cream, or cinnamon whipped cream. Serves 4 to 6.
Cinnamon Whipped Cream
2 cups heavy cream
¼ cup sugar
1½ tsp. ground cinnamon
½ tsp. vanilla extract
BEAT heavy cream on high speed in well-chilled bowl. Slowly add sugar, cinnamon, and vanilla extract. Continue beating until stiff peaks form. Serve on your favorite dessert; store any extra in refrigerator.
Turkey Waldorf Tea Sandwiches
½ cup mayonnaise
1½ cups diced, cooked turkey
½ cup dried cranberries
½ cup chopped, toasted pecans
1 apple, diced
¼ cup chopped onion
Butter
6 slices bread
IN medium bowl, combine all ingredients, adding a small amount of extra mayonnaise if needed. Butter 6 slices of bread. Top 3 of the slices with the turkey mixture, then place the remaining three slices on top. Cut off crusts, slice sandwich diagonally into quarters. Yields 12 small tea sandwiches.
Sinfully Chocolate Tea Bread
¼ cup butter
⅔ cup sugar
1 egg, beaten
2 cups sifted cake flour
1 tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. salt
⅓ cup powdered cocoa, unsweetened
1 cup buttermilk
¾ cup chopped walnuts
CREAM together butter, sugar, and egg. Gently stir in cake flour, baking soda, salt, powdered cocoa, buttermilk, and walnuts. When ingredients are well mixed, pour into a greased loaf pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour, or until silver knife comes out clean. Yields 1 large loaf.
Baked French Toast
1 stick butter
1 cup brown sugar
12 slices bread
5 eggs
1½ cup milk
Cinnamon
MAKE ahead in the evening: Melt butter and pour into a 9-inch-by-12-inch pan. Mix in brown sugar. Lay bread in pan, 2 slices deep. Beat together eggs and milk. Pour mixture over bread and sprinkle with cinnamon to taste. Cover overnight. In the morning, bake uncovered at 350 degrees for 45 minutes. Serve for breakfast. Yields 4 to 6 servings.
Greek Meatloaf
1 lb. ground turkey
½ cup crumbled feta cheese
1 cup fresh spinach, chopped
1 egg
¼ cup bread crumbs
Garlic powder
Oregano
Salt and pepper
PREHEAT oven to 325 degrees. In large bowl, mix together turkey, feta cheese, chopped spinach, egg, and bread crumbs. Add garlic powder, oregano, and salt and pepper to taste. Place gently in large loaf pan. Bake for approximately 45 minutes. Slice and serve with a salad for dinner. Yields 4 to 6 servings.
Apple-Yogurt Chicken Bake
4 unpeeled tart apples, chopped
1 cup plain yogurt
4 medium chicken breasts
2 oranges
PREHEAT oven to 350 degrees. Spread chopped apples in the bottom of a lightly oiled casserole dish. Pour yogurt over the apples and stir lightly to combine. Place the chicken breasts over the apple-yogurt mixture. Cut unpeeled oranges into thin slices and place atop chicken for flavor and to keep it from drying out. Bake for 1 hour. Remove orange slices before serving. Yields 4 servings.
Old-Fashioned Griddle Scones
2 cups flour
1 tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. cream of tartar
1 Tbsp. sugar
¼ tsp. salt
¼ cup butter, chilled and cut into pieces
1¼ cups buttermilk
1 large egg, beaten
IN a large bowl, combine flour, baking soda, cream of tartar, sugar, and salt. Using a knife or pastry blender, cut in butter until mixture is coarse and crumbly. Add buttermilk and beaten egg and mix lightly until mixture forms a soft dough. (If you need to add a little more buttermilk, that’s okay.) Grease a griddle or fry pan and bring to medium heat. Drop heaping tablespoons of dough to create 3 or 4 scones. Using the back of a spoon, press each one gently to flatten. Cook scones until golden brown, then flip to grill the other side. Scones are cooked when they are golden brown on both sides and center is firm to the touch. Remove from heat and cook the rest of the scones. Serve warm with Devonshire cream or butter and jam. Yields 8 scones.
Drayton’s Easy-Peasy Devonshire Cream
1 pkg. cream cheese (3 oz.)
1 Tbsp. sugar
1 pinch salt
1 cup heavy cream
IN medium bowl, cream together cream cheese, sugar, and salt. Beat in cream until stiff peaks form. Chill until serving. Perfect for topping your fresh-baked scones!
Asparagus and Gruyère Cheese Tart
1 sheet frozen puff pastry
2 cups Gruyère cheese, shredded
1½ lbs. medium-sized asparagus
1 Tbsp. olive oil
Salt and pepper
PREHEAT oven to 400 degrees. On a floured work surface, roll the puff pastry into a 16-inch-by-10-inch rectangle. Trim any uneven edges and place pastry on a lightly greased baking sheet. Using a sharp knife, lightly score pastry dough 1 inch in from the edges to form a rectangle. Using a fork, pierce the dough inside the markings at half-inch intervals. Bake dough until golden brown, about 15 minutes. Sprinkle Gruyère cheese on baked pastry shell. Trim the bottoms of the asparagus spears to fit crosswise inside the tart shell. Arrange asparagus in a single layer over the Gruyère, alternating tips and ends. Brush with olive oil, season with salt and pepper. Bake until spears are tender, about 20 to 25 minutes. Serves 4 to 6 as a side dish.
TEA TIME TIPS FROM
Laura Childs
Artist’s Tea
Channel the artists of eighteenth-century Paris who’d gather in the afternoon for a leisurely tea. Stack art and photography books in the middle of your table and create a cente
rpiece using paintbrushes, ferns, and flowers. Color copies of famous artworks make wonderful place mats. Be sure to use your art pottery or a fun array of mix-and-match china. Parmesan-rosemary scones are a lovely first course, followed by shrimp risotto and pear cheesecake bites for dessert. Serve a Ceylon black tea with your meal and a crème brûlée–flavored black tea with your dessert.
Tea Exchange
Have you heard of the famed tea auctions in Amsterdam? Well, this is a simplified mini version. Invite your friends to tea and ask them to bring a tin of their very favorite tea. Then have a good supply of muslin tea sacks or paper tea bags available so guests can exchange their favorite teas with each other. Then sit down for a simple but lovely cream tea. Serve cranberry or chocolate chip scones with clotted cream, a small chicken salad tea sandwich, and peanut butter bars for dessert. And enjoy the aromas from all those fresh-brewed teas!
French Tea
After a stroll through the Louvre or shopping at Galeries Lafayette, a French tea is in order. This can be served casually in front of a fireplace or at an elegant table. Polish all your best silver and put out your fine china—this is the time to let it sparkle. Fresh flowers are a must, as are white candles and sugar crystals in your sugar bowl. Édith Piaf on the sound system will set the mood for your first course of raspberry scones with crème fraîche. Crab salad on brioche is a delicious second course, and madeleines or an opera cake is perfect for dessert. If you can’t get to Mariage Frères in Paris for their gourmet tea, simply order from mariagefreres.com.
Tea Totalers Tea
Because caffeinated tea isn’t everyone’s cup of tea, why not have a Tea Totalers Tea? This is your chance to explore a riot of herbal teas and floral infusions. Think lemon verbena, catnip, chamomile, ginger, chrysanthemum, and even lavender. In keeping with the herbal and floral theme, serve cranberry-orange scones with clotted cream, herbed cream cheese on dark bread, and hazelnut-spice bars. Pretty up your tea table with your best china and a bouquet of flowers and give everyone a packet of seeds as a party favor.
