Wanda prompted Myrtle. “Then Puddin showed off.”
Puddin whipped her head around to frown at Wanda.
Myrtle said, “That’s indeed the case. The town was buzzing that Puddin knew who the killer was. And Philomena didn’t want to take the chance that it was true.”
“It was a stupid thing to say,” said Philomena icily.
Tippy said with a frown, “But what about Gabriel? Gabriel was attacked before Puddin was.”
Myrtle said to Philomena, “You must have felt as if you were under siege from all sides, didn’t you?”
Philomena shrugged. “Everyone seemed to know something. And I was unlucky. Gabriel had dropped by the library when I was at Amos’s house. He asked for me at the circulation desk and was told I’d stepped out for a minute to make a phone call.”
Myrtle nodded thoughtfully. “So you acted as if you were still going to be on the library grounds, in preparation for your alibi. But there was no phone call, of course. You’d stepped outside to rush to Amos’s house. And Gabriel, when he stepped outside to look for you on the phone, never saw you.”
Wanda croaked, “Bad luck. Or bad karma.”
Myrtle continued, “Then Gabriel realized what it all meant when he learned that Amos had been murdered. He knew that Philomena didn’t really have an alibi.”
Tippy said, “And that she had a motive.” She put her hand protectively to her throat as Philomena shot her a look.
Wanda said, “Then more bad luck.”
Myrtle said, “More bad luck for Philomena and for Puddin. Puddin, you clearly must have happened upon Philomena at Gabriel’s garage.”
Puddin frowned suspiciously and Miles clarified, “You saw Philomena when you were at the garage.”
Puddin looked defensive. “Didn’t know I did.”
“Well, I saw you,” said Philomena with a snarl.
“Don’t mean that I was payin’ attention,” said Puddin heatedly.
Miles said, “So Gabriel was blackmailing Philomena, then? Just as Amos was blackmailing him?”
Myrtle said slowly, “I don’t somehow see Gabriel that way. I see him more as a big cat torturing a small, helpless creature.”
“Except that I wasn’t helpless,” said Philomena. “And I wasn’t in the mood to play games. He came by the library the day before the funeral and made all of these vague references right in front of other patrons.”
“He enjoyed that, I bet,” said Myrtle. “And then you started worrying about Puddin. Realizing she was also going to the gala, you looked for an opportunity to get her alone. Which she provided when she decided to go put her feet up for a while on a pool chaise and eat.”
“Better than them loud speakers and no comfy seats,” muttered Puddin.
The sound of an approaching emergency vehicle made them turn.
“The ambulance?” asked Philomena, looking hopeful.
“The police,” said Myrtle succinctly.
Tippy sighed and brushed a miniscule speck from her immaculate white slacks. “I’m certainly glad it’s over.”
Philomena said, “I would have gotten away with it if it hadn’t been for Puddin.”
Puddin gave her a baffled look through narrowed eyes, having no idea how she had played any role in the proceedings whatsoever.
Myrtle said, “If Wanda hadn’t led me to where you were attempting Puddin’s murder, we wouldn’t have had proof to take to the police. As it happens, we now have two excellent witnesses.”
Wanda seemed to stand a bit taller as she grinned at Myrtle.
Red jogged up to their group with the ambulance arriving a couple of minutes later. He took Puddin aside first to interview and Myrtle could hear Puddin’s animated account from yards away. Now that Puddin realized that she was off the hook for the murders, she was her old, sassy self again.
“An’ I solved the case, too. That’s why she wanted to kill me,” said Puddin loudly.
Lieutenant Perkins arrived and he was speaking with Erma. Erma was also bragging about her exploits. “And I waved the shovel at Philomena. I could tell she thought it was all over. It reminded me of this time when I had this horrible stomach virus.”
Myrtle sighed. Poor Lieutenant Perkins. First, he was speaking to Erma and then he was going to have to suspend his disbelief and interview Wanda.
Sloan appeared with his date some distance behind him. His eyes wide he mouthed, “You okay?” Myrtle nodded and mouthed, “My story.” Sloan nodded and started taking pictures for the paper.
The gala was over and everyone was heading to their cars, craning their necks to figure out what was going on with the police cars, ambulance, golf cart, newspaper editor taking pictures, and assorted group of gala attendees. Finally, Red and Lieutenant Perkins questioned Myrtle. Puddin had fallen asleep by then, curled up in the golf cart.
Lieutenant Perkins listened attentively to Myrtle’s story, carefully making notes. Red listened, too, although he made short, exasperated sounds whenever Wanda’s name figured into the narrative. Perkins said at the end, “So, in your opinion, Amos was killed for revenge.”
Myrtle said, “That’s right. Because Philomena had always been babied. She’d always gotten her way. She couldn’t handle rejection. And then Gabriel’s death was all to protect her from discovery. Gabriel was determined to tease her with the information . . . he never planned on profiting from it. Instead, he found himself murdered.”
Lieutenant Perkins nodded soberly. “Well, Mrs. Clover, I think that’s all I have for you for tonight. I hope you can go home and get some rest. It’s been a long night for you.” A state policeman called him away and he added, “Excuse me.”
Red said, “Mama, I hope you know that you had a lucky escape. Philomena was nobody to be messed with.”
Myrtle said, “It seems to me that Puddin had the lucky escape. I was never in any danger.” She paused. “Are you following me home tonight for some food? Unless you’ve succumbed to the uber-healthy diet?”
Red grinned. “No. Elaine has given up her healthy living agenda. She decided that the food was making me gain weight.”
“Excellent!” said Myrtle. “Clearly she wasn’t clued in that you were consuming full bags of potato chips at my house.”
“Fingers crossed that the next hobby doesn’t involve me at all,” said Red.
Myrtle tapped Puddin, who continued snoring until Myrtle shook her by the shoulder. “Lemme go!” muttered Puddin without opening her eyes.
“It’s time to go home,” said Myrtle.
Miles and Wanda were already walking to the car as Puddin and Myrtle started slowly following them.
Miles drove to Puddin’s house first. Puddin opened the car door and then turned to Wanda. “Thank you. I’m glad yer a witch.”
Wanda gave her a tired smile and a wave as Puddin left.
Myrtle said, “Why don’t you stay over at my house tonight, Wanda? It’s a long drive home, after all. Besides, you wanted to watch the video of the lecture, didn’t you? Or will Dan worry about you?”
Wanda gave a croaky laugh at the thought of her brother being concerned by her absence. “Nope. Sounds good.”
Myrtle said, “Miles, you’re not sleepy after all this, are you?”
He shook his head. “Exhausted, yes. Sleepy, no.”
“Let’s play our Scrabble game for a while then. Maybe that will settle us down. And I even have a few snacks in the house since Red hasn’t been back to raid my kitchen,” said Myrtle.
And that’s what they did. Wanda curled up on the sofa with Miles’s phone, watching the lecture and nodding to herself. Miles and Myrtle faced off over the Scrabble table again. Myrtle gave a Cheshire cat smile. On her next move, she used tiles to spell out victorious.
About the Author:
Elizabeth writes the Southern Quilting mysteries and Memphis Barbeque mysteries for Penguin Random House and the Myrtle Clover series for Midnight Ink and independently. She blogs at ElizabethSpannCraig.com/blog, named by Writer�
�s Digest as one of the 101 Best Websites for Writers. Elizabeth makes her home in Matthews, North Carolina, with her husband. She’s the mother of two.
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Did you know my books are available in print and ebook formats? And most of the Myrtle Clover series is available in audio. Find them on Audible or ITunes.
Interested in having a character named after you? In a preview of my books before they're released? Or even just your name listed in the acknowledgments of a future book? Visit my Patreon page at https://www.patreon.com/elizabethspanncraig .
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I’d also like to thank some folks who helped me put this book together. Thanks to my cover designer, Karri Klawiter, for her awesome covers. Thanks to my editor, Judy Beatty, for all of her help. Thanks to reader Darlene Woods for suggesting that Puddin might make a great suspect. Thanks to beta readers Amanda Arrieta and Dan Harris for all of their helpful suggestions and careful reading. Thanks, as always, to my family and readers.
Other Works by Elizabeth:
Myrtle Clover Series in Order (be sure to look for the Myrtle series in audio, ebook, and print):
Pretty is as Pretty Dies
Progressive Dinner Deadly
A Dyeing Shame
A Body in the Backyard
Death at a Drop-In
A Body at Book Club
Death Pays a Visit
A Body at Bunco
Murder on Opening Night
Cruising for Murder
Cooking is Murder
A Body in the Trunk
Cleaning is Murder
Edit to Death (2019)
Southern Quilting Mysteries in Order:
Quilt or Innocence
Knot What it Seams
Quilt Trip
Shear Trouble
Tying the Knot
Patch of Trouble
Fall to Pieces
Rest in Pieces
On Pins and Needles (2018)
Memphis Barbeque Mysteries in Order (Written as Riley Adams):
Delicious and Suspicious
Finger Lickin’ Dead
Hickory Smoked Homicide
Rubbed Out
And a standalone “cozy zombie” novel: Race to Refuge, written as Liz Craig
Cleaning is Murder (A Myrtle Clover Cozy Mystery Book 13) Page 19
