Chapter 32

32

When I woke the next morning, my thoughts were on Eddy, how he died, why he died, and whether it was at the hands of Rosalyn. Was she responsible for the two murders, and if so, was she on the run? I believed she was, and given Foley had put out an APB the night before, I hoped it wouldn't be long before they found her.

I stepped out of the shower, toweled off, grabbed my cell phone, and texted Simone and Hunter, asking them to meet me at the office in an hour. As I set the phone back down on the nightstand, my focus shifted to the book I'd taken from Cordelia's house. The Agatha Christie novel, The Pale Horse , which held Cordelia's snooping notes, was one I'd read decades earlier, but I'd forgotten a large portion of the plot.

Staring down at it now, a thought occurred to me. Was it possible Cordelia chose the book for a reason? Did it hold significance? Could it be tied to her murder somehow?

I altered my plans, canceling the meeting with Simone and Hunter, and letting them know I'd reschedule with them later in the day. I slipped into a pair of comfy pajamas and returned to bed, spending the next several hours poring over the classic novel.

In The Pale Horse , several residents in a quaint village in London were found dead. The deaths seemed to be of natural causes at first, but many of the deceased had one thing in common. Prior to their death, their hair had started falling out. In the end, as it was with many of Agatha's murder mysteries, the reader learns the victims had been poisoned.

Thallium, which had no taste, no color, and was water-soluble, was almost impossible to detect. A poison so toxic, it had been banned in the United States since 1965 for household use and since 1975 for commercial use.

Given it was difficult to get one's hands on the poison nowadays, it would be a stretch to think anyone had murdered a person in such a way. But it hadn't always been illegal—in fact, it had one been the main ingredient in rat poison.

My mind was racing, connecting several dots at once:

The book.

The notes contained within it.

The fact there were no signs of a struggle when Eddy was found.

The fact it wasn't clear how he died.

The shelf in Eddy and Rosalyn's shed with a distinct square impression, leading me to believe something on it had been removed not too long ago.

Thallium may have been banned since the mid-'60s, but Rosalyn's house was built much earlier. It was possible the people who owned the home prior to Rosalyn and Eddy had kept thallium-based rat poison in the shed and had never disposed of it before selling their house.

To test my theory, I needed some advice. I messaged Silas, asking if he could meet me at Rosalyn's house. He was hard at work on Eddy's autopsy but agreed to break away in a couple of hours. We set a time, and I made a new plan. I called Hunter, asking her to find out who owned the house prior to Rosalyn and Eddy. She got back to me in minutes with an answer—Lorena and Alexander Potts.

Since selling their home, Lorena and Alexander had moved to a retirement community, which wasn't far from my house. I made the drive over, and when I reached the door, it was opened by a short, curly, gray-haired woman, wearing a brown apron with wine bottles all over it. She had a sweet smile and an inquisitive look on her face.

"Hello," she said.

"Hello, my name is Georgiana Germaine. Are you Lorena Potts?"

"I sure am."

"I understand you sold your house to Rosalyn and Eddy Westwood."

"We did sell the house to them, yes. Nice couple … well, Rosalyn was an absolute charmer. The husband, not so much. Had a bit of a foul mouth on him. Why do you ask?"

"I am a private investigator working on Cordelia Bennett's case, your former neighbor."

Lorena frowned. "Yes, I read all about it in the paper. What a horrible thing to happen to such a nice woman. What can I do for you?"

"I was hoping I could ask you and your husband a few questions."

"I'm happy to speak with you, but I'm afraid my husband won't be joining us. He died last year, you see."

"I'm sorry. I didn't know."

"Oh, it's all right, honey. He gave me the best sixty years of my life. I know I'll see him again, and when I do, we have all eternity to be together. Would you like to come inside?"

"I would."

"Wonderful. It just so happens I baked a tray of blueberry muffins not fifteen minutes ago. I like to take treats to some of my neighbors when I can. Most are not as agile as me in their old age. I'd like to think a sweet treat makes their day."

She'd said it with a wink, full of pride, as she should have been.

I'd never been a fan of muffins of any kind. When I did have one, I sliced it in half, eating the muffin top and discarding the rest, which was wasteful and why I didn't eat them often. But since I'd been offered a muffin by such a kind woman, saying no was out of the question.

Lorena plated a muffin for each of us, and we walked to her sitting room. A beautiful, pink-floral teapot rested on a table with four teacups next to it.

"I've just brewed a pot of Lady Grey," she said. "I'll pour us both some, and you can tell me more about why you're here."

She poured the tea and sat it on a side table next to me.

"The reason I wanted to speak to you is because I was in your old shed yesterday," I said. "On one of the shelves, it looked like something had been removed not too long ago. Did you leave anything behind when you moved out?"

"If we did, I wouldn't know. The shed was my husband's domain. I never much cared to go in there."

"Do you know whether your husband kept anything containing thallium in the shed at one time?"

"I'm not even sure what thallium is, if I'm being honest."

"It's a poison, and it was banned in the 60s. Before then, it was one of the ingredients in rat poison."

Lorena crossed one leg over the other, sipped a bit of tea, and said, "Rat poison, you say? Well then, yes, it's possible. If I remember right, we did have a big rat problem one year. My husband went to the store and brought back a large tin of Reeds Rat Killer. I remember it well because the label on the front was a cartoonish rat in a coffin. I have no idea if it contained thallium, but it may have. All I can tell you is it worked. We were free of rats after that."

I sent Hunter a text, giving her the name of the rat poison, and I asked her to see what she could find out about it. Then I returned my attention to Lorena. We chatted for a while longer while I finished my tea and muffin. Then I thanked her for her time. As I was heading out, she stopped me, saying, "Might I ask why you were inquiring about the rat poison?"

I considered what response I wanted to give and landed on one of honesty. "I'm sorry to say that Eddy Westwood was found dead last night. Since his death is being investigated, I can't go into all the details, but it's possible he was poisoned."

"I would hate to think something we bought contributed to another's death, but I thank you for telling me."

"One last question before I go," I said. "Were you friends with Cordelia?"

"Good friends, yes."

"Do you know if she was ever in your shed while you lived there?"

Lorena considered the question. "She was, yes. Marlon and Cordelia would come over from time to time, asking to borrow some of my husband's tools."

"You've been a great help to me, Lorena," I said.

She opened the front door, and as she wished me a good day, she said, "Are you getting close to finding Cordelia's killer?"

I looked at her, smiling as I said, "Yes, I believe I am."