Chapter 10

CHAPTER TEN

Since everyone had fled the library, I decided we should split up and conquer. Ida Belle and Gertie were going to wander around the house, taking pictures and seeing if they could overhear anything. I grabbed a couple of cookies and headed outside, hoping to catch Nicole and see if she was interested in talking. Morgan was just walking back inside as I left the library. He gave me a brief smile before heading upstairs.

I waited until he was out of sight before stepping out onto the porch, holding my cell phone up and frowning. As I turned around to close the door behind me, I pretended to catch sight of Nicole, who was sitting in a rocking chair at the far end.

“Sorry,” I said. “I didn’t know anyone was out here.”

She shrugged. “I don’t own the porch.”

I shuffled her way, still looking at my phone, then sat on a couch near her.

“Cookie?” I held out my hand.

“No thanks,” she said. “I’m type 1. I avoid refined sugars most of the time. I’d rather save the insulin for my favorite chocolates and the rare glass of wine or champagne. ”

“Okay, I definitely need to know what chocolates are worth a shot of insulin.”

She laughed. “Bayou Betsy’s Chocolates. She’s a chocolatier in Baton Rouge so at least they’re not readily available in NOLA, and shipping chocolates is risky except in the winter. Fortunately, Tyler remembered the exact flavor I love and brought me some.”

“And that is?”

“Lava chocolates. Think of Valentine’s-style chocolates but with a lava cake center.”

“Jeez. I might need some of those.” I tapped in the name of the chocolatier on my phone and frowned. “I was hoping I’d get a signal out here, but no such luck. Do they have Wi-Fi?”

“Yeah, a satellite system, but I think it’s out because of the storm.”

I let out a hugely dramatic sigh and shoved the phone back in my jeans.

“I don’t get it,” I said to her. “What’s the draw with this place? I understand why my aunts wanted to come—they’re into all that supernatural nonsense—but it doesn’t seem like your group’s cup of tea any more than it is mine.”

“It’s not. I mean, I can appreciate the architecture—I’m an interior designer for a custom home builder—and you don’t find this sort of detailed woodwork just anywhere. Still, I’d have been happier with the hotel when it comes to comfort and access to things, but Brittany set it all up. She wanted more of a family feel for our private get-together and had been wanting to see the place. Their house isn’t big enough to host us all, and at the hotel, we would have been surrounded by other people, and renting a meeting room seemed so impersonal…”

I nodded. “But cooking outside and sitting in a cozy library was more like reliving the past. That makes sense. Still, this is beyond out of the way, and inconvenient if you want any connection with the outside world.”

Nicole smiled. “That’s the only perk for me. I usually get work calls all day long even on vacation. This way, I get a genuine break.”

“Your work sounds interesting, but yeah, I wouldn’t like a bunch of calls on my days off.”

“What do you do?”

“I process insurance claims. The pay isn’t all that great, but the benefits are good and I work from home. Sometimes that’s not the best because there are days that I feel like I never left work, you know?”

She nodded. “I have a home office and do most of my design work from there. Obviously, I’m on-site a lot, but it can be hard to turn off the job when it’s just on the other side of a wall.”

I nodded. “We have quotas, and I have a fire-breathing dragon as a boss. I tell people that glaring at my office door from the couch while drinking a beer is how I wind down every night.”

“You would have fit in with our group well. We’re big on cynicism, although we wouldn’t all admit it.”

“Really? Brittany seems like Miss Positivity.”

“Brittany is definitely the cheerleader of the group. Has been her entire life, and I’ve known her practically since birth since we’re cousins. She wants everyone she cares about to be their best self and get the most they can from life.”

“She sounds exhausting.”

Nicole blinked and then laughed. “You know what, she definitely can be. I love her to death, but I’m afraid I don’t have a lifetime pass on the glass-half-full train. I’m solidly in Morgan’s camp—living in reality.”

“Which is sometimes very, very negative,” I said and sighed. “I’m really sorry about your friend. I didn’t mean to set everyone off with my questions earlier.”

“You didn’t know. I’m sure it’s not the sort of thing that Petunia and Corndog are going to spill the beans to guests about, especially when it looks like their mistake caused his death.”

“No, probably not. But I still feel bad for all of you. I know this wasn’t what you had in mind when you all decided to get together for a fun time.”

She gazed out into the trees, seemingly lost in memories for a bit, and I could see tears forming in her eyes.

“Maybe it’s best not to revisit the past,” she said as she rose. “If you’ll excuse me, I think I’m going to have a nap before dinner.”

I watched as she went back inside, wondering what her cryptic statement had meant.

Ida Belle and Gertie were in their room when I went upstairs. I had given Justin’s room a longing gaze as I’d passed, but the police tape was still up, so I couldn’t risk going in. I had no doubt I could search the room without raising the alarm to the two-bit sheriff, but if any of the reunion group saw me, there was no explanation that would suffice, especially given the story Ida Belle had provided for me concerning my friend’s death. Normal people didn’t go poking around the room a stranger had just died in.

“Let’s head over to my room,” I whispered when I poked my head in their bedroom door.

As soon as we were enclosed, I explained, in a low voice. “Your room shares a wall with someone. The ornate wood downstairs will prevent voices from carrying but I figure the walls up here are thin and they’re only covered with wallpaper. I’ve got the bathroom separating me from the next room.”

Ida Belle nodded. “You can definitely hear through them. Daniel and Brittany are in the room next to ours, and they had a good row just before you came up.”

“What about?”

“Brittany is unhappy with Tyler and his mouth and told Daniel that if he had a backbone he would have put his pet in line a long time ago,” Gertie said.

“Harsh,” I said. “What was Daniel’s reply?”

“He said Tyler was a grown man and there was nothing Daniel could do to change him, nor was it his job to try,” Ida Belle said. “Then Brittany said there wasn’t an ounce of man inside of Tyler—that he was still just as moronic as he had been when they were teens. Then she said this whole mess could have been avoided if Daniel hadn’t insisted on including Tyler. That putting Justin and Tyler together in the same space was a bad idea from the start.”

“Then Daniel told Brittany that she knew exactly why he’d invited both of them and he wasn’t going to stand there and take insults from her when there were so many other people offering them up. That he was already dealing with enough. Then he left. We didn’t hear the door open again, so I assume Brittany stayed behind.”

“Anything else?”

“When we first left the library, we spotted Tyler headed down the hallway for the rear of the house which is where the dining room is,” Ida Belle said. “We thought he was following Nicole so we tailed him, but it was Amanda who was on a small back porch. There was no way to hear what they were saying through the exterior walls, but we peeked through the blinds, and it was clear they were arguing. Amanda was pointing her finger at him and poked him in the chest. ”

“I wanted to sneak around and listen,” Gertie said, “but there was no way to get around the house without going across the front porch, which by then, we’d assumed was where Nicole had gone. But we wouldn’t have had time anyway. After the finger poking, Tyler got beet red and stalked back inside. We barely made a dive behind a serving cart when he flung open the door and practically ran back down the hall.”

“Seems like Tyler is making everyone unhappy today,” I said and shook my head. “You have to wonder why they bother being friends with him at all. Seems like this reunion would have been better without him.”

“Seems like,” Gertie agreed. “He’s in love with Nicole.”

Ida Belle lifted her eyebrows but I just nodded.

“I caught that,” I said. “Finally. I might be getting better at reading normal people emotion. She’s definitely not on the same page though. Brittany seems to be her only focus.”

“Interesting,” Ida Belle said. “I wonder if that’s the way things were in high school. Seems like none of the others were a couple, at least not that they’re admitting.”

“No, but I did have an interesting conversation with Nicole.”

I told them about our chat and her cryptic statement at the end.

“I wonder what she meant,” Gertie said.

“Hard to say,” I said. “Could be she thinks all of them getting together was a mistake because Justin died, or it could be because they’re all arguing. Maybe it wasn’t that different in high school, but glass-half-full Brittany wanted to relive something she refused to see as problematic. Because clearly, they’re not a cohesive unit now. I wonder if they ever were.”

“Their friend did just die, so no one is likely acting normally because nothing is currently normal,” Gertie said.

Ida Belle frowned. “She’s right. Obviously, there were some issues among them—old grudges and petty jealousies, most likely—but so far, we haven’t turned up any good reason to suspect Justin was murdered. If his death was really an accident, then there’s nothing we can do about it.”

I nodded. “I know. Between Corndog’s admitted memory lapses and his squinting, could be he forgot about the allergy and followed his normal routine for the fish fry.”

“Which would have been peanut oil,” Ida Belle said. “Or he could have grabbed the wrong jug of oil from the shelf if his vision isn’t up to snuff. I noticed the squinting too.”

Gertie sighed. “I don’t want to think he made a mistake like that. I get the impression neither of them will live with it too well.”

“Good people wouldn’t,” Ida Belle said. “But we can’t drum up a murder where there’s not one just to make them feel better.”

“We’ve got about thirty minutes until dinner,” I said. “Let’s head back down to the library in case any of the friends are down there. Maybe we’ll get more information.”

Gertie put her hands up. “To what end?”

“Maybe no end,” I said. “But come tomorrow morning they’ll be gone, so we need to find out as much as we can now on the off chance this isn’t the horrible accident it appears to be. Tomorrow, I want to see that room before I call the whole thing quits.”

None of the friends emerged until dinner was on the table, and everyone was painfully quiet as the food was being served. Corndog and Petunia didn’t eat with us, instead tending to things as servers in a restaurant would, but Ida Belle and Gertie’s attempts to spur conversation were mostly met with short answers from one person and a complete lack of acknowledgment from the others.

Even the inappropriate Tyler appeared to have had his tongue clipped. As he kept sending sideways glances to Nicole, I had a good guess at what had him on his best behavior. Nicole, however, didn’t seem to notice. She spent most of the meal casting looks across the table at Brittany, who spent a lot of time moving her food around on the plate but not actually eating more than a couple of tiny bites.

Ida Belle, Gertie, and I kept up the idle chatter among ourselves—mostly Gertie telling us about ‘local’ gossip—all made-up names but real stories. And she described a blanket she was knitting in excruciating detail. By dessert, I was so bored I decided to just start asking questions of the others, figuring they’d either answer or excuse themselves.

“So you guys are here for a reunion, right?” I asked. “I can’t even imagine still being friends with people I went to high school with. That’s kind of cool. Do you do this often?”

For a couple seconds, there was absolute silence, then I guess cheerleader Brittany found not replying too rude and shook her head.

“Not really,” she said. “No one lives in Houma anymore except Daniel and me. Amanda and Nicole are in NOLA, Morgan and Tyler are in Baton Rouge. And Justin had ditched Louisiana altogether in favor of Miami.”

“More gullible women,” Tyler said, and all the schoolmates glared at him. “What? It’s the truth. Justin was a player. I see no point in rewriting history.”

“No one’s asking you to rewrite it,” Morgan said. “But perhaps not volunteering it when Justin’s not here to defend himself would be the classier move.”

Tyler snorted. “Seriously? If Justin was here, he’d have spent this entire miserable dinner telling us all about his conquests.”

“Or ragging on you,” Brittany said. “But you’re the big man with the big mouth now that he’s no longer here.”

Amanda shrugged. “Tyler’s not necessarily wrong, you know. I’m not saying we should run Justin down, but I’m not going to pretend we’d have been having a discussion about theater or art if he was here. God knows we heard plenty about his Miami conquests the night we arrived, so it’s more likely he’d have spent his time tonight trying to hook up with Rose. Especially since Nicole and I had to remind him within ten seconds of seeing him again that it was never going to happen with either of us.”

Tyler raised his eyebrows when Amanda first started talking, apparently surprised that someone else had agreed with his take. But I saw his jaw clench when Amanda mentioned Justin hitting on her and Nicole. When she finished talking, Tyler gave me a once-over as if noticing I was a female in their age range for the first time.

“Yeah,” he agreed. “You would have been just his type. You got a boyfriend?”

“Would I be here if I did?” I asked, hoping I’d put just enough disappointment in my voice to illicit some sympathy.

Tyler grinned. “Maybe I should take up Justin’s banner.”

“The world doesn’t need more men carrying that banner,” Amanda said. “ Women especially don’t need it.”

“I’m going to follow in my aunts’ footsteps,” I said. “Maybe even take up cats and knitting at some point. Men are too much trouble.”

Amanda lifted her wineglass. “Preach it, sister.”

Tyler rolled his eyes. “Amanda went to Berkeley and they made her a lesbian. ”

“You just say that because you know my answer to you would also be no,” Amanda said and smiled.

“Since I don’t have any interest in you, there are no questions to answer,” Tyler said.

Amanda gave him a knowing grin. “But you have questions for one of us, don’t you? Poor Tag-Along Tyler. Always in that number three slot and never a shot at the prize.”

Tyler flushed, and I could practically feel the tension among the dinner guests.

“Amanda,” Daniel said, his tone issuing a warning.

Amanda, who I now realized was getting a little tipsy, looked over at me. “I’ve got a group of girlfriends who meet every Wednesday night at the After Party in the French Quarter. Do you know it?”

“Sort of,” I said. I didn’t, of course, but I didn’t figure there was going to be a quiz. “I’m afraid I’m more of a homebody.”

“Come by anytime you want,” she said. “We usually get there around seven. The owner expects us and reserves a private booth for us at the back, so we’ve got room. You don’t have to go out with a guy to get out of your house. Just sitting around drinking and bitching with the girls is great decompression.”

“Thanks. I appreciate the invitation.”

Morgan smiled at me. “Did you grow up in Belle Chasse?”

While I appreciated his desire to shift the conversation to something more comfortable, I had hoped I’d get through the night without having to talk too much about myself. But I was a pro, and when a pro was undercover, they did two things—made up things that were so mundane no one would ask more questions about them, and used real-life examples for certain things in case they were questioned for more detail.

“Idaho,” I said, figuring that would eliminate any potential issues with my lack of knowledge on NOLA schools, locations, and people.

He blinked and I laughed. “I know. It’s one of those places that you never know anyone from, which is why people want to leave. My aunts were in New Orleans and hooked me up with a place to stay while I looked for a job. I thought I’d have a big adventure, but I’m not really the big adventure type, so it was just the same life with better food and views. A couple years ago, they started letting us work from home, so I’m just as big a hermit now as I was back in the potato fields.”

“You’ve got a good tan for a hermit,” Nicole said.

I nodded. “I like to sit outside and read. I’m an early bird and we don’t have set hours, so I’m usually done with my quota by noon or a little after. If the sun’s out and I’m not working, I’m sitting in it.”

“What are you reading now?” Morgan asked.

“Aunt Ida Belle gave me some old books of hers—the Dragonriders of Pern? I’m really enjoying them.”

“Nice,” Morgan said. “If fantasy’s your thing, I’m surprised you’re not all over the hot social media fantasy stories— ACOTAR ? Fourth Wing ?”

I shrugged, indicating I wasn’t familiar with those series. “I’m not on social media.”

Tyler stared. “How can you not be on social media?”

“Hermit, remember?” I said, looking down. I figured if I appeared slightly uncomfortable, then this line of questioning would cease.

“What about you, Ida Belle?” Morgan asked. “We know Gertie is into knitting and her cats—do you knit too?”

Ida Belle stared at him as if he’d lost his mind.

“Heavens no!” she said. “I like to fish. Back before my knees got shoddy, I liked to duck hunt. But my days of tromping through the marsh in hip waders are over, I’m afraid. And my roommate was my hunting buddy—lived and hunted together for forty years. Since she passed, I haven’t felt much like going. Can’t talk Gertie into it, and she wouldn’t be much use unless I wanted to knit the deer a scarf.”

The others gave each other a knowing look at her ‘roommate’ comment and smiled at her knitting reference.

“I’m sorry about your roommate,” Amanda said.

“Thank you,” Ida Belle said. “So are there big doings planned for your reunion?”

“Ha!” Tyler said. “They’ll have cheap finger food in a conference room at the hotel with even cheaper decor and call it a party. It’s not even open bar. Not sure how much planning goes into that.”

Brittany flashed a dirty look at him. “If you’d like a fancier event, then you’re welcome to be committee chair at our twenty-year, which includes fundraising. That is, of course, if no one has taken you out by then because of your mouth.”

Daniel winced at her ‘take out’ comment, which I agreed was a bit in poor taste. At least, for normal people it was. I didn’t care, but my standards for death references were set by the CIA, so…

Brittany apparently realized her faux pas and tossed her napkin on the table as she jumped up from her chair. She glared at Tyler, clearly blaming him for her mistake, then strode out of the room. Nicole gave everyone an apologetic look and hurried after her.

“Always the dramatic exit, our Brittany,” Tyler said. “But then, she never could stand to lose and with Justin dead, that’s one less admirer.”

“I’d watch what you say about my wife,” Daniel said quietly. “Or I can accommodate her wishes.”

Tyler smirked, but I saw him swallow. Regardless of his posturing, he was obviously leery of Daniel and realized he’d taken things too far. Daniel held his gaze for several seconds, then shook his head in disgust and headed off, presumably after his wife. Again.

“Congratulations, Tyler,” Amanda said. “You’re still the biggest douche in the parish.”

“Only because Justin’s dead,” Tyler mumbled.

Amanda shook her head at him. “Like that somehow makes it better.”

She looked over at us as she rose. “I’m so sorry that our party has ruined your stay. I’m sure this wasn’t at all what you had in mind when you booked.”

She gave Tyler one last disdainful look, then left the room.

Morgan pulled off his glasses and started cleaning them, a behavior I suspected he reverted to when he was in a stressful situation.

“Go to your room, Tyler,” Morgan said. “There’s no point in ruining the rest of these ladies’ night.”

“You’re still here,” Tyler said.

“I’m not the problem,” Morgan replied. “I’m never the problem.”

“And I always am?” Tyler asked.

“You said it.” Morgan finished cleaning his glasses and slipped them back on but never even glanced in Tyler’s direction. After several uncomfortable, silent seconds, Tyler jumped up and stalked out.

“I add my apologies to Amanda’s,” Morgan said.

“Can I ask you a personal question?” I asked.

“Yes. But I might not be willing to answer it depending on how personal it is.”

“Fair enough. Why are any of you friends with him? No one appears to like him, and I get the feeling he was just as bad in high school. Why invite him to this pre-reunion get-together? ”

Morgan sighed. “It would probably really dismay you to learn that Justin was twice as bad.”

“Heavens,” Gertie said. “Then why be friends with either of them?”

He smiled. “One of my friends from college is currently doing his residency in psychiatry. I’ve spent some time talking to him about us. He wrote his thesis on young adult group dynamics and interviewed a lot of different personality types for it, asking a bunch of questions about interactions with peers in high school. And although our group looks an odd mix from the outside, when you break it down by individual, it starts to make sense. At least, the way my friend explained it.”

“You have to know the backstory,” I said.

“Exactly. Just like a good book. The backstory matters.”

“So what did your friend determine?” I asked, hoping he would take my question as general curiosity and would feel like answering.

“It would take far too long to go into the full-blown analysis, but have you ever seen The Breakfast Club ? Teen movie about stereotypes?”

“Yes. Aunt Gertie had me watch it.”

“It’s more or less like that except the bond wasn’t developed on one situational occasion like theirs was with detention, but instead by multiple connections leading back to a whole. Daniel and Justin had been friends since they were kids. Both athletes, good-looking, big personalities. Justin was just slightly better at everything though—a fact that Daniel’s overbearing father never let his son forget. So Daniel looked up to Justin and together they ruled the school.”

“Along with Brittany, no doubt,” Gertie said.

“Yes,” he agreed. “Brittany and Nicole’s mothers are sisters, and they were born within a week of each other, so literally friends since the crib. Brittany was the popular one who likes having a following and Nicole was the quieter one who likes having a leader. Brittany was the best kind of leader because her popularity got Nicole access into the cool kids’ group and all the best parties without having to earn it herself by making cheer or homecoming court and the like. Nicole was always more concerned with being included, not with being the center of attention.”

He shook his head. “It’s funny…the only thing Daniel ever bested Justin at was Brittany. Justin wanted her and they dated for a bit until she figured out he was hooking up with other girls on the side. Probably just as well she got his number then, because she might have ended up hitching her wagon to that star only to discover it was all flare and no substance.”

“Sounds like she made the right decision,” Gertie said. “A lot of young ladies ruin their lives over the good-looking bad boy.”

“Brittany’s a lot smarter than people think,” Morgan said. “I think she knew Daniel was the best choice for a secure future, and that Justin would never grow up.”

Gertie nodded. “And they still live in Houma?”

Morgan nodded. “Daniel’s father owns a builders’ supply company. The largest in the region. Daniel is an only child and was always slated to take over when his father retired. That was hurried along when he had a stroke that left him with some mobility and speech issues, but from what I’ve heard, he’s still grasping the reins.”

“Does Brittany work with him?” I asked, unable to reconcile her perfect hair and long polished nails with building material.

“No way. Brittany owns a gymnastics studio. She also teaches cheer classes, which fits. Two of her gymnastics students got college scholarships, which is pretty impressive.”

“Definitely,” I agreed. “What about Amanda? She doesn’t strike me as the cheerleader type, but I figured twins would be close.”

He snorted. “Amanda made a concerted effort to do everything the opposite of her sister. Instead of cheer, she was chess club. Instead of homecoming court, she was the head of the art society. She’s a brilliant woman who prefers no one realizes until it’s too late.”

“What do you mean?”

“She attended Berkeley on full scholarship, graduated with dual majors in accounting and law, was accepted straightaway into Berkeley’s law school, again, on their dime. She’s on track to make partner at one of the biggest financial legal firms in NOLA by the time she’s thirty, which is practically unheard of.”

“Wow,” Ida Belle said. “That’s impressive.”

I nodded. “But if she doesn’t volunteer that information then people tend to talk more openly around her, and she finds out things before they realize they gave too much away.”

He smiled. “Exactly. And not only does Amanda collect information, she remembers everything, down to the last tiny detail. Poised and ready to use it against her enemy whether it’s at that moment or ten years later.”

“A dangerous woman to be friends with,” I said. “Do she and Brittany think alike as much as they look alike?”

“Brittany is no dummy, and in high school, she always kept Amanda in her immediate circle even though they had little in common. Amanda was fine with lingering in the background being the observer.”

“While Brittany wanted to be observed,” Ida Belle said.

Morgan nodded. “Despite all their differences, there is no questioning their loyalty to each other. Go at one and you’ll be fighting both.”

“So where does Tyler come in?” Gertie asked .

“Not athletic enough to make the teams,” Morgan said. “Not good-looking enough to be prom king. Not smart enough to help any of them pass classes. So he leaned heavily on making people laugh. He was the goof-off. He pulled the pranks and back-talked the teachers like others wanted to but people like Daniel and Justin had too much at risk to act a fool.”

“So they goaded Tyler, who was happy to do it for them to gain admission into the group,” Gertie said. “I had a Tyler every year in my classes.”

“So the only one left to analyze is you,” I said.

He nodded. “And one would think I’d have spent the most time on myself, but I was the easiest to explain. I was the smart kid. The geek. And mostly invisible until I started tutoring Daniel. He was a smart guy but between his father and Justin, Daniel was so used to not quite measuring up that he needed someone to help him believe in himself. He needed therapy more than a tutor, but once I convinced him he could do it, he passed with flying colors.”

“And you earned a spot in the group,” I said.

He nodded.

“But there’s no adults that need antagonizing now,” Ida Belle said. “I get inviting Justin because he was Daniel’s best friend, even though I have to say he sounds very unpleasant. But why invite Tyler? His usefulness was years ago. I would think now that you’re all grown, leaving him off the guest list would make things a lot nicer.”

Morgan nodded, and I could tell he was seriously considering her words.

“I agree,” he said finally. “I think my psychiatrist friend’s habit of trying to assign a reason to all human behavior has rubbed off on me, and I’ll admit it’s something I did waste time mulling over after my first five minutes in Tyler’s company.”

“And did your mulling produce an answer?” Ida Belle asked.

“Yes, but I’m afraid that while I believe it to be accurate, it isn’t very satisfying. I think the answer is guilt.”

“How do you mean?”

“When you break everything down, we weren’t really friends back then—not in the true meaning of things that I understand now as an adult. Except Nicole and Brittany. They’re the only two who have remained close. But the rest of us were getting something out of the ‘friendship’ that we needed at the time. Brittany is the head of the reunion committee and she and Daniel—perhaps feeling nostalgic—suggested we get together beforehand for our own private reunion. They made the reservations and extended the invitations.”

He sighed. “I guess you might have caught on that there was no love lost between Justin and Tyler. That’s because Justin bullied Tyler in high school—always under the guise of ‘just joking’—but honestly, it didn’t appear that the dynamic had changed one bit when we arrived here. I had hoped everyone would have grown up, but apparently that’s too much of a stretch for some.”

I nodded. “So if Brittany and Daniel hadn’t invited Tyler—who’d done their dirty work in high school and whom Justin picked on—then they would have felt guilty because they matured and perhaps realized that back then, it wasn’t a relationship of equals.”

“Very good,” Morgan said. “Maybe you’re wasted processing insurance claims.”

“Maybe,” I said. “Hey, you’ve never told us what you do for a living.”

“I’m a plumber. ”

I blinked. “That’s…nice.”

He grinned. “I’m joking. I write code for a defense contractor.”

He pushed his chair back and rose. “Ladies, I’m going to leave you to your evening. If I don’t see you tomorrow before we leave, I hope you enjoy the rest of your stay.”

He headed out and I watched him go, thinking about everything he’d said. It was interesting, the dynamics of the group—then and now—but I wasn’t sure it mattered. Unless something popped up to prove things differently, Justin’s death was looking like a horrible accident. It wasn’t what Shadow Chaser wanted to hear, but at that point, it was the most likely answer.

“Corndog told me earlier they have after-dinner drinks and cookies in the library,” Gertie said. “And to let him know if we want coffee.”

Since we couldn’t talk freely anywhere but my room, I wasn’t thrilled with spending the rest of the night in the library, but I didn’t see many choices. We needed to keep up appearances that we were on holiday and retiring to our rooms at 7:00 p.m. wasn’t exactly a tourist move. If the friends were still out and about, we needed to appear as if we were getting the most out of our visit. Given that Ida Belle and Gertie were doing brilliantly playing the role of the elderly aunts, I figured we could probably head up around eight without anyone raising an eyebrow.

So we just had an hour to kill with bland, uninteresting small talk.

I hoped the drinks were stiff.