Tea and Sympathy

by Carol Cox

  Ruby nodded. “Sometimes it takes more than once to get the job done. That’s why I came by to see if you needed another round.” She held out a small bottle that looked identical to the one she had brought before.

  Kate reached for the vial and eyed its contents. Was it the height of foolishness for someone who thought she’d been poisoned to swallow some sort of mystery concoction? After all, Ruby was still a virtual stranger. On the other hand, she reminded herself, the first time she met Ruby was after the onset of her illness. If her conviction was correct and it had been a case of poisoning, it hadn’t been caused by anything Ruby had given her.

  Kate rolled the vial between her fingers. Ruby’s elixir hadn’t seemed to do much good the first time around, but it hadn’t done her any harm either. If a second dose might be the thing she needed to boost her energy, she was willing to give it a try. She put the glass tube to her lips and downed its contents.

  Ruby reached out to take the bottle from Kate. “That should do you a powerful lot of good. I expect you’ll be seein’ some results really soon.”

  Kate smiled up at her. “I sure hope so. I’m in the middle of a project, and I really need to get back on my feet.”

  Ruby’s whole body stiffened. “I think I heard somethin’ about that,” she said in a voice devoid of expression. “It has to do with all that squabble about Mayor Briddle, doesn’t it?”

  Kate nodded. How on earth could this backwoods woman guess what she was working on? But then, Ruby herself had said there wasn’t much that happened around Copper Mill that she didn’t know about. Whatever Ruby’s sources happened to be, they showed remarkable accuracy.

  “That’s right. I’m not convinced he’s the one responsible.”

  “I’ll be goin’ now.” Ruby slipped the bottle into her pocket. “And I’ll be prayin’ for you, Miz Hanlon. If I hear you’re still under the weather, I’ll be back to see you again.”

  “Don’t come just on that account. Please stop by any time you get the chance. I’d like to get to know you better.”

  Ruby lifted one shoulder. “Maybe. I don’t know as I can, though. Just keeping on top of my quiltin’ and carin’ for the family takes up most all my time.”

  She glanced over at Paul and Danny, who were still engrossed in the ball game. “Tell the parson I said good-bye, will you?” With that, she turned abruptly and walked out of the house.

  Livvy came back into the room. “Okay, Lucy Mae’s dish is clean, and all the others are back in the cupboards.” She looked around. “Where’s Ruby?”

  “She just left. She said she only planned to stop by for a few minutes.”

  Danny whooped. “Did you see that?”

  Kate jumped and turned to see him and Paul pumping their arms and patting each other on the back.

  “That was beautiful!” Paul said. “A line drive to the shortstop, and he turns it into a triple play. What a great way to end the game.”

  Danny grinned. “Especially since we won.”

  Kate and Livvy looked at each other and shook their heads.

  “Like they had anything to do with it,” Livvy whispered.

  Kate hid her smile behind her hand. “I guess all that armchair coaching has to count for something.”

  Danny leaned from side to side, as if to loosen his back muscles. “We didn’t mean to take over your house for the whole afternoon. I guess we’d better be running along.”

  Paul clapped him on the shoulder. “Not to worry. It was good to have the company. I might have snoozed right through the game if you hadn’t been here.”

  “Don’t bother getting up,” Livvy protested when Kate started to rise.

  “It’s all right.” Kate stretched her arms out wide. “I’ve done nothing but sit all afternoon. I need to move around.”

  She joined Paul, and they walked toward the front door with the Jenners. “Thanks for everything you’ve done. We—”

  Kate stopped in midstride. “Oh dear.”

  Paul slipped his arm around her. “What’s the matter, hon? You’re white as a sheet.”

  “Are you all right?” Livvy said, concern etched on her face.

  “I...I’m not sure.” Kate wrapped one arm across her stomach and clung to Paul with her free hand. “All of a sudden...Oh!”

  She clapped her hand over her mouth and dashed for the bathroom.

  Chapter Eighteen

  That was one long night, huh?” Paul reached over and traced the contour of Kate’s cheek with the back of his fingers. In the gray light of early morning, his face looked drawn and haggard.

  “You can say that again.” Kate closed her eyes and pressed his hand against her cheek, savoring the warmth of his touch.

  “I still think you should have let me take you to the emergency room.”

  Kate murmured an indistinct reply. He was probably right. Why had she insisted on staying home? Maybe she really was as stubborn as she’d implied to Camille. She turned on her side so she faced Paul, grimacing when her stomach twinged. It was entirely possible to be too stubborn for one’s own good, she reminded herself. She opened her eyes again to find Paul studying her.

  “I’m sorry,” he said.

  “Sorry? Why?”

  “For letting that whole crowd of people invade the house and stay all afternoon. I should have known better than to let you overdo it and set off another bout of illness. Once was bad enough, but twice...”

  Kate opened her mouth to protest but settled for a noncommittal murmur instead. Paul seemed convinced that the misery that kept them both awake until the wee hours of the morning had been nothing more than a relapse, the result of her doing too much too soon. He might be right, but Kate had a feeling there was more to it than that.

  Paul looked at the alarm clock, then ran his hand across his face and groaned. “I wish there was some way I could turn back time a couple of hours, but I need to be up and moving.”

  He stood up and stifled an enormous yawn. Then he planted his hands on the mattress and leaned over Kate. “Are you going to be all right if I go to work? Do you want me to call and make an appointment with the doctor?”

  Kate probed her abdomen gently, then shook her head. “I honestly think it’s run its course by now. This wasn’t nearly as bad as last time.”

  SHE HEARD WATER RUNNING in the shower, followed by Paul’s rich tenor voice belting out a rendition of Marty Robbins’ “Have I Told You Lately That I Love You?”

  Kate smiled. It was good to hear him sounding cheerful after their long night; even better to know how much he loved her.

  Time to get to work. When she tried to sit up, the room spun so that she could barely raise her head. There was no way she would be able to sit upright. She managed to reach her laptop and drag it over onto the right side of the bed. After a little experimentation, she found that by propping it up against a pillow, she could lie on her side and type using a sort of one-handed hunt and peck. Trying to read the monitor sideways was a challenge, but she couldn’t find any other alternative.

  Once again Kate entered keywords relating to her most recent symptoms and, without much success, went through the list of sites that came up.

  When Paul brought in a mug of mint tea laced with some of Abby’s honey, Kate tilted the cover of her laptop down to screen the current site from his view. She knew all too well what his reaction would probably be.

  “I’ll be back to check on you at lunch. Be sure to call me if you need anything.”

  “I think I’ll be fine, but the phone is within reach, just in case.” She was back to checking out the sites she’d found even before the front door closed.

  Some time later, Kate sat back and rubbed her eyes, trying to figure out where she’d gone wrong. Something didn’t fit. The symptoms she had the previous week pointed to several possible toxins, but none of them listed effects that would last for this long.

  Kate drummed her fingers on the laptop case. Now what?

  Remembering the tea, she reached ov
er to the nightstand. When her fingers encountered the smooth ceramic surface of the mug, she realized the tea was stone cold.

  She needed to find some way to move past this dead end! Kate took a moment to stretch, feeling her muscles protest. Staying in bed was going to have her out of shape before she knew it. She couldn’t wait until she felt up to going out and walking with Livvy again.

  She scooted over to the center of the bed and moved the laptop and pillow to the left side. At least this way she could face the opposite wall and see the room from a different perspective.

  She heaved a deep sigh and decided to focus on something different. If her research on poisons wasn’t going to bear fruit, maybe she ought to move on to work on the chamber of commerce case.

  This time her search seemed more profitable. By the time Paul popped in to check on her at lunchtime, Kate had formed a basic understanding of various types of frauds, how they operated, and what made them productive for the scam artist.

  Collecting her cold tea without comment, Paul brought her a plate of lightly buttered toast and a fresh mug of tea.

  “I can’t stay,” he said. “I have a ton of work waiting for me at the office. Is there anything else I can do for you before I head back?”

  Kate smiled. “I can’t think of a thing. Thanks for bringing me lunch.” After he left, she sampled the toast, pleased to find that it seemed to settle without threat of any further disturbance.

  Finding she could now raise her head a bit if she moved slowly, Kate eased herself into a half-sitting position and propped her notebook against her bent knees. She sipped at her tea, trying to weigh what she had learned against what she already knew about the current swindle.

  Kate set her empty mug on a coaster on the nightstand and closed her eyes, deep in thought. It took a cunning mind to devise such a plan, a mind with obvious skill at working in the shadows. And that description went against everything she knew about Lawton’s character. Brash and outspoken he might be, intent on getting his own way to be sure, but never devious about his doings. Kate simply couldn’t believe him capable of such convoluted thinking.

  On the other hand, there was no getting around that bank account with a balance of six figures and Lawton’s name on it as the only signer. Lawton was well known in Harrington County and beyond. Why put the account in his own name in the first place? Why not create an assumed identity? Anyone who could come up with such an intricate strategy ought to be clever enough to cover his tracks better.

  A dull ache throbbed behind Kate’s eyes. She massaged her temples with her fingertips, trying to ease the pain away. How well did any one person know another? Lawton might seem all bluster and swagger on the surface, but did a far more calculating person dwell beneath that facade?

  The ache in her temples increased. On one hand, the evidence seemed solidly stacked against Lawton. And yet Kate found herself completely incapable of believing it to be true.

  That brought her back to the question: If Lawton didn’t initiate the bogus fund-raiser, who did? Someone had deliberately set this up to make him the fall guy. What kind of person would do such a thing? And what could the motive be? Just thinking of the heartless plotting involved made Kate’s blood run cold. A person capable of that would be capable of almost anything.

  Kate suddenly felt in need of another cup of tea. Moving with infinite care, she eased herself off the mattress and tottered over to the doorway. Moving slowly, she steadied herself against the furniture as she made her way to the kitchen and put the teakettle on the stove.

  Kate sat on one of the dining chairs and rested her head on the oak table while the water boiled, and again while the tea steeped. Before long, she cradled a fresh mug of the steaming brew, gratefully inhaling the fruity fragrance of raspberry and apple.

  Her headache had lessened, but her stomach still didn’t feel up to taking an aspirin. Kate wondered what natural remedy Ruby Merton would prescribe and made a mental note to read up on the restorative properties of plants. She might have something growing right in her own garden that could prove useful.

  In the middle of her musing, the doorbell rang. Kate let out a low moan and debated whether to answer it. The doorknob rattled, and she heard a familiar “Yoo-hoo!”

  “Hold on, Renee. I’m coming.” Using the walls and the furniture to steady herself, Kate made her way to the front door and opened it.

  Renee cradled Kisses against her shoulder and looked at Kate reprovingly. “You know, if you’d just leave the door unlocked, I could let myself in, and there’d be no need for you to put yourself out like this.”

  “That’s all right,” Kate said as Renee sashayed by her. “I was up anyway.”

  “I stopped by the church, and Paul told me you had a setback last night, so I came over right away. I wanted to let you know what I’ve been up to.” Renee tilted her head and eyed Kate closely. “Do you want to sit in the living room, or do you need to go back to bed?”

  “As long as you don’t mind if I just curl up on the couch, it would be nice to have a change of scene. I just made myself some tea. Would you like to fix a cup for yourself?”

  “Do you have any Earl Grey?”

  “Sorry, I’m afraid we’re out. I’m having a raspberry-apple blend.”

  Renee’s nose crinkled. “No, thanks. I’ll just bring yours to you.”

  While Kate situated herself on the couch, Renee brought her tea, then pulled a chair over so she could sit face-to-face with Kate. She leaned forward, a glimmer of excitement shining in her eyes.

  Kate knew a cue when she saw it. “So what have you been up to?”

  “I’ve been hard at work. Since Skip Spencer refused to divulge any details of his investigation to me, I’ve decided to take another tack.”

  “Oh?”

  “As I see it, the key to solving this case is to get our lead detective back on her feet. That’s why I’ve been researching your illness.”

  Kate blinked. “What have you been doing? Talking to a doctor?”

  “Better than that.” Renee’s expression held immense satisfaction. “I bought the full set of DVDs for House, and I’ve been closeted away the past few days, watching them and taking notes.”

  Kate stared, knowing she ought to say something but not sure what. “But, Renee—”

  “Did you know that Hugh Laurie is really English? Amazing how he shed his accent for the show.”

  Kate’s head spun. She wasn’t sure whether to attribute it to her indisposition or Renee’s rapid-fire change of subject.

  “But that’s beside the point.” Renee reached into her handbag and pulled out a slim notepad. Flipping it open in the manner of a TV detective, she told Kate, “I haven’t been able to watch all the episodes yet, of course, but I wanted to keep you up to date on my findings. You’ll be encouraged to know that none of the truly horrific cases matched your symptoms.”

  “That’s a relief,” Kate murmured.

  Renee tapped her finger against an entry and looked at Kate. “Have you ever had your gallbladder removed?”

  “Uh, no. Why?”

  “Hmm. You might think about having it checked. On the other hand, the gallbladder issue turned out to be a faulty diagnosis. That person wound up having a rare blood disease instead, so maybe that isn’t your problem.”

  Kate shuddered. “I certainly hope not.”

  Renee turned to another page in her notepad. “After that abominable outbreak of food poisoning at the diner, I paid special attention to one show.”

  Kate’s interest quickened. “Really? How did it turn out?”

  Renee made a sorrowful face and clicked her tongue. “Unfortunately, they weren’t able to save the patient.”

  Kate closed her eyes. “Renee, let’s not get too caught up in this. After all, it’s only a television show.”

  “With technical advisers on board.”

  “Right,” Kate muttered. Trying to steer Renee in a different direction, she added, “At least the people who got s
ick at the diner over the weekend seem to be recovering.”

  Renee nodded. “That’s what makes me wonder about your case. There was one episode that involved poisoning by arsenic.”

  Kate gasped.

  Renee narrowed her eyes. “What’s wrong?”

  Kate hesitated. Knowing Renee’s tendency to dramatize every situation, did she dare confide her suspicions? On the other hand, no one else seemed to believe her. Renee probably wouldn’t either.

  Kate chose her words carefully. “It’s just that I wondered if I might have ingested some sort of toxin...by accident.”

  “Or by design.” Renee clapped her hands. “Kate, I think you may be onto something.”

  Uh-oh. Maybe she shouldn’t have said anything after all. “Please don’t mention this to anyone else.”

  “Of course not. But think about it,” Renee went on. “You were already working on the chamber of commerce case. Maybe the perp thought you were making too much progress and decided to get you out of the way.”

  “At least he didn’t do a thorough job of it,” Kate said, trying to lighten the mood.

  “Yet.” Renee shoved her notepad into her handbag and hooked it over her arm.

  “You’re leaving?” Kate asked.

  Renee stood up so quickly that Kisses gave a yelp of protest. “I’m going to go pick up a season or two of CSI. It seems I need to broaden my research a bit. I’ll let you know what I find out.”

  “Lock the door behind you,” Kate called as Renee hurried out.

  She sagged back against the sofa cushion. What on earth had she done? Entrusting Renee with that kind of information was a little like giving a loaded pistol to a monkey. No telling when or where it was going to go off, or what kind of damage it might do.

  But Kate hadn’t planted the idea of poison in Renee’s mind. The older woman had picked it up on her own from watching the medical drama. Kate sucked in her breath. Was it a result of Renee’s overactive imagination, or did it mean that Renee had connected similarities between Kate’s symptoms and the TV doctor’s case on a subconscious level?