A Killer’s Christmas in Wales by Elizabeth J. Duncan

Author:Elizabeth J. Duncan
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Publisher: Macmillan
Published: 2011-10-24T16:00:00+00:00

Fifteen

“I know it might have seemed like a good idea last night, Florence, but now, in the cold light of morning, I’m just not sure.”

Mrs. Lloyd spread a generous dollop of ginger marmalade on her whole-grain toast and then sliced the bread in half.

Florence’s eyes narrowed slightly, giving her a no-nonsense look and Mrs. Lloyd immediately backtracked.

“What I meant to say is, I’m still thinking about it. I don’t know what Penny can do that the police can’t.”

“Well, from what you’ve told me about her, she’ll get to the bottom of it,” said Florence. “I think you should go and see her this morning. In fact, maybe we both should.” As the carriage clock on the mantel chimed the half hour, the two women turned to each other. They had both been dreading the arrival of the morning post with its unfortunate reminder of the late Arthur Lloyd’s letter opener.

Mrs. Lloyd shuddered.

“When all this is over, if they were to return that letter opener to me, I could never, ever use it again to open my letters.” She took a crunchy bite of toast and brushed a few rather large bits of crust off her bosom.

“And in all this, Florence, I can’t help thinking how I’ve let my poor Arthur down. I know he would have wanted me to be happy, and if I had found someone nice to marry, I don’t think Arthur would have minded too much. But when I think about the money and how Arthur scrimped and saved every year of our married life so I would be provided for. Do you know, he never had a holiday abroad? ‘What do I want with all that foreign muck?’ he used to say. I tried to talk him into going to Spain, telling him it would be good for him to experience the oranges firsthand, so to speak, but he wouldn’t have it.” She punctuated the last few sentences with a little series of sighs.

She wiped her lips and then folded her napkin and tossed it beside her plate.

“Oh! I can’t bear to think of it.”

“Well, I’ve made my opinion very clear, Evelyn, and I’ll not say it again. But I will say this. I’m going to see Penny this morning and I’d like it very much if you would come with me.”

Before Mrs. Lloyd could reply, the soft, shuffling sound of the morning post landing on the hall carpet caught their attention. As their eyes met, Florence tilted her head in the direction of the front door.

“I’ll go,” she said, standing up and leaning on the table with her hands in front of her. “And here’s a thought. I know you hate opening your mail with your fingers, so while we’re in town, why don’t we stop in at the charity shop and see if they’ve got a letter opener? There’s all kinds of nice things in there and you never know what you’ll find.” She took a step away from the table and folded her arms.

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