A Blooming Fortune by Stephen John

Author:Stephen John
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Cozy murder mystery, Female Sleuths, Mystery and Detective, Jana DeLeon, Miss Fortune Mystery, Ruby Loren, Kathi Daley, Lauren Elliott, Tamra Baumann, Alison Golden, Gallagher Gray
Publisher: Miss Fortune World
Published: 2019-08-10T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter Sixteen

I got to Ida Belle’s house just after Gertie, praying that my quickly conceived plan worked. We spent fifteen minutes discussing all the what-if scenarios before the doorbell rang.

Ida Belle answered the door. She smiled. “Thank you for coming on such short notice, Mr. Proctor. Please come in.”

The man smiled, “Please, everyone calls me Gus.”

“Gus, it is. I want you to meet two of my dear friends,” she continued. “Gus, this gorgeous creature is Fortune.”

“Pleased to meet you,” I said.

“A-hem,” Gertie cleared her throat.

“And this is Gertie,” Ida Belle continued.

Gertie smiled and shook his hand.

“Pleased to meet you as well, ma’am,” he said.

There was no question about it, Gus Proctor was a handsome, charming man. I could see right away how an older, lonely woman could be easily swept up by him. His smile was infectious and his voice was low, soft, and deep. I also noted, that of all the people in the room, I was clearly invisible to him—not an experience I was used to.

“Please, take a seat,” Ida Belle said. “Tea?”

“Thank you, yes,” he replied, sitting.

Ida Belle sat a saucer and cup in front of him. He watched her as she poured, never taking his eyes off her face. He smiled. Ida Belle smiled back.

“Tell me, Mr. Proctor . . .” Ida Belle began.

“Gus,” he corrected, softly, smiling with his eyes.

“Gus,” she repeated. “Tell me how you managed to work me into your schedule on such short notice. Your reputation would indicate you are quite busy, making lawns and gardens beautiful.”

“Well, as it turns out, I had a cancellation this morning,” he said. “How may I be of service to you?”

“Well, I recently had tea with Emma Peterson and she gave me a tour of her beautiful garden. Her loss was such a tragedy.”

The smile disappeared from Gus’ face and in its place appeared a solemn expression.

“You were a friend of Ms. Peterson?” he asked.

“A . . . casual friend,” Ida Belle replied. “She was quite the hermit, you know. She rarely left the house. To tell you the truth I was shocked she invited me for tea after so many years.”

He sighed heavily, “I’m sorry for your loss. Such a wonderful woman,” he said. “She was such a delight to be around. She will be missed.”

“I understand you were the one who actually found her body?” Ida Belle said. “You know . . . on the floor of her kitchen?”

“Yes,” he replied. He drew a breath and sighed again. “It’s true . . . it was so upsetting. I am still unable to really speak of it.”

He looked down with a dour expression; it made me want to gag.

“I understand,” Ida Belle said. “It must have been devastating.”

“Words cannot describe it,” he said, looking as though he was ready to break into tears.

I fought back the urge to break out in applause at his Oscar-caliber performance. Instead, I sighed and smiled conciliatorily, but underneath the smile I wanted nothing more than to leap across the table and rip out his Adam’s apple.

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