Christmas with the Franks by Leena Clover

Author:Leena Clover [Clover, Leena]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2017-11-29T05:00:00+00:00

Chapter 15

I entered the dining room to find everyone assembled around the big table. I squeezed into a seat between Motee Ba and Tony.

“Found anything yet?” Motee Ba whispered.

I shook my head.

“There’s a lot of information. But I haven’t really made much sense out of it yet.”

“Do you suspect anyone in particular?” Tony whispered.

I shook my head, choosing to keep my silence. Maybe lunch would be more enlightening. I realized the killer was probably sitting there at that table. I decided to observe them one by one.

Amanda gave some sort of nod and Chamberlain pulled the covers off a couple of platters.

“We don’t have any maids or serving staff today,” Amanda told us. “We will have to serve ourselves.”

Everyone started passing the food around. The cook had put up a decent meal and all that could be heard for a while was the clink of silverware against the plates.

“Any luck with the investigation?” Ted Junior asked Stan.

Was he concerned about getting justice for his father? Or finding out if it was time to run?

“We are still conducting our first round of interviews,” Stan told him.

“We are getting more snow today,” Pappa spoke up. “I saw the weather forecast.”

Amanda looked worried. She must be getting tired of playing hostess.

The seat at the head of the table was empty, Theodore Frank being conspicuously absent. Sophia Frank sat at the other end of the table looking morose. She seemed to have lost her bluster. She was just a poor old woman, trying to cope with an unexpected loss.

The group seemed to have retained their appetite. We ate through pretty much everything on the table. Noah was sitting next to Amanda, talking to her under his breath. How could Ted Junior not find something suspicious in their behavior?

Naps and games were discussed after we adjourned to the living room. Julie was trying to talk Madam Isadora into doing a tarot reading. Henry Robinson and her sister sat in a corner, talking to each other. The massive room felt over heated.

“Let’s go take a walk,” I said to Tony, springing up from the couch.

Suddenly I couldn’t wait to get out of there.

Stan Miller was sprawled on a chair, his head listing to one side. He seemed to have dozed off. I didn’t need his permission to go out.

We bundled up, Motee Ba calling out to make sure I covered my head or neck or some such thing. She had pressed a thick woolen scarf on me. Santa’s elves had cleared some paths around the house. I wondered how many people actually worked on the Frank estate. It looked like someone had been shoveling snow off the internal roads. Could any of these unseen workers have entered the old man’s study the previous night?

I forced myself to think of something other than the crime. It wasn’t too hard with Tony for company.

He placed an arm around my shoulder and pulled me close.

“How are you doing, sweetie?” he asked.

“Do you think their flight will be delayed?” I asked.

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