Kittens, Cupcakes & Kerfuffles (Magical Kitten Cozy Mysteries Book 4) by Allen Amity

Author:Allen, Amity
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Bad Baby Press
Published: 2023-09-26T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 11

Inside the kitchen, I found Mary alone, pouring orange juice into a tall glass. “Good morning,” I said brightly.

“Morning,” she mumbled.

“Have you found everything you need for breakfast?”

“I guess. I was late. Sorry about that.”

I waved a hand. “Don’t worry. There is no ‘late’ when it comes to breakfast. I’ll pull some things out for you. If you’d like an omelet or some pancakes, I can fire up the pan.”

Mary shook her head. “Fruit and nuts will be fine.” She ran a hand over her abdomen, then took a seat at the table while I hustled around the kitchen, pulling out food, a plate, and utensils for her.

Normally, Mary’s lateness, requiring me to pull stuff back out after everything was cleaned up, would irritate me. But in this particular situation I was happy to get anyone from the retreat alone for a few minutes, so I could ask them questions.

After Mary was served, I made myself a cup of coffee, then sat across from her. She glanced at me and gave a weak smile, as though hoping to be left alone and rueful at finding me there, looking for conversation.

Oh, well. I wasn’t going to let that deter me. “Are you still planning on the meditation tomorrow morning? The one with the sound bath?”

Mary swallowed, then glanced up at me. “I’m doing it still, but in the afternoon instead of morning. I have to go down to the station for more questioning in the morning.” She sipped her orange juice and watched me over the rim.

“Oh, I see.” Why were they questioning Mary again? Did they suspect her? “How are you holding up? It must be so hard to carry on with the retreat immediately after your half-brother’s death.”

Mary shrugged, setting the glass down with a little thump. “It’s not so bad. It’s been kind of nice not having to deal with Simon in my face constantly, trying to micromanage my job.”

Well, hello. Another person who wasn’t so upset that Simon was dead.

“I can understand that. It’s never a great situation when you aren’t left to do your job as you see fit. It must have also been tough having a relative for a direct boss.”

She sneered. “I wouldn’t consider Simon a relative. I mean, I guess, technically, he was my half-brother, but that was only on paper. We had no relationship. Not with the way he treated Larry.”

“Not a great brotherly relationship, huh?”

She snorted in mock laughter. “Simon was horrible to Larry. Treated him like a loser. And he managed to convince Mom and Dad that Larry wasn’t worth much too.” At my shocked expression, she added, “Oh, they didn’t say that outright. They acted like they were trying to help Larry. But they wouldn’t give him any responsibility in the company, which is what he deserved and what he needed in order to feel trusted, valued, and respected. If they’d given him something to do, he would have felt motivated to prove himself. They could have seen what he’s really made of.

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