Military Mischief: A Classy Cohorts Historical Cozy Mystery by Nelly Stein

Author:Nelly Stein [Stein, Nelly]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: anonymous
Published: 2024-04-13T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 12

Handsome and Heroic

James’ landlady had not attended this year’s May Day celebrations. In the half century they’d been held, she hadn’t attended a single one. This was a fact the Port Davis Lady's Society had tried to impress on Constance when she’d been initially drawing up the invitation list. Yes, the woman’s family had been founders. Yes, it was true they had been on the Mayflower, and yes, they had the ‘paperwork’ to prove it.

The ladies had tried to explain, as discreetly as possible, that the landlady’s ancestors hadn’t actually paid for the ticket across the Atlantic. Nor had they paid for much of anything from the moment their (probably stolen) boots hit American soil. For reasons they couldn’t comprehend, Constance had insisted on inviting the old woman anyway.

She’d commissioned Dorothy to bring the invitation personally, hand delivered to her address on one of her frequent visits to James. The embossed invitation would get the care it deserved, and Constance had hoped the act itself might finally soften up the miserable ‘misunderstood’ old crone.

She was the only surviving member of the founding lineage that Constance hadn’t found on the register when she had settled in to her new assignment. The name Morgan had been absent from the attendee list, despite having been one of the first on the census all those years ago. Miss Briggs chalked it up to the sloppy management of the Ladies’ Society on the whole. But Constance had a plan. In her opinion, the entire misunderstanding was nothing that couldn’t be fixed with an embossed invitation and Dorothy’s sincere smile.

Despite that smile, the landlady had thrown the invite in the fire without looking at it, finishing her fit of temper with a few choice words in French to Dorothy that she chose not to translate.

***

Mavis and Dorothy stood on the doorstep of the Morgan Manor. They looked at each as to read each other’s thoughts. The adventures they shared with James when they worked in the hospital were fresh on their minds. Even though at the time as a patient he was not feeling good, he was always ready for the next clue, the next hidden door. The excitement to get this current case figured out was lingering with their glance. Now that James will be involved, he will surely be helpful in finding new evidence.

They were a little farther away than necessary from the door – no doubt to ward off the miserable look on the landlady’s face as she answered the door. She looked from one girl to another, her jowls spotted with the remains of whatever she’d been eating.

“He’s resting.”

Mavis and Dorothy shared another glance. The old woman spoke the same words every time they called on their friend and always with the same finality. In fact, Dorothy had only heard her say ‘hello’ once.

Mavis smiled. “Come on, Mrs. M. I think we all know James is wide awake. I can't speak for Dorothy here, but you stopped fooling me a while back.

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