Mourning in Miniature by Margaret Grace

Author:Margaret Grace
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Tags: Retired Women, Miniature Craft, Women Detectives, Murder, Class Reunions, Mystery & Detective, Santa Clara County (Calif.), Crime, General, Geraldine (Fictitious Character), Women Sleuths, Dollhouses, Fiction, Porter
ISBN: 9780425230800
Publisher: Penguin
Published: 2009-10-05T04:00:00+00:00

“I’ll tuck you in,” I told Maddie, who was sweet enough to let me use the phrase long after she’d outgrown it. Eleven o’clock bedtime was much too late for a “school” night, I knew, but I was a weak grandmother. Also a sneaky one. I’d conveniently waited until now to tell Maddie about her parents’ phone call. Buying time.

“I didn’t think you’d want to tuck me in tonight,” she said, a sheepish look on her adorable, freckled face. “I thought you might be mad at me.”

“Were you mad at me?” I asked, perched on the side of her bed. She always used her father’s old bedroom on her visits and had been sorry to see his original preteen bed go a couple of years ago when it became nothing more than a board and a few feathers.

“You mean, did I give Uncle Skip the printouts because I was mad at you?” Maddie asked. “Maybe a little.” She pouted. Still adorable. “You kept leaving me and going off to do interesting things.”

Like being run down and having my purse stolen. Maddie didn’t know about the former incident, and was only vaguely aware of the latter, since Duns Scotus’s gallant security man, Big Blue, had interrupted her sleep.

“I thought you were having a good time with Taylor and the other kids in the program. And you had a lot of homework to do on your laptop for camp.”

Something like “Pssshht” came out at the mention of homework. Apparently the little Porter genius could manage a lot more than homework on any given day.

“You know I love to investigate with you. Then even in Lincoln Point, you dropped me in a pool.” She hardly finished the sentence without breaking up in laughter.

“Sometimes it’s too dangerous, sweetheart. And I do tell you everything eventually.” Almost everything.

I could always tell when Maddie’s waking minutes were numbered. Her speech slurred a bit and her eyelids fluttered, as if she were trying valiantly not to miss anything. She looked now as though her time was about up. I kissed her forehead and got up to leave.

Early as it was for those of us who didn’t have school or camp in the morning, I was ready to turn in myself.

“Grandma?”

“Yes?”

“I didn’t give everything to Uncle Skip.”

I perked up. “What else do you have, sweetheart?”

But Maddie had nodded off for good, leaving me hanging.

Which was just as well, since I could hear my phone ringing in the other room.

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