A Twisted Case of Murder by Emily Queen

Author:Emily Queen
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Willow Hill Books

Later that evening, Rosemary received a telephone call—the first one of the day she deigned worthy to answer, given that it was from her sister, Stella.

“How are you doing, Rosie?” Stella asked, her voice full of sympathy. “No, Nelly, go on now,” she said before Rosemary could answer. “It’s time for your bath. Go and see Nanny. You can talk to Auntie Rose later.”

At that, an ear-piercing shriek caused Rosemary to pull the speaker away from her head. “Stella, it’s all right. I’d love to say hello to my nephew.”

She was surprised her sister could hear that statement, but the screaming ceased a moment later even though Nelly did not come on the line.

“He’s got to learn to hear the word no, Rosie,” Stella said sternly. Rosemary sensed her tone had more to do with parenting challenges than it did irritation at the suggestion, so she took no offense.

“You sound exhausted,” Rosemary commented. “How are you holding up? Aren’t you ready to burst?”

Stella groaned and replied, “She could come at any moment.”

“She?” Rosemary asked, surprised. “Do you have a crystal ball I don’t know about? Because if so, I’d like to ask it a few questions of my own.”

With a grunt Rosemary interpreted as an attempt at laughter, Stella answered, “It’s just a feeling I’ve got, or perhaps it’s blind hope. I can’t take another boy! Don’t get me wrong, I love my son to pieces, but he’s far more than a handful, and I’m exhausted.”

Rosemary let her sister wind down and then inquired as to the reason for her call. “I’d lose my head if it wasn’t attached,” Stella excused herself when she was forced to admit she couldn’t recall what she’d intended to ask her sister. “I suppose I only wanted to check up on you. Mother says you haven’t returned her last two messages.”

Even if her eye roll was silent, Rosemary’s deep sigh could be heard across the line. “She’s been an absolute pill. I’m sure she’s told you all about how much of a disappointment and embarrassment I am,” Rosemary sulked. For all her complaining, she did crave, as most children do, her mother’s approval.

“Actually,” Stella said archly, “she’s quite proud of you, you know.”

Wondering what she’d said to put that tone in her sister’s voice (their common ground had always been the fraught nature of their relationships with Evelyn), Rosemary sputtered incredulously. “You couldn’t prove it by me.”

Having realized she’d sounded rather harsh, Stella softened. “I know, Rosie, but it’s true. She’s the only one who is allowed to criticize any of us; if the press were a single person, they’d have received a thorough tongue-lashing from Mother. As it stands, I suspect she’s left curt messages with all the papers. She’s behind you, Rosie, as are the rest of the family. Just this once, perhaps cut her some slack.”

Stella begged off the phone soon after, but her words stuck with Rosemary for the rest of the night. She’d been so frustrated with her mother, perhaps she hadn’t really given her the benefit of the doubt.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.