The Cat That Had a Clue: The Cat's Paw Cozy Mysteries - Book 1 by Fiona Snyckers

Author:Fiona Snyckers [Snyckers, Fiona]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Fiona Snyckers
Published: 2018-09-09T22:00:00+00:00

Chapter 15

Fay was about to go back to her office when a shadow fell into the residents’ lounge and a large figure darkened the doorway.

She looked up, as did everyone else in the room. Morwen surged forward.

“Dr. Dyer! How lovely of you to join us. You’re just in time for a cup of tea and a scone.”

Dr. Dyer’s cartoon-villain eyebrows snapped together. “No, thank you. I never indulge at this hour.”

“Oh, but you must have something.” Morwen’s hospitable instincts were offended.

“Coffee. Black. Thank you.”

While Morwen fluttered around getting coffee for the new arrival, Fay noticed several women glancing in his direction. She caught snippets of conversation.

“… the local doctor …”

“… terribly good looking …”

“… wonder if he’s single …”

Fay rolled her eyes. What was he doing here anyway? Had he come to annoy her with more accusations about how she was treading on the toes of the local police force?

A woman that Fay recognized as local plucked at his sleeve.

“Dr. Dyer.” Her voice was anxious. “I’m so worried. My little Euan has a terrible sugar allergy. He just helped himself to a scoop of strawberry jelly when I wasn’t looking. Should we rush him to hospital? What symptoms should we look out for?” She pointed to the little boy who was running up and down the passage uttering fearsome war-cries.

Dr. Dyer’s eyebrows drew even closer together. “Nonsense. There’s no such thing as a sugar allergy. Sugar is not a recognized allergen. Is the child diabetic?”

“No.” The woman’s eyes were like saucers.

“There you go then. Our bodies break our food down into glucose anyway. If we were allergic to it, we would all die. Who told you your child was allergic to sugar?”

“A homeopath I visited in London.”

“Well, tell him from me he’s an idiot.”

Dr. Dyer had apparently lost all interest in the conversation because he turned away. Fay tried to slip out the door before he noticed her.

“Miss Penrose!”

She sighed and turned to face him.

“Dr. Dyer?”

“I need to ask if you use pesticides in this establishment. I’m talking particularly about sprays or granular pesticides left out in the open. Do you have anything like that?”

It took Fay a moment to realize why he was asking.

“The cyanide,” she said. “You think I’ve been using illegal pesticides on the premises, and that’s how Mr. Caldwell got poisoned? You can’t be serious.”

“It wouldn’t be the first time. There have been several documented cases where this has occurred. Residents of New York City, in particular, have been known to bend the rules about permitted pesticides.”

“And since I’m from New York City…”

He gave her a close look. “Actually, I didn’t know that. I can hear you are an American with an east coast accent, but apart from that, I had no idea where you were from.”

“We don’t use pesticides at the Cat’s Paw. And if we did, we certainly wouldn’t use illegal ones containing hydrogen cyanide. We only use organic remedies like cedarwood and mineral oil to discourage pests.”

“There’s no need to sound defensive.”

“And there’s no need to sound accusatory.

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