The House of Seven Mabels

lives.'

'Maybe it's too soon for him. I think he's so angry that he could have done all the vandalizing. But not in person. He'd be too obvious if anyone saw him lurking around. Maybe he hired one of Bitsy's discontented workers to do the sabotage.'

'That's an interesting theory,' Jane said. 'But it would have cost him too much. I do think it's likely that others have inquired about him or brought suits against him. This attorney Paul uses sounds like more of a detective than a lawyer.'

'That's why Paul pays the big bucks. The guy loves to get the dirt on people. I guess it's an instinct.'

'One we also share,' Jane said.

'Bite your tongue,' Shelley said with a laugh. 'Oh, I forgot to tell you something else. I finally met the plumber.'

'I'd forgotten there has to be a plumber. Why haven't we come across him yet?'

'It's a she, Jane,' Shelley said. 'Introduced herself as Hank. I can't imagine what that's short for. For some reason she wasn't on the list of workers and phone numbers Bitsy gave me.'

'She must have been one of the earliest to work once the walls were down in that section. Doesn't plumbing have to come first?'

'I have no idea. But if you think back, the first time we looked at the renovated part there were pipes stubbed out in the bathrooms and in the kitchen.'

'Count on you to notice that. I didn't. So did you talk to Hank?'

'To my sorrow, I did. She said right out that Sandy Anderson was a cross between Eleanor Roosevelt and Mother Teresa.'

'What an odd combination,' Jane said. 'I don't get the connection.'

Shelley said, 'I think I do. How much do you know about Eleanor Roosevelt?'

'Not as much as I'd like. Why?'

'Some recent scholars have suggested that after Eleanor found out about Lucy Mercer having an affair with Franklin, Eleanor and her longtime women friends became, let us say, much closer friends.'

'You mean lesbians? Oh, now I get it.'7

'Hank went on haranguing about their feminist group and how it would never have gotten off the ground if it hadn't been for wonderful Sandy. She was both a hard and a tenderhearted person. Always so supportive of everyone in the group. She called Sandra a good example of 'tough love' and actually got a bit teary about her dying.'

'No! I can't imagine that,' Jane exclaimed.

'But she recovered quickly. She demanded that I go back to the Merchandise Mart and present my recommendations on the swirly hot tub thing

that they're putting in the master bath. Told me in no uncertain terms to be sure to consider only the ones that are left-handed.'

'Left-handed? What does that mean?'

'I think it means they hook into the plumbing at the end she's stubbed out, instead of having to be installed with the back of it the wrong way around.'

'What did you tell her?'

'That we weren't yet under contract and were still waiting for a better one. She went ballistic. How dare I argue about the contract? Sandra, or Sandy, as she insisted on calling her, could never be wrong about anything. She thought it was a wonderful contract.'

'Did you tell her…?'

'You bet I did. I told her that everyone else on the job that I'd talked to had slashed through theirs and gotten it changed. That really knocked her for a loop. Later I saw her go out to her truck. When I was leaving, Hank was sitting there behind the steering wheel, flipping pages of what looked like her contract.'

'If she's telling the truth, she's certainly not a suspect in Sandra's death.'

'Jane, we don't really know if anybody has told us the truth.'

'I guess that's true. But Henrietta and Jacqueline were quite frank with us. And so were Eva-line and Thomasina. Even Bitsy's inclined to spill her guts at every opportunity.'

'I hate to admit this,' Shelley said, 'but I'm starting to feel sorry for Bitsy. I know Sandra was her own- free-will choice of contractor, but so many things have gone wrong on the project. Bitsy has to be thinking it's her fault.'

Shelley opened the foil on a third granola bar.

'Maybe so.' Jane said. 'But she's still plowing along with it.'

'If I were she, God forbid, I'd have taken my loss by now and turned it back over to the township to tear down.'

'I'm so glad to hear you say that,' Jane said.

'I know. You should just back out.'

'I can't do that to you.'

'Sure you can. You're so excited suddenly about your book. That's what you're meant to be putting your brains to work on. I can do the decorating myself. Or find someone else who has the skills and interest. But only if Bitsy antes up what I think is fair.'

Jane knew Shelley wholeheartedly believed what she was saying. But the book had already taken her years and she would hate to disappoint her best friend.

Twenty-eight

Wednesday morning jane got a call from Evaline. 'Carl and I will be finishing up our work by noon, if not earlier. And I have some good news to tell you and Shelley. I'd like to celebrate. Could you two come to dinner at my apartment?'

'I'll have to check with Shelley. But it sounds like a good idea to me. Can you give me a hint about your good news?'

Evaline laughed. 'No. I have to save it for tonight. Would seven be too late?'

'That's fine. I can feed my kids at six. I'll get back to you.'

Jane caught Shelley just as she was leaving for another fight with the caterer.

'I'll either have it sorted out or will be interviewing someone else I've heard about long before then. I can make it. Did she tell you what the good news is?'

'She's saving it for dinner.'

'I have got to run. I'll pick you up at quarter to seven.'

Jane spent another day at the computer with Priscilla and wished she hadn't committed to the dinner. She'd rather have continued her work while she was on a roll. But she'd promised Eva-line they'd be there.

'How'd the meeting with the caterer go?' Jane asked as she got into Shelley's minivan.

'I won. I never really doubted that I would. Where are we going?'

Jane gave her Evaline's address, and they arrived just on time.

The apartment was on the first floor. Evaline greeted them at the door before they even knocked. 'I saw you pull up. I'm running the tiniest bit late. I forgot to start the beans on time. Come in.'

Her apartment was tiny but well-kept. It must have come already furnished, Jane guessed. The pictures on the walls of the living room seemed somewhat generic, not a reflection of what little they knew of Evaline. The furniture was cheap but clean and comfortable. Evaline, dressed in a short khaki skirt and a flowered shirt, asked them what they wanted to drink. 'I have iced tea, sodas, or beer. And I even bought Shelley some bottled water and a six-pack of RC Cola for you, Jane.'

She was back in a moment with their drinks. She sat down beside Shelley on the sofa. 'I heard from the patent attorney yesterday. He has a guy in the patent office he's worked with for a long time,' she

said. 'He called him and asked if he could hurry it through and the guy said he would.'

'That's wonderful/' Jane said. 'I'm so glad for you.'

'It gets even better,' she said with a grin. 'The patent attorney has talked to some joint-venture investors and they're considering funding me.'

Jane was delighted and put down her drink to give Evaline a congratulatory handshake. But she spilled a bit