Pushing Up Bluebonnets

wanted to buy her, can you imagine that? None of you would have refused.' Meanwhile, his other drooling heirs were out on the job while JoLynn was home admiring the swimming pool—or perhaps the swimming pool attendant? Quite an attractive young woman, our JoLynn. Looked very much like Katarina.'

'You believe Mr. Richter made sure she stayed away from the others? That he did this intentionally?' I said.

Ian cocked his head. 'Ah, you're quite brilliant, aren't you, Abby? Yes. Good summary, my dear.'

I ignored the smiling sarcasm, the attentive expression and the body language that indicated he'd like to talk more about me and less about JoLynn. 'You're saying you were never alone with her? Never got to ask her about her past?'

Ian threw back the last of his brandy or whatever had been in his glass. 'Not on your life. She was treated like a precious gem Elliott needed to keep in a glassed-in case. Though he never gave warning, one knew better than to get too close.'

'You're very insightful, Mr. McFarland,' Kate said.

'Please call me Ian.' The charming blues focused on Kate now.

'Simone is your daughter with Adele, correct?' she went on.

'We're back to my daughter, are we? I suppose she's raised suspicion, perhaps due to the surliness I'm sure you were forced to endure. Let me be clear that Simone, though prone to fits of temper, would never harm anyone. Adele, however, is quite another story. You might want to focus your efforts there.'

'You mentioned Katarina earlier. How well did you know her?' I asked.

'Quite a shining light in the world, Katarina was. A tragedy she had to wither away like that. They've made great progress with cancer in the twenty or so years since she's been gone. Though I was never privy to what kind of cancer she had, she surely would have lived longer had she been born years later.'

Kate said, 'Do you know why Katarina ran off for those two years?'

He laughed, an open-mouthed loud laugh, at that. Too much wine, maybe?

'You've got to be kidding,' he said. 'You've met Elliott. Katarina was being smothered, of course. We all knew she had to do something. Her running away came as no surprise to Adele or me—one of the few things we ever agreed upon when we were married, by the way.'

'How did you know she was being smothered?' Kate placed her elbow on the table and rested her chin on her fist.

'Elliott, as I said earlier, acted with Katarina rather like he's been behaving with JoLynn. Possessive. Adoring. And toward the end, after Katarina returned from God knows where, he kept the details very hush-hush— that is, if he knew any details. Like where she'd been. The cancer. I mean, we were all shocked when we learned she was dying.'

I recalled the words on Katarina's tombstone. Taken from the secretive world, taken from the pain of life. That memorial to Richter's daughter certainly jibed with what Ian was saying and made me believe that Richter might not have known where his daughter had run off to.

'Is there anything else I can offer?' Ian asked, glancing at his watch.

I wondered if his time matched the ticking clock on the fireplace mantel that had begun to distract and annoy me. Hard to believe it was already past nine p.m. 'Not now,' I said, trying to assimilate everything I'd heard so far. Which was more accurate? JoLynn the sneak or JoLynn the gem under glass? Maybe both, I thought.

He stood, bowed at the waist and in a mocking tone said, 'I am your servant.'

After the door closed, Kate said, 'He's not telling all he knows.'

'What makes you say that?' I said.

'Body language. Eye shifts. All very subtle but still there,' she said.

'Good thing you were paying better attention than I was.' I glanced at what looked like an antique mantel clock, resisting the urge to throw my notebook at it. 'Is that damn clock bothering you as much as it is me?' I said.

But before Kate could answer, a knock sounded and Eva stuck her head in the door. Her ridiculous little hat was gone, thank goodness. You cannot take someone seriously when they're wearing a doily on their head.

She said, 'Herr Richter thought you might require a break and some refreshments. Coffee? Tea? A brandy? Water? Whatever you wish.'

'Coffee for me.' I looked at Kate.

'If you have green tea, that would be wonderful,' she said.

Eva nodded and closed the door.

While Kate left to find a powder room, I stood and stretched, then walked around, glancing at the books, resisting the urge to tamper with the clock. It had one of those pendulums that matched its loud tick- tick-tick and was probably wound with a key at the back. Worth plenty, I'd bet. I then focused on the books and noted Richter had a variety of titles, everything from Shakespeare to a collection of first-edition Nero Wolfe mysteries by Stout.

Since Kate had left the door open, I was startled when Richter spoke. He had stepped into the room without a sound.

'This is JoLynn's favorite room,' he said. 'She would sit in the window seat and read for hours. She told me she never finished high school and yet I caught her reading Chaucer one day and Poe another time. A very bright girl, but perhaps I told you that before.'

'No, you didn't,' I said. 'I think you've been too worried about whether she'll pull through to offer me much information. How was she this morning?'

'Peaceful. As if she wasn't in as much pain as she has been in the last few days. They'll gradually bring her out of the coma soon, I'm told.'

I smiled. 'That's good news.'

'Yes. I'm optimistic.' He reached into his suit jacket and pulled out a photograph. 'You wanted a picture of JoLynn, but this is the best I can do.'

I took it from him and found her immediately. She and her grandfather were the only ones smiling. 'She's . . . beautiful.' I continued to stare at her face and felt anger building in my gut. The person in that hospital bed hardly looked like this person. Who could have done this to her?

Just then, Estelle arrived with a tray of cups and steaming pots. Richter stepped aside and said he would give us ten minutes until he sent in Adele. He left the room with a nod and an almost pleasant smile.

Estelle said, 'Anything else?'

How could we need anything more? There was not only a pot of coffee for me and Kate's green tea but biscotti, cookies and a bowl of Andes chocolate mints.

'This is beautiful, Estelle. Do you eat all this wonderful food, too? Because I might just have to get a job here if that's the case.'

'I don't think you want a job here.' She smiled and then was gone.

She's probably right, I thought. Bet she sees the worst

of everyone. I poured coffee and was dropping a mint into my cup just as Kate came back.

'What's that?' she asked.

As if she didn't know. 'My own special energy drink.'

She raised an eyebrow but made no comment as she poured from the small teapot. Her tea smelled wonderful—a touch of citrus, maybe?

I slid the photo over to her. 'Check out JoLynn.'

Kate's eyes widened and I heard her intake of breath. 'My God, she looks so different than . . . what we saw. Really lovely.'

I held up a biscotto for Kate. 'How's about we leave that photo right on the table?'

She refused the biscotto—her loss, since they tasted homemade. She sipped her tea and sat deep in thought while I ate two of those crispy critters, along with three cookies. Then I added another mint to my second cup of coffee.

Adele arrived minutes later, and with her came a blast of cold air. 'Pardon my saying so, but this is probably the most ridiculous thing my brother has ever subjected us to. And who chose what order