A Groom wirh a View

imagination is as vivid as ours are,“ Jane said. “What else could have made them? Falling against the outstretched hand of a marble statue? There aren’t any of those around.”
    Mel looked embarrassed. “Okay, okay. But maybe someone else was roaming around in the dark, ran into her, and just out of fright and alarm, gave her a shove? Not even knowing who she was.“
    “It won’t play, Mel,“ Jane said. “First of all, she wouldn’t have been anywhere near the stairs in the dark without having been deliberately lured out of her room. She was already afraid of going up and down those stairs in full daylight.“
    “I learned a couple things from John Smith, too,“ Mel said. “Apparently she made Marguerite Rowe’s wedding dress sometime back in the Dark Ages.“
    “She claimed that, and Marguerite brushed her off,“ Jane said.
    “She also has an accountant in common with Eden’s father.“
    “What could that mean?“ Jane asked.
    “Almost certainly nothing,“ Mel said. “And she once had a sewing class that a Mrs. Hessling attended.“· “You’re just a wealth of information,“ Jane said. “But how does any of it help?“
    “I’m not claiming it helps. Just reporting.”
    “What about Dwayne? Did they find out anything about him?“ Jane asked.
    Mel decided the teenaged shoplifting charge wasn’t something he should discuss. “Not much. His boss was pretty closed-mouth about him. Whether he was concealing something the company didn’t want talked about or he simply doesn’t like the kid very well wasn’t clear. He said Dwayne was going to work for Livvy’s father and didn’t express any regret at losing him.”
    Shelley suddenly gasped.
    “What’s wrong?“ Jane asked.
    “The seam binding! We forgot to tell Mel about the seam binding!”
    Jane nearly slapped her own forehead. “How could we forget!“ She explained to him about the fresh, non-dusty seam binding they’d found in the attic while he was out to dinner and their theory that it had been tied across the stairway to make quite certain Mrs. Crossthwait would take a serious tumble.
    “Where is it now?“ he asked in a low voice. “I think we left it in the attic,“ Shelley said. “You haven’t mentioned this to anyone else, have you?“ Mel asked.
    “Of course not,“ Jane said.
    “Then don’t. Stay here. I’m going to call Smith and have him take a look.”
    He got up and strolled away with seeming casualness.
    “He’s taking us seriously for once,“ Jane said with surprise.
    “What are you two plotting?“ Eden Matthews said from behind Jane. Neither she nor Shelley had seen her approach and Jane wondered if she’d overheard any of their conversation.
    “Nothing much,“ Jane said. “Just chatting about the plans for tomorrow.”
    Eden took the chair Mel had been sitting in. She was still in her dinner dress, a slinky black number with a plunging neckline and what looked like a real diamond brooch to draw the eye to the extent of the plunge. She really was a gorgeous, voluptuous woman. “Your boyfriend is very good-looking,“ she said to Jane.
    “I think so, too,“ Jane said.
    “Where’s he gone?“
    “I’m not sure. He didn’t say.“ Jane wondered fleetingly whether Eden was really asking if he’d gone to bed and intended to pursue him there. Rather than let herself follow this line of thought, she asked, “How was the rehearsal dinner?“
    “Wonderful. Excellent food. Nice surroundings, but not the best of company, I have to admit. Dwayne was in a bit of a rage about his room being messed up. He couldn’t quit complaining about it. Didn’t make for scintillating conversation.“
    “That’s too bad,“ Shelley said. “Was he blaming anyone in particular?“
    “Oh, just about everybody in turn. Not blatantly enough for anyone to justify taking offense—quite. But he was very annoying. Set everyone’s teeth on edge.“
    “What does he do for a living?“ Shelley asked.
    “I have the impression he’s been a very insignificant clerk in a very large mortgage company. Researches deeds or something boring like that. But he’s coming into the family firm when he and Livvy get back from their honeymoon. I can’t imagine what he can contribute.“
    “Besides sons for Livvy?“ Shelley said.
    Eden grinned. “It probably is just a ploy to keep him close at hand and under Jack’s control. I never thought about it that way, but you’re probably right. Keeps him under Jack’s watchful