In the Still of the Night

about it. She’ll be ruthlessly honest. She always is.“
    “Was the other version Mrs. Ethridge’s?“
    “It was, but I won’t repeat it until you’ve talked to Addie.“
    “Very well. Would you be willing to stay while I question Miss Jonson?“
    “Only if it’s all right with Addie,“ Lily said. And then she suddenly remembered that Robert had been calling the Roosevelt home when the whole horror had started.
    “Chief Walker, we’ve been invited to the Governor’s house tomorrow. We need to respond to the invitation. May we go?”
    At this, he showed surprise again. “You’re friends with Governor Roosevelt?“
    “No, but he found out that we were hosting Mr. West, and Mrs. Roosevelt very kindly invited Julian West and the rest of us to tea tomorrow.”
    Walker thought for a moment. “Somebody is a murderer. It’s most likely one of your guests or someone who lives here. Certainly you don’t think it’s wise to drag that person, whoever it is, to the Governor’s house?”
    He had a point, but Lily didn’t like the inclusion of the household residents among the suspects. “Perhaps you and a deputy could come along.“
    “Perhaps,“ he said with a slight smile. “Let’s leave this for another hour. I’ll let you know then.”
    Did he think he would solve the murder within a mere hour? Lily wondered.
    “May I go back to our guests?“ Robert asked.
    “In a moment. I have a few questions for you. You’re quite certain you didn’t use a key to open the door to the victim’s room?“
    “I am. The only way to lock the room was with a latch inside. When we came to live here, most of the keys to everything had gone missing.“
    “Did you touch anything in the room?“
    “Good Lord, no!“ Robert said, offended. “Why would I? I saw that her lips were blue, that she wasn’t breathing, and I touched only her hand briefly, which was quite cold. I thought that it was reasonable to assume she was dead, or as near to it as a person can be.“
    “Did you take her pulse?“
    “I wouldn’t know how,“ Robert admitted.
    “How long were you in the room?“ Walker asked, taking notes on what Robert was saying.
    Robert glanced at Lily. “Maybe thirty seconds? Or less?“
    “I agree,“ Lily said.
    “Did you know Mrs. Ethridge before she arrived here, Mr. Brewster?“
    “Never laid eyes on the woman or even heard of her until my sister showed me her letter wishing to be invited,“ Robert answered curtly.
    “Then you may go,“ Walker said.
    “What am I to tell the rest of the guests?”
    “You’re welcome to tell them she was murdered and that none of them is free to leave.“
    “Oh, they’ll be happy to hear that!“ Robert snapped.
    Walker ignored this show of bad temper. “Would you ask Miss Jonson to come in?”
    Mr. Prinney, content that he had protected the Brewsters’ interests, rose from his desk and left the room. “I’ll look for her, if you wish,“ he said.
    “Don’t bother, Mr. Prinney, I’ll get her,“ Lily said. She wanted a word with Robert. As she and Mr. Prinney left the room and caught up to Robert, she whispered to the two of them, “What do we do about that invitation? We can’t show up at the Governor’s house under armed guard.”
    Mr. Prinney said, “Walker’s not going to let us go. He’d like to go himself—you saw that hint of smile—but he can’t risk it. He might allow West to go and accompany him, but how could he explain how their guest needs an escort who happens to be a police officer?“
    “And how do we explain why we can’t come?”
    “Easy. Blame it on West,“ Robert said.
    “But it isn’t his fault.“
    “We don’t really know that, do we, Lily?“ Mr. Prinney cleared his throat disapprovingly.

    Addie was truthful. “I hated that woman,“ she announced to Chief Howard Walker. “But I didn’t kill her. Robert said she was murdered.“ She glanced at Lily instead of Walker for confirmation.
    “Why did you hate her?“ Walker asked.
    “She seduced away a man I loved a great deal and planned to marry,“ Addie said bluntly. But there were no tears this time. “He was in poor health and she left him alone to die.“
    “But you didn’t kill her,“ Walker said.
    “I had reason to. I did not do so. But I don’t mind a bit that someone did kill her, if that’s your next question.”
    If she expected Walker to show any shock at this remark, she was disappointed.
    He only asked, “Who do you think did kill