Mulch ado about nothing

well-developed suburb.”
    This gave Jane the chance to explain how it had happened to be there. “It was the last block of houses in this division that were planned. The developer got in trouble with the financing of the building project, and for some reason nobody knows, a multitude of lawsuits have dragged out for years, preventing anyone else coming and building. The homeowners’ society has taken over temporary responsibility for keeping it attractive. Part of our dues are spent on mowing it early in the spring and scattering wildflower seeds on it.“
    “What an excellent solution,“ Miss Winstead said.
    “Over the last five years or so the wildflower plants seem to have finally beat out the weeds. Otherwise it would really be a blight,“ Jane agreed. She was blathering along on autopilot. “Frankly, I hope the lawsuits drag out for the rest of my life. I’d hate to lose this view. And my cats enjoy the field enormously. They’d be heartbroken if houses went up back there, and so would I.”
    Geneva had joined them and had been listening. She said, “Someone ought to write an article about this. It might be very encouraging to other communities that have open land that’s left to be a blight.”
    Miss Winstead had been considering the view with head slightly tilted and eyes half-shut. “Jane, you know what would make this even better? If you replace that fence across the back of your yard with something rustic. A simple split-rail fence would fit in better with the wildness and beauty of the field.”
    As they left Jane’s yard for Shelley’s, Arnie slipped back into the group. Nobody seemed to notice he’d been missing. Jane was dying to speak to Mel, but didn’t dare disappear.
    Shelley had gotten their girls to cooperate with her plans. An enormous pitcher of iced tea and a plate of tiny iced cakes were sitting out, lightly covered with plastic wrap. Colorful plates and glasses were ranged around her patio table.
    “You just did this to show me up,“ Jane hissed.
    “I did it to misdirect their attention from my store-bought garden,“ Shelley replied in a whisper.
    No one was fooled. It was obvious to the real gardeners that Jane and Shelley’s “gardens“ had recently been trucked in. “You should keep these things,“ Ursula said, “instead of sending them back to the nursery.“
    “How did you know?“ Jane asked with a laugh.
    “They’re too perfect and they’re all in brand-new pots. But that’s okay. You might learn some things by caring for them.”
    The group made serious inroads on the tea and cakes, until there was a flash of lightning and distant thunder. Threatening weather gave the guests a legitimate reason to flee.
    “I’ve enjoyed meeting all of you,“ Shelley said hurriedly as everyone headed for their cars. This didn’t seem an appropriate way to end a class, everyone running for cover and probably hoping they’d never meet again.
    “That wasn’t too bad,“ Jane said when they were all gone. “At least we showed that we cared about our yards enough to make an effort to spruce them up.“
    “They knew we cheated,“ Shelley said bluntly. “We should have done what Stefan did—let them see it in the raw and make suggestions.”
    When Jane went back to her house, she was surprised to see Mel still sitting at her kitchen table, eating a ham sandwich. “Sorry, but I’ve missed lunch for three days in a row. Hope you don’t mind that I raided your refrigerator.“
    “Not in the least,“ Jane said, sitting down next to him. “Was Arnold Waring helpful?”
    Mel shook his head. “Not at all. It was all so vague. He wasn’t sure of the color, make, or age of the car he claims he saw in front of Dr. Jackson’s house.“
    “Claims?“
    “My instinct tells me he made it up,“ Mel said. “He’s a lonely old man, wanting to look helpful and cooperative, I think. We’d already questioned everyone else on the block about strange vehicles or unfamiliar people on the street during the early morning of the attack on Dr. Jackson. Nobody could think of anything unusual.“
    “Maybe they were all just busy with their own lives and didn’t notice,“ Jane said. It was a feeble excuse, but she felt honor-bound to make it.
    “Jane, you know better,“ Mel said, grinning. “This kind of old neighborhood has people who keep an eye out for anything odd happening. You and Shelley are good examples.”
    Jane started to object to this characterization, but Mel