Peril in Paperback: A Bibliophile Mystery

of flowing chiffon material over slim black pants. Her normally spiky blond hair was now a sleek bob. And were those high heels she was wearing?
    “Yeah, color me shocked, too,” she muttered, and craned her neck to gaze over my shoulder. “But Vinnie’s been on a kick lately.”
    I turned and my eyes almost bugged out of my head as I watched Vinnie approach wearing—oh, dear God—a little black cocktail dress. It was short and tight and clung to every curve she had, with capped sleeves and a sweetheart neckline that actually showed some cleavage. Her strappy black heels were seriously high and very sexy. She wobbled only once; otherwise, she looked like she’d been sporting stiletto heels her entire life.
    Wait. Is she wearing makeup?
Yes, I could see a glimmer of pale pink lipstick and soft gray eye shadow.
    I leaned in close to Suzie and whispered, “Isn’t this one of the seven signs of the coming Apocalypse?”
    She snorted a laugh. “Doesn’t my girl look hot?”
    “Yeah,” I said. “Vinnie, you look amazing.”
    “Thank you, Brooklyn.” In a self-conscious gesture, she fluffed her hair, which, instead of hanging straight down her back in a demure braid, was curled around her shoulders in thick, lustrous waves. “I thought it would be fun for Suzie and me to play dress-up. Doesn’t she look lovely?”
    “You both do.”
    Suzie winked at Vinnie. “Never thought you’d catch me playing the lipstick lesbian, but it’s kind of fun to see you all dolled up.”
    I took another sip of my drink. “Not that you guys don’t always look perfect, but…wow.”
    “Thank you,” Vinnie said, smiling her appreciation for my inability to speak coherently.
    The men were gathered around the bar and I heard Nathan trying to convince the others to get a football pool going. Marko’s silly giggle could be heard throughout the room and I wondered again what Bella found attractive about him.
    Against one wall was a bountiful buffet table filled with hearty appetizers of every kind. Miniature quiches and taquitos, finger sandwiches filled with rare roast beef and horseradish sauce, Chinese dumplings with dipping sauce, chicken satay.
    Once again, Chef Tang had outdone himself. And he would be serving dinner after the séance. I was so in love with him, and to prove it I was careful to eat as much as possible. I’d learned my lesson about skipping a meal.
    “The séance is about to begin,” Grace said in a clear, cheerful voice. “You’ll want to take your drinks with you, but please place them on the floor by your feet. I can’t have any beverages on the table interfering with the power of the crystal ball.”
    There were a few snickers at that. Bella and Ruth and some of the others hustled over to the bar and quickly ordered more cocktails. The rest of us followed gamely behind Grace, who led us into a slightly smaller sitting room next door to the Gold Salon. She called this room the Red Room. It was more than obvious why. Swaying streams of thick red velvet billowed out from the chandelier to the walls and cascaded down in a rich red waterfall. The material effectively covered any windows that might have allowed the moonlight inside. In the center of the room was a large round table cloaked in mirrored brocades and Indian print fabrics. Two rows of chairs circled the table.
    Grace sat down at the table first and Ruth joined her.
    “I brought you an iced tea,” Ruth said, handing Grace a tall glass of dark red liquid.
    “Mm, passion fruit, my favorite,” Grace said, and leaned over to place the glass on the floor. “Thanks, sweetie. Sit here next to me.”
    Ruth took the chair to Grace’s right and set her own glass on the floor. Then Bella grabbed the seat on Grace’s other side and Marko sat down next to her.
    “No glasses,” Ruth murmured.
    “Okay, just one more sip,” Bella said, and took a serious gulp from her beverage before handing it to Marko, who placed both of their drinks on the floor.
    Peter, Sybil, Harrison, and Madge rounded out the seating at the main table. Vinnie, Suzie, and I, along with Nathan and Kiki and Merrilee, took seats in the second row of chairs. Stephen Fowler straggled in last and sat down next to Kiki, grumbling as he did so.
    As soon as everyone was seated, the lights dimmed and flickered as sounds of thunder were heard in the distance. It was obviously an old recording, complete with scratches and pops, but everyone laughed nervously.
    Bella feigned girlish