Peril in Paperback: A Bibliophile Mystery

well.”
    “Finally,” Peter muttered, and shoved back his chair.
    I turned. “You’re happy the music room is open?”
    “Very funny,” he said, standing. “No, just happy this meal is over.”
    I pushed back my chair. “At least the food is always phenomenal.”
    “Sometimes that’s just not enough.”
    I recoiled. “What planet are you from?”
    He finally cracked a smile and I felt like I’d achieved something monumental.
    The others seemed to feel the same way Peter did as we all rushed to leave.
    I hurried to catch up with Vinnie and we walked down the hall together. “What a vibe, huh?”
    “What a lovely dinner,” she said simultaneously.
    “What?” I said.
    “I’m sorry, Brooklyn,” she said at the same time.
    We were both amused at how we kept talking over each other. “You go first,” she said.
    “The vibe at dinner,” I explained in a low voice. “You could slash it with a butter knife.”
    “I don’t understand. We had a lovely dinner.”
    “Well, sure, the food was great, but what about…?” Then it dawned on me why she was so happy. “You had Lily with you.”
    “Yes.” Her smile was rapturous. “She is such an angel. Suzie has gone to the kitchen to get her a bottle. She’ll be right back.”
    “I’m glad.” I leaned against her in weary camaraderie. “My end of the table was dismal. Everyone’s uptight or morose or just plain bitchy.”
    “I’m so sorry, Brooklyn,” she said, patting my arm. “Come sit with us next time.”
    “I will.”
    “Grace only stuck you at that end of the table to pair you up with Nathan.”
    “I suppose so.” I smiled. “You’ll be glad to know it doesn’t seem to be working out.”
    She laughed. “Thank goodness.”
    “And despite all the angst, my appetite is as healthy as ever.”
    “That’s my Brooklyn.”
    We made it to the card room in time to see Fowler arguing with Gabriel. “I may be stuck in this godforsaken house, but that doesn’t mean I have to socialize with you heathens any more than necessary.”
    “You’re right,” Gabriel said. “It’s time for you to leave.”
    “Fine.” Fowler sniffed. “Good night.”
    Gabriel grabbed his arm and squeezed. “I suggest you go straight to your room and lock your door.”
    Fowler’s eyes grew wide and his lips trembled. Was he only now remembering how dangerous it was to be left alone on the third floor? He bolted from the dining room as if he were shot from a cannon.
    I watched him leave, then gave Gabriel a nod. “Well done.”
    Gabriel smiled artfully at me, then shifted his glance to Vinnie. “Everything okay with the baby?” he asked her.
    “Everything is wonderful.” Her hands were pressed together in a little prayer of thanks. “Bless you both for your part in bringing us all together.”
    Gabriel lifted his shoulder in a casual gesture. “I was just holding the kid.”
    “An experience Lily will treasure forever,” Vinnie assured him with a smile.
    I laughed and gave her a quick hug. “I’m thrilled for you and Suzie. And I’m right down the hall, don’t forget. If you ever need a babysitter…”
    “Thank you, Brooklyn,” she said. “We are so grateful to you. You are the very best neighbor in the world.”
    Since the rest of the guests were filtering into the card room, I figured all of us had concluded, at least subconsciously, that there was safety in numbers.
    Peter, Marko, Harrison, and Nathan gathered around the bar with after-dinner drinks. The four men had developed a loose-knit friendship, but now I watched Marko and wondered. Here he was, stuck in this house with the person who had murdered his longtime friend and possible lover, Bella. Was he mourning her loss? Was he bent on revenge?
    In the beginning, I had considered Marko a grown-up kid, a consummate slacker. He seemed like the kind of guy who could stretch out on any couch in the world andfall asleep in an instant. But now, without Bella around, he seemed antsy. Like he wouldn’t know how to sit quietly if someone paid him to do it. My original impression still stood: he was an annoying twelve-year-old kid in a fifty-year-old body.
    At that moment, nobody was paying much attention to him, so he was cantankerous and loud and getting worse by the minute. But I watched him study the others out of the corner of his eye and I saw him change tactics. He grew more somber and solicitous. One of the men said something to him, then the others joined in. And just like that, he