The Merchant of Menace

she was seriously overdressed for the occasion. She’d brought along exquisite puff pastries with a dusting of powdered sugar, which surprised Jane. She’d expected Tiffany to turn up with something heavy, filling, and distinctly “down home“ instead of something so fine and delicate.
    Shelley strolled into the dining room, looking over her shoulder at Tiffany. “I don’t get it, Jane.“
    “Don’t get what?“
    “The Johnsons. That’s a very pricey dress Tiffany’s wearing. Awfully mother-of-the-bride-ish, but good quality. Where do they get the money? How do they afford the rent on their house? Do they do something for a living?“
    “I have no idea,“ Jane said. “The only thing I can figure is that they inherited a wad from some distant relative.“
    “Or maybe Billy Joe sold out a highly successful hog-butchering factory,“ Shelley said. “They aren’t as ignorant as you’d think,“ Jane said. “I meant to tell you about this. I went over to invite Tiffany to the parties and Billy Joe was working away at a computer.“
    “Probably just playing a game.“
    “No, I don’t think so. I caught a glimpse of the room before Tiffany hastily closed the door. There were shelves of books and computer manuals.“
    “Jane, when you’re past this entertaining binge, we have to try to find out more about them. You can’t entirely overlook the fact that Lance was killed at their house. Could just be a random roof he chose, or it could be more.“
    “You mean Lance knew about them?“
    “Possibly. He was even nosier than we are.“
    “But Shelley, that doesn’t make sense. If he were setting up a ‘spy station’ to spy on them, he’d have been on someone else’s roof, wouldn’t he?“
    “Let me think that over,“ Shelley said as the doorbell rang.
    Another group arrived together and the noise level went up significantly. Of course, they were having to compete with Billy Joe Johnson’s Christmas music which was once again blasting the neighborhood. Jane was strolling through the living room, greeting friends and feeling smug when a relative silence fell over the room. Everybody was gazing at the doorway to the kitchen, where Sam Dwyer stood, looking very awkward.
    “You must be Sam Dwyer. How nice that you could join us,“ Jane said. “Ladies, this is Sam Dwyer. Pet’s dad. You’ll all have to introduce yourselves.”
    The noise level gradually climbed again as Jane took the box Sam had brought along. “Oh, what lovely fudge,“ she said. It was a huge improvement on the fudge Pet had brought the day before.
    “Thank you,“ Sam said quietly. “Where should I put it?“
    “Come along to the dining room,“ Jane said, leading the way and handing him one of the brightly colored plastic serving trays. While he moved the squares of fudge onto the tray, she studied him. She’d never gotten a close look at him before, just a general impression from down the block. He was better-looking than she would have guessed from a distance. His hair was too short to be stylish and his glasses were a bit on the Buddy Holly side, but his features were strong and handsome. He wore a charcoal gray tweed jacket with suede elbow patches, a light gray shirt and tie, and black dress slacks. Very well turned out for a computer nerd.
    “I appreciate all you’ve done for Pet,“ he said, setting the last piece of fudge in place.
    “I haven’t done anything for her. Except enjoy her. She’s a nice little girl. A credit to you.“
    “You’re more important to her than you know. She’s shy around most people, but feels comfortable coming to your house and being friends with your son. She told me you even let them use your computer.”
    Jane was surprised at the compliments. “They both know more about computers than I do. I don’t worry that they’ll wreck it as much as I worry that I will.“
    “Well, I still want to thank you for making her feel that your house is sort of a second home. We don’t have family here and it’s pretty lonely for her at home sometimes. I’m her only companion there and my work takes a lot of my time and concentration. She really enjoys your family. She’s always telling me about how busy and interesting everybody in the Jeffry family
    “Listen, Sam, any man who is able and willing to do tidy French braids is a fine dad.”
    He laughed. “I keep hoping she’ll get interested in doing them herself!”
    Thelma came into the dining room just then. She gave them an