Thirteen Diamonds

two women. “One was Harriet Monroe. The other was Ida Wilson.”
    “They were both sitting at his table,” Tess said. “Keeping an eye on each other. I wonder if there was some jealousy there.”
    “I don't see much point in this romantic nonsense at our age,” I said. “Mooning over men like schoolgirls. It isn't as if there were a payoff. All they do is talk, anyway.”
    “As a nurse, I can tell you that's not true,” Dora said. “It's not all talk.”
    “You mean...they indulge?” Tess asked.
    “You mean they have sex?” I asked.
    “Yes,” Dora, said, smiling at our surprise. “You would be amazed at what goes on here at Silver Acres. They may not be as active as they were when they were younger, but that doesn't mean everybody here is celibate.”
    “Like we are,” Tess said. “So there's Viagra in the medicine cabinets.”
    “Peyton Place,” I said.  “I'm shocked.” They say older people sometimes forget about sex. I hadn't forgotten about sex; I just didn't want to have sex with the few doddering single men at Silver Acres. But apparently not everyone agreed with me.
    “One of my friends here even tells off-color jokes,” Dora said. “Here's one she told me. A doctor got mad at his wife for some reason so he chewed her out. At the end of his lecture he added for good measure, 'And you're lousy in bed, too.' The next morning he went to his office. He felt badly about the things he had said so he called his wife around noon and asked about her day. She said she was in bed. 'At this hour?' he fumed. 'What in the world are you doing in bed?' She said, 'I'm getting a second opinion.'“
    After we chuckled, Dora said, “Both Harriet and Ida are on the lunch committee. Since you're talking about suspicions, it would make sense that the murderer would have had the opportunity to doctor the food.”
    “Who else is on the lunch committee?” I asked. I probably should have known, but I tend to forget things.
    “At the risk of incriminating myself, I am.”
    “That makes you a suspect,” Tess said, smiling. “Do you want to confess now?”
    Dora laughed. “Well, since we're naming suspects, there is a fourth member of the lunch committee—Ellen Tooner.”
    “Do you remember where Ellen was sitting?” I asked.
    “Why yes,” Dora said. “If I recall, correctly, she was the fourth person at Gerald's table.”
    “Just one more question,” I said, trying to sound offhand, like Columbo. “Which one of you prepared the fatal dish?”
    “We all worked on it,” Dora said. “At Harriet's apartment. We usually meet at one of our apartments before the bridge club and prepare the lunch together. The recipe we were working from didn't call for shellfish. It called for tuna, which is not a shellfish.  In fact, I can remember seeing Harriet put the tuna into it. And I was very surprised when I heard about the shellfish being found in it.”
    The three of us stood looking at each other for seconds, not speaking. Finally, Dora said, “I-I didn't make the connection before. I guess that's significant, isn't it?”
    “Monstrously,” Tess said. “Whoever put in the shellfish is the murderer.”
    “If, indeed, there was a murder,” I said.
    Now the others both looked at me. Tess said, “But you're the one propounding the murder theory.”
    “Just playing devil's advocate. Remember that it's only a theory so far.”
     
                       *    *    *
     
    After leaving Dora, Tess and I walked back to our almost-adjoining apartments, which were in the same one-story brick building. The cozy apartments all had access to the outside. A narrow lawn fronted the building, as did a sidewalk. A section of woods, mostly evergreen trees, bordered the sidewalk, complete with squirrels and birds. As we approached, a regal red cardinal splashed in the birdbath I had set up.
    Tess invited me into her place for a drink. I was always impressed by how homey it was, with knickknacks and personalized furniture arranged to fill up much of the minimal space in the one-bedroom apartment. My apartment, on the other hand, I had furnished for practicality, and it had more open space.
    We sat near the south-facing windows with the drapes drawn to keep the hot sun at bay, sipping iced tea. Fortunately, the air conditioning worked well. 
    Tess said, “Now tell me why, after we had what I would call a breakthrough, finding out that the shellfish was apparently put in the casserole