War and Peas

didn’t have any opportunity to ask Sharlene about the newspaper clipping.“
    “Let’s stick to Regina,“ Jane said. “Whitney Abbot thought well of her. He wanted to marry her. More than wanted to, he planned to. I can’t imagine him getting swept away by anyone who was less than perfect.“
    “Yes, but like we said before, if he felt he’d been made a fool of in some way, or tricked by her, it might be a motive for murder.“
    “A pretty thin one,“ Jane said. “My take on him is that he’d consider social shunning a fate far worse than death.“
    “Lisa, of course, thought well of Regina,“ Shelley said. “But what about Jumper?”
    Jane shrugged. “No idea. He was Miss Daisy’s attorney and probably would have dissuaded her from giving her money to the museum if he thought there was anything dishonest or disreputable about Regina.“
    “What if he was in love with her?“ Shelley said suddenly, looking as if she’d taken herself by surprise with the thought.
    Jane stared at her friend for a minute as if she’d gone completely mad. “I—you take my breath away. What an extraordinary idea! But if he were, why would he kill her?“
    “Because she was going to marry Whitney.
    They were going to announce it at the groundbreaking party. The if-I-can’t-have-you nobody-can thing. Jane, that makes more sense than anything else. It’s passion. Even the most normal people can be driven to murder by passion.’
    “I don’t like it,“ Jane said. “I really, really don’t like this idea, because I do like Jumper.“
    “But that’s got nothing to do with it,“ Shelley said. “Give me a good reason why it couldn’t be Jumper.“
    “I can do that,“ Jane said after a moment’s thought. “Because I think he’s in love, all right. With Sharlene. She’s certainly in love with him. And what’s more, I think it’s up to us to do something about it!“
    “Jane, will you please make up your mind whether you’re a sleuth or a matchmaker?“
    “I can be both. I told you, I’m a modern woman.”

Sixteen

    The rain was only a drizzle and stopped just as Todd arrived home. Jane managed, by a balanced combination of bribes and threats, to convince him to take the hand vacuum outside and finish the car cleaning. She got busy fixing her own special macaroni and cheese casserole (part of the bribe), and because this was a great favorite with the kids, all three of them managed to fit dinner at home into their social schedules.
    Jane was loading the dishwasher when the phone rang.
    “Jane, this is Babs McDonald. I hope I’m not interrupting your dinner.“
    “No, we just finished.“
    “Good. I wonder if I might ask you a favor. I’d like to meet you to discuss something. I understand from Jumper that you were present this morning when he had a rather unpleasant discussion with Derek Delano—“
    “I was,“ Jane said hesitantly. So much for thinking she’d made herself invisible.
    “And I presume you’ve discussed it with your friend Shelley.“
    “I—er, yes.“
    “Quite natural that you would,“ Babs assured her. “Then perhaps you two would be willing to get together with me so I can tell you about killing my husband?”

    “That’s what she said,“ Jane said, glancing around Shelley’s pristine kitchen resentfully. Shelley’s house was always clean, yet Jane almost never actually caught her cleaning it.
    “So what’s the plan?“ Shelley asked.
    “You know that family-style restaurant across the street from the mall? We ate there once and the entree was awful, but Babs swears the desserts are wonderful. We’re supposed to meet her there at eight-thirty. You will come, won’t you?“
    “I wouldn’t miss it for the world.”
    They arrived a few minutes early and Babs was already in a booth at the far wall. She gestured regally, and like schoolgirls summoned to the principal’s office, Jane and Shelley joined her. They made awkward chitchat while giving their orders—at least it was awkward on their part. Babs didn’t seem the least disconcerted.
    “I know it’s a ghastly place,“ she said quietly so the waiter wouldn’t hear, “but the grandson of a friend of mine does the desserts and they’re superb. I recommend either the lemon meringue pie or the raspberry torte, and the brownie fudge cake is the best chocolate I’ve ever tasted.”
    They each ordered one of these three suggestions and kept the conversation relentlessly impersonal until the desserts