Arsenic And Old Books

THIRTEEN

By the time I got home that evening, I felt like I’d been dragged backward through the briar patch. That’s what my late mother used to say anytime she was exhausted. Occasionally she’d say she was “plumb wore out.” No matter how I described it, I was beat.

Poor Diesel was fatigued, too. All the noise, with law enforcement personnel going up and down the stairs outside Melba’s office, and the tension he picked up from me, wore him plumb out. We were both glad to get home to the quiet and peace of an empty house.

Or so I thought. Sean came noisily down the stairs about five minutes after Diesel and I walked into the kitchen. I was seated at the table, and the cat was stretched out beneath it after a visit to the utility room.

“Hey, Dad,” he said as he headed for the fridge. “How was your day?” He pulled out a beer and popped the cap off with his thumb. The cap hit the floor, but Diesel couldn’t be bothered. Usually he would bat it around until I took it away from him to stop the noise.

“I’ve had better.” I leaned back in my chair.

Sean put his beer on the table and sat across from me. “You look out of it,” he said. “And when Diesel doesn’t want to play with a bottle cap, I know he’s out of it as well. What happened?”

I realized I hadn’t seen my son for at least a couple of days; thus I had a lot to tell him. “Tell you what. Pour your poor exhausted old dad a glass of iced tea, and I’ll fill you in.”

“Deal.” Sean got up and went to the cabinet for a glass. “I’m not buying the poor old dad bit, though. You’re not quite ready for the old folks’ home. Next year maybe, but not now.” He grinned broadly as he set the full glass in front of me.

I clinked my glass with his bottle once he resumed his seat. I drained half the tea before I started talking. “This will take a few minutes.”

“I’ve got the time.” Sean leaned back in his chair and sipped his beer.

The cold tea and the caffeine revived me a bit, though by the time I finished my recital of the events of the past two days, I was ready to go up to bed and forget about dinner.

Sean’s first question surprised me.

“What did the mayor say when she found out about the theft?”

I shrugged. “Luckily for me, the college police chief called her. I didn’t talk to her until after she’d had time to cool down. She wasn’t happy, but she did say at least twice she didn’t hold me responsible.”

“You took reasonable precautions for the safety of the diaries.” Sean sounded like the lawyer he was now, rather than just my son.

“I locked the door to the office when I left for lunch,” I said. “It’s such a habit with me, I can’t believe I didn’t do it today. So, yes, I took reasonable precautions. I don’t have a safe to put things in.” I paused for a moment. “I suppose I could have put them in the storage room next door. It has a much better lock, one that’s not easily compromised.”

“You could have,” Sean said. “But did you have any reason to suspect that the diaries were vulnerable to theft?”

I shook my head. “No, but I knew there were two parties anxious to get hold of them.”

“Do you think the professor or the writer stole them?”

“Surely it must be one of them,” I said. “At least, I hope it was one of them, because I don’t think either of them would destroy the diaries. My biggest fear is that the thief might do that for some unknown reason.”

“Let’s hope the cops find them before the thief has a chance to do anything drastic to them,” Sean said. “Right now I’d give a lot to know what’s in those diaries to stir up this kind of kerfuffle.” He shook his head. “By now I’m pretty much used to weird things happening around you, but this is even more bizarre than usual.”

“Thanks for that,” I said sourly. “Are you sure you weren’t serious about putting me in a home?”

Sean laughed. “I wouldn’t dare. For one thing, Helen Louise would extract my liver and then feed it to me. As would Laura, and probably Azalea as well.” He got up for another beer, and I motioned that he should refill my glass, too.

“Seriously, Dad, how do you keep getting involved in these things?” Sean frowned as he set my refilled glass in front of me.

“Must be karma,” I said, half joking. “Maybe in my last existence I went around whining about being bored all the time, and this is the payback.”

Sean rolled his eyes. “People are going to stop letting you come near them at this rate.”

“It’s not my fault,” I protested. I was beginning to get a little annoyed with my son. “I don’t go out of my way to find dead bodies or get involved in thefts. They just happen, and there I am.”

My son burst out laughing. “You are way too easy, Dad.”

For a moment I contemplated throwing the contents of my glass across the table at him, but then I started laughing, too. I could feel the tension drain away. Diesel joined in with a few chirps. Even if he didn’t understand the words, he understood the mood.

Time for a change of subject, I decided. “How is Alexandra?”

“Fine,” Sean said. “And before you ask, no, I haven’t asked her to marry me yet.”

“I wasn’t going to ask,” I said. I knew better. Sean had never liked being hounded—as he called it—about anything. “The last time I saw her she was having trouble with her allergies. I hope she’s feeling better.”

Sean looked mollified. “She is. Whatever was blooming seems to have stopped, so she’s not sneezing and getting watery eyes like she was a few days ago.”

“Staying busy at the office?” I asked. Sean had recently become a partner in the law firm established by Alexandra’s father, the legendary Q. C. Pendergrast.

“Plenty of work,” Sean said. “Q. C.’s starting to take it easier, so Alex and I are taking on more of his work.”

“That’s good.” A few months ago Sean and his prospective father-in-law were locked in a battle of wills. Q. C. wanted to make Sean a partner as a wedding gift, but my stubborn son wanted to pay his own way and buy into the firm. They finally came to an agreement over the summer. I kept out of it.

“Are you in for dinner?” I asked.

Sean shook his head. “No, sorry. I’m about to head upstairs for a shower and a change of clothes. Alex and I are going to a Chamber of Commerce dinner tonight. Three hours of rubber chicken and listening to speeches. The mayor has some new plan for attracting more tourists to Athena.”

I loved my hometown, but I would be hard-pressed to name enough local sights or activities that would interest many tourists. We did have a number of historic homes from the antebellum era, and a few were open to the public. Nothing like the spring pilgrimages, as they were called, held every year in Natchez and Holly Springs, though.

“I’m sure local business owners would love that,” I said. “I’ll be curious to hear about the mayor’s plan.”

“I’ll tell you all about it tomorrow.” Sean got up to drop his two beer bottles in the recycling bin. “Gotta get a move on, Dad. See you later.” As he walked past, he gave my shoulder a quick squeeze.

As the sound of my son’s footsteps faded away, I let the quiet of the kitchen settle around me. I could hear Diesel purring and the ticking of the wall clock, but otherwise there was blessed calm. I sat and enjoyed the peace for several minutes. Then I decided it was time to eat.

I still had half the casserole from last night and a bit of salad that would be fine for my dinner. There was some more of the boiled chicken for Diesel. While the two of us enjoyed our meal, Sean popped back through the kitchen on his way to meet Alexandra. He looked distinguished and handsome in his black suit, white shirt, and dark red tie, I thought. Every inch the successful young professional. I was proud of my accomplished son, but I didn’t tell him. I knew he would only squirm with embarrassment, so I simply smiled and bade him good night.

Diesel and I were halfway up the stairs when the doorbell rang. I had an uneasy feeling that if I went down and opened the door, it wouldn’t be to good news. I was tempted to ignore it and take refuge in my bedroom, but the adult in me prevailed.

I turned and clumped back down the stairs. I peered out the peephole. There was still enough daylight left that I could see who stood on the doorstep.

I felt my blood pressure start to rise as I opened the door.