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“You know, bees... beekeepers, smoke pots?” Riley added.
Theodosia was so thoroughly surprised all she could squeak out was “Wow.”
“Don’t act so shocked,” Riley said. “You’re the one who pointed me in Booker’s direction in the first place.”
“I know, but...”
“What? You didn’t expect your information to pan out? Well, maybe it did after all. Maybe you’re a better investigator than I thought you were.”
“Thank you,” Theodosia said. “I think.”
“But here’s the thing. On a more personal note, will you take a rain check for dinner? I have to drive up to this orchard and interview the owner. And I can’t leave until after a staff meeting. So two hours up and two more back means I won’t hit Charleston city limits until eight or nine o’clock tonight.”
“That’s okay,” Theodosia said. Her mind was spinning with possibilities. “I totally understand. You’re working an important case.”
Riley pulled her into a hug. “But we’ll do Saturday night for sure.”
***
Once Riley left, Theodosia crooked a finger at Drayton. “Did you hear any of that?”
“Enough to rouse my suspicions about Mr. Booker,” Drayton said.
“Weird to think that he worked at an apiary.”
“More like strangely serendipitous,” Drayton said. “On the other hand, you seem to have accumulated an abundance of suspects. With Booker in the lead, followed closely by Lamar Lucket, Mignon Merriweather, and Ginny Bell.”
“You’re not going to believe this, but Jeremy Slade’s been tossed into the mix as well.”
“Holly’s partner? What are you talking about? I thought Mr. Slade was her knight in shining armor. Her angel investor.”
“When Philip was in before, he confided to me that Slade has been exerting tremendous pressure on Holly. To sign more artists, attract a higher caliber of clients, and, I guess, make a whole lot more money.”
“Now that her revenues have dropped sharply, do you think Slade wants out of the partnership?”
“Could be,” Theodosia said.
“And killing Claxton was the way to do it?” Drayton said. “Somehow that doesn’t make any sense to me.”
“Who knows? It’s possible Slade had bad dealings with Claxton somewhere along the line. Maybe Slade figured if he murdered Claxton he’d be free of him for good, with Holly suffering the consequences. Kill two birds with one stone.”
“That’s a bizarre thought.”
“Drayton, this whole case is weird.”
Drayton thought for a moment. “With this many suspects, how are you going to investigate everyone? Or better yet, narrow it down to just one and pinpoint the real killer?”
Theodosia, who hated failure more than anything, who prided herself on her unflagging loyalty to friends, said, “I don’t know, I still have to figure that part out.”
16
Cotton Duck was one of the trendiest boutiques in Charleston. So it was with a fair amount of trepidation that Theodosia dropped in for Delaine’s trunk show this Wednesday afternoon. It wasn’t that Theodosia was averse to fashion—no, she loved fashion. It was that Delaine had a habit of cooing and pressuring and pushing anything and everything at you, whether it was your particular taste or not. Of course, Delaine changed clothes four times a day and had a wardrobe that engulfed two large rooms in her house. When Theodosia put her clothes on in the morning, they generally stayed on until she took them off at night.
“Theo! Theo!” Delaine squealed in delight as she hurried to greet Theodosia. Her overfilled lips were pursed in anticipation and her nonexistent hips swayed as she took tiny but hurried steps in her outrageously high (four inches!) Manolo Blahnik heels.
Theodosia glanced around the busy boutique as Delaine clutched her arm and pulled her into an enormous crush of people. Delaine’s trunk shows were always major fashion events filled with glitz and glam—lots of well-heeled women, flutes of champagne, and good-looking young male waiters. Today she’d invited three different designers to show their brand-new collections and was hoping to write a slew of orders.
“I had no idea you’d be so busy,” Theodosia said as the woman next to her jabbed an elbow into her ribs, grabbing for a silk gown.
