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Too.
Much.
She offered us a seat on the large sofa and then made a show of collapsing into the armchair opposite. “You’ll have to forgive my lack of makeup,” she sighed. “I wasn’t expecting company today.”
“No worries,” Janessa said, the corners of her lips twitching. “You don’t have to get all dressed up for us, anyway.”
I elbowed her in the side while doing my best to keep from smiling. Or snorting out a laugh. I wasn’t sure in what world Nora’s look would be considered makeup-free, but she looked ready for a night out on the town to me.
I wouldn’t have even been a tiny bit surprised if she’d whipped off that silky robe to reveal a sequined cocktail dress.
Seriously. The woman was too much. But there was something that was almost endearing about it. Endearing and sort of sad. Did she really put on a full face of makeup to knock around in this big old house all by herself?
Nora gave a smile that definitely didn’t reach all the way up to her eyes. “So, Miss Thoreson, to what do I owe this… unexpected visit?”
“We thought you might like some cobbler,” Janessa said, nodding toward Becca. Becca dutifully held up the dessert dish with a sweet smile. “And I also wanted to ask if your horse is doing any better since the last time we talked?”
Nora’s face fell into a concerned frown and she shook her head. It was the first genuine-looking expression I’d seen since we’d arrived. “He isn’t doing very well, I’m afraid. He’s been having kidney issues ever since the poisoning. Logan doesn’t know if he’ll ever make a full recovery.”
“Was it Monensin?” I asked, prompting a confused look from Nora.
“I’m sorry? I’m not familiar…” She shrugged. “I can’t remember what Logan said was used to poison my horse, but it wasn’t that.”
All four of us were silent for a moment. Were Janessa and Becca thinking the same thing I was? If Nora had somehow been connected with the other poisonings, wouldn’t she at least have heard of Monensin before?
I’d slipped the question in quickly, hoping to trip her up a little, but… either she was a really good actress, or she genuinely hadn’t ever heard of the drug. And judging by the rest of her over-the-top actions and surroundings, I had to assume that an unrehearsed lie would have been pretty easy to detect.
“It just feels like my whole world is crashing down,” Nora said, easing back in her chair with another heavy sigh. “First my beloved horse, and then Isaac… I just don’t know what I’ll do if anything else happens. I don’t think I could handle it. Maybe we should all be trying to sell our land.”
“I heard about something happening here but didn’t get a lot of details,” Janessa said. “That was the guy from the geological agency? Isaac?”
She nodded. “He’s been in a coma ever since the… the attack.”
The three of us leaned in closer with each word. Nora was barely speaking above a whisper. It was exactly the sort of dramatic performance I had expected to see earlier, but it still didn’t seem like she was acting. Not completely, anyway.
Whatever the geological guy had been doing at Nora’s house that morning, it was obviously more than just business.
“How did you know Isaac, anyway?” Janessa asked, giving a voice to my own thoughts.
“I… we…” Nora huffed out a short breath and made a dismissive gesture. “It doesn’t matter. All that matters is that he gets better.” She stood up so suddenly that Janessa, Becca, and I all flinched a little on the sofa. “Now, if you ladies will excuse me, I have an awful headache.” We got to our feet, and she didn’t waste any time ushering us toward the door. “I’ve been suffering since this whole ordeal started. Chronic migraines. I should probably be in the hospital myself.”
“I hope you feel better,” Becca said meekly as Nora practically pushed us out the door.
“Thanks for letting us stop by,” Janessa added. “Enjoy the cobbler.”
“Thank you, dear,” Nora said with another fake smile. “I need to go lie down now. I’m sure you understand.”
She closed the door before any of us could say anything else.
“Well, that was weird,” Becca said as we walked back to the car.
“Honestly?” Janessa shook her head. “Not much different from how she normally acts.”
“Can we at least go back to your house now?” I asked, suddenly feeling tired even though I’d had a full night’s sleep. “That was… a lot.”
“Not yet,” Janessa said, pausing as we all got into the car. “We still have one more stop to make.”
“Please tell me we’re not going to interrogate more of your neighbors,” I groaned.
