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The doorbell had already sung out five times that morning, every time announcing one of her mother’s admirers. When Mom didn’t respond, Marge stomped into the hallway and yanked open the door, only to find yet another pensioner on the mat.

The man flashed a set of perfectly bleached pearly whites and she forced a smile onto her own face.

“Hi there, Marge,” said the man.

“Hi there, Dick. I’ll bet you’re here to see my mom?”

“Unless you’re prepared to be my lady of the night,” he quipped.

“Ha ha,” she laughed without much enthusiasm. “I think I’ll leave that honor to my mother.” She stepped aside. “She’s in the basement.”

“Oh, a secret meeting in the basement, huh? Now isn’t that exciting?”

Dick Bernstein was one of Gran’s oldest friends, and a regular at the senior center. Mom had told her he was a great dancer, though Marge doubted whether that was why she’d invited him over today.

When the sound of people talking floated up from the basement, Dick said,“I recognize a great party when I hear one. Sounds pretty cozy, Marge—you sure you don’t want to join us?”

“Very sure,” she said, and as she watched him potter off in the direction of the basement door, hoped the old man wouldn’t break his neck on those rickety stairs.

She wondered what her mother was up to now, but was afraid to ask. First Tex had turned the basement into a rehearsal space for him and his two doctor friends. Together they were The Singing Doctors, and they were actually pretty good. They played jazz with Tex on vocals, Denby on drums and Cary Horsfield on guitar. They’d soon shaken up the lineup, though, when it turned out Tex couldn’t sing. Now Denby was the frontman, Tex played drums, and Cary still rocked the guitar. They were looking for a trumpet player but so far no other doctor had responded to their request to join the band.

Ma had quickly shown a keen interest in The Singing Doctors and had volunteered as backing vocalist. And to Marge’s amazement it had worked out pretty well. Tex and Mom had called a truce, and for the first time in years they’d actually gotten along.

And now this. Ma launching a solo career, with the assistance of her senior center buddies. She just hoped the new Beyonc? would keep things PC down there.

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Odelia had just stepped out into the garden to get some fresh air when she bumped into Max and Dooley.

“Odelia!” said Max. “We’ve been looking for you!”

She quickly glanced around to see if anyone could overhear them, then asked,“So what did you find out so far?”

“Well, for one thing,” Max said, “Chickie’s former best friend Jamie Borowiak dropped by the house yesterday, and they had a flaming row about Chickie allegedly trying to steal Jamie’s boyfriend away from her.”

“Charlie Dieber?”

“Yes, that’s the one,” said Max.

“And this morning,” said Dooley, “Jamie came back, and she and Chickie made up.”

“Though we only have Chickie’s dog Boyce Catt’s word for that,” said Max.

“What else?” she said.

“Well, we just overheard a big man talk to someone named Weskit on the phone. He was talking about a promise Mr. Weskit made him, and sounded pretty desperate.”

“What did this big man look like?”

“He had no hair on top of his head and a very nice white mustache,” said Dooley.

Odelia nodded.“Tyson Wanicki and Laron Weskit. Who would have thought?”

“Oh, and Harriet claims she cracked the case,” said Max, “but she refused to tell us how. So you’ll have to ask her what she found out.”

“She talked to the same big bird we did, though,” said Dooley, “so chances are that Mark—that’s the big bird’s name—told her the same thing he told us.”

“About Jamie and Chickie having a big fight over Charlie Dieber,” Max clarified.

“Great job, you guys,” Odelia said as she pressed kisses on top of her cats’ heads. And as she straightened, she caught sight of Tyson as he stood smoking a cigarette on the deck. She quickly made a beeline for the security man.

“Tyson? Can I have a quick word?”

“Sure, Miss Poole.”

“So we’ve talked to Hortense, and also to Yuki and Nickie, and so far the picture I have of what happened this morning is becoming a little clearer. And I was hoping you’d be able to confirm certain details.”

“Of course,” he said. “Whatever you need.”

“So Jamie was here early this morning? And she and Chickie met in the dance studio?”

“That’s correct. Jamie is one of Chickie’s oldest friends, and she always got access to her. Though this morning Chickie didn’t seem very happy when I ushered Jamie in.”

“They had a fight yesterday,” Odelia explained.

“Oh, right. That would explain the frosty reception.”

“When did Jamie leave?”

“Um, just after six, I would say.”

“And Chickie was still alive at that time?”

“Yes, she was. I saw her myself. She told me she didn’t want to be disturbed.”

“And did anyone else drop by after Jamie left?”

“Nobody.”

“So where were you when Chickie was holed up in her studio?”

“In the kitchen, having breakfast,” he said, looking a little embarrassed.

“How many security people were watching the Hay family this morning?”

“Um, there’s a crew of five.”