Catch As Cat Can

                "Damn, now she knows I know how to roll down the window."

                "I told you not to do it." Pewter smugly moved over to sit next to Harry.

                "Brownnoser" Murphy spat.

                "That does us no good at all. What if this is a short visit? We need a plan," Tucker, being practical, said.

                "All right. When we get there. Tucker, go straight to the dining room. The flooring is old random-width. There are cracks between the boards. Sniff the cracks. Would be a bitter smell, I think. Pewter, go into the pantry. You do the same thing but get on the shelves. You'll have to stick your nose in sugar bowls, creamers, any small bowl, but be careful. You don't want to inhale anything into your system. Stuff would be lethal. Think how quickly it killed Roger O'Bannon."

                "If it did," Pewter replied."We'll never know without an autopsy. He could have died of natural causes."

                "We'd best hope he did," Tucker grimly said.

                "Sean should have ordered an autopsy." Pewter eagerly moved toward the passenger door as Harry parked at the back of Tally's beautiful house."It's weird."

                "Some humans feel strongly that the body shouldn't be disturbed. And no one thought of murder at the time. It's not so weird." Tucker allowed Harry to lift her down.

                The blossoms, knocked off the trees and bushes, scattered on the grass like pink and white confetti. Harry rapped on the back door as she scraped the petals off her boots.

                As no one came directly to the door she opened it a crack."Aunt Tally, it's Harry."

                The sound of footsteps reverberated through the back hall. Reverend Herb Jones appeared."Harry, come in."

                "Hi. I didn't see your car."

                "In the garage. The storm was so bad I thought I'd better come out here and stay, especially since Mim and family are in New York." He closed the door behind Harry and the animals, who headed to their respective assignments."When the help goes home she's out here all alone and those were nasty storms. One right after the other."

                "Gee, I'm happy you're here. That's why I stopped by. I was worried about Tally being alone, too." She followed Herb into the huge kitchen.

                Tally glanced up from yellowed hunt-territory maps, drawn in the 1930s."I'm still alive, thank you."

                "Never a doubt in my mind." Harry laughed."Hey, those are something."

                "Forgot I had them and then Herb and I were talking about the old Albemarle Hunt, which hunted the Greenwood territory. I was just a kid then but that hunt unraveled, odds and ends, and in 1929 Farmington took over the territory. Anyway, these old maps will show you."

                Harry propped on her elbows to study the maps. She loved old prints, photographs, aquatints."I think people had better lives back then."

                "Well, I'm inclined to agree-until you had a toothache," Aunt Tally sensibly replied.

                As the humans enjoyed one another's company, Tally recalling her girlhood, Herb remembering the big jumps from hunt days gone by, the animals worked quickly.

                Pewter, nosy anyway, quietly pulled open the pantry cabinets. They had glass window fronts so she didn't waste any time. She pushed the lids off the two sugar bowls, one silver and formal, one informal. Plain white sugar rested inside. She sniffed. Plain white sugar, pure and simple.

                For good measure she inspected every small bowl, tureen,

                creamer. Everything was in order. Disappointed, she hopped down, pulling open the bottom cabinets that didn't have glass window fronts. Nothing in there but big pots and pans and serving dishes.

                Mrs. Murphy had intended to prowl around the kitchen but with the humans in there she decided to join Tucker.

                The corgi, diligent and intelligent, carefully started with the joinings between two boards, following it from end to end. Murphy walked in just as she reached the place where the table had been set.

                The cat sat on her haunches.

                Tucker stopped, checked out a spot, lifted her nose up, then put it back down."Murph, try this."

                The cat joined her friend and although her nose wasn't as refined as the dog's, a scent so faint as to be ethereal wafted up from a crack."Bitter."

                "Smells like a bad poison, but we can't prove it." The dog cocked her head, then put her nose down again, wrinkled it, bringing her head up."Not rat poison. I've never smelled this."

                Pewter sauntered in."Big fat nothing."

                "Come here," Murphy said.

                Pewter placed her nose where Tucker indicated she should. She sniffed, then blinked her eyes, jerking her head back."Nasty, what's left of it." She turned to Murphy."You might be right."