Digging Up The Dirt

“It wasn’t a ghost, I keep telling you that.” Barbie rolled her eyes. “You’d pass out and wee all over yourself if you ever did see one. Neither of us saw the light in Sarinda’s house. One of Sarinda’s neighbors told us about it this morning in swim class.”

“You really ought to come join us,” Lottie said. “It does wonders for your joints.”

“Thank you for the invitation,” An’gel said. “I’ll keep that in mind if my joints start acting up.”

“Which neighbor of Sarinda’s told you about the ghost?” Dickce asked in a more diplomatic tone.

“The one who lives directly across the street, Mrs. Harrington,” Barbie replied. “She apparently stays up late at night writing in one of the front rooms of her house, and her desk looks straight out the window at Sarinda’s place.”

“She was working last night,” Lottie said. “I believe she’s writing a cookbook. It was about midnight.” She turned to Barbie. “Wasn’t that what she said? Midnight?”

“Yes,” Barbie replied. “Anyway, she was working, and she stopped for a few minutes to rest her shoulders. She was staring out the window, and she suddenly noticed a small light moving around in Sarinda’s house. From what she said, I think it was her parlor.”

“Couldn’t it have been the reflection of a headlight from a car passing by?” An’gel asked.

“We thought of that.” Barbie glared at her hostess. “You’re not the only two who read murder mysteries, you know. Barbie and I both read them. Anyway, I asked Mrs. Harrington that same question, and she said the street was quiet. They hardly ever have traffic that late at night.”

“Besides,” Lottie added on a triumphant note, “she could see the light going up the stairs after a few minutes. You know how Sarinda has that huge glass front door, and the staircase is straight ahead of it when you walk into the house.”

“And she just happened to have a pair of opera glasses nearby,” Barbie added. “I think she snoops on her neighbors, frankly, because who keeps opera glasses in their front room? Anyway, she snatched up her glasses when she saw the light start going up the stairs, and she looked, and all she could see was the light. No outline of a body, nothing. Only the light.”

“Are there any lights on inside Sarinda’s house?” An’gel asked.

Barbie and Lottie looked at each other and shrugged.

“Any outside light?” Dickce asked.

“There’s a streetlight by the sidewalk right between her house and the one to the north,” Barbie said after a moment’s thought. “We drove by the house before we came here, and there weren’t any outside lights on that we could see from the street.”

“We didn’t notice any lights on inside, either,” Lottie said. “But it would have been hard to tell without getting out of the car and walking around the house. It was daylight outside.”

“If you’re trying to make out that the light Mrs. Harrington saw was a reflection from an outside light or one from inside, I think you’re wrong,” Barbie said. “She saw what she saw.”

“All right.” An’gel put up her hands in a gesture of surrender. “Mrs. Harrington saw the light, and it went up the stairs. Did she see it upstairs?”

“I don’t think so,” Lottie replied. “If the person with the light stayed toward the back of the upper floors, Mrs. Harrington couldn’t have seen anything.”

“Sarinda’s bedroom is at the back of the house, you know,” Lottie said.

“Yes, we remember that,” Dickce said.

“Somebody was snooping,” Barbie said. “I’m wondering what it is they were looking for.”

“Yes, me, too,” Lottie added. “Sarinda kept all her jewelry in a safe deposit box at the bank. If the ghost was looking for diamonds, he was bound to be disappointed.”

“If you really believe there was an intruder in Sarinda’s house last night,” An’gel said, “then you should inform the police.”

“We did that.” Barbie shot An’gel a smug look. “They said they would go talk to Mrs. Harrington. I’m sure they’ll check with Sarinda’s other neighbors to find out if they saw anything.”

An’gel found her patience wearing thin. Most of the time she didn’t find Barbie and Lottie so annoying, but today they were.

Clementine entered the room, pushing a rolling cart. She brought it to a stop by the coffee table and commenced to unload its contents onto the table. In addition to the large carafe of coffee and the necessary accoutrements, An’gel saw a plate of cookies. Clementine knew their guests well, because Barbie and Lottie could never resist Clementine’s cookies.

“Thank you so much, Clementine.” Barbie’s eyes shone when she saw the treats.

“Yes, thank you,” Lottie said. “You make the best cookies in Athena.”

“You’re welcome, ladies,” Clementine said with a wink at An’gel. “I’m glad you enjoy them.” She left the room.

While An’gel poured and served the coffee, the guests picked up their plates and loaded them with cookies.

“If there’s anything to find,” An’gel said in a return to the previous subject, “I’m sure the police will find it. I’d like to talk about another matter with you. I was going to call you this morning.”