Diva Runs Out Of Thyme

Francie glowered at her. “Give me a little credit. Besides, the original Peeping Tom made it easier for me. If anyone saw me, they’d think it was the real guy back again.” She looked around. “So where is he?”

I didn’t dare tell her the colonel invited June to dinner. I couldn’t break her heart that way. “He went out. He just stopped by for a minute.”

“Where’d he go?”

At least I didn’t have to lie. “I don’t know exactly.”

The knocker on the front door banged. Nina looked out the bay window. “That’s my dinner.” She rose to answer the door.

Francie’s eyes roamed the kitchen. “Where’s June?”

I chose my words carefully. “She went out.”

Francie leapt from her chair. “Together! They went out together.”

I didn’t deny it. I couldn’t.

Nina carried a pile of party-sized take-out containers into the kitchen. “Okay if I borrow some of your pots and pans so the monster-in-law will think it’s homemade?”

“Of course.”

Francie paced. “I’ve invested so much time. Then June arrives in town and boom, he’s smitten with her immediately. How could this happen?” Francie’s fingers curled into little balls. “Nobody trifles with Francine Vanderhoosen. Nobody. That . . . that . . . man!”

“Francie, calm down. It’s just dinner,” I said.

“Just dinner? When I think about the way I’ve been treated. Ooo. He’ll rue the day he did this to me. I’m not keeping his secrets anymore.”

Nina swung around. “Secrets? Do tell.”

“I’ll tell you something the police don’t even know. The colonel went to see Simon the day he was murdered. And the colonel was there when Simon was killed.”

SEVENTEEN

From “THE GOOD LIFE”:

Dear Sophie,

The holidays are upon us and what with decorating, writing cards, and going to school pageants, I have less time than normal. But family and friends expect more than a peanut butter and jelly sandwich for dinner. Any suggestions for something fast and festive?

—Frazzled in Fredericksburg

Dear Frazzled,

Pork tenderloins to the rescue. They’re like the filet mignon of pork, delicious and easy to make. Better still, they go well with a variety of nuts and fruits if you feel like dressing them up. A whole tenderloin cooks in twenty to thirty minutes. Don’t overcook them! They should be a little bit pink in the middle. You can pop them in the oven or cook them on the stove top. If you opt for a pan on the stove top, brown them first in olive oil and be sure to add some liquid like chicken broth or apple juice and cover tightly.

Need to speed up dinner? Cut the tenderloin into half-inch slices and cook on the grill or in a pan.

—Sophie

“How do you know the colonel was at the hotel the day Simon was murdered?” I asked.

“Haven’t you been listening?” asked Francie, her expression incredulous. “I followed him.”

“So you were there, too.”

“Obviously.”

“But why wouldn’t the police know? They corralled us all in the ballroom.”

“The colonel isn’t an idiot. He left when word broke about the murder. Simply walked through the main lobby and out the front entrance. No one tried to stop either of us.”

“Maybe he went to the hotel for another reason,” suggested Nina.

“Not a chance. He knew exactly where he was going. Waited until that driver of Simon’s left his side and then the colonel paid Simon a visit in the Washington Room.”

I thought I caught an implausibility in her story. “If that were the case, Natasha would have seen the colonel coming or going.”

“Not if she went in the back way. I would have seen her if she had come down the main hallway.”

I frowned at her. “Then why didn’t I see you?”

“I guess we had moved on by the time you found Simon. I was lurking behind a potted plant but I’d have noticed you or Natasha going into the Washington Room.”

Nina appraised Francie with admiration. “Francie, how’d you like to come over for dinner? My monster-in-law would love company.”

Francie fingered the oversized sweater she’d worn under her jacket. “Dressed like this?”

“Go home and change first.”

They headed for my front door.

“But one word about this being take-out and I’ll spill everything to the colonel,” warned Nina.