Diva Runs Out Of Thyme

The surprise on her face seemed genuine. “Why would I do that? I wanted the TV show, Sophie. I thought I was doing what men would do in my position, getting the goods on the man who could make it happen. I never intended to blackmail Simon; I wanted to know more about him personally, to find some common ground that would help me get an edge with him. I already know pretty much everything about you . . .”

So why did Otis have my picture I wondered to myself.

Natasha pulled a tray of cookies from the oven. “I’m sorry I wasn’t honest with you about the stalker. That night I ran into you, I realized someone was following me, but I thought it was Andrew. Actually, I thought it was exceptionally nice of you and Nina to warn me.”

“Did you tell Wolf that Clyde was Vicki’s brother?”

“And admit that I hired Otis? No way. My lawyer scared the pants off of me. I couldn’t admit anything. Besides, I didn’t know about Vicki’s affair with Simon. That would have been different.”

I leaned against the dishwasher. “How could we not have known that Clyde was her brother?”

Natasha raised her eyebrows. “Are you kidding? Mars and Andrew hated Simon vehemently. They said such ugly things. I’m sure she was ashamed to admit that her brother worked for Simon. And then when the affair started, well, I guess it wasn’t a good idea to say anything then.”

“I feel sorry for her.”

“She killed Simon!”

“I know.” I twisted a dish towel in my hands. “But she worked so hard while Andrew ran through their money with his ridiculous ideas. All the while she had to hide her affair and her brother’s identity. She must have been miserable.”

In the doorway to the kitchen, Wolf cleared his throat. “Could I have a word with Sophie?”

Natasha nodded and hurried out of the room.

“In case you haven’t figured it out, Vicki was your intruder,” he said.

“Then who ransacked her house?”

“She did it herself. To throw us off. And it appears that Clyde was Natasha’s stalker, waiting for an opportunity to kill her since Vicki hadn’t managed to do it. Natasha was the only one who could tie them together and they thought she knew about the affair.”

“Then one of them planted the turkey trophy in Natasha’s yard?”

“Clyde snagged it at the stuffing contest and passed it along to Vicki to bury at Natasha’s party that night. He was pretty sharp.” Wolf jammed his hands into his pockets. “I ought to chew you out for doing something so dangerous.”

“You should have believed me and trusted me.”

Mochie marked Wolf’s legs by rubbing against them.

“I didn’t know you. Everywhere I went I learned things that were the opposite of what you claimed.”

“Like about Humphrey dating me?”

He swallowed hard. “Not true?”

I closed in on him. “Nope.”

He looked over my head at the stone wall. “So this is where Faye’s ghost resides?”

I grinned. “So I’m told.”

He wrapped his arms around me. “I hope she doesn’t mind this.”

He kissed me tenderly but not nearly long enough.

When I turned around, I would have sworn Faye’s eyes glittered in approval.

THIRTY-TWO

SOPHIE’S TIP OF THE DAY:

Dry herbs are more concentrated than their fresh counterparts. If you need to use dried herbs in a recipe that calls for fresh herbs, a good rule of thumb is to use about one-third as much. An easy way to remember is to use a teaspoon of dried herbs for every tablespoon of fresh herbs.

After one more lingering kiss, Wolf took off to check on Andrew at the hospital.

I wanted some answers, though, and no matter how angry it might make Hannah, I planned to get them. I joined the rest of my clan in the sunroom and helped myself to a turkey panini.

“Craig,” I said, “now that we know that Vicki and Clyde were behind the killings, what were you doing over at the Washington Room the morning after Simon was killed?”

I expected Hannah to scold me, but she frowned and said, “Is that true? You went over there?”

“Of course not.” He looked me in the eye. “You must be mistaken.”

“Andrew saw you,” I insisted.

Craig blinked hard. “I did it for you, Sophie, and for your family. I could see how upset everyone was and, well, sorry, Bernie, but I thought if I dropped a clue it would throw suspicion off Sophie.”

“Why are you apologizing to me, then?” asked Bernie.

“I found your key card with the hotel logo on it in the den and sort of dropped it in the Washington Room for the cops to find. It was a stupid idea but I meant well.”

If I hadn’t pushed him, he wouldn’t have admitted it. I was glad Hannah could see him for what he really was.