Plum Pudding Murder. Joanne Fluke

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      “Trouble?”

      “Yes. She could be ill and working a full day at Granny’s Attic and then attending a night class is just too much of a drain on her health. Or…she could have turned into a closet drinker for some reason or other. There are people who can drink every night for years and no one ever suspects. And then there’s the computer Norman got for her. What if she’s addicted to one of those online poker places and she’s lost all her retirement money?”

      “None of those things sound like Carrie,” Hannah commented.

      “I know, but she’s changed over the past few weeks. We used to talk, but she’s just not open with me anymore.”

      Hannah heard the note of panic in her mother’s voice, mixed with an undertone of pain that her oldest and best friend wouldn’t confide in her. “Do you want me to try to find out what’s going on?” she offered.

      “Would you, dear? I’d be so grateful!” Delores looked very relieved. “You should probably start by talking to Norman. He may know something.”

      “Good idea,” Hannah said. “Maybe I’ll see him after class. What time do we get out?”

      “Seven-thirty. It’s only an hour.”

      “I’ll call him and see if he can meet me at my place later. I’ll bribe him with dessert.”

      Delores gave a little laugh. “I don’t think you’ll have to bribe him, dear. It seems to me that whenever you want him, Norman comes running. He’s like your father in that respect. When we were dating, all I had to do was pick up the phone and he’d come over any hour of the day or night.”

      Hannah thought about that for a moment and realized that her mother was right. Unless Norman had a patient in his dental chair, he always seemed eager to see her.

      “If Norman doesn’t know anything, perhaps you could ask a few questions around town.”

      “I guess I could do that.”

      “Something else, dear…you could keep an eye out for Carrie’s car when you’re driving around town. If it’s parked in some unusual place, it could give us a clue to what’s going on.”

      “That’s true.”

      “You could even drop in on her at night to see what she’s doing firsthand. I’m sure you could talk Norman into going with you. All you’d have to do is think up some reason to pay her a surprise visit.”

      “Norman wouldn’t really need an excuse to drop in on his own mother. I’m sure Carrie would love to see him. And maybe while they were talking, I could look around.”

      “That’s an excellent idea. Thank you for your help, dear.” Delores ate her last bite of cookie and drained her coffee mug. Then she stood up and gave Hannah a little pat on the back. “I’ll drive out to your condo and pick you up at six. That gives us plenty of time to get to the college.”

      “You don’t want me to drive?”

      “No, dear. It’s out of your way. It’ll be better if I pick you up and drop you off at home after class.”

      “Whatever you say, Mother,” Hannah replied obediently, watching her mother walk across the room, retrieve her coat, and hurry out the door. When the door closed behind her impeccably dressed, attractive mother, she let out a deep sigh that bordered on exasperation. She’d been maneuvered by an expert. Delores had elicited her help by claiming that she didn’t like to drive to the college at night, yet she’d volunteered to drive a round trip from town to Hannah’s condo, to the college, back to Hannah’s condo, and all the way to town again.

      Hannah was half amused and half annoyed as she got up to join Lisa in the kitchen. Delores really was a master manipulator. Not only had she talked her eldest daughter into attending a class that didn’t interest her in the slightest, she’d also coerced Hannah to recruit one of her boyfriends to spy on his own mother!

      Chapter Three

      Hannah was struck by an odd sense of déjà vu as she walked with her mother down the sidewalk leading to Stewart Hall. She’d never attended Lake Eden Community College. It was still in the planning stages when she’d graduated from Jordan High and gone off to another school. But she noticed certain similarities between her hometown community college and the university she’d attended. The student parking lot was filled with what Cyril Murphy, the owner of Murphy’s Garage, Shamrock Limos, and Murphy Motors, called previously owned autos. Most of the students’ cars looked as if they’d been owned multiple times, and it was apparent that a large percentage of those owners had been accident-prone.

      “This is for you,” Delores said, handing Hannah a notebook. “I thought you might like to take notes since you’re a small business owner, too.”

      “Thanks,” Hannah said, tucking the notebook under her arm and following her mother.

      As they crossed the quad that separated the buildings, they joined a steady stream of students hurrying to class clutching notebooks, books, and the occasional laptop computer. Even though the evening had turned cold and her mother had taken the precaution of plugging her sedan into the power strip that ran around the perimeter of the parking lot, most of these students were dashing along with their parkas unzipped and their heads bare. Some were even wearing tennis shoes rather than boots and Hannah remembered the same phenomenon occurring on the campus she’d attended. They were young. They were invincible. They were much too healthy to succumb to winter colds or other illnesses.

      Delores slowed near the door to Stewart Hall to let a large group of students pass by. Hannah saw her mother eyeing them critically and as soon as they were gone, she turned to her mother. “What is it?”

      “Not one single girl in that group had a hat or gloves. Don’t they know what will happen to their skin and hair if they continue to expose it to this dry winter air? Or is it just that they don’t care?”

      “Both,” Hannah took her mother’s arm and escorted her into the warmth of the building. “Where’s our class?”

      “It’s on the second floor. Follow me.” Delores led the way to a stairwell and began to hurry up the steps. Hannah followed, but once she’d reached the landing between the first and second floors, she was sadly out of breath. She should have continued her exercise class at Heavenly Bodies Spa, but life had intruded with holiday orders for cookies coming in fast and furiously. She just didn’t have the luxury of setting aside an hour and a half every day. At least that’s what she told herself whenever the subject crossed her mind.

      “Hurry, dear.” Delores called out, turning around to look over her shoulder as she reached the door to the second floor. “We don’t want to be late.”

      We don’t want to be embarrassed either, Hannah thought, and I’ll be completely humiliated if I hurry into class breathing like a steam engine.

      “Hannah?” Delores called out.

      “Just a second, Mother.” Hannah knew she had to take a few seconds to catch her breath so she bent down to fiddle with the sole of her boot. “I think I stepped on a tack. Just go and wait for me in the hall. I’ll pull it out and be right there.”

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