Death at a Drop-In: Myrtle Clover #5

Chapter Eight

Chapter Eight

The next morning, Myrtle sat at her breakfast table with a bowl of bran cereal, coffee, and a small notepad. She'd learned in the past that she needed to think about her investigating in an organized way. Thinking about the case, she figured that she needed to speak with Lucas pretty soon. He was, after all, the prime suspect. Perhaps fluffy Aunt Hazel would need to return to Charlotte at some point and Myrtle would get more of an opportunity to talk to him. 

Today was the day that Joan was dropping Noah off so that she could help her father go through her mother's things. Myrtle realized she'd forgotten to call Elaine and ask if she'd like to drop Jack off at the same time so the two boys could have a play date. She squinted at her rooster wall clock. Eight o'clock. Elaine was surely up by now. Myrtle picked up her phone. 

Elaine was up. In fact, she might have been up for the last few hours since she was already sounding tired. "Myrtle? What's up?" 

Myrtle heard what sounded like loud singing in the background. "Is that Jack?" 

"Oh, he learned London Bridge at preschool yesterday and now he's singing it over and over," said Elaine with a slightly hysterical laugh.  

"That's nice," said Myrtle, not entirely sure that it was. 

"Is it?" asked Elaine, not sure herself. "No, Jack. Eat your cereal-don't play with it." 

Jack, ordinarily an exemplary toddler, sounded like he might be having an unusual day. Myrtle reassessed the situation. Did she really want two small boys in her small home this afternoon? But, as she remembered from many decades ago after her husband had passed away and she was rearing Red alone, it was easier in many ways to watch two children than one. They entertained each other. "Elaine, I'm watching Noah for Joan today. I thought you might want to bring Jack by and have some time for yourself." There. It was done and there was no going back now. 

There was a pause on the other end of the line and Myrtle heard Jack saying, "Ka-boom! Ka-boom!" in the background. It was accompanied by the sound of some sort of object hitting Elaine's kitchen floor. 

Then Elaine said, "Are you sure? Jack seems to have an excessive amount of energy today. Are you sure you want to watch two preschool-age boys?" 

The doubt and concern in Elaine's voice made Myrtle even more convinced that not only could she do it, but that it was what she wanted most in the world at that moment. "Elaine, I'm positive. Jack is always as good as gold whenever he's with his Nana. And Noah, from everything I've heard, is a prodigy of some sort. Prodigies should be a breeze to watch." 

There was a whooping on the other end of the line as Jack cheered over some unknown, unseen outcome in Elaine's kitchen. Elaine gave a deep sigh. 

Myrtle said, "Look, you clearly need a break today. Think what you could do. You could run a Jack-free errand. You could tidy up Jack's room without him pulling out toys just as fast as you put them away. You could knit. You could...." 

"Take a nap?" asked Elaine wryly. 

"Naps are good, too. So may I borrow Jack for a while? It will actually help me out. Noah might get bored with only me to entertain him. And we know what happens when little boys get bored," said Myrtle. 

There was a crashing sound in the background and Elaine said tersely, "I've got to go, Myrtle. Thanks for the offer. I'll drop him over soon. Call me if you have any trouble with him today and need to be rescued." 

"Eleven-thirty, Elaine. Thanks." Myrtle put down the phone. She knew one thing-she sure wasn't going to be calling Elaine if she ended up in over her head. Not with all that doubt and concern in Elaine's voice, she wouldn't. Besides, these were small boys, and Myrtle had a lifetime of experience and wisdom to draw from. Everything would be fine.