widened as pulled out a small clear vial of liquid. “This isn’t mine,” he said.
The detective placed it in a clear plastic bag, read the label closely, and put Hubert under arrest. I could hardly believe it.
After Hubert was led away, Felicia and Cody quickly followed, and Aunt Janet and I were left nearly alone in the drawing room, except for one police officer who was bagging the evidence.
Aunt Janet said softly, “Are you ready to leave for the hospital?”
“You bet.” I needed to know if Delphine was all right. I swallowed hard. I didn’t want to talk about it yet. I glanced at the open door. “Wait a minute. Aunt Janet, you figured out the escape code. You opened the door.”
“Yes, I did.” She gave a tiny smile of satisfaction.
“How?”
She pointed to the clock above the mantel. “Hickory Dickory Dock. The book suggested it, as did the RSVP clues, with the first letters of each response spelling out T-I-M-E. The clues all directed us to the clock. Eleven fifteen.”
I stared up at the clock, my mind in a whirl.
She put an arm around me. “I know this is all so distressing, David.”
I turned and buried my head on her shoulder, breathing in her floral perfume, which she always ordered from Paris. When the urge to cry tickled too strongly, I lifted my head. “I never would have guessed you’d be such a good detective, Aunt Janet.”
She stepped back. “I can’t see why not, David, with you reading all those Agatha Christie novels.” Her smile was warm. “After all, Miss Marple was always her best detective.”
I smiled as her hands squeezed mine. Something sharp pressed into my palm and I pulled them away to reveal a sapphire ring I hadn’t noticed before. “That’s beautiful,” I said.
“Thanks,” she said. “You can never have too many nice things.”
As she picked up her purse, a gold bracelet slid down her arm. I hadn’t noticed that before either. I turned, taking in the room, going over what had happened. Yes, Hubert had held the letter opener with the handkerchief, I remembered, but Aunt Janet had held it first. And then he’d crowded her by the table, meaning her hand was conveniently near his pocket.
If Delphine died and Hubert went to prison, the only one left to inherit Grandma’s money would be Aunt Janet—and maybe me, if Grandma had a change of heart. Aunt Janet didn’t need Grandma’s money, but greed was human nature. She’d practically said so herself.
“You ready to go?” she asked.
I nodded. “After you.”
I might be giving Aunt Janet a wide berth from now on. Maybe it was a good thing our family rarely saw each other.
Leone Ciporin’s short stories have appeared in Woman’s World, Flash Bang Mysteries, and several mystery anthologies. This is her third appearance in the Chesapeake Crimes series, with a story inspired by escape-room experiences on two continents, as well as her admiration for Agatha Christie. When she’s not writing mysteries, Leone works as a manager in the law department of an insurance company, which is more interesting than it sounds. Leone lives in Charlottesville, Virginia. http://leoneciporin.com
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