Free The Stolen Canvas by Marlene Chase Page B

rushed toward her, the cat leaped away into the hydrangeas.
    Boots was nothing if not curious, and she could get into things. Once she’d unraveled an entire ball of tweedy yarn that took hours to restore, but she had never knocked one of those heavy pots off the porch rail. She was notoriously light on her feet. She might be guilty, but it was more likely that a deer or small animal that had caused the ruckus.
    Alice began extracting flower stems from the soil and broken clay, her Divine Décor bracelets jingling. “Don’t bother now, Alice. I’ll get it later.” Annie took Tara’s hand to direct her back to the porch and was surprised to find it sweaty and cold. Her face was drained of color, and her eyes wide with fright. “It’s nothing, Tara. Come on, the tea will be getting cold.”
    She was certainly a high-strung young woman to be unnerved by such a small thing, Annie thought. But then she was in a strange place among people she didn’t know. But as they walked back to the front porch, Annie saw Tara glance over her shoulder, her lips set in a pale line. High-strung indeed.

7
    Tara surveyed the tools Annie had provided for cleaning the wicker furniture: A paintbrush with stiff bristles that had been cut down halfway, a dowel with a sharp point, and a toothbrush. Tara had never cleaned wicker before, but she was eager to do something to show her gratitude. Annie had been so kind in the six days since she’d come, looking after her, providing rest and nourishing food, and arranging for a visit to the doctor. She wanted to do something in return. Something to make up for the lies—and for what she was going to do!
    “Let me help,” she had pleaded when Annie left to go to town. “I’m feeling so much better. I think those iron pills your doctor prescribed for me are already working. I’m—really grateful for your kindness.”
    Annie was wearing white jeans and a lime green top with a scallop of tiny white flowers at the neckline. Her blonde hair shone in the sunlight as she stooped to retrieve her crochet project and tuck it into her tote bag. She and Alice had errands to do that morning, she had explained. She would come back for her later, and they would go to the club meeting together.
    Tiny gold flecks danced in Annie’s striking green eyes. “Are you sure you don’t mind doing this? I need to prepare the way for you to join us at A Stitch in Time. You see, people in Stony Point are wonderful, but they don’t take to outsiders very well unless they’ve been warned that someone new is coming. I’ll be back in a couple of hours—the meeting is at eleven o’clock—then I’ll introduce you to my Hook and Needle Club friends.”
    “Of course, I understand. And I’m happy to clean the wicker,” Tara said. Annie was actually going to leave her alone at Grey Gables—with free reign of the house and silverware!
    “You won’t get all the furniture done this morning. Just leave everything where it is when you need to change for the meeting. We can finish it later. Remember not to get it too wet, and once you’ve washed it, you need to dry it.” She motioned to a basket in the corner that held clean white rags. “I’ve prepared a solution of water and ammonia. Once you dust, you can wash the furniture with the brushes. The toothbrush is good to get in small places, and the paintbrush can be used for the larger areas. The pointed stick comes in handy for those tiny grooves that trap the dirt.”
    Then Annie had climbed inside Alice’s Mustang and left her on the porch at Grey Gables. Boots, who had followed her mistress to the car, returned and trotted lightly up the steps. The cat wrapped herself around Tara’s ankles and purred a welcome.
    “You too!” she scolded lightly, and stooped to stroke the velvety gray fur. Why did everyone have to be so kind to her? It made what she was planning to do so hard! She switched on the handheld vacuum to dust an overturned chair. Plying the nozzle