Free Two Tall Tails by Sofie Kelly Page A

that the carpeting on the stairs had looked fine to her. Could she have been mistaken or . . .
    â€œJason thinks I should sue,” Angie was saying. “But I have to take some of the blame.”
    I frowned. “What makes you say that?”
    The professor gave me a wry smile. “I was so sleepy that night I could barely keep my eyes open. Jason and I were having tea and I almost dozed off there at the table. I was on my way up to bed when I caught my foot on that loose piece of carpet. Maybe if I hadn’t let myself get so overtired, I might not have lost my balance.”
    â€œIt’s good that Jason was there,” I said. Even though the sun was warm on my head and shoulders, I gave an involuntary shiver.
    Angie nodded, her hand going to her injured shoulder. “I know Jason can be”—she shrugged—“well, a bit of a jerk sometimes. He’s just like my brother James. But I don’t want to think what could have happened if he hadn’t been around to call 911.” She ducked her head and studied her hands for a moment. “I feel a bit guilty.”
    â€œWhat about?”
    Angie looked up at me then. “I had been planning on amending my will and leaving less of my estate to Jason because he’d never really seemed that interested in staying in touch. But then he stepped up after the accident and he offered to stay for a while to help out. So I decided to leave things the way they were.” She shrugged. “I guess you can’t always tell what people are capable of.”
    I had a sinking feeling I knew exactly what Jason Bates was capable of.
    When I got home, I half expected to find Elvis sitting on the veranda railing, but there was no sign of the cat. Liz had offered to bring Rose and Elvis home, and I realized he was probably in Rose’s apartment.
    She was feeding me again and I hated to show up empty handed so I went to the front of the house to cut the last of the narcissus, arranging the stems in a mason jar of water and tying a length of wide green paper ribbon in a bow around the neck. I was about to head for Rose’s apartment when I heard shouting from outside.
    I went out into the hallway. Rose was standing in her doorway, a yellow-flowered apron tied at her waist. Elvis was at her feet. “What’s going on?” she asked.
    I shook my head. “I don’t know.” I opened the front door.
    We heard a shout. “Help! Somebody help!”
    â€œThat’s Tom,” Rose said.
    I bolted across the grass, through the gap in the hedge, into the Tom’s backyard. He was crouched on the lawn, leaning over Matilda. The little corgi seemed to be having a seizure.
    My chest tightened. “What happened?” I said, bending down next to the old man.
    He looked up at me, his face ashen. “I don’t know. I was just throwing the ball for her. She was bringing it back to me when she suddenly stopped. She took another step and then she just fell over and started shaking.”
    I put a hand on his back. “I’m going to get the car and we’ll take her to the vet.”
    Rose was behind me. “What happened?” she whispered.
    I gave my head a little shake. “I don’t know.”
    Rose dipped her head in the direction of my SUV. “Go,” she said. “I’ll stay here.”
    I ran back to the house, grabbed my purse and keys and hurried back out to the SUV. I pulled into Tom’s driveway and grabbed the blanket I kept on the backseat. “Here,” I said to Rose. “Wrap her in this.”
    Rose swaddled Matilda in the blanket and I helped Tom get to his feet. The corgi’s eyes were open and she wasn’t seizing anymore but she seemed lethargic and disoriented.
    Rose was still holding the little dog. Tom put one hand on the blanket and they moved toward the car.
    â€œMatilda may be little but she has a big heart,” Rose told the old man.
    Elvis had