Free Till Death Do Us Purl by Anne Canadeo Page A

prevent the explosion. Once that occurred . . . it was . . . over.” She swallowed hard and looked away. “The police officer I spoke to said poor Jeremy was . . . was blown to bits. There was no hope, even if someone had heard the alarm quickly.” She took a deep, shaky breath and looked up at themagain. “I know Jeremy was dedicated to his work and under a lot of pressure right now with his special project. But for goodness’ sake, they’d just been married and about to leave for their honeymoon. Why did he have to go to that lab and work Monday night? If only he’d stayed with Rebecca.”
    If only . . . famous last words, Lucy thought. She sighed aloud. But there was nothing she could think of to say that would offer comfort.
    “What is this project about, Nora? Do you know?” Maggie asked curiously.
    Nora took a tissue from a box on the table and wiped her eyes again. “From what I can gather . . . it’s just . . . glue. Some special miracle formula that’s going to change the world. The world of glue, that is.”
    Maggie glanced at Lucy. No one could blame Nora for her sarcastic tone. It was obvious that she didn’t think much of her son-in-law sacrificing himself to this questionable cause.
    And her daughter suffering such a heartbreaking loss. One that would stay with her the rest of her life.
    “A special type of glue?” Maggie also did not sound especially impressed.
    “That’s right.” Nora glanced at the entrance to the living room, where they could see the foyer and staircase that led to the second floor.
    “Rebecca doesn’t like me to talk about it. That’s why she’s hardly told me anything about his work. Not that she knows that much. He had told her that it’s some sort of amazing adhesive that could even be used by construction companies and to build cars, and for a lot of other industries.Supposedly, it will save companies millions of dollars in production costs.”
    Such a product would be extremely valuable and worth millions of dollars, Lucy thought.
    “So it was important work, in that way,” Maggie replied.
    “Important to his father.” Nora’s mild tone took on a harsh note. So did her expression, Lucy noticed. “Philip Lassiter thinks he runs the world. He was nearly impossible about the wedding, and now he’s totally impossible about the funeral arrangements. You would think he’d have some respect for my daughter’s wishes.”
    “He doesn’t?” Maggie asked.
    “Oh, he starts off saying the right things. But if he doesn’t get his way, he turns into an arrogant tyrant.” Nora was incredulous. “Jeremy’s mother, Patricia, has her own ideas about a memorial for her son. But she’s much more considerate and concerned about Rebecca. I think Rebecca will just give in to both of them. She’s so . . . bereft right now. She just wants to carry out Jeremy’s wishes. He had some very specific ones,” Nora added.
    “He did? That’s unusual for a young person,” Maggie mused.
    “Yes, it is,” Nora agreed. “But he was very detail minded. He wanted to be cremated, for one thing. He also added her name to all his bank accounts and investments before they were married, so that if anything happened to him, Rebecca would be taken care of. Maybe he was worried that his family wouldn’t treat her fairly,” Nora said in a hushed tone, glancing at the staircase again. “Cold comfort for my little girl, after all she’s going through. Losing the love of her life.”
    Her voice faltered andshe started crying again.
    “Nora . . .” Maggie reached out and patted her friend’s hand. Nora tried to compose herself, her head bowed for a moment.
    “Is there anything we can do for you?” Lucy asked. “Or for Rebecca? Can we help you in any way?”
    Nora finally looked up and shook her head. “Thank you but . . . I can’t think of anything right now. I do appreciate you coming here tonight. Listening to me rattle on.” She sighed. “It’s been so hard since we heard