Free Dead Funny by Tanya Landman Page B

understood what she meant. I never thought it was possible for a person to be too smart. But then I met you, Poppy Fields, and now I get it. You’re so sharp you’re going to get yourself killed. Seems a pity when you were doing so well on my behalf, but there you go.”
    “How did you get here before me?” I demanded, desperately playing for time.
    “I could see from your face you weren’t planning to go for a swim. I figured you might work it out. So I made my excuses to your mother and drove straight here to finish the job. And now I’m almost through.”
    “You don’t need to kill me,” I protested.
    “Oh yes, I do,” said Toby. “Because if I don’t you’ll go blabbing to the police, I’ll get arrested and the whole beautiful plan will crumble into nothing. And I can’t allow that, Poppy, really I can’t. I’ve been working on this too long to see it fall apart now.”
    “Was Sylvia part of the plan?” I asked. “You knew her, didn’t you? You were lying when you said you’d never met her.”
    “Sylvia! What a sweetheart! She was so obliging: believed everything I told her so easily. She went off to work for my mother without a murmur just so I could keep an eye on Judy. You see, when my dear little sister moved back in and started spending my mother’s money I knew she had to go. And then I thought, well, why not kill them both? But I couldn’t see a way to do it. Not until Len wrote that cute little note to my mother saying he still loved her, and could they start over? I wasn’t going to allow her to squander her fortune on some old guy. But it worked out real well in the end. As soon as Sylvia told me he was a Punch and Judy man, I knew I had the perfect fall guy. She made all the arrangements for him to come and see my mother. Heck, she even booked this apartment for him to stay in. If there’s one thing I can say about Sylvia it’s that she was efficient.”
    “So why kill her? She thought you two were getting married.”
    He laughed cruelly. “Like I said, she was gullible. She’d outlived her usefulness. And I think I can manage to find someone more attractive than Sylvia, don’t you? A model. An actress. An heiress, maybe. Especially now I’ve got millions of dollars to my name.”
    “But how did you get into the grounds?” I asked. “The place was crawling with police.”
    “Sweetie, I was raised there. I know every tree, every rock, every hiding place. It’s easy to avoid attention if you know where you’re going.” He finished securing me to the chair and stood up. “That’s enough shooting the breeze. It’s been real nice talking to you, Poppy, but now I’ve got to get going. So long.” He smiled his rich, warm smile and turned towards the door.
    “Are you just going to leave me here?” I yelled.
    “Well, yes. I have to go and comfort your geeky friend and your poor mother for the tragic loss of her daughter.”
    “You leave Mum and Graham alone!”
    “No can do, Poppy. Sorry. You know, I have something special planned for you. The finale to the whole show. It’s a perfect ending, believe me.”
    My brain was working frantically, wondering what Toby meant. What did he have in mind? How was he going to finish me off? What was the last scene of the Punch and Judy show?
    Before I could ask him anything, he was gone. Stepping over the corpse of Len Radstock, he walked up the narrow hallway. The front door slammed. There was silence. And I was left in an empty flat with a dead Punch and Judy man.
    Panic rose in my chest like a great bubble, swelling into my throat and threatening to choke me. I had to get out of there!
    I began to wriggle in the chair. I’d dimly remembered that old circus escapologist’s trick and tensed my muscles when Toby tied me up. I relaxed and could feel the ropes slacken a little. But only a little. I sighed. Circus escapologists were big, brawny men with massive biceps. I didn’t have enough muscles to give me the slack I