Free Death of the Swami Schwartz (A Kate Kennedy Mystery Book 2) by Noreen Wald Page B

them.
    “Don’t you understand? We never had children. Thistle was like my son. People visit their loved ones who have gone on before them. Even an iceberg like you ought to appreciate how comforting that would be. Well I can’t visit Thistle if he’s in Arizona and I’m here, can I? And you know I moved here because of Life Preserver. I had to get Thistle out of that situation.”
    He stared at the phone, wishing that Dallas Dalton would disappear. A woman of a certain age… all too visible.
    “I have contingency plans, Jack.” Her face looked hard and cruel in the bright sunlight. “And I’ve instructed my bankers to stop funding Life Preserver’s research program if my horse isn’t here by Monday.”
    Know when to fold, old boy. Don’t call her bluff. Cancel your plans.
    He dialed Harry Archer.

Nineteen

      
    After decades of dealing with her sister-in-law’s real and imagined crises, Kate knew Marlene would talk in her own good time. To rush her would be futile. And, indeed, once she started talking, it might be difficult to shut her up.
    Trouble was best handled in the kitchen, so Kate silently fussed over tea and biscuits, while Marlene sat stone-faced in a white Formica chair, with a faux-leather seat cushion. Why had Kate allowed Edmund to convince her and Charlie that Formica was the way to go in South Florida? The dinette set looked like it belonged in a school cafeteria.
    Kate poured boiling water into a china teapot holding two English breakfast tea bags.
    Their silence wasn’t uncomfortable, merely anticipatory, like a sotto voce overture promising cymbals and trumpets.
    Ballou had given up comforting Marlene and was curled at her feet. She petted him aimlessly, minus her usual enthusiasm.
    Since they’d been kids, Kate and Marlene had found comfort in each other’s presence: comfort that, on occasion, didn’t require conversation.
    Marlene finally spoke. “You always were so damn lucky, Kate. Even now with Charlie gone, you’ve got the boys and those two beautiful granddaughters.” Her voice caught in a sob. “And you kept your figure. I’m just a fat old broad with no one to love me.”
    Whatever Kate had been expecting, it certainly hadn’t been anything like this. Had Marlene been drinking? She usually only became maudlin after three martinis. Should Kate cajole her? Or challenge her? Or maybe a little of both.
    “Come on, Marlene. Kevin and Peter are your nephews. Didn’t Charlie and I name our Kevin after his brother, your husband?” She saw no reason to mention that Kevin had been Marlene’s second ex-husband. “Lauren and Katharine are your great-nieces. They both love you. Remember when they played dress up in your evening gowns? And you must know my daughter-in-law likes you better than me.” That was true. Jennifer, despite her Lowell heritage and her own air of casual entitlement, always lit up when Marlene entered a room. “Edmund adores you. They all do. They’re your family. And what about me? You drive me crazy, but I love you too. And, for the record, when did you start thinking I had a figure worth keeping? You’ve been telling me since puberty that I’m flat-chested.”
    Marlene almost smiled, just the barest hint of a twinkle in her red-rimmed eyes.
    “Now tell me what happened today to put you in a state of such negative energy.” Maybe she could persuade Marlene to join her for a yoga session on the beach. “I have a lot to tell you too.”
    The phone rang. Jarring. Obtrusive.
    Kate said, “Sorry,” then reached for the kitchen extension. “It might be Tiffani. Carbone whisked her off to the police station late this morning. He’s convinced she killed Swami.”
    No question about it. Nothing like a murder investigation and the chance to champion an innocent suspect to chase away the blues. Marlene’s eyes lit up.
    “Hello.”
    “Mrs. Kennedy, it’s me.”
    ‘Tiffani! What happened? I was getting worried.”
    “Detective Carbone scared the hell