Free Fillet of Murder by Linda Reilly Page B

is unanimous, then it flies.” She bit into her glossed lower lip. “Look, Bea, I know Phil told you everyone else was against the comic book store, but I, for one, was not. So don’t believe everything you hear, okay?” She gave Talia a pleading look.
    Talia opened her mouth to speak, but said nothing. What was Suzy trying to convey? Had she signed the petition or hadn’t she?
    â€œI’ve got to run,” Suzy said, “so I’ll get to the point. Jill has invited all the arcade owners to meet at her shop at seven this evening, after we all close. She’ll serve snacks and tea, and we can all brainstorm. We need to find a way to entice shoppers”—she waved a hand at the kitchen—“and diners, back to the Wrensdale Arcade. Among all of us, we should be able to come up with some ideas, right?”
    Bea looked as if she hadn’t heard Suzy. Her eyes again grew misty.
    Talia felt her own eyes filling. She glanced out at the dining area and then the kitchen. She loved this place—shehad since she was a teenager. And Bea and Howie were family to her. She hated that so much bad luck had befallen them.
    â€œIt’s Bea’s call,” Talia said. “I only work here, but I’ll be glad to do whatever I can.”
    Bea nodded slowly. “Sounds fine,” she said dully. “I don’t want to stay too long, though. I visit my Howie at the hospital every night, and he’ll worry if I don’t show up.”
    â€œOf course.” Suzy plopped a light kiss on Bea’s cheek. “Our families come first. I think we all agree on that.” She shot another look at Talia.
    â€œSee you after closing, then,” Talia agreed. “Can we bring anything?”
    â€œOnly if you want to. Knowing Jill, she’ll have enough goodies for all. Oh, and keep your eyes peeled for reporters today,” she said in a stage whisper. “I saw one of them hanging around Queenie’s Variety this morning. Dressed to the nines and trying to nab people for an interview as they were leaving the store.”
    With a wink and a wave Suzy left the eatery, leaving Talia to wonder. Was Suzy being honest about not objecting to the comic book store? Had Turnbull flatly lied about Suzy signing the petition?
    So many questions, not enough answers. And now that Talia thought about it, where
was
that petition? She’d love to take a peek at it.
    She was mulling that problem when the door slowly opened. Three elderly women shuffled in, their flat shoes stepping carefully over the blue-and-white tile floor. Vinyl purses hanging off their wrists, they huddled in a knot and looked around. “Are you open?” one of them asked, her bright blue eyes studying Talia’s face.
    â€œYes, we are!” Talia graced each of them with a cheerful smile. “Welcome to Lambert’s Fish and Chips. Is this your first visit?”
    They all nodded. Talia guided them to a table near the far wall, where the cold air from the doorway wouldn’t affect them. She offered to hang their coats but they refused, opting instead to drape them over the backs of their chairs.
    â€œOh my,” one of them warbled, perusing the crisp, single-sheet menu. “Lil, you and I haven’t had a proper fish and chips lunch since we visited Rodney in Maryland last year. This is going to be such a treat!”
    Notepad in hand, Talia took their orders and brought each of them a mug of coffee. Bea had disappeared for the fifth or sixth time, no doubt to pay another visit to the “loo.” In between bouts of tearful outbursts, Bea had been drinking coffee nonstop all morning.
    Whitnee, too, had taken a quick break. She’d been shivering since she arrived and had to dash out to her car for a sweatshirt.
    Back in the kitchen, Talia opened the fridge and extracted a container stacked with fresh haddock fillets. She set it down on the work counter next to the lemon, the large