Free A Mold For Murder by Tim Myers

item on our shelves. Agreed?”
    “Absolutely,” Kate said.
    Mom nodded, then said, “The meeting is adjourned.”
    We were all feeling pretty good about our family and our business when the phone rang. Louisa just happened to be standing nearby, so she picked it up, despite the fact that we were officially closed.
    “Ben, it’s for you,” she said over the chatter of our family.
    “Take a message,” I said. “This calls for champagne.”
    “I think you’re going to want to take this call,” she said, and I felt my heart sink. I had no idea who wanted to talk to me, but from the look on Louisa’s face, there was little doubt in my mind that I wasn’t going to like it.

FIVE
    “ THIS is Ben Perkins,” I said, after getting a quizzical look from Louisa. Why was she staring at me like that? She had to know more about who was on the telephone than I did, since she was the one who had just answered it.
    “Am I interrupting anything?” a familiar voice asked.
    “Hi, Kelly. No, we’re just handling some family business. What can I do for you?”
    “Ben, we need to talk,” she said.
    “If it’s about Diana, I already ran into Molly. She said your meeting today didn’t go particularly well. Good job.”
    “Ben, you know I can’t talk to you about one of my clients.”
    “Then what did you want to talk about?” She certainly had my curiosity up.
    Kelly hesitated, then said, “I can’t do this over the phone. Are you free tonight?”
    “What about your daughter?” I asked, not mentioning her ex-husband Wade’s name. Kelly had broken up with me to reconcile with him, though I’d heard enough rumors around town that it wasn’t working out. I had been upset losing Kelly, and then Diana had come into my life. Still, I had enough feelings left for Kelly to feel my heart skip just a little at the sound of her voice, even though I was firmly committed to Diana.
    “Annie and Wade are having dinner together,” Kelly admitted. “I don’t suppose you’d like to get a bite with me, would you?”
    “Sorry, but I’ve got plans with Diana,” I said, not trying to be hurtful in any way.
    “I understand,” Kelly said, a little more curtly than I liked. “Would you have time to meet me afterward, then?”
    I glanced at my watch. “I’m not picking her up for an hour, so if you’ve got the time, I can meet you now. Should I come by your office?”
    “How did you know where I was?” she asked. “Have you been keeping tabs on me?”
    “No, I just figured that’s where you would be.” I’d driven past her law office several times lately, at all hours of the day and night, and more often than not, Kelly’s car was parked out front. I didn’t know when she had time for Annie, but then I realized that really wasn’t any of my business anymore.
    “I’ll see you in five minutes,” I added.
    “I’ll be waiting for you.”
    After I hung up the phone, I started toward the door, but Louisa cut me off. “What was that all about?”
    “What are you talking about? Can’t a man be friends with an old girlfriend?”
    “She hasn’t had that status long,” Louisa said. “Ben, you’re not going to do something stupid, are you?”
    “I rarely plan those kinds of things in advance,” I said, trying to lighten the tone of our conversation. We were starting to attract some attention from our other family members, and I hated to be in their crosshairs, especially tonight.
    “I mean it,” she said. “You need to be careful.”
    “I will,” I said, then I stopped and kissed Kate on the cheek on my way out. “Congratulations, Sis, you did a fine job.”
    “I was scared to death, and you know it,” she said. “But thanks for your vote.”
    “How do you know I voted yes?” I asked her.
    “Because I’d kill you if you didn’t.”
    I laughed. “My pencil nearly pierced the ballot, I pressed down so heard on that y .”
    “So where are you off to? Stay and celebrate with us.”
    “I’d love to,