Who Could Have Done It? Lethal in Old Lace Guest Post

Guest Post by Author Duffy Brown

Hi, Reagan Summerside here from the Consignment Shop Mystery Series. In Lethal in Old Lace it’s spring in Savannah! I know, I know, spring is amazing everywhere, but here in Savannah all the colors make the city a full-out Van Gogh painting. But that doesn’t mean all is right with the world.

The Abbott sisters are accused of murder! How can this be? Those two adorable little old ladies who live right next door to me wouldn’t hurt a fly unless that fly is named Willie Fishbine. He just happened to swindle them out of a ton of money. They got sucked into the great Spring Chicken vitamin scam that was supposed to make everyone feel young again. A great idea but crushed dandelions, wheat germ, and a dash of gummy worms just doesn’t do the trick.

All seemed circumstantial and the sisters were okay until BW…that’s Bruce Willis the canine version and my BFF…went bone hunting and dug up a body in the sisters’ garden. He announced this great accomplishment by carrying a blue purse covered in dirt right to the head Savannah detective.

Now I have to try and find the real killer or the best neighbors and dearest friends ever will go to jail for a really long time.

So far my main suspect is Dexter Thomas. Not only does he own the House of Eternal Slumber mortuary, but he wants to buy the Sleepy Pines retirement home. What better way of driving down the price than knocking off the residents. That’s one way to get the Pines for cheap.

And another suspect is Arnett Fishbine who had her eye on her daddy’s money for years and is presently on a non-stop spending spree. Of course the killer could also be those two gold-digger gals who married for money and want to get their antiquated husbands into Sleepy Pines so they can start enjoying their money. They need two openings to get them there. Knocking off residents is one way to get those openings.

All this and the dead body keeps disappearing and I’m trying to plan a wedding. Did anything ever run smooth in planning a wedding? Thanks to the brides maids my wedding colors are now fuchsia and gold! And Mamma and Auntie KiKi want me in a wedding dress with enough tulle to cover the entire state of Georgia.

I have to focus on the good part. That I’m marrying Walker Boone, the best guy ever. I just hope we get to the altar and the Abbott sisters are there to see it all.

Here’s a little excerpt so you can see how things are going:

   “If we lathered it in Crisco and shoved like the dickens it’s still not going to fit,” Mercedes said, the four of us staring at the end of the casket sticking out of the trunk of the Beemer.

   Auntie Kiki had moved the car next to the delivery door at the House of Eternal Slumber so the Beemer was in the shadows and we wouldn’t have to roll a casket clear across the parking lot.

   “So what should we do now and we better think fast,” Mercedes said in a panicky voice.

   I snagged the brown tarp draped over a mound of mulch. “We wrap the end in this and we use BW’s leash to hold it in place. I’ll tie my yellow scarf at the end so what we’re hauling looks legal. The last thing we need is the cops stopping us.”

   “All we need to do is get t my house. I’ll park the Beemer in the garage and tell Putter that the car manual says BMWs need to rest every twenty-thousand miles. He’s a mighty fine cardio guy but not exactly a car expert.”

   “You read a manual?” I shook my head in disbelief.

    “Honey, if I add in that there’s pot roast for dinner the man will believe anything.”

Mercedes held the tarp in place while I wrapped the leash. KiKi added the scarf, a smile braking across her lips as she took a step back. “Looks good to me.

    You know, I think this is going to work just fine and dandy.”

   “What’s going to work fine and dandy?” Police Detective Aldeen Ross wanted to know as she drew up beside Mercedes. KiKi grabbed my hand, I grabbed hers and the only thing that kept us from fainting dead away was Aldeen’s electric green nightshirt with I see guilty people on the front in day-glow pink. Neither of us wanted to miss that or the police car slippers strobbing red and blue when she walked.

Thanks for visiting Savannah and having fun with me, Auntie KiKi, and Walker Boone. Never a dull moment at the Consignment Shop!

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