Grace shook her head. This was silly. She had forgiven Theodore for that horrible night back in Chicago—she hadn’t realized it until that moment, but she had. At least almost all of her had.
He seemed so different now from the dreadful person she had first met. Still prickly, yes, but also strangely thoughtful, to the point of deeply caring. Had he changed in such a short time? Which Theodore Parker was the real one?
This was ridiculous. He had tried to help her every step of the way, hadn’t he?
Look out for someone who is involved in the investigation, Oliver had warned.
She couldn’t believe she was actually suspecting that Theodore had played a hand in Harriet’s murder.
She brushed the thought away. She would not think about it any longer.
She was about to walk on when Earnest suddenly came out of the baby incubator exhibit. But this time, he was without Lillie.
He looked furtively over his shoulder.
“Grace,” he said in a low voice. “Can we talk?”
Grace cringed a little. She quickly shut her notebook, where his name had recently been crossed off the pages. Things were still slightly awkward between them, and it reminded her again how stupid she was to be suspicious of Theodore. After all, look where that had gotten her with Earnest. But he seemed to have softened toward her, as if he had forgiven her accusations. Perhaps after the scare they had experienced last night, all could be put behind them.
She nodded and smiled.
“Of course,” she said.
He gestured toward the notebook that she had set on the bench beside her.
“I saw the article you wrote. And it got me thinking.”
She moved so that he could take the seat next to her. “All of these things that have been happening. First, the plane I’m in explodes. The police say they think it was just an engineering failure, sure. But then Harriet dies. And then we get mugged and threatened. And the thing is, Grace, I just keep thinking about how I’m the one who handed Oliver the glass. But someone put the poison in the drink when it was with me.
“What if they thoughtIwas the one who was going to drink it?”
Grace turned toward him in surprise.
“You think that poison was meant for you?” she asked, aghast.
“Perhaps someone was trying to kill me when the plane exploded. And then”—his eyes grew wide—“after the balloon sabotage didn’t work, maybe they tried a second time. MaybeIwas the real target all along.”
It was an angle she hadn’t thought of before. And yet she should have. It made so many of the pieces fit together. What if she had been looking at it the wrong way round this entire time? What if Harriet was never supposed to be the one dead?
What if the real target had been Earnest?
“But who would want to killyou?” she asked.
She stood as Lillie came out of the exhibit, and Earnest shot Grace a look that he wanted to stop talking.
“That was atrocious,” Lillie said furiously, marching toward them. “They clearly have no business taking care of those babies. It’s inhumane.”
“I’m sorry, but I need to go meet Walt,” Grace said, standing. “I told him I’d be at the restaurant to see if he had any updates.”
“All right,” Lillie said hesitantly. She turned to Earnest.
“Shall we go to the Philippine Village?” he said. “It’s supposed to be huge. It would take us all day to see, at least. You should come meet us afterward, Grace.”
“Sure,” Grace said, nodding. “Hopefully with good news.”
She turned the corner, still dazed by what Earnest had said, and almost ran into a small electric autobus, packed with riders.
“Watch it!” the driver barked.
