“Helia?”
Her mother stood in the doorway, vase of flowers in hand, staring at her.
“Sorry, woolgathering,” she said.
Her mom raised an eyebrow. “Anything to do with the reemergence of Collin?”
Yes, but she wasn’t about to go into details. She and her mom were close, but no way was Helia going to share anything about the intimacies, physical or otherwise, that she’d experienced in the past eighteen hours.
“More about the murders,” she replied.
“And your house,” Vanessa added, concern settling in her expression. She’d texted her parents after she’d returned to the castle last night to tell them what had happened. They’d wanted her to come home but let it go when Collin and Dulcie promised to install a security system at her place.
“And my house,” she conceded.
Her mother stared at her, then lifted the vase. “Help me with the finishing touches?”
“Of course,” she said.
They entered the medium-sized dining room, already filled with winter greens and flowers. The tablecloth sat in a roll on the dining table, along with runners, and she headed for these first.The china and glassware lay stacked on a sideboard; they’d get to that next.
“What are you thinking about the murders?” her mom asked, setting the tall vase on a pedestal in the corner before standing back and eyeing it.
“It feels like I’m involved in a way I shouldn’t be. First, they question me about Justin’s murder because they found some weird letter, then Carter called last night to ask me about Kurt because someone said they saw the two of us together. I didn’t know anything about the letter until they showed me, and I definitely wasn’t with Kurt, so why focus on me? Or do I feel targeted because I’ve never been in this situation, when really this is all normal? Maybe they’re out there questioning lots of people and I’m just not seeing the bigger picture.” As she spoke, she unrolled the linen tablecloth. The white material with an embroidered frame of red holly berries making the room instantly more festive.
“I’m sure they’re questioning a lot of people,” her mom replied, straightening the other side of the tablecloth. “I don’t like that they’ve come to you more than once, but since the idea of you being even remotely involved in either murder is ludicrous—not to mention your house being broken into—it makes me ask why.”
Helia made a face. “That’s exactly what I’m doing, asking why me?”
Her mom leveled her with a mom look. “I don’t mean whyyou, butwhyyou.”
Helia paused, the linen fresh and crisp between her fingers. “I have to admit, you’ve lost me, Mom.”
Vanessa chuckled. “Your life isn’t small, dear daughter. In addition to everything you do at Sundaram, you’re involved in the chamber of commerce, the tourism board, the animal shelter, and a few other groups.” Another mom look came herway. For years, her parents had voiced their concern about the number of things she committed her time to. Not because the commitments pulled her away from Sundaram, but because they worried she’d stretch herself too thin.
That conversation was one for another day, though—or not—and Helia focused on what her mom meant. As the table slowly morphed into a holiday canvas waiting to be adorned, it clicked.
“You think Justin and Kurt might have some connection we don’t know about, but whatever it is, I’m connected to it, too? Like maybe one of the organizations I’m involved in?”
“It only makes sense, doesn’t it? Not that any of this makes sense,” she said, smoothing out the cloth.
“It does make sense, actually.”
Her mom flashed a wry grin. “Don’t sound so surprised.”
Helia laughed. “You’re a constant source of surprises, Mom.” She paused, eyeing the runners. Her mom had pulled three out, one a deep gold, one an elegant red with white tallow berries on it, the opposite of the tablecloth, and the third a rich dark forest green.
“Which runner?” she asked her mom, who had a better eye for decor than she.
“Gold,” her mom replied. “With the dishware Akin chose and the decorations, the gold will even out the colors better.”
She set the other two aside and together, they rolled the runner open. “It doesn’t explain the letter or false sighting, but if you’re right about Kurt and Justin being connected to an organization I’m involved in, it would explain why my name keeps cropping up.”
“Not that I want you putting your nose anywhere dangerous, but I wonder what Kurt and Justin have in common? They’re in different, though admittedly adjacent, lines of business, and I wouldn’t have thought they were friends. But I certainly don’t—didn’t—know either well enough to say.”
“Maybe the place to start is with me and the organizations I’m a part of?”
“I don’t think you should bestartinganywhere, sweetie. I think you should leave it to the professionals.”
