She closed her eyes. “Worth fighting for.”
“Worth almost getting arrested for,” Ida corrected, her mouth already full.
Helen took a delicate bite and smiled. “Rose would be proud.”
Ruth picked up her iPad. “Frankie called this morning. He wants to know if you ship.”
“I do,” Lexy said.
“He wants a family discount.”
“He’syourfamily.”
“And you’re my family. It cancels out.” Ruth tapped something on her screen. “He also says to tell Nans she ‘has a future in his line of work,’ which I am choosing to interpret as a compliment and not a job offer.”
“Noted,” Nans said. “And declined.”
The loose ends came out over tea the way they always did. Crane’s operation had been referred to federal authorities — three more front businesses found in New Hampshire. Sal took a plea deal, full cooperation. Needles too, though apparently his testimony was mostly about how cold the parking lot was and how he’d like it on the record that he told Sal the whole thing was a bad idea from the start.
“He did seem like the reasonable one,” Helen said.
“He’s a criminal, Helen,” Ruth said.
“A reasonable criminal,” Helen said mildly.
Bella Notte had new owners, a young couple from Concord turning it into an actual Italian restaurant. They’d asked Lexy to supply desserts.
Lexy smiled. “I said I’d think about it. After I check their flour.”
Outside, Main Street was quiet. A woman walked a dog past the waterfall. A delivery truck pulled up to the dry cleaner three doors down.
Nans watched the delivery truck for a moment longer than necessary.
“Nans,” Helen said. “Stop investigating the dry cleaner.”
“I’m not investigating. I’m observing.”
“You’re observing with intent.”
Nans sipped her tea and said nothing, which was, as always, answer enough.
A comfortable silence settled over the table. Then Helen said, “There’s one thing that was never resolved. The missing diamonds — the ones Crane said were short from the count.”
“Sal swore he didn’t take them,” Lexy said. “Crane’s supplier swore the count was right.”
“So where did they go?” Ida asked.
Nobody had an answer. A few loose diamonds, somewhere between Montreal and a bakery doorstep, had simply vanished. It was the one piece of the puzzle that never fit.
Ida reached into her purse. She rummaged for a moment, then pulled out a small paper bag and poured something into her palm.
Tiny glittering gems tumbled out and caught the light — winking and sparkling against her skin like a handful of tiny diamonds.
Everyone at the table went still.
“Relax,” Ida said. “It’s rock candy. I found it at the candy shop.”
Helen stared at the crystals in Ida’s palm. “Why did you pour them out like that?”
