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Chapter Fourteen

Rat Poison !

Nancy hung up the phone slowly. Several emotions washed over her ---- triumph, confusion, sadness, all jumbled together. She remembered vividly the image of Eleanor that first night, empty glass tipped over on the carpet, another in Eleanor's hand. How quick it would have been for her to switch those glasses ---- a matter of seconds !

Other images crossed Nancy's mind. The sneaky way Eleanor had disposed of the rat poison. After all, rat poison was a common household item, and no one at the time had suggested it was the cause of Nila's illness the night before. Why should Eleanor have looked so furtive, so guilty, about throwing it away ?

Eleanor hiding after listening in on Nancy's private conversation with Pierce. Eleanor, who knew Nancy was a detective before any of the others.

And it was Eleanor, Nancy remembered, who'd told her about the newspaper article, who'd led her to Jack's house, where they'd found it, and who'd been standing next to the wastebasket where Nancy had found the greasy rag . . .

The pieces were certainly beginning to fall into place. And yet, Nancy didn't feel entirely happy about it. Eleanor Pierce did not seem to be the sort of person who had it in her to kill. Cunning, yes ---- the eavesdropping proved that, as did the clever withholding of information, only to drop it in dribs and drabs as the occasion suited her.

But it was hard for Nancy to imagine Eleanor getting down on her knees with a wrench and loosening the bolts on her car wheel; or up on the roof of the mansion, throwing a brick down at Nila's head; or administering a potentially fatal overdose to her brother-in-law, who'd taken her in and been so kind to her for years.

Eleanor didn't seem like a cruel person or an evil person. Of course, Nancy knew from personal experience that murderers didn't always fit the stereotype of a killer. Still, she was bothered.

Frowning, she sat back down on the edge of her bed and dialed Bess's number.

"I thought you'd never call," Bess complained. "I've been sitting around here all day waiting, do you realize that ? What's been going on ?"

"A lot," Nancy told her. "Do you think you could get over here right away ? We have to talk."

While she waited for Bess, Nancy played back her messages. One was from Sergeant O'Rourke at homicide. "Hello, Nancy," his deep voice boomed. "I'm over at the Pierce mansion, and I understand you've been doing some investigating for Mr. Pierce this week. Knowing you, I'm sure you're well aware what's been going on. I've been interviewing the family members and staff, and I'll be wanting to talk to you before I make an arrest. So, please, when you get this message, give me a buzz, or just head on down to headquarters, all right ? Thanks."

Nancy sighed, debating what to do. She knew that when O'Rourke referred to making an arrest, he meant Nila Kirkedottir. She was the one who regularly gave Charles Pierce his nighttime medication, and she would be his number one suspect. Nancy felt sorry for Nila. After all she'd been through, a police grilling was the last thing she needed.

Nancy knew that if she couldn't crack the case in the next twenty-four hours, she'd have to turn things over to O'Rourke and the River Heights Police Department. She also knew that right now that would be counterproductive. She'd already learned so much on her own that she felt she'd come to know these people. And she was so close ---- she could feel the solution just beyond her grasp.

Twenty-four hours, she promised herself. If she hadn't wrapped up things by then, she'd march over to police headquarters and turn things over to O'Rourke. Until then she'd just forget she'd played back her messages.

Bess arrived, flushed and out of breath. She had obviously raced over. "So dish, Drew," she said, as Nancy answered the door and led her into the kitchen for a snack. "What did I miss ?"