Cleaning is Murder : Myrtle Clover #13

Chapter Seventeen

Miles pushed open the old wooden door with relief.

Myrtle shoved the ginger ale at him. "Here. You should drink this for your migraine. You don't look so hot."

"It was the environment in there. It was too hot, too crowded, and too loud. I'm not thirsty now. Could you stick it in your purse for a while?" asked Miles as they got into his car.

Myrtle sighed and dropped the ginger ale into the depths of her pocketbook.

"What did Steven have to say?" asked Miles.

"Well, after he finished inquiring after my health, he told me that his sister had an affair with Gabriel for a time," said Myrtle.

Miles's eyebrows shot up. "I never would have guessed that."

"Apparently they must have kept it hush-hush since Gabriel is married. Her brother also mentioned that she was very conscious of what people in town thought about her. Steven, bless him, isn't discreet. Anyway, Steven didn't think much of Gabriel because he'd ended his affair with Philomena rather abruptly and she was still hurt from being dumped by Amos," said Myrtle.

"Do you think that Steven could have done it?" asked Miles.

"He was certainly angry enough at him to have done it. He's very protective of Philomena. But we saw for ourselves that he just came off a shift. With the nature of his job, he wouldn't exactly have time to slip away, commit a murder, and then hop back into an ambulance again. He's part of a team," said Myrtle.

Miles drove slowly toward Myrtle's house. "So Philomena lied to us. She said that she hardly ever saw Gabriel and that she avoided spending time with him."

"Either she's so used to lying about their affair that she's continuing to do it or else she has something to hide," said Myrtle with a shrug. "At any rate, we're seeing her tomorrow for book club."

At the mention of book club, Miles winced.

Myrtle said, "You need to have this ginger ale. I'm telling you, whoever sent in that tip for my column swore by it."

Miles said, "Not while I'm driving. Just hand it to me before you get out of the car." He paused. "You are getting out of the car, aren't you? We're not going anywhere else?"

"I still want to speak with Alice Porper, but I also want to make sure that I write an article about Gabriel's death for Sloan or else he'll find a way to bypass me and run a story himself. Let's worry with Alice tomorrow after book club," said Myrtle.

Miles said, "I don't even remember who is hosting book club tomorrow." He swung his head around and gave Myrtle a horrified look. "I'm not hosting book club tomorrow, am I?"

"No. Technically, it's Georgia's turn to host since she chose the book. But Georgia's home isn't exactly set up for a lot of guests. Too many knickknacks," said Myrtle.

"Not to mention that coffin she acquired at a yard sale that she uses as a coffee table," said Miles with a shudder.

Myrtle shrugged. "She said she wanted to find some practical use for it before she needed it. She said it was a real steal."

"I definitely can't see our dignified book club president putting her wine glass or tray of hors d'oeuvres on a coffin. Who's hosting instead of Georgia?" asked Miles. He pulled the car into Myrtle's driveway.

"Our dignified book club president is. Tippy offered. And Tippy is the one who coordinated with Philomena to speak," said Myrtle.

"And Tippy will be the one to deal with Puddin," said Miles. "This should be the most interesting book club meeting yet."