Dead Certain - Mariah Stewart [57]
“Thank you, Greer.” Amanda swallowed back the lump that was forming in her throat.
“Didn’t I hear that the police—” Greer stopped midsentence and turned to Sean. “Sometimes I still forget that’s you. You have no leads, right? I heard it on the news.”
“Right. And then this morning we found another shop owner from St. Mark’s dead—another friend of Amanda’s, as I explained to you when I called earlier.”
Greer stared at Sean for a long moment. “So you’re saying that someone is killing off shop owners at St. Mark’s?”
“You could say that.”
“Should I expect the rest of them sometime between this afternoon and this evening?” Greer asked.
“The rest of who?”
“The other shopkeepers.” Greer fixed her brother with a stare. “Or is there some reason why Amanda might be a target whereas the others are not?”
“We don’t know. Right now, she looks like the only obvious common thread between the two. The only one I know of who was close to both victims.”
“They’re not just victims, Sean, they’re her friends,” Greer admonished him as if Amanda wasn’t sitting at the kitchen table.
“You’re right. They were friends. Sorry.” This to Amanda.
She nodded and reached for the glass of wine Greer had poured for her.
“Did you eat anything today?” Greer asked.
Amanda shook her head.
“I thought Dana picked up lunch for you.” Sean frowned.
“She offered. I couldn’t have eaten anything.” Amanda sipped at the wine. It was cool and slightly fruity and just what she needed at that moment.
“Then go easy on that and I’ll see what I can find for you,” Greer said.
“Please don’t go to any trouble . . .”
Greer waved off her protests. “Not a problem. I was in the mood for an early dinner, actually, and just about to have some of this wonderful tomato and cheddar cheese pie I made yesterday. Oven’s already heated.” Greer turned back to the refrigerator and pulled out a light green pie plate covered with aluminum foil. “What do you think? Want to try it? It really is delicious.”
“Sure. Thank you.”
“How ’bout you, Sean?”
“I’ll pass, Greer, but thanks.” He grabbed an apple from a bowl on the counter. “I’ll pick up something later on. Right now, I need to get back to the station.”
“Oh, sure. Of course. You go on back to work and find the person who killed Amanda’s friend.” She filled a plastic travel mug with the freshly made coffee and handed it to her brother. “Her friends. The same person, right? The same person killed them both?”
Sean nodded. “It looks that way.”
“Then go catch him. I’ll save you some dinner.”
“What can I do to help?” Amanda asked, watching Sean cross the grass on his way to his Jeep, then wave to someone on the opposite side of the street. She leaned a little closer to the window, saw a parked police cruiser. Someone to watch the house, she thought, while Sean was at the station.
“Not a damned thing. You just sit right there, and I’ll heat this up. We can go outside for a bit and put our feet up and drink our wine. And after you eat, you can go lie down for a bit, if you like, or you can sit outside by yourself, if you need to be alone. I’ll understand.”
“Thank you. I appreciate how kind you’re being.”
“Well, this has to be just a terrible time for you.” Greer took a baking sheet from a cupboard and a knife from a rack that stood on the counter. She sliced off two pieces of pie and deposited them on the baking sheet, then popped the tray into the oven. Everything the woman did was quick and smooth.
“Now, shall we sit out on the patio while our dinner heats up?” Greer asked.
Not waiting for an answer, Greer picked up her wineglass and motioned for Amanda to follow her out the back door. The patio was a snug enclosure, with a white wicker love seat and two chairs grouped around a matching table with a glass top. Greer sat on the love seat, and Amanda chose the rocking chair.
“I love a rocker, don’t you?” Greer asked as she set her glass on the table. “So soothing.”
Amanda smiled and sipped her wine. It was