Page 91 of Death on Riddle Road

Was it the natural cracking that can happen as a child grows up, with his closeness to Mamie contributing?

There was something Ruby had said about Dova...

Got it.

Usually smiles and smiles and moves mountains that way.But at the hospice that day, Dova was uncharacteristically upset.Not wanting Robbie there, exposed to what was happening?

“Mamie is surprised by how upset Robbie is over his father’s death.”My words came out, surprising me a little.Was this the time to share the niggling at the back of my mind?“You and I both said that.When we were talking about looking more closely at each of the things she’s told us.”

“Yeah.”That solitary word of agreement might as easily have been,And your point is?

“Why is he so upset?”I asked.

“Because his estranged father was killed.”

“Estranged.Exactly.And, besides, that accounts for the amount of upset we’d all expect — us and Mamie.But he’s beenmoreupset than that.”

“Maybe it’s because his father was murdered.Or because Robbie’s recognized there will never be a chance to not be estranged now.Or...there are probably other reasons.”

“Uh-huh.What if he’s actually upset about something else, but he’s pretending it’s about his father?”

With her head slanted toward me, she slowly said, “If it’s not about his father, what is he upset about?”

CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX

I backed awayfrom the opening her question offered.

Chicken?Or sensing the timing wasn’t right?

“That’s a puzzle, isn’t it.I was thinking about puzzles, specifically, a conversation with Kit about jigsaw puzzles.”

“The one when you and she were telling me about how people approach puzzles different ways?”Clara asked.“She goes by shape, starting with the edges.You group colors and patterns.”

“Yes.And you said murders as puzzles don’t come with edges, which, by the way, is a brilliant insight.”

She grinned.“Why, thank you.”

“You’re welcome.And then, later, I was showing Teague how to wrap packages and we talked about wrapping being another kind of puzzle.”

“Or a way to hide a puzzle.To add a layer — literally to the puzzle of what’s inside the box, for instance.”

“True.So, then Teague asked why Kit likes to do puzzles so much and she said it occupies layers of her brain to keep them from interfering with her thinking, especially about a book.She doesn’t look at the cover — she doesn’t want to know what it’s supposed to look like.”

“Just like we do with murders.We’d love to know what they’re supposed to look like, but if we did, they wouldn’t be mysteries.”

“Exactly.”

“Maybe that’s why you don’t look at puzzle box covers.Because they’re more like murders that way.”

“More like I’m afraid of Kit snarling at me.”

She chuckled, then sobered immediately.“But what made you think about puzzles now?I mean, I know the general connection between looking into murders and figuring out puzzles.But is there something specific?”

“It could be nothing.”My words stretched long with doubt.

“Or it could be something.So, tell me.”

“Well, it was like you mentioned, that I group colors and patterns.And it struck me that Mamie is a recurring pattern in this.”