Page 97 of Death on Riddle Road

I heard her, but my brain was dealing with other issues.

With the label nestled in my impromptu evidence carrier and tucked carefully into my deep jacket pocket, I said, “Clara, will you call Mamie, get her to get Robbie to Kentucky Manor?”

“Okay, but...You aren’t going to tell me what you’re thinking, are you?”

“Not yet.”

“When?”

“You mean when to call to get them to Kentucky Manor?”I knew she meant when I was going to tell her.But, priorities.“Now.Right now.”

****

Clara couldn’t callright away because of lack of connection.Also lack of breath.Who knew going down would be nearly as oxygen-depleting as going up?

We finally reached the nominally flat parking area.

My car was still the only one there.

I couldn’t decide if that was good news or bad news.

No one attacked us, sogoodwon.

As I drove back toward town and connection returned, Clara left a message for Mamie to call back.Immediately.

Then she looked at me.“At least tell me what the prescription’s for?”

“It says hydromorphone.Sounds sort of like morphine.”

“It’s another opioid, but stronger than morphine.Far, far stronger.”

I looked at her a second before returning my attention to the road.From the corner of my eye, I saw her nod at my unasked question.

Yes, she knew about hydromorphone from caring for her mother-in-law.

She said, “It’s what Linda had that she’d wanted disposed of, what we talked about at lunch.Remember?I bet Dova had it for her injuries after that car accident Mamie told us about.It would have been easy for Robbie to take it from his mother’s things — like Linda was worried about her neighbor doing.And easy to force pills into Derrick.Or mix them into something and get him to drink it.It all fits.”She stared at me.“It’s so awful—”

“Wait.Don’t reach a conclusion yet.I have to call Teague.You’ll hear at the same time.”

“But you think finding this means Robbie killed—”

“No.I think it means hedidn’t.”

CHAPTER THIRTY-EIGHT

Mamie called backthen and Clara asked her to meet us at Kentucky Manor as soon as she could, with Robbie.

I took the opportunity to call Teague.

I couldn’t be as vague with him as I had been with Clara.

“You should have called earlier,” he said.“And—”

“I know what you’re going to say.I shouldn’t have touched it.But until I did touch it, I couldn’t know if it was anything.And then I couldn’t leave it there.The wrong breeze and it could have been gone forever.”

His temporary silence acknowledged my logic.

“There’s something else you should know.”I quickly told him about the Payloma-Derrick affair while Jaylynn was pregnant.