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Sunday morning, Rarity was eating breakfast when a knock sounded at her door. She went to open it and found Shirley standing there, a baking pa n in her hand.

“Good morning, I brought cinnamon rolls.” She moved past Rarity and set the pan on the table. She eyed Rarity’s bowl of cereal. “And it looks like I got here in time to save y ou from that.”

“Hey, I like shredded wheat.” Rarity followed the smell of warm sugar and cinnamon int o her kitchen.

“You might like them, but you’ll love these. They’re right out of the oven.” Shirley walked over and took out two small plates. “Besides, I need to butter you up so I can ask a favor.”

“Fine.” Rarity took her half-eaten breakfast into the kitchen and dumped it down the garbage disposal. The wheat had gone soft anyway. “Do you want coffee?”

“Is a turtle slow?” Shirley smiled at her. “Of course I want coffee. So abou t that favor?”

“Where do you want to go with Terrance and have us tag along?” Rarity put the cups on the table and picked up a fork to bite into the sinful treat that was calling to her.

“Wait, what? No, it’s not about Terrance. I want you to help me move George back to the other ward. The aides are shorthanded and if we don’t do it, he’ll have to stay in that awful room for another week or so until they get around to it. It’s only a few boxes and remaking his bed. Sally says I need someone to carry the boxes. Which I think is ageist, but what are you going to do? I told her I moved heavier boxes than that at work, but she doesn’t believe me.” She sipped her coffee. “How do you like the rolls? I put cream cheese frosting on top this morning.”

Rarity looked up from inhaling the cinnamon roll and groaned. “Since it’s almost gone, I think it’s okay. But you didn’t have to bake to bribe me. I would have come and h elped anyway.”

“I know, but I felt bad asking you on your day off. Well, one of your days off. I guess you have a full weekend now.” Shirley sipped her coffee. “So you’ll come with me?”

“Of course.” Rarity cut a second roll in half and put it on the plate. “Any more of this and I’ll be in a sugar coma. Besides, it’s only because I have you and Katie at the store that I get a full weekend. I should be thanking you.”

“Well, finish that and I’ll put a couple in a container for tomorrow’s breakfast. I’ll take the rest with us to give to the Sunday nurses. They love these. They always wait to eat until I come in to visit in case I bring something for them. Of course, I always do. They won’t let me give any baked treats to George now. They’re watching his blood sugar.”

As they got ready to go, Rarity let Killer out into the backyard.

“I’ll drive. We probably should leave Killer at home. We won’t be able to watch him while we’re moving and packing.” Shirley rinsed off the plates and the cups and put them into Rarity’s dishwasher. She’d already put two cinnamon rolls in to the fridge.

“He probably wants to sleep anyway.” Rarity let him in and went to grab her purse. “He’s been going a lot lately.”

As they drove to Sedona Memory Care, Rarity updated Shirley on what she knew abou t Archer’s dad.

“That’s such a shame. I’ve heard that Dana was a big daddy’s girl when she was growing up. One of the ladies in my women’s group was friends with June, the wife. She says it nearly broke the woman’s heart to divorce him and move away. But she wanted to have a life before she died and Archer’s dad was lost in the past. I guess she’d accused him of cheating before, but this time, he stopped being there for her at all. Marriage is hard, even when it sh ould be easy.”

Rarity watched out the window as they drove through town. If anyone knew the subject matter, Shirley knew all about marriage. The goo d and the bad.

When they got to the nursing home, Sally Ball, the administrator, met them at the door. She stood in front of Shirley with her arms crossed. “I didn’t realize you’d be here today. I thought we agreed that George’s move would be put on the aides ’ to-do list.”

Rarity heard the steel in her fr iend’s answer.

“Actually, you told me that I couldn’t move his boxes myself due to my age. So I brought someone to help me. I don’t want George stuck in that windowless room for weeks while you deal with staffing issues.” Shirley pulled her wagon closer to her. “And I brought supplies so you don’t have to be inconveni enced at all.”

“I didn’t mean to say we have staffing issues. The aides are all busy with resident tasks and…” Sally paused and looked at Shirley. She must have seen the determination as well. “Okay, fine. You’re more than welcome to move George’s things. You will need a nurse to transfer him from one hall to the other. I’ll let them know to expect you and your friend.”

“Thank you so much.” Shirley turned around and winked at Rarity. “We’ll get this done before lunch. George hates it when his lunch is late. Or he used to.”

Sally moved so Shirley could wheel her wagon into the resident area, and Rarity tried to follow. Sally touched Rarity’s arm, stopping her. “I wanted to tell you that I was so pleased to see you at William’s memorial. He didn’t have a lot of family in the area. It was nice to see Sedona represented.”

Rarity nodded. “I know William’s aunt was pleased with the turnout, even though she and that side of the family we re estranged.”

Sally frowned. “He had an aunt who attended? I thought it was only his mom and stepdad in the area.”

“The aunt lives in Flagstaff near his grandfather. I don’t know if there are more relatives nearby. I didn’t have much of a chance to talk to Daisy.” Rarity nodded to Shirley, who was standing at the doors to the secured area, waving at her to follow. “I better catch up. We ca n chat later.”

As Rarity hurried over to follow Shirley, she could feel Sally’s eyes burning a hole in her back. So William hadn’t told her about his father or relatives. Was this an issue for the administrator who had thrown away a file to keep his indiscretions with a patient a secret? Rarity wanted to have an honest chat with Drew about the administrator and the social worker at Sedon a Memory Care.

Maybe before the sleuthing group m eets tomorrow.

Shirley smiled at the nurse on the floor and handed her the pan of cinnamon rolls she’d brought along. “How’s George doing today?”

“He’s a doll. Now that Lizzy’s gone, he’s calmer. Terrance came this morning and played cards with him for a few hours. That man’s a keeper. I hear you’re moving George back to his old room?” The nurse’s name tag said she was Shevonne. “I know he’ll be happier back with his roommate; he talks about him all the time.”

The look on Shirley’s face almost broke Rarity’s heart. She decided to follow up on what Shevonne had said. “Lizzy H amilton left?”

“Oh, I probably shouldn’t have said that, medical privacy law and all, but I guess since she’s not here anymore, it shouldn’t be an issue, right?” Shevonne looked around, as if to see if anyone was listening.

“I won’t say anything. She was actually in my bookstore last week and mentioned she was moving out and getting married?” Rarity leaned into the nurses’ station. “I mean, I’m glad for her, but going from being in a facility to running a household, that’ s a big step.”

“That’s Lizzy for you. She was a hard-core romantic. She said her boyfriend was coming to rescue her all the time. I called her Rapunzel and she loved it. She even started braiding her hair. But no, she didn’t get married. I hear she went to a facility in California where her sister moved.” Shevonne leaned forward. “If you ask me, that William Jully had the girl tied up in knots. I saw him going into her room at night. She pretended to be interested in George—she would wink at me when she was flirting with him. No, those two had a thing going on. I don’t like to speak ill of the dead, but William Jully was trouble with a capital T.”

Shirley and Rarity made their way to George’s room. He was sitting at a table, playing cards with Terrance. As they entered, Terrance stood. “Oh, I didn’t expect y ou here today.”

George looked up from the cards in his hand. “Don’t disturb us. I’ve got this guy o ver a barrel.”

“We’ll pack up your things while you play out that hand. Then maybe you and Terrance could go to the activity room to play. Rarity and I will get you set up in your old room while you’re taking Terrance to the cleaners.” Shirley started folding up a box. “How do es that sound?”

“Great. I hate this room.” He stared at Shirley. “What’s your name again? You s eem familiar.”

“I’m Shirley.” The brightness in her voice wavered a little. “This is Rarity and we’re here to g et you moved.”

“Hi, Shirley. You sure look familiar.” He looked up at Terrance, who was still standing. “Are you going to finish this hand or keep gawking at the pretty women?”

Shirley and Rarity worked on packing up George’s room, and when he and Terrance left for the activity room, she collapsed on the bed. “I don’t know why I keep trying. He hasn’t recognized me fo r months now.”

“Because you love him. Good or bad, you’ve committed. I’d hate to see you going through this.” Rarity sat next to her. She didn’t mention the pain on Terrance’s face when he saw Shirle y in the room.

“Rarity, you’re a good friend.” Shirley glanced at the empty doorway. “And so is Terrance. I can’t give him more than th at right now.”

“Then tell him that and let him deal with his feelings. He misses you.” Rarity rubbed Shirley’s back. “L ife is short.”

Shirley nodded and stood. “You’re right about that. We know that lesson better than others. I’ll think about what you said, but right now, let’s get this done. Then I’m taking you to lunch at Carole’s. I need some carbs I didn’t cook myself.”

When they came back for the last load, Rarity stripped the sheets off the bed. There were envelopes in the corner of the fitted sheet. She unwrapped them and then sat back down. “Shirley, l ook at these.”

Shirley took one and opened it. “I’m not sure I want to know what’s in these. It looks like a woman’s handwriting. It’s not George’s.”

“I can read them if you want.” Rarity put her hand over Shirley’s as she pulled o ut the letter.

“Seriously, I’m not sure this could get any worse. Besides, Lizzy’s not here anymore and I haven’t heard about any new girlfriends.” She scanned the letter. “This is from Lizzy, but the letter’s not to George. It’s to a guy named Billy. Could this be W illiam Jully?”

Rarity opened a letter and nodded. “I think so. It talks about meeting in her room at night and how she’s trying to hide how happy she is from the nurses and her family. Maybe George took these from Ju lly’s office.”

“You don’t think Lizzy could have killed him, do you?” Shirley tucked the letter back into the envelope.

“No, but it gives Drew someone different to look at besides Terrance.” Rarity tucked the letters into her tote. “I’m not sure George will remember he even had these, but if he does, tell him that they got sent b ack to Lizzy.”

“What are you doing with them?” Shirley grabbed the sheets and put them into a pile. The room was empty and ready for the next resident. The aides would clean it and take the sheets t o the laundry.

Rarity followed her out of the room that George had been banished to after William Jully’s death. “I’m dropping them off to Drew. After lunc h, of course.”

As they were driving to Carole’s, Rarity saw a man walking down the street. He was on his phone, and he turned into the Sedona Hotel as she focused on him. He looked like Kevin. She shook her head and turned back in her seat. It was the second sighting of the man who looked like her ex this week. She was going a little crazy . That was all.

Shirley glanced over at her. “Are you all right? You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”

The description fit. A ghost of her past. Rarity smiled and relaxed in the passenger seat. “I think I’m worn out. I’ve been working too much and not relaxing. I didn’t even swim this morning.”

“I know you’re worried about Archer and then we’ve got these two mysteries on our hands.” Shirley turned the car into Carole’s parking lot. “You need to find a hobby that helps you de-stress. Like croche t. Or baking.”

“Swimming does that. I’ve got Killer to walk. And I went to the quilt show this weekend. I’m trying to keep busy.” Rarity rattled off the ways she’d spent her time this week.

Shirley got out of the car and waited for Rarity to meet her in front of the restaurant. “Staying busy isn’t the same as relaxing. You need to find something where you stop thinking about everything going on around you. For me, it’s baking. I get lost in the process. Of course, the downside is I have way too many sweet dishes and food in the house for one person. Maybe I’ll drop off a cake to Terrance later today. To thank him for being so nice to George. He always liked having male friends. He used to be part of a standing Saturday morning golf game, but now they’ve all moved away. Of course, I don’t think George co uld golf now.”

Rarity thought that Shirley needed someone to cook for, but she wasn’t going to bring that subject up. “Let’s go find a table. I’m starving.”

* * *

Drew met Rarity at her house at about three. They were currently sitting outside on the deck and Killer was on his lap. She’d gone through what she’d found out about Lizzy and George and even Daisy being friends with Caleb Ender. She showed him the photo. He sipped his tea and put his notebook away. “It’s something. I mean, the only thing linking Terrance to the murder right now is he was at the memory care place that night. He admits to fighting with William Jully about George. He also told Jully that someone inside was turning off the security system. It wasn’t a computer problem; someone was specifically turning it off. Terrance said he was going to put a camera in the mechanical room to catch whoever was doing it. Jully told him it was a violation of patient privacy and forbade it. Then according to Terrance, Jully told him to leave the facility. That it was late and the residents had already been upset enough with the dogs all ov er the place.”

“Jully wasn’t happy about the pet visits. He yelled at Gretchen when Archer and I arrived that night.” Rarity leaned back in her chair. “He didn’t like anyone there at night besides the small staff they keep on-site. And if all the scuttlebutt about Jully we’ve been hearing is right, there was a good reason. He was trolling for women he could romance into givi ng him money.”

“That’s horrible.” Drew had a habit of rubbing the top of his head when he was thinking, and he did it right then. “I’ve been trying to contact Lizzy’s sister and see why they moved her. It might have been because they wanted her closer, but my gut and these letters are telling a nother story.”

“I think Sally found out. That’s why she threw away Ruth Agee’s file. She didn’t want anyone to find out what he was doing. It would put her as an administrator in a bad light, right?” Rarity stood and started to pace on her deck. “But someone else knew. It might have been Marsha Graves that Sally was talking to that day at the festival.”

“Maybe, but then why would Marsha tell you about Jully’s bad deeds?” Drew flipped through his notebook. “No, there’s another player here we haven’t found. I need to reinterview all the staff at Sedona Memory Care. Thanks for fillin g up my week.”

“The sleuthing group could go over and help you.” Rarity stepped inside and grabbed the iced tea pitcher from the fridge. The look on his face when she came out was priceless. “Stop, I was kidd ing, kind of.”

“You, my dad, and your group are going to give me a heart attack one of these days, I swear.” He rubbed Killer’s head while Rarity refilled his glass. “Maybe you and I should take off for a long vacation. What do you think, buddy? Leave your mom and the book club to do my job while we rent a boat somewhere an d go fishing?”

“I’m not sure Killer likes fish.” Rarity smiled as she sat back down. “Besides, he loves investigating, don’t you, big guy?”