Death Pays a Visit (A Myrtle Clover Mystery Book 7) by Elizabeth Spann Craig

Myrtle opened the door and yanked it out. How on earth could one thin slice of cheese have contributed to that much spattering in the microwave? She took a fork and tried to reconstruct the cheese on the egg top before finally pushing it in front of Miles.
    An hour later, a Greener Pastures manager by the name of Darla was looking at them with a very long, serious face. Darla had artificially blonde hair and blue eye shadow. Darla’s long face did not seem to have anything to do with the fact that Miles and Myrtle had just asked her to ask the police to investigate a resident’s death. It seemed to be more in keeping with her general disposition and outlook on the world.
    “Mrs. Clover, I appreciate your concern over our resident. But I can assure you that we hold safety in the very highest regard here. Mrs. Pelias experienced a natural death while she was sleeping, which is honestly not a bad way to go. We’ll miss her, of course. But there was nothing at all untoward in her demise.” Darla’s clipped speech was so pat that Myrtle wondered if she’d given it before. Did Greener Pastures residents frequently ascribe foul play to seemingly natural deaths?
    Myrtle felt her face flush. She was used to not being taken seriously, but it was still extremely galling. She was just opening her mouth with a hot retort when Miles quickly jumped in.
    “You see, Ms. … um … Darla, the reason we want to report the possibility of foul play is because the resident, Mrs. Pelias, brought it up herself only yesterday. She told us that she felt her life was in danger. It seems very coincidental that she met her Maker the very same night,” said Miles in a reasonable voice that Myrtle envied. She still felt as if her blood pressure were up.
    Darla gave him something of a patronizing smile. “I realize that y’all think it’s your duty to bring this to my attention. But there is no cause for concern. Mrs. Pelias was a bit paranoid, you see. She thought people were out to get her. Maybe it made her feel important to think that way, who knows? At any rate, she was constantly telling staff members that she felt her life was in danger—for at least a year. And every other night she was just fine. Unfortunately, we only have a certain amount of time on this earth and her time was simply up, that’s all. But again, I do appreciate your concern and I’m sure that, if Mrs. Pelias was still around, she would appreciate it too.”
    Darla stood up to indicate that their meeting in her tiny office was over. Myrtle stood up, too, and gave her a haughty look. “It wasn’t only Mrs. Pelias who felt that way. Ruby Sims called me this morning to let me know. And Inez Wilson believed it was foul play, too. ”
    Now Darla smirked. “Well, that’s Mrs. Sims for you. She’s a loyal friend, but frequently a bit confused. And Ms. Wilson is a fan of drama. Rest assured that you have nothing to worry about here, Mrs. Clover. The residents of Greener Pastures are completely safe from harm here. That’s the entire reason they’re here after all—to be safe. And we take that responsibility very seriously.”
    Darla was clearly back on script again. Myrtle grabbed her cane and her pocketbook and she and Miles walked out of the office.
    “Have a safe ride back,” called Darla. Her smile reminded Myrtle of a crocodile’s smile.
    “We will,” said Myrtle. “When we eventually leave.” She gave Darla a smirk before she and Miles walked off in the direction of the elevator.
    “So, that didn’t go well,” murmured Miles. “What’s our next step?”
    “It went exactly as expected,” said Myrtle grimly. “And our next step is to talk to the police. Well, I guess our very next step is to talk to Ruby and let her know we were here so she won’t call me later. Then we can talk to the police.”
    Ruby seemed fairly lucid. Maybe the shock of Mickey’s sudden death was responsible. Her eyes were tired when she opened the door to them. “Hi,