Sour Apples by Sheila Connolly Page A

eggs.”
    “No, please don’t bother.”
    Meg wondered how to phrase her next question tactfully, since the whole situation was painful to Ethan, but there were some details that bothered her. “Ethan, I heard that we know now that Joyce wasn’t killed by Cyndi. Did you notice anything out of the ordinary, out of place, when you went into the barn?”
    He shook his head. “I wasn’t looking for anything, of course. It’s always kind of a mess. I just saw that the cows hadn’t been milked, and then I found Joyce. I wasn’t really thinking straight after that.”
    Meg wasn’t surprised: shock could blot out a lot. Time to shift gears and get Ethan away from the memories of how he’d found his wife. “I hear you lost a cow to lead poisoning?” Meg asked.
    “Chapin told you about that?”
    “I was here when Joyce came to talk to Seth about it. What do you think happened?”
    “I don’t know. I don’t know how much you know about cows, but they’re pretty sensitive to lead. And they’re not real bright. They’ve been known to drink old oil or lick grease off machinery or chew on old plumbing or batteries, all of which can contain lead. But Joyce and I went over that pasture with a fine-tooth comb before we let the herd out on it. There was no junked machinery, no dumpedbatteries, no trash heaps with old building rubble. So unless somebody pitched an old car battery over the fence within the past couple of weeks, I have no idea how the cows could have taken in any lead. Which is why Joyce thought that maybe there was something in the soil. She sent off some soil samples, but I haven’t seen that report yet.”
    Meg nodded. “And that’s why she wanted Seth to trace the history of that property, to see if there was an overlooked reason why it might be contaminated? That sounds reasonable. You know, if you need some help keeping up with the milking while you figure out what you want to do, you should get in touch with someone at UMass. They’ve got an animal sciences department, and I bet there are some students who’d like some real hands-on experience. Or talk to Andrea Bedortha, the vet in town here—she handles mostly small animals at the moment, but I know she’s worked with farm animals before and she might have some contacts. You don’t have to go it alone, Ethan.”
    Ethan seemed to focus on Meg for the first time. “Thank you. Those are good ideas. Ever since I found Joyce, I’ve been in a fog, but you’re right—I need to do something for now, even if it’s not a long-term solution. I just haven’t been thinking straight.”
    “Around here, neighbors help neighbors. I’ve been on the receiving end—sometime I’ll have to tell you about it—and I know it’s important. People want to help, you know.”
    Just then, they both heard Seth’s truck pull into the driveway. Ethan stood up. “I’ll let you get to your work now, Meg. I know you’ve got things to do. I’ll just have a word with Chapin and be on my way.”
    “Let me know if there’s anything I can do to help. And you can always talk to me.”
    “Thanks again, Meg.”
    Meg escorted him to the door and watched as he headed toward Seth’s office. Poor Ethan. Poor Joyce. Ethan Truesdell seemed like a nice enough guy, but it was obvious hisheart wasn’t really in dairy farming. But as he’d pointed out, he was trapped. There was no way he could just walk away from it, not at the moment. And he was in that position because he’d loved his wife and wanted her to be happy—and now she was dead. What a mess.
    And if Meg didn’t get up the hill soon, Bree might kill
her
.

8
    Meg pulled off her respirator and stretched. The spraying had gone quickly and well, and they’d managed to finish it. Since she and Bree were using a nontoxic pesticide, the respirator wasn’t absolutely essential, but Meg didn’t want to take any chances when it came to inhaling any unnecessary chemicals. Besides, they had sprayed fifteen acres of