he puts on every year? But youâre right. He is a blah. You have a tendency to attach yourself to blahs, my dear. I hope that Roland Nunes isnât another one. You should raise your sights.â
âI raised them to Mr. Jackson here, and it did me no good at all.â
âHow well do you know Roland Nunes?â I asked her.
She pouted. âNot as well as heâd like.â
âHave you ever heard him mention any enemies?â
Her eyes brightened. âEnemies? That sounds interesting. Does Roland have enemies? Oh, you must be talking about those vandals Mother mentioned when I came in. Has Roland been vandalized? Heâs never mentioned it. Tell me all about it!â
I told her what Iâd seen and done.
âMy goodness,â she said. âSo you were shot? I think youâre the first person Iâve ever known whoâs been shot. Does it still hurt?â
âNo. Real bullets hurt a lot more a lot longer. Has Roland ever mentioned any enemies?â
âNo. Have you been shot by real bullets? How exciting!â Her eyes were actually shining.
âThereâs nothing exciting about being shot,â I said. âCan you think of anyone who might be behind this vandalism?â
Melissa cocked her head in a thoughtful pose and then looked at her mother. âWell, thereâs Mommy, of course. Sheâd like to have Rolandâs land. Isnât that right, Mother?â
8
âMy daughter has more than one bad habit, as you see,â said Babs Carson. âShe not only covets her neighborâs manservant and maidservant, she doesnât honor her parents, either. I doubt if she has many commandments left to break. I really should throw her out of the house, for the sake of the family image.â
âOh, Mother, you donât care a whit about the family image,â said Melissa. She looked at me. âMother is an artist and you know how artists are. They just donât give a damn about propriety.â
âNeither do some mathematicians,â said Babs cheerfully.
âYou should spend less time on my romances and more on your own, Mother,â replied her daughter. âRob Chadwick has been eyeing you ever since Joanna left him for that slimy prince of hers. Now that sheâs gone with half of Robâs money, heâd love to climb into your bed. And why not? You know you like him. The two of you could have a splendid golden years affair. Or you could even get married.â
âThen you could marry Roland and we could combine the three properties and have a genuine estate. How splendid.â
Melissa smiled. âWhat an excellent plan! Maybe I will marry him. Iâll give the idea some real thought. Maybe Iâm already weakening.â She gave me a girlish smile. âWe ladies can be so indecisive sometimes.â
âI take it youâre talking about the Robert Chadwick who owns the land on the other side of Roland Nunesâs place,â I said. âHas he been trying to buy Nunesâs land, too?â
âI wouldnât know,â said Babs.
âOf course he has,â said Melissa. âAnd he has even more money than we have. Or at least he did before Joanna got half of it. Tell me, Mother, do you suppose Rob hired those men who shot Mr. Jackson? Come to think of it, did you?â
âHow sharper than a serpentâs tooth,â said Babs. âNo, dear, I didnât hire anyone to vandalize Mr. Nunesâs property and Iâm certain Rob Chadwick didnât either. In fact, youâre the only person I know who might hire a thug to do that sort of dirty work. You didnât try to poison Rolandâs cat, did you, darling?â
âWhy, Mother! How could you think such a thing? I might pluck a manâs eyes out, but Iâd never harm his cat! Youâve hurt my feelings.â
âPoor baby. Well, Mr. Jackson, have we entertained you enough for one morning?â
I