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Burton frowned at Luna in confusion. “Know what?”
“I’ve felt so awful. So guilty. But I didn’t want to let anyone know. I’m the only one taking care of my mom, you know. I have responsibilities. But each day, I’ve felt worse and worse. In some ways, it’s kind of a relief to talk about it.”
I said, “Luna, we have no idea what you’re talking about.”
Luna’s head swung back and forth as she took in Burton’s and my blank expressions. “Weren’t you going to talk to me about the argument I had with Carmen?”
Burton shook his head. He slowly said, “No. I was going to talk with you about a possible joint project between the library and the police department.”
Luna’s face flushed and she covered it with her hands. “Oh, wow. I just blew it, didn’t I? I guess I’d make a really bad crook.”
“You sure would,” I agreed. “Which is fine, since you’re not one. Right?”
“Right. Although I’ve felt so terrible, like I was saying. It wasn’t just the shock of discovering her, although that was bad enough. It was the fact that I’d had an argument with her and not long before she died. I feel really guilty. And I hate feeling guilty.”
I said, “It wasn’t as if you knew that something awful was going to happen to Carmen. It was just another ordinary day.”
Burton took out his notebook. “Could you tell me what happened, Luna?”
She sighed and ran her fingers nervously through her purple hair as Fitz watched her with concern. “You see, it’s been tough for my mother and me to make it on my salary here at the library. She’s had all these medical bills, you know. I’ve been really trying to help make ends meet. I’ve been packing my lunch and everything. I’d petitioned the library board for more money at their last meeting . . . not much, just a supplementary amount,” she added hurriedly. “But Carmen apparently voted against it. At least, she was the deciding vote. That’s why I was so surprised, after she’d been so awesome to stand up for you, Ann.”
“How did you find out that she’d voted against the raise?” I asked curiously. “That doesn’t sound like something Wilson would mention.”
Luna shook her head. “Nope. It was from Carmen herself. She thought it was ‘impertinent’ of me to ask for a raise in salary, especially since I was so new on staff. She explained the library was an institution and needed all the income it could get. Our jobs were to serve. To serve the patrons, of course, but also the library itself.”
I made a face and Burton winced.
Luna said, “Anyway, I really tried to keep myself in check. I know I’m new here and I signed on to work knowing what my salary was. But I had no idea how many medical expenses my mom would have from her surgeries. And I wasn’t asking for a lot. It was just the way she made me feel like I was nothing. Like I was being really out of line to ask for anything at all. So I admit I was sharp with her. And then I was terrified Wilson would find out.”
I gave her a sympathetic look.
Burton said thoughtfully, “I didn’t realize he was such a tough guy to work for.”
Luna said, “He’s really not. But he sure likes to butter up anyone on the library board or Friends of the Library. He wouldn’t have been happy about me calling her out. But I’ve been feeling bad about it all. That’s one reason I was coming to help bring the books up from the basement—because I wanted to apologize in person to Carmen.”
Burton nodded, but looked uncomfortable, as if he’d rather Luna hadn’t said anything about her argument with Carmen. I guessed this might make Luna a suspect, at least to a certain degree.
Sure enough, he reluctantly asked, “So you came up after Ann had found Carmen at the bottom of the stairs. What were you doing before that?”
Luna shifted in her seat. “I was helping a mom find a book for her beginning reader. And then I took a break and made a phone call to check on my mom.” She sighed. “Too bad I wasn’t giving a storytime or something like that. Being surrounded by a bunch of mothers and toddlers while I was singing, reading books, and blowing bubbles would have given me a far, far better alibi.”
Burton said kindly, “I don’t think anyone would consider you a very serious suspect.” But I did notice he’d made a quick note in his notebook. He opened his mouth, probably to ask Luna about the joint project, but Luna was already quickly moving away. “Better run. I’ve got a storytime coming up.”
I gave Burton a sympathetic look. “Sorry. Maybe you’ll have a chance to catch up with her later? She obviously totally forgot about the project you were going to mention.”
Burton smiled at me. “I’ll be back.” He walked slowly out of the building.
––––––––
THE MORNING FLEW BY. At least it moved quickly because of a few disasters. The women’s restroom had a toilet back up, a volunteer decided to shelve a cart alphabetically by title instead of author, and there was a long period of time where several computers refused to connect to the internet for a mysterious reason known only to the powers that be.
When I glanced again at my watch, I saw it wasn’t only time to help Tanya James move the books, but I was going to need to really hustle to get there.
When I pulled up to her house, I was relieved to see her also just pulling up.
She smiled at me as she got out of her car. “Couldn’t find anyone else to help?” she asked.
I chuckled. “I didn’t even try. If you could see the morning that just transpired at the library, you’d understand.”
We walked to the house and she fumbled in her purse for her keys, saying, “I completely understand. Sometimes when you walk out, you can hit the reset button on your day. I think that’s why Howard likes working from home so much now.”
As she started digging her keys out from the bottom of a large and very expensive purse, I said, “Tanya, it looks like your front door is already open.”
She jerked her head up and frowned reprovingly at the door. It wasn’t wide open, but it wasn’t shut, either. “That’s rather careless of Howard,” she said in an irritated voice.
“He’s still working at home?” I asked. I’d assumed the reason Tanya needed help lugging books was because Howard was going to be away at the time.
Her frown deepened and when she spoke again, that edge of irritation was no longer in her voice. “He’s not supposed to be. That was the whole reason I asked you to help. He had a busy morning at home catching up on emails and then he was going to the office around eleven-thirty to prepare for an afternoon of meetings. Howard wasn’t going to be available to help.”
She pushed the door open with a forceful shove. I followed her into the atrium of the large home. Despite all the windows, the antique furniture and the gray paint and old paneling made the interior fairly dim.
On the wall, I could make out a large number of signed photographs of Howard and Tanya with various important people—political figures and celebrities, mostly. There also appeared to be several pictures with what looked like a mountain climber and well-known tennis players.
Tanya noticed my gaze and gave a self-deprecating laugh. “It looks ridiculous right here in the front of the house, doesn’t it? But Howard is so proud of his connections. You know he’s a self-made man? He really pulled himself up by his bootstraps and is so appreciative of where he is today.”
She paused and then called out sharply, “Howard! Howard?”
Tanya paused for a moment to listen as she called, tilting her head to see if she could hear Howard upstairs. Hearing only silence, she frowned, hands on her hips.
“Maybe he’s in the backyard?” I asked. It seemed like a longshot on a hot day, but it looked as though they both did some light gardening. They wouldn’t have gotten the same effects from a yard service.
She listened but didn’t say a word, pushing past me to head to the back door. But we went through the kitchen on the way.
I nearly ran into Tanya’s back as she stopped cold. Peering around her, I could see Howard’s lifeless form sprawled on the kitchen floor, a fire extinguisher on the floor beside him.