Total pages in book: 133
Estimated words: 122440 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 612(@200wpm)___ 490(@250wpm)___ 408(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 122440 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 612(@200wpm)___ 490(@250wpm)___ 408(@300wpm)
“Spiders can be venomous,” Alek volunteered helpfully.
“Those are orb spiderwebs on the barn, and funnel-web spiders made the webs on the ground. Neither species hurts us.”
“I read somewhere that funnel-web spiders are extremely dangerous,” Alek objected.
“Only in Australia,” she corrected. “Not here. We do have black widows, and there are some in the eaves of the barn. I did take some shots of their webs.” She flashed a smile. “Thanks for the great idea, Alek. I have so many more photos to look through. Black widow webs are shiny and sticky. They would stand out if I captured them on film, even if they didn’t have frost on them. At least that’s my hope. There were several hanging from the eaves.”
“Can I buy this particular photograph? I’ll get it framed immediately and hang it with the other paintings. This won’t be for sale. I don’t want to ever give it up.”
“You really like it that much?” She couldn’t help the glow she felt at his obviously honest opinion. She loved the photograph as well, although she wanted to get it right. If she had one angle that included a black widow spider’s web, she could justify the title without making the snakes more prominent.
“I absolutely do. I checked the gallery websites in New Orleans and the one in New York that sell your work to get a feel for the prices charged for one of your pieces…”
“Don’t, Alek. This isn’t the finished one that will go into the galleries. You’re my friend. I’ll pack it up for you right now.”
“I can’t just take it.”
“Of course you can. You can display the title, which I’ll add to the back along with my signature and the date. It will be one of a kind, unfinished, but who knows? If I have the shot—I hope I do—of spiderwebs in the eaves, maybe this one will go big and your artist proof will be worth tons of money.”
“I’m going to take it, but the next time you and your friends come in for dinner, it’s on me and no arguments.”
“It’s a deal. Thank you, Alek. I needed something good to happen today.”
“I was sorry to hear about Helen McKay. I know the two of you were good friends.” Alek turned completely around to face her, his expression compassionate. “She was kind to everyone. I didn’t know her that well, but that’s what I remember most about her.”
“She was kind,” Harlow agreed.
“Do you have any idea what happened? When I ask, I am just told that there is an ongoing investigation. You don’t think she was murdered, do you? It’s just weird to me that Lawyer died of strange circumstances the same way Old Lady Gentry did. And now Helen.”
A chill went down Harlow’s spine. Knightly had dealt with a very clever serial killer not too long ago. The small town hadn’t fully recovered from the shock that one of their own had been staging accidents to kill his victims. It made no sense to think that someone could be murdering people she knew without apparent cause, and yet it had happened before. Even though the thought had crossed her mind that the deaths were related and might be the work of a serial killer, having someone outside her circle of close friends suggest that theory made it even more real.
“Why would you think that, Alek?” But suddenly adrenaline poured into her, making her shaky. Deep down, she knew the deaths had to be related. If so, how? To give herself something to focus on, she removed the print from her wall. The photograph had been mounted on foam board. It wasn’t her final version, so she hadn’t used an acrylic sleeve to protect the picture from dust or dirt particles.
“I don’t know, Harlow. Giselle Gentry was from one of the founding families of this town. She was a pillar here. She was generous. The first person to give if there was a tragedy or fundraiser for search and rescue or the hospital. But she was a force. You know that. She was entitled and demanded her way in all things. She made life miserable for anyone who dared to challenge her. Even the two other founding members’ families. There would be reasons to target her.”
Harlow knew Giselle was considered extremely difficult. Zahra had to deal with her often because Zahra was an administrator at the hospital, and Giselle had been on the board. Fortunately, Zahra had a way of talking to the older woman that sounded admiring and respectful, along with a method of sharing ideas, as if Giselle had thought of them. Most people didn’t have Zahra’s very patient people skills. Giselle had many enemies in town, but was her entitled, irritating behavior enough to have someone plot her death?
“What about Lawyer?” She wrapped the photograph carefully, taking her time, not looking at Alek. He seemed to be as uncomfortable with the subject as she was. The wounds from their friend’s betrayal were still too raw. “Lawyer was one of the nicest men in town. As far as I knew, he helped anyone who needed it.”