Gertie nodded. “I have it from a higher authority.”
“That would sound better if you were in costume,” I said.
“Then I’ll say it again tomorrow,” she said. “Looks like we’ve got some days off coming.”
We headed for the corn dog stand first and snagged a couple of dogs. Gertie was right. As soon as I took my first bite of the juicy goodness, I felt better.
“What is it about food that’s bad for you that makes you feel so good?” I asked. “And why can’t I feel this way about lettuce?”
“If you can solve that mystery, you’ll be a billionaire,” Gertie said.
“I hate to agree with you two over your bad food debauchery, but if you could make it so Molly’s cream cheese dip had no calories, I might divorce Walter and marry you. You could also have all of my money.”
“I don’t need any money or another person to date,” I said.
“I’ll throw in half my freezer,” Ida Belle said.
Gertie whistled. “She’s going hard-core now. Walter only got a tiny corner.”
We all laughed.
“Caramel corn or candied apples?” Gertie asked.
“Let’s go with caramel corn,” I said. “I’m going to take the apple home with me so I can cut it up before I eat it. Last time I bit into one, I thought I was going to chip a tooth, and you know how I hate the dentist.”
“You just hate sitting still while a strange man hovers over you with weapons,” Ida Belle said.
“True,” I agreed. “So what’s the event tonight?”
“Arts and crafts,” Gertie said. “So no big attraction for us except for the food.”
“And pissing Celia off,” I said. “Don’t look now, but here she comes.”
The pioneer dress had been retired—probably due to the overwhelming smell of fish and skunk—so Celia had returned to her usual Rose Kennedy look. Her hat had more flowers on it than I’d had in my beds this year. The entire outfit was a bright glowing purple. Except for Celia’s face. It wasn’t glowing at all. It wore the permanent frown it always did. And the smell still lingered.
“I know you had something to do with that skunk incident,” Celia said to Gertie as she stomped up.
“Not unless I’ve developed the ability to be in two places at one time,” Gertie said. “If you remember correctly, we were behind you in the maze. You practically ran us over trying to get out. So how did I throw a skunk at you at the exit?”
“Then you had an accomplice,” Celia said.
“My two accomplices were with me,” Gertie said.
Ida Belle and I both nodded.
Celia’s face turned red. “The three of you are insufferable.”
“At least we don’t stink,” I said. “If you’re going to keep ranting can you at least do it downwind?”
Celia sputtered a little and I smiled.
“Are you trying to warm your mouth up so that something logical comes out of it?” I asked.
She gave me a look that could kill—if it had been anyone other than Celia—then whirled around and stomped off. Gertie, Ida Belle, and I were rolling laughing before she even made it all the way around.
“Still making friends and influencing people, I see.” Carter’s voice sounded behind us.
We turned around, still laughing.
“It’s Celia,” I said.
“Yeah, that pretty much covers everything I need to know in so many cases,” he said.
He was smiling but I could tell he was strained. And tired. And even though Carter would never feel defeated, he had just the tiniest thread of it in his expression. He was definitely taking not recovering the murder weapon hard.
“Did you talk to Detective Casey about Tiffany’s guy?” I asked.
He nodded. “She wasn’t thrilled with my source but she put the information to good use. She called about an hour ago and told me they’ve booked Tiffany and are holding the boyfriend for questioning. And after I talked to you, I did some walking around the woods and found a set of horse tracks that led from a road a little ways behind Tiffany’s property to the park. You know the one—there was pink glitter everywhere.”
“I don’t know where you keep getting these ideas,” I said.
“I can’t imagine,” Carter said.
“I don’t suppose Tiffany has offered up a confession and an explanation for all of this, has she?” Ida Belle asked. “Because we’d love to have the blanks filled in.”
“So would I,” he said. “But Tiffany is insisting she didn’t do it and asked for a lawyer.”
“What does Detective Casey think?” I asked.
“She thinks her case is a wrap,” he said.
“What do you think?” I asked.
“I think Casey has a darn good motive, opportunity, and a murder weapon with only one person’s prints on it,” he said. “It’s a solid case. More solid than a lot that go to trial.”
“But do you think she did it?” I asked.
“I guess I have to,” he said. “Understand, I don’t know Tiffany any better than anyone else in this town, so I can’t speak to her character or her sanity. But Casey said one of those actor guys told her Gil said he was thinking about divorcing Tiffany. According to their prenuptial, she would have been out with the clothes on her back.”
“Sounds like our work is done,” I said, feeling a bit miffed that Paul Easton had held out on us about the divorce thing, because I was sure he was Casey’s source.
“You were never supposed to be working it to begin with,” he said. “And I’m not even going to ask why you didn’t so much as raise an eyebrow over the divorce revelation.”
“Over half the marriages in the US end in divorce,” I said. “If I was playing the odds, I’d go with divorce every time.”
“Uh-huh,” he said. “I’m going to leave you guys to it and go make my rounds. Try not to cause any trouble.”
“He says that like we’re always the ones causing trouble,” Gertie said.
“I’d say our record weighs more heavily in being in the midst of trouble rather than being the catalyst,” I said.
“I don’t think Carter wants to differentiate,” Ida Belle said. “That’s why I don’t tell Walter anything and he doesn’t ask. What little he knows has him shooting back a dose of whiskey every night.”
“Marrying you was probably the worst thing he’s done for his health in his entire life,” Gertie said.
“Probably,” Ida Belle said. “But he had a lot of decades to see that. His choice. Do you think the actors told Casey that we questioned them?”
I shrugged. “Hard to say. And even if they did, since they weren’t suspects, technically, we weren’t interfering in her investigation.”
“Do you think technically will matter to her captain?” Ida Belle asked.
“Only if he finds out,” I said. “Hopefully Casey will keep that to herself if someone tattles.”
Ida Belle nodded.
“Hey, there’s Emmaline over at the arts and crafts booths,” Gertie said. “Do you guys want to go say hello?”