Page 60 of Murder in the Tea Leaves

“That’s right. Which is why I decided to stop by her shop.” Theodosia waved a hand in front of her face as if trying to clear the air so her words would get through. “Anyway, I saw a light on and thought Helene might be working late. Figured maybe I could ask her about it. I mean, was it simply a coincidence or was she somehow involved?”

“And then?” Riley said.

“Then I went in because the door was open, unlocked, I mean…and that’s when I found Helene. Crumpled on the floor in her office.” Theodosia drew a shaky breath as if to punctuate her sentence. “It looked to me as if…well, I think Helene’s been shot.”

“Shot where?” Riley asked.

“I’m not sure,” Theodosia said.

“Ambulance,” Tidwell said in a flat tone, as a white ambulance with the words university medical center painted on the side pulled up. “We’d better go in and have a look-see before they get antsy and want to haul her away.”

“Right,” Riley said.

They both turned and went inside, leaving Theodosia and Earl Grey standing on the sidewalk. Theodosia looked over to where one uniformed officer was stringing up black-and-yellow crime scene tape to cordon off the area, and the other officer had just started talking to the ambulance guys. Kind of yucking it up, like they knew each other. Then she looked down at Earl Grey, who’d been waiting patiently for something to happen. She shrugged, made up her mind, and led Earl Grey into the shop with her. Tidwell and Riley were already in the office, talking in low voices. The Crime Scene guys were also in there and had finished photographing the body and checking the area for trace evidence. Now all four of the men were studying Helene’s body.

“Shot clean through the forehead,” Riley said. He bent over Helene’s crumpled body and studied it again, as if to confirm his words. Then he straightened back up.

“She looks surprised,” Theodosia said.

They all turned to stare at Theodosia and her dog.

There was a long moment of silence and then Tidwell said, “You shouldn’t be in here.” Though he made no movement to throw her out.

“Surprised,” Riley said. “What do you mean by that?”

“Helene looks as though she’d been sitting at her desk, talking to someone she knew. And then suddenly had the fright of her life—of her death, actually—when she realized what was happening,” Theodosia said. “That something was going way off the rails. And then she…”

“And then she what?” Riley prompted.

“Got blown clean off her chair,” Theodosia said.

“And shortly thereafter you walked in and found her,” Tidwell said. “You shouldn’t have been investigating.” His tone was cold and accusatory. “You were warned not to get involved.”

“Like I told you, I just stopped by to ask Helene a simple question,” Theodosia said. “To clear up what I hoped might be some sort of coincidence or misunderstanding. I didn’t know I’d stumble on her dead body. This…” She threw a hand out to indicate Helene’s body. “This wasn’t the outcome I was hoping for.”

Tidwell gazed at her. “That’s your excuse? You dropped by and found her like this?”

“Yes!” Theodosia said. “And badgering me isn’t going to help things.” She blinked hard, put a hand to her face, trying to keep her tears at bay, and half turned away from them. That’s when her eyes fell on the large wooden bookcase that was positioned against the back wall of the office. It was stuffed with oversized art books on porcelains, antique furniture, Greek vases, Renaissance art, and nautical antiques.

But there was more.

A shock of recognition suddenly jolted Theodosia and she let out an audible gasp. Because leaning up against the end of the bookcase were two metal folding chairs!

Theodosia was so stunned she could only point.

Riley picked up on her astonishment first. “What?”

“Folding chairs,” Theodosia rasped. “They…they look identical to the one that killed Josh Morro!”

“Good heavens,” Tidwell said. He turned to his Crime Scene guys. “Did you test those chairs?”

“Why?” the tall one asked.

“Because a chair nearly identical to one of these was used in a murder this past Monday. The Josh Morro case.”

“We didn’t work that,” the short Crime Scene guy said.

“Now that you know there’s a possible connection, do you think you could get back to work?” Tidwell sounded testy and upset. He turned and stared at Theodosia. “Now out. Everyone else, get out.”

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