Page 60 of Power of the Mind

“Would you be willing to lend us the key so we could poke around? Maybe we can unearth something that would lend credit to your theory.”

Winifred finished her glass of green grossness while she seemed to consider. “I suppose I can allow that. ButI’ll supervise. You’re strangers, so far as I’m concerned. Investigators or not, I won’t have anyone disrespecting Allan’s property.”

“Fair enough.”

“Let me get some proper clothes on. I guess Jane and I aren’t going to get around to our workout any time soon.”

14

Tallus

The air in Allan Cornell’s apartment was stuffy and hot. The pungent aroma of death lingered, and I wrinkled my nose. Winifred must have smelled it too. The moment she had the door unlocked, she hustled to open a few windows.

“The utilities are still hooked up since Allan and I are on the same system, but the landlord turned off his air,” she explained. “It’s a bit sticky.”

It was more than sticky. It was like swimming in a pond of caustic waste in the middle of the Amazon. It took all my willpower not to gag.

Diem seemed unaffected.

“When did Allan pass away?” I asked, pressing the back of my forearm against my nose.

“Found him August seventh. They figure he’d been gone a few days.”

Good lord. It had been three weeks. Even with the body removed, the scent was nauseating. Winifred stayed near awindow. She’d dressed in khaki-colored shorts, a frilly blouse, and white leather sandals.

“Be quick, boys. I ain’t got all day, and being here stirs my emotions.”

I aimed for the kitchen, figuring if we were going to find a calendar or appointment book, it would be there.

Diem followed. He hadn’t said much, but between the way he walked and stood, his opinion on the matter was clear. This whole thing was a waste of time. More than once, I felt the heat of his gaze, but when I met his eyes, he shriveled and looked away.

We had a mountain of shit to get through if we were ever going to make this work. An Everest mountain. An Everest mountain in bad weather. I wasn’t sure we were properly equipped for this endeavor, but I’d set the ball in motion by kissing him, so I had no one to blame but myself if it all went tits up.

Despite the smell, the kitchen was sparkling. Cleaning products had been left near the sink, and I wondered if this was the room where Allan had done the deed. Shuddering at the prospect, ejecting the thought from my head as quickly as it had landed, I scanned the room. No visible calendar. Several magnets clung to the fridge, holding notes, so I poked around to see what they pinned down.

Photographs of two children and a woman who must have been their mother.

“His niece and nephew,” Winifred explained when she caught me staring. “They’re his sister’s kids. They didn’t talk much. Allan and his brother-in-law didn’t get along.”

Beside the picture was a medical form he needed to take to the lab for bloodwork. I didn’t speak doctor lingo, so the checked boxes meant nothing to me.

Under that was an article torn from a magazine, sporting a coupon for fifteen percent off a hotel and certain attractions in Niagara Falls.

Winifredtsked. “We were planning to visit in October when the leaves changed color,” she explained as I tilted my head to read the fine print. “Allan had never been to Niagara. Hard to believe, isn’t it? It’s right next door. One of Canada’s more famous attractions, and he’d never seen it. Never will now. It’s a shame.”

“I’ve never been either,” I said offhandedly as I skimmed another item pinned to the fridge. A parking ticket dated August first. Allan had let the meter run out, and the cop had fined him fifty-three dollars. I wondered who would be responsible for paying it now.

“You should take the coupon,” Winifred said. “Have yourself a discounted weekend. You got a girlfriend, Tallus? Take her. It’s beautiful, especially in the fall.”

I ignored thegirlfriendcomment and lifted the corner of the parking ticket to get a look at the last item under the magnet. A business card for Janek Piotrowski. Her business hours, office location, and phone number were printed underneath. A leafy logo I assumed had something to do with health care was stamped on the left-hand side.

Diem tugged open a few drawers and slammed them closed again before wrenching open one cupboard after another, telegraphing his animosity, in case I didn’t know he thought the whole interview with Winifred was a waste of time.

A thin cupboard angled in the corner contained a similar lineup of herbal supplements as I’d seen upstairs on Winifred’s counter, but most of Allan’s were still sealed with the plastic shrink wrap around their lids.

“Well, son of a gun.” Winifred shuffled up beside Diem so she could pick up a bottle. She was so close to the brooding giant that their arms brushed.

d and tried to retreat as Winifred, oblivious to his discomfort, continued to talk. “That booger butt never took any of them.” She removed every bottle from the cupboard, inspecting them and clucking her tongue.

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