Page 90 of Too Old for This
Morgan furrows her brow. I see the first whisper of a wrinkle between her eyes. “I went to church when I was little, but I don’t remember that story.”
“The Old Testament can be quite violent. Bezek cut off the fingers of kings so they couldn’t fight.” Actually, it was their thumbs and large toes. But close enough.
“Kings? But that looked like a woman’s finger.”
“Kingsandqueens. In our interpretation, Bezek doesn’t discriminate.”
Morgan tilts her head one way, then the other. “What a weird idea for a church play.”
I nod along with her and make a face. Like we’re on the same page. “It wasn’t my first choice, but I’m not on the planning committee.”
She doesn’t touch her dessert. She sits at the table looking a little queasy as I eat every bite of my cookie sandwich. A few times, she looks away and stares off into space, zoning out of our conversation. Morgan is still thinking about the finger. I understand. It’s not every day an appendage like that falls out of someone’s freezer.
I try to imagine something like this happening to me. If, for example, I was at Sheila’s house and we were cooking some food for bingo night and I found a finger in her freezer.
Well, I would be shocked. I cannot imagine any reason why Sheila would have a finger in her freezer. There is no reason, as far as I can tell. Not unless she secretly had killed someone and chopped off their finger to open their phone.
That would cross my mind, but only because I’ve done it myself. It’s hard to believe that exact scenario has gone through Morgan’s mind.
I reach over and pat her hand. She smiles a little.
“I’m sorry that scared you,” I say. “Have you always been squeamish around blood?”
“No. Just…fingers, I guess?”
“It was the shock. You weren’t expecting to see that.”
“No. I definitely was not.”
Before the finger incident, I considered asking Morgan to stay at the house instead of moving to the hotel. Now that idea seems downright dangerous, almost like my subconscious wants me to make mistakes. I have a whole body chopped up in a freezer, and this is not the time for guests. Maybe my brain is screaming at me to stop this nonsense and retire for good. And I’m trying. I swear I am.
CHAPTER 49
Norma:I called Cole again yesterday.
Burke:Why?
Norma:Because I thought he might want to help.
Burke:Now you’re thinking like a detective.
Norma:I’m double-checking everything. But he didn’t answer.
Burke:Sometimes that’s how it goes.
Norma:There is one more person I want to talk to. She works at a coffee shop at the airport.
Burke:The airport? But you know Plum never left town.
Norma:I’m just being thorough.
Burke:Waste of time!
He gets upset easily. That’s the first thing I’ve noticed about Burke. The second is that he doesn’t have much respect for Norma. He flatters her when he needs to, but he also insults her—especially when he’s frustrated.
I admit, it’s kind of fun to see him all worked up. Now if only he would have a heart attack, my problems would be over.
So far, no such luck.
