Page 24 of A Poisonous Plot

“The smoothie was meant for you, wasn’t it?”

Lily gave her a puzzled smile.

“I’m not blaming you,” she whispered. “Of course it’s not your fault, but Glynis got sick after she drank it. I thought about it when the doctor suggested Glynis might have food poisoning rather than a virus. That’s the only thing she consumed that I didn’t. We eat all our meals together. You gave the smoothie to her, didn’t you? It was meant for you, not Glynis.”

“Yes, but…” Lily stared at her, confused. “I don’t understand. You think the person who delivered the welcome baskets also tried to poison me with the smoothie?”

She nodded meekly. “Maybe.”

“You really think someone is out to get newcomers to the island?” Her mind went to the review Dante had shown her, commenting on foreigners taking jobs.

Maria only gazed at Lily, saying nothing.

“By the way, PC Grainger said he’ll collect the basket later. It sounds as though he has a few to collect, so it might take a while.”

She tilted her head and creases marked her forehead. “How many people received them?”

“I’m not sure. I think he said a dozen.” She retrieved her phone again. “He said it’s all over social media. It’s the sort of thing people like to post about on the community groups.”

It didn’t take Lily long to find people posting pictures of the welcome baskets. The posts from the previous evening were filled with gratitude and excitement, then turned ominous that morning, as people reported getting ill.

With her focus on her phone, Lily only noticed that Maria had moved across the room when she glanced up to find her shuffling the papers on the kitchen table with trembling hands.

“You should go and lie down,” Lily said.

Frantically, she continued collecting up the papers. “It’s such a mess. With Glynis being ill, and now me, I haven’t had much time for cleaning.”

“Leave it for now,” Lily said, watching her shove the papers into a drawer in the mahogany dresser. “You can worry about that when you’re better.”

Finally, Maria looked up at Lily. “Lots of people got ill?” she asked.

“Yes. Quite a few. Anyone who ate anything from the baskets.”

Maria pressed her fingers to her forehead. “I don’t know what I was thinking, eating something without knowing where it had come from. But I’d been at the hospital with Glynis and it was late when I got home. I hadn’t eaten…”

“I’d have done the same,” Lily said, aiming for a reassuring tone.

“Why would someone target newcomers to the island?” Maria asked, slumping into a chair.

“I don’t know. I think I’ll dig around, see what I can find out…”

“Yes. Good idea.” Again, she reached into the neckline of her pyjamas and squeezed on her crucifix.

“Are you religious?”

She looked at Lily with complete bewilderment. “No. Why?”

“Never mind,” Lily said, shaking her head. “Do you think you’ll be okay alone?”

“I’ll be fine.” She looked distracted. “You should go.”

“I’ll call you later and see how you’re doing.”

“Yes,” she said vaguely. “Okay.”

Chapter Eleven

It didn’t take longfor Dante to open the door to the restaurant. When he did, it was with his phone held aloft.

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