Page 60 of A Poisonous Plot

“Because everyone knows he would never hurt anyone. And he only ever sees the best in people. Which means that even when you question him, he thinks you’re his sweet new friend and wants to help you.”

“I am very sweet,” Lily said, smirking. “And if everyone went out of their way to help me, my investigations would go much more smoothly.”

“I’m sure,” Denzel said. “But I would appreciate it if you’d back off Arthur.”

“I haven’t entirely written him off my list of suspects, but he’s also not top of my list any more.”

“Am I still on your list?” Denzel asked as he manoeuvred through the streets of Hugh Town.

“No. You’re off it. You can thank Mirren for that.”

Lily caught his flash of a smile at the mention of Mirren, but it was gone again in an instant.

“You really believe someone is intentionally poisoning people?” he asked, pulling up to the curb on the road that ran behind the promenade.

“Yeah. I do.” She reached for the door handle.

“Hang on a sec,” he said, then cleared his throat.

Lily looked at him quizzically.

“I wanted to ask you something…” He trailed off, looking thoughtful. “Actually, it doesn’t matter. Never mind.”

Her insatiable curiosity meant Lily didn’t move an inch, but tilted her head while she waited for him to change his mind and ask his question.

He rubbed his knuckles against his forehead. “I was just wondering,” he muttered eventually. “This is really embarrassing, but I keep thinking that the reason Mirren won’t tell her family about us is because she doesn’t see it as a long-term thing.” He winced as he looked at Lily. “Did she say anything to you?”

She felt a jolt of sympathy for him. “She didn’t say much.” Frowning, she tried to recall her conversation with Mirren. “I definitely got the impression she likes you a lot – and she said she was planning on telling her sons soon.”

“Okay. That’s good. Sorry, this is awkward, isn’t it?”

She shook her head. “It’s fine.”

“Are you okay?” he asked, narrowing his eyes. “You look a little peaky.”

She inhaled through her nose, trying not to focus on the slight discomfort in her stomach. It was probably down to stress.

Or so she hoped.

“I think I’m okay,” she said, before hopping out of the car and heading for the comfort of home.

Chapter Twenty-Eight

When Lily tookherself to bed that evening, it was with a sense of impending doom. Maybe Flynn had been right that she should have thrown away the ice cream and delayed opening the shop. Ingesting something you suspected of containing poison seemed less sensible as the day went on.

The message from Flynn asking if she wanted him to come and sleep on her couch did nothing to calm her nerves. His implication that she may need medical assistance wasn’t subtle. She told him she was fine, then messaged again when she was tucked up in bed and asked him to keep his phone on loud.

It took her a few minutes when she woke to figure out her confusion. She had that gnawing feeling that something wasn’t quite right, which was quickly replaced by relief when she realised it was merely surprise at having slept the whole night without waking to stomach pains or any other signs of poisoning.

Apparently, the mint choc chip ice cream was okay.

Sitting up in bed, she replied to Flynn’s early morning message to inform him she’d survived the night and had no ill effects from the ice cream. She’d need to test the other flavours, but it was the mint leaves which had been her main concern.

With thoughts of opening the shop in two days fresh in her mind, she hopped out of bed, intent on making more batches of ice cream. She’d stick to recipes which didn’t require her to use supplies from the garden centre, just to keep her nerves at bay. She could make plenty of double chocolate chip, and another batch of vanilla.

While she worked, she kept an eye on the door, wondering if Flynn would materialise.

The bell above the shop door made a slightly different sound if someone opened it in a hurry. Lily hadn’t even realised she was so accustomed to the specifics of the jingling sound, but her head shot up and she knew before she saw the stricken look on Flynn’s face that something wasn’t quite right.

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