Page 80 of Dead & Breakfast
Instead, he took his cues from Nora, who sat on the bench of dubious sturdiness without incident, and sat beside her.
“Something we have in common.” Arthur smiled at the memory. “It still looks the same as it did back then. Better parking lot, though.”
This was, of course, not an impressive statement. The parking lot was a whole two spaces, one of which was taken up by Nora’s car, and the other was full of old tires and tarps.
“I didn’t realize this place had that much of a history. One day, we’ll have to compare notes about the rest of town. I’d love to put together a historical pamphlet or display or something. You could give a real eyewitness account of what this town was like back then.”
Arthur nodded. “Mostly the same. Some things were a little bit better…There wasn’t a murderer on the loose for a start. And I suppose there was less vocalized hate of paranormals.”
“Was there, though? Or were paranormals just not allowed in public, so no one needed to talk about them?” Nora asked.
“That’s a very good point.”
“It’s like how Oregon talks about being such a liberal haven…like it’s exempt from all the bigotry the rest of the country is dealing with just because they made it harder for us to actually live here. That’s why I left, you know.” She leaned back—a dangerous act in Arthur’s estimation—and sighed. “It’s why I came back, too.”
A silence fell between them, not unlike the first leaf of autumn. A herald of something far colder to come.
“I need to ask you something,” Arthur said finally.
“I figured as much.” Nora didn’t turn to look at him. “You want to know about me and Quinn.”
“It’s not for the reason you think—I promise, I’m not some gossip hound. That’s all Sal.” Arthur managed not to stumble over his name. He didn’t want Nora asking where his husband was.
“I didn’t think you were.”
“This is about the case,” Arthur said. “It’s just that the two of you are a mystery. Someone hurt Brody and killed the mayor, and now they’re trying to frame me. I suppose it doesn’t help anyone to beat around the bush…”
“Oh, Arthur. I promise it wasn’t me. I wouldn’t hurt Brody, and as much as I disliked the mayor, my plan for dealing with him was much less violent.” Nora looked up then, turning a pitying gaze on Arthur. “And also I like you and Salvatore. Trust me, if I was going to commit murder and then pin it on someone else, I’d pick a person I dislike.”
“Like Quinn?”
Nora groaned. “You know what’s stupid? I thought she’d be happy to see me.”
Arthur sat there for a moment, waiting for Sal to shout in victory or something, but of course he wasn’t there. He’d left.
“Sal would be incredibly vindicated to know he was right about the two of you,” Arthur said instead. “He suspected there was some history you were hiding. Made you two look awfully suspicious, you know…”
“Have you ever been to a party where you think you know someone, but when you go to say hello they introduce themself like it’s the first time you’ve met?”
Arthur couldn’t help but laugh. “More than once. Salvatore is more of the partygoer, of course. I’m quite forgettable next to him.”
“Well, that’s what my first day at city hall was like. This is my hometown, but you wouldn’t know it from the reception I’ve gotten.”
“So, do you think Quinn is capable of murder?”
“If you’d asked me a week ago, no. Today? Maybe…”
“What changed?”
“How she was acting this morning at brunch. She looked guiltyabout something. I can always tell.” Nora let out a long breath that whistled ever so slightly, an echo of the wind. “We grew up together. We were like those willows.” She pointed to the dark tree trunks covered in green moss behind them. “So intertwined, people treated us like a single unit. I liked that. It was like having…I don’t know, not a sister exactly, but she was family.” A laugh escaped her lips, small and sad. “But when we graduated…well…some things happened, and in the end, I wanted to leave, and she wanted to stay. Guess there was no real way to separate us without pain.”
Arthur couldn’t think of anything to say to that, so he just nodded and tried not to dwell on Sal, his own inexorably entangled soulmate.
“In the end, she cared more about the politics of this town, and I cared more about getting out. I wanted to make a difference somewhere. Took me the better part of a decade to realize I could make a difference right here. Or at least I can try. If Quinn could just get over herself…I swear, that girl wants to be mayor so badly she’s forgotten to actually care about why. If she killed Mayor Roth, that’s probably the reason.”
“I don’t want to be mayor.”
Arthur and Nora whipped around to see Quinn lurking behind the conjoined trunks. She looked much the same as she had at brunch, only a bit windblown with bits of twig and leaf in her pinned-up hair.
