Read Online Brooklyn on Fire by Lawrence H. Levy - Free Book Online
Authors: Lawrence H. Levy
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believes in me and is incredibly supportive,” said Mary with a tone that implied what she thought but did not utter:
Like you, Mother, should be
.
“Well,” said Sean, “as long as we’re sharing good news, I’ve just been promoted and put on my first murder case.”
This time Mary was the first one to chime in. “Fabulous news, Sean. I’m sure you’ll crack it in no time!”
“I’m very proud of both my children,” announced Jeffrey, beaming.
“As if I’m not?” Elizabeth said, challenging him with a scowl.
“I didn’t say that, Elizabeth. I—”
“Congratulations, Sean, and”—she paused, the rest difficult for her to say, but she finally spit it out—“you too, Mary.”
Mary knew her mother’s compliment was backhanded at best, but she decided to leave it alone and concentrate on Sean’s good fortune.
“So, Sean, I know I can’t talk about mine, but can you tell us anything about your case?”
“There’s not much to tell yet. You know Gabrielle Evans, that rich old woman who was found strangled in her home?”
“Mary, would you pass the salt, please?” Elizabeth asked.
Concentrating on Sean and without looking at her mother, Mary passed the salt. “The one in Clinton Hill?”
“Yes, that’s the one. The obvious motive is robbery, but her house is filled with so much garbage, it will take us weeks to go through it all, and even then it’ll be hard to know what might have been taken.”
“The pepper, please, Mary.”
“Are there any clues to the intruder?”
“Not yet. It’s hard to decipher between her mess and what the killer might have left.”
“Mary, the pepper.”
“You’ll find the killer in due time. I have every bit of faith in you.”
“Thanks, sis. Who knows? Maybe someday I’ll even beat you at chess,” he remarked with a smile.
Mary shook her head, thinking,
A step forward and then a step back again. Sean will be Sean
.
“Mary,” Elizabeth blurted out, trying to control her anger. “How many times have I told you? When you pass the salt, you always pass the pepper, too.”
“Oh, sorry, Mother,” Mary said as she quickly passed the pepper to her mother. But Elizabeth couldn’t control her frustration.
“How are you ever going to find a husband or even a date if you don’t know common table manners and all you talk about is murder?”
“I don’t know, Mother. Maybe I’ll wait until the right murderer gets out of jail and marry him. We’ll have a lot to discuss, don’t you think?”
“That’s not at all funny, especially since your last serious beau was a dope fiend.”
Jeffrey and Sean knew Elizabeth had gone too far and immediately protested.
“Elizabeth!”
“Mother!”
Elizabeth’s outburst hurt Mary, and she knew it was probably meant to do just that. It was one of her tactics, “a hard lesson to wake her up.” Elizabeth was referring to Charles Pemberton, the son of John Pemberton, who had invented a soft drink known as Coca-Cola. Charles was a witty, charming, and handsome young man who hid his addiction to morphine very well. Shortly after it came to light, they broke up. Charles knew his resistance was weak and didn’t want to bring Mary down with him. Still, they were very much in love, and it had been devastating to both of them.
Mary gathered herself. “Well, Mother, you’re right about Charles, but you’re absolutely wrong about my dating. In fact, I have a date tomorrow night.”
“Really, and who are you trying to save this time?”
“You may have heard of him. His name is George Vanderbilt.”
Elizabeth’s mouth dropped wide open. “George Vanderbilt, as in…Stop fooling with me, Mary. I don’t appreciate sick jokes.”
“It’s no joke, Mother. I met him while I was working on my case at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, a place that, along with my profession, you think is a waste of time. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have to go. I just realized I have a prior engagement.”
Elizabeth’s
Like you, Mother, should be
.
“Well,” said Sean, “as long as we’re sharing good news, I’ve just been promoted and put on my first murder case.”
This time Mary was the first one to chime in. “Fabulous news, Sean. I’m sure you’ll crack it in no time!”
“I’m very proud of both my children,” announced Jeffrey, beaming.
“As if I’m not?” Elizabeth said, challenging him with a scowl.
“I didn’t say that, Elizabeth. I—”
“Congratulations, Sean, and”—she paused, the rest difficult for her to say, but she finally spit it out—“you too, Mary.”
Mary knew her mother’s compliment was backhanded at best, but she decided to leave it alone and concentrate on Sean’s good fortune.
“So, Sean, I know I can’t talk about mine, but can you tell us anything about your case?”
“There’s not much to tell yet. You know Gabrielle Evans, that rich old woman who was found strangled in her home?”
“Mary, would you pass the salt, please?” Elizabeth asked.
Concentrating on Sean and without looking at her mother, Mary passed the salt. “The one in Clinton Hill?”
“Yes, that’s the one. The obvious motive is robbery, but her house is filled with so much garbage, it will take us weeks to go through it all, and even then it’ll be hard to know what might have been taken.”
“The pepper, please, Mary.”
“Are there any clues to the intruder?”
“Not yet. It’s hard to decipher between her mess and what the killer might have left.”
“Mary, the pepper.”
“You’ll find the killer in due time. I have every bit of faith in you.”
“Thanks, sis. Who knows? Maybe someday I’ll even beat you at chess,” he remarked with a smile.
Mary shook her head, thinking,
A step forward and then a step back again. Sean will be Sean
.
“Mary,” Elizabeth blurted out, trying to control her anger. “How many times have I told you? When you pass the salt, you always pass the pepper, too.”
“Oh, sorry, Mother,” Mary said as she quickly passed the pepper to her mother. But Elizabeth couldn’t control her frustration.
“How are you ever going to find a husband or even a date if you don’t know common table manners and all you talk about is murder?”
“I don’t know, Mother. Maybe I’ll wait until the right murderer gets out of jail and marry him. We’ll have a lot to discuss, don’t you think?”
“That’s not at all funny, especially since your last serious beau was a dope fiend.”
Jeffrey and Sean knew Elizabeth had gone too far and immediately protested.
“Elizabeth!”
“Mother!”
Elizabeth’s outburst hurt Mary, and she knew it was probably meant to do just that. It was one of her tactics, “a hard lesson to wake her up.” Elizabeth was referring to Charles Pemberton, the son of John Pemberton, who had invented a soft drink known as Coca-Cola. Charles was a witty, charming, and handsome young man who hid his addiction to morphine very well. Shortly after it came to light, they broke up. Charles knew his resistance was weak and didn’t want to bring Mary down with him. Still, they were very much in love, and it had been devastating to both of them.
Mary gathered herself. “Well, Mother, you’re right about Charles, but you’re absolutely wrong about my dating. In fact, I have a date tomorrow night.”
“Really, and who are you trying to save this time?”
“You may have heard of him. His name is George Vanderbilt.”
Elizabeth’s mouth dropped wide open. “George Vanderbilt, as in…Stop fooling with me, Mary. I don’t appreciate sick jokes.”
“It’s no joke, Mother. I met him while I was working on my case at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, a place that, along with my profession, you think is a waste of time. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have to go. I just realized I have a prior engagement.”
Elizabeth’s
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