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Authors: Joyce Lavene,Jim

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BOOK: Poisoned Petals
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“Now?” Both men echoed, then glanced at each other uncomfortably.
“Jinx!” Aunt Mayfield called out. “Y’all come and eat now! The food is getting cold!”
“I’ll be back as soon as I can,” Peggy responded, “save me some potatoes.”
“They have lard in them,” Paul told her.
“Never mind.” She shook her head. “I’ll get something while I’m out.”
“I’m sorry to have to come and get you this way,” Mai apologized when they were outside in the rapidly cooling evening air.
“Don’t be silly. This is the best way to find out if I want to do this on a part-time basis. Normally I don’t have a whole house full of people. But that’s okay.”
Mai drove them to the ME’s office. It was only a few minutes on the nearly empty roads, but their conversation faltered. Peggy didn’t know why Mai wasn’t saying much. Usually the two of them chattered together like magpies. Maybe she was thinking about Paul.
When they reached the office, Mai suddenly apologized for being so quiet. “I hope you don’t think I’m angry with
you
, Peggy. I hate it when I let Paul get to me like that.”
“I’m not upset at all. I’m sorry you and Paul couldn’t have worked things out between you.”
“Sometimes, I am, too. But it’s okay, you know?” She pulled down her bright yellow jacket. “I’m good.”
Peggy hugged her. “Yes, you are!”
“Paul probably doesn’t even deserve me.”
“He’s my son, Mai. I can’t go that far. I already had names picked out for the grandchildren.”
“Names?”
“Nicknames. You know. Sparky. Corky. Sooner. Wheezy. Bowtie.”
“How many children were we supposed to have?” Mai laughed. “And why do they sound like the names of the seven dwarfs?”
“Ladies?” Dr. Harold Ramsey, Mecklenburg County Medical Examiner, tapped his foot impatiently as he waited inside the doorway for them. “I hope I’m not cramping your style too much?”
Peggy wasn’t impressed with his bravado. “We’re here. That’s what matters. What do you want me to look at?”
He frowned, his thick glasses sliding down his nose as he glanced around the empty hallway and then pulled them both inside the office, closing the door behind them. “One of the churches did an audit on the Feed America program and found money missing. Captain Rimer obtained a search warrant for Professor Appleby’s office at the university. The officers found records of the missing money. And something more.”
“Well, tell us,” Peggy scolded. “What else did they find?”
“They found a detailed explanation of how to use
Hyacinthus
to cause a deadly asthma attack.”
11
Wisteria
Botanical:
Wisteria sinensis
Family:
Fabaceae
Chinese wisteria and its cousin, Japanese wisteria, were introduced to the United States in the early 1800s. The pervasive vine was popular until it began to grow unchecked in many areas and began to kill hardwoods. It can be grown successfully with careful management. Both types have a wonderful scent but are poisonous.
PEGGY WASN’T IMPRESSED. “Like Darmus would need to look up and print out a way to do that!”
“This whole mess with your friend, Professor Appleby, has made my office look bad. The DA wants me to
rethink
the autopsy report on Reverend Appleby.”
“And you want
my
help?”
“Not on the autopsy itself. But I’d like your opinion about the flower,
Hyacinthus orientalis
. I thought this might be a good case for us to see how we collaborate together. Get the ball rolling, as it were, on the possibility of CMPD using your services as a contract forensic botanist.”
“All right.”
“I hope this isn’t a problem for you,” he said. “I realize you were close to both these men.”
“That has nothing to do with it. I want to get to the bottom of this as much as the DA.”
Harold Ramsey was a tall, stout man with thinning hair that he combed forward to cover a bald spot. He held his hands behind his back and rocked on his heels. “When can you get started?”
“In the morning?”
He glanced at the clock and took a deep breath. “I was hoping for tonight.”
“It’s a little late.”
“Maybe you could examine this flower and give me your opinion for now,” he suggested. “Then we could start on the fieldwork tomorrow.”
Peggy was relieved she didn’t have to help with the autopsy of anything but a flower. She followed him to a microscope where the hyacinth was laid out.
Better the hyacinth than Luther.
She adjusted her eyes to the microscope, then looked at the wilting plant. “What am I looking for?”
“I don’t know.”
“What?” She looked up at him.
“I know what killed Reverend Appleby. He died of an acute asthma attack. According to your information and what I’ve read, this plant can bring on that kind of attack. But it didn’t kill him immediately. Why didn’t he pull out his inhaler and use it?” Dr. Ramsey pointed to an inhaler in a plastic bag on the counter beside them.
“I don’t know. I’ve wondered the same thing myself.” She pointed to the hyacinth. “May I look at it?”
“Put these on first.” He gave her a pair of gloves.
“Did you find any fingerprints on the stem?”
“Only Reverend Appleby’s,” Mai responded. “There was nothing else.”
Peggy looked at the flower closely. It didn’t appear to be any different than any other hyacinth. Then she held it to her nose, sniffed and coughed. “Oh my God!”
“What’s wrong?” Mai and Dr. Ramsey leaned closer to inspect it.
“It’s been doused with something extra. Probably a concentrated burst of hyacinth scent,” Peggy explained. “It smells a hundred times stronger than a normal hyacinth should smell. Luther probably didn’t have time to pull out his inhaler.”
“Interesting.” Ramsey looked at it again. “But it could have been given to Reverend Appleby by anyone. He could have picked it himself. How are we going to prove what happened from using the flower, which is our only evidence of the crime?”
Peggy considered the question. “There is a way to figure out where it came from. When you pick a flower, it has a distinctive pattern. It wouldn’t fit on any stalk except the one it was taken from. We should be able to find where it came from by matching the cut piece to the bottom of the plant. The edge of the stem should be an exact match with the cut part on the base.”
“Will it show what it was cut by?”
“It should show serration or a smoothly cut edge,” she theorized for him. “We could probably take a knife or scissors to check to see if one or the other made the cut. If it was pulled off, the edges should still match from the same plant.”
“Excellent!” Ramsey turned away. “Let me know when you’ve discovered the base plant and its location.”
“That’s a tall order.” Peggy glanced at Mai. “It could be anywhere.”
“Well not
any
where,” he mimicked her. “But you could start by looking places where Reverend Appleby spent time prior to his death. The Community Garden, perhaps. Or wherever he was staying at the time.”
“Yes, but how will that prove anything? Even if we find the base of the plant in the garden, we still won’t know who picked it.”
“That is where Ms. Sato comes in. When you find the plant, there may be footprints around it or fingerprints on the base of the plant. You do your part of the job, and we’ll do ours. I’ll arrange a police escort to take you around tomorrow. Take Ms. Sato with you.”
“Is this what I can expect if I contract to be a forensic botanist?”
“This and all the coffee you can drink. Maybe even a key to the lab if you play your cards right” He winked at her.
Fortunately, he turned away before she could laugh at his suggestive tone. Knowing from previous encounters with him that she and Mai were dismissed, Peggy left the same way she’d come in. “He’s such a people person.”
Mai laughed. “I think he’s spent too long behind that microscope. He’s kind of forgotten what people are.”
“And you’re happy working for him?” Peggy asked her as they got back in the car marked Medical Examiner’s Office on the side.
“Only until I take his place,” Mai said. “He can’t live forever.”
 
THE NEXT MORNING, Peggy drove to the police lab instead of going to the Potting Shed. She’d called Selena to let her know she wouldn’t be in that day. The sergeant at the front desk issued her a name tag after checking her ID. Mai met her at the door and gave her a small case marked ME’s Office. “You’ll need it. It has gloves and plastic sample cases. All the things a contract forensic botanist needs.”
“Great.” Peggy played with her new name tag, thinking how life could take the oddest turns. John would be amazed to see her here.
Mai shrugged. “All in a day’s work.”
“Good morning,” Ramsey greeted them. “I called for your ride. I hope nothing has been disturbed since we had to
wait
until today to get started.”
The one thing Peggy wasn’t sure of was working with this man. He was annoying on his good days. She wasn’t used to being bullied and made to feel guilty about her work. She didn’t need him to remind her she was a professional.
After going to Mai’s office to get her gear together, they walked out of the building into the sunshine. Peggy breathed in the powerful scent of wisteria. It was attached to a tall pine tree that grew behind the police station.
“Smells beautiful,” Mai enthused.
“Yes,” Peggy agreed. “But it’s deadly, too. At least to that poor tree it’s smothering.”
“Why can’t something just be pretty and smell good? Why does life have to be so complicated?”
“Some things aren’t complicated. Roses. Sweet William. Mint. They’re pretty, smell good, and they’re harmless.”
“Ladies,” a familiar voice called them from the window of a nearby police cruiser. “I understand you need an escort.”
“Oh
no
!” Mai whispered when she saw it was Paul. “I suppose Dr. Ramsey thinks
this
is funny.”
“Maybe he didn’t know,” Peggy suggested.
“Yeah, right. Like everyone doesn’t know we dated.”
“Hello, Paul,” Peggy finally greeted her son in a normal tone. “I think we’re on our way to the Community Garden first.”
“So I heard. Climb in and we’ll head over there.”
Mai hurried toward the backseat, shoving her kit in with a little too much force before she climbed in after it and slammed the door.
Peggy sat in the front seat and smiled at her son.
This is going to be fun.
If Paul tried any harder not to look at Mai, he was going to have whiplash, she mused. “Do you know where they found Luther?”
“I don’t think we’ll have any trouble locating the spot.” Paul pulled the car out of the parking lot.
“I have the crime-scene photos,” Mai interrupted. “We should be able to use them to locate the spot, even if it’s been disturbed.”
Paul looked at the rearview mirror. “Hello, Mai. I didn’t see you back there.”
“Funny.” She uttered the word then looked out the side window.
Peggy shifted in her seat. “I guess this is my first forensic botanist case.”
Paul smiled into the mirror, not hearing his mother. “It was always easy for you to look the other way, wasn’t it?”
“I’m not sure if I should be happy or not.” Peggy ignored him. “I suppose if I help Darmus, it will be worthwhile.”
“It was
always
easier to look the other way than to look at
you
!” Mai responded to his jibe.
“That wasn’t
always
what you said—”
“I wasn’t always
this
smart!”
Peggy put up her hands. “Children! And I mean that in the
most
adolescent way! If you’ll recall, this is what you were doing before you got together. If you’re not careful, you’ll end up in each other’s arms again.”
“I don’t think so,” Paul argued.
“I won’t make
that
mistake again!” Mai agreed.
“Then let’s talk about the case and pretend you weren’t involved a few months ago,” Peggy suggested.
“Mom!”
Paul was outraged.
“Was I supposed to think you were just good friends?”
“Peggy!”
Mai added her complaint. “Could we talk about something else?”
“Yes.” Peggy smiled at both of them, thinking what a shame it was they weren’t still together. Mai was certainly her best bet for grandchildren. “Let’s talk about the case, shall we?”
It wasn’t hard to identify the crime scene in the Community Garden. The area was roped off and didn’t seem to have been disturbed since they found Luther there. But a thousand footsteps had crushed everything living around the spot. Most of the tender young grass was dead. Tree limbs from a few dogwoods were broken and some were left hanging. Even a few large rocks had been pushed aside and rolled over.
BOOK: Poisoned Petals
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