Chapter One
Judith McMonigle Flynn stood on the front porch of Hillside Manor, took a deep breath of fresh summer air, and gazed around the cozy cul-de-sac on the south slope of Heraldsgate Hill. It was a perfect June morning with pink and white dogwood trees in full bloom, maple trees swaying in the soft wind, and rosebushes bursting with new buds.
"Nice," she said out loud. Not too warm, she thought, and so peaceful. The only sound was the chirping of baby birds in a nest that Mama and Papa Robin had built in the branches of a cotoneaster bush by the east side of the house. All the weekend B&B guests had left by eleven o''clock on this last Monday of the month.
Judith was about to go back inside when she heard a rumbling noise. A plane overhead? A helicopter? A herd of stampeding buffalo? The sound grew closer. She leaned on the porch railing and saw a huge truck pulling into the cul-de-sac. It stopped in front of the second house from the corner. Judith went down the front steps to see the big black and red letters on the truck''s side: grooving moving, inc.
"What''s going on?" a voice nearby called out.
Judith turned to see Arlene Rankers coming out of her house on the other side of the laurel hedge. "I don''t know," Judith replied. "Are Rudi and his girlfriend moving out?"
Arlene''s pretty face puckered into a scowl. "If they are, I should''ve known about it. Cathy keeps her ear to the ground when it comes to the real estate business. Surely my own daughter would''ve told me."
Judith gestured at the two burly young men who had gotten out of the truck. "They''re going to Rudi''s rental. I think their lease is up about this time of year."
"That''s right." Arlene started across the pavement that curved in front of the Rankerses'' house and the B&B. "Let''s find out."
Judith hesitated. She was as curious as Arlene, but lacked her neighbor''s brashness in posing awkward questions. Then again, there were times when Judith didn''t want to know the truth. The moving van''s arrival was one of them. "Arlene!" called a voice from farther down the cul-de-sac. "Wait!" Rochelle Porter, who lived on the other side of the Rankers, hurried to the middle of the street where Arlene stood with her head cocked to one side like a curious bird. "What is it, Rochelle?" she asked.
Rochelle motioned for Judith to join them. "Last night I couldn''t sleep," Rochelle said, lowering her voice. "Gabe got a crazy notion that he wanted some real soul food. He made chitlins with vinegar and some kind of hot sauce that practically set my mouth on fire. For a black man who was raised right here in this city and hasn''t been farther south than Disneyland, I don''t know why that fool husband of mine comes up with these peculiar cravings." She shook her head. "I was up half the night with heartburn. About three in the morning I saw lights over in Rudi Wittener''s house and a big U-Haul. Rudi''s girlfriend, Taryn, came outside, and the movers started hauling furniture from the house to the truck." Rochelle gazed at the newly arrived moving van. "Look, they''re unloading the truck. Somebody else must be moving in."
Arlene stamped her foot. "I''m going to strangle Cathy! She should have told me! I''m never the last to know!"
Judith suppressed a smile. Arlene was right: she was indeed the font of all knowledge, rumor, and gossip on Heraldsgate Hill. Long ago, Judith had dubbed her neighbor''s store of information as Arlene''s Broadcasting System, or more briefly, ABS.
"Maybe," Judith said soothingly, "Cathy doesn''t know. It''s odd to move out in the middle of the night. Why would they do that?"
Arlene glared at Judith. "You wonder? Not as much as I do! And," she added, marching off toward the van, "I intend to find out!"
Rochelle laughed and shook her head. "Arlene''s got more nerve than a peanut merchant. I admire her gumption."
Judith nodded. "Me, too. She''s a terrific neighbor."
Both women stopped talking as they watched Arlene''s animated conversation with the brawny movers.
"Bus?" Arlene shouted. "What bus? The nearest stop is a block and a half over on Heraldsgate Avenue."
One of the men threw his hands in the air; the other stomped off toward the ramp that had been propped up behind the van.
"Oh, for heaven''s sake!" Arlene exclaimed. "If you people can''t speak English, at least show me your work order! My husband''s the block watch chairman around here. We have to know."
With a heavy sigh and sagging of broad shoulders, the mover who''d remained by the curb came around to the driver''s side of the van and opened the door. He returned with a clipboard and shoved it at Arlene.
"''Buss''?" Arlene snapped, looking up from what Judith presumed was the work order. "You don''t spell ''bus'' with two esses."
The man tapped his finger several times on the sheet of paper.
"Oh," Arlene said, more quietly. "That''s the person''s name. Carry on. Or lift on. Or ... whatever you people do." She headed back to Judith and Rochelle. "Someone named Billy Buss is moving in," Arlene announced. "He''s from Oklahoma. There was a handwritten note attached to the work order. I think I got the gist of it. It indicated that Mr. Buss was anxious to be in the house by today, which, I suppose is why Rudi and Tara had to move on such short notice. I hope they got a break on their rent. I was never fond of them, but fair is fair, after all. This Buss person sounds very demanding. I hope he''s not a musician."
"Amen," Rochelle said with fervor. "Rudi and his violin just about drove Gabe and me crazy as a pair of three-legged chickens."
Judith agreed wholeheartedly. "His outdoor practice sessions, especially when he did them in the nude during the hot weather, upset all of us, including my B&B guests."
(Continues...)
Excerpted from Vi Agra Fallsby Mary Daheim Copyright © 2008 by Mary Daheim. Excerpted by permission.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.
