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.The cake was safely in the cabinet above the sink.The doors were shut tight.Mamie waddled inside.Claire let out the breath she’d been holding and turned, rubbed her shoulder and slipped on a welcoming smile.“What happened here?” Mamie asked.“I tripped,” Claire said, pushing the table and chair back in place.“You shouldn’t have been running.”“I thought I’d left the burner on.”Mamie peered at the stovetop.“It isn’t even red.”“I said I thought I’d left it on.What do you want me to pick up at the grocery store later?” Did her voice sound normal?“I was thinking soup would taste good today.”“It’s supposed to be beautiful and warm, I won’t feel like eating soup.And you won’t either.What if I put together a picnic and we eat down at the battlefield?”“That’s right, today is dress rehearsal, isn’t it?”Claire had forgotten about that.Dress rehearsal was Edward’s term for the practice meet the day before the yacht club race.“Yes.What about finger foods: carrots, cucumbers and fried chicken?”“Sounds good.Will you make some of that horseradish dip for the chicken?”“I can.And I’ll make extra chicken so we can have it for supper.What about potato salad?”“Good.Should I pick you up at lunchtime, or will you drive?”“I’ll walk.”“You’ve been doing a lot of walking lately.Do you think it’s good for your ankle? Besides, you’ll be carrying that heavy basket of food.”“My ankle is fine.I’ll be fine.” Claire slid the plant to the exact center of the table and made sure the doily lay flat underneath.“What a pretty plant.” Mamie put out a finger to touch one of the shiny leaves.“Don’t!”Mamie yanked her hand back as if the plant were a hive of angry hornets.“What?”“It’s…I just…” Claire stammered.What to tell her? The truth? Sure, Payton was telling everyone anyway.“It’s poisonous.Well, I don’t think it is if you touch it, but Payton said it’s got poisonous sap.And I just didn’t…”“Why on earth would you want a poisonous plant?”“Well, it’s only poisonous if you’re messing with it.A lot of houseplants are that way, poinsettias, lily of the valley, cyclamen, amaryllis.Payton said they’re only dangerous if you have children or pets who might be putting leaves in their mouths.”“So why did you jump down my throat?”“I’m sorry.It was a knee-jerk reaction.” Claire handed Mamie a small notepad.“Here, help me make a shopping list.”Mamie peered at her suspiciously.Claire had never needed help with a list before.She began dictating; chicken, cucumbers…“I bought some nice plants at Payton’s shop.” Mamie was still eyeing the monkshood.“Didn’t see this one there.Maybe you could give me a cutting.”“I don’t think it propagates that way.After a while it’ll be too big to keep as a houseplant.Eventually I’ll have to put it outdoors.How did you like Payton’s house? Do you think it’ll work as a gallery?”“That reminds me.I called Miles this morning and told him we were having the exhibit there.He was excited I’d found something so quickly.”Finally Mamie left to open the gallery.Claire did the grocery shopping, but her mind wasn’t on fried chicken, potato salad or carrot sticks, it was on the Deathday cake delivery.Sean would suffer.The fastest working poisons generally had the most horrific symptoms.It had to work fast.She couldn’t take the chance some magical antidote would be available.This had to be done right the first time.There wouldn’t be a second chance.Driving from the supermarket, all she could smell was chocolate.Could that single slice in the trunk emit that much aroma? Suddenly Claire felt ill.The chocolate smell was so powerful her stomach rumbled.Acid churned.She sped home.ELEVENWith her stomach in turmoil, Claire decided to drive to the marina instead of walk.The sky was still overcast, but now there were breaks in the clouds with blue sky visible between.She left the picnic hamper in the car and joined the others already gathered for the dress rehearsal under the big white canopy in the parking lot.Tomorrow long tables would be set along two sides to hold the potluck lunch they served before each race.Chaumont, the team they’d race against, would be invited, too.She spotted Sean talking to Brighton and Aden.Brighton pointed at something down the dock and Sean nodded.He said something to which Aden disagreed, tweaking his mustache between thumb and forefinger.Payton’s words popped into Claire’s head
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