The rest of my Monday was unremarkable except for a very strange call I made to Happy Home Care, a company that hired out nurses for housebound patients. Alexis had sent all employee information for the nurse who had attended to Diana during her last few months; a woman named Corrine Davis.

          Corrine was the person who worked closest with Diana in her last days. She had administered her meds, bathed her, and even planned her meals according to Alexis. She also hit her and kept her drugged according to Este. If anyone could poison or smother or unplug Diana it was the woman who had access to her IV. Not to mention the fact that she had seemed pretty comfortable hugged up with Malik at the repass.

         Why she stayed on the payroll for someone she allegedly hated was a mystery but who knows, plenty of people keep jobs they hate to put food on the table or open the door to other opportunities. I'm my own boss now, but I remember the nine to five hustle very well.

          The Happy Home Care website boasted of quality care that included meal prep, administering medication, companionship, and physical therapy. The senior models they'd hired for the photo-op smiled from behind the page header. All perfectly respectable looking. So, in between a call to the bank and a call to one of my insurance providers, I dialed them up to see what I get find out about our inappropriately friendly nurse.

          The line rang once, then the automated mailbox picked up. I tapped my fingers impatiently as I waited for the robot to recite its message and slowly go over every number for every option on the keypad. When we got to nine, none of the options suited my needs so I pushed zero. The Robot said, 'Sorry. Would you like to hear the options again?', and the torturous bureaucracy of it all just about made me scream into the void.

          I listened to the options one more time before picking number three because it sounded like it would connect me to a human at the very least. By the time the human picked up, I had already thought up an impromptu fabrication.

         "Happy Home Care," said the voice at the other end. "Audra, speaking."

          "Yes, hello. I'm calling in regard to a reference from Corrine Davis. She's one of your home health aides."

          "Excuse me?"

          "I work in the recruiting office for... St Theresa's...Hospital. Ms. Davis left you as a reference for our new...nursing position. I was wondering if you had a moment to speak about her."

          I was getting busted for sure. I could fake my way through restaurant and business terminology, but I didn't know the first thing about the healthcare industry. Why didn't I just admit I was a private investigator? Maybe she would have cooperated. And that stuff about the recruitment office? I don't even bother to check the references of my actual employees! Shit always seemed so pointless...

          "What was her name?" Or maybe she's an underpaid phone person who doesn't care.

          "Corrine Davis."

          "Could you hold for a minute."

         "Of course." On hold I used my free hand to go over payroll on the computer while I bobbed my head to the generic but familiar tune playing as hold music.

          "Hello?" She said almost four minutes later.

         "Yeah?"

          "Ma'am I just checked our entire staff register. No one by the name Corrine Davis has ever worked here."

         Ever? Well, that's odd. Why would Corrine lie about her place of employment? How could that get past the Dupont's with their endless money and access to resources that could check this woman's background ten times over?

          "...Oh dear." I said when I remembered I was on the phone. "It's a shame when applicants feel they need to lie on their resume isn't it?"

          "Yes ma'am."

          "Good nurses are so hard to find."

          "Most home health aides aren't registered nurses anyway."

          That, I didn't know. Was Corrine even a nurse? If not, where would she get the drugs to keep Diana unconscious? Was Este mistaken? Was she a liar? "Well, thank you for your help. My apologies for disturbing you."

          "Oh, it's no problem."

          So, our mysterious home health aide lied about her employment? Or does she work for another company? Maybe this is simply a clerical error. Maybe Alexis or Audrey got a letter wrong. It happens. But if it isn't, how could Corrine possibly swing a job giving end of life care to someone as high profile as Diana Dupont?

          If Este was telling the truth and Corrine had hated and abused Diana, then I'd have to figure out where she came from in the first place.

          But before that I needed to get through the rest of my workday. Back in the front of the house the line at the first register was backing up. I threw on my apron and opened register two.

************

          Though Jackson had left around lunch as usual I still had plenty of help. Johnny walked through the front door and made his way around the counter with little fanfare.

         I looked over my shoulder while pouring coffee. "You can bus tables for a couple of hours until Lana shows up."

         He nodded, "Thanks", and started walking back toward the break room where I stored a couple of extra aprons.

          The next two hours I ran the register while Pasha made the coffee, Devonte bagged and plated pastries and Johnny kept the floor clean and the tabletops spotless. The staff fell into a groove that ran like the most efficient of machinery.

          As traffic tapered off, I backed off and let Pasha handle the orders while I took a moment to look over my kingdom as any queen is wont to do. The sun was shining brightly through the large commercial windows; the street outside was a sea of pedestrians. Inside customers engaged in happy chatter as they sat at the tables I'd picked out and sipped at beverages from a menu designed by me.

          It had been a long journey. Four years, blood sweat, and tears, careful budgeting, and a partial loan from the bank. Not to mention the generous souls who had mentored me. But all my hard work had paid off. I was doing it. I was living my dream. My soul swelled with happiness as I looked around.

          In the back corner, Johnny swept under the condiments table. The broom went back and forth in a steady motion. His mouth was pressed shut and his eyes were lowered in concentration. I wondered what he was thinking about.

          He peered over suddenly from behind the broom handle and our eyes met. He looked away just as quickly. Was Manny right? Did Johnny have feelings for me? Did that even matter if true?

          Say Johnny did see me as more than a friend. Is it fair for me to deny work to someone for the horrible crime of having a crush? Should I just ignore it and go on with business as usual? He hasn't crossed any lines or ever made me uncomfortable. Should I set him straight or pretend like I don't see it? Assuming this wasn't just pointless supposition brought out by a jealous boyfriend, what was the protocol here?

          Ugh, I don't have time for this!

          Pro tip for productivity: never waste your brain power thinking about what-if problems of tomorrow when you could use it to solve the problems of today.

          The rest of the day was mundane but easy. At three my teen employee Lana walked through the door and Johnny got his money and left. The paranormal book club followed closely behind them and went to settle into the reserved room upstairs.

          An hour later I had prepared and served the book club their snacks and done enough boring clerical work to numb my brain. I needed a screen break, so I stupidly decided to leave my fortress of solitude. I think I got half a big toe in the room before I immediately ran into another problem.

          Out in the dining area, it was taking two of my workers to wipe down a single goddamn table for some ungodly reason. Lana and Devonte were bent over the clearly clean table with their faces within stank breath distance, pretend wiping it down and talking in hushed voices. Every few seconds Lana would spritz a little cleaning solution and sloppily wipe it up with a rag, in spite of the fact that the table was cleared of all dishes and food residue. Devonte leaned close to her ear and whispered something that made her slump into a fit of giggles.

          What's this, now? Are they flirting in my establishment? Not on my watch.

          "Devonte." When I called him the sternness in my voice made him jump ever so slightly though he tried to play it cool. Didn't want to look dorky in front of a girl I suppose. "Go upstairs and make sure the book club is good on snacks, please."

          He smiled and scratched absently at the fresh growth of hair coming in at his crown. "Okay, boss lady." Boss lady was a habit he'd picked up from Jackson to my mild annoyance.

          With Devonte disposed upstairs Lana's productivity improved remarkably. She managed to finish bussing the rest of the tables before moving on to restocking the condiments. I decided to take a reprieve to make a phone call and feed my cat. On my way to the back alley I grabbed my cell, a can of cat food, a water bottle, and a bag of cat treats.

          The air outside was warmer than I preferred but still reasonable considering summer was close. On the plus side, we were downwind of the barbeque joint two blocks over, so the savory smell of slow roasted pork was a nice change from the usual smell of overheating alleyway.

          I stepped out onto the top of the stoop and looked around the tiny parking lot.

          "Tumnus?" I called out. "Here kitty."

          It took a couple more 'here kitty's' before he unwedged himself from underneath the shade of a low sitting car.

          "There you are!" He gave me a friendly meow, stretched his little white and gray limbs, and ambled over like he had all the time in the world. "I've got food."

          That put a little pep in his step and he hurried over; his long tail pointed up.

          I pulled the pop top on the cat food and plopped it into the little plastic bowl I put out for him. As soon as my hand was out of the way he rushed over and faceplanted in it like he'd never seen food before. I chuckled and emptied half the water bottle into the other plastic dish, gave him a cautious pat between the ears, and then started drinking the rest of the water while I contemplated my next move.

          What on earth was I going to do about this Corrine situation?

          I sighed and pulled my cell from the pocket of my slacks and dialed Alexis. Better to break it to her now rather than later.

          "Hello?" She said from the other end.

          I kept my voice nice and even. I read somewhere people feed on energy so staying calm helps others stay calm. "Alexis, I called the company Corrine works for. They've never heard of her."

          "What?" Her voice was reasonably shocked, though I couldn't examine her face.

          "Did you maybe give me the wrong company..."

          "No. That's the one. Or the one she claimed she worked for."

          "Who hired her?"

          "I'm not sure. When mom was getting too sick to leave bed, I was out of town on business, so it was either Destiny or Gabe."

          I would have guessed Malik for obvious reasons but then he was apparently banned from the house, so I doubt he made to many end-of-life decisions for their mother. "Has Corrine been acting strangely?"

          "No one's seen her since the repass."

         I'll bet our buddy Malik begs to differ. "Who was that woman that made a scene at the repass."

          She chuckled but the bitter sound caught in her throat. "You'll have to be more specific, quite a few people decided to lose their minds that day."

          "The one who said she helped start the company."

          "Oh, that was Aunt Margie."

          "Maternal or paternal?"

          "Neither. She's a play aunt. Mom and her went to college together. They pledged together. They started the company together too."

          I vaguely remembered Diana having a startup partner from the research I did in college, but the details were fuzzy. "Why was she so angry?"

          "Mom always said Margie was jealous of her success but it's really because mom forced Margie out right when it was gaining success."

          "Do you have her information?"

          "Yeah. I can send it right now."

          "Great."

          "If you think she's involved that's impossible. Mom and Margie have been feuding since before I was born. There's no way she could get into the house."

          Unless someone let her in. And there was plenty of hands in the house that night. "It's better to be thorough."

           "You're the expert."

            While we were at it I had her send me the information for all of her siblings and the lawyer who'd drawn up the will stashed in Diana's keepsake box—a man named Robert Davis. I hung up with a promise to keep her posted.

          My next step was to find out all I could about this Margie person. Manipulating someone out of their share of the business right before that business makes millions is probably the most compelling argument for murder I've ever heard. And Alexis was conveniently out of town when they hired Corrine? No follow-up? And then there was the will. Why did Diana leave a copy in the keepsake box if not as a clue?

          I didn't know what was going on here, but one thing was for certain: something in the water ain't clean.

          Tumnus finished his meal and sniffed around the outside of the bowl trying to find any dropped morsel he could. I popped open a bag of savory salmon flavored treats and grabbed two. Tumnus hopped up the stairs and started rubbing himself against my ankles. I crouched down, opened my palm, and he ate right from my hand.

          I smiled. "You're a good kitty, aren't you?"

          To that he had no reply.