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“You gotta understand, the guy was sick. I mean, seriously ill. Congestive heart failure, emphysema, and who knows what else. The fact that he croaked this morning shouldn’t have triggered anything more than a call to the funeral home for a pickup.”
    â€œYeah,” Kyle said. “People die here every day. Like, literally.”
    â€œNo,
you
don’t understand,” I said. “If foul play is suspected, and Frances is involved, this is serious. I need answers.”
    Percy stared out over the top of Kyle’s head. “And here they come. See, what did I tell you?”
    Bennett accompanied Frances as the two made their way toward us. Her gaze was fixed on our table, but one look at her fisted hands, pursed lips, and storming gait, and I knew she wasn’t actually seeing any of us.
    I got to my feet. “What’s going on, Frances?”
    â€œHow dare they?” she asked rhetorically. “I didn’t kill that old bag of bones. How do they know he didn’t do it himself? I’ll bet that miserable, selfish, ignorant lump finally decided he’d had enough and figured he could blame it on me.”
    Bennett pulled up another chair. “Have a seat, Frances.”
    Outside, the thunder and lightning had finally let up, but in here, Frances’s stormy fury was about to be unleashed. “You think I can sit after what I’ve been through?”
    Perspiration speckled the chest of her violet blouse. Her steel-gray hair poufed out at both temples as though she’d recently been yanking it out.
    â€œTalk to me, Frances.”
    Normally, Frances eschewed all physical contact. When I touched her arm, I expected her to draw back. She surprisedme by taking a sharp breath. She worked her jaw as though to collect herself. After a swift glance around the Sun Gallery, she faced me. “This is ridiculous.”
    â€œI know it is. And we’re here to help. But we need to know what’s going on.”
    She cocked an eyebrow at me, then turned to Bennett. “Sorry for snapping. I’m a little stressed right now.”
    Bennett waved off the apology. “Perfectly understandable.” He nudged the chair a little closer to her. “But now that you’ve been released, things are looking up. Let’s all take a deep breath and sort this out, shall we?”
    Frances nodded. She tucked the hem of her blouse into her slacks’ elastic waistband and took a seat in the proffered chair. “Stupid cops.”
    When we were all settled, with Frances between me and Kyle, Bennett gave me a nod. I decided to tread gently. “Percy and Kyle said that their roommate is dead and the police suspect murder. Is that right?”
    Frances leaned forward, smashing a fingertip against one of the black checkerboard squares as though testing its rigidity. “As far as offing that old curmudgeon, the nurses probably have a sign-up sheet at the front desk for people eager to do the deed,” she said. “Don’t know why they spent so much time talking to me.” She shot me a sideways glance. “I didn’t do it.”
    â€œWe know you didn’t.” Keeping calm took every bit of resolve I could manage. Questions scrambled my thoughts and a thousand prickles of worry tap-danced along my spine. I wanted answers so badly I was tempted to shake everyone around me until the right words fell out. But Frances was as worked up as I’d ever seen her. Next to me, under the table, her knee bounced. And though she poked at the same square over and over, exerting so much pressure that her fingernail reddened, she couldn’t keep her hand from shaking.
    She looked up, thrusting her chin toward Percy. “So you’re probably wondering why I never told you about him.”
    â€œRight now, all we care about is that you’re free to go,” Bennett said. “Are you?”
    Frances snorted. “Who knows? They may need to