Tippy Toe Murder (22 page)

Show
begins
at
7:30
p. m. SHARP.

Finally, after months of preparation, the
big show was about to begin. The high school auditorium was packed; everyone in
Tinker’s Cove seemed to be there. Hardworking fathers, uncomfortable in their
Sunday best, tugged self-consciously at their ties and stretched their necks.
Brothers and sisters fidgeted restlessly in their seats. Grandparents, veterans
at these affairs, chatted quietly and idly fanned themselves with their
programs. And almost every mother, decked out in heels and makeup, had a
bouquet of flowers or a prettily wrapped gift for her favorite ballerina.

Backstage, Lucy led Sara and Elizabeth to
the dressing room. Staking out a spot in the crowded room, where every inch
seemed occupied by tiny dancers in various stages of undress, Lucy helped the
girls into their costumes.

“I can’t believe there’s no curtain or anything,”
complained a newly modest Elizabeth. “How do they expect us to change with
everybody watching?”

“Nobody’s watching. Just be quick,” urged
Lucy, helping her step into the tutu. Her voice was still a hoarse whisper.

“You look beautiful,” she said, stepping
back to admire her daughters.

“The other girls are wearing lipstick,”
Elizabeth informed her.

“I know,” said Lucy, unzipping her makeup
bag. “The pink sheet says to use lipstick and rouge.” She was just adding a
final touch of blush when Karen Baker asked if the girls would pose for a
snapshot. Linking arms, the girls smiled prettily.

“Off you go,” said Karen, replacing the
camera in its case.

“Break a leg!” said Lucy, giving them a
wave for luck.

“How are you feeling?” asked Karen. “You’ve
had a lot of excitement lately.”

“I’m okay, we’re all okay. It was horrible,
though. I’m still having nightmares about it.”

“How are the kids doing?” Karen took her
arm, and the two women walked slowly down the hall to the auditorium. On the
way, they passed Tatiana, splendid in harem pants and a bolero jacket. She
always performed in the show and this year she was dancing the part of the
Arabian from the
Nutcracker.
She had painted eyeliner out to her ears, attached fantastic false eyelashes,
and added a sprinkling of glitter. The effect was extremely dramatic, and some
of the youngest dancers couldn’t resist hugging her.

Catching her eye over the heads of the
children clustered around her, Lucy gave her a thumbs-up sign. Tatiana winked
back.

“The kids are fine,” said Lucy. “I think
they liked all the excitement. Toby says he wished he’d been home to videotape
it. Then he could have sent it in to
Eyewitness Video.”

“Somehow that doesn’t surprise me,” said
Karen, scanning the crowded auditorium for her husband. “See you later,” she
said, spotting him. “Enjoy the show.”

Lucy made her way down the crowded aisle
and slipped into the seat Bill had saved for her.

“Are the girls nervous?” he asked.

“More excited than nervous, I think. The
squeaky-voice index is hovering around ninety-nine point nine.”

Bill chuckled, and reached inside his
pocket. “By the way, I found this in the mailbox.” He handed her a letter.

Lucy fingered it curiously. She hadn’t
written or received a letter in a long time. She had had many correspondents
when she was in college, but now she reached for the phone.

The return address was in Washington, D.C.,
but the sender had not included a name. Lucy opened the envelope and looked for
a signature.

“It’s from Louise Roderick,” she said, and
began eagerly reading the neat, round script.

“Dear Lucy Stone [she read]. There is no
way I can ever express my great thanks to you. You saved my dearest friend’s
life, you protected my daughter
,
and
you did all this despite real danger to yourself and your family. You must be a
very rare and wonderful person.

“I have been granted custody of Melissa on
a trial basis, supervised by the court. I know I have a lot of work to do if I’m
going to be the good mother I want to be, and we’re both seeing counselors.

“Oddly enough, I find I can deal with the
things Philip did to me and maybe even to Melissa, but I cannot stand the fact
that he hurt you and Caro. My constant prayer is that you will both recover
completely, and that he will receive the punishment he deserves.

“Thanks to you and Tatiana and Caro I now
have a chance for a new life with Melissa. I am taking things one day at a
time, trying not to forget or deny the past, but to accept it and let it go.
What’s done is done, tomorrow is full of possibilities. Thank you. “

Amen, thought Lucy, folding the letter and
tucking it into her purse. Perhaps someday she would meet Louise. She hoped so.

“Is this seat taken?” demanded Miss Tilley,
nudging Lucy’s shoulder.

“Not anymore,” said Lucy, gathering up the
sweater she’d put on the next chair so Toby could sit there. “I see Toby’s
sitting with his friends.”

“How are you feeling?” inquired Miss
Tilley, fixing her sharp eyes on the scarf Lucy had wrapped around her bruised
neck.

“Pretty good,” admitted Lucy. “Every twinge
just makes me more determined to see Philip Roderick go to jail for a very long
time.”

Bill nudged her and she looked up just in
time to see Franny appear. Accompanied by her mother, Franny looked relaxed and
happy. One or two friends began clapping, and within seconds the entire crowd
was welcoming her with applause. Stunned, Franny stood there, smiling and
clutching Irma’s arm while tears ran down her cheeks.

Finally, a gentleman Lucy recognized as the
Smalls’ neighbor came to their aid and led them to a pair of empty seats.
People smiled and waved, and some reached for her hand as she made her way down
the aisle. Lucy found herself grinning and brushing away tears at the same
time. She felt the warmth of Bill’s hand covering hers, and she leaned her head
on his shoulder.

Observing this sign of affection, Miss
Tilley humphed softly. “Did you see Kitty?” she asked.

“No. Is she here?” Lucy straightened up,
followed Miss Tilley’s gnarled finger, and found Kitty Slack seated next to a
handsome white-haired man. The two were engaged in an animated conversation.

“He’s Gerald Asquith, president of
Winchester College,” she hissed in Lucy’s ear. “I told her he’s just after her
money, but she won’t listen to me.”

“She should,” said Lucy, remembering the
conversation she’d overheard in the post office. Then she added, “There are
more important things than money. She looks awfully happy.”

“Pah!” said Miss Tilley, so loudly that
several people in neighboring seats turned curiously.

The lights dimmed, and Lucy felt the old
woman’s hand pat hers. “I always said you were one to watch,” she whispered in
Lucy’s ear.

Then a spotlight revealed Tatiana, wrapped
in a saffron cape, in front of the curtains. She was welcomed with a scattering
of polite applause. The audience was restless—they’d waited a long time to see
the children perform.

“I’m very happy to welcome you to our ninth
annual show. I know the children are very excited about performing for you
tonight. But before we begin, I want to thank two special people, Ann Douglas
and Mitzi Crandell, for all their help.”

She paused and the audience gave the
expected round of applause for Ann and Mitzi. When it was quiet again, she
resumed.

“Also, I would like to dedicate this year’s
show to a wonderful teacher, my mentor and also my friend, Caroline Hutton.”

There was another round of applause, louder
this time, and Tatiana disappeared behind the curtains. A second or two later
the spotlight was turned off, and the audience sat in the dark, waiting
expectantly.

Music began to play, the familiar strains
of a Strauss waltz filled the auditorium, and the curtain opened on seven pairs
of dancers dressed in filmy pastel gowns and crowned with flowers. Lucy
recognized the girls as members of Tatiana’s intermediate class, none of them particularly
talented. But in their beautiful costumes each was a star tonight. They whirled
around the stage carried along by the sumptuous music, and the audience adored
them. Friends and relatives pointed out their darlings, and cheered and clapped
for them. This was what they’d come for and they applauded enthusiastically
when the girls ran off the stage.

The older dancers, the high school girls,
were greeted with shrieks of appreciation from their claques of friends and
admirers. Tottering about on their toes, they remained cool and professional
and never missed a step. No matter how much they were looking forward to the
party afterward, or hoping for a bouquet from a certain someone, they didn’t
dare let Tatiana down while they were performing.

After a slight delay the very littlest
dancers, the babies, tippy-toed on stage to be greeted with oohs and aahs. They
looked very tiny, and absolutely adorable in their pink tutus. They also looked
very much alike with their hair pulled back into identical buns, and Lucy had a
difficult time picking out little Sara. All the babies looked slightly dazed,
and some were so dazzled by their first stage appearance that they completely
forgot to dance. Instead, they stood awkwardly, shifting their weight from foot
to foot. Others, including Sara, performed like old troupers. The audience
loved them, especially when the little girls held their tiny hands about six
inches from their button noses and attempted to pirouette. That brought down
the house, and the babies exited to the loudest cheers and applause of all.

When the curtain reopened, Tatiana stood
alone, center stage, in her glamorous costume. Everyone watched attentively as
she began the sinuous movements of a harem dancer. The audience was impressed.
Tatiana was a hometown girl, someone they’d known forever, and she could dance
just like someone on TV. They rewarded her with appreciative applause.

The grand finale was unforgettable. As each
group of dancers appeared, and performed briefly, they were welcomed with a
burst of applause. Soon the dancers were entering so quickly there was no break
in the clapping. Lucy and Bill beamed with parental pride and slapped their
hands together until their palms burned and their arms ached. Finally, everyone
was on stage and Tatiana appeared; the clapping became a thunderous ovation.

Then, much to Lucy’s surprise, Sara
detached herself from the line of babies and took the center of the stage. Lucy
recognized her anxious expression; it meant she knew she was supposed to do
something but couldn’t quite remember what it was. Responding to an offstage
hiss, Sara turned and ran directly toward a disembodied beckoning arm. She
disappeared offstage but soon reappeared, clutching an enormous bouquet of
roses and trailing the ribbons. Nudged by the arm, she trotted across the
stage, executed a perfect curtsy, and presented the flowers to Tatiana.

There was a final burst of applause,
Tatiana took Sara’s hand and bowed to the audience, the dancers all made a
final curtsy, and it was over.

“Wow,” said Bill. “That was better than a
double-header!”