Shelly said in a faint, appalled voice, “Why do you think that?”

“Because he stole the T‘ang horse from the museum and Margot found out about it.”

Godwin said, “You mean, when you went to the museum today it was gone?”

“Oh, no, there’s a horse there all right. But it’s not the same horse.”

Jill asked sharply, “Are you sure?”

“Pretty sure. I mean, I took those Madeira silks with me, all six of them.” She fumbled in her pockets and pulled them out. “Godwin pointed out that they are really two different families of blue, one of them kind of grayer than the other. Well, the 1710, 11, and 12 are the colors that match the horse I saw. These others don’t. But Margot had all six in the folder labeled T‘ANG in her file cabinet.”

Shelly said, “When Margot was laying out the colors, she said 1008 was the right shade of blue.” They looked at her. “I’m positive, I remember it distinctly. She was putting the colors beside the framed picture and saying she remembered it was 1007.”

“There, Jill; there’s your proof!” Betsy said. “The horse Margot used as a model for her canvas and the horse I saw are not the same color. I think that when Margot went down there to look at the horse last Wednesday, she took the 1007 colors with her. And they didn’t match the horse in the case.”

Jill said, “And of course she went to tell Hud. He’s responsible for the Chinese stuff.”

“And Margot was murdered that night. I suspect Hud told Margot not to tell anyone else until he checked into it. But what he did was come out here and murder her. And he stole the needlepoint horse and the sketchbook, because they’re evidence. Then he trashed Crewel World to make it look like a burglary.”

“Wait a minute,” said Godwin. “Wait just a minute.” Then he himself waited until they all turned to look at him. “About those different families of blue. I’ve been to the museum, and I know how carefully they light those exhibits. I have a feeling they don’t light the storage areas like that.”

Betsy flashed on the warm lighting of the Fasset exhibit and then on the big chill storage room with its harsh overhead lights. “No, they don’t.”

“Well, how many of us have put on an outfit that matches beautifully in your bedroom, but when you get to the office it’s like you got dressed in the dark?”

The women, frowning, nodded doubtfully.

“So of course the silks didn’t match the horse! On exhibit, in storage, different lights, different colors.”

Betsy stared at him, her heart sinking. What if she had made a terrible mistake?

Chapter 18

18

Hud arrived Friday evening, right on time. He paused inside the door when he saw Jill and a very tall and well-built man waiting with Betsy for him.