She was immediately sorry she'd suggested it.

Shelley hugged herself. "Could I have actually been in the house with the killer? No, Jane. That doesn't work. If he didn't mind killing her, he wouldn't have minded killing me. And how would he have gotten away? If he'd jumped from a second-story window, he'd have been bound to hurt himself, and the police checked all around the house for signs of things like that. If he didn't go out the window, he'd had to have come downstairs, and I could see the stairway from the time I came in the kitchen. I wasn't looking at it, but I would have certainly noticed anyone coming down."

“Okay, cross off greed. It was just a suggestion. Reasons for murder. Greed, fear—"

“Fear of what? That woman? Would you be afraid of her?"

“Not physically. But what if she knew something the killer was afraid she'd tell?"

“Jane, you met that woman. She didn't strike me as knowing how to tell time, much less dangerous secrets. Besides, the question I asked earlier applies—why kill her at my house? Why not at her own, or on the street?"

“I don't know about the where-to-kill-her part, but think some more about the why. Just suppose that she'd been cleaning some office, though. You said she was a substitute and went all sorts of places. Suppose she learned something about a company take-over, or—"

“Happy Helpers doesn't do businesses. Only domestic jobs. I tried to get them for Paul's office."

“Some people do their business at home. Mary Ellen Revere, for instance."

“With a broken arm she can't even use? She strangles her?"

“Of course not. I didn't mean her. I was just making an example of somebody around here who has a business at home." Jane sighed. "Now who's shooting down ideas? All right. Cross off fear. What else is a motive for murder? Well, there's mercy killing, but this obviously wasn't a method of putting a loved one out of her misery. What about revenge?”

The phone rang and Jane answered somewhat impatiently. It was Laura Stapler, inviting Shelley and her and the kids to spend the night at their house. Jane had a momentary vision of being cooped up in the Staplers' house like survivors of a nuclear attack. "'That's sweet of you, Laura, but Shelley's staying here and I think we'll be fine."

“You do have the house locked up tightly, don't you? And be sure to draw the blinds. My husband could put a rush order through and have an alarm system installed for you tomorrow if you'd like. Normally it takes a week or so, but under the circumstances—"

“That's very thoughtful, but I really can't afford it."

“We could arrange for financing, thirty six months at fifteen percent."

“Laura, no, thank you!" Jane said firmly.