19
FRED SHOT UP FROM HIS bed as Luella raced from the room. “Are you saying my niece murdered my lady-love? Why would Mallory do such a thing?”
Luella slowed her pace to let Fred catch up—that, and she was running out of breath. In fact, Fred moved at quite a clip for a man who lived in a retirement residence.
“You said yourself Mallory is overprotective of you,” Luella panted. “You loved Alice. That much is clear. When your niece found out Alice was also in a relationship with Phyllis, she must have assumed Alice was cheating on you.”
“Alice wasn’t cheating. She and Phyllis had my blessing. I knew all along.”
“But your niece didn’t know you knew!”
“This is ridiculous,” Fred growled as they turned the corner that led to the front desk. “Mallory is a sweet girl. You’ve met h
