HALF AN HOUR LATER, Anna and I are sitting in Helen’s office, waiting for her to return from seeing Gladys.
“This office is a lot nicer than her other one,” Anna whispers.
“It is,” I agree, speaking in a normal voice. “Why are you whispering?”
“Oh,” she says in her regular voice. “I don’t know. Intimidated, I guess?”
“It’s just Helen,” I say.
“No, it’s not just Helen,” Anna says. “It’s Helen as a detective. And you know that’s a different Helen than you see in the Rectory every day.”
“Oh, she can be intimidating if you’re a suspect, as I know full well.”
“She’s not much easier if you’re a witness,” she says under her breath.
“What do you mean?”
“I’ve never told you this,” she says, “but the first time I met Helen was when she came to my house to inform me that she had reopened the
