"Savannah, I think. I suspect she thought I'd pay for the dress, and naturally pay for my plane fare as well. The worst ones are when she's getting divorced, and her money's tied up in court, and she wants huge loans. I can always say the kids have some sort of program at school and I can't go anywhere when she wants me to fly halfway across the country, but it's harder to turn her down on money."

"I think that would be easier. Just tell her you don't have any."

"She knows better than to believe that. Even my parents won't do it. I don't know why she continues to ask them."

"Never?"

"Not unless she has a really good story. Then they wire her a couple hundred dollars and do the same for me."

Shelley reached for a second fruit-and-granola bar. "These aren't as bad as I expected. I want to

talk to you about Thomasina. But do you want to call your sister back first?"

"Neither of those options would be my first choice. I think I'd rather have a week in Bermuda. Sprawled on a beach with a good book, thinking about my sins."

"Then let's talk about Thomasina first. I know what Mel said about her, how tough and nasty she is. But he's a cop and lots of people don't like talking to cops."

"You have a point there," Jane admitted. "Especially when they fear they're being investigated as a possible suspect."

"But you and I aren't cops. We'll just chat with her about some innocuous subject such as how many electrical outlets she plans for those rooms they're working on now. Pretend we're thinking about furniture and lamp placement. And then ease with enormous sympathy into what went wrong with the wiring."

"And also pretend to understand?"

"Of course."

"Since you think this sounds sensible, I think I'll play the role of the nodding sidekick, if you don't mind. I don't even want to understand wiring."