“It can start in as little as five to fifteen minutes.”

The timing was right. “There's nothing you could have done.”

“You win some and lose some. The best medicine, of course, is preventive. If only the lunch committee had known about Gerald's allergy to shellfish.”

“I wanted to ask you about that,” I said. “Did anybody know about it?”

“Carol asked me the same question. Not that I'm aware of. Although she told me it was on his medical record.”

“So there's a possibility that even if he hadn't talked about it, somebody may have seen his record.”

“Medical information is supposed to be confidential…”

“Of course. What kind of a relationship did you have with Gerald?”

“We were…friends…good friends. But we were not romantically involved.”

“Dora, did Gerald have any special girlfriends? I know he was chummy with a number of different women.”

“It sounds like you're conducting a murder investigation.” Dora stood up from the bench where she had been sitting. “You don't suppose that Gerald's death wasn't accidental, do you?”

“I don't know. It's just suspicious.” I explained about the 13 diamonds.

Dora reflected. “He was quite close to two women. “One was Harriet Monroe. The other was Ida Wilson.”

“They were both sitting at his table,” Tess said. “Keeping an eye on each other. I wonder if there was some jealousy there.”

“I don't see much point in this romantic nonsense at our age,” I said. “Mooning over men like schoolgirls. It isn't as if there were a payoff. All they do is talk, anyway.”

“As a nurse, I can tell you that's not true,” Dora said. “It's not all talk.”

“You mean…they indulge?” Tess asked.

“You mean they have sex?” I asked.

“Yes,” Dora, said, smiling at our surprise. “You would be amazed at what goes on here at Silver Acres. They may not be as active as they were when they were younger, but that doesn't mean everybody here is celibate.”