Page 79 of Don't Cross Mo Ellery

Original text:Hells no apple the cat invite affluent odor

Translated text:Help mo solve the case, investigate alderman office

Tond drops the bottle of sherry, and it shatters.

Looks like there might have been a murder after all.

Chapter 26

The sherry pools at Tond’s feet.

“Itoldyou the text was bad news,” Marlowe says as she pulls herself up and climbs through the window.

“Ihatenews,” Tond says miserably. “It’salwaysbad.”

“Everybody stay calm,” I say, mostly to myself.I will not spiral.“Let’s look at the facts. What do we actually know?”

“What do weknow?” Tond echoes, his voice getting shriller with each word. “This parking garage is cursed! Bad things happen to people involved with it!”

“Who is this guy again?” Marlowe asks me.

“I’m the guy who’snext!” Tond cries.

His panic is contagious, and I can’t hold back the spiraling any longer; my mind swirls with questions about how deep the conspiracy goes. Gas company hit men has to just be the tip of the iceberg, right? So many people are involved in this kind of deal! The neighborhood is clearly full of secret corruption. It’s all around me. Anybody could be anybody, I don’t know! Like, who is “Sheila,” really? Is she actuallyRoy’s mom, or is she a plant keeping an eye on me? Is she on payroll? What’s her deal?

“I dont’t deserve to die!!!!!!!”cries Tond as he drops to his knees.

And just like that, I’m not spiraling anymore.

Because— Is that what I look like? That guy on his knees sweating and checking to make sure we’re acknowledging his meltdown? Is that how Hannah sees me? And Eva? And my mom?

Woof. Okay. That is not what I want. Personal growth moment happening in real time here.

I need to take a step back. Like, seriously. While Tond weeps into a nearby houndstooth pashmina, I ask myself again:What do I definitely know?

Cran’s death really was an accident, just not the accident itlookedlike. Check.

Which means Claudia was wrong—at least about it being murder. Check.

But—even though she was wrong about that, investigating Cran’shypotheticalmurder meant sticking her nose into some pretty dirty business dealings. And that’s why she had to die.

The room goes topsy-turvy and I realize that if I’d managed to convince Claudia that Cran’s death was an accident,she’d be alive right now. Oh god. I should have tried harder.

And then, because my body can’t physically contain any more guilt, suddenly, I’m furious.

Claudia’s only mistake was that she got too close to a bunch of crimes that wereactuallyhappening. The crimes of greedy, corrupt people who had no respect for human life and who would throw money and favors andmurderaround to get what they wanted.

Or maybe just one greedy, corrupt person. Someone who needed to hang on to his power no matter what it cost. Someone who’s beenin the background this whole time. Someone she warned us about as she was dying.

“Is it possible that Claudia was telling us who killed her?” I can barely whisper the words, but they tumble out of me. “DidAlderman Merle Careymurder her? I’ve been to his office, it didn’t look murdery.”

“Bro,” says Marlowe with a shake of her head. “I saw him light the neighborhood Christmas tree-slash-giant menorah last year. You think you can trust a guy.”

Tond leaps up and grabs me by my shoulders. “This is what I’ve been telling you,” he cries. “I’mnext! I need your help!”

He looks genuinely terrified, and, wow, I am SO out of my league here. From the very start, in fact.

Dead guy in a sinkhole, botulismed on his own pickles.