Chapter 5 - An Ultimatum Ignored
The door rebounded off the drywall with a thunderous crack.
Evelyn was standing over an open suitcase on the bed, stuffing designer silk blouses, diamond jewelry, and thick manila envelopes into the pockets.
On the nightstand sat four large glass jars filled with dried, pungent gray-green leaves.
"What are you doing in my room?!" Evelyn shrieked, clutching a leather binder to her chest. "This is private property!"
"Get out," I said coldly.
"Excuse me?"
"You have five minutes to take what fits in that suitcase and get the hell out of my house before the police arrive with the paramedics."
Evelyn let out a high-pitched, hysterical laugh. "Call the police! Go ahead! Tell them what? That an elderly mother asked her lazy daughter-in-law to do dishes? You think the cops care about domestic chores? I have rights! I’ve established residency here for ninety days! You legally cannot evict me without thirty days' written notice, Mark! Look it up!"
She had planned it. From the exact date she moved in, she had tracked the tenancy laws.
"You think this is about tenancy?" I grabbed the jars off the nightstand. The label on the bottom of one jar had a handwritten note in her neat, cursive handwriting: Pennyroyal & Rue - 2 tsp daily.
"You tried to poison my child," I said, holding the jar in front of her eyes. "This isn't an eviction, Evelyn. This is a felony."
Her smug expression vanished. The color drained from her cheeks, leaving her face looking old, gaunt, and terrified.
"Mark... no... that was just for tea... for menopause..." she stammered, backing away.
"You've been slipping this into Anna's smoothies every morning. She didn't drink them, Evelyn. She threw them away because she knew."
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Before Evelyn could spin another lie, the blare of sirens cut through the quiet neighborhood night, getting louder, closer, reflecting flashing red and blue lights against the bedroom windows.
"The police are here," I said quietly. "Let's see what the detectives think about your herbs."
