Dean sighed. He wished to put everything concerning the Shiptons in the circular file of his memory and get on with a normal life. While the loose ends of both Jerome Shipton's fall and Edith's suicide itched at Dean's sense of logical completion, the matter in its entirety was so repugnant to him that he didn't want to think about it. Dean said nothing, hoping the subject would die a natural death.
"She put the white dress on because she was Annie Quincy when she died," Cynthia said.
"I'll bet Annie Quincy wore her underwear," Fred grumbled. "Edith didn't. Not even her own. Edith didn't have anything on but the white dress. She didn't wear a bra or her panties or Annie's antique drawers."
"Maybe she was in a hurry," Cynthia offered. She turned to her husband. "How long after she left you did she...do it?"
"I don't know," Dean answered, a tad on the surly side. "I sure wasn't looking at a clock when I was trying to get rid of her."
"I can answer my own question," Cynthia said quietly. "Remember? I telephoned you at four-thirty."
"Edith died before five," Fred said. "That was mighty quick."
"Why would she bother to wait?" Dean asked glumly. "There wasn't anybody to stop her. That was the point of her suicide, wasn't it? There wasn't anybody left in Edith Shipton's life for her to turn to."
Dean continued to feel miserable but Fred was on a roll. "So where are the drawers?" he asked. "They weren't in Edith's room either."
"Claire the klepto swiped them," Dean said impatiently.
"Antique undies?" Cynthia said, shaking her head. "Claire didn't express any interest in Annie's clothing earlier. She was quick enough to toss in the underthings when she sold the dress to Edith that first night. Why would she steal them back later?"
"And when could she swipe 'em?" Fred asked. "I was in that room real quick after Edith died. So were you. And a little while later the police were all over the place. I never saw Claire poking around."
Cynthia turned to her husband. "It seems to me, that Edith had a very rapid mood change from flaunting her nakedness in front of Claire to...killing herself, practically minutes later. You have to admit, that's strange behavior."
Dean tried to put the matter to final rest. "Everything about Edith Shipton was strange-her moods-her personality-the fact that she lied so easily. She said she was pregnant and now there's a question about that. She said her stepson was killed canoeing with her husband when we know he died in a swimming pool-with her nearby. She claimed Shipton was nuts to have her back, when in reality, who knows how he felt? She told Franny that Donald had dumped her as his fiancée when he never considered doing any such thing. Even though she had a bruise, we only have her word that Shipton beat her. Edith Shipton was, first and foremost, a very manipulative and self-centered woman who had a love-hate relationship with every man she ever met. Who knows what went through her mind when she died?"