My voice was soft, but Melissa stopped talking.

Mrs.

Gable grabbed her garden basket and hurried off toward her back patio without a backward glance.

Sandra clicked her pen twice and climbed the front steps past Melissa.

“I’ll start with the bedrooms on the upper floor,” Sandra told Margaret.

“Go right on ahead,” Margaret said.

Melissa spun on her heel and stormed inside, letting the screen door bang against the wooden jamb.

“I’m calling everybody,” Melissa shouted from the foyer.