Who'll Kill Agnes? Read Online Free PDF

TWO
     

Sunday, June 2nd
     
     
    Relaxing in her elegantly furnished third floor suite, Agnes Henley contemplated her wonderful life. True, she was a little overweight, but at age fifty-plus she carried herself well. She never admitted her age to anyone, not even to herself. The weight gain was due, she was sure, to the fact that she could employ a real French chef. The luxury of eating Marcel’s creamy, buttery sauce was something she had worked hard for and would not relinquish. Besides, she was a nutritionist and she ate enough healthy food. What harm could a little weight gain do? Everything else in her life was perfect. She had a prominent position in the Magnolia Creek School District, although she was disappointed that she had not yet been promoted to director of nutrition. Publicly, she announced to everyone around her that she didn’t want the additional responsibility of the higher position, and privately, she tried to convince herself that she had enough prestige and respect in the community to satisfy her dreams of power.
    Although in reality her public career had not reached the magnitude she thought she deserved, her home-life was one of perfection. Her husband Lester adored her. Never mind that each had maintained separate bedrooms for years. Poor Lester had a sleeping disorder. Her sister Audrey had worshiped her all her life, trying desperately but ineptly to follow in her footsteps. Poor Audrey could never have maintained an independent life without her older sister’s direction.
    Thank heavens years ago she was able to convince dear Aunt Hilda to leave everything to her. What a tragedy it would have been if Audrey had squandered the family fortune on a modeling career. Agnes shivered at the thought. Her best friend Penelope would always be indebted to her. The pathetic little thing had been such a failure at everything she tried. She was so lucky to have a friend like Agnes to provide her with a home and companionship.Agnes smiled beneficently.
    The crowning jewel of her life was Kevin, her dear precious son, for whom she had worked so hard in order that he might have all the luxuries, comforts, and social prominence that a small community offered. She arose from the purple velvet divan that she had inherited from her aunt and crossed the sitting room to gaze downward through the side window to the pool area below. There was Kevin relaxing on a lounge chair in the late Sunday afternoon sun. Yes, everything in her life centered on him.
    The only thorn in Agnes Henley’s perfect life was her daughter-in-law, Bernadette. What a little bitch she was and what nerve she had worming her way into the Henley family. Now, now, she chastised herself, she knew she shouldn’t think bad thoughts. Kevin had made a terrible mistake letting that little hussy entrap him. If only she could have known what he was doing, she would have put a stop to it. But the poor dear boy was just too young and inexperienced. She had no problem convincing herself that she could get Kevin to come to his senses and divorce the skinny little parasite.
    In the meantime she would set an example for Bernadette to follow so that, beneath her lower-class exterior, Bernadette would admire and respect her accomplished mother-in-law. But when Kevin did divorce her, she wouldn’t get a dime from the Henleys.
    Agnes gazed past her adorable Kevin and the pool and rested her eyes on her other pride and passion, her gardens full of flowers, herbs, and vegetables. Yes, she had proved herself to be quite the botanist, earning envy and admiration from the townspeople of Magnolia Creek. With her combined knowledge in nutrition and botany it was only a matter of time before she was promoted to director of nutrition, not that she really wanted it, she kept telling herself, but she would do her civic duty if asked.
    She tore herself away from the window with its views of her two great loves, her son and her gardens. She turned toward her full-length mirror