The Cluttered Corpse Read Free Page A

duckies from the only visible chair.
    I stayed standing. “I can see why you want to get your collection in hand. This will be a spectacular space when you’re done.”
    â€œYou think we can do it?” By this time she had a bead of sweat on her upper lip. She might love these creatures, but they were giving her grief. Why was she letting this happen? But, of course, that was what I needed to figure out.
    I said, “It will be great. We’ll have fun.”
    â€œDo you think? That’s a relief. I’ve been feeling so overwhelmed.”
    Emmy Lou was the kind of client I loved: she knew what she needed to do but not how to do it. I could tell she would follow through.
    â€œAs soon as we have a plan, you’re going to feel better. Let’s check out the rest of this level. Is there another bedroom?”
    â€œOh. Yes, but it’s sort of an office.”
    â€œOkay, we’ll have a look. We might need it for swing space.”
    She bit her lip. “There’s nowhere to swing anything. Certainly not a stuffed cat.”
    I grinned. “Cute.”
    She said wryly, “Too bad it’s true.”
    â€œAnd how about the bathroom?”
    She hesitated. “It’s not too bad. Not like this. Now that you’re here, I have to look at all this stuff in a new light. I can’t believe that this whole collection has gotten so totally out of hand.”
    I shrugged. “It happens.”
    She reached out, picked up a toy Dalmatian, and stroked its spotted fun fur. “It feels so lovely. Do you like plush toys?”
    Sometimes it’s better not to disclose your likes and dislikes to clients. “I have two real dogs. They’re pretty overwhelming sometimes too.”
    â€œI’ve never had a dog,” she said. “Only these.” She pointed toward a pile of cuddly doglike creatures, pale blue, green, and pink. She definitely had a pastel theme going with the stuffies.
    â€œReal ones are a lot more trouble,” I said. “Trust me.”
    â€œI’m not sure that’s true. Do they multiply overnight?”
    â€œWhy? Do your stuffed animals multiply overnight?” I chuckled.
    She gave a nervous giggle, at odds with her sophisticated look. “They’re popping up everywhere. I don’t even remember buying some of them. I guess that’s when you know your collection is out of control.”
    â€œThey’re not all sentimental purchases?”
    â€œSome of them, for sure. It started when I first met Dwayne. We were on our third date and we were strolling past a toy store. I told him I’d never had a stuffed toy as a child.”
    Ah, I thought. That might explain a bit.
    â€œSo he bought you one?”
    â€œOne? You probably noticed that Dwayne is a bit dramatic. He charged into the shop and bought me one of every kind they had. And I loved them, of course. And him too, it goes without saying.”
    Hmm. Maybe the problem with the overabundance didn’t lie with Emmy Lou after all. Good thing we were taking our time getting to know the situation.
    â€œDid he buy all these?”
    â€œOh no. I was hooked almost instantly. My own kind of crystal meth. He bought me lots and lots, although he’s stopped doing it lately. He must have realized that he’d unleashed a monster.”
    I wanted to put a stop to that kind of negative self-talk, as they call it. It makes the process harder. “Emmy Lou, you’re obviously a very capable person. So you have a collection that you love and it’s got the upper hand. That’s no biggie. You’d be surprised by how many normal people have a problem like this in some part of their life. It’s good news for me, because I have to make a living. Once we find a way to manage these fluffy creatures, you’ll be happy with them again.”
    â€œThat’s good because I can’t resist them. And they’re everywhere, even in the grocery