Liz stood and put her napkin on the table. As she turned for the kitchen, she heard David Worth’s raised voice. “I will not keep quiet any longer. I refuse to sit in a room with that Casanova, Captain Clyde, acting like he didn’t make a play for my dearly departed wife. I even have proof! I found a bottle of Chanel perfume with a note in my wife’s Birkin.” David tried to stand, but he wobbled and plopped back onto his seat. There was a second bottle of wine on the table, and it was half empty. David was high or drunk—or both.
Ryan said, “Steady, old boy. Let me help you to your suite.”
“I don’t want to go to my suite. What right did he have to give her Coco Mademoiselle!”
Both Betty and Aunt Amelia said in unison, “Coco Mademoiselle!” Then they each turned to Captain Netherton, who had a cat-that-ate-the-canary look on his face.
Uh-oh. It looked like Captain Netherton had been buying the same perfume for all his ladies.
“My beautiful wife was not a ‘mademoiselle’! She was happily married to me!”
Agent Pearson stood, then went over to David.
David had lost all his bluster and his chin was on his chest, his eyes glassy from the wine and drugs. She said, “Ryan, please escort Mr. Worth to his suite.” Then she turned and said, “Mr. Netherton, could you please meet me in the lobby?”
The captain stood and performed a little bow. “Of course. My pleasure.”
Chapter 30
After dinner, Betty and Ryan met Liz at the door to the library. Liz put the antique key in the keyhole, opened the door, and ushered them in. Then she locked the door behind them.
Betty walked to the desk and rifled through her handbag for the printed photo of the note tied to the rock. She took it out, then dove back in for the copies of the rent checks Liz had given her before dinner. Liz could see why she was having a hard time finding anything in her handbag, which was more of an overnight satchel. She extracted an iPad, crochet hooks, tape measures, three granny squares and a neon orange skein of yarn, just to name a few of the items. Betty belonged on the TV game show Let’s Make a Deal. Aunt Amelia had already been on the show in the late sixties, when she lived in Burbank. When Monty Hall had come up the aisle and asked Aunt Amelia if she had a tube of toothpaste in her handbag, Aunt Amelia almost fainted. She not only had toothpaste, but also a toothbrush, dental floss, and a pair of false buckteeth she’d used for one of her parts in the sitcom The Beverly Hillbillies.
Aunt Amelia’s “pocketbook” held so many surprises that when Liz was a child, she would close her eyes, reach in, and call out an item. If she guessed it right, her great-aunt would allow her a single stick of Wrigley’s Spearmint gum. She’d explained to Liz that when she was a young girl, during WWII, Wrigley’s Spearmint gum wasn’t available at her local candy store because the company sent their entire inventory overseas to the GIs fighting for America’s freedom. To this day, when Liz was near Aunt Amelia and her handbag was open, the scent of Wrigley’s Spearmint gum took her back to her own childhood.
Betty pulled out the copies of canceled rent checks and compared them against the writing on the note. Bingo! Francie Jenkins was the winner.
Liz wasn’t surprised. They’d solved that puzzle, but it only opened the door to more questions. Could Francie also be the one who had murdered Regina and stabbed David? It seemed a big leap. “If Francie doesn’t come in to the emporium tomorrow, I’ll go to her cottage and talk to her. I don’t think we should tell Agent Pearson anything about this until afterward.”
“It might be too late,” Ryan said. “Remember, I told you earlier that Agent Pearson was at the emporium looking for Francie.”
Betty put the photocopies back in her bag. “Liz, I’d suggest that you get up early to go see Francie.”
“I will. Now, why don’t we have a seat and talk about what Ryan uncovered in David Worth’s suite.”
He grinned. “How do you know I found anything?”
“’Cause you’re a snoopy pants,” Liz said.
“Spoken like a true bossy pants.”
Liz and Betty sat on one of the sofas and Ryan pulled an armchair up next to them. He retrieved his phone from his pocket and said, “What if I told you I’d discovered a copy of Regina and David Worth’s prenup—and a copy of Regina’s will?”
“I’d say, ‘No, you didn’t!’” Liz exclaimed.
“Did,” he said. “However, just from all the photos I took with my phone, it doesn’t look like he stands to inherit anything from her death.”
He tapped his screen, then handed Betty his phone.
“May I e-mail or text these to my iPad? I need a bigger screen to view them.”
“Of course,” he replied.
Liz added, “I’d love a copy, too.”
“Sure,” Ryan said.
Betty stopped for a minute and looked over at Ryan. “Stellar work, Mr. Stone. You even took a photo of his prescription bottle, which gives us his doctor’s name, where maybe we can find more about…”
“His wound and whether it was self-inflicted,” Ryan finished.
“But if it was self-inflicted,” Liz asked, “what would his motive be if he doesn’t stand to inherit anything?”
“At this point, if it wasn’t self-inflicted, it would just be a confirmation that he’s not in the upper echelon of our suspect list,” Betty replied.
“Speaking of a suspect list,” Liz said. “What do you think of David’s accusation against Captain Netherton?” Betty pretended to be busy e-mailing, but pink flushed her cheeks. “Come on, Betty, confession time. Did you happen to also receive a bottle of Chanel’s Coco Mademoiselle from our captain?”
She looked up.
