Mercedes pressed the palms of her hands together. “I’ve been meaning to ask you if Montgomery Hall is haunted, you know with ghosts.”
“Of course it is.” Tori smiled. “No old Savannah manor would be complete without a ghost or two. I’ve never seen one, but have felt a presence on numerous occasions, especially in my conservatory and in William’s cigar room across the hall.”
She pointed to the drawing room door. “We’ll begin the tour in my office where we can perhaps assemble a list of suspects.”
Tori led them out of the room and down the hall. They entered another smaller side door. It opened to a wing of the house Carlita had never seen before.
“The original plan was for this room to be our conservatory.” Tori walked down the hall and stopped in front of a set of double doors. “But I fell in love with the light, airy interior and claimed it as my office.”
She pulled a skeleton key from her pocket and stuck it in the lock. “As a rule, I don’t keep my office locked, but with the recent string of incidents I started locking it.” The door creaked as Tori pushed it open. She flipped the light switch before motioning them inside.
The arched entrance opened to a two-story wall of windows that covered three sides of the room. In the center of the Saltillo floor was a Mediterranean medallion inlay.
A tiffany lamp on the corner of the mahogany L-shaped desk beckoned them into the room.
“This room is gorgeous.” Mercedes stepped over to the window. “If it were me, I would hang a hammock by this window and sleep under the stars at night.”
“It is my favorite room as well,” Tori said. “When William was alive, we would spend our evenings in this wing of the house…him in his cigar room, some nights with his business partners, while I would drag my telescope out for an evening of star gazing.”
Her heels clicked sharply on the tile floor as she crossed the room and made her way behind the desk. “Please, have a seat.”
Carlita sank into a chair facing the desk. The smell of old leather filled the air. Mercedes plopped down in the chair next to her mother and patted the armrest. “I bet these set you back a pretty penny.”
“Mercedes,” Carlita chided.
“It’s all right. They did cost a pretty penny and they were worth every cent.” Tori opened a desk drawer, pulled out a notepad and set it on top. “We can start with a list of suspects and what we know.”
She picked up a pen. “I hate to do this, but I’m afraid we must put Iris at the top of the list of suspects. We can also add Jenny, one of my part-timers. Mrs. O’Brien said Jenny and Ava exchanged words shortly before the party started.”
Carlita interrupted. “Does Jenny live here, as well?”
“Not full-time.” Tori shook her head. “Jenny has been here for a couple of days. She arrived the day before yesterday to help with the party preparations.”
Tori went on to explain that although the authorities had only conducted a preliminary examination of Ava’s body, they believed she had been dead for at least an hour before her body was found. “The employees’ living quarters are on the second floor and in the back, with a private entrance accessed via the rear courtyard. It’s the only way in and out for them. Once the storm lets up, I’ll take you there and show you around.”
Carlita shifted in her chair. “You said Ava was hired on a recommendation. I’m sure you do thorough background checks on all of your employees before hiring them. Nothing stood out that may have been a red flag?”
“Well.” Tori frowned. “I dare say I’ve been remiss in my background checks and some things may have slid by.”
“You don’t check out your employees before hiring them?” Mercedes asked.
“I do and I don’t. If they come highly recommended by a friend, then I normally don’t bother. If it’s someone answering an ad and not a personal referral, then I run a thorough background check.”
“There’s gotta be motive and opportunity.” Carlita tapped her finger on the arm of the chair. “All of your employees would have opportunity to take Ava out, with access to the drawing room and the weapons. The motive will prove to be a little trickier. Obviously, Iris had motive…Patrick. Jenny may or may not have had motive.”
“Oh, she had motive,” Tori said. “Mrs. O’Brien said she overheard part of the argument between Ava and Jenny. Ava threatened to report Jenny for using her cell phone during working hours, which is a big no-no. I pay my employees to work, not to text their friends.”
“We’re up to two with motive and opportunity,” Carlita said. “Is there anyone else you can think of who might be considered a suspect?”
Tori fidgeted in her chair. “There is one more.”
“And…” Mercedes prompted.
“It’s Lucien. The police questioned him extensively.”
Carlita shook her head. “Why Lucien? Did Ava tick him off too?”
“No, but Lucien has a criminal record.” Tori slid out of the chair and stared out the window. “He was in jail years ago on an attempted murder charge.”
“Well, that doesn’t look good,” Carlita admitted. “Where’s the motive? Surely, he wasn’t after Patrick, too.”
“No, but he didn’t care for Ava.” Tori crossed her arms. “My employees…and I hate to refer to them as employees, because they’re more like family. Ava managed to – how do you say? Upset the applecart. She was a troublemaker and she even reported Lucien, telling me she thought he was a stalker and was watching her everywhere she went.”
“Do you think it’s true?” Mercedes asked.
“Yes. As I said, we’re like family. Lucien and Iris are close, like brother and
