“There are blueberry bushes on the other side of my house, and they are laden with fresh fruit. Lucinda likes to use them in her baking.”
I said, “I’ve been fortunate enough to sample some of her baked treats. She works magic with blueberries.”
Marla Mae came out from the kitchen. “Here, let me refill that pitcher. Would y’all like a snack? We have sugar cookies and brownies.”
I passed, but Marjory opted for sugar cookies and asked Marla Mae to bring the blueberries to Lucinda. We sat enjoying the cool afternoon breeze.
Marjory said, “I could hear Dolores clear over at the blueberry bushes. I couldn’t tell what all had her upset but I could hear the rage in her voice. I certainly wouldn’t want to get on her bad side.”
I stayed mute.
After a while, Marjory tried again. “Was it about the jewelry?”
Now I was startled. Did she mean Claudia’s jewelry? That was such a private fight between Willis and Dolores that even Lucinda didn’t know the cause; how could Marjory?
“I don’t know what you mean.” Playing dumb usually got more information than most other tactics.
“Willis’s first wife, Claudia, had about a million dollars in fine jewels, which should have gone to Emily but somehow never did. Well, to hear Clancy tell it, every time Emily asked her father about the jewels, he put her off for one reason or another. Clancy was getting quite frustrated, and then Emily died, and well, Willis still has the jewelry, or I suppose it’s more accurate to say Dolores has it now. The jewelry should have gone to Emily, and then to Clancy for the little girl. Such a shame.”
I was in a position to know it wasn’t a shame at all, that Dolores had made sure Abby would get her grandmother’s jewels, but I pretended to be aghast. “Are you sure about this? Are you certain this jewelry actually exists?”
Marjory bobbed her head repeatedly. “Oh yes, quite sure. Clancy drank one too many martinis during a fairly large dinner party here at Manning Hall. He got flippant with Willis a time or two, and before real trouble could start Candy and I brought him out to the sitting garden to clear his head, and that’s when he told us. He was quite emphatic, even . . . indiscreet.”
“Indiscreet? In what way?”
“Well, he said his antique business—which, frankly, I always thought was more of a hobby—wasn’t doing well and if he had the jewelry he could take out loans against it. That way he wouldn’t have to hit up his daughter’s trust fund so often.”
I was shocked. “Oh my, he was absolutely reckless in revealing such personal information. Besides you and Candy, was anyone else there? Is it possible other people know about his financial woes?”
“Well, somewhere in the middle of Clancy’s rant Norman came out for a cigar. He is the one who finally got Clancy to stop ranting. I believe his exact words were ‘Shut up, you fool. You’ve said far too much already.’ And of course there’s Tom—I’m sure he knows. Candy tells him everything.”
That’s what you think floated through my mind.
“And speaking of Candy, I am a little . . . not exactly worried, but close—let’s say concerned.”
“Really? Why are you concerned?” I feigned ignorance. “I stopped by Jessamine House yesterday, and she seemed fine when I saw her.”
“You’re probably right. She just doesn’t seem herself since Willis died. She’s always on edge. I guess we’re all in turmoil. Everyone was so upset by the shock of Willis’s death, and now the sheriff has deemed it a murder.” Marjory shivered. “Well, that makes it bone-chilling. Positively bone-chilling. I mean, one minute we were all together, and within hours Willis was dead, and someone made it happen.”
Obviously Marjory didn’t know the secrets of Candy’s past.
She stood. “Well, that’s enough doom and gloom for one day. I’d better get home. Jessica, it was lovely to have tea the other day. Please stop by anytime you are out for a jog.”
The kitchen door opened and Abby called, “Miss Jessica, come see the big surprise.”
And the door slammed shut. Well, she’s here and she’s laughing, so Dolores and Clancy must have pulled off the ride home from the school pickup line without any angst or confrontation.
I entered the kitchen and it was filled with smiling people. Clancy, Dolores, and Elton were standing in front of the kitchen table while Lucinda and Marla Mae stood near the sink.
“Close your eyes,” Abby commanded.
I did as I was told. She took my hand and led me slowly toward the table, giggling all the way.
“When I count to three, you can open your eyes. One . . . two . . . three . . . open,” Abby shouted.
Everyone started to clap and laugh. On the table sat what I thought was a chocolate sheet cake until I read the sign next to it that declared it to be COLA CAKE in big letters.
“It’s snack time,” Abby proclaimed. Dolores began cutting the cake while Marla Mae offered hot tea, sweet tea, and coffee to the grown-ups. Lucinda put a healthy-sized glass of milk on the table in front of Abby.
Everyone crowded around to watch me take my first-ever bite of cola cake, and they cheered when I pronounced it delicious.
“Can I crash this party, or is it by invitation only?” Norman Crayfield had come down the hallway and stood in the kitchen doorway.
Dolores grabbed his arm and pulled him into the room. “Come, join us, please. We’re celebrating Jessica’s first taste of cola cake, but not her last, I’m sure.”
“Most certainly not my last!” I agreed.
Norman folded his arms. “I can’t imagine what Willis Nickens would think of this: family, friends, and servants all carousing together. Not his kind of party, that’s for sure.”
And in a flash the joy dissipated. Norman had managed to remind everyone of the pall Willis had often cast on social occasions. Only Abby didn’t notice. Her mouth delightfully covered with chocolate, she
