by Kathi Daley
Georgia began pulling items from the refrigerator she wanted to prep for breakfast the following morning, so I made a pot of decaf coffee. I was about to go looking for a cookie when the dark-haired sister who I’d yet to meet poked her head in through the kitchen door.
“I’m sorry to interrupt you,” she said.
“No problem at all,” Georgia answered with a smile. “How can I help you?”
“I know we were served our meal while we talked with the attorney and his assistant, but to be honest, I was too nervous to eat a bite. I wondered if I could maybe make a sandwich.”
“Certainly. Come in and have a seat.” Georgia looked at me. “This is Abby. She owns the place. Abby, this is Sierra Danielson.”
“I’m happy to meet you,” I greeted. “Pull up a stool. Georgia always keeps plenty of sandwich fixings on hand.”
She slid onto one of the stools that lined the counter. “Thank you. I really appreciate this.”
“So, how did the meeting go?” Georgia asked as she pulled out a baggie with sliced ham.
Sierra took a deep breath. “I guess it went okay.” She frowned. “To be honest, I still haven’t been able to wrap my head around the fact that not only do I have two half-sisters, but I had a grandmother who left me one-third of a huge estate as well.” She narrowed her gaze. “Mr. Wilson, the attorney who showed up to cover for Mr. Hollander, used the term tens of millions.”
“That is a lot to take in,” I sympathized.
“Yeah. Don’t get me wrong, I’m thrilled that this woman I never had a chance to meet has left me enough money to pursue ten graduate degrees if I want, plus pay off my student loans from the degrees I already have, but it is a lot to take in.”
“What did you think of your sisters?” Georgia asked as she scooped some macaroni salad onto a plate next to the sandwich.
“They seem really nice.” Sierra rolled her lips. “They are very different than me. Both Shelby and Sage seem very outgoing and extroverted, while I’m most happy in a quiet room with my books and research. It was nice that they carried the conversation with Mr. Wilson. They both jumped right in and asked all the right questions, so all I had to do was sit and listen. If they hadn’t been there, I would probably have been totally tongue-tied and unable to ask what needed to be asked.”
“Coffee?” Georgia asked after sliding the sandwich and macaroni salad in front of Sierra.
“Milk, if you have it.”
“I do.” Georgia headed toward the refrigerator.
“Thank you.” She smiled as she accepted the glass. “I really do appreciate this.”
“No problem at all,” Georgia assured her.
“I thought about just waiting to eat until breakfast, but then I realized I was going to have a hard enough time sleeping without having to deal with a growling stomach on top of everything else.” She took a sip of her milk. “I’m supposed to meet Sage and Shelby in the sitting room tomorrow morning, so we can go over our plan to tackle the project that seems to be attached to our inheritance. Sage already told us that she doesn’t eat breakfast, so I figured I should eat now in case they wanted to start early.”
“If you need a snack at any time, you’re free to help yourself to whatever you can find,” Georgia said.
“Thank you. I appreciate that.” She took a bite of her sandwich and chewed slowly. It really did look delicious.
“So, tell us about this project,” I said after she’d had a chance to eat most of her food and had slowed to the nibbling stage.
“It’s sort of like a scavenger hunt. There are people the three of us are supposed to visit and speak to. There are places to visit and questions to answer. Mr. Wilson said he thought the project was meant to provide a means for the three of us to not only get to know each other but to learn something about our ancestry as well. It had been Mr. Hollander who’d worked with Ms. Rosewood on her will and not Mr. Wilson, so he didn’t have all the details, but based on what he’d read, it seems that Ms. Rosewood wanted us to have an overview of things before we began making decisions about liquidating assets. I guess I understand that. Our grandmother not only left us the house here on the coast, but she also left us a house in Boston.”
“Wow. The homes alone must be worth a fortune,” I said.
“I’m sure they are. There are also liquid assets: cash, stocks, bonds, that sort of thing. There are antiques and collectibles to be dealt with, as well as cars and furnishings to be liquidated. The will doesn’t seem to limit how we divide things up or how we go about liquidating the assets, but it is very clear that we are to complete the project before we make any decisions.”
“It sounds like you will be busy,” Georgia said.
“Very busy. There are a lot of people to talk to and a lot of places to visit. Just accomplishing those two tasks will take most, if not all, of the ten days we’re here. But there are also questions to answer and research to be done. I have a feeling that even with three of us pitching in, we’re going to have to hustle to get everything done in time.”
“Do your sisters seem as overwhelmed as you seem to feel at this moment?” Georgia asked.
She shrugged. “Sage is really controlled. It seems obvious to me that she’s used to appearing cool and collected, even in stressful situations. She appeared to be happy about the inheritance and accepting of the terms of the will, but I sensed she was more about completing the task at hand than anything else. Shelby, on the other hand, seemed more interested in the people involved. She asked a lot of questions about our grandmother and our father and any aunts, uncles, or cousins who might be lurking around. I had the feeling she was really intrigued to have all these new people in her life, whereas Sage seemed more interested in doing what we needed to do to get the money and return to our regular lives.”
“And you?” I asked.
She shrugged. “The money will go a long way toward helping me accomplish the goals I’ve set for myself, although I am interested in finding out more about the people who came before me. I’m hoping this project that the three of us have been tasked with will give us all a better understanding of who our grandmother was and why she went to all the trouble to set things up the way she did.” She slid off the stool. “I find I’m really exhausted. Thank you for the sandwich, macaroni salad, and milk. I really should get some sleep. I’ll see you in the morning.”
Georgia and I wished her goodnight, and then Georgia returned to her food prep.
“The project Henrietta Rosewood left for her granddaughters sounds interesting, and it seems she must have put a lot of thought into it,” I said. “She obviously knew of the existence of these women, even if they didn’t know about her. I wonder why she didn’t reach out to them when she was alive.”
Georgia began slicing oranges. “Good question. It does seem as if it was important to her that the girls not only get to know each other but that they learn something about their father’s family as well. It does seem she would have reached out to them while she was alive, but maybe there was a reason she couldn’t.”
“Like what?” I asked, getting up to refill my coffee cup. Deciding to add a little cream, I headed toward the refrigerator.
She shrugged. “Maybe she promised her son she wouldn’t, or maybe there was some sort of an agreement that she’d made with the mothers of the three women.”
“I suppose it might have been something like that.” I took a sip of my coffee and slipped back onto the stool. “I wonder if the mothers are still alive.”
“Another good question. I suppose we can ask the sisters at some point. If the mothers are still alive, I wonder if they will try to worm themselves into the situation.”
“What do you mean?”
“We are talking about a lot of money. If these women all bore children after having a relationship with the son of this woman who we know has millions of dollars in cash and assets, it seems reasonable that one or more of the three might decide they want their cut as well.”
&n
bsp; I supposed Georgia had a point. It did seem like the potential existed for the three mothers to decide to become involved at some point. Of course, I’m sure Henrietta thought of that and took measures to ensure that wouldn’t occur. I said as much to Georgia.
“Yeah, I guess you’re right. The grandmother probably considered all the angles, and she must have felt confident that the assets would be left to her three granddaughters without other relatives trying to make a claim,” Georgia agreed. “I just hope the sisters all get along, and this social experiment doesn’t end up backfiring.”
Georgia had a point. Just because the sisters would be forced to work together didn’t necessarily mean they’d get along. They lived separate lives, and each had their own reason for wanting and needing the money they’d been promised. It bothered me a little that Sierra had indicated that they could choose as a group to dispose of and divide the assets any way they wanted. I had to wonder what would happen if the three sisters were unable to agree on exactly how that should be accomplished.
Chapter 5
By the time I met Colt for lunch Thursday, he’d been able to eliminate most of the potential suspects he’d originally come up with. Justin Marlow had been sitting in the audience with a group of parents watching their children as they rehearsed when the murder occurred. Karl Grafton had gone out into the hallway to make a phone call, which initially hadn’t netted an actual alibi, but his phone records confirmed that he was indeed on his cell when the murder went down, so Colt was inclined to believe him. Scotty Crabtree had gone to the men’s room about the same time Colt figured Hollander had been murdered, and luckily, for him, one of the kids had seen him, and they’d walked back to the theater together. Of course, there was the off chance that Scotty had killed Hollander before going into the men’s room, but it was sort of unlikely, and Scotty didn’t really have a motive, so Colt decided to move him to the bottom of the list. The only adult tall and strong enough to have hit and killed Hollander in a downward motion that didn’t appear to have an alibi for his whereabouts was George Manheim. George had told Colt that he had gone outside for a smoke, but unfortunately, no one had seen him. Colt had left him on his list of suspects, but, like Scotty, George didn’t appear to have a motive, so he wasn’t putting a lot of weight on the idea that he might be the killer.
In terms of suspects with a motive outside the cast and crew involved with the play, Colt had a bunch. Unfortunately, there were too many to be helpful. Hollander had been an attorney, and it did seem as if he’d taken on some controversial cases. There were twelve Holiday Bay residents involved in the lawsuit against Hollander’s client, Daryl Prater, alone. I wasn’t saying that any of the twelve would take out their frustration with an act of violence, but as Georgia and I had discussed, when large amounts of money were involved, anything was possible.
And then there was the fact that Hollander had defended the son of a prominent businessman from a driving while under the influence charge just a month earlier. Not only had the seventeen-year-old been smashed when he’d driven himself home, but he’d run a popular resident of the Holiday Bay Senior Retirement Community off the road, causing her to suffer a two-week stay in the hospital. Hollander’s client had gotten off with time served and community service. There were a lot of folks mad about that, but I really didn’t think anyone would be angry enough to commit murder.
And so the dance began. Colt spent most of his time adding names to his suspect list, looking into the whereabouts and motives for the names on his list, deleting some and adding others. He hadn’t asked me to help, and so far, I hadn’t offered. It seemed to me that the truth would eventually come out once Colt was able to whittle down the list a bit.
As for the play itself, the committee had officially decided to cancel it. I could see that Lacy was disappointed, but with everything that had happened, it just didn’t seem to make sense to continue. Of course, that just meant that Lacy would have a head start on the Christmas Village sponsored by the local chamber of commerce. I really wasn’t sure where she got her energy, but she did seem to be happiest when she was over the top busy. Today, she’d managed to talk me into going to Portland with her to look at the costumes she wanted to order for the wandering carolers.
“So, what’s going on with the three sisters?” Lacy asked as we traveled south.
“They’ve certainly been busy since they checked in,” I answered. “I really haven’t had much opportunity to talk to any of them in depth since this whole thing started. What I do know is that the sisters have been given a list of tasks to perform. There were people to talk to, places to visit, and questions to answer. I also know that the three sisters have a trip to the family estate planned for tomorrow. While they are there, it appears they will need to make some decisions as to what to do with some of their grandmother’s personal possessions.”
“That seems like an emotional thing to have to go through.”
I nodded. “Even though none of them knew their grandmother, I’m sure it will be. My biggest worry, however, is that the sisters won’t agree about what is to be done. So far, they seem to all be getting along really well, but they haven’t been asked to make any real decisions yet.”
Lacy merged onto the main highway. “You mentioned in the beginning that it seemed as if all three of the sisters really wanted and needed the money.”
“I did say that, and it does seem that way. Logic would dictate that they’d agree to cash out, each take their share and get on with their lives. It’s not like they live near each other. One sister lives in South Carolina, another lives in LA, and the other is planning to move to Belgium. I really don’t see any family dinners in their future.”
Lacy frowned. “That’s actually too bad. Sure, they’re basically perfect strangers, but they’re also sisters. It would be nice if they could maintain some sort of relationship.”
“Yeah,” I agreed. “Maybe they will. I guess that will be up to them.”
“Did you ever find out if any of their mothers are in the picture?” Lacy asked.
“Sierra’s mother passed away about five years ago. She has no siblings. Sage’s mother lives in New York. She’s married to a record producer, and they have a son together. I think, based on what Sage said, she and her mother get along okay, but they really don’t get together all that often given the fact they live on opposite coasts. And while Shelby’s mother is still alive and even living in the same general area as Shelby, from what I can tell, they are not close. In fact, I think they are very much estranged. Shelby made a comment about not having seen her for years and not wanting to change that now.”
“That’s too bad.” Lacy sped up a bit as the road opened up. “It makes me sad when families are estranged.”
“Yeah. It is too bad.” I glanced out the window as Lacy exited the highway. “Are you planning to buy or rent these costumes?”
“Rent. I don’t know that they’ll have as many as I need in the sizes I need at this late date, but I figured there was no harm in taking a look at what they had left. If what they have doesn’t work out, I’ll just go to Plan B.”
“Couldn’t you have just asked them to send photos of what they have along with sizes rather than making this long drive?”
Lacy smiled. “I could have, but then I wouldn’t have an excuse to stop by that antique store I love so much.”
“Ah,” I said. “The real motive becomes apparent.”
The real motive becomes apparent. I thought about that for a minute. I had to wonder if the motive of the person who killed Dashwood Hollander might be something other than the obvious motives, which Colt had identified and was busily tracking down. Perhaps I’d need to keep this in mind as the investigation progressed.
Once we arrived at the costume shop, I hung out in the background while Lacy chatted with the manager of the store. She had a specific look in mind, and there were the variable sizes to consider, although most costumes weren’t form-fitting and could be worn by those of a v
ariety of shapes and heights. Lacy was going for a Victorian theme, but the owner of the shop was doing a good job convincing her that with a few key “props” or accessories, most of her carolers could simply wear clothes they already had.
To be honest, I wasn’t all that interested in the negotiation, so I headed out into the parking area to call Georgia and check-in. I’d left shortly after breakfast this morning since I’d had several errands to do before meeting Colt, and I knew she had a couple check-ins, one of which she was afraid might provide a conflict.
“So did the couple from Vail check-in?” I asked after she picked up.
“They did. And they weren’t happy that I’d moved them from suite six to suite two since they had requested suite six when they booked their stay. I explained that while we took requests into consideration, we couldn’t guarantee the availability of a specific suite and that we’d had a group who’d needed the top two floors. Of course, they didn’t care about that and made sure I was aware of their displeasure, but I offered them a gift card for a two-night stay during the offseason, and they seemed to be placated, at least on the surface.”
“It made sense to move them. They’re only staying with us for two nights, and the three sisters are booked for ten. And it is very clear on the website that room requests will be taken into account when room assignments are made based on overall reservations and cannot be guaranteed.”
“It does say that, and I always remind people of that when the reservations are made. I do feel bad, but I still think we did the right thing.”
“Are the sisters there today?” I wondered.
“They were here this morning, but they headed out together after lunch. Apparently, they’re involved in some sort of treasure hunt today.”
“Sounds like fun.”
“It does. I have to say that the woman who put all this together went to a lot of effort. It must have taken weeks or maybe even months of planning.”
