Mischief in Mudbug (Ghost-in-Law, #2)(74)

“Why not?”

“Well, like the article about William receiving a medal of bravery for being shot in the leg trying to help another soldier. You’d think she would have highlighted his name and medal of bravery, right? But instead, she’d highlighted the text that mentioned the shot he took to the leg. They were all like that. I couldn’t make any sense of the things she highlighted. I started to take them, but I figured it wasn’t a good idea.”

“No,” Sabine agreed. “We don’t want anyone to get suspicious. And be careful when you search and make sure you put everything back exactly as you found it, okay?”

“I’m being careful,” Helena promised. “After that I took a trip to Frances’s room and what a doozy that was. The woman has more crosses in that tiny space than the entire cathedral in Rome and a candle on every level surface. I figure either she’s trying to repent for something major or believes in vampires. Then I found a newspaper stashed in between her mattresses.”

Sabine nodded. “Catherine mentioned something about Frances reading the newspaper again. I got the impression they tried to keep it from her.”

“Well, the odd part about this one is it was a month old. So I flipped through it and you’ll never guess what I found—that photo of you at that breast cancer walk in New Orleans. Your picture was circled along with a comment in the article about you owning Read ’em and Reap.”

Sabine sucked in a breath. “That’s how she knew about me before Beau contacted Mr. Alford. She saw me in the paper and noticed my resemblance to her brother. Could it have been Frances who tried to break into my store?”

Helena nodded. “I wondered that myself, so I took off out of there and made my way through the garage and the carriage house. Sure enough, in the carriage house there was the white truck that I saw in the park the day of the break-in.”

“You’re sure it was the same?”

“It was the same make and model. I’m pretty sure there’s another one or two in the world like it but it’s too big of a coincidence to ignore, don’t you think?”

“Yes,” Sabine agreed, “and with Catherine busy with church things and William throwing them back at the bar, Frances would have had plenty of opportunities to take the truck and pay me a visit. But for what?” Sabine frowned and repeated everything Helena had said so far to Beau.

Beau shook his head. “Maybe she was going to talk to you but when the shop was closed, she figured no one was there and she’d do some snooping. Lord only knows for what…a birth certificate, pictures? Either way, I don’t think it’s a coincidence that the truck is the same make and model as the one Helena saw.”

Sabine frowned. “But what about the person I kicked that night outside of the general store? That couldn’t have been Frances. A kick would have sent her sprawling.”

“Not necessarily,” Beau said. “Sometimes the insane can show remarkable strength if they’re experiencing an adrenaline rush. It’s documented all the time.”

“And the poison…the bomb? Do you really think Frances is capable of those things?”

“No,” Beau said, “but I think she’s capable of getting someone else to do them, and I’m sure she’s got the trust fund to back it up. But we also have to remember that anyone with access to the household could have used that truck. Frances might be winning the insanity wars, but we still don’t know for sure it was her that tried to break into your store, or that attacked you on the street. And if it was, we don’t know that she was alone.”

“True. But who would help her commit a crime and why?”

“She’d do it for the inheritance,” Helena chimed in. “If the Fortescues’ estate was set up anything like my family’s, then your father, as firstborn, would inherit the house and all its contents, along with his share of the estate. Since he’s dead, his portion would pass to you as his firstborn.”

“And skip Frances entirely?”

Helena nodded. “The house could, yes. And I’m guessing this place is worth a pretty penny.”

Sabine repeated Helena’s comments to Beau. “It reminds me of something Catherine said when she invited me to dinner. About being the ‘firstborn child of a firstborn child.’ ”

“So quite possibly, a fortune at stake,” Beau said, “and more importantly, her home. Maybe Frances was afraid she’d have to leave.”

“I would never do that,” Sabine protested.

“You and I know that,” Beau said, “but Frances doesn’t, and she’s not exactly playing with a full deck. The more I hear, the less I like this idea of you playing bait, Sabine. I think—” He stopped talking as Adelaide walked into the room.

“If you are ready,” Adelaide said, “I can take you to your rooms now.”



Beau’s mind raced with possibilities, none of them good. This situation had gone from bad, to horrible, to out of the f*cking world in less than ten minutes time. If there was ever a situation where he needed to think quickly and clearly, it was now. But the overload of information, coupled with being stranded in Hell House—accompanied by a ghost, no less—had his mind racing out of control. Keeping Sabine safe, then getting her out of that house was his top priority and he needed a plan. Yesterday.