Murder by Page One by Olivia Matthews (read aloud txt) 📗

didn’t know Fiona, but I do know Jo, perhaps better than you do. She cares deeply for this town. She opened her bookstore to share her love of reading with you.”

A flicker of doubt crossed her thin, pale features before she scowled it away. “Betty and Bobby love this town too.”

Why weren’t my words working? I tightened my grip around my tote bag and strained to keep my voice level. “Someone in our community was killed. We’re all scared. We want to find the killer and put them behind bars, but we want to arrest the right person, don’t we?”

She fisted her small hands at her sides. “Are you saying Betty and Bobby are the right people?”

I swallowed a sigh. “No, I’m not.”

“You don’t have any evidence against them, so you don’t have any right to accuse them of anything.”

“The deputies don’t have any evidence against Jo, either. So why are you suspicious of her?”

Delores did another one of her impressive fish impersonations. Circling her, I continued on my way to work.

To confront me the way she had, Delores must feel as protective of Betty as I felt toward Jo. If Delores believed Betty was innocent, why was she trying to intimidate me into leaving Betty alone? Why wasn’t she looking for other suspects the way I was, or ignoring my inquiry? Was she really convinced Betty was innocent—or was she more afraid she was not?

Chapter 16

I’d already been busy at work when Viv, Floyd, and Adrian walked into my office Wednesday morning. Floyd must’ve made quick work of the cobbler I’d left on his desk. It wasn’t much after eight o’clock, and I couldn’t imagine him coming to see me before eating it.

“Thanks for the cobbler.” Floyd tossed his gratitude toward me as he patted his stomach.

“You’re very welcome.” Even though I’d brought a cobbler to Floyd every work day for the past almost four months, he sought me out to thank me every time.

“Any new developments in the investigation?” Adrian settled his hips against the small blond wood circular conversation table beside my desk.

I took a moment to consider my answer, and gestured for Viv and Floyd to make themselves comfortable. They took the two gray guest chairs in front of my desk.

I passed over the details about my early morning intruder. There wasn’t any evidence linking that event to our case, only a very strong hunch. Besides, I wasn’t ready to talk about it. Instead, I filled them in on the information from Spence’s contact in the coroner’s office.

Viv wrapped her arms around her waist. “That gives us an idea about the killer. It’s probably somebody with a bad temper.”

The memory of Bobby’s argument with Willy this morning crossed my mind. Bobby had been pretty angry. But then, Betty seemed angry all the time. “On another note, who do you think Fiona would’ve most likely retained as her lawyer to handle her will?”

“There are a couple of well-regarded law firms in Peach Coast.” Viv’s dark eyes shone with a gleam of interest.

Floyd frowned in consideration. “You should start with Buddy’s lawyer, but you aren’t going to get anything about Fiona’s will out of him.”

“I know.” I balanced my elbows on my desk. “But maybe I could gain some insights based on nonconfidential information.”

Viv gave me a dubious look. “Buddy Hayes retained Gillis & Sweets, Attorneys at Law. They’re the highest-profile firm in town.”

Floyd made a rude noise. “I don’t know how Buddy was able to keep them. I did an internet search and found he hadn’t moved any real estate for almost a year before he died. And by my calculation, those commissions had been small.”

That was an interesting detail. “Why did his business income drop off?”

Viv played with her ruby earring. “Competition among real estate agents in Peach Coast got tougher. When Buddy first started, he was one of the only agents in town. Now, there’s an agent in every neighborhood practically.”

This information made me curious again about the size of Bobby’s trust fund. “Would you say Buddy was accustomed to a high-profile lifestyle?”

Adrian laughed out loud. “Do dogs hunt?”

I took that as a yes.

“Those high-priced lawyers were just the beginning, though.” Floyd used his fingers to count off Buddy’s additional expenses. “He was keeping up appearances with Fiona, paying alimony to Betty, and helping Bobby with his bills.”

I played with my book pendant. Today’s image was the cover of James Baldwin’s If Beale Street Could Talk. “Why was he helping Bobby with his bills?”

“Probably the same reason my parents are helping me.” Adrian shrugged. “My student debt has me so broke between paychecks that I can’t even pay attention.”

I was intimately acquainted with the strain student loans could be on a person’s budget. “How was Buddy able to pay for all of that if his business was struggling?”

“Fiona’s accounting firm was doing well.” Viv spread her hands, drawing attention to her crimson nail polish, which matched her silk blouse. “But I did wonder why they didn’t sell Fiona’s vacation cabin. It would’ve brought in a lot of money.”

That was a good point. I had another one. “If Buddy was dependent on Fiona’s income, then Fiona didn’t marry Buddy for his money. And if I’m right about that, what other rumors about Fiona were false?” A calendar reminder drew my attention to my computer monitor. It was almost time for Floyd, Viv, and I to join Corrinne for our standing Wednesday morning managers meeting. “We’d better get moving. It’s almost eight-thirty.”

I followed Viv and Floyd to Corrinne’s office. Adrian turned toward the circulation desk in the opposite direction.

Corrinne looked up as we arrived. “Ah, our meetings have been starting earlier ever since you joined us, Marvey.”

I settled onto my usual seat on one of the cushioned armchairs in Corrinne’s spacious office. “To be early is to be on time,” I quoted.

The meeting progressed as it usually did. Corrinne invited us to give our department updates. Floyd reviewed the status of various reference resources and