Digging Up The Dirt

Peanut walked over to the deputy and stared up at her, waiting to be noticed. She had been friendly before, and he now expected some attention from her. Kanesha frowned at him for a moment, then patted his head. “Nice to see you, too, Peanut.”

The dog barked and wagged his tail. Happy now, he returned to Benjy’s side. Endora paid the deputy no attention whatsoever.

An’gel rose. “We’ll be happy to get home. But there is a matter I’d like to discuss with you. Do you think you might have time to come by Riverhill for a few minutes?”

“We could talk here,” Kanesha said. “Mr. Partridge is allowing us to continue to use his library for as long as we need.”

An’gel shook her head. “I’d really rather discuss this away from Ashton Hall. I would consider it a great favor if you could come by Riverhill sometime today.”

“Very well, Miss An’gel,” Kanesha said. “I’ll come by right after I leave here. It may be another hour.”

“That’s fine,” An’gel said. “Now we’d better take our leave of Hadley.”

Kanesha said, “He went upstairs a couple of minutes ago. I don’t think he’ll be back down for a while.”

“Poor man,” Dickce said. “I can’t blame him. This has been a terrible shock to all of us.”

“I’m sure it has,” Kanesha said. “I will be working hard to find out exactly what happened here.”

An’gel nodded. “I know you will figure it out.” She turned to Dickce and Benjy. “Come now, let’s go home.” She headed for the door, her heart heavy and her mind troubled.

Back at Riverhill ten minutes later, they shared the shocking news with Clementine while Benjy took Peanut and Endora outside for a walk. The housekeeper shook her head. “Lord, to think Miss Callie might’ve been lying there all these years, and nobody knew.”

“We can’t be completely certain that the remains are Callie’s,” An’gel said. “My heart tells me they are, though.”

“If they are Callie’s, then the person who put her there certainly knew,” Dickce said. “It makes me angry to think that someone might have gotten away with murder all these years.”

“Kanesha will see to that,” An’gel said. “I’m expecting her to come by to talk to me in the next hour or so, Clementine.”

“Yes, ma’am,” the housekeeper said. “What would you like to do about lunch?”

An’gel glanced at the kitchen clock. Ten minutes to eleven, she read. “Let’s say twelve thirty. Is that okay with you, Sister?”

Dickce nodded. “Yes. I hate to say it, after the upsetting morning we’ve had, but I know I’ll probably be really hungry by then.”

“It’ll be ready,” Clementine said. “In the meantime, would you like coffee or some hot tea?”

“Tea would be nice,” Dickce said.

“Yes, it would. We’ll be in the front parlor,” An’gel said. “Thank you, Clementine.” She headed out of the kitchen, followed by her sister.

When they were seated comfortably in the parlor, Dickce asked, “What is it you want to talk to Kanesha about?”

“Sarinda,” An’gel said. “If those remains are Callie’s, then I think it’s likely Sarinda might have known who put Callie in that grave.”

“And that person killed Sarinda because they thought Sarinda was going to expose them.”

“I think it’s possible,” An’gel replied. “Maybe I’m indulging in a wild flight of fancy, but I think there has to be a connection.”

Clementine came in with a serving tray and set it on the coffee table. Along with the teapot and cups, there was a plate of her homemade shortbread.

An’gel thanked her, and Clementine nodded. Dickce poured the tea for them both. She picked up a piece of the shortbread and began to eat.

They had finished the tea and the plate of shortbread by the time Kanesha arrived forty minutes later. An’gel answered the door and ushered the deputy into the parlor.

“Would you care for anything to drink?” An’gel asked.

“No, ma’am, I’m fine.” Kanesha perched on the edge of the chair her hostess had indicated. “What is it you wanted to discuss with me?”

“Sarinda Hetherington’s death,” An’gel said. “I don’t think it was an accident.”

“And if those bones turn out to belong to Callie Partridge,” Dickce said, “we think there’s a connection.”

“I’m sure you’ve talked to Chief Carson,” An’gel said. “Did he tell you about our conversation?”

Kanesha nodded. “He did. I’ve also spoken with Dr. Gandy, and he is adamant that Miss Hetherington wouldn’t have drunk enough bourbon to incapacitate herself enough to fall down the stairs.”

“I believe him,” An’gel said. “So what’s being done about it?”

“We are treating it as a suspicious death,” Kanesha said. “There is some evidence to indicate that it wasn’t an accident.”

CHAPTER 11

“What evidence?” An’gel asked.

Kanesha frowned. “I can’t go into detail, and I wouldn’t tell anyone else outside the force this, Miss An’gel. But I’ll tell you and Miss Dickce. I know it won’t go any further.”

“No, it certainly won’t,” Dickce said.

“There are marks on the body that indicate Miss Hetherington might have been shoved down the stairs,” Kanesha said. “I emphasize might. We won’t know for sure until the examination is complete, and that could take several weeks.”