Fixing To Die

“When you put it like that,” Mary Turner said slowly, “I suppose he was. Serenity and Truss would benefit the most, in that case, unless Nathan didn’t leave them anything.” She thought a moment. “But Nathan was big on family and family history; otherwise he wouldn’t have been so obsessed with the French room. I can’t imagine he would cut his sister off completely.”

“This is putting you on the spot, really,” An’gel said, “but if you had to point the finger at either Serenity or Truss, which one would you point to?”

“That’s a hard question. My first instinct is to say Serenity, but that may be because I loathe her so much.” Mary Turner shrugged. “I actually sort of like Truss. He’s really not so bad, but he does love money. Could be either one of them, or they might have been in it together.”

“That’s an interesting thought,” An’gel said. “They were both angry with him certainly.”

“I didn’t realize Truss was angry with Nathan,” Mary Turner said. “Why do you say that?”

An’gel told her what she had seen, minus the vulgar language. Mary Turner looked stunned. “Miss An’gel, I’m so sorry you had to see that. How nasty.”

“It was unpleasant,” An’gel said, “but I’ve lived a long time, my dear. I’ve seen far worse.”

“Wait till I tell Henry Howard about this.” Mary Turner’s face clouded. “If he ever comes back, that is.” She pulled out her cell phone. “Still no response from him.”

“Don’t let yourself get worked up again, my dear,” An’gel said. “He’ll turn up soon, I’m sure. By now he will have walked off his frustrations and be on his way home.”

“Bound to,” Dickce said.

“I sure hope so.” Mary Turner started to rise. “I really should go talk to Marcelline. I was pretty rough with her.”

An’gel privately thought that a little rough talk would do Marcelline good. The housekeeper had been unpleasant to Henry Howard and shouldn’t be interfering in her employers’ marriage. She had behaved like a mother-in-law instead of a housekeeper.

“Don’t go just yet,” An’gel said. “I have something else I want to ask you about. It won’t take long, I promise.”

Mary Turner resumed her seat promptly, and An’gel guessed she wasn’t eager to confront Marcelline again.

“What is that?” Mary Turner asked.

“It’s about Primrose Pace,” An’gel said. “Did she tell you anything at all about her background? Give you any references?”

“References? No, she didn’t, but then I didn’t ask.” Mary Turner frowned. “I probably should have, shouldn’t I? I was so excited by the idea of having an experienced medium in the house, I guess I wasn’t thinking clearly.”

“About her background,” An’gel said. “Did she tell you anything?”

“I did ask about that,” Mary Turner said. “She told me that she had been involved in solving several missing persons cases. She even pulled out a couple of newspaper clippings to show me. I didn’t take time to read every word, but it was pretty obvious she has some kind of ability with spirits.”

“What did she tell you about those cases?” Dickce asked. “Did she offer you any details besides what was in the clippings?”

“Let me think about that for a moment,” Mary Turner said.

An’gel and Dickce waited semi-patiently while Mary Turner thought. They were both curious about Primrose Pace, although at this point they couldn’t see a connection between her and Nathan Gamble that would give her a motive in his murder.

“She said she was from Louisiana,” Mary Turner said. “I remember that. Oh, and she also said she was in Natchez visiting a friend. She happened to be driving around looking at old houses, and when she drove into the driveway near the house, she started getting a strong feeling about it. She sat in her car for a few minutes and concentrated, and that’s when she realized there was a spirit here that wanted someone it could talk to.”

Given the stories about ghosts and antebellum homes and other places in Natchez, An’gel reckoned, Primrose Pace might have simply taken a chance that she could get a few nights’ stay and some free meals in turn for her so-called services at Cliffwood. If Mary Turner had looked blankly at her and told her there had never been any supernatural activity at Cliffwood, the medium could have made her excuses and been on her way. Instead, Mary Turner had basically welcomed her with open arms.

“This isn’t our business, and you can certainly tell us so without hurting our feelings,” An’gel said. “Did Mrs. Pace mention a fee for her services?”

Mary Turner said, “Heavens, Miss An’gel, I don’t mind you asking about that. I know Granny and Daddy trusted you and Miss Dickce, and I certainly do. Otherwise I wouldn’t have begged you to come and help. In addition to her stay here and her meals, Mrs. Pace asked for five hundred dollars for five days’ stay while she worked with the spirit.”