[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
.“He told me a month ago that he suspected he was, and I thought he had lost his mind.When he received the paternity test that confirmed it and showed me the results, it was shocking to say the least.To both of us.”“Both? He hadn’t known his whole life that he was an Ezekiel?”“Not a clue,” she said.“He only started suspecting a few months ago.”Louella sniffed Hyacinth’s boots, and Hyacinth recoiled a bit.I tugged the leash to the right, away from her, and Louella stubbornly plopped down right where she was.Virgil sat next to her, and her tail started thumping happily.My body ached, but I didn’t shoo him away.I noticed that Hyacinth looked at Louella as though viewing her worst nightmare, her face pinched with panic.Louella must have really done a number on the woman for such a reaction.“How did he come about suspecting after all these years?” I asked.She looked away from the dog and sighed.“During the renovation, Hay came across a box of Tyson Ezekiel’s belongings that the army had shipped back to Rupert long after Tyson had died at war.Inside was a stack of love letters written to Tyson from a woman named Ree that had been sent overseas to his post in Korea.Sweetest things you ever did read.Apparently they met at a USO dance over in Rock Creek while Tyson was home on a short leave and it had been love at first sight.They had only one week together before he was shipped off to war.”That explained a lot about the timing questions surrounding Haywood’s conception.Tyson had been home for only a little while.Hardly time enough to leave an indelible stamp in people’s memories.Hyacinth went on.“In the last letter in the bunch Ree told Tyson she was with child.” She sighed.“Even though there had been no return address on the letters, Hay started figuring dates and such and couldn’t get it out of his head that he was the baby in the letter, as Ree was Hay’s mama Retta Lee’s nickname, used by only her family.Turns out he was.”Hyacinth’s story also explained why the heir to the Ezekiel house had been so mysterious.It was entirely possible that Rupert Ezekiel hadn’t known the true identity of the woman named Ree so he hadn’t been able to find the grandchild whose existence he knew about only because of a bittersweet love letter in his son’s personal effects.The tragic nature of the story tugged at my heartstrings.After a moment, Hyacinth said, “I thought Haywood would like to be buried here, next to his daddy.There’s space enough—don’t you think?”I nodded.“Plenty.”“I think so, too.”We stood in silence for a moment, the only sounds coming from the birds in the sky and the wind in the trees.“Was Haywood going to announce he was the heir at the masquerade ball?” I asked.“Yes.I tried to talk him out of it, but he was proud.So very proud.”“Did any of the other Harpies know that was the announcement?”“Not that I know of,” she said, “and honestly I dreaded them finding out.It was bound to rip the group apart after all the work that had gone into restoring the house.”I read her energy.Amid a powerful grief, she was telling the truth.If she had been lying, physiologically, her energy would have changed with a sudden increase of adrenaline and anxiety.“Do you think he was killed because he was the heir?”Again, I read her energy as she said, “I don’t know why he was killed.”She was being honest, but this time when she spoke I picked up another emotion in addition to grief.guilt.It was eating her from the inside out.If she didn’t know why he was killed, then the guilt couldn’t stem from Haywood’s death.That meant she hadn’t been in cahoots with anyone.There was no way for me to know why she was feeling what she was, however, and I couldn’t figure out how to ask her flat out.I also refrained from asking about her previous three husbands, though I was quite curious about their fates.My nosiness was no cause to heap on her misery.“He was the kindest, sweetest, most gentle man in the world.” Tears puddled.“And now he’s gone.It’s.unfathomable.”“When’s his funeral?” I asked after giving her a moment to collect herself.“Thursday,” she said.Louella had fallen asleep on the ground, snoring softly.Virgil was nearly invisible now, a mere outline of his ghostly self.It reminded me how time was not on my side for Haywood and pushed me to pry more than I would have ordinarily.“How come you don’t want Avery Bryan to come to the funeral?”Her eyes narrowed.“How do you know that?”“I was at the Goose yesterday when you told her so.You weren’t exactly speaking quietly.”Glancing back toward the mansion, she said, “I should get back.The insurance adjuster is here.”“Haywood would probably want his daughter there—don’t you think?” I pressed, echoing her earlier words.She froze.Ice dripped from her words as she said, “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”A lie—that energy came off loud and clear.“Sure you do.” No more Ms.Nice Witch for me.“Avery is Haywood and Twilabeth’s daughter [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]