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“Where is Hadley?” Reba frowned at their hostess. “I thought surely he’d be here since we invited him back on the board.”

Before Barbie could respond, Arliss spoke. “I’m afraid Hadley is swamped at the moment.” She laughed. “The poor man has so much to do at Ashton Hall.”

“How do you know so much about it?” Reba asked.

“Arliss had lunch with Hadley today,” Barbie said in an arch tone. “I ran into them at Helen Louise’s when I went to pick up some pastries for our meeting.”

Arliss smiled. “I have to admit it, Barbie caught us.” She sighed. “I’ve shared several meals with Hadley. He is still the most charming companion a woman could ask for.”

“That was fast work, even for you.” Lottie sniffed. “I guess I shouldn’t be surprised you’re trying to line up husband number three. You’ve been chasing any man who’d give you a second look for years.”

Arliss laughed. “Well, honey, at least I’m getting second looks, and that’s more than I can say for some of you.”

Why do women do this? An’gel found it distasteful in the extreme. Women old enough to know better, yet here they were carrying on over a man like, well, the only words she could come up with were vulgar. She didn’t even want to soil her thoughts with them.

“Ladies, I think it’s time we focused on the reason Barbie called this meeting,” An’gel said. “We need to be thinking about our friend and the proper way to pay tribute to her memory and to her contributions to the club.”

“Hear, hear,” Barbie said. “I checked with the pastor at Sarinda’s church, and he says they will be happy to host a memorial. We need to come up with a date, though, and let him know.”

“I volunteer to be in charge of the arrangements,” Arliss said. “I’ll draw up a budget for flowers and food, and we can split the cost among us. Agreed?”

“Sounds fine,” An’gel said. “If you need help with anything, let me and Dickce know. We’ll be happy to do what we can.”

Arliss nodded. She picked up a pad and pen from the table by her chair and started jotting things down as the group discussed the service.

Thirty minutes later the board had a plan everyone agreed upon, and An’gel was relieved that there had been no further mention of Hadley Partridge. He seemed to bring out the worst among the members, and An’gel was weary of dealing with their behavior. She said as much to Dickce as they climbed into the car after the meeting ended.

“Some women think their lives aren’t complete if they don’t have a man on their arm,” Dickce said. “You know that as well as I do, Sister.”

“Yes, I do, but it still aggravates me to no end when otherwise intelligent women carry on like they were doing today over Hadley.” An’gel sighed and cranked the car. “I’m beginning to wish Hadley had never come back.”

CHAPTER 18

“I understand how you feel,” Dickce said, “but they’ll all settle down soon, especially when they see that Hadley is not going to rescue them from the loneliness of widowhood.”

An’gel snorted. “What a ridiculous phrase. Rescue them from the loneliness of widowhood. Spare me the purple prose.”

“My choice of words aside,” Dickce said, slightly nettled by her sister’s reaction, “the point is, Hadley’s only been back a short while. They’ll get over this silly competitiveness for his attention.”

“I certainly hope so,” An’gel said.

Dickce decided it was time to move on to a different subject. “When are you going to call Kanesha and tell her about our little talk with Mrs. Turnipseed?”

“Right now,” An’gel said. “I’m heading to the sheriff’s department since’s it not all that much out of the way. We might as well talk to her in person if she’s in the office.”

“Good idea,” Dickce said.

Moments later they pulled into the parking lot at the Athena County Sheriff’s Department. Inside they inquired whether the chief deputy was available. She was, and soon an officer ushered them into Kanesha’s office.

“Good afternoon, Miss An’gel, Miss Dickce.” Kanesha rose as they entered and waited until they were seated before she resumed her own seat behind the desk. “Have you got information to share with me?”

“Yes, we do,” Dickce said. “We went to talk to Mrs. Turnipseed this afternoon.”

“That was fast,” Kanesha said. “Did you find out anything useful?”

“Not directly, no,” An’gel said. “The woman kept saying everything wasn’t her business. According to her, she was out of town visiting her sister when Hadley and Callie left Ashton Hall.”

“She claims all that Hamish said to her was that Callie was gone,” Dickce added. “Then she said he never mentioned Callie’s name again for the rest of his life.”

“What did you think of her responses? Was she telling the truth?” Kanesha asked.

“She’s holding something back,” An’gel said. “We both thought so.”

“Yes, we did,” Dickce said. “The other thing is, her living room is full of antique furniture and things that we think came from Ashton Hall.”

Kanesha frowned. “Do you think she stole all this stuff?”

“No,” Dickce said. “We don’t think she’d be that stupid.”