“That’s one reason I came down here to go sailing, to get away from it.” She shook her head. “I’ll never get that out of my head. Never. It was so awful, Sean, so awful.”
He put his hand over hers and squeezed for a moment before letting go. “But it only gets worse if we don’t catch the person who did it.”
“I told Todd and Agent Bailey everything I know. I didn’t even know Sally was in the stables until…”
“And then you ran to your brother’s home?” said Michelle. Savannah nodded. “Dorothea answered the door. How did she seem?”
“I don’t really remember. I was hysterical. I remember her going to get Eddie, but then she couldn’t wake him. Then all hell broke loose. I just stood over by the door the whole time. I was afraid to move. When they came and got Eddie, I ran back to my room and pulled the covers over my head.” She put her drink down and went over and sat on the dock, her feet in the water.
King stared at her curiously. What the hell was gnawing at his brain, begging him to decipher it? He finally shook his head in frustration. It just wasn’t coming.
“Is your mother home?” he asked.
“No, she went out. Something to do with the lawyers and probate.”
“Would you mind if we took another look at the closets in your parents’ bedrooms?”
She swiveled around on her bottom to look at him. “I thought you already did that.”
“Never hurts to check a second time. It might help.”
They climbed in the golf cart Savannah had ridden down in and headed up to the house. Savannah led them in through the rear entrance and up the stairs to the third level.
“I keep telling Mama that if she’s going to stay here, she needs to have an elevator put in.”
“Climbing stairs is good exercise,” said Michelle.
“Don’t listen to her,” said King. “Get the elevator.”
Savannah opened the door to her mother’s bedroom and stopped dead. “Oh,” she exclaimed. “What are you doing in here?”
King moved past her and looked at Mason suspiciously.
The butler gazed back at them unperturbed. “Just tidying up your mother’s room, Savannah. The maids rarely do a good enough job.” Now he looked at King and Michelle with equal suspicion. “Can I help you with something?”
“Um,” began Savannah, her upper teeth biting into her lower lip.
“You’re dripping on the rug,” Mason pointed out.
“We were swimming in the lake,” explained Michelle.
“Nice day for it.” He continued to stare at them questioningly.
“We’re here to take another look at Remmy’s closet, Mason,” said King. “As part of the investigation.”
“But I thought because Mr. Deaver is dead that there’s no longer an investigation to pursue.”
“You’d think so, wouldn’t you, but that’s not actually the case,” said King politely.
Mason turned to Savannah. “Have you checked with your mother about this?”
King answered, “She took us through it once before, Mason. I can’t imagine she’d have a problem with a second time.”
“I always like to make sure of these things, Sean.”
“You see, because we know Junior didn’t do it and Remmy is now friends with his widow, it’s up to us to find out who did take those things. It’s in Remmy’s interest of course to see that happens. But if
you want to call her and bother her while she’s with the probate lawyers, that’s fine. We’ll just wait right here.”