“As I was saying,” Barbara continued, “I was sent here by my husband to negotiate a price with Derek. My husband’s entire career could depend on keeping Derek Oliver silent. Killing him would have solved all our problems. In fact, his disappearance did solve the problem.”
While the others thought about this, Lea spoke. “I think my reason for murder is as good as yours. Mine affected me personally. You might have benefited if your husband was charged and taken away to jail. In your world, publicity only helps.” She said it with no emotion, just as fact.
“Hollywood didn’t already know the truth?” Sara asked.
“Of course they did,” Barbara said, “but the public didn’t. They do so love to keep their illusions.”
“I still think my motive was the strongest,” Lea said indignantly. “I could have—”
Sara cut her off as she looked at Rachel. “What about you? Did you have a motive for killing Derek Oliver?”
“The jewelry, maybe?”
Everyone looked at her with great interest.
“I don’t know the full details, only the basics,” Rachel said. “What I do know is that a lot of jewelry was given to my grandmother by her good friend, Mrs. Oliver.”
“Derek’s stepmother,” Randal said softly.
“Yes, she was,” Rachel said. “And Derek Oliver wanted those jewels. He seemed to think they were his by right. Does that make sense?”
The Medlar-Wyatt four nodded.
“Weren’t you sent here as a punishment?” Barbara asked.
Rachel smiled, showing her perfect teeth.Rich girl teeth, they all seemed to be thinking. “Yes. Too many boys and not enough study. My mother sent me to her dreaded mother-in-law. It was the worst thing she could come up with.”
“And were you straightened out?” Sara asked.
“Not in the least.” Rachel gave a grin that was infectious.
“What about the jewelry?” Lea asked.
“I’m not sure, but I believe Grans came here to give it to him.”
“Giveit to him?” Lea asked in disbelief. “Why?”
“I don’t know,” Rachel said.
Randal spoke up. “I think I can answer that. As you said, Derek Oliver truly believed the pieces belonged to him. He thought they were like riches passed down through a royal family—him being the royalty. But Mrs. Meyers had them. I know she wasn’t well, so she probably feared that Oliver would harass and threaten her family after she was gone.”
“That sounds like her,” Rachel said. “All I know for sure is that the morning Mr. Oliver didn’t come to breakfast, I asked where he was. Grans said, ‘I assume he got what he wanted so he ran away.’”
“That was it?” Kate asked. “You didn’t ask what she meant?”
“I was still sulking over being punished and besides, I didn’t care what the old people were doing. But I did know that if he got the jewels, I wouldn’t.”
They sat in silence for a moment, thinking about three motives for murder.
They turned to Reid. “I was working. Although, to be honest, I was looking forward to the man leaving. He was quite nasty to my little sister.”
“He was,” they agreed.
Minutes later, Sara suppressed a yawn, and the group finally broke up. Randal disappeared like he was in a magician’s act.
Jack and Kate walked Sara to her room. She had insisted on staying in the Palm Room. They knew it was because she wanted to go through James Lachlan’s documents. Whether they had anything to do with the current murder didn’t matter to her. She loved research and finding out things. “Learning is what keeps your brain working,” she said.
At last, Jack and Kate were alone, standing together in the wide hallway. All the bedroom doors were closed and it was quiet in the house.
