Even though I kept from saying these words out loud, Glenda scowled at me. “You and your mother were nothing to Fred.”
I couldn’t help myself. I laughed out loud. She thought this was an insult?
“Ladies,” Mr. Froble said, putting out one shaking hand. “Let us remain dignified. The proper documentation can be submitted to the court if it comes to that, though it is clear thatthe man himself had no such qualms when he updated his will. Rest assured that Mr. Finch was in his right mind when he made these changes.”
Glenda was not assured by this fact, but I wouldn’t let myself be pulled into her narcissistic tantrum. Katie kept her eyes averted from me, so I had no idea how she was taking the news.
“I just don’t understand…” Glenda pouted. “What kind of man changes his entire will because of… a bastard child?”
Savilla inhaled sharply. “That’s enough.” She stood and stepped forward as the guard watched her closely. “Perhaps it is a surprise, but, as I said, I swear I’ll take care of both of you. I’ve already hired the best lawyers who are working night and day to get your sentence punctuated.”
“Mitigated, dear,” Katie corrected.
Savilla didn’t miss a beat as she took a knee in front of her mother and aunt. “I swear to do my best to keep us afloat.”
“Your best isn’t going to be good enough,” Glenda scoffed, throwing off Savilla’s hand and standing, her arms flailing.
As soon as she was on her feet, the guard was on them, gripping Glenda in a kind of manual straight-jacket as he called for the officer standing watch outside the door. In seconds, the other guard had Katie’s arms behind her back, and the men were leading the women, one sister screaming and belligerent and the other resigned and sorrowful, out the door and into the waiting police car.
Mr. Froble, Savilla, and I watched it all unfold in stunned silence, my mind circling Brett’s inclusion in the will as the room emptied. It didn’t make sense why Mr. Finch would’ve left him a dime, much less a diamond worth many millions.
The mystery of this man and his death was getting muddier than a pigpen, as Momma would say.
TWENTY-THREE
Mr. Froble raised both palms in the air as if to say he couldn’t even begin to fathom what he’d just witnessed: two distraught sisters who’d once been upstanding members, even leaders, of the Aubergine community, carted away once again in handcuffs.
“I’ll have the official paperwork sent out on Monday, and we’ll be able to move everything from the trust into both of your names in coming days.” Mr. Froble tapped mindlessly at the sheet of paper that had caused such uproar before addressing Savilla. “I’ll arrange for the Miss 2001 crown to be kept in a secure lock box at the bank until Glenda and Katie’s potential… or eventual… release.”
The man stood to his full height, which couldn’t have been more than five feet and some change, put on the hat that had been resting at his elbow, and walked out of the room. He probably needed a nap after the excitement, and even though it was only 1 p.m., I thought I might need a stiff drink.
Once we were alone in the office, Savilla threw her arms around me again, and the nerves I’d been feeling about her finding out we were sisters finally disappeared completely.
“I always wanted a sister,” she squealed, squeezing me tight. “And we’re almost, like, twins, which is twice as good.”
Except we didn’t share the same mother or the same birthdate. I supposed we could be Irish twins—of a sort. Regardless, the thing that mattered was that Savilla seemed ecstatic rather than resentful about sharing her role as an heiress, even though I had no idea what exactly that might mean in coming days. If only there was some kind of book for dummies, a kind ofHeiress’s Guide to Death & Diamonds.
“We have so much catching up to do. Oh. My. God. I have chills.” She held out her arm to prove the fact. “It’s like I knew without knowing. I’m, what’s it called, precious?”
“Prescient,” I corrected.
“See! You can even finish my sentences.” Savilla studied me with slack-jawed amazement, even though I was pretty sure that any kid studying for the SAT could’ve figured out that one. “You can move into the west wing of the house and you can run the stables, because that’s totally your thing. I could also use some help with the accounts because I do not do math.”
Savilla giggled as if bleeding money from an estate like The Rose was the best joke ever.
“Every night we can eat dinner together and watch movies—the classics are my favorite.Clueless,Mean Girls,Ten Things I Hate About You.” She inhaled and thought of another benefit to our new relationship status, waving her hands in excitement as she spoke. “Aunt DeeDee can come too. Can I call her Aunt DeeDee now, since we’re, like, totally family?” Not waiting for an answer, Savilla spun around in a full circle. “This is the best thing since that time I met the Jonas Brothers in Cancún and one of them asked me to marry him. I had to turn him down because our auras didn’t align, but it was a thrilling week.”
When her words ran out, she looked at me expectantly. I wasn’t quite sure which thing I should address first: moving into the Rose Palace, the fact that none of those movies were classics, the Jonas proposal, or the auras?
“I think I might be a little overwhelmed,” I said, lifting my thumb and pointer finger to show her that I was freaking out inside. “How about we take some time to digest the news and then we can figure out details?”
“Of course, yes, you’re right. I’m being too much. So, so, so sorry.” Savilla stopped beaming and her perfectly tailored eyebrows dipped into a concerned V. “I get like that when I’m excited, and my words get all jumbled too. Why don’t you take a minute and then we’ll go grab coffee and work out the details?”
It wasn’t what I had meant by a request for time to process, butque sera.
“Sounds good,” I said, wondering how, after the news of my inheritance, I was ever going to focus on figuring out Brett’s email password or who might’ve actually killed him. Savilla was right. It wasalltoo much.
Savilla threw her arms around me one more time and yanked me close. “I’m going to be the best sister ever. Just you wait.”
