“Who knew about the new will?” Judson asked.
“Not her family,” Grace provided. “Well, not unless Yvette told them herself. The lawyer said the will had just been signed and processed and that he hadn’t even given Yvette a copy of it yet.”
Neither Shane, Jennifer, Trevor nor Elijah had mentioned the will, so it was possible Yvette had kept it to herself. But if shehadn’t, if Shane and Jennifer knew about their inheritance, then it strengthened their motive for murdering her.
Grace had just finished bagging the shirt when both her phone and Judson’s sounded with texts. They both looked to see what the message said.
“Group message from the CSIs,” Grace relayed. “They’re going over Yvette’s car now, and they found something.” She stopped, looked at Judson. “Apparently, a suicide note.”
Of all the things Addie had thought the sheriff might say, that wasn’t one of them. “Yvette was running for her life when we got to her,” Addie pointed out. “Is the note real or something her killer planted?”
“We might soon find out,” Grace murmured just as another text arrived.
Because Addie was still right next to Judson, she saw this message was a photo attachment. “The note,” he said, holding his phone so they could both see it.
This wasn’t some pristine, typed letter but something that appeared to have been hastily scrawled on a napkin from a fast-food place.
“‘I’m so sorry,’” Addie read aloud. “‘I can’t live with what I’ve done.’”
That was it. Not even a signature. Definitely no last words for her kids. And that made Addie instantly suspicious.
“Yvette would have told Shane and Jennifer she loved them,” Addie remarked, and she got immediate sounds of agreement from both Grace and Judson.
“So, either she was coerced into writing this, or she didn’t get a chance to finish it,” Judson concluded. He glanced up from the photo to meet Grace’s gaze. “I got a look at Yvette’s car, and it’d been run off the road. There were skids on the pavement from where it looked like she tried to stop.”
“That was Livvy’s impression, too,” Grace said. “The person who shot Yvette could have maybe hoped to make her death look like a suicide. When that failed and when she started running and you guys showed up, the killer had to resort to shooting her. And trying to eliminate any witnesses by shooting Livvy and the two of you.”
Yes, all of that was possible.
Grace opened her mouth to say something else, but the sound of raised voices stopped her. Judson automatically stepped in front of Addie, and he drew his gun. Grace did the same. Addie might have pushed them both aside to try to get to the babies, though, if Bennie hadn’t stepped into view.
“Elijah, Shane, Trevor and Jennifer just arrived,” Bennie let them know. “They’re demanding to speak to you,” he added before he hurried off. No doubt to make sure the visitors didn’t barge in.
Grace sighed and looked back at Addie. “When I called to do the death notification, I told them to meet me at the station. I didn’t want them here around you or the twins.”
Addie got that. She didn’t especially want the trio around the babies, either. But she did want to see something.
“Will you tell them about the will?” Addie asked Grace. “Because I’d like to see how they react to that.”
The corner of Grace’s mouth lifted into a smile. “Oh, yes, I’ll definitely let them know, and I won’t be having that conversation in the house but rather on the porch, so you’ll both be able to watch and listen. The babies are tucked away safe with Etta Jean?” she asked.
Addie nodded, but she sent a text to Etta Jean to tell her to take the twins into the bathroom. Yes, she wanted to see the reactions to the will, but Addie didn’t want that info to come with any additional risks to Lily and Rose.
“Do any of the four have alibis for the time of Yvette’s shooting?” Judson asked Grace as they all made their way to the front of the house.
“Nope. I asked them that when I did the phone notification, and all claimed to be at home or on their way home. We’ll check and see if that can be verified.”
“I will see her now,” Shane shouted, his voice so loud that it would have drowned out anything else that Grace said.
Elijah wasn’t exactly being quiet, either. He was yelling out a demand to see Grace and Judson. Trevor was in the mix, too, shouting at the top of his lungs. Addie couldn’t hear Jennifer at all.
When Judson, Grace and she made it to the front door, Addie saw Livvy and Bennie were blocking Shane and Elijah from coming in. She spotted Trevor on the porch steps, and Jennifer was by the gate. Jennifer was the only one of the four who looked grief-stricken, and it was obvious the woman had been crying.
“What the hell happened to my mother?” Shane demanded when his attention landed on Grace. The man also shot looks of disgust at Judson and Addie. “Did those two kill her?”
“Throttle back now,” Grace snapped through clenched teeth. “Or I’ll arrest you on the spot.”
“Yeah, yeah, and kill me, too,” Shane taunted. “Just like they murdered my mother.”
