I look back at her blankly. “What? What is it?”
“When Jane’s ghost goes free and exits the cell, a cactus flower will immediately bloom on the jail cell floor, right out of the concrete!”
“How does that help Ginny?” I say. “Logan met Gigi in the desert, for Christ’s sake. Cacti only grow in deserts.”
“Not true.” Mama shakes her head emphatically. “We have them right here at the Nature Center in town. I visit the cacti all the time.”
“You visit the cacti? Why would you do that?”
“I have a special connection to plants that survive, even thrive, in harsh environments,” Mama waxes on. “Living with your father has been so taxing on me. Just like poor Jane suffering alone in her cell all these years. Speaking of which, I thought you did a very nice job with your lines at rehearsal today. Maybe try to beef up the last half a bit, though. Queen Austen could be our best play yet.”
“Oh, my God, Mama.” I bang the heel of my hand against my forehead. “Jane Austen didn’t ask to be Queen of Austen, or Queen of a Jail, or Queen of anything. She just wanted to tell a good story.”
Dye calls out, “That’s a good one, Macey. Jane Austen was a great storyteller. We should get a plaque and put it on her cell.”
“Like an epitaph!” Mama says. “Why didn’t I think of that before? Dye, what a fabulous idea.”
Dye tips his cowboy hat Mama’s way.
“Seriously, what am I going to tell Ginny tomorrow?” I ask. “She needs some positive news.”
Mama looks down again at the diary. “Right here it says there will be shared blood between them. Ginny and Dave are fifth cousins once removed.”
“They are?”
“Helena Rattles told me so herself. So there you have it—the perfect clue.”
“Dave and I are cousins?” Ginny asks me in a horrified voice the next day.
“Not really,” I assure her, glaring at Ben when he cracks up next to me behind the bar. “Just fifth once removed. It’s supposed to be a good thing. You know, because of the clue. It could mean you’re the soul mates Vivian’s referring to in her diary.”
“But what does fifth cousins once removed even mean?” Ginny spins on her stool and reaches for her phone.
“I’m not sure. But I know it doesn’t mean you’re super close genetically. Your baby’s definitely fine. You even had those tests done already, and the doctor gave you the all-clear.”
“I just can’t believe Dave is my cousin.” Ginny shakes her head. “It’s like a bad dream. I have to text Mama now and find out why she never told me.”
Speak of the mother.
Mrs. Rattles strides into The Cowherd and right up to Ginny’s stool.
Mr. Bingley picks that moment to jump onto Ginny’s lap, and she clutches him tightly, almost like a security blanket.
“Mama! Dave and I are cousins?”
Mrs. Rattles gives a dismissive wave. “So not the time, dear. Girls, I have terrible news. We have to move Ginny’s wedding up again. I want it this month. A June wedding.”
“But that’s impossible,” I say. “Everything’s set.”
“Logan Wild and his socialite girlfriend are tying the knot before Independence Day now.” Mrs. Rattles sniffs. “I heard something about July second. That’s far too close to my daughter’s wedding on the first.”
“What?”
I swear to God.
I grab the saloon’s calendar and check the dates. Sure enough—Logan and Gigi are now penciled in on July second.
I turn to Ben. “Did you know about this?”
