Eunice handed Arthur the pitchfork. “Arthur enjoys embracing a sense of chivalry. But while he clears the floor, allow me to take a moment or two to ask you a few questions I still have about Grandfather’s murder.”
Vincent shrugged. “I don’t know why you think I’d be able to answer any of your questions about that. I was as shocked as everyone last night when Mother fessed up to her crime.”
“I’m sure you were, but I’m curious as to whether you were just as shocked when Aunt Hazel disclosed the truth about your mother and my grandfather’s relationship—that it wasn’t as intimate as she’d always allowed everyone to believe.”
Vincent’s eyes flashed with temper. “I don’t believe how I feltabout that tawdry matter is relevant to anything concerning my mother.”
“And I would have to disagree with that because I imagine there was some point in your life when you might have thought you were my grandfather’s illegitimate son.”
When Vincent released a laugh tinged with a slightly menacing air, the thought sprang to mind that she might have once again been a tad too direct, that idea reinforced when a blink of an eye later she found herself staring down the barrel of a pistol.
“You’re going to want to put that away if you don’t want me to shoot you,” Arthur said, training his own pistol on Vincent, who laughed again, right as another laugh joined his, one that had Eunice swinging her attention to the right, blinking at the person who’d just entered what was clearly a concerning situation.
“And you’re going to want to put your pistol on the ground, and then kick it Vincent’s way, Mr. Livingston,” Mrs. Wagner said pleasantly, holding a pistol in her hand that was trained on Eunice. “I assure you, I won’t hesitate to shoot darling Eugenia, or whatever she’s calling herself these days. I’m rather fond of my son and didn’t just break out of jail to watch him suffer a bullet wound.”
When Mrs. Wagner cocked her pistol, Arthur didn’t hesitate to set his pistol on the ground and give it a kick in Vincent’s direction. Vincent didn’t so much as blink at the glare Arthur was leveling on him, instead moseying over to Arthur’s gun and picking it up before he inclined his head toward Mrs. Wagner. “I wasn’t expecting to see you today, Mother.”
Mrs. Wagner settled a fond smile on her son. “I don’t imagine you were, but I had this sneaking suspicion you were going to do something foolish, such as try to find that letter, so here I am, doing what mothers do best—saving our children from their reckless impulses.”
When Vincent didn’t have a ready answer to that, Eunice cleared her throat. “You were spot on about Vincent’s reckless plans, but speaking of reckless, how did you get out of jail?”
Mrs. Wagner shrugged. “James wasn’t the only one I blackmailed in this town, dear. Blackmail is a lucrative business, which is why I make it a point to uncover unsavory tidbits about everyone. Deputy Hanson, unfortunately, enjoys helping himself to items that don’t belong to him in stores around town. Since he’d prefer to keep that information private, and since he realized I was serious about getting out of jail before that annoying Agent Clifton returned to question me, he was only too willing to let me go. I had to knock him over the head with a club to make it appear I’d overpowered him, something I don’t believe any of the other deputies will believe. But that’s not really my concern.” She nodded to the pitchfork Arthur had abandoned. “Do continue, dear, with whatever it is you were doing, which I’m going to assume was recovering that ridiculous letter James had the brilliance of mind to leave.” She arched a brow Vincent’s way. “May I assume we’re going to find your name listed in that letter?”
“Why would you assume that?”
“Because when you didn’t so much as flinch last night when Hazel disclosed I wasn’t James’s mistress, I realized then and there that you’d already discovered that unfortunate truth on your own. I then remembered how furious you were when you returned home the night before James died. It didn’t take much of a leap for me to realize what happened next. You confronted James about your parentage, didn’t you, dear, and he, being James, was probably far too blunt telling you that you weren’t his son.” She sighed. “I was hoping the purchase of the bookshop would be enough to soften the blow when James died.”
Vincent’s eyes began to glitter. “You thought presenting me with a bookshop would appease me when for years you allowed me to believe that James would see reason and acknowledge me as his only son and thus the rightful heir to Mason Mines?”
“I didn’t know at the time I purchased the shop that you’d discovered James wasn’t your father, so I thought you’d merely conclude that I was unable to convince him to claim you as his heir.”
Vincent darted a look to Eunice. “I’m not certain we should be having this discussion in front of anyone, Mother. What say we wait to finish the conversation until after I find that letter and we’re far away from here.”
“I have a feeling Eunice, being annoyingly astute, as well as Arthur, who’s no slouch, have already begun to puzzle out what actually happened that day on the target field. It’s highly unlikely they will be given the opportunity to tell anyone anything they hear us discussing now, darling.”
“You’re going to kill us in cold blood?” Eunice asked.
“I’m afraid it’s unavoidable” was all Mrs. Wagner said to that before she moved closer to Vincent. “I am curious, though, how it came about that you confronted James. Was there a specific incident that occurred that caused you to seek out a confrontation with a man you were ill-equipped to argue with?”
“I wasn’t so ill-equipped to deal with him when I shot him.”
Eunice blinked. “Soyou’rethe one who killed my grandfather?”
Vincent shrugged. “I see no reason to deny it, and it’s not as if he didn’t deserve it. I’d spent years trying to convince him you weren’t suited to run Mason Mines, and after I finally got through to him, does he offer to bring me on? No, and granted, I wasn’t his son, not that I knew that at the time, but I know the mining business. Studied it at Harvard with the hope I’d be able to take my place in the Mason company. To secure that place, I even agreed to tutor you in the hope James would recognize my worth and react accordingly. Instead...” Vincent shot a malevolent look to Arthur. “Your grandfather decided to hand the mine to a complete stranger, and on a silver platter, since he offered your hand in marriage to really seal the deal.”
“How did you learn about that?” Arthur asked.
“I think that’s enough questions for now” was Vincent’s only reply. “I may afford you a few more answers, but only after Eunice finds that loose floorboard and locates that toolbox she mentioned.”
“I’ll need the pitchfork back,” Eunice said, earning anotherlaugh from Vincent, who picked the pitchfork off the floor from where Arthur had dropped it when he’d gone for his gun.
“Nice try, but I’m very familiar with your proficiency with weapons. A pitchfork can certainly be considered that if it’s in the right hands.”
Refusing to allow her frustration to show over being denied a viable weapon, Eunice used her boot to shift around some hay, stopping when she stepped on a board that wobbled. She dropped to her knees and pried up the loose floorboard, sticking her hand in the opening that was revealed.
“And here I’ve been wondering if there actually were secret hiding spots or if Eunice had made that up to rattle the audience last night,” Mrs. Wagner said.
“I bet that type of wondering left you feeling rather annoyed,” Eunice said as she fished around under the floorboards.
