“No, Zelda is not okay,” Roan said, stepping aside so they could see her body. “She’s been stabbed.”
Lemon dropped to her mother. “Stabbed?” She took a long, hard look at Zelda. “Oh my gosh, he’s right. Mother’s been stabbed.” She shook Zelda. “Mother! Mother! Don’t die on us! Mother, you can’t die!”
“She’s already gone,” I said softly. “I’m so sorry.”
Lemon threw her head back and wailed. “No!”
Traylor moved to Lemon’s side and bent down to give her an awkward embrace. “Let’s hope she went peacefully.”
“She didn’t go peacefully,” I snapped. “She was stabbed. Someone here did this to her—unless one of you wants to argue that Zelda walked into a knife that just happened to be held out for her.”
“Oh no, not Zelda! Not my love!” Luis cried for a moment, his hands covering his face. Then he turned to me. “Where is this knife—the evil object that killed her?”
“I don’t know,” I said.
He sashayed around Lemon and bent beside Roan. Luis smoothed a hand over Zelda’s head. “Oh, my dear. Who would have done this? Who could do this?” Without missing a beat, Luis pointed a crooked finger at Lemon. “You always hated her. You always hated everything about your mother. You were jealous of her talent.”
Lemon fumed. “Me? You were the one who used her money to your advantage. You never cared one thing about her. All you cared about was her money. If anyone murdered her, it was you, Pool Boy.”
Luis gasped. “I am much more than a pool boy. Who hand-fed your mother when she was sick in bed? Who helped her to the bathroom and washed her up? Me. I did. You never lifted one finger to help Zelda.”
Traylor patted the air. “Now, y’all, I know emotions are high and so are tensions, but we need to take a moment and calm down. This isn’t for us to decide. This is a job for the police. Not us. Surely the two of y’all can agree to that.”
Lemon glanced around the room. “What time is it?”
Why would the time matter now? But just to humor her, I replied, “It’s nearly twelve o’clock.”
To Traylor, she said, “We have to hurry.”
Luis jumped up. “Quickly. We must get to the box.”
Tex looked rattled and confused as he headed toward the front door. “All this is terrible, and I’m sorry for your loss, but I need to get going.”
Boy, was he eager to start digging up buried treasure, or what?
“We have to turn off the locks,” Lemon said, rushing down the hallway.
I shot Roan a confused look. “I’m calling the police.”
Then it hit me—I hadn’t seen Zelda’s spirit near her body. When a person freshly died, they usually hung around for a few minutes before passing on. But Zelda was nowhere to be found. That was strange. Was she still here? If so, she could tell me who murdered her, so that when the horrible Kency Blount showed up, I’d be able to relay the information to her and the mystery would be solved.
“Zelda?” I whispered, trying to pull her out of wherever she was hiding.
“You think she’s still here?” Roan asked.
“I do.”
Tex, at the door now, said, “Well, if y’all think it’s okay, I’m just gonna head on out.”
“This is a murder investigation,” I told him. “The police will want to talk to you.”
“They can call me. I’m just visiting. I don’t know any of these people, so why would I want any of them dead?”
He had a point. But still. “You need to stay,” I said.
He scoffed and started to turn the knob when a grandfather clock in the roomdonged.
Midnight.
