Digging Up The Dirt

“Pour it on thick,” An’gel called after her. She wasn’t sure Dickce heard her, but she figured her sister knew what to say to Reba.

An’gel retrieved her own phone from her purse and found Lottie’s name in her contacts. She tapped the call icon and waited for an answer. Kanesha, Hadley, and Coriander watched and waited quietly.

“Hi, Lottie, how are you?” An’gel asked, her tone bright and breezy. “I hope you’re well.”

“Doing fine,” Lottie said. “What’s up, An’gel? I’m supposed to meet Barbie in a few minutes.”

“I won’t keep you long,” An’gel said. “I simply couldn’t wait to call you. You’ll never guess what Dickce and I found out. It’s so juicy, you’ll have a fit when you hear.”

“Really? Do tell,” Lottie said. An’gel heard the eagerness in Lottie’s voice. She adored gossip.

“Well, Dickce and I dropped by to see Hadley a little while ago, and you could have knocked us down with a feather,” An’gel said. She groaned inwardly at the cliche, but pressed on. “You’ll never guess who opened the door.”

“Who?” Lottie asked. An’gel thought she detected tension in that one syllable.

“His wife.” An’gel paused deliberately too see how Lottie would react.

“I don’t believe you,” Lottie said. “Who is she, some English woman?”

An’gel laughed. “Heavens, no. You’d never in a million years guess who she is.”

“Who, dammit? Who is she?” Lottie was obviously agitated, whether from An’gel’s teasing her by delaying an answer or from the very fact that Hadley was married. An’gel wasn’t sure, but it was time to drop the bombshell.

“Do you remember Callie’s maid? Coriander Simpson?” An’gel said. “She’s Mrs. Hadley Partridge now.”

“You have got to be kidding.” Lottie snorted into the phone. “You’re telling me that Hadley Partridge married his brother’s servant? They’ll kick him out of the country club for this. I can’t believe it. Why’d he go and marry her?”

“For the same reason most people marry,” An’gel said. “He loves her, and she obviously loves him. You should see them together. They make such a beautiful couple. She’s every bit as striking as Hadley is handsome.”

Hadley grimaced at her, and Coriander appeared embarrassed. An’gel couldn’t help that. If Lottie was the killer, An’gel wanted to do what she could to get her worked up enough to show her hand.

“I’ve got to go,” Lottie said abruptly. “Barbie’s waiting. Talk to you later.” The call ended.

An’gel set her phone on the table. “If that doesn’t get her here—presuming she’s the one we’re after—nothing will.”

Kanesha smiled. “Miss An’gel, you are even more devious than I ever suspected.”

“I’ll take that as a compliment, thank you very much.” She shared with them some of what Lottie had said. Hadley laughed at the remark about his being kicked out of the country club.

“I couldn’t care less about those old fogies,” he said. “I hate golf anyway.”

Kanesha stood. “I hear the squad car.” She went to the back door. “Back in a moment.”

Dickce returned to the kitchen. “Mission accomplished.”

“How did she react?” An’gel asked.

“I was afraid she was going to have a stroke.” Dickce shook her head. “I’m not going to repeat some of the things she said. Trust me, if she’s the killer, she’s bound to show up here in record time.”

“The other deputies are here,” An’gel said. She began to feel nervous. Would her plan work? Was she unnecessarily putting lives in danger? They would simply have to see how things played out.

Kanesha returned with three deputies. She discussed with Hadley where to have them wait, and they decided that she and two of her men would wait in the room next to the front parlor. There was a door between the two rooms, and they would stand there with it slightly ajar, ready to come in the moment they were needed. The third deputy would wait across the hall where he would be watching what happened when Hadley answered the door. He would move into place outside the outer door to the parlor once Lottie or Reba was in the parlor.

“We’re going to be in the parlor with you,” An’gel told Hadley and Coriander. She shot a defiant glance at Kanesha. “You’ll have to lock us up somewhere to keep us out of there. Are you with me, Sister?”

“Absolutely,” Dickce said. “We can cause a distraction if necessary. We both have mace in our purses, and we’ll use it if we have to.”

Kanesha looked resigned. “We don’t have the time to argue this, and I’m sure not going to lock you and Miss Dickce up, Miss An’gel. I can’t even imagine trying it.” She paused. “Let’s get everyone in place. No telling how quickly the killer will show up.”

They all trooped out of the kitchen. Hadley showed Kanesha and her men into the library, the room next to the front parlor. Kanesha fixed the door how she wanted it. An’gel, along with Dickce and Coriander, seated themselves in the parlor. Hadley joined them moments later.

“I could use a drink,” Hadley said. “Bourbon, anyone?”

“Not for me, honey,” Coriander said. “You go ahead, though. Ladies?”

“No, thank you,” An’gel said in unison with Dickce.