Page 100 of Tangled Up In You

"That's good." She cleared her throat. "So how was the rest of your day?"

"It was fine. I didn't make much progress on your case and then I got sidetracked by another investigation."

"Is it something you can talk about?"

"Not at the moment, but nothing too serious. What about you? Was it another big sales day?"

"It was steady, not super busy, but enough that I felt good about things. Oh, I also had a brief chat with Phoebe's lawyer, George Marconi. I was supposed to pick up Phoebe's ashes, and I forgot, so he brought them by." She tipped her head toward the table.

Adam turned his head. "Well, that's a very bright and very large gold urn."

"Phoebe liked gold."

He faced her once more with a question in his eyes. "Is she going to stay there on the table?"

"I tried putting her in a dozen other places, and every single one felt weird. When I put her by the window, it felt right. She used to sit in that chair and look out the window. She liked to see the sun set over the mountains. She'd make herself a Manhattan and watch the sun go down."

"That seems like the right spot then."

"For now. I don't think it can be her permanent resting place, but I don't know where that should be, and she left it up to me. She gave me a note saying something like I would figure out where she should stay forever. I can't believe she didn't just tell me."

"She might not have known. It's a big decision to make, to even think about. She didn't want to do it, so she left it for you."

"But I haven't seen her in years and when we spoke, it was only on the phone. How would I know what to do over all her friends? They knew her better than me."

Adam gave her a sympathetic look. "Maybe she just thinks you two had a connection that will tell you what to do. At the end of the day, you're never going to know. She can't tell you."

She let out a sigh. "True. I just need to think about it, and also about a memorial service. But before I can get to all of that, I really need to make sure that I wasn't lying when I told Mr. Weatherly that the diamond wasn't here. Finish your pizza. Because I am going to need your help going through some boxes."

"So, rich people buy a lot of worthless shit," Adam declared after thirty minutes of looking through boxes filled with impractical and, at times, very unappealing objects. He was astonished by the amount of junk Caroline had apparently treasured enough to bequeath to Phoebe. He held up a ceramic snake. "How much do you think this is worth?"

"About a quarter at a yard sale," she said with a laugh. "But I could be wrong. Maybe it's a priceless ugly snake."

"I don't think so. I'm putting it in the giveaway pile."

"I won't stop you. I'm beginning to lose hope on finding the diamond. Unless…" She started taking apart a wooden doll.

"You think there's something inside that?" he asked in surprise.

"I know there is." She held out another doll that matched the larger one. "It will keep going, too."

He watched in fascination as she opened the doll to reveal a smaller one. In the end, there were five matching dolls, all with the same painted expression.

Molly held up the center of the doll, which was a tiny round box. "Last chance." She popped open the lid and then turned it upside down. "Nothing. I was thinking this was going to be it."

He smiled at her disgruntled expression. "It would have been a good place to hide a diamond. I certainly wouldn't have found it."

"One more box to go." She sliced open the tape on the last box. She lifted the lid and started to pull out something very furry, then stopped, her expression wrinkling with fear. "I don't know if I want to see this."

He stepped forward. "I'll check it out."

She put her hands over her eyes, as he pulled it out of the box and laid it on the floor. "Is it an animal?" she asked.

"At one time. It's a bear rug."

"Oh, God, there's not a head, is there?"

He laughed as he saw her bright-green gaze peeking through the hands covering her eyes. "No head. I'm not actually sure if it's real or faux fur."

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