Page 41 of Family Jewels

“What?” Neely Kate asked breathlessly. “Somebody killed her?”

Joe shot her a grim look. “We don’t know what happened yet, other than that Rayna’s friend showed up at her house and found her dead in her hot tub. I’m heading over there now to meet the county coroner.”

Rayna had been in her hot tub in my vision. I put my hand on my chest in an effort to calm my racing heart.

He pointed his finger toward Neely Kate and then swung it toward me. “But you two need to stay as far from this as possible. Got it?”

“Yeah,” we both said in unison.

He pushed out a breath and dropped his hand to his side. Now that he had our assurances, his tone was softer. “Is there anything else I should know?”

Neely Kate started telling him all the conflicting information we’d collected about Raddy’s family jewels.

Joe’s phone rang again, and he held up his hand. “Stop right there.” He answered it in his cop voice. “Simmons.” He rubbed his temple, then sighed. “Just hold him off. I’ll be right there.” He hung up and shook his head. “Unbelievable. The press has already shown up.”

“Henryetta has press?” I asked in surprise. I wouldn’t exactly callThe Henryetta Gazettea press. They published a paper once a week, but their biggest news was usually the Friday night bowling league scores—or it would be if the scores weren’t a week old by the time the paper went to press on Friday mornings.

Joe’s forehead wrinkled with irritation. “Some kid’s started an online news channel on YouTube. He tries to stir up trouble where there’s none to be found, but somehow Barry figured out there’s a real situation unfolding. He’s camping out on Rayna Dyer’s front yard. I need to head over there to make sure his camera is nowhere near that hot tub.” He headed for the front door, but his hand lingered on the doorknob for a moment. “Neely Kate, before I forget, I wanted to let you know that I have to leave town tomorrow, but I should be back by late afternoon Friday. If you need me for anything, you can still call me.”

Her eyes widened. “You’re leaving town?”

“Yeah,” he said. “Some business with my father’s accounts.”

“Can you still go now that Rayna’s been murdered?” she asked.

“Now, we don’t know what happened to Rayna, so there’s no reason to start throwing out the word murder. Deputy Miller said she was floating in the water along with an empty bottle of wine. For all we know, she got drunk enough to pass out and drowned.” He pointed his finger at us again. “But that’s official information, and I don’t want it gettin’ out. Especially to that pain in the ass, Barry Whitlow. Got it?”

“Yeah,” we said in unison again.

“Besides, I don’t need to be around for every violent crime investigation. There were a few suspicious deaths while I was gone this spring, and they were handled just fine. I’ll make sure things are taken care of before I leave.”

“Is your trip about Kate?” Neely Kate asked, her eyes full of worry.

Joe gave her a soft smile. “No. Nothing to do with Kate. Just some legal paperwork is all. Nothing to worry about, okay?”

She nodded.

He walked over to her and kissed her cheek. “This means I’ll have to take a raincheck on the cake. You two stay out of trouble.” Then he was out the door.

“Do you believe him?” Neely Kate asked as she stood in the front doorway and watched him drive away.

“About his trip?” I asked, trying hard not to act guilty. “Why wouldn’t I?”

She turned to look at me. “Because I’ve been getting letters from Kate.”

“What?” I asked in shock. “What does Joe say about that?”

A frown tugged at her lips. “I haven’t told him. But I wonder if he’s been getting them too.”

She hadn’t toldmeabout the letters, and I wasn’t sure what to think of that either. “How many have you gotten? When did they start? What has she said?”

“Only a few, and they started a couple of weeks ago,” she said, shutting the front door and locking it. “They’re mostly to taunt me about my mother.”

“Why didn’t you tell me?” I asked. Given the way Kate Simmons liked to mess with people’s heads, I was sure she was currently toying with my best friend.

She shrugged and went into the kitchen. When I followed her, she gave me an exasperated look. “Maybe this is why—because I knew you’d make a big deal about it.”

“Itisa big deal, Neely Kate. Your half-sister’s in a mental institution for messing with people’s lives. How is she even sending these things?” I asked, getting more and more riled up. “I would think they’d do a better job of monitoring her outgoing mail.” I pushed out a breath of frustration. “We need to contact the hospital and put a stop to this.”

---