Page 123 of Family Jewels

“Yeah.”

She shook her head. “No. We’re safe. Homer firmly believes his business is his own. If he stumbled upon the necklace and sold it, there’s not a chance in Hades he’d share the money with his wife. He wouldn’t tell her he was goin’ to get it.”

“I hope you’re right. This is a long shot as it is.”

“Just let me take this one. I know her, so she might be more inclined to tellme.”

“I’m good with that.” Although it didn’t seem like a good time to remind her it hadn’t mattered much last time.

We climbed out of the car, and at the last minute, Neely Kate grabbed the box of her half-eaten Chuck and Cluck lunch.

What in the world?

Mable walked out onto the porch. I saw it as a step in the right direction that she was holding a broom instead of a shotgun this time.

“What are you girls doin’ back here?” the older woman asked, shouting over the frantic barks of the dog. “You still tryin’ to get that recipe?”

Neely Kate gave her a sad grin as we sidestepped the dog and approached the bottom of the steps. “Well, you can’t blame a girl for tryin’, but we’re here for a different reason.” She paused, lifting the chicken box in front of her. “We’re here to pay our condolences.” She mounted the bottom step and handed the woman the box.

“Oh.” The woman’s hard exterior seemed to crumble a bit as she took the box.

“Raddy was so full of life,” Neely Kate said, shifting her weight. “I just can’t believe he’s gone.”

“Radcliffe Mussleman Dyer was a fool. It’s a wonder he didn’t get himself killed sooner,” the older woman grumbled, and while her words were shocking, the tears gathering in her eyes softened them.

“As you know, he’d hired us to find his grandmother’s necklace, and we’ve vowed to complete the mission in honor of his memory. Of course we’ll bring it to you straightaway,” Neely Kate said. “I’m sure he would have wanted his momma to have it.”

She nodded and wiped her eyes.

“But we’re tryin’ to track down the last person to have seen it before it disappeared. We think it might have been you.”

Mable didn’t answer.

“We know you got all the jewelry from Rayna, but we think there was a necklace in there that didn’t come from your momma. Do you remember seeing it? It had big, yellowish-clear stones.”

The woman pursed her lips. “No. I don’t rightly recall. I just grabbed the jewelry and brought it home.”

“And you gave it to Leah?” I asked even though I knew that wasn’t true.

The older woman pressed her lips together.

The frenzied dog made a forceful lunge, and Neely Kate flinched and jumped a foot to the right. “Has Leah been out to see you since you brought the jewelry home?” Would she admit to the truth?

“Yeah. She and Newton came over a couple of days later.”

“Newton was with her?”

“Yeah. She said her car was broke down, and he gave her a ride.”

“Did you see Leah the entire time, or did she slip away?”

“She said she was goin’ to the bathroom, but I caught her comin’ out of my room,” Mable said. “When I called her on it, she said she was lookin’ for the picture albums.”

“What do you think happened to the necklace?” I asked.

Her eyes turned hard. “I think that hussy Rayna hid it somewhere good where no one’s ever gonna find it. You’re on a fool’s errand. You need to give it up.” She opened the box, and confusion flickered in her eyes as she lifted the mostly eaten chicken thigh.

“That’s for Zeus,” Neely Kate said, reaching for it. She snatched it from the older woman, and then before I could stop her, she tossed it sideways toward the tree where the animal was chained up.