“Thank you, dear.”

Judith poured herself a cup of tea and Hannah noticed that it was steaming as it flowed from the spout of the antique teapot. There were no cracks in Judith’s rare Wedgwood, though the tea set was almost two hundred years old. Delores had mentioned that even hairline cracks diffused the heat and cooled the tea.

Judith was perfectly silent as she sipped her tea, and Hannah knew she had to say something. Her hostess wasn’t making it easy and Hannah had never been any good at polite small talk. “It was so nice to see Benton again,” Hannah began. “Will he be here for long?”

“I’m really not sure. We haven’t had time to discuss his plans.”

Nothing useful there, Hannah thought to herself and decided to try a more direct method. “I was wondering if Benton was satisfied with the car that he rented.”

Hannah was rewarded for her efforts by a raised, perfectly shaped eyebrow and total silence. Judith was the master of the noncommittal.

“I’m talking about the car from Compacts Unlimited,” Hannah explained. “I noticed the folder when your husband gave us permission to take pictures in his den.”

“Oh, that wasn’t Benton’s car,” Judith corrected her. “The party people rented from Compacts Unlimited.”

Hannah kicked herself mentally for not thinking of that possibility. The maid at the party had told her that Judith had paid for transportation. But just because Benton hadn’t rented the car didn’t mean that he hadn’t used it while it was here. And it had been here on Wednesday morning.

“Why are you so interested in rental cars?”

Judith’s question pulled Hannah back from her thoughts with a jolt. She was getting nowhere, fishing for information, and Judith had given her the perfect opportunity. She might as well come right out and ask.

“Look, Judith.” Hannah raised her gaze to Judith’s perfectly calm green eyes. “I probably shouldn’t say anything, but a black rental car from Compacts Unlimited was spotted leaving the dairy on the morning that Max Turner was shot. I certainly don’t believe that Benton had anything to do with Max’s murder, but my brother-in-law is in charge of the investigation and he’ll probably be by to ask questions. I just wanted to warn you.”

“Warn me? Why would you want to warn me?”

Hannah sighed. “I guess warn was the wrong word. I should have said that I came to alert you. Benton does have an alibi for the time of Max’s murder, doesn’t he?”

“Of course he does!” Judith’s voice dripped ice. “Benton wasn’t even in town at the time!”

“That’s what I thought. If Benton still has his airline tickets, don’t let him throw them away. They could prove his innocence.”

Judith’s eyes narrowed. “Are you telling me that your brother-in-law suspects Benton of murdering Max Turner?”

“No. This is just between you and me. If you can find Benton’s airline tickets and show them to me, I won’t need to mention it to Bill. You’ve always been nice to me and I’d really like to save your family from the embarrassment of a police visit.”