I took the letter from her. I wasn’t surprised to see it addressed to John Graves. I was, however, quite shocked to see who it was from. Constance. My gaze snapped back up to hers.

She held up a hand as though to hold me off. “I know.”

“How old is this letter?”

“Several years.”

“Why do you have it?”

“Rip stole it. Probably took it right out of her mailbox. She would have thought the mail carrier had delivered it.”

I suddenly remembered what John had said about Dog bringing him other people’s mail. Maybe the crow had been trying to tell John about this letter. A messenger for the dead indeed.

I brought myself back to the moment. “Your husband told me he didn’t see much of Constance.”

“My husband is a liar, Ms. Warren. It comes as easily to him as breathing. He doesn’t even think his lies through. He visited his sister several times a year trying to convince her to give him Graves House. I’m sure he wasn’t nice about it either. My guess is every visit he paid hardened her heart against him a little more.”

“But the letter?”

“It wouldn’t exactly be in his interests to have John and Constance making amends, would it?”

“Is that what this is? Constance trying to make amends?”

“I shouldn’t say. The letter was meant to be a private communication between Constance and her brother. I am ashamed for having looked at it myself.” Her cheeks reddened. “Suffice it to say, Rip used what was in that letter to keep John angry at his sister, but it was all out of context. Constance was trying to make things right for once.”

“I can’t believe this,” I said, staring at the envelope.

“You can’t begin to understand how devious my husband is. That day when you came to the orchard, he already knew the police thought Constance’s death was suspicious.”

I couldn’t say I was shocked. I already knew he had been lying.

“He set you up. He wanted you to question whether John had something to do with his sister’s death. And you’re not the only one. He planned to use this letter to convince the police John had a motive to kill his sister.”

I frowned. What more could Constance have possibly done to John aside from cutting him out of the will?

“If he could make it seem like John had killed Constance that was one less person he’d have to fight for the estate. Not that he’s going to get one brick of that house. Constance would have made sure of that. Of course, Rip’s ridiculous plan fell apart when he heard John’s alibi.”

“What alibi?”

“He was in the military for a while with several members of Evenfall’s police force. They were drinking together that night. Not that anyone would have believed John could be capable of such an act. Rip never understood his brother. What it meant to be a good man.”