“Not in the clothes she had slept in, Fairchild,” I interrupted. “Millicent wouldn’t be caught dead not looking neat as a pin.”

But she had been. Shut up, Patricia Anne. I bit my lip and looked out at the Gulf again.

“Thank you, Mr. Weatherby.” Elaine Gregory put her notebook back in her pocket. “We’re just doing our job, trying to find out what happened to your wife.”

“I know,” Fairchild said. “And I’m sorry I flared up. It just seems so unnecessary to go over the same things again and again.”

“We understand. We’ll try not to do that.” Elaine Gregory nodded toward Tim Blankenship. “You ready?”

They started out and I followed, being polite, seeing them out of the door. I was so close that when Elaine Gregory turned suddenly, I jumped backwards.

“Oh, Mr. Weatherby, there is one new thing we need to ask you about, the insurance policy.”

Fairchild was standing in the middle of the living room. “What policy?” he asked, though I could tell he knew exactly what she was talking about.

“Mrs. Weatherby’s million-dollar life insurance policy naming you the sole beneficiary.”

My mouth fell open. “Millicent took out a million-dollar life insurance policy? God, Fairchild, that must have cost a fortune.”

He sighed and looked down at the floor. “It’s not what it sounds like.”

“But you are the beneficiary, aren’t you, Mr. Weatherby?” Tim Blankenship asked.

“Of course I’m the beneficiary. This is some kind of deal the Blue Bay Ranch Corporation cooked up, this insurance thing. One of Jason Marley’s ideas. He’s the one you need to talk to.”

“We will, sir.” Tim Blankenship opened the door. “Y’all have a good day now.”

Chapter 7

Chapter 7

When the door closed, I turned and looked at Fairchild.

“The insurance was a Blue Bay perk, Patricia Anne,” he said. “The corporation bought it and paid the premiums. The land was Millicent’s part of the corporation, you see, and she wanted to make sure I wouldn’t be left out if something happened to her.” Fairchild shook his head. “To tell you the truth, I didn’t pay much attention to it. Millicent was ten years younger than me, so it never occurred to me that I would collect it.”

I came back into the living room. “I believe you, Fairchild.”

“It looks bad, though, doesn’t it?”

“It won’t when they find out all the details.”

Fairchild sank down on one of the wicker rockers and put his face in his hands. “I wish she had just sold the land to Jason Marley; he offered her a good price for it. But she wanted to be in on the development, said she wanted to be sure they did as little damage as possible to the environment.” He looked up. “Who would have killed her, Patricia Anne?”