“But come in for some coffee, won’t you?” Laura opened the door wider. “I was just straightening up a little. Fairchild’s not here. He and Eddie have gone to De Funiak Springs to make funeral arrangements. They’re releasing Millicent’s body tomorrow.”

“Have the police said anything about what they think may have happened?”

“They know she didn’t drown; they know that much. She bled to death.”

“So she had to be dead when she was thrown into the water?”

Laura held up her hands in a “who knows?” gesture and shrugged. “You want anything in your coffee?”

I nodded that I did. “About a half teaspoon of sugar.”

“Let’s sit on the balcony. Go on out. I’ll bring the coffee.”

It was another cloudless day, and would probably be hotter than the day before. A perfect beach day. The procession of young parents juggling floats, coolers, and kids over the stile and onto the sand brought back memories of Fred and me herding our three to the beach. I could have told them that as soon as they were settled under an umbrella, the kids would have to go to the bathroom. It was a given.

“Here we go.” Laura put a tray with two cups on it on a small glass table and we sat down.

“It feels strange being here without Millicent,” I said.

“Yes, it does.” Laura picked up her coffee and blew across the steam. “Lonesome.” Tears filled her eyes. As she brushed them away, she parted her bangs and I noticed a large bruise on her forehead.

“Are you okay? I asked.

She saw I was looking at the bruise and smiled. “Eddie hasn’t been abusing me, Patricia Anne, if that’s what you’re thinking. We’re building over at Blue Bay, you know, and I bent down too quickly over the corner of a kitchen cabinet. Saw stars.” She pulled her bangs back into place.

“You’re lucky it didn’t break the skin.”

“Bumps and bruises seem to be par for the course when you’re building a house.”

“Mary Alice and I went over to Blue Bay Ranch yesterday. I had no idea it was going to be such a fancy development.”

“Millicent was sitting on a gold mine. I don’t think she ever understood it, which makes you realize what a mindset money is. If you’re born poor, I wonder if you can ever feel wealthy.”

I thought about that a minute. “Mary Alice seems to have the hang of it. Of course, we weren’t poor when we were children, just very middle class.”

Laura nodded. “So was my family.” She put her coffee on the table. “We’ll be moving in about a month. The boathouse is already finished.”

“What color is your house? We probably saw it.”

“It’s lavender. My favorite color.”

“I remember it. It’s beautiful.”