Ivy looked around the house, wondering if Ruth would have been happier if she’d just sold the cottage and found a more accessible home. “You were with her when she died.”

A silence settled between them. “I’d come to see her latest painting. I could see right off she wasn’t feeling well, and her left hand was shaking. She didn’t want me to fuss, but I called 911. When the rescue squad arrived, she had a heart attack just as they were loading her on the stretcher. They worked on her all the way to the clinic, but she was gone before they arrived.”

Sadness tangled with guilt and lodged in her throat. “Thank you for being with her.”

“Of course. She was a second mother to me.”

Nestled under Ivy’s gratitude, flickers of resentment flared. Dani had again stepped into a role that Ivy could have had if she’d stayed in Nags Head. But leaving was her own mistake.

“She was glad you went to New York,” Dani said. “She said you needed the time away.”

“Why would she say that? She never left the shore.”

“I’m not so sure about that.”

“What do you mean?” Ivy asked.

“My father once mentioned Ruth wasn’t living in the area when her father died.”

“Did your father know where Ruth went?”

“No, but I’ll be sure to ask.” Dani’s gaze roamed the cluttered room. “I think Ruth has more to say.”

CHAPTER SEVEN

RUTH

Saturday, June 17, 1950, 12:00 noon

Whiskey was stubborn. She glanced up at Ruth and Talley, her gaze defiant. She sniffed the ground, looked as if she’d squat, and then didn’t. Choosing another spot, she changed her mind again. And again.

“Can’t you just pee? We want to see that lady. Don’t you want to see her too?” Ruth asked. “She’s about the most interesting person I’ve met ever.”

“Me too,” Talley said.

The dog grunted out a breath. Pawed at the ground as if solid soil deserved suspicion. Finally, finally she dropped down and peed.

“About time,” Ruth said. “You really are a spoiled thing, aren’t you?”

Whiskey yawned.

Ruth scooped up the dog, and the two girls pivoted toward the cottage where Carlotta was staying. Squinting against the sun, they moved across the pale sand, past the scrub bushes and bramble. The day’s heat gathered in the humid air, and within a few steps, sweat dampened the slender alley between Ruth’s shoulder blades.

“The sun’s hot,” Talley said.

Her cousin, like Mama, was turning bright pink, and soon her skin would burn. Ruth soaked up the sun with the ease of a sponge. She cupped her hand over Whiskey’s eyes just to be on the safe side. “We need to get you a hat from the lost and found.”

“I won’t say no,” Talley said. “Do you get entertainers a lot?”

“Mama has had performers in before, but they rarely stay more than a night or two. And none have been as glamorous as Carlotta DiSalvo.” Her every detail sparkled. Even her hair was unique.