“The Veronica Thane manuscripts?” I hadn’t even considered them. So much had happened since I first heard about them that I had nearly forgotten they existed.

“Yeah, and Eagleton swears he didn’t take them.” Sean shrugged. “But they were found in his suite at the Farrington House.”

I wondered who had found them, but I had another question I wanted answered first. “Who reported them missing?” I decided I’d had enough pimento cheese and got up to put the food away.

“Eugene Marter, the grandson, called the sheriff’s department to report the theft.”

I had put my odd encounter with Eugene out of my mind, along with the manuscripts. Now, I realized, I needed to tell Sean what Eugene had told me. “I have more questions about the theft, but first there’s something you should know.” I gave Sean a summary of the meeting when I resumed my seat at the table. My son’s eyes narrowed when I related the alleged threat Eagleton had made against Mrs. Cartwright.

“Did you believe Marter?” Sean asked.

“Hard to say. Carrie Taylor told me he was shiftless, couldn’t keep a job, but of course I have no idea if that’s true.” I thought back to the encounter, replayed a bit of it in my head. “He was rather odd. Talked like Hollywood’s idea of a Mississippi redneck, when both his mother and his grandmother speak like educated women. He told me he’d had run-ins with the police.”

“Maybe not a completely trustworthy character then.” Sean looked thoughtful. “I’ll have to discuss this with my client. Kanesha didn’t mention any threats when she questioned him, so I presume that Marter never talked to anyone else about it.”

“Frankly I thought he probably wouldn’t,” I said. “He didn’t seem that eager to have contact with the authorities.”

“Other than calling them to report a theft.”

“That reminds me of one of the questions I wanted to ask. Who found the manuscripts in Eagleton’s suite?”

“Kanesha.” Sean leaned back in his chair. “Evidently Marter wouldn’t talk to anyone else when he called in to report the theft. He said Eagleton must have taken the manuscripts during a visit to Mrs. Cartwright earlier in the day.”

I nodded. I remembered that Eagleton had referred to a visit tonight.

Sean continued, “They weren’t able to settle on terms because, according to my client, Mrs. Cartwright and Mrs. Marter were asking for much too large an advance.”

Given what I suspected about the man’s financial situation, I figured much too large might be a relatively modest sum—although they did seem really greedy. I told Sean my suspicions. “You might well be whistling in the wind for your fee if I’m right.”