Deep Dixie (39 page)

“
Dixie, you are jumping to a lot of conclusions. You don
’
t know what was or wasn
’
t willed or given to her by your family. Maybe your great-grandfather gave her something else besides the family home. He must have felt pretty strongly about defending Lettie
’
s privacy on the matter. He did lock this Bible away and evidently took the story of Lettie
’
s marriage and Helen Betty
’
s parentage to his grave.
”

“
Maybe he did that for all the wrong reasons, Riley We can skirt around it all we want, but it
’
s a little like trying to ignore an elephant in the parlor, isn
’
t it?
”

“
I
’
m not sure—
”

“
Oh, c
’
mon. A racially mixed couple in Mississippi in nineteen forty-seven? Did you ever think that all this secrecy, the lies, the cover-up might have been, well,
forced
on Miss Lettie? A condition my family put on her and she had no choice but to honor? To suffer in silence?
”

Riley laughed.
“
Somehow that does not sound like our Miss Lettie.
”

“
Allowing me to believe she was the retired family maid my whole life, living a lie...that doesn
’
t sound like her either, does it?
”

Having no ready answer to that, he just frowned.

“
I wonder who else knew. Or knows.
”

“
Do you suspect your grandfather or Aunt Sis have any idea?
”

“
They
’
ve never given any indication of it. But obviously Daddy knew. He was the one who had the Bible.
”
She raised her head and the shadow of the safe
’
s door fell across her face.
“
He had the Bible and kept it locked away in a place no one but he and I have gotten to without some drastic means like a court order or a short stick of dynamite.
”

Riley looked up at the bullet hole in the office ceiling.
“
You know, John Frederick might not have considered resorting to TNT all that drastic of a measure.
”

She glared at him.

He could see in her dispirited eyes, her slumped posture, her white-knuckled grip on the old Bible how her father
’
s less- than-forthright treatment of this matter hurt Dixie. That made him think twice before offering yet another possibility, but he felt he had to say it, to make her look at this from more than just her own narrow angle.
“
Dixie, honey, you do understand that it
’
s possible that you are the only member of your family that does not know about this big secret you think you
’
ve just uncovered? That maybe it
’
s already been resolved by those directly involved?
”

She drew a shuddering breath and nodded, then tipped her head to the side.
“
Do you think Fulton knows?
”

“
Fulton
? His very name makes you suspect his mother must have shared the connection.
”
Riley paused to glance around the room, recalling all the conversations he
’
d had with the man, the times they
’
d sat here and talked about raising their daughters, about business strategies, even about the Fulton family.

Not once had Fulton given so much as a hint that he suspected he held any relationship to Dixie
’
s family at all. Riley folded his arms over his chest and shook his head.
“
Actually, no, Dixie. In talking with him, I don
’
t think he knows. But that doesn
’
t mean it
’
s your place to tell him.
”

“
I think Fulton and his little girl, considering that they are heirs to a chunk of the family
fortune, might argue with that, Riley.
”

“
Heirs? How do you figure that?
”

“
It
’
s family money, they are family. In fact, of all the people who have reaped the benefit of Samuel Fulton
’
s fortune, which included most of the start-up money for the furniture businesses, there are only three survivors who are his true blood relations: me, Fulton, and Fulton
’
s daughter.
”
She reached up and shut the wall safe slowly, the Bible still clutched close with one hand.
“
If there is any
right
thing to do, in this case, Riley, it
’
s to get to the truth in this matter and then see what I can do to make up for whatever wrongs have been done by my family.
”

* * *

“
Did you get your phone call taken care of?
”

Riley heard Aunt Sis
’
s voice, but the sole creature he saw in the entryway was Peachie Too, just sitting there, her head cocked to one side.

“
I, um...
”
Riley looked around. The house seemed hushed and deserted, like some old library. Dixie had pushed past him the second they came in the door to go find Miss Lettie and have a long talk with the elderly woman. Riley
’
s heart was set on having a few words with Momma himself before he tried to contact Fulton and advise him on how to proceed should the lawyer hear from Marcia.

“
Well?
”
Peachie Too sat up, her front paws in begging position. The dog blinked as though it were, indeed, awaiting some kind of response from Riley.

It seemed rude not to answer the question and even though he knew Peachie Too had not asked it, he leaned forward to inspect what the animal was up to as he said,
“
Yes, I did.
”

“
Who are you talking to, son?
”
Momma came into the parlor just off the entryway, her gait hampered by the use of an aluminum walker.

“
I, uh...
”
He pointed to Peachie Too, meaning to ask why the thing was acting so docile and beguiling.

Momma lowered herself onto
“
her
”
end of the large sofa, the one farthest from Miss Lettie
’
s rocker.

In the weeks she
’
d been in the house, Momma and the others had established their own routines, complete with favorite seats, meals, television programs, and leisure activities.

Sis and Momma had taken up opposite ends of the parlor sofa so that Peachie Too, who had taken a liking to Momma as intense and inexplicable as her seeming dislike for Aunt Sis, could lie between them. The Judge took the high-backed chair that faced the entryway and dominated the room, and Miss Lettie favored her carved, oak rocker. Wendy got the floor; Dixie, the footstool. Riley made himself at home pretty much wherever he could and that was fine with him because of that very thing: he was at home here.

“
Stop fooling with that dog and come talk to me,
”
Momma ordered.
“
Or better yet, bring that princess puppy-toes over here so I can visit with her.
”

Riley gave one last glance around for Sis then reached cautiously toward the poodle.

“
You don
’
t have to tell me about the phone call, Riley, honey, but at least have the courtesy to acknowledge me.
”

Riley hesitated.

Peachie Too sneezed right into Riley
’
s open palms then darted off.

“
Come back here you little—
”
He chose not to call the troublesome apricot-colored, dog-germ spritzer what he really wanted to call her. Momma was in the room and, injury or not, she
could still nail his backside from forty paces with a sofa pillow. He glared at the dog.
“
I
’
ll acknowledge
you
—
”
as opposed to the yet unseen Sis whom he knew he should be addressing
“
—all right. Acknowledge you as a good place to wipe this snout-goo off of my hands.
”

Bending down, he started after the beast, which ran under the rocker and around the footstool.

“
Aha!
”
Riley caught a glimpse of pinkish fluff quivering behind the Judge
’
s chair. He pounced.

“
What are you doing, young man?
”
Aunt Sis rose from behind the chair and nearly gave Riley a heart attack.

“
Nothing! I thought you were...your hair is the color of...
”
He put his hands behind his back like a ten-year-old with a slingshot caught standing outside a busted window.
“
Um, did Peachie Too run by here? Momma was wanting to hold her.
”

Dixie breezed into the room.
“
Miss Lettie is napping right now so I guess I
’
ll have to wait to talk to her.
”

“
Talk to her about what, honey?
”
Sis put her hands on her hips, her attitude suddenly as if she had appointed herself Miss Lettie
’
s social secretary charged with screening who got through to the lady and what they discussed with her.

“
Oh, never mind.
”
Dixie took a side step and slid the Bible she
’
d kept cradled in her arms all the way from the office onto the end table beside a red, cloth-covered journal.
“
It can wait until she
’
s rested and up and around. What are you doing crawling around on the floor, Aunt Sis?
”

Riley gave her a thumbs-up nod of approval for the preemptive question.
“
Yes, what are you doing crawling around on the floor?
”

“
Oh! That
’
s something you
’
ll be glad to hear about!
”
Her face brightened but it still had a long way to go to rival the thousand-watt glow of her floral-patterned dress.
“
I have fixed Riley
’
s precious little cellular phone.
”

“
You
what
?
”
he managed to utter even as his jaw dropped.

“
Fixed
it?
”
Dixie threw him an apologetic grimace.

“
Yes, I did. I took all the pieces and snapped them back inside and glued the cover back on good as new.
”
Her hands flew as she reenacted the process of jamming the intricate parts of Riley
’
s phone together.
“
It was sort of like putting together a jigsaw puzzle and you know how good I am at putting together jigsaw puzzles. Except that these pieces didn
’
t quite fit right and there wasn
’
t a picture on a box for me to follow, you know. So, I figured that I might have dropped a piece or two carrying it from the entryway to the kitchen. That
’
s when I decided to retrace my steps on my hands and knees, combing the rug for any stray bits and pieces...
”

Okay, Sis, come up for air
.
Riley was hoping against hope for a window of opportunity to speak.

Dixie did not wait for that window, she just barged right in, making her own door then sticking her verbal foot in to make sure Sis could not shut them out of the conversation again.
“
My! Isn
’
t that ingenious of you Aunt Sis? Sounds like you
’
ve really worked hard while we were gone and you know what? You deserve a break!
”

“
Oh, it wasn
’
t hard work, honey. Just trying to help Riley—
”

“
Gee, thanks,
”
he muttered, his hand over his eyes.