Page 89 of The High Tide Club
“Leave it to a Yankee,” Felicia muttered, shaking her head.
“I’m not a Yankee. I’m a Californian, although technically, Ruth, Josephine, and Millie were all Yankees.” Lizzie grabbed a biscuit from the basket and dipped it into the bowl of grits. She took a bite, chewed, and nodded. “Hmm.Not bad.” She added, “Are you saying you don’t care what happens to Josephine’s estate, Felicia?”
“Nooo,” Felicia said cautiously. “I mean, yes, I do care, but for God’s sake, have some tact. The woman’s body is barely even cold.”
Varina sniffed loudly.
“What about funeral plans, Brooke?” Marie asked. “Do we know anything about arrangements yet?”
“No. I’ve notified the sheriff’s office, and he and the coroner should be on the way over by now,” Brooke began.
“Coroner!” Lizzie and Felicia said in unison.
“It’s strictly procedural,” Gabe said. “Especially in a case like this, when the, uh, deceased has met with an accident.”
“So after that?” Lizzie crossed her arms over her chest.
“Assuming everything is, uh, as it should be, Mrs. Warrick will be taken to the funeral home in St. Ann’s, and a death certificate will be issued.”
“And then we start probate, or however you do things in Georgia, correct?” Lizzie asked. She jerked her head in Felicia’s direction. “I only ask because at some point, Dweezil and I need to get back to California. I’ve got stories to write and deadlines to meet. It would be good if we could get all the paperwork wrapped up ASAP.”
Gabe frowned and nodded meaningfully at Brooke.
“We have a problem,” Brooke said.
“What kind of problem?” Felicia demanded.
“It’s about the will,” Brooke said slowly.
“Oh, shit. Here we go,” Felicia said. “What? She changed her mind?”
“This is all my fault, so I think I’d better be the one to tell you,” Gabe said. “Mrs. Warrick had every intention of leaving her estate to be put into a trust and divided among you five women—Brooke, Marie, Lizzie, Varina, and Felicia. I drafted the will as she dictated it last week, and as you know, I brought it back here yesterday for her to review and approve. Which she did.”
“Thank God for that,” Felicia said.
“Unfortunately…”
“Oh, shit,” Lizzie said.
“Unfortunately, for the will to be legally binding, it had to be signed by Mrs. Warrick in the presence of two witnesses. And that, I regret to tell you, did not happen. I had every intention of sending for two witnesses first thing this morning, but as you now know, it would have been too late.”
“Run that by me again?” Lizzie said. “Are you saying we don’t inherit? Like, anything?”
“Yes,” Gabe said, looking defeated. “That is correct. For all intents and purposes, Mrs. Warrick died intestate.”
Felicia pounded the tabletop with the flat of her hand, sending coffee cups and plates bouncing and clattering. “I knew it! I knew this was just some bullshit white guilt trip.”
“All because of a frigging piece of paper you didn’t get signed?” Lizzie demanded. “We can fix that. Send for the witnesses now. Get Louette and that weird guy who drives the boat. Have them sign the will, backdate it, then slip them a couple of hundred bucks to keep their mouths shut, and it’s all good. The will is in effect, and everybody’s happy.”
Gabe shook his head. “It’s not that simple. For one thing, Mrs. Warrick left both Louette and C. D. bequests, which means they are ineligible to be witnesses. But more importantly, even if they hadn’t been named as beneficiaries, such an action would constitute fraud, and as an officer of the court, I cannot and will not be a party to that.”
***
“The sheriff just called. He and the coroner should be docking in a few minutes,” Louette announced, returning to the dining room. “I said I’d send Shug to fetch them.” She circled the table with the coffeepot, hovering quietly in the background as the unhappy news sank in.
It was Lizzie who asked the question that had already occurred to everybody.
“If none of us inherits everything, who does? Josephine didn’t have any family, right?”
