Page 41 of Little Bitter Truths
“Is there any truth to her claim?”I asked.
“I don’t know.I’ll admit she spent a lot more time with our grandfather than we did in the last year of his life.After he died and the will was read, she tried to contest it in court.She even produced a letter she said he had written assuring her the house would be left to her.”
“What happened in court?”
“A handwriting analyst determined the letter was forged, and her claims didn’t hold up.The judge sided with us.”
“How did Renee take it?”
Mia took a few sips of coffee.“Renee’s always been a little strange.Ever since we were kids, she would go out of her way to be close to us.I’ll admit, I was never good about making the effort.Wren was a lot better at making time for her.After the court case, Renee accused us of influencing our grandfather before he died, convincing him to leave the house to us instead of her.”
“That’s a serious accusation,” I said.“How did you react?”
“I didn’t.I ignored it because it wasn’t true.According to our grandfather’s attorney, no changes had been made to the will for years.”
“What happened after she lost in court?”
“She tried reaching out to us a few times to apologize.She said she regretted what she’d done.Wren talked to her, but I didn’t.Not until I called her to let her know Wren had died.”
“Where does Renee live?”I asked.
“In Bakersfield.”
Bakersfield was a two-and-a-half-hour drive from Cambria, close enough for me to make a day trip out of it.
“I know I’ve just given you a short list of possible suspects,” Mia said.“But it’s like I said before, I just can’t picture any of them committing murder.”
I’d be the judge of that.
She wrapped her hands around her coffee cup like she was trying to warm them.“I keep thinking about what you said last night about the key.Someone knew where I kept it.”
Her phone buzzed on the table, and when she glanced at the screen, her face lit up.
“Everything okay?”I asked.
“Yeah, it’s umm … when I was at the conference in Las Vegas, I met someone.We planned to get together once it was over, and then Wren died, and everything changed.”
“Is he the guy you texted your sister about?”
She nodded.“His name is Simon Sullivan.We hit it off right away, but given what’s going on, I’m not sure when I’ll see him again.”
“Seems like the two of you are still communicating with each other.That’s something.”
“We text every day, and we’ve spent hours talking on the phone.The more I get to know him, the more I find myself wanting to see him again.It’s just hard to focus on anything beyond this investigation right now.”
When Simon’s text message came through, she smiled, which was nice to see.
After all the grief, fear, and uncertainty, she deserved a glimpse of something brighter.
“Thank you for being so open with me today,” I said.“I know it wasn’t easy.”
“I just want it to be over.”
“So do I.”
We stood, tossed our empty cups in the trash, and walked outside.
“I’m going to talk to my team, the two ladies I work with, and I’ll be in touch,” I said.“In the meantime, please be careful, okay?”
