Bones of a Feather - Carolyn Haines [34]
That gave her pause. “They’ve been really good to me. I’ll do whatever I can to help them, but I won’t discuss their private business. There are enough vultures in town hoping to pick their carcasses clean.”
I instantly liked Kissie. She was loyal and straightforward. She signaled for me to enter. Beads, à la 1971, hung in a doorway that probably led to her bedroom. The sofa in her sitting area was covered in a multihued throw, and plants jammed every windowsill. Candles burned in saucers on the kitchen counter. Incense lingered in the air, though none was burning. She was definitely living in a time decades past.
“How long have you worked for the Leverts?” I asked.
“Long enough to know they’re good people. Everyone in town is jealous because they have money and an estate and they can do what they want and tell the busybodies to kiss their asses.”
“And they do that regularly, I’ll bet.”
Kissie gave me an appreciative look. “You can respect that, can’t you?”
“Indeed I can. Sucking up to those who consider themselves high society has never been one of my favorite pastimes.”
She indicated a rattan chair that had seen better days. “Want some green tea?”
Tinkie enjoyed the tea leaf, but I was coffee 100 percent of the way. “I just have a few questions and then I’ll be out of your hair.”
“Shoot.” She dropped onto the sofa. “I’ve got a gig tonight at King’s Tavern, and I need to practice a few of my songs.”
“Do you write your own material?”
“Most of the time. I cover a few artists I like. Rosanne Cash. Lucinda Williams. They have some fine songs. Mostly I write my own, though.”
“That’s a tough business.”
“It’s not for sissies, but nothing worth having ever comes easy.”
Words to live by. “You know the Levert necklace is missing,” I said. She nodded and I continued. “Monica and Eleanor hired me and my partner to report to the insurance company on the theft of the necklace. We’ve done our report and found no cause for Langley Insurance not to honor the policy.”
Kissie clapped. “That’s good news. I was afraid they’d try to stiff Monica and Eleanor.”
“Mr. Nesbitt was justifiably concerned the theft was … staged.”
“Yeah, any excuse not to pay up. Ask the folks down on the coast what happened after Katrina. Like they staged a hurricane.”
I didn’t want to debate the pros and cons of insurance companies. “The good news is, we believe Langley Insurance will cut a check very soon.”
“I’ll bet Monica and Eleanor are chilling champagne right now. Hey, maybe they’ll come to my gig tonight. Sometimes they do, to show support for me. They’re really cool.”
It was clear Kissie had no clue Monica was missing and being held for ransom. That answered my most pressing concern. I didn’t believe Kissie was responsible, but her past history had proven she sometimes hung out with unsavory characters.
“Kissie, have you noticed strangers around Briarcliff, or anyone asking questions about the estate or the Levert sisters?”
She took a deep breath. “You think my boyfriend is involved in the theft of the necklace, don’t you?”
“I wasn’t accusing anyone.”
She picked at a string on her jeans. “I don’t have much taste in men. I’ll admit that. But I’d never do anything to hurt Eleanor or Monica. They’ve been like family to me.”
Sometimes family committed the most grievous of sins, but I didn’t go there. “Do you think your boyfriend could be involved?”
“No way. I’d kill him myself, and he knows it. Marty’s selfish and full of himself, but he’s not a thief. Music is his thing. He’d step on someone to get ahead, but he wouldn’t steal from them.”
“Does Marty have a last name?”
“Marty Herman.” She rolled her eyes. “He goes by Marty Diamond. Herman doesn’t sound like much of a country music name.”
“Do you perform solo?” I asked.
She hesitated, and in that split second I saw a young woman who was not as self-assured as she pretended to be. “Most of the time I do, though sometimes I like to play with Marty.”
“Does he write, too?”
“No. He sings my stuff. He’s got a more commercial voice. He