possession of some of the darndest information.
Nan nodded. “Yep, it burned down just before they declared bankruptcy. They had to at that point. They had nothing left. The insurance company, suspecting fraud over the missing jewels claim, dropped their coverage. I think the parents were still trying to get the place reinsured when it went up in smoke. They lost everything. They died not long after.”
“That’s terrible,” Doreen said with a snort. “Was the fire an accident, I wonder? Too bad the parents aren’t still alive to ask who knew about the insurance being canceled. If no one knew, then maybe it was deliberate to save the business. But, if everyone knew, maybe it was deliberate to finish off the family business. Then again, it might have been a terrible accident.”
“Exactly,” Nan said, “but I’d put that fire down to Aretha’s first husband. He was really kind of useless.”
“It does seem like he drove the business into the ground.” Doreen thought about the stately Aretha; maybe she had taken a step down in life after all. Maybe, by the time her husband died, there hadn’t been any money left.
“No, he wasn’t any good at business,” Nan said with a smile. “And Aretha was a girl who liked to wear the jewelry.”
“Do you think she had anything to do with the burglary?” Doreen asked.
Nan looked at her, surprised.
“Oh, my goodness,” Nan said. “I can only imagine what kind of a scene that would have been, if she had.”
“Exactly,” Doreen said. “So, you’re saying the business burned down soon after that?”
“Yes. It was very soon after that,” Nan said. She shook her head. “Well, I hadn’t heard any of this about the jewels.”
“It doesn’t change much, but it does make you wonder,” Doreen said.
“Yes,” Nan said. “Maybe it is poor Aretha after all. I can’t remember now,” Nan said. “Did her husband commit suicide? I think there were rumors to that effect.” She tapped her jaw as she tried to remember.
“If he did, maybe it’s not so hard to understand, given the fact they were broke.”
“But the insurance should have covered a certain amount.”
“Depends on how much they had the business insured for,” Doreen said. “And insurance companies don’t like to pay out.”
“No, of course not,” Nan said. “It’s money going in the wrong direction, as far as they’re concerned.”
“Exactly. … Of course, if her husband committed suicide fairly soon afterward …”
“I know that look on your face,” Nan said eagerly. She leaned closer. “What are you thinking about?”
“Not a whole lot,” Doreen said. “It’s just interesting. I’ll have to look up her second husband.”
“Well, he’s dead too,” Nan said with a wave of her hand, as if to say, Easy come, easy go. “There isn’t a lot you’ll learn about him.”
“Does he still have family around?”
“Of course. His brother is here,” Nan said.
“Brother? What brother?”
“Mangus. He’s in here with me. But he’s older, and he’s also kind of a grump.”
“Sounds like maybe he’s of the same mold as Aretha.” Doreen was clearly distracted, her mind going in all directions.
“I don’t think there’s been any love lost between them,” Nan said. “When they were both here, they wouldn’t even sit at the same table.”
“If I was still married, and my husband died, and I came to Rosemoor, I’m not sure I’d want to hang out with my husband’s old friends or family either.”
“Okay, good point,” Nan said. “That could very well be it. Aretha doesn’t do well with anybody. You know that, right?”
“That’s what you keep telling me,” Doreen said with a smile.
“Just say that you believe me,” Nan said.
“Okay.”
The conversation eased back a little bit at that point.
“So, what about Mangus?” Doreen asked. “Is there any way I could talk to him?”
“Probably,” she said. “You could come by on Monday. He’s on my lawn bowling team.”
“Are you enjoying the game?” she asked curiously.
Nan laughed and nodded. “I am and finding it fun,” she said. “I’m not saying I’m very good at it, but Mangus is quite good.”
“Is he here now?”
“Nope, he’s not. He’s gone away for the weekend.”
“Interesting. How does one get away for a weekend when in Rosemoor?”
Nan snorted. “Honestly, he’s probably gone into the hospital for a procedure. Anyway, he’s not here and is supposed to be back Monday.”
“Good,” Doreen said. “Maybe I can talk to him then.”
Nan nodded, then looked at her watch. It was about the third time she’d looked at it.
“Am I keeping you from something?”
“My favorite show is coming on.”
“Oh my,” Doreen said. “I don’t