Harper walked over to her. “This must be a nightmare for you,” she said sympathetically.
“You have no idea. Reporters knocked on my door at ten o’clock last night trying to interview me. I’m alone in the house. Police were coming and going at all hours.” The woman’s lips tightened. “I’ve had enough. My children don’t think it’s safe for me here until they catch the person who did this.” She had the silky patrician accent of old Savannah gentry that elongated every syllable. “I’ll stay at the DeSoto until this madness blows over.”
The DeSoto was one of Savannah’s most stylish and expensive hotels.
“That’s probably the right thing to do.” Harper kept her tone supportive.
“I think so, too.” As if she’d belatedly realized she was talking to a stranger, the woman peered at her. “I’m sorry, who did you say you were visiting?”
Harper gestured vaguely at number 2, where no car was in the drive. “My friends don’t seem to be home, though.”
“Gerald and Anna? I saw them leave about an hour ago,” the woman told her. “I think they’re going to stay in the city as well.”
This was perfect. She was a veritable one-woman Neighborhood Watch.
“Can I help you with that bag?” Harper offered.
“That’s so sweet of you.” The woman pushed a button on her key fob, and the trunk lid rose smoothly.
Harper picked up the suitcase, which was considerably heavier than it looked, and maneuvered it in. “There you go,” she said, dusting her hands together. As the lid closed, she made no move to leave. “It must be terrible, all of this happening so close to you. Anna’s really upset about it.”
“It’s terrifying.” The woman’s pencil-lined eyes widened. “The police have no idea where the murder happened; they couldn’t even tell me for certain it wasn’t on my very doorstep.”
“I’m so sorry,” Harper sympathized. “Did you know Xavier Rayne?”
The woman made a vague gesture. “Enough to say hello. He was a sweet man. Very sensitive. It’s such a tragedy. He and his girlfriend—that pretty actress—they were a beautiful couple.” She leaned forward confidingly. “They had problems, though, I have to tell you. Terrible fights.”
This time, Harper didn’t have to feign surprise. “Really? They fought?”
“Like cats.” Mistaking her expression for disbelief, the woman explained, defensively, “I sleep lightly. Insomnia runs in my family. Besides, they made no effort to keep their voices down.”
“I’m sorry, I’m just surprised,” Harper said. “They seemed like the perfect couple.”
The woman gave her a look. “Not very perfect from what I could hear.”
“Was this recently?” Harper asked. “The fighting, I mean?”
“Oh my land. The night he disappeared they had the biggest screaming match you’ve ever heard. He said he wouldn’t move in with her in LA, which really upset her. And she accused him of having sex with another girl. Which really upset him. She told him she was going back to California and she’d never come here again. She used extremely foul language. And so did he. I meant to talk to them about that but … Well, you know.” Her words faded.
“Have you talked to the police about this, Mrs.…?” Harper tilted her head. “I’m sorry, I didn’t catch your name.”
“Masters,” the woman said. “Jennifer Masters. And yours? I beg your pardon, I should have asked earlier.”
“Harper McClain.”
“McClain…” The woman’s carefully penciled eyebrows drew together. “I know that name.”
Harper nudged the conversation back on track. “Did you tell the police?”
“I did. In fact, a detective came by this morning,” she said. “She was extremely interested.”
She. That had to be Daltrey. Harper hadn’t noticed any detectives’ cars parked on the street, so she must be gone already. She hoped so, anyway. Either way, she needed to get moving. The last thing she wanted was to run into Daltrey before she could find out what was going on in there.
“I don’t blame you at all for going into the city until things calm down out here,” she said, taking a step back. “It was nice talking to you.”
Taking the hint, the woman got into the car. “I won’t feel safe until they catch whoever did this,” she said before she closed the door. “You should be careful out here, too.”
Harper waited until she drove out of sight before dashing over to number 6. Bypassing the main door in case anyone was watching, she slipped down the path between the two houses. This time, she didn’t run into anyone before reaching the arched, wooden gate.
For a second, she feared she wouldn’t remember the