Williams jumped to her feet. “Miss Coleman, this is not what we agreed to.”
“We agreed to nothing,” Liz said. “You’ve been in this town for what? Ten years? My family has been here three hundred.”
Williams locked glares with her but then backed away. I think she knew, one way or another, Liz would have her say, and it was probably best to get it over with.
“Now, I know everyone here has heard the stories of the Warren women,” she began, taking note of the glances being exchanged in the crowd, “but I’m here to tell you they are not just stories. And it’s not just about the dying plants or the people who have disappeared.”
An alarm sounded in my head. What people? I looked to Nora for answers, but she was still staring ahead, completely frozen. I knew my aunt well, though, and something had changed about her. She knew what Liz was talking about.
I had been so focused on Nora, I didn’t realize Izzy was suddenly on her feet. Beatty had half risen to his own to stop her from saying anything, but it was too late.
“What in the stars? Who has disappeared?”
Liz smiled. “You don’t know?” she asked sweetly. “Maybe you should ask your sister.”
Nora didn’t flinch.
“Evanora?” Izzy asked, slowly sitting back down. “What is she talking about?”
“I’m sure I have no idea,” Nora answered tightly.
“She knows exactly what I’m talking about. Tell them, Ms. Warren. What happened to my father?”
“Your father?” Izzy asked, still perched on the edge of her seat. “He didn’t disappear. He passed not too long ago, I believe.”
“Grant was my stepfather,” Liz said, gripping the sides of the podium. “Your sister drove my biological father out of town.” She slid her gaze away from Izzy to land on Nora. “Isn’t that right?”
“Nora,” Beatty warned from across the room.
I looked at my aunt. She was hanging in there, but I could feel the disquiet building behind her calm facade. In hindsight coming to this meeting had probably not been a good idea. No, not good at all.
“You couldn’t help yourself, could you?”
Nora didn’t answer, but I caught her exchanging looks with Mary, who suddenly looked quite guilty?
“You saw something you wanted,” Liz went on. “And when you couldn’t have it, you made sure nobody else could either.”
Confusion flickered over Nora’s face.
“You sent my father away. I don’t know how you did it, but you did. Now we don’t know if he’s dead or alive,” she said with an angry shrug. “All because you couldn’t have him. The man you were in love with didn’t love you.”
Silence filled the room.
I stared at Nora, searching her face for any sign she knew what Liz was talking about. For a good long time, she remained perfectly still. She could have been a statue. Then, all of the sudden, she chuckled.
It was nothing more than titter at first, but then it grew. I tried to think of a way to quiet her, something that wouldn’t make the situation worse, but before I could even blink that chuckle had risen to a howl. Nora was roaring with laughter. Her whole body shook with it. She was completely beside herself. It was like she had never heard anything quite so funny in her entire life.
Unfortunately, everyone else in the hall had gone deathly silent.
But either Nora didn’t notice or she didn’t care. She just laughed on and on.
After what seemed like hours, my aunt wiped the tears from her face and said, “Oh my. Just the thought of me being in love with that man. It’s too much.” She coughed, blinked a few times, then looked around the room. “Sorry. Where were we?”
Nobody seemed to know anymore.
It was Liz who recovered first. “That was a good performance,” she said, a little uncertainty finding its way into her voice, “but I know what I know.”
“What is it you know again?” Nora said, still smoothing tears away from the corners of her eyes.
“I know you made my father disappear, and more importantly, I know what everybody else in this room suspects.”
Nora rose to her feet. “I would choose your next words carefully.” All the previous hilarity had vanished from her voice, and everyone in the room tensed with the sudden feeling of danger.
“Evanora Warren, you are responsible for the murder of my aunt. And I have proof.” Liz patted the file in front of her. “Right here.”