a pale yellow blouse with a little too much spandex.

Barefoot, she padded down the hallway with her makeup bag and put it on the dresser in the bedroom. Theo came in to get his glasses. He was talking on the phone as he walked. He gave her a quick once-over, his gaze lingering on her legs, and she

heard him ask the person on the other end to repeat what he had just said.

"I got it. Yeah, her dad got the certified letter about an hour ago. No, Michelle doesn't know. I'll let Jake tell her."

"Who was that?" she asked.

"Ben. He's still waiting for the crime scene report."

"What is it you want Daddy to tell me?"

"Good news," he promised.

"Were there people here earlier? I thought I heard the door opening and closing and lots of strange voices."

"A couple of your dad's friends brought over the food from your house. There are four pies on the kitchen table," he added

with a grin.

"But no cards, right?"

"Mike, I want to talk to you," her father called.

"I'm coming, Daddy."

She and Theo walked into the living room together. She saw the photo album on the table and whispered, "Uh-oh. Daddy's melancholy."

"He looks happy to me."

"He's melancholy. He only gets the family album out when he's feeling blue."

John Paul was sprawled out on the sofa. His hands were stacked on his chest and his eyes were closed. Jake was sitting

at a big round oak table in the country kitchen, which opened to the living room.

"Now aren't you sorry you didn't go to the funeral?" he asked his son.

John Paul didn't open his eyes when he answered. "No."

"You should be," Jake said. "Your cousin wasn't the sourpuss you thought she was."

"I never said she was a sourpuss. I said-"

His father quickly stopped him. "I remember what you said, but I don't want you repeating it in front of company. Besides,

I know you've got to be feeling contrite now."

John Paul didn't have anything to say about that, unless a grunt qualified as a response.

"Your cousin was mindful of family after all. Mike, come and sit at the table. I've got something important to tell you. Theo,

you sit down too. I want you to see some pictures."

Theo pulled out a chair for Michelle, then sat beside her. Jake took hold of Michelle's hand and looked her in the eyes.

"Brace yourself, sugar. This is gonna be a shock."

"Who died?"

Her father blinked. "No one died. It's your cousin Catherine Bodine."

"The dead one," John Paul called out.

"Of course she's dead. We've only got one cousin in the family on your mama's side." Jake shook his head.

"What about her?" Michelle asked.

"She left us money. A heap of money," he stressed, raising his eyebrows.

Michelle didn't believe him. "Oh, Daddy, that's got to be a mistake. You're telling me Catherine left us money? No, she wouldn't."

"I just told you she did," her father countered. "I know it's hard to believe, and it's a shock, just like I warned you it would be, but it's true. She left us money."

"Why would she leave us anything? She hated us."

"Don't talk like that," he chided. Pulling his handkerchief from his pocket, he wiped his eyes. "Your cousin was a wonderful woman."

"That's called rewriting history," John Paul muttered.

Still the doubting Thomas, Michelle shook her head. "There has to be a mistake."

"No, sugar, there isn't any mistake. Aren't you curious to know how much money she gave us?"

"Sure," she said, wondering what kind of joke Catherine had played. From what she'd heard about her cousin from her brothers, the woman had a cruel streak'.

"Your dear cousin left each one of us one hundred thousand dollars.''

Michelle's mouth dropped open. "One hundred…"

"Thousand dollars," her father finished for her. "I just got off the phone with Remy. I called your brother to tell him about his cousin's generosity, and his reaction was just like yours and John Paul's. I raised three cynical children."

Michelle was having a difficult time processing the shocking news. "Catherine Bodine… gave… one hundred…"

John Paul laughed. "You're sputtering, little sister."

"You hush now, John Paul," his father ordered. In a softer voice, he said to Michelle, "You see, sugar? Catherine didn't hate us. She just didn't have much use for us is all. She was… different, and we were a reminder of hard times."

Michelle suddenly realized Theo wouldn't have any idea who they were talking about. "My cousin was around seven or eight

when her mother married a very wealthy man named Bodine. They moved to New Orleans and pretty much severed ties with

us. I never met Catherine," she admitted, "or spoke to her on the phone. I can't believe she would leave us anything."

"Catherine's mother was my wife's sister," Jake explained. "Her name was June, but we all called her Junie. She wasn't married when she found herself in the family way. Back then, having a child out of wedlock caused quite a stir, but folks forgot about it as time passed. Her father never forgot or forgave her, though. He tossed her out on her ear is what he did. Now, Ellie and I were newly married, so Junie moved in with us. When the baby came, the two of them stayed on. It was crowded, but we all made do," he added. "Then Junie met that rich fella, got married, and moved away. Junie passed on when Catherine was eleven. I wasn't going to let that child forget she had family in Bowen who loved her, so I made it a point to call her up at least once a month and visit with her. She never had much to say, though, and I did a lot of bragging about my three so she'd know her cousins. Catherine was real impressed when she found out Mike was going to be a doctor. She was proud of you, sugar. She just never said so."

"Catherine didn't even invite you to her wedding," Michelle reminded her father. "And I know that must have hurt your feelings."

"No, it didn't. Besides, it was a tiny affair in the courthouse. She told me so herself."

Michelle had her elbow propped on the table and was twirling a lock of hair around her finger in an absentminded fashion while she thought about the windfall. The money was a godsend. There was more than enough to fix up the clinic and hire a nurse.

Her father was smiling as he watched her. "There you go again, twisting your hair." Turning to Theo, he said, "When she was a little tiny thing, she'd wrap her hair around her fingers and suck her thumb until she fell asleep. I can't remember the number of times Remy or I had to untangle the knots she made."

Michelle let go of her hair and folded her hands.

"I'm feeling guilty," she said, "because I can't think of one nice thing to say about Catherine, and I've already figured out how I'm going to spend some of her money."

Her father pushed the thick family album with a black-and-red-checked cover toward Theo. Theo opened it and began to look

at the photos while Jake pointed out who was who. Michelle excused herself to get a Diet Coke and carried one back to the table

or Theo. He'd put his glasses on and looked quite scholarly.

Putting her hand on his shoulder, she asked, "Are you hungry?"

"Yeah, sure," he answered as he turned another page.

"Daddy, Theo doesn't want to look at our family photos."

"Yes, I do."

She reached over Theo's shoulder, put her can of Diet Coke on a coaster next to Theo's, then straightened and turned to her brother. "John Paul, fix Theo and me something to eat."

"like that's gonna happen," he chuckled.

She walked over to the sofa and sat down on his stomach. He knew what she was going to do and braced himself.

"I'm sleeping," he snapped. "Leave me the hell alone."

She ignored his grumbling and pulled on his hair as she leaned back against the cushions. "Can you believe Catherine left us so much money?"