Lorinda turned her head quickly. “A pay raise? By the board, you mean?”
“I don’t know who gave it to him.”
“I can’t imagine anyone giving old Potts a raise, certainly not the board. The members meet only once a month, on the fifteenth. Of course, it’s possible a special session was called because of my stepfather’s absence.”
“That may have happened,” agreed Penny. “At any rate, Mr. Potts seemingly has come into money.”
Rounding a twist in the path, the girls came within view of the mansion terrace where Mrs. Rhett, in white, reclined.
“Why, Mother is downstairs!” Lorinda exclaimed in surprise.
The woman did not see the girls until they were very close. But as they reached the terrace, she raised her eyes, and smiled in a brief, sad manner. Penny instantly noted the pallor of her face.
“I appreciate your efforts, Lorinda,” she said before either of the girls spoke. “But it is useless.”
“What is useless, Mother?” inquired her daughter.
“I saw smoke rising from your fire on the beach.”