A chorus of gasps broke out in the room, followed by an anguished cry from Nila, who sank down into her chair . Nancy quickly looked around at the members of Charles Pierce's family . Not surprisingly, everyone of them seemed relieved, except for Eleanor, Nancy noted . Charles Pierce's widowed sister-in-law was acting distinctly worried, and Nancy wondered why .

"What happens now, Mr. Bishop ?" Cecilia asked .

"Well," he said with a sigh, "if Mr. Pierce should die or become incapacitated, his most recent will would take precedence . That means, if the new will can't be found, the old will would still be in effect ."

Nancy listened closely . Until this moment there had been two possibilities . Now, there was only one . In any investigation, Nancy knew, the detective needed to look at who benefited from the crime . In this case, the answer was :- everyone but Nila . Therefore, it no longer made sense that Nila faked the attempts on her life,...