Maribelle’s Shadow

“A slew of family secrets, sisterly betrayals, and the suspicious drowning churn the Palm Beach waters in this wickedly entertaining novel by Susannah Marren.” —MARY SIMSES, author of The Wedding Thief “With a penetrating eye for tribal nuance, Susannah Marren returns to Palm Beach, where wearing the wrong shade of lipstick can be social suicide. Maribelle’s Shadow explores how a mother and three daughters transplanted from Nowhere play the ambition game with chilling skill. Get ready for a mystery surrounding one husband’s death, and don’t expect Little Women.” —SALLY KOSLOW, best-selling author of The Real Mrs. Tobias “Another stunning novel from Susannah Marren set in Palm Beach. Exploring the intricacies and interplay of family loyalty, romance, and high society, Marren never ceases to amaze. This one will keep you turning pages!” —JACQUELINE FRIEDLAND, USA Today best-selling author of He Gets That From Me “The mystery catches your attention, but Marren’s vivid characters seal the deal. Maribelle and her sisters are complicated and brilliant heroines, determined to be remembered and make their mark.” —TERESA SORKIN, co-author of Lacie’s Secrets “A great escape! Susannah Marren’s newest novel set in Palm Beach blurs the line between “inner sanctum” and “creative wannabe,” and will leave readers wondering if they would want to be part of the “in-crowd.” —JEANNE MCWILLIAMS BLASBERG, author of The Nine and forthcoming, Daughter of a Promise “Sisters, husbands, scandal, business and betrayal. This intriguing novel about deception, marriage, and the high society Palm Beach scene will keep you turning the page until the surprise ending.” —SONDRA HELENE, author of best-selling novel, Appearances “Susannah Marren returns to familiar territory in her new novel, Maribelle’s Shadow, navigating us through the glitzy, cut-throat world of the Palm Beach elite. The sudden death of Samuel, the husband of the oldest Barrows sister, sends the wealthy family into a tailspin of suspicion, deception and uncertainty. Love, loyalty and wills are tested as the mystery begins to come clear. An insightful look and welcome addition to the literature of mothers, daughters and sisters—richer and more relevant today than ever.” —ANNE WHITNEY PIERCE, author of Down to the River and Rain Line For Juliet I love you as one loves certain obscure things, secretly, between the shadow and the soul. —PABLO NERUDA “One Hundred Love Sonnets: XVII,” from The Essential Neruda: Selected Poems. All that I have I bring,All that I am I give. —CHRISTINA ROSSETTI Twice Copyright 2023 by Susan Shapiro Barash All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without the express written permission of the publisher, except in cases of a reviewer quoting brief passages in a review. This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, events and incidents are either a product of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental. Pablo Neruda, “One Hundred Love Sonnets: XVII,” translated by Mark Eisner, from The Essential Neruda: Selected Poems, edited by Mark Eisner. Copyright © 2004 by Mark Eisner. Reprinted with the permission of The Permissions Company, LLC on behalf of City Lights Books, citylights.com. Paperback 9780825310294 Ebook: 9780825309083 For inquiries about volume orders, please contact: Beaufort Books [email protected] Published in the United States by Beaufort Books www.beaufortbooks.com Distributed by Midpoint Trade Books, a division of Independent Publishers Group www.ipgbook.com Interior design: Mimi Bark Front cover design and digital imaging: John Lotte Jacket design: Mark Karis Photo of woman on deck and ocean: Conrado/Shutterstock Photo of cloudy sky: John D Sirlin/Shutterstock Printed in the United States of America PART ONE CHAPTER ONE Maribelle When is the right time to tell your husband you know he’s a cheater? Over breakfast? When he comes home from a business dinner, or he pretends to work overtime? These past few months, I wake in the middle of each night, chilled or feverishly hot, wondering this. In the predawn, Maribelle walked toward the floor-to-ceiling windows of their living room and looked across the Intracoastal. The darkness mixed with lights to the west while to the east a damp wind blew off the ocean. The only sound was the palm trees stirring along the A1A. The garbage trucks hadn’t yet rolled out. No sirens were racing to save a dying soul. Utter calm as high season began in Palm Beach. By daylight she was in the kitchen, starting breakfast when Samuel ambled in, whistling. The espresso maker hissed; light entered through the slatted shades. Why wouldn’t Samuel be cheerful? Maribelle thought. He had come in past midnight, undoubtedly from one of his encounters. Now he watched his dutiful wife beating four egg whites. She whisked too vigorously as she rehearsed her opening line, her segue, what every wife might want to know: Do you love her? Are you leaving me? As Maribelle was cutting a slab of clarified butter for the omelet pan, she asked herself, do I dare risk a confrontation today? “Are you heading to yoga?” Samuel was smiling. “I plan to.” She was not smiling back. “Your favorite way to greet the morning.” Samuel said it like they were still “kindred.” That was how he phrased it. They had always wanted each other; the consummate treasure was being together. No wonder Maribelle looked away when Samuel had his trysts. They, as a couple, subsisted on the far side of that. He had always come back to her. They had shed his misdemeanor and gone on together. Until this. How can you be someone who knows what I care about? A betrayer doesn’t get to pose as my best friend, Maribelle wanted to shout. She flipped the omelet over, the pan sizzled. She had burned the bottom. His hands were in the pockets of his khakis while he jiggled a set of keys. “I might take the boat out.” “Now?” To be with