BILLIONAIRE ANGEL (Point St. Claire, where true love finds a way) (8 page)

Jax got to his feet and took another moment to get it together. When his heart was beating somewhere close to normal, he took a deep breath and started after Billy, who’d almost reached the road.

That’s when she turned around to face him.

The same second that a shot rang out.

A
gun
shot.

Billy and Jax landed on the dirt, on their sides, with a bruising thud. Jax kept her flat to the ground, sardines-in-a-can close beside him, even when she tried to shove herself away.

Had he lost his freaking mind?

“Jax, what the hell are you doing?”

His arm was a steel beam keeping her pinned. Jaw tight, he was focused on the road like he expected some random apocalyptic event to come storming in any second.

“Gunfire.” He grunted. “You hurt?”

What the―?
“I didn’t hear gunfire.”

“You fell. Sure you’re not hit.”

Billy froze. She wasn’t going crazy.

You knocked me down.

A noise came from the road. Jax braced himself, pinned her harder. And then it dawned. Billy understood. She would have laughed if Jax didn’t look so...

Well, so ready to kill.

She spoke softly. Reassuringly.

“Jax, that’s a car backfiring.”

The intensity in his face, in his eyes, only sharpened more. Then the noise came again and again, each time further away as an old Chevy chugged its way up the incline.

Jax stiffened before he clamped his eyes shut, hunched into the ground and physically shuddered. Then he swore under his breath and brought her so close against him, she almost winced at the force.

His breath hitched as he murmured against her hair, over and over. “
Sorry...I’m sorry...so sorry
...”

Billy held on, stroking his cheek, telling him it was okay. No one was hurt.

Not this time.

*

Sitting at the M Lodge cafe, finishing his fifth coffee for the day, Jax was mulling over yesterday’s events, cringing over his meltdown with Billy in that field, when he heard his name called and swung around.

Wearing a crisp button-down shirt and silk bowtie, Judge Garfield was beaming, rocking back on his heels, looking like he wanted to slap Jax on the back.

“You’re a wily one,” Garfield said, joining him and taking a seat. “I never thought I’d live to see the day. My wife certainly approves.”

The penny dropped. Garfield was talking about the anniversary party invitation welcoming patrons’ partners.

“That was my P.R. manager’s idea,” Jax admitted.

“Margo’s been around a while. The former owner respected her. Clearly, so do you.” Garfield pulled out some mints, shook a few into his palm. “Eugenie went out this morning to find a new dress. She has a wardrobe full,” he smiled fondly, “but you know women.”

Jax had to bite his inside cheek, the impulse was suddenly so strong. Garfield had mentioned his wife–that was his in to ask about Billy’s ruby ring. But Jax only needed to imagine Garfield’s reaction. The ex judge might seem friendly enough now, but Garfield was an extremely private man. He would not take kindly to queries regarding his wife and her possessions. Particularly when the query related to a crime.

Garfield’s eyebrows knitted. “Have you seen anymore of her?” When Jax blinked, questioning, the older man explained. “The lass who tore around here in a waiter’s suit a few weeks back. She was after me, wasn’t she? My man spotted her hanging around the gates of my address more than once.”

Jax’s jaw dropped. All this time and Garfield
knew
?

He cleared his throat. “The situation that day...it was quickly contained. A minor breech nipped in the bud.”

Garfield’s eyes behind their round spectacles narrowed as he sucked the mints. “I saw you marching her out.”

Jax exhaled. “You don’t miss much.”

He shook out more mints. “What’s she after? She told you, didn’t she?”

Jax rolled back his shoulders. “Her name’s Belinda Slade. She wanted information concerning a piece of jewelry she believes to be in your wife’s possession. A ruby and pearl ring surrounded by an unusual setting.”

“A gold filigree resembling wings. My wife keeps it for special occasions.”

“My client owned a similar piece.”

Garfield’s grey eyebrows knitted. “Did you say client? From your private investigative days?” Garfield’s thoughtful gaze flicked down like he was remembering back to the reason Jax had quit. The much publicized ‘incident’ concerning a death. Then he nodded sagely. “Go on.”

“The ring was handed down through generations of Belinda’s family until it was stolen ten years ago.”

“That girl thinks my wife’s ruby ring and her own are the same?”

“She does.”

Garfield’s next words were measured. “I remember the day my wife came home with that ring. Not ten years ago. Perhaps eight. She’d always liked hunting around the country for hidden treasures, so to speak. The gold is twenty-four carat and the stone is exquisite. She was thrilled to have negotiated a very good deal. No appraisal certificate attached, but, in this instance, she wasn’t concerned.”

Jax was filing information away. Eight years, not ten. An expensive piece that was acquired for a bargain price.

“You wouldn’t happen to remember the name of the establishment that sold your wife the ring.”

“Wouldn’t recall if you spelled it out for me. Wasn’t something I needed to file away for future reference.”

Jax’s stomach dropped. “I see.”

“But my wife’s memory is a steel trap.” Garfield drew out his cell phone. “I’ll ask her now.”

There’d been a break in the case. One that might answer all the questions she and Jax had been asking.

When he’d phoned earlier, Jax had told Billy that she needed to wear something dark, including gloves. Now, pulling his vehicle away from her curb, Jax explained how he’d spoken with Garfield. That he had the name of the establishment that had sold on her ruby ring eight years ago.

Two hours later, Jax pulled up in front of a decrepit shop in a town Billy had barely known about. In the hazy light, she couldn’t make out the signage. All was quiet other than a couple of college-age guys dressed in hoodies eyeballing the activity from down the street.

Jax shifted the vehicle into drive and cruised past the shop. “That place has been empty for years.”

Billy deflated. “Which means another dead end.”

“Not necessarily. Not if we go inside.”

Right
. “By breaking in the front door?”

“No. Breaking in the
back
door.”

Billy pressed back in her seat. “That’s against the law.”

Jax flashed over a determined grin. “Only if we get caught.”

A few moments later, they were parked in a back lot and exiting the car. A lonely streetlight smeared a hazy glow over the area. Edging forward, Jax surveyed the space, particularly the building’s eaves, Billy guessed for security cameras or alarms.

The rear entrance was housed within an alcove and cloaked in darkness. Inching forward, Billy felt something sticky and light crackle over her face. Yelping, she jumped a mile into the air. Jax gripped her arm.

“What are you doing?” he whispered. “We need to be quiet.”

A violent shudder tore through her as she hissed through clenched teeth, “
Spider web
.”

He crouched down to inspect the locks and then opened the bag he’d brought along. She heard a click and then a circle of light appeared on the door.

He handed the flashlight over. “Keep the light on that spot.”

A few minutes later, he’d cracked both locks. She darted a look around the darkened lot as he turned the tarnished knob and pushed the door open. Taking the flashlight, Jax entered first. Billy tiptoed in, close behind.

The flashlight’s beam arced left, right, and then up and down the narrow, low-ceilinged corridor. She winced at the smell as stale air stuck in her throat.

They walked past a couple of empty rooms. No furniture or shelves. Then the corridor seemed to narrow; probably imagination but this place made Billy’s skin crawl. She was about to tug the back of Jax’s shirt–tell him that she wanted to leave–when he turned right into a room and the light disappeared.

She bolted in after him.

There was a desk, a filing cabinet and packed boxes set into piles. Jax fished out and handed over a second flashlight before opening the cabinet’s squeaky top drawer. Billy moved to the desk, which was bare other than a layer of grime. She opened each desk drawer: an empty stationery tray, a blank notebook, more dust.

Jax wasn’t having any more luck. As he swiped a palm beneath the files of the second cabinet drawer, Billy crouched down to pry open a mouldy cardboard box.

“What precisely are you hoping to find?” Billy prayed there weren’t any creepy crawlies as her fingers dipped inside.

“Any intel relating to the owners, suppliers, stock.”

“Couldn’t we have done that without committing a crime?”

“I could’ve made phone calls, asked around town, but I didn’t want to throw up any red flags and give whoever enough time to clean up the place.”

She held up her first find. “I guess old books are no good?”

Its cover was a worn green-grey featuring a rudimentary gold-embossed sketch. Jax crossed over. As he knelt down, Billy carefully opened it. The smell of mildew wafted up.

Shining her light on the page, Billy skimmed words in her head. It was a story about a rich man and his mistress. The accompanying black and white drawings were explicit.

Edging closer, Jax flipped a couple of yellowed pages. “
She was accommodating of her master in every sense. She relished the hours spent at the foot of his bed...
” He grunted. “Sadomasochism is so retro.” He pulled a pair of cufflinks out of the box and rattled them. “Used for play, I assume.”

Billy looked around the dingy room. “So this used to be an adult shop. How does my ruby ring fit in here?”

She moved to a different box. More books. Some old comics. A few early ‘last century’ photos. And…

She pulled out a long string of pearls. “You think these are real?”

“Can’t say. Also can’t say where they’ve been.”

Billy dropped them back into the box where they settled with an exotic rattle.

Billy was going through a book shelf when Jax made an encouraging sound. Slapping the grit from her gloved hands, she joined him. He was pushing to his feet after retrieving papers from the bottom filing cabinet drawer.

“A personal note,” he said, angling the torchlight closer to the paper. “
I’m finished. Dump the rest. See you tonight.
”

Billy grabbed the note and her heartbeat began to thump. She wanted to laugh out loud, this was so ridiculous.

So absolutely
wrong
.

“This can’t be a coincidence,” she murmured, staring at the note. “I know this handwriting.” Feeling numb, she looked Jax in the eye. “And I know who took the ring.”

When Billy buried her face in her hands, Jax brought her close.

“Who, Billy? Who took the ring?”

“My sister. Ann took it. She claimed the insurance money and, two years later, sold it on.” A dry breath hitched in her throat before her chest gave a sound that reminded Jax of an injured animal. “All those years she
lied
to me. She wanted me to drop it all now because she didn’t want to be caught.”

She broke away. Her eyes were wide, filled with ghosts. Billy had chased an answer for a decade.

She would’ve been better off never knowing.

“This is fraud,” she told him as if he didn’t already know. “And they operated this shop together, didn’t they. I had no idea.
None
. As far as I ever knew, eight years ago Ann ran a cafe that sold low-fat pastries. What a con.” She shut her eyes and groaned. “What would Mom say?”

“I’ll come when you speak to her.”

“I don’t need you to do that,” she ground out.

But he insisted. He knew firsthand.

Criminals could be unpredictable when cornered.

*

Later, at his place, Jax poured them both a stiff drink. When he turned around, Billy had disappeared. But she’d only crossed over to that work table to study his stained glass piece.

A nearby lamp recreated her as a misty silhouette. “You’re almost finished,” she said.

He joined her then ran a fingertip over the two pieces he was yet to fit in. One said
Jax’s
, the other said
Place
.

“You did a good job,” she said. “You really did.”

Was she talking about the glass or discovering the truth about her ring?

“I did my best,” he said.

She glanced around the naked beams and hanging electrical wiring. “When do you think you’ll be finished?”

“I’m not in any hurry.”

She pinned him with a look. “Why did you give up on that part of your life? What are you running from? Why were you so interested in David Green?”

He saw it in her eyes.

Why did you break down in that field?

He took a mouthful of scotch and savoured the burn going down.

“I knew a
Hurly
Green. No relation to David as it turns out.” When Jax had decided to dig deeper into that, it had taken no time to verify. “Hurly was in trouble his whole life. By the time he was eighteen, he’d progressed from using to cooking. To pushing and ruining lives. A boy overdosed on a batch of Hurly’s meth. Fourteen years old. A good kid who’d been destined for a good life. The boy’s father came to me. Hurly had slipped through the authorities’ radar a few times already. They couldn’t establish a direct link between the dealer and the death. The father wanted me to find evidence to help put that creep away.

“In that line of business,” he went on, “whether you’re trying to locate a missing dog or this kind of sick shit, you always need to be careful. Be ready. One night I let my guard down. Someone close to me paid with her life. ”

“
Her
life.”

“Elise hated my job. She was worried that one day I wouldn’t come home. I told her that I’d quit. That I was looking for something else. And I was. But somehow I always got dragged back in. Like the Green case.”

Billy eyes were filled with understanding. “You loved her.”

Jax’s chest squeezed. “I loved the baby we were having together. I’d just found out that Elise was three months pregnant.”

Billy withered in to a nearby chair. “Oh, Jax...”

“That night, Elise wanted ice cream. Salted caramel. She said the baby had a sweet tooth.” His small smile faded as his heart squeezed more. “I purposely drove that way...past Hurly’s address. I had a lead I just had to chase. As we passed, I saw Hurly scurry inside. I wanted to nail that son-of-a-bitch so bad. So I parked over a block away, told Elise to stay put. That I’d only be a minute. Then I jogged up to Hurly’s place, crept around back. Something, I don’t know what, went down inside. Two guys, including Hurly, ran out. Shots were fired.”

Jax’s throat convulsed.

That decision, that one stupid choice...

“Elise had followed me, wanting to catch me in the act, I suppose. In a lie. She would’ve told me again how dangerous that life was.”

Jax wiped the damp from his brow.

“They couldn’t link the bullet to a gun,” he said. “Hurly got away with it. Again.”

Billy eased out that pent up breath. Now the way Jax had behaved in that field the other day―reacting to the sound of a backfiring car, pulling her down... It all made sense. He was haunted by a decision he’d made in the past. Billy identified with that a million times over. 

No words could describe how she felt about losing her mom. She’d been haunted, too, over losing that ring. All this time she just
had
to push ahead with finding the answers. And now, tomorrow, she would lose her sister, too.