Deadly Inheritance: A Romantic Suspense (13 page)

He felt a surge of answering relief and joy at the sight of her. He’d never been so relieved to see a woman in his life.

“Are you all right?” He moved toward her and opened his arms when she flung herself against his chest. He flinched. But despite the catch in his breathing and pain flaring along his rib cage, he held her for a minute, the clean scent of her hair and warmth of her body filling his senses.

He felt her nod and glanced down into her beautiful face. The urge to kiss her nearly overwhelmed him.

“I was so worried.” She tapped him lightly below the collar bone with one fist, her eyes reflecting the memory of her anxiety. “I needed you last night! Where were you? What happened?”

She had needed him
. His first exultant reaction was to grin like an idiot and hug her tighter. Then, the word “need” echoed in his ears like a deep warning bell. Had she been frightened, or was it something else? He shifted restlessly. The pleasure he’d felt froze and cracked.

“I had an accident—”

“An accident? Is that why you look like you’ve been in a fight?” She stared up at him and gently touched the bandage on his forehead. “What happened?”

“Car trouble, and I’m fine. Just sore ribs and this.” He touched his forehead briefly.

“Car trouble—is your truck okay?” A nervous smile trembled on her lips. “I know how much that vehicle means to you.”

He didn’t want to talk about his truck. It was totaled, no point in discussing it.

“I haven’t assessed the damage yet.” Grabbing her arm, he glanced around and guided her toward the hall. “Let’s go up to your room.”

“I don’t know if we can.” She kept up with him with little running footsteps. “The police were up there, they told us to wait in the kitchen. I was just coming to see if they needed anything. Did you meet Detective Gerhardt?”

“I talked to him.” He paused at the foot of the staircase. Several technicians carrying a variety of bags were descending. “Would it be all right for Miss James to go to her bedroom?”

The techs looked at each other before the closest one answered, “Better not. Sorry, but until Detective Gerhardt says it’s okay, we can’t give you permission to go up there.”

“Sure.” Gabe glanced around. He didn’t know the house well enough to identify another private room. “How about a walk? Outside?”

Nora stared at him as if he’d lost his mind when he steered her toward the front door. “Isn’t it cold? My jacket is in my room.”

He’d forgotten that he still wore his lined denim jacket. He dragged it off and draped it over her slim shoulders. “Come on.”

“What about you?” She trotted along next to him, working her arms into the long sleeves.

He grinned. “I’ve got enough bandages wrapped around my chest to keep me warm.”

Despite a flurry of questions, he refused to answer until they were several yards away from the house. A narrow footpath led around the corner, through thick, overgrown azaleas to a small gazebo. The white paint was peeling, and there was evidence of rot and termites around the base, but the graying steps and floor appeared sound enough.

“We can sit here,” Nora said, patting one of the warped, gray benches. “You don’t look like you should be walking around too much.” She stretched out a hand toward his face, but he drew back before she touched him. “That black eye has got to hurt.”

He sat down next to her, like a stray dog unsure of its welcome. “Don’t worry about me. I’m fine.”

“Do you mind if I ask you a question?” She flicked a quick, awkward glance at him. A flush colored her cheeks. When he shook his head, her blush deepened and she stared at the floor as she asked, “Are you married?”

“No.” He almost laughed, but managed to choke his reaction back even though it made his ribs ache again. Safe ground. Or saf
er
.

“I was worried that your wife might be upset if you stayed, considering what happened,” she explained hastily.

“No. No one is going to show up, calling for my scalp. What about you? Husband? Significant other?”

She laughed. “No, no one.” When she caught his curious gaze, she flushed and said in slightly bitter tones, “Not a lot of men like to see their date with her arms stuck up some cow’s rear end, trying to turn a badly positioned calf during a delivery. It’s not exactly romantic, if you know what I mean. The reality of a vet’s job is not exactly all cute little kittens and puppies.”

“I’ve seen worse. In fact, I saw worse when you climbed out of the moat.”

“Very funny.” She hit his arm with a fist.

He sucked in a sharp breath and pressed his left hand against his chest as her sudden movement jarred his ribs.

“Sorry,” she apologized, although she didn’t sound exactly sincere.

“Just give me a little warning next time, okay?”

“How bad is it?”

“Just a fracture. The rib isn’t even broken.”

“Then you’re lucky.” Her gaze searched his face. “Your accident wasn’t really an accident, was it?”

He shrugged. “The brakes failed. That’s about all I can say without speculating. Your turn—what happened last night?”

“I wish you’d speculate a little. One of the policemen said Frank Leonard brought you. So your truck must have been totaled.”

“My vehicle was out of commission, so he gave me a lift. Now what happened here?”

Nora shifted on the bench and fiddled with the buttonholes of the jacket he’d leant her. Finally, she glanced up at him, her face drawn with anxiety. “You’re going to think I’m crazy.”

“What makes you think I don’t already?”

Her half-hearted giggle showed she wasn’t as reassured as he’d intended, but she did nod. Her fingers buttoned the top jacket button and then unbuttoned it nervously. “After I went to bed, I heard something, or someone, try my door. The room was icy cold when I got up.” She buttoned the jacket and shivered. “I opened the door. There was no one there. Then, I know how this sounds, but a kind of mist filled the corridor, and it began to coalesce into the shape of a human.”

He must have made a disbelieving noise, because she stopped and stared at him with accusing eyes.

“I saw it!” she said angrily.

“I believe you.”

“You mean you believe that
I believe
what I’m telling you. But you can ask the others, they came out into the hallway, too. They saw and heard the same things. We reported it to the police.”

“Why did they come out of their bedrooms? Did they hear something?”

“Yes, we all heard it. All the doors started rattling.
All
of them. It was unnatural.”

“So the five of you were in the hallway while this was happening?”

“All except Mike. I never realized he wasn’t there until the next morning. Sarah said she always brings him a plate of crackers before breakfast, because he has stomach problems. Ulcers or something. Anyway, she went up with the plate and knocked, but he didn’t answer. His door was locked, and she was worried that he might be ill, so she asked Drew to force the door. They found Mike inside, dead.”

“Did you see him?”

She shook her head. “No. I never went inside his room. Sarah and Drew shut the door and called the police. When I thought about it later, I realized that the mist was thickest in front of Mike’s door. I know there are no ghosts, but—I don’t know what to think.”

“We know that the bridge was sabotaged. My vehicle was tampered with. And I don’t think ghosts use guns. Both Archie and Mike were shot. We’re dealing with a human.”

“I’d agree, except who could do all of that? How? I’ve been thinking about it and there’s this one, huge glaring flaw: if it’s one of the cousins,
then whoever is left alive at the end of this is obviously guilty
. No one could hope to get away with killing the rest of us. Even Detective Gerhardt would realize that and arrest him. Or her. Whatever.”

The same thought had already occurred to him. Given the cleverness of the murders, the killer must have also realized the same thing. There would be no way to get away with that many deaths.

So how could it be one of them?

“Then maybe it’s not about the money,” Gabe said, thinking about the gold. Should he tell her? Technically, he shouldn’t even know about it.

“Money or not, the surviving cousin would have a hard time convincing anyone of his, or her, innocence.”

“Unless no cousins survive. What happens to the estate if all of his relatives are dead?” He should have asked Frank when he was being so forthcoming the previous night.

“I have no idea. We’d have to ask Frank about that.”

His headache throbbed insistently as he gazed out at the dank tangle of azaleas, Virginia creeper, and trees beyond the gazebo. He was conscious of the warmth of Nora sitting next to him and a strong desire to loop his arm over her shoulders. She seemed to bring out the best, and the worst, in him.

“I think we also need to figure out if someone just wants to get rid of the whole James family,” he said.

“Oh, Gabe, you don’t really think that could be true, do you? Mike had two children, twin boys. And a wife. Even Candy has a husband. No one could possibly hope to kill the five—the four of us—as well as the spouses and children. It’s inhuman.”

Someone might if he thought it would give him time to find the gold.

“Maybe it’s something else, then.” He rubbed the bridge of his nose. “But whatever it is, I think we need to find out what’s going on. Before anyone else has another unfortunate accident.”

Nora studied Gabe, sensing that he felt as conflicted as she did. He’d seemed relieved, if not happy to see her initially, but then he had withdrawn. Oh, she couldn’t really complain about his behavior, he was acting concerned and worried about her, but there was that stone wall in him, turning his eyes hard and blank.

Maybe she shouldn’t have been so happy to see him. What worked with dogs didn’t always translate too well with people. Probably another reason why she was still unattached.

Gabe stood and she reluctantly got to her feet. Nothing was settled. They hadn’t figured out anything. In fact, they’d only come up with more questions.

The looming house blocked the afternoon sun, and the long shadows made the path between the overgrown bushes dank and unpleasantly dark. She shivered as she followed Gabe and hugged his warm jacket around her, breathing deeply of his lingering scent. He had to be freezing cold, but he seemed oblivious to the dropping temperature. Another chilly evening followed by an icy night lay in front of them.

Maybe she really should leave. Find the money for the shelter in some other way, or wait a few years. And put a few more sad-eyed animals to sleep. No. She shoved her fists into her pockets. She had to be strong.

She jogged a little faster and caught up with Gabe. “Do you think Mr. Leonard is still here?”

“Looks that way.” He gestured toward the silver SUV parked beneath the trees. “Why?”

“I’d like to know what happens to Autumn Hill if none of us stays here for two weeks. Or survives.”

“Have you thought about contesting the will? I mean, the guy was clearly nuts. Look at the moat. He was at least paranoid, and the will is pretty much proof of that.”

“Well, considering he was murdered, I’d say he had reason to be paranoid.”

Gabe grunted and stepped aside to let her cross the temporary bridge ahead of him. When she entered the front door, her godfather was being wheeled toward her by another man.

“Frank—”

“Nora,” the lawyer smiled genially. “I don’t think you’ve met my assistant, Johnny Heck. He’s a recent hire. Johnny, this is Nora James, my godchild and one of the legatees.”

The fit-looking, gray-haired man behind him nodded.

“Can we talk?” she asked.

“Certainly.” Frank glanced around. “I’m not sure how much privacy you want. The police are using the den at the moment, and the others are occupying the dining room and kitchen. Unfortunately, the other room on this floor is off limits as it is a crime scene.”

Nora flicked a glance at Gabe, but his neutral expression gave nothing away. “We can use the den. It’s pretty large, and I’m not concerned about the police.”

“Good enough. Johnny, if you don’t mind, it’s back the way we came,” Frank answered with a smile.

She was so occupied with her own thoughts that she didn’t notice the silence until they had settled into a group of chairs around the fireplace. The police had elected to use the huge sectional sofa, perhaps because it was closest to the computers they were examining. They barely glanced at Nora and the others as they took their seats.

“So, Nora, what’s on your mind?” Frank asked after his assistant took a seat in the chair behind him.

“What happens to Autumn Hill if we, uh, leave?” she asked.

“Or die?” Frank added the alternative she was trying not to mention. He studied her with a small, sad smile. “What are you thinking?”

She flushed and stared at the floor. “Nothing, really. I don’t know what to think.”

Frank studied her face, his brows pinched with concern. “You know you can trust me, Nora.”

“I know.” She smiled at him. Until that moment, she’d never really thought about her godfather’s role in the tragedies at Autumn Hill. He was just her friend. And a lawyer. She looked at him and caught him eyeing Gabe with a troubled look on his face.

When Frank noticed her gaze, he gave her a lopsided grin and shook his head. “You know, if this were one of those TV mysteries, the evil lawyer would be responsible.”

Nora giggled before pressing her fingers over her mouth. It seemed terribly inappropriate to laugh after poor Mike’s death.

Frank sighed. “I realize we lawyers are easy to hate, but we aren’t all immoral. And if anyone is wondering about Mr. Heck, I can assure you he is quite trustworthy, albeit quiet. In fact, he’s a retired policeman who for some reason doesn’t mind pushing me around.” He laughed. “I suppose he finds it marginally better than watching television all day.”

She flicked an embarrassed glance at Gabe.

He gave her a wry grin and shrugged, leaving her to feel her way on her own. Not particularly helpful. In fact, he was kind of hanging her out to dry.

Fine. She could handle this.

“I actually hadn’t thought that, but I am relieved. What about Autumn Hill, though? What happens if there’s no one left to inherit?”

“Archibald James never envisioned that outcome. He was sure that one of his relatives would stay the requisite number of days and thereby meet the terms of the will.”

“And if no one does?”

“I won’t profit—too much. At least no more than I will for handling the estate.” He rubbed his mouth thoughtfully. “I would think that initially, it would go to the State of North Carolina, as the estate would then have essentially the same status it would have if Archibald died intestate. Those of you who attempted to inherit, but failed, would of course be exempt from the process and unable to receive more than the ten thousand already given to you or your heirs. The state would do a search for the next closest relatives and divide the property among them.”

“Would Mike’s children receive anything, then?” Nora asked hopefully. Perhaps they would still be able to go on to medical school, or whatever they wished.

“I don’t think so. They would be considered to be Michael’s heirs, and since he is now ineligible to inherit, they would be considered ineligible, except for the ten thousand already received. Assuming the state used the terms of the will in their calculations, of course, and that is by no means certain. The will is unusual.”

“Are there any other relatives?” she asked, struggling to understand the implications.

“Well, the older generation—Archie’s generation, including your father—is mostly deceased. Which is why there are only five of you here.”

“Four,” Nora said, depressed anew about Mike and his children. He’d had such hopes, and out of all of them, he seemed the nicest. The one who had wanted the money for a reason other than sheer greed.

Frank nodded. “Unfortunately. Off-hand, I don’t know of any other living relatives.”

“So the State of North Carolina will get a nice little bundle of money and this place,” Gabe said. “And will probably sell Autumn Hill for a little additional revenue.”

“In a few years, yes,” Frank answered with a frown. “It won’t be immediate. They will need to do due diligence to locate potential heirs. In fact, it could take a number of years.” He ran a hand over his face. “That’s one of the reasons I tried to talk Archie out of creating a will with such strange provisions. It makes it difficult to probate.” He glanced at Gabe. “And it is possible that part of the estate has been converted into gold that is stored at Autumn Hill somewhere, which complicates matters.”

“Oh, that’s just great. Gold.” Stunned, Nora studied Frank. He couldn’t possibly be serious. “Is that what this is all about? Gold?”

“That is
part
of the estate, certainly,” Frank said. “However, I don’t know how many of you are aware of that.” He shrugged. “I don’t think it really matters what form your inheritance takes, does it?”

“I guess not.” Nora admitted. What was she going to do with gold? While it sounded great to be handed a bar of gold, she didn’t really want to deal with the mechanics of turning it into actual money that she could use for the shelter.

After all, dogs and cats couldn’t eat gold.

“In any event, I’m afraid that one of the beneficiaries is hoping to obtain a larger share.”

Nora and Gabe exchanged glances and Gabe said, “We talked about that earlier. It seems kind of counterproductive in the long term. Anyone left is going to have a hard time proving his innocence.”

“Rather obvious, isn’t it?” Frank rubbed his mouth again and then pulled his lower lip. “It does make one wonder, doesn’t it?”

“Yes. And it occurred to me that there might be another motive, something unrelated to the money,” Gabe pointed out.

“Which would be what?” Frank asked.

“That’s one of the reasons we wanted to talk to you.” Nora leaned forward, her elbows on her knees. “Did Archie have any enemies? Is there any reason for someone to hate the James family enough to murder all of us? Or to get us out of the way? What are we missing?”

“I wish I knew,” Frank answered. “When Archie was murdered, I asked Johnny to nose around.”

Johnny nodded and spoke for the first time, his voice deep and gravelly. “I have a few contacts left with the police. All the alibis checked out. Other than the bullet, the forensic evidence was, for all intents and purposes, nonexistent. There was literally nothing to go on.” He paused, frowning, before continuing reluctantly. “The housekeeper was here, of course. She was the only one present when it happened.”

“I don’t think she did it,” Nora said quickly. Poor Sarah. She seemed destined to be blamed, having both motive and opportunity. But Nora couldn’t believe the older woman had done anything that night except go to bed. “What about Don Bain? We met him when we first arrived.”

“No.” Heck studied her. “Archie James apparently had rules for his staff. Bain was never allowed to set foot in the house. The police took his fingerprints at the time and none of the prints in the house matched his, so as far as anyone can determine, Bain followed the rules. And his alibi checked out. He claimed to have ridden his bicycle five miles to town to go to the ATM and get a burger. The ATM’s camera proved his story.” A small wrinkle formed between Heck’s brows as he spoke, as if he was reluctant to accept the facts.

“I still don’t think it was Sarah,” Nora repeated stubbornly.

“Have you looked at Archie’s office yourself?” Gabe asked Johnny.

He shook his head. “It’s sealed. Murder scene.”

“I’d like to get in there,” Gabe said thoughtfully.

“If you’d like, I can ask Detective Gerhardt if the room can be put back into use,” Frank offered. “If they’ve finished collecting evidence, there’s no reason to keep it sealed. After all, it’s been over a week.”

He gestured to Johnny, who got up and bent over the wheelchair. The two men held a brief, whispered conversation before Johnny strode across the room to the detective. A few minutes later, he returned, his poker face still in place.

Nora couldn’t tell if he’d succeeded or failed until he took a position behind Frank and spoke. “They have agreed to release the room. They’ll remove the seal when they leave this afternoon.”

“If there isn’t anything else, Nora, I really need to get to my office,” Frank said. “Johnny will unload the lumber for you, Gabe, although it looks like the police have provided a new bridge, at least for now.”

Gabe nodded to Johnny, “Thanks.”

Johnny gripped the handles of the wheelchair to turn it toward the door for Frank.

“I can’t think of anything,” she admitted. As soon as they were gone, she just knew some question would leap to mind. For some reason, she wished her godfather would stay.

Although the wheelchair faced the door, Frank craned his neck to look at her. “Call me if you need anything.”

“I don’t have a phone.” She stood and rubbed her palms against her hips as she glanced at Gabe.

“Yes, you do.” Gabe dug into his back pocket and pulled out a sleek new cell phone. “I forgot to give it to you earlier.”

“Thank goodness.” All she needed to do was to log in to her Google account and download her contacts, and she’d be back in business. “Appreciate it.”

“All set then?” Frank asked, his voice floating over his assistant’s broad shoulder.

“All set,” she agreed, wishing she could think of some reason for Frank and his stalwart assistant to stay at Autumn Hill.

Nora spent some time configuring her phone while Gabe used one of the computers. All too soon, not only had Frank and Johnny left, but the police abandoned them, as well. Outside, night had darkened all the windows and turned them into dim mirrors, reflecting back a claustrophobic view of the furniture and inhabitants of Autumn Hill in place of the outside world. The watery effect was creepy, and she closed the drapes in the den only to discover that drafts made the heavy curtains billow and shift eerily.

“Come on, let’s find the others. I should help Sarah with dinner, too,” she said.

“Why should you make dinner? Isn’t that Sarah’s job?”

“Do you really want poached chicken and steamed vegetables again?”

“It wasn’t that bad.” Gabe’s dismal expression belied his words. His broad hands, with their long, tapered fingers, hovered over the keyboard of one of the computers.

She stifled a wish to have him fold her in his arms and feel his warmth around her.