Hard As Ice (Fortis Series 1) (14 page)

“No right?”

“I’m perfectly capable of buying my own clothes, Evan. I’m not looking for a man to do that for me.”

“Come on, Nia. It wasn’t like that. You were only buying it because I had invited you to the party. So, I didn’t want you to be out of pocket,” he explained, still confused by her reaction. “It was a gift.”

“A nine hundred dollar gift? Seems overly generous for someone you’ve just met, don’t you think?” she sneered, frustrated by his highhanded arrogance.

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Take the check, Evan.”

“No, I won’t. You’re completely overreacting, Nia,” he stated. “I wanted to buy it for you, it’s that simple. In fact, I may buy you other things, so you better get used to the idea.”

“Well don’t! I don’t want anything from you, okay? As shocking as this may be, I have no interest in your money or what you can buy with it.” She turned away, feeling even more pissed off that he was refusing to let her pay him back. “In fact, I agreed to go out with you in spite of your wealth, not because of it. And now I’m starting to think it was a bad idea.”

When he didn’t respond right away, Nia faced him again, her arms folded to match his.

“I can’t be bought, Evan.”

“Nia,” he stated in a low voice, his expression icy hard. “You’re turning this into something it’s not. I paid for the dress because I wanted to, no other reason. Your insinuation of something more sordid is ridiculous and insulting.”

She stood firm, as unwilling to back down as he was.

“Take the check,” she insisted again, holding out the bank note.

“No. And since you can’t return the dress, it looks like you’re stuck with it.”

Nia wanted to slap the smug arrogance off his face.

“Maybe coffee wasn’t a good idea after all,” she stated sharply as she walked toward the front door. “Don’t you have an early meeting?”

“Nia, come on,” he cajoled, clearly exasperated by her response. But when she didn’t show any sign of bending, he strode smoothly up to her.

“Good night, Evan,” she mumbled, opening the door.

He gripped the back of her head in his palm and pulled her forward into a deep, intense kiss. His lips consumed hers, and his tongue delved into every recess, leaving her breathless. Then she was free and he was striding away, but only after flashing her an arrogant, mocking smile.

Really?
Nia let out a deep, annoyed breath and closed the front door with a hard shove. She strode back across her apartment to toss the rejected check on her desk.

What a great end to a romantic getaway,
she thought sarcastically. Her intense anger was slowly fading, but maybe it was for the best that Evan had left on such a sour note. His obnoxious wealth was going to be a barrier for them at some point anyway. And, if things didn’t improve this week at work, she wouldn’t be available for a relationship, casual or otherwise, except with a cellmate named Bertha.

While Nia turned off the coffeepot and got ready to turn in early for bed, Evan was meeting his team in their control center about twenty minutes later. Tony had just returned to Boston ready to provide the team with an update on his meeting with the Interpol contact. Spencer provided some information, but most importantly, he provided a name: Walsh.

“What do we know about this Walsh?” Evan asked.

“Not much,” Raymond stated as he pulled up some information on one of the panel screens.

“According to Spencer, if you want something rare and expensive at a deep discount, Walsh can get it,” Tony explained.

“And how does he know this?” questioned Evan.

“He was a little cagey on the details, Ice. But when he was in Boston about six months ago, the word in a very small circle was that you could get anything you wanted for the right price.”

“So, what does that mean? And what does it have to do with the Worthington robbery?” Michael probed.

“It means anything you can’t get legitimately. Drugs, women, guns, contraband. Anything,” Tony explained. “According to Spencer, Worthington’s acquisition of the red stone was known by anyone who wanted to know about high-value gems.”

“So, someone wanted it, and our thieves were just filling an order?” Evan asked.

“Theft by contract,” Michael stated. “Makes sense. Buyer commitment up front. You take only what you’re paid for. Guaranteed money, less risky than trying to sell the hot items after the fact.”

“Exactly. It explains how quiet things have been about it in the black market,” added Tony.

“Does he know who this Walsh is, or the name of the buyer?” Evan asked.

“Not specifically,” Tony confirmed. “Only that Walsh operates out of some of the top hotels in Boston.”

Raymond quickly typed in some more information on his computer and pulled a full screen of data to show the team.

“I’ve been working on a potential match for this Walsh character, based on what Spencer provided, using search strings on dealer, suppliers, and known fences in the police database. Assuming that’s his real name, we have eighteen matches in the greater Boston area.”

He pulled up a string of pictures to represent the results, filling up the large flat-panel screen.

“If we search people named Walsh that work in a downtown hotel, we have thirty-seven,” continued Raymond as his fingers flew over the keyboard. “Cross-reference the list, and we have seven.”

“Nice,” Michael added. “Any of them live in Dorchester?”

Raymond did a quick scan.

“No. That would be too easy,” he told them.

“Okay, team. We now have a viable target. A broker who will lead to either the buyer or the thieves. Then ultimately the recovery of the jewels,” Evan surmised, his tone sharp with urgency. “In the morning, this will be our immediate priority.”

The team moved close, ready for Evan’s direction.

“Tony, you’ll take James first thing in the morning. It’s a holiday, and I want eyes and sound on her at all time. Use the long-range surveillance equipment, and get pictures of anyone she talks to.”

The older man nodded.

“Raymond, we’ll need you here, looking for any connection between the Worthington employees and our mystery man, Walsh. Michael and I will split up and check out the Walshes on our shortlist.”

The other two men acknowledged their assignments.

“I’ll meet you guys in the gym at oh-five hundred,” he concluded before they packed it in for the night.

Memorial Day was a mild day with a light breeze and a sunny, cloudless sky. On Friday, Lianne had suggested that the group meet again to spend the day together before Eddie’s brother, Kevin, flew back to Seattle. Nia met Lianne, Eddie, and Kevin near her apartment, and they walked to Pleasure Bay Beach. The temperature was in the midsixties, ideal for walking around and a competitive game of Frisbee. They had an early dinner at a pub nearby, before the others left to drop Kevin at the airport for his late flight. Nia was home by nine o’clock.

It didn’t take long for her to calm down and acknowledge that Evan was right about the dress. She had overreacted to the situation. Yes, it was presumptuous for him to think she would be okay with him buying her anything, but his rationale made sense. Nia only needed it to go to the charity event he’d invited her to. And since it had been done on the sly, Evan obviously didn’t want her to feel obligated to him in any way.

She was going to have to apologize. But her phone had been disappointingly silent all day. While Nia had considered calling Evan several times, her self-control won out. He had started this thing, whatever this thing was, and she wasn’t going to chase after him now. Even if her reaction had been a little irrational.

Tuesday morning, Nia was up early for her usual kickboxing class. Then, she was in the office just after eight o’clock, dressed in a gray dress with a matching jacket and navy blue heels. She wanted a few minutes to review the sales forecast before her weekly team meeting, pushed forward a day due to the holiday weekend.

Chris Morton was the first person she saw as she entered the building. He was setting up a display cabinet in the gallery.

“Hey Nia,” he said across the room.

“Hey,” she replied with a hesitant smile. Usually, she would avoid small talk so early in the day, and just head upstairs to start work. But after everything that happened last week, Nia felt obliged to say something. She walked a little closer to Chris.

“I heard about Matt Flannigan on the news,” she stated in a soft voice. “I couldn’t believe it.”

Chris turned to face her. He looked tired, with dark bags under his eyes.

“Yeah, it’s pretty crazy,” he agreed.

“You guys were friends, right? Do you know what happened?” she asked, trying to sound casual. This interest in the personal lives of her work associates was completely unlike her. The question sounded awkward and stilted to her ears. But Chris didn’t seem to notice.

“No, nothing beyond what the police had released.”

“Did he have any family or anything? Somewhere we can send a card or flowers?”

“I don’t know. He lived with his girlfriend, but I’ve only met her once,” he replied with a sigh. “I can check with the security company to see if they have her contact information.”

“That’s a good idea. Let me know,” Nia replied.

“Thanks, Nia.”

“No problem. Good luck.”

She turned away toward the stairs.

“Those security consultants were in over the weekend,” added Chris. “They’re going to be updating our servers and network protocols. Our systems will probably be offline sometime this week. But I’ll send an e-mail to everyone when I have the details.”

“Okay, no problem,” she replied.

In her office, Nia was preoccupied as she unpacked her laptop and the power cable. She wasn’t sure what she expected from the exchange with Chris, but it wasn’t to feel sympathy. When Adam had mentioned the friendship between Chris and the security guard, she had immediately been suspicious, wondering if the operations manager was somehow involved in the robbery too. So, while she hadn’t expected him to suddenly break down and admit his guilt, she was surprised at how genuinely upset he was about Matt’s murder.

If they were partners in the crime, wouldn’t Chris be concerned that Matt’s role in the robbery would lead back to him? Wouldn’t he try to downplay their relationship instead of pursuing contact with Matt’s girlfriend? Or maybe he knew that hiding their connection would look suspicious?

Nia didn’t have long to mull it over. At eight-thirty, she met her team of six in one of the small boardrooms. Tara, John, and Adam were already seated around the table, chatting. Not surprisingly, they were talking about Matt.

“It’s weird not seeing him in the office,” Adam expressed.

“Yeah, I know,” agreed John. He was a shorter man, slender with a flashy, colorful sense of style. With his legs crossed, his turquois-and-pink striped socks were brightly displayed.

“I’m telling you, it has something to do with all that partying . . . ,” added Tara, but she stopped when Nia joined them at the table.

Mimi Rodrigues arrived at the same time, nicely tanned from her weeklong Florida vacation. She was a curvy, petite woman with a big personality and an endless supply of pretty dresses. Nancy and Cain arrived shortly after. The tall, gangly sales coordinator appeared to be lecturing him about disorganized contracts. Cain was a tall, lean man with deep chocolate skin and sparkling white teeth, now clenched in annoyance. Once they were all seated, the meeting got started. It was the start to a busy day with several meetings in and out of the office.

The first was a brief call with Edward after the staff meeting.

“I just got the sales projections you sent, Nia,” he started. “They look good.”

“Yes, I agree. We’ll end May ahead of target,” Nia confirmed. There was a short pause.

“I’m glad to hear that, but that’s not why I’m calling,” Edward continued. “I met with Fortis on Friday. They will continue their investigation.”

“They’ve uncovered something?” she asked, breathless with anticipation.

“I can’t share the specifics, of course. But they have some new information, and it’s enough to suggest they’ll be able to identify the culprits and recover the jewels within the timeline needed.”

“That’s . . . That’s great,” she replied, with a gulp. “Am I still a suspect?”

“I’ll be honest with you, Nia. They haven’t ruled out your involvement,” her boss stated reluctantly. “But if I really thought you had anything do with it, I would have fired you on the spot.”

“I know,” she whispered, trying desperately to hold on to that belief.

“Let’s leave them to do their jobs, okay?”

“Okay. Thanks, Edward,” she added before they hung up.

Nia tried to be relieved. She still had a job. And if Fortis was still on the case, then maybe the whole mess would be resolved with minimal impact to her. It was a big if. Too big to leave in the hands of a group of people that were still convinced she had a role in the theft.

She closed her office door, then took out her cell phone and called Nigel to see if he had managed to uncover any valuable information.

“I was going to call you later today,” he stated right away.

“Why? What did you hear?” she demanded.

“Well, word on the street is that the Flannigan dude was well connected inside the gallery,” Nigel stated in a solemn tone.

Nia let out a deep breath. While she wasn’t surprised, it was still uncomfortable to have it confirmed.

“Meaning, he was working with someone else here?” she asked.

“Meaning, he knew enough to be dangerous, Nia,” he explained.

“Shit,” she mumbled. “I can’t believe fingers are pointed at me for something like this, but now someone I work with might have set me up to take the fall, Nigel.”

“You don’t know that,” Nigel countered.

“Yeah, I think it’s a pretty safe bet,” she shot back with a frustrated sigh. “Now I have to be looking over my shoulder, wondering who it is,” she whispered. “There’s only eight other employees here, and six of them work for me. I had a meeting with them just this morning. Which of them is planning to reap the profits while I take the fall for them?”

“Look, Nia, you can’t panic about it. Just keep your head down until it all gets sorted out.”

She closed her eyes, feeling overwhelmed by all the implications.

“What if it doesn’t, Nigel? It’s grand larceny and maybe even murder!”

“Trust me, Nee. It will all get resolved. You won’t go down for something you didn’t do,” he insisted. “But promise me you won’t get involved or talk to anybody else about this? These people are serious bad dudes. For thirty million in diamonds, they won’t hesitate to take you out if you get in their way.”

“I know,” she agreed with a sigh. “I don’t have anything of value to say anyway.”

“Good. It’s better that way.”

His words sunk in and Nia paused.

“Nigel, you’ve told me everything you know, right?” she asked.

“I’ve told you everything you need to know. Just trust me, okay? Keep your head down and your mouth shut,” he commanded.

“Okay, okay. I get it,” she finally conceded.

“I’ll call you later in the week to see how you’re doing,” Nigel added in a softer tone.

“Thanks, Nigel,” she replied, feeling grateful about the help he was providing her.

They said good-bye and Nia hung up her cell phone. She sat back in her chair, her brows curled in a frown. Despite his protests, she couldn’t shake the feeling that Nigel had uncovered more information about the robbery and the jewels than he was sharing with her. Like the value of the stolen gems. Had she told him that their estimated value was thirty million dollars? Her first instinct was to keep pushing him on it, but something in his voice made her hesitate. Maybe it was safer to know as little as possible.

Nia was pulled out of her musing by the notice indicator on her cell phone. It was a text message from Evan DaCosta and she sat up straight at the words.

 

 

She smiled a little, welcoming the diversion. After his abrupt departure Sunday night and silence since, Nia had wondered if she had managed to put him off his interest in something personal.

 

 

 

 

Once back to work, Nia’s day flew by. She went to meetings from one end of the city to the other in cab rides, finally getting back to the office shortly after four o’clock. At one of her client visits, she had the opportunity to acquire a large nineteenth-century Italian marble statue. Nia had been unable to commit to accepting the piece on consignment for the gallery until she spoke to Chris. The size and weight far exceeded what they usually managed.

Imagining special equipment and extra laborers, she went into the warehouse to get Chris’s opinion. When he wasn’t in his office, she looked around, intending to check in a couple of storage areas. On the way, she passed the back door next to the delivery bay and noticed it was left slightly ajar. Nia hesitated, concerned about security. With soft steps, she walked closer, until she heard someone talking in an agitated tone. Still apprehensive, Nia leaned closer, and the words of the one-sided conversation came through the narrow opening of the door

“I’m telling you, Matt’s girlfriend must have it, but don’t worry about it. I’ll find her. I’ll get the stuff back. I just need a little more time, that’s all.”

He turned toward the doorway, and Nia jumped back, then walked away as quickly as possible, embarrassed by the thought of being caught snooping. It wasn’t until she was halfway up the stairs that the significance of Chris’s words registered.

 

 

Evan and the Fortis team had spent the last day and a half tracking down any scent of a broker named Walsh, but they had come up empty.

At five o’clock on Tuesday afternoon, they were back in the control center looking speculatively at the virtual picture board displayed on one of the flat oversized LED screens. It was a visual map of the people they had in their scope. The employee photo of Nia James was still front and center, with the mug shot of Nigel St. Clair on one side, and the picture of Matt Flannigan on the other. There were two squares next to Flannigan; one was blank with only a large question mark in the center and the second one had the name Walsh captured in it. The other Worthington employees were displayed in a row below.

“We need to rethink the profile of Walsh,” Evan stated. “None of the names we short-listed were viable suspects. It was too easy. If we’re on the right track, we need to find a real connection. James or someone at Worthington made contact with the broker, either directly, through Flannigan, or through another third party. It’s the only way a heist like this could have come together. We just need to find out who and when,” Evan summarized.

The team uttered their agreement.

“Let’s review all our known variables again to see if we missed anything,” Evan decided. “We know there’s a low probability that Nia handled the jewels herself. We can’t place her at the robbery, and she hasn’t been in contact with anyone outside of work.”

“Except for her visitor on Saturday at the community center,” Raymond stated as he pulled up the picture. “We couldn’t get facial recognition off the picture you took. So I took another route. The music student is Meghan McFarlane. She lives with her divorced mom, Julie McFarlane, just a few blocks from the community center. Julie’s maiden name is St. Clair. And meet her younger brother, Nigel.”

He pulled up a recent picture of the subject, then layered it against the original Michigan mug shot from eleven years ago. The newer picture showed a thinner, more clean-cut man.

“Nicely done, Raymond,” Evan commented. “Now we can remove our unknown subject from the list.”

The team watched as Raymond updated the virtual picture board by removing the square containing the large question mark.

“But now we still need to connect James to possession of the jewels or a way to get paid for her role in the job,” Tony reminded them.