Ring of Lies (69 page)

‘
Because they were his insurance
, as
long as he had them in his possession
,
he was safe.
’

‘
So you think someone stole them.
’

‘
Despite what the accident report and initial autopsy say, I don’t believe
Elliott’s
death was an accident. So either
he gave them to someone for
safekeeping
or whoever killed him has them
. It
w
ould also explain why
his
attorney
was murdered.
’

‘
You
think
Daniel gave them to
Mr
.
Parous
?
’
Grace asked.

Jack reached for another piece of pizza.
‘
There was no sign of a break-in at
the attorney’s
office or home
.
I
f Parous had them, he must have
handed
them
over
to his killer
.
’

Grace drew a
question mark between
each name on the page.
‘
There’s another possibility—
Daniel
could have given them to his mistress
.
’

He hesitated, not wanting to cause her any distress. But there was no polite way to ask, other than come straight out with the question.

‘
When did Daniel make his will?
’

‘
Shortly after he purchased this house, why?
’

‘
If he didn’t want you to kn
ow of its existence, why include it in his will?
It doesn’t make sense, unless
—
’

‘
Unless what?
’

A muscle quivered at Jack’s jaw.
‘
Unless
he planned to change it at a later date.
’

‘
You think Daniel was
going to divorce
me
?
’

‘
It would be one way of preventing you from inheriting his property. The other would be to kill you.
’

Shock siphoned the blood from her face.
‘
Don’t be absurd. Daniel wouldn’t stoop to murder.
’

‘
With you out of the way, legally or otherwise, he could leave his property to anyone he liked.
And if my hunch is right, and Daniel was murdered
by someone else involved in the scam
, it would also explain why someone tried to kill us yesterday.
’

Grace shuddered deep inside.
Somehow the suggestion made Daniel sound like a hardened criminal, not the man she had
married
.

‘
What if the
man
who threatened me at the funeral
also
owns the island Daniel visited, the one Pete Jacobs told us about
?
He wanted the
electronic files
. W
hy not assume the money was his?
He could have followed me here.
’

‘
That’s a lot of ‘if
’
s
.
’
T
here’s only one way
to
find out
if you’re right
.
’

Grace
ignored the chill running down her spine. She sipped her coffee and waited
.
When he didn’t say anything she asked,
‘
Are you
suggesting we
visit the island
?
’

Jack swore under his breath.
‘
Y
our ass is already in the firing line. Going there—
’

‘
W
ould be suicidal?
’

‘
I was going to say
too
dangerous.
’

She shrugged.
‘
Well, I can’t be in any more danger than I already am. When do we leave?
’

‘
Even if
Mike
agree
d
, I w
ouldn
’t let you do it.
’

‘
But—
’

Jack
j
umped to his feet, and strode round to round to Grace’s side of the table, pulled her chair back with a jerk.

‘
Damn it, Grace.
It’s a job for a SWAT team, not an innocent civilian.
Do you have any idea what I went through last night, knowing that I might not be able to protect you, prevent you from being killed
?
’

Her breath lodged in her throat at the
fear and passion reflected in his eyes. She didn’t move.

His
fingers
slid into her thick auburn hair. He leaned in until their foreheads touched.

‘
I
love
you, Grace. I think I always have. But you have to trust my judgement
on this
.
’

Before she could form an answer, his lips brushed hers. Her own mouth responded, and a familiar shiver of wanting stirred deep inside her body.
She lifted her head and saw the heart-rendering tenderness of his gaze and said,
‘
But—
’

‘
No argument. That idea get
s
list
ed under ‘last resort.’ Agreed?
’

She put a hand to his cheek and let her fingers rest there for a moment.
‘
Agreed.
’

‘
Anyway,
’
he said taking his seat again and grabbing another slice of pizza,
‘
that just leaves the notebook.
’

‘
I’ve been thinking about that. What if it’s not
written in
code?
’

Jack frowned.
‘
How’d you mean?
’

‘
We never compared the entries in the note
book
, to
the
dates
of
the deposits on the bank statements
.
It might explain where each deposit originated.
’

‘
You think it could be that simple?
’

‘
What’s that saying about hiding things in plain sight?
’

Jack rubbed his beard.
‘
You have a point. I’ll mention it to Mike when I call him.
And find out if the tech guys have come up with any suggestions
.
’

Grace twisted the platinum band on the third finger of her left hand. It meant nothing to her now. She pulled it off, along with the matching diamond engagement ring
, and slipped
both rings
into her pocket.
When
she returned home, she’d
sell them and
give
the money
to
Cancer Research or some other charity
. S
he stood
,
and picked up the empty pizza box a
nd dropped it
into the trash
, then
helped herself to the last of the coffee
before taking her place
at the table once more.

‘
Somethi
ng else has been bothering me
.
’

‘
Go on,
’
said Jack.

‘
Mr
.
Cody said that all bank customers are issued with an ATM card, yet there was no such card in Daniel’s wallet when it was returned to me by the police.
’

‘
What about his
British
bank
and credit
cards? Were they missing too?
’

‘
No, and what’s more,
his wallet
contained a considerable amount of cash.
’

‘
How much are we talking about?
’