He chuckled. “My flight arrives in five hours.”
“That means you’re on the plane now? How is that you're allowed to use your cell?”
“One of the many perks of having a prince as your best friend but don’t worry. You’ll get to experience it first-hand when we fly to California.”
“Right.” I’d almost forgotten that was why he’d found me so interesting. I glanced at the clock by the bed. The ball was still two hours away. I was about to look away when I spotted a coin. It was larger than a half-dollar and looked as though it were 100 years old. I picked it up and ran my finger over the scratched surface. “Listen. I’ll just see you at my house when you land or tomorrow. I’ve got to go.”
“Cree, I’ll see you when I land.”
“It’s okay. I’ll try to have everything wrapped up, and we can work on your stuff tomorrow or whenever, but I have to go.”
“Fine, call me when you’re home.”
“I don’t have a phone,” I said and glanced at Butler’s, which was sitting next to the coin. It was a burner phone just like the one Davina had been using.
“You will by the time I get there,” he said.
“Sounds great. Really, though, I have to go.”
“You sure you’re okay?”
“Yeah,” I answered and hung up when I heard the sound of the door opening behind me.
I spun around to find Butler standing in the doorway. “Your food is ready.”
His gaze went to the coin in my hand, and he slowly started to walk toward me. “What are you doing with that?”
“I uh…”
He slipped it out of my hands and twisted it between his fingers. “It’s my lucky coin. No one touches that.”
“Right,” I said, trying to slide around him.
His brows furrowed as he watched me. “Why are you acting like that?”
I grabbed the lamp from the dresser yanking the cord out of the wall. I held it like I might a bat, not that I played many sports. Okay, none. But I’d seen it on TV.
“Stay back.” My voice came out as a shriek as I walked backwards toward the door, only stopping when Glynis and Charlie entered the room.
“What did you do to her?” Charlie asked.
He held up his coin. “She was holding my lucky coin. I just said no one was allowed to touch it, and she started acting like… that.”
He pointed to me like I’d sprouted green skin and horns.
“Here, Cree, you can hold mine.” Charlie pulled one out of his pocket and held it out.
I waved the lamp between the two of them. “You’re in on it?”
“Cree, put the lamp down. I’m sure you’re just rattled from earlier, and this is all just a misunderstanding.”
Charlie held up his hands as he moved to the bed and put the coin on it. “You can take a look. There’s nothing special about my coin.”
I wasn’t budging. “How did you two do it?”
“Do what?” Glynis asked.
“Steal the coins.”
Charlie and Butler shared a look and laughed. Butler was the first to speak. “We didn’t steal them; everyone in the wedding party got one.”
I slowly shook my head. “From Davina?”
“No,” Charlie answered. “From Logan.”
I gestured to the phone. “And I suppose you want me to believe that disposable phone was a wedding present too?”
Butler picked it up and turned it on. He turned the screen for me to see. “My sister is pregnant, and she’s had two miscarriages. It’s her direct line to me. I sometimes ignore my personal phone since fans get the number. I won’t ignore this phone. Only she has these digits.”
“I don’t believe you.” I shook my head. I wasn’t falling for this. I put my hand out to block Glynis and pushed her behind me, inching us closer to the door.
Chapter 16
“I’ll prove it.” Butler picked up the phone, hit a number, and put it on speaker.
A female answered. “Hey, Butler, why are you calling me from this number? It’s only for emergencies. You haven’t been arrested for something, have you?”
“I have you on speaker. Tell them your name.”
“Tell who my name?” she asked.
“Just say your name,” he growled.
“Winnie Spade-Mitchell.” Her voice echoed through the silent room.
“And tell them why I have this phone.”
“Butler, are you in trouble?”
“No, Winnie, just tell them why I have this particular phone, please.”
“Because I’m pregnant.” She growled in irritation. “Now you better tell me what the hell is going on before I bring my hormonal ass down there and kick some butts.”
Charlie took the phone from Butler. “We’re sorry, Winnie. This is Charlie. We thought Butler had a girlfriend he wasn’t telling us about. That’s all.”
“Okay then. Butler, call me later when you’re done screwing around with your friends. We need to discuss Mom and Dad’s anniversary.”
“I’ll call you after I hit the mainland.”
“Fine. Don’t forget.”
“I love you, Winnie Pooh,” Butler said.
“I love you too, Butthead.”
Butler disconnected the call and tossed the phone onto the bed. “Now your food is getting cold. You need to eat, and you can tell us what the hell all this is about.”
Glynis slid the lamp from my grasp while Charlie turned me back around and led me to the little kitchenette table. “Are you even sure these are stolen coins? Have you seen a picture of them?”
“Well no,” I answered, but they looked like they belong in a museum.
“Okay, let’s start there.” Glynis pulled out her phone and started typing. Her fingers slowed to a stop, and she turned the phone around. “Here’s a picture of the coins from the paper when they were reported missing. There’s a fifty thousand dollar reward for their return.”
She turned the phone to me and the guys. The coins were identical to the ones that Charlie and Butler had.
I spent the next half-hour our telling them about the stolen coins between devouring two of the best-grilled cheese sandwich I’ve ever eaten. I pushed my plate away and drank my tea while Glynis, Charlie, and Butler sat in silence. Charlie had grabbed his coin and was staring down at it. “That explains your freak-out.”
Butler sat forward, resting his elbows on his knees. “I don’t get it. Logan told us that these coins have been in his family for centuries.”
“That’s not what he told me,” Charlie interrupted. “Logan told me that he found them at an antique shop.”
Glynis sat back and crossed her legs. “How many men do you know that go antiquing?”
The vibe in the room turned from disbelief to shock to somewhere around WTH.
“No way can you convince me that Logan helped steal those coins. There has to be another explanation.” Butler rose and started pacing the floor.
“Maybe Davina gave them to him, and he just didn’t know,” Glynis said.
“Well, you guys realize there’s one way to find out. Let’s ask him.” Charlie pulled out his phone. “I’ll invite him over here.” He glanced at me “Of course we’ll stash Cree in the other room, but we’ll just flat-out ask him. He’ll tell us the truth.”
“I don’t know, guys. What if he sees me and tells his mother that I’m hiding out here? I don’t have any way to defend myself besides the bedroom lamp. Everything I brought is in the cabana, and that’s assuming that Priscilla hasn’t destroyed it all. This isn't a good idea.”
“I’d have to agree with Cree on this one. Do you honestly think Logan would have just given you guys stolen coins? He’s smarter than that.”
“Maybe he didn’t know,” Charlie said.
“The senator told me he threw a museum fundraiser here, and those coins were on display and he told both of you different stories. Of course, he knew,” I said.
“Logan travels a lot for his job, and
he hates having to attend his father’s parties. He might have skipped that one,” Butler said.
“What does he do for a living?”
“He’s a computer genius. His company invented new security software that is one hundred percent safer than anything else on the market.”
“He’s in negotiations with several security firms that want the technology,” Glynis announced.
If Logan knew his way around computer security, then he could have easily been involved in taking down the bank system. It made sense. Logan made sense.
“Call him and ask him to come over,” I said, catching them each off guard. I’d be able to tell if he was lying by whether or not I got goosebumps from his answer.
“Are you sure?” Charlie asked.
“Yes. Like you said, I can hide in the other room.”
“I’ll hide with her,” Glynis said.
“No, you need to go find your dad and tell him what happened with Priscilla. Maybe he can look for the gun that was used to kill Davina. Right now it’s my word against hers unless we find some evidence.”
“We’ll take care of her,” Charlie said, tossing his arm around my shoulder.
She gave me a hesitant look.
“I’ll be fine, and I’ll be gone as soon as the sun goes down.”
She sighed and glanced around at the others. “Don’t let him in that room.”
“We won’t,” Butler promised. “Now go find your dad.”
I peeked out the curtains in the bedroom. Night was coming fast. The ball was due to start in less than an hour. Butler had called Logan and asked him to come by his cabana for a drink with him and Charlie so they could go to the fundraiser together.
Charlie had gone back to his cabana to get dressed, and I tried to stay out of Butler’s way while he got ready. I was helping with his cufflinks when there was a knock on the door. He shared a worried look as he walked out of the room and held my gaze as he pulled the bedroom door closed behind him.
I opened the door an inch to listen in on their conversation and pressed my back against the wall next to the door, in case someone walked in. The door would hide my presence.
“You’re early,” Butler said.
“The less time I have to spend at the fundraiser, the better. Where’s Charlie?” This was a voice I hardly recognized. I peered through the edge of the door opening out into the room. The voice belonged to Logan all right. He looked just like I’d seen him during my Insight session.
“He’s on his way. So what’s your poison? I’ve got bourbon and tequila.”
“Bourbon. That will help me make it through this damn fundraiser.”
“I’m surprised you decided you let them talk you into attending. It can’t be easy without Davina.”
Ice clinked in a glass before Butler poured the liquor.
“They found her body,” Logan announced out of the blue. “The police wanted to question my dad and me this morning. They confirmed she was pregnant.”
“Man, I’m sorry. I couldn’t imagine losing the woman I loved and an unborn child.”
“It’s been tough. Everyone has their own idea of trying to help me get through it, but all I see is a dark tunnel. There isn’t a light. I’m just going through the motions trying to appear fine just so everyone will quit asking.”
Goosebumps. Truth.
“I guess you should have kept those lucky coins you gave me and Charlie and used them for Davina and yourself.”
That was a quick transition I hadn’t been expecting.
“You aren’t kidding.”
“If you don’t mind me asking, where did you get them from? I need to get one for my sister and the rest of the band.”
I clenched my fist to my chest to try to calm my racing heart as I waited for him to answer.
“Davina said she and Clarissa found them on the beach.”
Goosebumps. Regardless if it was true, he actually believed they’d found them on the beach.
“Then why the two lies about where they came from?” Butler asked.
He raised his brow. “Would you tell someone you didn’t buy the present and that you got them for free?”
“This beach?”
“Yeah. Clarissa and Davina jog every morning even when we come to the island.”
“I…ah…” There was a pause before Butler continued. “I didn’t realize those two got along. I always thought Clarissa was jealous of Davina. She obviously had the hots for you for a long time.”
“It was the other way around, dude. It was weird. They became thick as thieves like instant best friends that had known each other forever. They completed each other’s sentences and everything. It was crazy weird, but I wasn’t about to complain. I think they spent more time together that I did with either of them. I was always working, but my best friend and business partner should like my wife… well, almost wife.”
“You didn’t ask them if they knew each other before?”
Ice clinked in a cup, followed by more liquor being poured. “I caught them kissing once.”
My eyes widened.
“You’re shitting me.”
“Nope, it was the night I met her. She was here at one of dad’s fundraisers. It was right before Clarissa started hooking up with my dad.”
“You knew about that?”
“Everyone on the island knows about their affair. They don’t hide it very well.”
“Does your mother know?”
There wasn’t an answer. I could only imagine he shrugged.
“It’s Clarissa.” The words flew out of my mouth before I could stop them. My hand covered my mouth as the door was shoved open. I had to jump out of the way before getting smashed.
“Who the hell are you?”
“Cree Blue.” My answer came out more like a question than an answer. “I have a story for you, Logan. One you aren’t going to like but that you have a right to hear before the police show up.”
“Butler, who is this woman?”
Butler walked into the room and took the empty glass from Logan’s hand. “She’s a psychic and a friend, Logan. She’s the one who led police to Davina’s body, and you really need to listen to what she has to say.”
“You expect me to listen to a psychic? What the hell is this? Were you hoping she would tell me Davina is here and that I need to move on?”
“Actually she’s not, but since you need proof.” I took a deep breath. “Outside the church that last day, she told you she was going to get you a present and run errands.”
“Anyone walking by could have heard that.”
“You asked her if she was getting cold feet.”
He turned silent, his face hard as stone.
“She reminded you that you promised her a do-over. Three boys and a house on a hill on the other side of the country away from your parents.”
“That was our secret.”
“I’m sorry for your loss, but that’s not all I have to tell you.” I gestured to the living room and for him to sit as Butler placed a drink in his hand.
I told him the story of how Davina had shown up and led me to her body and the cabin in the woods and the cash that I’d found. I told him how the feds figured out she worked at a bank where the coins were stolen and the security disabled. I'd explained how I uncovered his mother was responsible for shooting Davina, and how she threatened to kill me and locked me in the supply closet in her office. I told him everything, except that Davina had a previous affair with his dad. That part I left out because that part might have destroyed him.
By the time I was done, Logan was staring down at the coin Butler had handed him, and Logan’s phone with the web page was open showing pictures of the missing coins.
He lifted his gaze. “My mother killed her?”
“I believe she did, but I haven’t proved it. It’s her word against mine, even though she admitted it to me when she locked me in the closet.”
“Why?” He looked up at me. “Was it because of the affair Da
vina had with my dad?”
I shared a look with Butler, and he spoke. “You knew about that?”
He nodded. “Davina told me. She said she didn’t want any secrets between us.” He lifted the coin. “I guess she didn’t mean all her secrets.”
“Someone helped her disable the security at the bank. I thought it was you.”
He shook his head and met my gaze. “You think Clarissa helped her?”
“I’m sorry, but I do. I just hadn't figured out their connection since Davina worked at a bank and Clarissa worked with computers.”
He pressed his lips together. “I can answer that. I asked Clarissa where she’d met Davina the night I saw them kissing. She told me she met her awhile back at the bank where my company does business. I just didn’t realize…”
I rested my hand over his. “Davina loved you. I believe she died wishing she’d told you the truth. I believe that she was going to the cabin that day to meet someone and had every intention of calling things off with whoever was waiting. I really believe she chose you.”
Butler rested his palm on my shoulder. “Cree, it’s dark enough. If you’re going to make it to the boat, you should leave in the next few minutes. Freddie is going to be expecting you.”
The door opened, and we all froze until Charlie walked in. “You’re still here and talking to Logan, I see.”
“You're involved in this?” Logan asked.
“I helped save her from the supply closet.”
“My mother killed Davina.”
“I heard. The police showed up. They just served a search warrant, and the police and FBI have converged on the hotel. They’ve confiscated your mother’s rifles and handcuffed her. That’s why I came down here. Harrison Reed, some big Italian scary-looking guy, and a cop named Faraday are looking for Cree.”
“What about Clarissa?” I asked, slowly rising to my feet.
Logan rose from his seat. “They’ll need proof that she hacked the bank’s security the day the coins went missing. If she used her computer or one at the company, then I’ll help them find the proof and the coins.”
I used to feel vindicated when solving a case. I used to do it from the comfort of the Lady Blue. This case and these people were real, not some shady criminal who I’d expect to see in jail or at night scouring the streets for victims. I’d single-handedly pulled the rug out from beneath Logan’s life. His mom was going to jail, his business partner was a thief, and his fiancée and baby were dead. How did one survive this type of aftermath?
Deadly Vows Page 9