This time there were fewer results. “I’d say we can agree that the Frank Malone we’re looking for isn’t on Twitter,” he said.
She laughed. “We can definitely agree on that.” She scrolled down farther. “And we can also agree that he isn’t an exotic dancer willing to entertain at private parties.”
“I’m surprised an obituary didn’t pop up.”
She frowned. “Now that you mention it, I don’t remember seeing one. I didn’t even know he had died until the lawyer contacted me about the house. The lawyer did tell me he was cremated.”
“Have you ever used the site KCPersons.com?”
“No, I’ve never heard of it,” she replied. She shifted positions in the chair and once again her heady scent surrounded him.
“It’s a site that has bios and information about the notable people in Kansas City. And by notable I mean the famous and the infamous.”
“I doubt that Frank was considered a notable person.”
“Maybe it’s worth looking at,” he replied. “Although I have to admit the information there isn’t vetted properly at all. They have me listed as being fifty-five years old. They’re exactly twenty years off my real age.”
She raised an eyebrow. “You’re listed as one of Kansas City’s notable persons?”
He shook his head. “I don’t know how I got listed on the site, but I’m guessing it had something to do with an article that appeared in the Kansas City Star newspaper where local businesses and services were highlighted.”
“How did you know you were on the site?”
He cast her a slightly sheepish grin. “I Google myself occasionally. Actually, I do it to make sure there aren’t any disgruntled customers out there talking negatively about me or the business.”
“Have you ever found any?”
“Three. Over the years I’ve only had three customers complain about my service. In two of those cases I contacted the people and made things right with them.”
“And in the third case?”
“She was a diva. Short of offering her my services free for the rest of her life, she wasn’t going to be happy. Now, enough about me, let’s see if Frank Malone made the Kansas City notable site.”
Once again, her fingers quickly tapped over the keys. “Wow, I can’t believe I didn’t know about this,” she said when the site opened up. There was a search bar in the upper right-hand corner and she typed in Frank’s name.
“He’s here,” she said in surprise.
“It looks like he was added two weeks ago,” Troy observed.
“So somebody wrote this bio after his death.”
They both leaned forward to read. The first part of the bio was about where Frank Malone was born and went to school. It appeared to be a fairly unremarkable life until he was seventeen, at which time he was convicted of the robbery of a video store. He spent time in juvenile detention and was released just after his eighteenth birthday. He was in trouble again when he was twenty-two, this time convicted of robbing a convenience store.
“He definitely wasn’t a Boy Scout when he was young,” Troy said as she moved the cursor to pull up the next page.
He could feel Eliza’s tension. It wafted from her as strongly as her scent. For the life of him, he couldn’t figure out what kind of information they’d learn about Frank Malone that would have anything to do with her or the house the man had left to her.
The second page of the bio was devoted to his marriage and more legal trouble culminating fifteen years earlier when he and three other men were prime suspects in what the news reports had called the Great Flake Jewel Heist. The other men were named, but none of them went to trial due to a lack of evidence. The bio ended with his death.
She turned to look at Troy. “I guess we need to look up the Great Flake Jewel Heist and find out what that was all about.”
“Go for it,” he agreed, intrigued by what they’d find.
“I know Flake Jewelry is a high-end store here in town, but I don’t remember a big robbery ever taking place there,” she said as she typed in the appropriate words.
“Would you have paid any attention to a news report about it fifteen years ago?”
She shook her head. “Probably not.”
Her search yielded several results and she punched on the first one. It detailed the robbery of the store, which had occurred at night. Various pieces of jewelry were stolen, but the biggest loss was of a necklace that had been on loan from a jewelry store in Paris, a necklace worth $2.4 million.
“Well, the good news is I don’t think Frank was a serial killer, but it’s very possible he was a jewel thief,” Troy said.
“I want to see what I can find out about the other men listed as potential suspects in the jewelry robbery.”
She went back to the bio and wrote down the three names listed there. “We’ll start with Lester Cantano. At least his name isn’t common.”
An obituary with a picture of the man appeared. “He died five years ago,” Eliza said aloud.
“What about Neil Riddicio?”
“Look, he has a social media page.”
Neil’s profile photo showed him to be a tough-looking sixty-year-old guy. It listed him as being an IT expert who also enjoyed powerful motorcycles and bar fights.
“Not exactly a pillar of society,” Troy said drily.
“I still can’t figure out what any of this might have to do with me or this house,” she replied. “Let’s see what we can find out about Mitchell Martinson. Oh, good. He’s on social media, too.”
She pulled up the site and then gasped in obvious horror and pulled her fingers off the keyboard. “That’s Max.” Her voice trembled as her face paled.
Troy looked at the photo of the scruffy, dark-haired man and then gazed back at Eliza. “Max who?” he asked in confusion.
“Max...he was the man who came here earlier and pretended to be from the power company.”
The man had pretended to be an electric technician to get into the house. Why? They had to figure out what the hell was going on. All of a sudden he didn’t smell Eliza’s enchanting scent or feel the warmth of her body close to his.
All he smelled, all he felt at the moment, was a tight twist of his gut as a dark cloud of danger descended over her.
Chapter Seven
“Mommy?”
Eliza jumped at the sound of Katie’s voice. Bitter fear lingered in her mouth and she forced a smile to her face. “Yes, honey.” She was grateful her voice held none of the panic that pulsed inside her.
“Sammy fell asleep on the sofa and I’m ready for bed, too.” Katie rubbed her eyes with her fists, a gesture she always did when she was overtired.
Eliza looked at the clock on her wall and nearly gasped. It was definitely past their bedtimes. “We’ll skip baths for tonight,” she said. “Go get into your jammies and I’ll be up to tuck you in.”
“I want Mr. Troy to tuck me in,” Katie said.
“I think I can do that,” Troy replied. “In fact, I’ll carry Sammy up.” Eliza looked at him gratefully. They both got up from the desk.
Troy carried a still-sleeping Sammy up to his bed and Eliza went with Katie to get her ready for sleep time. All the while the information she and Troy had gleaned about Frank Malone whirled around and around in her head. A jewel thief? Was it really possible?
And the fact that Max had pretended to be a utility worker to gain access inside her house made everything even more horrifying.
Katie crawled into bed and by that time Troy appeared in her doorway. “All ready for a Mr. Troy tuck-in?” he asked.
“Yes,” Katie replied.
Troy walked across the room and sat on the edge of her bed. He reached out and moved a strand of her hair away from her little face. “May the light of the moon and the stars guide you into the land of happy dre
ams.” He leaned over and pecked her on the cheek. “Sleep tight and don’t let the bedbugs bite.”
Katie giggled. “Mommy says that sometimes, too. Good night, Mr. Troy.” She grabbed her favorite stuffed bear to her chest and was asleep almost immediately.
Eliza looked in on Sammy, grateful to see that Troy had taken off his shoes and covered him with the sheet. She moved his shoes from the side of the bed to the foot of the bed where Sammy was accustomed to finding them. Then she and Troy went back down the stairs.
Instead of leading him back into the office, she went into the living room and sat on the edge of the sofa. He sank down next to her.
“That was a beautiful tuck-in,” she said.
“Thanks. It’s what my mother used to say to me at bedtime.”
“Where are your parents? You’ve never mentioned them to me.”
“They divorced when I was eight. My father passed away six years ago from a heart attack. My mother remarried and moved to France when I turned eighteen. She didn’t stay in touch with my dad or me after that.”
“That’s terrible. I’m so sorry,” she replied. He hadn’t even had his parents’ support when tragedy had fractured his entire life.
He shrugged. “To be honest, she wasn’t much of a mother even when she was present in my life. But that’s enough about me. What are you thinking about what we just learned?” he asked.
She released a small laugh. “My brain is positively spinning in my head and I’m thinking of a million things all at the same time.”
He cast her a gentle smile that only added to the emotions rushing through her. At least the smile offered her his support, and that helped her deal with all the negative thoughts.
He leaned back in the sofa. “So, you had no clue that your husband’s grandfather was a lifelong criminal?”
“None. That’s something Blake didn’t ever say anything about,” she replied.
“I can see why Blake might not mention it. You said the two men weren’t that close. Blake was probably embarrassed by his convict grandfather.”
“You could be right about that,” she replied with a sigh. “Shall we talk about the elephant in the room? The fact that he was a suspect in a big jewel theft?”
“And the jewels were never recovered,” Troy replied.
An icy chill washed over her at those words. “But he was just a suspect,” she said in an effort to somehow comfort herself. “He wasn’t even officially charged with the crime. That means it’s very possible he didn’t do it.”
“And yet you had one of his thug friends, a fellow suspect, show up today wanting to get inside the house,” he countered. “We have to consider that it’s possible the jewels are hidden someplace here in the house.”
She fought back a gasp even though she’d known that was where the conversation would lead. “I certainly don’t know where. We’ve found a couple of hidey-holes but they’ve been empty.”
“Then maybe you just haven’t found the right hidey-holes,” he replied.
“I find it hard to believe the jewels are in the house considering that this crime happened over fifteen years ago. Wouldn’t the thieves have already fenced them or whatever? Why steal jewels and just stick them in a hidey-hole in the wall for fifteen years?”
Troy frowned. “I certainly don’t know how these things work, but I would guess it was fairly easy to get rid of some of the smaller pieces of stolen jewelry when the theft occurred, but that $2.4 million necklace would be much more difficult.”
“I just feel so overwhelmed right now,” she admitted.
He reached out and took her hand in his. “You aren’t alone in this, Eliza. I’ll do whatever I can to help you.”
She squeezed his hand. “Thank you, but I’m not sure what kind of help I need. Should I call the police?”
“If that would make you feel better, then definitely you should make that call. But I’m afraid there’s not much they would be able to do. We’re just speculating on a possibility right now.”
“It was obvious Max wanted inside the house, so he must believe something of value is in here.” At the moment her home, the place she should feel the safest, instead felt like a place of danger. She looked at Troy helplessly. “What should I do?” she whispered.
He threw an arm around her shoulder and pulled her closer to his side. “If I were you, the first thing I would do is get an alarm system...as in tomorrow if it’s possible. If getting one is an issue due to finances, then I’ll help you with it.”
“Thank you, but that’s not necessary.” She couldn’t believe he was so nice as to offer financial help if she needed it. “I’ll call somebody first thing in the morning and get that taken care of.” She would make sure every door and window was covered with bells and whistles should somebody try to make their way inside. As she remembered that night when she was sure there had been somebody in the house, an intense shiver raised goose bumps on her arms. Yes, she definitely wanted an alarm system sooner rather than later. “Then what?”
“We search to find out what secrets this house might still hold.”
She leaned against him. She’d always considered herself to be a strong woman, but at the moment she felt lost and afraid. “I can’t exactly tear up the floor and walls with a blind child in the house. I don’t even want my children to know anything about this. The last thing I want is to do anything that upsets their routine or makes them be afraid.”
“I understand that, but there’s no reason why you and I can’t do a search of this place and look for more hidey-holes while the kids are in school. They found a couple without tearing up the house.”
“That sounds like a plan,” she replied. She sat up, feeling stronger with a definite plan in place. She got up and walked over to the place where Sammy had found the newest hidey-hole. Troy watched her curiously as she ran her fingers along the wainscoting. When she felt an irregularity in the wood, she pushed on it and the hidden door popped open. “This is the newest one Sammy found.”
Troy’s eyes widened and he got up off the sofa and joined her in front of the large space. “Looks like a great place to hide if the police came into the house.”
“And the secret stairway Sammy found would also help somebody get from upstairs to downstairs without anyone being the wiser,” she said. Knowing Frank’s history suddenly made the hidey-holes in the house make more sense.
Were there jewels still hidden in the house? Was that what Max aka Mitchell was looking for after all this time? And if that was the case, what kind of danger were she and the children in? A shudder of fear swept through her.
Troy must have seen it for he pulled her into his arms. She leaned against him, loving his warmth and the unspoken support he offered her. Again she wondered, how had she gotten so lucky to have him as a neighbor?
Who was she kidding...he was becoming much more than just a helpful neighbor to her. She was precariously close to being in love with him and that thought both thrilled her and filled her with just a little bit of fear, because she had no idea where he was at with her.
Her feelings toward him had blossomed so fast she wasn’t sure she could trust them. Would she have been vulnerable to any man who showed her attention and support as she went through this disturbing time and with so many mysteries floating in the air? She honestly didn’t know the answer.
She lowered her head to the crook of his neck and breathed in the scent of him. His arms tightened around her. “Make sure you get that alarm installed first thing tomorrow,” he said.
“Definitely first thing in the morning,” she agreed. She raised her head and looked at him as her heart began to beat an unsteady rhythm. “My children are going to be gone all night next Friday night. I was wondering if you’d like to come over for dinner.”
His eyes lit with small flames as his hands moved up and down her back. “I’ve got a bette
r deal for you. You’ve already cooked several meals for me—how about next Friday night you come to my place and I’ll provide the meal?”
“Okay, then I’ll bring dessert,” she said, half-breathless by the heat in his eyes.
“You can be dessert.”
She released a small, unsteady laugh and he dropped his arms from around her and stepped back. “It’s getting late. Will you be okay here tonight?”
“We’ll be fine.” She was grateful he was calling an end to the night. Her head was not only spinning with the information about Frank and a jewel heist, but also with the knowledge that she’d effectively set up a night of lovemaking with Troy.
She knew that’s what would happen. There was no doubt in her mind that Friday they would take their relationship to the next level.
They headed for the front door. “I’ll come over tomorrow afternoon so we can start our search for more hiding places,” he said.
“I feel like I’m taking up all your free time,” she replied. “And work time...don’t you usually work in the afternoons?”
“If I minded, I wouldn’t have made the offer to help, and when you’re the boss you get to pick your own hours.” He flashed her the smile that always shot a delicious warmth through her. “I’ll see you tomorrow afternoon unless something else happens that frightens you and then you know I’m only a phone call away.”
He pressed his lips against her forehead in a gentle kiss and then opened the front door. “Get some sleep, Eliza. I know it’s been a long day for you.”
Suddenly she was exhausted. It seemed like she hadn’t gotten a good night’s sleep since she’d moved into this house over a month ago. “Good night, Troy. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
When he was gone she wandered around the living room, her gaze drifting from wall to wall. Was it really possible there were priceless jewels hidden someplace in the walls? If so, why would Frank not do something with them after all this time? If four men had robbed a jewelry store, then why hadn’t they sold the goods and split the profits?
Desperate Intentions (HQR Intrigue) Page 9