Instead of the usual internal explosion when she heard her ex-husband’s name, Kelly felt only a twinge. She’d known that she’d have to face this question. Media people were still swarming around the investigation into Samuel’s death and—like it or not—she was part of that story. The blog had upped her recognition factor by mentioning her ex, a public figure who was running for office.
“Let me put it this way,” Kelly said. “I wouldn’t vote for him.”
Wendy did a little more prodding, but Kelly kept her lips zipped. She was beginning to get the idea that Nick’s elegant ex-wife was a bit of a gossip, looking for gory details to pass on to her friends. Wendy probably ran in many of the same social circles as Ted and his new wife.
Kelly switched the subject. “I’ll bet you have some stories about the Spencer family. I’m curious about Samuel. He and Julia were together for a long time. Why didn’t he marry her?”
She leaned closer and lowered her voice. “There was a rumor that Julia refused to marry him unless he gave her fifty pounds of the Valiant gold. That would be a dowry of over a million dollars. Of course, Samuel refused to part with one single kilobar of the family legacy.”
“That could be a symbolic gesture,” Kelly said. “She might have been demanding that Samuel put her ahead of his family.”
“Or it could be smart business. Julia is a shrewd woman.” Wendy stood. “You might be interested in seeing a group photograph that we took last Thanksgiving when the family got together. I had it out earlier today because Maddie, my older daughter, wanted a picture of her great-uncle.”
Nick and the two girls came clattering down the staircase and into the kitchen. Both children were talking at once about a goat named Fifi and a butterfly princess.
Nick explained, “I promised them a visit to Serena’s farm the next time they visit Valiant.” Then he introduced them to Kelly.
“I’d be happy to show you around,” Kelly volunteered. “There are also a couple of llamas and bunnies and chickens.”
The four-year-old clasped her hands together and whispered, “I love bunny rabbits.”
The seven-year-old girl was more serious. Her eyes were red as though she might have been crying. She tugged on her father’s arm. “Come and see the picture.”
“It’s in the dining room on the table,” Wendy said. “I need to have it framed.”
In the dining room, Kelly looked around Nick’s shoulder as Maddie carefully spread the eight-by-fifteen-size photo on the table. There must have been thirty people in the group—all ages, sizes and shapes. Maddie tried to put names with all the faces, and Nick helped biographical details.
“That’s a cousin from New York, a doctor. That dude with the beard does shipwreck salvage in Florida.”
“What’s salvage?” Maddie asked.
“Your mom can explain.”
“No, she can’t,” Wendy said. “You’re going to have to write this down, Nick. I can’t remember all these people.”
“Here’s the important one,” Nick said as he pointed to a white-haired gentleman in a suit. “Your great-uncle Samuel.”
Maddie kissed the tip of her finger and touched it to Samuel’s chest. The simple, sweet gesture stirred Kelly’s heart. She wanted to hug this little girl and promise her that everything would be all right.
Before she lifted her gaze from the photograph, Kelly glimpsed a face that she’d seen before. His eyes stared directly at her, and he seemed to be laughing. “Who’s this?”
“Julia’s son, Arthur Starkey.”
Arthur Starkey was the man who had been tailing her in Valiant.
Chapter Thirteen
Wednesday, 6:15 p.m.
“I believe you.” Nick drove into the cul-de-sac in Valiant where his sister-in-law’s house took up two and a half lots on the back end. “But I still don’t like it.”
“Fine,” Kelly said. “Next time I recognize a bad guy, I’ll try to make it someone you don’t care about.”
“I’m not buddy-buddy with Arthur. I’ve told you that. Hell, I don’t even like the guy.”
“But you care about Julia.”
Though dusk had barely settled, every light in the Spencer house seemed to be lit. A couple of days ago, Lauren had been complaining about not having anyone around; now it appeared that a mob of friends and family had arrived to offer help and condolence. Several vehicles blocked the circular drive outside the front entrance. Near the three-car garage, he recognized Julia’s bronze Lexus.
Nick parked his SUV at the curb. He turned off the engine but made no move to get out of the car. “It all comes down to the same thing. Somehow, I’m going to have to tell Julia that her son might be involved in Samuel’s death.”
“We don’t know he’s involved,” Kelly said.
On the drive from Denver, they had gone around and around, trying to come up with reasons why Arthur might have been lurking around in Valiant and following Kelly. Was he working with Trask? Had he hired the private investigator? Did he want to talk to Kelly about Samuel’s dying words? Was there some other connection? Too many questions, not enough answers.
“I need to talk to Arthur.” But the phone number Nick had was disconnected. “I might be able to avoid a conversation with Julia if I just ask for his phone number.”
Kelly reached over and touched his arm. “She’ll ask you why you need to talk to her son, and you’ll have to say something. Julia is sharp. You won’t be able to hide anything from her.”
He could tell that she wanted him to lean on her. She was so slim and delicate that he kept forgetting that she was also strong. “I’m glad you’re with me. It would have been worse to make these decisions by myself.”
“I want to help. I’ll do anything I can.”
Later tonight, when they were alone at his condo, he had a pretty good idea of how he’d like to take her up on that offer. But that didn’t help with the current problem. He looked toward the sprawling house. “It’s possible that Arthur is inside, mingling with everybody else and acting like he belongs.”
“There’s another way to handle this,” she said. “Contact the police and let them question Arthur.”
He shook his head. “I’m not going to get Julia’s son in trouble unless I’m sure he deserves it.”
“Do you want me to talk to Julia?”
A tempting offer, but he couldn’t push this confrontation off on her. “I’ve got to do it myself.”
He shoved open his door and came around the SUV to the curbside where she was standing and waiting. Her eager, tenuous smile encouraged him and told him that she cared, really cared, about what happened to him. When she reached out and took his hand, he wanted a deeper connection.
His arm slipped around her waist, and he reeled her in, gradually pulling her closer until her body pressed against his.
“What do you think you’re doing?” she asked in a teasing whisper.
“Looking for inspiration.”
“Take whatever you want.”
Her lips parted, inviting him. When they kissed, he felt a rush, like adrenaline pounding through his veins, urging him to go faster and harder. He wanted to make love to her. Later tonight, he promised himself. If she was ready, so was he.
At the front door, Nick walked inside without ringing the bell. The house used to belong to his parents, and Nick grew up here which gave him a certain feeling of ownership. The colors and furniture were different, but the atmosphere was the same. He could see where the stained glass in the window by the door had been repaired after he’d knocked a home run through it. The wall beside the staircase was lined with photos of Spencer ancestors that had been there for as long as Nick could recall.
Avoiding other conversations, he made his way down the hall to the kitchen where dinner was being prepared. Lauren grabbed Kelly and gave her a knife to cut salad veggies, leaving him alone to find Julia. She was in the dining room, setting the table.
When he entered, she looked up. “Shall I set ano
ther two places for you and Kelly?”
“We’re not staying,” he said.
“I’m glad you suggested that I come over here. Living alone, I forget how nice it is to have a family. So many people have told me their fond memories of dear Samuel.”
That might have been the first time he’d ever heard her refer to his uncle as dear. Their relationship was feisty, not sentimental, and he wasn’t buying the image of Julia as a pathetic figure. He’d witnessed some world-class arguments between her and Samuel. She was tough as steel.
“We need to talk,” he said. “Out here on the porch, we can grab a little privacy.”
“Could be chilly.” She adjusted the collar on her black turtleneck and pulled her gray cardigan more tightly around her. “But I have my sweater, so I ought to be warm enough.”
He opened the French doors and led her into an enclosed porch that was a favorite spot for breakfast on summer days. Unheated, it was cooler than the family dining room but not freezing. The air smelled stale, as though memories of better times had come here to die and had rotted.
This conversation with Julia would forever change his relationship with her. He was accusing her son. Nick would no longer be the young man she cared for like a nephew. He would be her adversary.
After he turned on the overhead light, he plunged right in. “I need to find Arthur. Do you know how I can reach him?”
“What’s he done now?”
“I just want to talk to him.”
“Because you’re such great friends?” Her sarcasm was biting and more in character with Julia’s personality than her show of wistful sentiment. “You and Arthur were raised as close as brothers but never warmed up to each other. Tell me why you’re after my son.”
The way she phrased her statement made Arthur sound like a victim, which he sure as hell was not. Julia’s son was in his forties, older than Nick or Jared, and he’d never done an honest day’s work. There was always some scheme Arthur was running, a big payoff that was right around the corner.
Nick lowered himself into one of the chairs at the glass-topped breakfast table. “Something is going on with Arthur. What do you know about it?”
Anger narrowed her gaze. For a moment he thought she was going to turn on her heel and storm away from him. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Don’t play games with me.”
“I’ve never seen this side of you, Nick. You sound just like your uncle.”
He wouldn’t let her cajole him into dropping his questions. It was time to pull out the big guns. “I have evidence that Arthur is involved with some bad people. Don’t make me take it to the police.”
“Fine.” She pulled out another chair from the table and sat. “For the very first time in both their lives, Samuel and Arthur were working together. Frankly, I was pleased. It was always my dream for Samuel to love my children and think of them as his own. I should have known there’d be trouble.”
Finally Nick felt as if he was making progress. “What were they working on?”
“I don’t know the details,” she said. “I purposely kept my distance so the two of them would have more time together, and Samuel could see that Arthur really does have good ideas, especially when it comes to creative financing.”
“The kind of financing that Barry Radcliff does?”
“That’s correct.” Her long fingers knotted into fists. “Arthur arranged the first meeting between Samuel and Mr. Radcliff.”
That puzzle was solved, and it made perfect sense. A con man like Arthur would have contacts that weren’t 100 percent legit, and Samuel would enjoy the thrill of getting money without consulting Marian or Rod or even Julia.
“Do you remember when I told you that Samuel put up the Valiant gold as collateral for the loan?”
“I most certainly do,” Julia snapped. An angry flush colored her cheeks. “A foolish mistake.”
“If I don’t pay Radcliff, he might find a way to take his payment in kilobars.”
“That’s absurd, Nick. I won’t let that happen.”
It might not be her decision. “That’s why I need your help. I’ve got to have more information. Tell me what Samuel was working on.”
“I don’t know.”
He didn’t believe her. “Sooner or later, I’ll find out. A million dollars doesn’t just vanish into thin air. There have to be records.”
“You’re so naive, Nick. Your uncle never wrote anything down. He never filed anything. No one at Spencer Enterprises would have known what he was doing if it wasn’t for me.”
“You and Samuel together made the perfect partnership.” He was creative, and she was organized. “He trusted you.”
“Barely noticed me,” she said. “Half the time I was invisible to him.”
“You’ve got to tell me everything. I don’t want to lose the gold.”
Still putting up a fight, she looked down at her clenched fingers. “The more I think about it, the more I’m sure it has something to do with the Valiant gold mine in the mountains. Remember, I told you that I saw a credit-card charge from the Hearthstone Motel.”
“How do I find Arthur?”
She recited a phone number. “It’s a cell phone, and he hasn’t been answering for the past few days.”
“Home address?”
“I can’t help you with that,” she said. “You know how Arthur is. He doesn’t like to put down roots. For the past six months he hasn’t had a permanent address. He stays with friends. Most of his belongings are stored at my place.”
“If he contacts you, will you let me know?”
“I can’t promise that,” she said.
Nick looked her in the eye, searching for a glimmer of their former friendship. He hated to lose his connection with her; Julia was a link to his uncle. As she gazed back at him, he didn’t see a welcome sign. “I’ll keep you informed.”
“Don’t hurt him.” Her voice dropped to a lower register. “Please, Nick. Don’t hurt my son.”
That wasn’t his plan. Nick wanted only one thing: to understand how and why his uncle had died. The million dollars and the Valiant kilobars of gold were secondary. If the money was lost, so be it. He couldn’t lose Samuel without knowing the truth.
* * *
THOUGH LAUREN DID HER BEST to make him stay, Nick pleaded exhaustion and made his escape with Kelly. He sure as hell didn’t want to sit down to dinner with Julia glaring at him. A couple of the other women were interested in his relationship with Kelly. The more serious-minded wanted to talk about Samuel and the plans for the memorial service.
He dived behind the steering wheel of his SUV and allowed the cool, dark silence to enfold him. Kelly sat beside him, not speaking. During their time together, they’d developed an ability to read each other’s rhythms. He didn’t have to tell her that he needed quiet—she just knew.
When he reached blindly toward her, she stuck a home-baked chocolate-chip cookie in his hand. He hadn’t known that he was hungry until he chomped down on the cookie.
“Perfect,” he said with a satisfied moan.
“While I was in the kitchen,” she said, “I threw together a couple sandwiches and grabbed cookies. There’s also fruit.”
“I’ll take another cookie.”
“Thought so. You’ve been running around and stressing out all day. It’s important to keep your energy level in balance.”
“Is that expert nutritional advice?”
“Common sense,” she said. “And I couldn’t help noticing that you don’t have any food at your condo.”
“I’ve got coffee.”
“And beer and half a carton of questionable eggs that might have been there for months. Typical bachelor’s pad.”
Her description wasn’t really fair. Because he didn’t spend much time at the Valiant condo, he didn’t bother stocking it with supplies. “My house in Breckenridge has plenty of healthy stuff.”
“But we’re not there, are we?”
He
wished they were. He would have been happy to erase these few days and start over. “It would have been nice to meet you in a more normal way.”
“Maybe.” She handed him a fat roast-beef sandwich and some paper towels.
“Explain.”
“If you and I had bumped into each other on the street in Breckenridge and started dating, it would have taken weeks, maybe months, for me to get this close. I would have been cautious because of my lousy first marriage, and I certainly wouldn’t have had the kind of meltdown I had last night.”
“And that’s a good thing?” He bit into the roast beef, an excellent sandwich.
“I probably wouldn’t recommend starting off a relationship with a nervous breakdown, but it certainly cuts through a lot of protective shields. It takes a lot to make me angry, and last night I was an erupting volcano.”
And hotter than any woman he’d ever known. “Some parts of that, I liked.”
“I know.” She nibbled at her own sandwich. “Before we go back to your place, should we stop at the supermarket?”
“There’s something else I want to do first.”
“What did Julia tell you?” She handed him a bottled water.
He unscrewed the cap and took a drink. “How did you get out of the house with all this stuff.”
“Big purse,” she said. “Julia?”
Between bites he told her about Arthur introducing Samuel and Radcliff and about the project near the gold mine that they were supposedly working on together. “Supposedly, Arthur doesn’t have an address or a phone that he answers, but Julia said that her son stores a lot of his stuff at her house.”
“Are you suggesting that we break in to her house?”
“I helped build the place. I know my way around the alarm system.”
“Couldn’t we tell Julia what we’re doing and ask her for a key?”
“Right now, she’s not in a mood to cooperate with me.”
He finished off his sandwich and started the engine. Looking for clues in Arthur’s stuff was progress. Nick had a really good feeling about this break-in.
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