“Want to tell me what’s really going on between the two of you, then?”
“Nothing personal,” she replied. “He did ask me to marry him before I left for Virginia, and I told him I’d think about it. But I never had any intention of accepting his proposal.”
“Why not?” Alex prodded.
“Because I’m not in love with him.” Her face warming, she lowered her gaze.
“From the way Devlin talked, you really admired the guy when you first went to work for him. And the two of you do have a lot in common.”
“You know that old saying about familiarity breeding contempt? Well, it took me a while, but eventually I realized Brandon Selby was a real bastard.”
“How so?”
“One minute. he can be intentionally cruel without the slightest provocation, and the next minute he can be so...solicitous you’re tempted to believe you only imagined having a strip torn off you for some minor failing. And, of course, any abuse he metes out is always for your own good. Or so he always insists. After a while—a longer while than I like to admit—I began to see a pattern to his behavior. A pattern designed to undermine my confidence while keeping me in a continual state of uncertainly.”
“Has he ever hurt you physically?” Alex asked, his voice low, yet so cold, so hard, that Kari regarded him with sudden consternation.
“Oh, no.” She shook her head vehemently. “He’s much too good at verbal chastisement to have to lay a hand on anyone. Even now, knowing how he operates, I still end up in tears whenever he’s displeased with me.”
“Yet you still continue to work for him.” As if needing to put some distance between them, Alex stood and moved to the railing, then turned to face her. “With your background and reputation, surely you could find a job at another stable. So why stay with Selby?”
“Because I’m fairly sure he’s been getting away with murder, and I intend to find a way to stop him,” she stated simply.
Alex met her gaze, seemingly unfazed by what she’d revealed, though his eyes narrowed almost imperceptibly. Kari wasn’t sure how she’d expected him to react. But his lack of surprise disconcerted her. Until it dawned on her that he might already know what was going on at Selby Stables.
She knew how clever Devlin was at tracking down bits of information, then piecing them together. And Alex was her brother’s protégé. Which would make him equally adept at ferreting out—
“That’s what I suspected,” he said, as if reading her mind.
“Well, if you already knew, then why give me the third degree?” she demanded, her voice rising angrily. She really, truly, hated being manipulated.
“I don’t know much,” he replied, his tone placating. He sat back against the railing and crossed his arms over his chest. “I went hunting on the computer yesterday and came up with some interesting bits of information about your boss and his business dealings over the past five years or so.”
“Ever since I went to work for him.”
“Yes, ever since you went to work for him,” Alex acknowledged. “And from what I discovered, I’ve come to the conclusion that Brandon Selby has profited from the death of other people’s horses on at least two occasions, and more recently, from the death of one of his own animals. There’s also a fourth instance I’m not sure about.” He paused, eyeing her thoughtfully. When she could do nothing but stare at him in astonishment, he added, “Am I on target, or what?”
“Oh, yes. You’re right on target.” She shook her head, still somewhat bewildered. “You put all that together after working on the computer one afternoon?”
“I got enough information from newspaper and magazine articles, insurance-company records, financial transactions and bank statements to put two and two together and come up with a plausible four. I assumed he was up to no good, and that whatever he was doing had to be benefiting him monetarily.”
“And there I was, right in the middle of it, yet totally oblivious until a couple of months ago,” Kari muttered disgustedly. “I can’t believe I was so blind. So blind and so stupid.”
“What happened to raise your suspicions?” Alex asked.
“A young gelding Brandon had pinned high hopes on wasn’t coming along nearly as fast as he’d anticipated. He’d paid top dollar for the horse about two years ago and had been working with him personally, bragging to everyone on the grand prix circuit that Moonwalker was going to win big.
“But Moonwalker just wouldn’t perform for him, at least not the way Brandon had led people to believe he would. After the horse placed low in several shows during the fall and winter, Brandon was beginning to worry about his reputation. He decided to put Moonwalker up for sale, but a rumor had started that Brandon had ruined him. As a result, nobody was willing to pay anywhere near Brandon’s asking price.”
“Was there any truth to the rumor?”
“No truth at all. Moonwalker had a lot of potential, but not as much as Brandon insisted he did. As a result, all his bragging backfired on him.”
“So he got rid of the horse the only way he could without losing most of what he’d invested,” Alex said.
“Yes,” Kari agreed. “I believe that’s exactly what he did.”
“How?”
“He arranged for Moonwalker to have an accident. Or at least that’s what I think he did. No matter how hard I’ve tried, I can’t think of any way Moonwalker could have gotten out of the barn the night he broke his leg and had to be put down, unless someone unlatched his stall door intentionally.
“We had a bad storm brewing all evening and the horses were nervous. Just to be on the safe side, I checked on them myself one last time before turning in for the night. All the stall doors were secured just the way they should have been. Yet sometime after midnight when the storm finally broke, Brandon claims he came upon Moonwalker sliding around out on the paved driveway, crazed with fear, his left foreleg shattered, supposedly from a fall.”
“Did Selby have any idea how the horse got out?”
“He claimed Moonwalker must have kicked open his improperly latched stall door, and the insurance company accepted his story. The horse was extremely high-strung, he did have an aversion to lightning and thunder and he had kicked his stall door open in the past when it was unlatched. But I’d been out there myself less than two hours earlier, and I’d checked—”
Angrily, Kari got up and paced to the railing much as Alex had done a few minutes earlier. Standing beside him, she recalled all that had occurred that awful night and shuddered inwardly. Poor Moonwalker hadn’t deserved to die that way.
“Did you confront Selby about the discrepancies in his story?” Alex asked.
“I tried, but he put me off. Said I’d probably been in such a hurry that I hadn’t really noticed. And when I started to argue with him, he was furious. He asked me if I was calling him a liar, then hinted that perhaps I ought to be more grateful he was willing to cover up my carelessness by blaming the open stall door on the stable hand who’d been on duty that night.
“Until then, I didn’t really suspect Brandon. I thought maybe someone else had sabotaged the stable. Vandals or a disenchanted former employee. But he was so determined to pin the blame on Marco while at the same time insisting I’d be wise to leave well enough alone or risk being blamed myself. That’s when I began to realize that Brandon must have something to hide.”
“What about the stable hand? Surely he must have had something to say in his defense.”
“He didn’t have a chance. Brandon fired him early the next morning. I’ve tried to find him in the hope that he could corroborate my story, but so far, I haven’t been able to track him down. He’s not working for any of the larger stables in Texas or Louisiana.”
“So it’s your word against Selby’s.”
“Yes.”
“What about the other horses you’ve lost over the past few years?”
“After Moonwalker, I began to wonder about them, too. But again, I have no real proof of any wron
gdoing on Brandon’s part. All three horses were causing problems for either the owners or for Brandon. But all three died of colic. That’s not unusual, although three horses in the same stable dying of colic within a three-year period is somewhat out of the ordinary.
“However, when I thought back, I realized that shortly after two of the horses died, Brandon suddenly seemed to have a lot of money to spend. He bought an expensive foreign car, ordered improvements done on the house and barn and started work on a new riding arena. I didn’t think much of it at the time. Business had been good and our horses had been winning regularly. But now...” Kari shrugged and shook her head despondently as she gazed into the distance.
“What about the third horse?” Alex prodded.
“I thought maybe losing Wylde One was just a fluke. But though I don’t think money was involved, her death worked in Brandon’s favor, as well. Like Moonwalker, the mare wasn’t doing as well as expected, and the owner had begun hinting about trying another trainer. After she died, Mr. Chambers bought another mare and Brandon talked him into letting him work with her. Within months, she was placing in the money, making Brandon look good again.”
“According to the records I checked, Selby deposited large sums of money into his account in October 1992, and again in June 1994. Do those dates coincide with the deaths of two of the horses?”
“Yes.” She glanced at Alex hopefully. “Is that proof of any kind?”
“No,” he admitted. “He included the sums in his tax returns as income. That means he probably issued invoices for services of some sort as backup.”
“Probably.” Kari slumped against the railing, turning her back on the lovely view. “Damn it, he’s going to get away with what he’s done, isn’t he? Unless I can find some concrete proof or catch him in the act.”
“That’s why you haven’t left, isn’t it?”
Kari nodded.
“Do you think he’s realized you’re onto him?”
“I’m not sure.”
“Why do you think he asked you to marry him?” Changing tack without warning, Alex caught her by surprise.
Highly miffed, Kari straightened her shoulders as she turned to face him. “What? You don’t think he’s madly, passionately, in love with me?”
She knew Brandon wasn’t in love with her, but she was offended that Alex obviously hadn’t considered it a possibility. Just because he didn’t care about her was no reason to assume another man wouldn’t.
“I didn’t say that,” Alex replied, his tone conciliatory. “I was just wondering if you thought he had some ulterior motive...” His voice trailing off, he winced, as if realizing he was only making bad matters worse. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to imply—”
“That I’m not a desirable woman in my own right?”
Pleased to see him so discomfited, she eyed him with a slight smile.
He met her gaze steadily, an odd light in his bright-blue eyes. “You’re the most desirable woman I’ve ever known,” he stated simply.
Her smile fading, Kari looked away, her thoughts confused. How could he feel that way, yet abandon her?
Aware that now was not the time to travel down that particular road, she chose, instead, to answer his original question.
“I think Brandon asked me to marry him because he figured a proposal would throw me off, at least temporarily. I made no secret of how infatuated I was with him when I first went to work for him. But he never showed any romantic interest in me. Not until after I questioned him about Moonwalker.
“First he made those veiled threats about my being to blame for the horse getting loose. Then a few days later he came on to me as if he’d suddenly realized I was the love of his life. He started talking about marriage and a partnership in the stable as though it were almost a done deal.”
Staring out across the lawn, she recalled, with utter distaste, the way he’d backed her into an empty stall and kissed her and fondled her. She’d wanted to fight him off, but she’d been too afraid. And there had been no one around to help her.
Luckily, he hadn’t expected anything more of her or the jig would have been up. No matter how much she wanted to bring him to justice, she wasn’t about to have sex with him. And he’d seemed willing to comply with her wishes on that score.
Or lack of score, she thought, barely suppressing a wholly inappropriate giggle.
“What’s so funny about that?” Alex demanded.
Understandably, he failed to see the humor in the situation she’d described.
“Nothing,” she assured him soberly. “Nothing at all.”
“I take it you’ve been stringing him along since then.”
“To a certain extent, yes,” she admitted. “But only to give me time to gather some evidence against him.”
“By granting sexual favors?” he asked, his voice cold, his words clipped.
“Not that it’s any of your business, but no, I haven’t granted him any sexual favor.” Angry all over again, she returned to her chair and sat down, refusing to look at him. “I told him I needed a few weeks to consider his proposal and he agreed. But he’s not going to wait much longer for my answer. That means I don’t have much time left to find a way to stop him. Which is why I decided to accept your offer of help.”
“I was wondering what changed your mind.”
“Sheer desperation,” she muttered. “I honestly don’t know what to do next. And the longer I’m away, the more likely it is that he’s going to get suspicious. So, Alex, got any ideas?”
“Yeah, I think you’d be wise to give Selby as wide a berth as possible,” he snapped, his expression grim.
“I wish I could. But until he’s been stopped, that’s not an option. As far as I know, I’m the only one who’s aware of what he’s doing. Except for the owners who appear to have been in league with him. And I doubt they’ll rat on him when they’re just as culpable.”
“Maybe you’re not the only one whose suspicions have been aroused.”
“I’d like to believe that, but I’ve been right in the middle of it for almost five years and I began to catch on only a couple of months ago. I may not be the brightest person alive, but I’m no dummy, either.”
“No one has so much as hinted to you he might have some qualms about Selby losing four horses in just over-three years?”
“No one at all.”
“What about you? Have you said anything to anybody about what you suspect?”
“Only to you,” she replied. “My suppositions wouldn’t carry the same weight as proof. And who would take the word of a disgruntled employee—as I’m sure I’d be portrayed—over that of someone of Brandon’s stature?”
“So there’s a good chance no one else is aware of what’s going on.”
“I’d say that.”
“Before we go any further, I’d like to find out for sure.”
“But how?”
“I’m going to contact a few friends of mine. Friends who would know if Selby is being investigated. There’s a chance one or another of the insurance companies involved may have become suspicious and gone to the authorities without your knowledge.”
“Then what?” she asked.
“Then we’ll see,” he answered cryptically.
“How long do you think it’ll take you to get in touch with your friends?”
“Not long.” He checked his watch, then added, “I should have some idea who knows what by late this afternoon.”
“I guess that means I won’t be able to go back there today.”
“If I have anything to do about it, you’re never going back there,” Alex growled.
“But how else will I be able to prove—”
“I’ll think of something.” He moved away from the railing, picking up his empty mug and the coffeepot. “But first, I have some calls to make. Are you coming in?”
“Yes.” Reaching for her empty mug, Kari stood and followed him into the house. “If I’m going to be here a while longer, I’ll hav
e to do some laundry.”
After that, she’d have to find something else to occupy her time. Maybe bake bread. She hadn’t done that in ages. And kneading dough would be as good a way as any to work out some of her frustration.
“The washer and dryer are in here.” He opened a set of louvered doors just inside the kitchen entryway to reveal a cubbyhole where the machines sat side by side.
“Do you want me to toss in any of your things?”
“No, thanks.”
“I thought I might bake some bread, too.”
Halfway across the kitchen, Alex paused and shot her a quizzical look.
“Unless you’d rather I didn’t,” she amended hastily.
“Oh, no. Be my guest.” He gestured toward one of the upper cabinets. “Estella, my caretaker’s wife, keeps several cookbooks in there.” He opened the pantry door and glanced inside. “And it looks like she’s stocked everything you’ll need in here, including yeast.”
“Well, then, as long as you’re sure you don’t mind...”
“I’d have to be nuts,” he said, offering her a wide smile. “The bread you used to bake was the best I’ve ever tasted, and your cinnamon rolls weren’t bad, either.”
Inordinately pleased, Kari smiled, too.
“If you want cinnamon rolls, as well, I’d better get to work.”
He could irritate the hell out of her, yet all he had to do was flash that boyish grin her way and she was putty in his hands.
“Let me know if you need anything else,” he advised.
Having decided to start the bread dough before loading the washer, Kari stayed in the kitchen as Alex headed toward the hallway.
“I will,” she murmured, watching him go, remembering a time when he wouldn’t have left her without a hug and a kiss first.
But those days were gone for good. And that need was one she could never again ask him to meet.
Chapter 7
Under almost any other circumstances, the enticing aroma of homemade bread and cinnamon rolls drifting into his office would have filled Alex with a sense of contentment. Especially since Kari was the one busily doing the baking in his kitchen. But as he cradled the telephone receiver and sat back in his desk chair, he was feeling far from gratified.
The Lady And Alex Payton Page 11