“Okay, Dad. I promise. But Uncle Harrison didn’t touch me or anything gross like that. It was just a hug.”
“It’s important to listen to your instincts. If you feel something is off about someone, chances are you may be right.”
“How did you feel about Uncle Harrison?”
“Honestly, I was never close to my older brother, and neither was Russell. When he was younger, he was very charming but a bit calculating. He was also volatile. One minute he’d be happy, and the next, something would set him off and he’d start throwing things.”
“Wow. I can’t imagine Grandpa Coulson would put up with that.” Her grandfather had always scared her a little bit.
“No, he didn’t put up with it. Fortunately, Harrison seemed to grow out of his tantrum stages. I always figured it was simply a matter of maturity. By the time he got into politics, he didn’t seem to have a problem controlling himself. In fact, he charmed most people. But, I did notice he seemed to change over the years.”
“I heard Aunt Kate say Uncle Harrison was nuts.”
Garret chuckled. “Yes, that does sound like your Aunt Kate. But I don’t know if he was nuts so much as suffering from some sort of dementia.”
“You mean Alzheimer’s, like Karen’s grandma?” Sarah thought about the stories her friend Karen told about her grandmother who suffered from Alzheimer’s.
“I don’t think it was Alzheimer’s. Although, I’ve heard some Alzheimer patients suffer from paranoia, and I definitely noticed Harrison seemed increasingly paranoid. I tried talking to your grandfather about it, but he told me he was taking care of things.”
“That sounds like Grandpa. When is Aunt Shelly moving out?”
“She was supposed to move out today.” Garret glanced at the clock. “I mean, yesterday. But she cancelled the movers.”
“Dad, we don’t have to move in with Grandpa, do we?”
Garret chuckled. “No sweetheart. But, you wouldn’t want to live in a mansion?”
“No, it reminds me of a haunted house.”
Garret laughed and then gently pushed Sarah off his lap. “You run up and go to bed. It’s getting late, and you have school tomorrow.”
Standing next to her father, no longer in his lap, Sarah gave Garret’s brow a quick kiss.
“I love you, Dad. Please make sure Adam doesn’t go to jail.”
Garret watched his daughter leave the room and asked himself when was the last time she’d sat on his lap like a little girl. His baby was now a young woman, and he relished these brief moments when she reached out to him. He just wished it wasn’t under the current circumstances. If Adam went to prison, it would devastate his wife and daughter. He had to find some way to prove Adam’s innocence.
Alex found her husband pouring over papers in his office.
“Garret, do you know what time it is? We have a big day ahead of us. Please come up to bed.” Alex walked over to the desk and stood behind her husband and then leaned down and gave him a hug from behind.
He reached back and patted her shoulder before saying, “I found something interesting.”
Alex rubbed her eyes sleepily and walked to the chair, sitting adjacent to the desk and sat down. She looked at Garret, waiting to hear what he had to say.
“According to these papers, Harrison paid for Carol’s house.”
“That’s pretty much what Emily suggested.”
“It appears he was sending Carol monthly payments. It looks like he was supporting her.”
“You think she was his mistress?”
“I know Emily suggested there was a sexual relationship, and I don’t want to sound cruel, but I can’t see my brother going for a woman who looked like Carol. Hell, if Shelly gained so much as a couple pounds, he was on her case.”
“Shelly is a rail. When has she ever gained any weight?”
“Exactly.” Garret gathered up the papers on his desk and put them into a neat pile.
“You know, Carol wasn’t always heavy. Kimmy showed me some pictures of her mother when Kimmy was a baby.”
“It isn’t just weight. My brother always went for a certain type of woman. Kind of like Emily and Shelly. Perfect hair, impeccable grooming, attractively dressed. He wasn’t attracted to the cute girl in sweat pants.”
“Humm. Well, your brother leered at me more than one time when I was wearing tattered jeans,” Alex grumbled.
“Yes, but Harrison knew you cleaned up well.”
“I tell you what, those pictures I saw of Carol, she didn’t look anything like the Carol we knew. She had a cute haircut, nice clothes. Actually, she looked exactly like Kimmy. I was shocked. I never noticed the resemblance before, except for the eyes.”
“Interesting. What year was Kimmy born?”
“I think she was born in 1978, the same as Adam. If I remember correctly, her birthday was in November.”
“Well, according to these documents, the house was purchased several months before Kim was born. It looks like Carol received regular monthly payments, beginning the month Kim was born and ending about ten months later. It’s possible there were other payments after those, but I can’t find anything.”
“Oh my God! Do you think Kim’s Harrison’s daughter?” Alex asked, dumbfounded.
“Actually, I was wondering that myself. The timeframe has Carol working for Harrison about ten months before Kim was born. According to what I’ve found, she didn’t work very long for the charity. Didn’t Kimmy say her father divorced her mother when she was pregnant with her?”
“Yes. It would explain a lot, including why he never had anything to do with her over the years.” Alex pondered the possibility for a moment and then asked, “Wasn’t Harrison married to Shelly back then?”
“Yes, he was. I always knew my brother screwed around on Shelly, yet I never imagined he had a lovechild stashed somewhere.”
“What about Emily?”
“What about her?”
“Well, what about their relationship?”
“According to Emily, they didn’t have a relationship,” Garret reminded her.
“Exactly. But what does this all mean?”
“I’m not sure. But I really don’t know how this all helps Adam.”
“It gives Shelly a motive to murder Harrison and Carol,” Alex suggested.
“For an affair that happened over thirty years ago?” Garret wondered if Alex was grasping at straws.
“Well, consider this,” Alex began to speculate. “It could explain how Angela got her hands on Harrison’s gun.”
“You have a valid point. Sarah said she saw Angela going into Shelly’s room on Thanksgiving. But what is the motive?”
“She might have to split her inheritance with Kim. Even though she doesn’t get your father’s house, his estate is considerable.”
“Hmmm. It would avoid us having to inherit that beast.” Garret chuckled, finding a perverse silver lining.
“Oh, that’s right. If Kim is Harrison’s daughter, that means she’ll eventually inherit the house.”
“It also means Kim is my niece.” Garret considered the possibility. “You know, I like her. I never got to know her when she was dating Adam, but there is something special about her.”
“You’re right. If she’s Harrison’s child, she is a Coulson, not a Myers. I wonder how she will feel about that? I always thought she was a sweet girl. What do we do now?”
“I think we figure out some way to put a little pressure on Angela. We need to figure out where she really got that gun,” Garret suggested.
“What if she is the one who killed Harrison? After all, she had something to gain with his death, especially if she thought she was marrying Adam.” Alex paused a moment and then said, “Garret, in my heart I know Adam didn’t do this awful thing. But I understand I’m his mother and sometimes mothers can’t see their children clearly. What do you honestly feel?”
Garret thought a moment before answering. “I’ve lived long enough to know anything
is possible. We may think we know someone and discover they aren’t who we believed they were. Yes, there is a very remote possibility Adam is guilty, but my gut feeling is that he’s innocent. For one thing, I don’t think the motive was there.”
“What do you mean?”
“Maybe I should have discussed this with you a few years ago, and if I had, Adam wouldn’t be in this mess. But, I often wondered if we didn’t do Adam any favors by giving him the restaurant.”
“Why, because it had some financial problems? Garret, considering the economy, I don’t really see how that was Adam’s fault.”
“No, that’s not what I mean. I don’t really think the restaurant was Adam’s passion. It wasn’t yours. It was Ryan’s.”
“I always told Adam it was his choice.”
“I understand that. And in the beginning, I think Adam wanted to keep his father’s restaurant in the family because it helped keep a part of Ryan alive. But you know as well as anyone that running a restaurant is hard work. It never ends. If it weren’t for Steve, Adam would never be able to take time off. Frankly, I have a feeling a part of Adam would have been relieved if Harrison had carried out his plans. Remember, Adam still owned forty-nine percent of the business and would have walked away with a considerable amount of money. Enough to retire on.”
Chapter 22
Emily Mitchell sat at her desk reviewing the property profile on Carol Myers’ house. A few minutes earlier, she had gotten off the phone with Kim Myers, who informed Emily she planned to hold off on listing her mother’s property. Other than casually asking if there were any liens against the house, Kim didn’t seem overly interested in looking at the report.
Emily slammed the report on her desk, regretting the day Kim Myers had walked into her office. Had she never met Kim, Emily would never have made that foolish phone call. Someday, Emily told herself, she would learn to think before opening her big mouth. That is how she had lost her job with Coulson Enterprises. She’d made good money and had great benefits, but she’d thrown it all away because she impulsively told a bar full of strangers about Garret and Alexandra’s affair. To make matters worse, Alexandra owned the bar and her son had witnessed the outburst. At least that time Emily had an excuse for her rash comments: she was drunk.
Emily had not been drunk when she’d made the phone call, taunting the very same person who might be responsible for two murders. Everything she had said was true—sixteen years ago and this week. Yet, that didn’t make her feel any better. She wasn’t sure just going to Garret would help her. Perhaps she needed to make another phone call and let the person know that if something happened to her, people would know where to look.
She picked up her phone and dialed the number. There was no answer. Disgusted, she stood up from her desk and headed for the door. Grabbing her purse and jacket from the coat rack, Emily decided to go get some breakfast. She’d try the call again later.
Slipping on her jacket, Emily exited her office and locked the door behind her. Tucking her hands in the jacket pockets, attempting to keep warm, she failed to notice someone watching her from across the street in a parked car.
Making her way through the narrow breezeway between her suite of offices and the next building, she walked to the rear parking lot. Although the parking lot was almost filled to capacity, there was no one walking around. Closer to lunchtime or around five, the area would be bustling with people. Emily didn’t pay any attention to the car that pulled into the parking lot from the direction of the side street that ran perpendicular to the street running in front of her office.
She didn’t pay particular attention to the slight rev of the car engine coming from that same vehicle, which was now behind her. When she heard it again, she turned around and froze momentarily, unable to react as the car’s driver unexpectedly pressed the accelerator, sending the vehicle toward Emily at full speed. The sound of Emily’s body hitting the front bumper sickened the driver of the vehicle. For a moment, the driver regretted what had to be done.
Emily sprawled on the asphalt, half of her skull smashed beyond recognition. It wasn’t necessary to get out of the car and check Emily. She was obviously dead. It wasn’t the force of the vehicle that killed her but the crushing blow to her head, which occurred after the car propelled Emily into a concrete pillar at just the precise angle to do maximum damage. The car sped from the parking lot. The first stop would be a carwash.
Ashton Kelly, an insurance agent from the next building, was just leaving his office to meet with a client when he heard a woman scream and then the sound of a car tearing out of the parking lot. Instead of going to the street running along the front of the building, as he originally intended, he changed directions and hurried to the rear parking lot.
The sight that awaited him was horrific. Emily’s crushed skull lay in a pool of blood and her eyes, wide open, eerily stared up into his face. Instead of checking her pulse, Ashton pulled the cell phone from his rear pocket and dialed for the police.
Chapter 23
“Adam, did you kill my boy?” Harrison Coulson asked Adam Keller a few seconds after the young man stepped into Harrison’s library with Garret and Alexandra. The question startled Adam, but before he could answer, Garret spoke.
“Dad, you already told me you didn’t think he killed Harrison.”
“I just want to hear him tell me,” Harrison explained, his eyes shrewdly fixed on Adam, who shifted nervously in the man’s presence. Alex tensed and reached out to take hold of Adam’s hand but said nothing. Adam gently pushed his mother’s hand away and faced Harrison.
“That’s okay, Garret. It’s a reasonable question. No, sir, I did not kill your son. I have no idea who murdered Harrison and Carol.”
Harrison just stared at Adam for a moment, showing no reaction and then nodded and gave a brief smile. “Do you know where Angela got that gun?” Harrison asked.
“No, sir. I’ve been asking myself that same question.”
“Have you asked her?” Harrison continued to quiz.
“No, sir. I was told I couldn’t contact her.”
“Well, that is bullshit,” Harrison grumbled. “They sure as hell didn’t say I couldn’t ask her!” He then turned angrily to Garret. “Get that girl over here. I want to talk to her.”
“In time, Dad,” Garret began. “But I have some things I need to ask you. But first, where is Shelly?”
“She went out an hour ago,” Harrison told him.
“Did she call the movers? What is going on with all that?” Garret asked.
Alex and Adam moved to the other side of the room and quietly sat down on the leather couch, listening to Garret and Harrison.
“I told her she needs to be out by this weekend. I’m sure some people might think I’m being unreasonable, considering Harrison hasn’t even been gone a month. But at my age, I don’t think it’s necessary I live with a woman I cannot stomach. Hell, she isn’t my wife. Anyway, Harrison left her well enough off. It isn’t like she is going to be living on the streets.”
“Dad, I need to talk to you about Harrison.” Garret then turned to Alexandra. He doubted his father would be completely candid in front of Alex and Adam. “Maybe you and Adam could let me speak to Dad alone?”
Alex nodded and got up from the couch with Adam. They left the room, closing the door behind them.
“So, why did you bring them along if you wanted to talk to me alone?” Harrison asked as he reached for a box on the table beside the wheelchair and removed a cigar.
“Dad, do you have to smoke that thing now?”
“When did you become such a pansy? Anyway, it’s my house,” Harrison grumbled. Yet, instead of lighting the cigar, he shoved it in his mouth and began chewing on one end.
Garret ignored the question about Adam and Alex and focused on what he needed to ask his father. “Dad, I’ve been going through Harrison’s papers, and I came across a few odd expenses. I was hoping you might be able to shed a little light on what they’re for.”
“Odd how?” Harrison narrowed his eyes and looked at his son.
“They seem to be some sort of payoff to women. Two women, in fact. But maybe there are more.”
“Well, didn’t I always tell you boys to take responsibility? You can’t expect Harrison to leave loose ends lying around. Hell, he didn’t have a son to take care of his mistresses when he was finished with them.”
Garret’s gaze locked with his father’s, and he chose not to respond to the snipe. Yet, they both understood Harrison’s comment. In Garret’s wild youth, before Alexandra came into his life, he’d had a brief marriage to one of his father’s ex-mistresses.
“I think it’s a little more complicated than compensating a mistress,” Garret snapped. He paced the library as his father sat stoically in the wheelchair watching him.
“What is the point of bringing it up now?” Harrison asked. Garret stopped pacing for a moment and faced his father.
“Because one of the women was Carol Myers,” Garret explained. Harrison didn’t seem particularly surprised by the information. He grabbed a lighter from the table and removed the cigar briefly from his mouth before biting off the wet tip and spitting it into the ashtray on the table. Harrison shoved the cigar back into his mouth, rolling it between his fingers as he lit its tip. He took several puffs before asking his question. “Who was the other woman?”
“Emily Mitchell.”
Harrison seemed surprised at that name. He frowned as if trying to remember something and took another puff of the cigar. “Isn’t she the broad who worked for both you and Russell? Brunette with nice legs? Russell canned her ass?”
“Yes. She’s a real estate agent now and has her own brokerage. Apparently, Harrison set her up in business, even purchased the commercial property for her. She owns everything, free and clear.”
“Humm.” Harrison took another puff. “Hope she was worth it. That boy was never good with money.”
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