by Rebecca York
Jack answered with a tight nod, wondering what his father wanted to keep from him.
They followed the rest of the group into the elevator and got off on the second floor.
“Can I see the balcony door?” Jack asked.
His father shot him an annoyed look. “Why?”
“Curiosity.”
Without waiting for an answer, he strode down the hall to his dad’s office.
The doorway was blocked by yellow crime-scene tape, but he could peer in from the doorway. He looked at the rug and saw footprints. Apparently there had been dust on the balcony, and he’d tracked some in. Also the killer had been out there, then come back into the office. And Sara had also briefly come back inside. But the footprints were smudged, making it difficult to figure out whose they were.
Jack involuntarily looked down at his shoes and was relieved to see that he wasn’t wearing the same ones from last night. Instead, because he was going into the office, he’d put on his “dress” athletic shoes. A black pair.
“Any insights?” his father asked.
“Sorry, no.”
“Then stop wasting our time.”
When the elder Morgan turned and walked down the hall to the second-floor conference room, Jack followed, thinking that the old man was in a foul mood. But then he did have an excuse. His building had been broken into and he was being questioned by the police.
When Jack and his father arrived, Barbara Bateman was already seated, and Ted was standing behind one of the chairs.
Jack and his brother nodded at each other before sitting down.
Montgomery took the position at the head of the table.
“You have a surveillance system,” the detective said, “but it wasn’t functioning last night.”
“That appears to be the case,” Bill Morgan said.
“When did it go down?” the detective asked.
“Eleven-fifty,” Ted answered. “The same time as the security system was turned off.”
“Which leads us to the conclusion that whoever broke in had the door code and also the security-system code.”
“That sounds logical,” Ted said.
Jack wanted to object, but he couldn’t think of a better answer. And he was struck dumb when he saw Sara standing in the doorway.
* * *
WHEN SARA STEPPED into the conference room, she was surprised to see that the assembled group included Jack, Ted, their father, Barbara and a man she didn’t know.
“What’s going on?” she asked.
“Come in and sit down. I’m Detective Jordan Montgomery of the Howard County Police Department.”
“What’s happened?” she asked again. Was this about last night, or was there something else going on? From the detective’s grim expression, she decided it was something she didn’t want to hear. But what?
“There was a break-in at this building early this morning,” he said.
“But why is she here?” Bill Morgan asked, eyeing her suspiciously.
“We’ll get to that.”
She gave Jack a quick look, and he shrugged.
“Have a seat,” the detective repeated.
She took an empty chair next to Jack. Although she wanted to reach for him, she kept her hands in her lap.
“We’ve already established that whoever broke in last night turned off the security system and the surveillance cameras.”
She said nothing, waiting.
The detective kept his focus on her and Jack. “You were the victims of a robbery attempt a few nights ago.”
“Yes.”
“Then last night the Morgan Enterprises building was broken into by someone who knew the security system. Are the attempted robbery and the break-in a coincidence? Or are they somehow related?” Montgomery asked.
Sara shook her head. “I have no idea.”
Montgomery resumed speaking. “You identified the man who attempted to rob you as a felon named Tucker Swinton.”
“Yes,” Sara answered.
The detective paused for dramatic effect, then said, “Tucker Swinton was found dead this morning.”
Chapter Sixteen
Sara’s heart thumped hard as she stared at the detective. “Tucker Swinton. The man who tried to hold us up?”
“Exactly.”
“Where was he found?”
“At an old farm in the western end of the county. A real-estate agent was showing the property to a client and noticed an unpleasant smell.”
Sara nodded. She might have asked another question except that she was pretty sure that the less she said, the better.
The detective was speaking again. “So how are these three events related?” he asked, as he looked at her, then around the room.
Sara had a pretty good idea. Someone had paid the man to rob Jack and shoot him. He’d failed in carrying out the assignment, so the man or woman who had hired him had punished him with death. And kept him quiet in the bargain. Then the same person had followed her and Jack into Morgan Enterprises and tried to kill them.
For a split second, she thought about trying to explain the whole thing to Montgomery. But it would probably sound like a paranoid delusion. Not to mention alerting everybody else in the room that she knew about the plot against Jack. Which was a very bad idea, considering that one of them might be the would-be killer.
They’d thought it was a man last night, but Barbara was a big woman. It could have been her.
Sara pressed her lips together and waited for whatever else the detective was planning to say.
He fixed his gaze on Jack. “Were you in the building last night?” he asked.
“Of course not,” Jack answered.
After a beat he turned to Sara. “And were you in the building?”
“No.”
“And you had no idea that Tucker Swinton’s body was at a farm in the western district of the county?”
“Of course not.”
“We’ll keep investigating the break-in and the murder,” Montgomery said.
“Are we dismissed?” Ted asked.
“I’d like to have a word with each of you,” the detective answered.
Jack and Sara waited in the conference room with Ted and Barbara while Montgomery took the elder Morgan to one of the offices.
Sara sat with her hands clasped in her lap under the table, when she wanted to reach for Jack again.
He turned to his brother. “Is the security system back on?”
“Yes.”
“A bit like locking the barn door after the horse has left.”
“Unfortunately,” Ted replied in a dry voice. He looked from Jack to Sara and back again. “Do you have any information you’re not sharing about last night?”
“No,” Jack snapped.
“Or about that dead guy?”
“No. Do you?” Jack retorted.
“No.”
The two brothers stared at each other, until Ted turned his gaze on Sara. “What about you?”
“What about me?”
“Do you have any inside information?”
“Like what?”
“You tell me.”
“I don’t know any more than anybody else.”
“Where were you last night?” Ted asked.
“She was with me,” Jack said.
“All night?”
“That’s none of your business,” Jack snapped.
Ted looked from his brother to her and back to Jack again. “Maybe under ordinary circumstances.”
“Drop it,” Jack warned.
Sara’s gaze flicked to Barbara, who was still in the room and was watching the action with a look of quiet satisfaction. What was she getting out of this, exactly?
“You brought her in on this,” Ted said, obviously referring to Sara.
“What do you mean by this?”
“She’s not part of the company. She shouldn’t even be here.”
“The cops brought her here, not me, but she’s an innocent bystander wh
o got sucked into something…unsavory.” He was still addressing his brother, but Sara thought he was also talking to her, telling her to stick with their story. “She happened to be at the wrong place at the wrong time when that guy tried to rob me. She doesn’t know anything about his murder. And she wasn’t here last night.”
Ted stood up and walked to the glass wall of the conference room, looking out at the guest reception area for the executive offices.
Sara watched the tension building between the two brothers. If it reached flash point, what exactly would happen?
When she put her hand on Jack’s arm, he whirled toward her.
“Let’s stay calm,” she said in a low voice.
After a long moment, Jack nodded.
She wished she could send him a telepathic message. Or have a conversation with him where no one else would hear. But private communications would have to wait until they got out of here.
All she could say was, “We just have to tell Montgomery the truth, and we’ll be okay. Like we already told him, we weren’t here last night and we don’t know about any murders.”
“Yeah.”
They stared at each other for a long moment. Before anybody else could speak, one of the uniformed officers came back and motioned to Sara. “Detective Montgomery is ready for you,” he said.
With her pulse pounding, Sara stood and followed the cop to an empty office.
“Sit down,” Montgomery said.
She sat, leaning back in one of the guest chairs and trying to look like she had nothing to hide.
“Let’s go through last night in your own words.”
“Jack Morgan came over for dinner. I cooked him chicken cacciatore. He helped me clean up and put the food away. Then we went back to his house for the rest of the evening.”
“Why did you leave your place?”
She had been thinking about a good answer. “I have a warehouse where I store the furniture and props I use for my business. Which is staging houses for sale.”
“Staging?”
“Making the interiors look attractive. To save money, I live in a small apartment at the back of the warehouse. It’s not all that comfortable. We decided to go back to Jack’s house.”
“Whose idea was that?”
“I’m not sure.”
“You don’t remember who made the suggestion?”
“Is that relevant?”
“It could be.” He kept his gaze on her. “And you spent the night with Mr. Morgan.”
“That really isn’t any of your business.”
“You were there all night?”
“Yes.”
“So you each provide the other with an alibi.”
“If you want to put it that way.”
“How would you put it?”
“That we were enjoying each other’s company and we had no idea that…this situation was going to hit the fan in the morning.”
“What situation?”
She swallowed. “The break-in here. The murder of that guy.”
“And today is the first you heard about Tucker Swinton’s murder?”
“Yes.”
“And you have no idea how any of these events might be connected?”
“That’s right.”
“I must ask you to remain in the area.”
“Why?”
“We might have further questions.”
“Do I need a lawyer?”
“That’s up to you.”
When the interview was over, Sara stood, stiffened her legs to keep them steady and went back to the conference room, where she told Jack the detective was ready for him.
“How was it?” he asked.
She lifted one shoulder. “Okay.”
“Wait for me. I’ll come to get you when I’m finished.”
She wanted to pull him into her arms and cling to him, but all she could do was give him a little smile.
Ted’s cell phone rang, and he looked at the screen.
“I’ll be right outside,” he said, his expression carefully neutral as he headed for the door.
“You’re sure that’s all right?” Barbara Bateman asked.
“I’m not going far,” he answered before leaving the room.
Through the glass wall, Sara could see him talking to someone.
She and Barbara stared at each other.
Last time around, Sara had been very polite to everyone. Now she was getting to the point where she felt like she had nothing to lose. Raising her chin, she said to Barbara, “Why do you dislike me?”
“I don’t.”
“Oh, come on. Do you really expect me to believe that?” When Barbara didn’t answer, Sara continued, “Did I do something to threaten you?”
“No.”
“Do you know anything about the break-in last night?”
“Of course not. How could you ask me anything like that? What are you—working with the police?”
“No. Should I be?”
Barbara scowled at her. “I’d prefer not to discuss anything with you.”
“Clearly.”
“You’re the one who’s acting hateful,” Barbara said.
“Your interpretation. Just tell me what you think I did, and I’ll try to correct the behavior. Or maybe you could tell me why you called Bill Morgan when Jack brought me to the other offices.”
“I didn’t.”
“Of course you did.”
Without answering, Barbara angled her chair away. Sara turned toward the glass wall. To her relief, she saw Jack coming back. He’d been gone less time than she. Because Montgomery suspected her of something—but not Jack? Or because he hadn’t gotten anything different out of him?
She stood and met him in the hallway.
“Come on, let’s go,” he said.
They headed for the elevator.
Sara was bursting to speak to him, but it wasn’t safe to talk here. Or in the parking lot, either.
Jack must have known that, too, because he didn’t say anything when they left the building. Not until they got into the car and closed the door did he let out a sigh.
“What did you tell Montgomery?” Sara asked.
“The same thing you did, I hope.”
“That we weren’t here last night. And we had dinner at my place, then spent the night at your house?”
“Yeah.”
“He asked whose idea it was to go to your house.”
“What did you say?”
“That I didn’t remember.”
“Good. I said it was mine.”
“And neither one of us knows anything about that guy turning up dead.”
“Yeah,” he answered again. His motions were jerky as he drove away from the Morgan Enterprises building.
“Where are we going?”
“To your place. So you can pick up your car.”
“I guess you didn’t get a chance to ask your father why you were locked out of the computers.”
“Actually, I did. He said it must have been a mistake.”
“You think that’s true?”
He shrugged.
“And why did he call MacDonald?”
“He wouldn’t tell me.”
They were both silent for several moments.
“It’s kind of strange that I can’t get into the computers, but I could deactivate the security system,” Jack finally said.
“It’s lucky for us you could.”
He pulled onto a side street.
“This isn’t the way to the warehouse.”
“I know.” He eased to the shoulder, cut the engine and reached for Sara across the console. She came into his arms with a little sob, hugging him with all her strength.
“I’m sorry,” she breathed.
“About what?”
“It was my idea to go over to Morgan Enterprises. I wasn’t thinking about the consequences.”
“I guess you didn’t know the cops were going to find a dead body.”
As she raised h
er head, he lowered his, and their lips met in a kiss that was equal parts relief and passion.
When he finally broke the kiss, she said, “I guess Montgomery thinks we were at the building last night.”
“But he can’t prove it. Good idea that you thought to bring gloves.”
“Yes.” She dragged in a breath and let it out. “And he’s wondering if we killed that robber.”
“Why would we?”
“What if we set up the robbery, then killed him to hide the truth—if he was caught.”
He shook his head. “That’s pretty devious.”
“I’m trying to come up with explanations. Unfortunately, we don’t know any more than we did.” She stopped and gripped his arm. “One thing I’m wondering about. Does Barbara have some reason to hate me?”
“Like what?”
“I don’t know. She’s always cold with me.”
He waited a beat before saying, “I guess she can turn that off and on. She was supernice to me when I came back from the Naval Medical Center. I think she was hoping that we could get something going, but I just wasn’t attracted to her.”
“That’s a reason, all right. She wanted you, and you rejected her. But now I’m in the picture.”
He hugged her more tightly.
“What are we going to do?”
“Act normal and try to figure out who was trying to shoot us last night.”
She laughed. “That would be easier if I knew what normal was anymore.”
He held her close for a few moments longer, then said, “We can’t stay here.”
He started the car again and drove to the warehouse. With everything that had happened, she was almost surprised that it was still standing when they pulled up at the loading dock.
“You should get some more clothes and come back to my house.”
The conviction in his voice made her heart swell. He hadn’t said he loved her, but he cared about her, and he wanted to protect her.
“Well, you said to act normal. I’d better check my voice mail and my email.”
“You can do that from my house.”
“Yes. But if anything needs attention, I have access to my stuff here.”
She turned away, wishing she could figure out what was going on, but there was little chance of coming up with any easy answers. Things had gone so off the tracks that she had no idea what to expect next. She’d come back determined to save Jack. Now she didn’t even know if she could save herself.