“Yes,” she said, not sure where this was going.
“The thieves disabled their alarm system and disconnected their cameras.”
“Yeah.”
“Remember when I had a backup system installed with hidden cameras, in case someone disabled the obvious ones?”
“I think so.” She vaguely remembered Liam talking about that, but she didn’t know or care that much about gadgets, so it went in one ear and out the other.
His eyes met hers. “I did not sleep with Jenna. I was drugged.”
She didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. Did he really think she was that gullible?
“You don’t believe me?”
She thrust out her chin, her eyes blazing. “No, I don’t.”
“Then allow me to show you.” He held out his phone.
She frowned. “What’s this?”
“A video taken with the backup cameras.”
Reluctantly, Maurie took the phone. The video showed Liam on the back patio, talking on the phone. Then he walked into the yard, away from the camera.
“Rebel disappeared again. I found her at the golf course. Look carefully at what happens next.”
Several minutes passed, showing only the vacant chair where Liam had been sitting. Then she saw movement. Maurie gasped as her mind registered what she was seeing. “Oh, my gosh! That’s Cooper. What’s he doing?”
“Watch the tumbler.”
“He’s putting something in your drink.”
“This is taking place while I was out searching for Rebel.” His eyes flashed with indignation. “I can only presume Cooper took her again, so I would go looking for her.”
They watched as Liam returned, placed Rebel inside, and then sat down. He took several long drinks from the tall glass.
“A green smoothie,” Liam explained, a sour expression forming over his face. “I made it because I was feeling a little puny this morning after last night’s events. Ironic, isn’t it?”
They watched as he took another phone call.
“My mom. I talked to her for a while.” He forwarded the video to the part where he stood and then fell. Cooper and Jenna came onto the scene. They were talking, and then Cooper dragged Liam inside. A few minutes later, Cooper returned and picked up Liam’s phone. “I presume this is when Cooper sent you the text, asking you to come over.” The video ended. “That’s the footage from the camera on the back patio.” He reached for his phone and touched the screen to pull up another video. “Here’s the one from the bedroom.”
Maurie watched in horror as Cooper and Jenna undressed Liam and placed him in the bed. Then Cooper reached into his pocket, pulled out a wad of cash, and handed it to Jenna. Maurie’s hand went to her mouth. “Oh, my gosh! I’m so sorry I doubted you.” She closed her eyes for a moment, trying to come to terms with the truth. Then she threw her arms around Liam’s neck, giving him a tight hug. “Can you ever forgive me?”
He chuckled. “That almost makes this whole sordid mess worth it. And yes, love, I forgive you.” His voice grew sober. “There’s something else I need to tell you. I called Benny Kai, the private investigator. Do you remember the man I told you about? The one Cooper was talking to at the gallery?”
“Yes.”
“His name was Clarence Dew. He was killed. Shot and left in an alley in Honolulu.”
She gasped. “Do you think Cooper did it?”
“Benny doesn’t know. Clarence was involved in a lot of crooked deals.” He stroked his chin. “We really need to think this thing through. Has Cooper tried to contact you?”
She grunted. “About a dozen times.”
“Okay, when he does, maybe you should take his call.”
Liam might as well have asked her to prostrate herself in front of a moving bus. “Have you lost your mind? I can’t talk to him. Not after knowing what he’s done.”
He caught hold of her arms. “It’s in our best interest for him to think his ploy with Jenna worked. If he thinks I’m still in the picture, then he might come after me.”
“Okay, I see your point,” she said, apprehension clawing at her stomach. How could she have been so blind where Cooper was concerned? All she could see was his status. His looks. His charm. She shuddered to think what would’ve happened if she’d actually married him.
“You’ll act distraught, and he’ll assume you need time to heal. That’ll buy us a little time.”
“Time for what?”
“I’m expecting a call from Benny. He was going to try and get a photo of Mitchell Grant to see if he’s Cooper. We can take that to the police.”
“We can also show them the video footage from your security cameras.”
“Yes, we can.” He paused. “You know what—I’m not going to wait for Benny to call me back. I’m calling him.” A minute later, he put down his phone. “I can’t get him to answer his cell, and no one is picking up at the office. Hopefully, I’ll hear from him later on tonight or first thing in the morning.”
“What do we do in the meantime?”
“Go ahead and call Kalia at the police department. Tell her the situation and get her advice.”
Maurie nodded. “Good idea.” She stood and grabbed her phone off the kitchen table. It buzzed. Panic burned through her like fire through dry grass. “It’s Cooper.” Her first inclination was to ignore the call again, but she couldn’t run from him forever, and it was better to answer it when Liam was here for moral support. Liam rushed to her side.
“Remember. You’re distraught.”
She put the phone on speaker. “Hello.”
“Maurie.” Cooper let out a whoosh of relief. “Finally, I’ve been trying to reach you all day.”
“Yeah, sorry. It’s been a crazy day.”
“Is everything okay?”
The concern in Cooper’s voice was sickening. “N-no, not really.” She didn’t have to fake the shakiness in her voice.
“What happened?”
“It’s Liam.” She let her voice dribble off to silence.
“What did he do?”
She sighed heavily. “I’m not up to talking about it right now.”
“Did he hurt you?”
The outrage in Cooper’s voice was both startling and chilling. He sounded so genuine. Anger twitched through Maurie. She looked at Liam, his jaw as hard as glass. “Yes, he hurt me.”
“I’m coming over there.”
Her eyes went wide. “No! I mean, that’s very sweet of you to offer, but I really need some time alone to sort this out.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes.”
“Let’s get together tomorrow for lunch.”
She looked to Liam for help, and he shook his head no. “I would love that, but unfortunately, I can’t tomorrow. Maybe we can plan something for the end of the week.”
Long pause. “Even if we don’t get together for lunch, I need you to drop off four giclees at the gallery tomorrow.”
“Which ones?”
“Two of the Haliewa Sunset and two of the Waimea Valley.”
“Why?”
“The gallery in Singapore is requesting them.”
“I thought they didn’t want to carry those two particular paintings.”
“They reconsidered.”
She tried to think. “Okay, I’ll call the warehouse first thing in the morning and have one of the workers drop them by.”
There was a long pause. “Is something going on here?”
Her mouth went drier than cotton. “What do you mean?”
“If I didn’t know better, I’d think you’re avoiding me.”
She grappled for something to say, trying to keep the fear out of her voice. “No, I just assumed it would be easier to have someone from the warehouse drop them off. That way, you’ll get them earlier in the day. I wouldn’t be able to get by there until late afternoon.”
“I don’t mind waiting for you, Maurie.”
The promise in his voice sent a chill running down her sp
ine.
“I think I will come on over. It sounds like we need to talk.”
“No, that’s not necessary. Like I told you earlier, it’s been a brutal day. I’m going to bed in a few minutes. I’ll bring the paintings over tomorrow afternoon.”
“Good, come right before the gallery closes, and we’ll grab some dinner afterwards.”
“Okay.” She’d have to think of a way to finagle out of dinner. But with any luck, she and Liam would hear back from the private investigator before then. And she was going to call Kalia in the next few minutes.
“I’ll see you tomorrow. I love you.”
She had to force the words out of her mouth. “I love you too.” She winced at the dark look on Liam’s face. “Bye.” Quickly, she ended the call. She closed her eyes, willing her breathing to return to normal.
Liam put his arms around her. “There’s no way I’m letting you go there alone. I’m going with you.”
Even though she knew it probably wasn’t wise for Liam to go, she was grateful that he would be by her side.
He looked her in the eye. “It’s going to be okay.”
A hard pit formed in her stomach. “I hope you’re right.”
Chapter 14
Maurie’s heart was pounding like a jackhammer by the time she and Liam pulled into the parking lot of The Alani Gallery. Liam turned off the engine and looked at her. “You ready?”
She nodded, a resolute expression on her face. Tension had bricked up inside her to the point where she was starting to hurt all over. If only she could go back to the beginning and start over. The only reason she accepted Cooper’s proposal to begin with was because she was upset about Liam getting married. And now, here they were, both still single and trying to figure out how to tightrope-walk through this situation without plummeting headfirst into disaster. Just breathe, she told herself. All she had to do was get through this encounter with Cooper, and then everything would hopefully be all right from then on out. Tomorrow morning, Maurie and Liam had a meeting scheduled with Kalia and a Detective Ripley from the police department. It was Maurie’s hope that once they told the authorities everything they knew, then they could wash their hands of the whole thing. Her next step would be to sever all business ties with Cooper while still trying to maintain a good relationship with the galleries in Asia, but she would cross that bridge when she came to it.
Liam put a hand over hers. “It’ll be all right. We’ll simply drop off the paintings and go.”
The concern in his eyes was more comforting than words could express. She took in a deep breath. “Okay.” They removed the paintings from the back seat of Liam’s BMW, each of them carrying two.
When they stepped into the gallery, no one was there to greet them, which was unusual. Normally Bridget or Tammy worked the floor, keeping a close watch over customers so they could offer assistance and score sales.
“It looks like everyone has gone home for the day,” Liam said.
Had Cooper let everyone go early, so he could get her alone? The thought sent a shiver down Maurie’s spine, and she was more grateful than ever that Liam was here with her. “Let’s go back to Cooper’s office.”
Liam’s eyes met hers. “I don’t know, love, I’m getting a bad vibe about this. Maybe we should leave.”
“No, I’ll have to face Cooper sooner or later, and I’d rather get it over with now, with you by my side.”
He nodded in understanding.
As they made their way down the hall towards the office, they heard male voices. When they reached the door, it was slightly ajar. Maurie straightened her shoulders in an attempt to bolster her courage. Liam gave her a nod of encouragement. She knocked once before pushing it open. It took a moment before she processed what she was seeing. Then she gasped, the paintings slipping out of her hands and falling to the floor. Cooper was sitting in a chair, his face a solid bruise, one eye swollen shut. Blood was streaming from his nose. Two men were standing over him and one was holding a gun.
“Run,” Liam growled in her ear, but it was too late. The bearded man with the gun pointed it at her. His face lit with recognition and then he smiled. “Well, this is fortunate. We were just asking Cooper about his lovely fiancée, and here you are in the flesh. I see you’ve brought your artist friend with you. Liam, if I’m remembering correctly.”
“How do you know us?” Liam said.
“We’ll get to all of that, but first ... come in. NOW,” he yelled when she and Liam hesitated. “Put those paintings against the wall.”
They did as he ordered.
“Now back up and put your hands where I can see them.”
Maurie looked at Liam. The look of distress in his eyes mirrored her own fear, making her feel utterly helpless. Tremors vibrated through her body, and she had to lock her knees to keep them from buckling.
“Check the paintings,” the bearded man said, to his partner. The taller man nodded. He reached for the first painting and tore off the shrink-wrap.
“What’s he doing?” Maurie whispered.
Liam shook his head. “I’m not sure.”
“Shut up,” the bearded man hissed.
Liam flinched like he’d been slapped, and Maurie clamped her lips together tightly. They watched as the man pulled a knife from his pocket and used the tip to lift the edges of the canvas off the frame. Then he removed the canvas and checked all four edges. He did this to all of the paintings before turning to the bearded man. “There’s nothing here.”
Cooper laughed. “You’re wasting your time, Rico. You can rip this whole gallery apart, and you still won’t find it.”
Rico swore and then pressed the gun to Cooper’s temple. “Tell me where it is, or I’ll splatter your brains all over this fancy office. You’ve got five seconds, hotshot. Five … four …”
Maurie had to fight the urge to cry out. This couldn’t be happening! It was a nightmare. Eventually, she would wake up.
“Three … two …”
Cooper’s eyes met hers. “I’m so sorry I dragged you into this.” He offered a sad smile. “No matter what you hear about me, know that my love for you is real.” He cut his eyes at Rico, his voice growing hard. “Let Maurie go, and I’ll tell you where it is. Or better yet, I’ll take you there and show you.”
Rico removed the gun from Cooper’s head. A look of surprise came over him the instant before he belted out a grating laugh that seemed absurdly incongruent with the current situation. He looked at the tall man. “You hear that, Tommy? Silvers actually cares about someone else other than himself. That’s a first.”
“You kill me, and you’ll never find it,” Cooper said through gritted teeth.
Maurie noticed that Cooper was slowly inching his chair over to one side as he spoke.
Rico looked thoughtful. “I wonder if your fiancée realizes what kind of man you really are.” He turned to Maurie. “His real name is Christopher Silvers, or at least that’s the alias he went by when he did business with me. He hired me and my brother Joey, to steal a couple of paintings—a Rembrandt and a Vermeer.” Malice flashed in his eyes. “Then he killed Joey in cold blood and shot me, leaving me for dead. Six long months. That’s how long it took me to recover from the gunshot wound.”
“That’s not the way it happened, and you know it,” Cooper said, his voice eerily calm. “Now, let Maurie go, and we’ll end this.”
Rico ignored the comment and continued his narrative, keeping his eyes fixed on Maurie. “Silvers claimed he was a ghost. Said he would disappear, but I knew he would eventually try and sell the Rembrandt. You see, he had The Concert sold before we even stole it.” His eyes hardened. “And I suspect he was finalizing the deal and getting a big pay-out right about the time they laid Joey’s cold body in the ground.”
“Don’t listen to him, Maurie,” Cooper said, his eyes pleading with hers. “Rico’s a double-crossing snake. I hired him to do the job and tried to pay him the amount we agreed on, but he tried to keep the money and the paintings.
If I hadn’t shot Joey and Rico, they would’ve killed me.”
“Shut up!” Rico screamed. “Shut your mouth, or I’ll put a bullet in her head.”
Horror rushed through Maurie. Rico was coming unhinged, and everything was about to explode. Her phone was in her purse. Was there anyway to get to it and call 911? She saw Cooper lean over like he was trying to reach for something.
Rico took a deep breath and let it out slowly in an effort to regain control of his emotions. “Anyway, as I was saying, I knew all I had to do was wait until Silvers ran low on money and tried to sell the painting.” A contemptuous smile spread over his lips as he glanced at Cooper. “You really are so predictable.” He pointed the gun at Maurie. “Now tell me where the Rembrandt is, or the girl dies.” A wicked light came into his eyes. “Or better yet, let me show you a little preview of what’s to come, just so you know I’m serious.” His voice grew musing. “A shot in the shoulder perhaps?”
A paralyzing fear gripped Maurie. And then came the sickening realization that she was going to die. Time seemed to stand still as Rico fired. Liam let out a cry and jumped in front of her as a shield. His body jerked from the impact of the bullet, and then he crumpled to the ground. In the next instant, Cooper pulled a gun from his bottom desk drawer and fired. He hit Rico in the head, killing him instantly. The tall man pulled out a gun and shot Cooper in the chest. Before he went down, Cooper fired three more shots, riddling the tall man with bullets.
A sob wrenched Maurie’s throat as she dropped to her knees and cradled Liam in her arms. Blood was pooling at his shoulder. She touched it, trying to stay the bleeding. “Oh my gosh,” she kept repeating. “Stay with me! Please.” Liam was her everything. She couldn’t live without him.
She heard a groan and looked over to see Cooper. He was lying on his back, his head turned toward her. Blood oozed from his chest as he gasped for air. His eyes sought hers like a desperate leaf trying to cling to a branch amidst a raging storm. He stretched out his hand towards her. “I’m sorr … I lov … yo,” he gurgled, blood bubbling from his mouth. “See … you …” he coughed “… have it.” His eyes glazed over, his hand falling lifelessly to the floor.
Love on the Rocks (Hawaii Billionaire Romance) Page 11