“This whole thing already looks suspicious. Who the hell breaks into someone’s place and takes only scarves and handkerchiefs?”
“Someone who doesn’t want a person to realize she’s been robbed,” I said quietly.
“Zee, you’re right on target,” Rock said. “Did you write down blue monogrammed scarf?”
I nodded. “Lacey, can you describe the other scarf that’s missing?”
“I can, only because it’s so ugly I’ll never forget it. It was a gift from one of the senior partners, Blaine Foster. It was brown and olive green paisley. Kind of the color of baby puke.”
I quickly made a note, leaving out the baby puke part. Then I sat, numbly, noting everything Lacey discovered was missing. All items that wouldn’t be missed, but enough to know she hadn’t just misplaced them. Especially things she never used, like scarves and hankies. A few pairs of costume earrings.
“Makes sense,” Rock said. “If they took a piece of expensive jewelry, you’d notice it was gone. And you have a ton of earrings, Lace.”
“This is going to take all night,” Lacey said. “I have to go through everything. Zee should go.”
Rock nodded and took the notepad from me. “Thank you for your help. I’m sorry we didn’t just take you to Reid’s, but I didn’t want to delay getting here any longer than we had to. Now we’re here. I’ll tell my driver to take you to Reid’s. Can you get in?”
“I…don’t know.”
“I have Reid’s key. I’ll take you up,” Rock said. “Will you be okay here for a half hour or so, Lace?”
“I’ll be fine, but get right back, will you? Please? The fact that someone was here has me freaked.”
“I will, baby. Let’s go, Zee.”
I stood. “Where is Reid? Moira said he wasn’t answering his cell phone.”
“I don’t know,” Rock said. “He usually responds. Must be in an important meeting. Come on.”
44
Reid
“Irene Lucent?” My mother’s eyes popped wide. “I’m your father’s first wife.”
“You sure about that?”
“Of course I’m sure. Don’t you think I’d know if my husband had been married?”
Her tone sounded almost sincere, but I was so used to her lies I didn’t believe her for a second.
“Nice try, Connie. Maybe if you weren’t such a pathological liar, I might give you some credence.”
“Look, Reid. I have no idea who this Irene is. Your father and I were young when we married. He couldn’t possibly have been married to someone else.”
“I have a marriage certificate that says otherwise,” I said.
“Then it’s a forgery.”
“Could be.”
“It is. Where did you find it?”
“None of your business.”
“Of course it’s my business. What if it’s real? That means…” Her face went white.
“Right you are, Mom. It means your marriage to Dad was never legal, and the four of us are bastards.”
Oh, she wanted to reply to that with some smartass comment. So apparent in her eyes. But I’d give her credit. She let it pass.
“Even if it is legal, he obviously divorced her.”
“Did he?”
She stood. “This is completely ridiculous. I’m done here.”
“Sit, Mother.”
To my surprise, she sat.
“Don’t you think it’s odd,” I said, “that all four of your children are implicated in Dad’s murder but you, his ex-wife, are not?”
“I don’t find it odd at all,” she said. “I didn’t kill him.”
“Neither did I, and neither did Rock, Roy, or Riley.”
“Talk to Rock,” she said with a sly smile.
“We have. He told us everything, Mom. How he caught Dad in Riley’s room and tried to off him with a kitchen knife. How the two of you sent him away to Buffington Military School and how he had to keep from being molested himself.”
Mom kept her face rigid. Good. This got to her.
“Rock has an alibi. I figured it out. You conned him into continuing to pay you off by saying you’d go to the cops with your story of his youth. Too late. We’ve already been to the cops. They know everything, and so much has gone on in such a short time that Rock hasn’t even thought about rescinding his payments to you.”
“You’d see your mother starve?”
“Of course not. But I don’t think my mother needs to be paying for cunnilingus, either.”
“I didn’t pay—”
“Please.” I rolled my eyes. “Let’s not go there again.”
She harrumphed.
“Now, I want the truth. Tell me about Irene Lucent.”
“Reid, I honestly don’t know anything about her.”
“How about if I make it worth your while. A couple hundred mill in the bank, and you can go live happily on some Greek isle with as many whore masseurs as you want.”
She bit her lower lip. She wanted to take the offer. Would she make up a story to do it? Or would she stick to her guns, in which case she probably didn’t know anything about the first marriage.
“All right, all right,” she said, finally. “I want it in writing.”
“The money? My word is good, Mom.”
“Fine.” She huffed. “Irene Lucent was your father’s first wife.”
“Nice try.” I couldn’t help a bristling laugh. “You really didn’t know.”
“I—”
“Save it. The Connie Wolfe I know would never have married a budding billionaire knowing another woman was out there who could get a hand on his fortune. I gave you an offer you couldn’t refuse, and you took the bait. Now I know the truth. You actually weren’t lying when you told me you didn’t know anything about Dad’s first marriage.”
She shook her head. “You are definitely your father’s son, Reid.”
“Don’t insult me, Mom.”
“That’s not an insult. He always saw right through me, and so do you. I give up.”
“No, you don’t.”
“Okay, I don’t. But please. I did give birth to all of you. I don’t deserve to live like a peasant.”
“You won’t. But we need your help, Mom. If you ever cared even the tiniest bit about your children, please find it in your heart to help us.”
“I’ve always loved all of you. I did the best I could.”
I regarded my mother. For the first time, a look of pure defeat swept over her face. Did she love us? Maybe she did, in her own warped way. Maybe she had been molested as a child. I didn’t know, and she’d given up any chance of sympathy from me long ago.
“Then help us, Mom,” I said. “Help us find out who killed Dad.”
“All right, Reid. I’ll help you.”
I nodded and grabbed my phone out of my pocket. I’d missed several calls and texts because my phone was on silent. I didn’t silence it. I must have done it by mistake. Calls from the office and from Rock. Texts from Moira, Rock, and Zee.