Triple Diamonds (Mystic Nights #2)(51)

“I wish we could have had more time together.”

“I know your election is in a few weeks. Good luck, son. I know you will do fine.” The Senator placed a hand on Joseph’s shoulder giving it a gentle squeeze of support.

“Yeah, I’m feeling pretty good about it.” His tone didn’t match his words, and he saw the Senator and Tawny exchange a look of concern. He chose to ignore it. He had enough of those looks of sympathy for one day.

The senator spoke up. “I’m sorry to hear about these robberies. I’m sure you will figure this all out soon.”

He looked up meeting the senator’s eyes. “I think we will be able to get to the bottom of this fairly soon.” The two men they had hired seemed confident they would be able to figure this out quickly. The recent tapes had given them plenty to go on.

“Your mom filled me in,” he explained.

Tawny cleared her throat when she saw Joseph’s eyebrow shoot up in surprise. It wasn’t like his mother to share Mystic business with outsiders even though the man was a longtime friend. “None of the delegates were robbed, but I wanted to let the Senator know what was going on. Most of the bigger fish kept their jewels in the safe.”

That made sense. Tawny didn’t want any trouble with the attendees of the convention. Conventions brought in lots of new faces, and it was imperative that their travels were safe and worry free.

“Oh, yeah,” Joseph muttered distractedly. It would have been quite embarrassing if one of the delegates had been robbed. It probably would have made the papers too, and then brought in trouble from the state or gaming commission. The reservation PD would have had to turn it over to the Ledyard cops, and they would have put a couple of detectives on it now that the rash of robberies had been linked by the tapes.

“I’ll be here all day, Joseph, if you want to talk.” The Senator looked to Tawny who nodded her approval. “I’ll also probably stay the night. It will be a late one.”

“Thanks, Julian. Senator,” he replied shaking the men’s hand one more time. “I’ll call when I get back in, but I’m headed out for a bit now.”

“Okay, I’ll be here. It was good to see you again.”

“You too, Senator. I appreciate the help and advice on the campaign.”

“Anytime son, anytime,” replied the older man as he watched him leave.

And with that Joseph left to go pick up Jewel. To find out if she was a thief and had been lying to him all along.





Chapter 19




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When Joseph arrived at her trailer, he was glad to see her in a bright mood. He hid his worries not wanting to alert her that the noose was getting smaller around her neck. He still couldn’t fathom that she involved. Amidst the boxes ready for her move to the house on the reservation, she told him she had some other good news that she would share with him on the way to the diner. He nodded distractedly as he looked around for her brothers who were supposed to be helping her. They were nowhere to be seen.

“Where are Lesley, and Wesley?” He asked in confusion after greeting her with a kiss on the cheek.

“They filled the truck with the furnishings we are taking and headed over to the house. They are going to meet us at the diner in an hour.”

He nodded and helped her into the car.

“I’ve already got my car packed up so when we are through, I can be dropped off, we can fill yours, and then drive on over. I think maybe the boys will only have two more trips, one with the rest of the boxes, and one with the rest of the furniture. They did most of the heavy stuff, so it looks like you are off the hook for that,” she prattled as he pulled out into traffic.

He began to head to the diner, when she asked him to make small detour. “Turn left here.” She indicated River Road. It was just off the beaten path, and he knew of nothing on it other than a few old farm houses most of which were abandoned. Some of the property had just been purchased by a land developer and recently zoned for commercial use.

When they arrived at her destination, he was still confused. He had not the remotest idea of what she wanted to show him. But it was an old farm house that was up for sale. He examined the property, and figured the land developer was hoping people would buy up this property and the others for a bed and breakfast.

Joseph’s expression must have clued her in to his confusion because she quickly began to ramble. “I think this would be the perfect spot for a restaurant. I would get patrons from the reserve and the nearby town. Now that the land is zoned commercial, I’m sure some of these properties will be converted into shops, antique stores, maybe a bed and breakfast or two. The kitchen would need to be updated and industrialized, but the rooms on the ground floor would make for great seating. And the porch too in warmer months. Upstairs I would use for storage.”

When had this idea popped into her head? He thought her restaurant was still far off. “Your restaurant?” He chimed in. He knew that was her dream, but knew she didn’t have the capital to start something like that now. Or did she?

“Yes,” she continued breathlessly. “It’s been my dream forever. And the back windows have a great view of the river. When I saw the sign this morning, something just clicked. I think I’m going to make an offer.”

He tried to wrap his brain around that announcement. “That’s going to be expensive.” His words came out softly. He tried to mask the incredulity he was feeling.