Faithless in Death (In Death, #52)(30)

Mavis wiped at her eyes. “I’ve got a bottle of champagne, for everybody but me, Bella, and point-whatever.”

“Pop it, enjoy it. We’ll come back for another bottle once you exorcise the demon walls. So … congratulations all around. Sincerely.”

She got out before more tears flooded. Roarke took her hand, kissed it as they walked around to her car.

“Well done, Lieutenant. And when did you cop to the big reveal?”

“The minute we walked into that science lab of a kitchen. Attached rental space, Mavis and Leonardo beaming with Peabody mooning over tiara moldings.”

“Crown moldings.”

“Whatever.” She turned for a last look. “It really will work for all of them.” When they got into the car, she looked at him. “And when did you have the idea of Peabody and McNab as tenants?”

“As soon as Mavis and Leonardo fell in love with the place. But I didn’t suggest it, and they both came up with it immediately themselves. As you said, a perfect solution.”

She settled back, started to reach for her PPC. Stopped herself. “I’m sorry I had to break up the moment.”

“We all had the moment. Now they can bask in it together. But instead of doing whatever’s next on your cop list, why don’t you take this time to catch me up so I can help if need be.”

“I’ve already earmarked money stuff for you to look at.”

“And there we are. A perfect solution for us as well.”

It kind of was, she thought.

She spent the time he drove uptown catching him up on murder.





7


“I do know Merit Caine and his family a bit. I don’t know the Huffmans, but know of them.” Roarke considered as he wound through traffic. “I recall seeing the engagement announcement, and hearing a bit of this, a bit of that.”

“I’d like to hear the bits.”

“I’ll say it’s an open secret the Huffmans—the elder Huffmans—have an association with Natural Order, so some of the bits came from surprise Merit would align himself with that family.”

“Money often speaks to money.” She shrugged. “But my impression was he’s in love with her. So that trumps the parents. What do you know about the parents—the Huffmans?”

“They’re respected for their medical skills, from what I know, and, of course, for their wealth and position. But liked is a different matter. Where, again, from what I know, the Caines are both respected and liked well enough. Then again, from what I recall, the daughter’s quite beautiful.”

“Yeah, she’s got the looks. And she’s a manipulator, a bone-deep liar.”

He glanced over. “A murderer?”

“She’s involved, one way or the other.”

“In that case, I expect the Caines will take a big step back from her, and this.”

“Including the fiancé?”

Roarke braked at a light. “I have to go by my impression of him.”

“That’s good enough for me.”

On the green, he drove on. “If Merit was unaware she was having an affair—male or female doesn’t matter, it’s the affair at the bottom—he doesn’t strike me as the type to say bygones.”

“Don’t know why he would.”

“Added to it, she pulled him right into it, didn’t she, by calling him in as her legal rep, and lying to him.”

Eve shifted to face him. “So you agree she lied to him, spun the same story she spun, initially, to me.”

“Ah well, my impression again. No one knows, precisely, what goes on inside a relationship except those inside it, but my take is yes, she lied to him, has been lying to him. Using him, basically, as her beard. He wouldn’t take kindly.”

“Agreed. But there’s more.”

Roarke nodded along as she outlined the terms of the trust.

“Ah, well then, now you have it. She needs to marry to get the money, and with the Natural Order angle, she has to marry a man, a white male. Better yet if she conceives a child with him in wedlock. That sews it closed for her.”

“Right? She does that, she can walk away with everything she believes she’s entitled to. Caine would have served his purpose. I’d like you to look into the trust, make sure of the details—and what kind of money we’re talking about.”

“An entertaining way for me to spend the evening. Will you spend yours trying to suss out how the lovely lying Gwen managed to be in two places at once?”

“I’ve backed off from her doing the dirty work personally. But she admits tossing her ’link, buying a new one. She could have contacted someone who’d do it for her. Meet up, give said unknown subject the key card, then gone into her apartment.”

“The hard edges of the order believe they’re doing the righteous by harming or eliminating those who fall outside their lines.”

“So she’s …” Eve worked up a teary voice. “ ‘I thought she was my friend! Then she assaulted me, tried to … I can’t even say! When I refused her, when I fought her off, she said she’d tell Merit, tell everyone we’d been together. We’ve been intimate. Please help me. Please don’t let her do this.’ ”