Big Easy Temptation (The Perfect Gentlemen #3)(47)

She nodded. “I talked to him for probably ten minutes. I can definitely describe him. He had two other goons with him, but I didn’t see them as clearly.”

“He didn’t disguise himself? Didn’t wear sunglasses or a hat?”

“No.” She understood why that disturbed her uncle. The guy in the suit had behaved like a man who didn’t have anything to worry about, as if he was above anything she could do to him. She’d worked law enforcement long enough to know that was a possible scenario. There were places she couldn’t go, things that were classified. She wasn’t naive and she certainly understood that powerful people sometimes went to very long lengths to keep secrets hidden.

With a deep sigh, her uncle walked to the window on his left. His office had windows on three sides. He’d always told her he liked to be able to intimidate his men at all times. Now he slowly approached each window, closing the blinds and sealing them in.

“What haven’t you told me?” she blurted. Her uncle would never have closed those blinds unless he was about to say something he didn’t want other people to witness.

“As a result of my investigation, I found some pictures I didn’t release to the press. Pictures that came to me after Admiral Spencer killed himself.”

“Of what?”

“Images taken from a hidden camera on Amber Taylor’s purse.”

Holland blinked in shock, cold washing through her. “Why didn’t you tell me before?”

“Honey, because you’re in love with that man’s son and seeing those photos could hurt his family. From what I’ve been able to piece together, the entire thing was a blackmail scheme gone wrong.”

“You believe the Russian mob used Amber Taylor to blackmail Admiral Spencer?” Dax had never said a thing about a blackmail threat. “Why would the Russian mob give a shit about an admiral? I know the Spencer family has money, but surely they’ve got bigger fish to fry.”

“Maybe it wasn’t about the money. Maybe it was about his connections.”

“But who? The admiral had run with the same friends for years, so why now?”

Her uncle sat forward. “Because someone figured out his weakness and decided to exploit it shortly after the admiral made a brand-new connection, thanks to his son. A lot of ruthless people wouldn’t hesitate to use that relationship to their advantage.”

“What . . . Oh, god. Zack. I mean President Hayes. You think they were trying to use him to get to President Hayes?”

Beau sat back, shaking his head. “It’s still hard for me to believe you can legitimately call the president of the United States by his first name, but yes. The admiral died six weeks after the election. You can’t tell me the timing isn’t interesting?”

No, she couldn’t. Holland swallowed and sank into her seat.

“Those are some serious people you’re involved with, honey. And they come with serious enemies. In my opinion, someone connected to the Russian mob wanted dirt on Admiral Spencer. It would have come in handy later when he almost certainly would have been appointed to the Joint Chiefs of Staff.”

She closed her eyes, the gravity of the implications crushing her. The Joint Chiefs of Staff advised the president, senate, and congress on all matters military. They had enormous influence.

“But wouldn’t it have all come out when the White House vetted him? Surely they would have discovered his penchant for teenaged girls?”

“If these people are powerful enough to hold a man like Admiral Spencer in the palm of their hand, it stands to reason that they can coerce other powerful people to keep their secrets,” her uncle reasoned.

True. “So why kill him even before Zack’s inauguration?”

Her uncle approached and wrapped a hand around hers. “They had no reason to since he hadn’t had the opportunity to prove himself useful yet. I think they blackmailed him but didn’t have anything to do with his death. After all, they lost a big fish when the admiral’s aide turned him in. I also believe that’s why the Navy shipped Peter Morgan out and put him on a classified mission. They were protecting their informant.”

“I don’t have any record of that.” She shook her head at the statement. “Which naturally I wouldn’t because it’s classified.”

It connected a whole lot of dots. It explained why she couldn’t contact Admiral Spencer’s aide. The Russian mob’s role and motive was enough to make her gut churn, but it made sense.

“You saw the pictures?”

Her uncle closed his eyes briefly. “I did. I hoped you wouldn’t have to. Do you need to? I can have them retrieved. I kept them out of the public eye because there was no need to hurt the Spencer family further.”

“You’re sure Dax’s father killed himself?”

He nodded. “I can’t see another scenario, Holland. We never found a note, but I think the old boy couldn’t take it anymore. All that press. His whole life’s work thrown down the toilet. His wife filing for divorce.”

“What?”

“She hadn’t filed, but she had visited a divorce lawyer the day before he died. You can’t know the true measure of a man until he’s placed under pressure. I can’t say I wouldn’t do the same thing.”

“But Dax is so sure. I know the admiral loved his children.”