Thirty-Six and a Half Motives
Page 83
He shook his head. “Kate told you that? I find that hard to believe.”
“She didn’t share it willingly,” I confessed. “There may have been some bargaining involved. Did you know about him?”
“No.”
“Really?”
“Rose,” he sighed. “When you and I were together, I told you that Kate and I were never close. Our relationship was turbulent at best. But she’d been making an effort before she took off a couple of years ago. She hinted that she was seeing someone, and she seemed . . . happy.”
“And then she disappeared?”
“Yeah, which is why I was especially worried. She’d been happier than I’d seen her since she was a kid.”
“Joe, I asked her what happened to Nick, and she said your father didn’t approve of him. She says he tried to pay him off with hundreds of thousands of dollars, but her boyfriend turned him down. So your father had him eliminated.”
His face paled as he sat up. “Oh, God. Why didn’t she tell me?”
“I don’t know, but she said that when she found out about me, she thought I might have a shot at standing up to your father—hence her obsession with getting you and me back together.”
He looked lost in thought. “If she wanted us back together, then Mason would have been a roadblock.”
Oh, my word. Why hadn’t I thought that part through? “Road block enough to hire Sam Teagen to hire Eric Davidson to run Mason off the road?”
His eyes narrowed. “What?”
“I’m 99% positive Kate hired Sam Teagen to do her dirty work.”
“What the hell are you talking about, Rose?”
I put my hand on his. “Joe. Listen to me. You know Neely Kate and I saw those files in Kate’s apartment—”
“But there was nothing there when I went to check.”
“That’s because she moved them.”
“Moved them where?”
“To the shed on top of the antique store. The one that burned.”
He cocked his head and gave me a suspicious look. “And how would you know that?”
“I saw them in there.”
He gave me a dubious look.
“Not to mention I heard Sam Teagen talking. He said he was hired by a woman to kidnap me, then kill Mason.” Which brought up another issue. She’d obviously hired Teagen, but he also answered to J.R. How did that work? Was she planning to double-cross him?
“When and where did you hear him talking?”
“I . . . uh . . .”
“Rose. Quit playing games and answer the question.”
What were the ramifications of telling him everything? “When I was kidnapped, I reached up and scratched the cheek of my capturer. Then I saw a suspicious character watching me last Friday. But I thought I was paranoid. Until I saw Sam Teagen yesterday with healing scratch marks on his face.”
“How do you know his name?”
I couldn’t bring myself to tell him everything. “I heard his friend call him by name.”
“And he just happened to confess to kidnapping you?”
I cringed. “It was last night. I was in my office when I saw Sam Teagen outside the front window with a gun in his hand. I think he was there to kidnap me and take me to your father. His friend told him they wouldn’t have to have been there if Teagen had gotten it right the week before.”
Joe sat back in his seat with a pained expression. “Shit. How’d you get away?”
“The explosions scared them off.” Not exactly true, but I didn’t want to drag Merv into this. “But not before he told his friend he was hired by a woman—a woman who wasn’t happy with the way things were going. They knew about the files in the shed, Joe. The same files that were in Kate’s apartment.”
Joe got a far-off look in his eyes, then rubbed his mouth with the side of his hand. “You realize you’re accusing my sister of some very serious crimes?”
“I know, Joe, and I’m sorry, but there’s more.”
He shook his head. “Go on.”
“Before Kate left this afternoon, she mentioned how much she hated Hilary. We asked her about Roberta, and she said she hadn’t been sorry to see your housekeeper go. Hilary was devastated when Roberta left, so that made Kate happy.”
“She said that?”
I nodded. “Then she said that Hilary was going to get what was coming to her.”
“That could mean anything.”
“I know, but I really feel like we need to warn Hilary. I’d do it myself, but she’ll think I’m trying to trick her. Will you talk to her?”
“Yeah.” He ran his hands over his head, still looking dazed. “I guess I should talk to my sister again, too.”
“I’m sorry.”
He shook his head.
“This isn’t your fault,” I insisted.
But he looked devastated. “My father’s a piece of shit. My mother is a manipulative bitch. My sister . . .” He looked into my face. “I have no one, Rose.”
I ached to tell him about Neely Kate, but it wasn’t my secret to share. At least not with him. Instead, I covered his hand with mine. “No. That’s not true, Joe. You and I may not be together, but I’m still your friend. I care about you. And you have other friends. People who would do anything for you.”
He stood and grabbed his coat and shoved his arms into his sleeves. “I need to go.”
“Thanks for taking the time to talk to me.”
A sad smile lifted the corners of his lips. “No. Thanks for this. It’s given me the closure I needed to move on.”
I stepped toward him and pulled him into a hug. “Thank you seems so inadequate. When we met, you saw the potential in me that no one else could see.” I pulled back and smiled even though my eyes burned. “You were with me when I started this crazy journey.”
He grinned. “You and your wish list.”
I wiped a tear from my cheek. “There were so many firsts with you, Joe.”
“You have no idea how much I loved watching you break free.” He wiped another of my tears. A soft smile lit up my face “You gave me the courage to believe I could be happy and free from my father. I will always love you for that, Rose, but I’m ready to let you go.”
I nodded through my tears, shocked at how much this hurt.
“She didn’t share it willingly,” I confessed. “There may have been some bargaining involved. Did you know about him?”
“No.”
“Really?”
“Rose,” he sighed. “When you and I were together, I told you that Kate and I were never close. Our relationship was turbulent at best. But she’d been making an effort before she took off a couple of years ago. She hinted that she was seeing someone, and she seemed . . . happy.”
“And then she disappeared?”
“Yeah, which is why I was especially worried. She’d been happier than I’d seen her since she was a kid.”
“Joe, I asked her what happened to Nick, and she said your father didn’t approve of him. She says he tried to pay him off with hundreds of thousands of dollars, but her boyfriend turned him down. So your father had him eliminated.”
His face paled as he sat up. “Oh, God. Why didn’t she tell me?”
“I don’t know, but she said that when she found out about me, she thought I might have a shot at standing up to your father—hence her obsession with getting you and me back together.”
He looked lost in thought. “If she wanted us back together, then Mason would have been a roadblock.”
Oh, my word. Why hadn’t I thought that part through? “Road block enough to hire Sam Teagen to hire Eric Davidson to run Mason off the road?”
His eyes narrowed. “What?”
“I’m 99% positive Kate hired Sam Teagen to do her dirty work.”
“What the hell are you talking about, Rose?”
I put my hand on his. “Joe. Listen to me. You know Neely Kate and I saw those files in Kate’s apartment—”
“But there was nothing there when I went to check.”
“That’s because she moved them.”
“Moved them where?”
“To the shed on top of the antique store. The one that burned.”
He cocked his head and gave me a suspicious look. “And how would you know that?”
“I saw them in there.”
He gave me a dubious look.
“Not to mention I heard Sam Teagen talking. He said he was hired by a woman to kidnap me, then kill Mason.” Which brought up another issue. She’d obviously hired Teagen, but he also answered to J.R. How did that work? Was she planning to double-cross him?
“When and where did you hear him talking?”
“I . . . uh . . .”
“Rose. Quit playing games and answer the question.”
What were the ramifications of telling him everything? “When I was kidnapped, I reached up and scratched the cheek of my capturer. Then I saw a suspicious character watching me last Friday. But I thought I was paranoid. Until I saw Sam Teagen yesterday with healing scratch marks on his face.”
“How do you know his name?”
I couldn’t bring myself to tell him everything. “I heard his friend call him by name.”
“And he just happened to confess to kidnapping you?”
I cringed. “It was last night. I was in my office when I saw Sam Teagen outside the front window with a gun in his hand. I think he was there to kidnap me and take me to your father. His friend told him they wouldn’t have to have been there if Teagen had gotten it right the week before.”
Joe sat back in his seat with a pained expression. “Shit. How’d you get away?”
“The explosions scared them off.” Not exactly true, but I didn’t want to drag Merv into this. “But not before he told his friend he was hired by a woman—a woman who wasn’t happy with the way things were going. They knew about the files in the shed, Joe. The same files that were in Kate’s apartment.”
Joe got a far-off look in his eyes, then rubbed his mouth with the side of his hand. “You realize you’re accusing my sister of some very serious crimes?”
“I know, Joe, and I’m sorry, but there’s more.”
He shook his head. “Go on.”
“Before Kate left this afternoon, she mentioned how much she hated Hilary. We asked her about Roberta, and she said she hadn’t been sorry to see your housekeeper go. Hilary was devastated when Roberta left, so that made Kate happy.”
“She said that?”
I nodded. “Then she said that Hilary was going to get what was coming to her.”
“That could mean anything.”
“I know, but I really feel like we need to warn Hilary. I’d do it myself, but she’ll think I’m trying to trick her. Will you talk to her?”
“Yeah.” He ran his hands over his head, still looking dazed. “I guess I should talk to my sister again, too.”
“I’m sorry.”
He shook his head.
“This isn’t your fault,” I insisted.
But he looked devastated. “My father’s a piece of shit. My mother is a manipulative bitch. My sister . . .” He looked into my face. “I have no one, Rose.”
I ached to tell him about Neely Kate, but it wasn’t my secret to share. At least not with him. Instead, I covered his hand with mine. “No. That’s not true, Joe. You and I may not be together, but I’m still your friend. I care about you. And you have other friends. People who would do anything for you.”
He stood and grabbed his coat and shoved his arms into his sleeves. “I need to go.”
“Thanks for taking the time to talk to me.”
A sad smile lifted the corners of his lips. “No. Thanks for this. It’s given me the closure I needed to move on.”
I stepped toward him and pulled him into a hug. “Thank you seems so inadequate. When we met, you saw the potential in me that no one else could see.” I pulled back and smiled even though my eyes burned. “You were with me when I started this crazy journey.”
He grinned. “You and your wish list.”
I wiped a tear from my cheek. “There were so many firsts with you, Joe.”
“You have no idea how much I loved watching you break free.” He wiped another of my tears. A soft smile lit up my face “You gave me the courage to believe I could be happy and free from my father. I will always love you for that, Rose, but I’m ready to let you go.”
I nodded through my tears, shocked at how much this hurt.
