Page 101 of Exposure of Murder

He had pulled out a locked metal box from under the feed bin, the one Jane couldn’t reach. It was heavy, and Ethan had a hunch about the contents. He remembered that he and Adam had found those small keys at David Thornton’s place. He bet one of those keys would fit.

Parking in front of the station, he grabbed the box, said hello to a couple of firefighters who were out in front of the fire station washing a truck.

Nora wasn’t in yet, so Ross was sitting at her desk, his feet propped on the edge. The air smelled faintly of almost freshly made coffee.

“You missed a fun time last night,” Ross said, swinging his feet down to the floor. “The wagon came for Maggie’s body. They took Ruggerio to the hospital, and he’s out of surgery with guards at the door, and the two wiseguys are locked up.”

“Have they said anything?” asked Ethan, setting the box down as he shrugged off his jacket.

“Nah.” Ross looked at the box. “Whatcha got there?”

“Don’t know yet.” Ethan’s eyes searched the bullpen. “Adam, grab those keys we found at Thornton’s place, will you?”

A minute later, Adam walked in holding the keys and tossed them on Ethan’s desk.

“What do you think is in there?” Adam asked.

Ethan reached for one of the larger keys and inserted it into the box. He turned it in the lock. It clicked open easily. The box creaked as he lifted the lid. Both men paused, looking inside.

“Damn, look at that,” exclaimed Adam.

Ethan pulled out a stack of hundred-dollar bills and counted nine more piles neatly bundled. “There must be a hundred thousand dollars here.”

He pulled out the cash and pulled out an old leather-bound ledger.

The pages were yellow with age, and the ink was faded and still legible. As Ethan flipped through, it was all there—names, dates, transactions.

“Wanna bet there’s enough evidence in this ledger to put Victor and his friends away for life?” Ethan said to Adam.

Adam whistled softly. “What a catch. Victor is a fool if he thought Thornton wasn’t writing everything down.”

He closed the ledger. This needed to be in the hands of a higher authority. He’d call the FBI soon.

As they stood there, staring at the cash, Nora came in, took one look, and her eyes widened. “Should I even ask?”

Ethan shook his head. “This is going to be a long day, for sure.”

Ruggerio and his men were locked up for now, but they still had pieces of the puzzle to connect. But with the cash and ledger, they had a real shot at taking down the illegal operation Ruggerio was running.

Fifty-Three

What a difference two weeks made. Jane had fully recovered from her ordeal. Savannah had left with a promise to return the coming weekend. The FBI had taken over the case, whisked away Ruggerio and his accomplices, and taken the ledger. Ethan shared information with Sean, who was investigating the gang’s operations in other towns and was passing that information on to town officials. Beaver Creek was none the worse.

Despite everything, Ethan hadn’t forgotten how Jane whispered she loved him after she fell asleep. And foolish him. He hadn’t said it back. She had to know how he felt, but knowing wasn’t the same as hearing. As time went by, he found himself too embarrassed to bring it up. She hadn’t said it since.

However, Ethan had made plans. It was time to celebrate and have a party. Not that he was a party animal, but this would be a special occasion. A chance for everyone and Jane to know precisely how he felt about her.

He reserved the little Community Church down the street, which was available for weddings and parties. It was the perfect spot to invite their family and friends. He asked Savannah forJane’s family’s phone numbers and called each one, explaining this was a special party for Jane. They all said they’d be there.

He rented rooms at the luxurious Mills River Inn, a four-star hotel close to the church. The Twisted Fork was catering. All his brothers and even his parents were coming. And now his stomach was gurgling, and he wanted to vomit.

Would Jane like the surprise?

Did she even like surprises? Savannah assured him that Jane would be ecstatic, especially since everyone coming would be family and friends. Preventing people from telling Jane about the party was a challenge. He even threatened to lock up anyone who spilled the beans.

The dayof the party had finally arrived. Ethan aimlessly wandered around the house. Jane finally asked him to sit down. He was making her nervous. When he told her it was a surprise party for Tanner’s birthday, she was excited and offered to help, but he said he had it handled.

It was a cold, crisp, sunny Sunday. A light breeze was blowing, and the scent of wood fires permeated the air, reminding him of home. Jane’s family had arrived and were ensconced at the inn. Tanner and Leah decorated the church the day before, and today Leah and his brothers were there welcoming everyone. Tanner would bring her family over soon. Everything was as perfect as it could be. No one had slipped the secret to Jane.

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