Page 61 of Lie for a Million

“But what if Lila adopts that baby?” Simone demanded. “If she becomes the legal mother of your father’s child, our lawsuit is dead in the water.”

“I don’t trust her,” Darrin said. “For all we know, she could be scamming us.”

“Maybe. But that report from the doctor looks real enough. And you know how your father loved the ladies, especially the young ones. He fooled around when he was married to your mother, and he didn’t stop after he wed Lila, especially now that she’s older.”

“But he never got one of them pregnant before.”

“You don’t know that,” Simone said. “You could have an army of half brothers and sisters out there who you’ve never met. I’m surprised that none of them showed up for the memorial service.”

“Stop it!” Darrin checked his hand, which had risen to slap her. She flinched and drew back, then released a breath when the blow didn’t come. “My father was who he was,” Darrin said. “But that doesn’t mean you can disrespect his memory.” He studied the card Crystal had given him. “Right now we’ve got to figure out what to do about that woman and her baby.”

“You could pay her,” Simone said. “Yes, it’s a lot of money, but it’s better than giving Lila a weapon to use against us.”

“But what if we give her the money and she doesn’t leave? Or what if she sneaks behind our backs and strikes a bargain with Lila? I don’t trust her.”

“Well, we’ve got to do something.” Simone picked up the remote and switched her reality show back on. “By the time we get our court date, that baby could be born and adopted.”

“I’m going to do some research,” Darrin said. “If Lila can legally adopt that baby, we need to stop her—any way we can.”

* * *

Crystal popped the tab on a can of Budweiser and settled onto her sagging couch. The visit to Frank’s son and daughter-in-law had left her emotionally drained. She could only hope the couple had bought her story and that they were worried enough to come through with the money.

Lila had made good on her word to transfer the $5,000 to Crystal’s bank account. But the woman was clearly getting suspicious—making too many demands, asking too many questions. Sooner or later, she was bound to guess the truth. By then, Crystal would need to be on the road to her new life. A hundred thousand dollars wouldn’t last forever. But it should at least keep her in style until she could find a man with money.

It would probably be a good idea to keep her bags packed, her car gassed, and her account converted to cash. That way she could be ready to leave at a moment’s notice.

The thought of leaving Willow Bend was both frightening and exhilarating. She would be all alone with no home and no friends. But she would be free—free to do and become anything she wanted.

The sound of the doorbell broke into her thoughts. Hardly anyone knew she’d moved here. Maybe it was her landlord to fix the constantly running toilet she’d complained about.

She got up and opened the door. Judd Proctor grinned as he stepped across the threshold.

“I’m back, babe,” he said. “Now we can be together, just like before.”

CHAPTERFIFTEEN

The more Sam learned about Ethel Grishman’s death, the more convinced he became that Charlie had murdered her. His last interview with Mariah had solidified that belief.

“Ethel was your friend, Mariah,” he’d said. “You’ve already told me that Charlie mistreated her. When she died, did you have any reason to think he might have killed her?”

Mariah had sighed. “At the time, I couldn’t imagine it. She loved her grandson, in spite of his ambitions. And she’d never mentioned any fear that he might harm her. But she seemed tired all the time and so confused that she’d had to stop driving. When I mentioned it and suggested she see a doctor, she said it was just old age. The next time I went to visit her, Charlie met me at the door and said she was sleeping and couldn’t be disturbed. A few days later, I learned that she’d died. It did seem strange that he wouldn’t have taken her to the clinic. But murder? I never thought of that. Not until now.”

“Is there any chance that Frank discovered what Charlie had done and Charlie killed him for it?” Sam had asked.

“I can’t imagine that. Nobody expected foul play. And Frank wouldn’t have known anything. If he had, he would have told me.”

Recalling the conversation, it was easy for Sam to believe that Charlie had poisoned his grandmother. But that wasn’t evidence. The only evidence, if any, lay under six feet of earth on Charlie’s ranch.

Now Sam had a choice. He could walk away from the whole dirty business and get back to his real job. Or he could confront Charlie face-to-face.

He already knew what he would choose. He would go to the game ranch, face Charlie, and hope to get answers he could use. He would do it for the sake of those wretched animals, yes, but mostly for Jasmine.

* * *

Charlie stood on the terrace sipping Scotch from a crystal glass—the last of a set that had belonged to his grandmother. The sun’s dying rays cast long shadows over the scrubland. Insects fluttered around the porch light. A coyote’s yipping wail echoed through the dusk.

Everything was in readiness for the hunt.

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