Page 20 of Renegade

I could feel Miguel practically vibrating all the way out of the mansion, but he remained silent until we got into the car and started to drive over to McNulty’s offices. “What is it? I can feel you ready to jump out of your skin.” I glanced over at him as we idled at the bottom of the driveway, waiting for the gates to open.

“I think going to the party tomorrow night is a good idea,” he said. “In my experience, a lot of high-end art and jewelry thieves love to flaunt themselves right under the noses of the people they’ve stolen from. Some of them are an arrogant bunch.”

“I agree.” I smirked as I started to drive out onto Bel Air Crest. “I gotta say, though…now that I’ve seen that house, I can’t believe it was jewelry that was stolen.”

“Why’s that?” Miguel asked.

“Did you see the paintings in that house? They all looked like originals, and they were hanging on practically every wall. I felt like I was walking through a museum. And didn’t Aston say that they were attending an art gallery opening the night the ruby was stolen?”

“Yeah, come to think of it, you’re right. She said that’s when she’d last seen the ruby before her husband locked it away in the safe.”

“Right,” I said. “But the ruby theft aside, think about it, Miguel. The paintings in that house looked like originals even if they’re not to my taste. Mr. and Mrs. Flores are art collectors. Aston didn’t even mention that.”

Miguel snorted. “So, they collect crappy art…what about it? Is it the fact that the art they collect are abstracts, or the fact that she seems more interested recovering a piece of jewelry which is insured for two million dollars?”

“I’ve had my suspicions about her from the very beginning. Now I’m even more suspicious of her and that Salvatore Mancuso boyfriend/bodyguard she had with her at the restaurant. We know the jewelry is insured. She’s going to get a payout eventually but trust me when I tell you, whoever insured the ruby already has someone working on its recovery.” I had some experience with insurance companies, after all.

“So, if I understand you correctly, you think she snatched the ruby herself, is holding it somewhere until the insurance pays out on it and then plans on selling it herself?” he asked.

“It’s a possibility, Miguel. Think about it, babe. Tomorrow night’s black-tie event might just be a vehicle for her to find a buyer for the ruby or…what if she’s already sold it and plans on delivering to her buyer at the party?”

“Then why hire us at all, Raven?”

I rolled my eyes. “By hiring us, it makes her insurance company think that she’s desperate to get it back…that it actually holds as much sentimental value to her as she says it does. I mean, if you think about it, it does make her seem like she’s just a poor widow who’s trying to recover a precious necklace, not because of its value, but because her poor, dear, departed husband gave it to her.”

“That’s true, Sunshine,” Miguel said as I headed toward the freeway.

“So, let’s go with that idea for a minute,” I went on. “Assuming she’s got it, I don’t think she’ll sell it until the insurance company pays out. If they ever got wind of a sale, they’d make sure she faced jail time for insurance fraud and who knows what else.”

When Miguel got quiet for more than thirty seconds, I glanced over at him, expecting to see him deep in thought. His expression of amusement was a surprise to me.

“What is it?” I asked. “You look like you want to laugh.”

He shot me a glance. His eyes twinkled merrily as he huffed out a laugh. “Sorry, I was just thinking about something else.”

I frowned. “What?”

“Your reaction to the art in the house. It’s just funny, that’s all. Do you have a problem with abstracts?”

“Honey, give me an R.C. Gorman any day,” I said, smiling.

“R.C. Gorman is that Navajo artist, right?”

I smiled, nodding. “Was. He died in 2005.” I glanced over at him as something occurred to me. “Are you familiar with R.C. Gorman’s work?”

“Yeah, I’ve seen a few of his paintings. Cassidy has one of those glossy tabletop art books at his house. He told me Gorman was in the U.S. Navy.”

“Huh. Now,that, I didn’t know,” I said, smiling. “It figures it would take a Marine to tell me something I didn’t know about my favorite artist in the world.”

“Well, what I learned about Gorman came from a Navy SEAL, so that only makes sense,” Miguel said.

I chuckled. “True.”

“I love his use of color,” Miguel said. “He studied in Mexico, you know.”

I grinned, nodding. “I’m a huge fan, and now, I can honestly say, I know you just a little better, Miguel Huerta.”

He grinned widely. “Back to this case, though. Let’s make the assumption that you’re completely wrong about Tawny Flores and it was stolen—as she swears—by some master thief. Let’s say I’m that thief. If I’m that good, wouldn’t I have enough expertise to know I’m going to be breaking into a house where I know I’ll encounter tight security?”

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