Page 6 of Renegade

“That’s purely speculation, Tawny,” Mr. Aston chided before turning to us. “No evidence of a break-in was found when the police were called. They found several other pieces of jewelry still in the safe including the valuable diamond cufflinks my client told you about. Therefore, it’s my belief that Mr. Flores removed the pendant himself, perhaps to store it somewhere else, but that’s why I initiated this meeting with you. We’d like you to recover the missing item and when that happens, you’ll be paid a tidy sum.”

“Okay,” Raven said.

“Why did you ask that we come armed and why do you feel it necessary to have a bodyguard?” I asked. At the mention of bodyguard, the man looked right at me.

“Bodyguard?” Mrs. Flores asked.

I lifted my chin, acknowledging the man standing several paces off. “Your man there. You didn’t introduce him, so I figured he was your bodyguard.”

She turned and beckoned him over. “Sal, come over here.” He walked over and she swiveled to look back at us. “I’m sorry. This isn’t my bodyguard. This is Salvatore Mancuso, my—” She faltered but recovered quickly. “Sal is a family friend. He’s a little overprotective and insisted he watch the patio for anyone who may be a threat.”

I felt Raven’s foot slide over to mine and bump my shoe at the mention of a family friend which he’d clearly heard asboyfriend,the same as I had.

Salvatore reached down and took the delicate hand she’d raised to him, squeezing it and offering her a stiff smile, saying nothing. She dragged her devoted gaze away from his and looked back at us as she dropped his hand.

“Nice to meet you,” Raven said.

The man nodded, his expression returning to stoic the moment he glanced back up at us.

“So, nothing else was removed from the safe and it’s your belief that you were burgled,” Raven pressed. She nodded. “But the police ruled that out.” She nodded again. Raven leaned forward, deliberately lacing his fingers together on the table. “Assuming you’re right and the police are wrong, you still haven’t explained why you thought we should come to this meeting armed. Have you been threatened?”

Mr. Aston cleared his throat, and Raven and I both turned to look at him. “Tawny—Mrs. Flores hasn’t been threatened exactly.”

“What does that mean…exactly?” I asked. I felt like we were being toyed with and I hated it.

“Shortly before Mr. Flores’ death, he began receiving threatening letters, delivered to his office.” Mr. Aston leaned forward. “You have to understand, my client—Mr. Flores—had holdings throughout the world and he traveled a great deal of the time. By the time he was aware he’d been receiving the letters, several weeks had passed and the letters had become—” He cleared his throat again, then reached into his pocket, producing an envelope. He held it out. “Read that. It’s the last letter he received.”

Raven hesitated before taking it, and Aston spoke up. “Oh, it’s okay to touch with bare hands. My in-house investigator has already checked it for prints and there weren’t any. Whoever sent it, wore gloves. Raven nodded and took it from his hand to examine the front, holding it between us so I could read it too.

“This is your last warnin, Flores. Give the stone back or we’ll kill you.”

Chapter Two

MIGUEL

I took off my sunglasses and sat back, looking at Raven who exchanged a serious glance with me before turning the letter over. It was blank. He picked up the discarded envelope. There was no stamp or address. Instead, Benedict Flores had been typed using an old-fashioned manual typewriter. He pushed the letter back into the envelope and eyed me once more before handing it back and looking at Aston. “Well, it’s a blatant threat and it was clearly hand delivered from the lack of address or return address.”

“Yes, it was delivered to Mr. Flores’ office like the others,” Aston said.

Raven nodded. “From a messenger service?”

“We thought so, but the investigator I employ checked all the businesses offering messenger services and he came up with nothing. Therefore, I can only presume the company was a fake.”

“I see,” Raven said. “Were the other letters all like this…delivered the same way?”

“Yes,” Aston replied. “All of them were delivered by hand and sealed in a manila envelope.”

“And…where are those?” Raven asked.

“I’m so sorry. Mr. Flores’ secretary threw them away. She routinely opens all his mail unless it’s marked personal.” He held up both hands, looking apologetically toward Tawny Flores. “I’m sorry. When I complained about this, she apologized.Apparently, Mr. Flores received almost two hundred pieces of mail a day and he never instructed her to save the envelopes. I’ve been told that she’s been reprimanded over the incident. As far as the tone of the letters…yes, they were all threats. They got gradually worse, but this is the last one, received only a week before Mr. Flores’ death when he returned home from a plantation he owns in the Caribbean.” He sounded contemplative.

“And you’re worried that these people or this person will come after Mrs. Flores, now that Mr. Flores has passed on?” I asked.

“Yes,” Tawny replied, turning to me. “Why do you say person? Obviously, it’s more than one since they saywe’llkill you.”

“Because saying that there are a group of people coming after you, makes the threat sound more dangerous than if it came from a single person,” I replied. “I assume the stone they refer to is the ruby you told us about?”

“Yes,” Aston replied before his client could say anything. “It couldn’t be anything else. Like I said, the pigeon’s blood ruby is valued at two million dollars.”

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