Page 24 of Deny Me
Charlotte watched him settle into the seat beside her, expression unreadable. “Questions?”
He met her gaze head-on. “Yes.”
“I don’t think—”
Charlotte held up her hand, forestalling her mother’s objection. “Whatever your team needs for this case, we’ll do,” she said evenly.
The years had wrought so many changes in her, not just physically, but in maturity, composure, and a steel spine that refused to back down from this case despite fear and injury. He couldn’t help but admire those changes.
Hell, it wasn’t mere admiration. It was want.
He couldn’t afford to let that want free.
Stuffing that knowledge back behind the cool facade that had kept him safe for a decade, he said to the room in general, “You know we’ve been looking into contacts for both of you, searching for a link Richard could have used to connect with whoever is a threat to you, Becky.”
“Because you don’t think he could set this up on his own,” Charlotte said, a statement rather than a question. That didn’t cover the hurt lurking beneath the words, the knowledge that thesomeonethey were looking for could be close to her or Becky or both.
“Right.” He met Charlotte’s steady stare. “We’ve eliminated most everyone on Becky’s end, and Saint has moved on to Richard’s phone records. But we both know a steady supply is the most important principle for a business, legal or illegal.”
“A steady supply of babies,” Kim said, her voice strangled.
King gave her a sympathetic smile.
“You think someone at CF is selling babies,” Charlotte said.
“Yes.” Stark. Bald, maybe too bald. But sugarcoating the truth wasn’t going to help any of them. “There are dozens of people connected with CF, even peripherally, and all of them have to be looked at, but we have to start somewhere. The top is usually best.”
Charlotte’s eyes narrowed. “My team has been in place for years—”
“And things change over time,” he pointed out. “We’re not saying any of them have done this, but we aren’t going to dismiss a single person without a thorough look.” He shifted back into his seat and opened the file at the top of the stack he’d brought. “Tell me about Dr. Susan Keller.”
Becky whimpered. Charlotte’s mother scooted closer to take her hand while glaring at him.
“Remember what I said, Becky.” He attempted a soothing tone, all the while knowing soothing didn’t really go with interrogation. “We have to ask the questions. It doesn’t mean anyone we ask about is actually involved.”
After a moment Becky reluctantly nodded. “Dr. Keller has always been good to me.”
“So you’ve never felt any hesitation around her, any concern?” The girl might not know anything concrete, but instincts sometimes surprised him. Humans were genetically engineered to sense danger.
“No.” King was pleased to see her hesitate, look thoughtful, as if considering her automatic response. Then, “No, I’ve never been afraid of Dr. Keller. She’s always been kind, concerned about keeping me and the baby healthy, not just the baby.”
“Any unnecessarily obtrusive questions, maybe hinting about changing your adoption or offering money?”
She rubbed a hand over the swell of her stomach, and his heart ached to see her fingers trembling. “No. I’ve met with her nearly every time I’m at Creating Families, and she has never done anything but help me.”
The simple words had him nodding. “That’s helpful to know.” Charlotte’s turn. “Were there any red flags in Keller’s background check or past performance?”
Charlotte straightened her spine as if going into battle. “Susan? Of course not.”
He resisted the urge to rub at the ache in his forehead. “Charlotte, loyalty is admirable, but it isn’t always earned. Everyone has secrets. If those secrets have nothing to do with selling babies, then questioning won’t harm the woman.”
“Susan was one of the first people the board hired when CF was formed. We wanted not only a consummate professional, but someone compassionate, with excellent medical knowledge. She was a perfect fit from the get-go. And I haven’t questioned that decision once in the years since.”
Exactly what Wes had said. Still… He flipped a few pages through the notes they’d gathered. “Were you aware Keller recently separated from her husband?”
Charlotte nodded. “We’re a close-knit office. She told me the day after it happened.”
“Did she also tell you her husband not only cleaned out their mutual bank accounts, but drained their savings and investments to clear gambling debts?”
