Page 13 of Out of the Shadows
Veronica nodded. “Logan leased it to him after the divorce.”
“Charlie lost everything Laura and he had, yet Logan gave his ex-brother-in-law a place to live?”
Margo didn’t know why she was surprised. After all, he paid his cheating ex-wife millions and gave her a house.
“Logan wanted to ensure that the kids had a safe, comfortable place to stay when they visited their father.”
“Okay, but I know the property in that neighborhood. The condo is worth at least a million.”
“One point three million last appraisal,” Veronica said.
“And Charlie’s paying rent? What’s that look like?”
Veronica hesitated, then said, “You can ask Logan for the details, but suffice it to say, he’s not charging market value.”
That didn’t surprise Margo, either.
“Logan said to assist in any way I could, but why are you asking so many questions about Charlie?”
“Because he hasn’t returned Laura’s call, and Laura is a low-risk target. Meaning, there’s no clear reason why anyone would break into her house and not steal valuables. We’re also looking into friends, neighbors, colleagues of Laura, but ex-husbands are usually high on the list for trouble.”
“Charlie is trouble,” she muttered, then put her hand to her mouth. “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have said that.”
“Trouble how?” When Veronica hesitated, Margo added, “Logan would want you to share.”
“Logan moved to Arizona because of business and stayed primarily because of Laura and her family. Charlie has had one wild idea after another. When I saytrouble, I don’t mean trouble with the law, as far as I know. More trouble with responsibility. He couldn’t keep a job. Had a hundred excuses. Logan hired him onto the maintenance staff at the resort earlier this year, when he lost his last job.”
“And how is that working out?”
“I couldn’t say. I sense that the staff doesn’t want to share any problems they’re having, so they work around them.”
“Is he incompetent?”
“No, he’s fully capable. People like him. He’s simply... a daydreamer. Pie-in-the-sky ideas. Always has the next greatest idea, if he only had this financing or that financing. I think... I would say he’s not reliable.”
“Would Annette at the resort know him?”
“Yes. She would be able to give a more accurate assessment.”
“Could you give her a heads-up that I’m coming by and it’s okay to talk to me?”
“Certainly,” Veronica said.
“And as you go through Logan’s businesses and correspondence, if anything jumps out at you as odd, an overt threat or something that feels wrong, let me know.”
“Have you spoken to his ex-wife?”
Margo sighed. “Unfortunately. She was evasive as usual, but I don’t think she was involved. I’ll dig around a little more, but she seemed genuinely surprised.”
“I don’t trust her,” Veronica said. “I’m glad he saw the truth, even if it took being hit over the head to realize it.”
Chapter Five
“Who are you?”
The boy stopped short of entering the kitchen as Jack refilled his coffee.
“I’m Jack Angelhart, a friend of your Uncle Logan.”
