Page 31 of Jane's Story
“Who knows?” Lance grumbled. “You know, he and I had a disagreement before he died. I don’t know why they suspect foul play—it might have been a heart attack. Imean, he was pretty stressed—worked up about the funding for a few projects like your SaferLoc. He said there was close to half a million dollars missing. But he had to have been imagining it.”
Charles raised his eyebrows. “Half a million, huh? I’ll need to check that out.”
“Doesn’t that seem odd in hindsight?” I asked Lance.
“Well, it’s not something to kill someone over.” Lance’s face reddened, and I glimpsed the angry expression he’d had in the images from Aunt Penny’s magical recording. “I mean, half a million is something these days, but it’s not everything.”
“Sorry, I didn’t mean it that way.” I used my sweetest voice, trying not to stir the pot further.
“Half a million dollars?” Catalina asked. “It’s got to be an accounting error. With the size of some of our projects, it’s just a minor setback.”
“I’m surprised he said nothing to me about it.” Charles rubbed his temples.
“Some materials for our initial projects can be pretty pricey. Plus, if we have to outsource anything, there are contractors to be paid. It’s a lot to track,” Owen added.
“You know, maybe it was a heart attack. They have no reason to suspect anything else. I mean, it’s sad. But they’re probably making this into something it’s not. Do we know why they suspect murder?” Catalina took a hearty bite of salad.
“There’s Margery Blake’s death, which makes everything look more suspicious,” I pushed to see if anyone would respond. No one seemed to know about the needle injection in Armond’s neck.
“Margery’s death probably had nothing to do with anyone at Haven Corp.” Kyle looked exhausted and spoke to no one in particular.
“Did Armond have any health conditions you know of?” I asked. Kyle shrugged without looking at me, and Catalina shook her head.
“I don’t think so. But who knows?” Owen looked to Lance and Charles for answers.
“He seemed healthy,” Charles said.
“He stressed over more things than he should have,” Owen said. “Stress can be bad for you, you know. I think that can cause heart attacks. It’s not like someone shot him.”
Chapter 12
Afteralengthydinner,Charles and I slipped away from the group.
“Good work, Detective,” Charles gave me a little nudge as we pretended to wander around the lobby but slowly made our way toward a side exit.
“You too. Anything you picked up on?” I asked, hoping it wouldn’t be too cold outside. Aunt Penny had taken our coats because we didn’t want anyone to realize we were leaving.
“I have to say, I don’t have the same gifts for picking up on things you do, Jane. To me, everything seemed perfectly normal—well, relatively. But I got the sense you noticed something.” He tipped his chin a bit to the side and arched an eyebrow. He wasn’t trying to look like a handsome detective, but he did. We made it to an exit near the now-empty conference hall and stepped out into the frosty November night.
“Oh, my!” I rubbed my arms, trying to stay on topic. “I picked up on something about the mood in the room, or the conversation, but I can’t pinpoint… oh, I’m too cold to talk. Owen said Armond hadn’t been shot, but maybe he just assumed that.”
Charles removed his dinner blazer and placed it on my shoulders. “Maybe. Let me get a cab. We need to get you out of the cold.”
I nodded, shivering.
Within a couple of minutes, Charles held a cab door open for me. We quickly loaded ourselves inside and disappeared into the night.
Aunt Penny’s humble apartment building was nothing like the Grand Lakes Hotel. Marco, the doorman, was long gone this late in the evening. So we used the keypad to let ourselves into the entrance, then tried to stop a gust of wind from carrying a mountain of fall leaves into the lobby.
Walking into Aunt Penny and Uncle Terrance’s apartment with Charles made me notice things I hadn’t before. The folded but ancient afghan on the back of her sofa, the mismatched picture frames displaying decades of beautifulmemories, her overstuffed bookshelf, and Moonbeam curled up on a cushion in the corner.
“Hello? We’re here,” I called softly into the apartment, not wanting to wake them if they were already asleep.
Aunt Penny burst from the kitchen in a long flannel bathrobe. “Oh, Charles!” She hugged him before even acknowledging me. “So glad you’re here. Looks like you brought our Jane home safe and sound.”
“We survived dinner and a cab ride.” I kissed my aunt on the top of her head. “We thought maybe we’d do a little research here tonight.”
“Oh, no. That can wait until morning. It’s so late, get some sleep. I’ll show you your room, Charles.” Aunt Penny took his arm and led us down the hall. She gave Charles the “nice” room I’d stayed in the night before. It had belonged to her daughter, my cousin, Hannah.
