Page 11 of Roark
“Gibbons isn’t gonna let McGee tell us much of anything anymore,” Cade said.
“Because we’re suspects—at least me, Ridge and Suri are.” His free hand fisted before he could think to stop it.
“Your mother was worth five hundred million dollars at the time of her death. She was an equity shareholder in both Donovan Oilwell UK and Donovan International.”
Roark hadn’t needed Cade to tell him what he already knew. His mother had those holdings partly because of his father’s will and also because Roark had insisted she be a part of any businesses he ran. At seventeen years old, he’d stood over his father’s casket and vowed to always take care of his mother and siblings. Unfortunately, he’d failed Maxine when she’d needed him most.
“We have our own money.” Not that he needed to explain their innocence this time.
Cade was a Donovan and while he hadn’t gone into the family oil business but had instead decided he was better suited to be an FBI profiler, he still held stock in the family’s American companies.
“I know that, and you know that. Now it’s up to us to prove it to the MPD and figure out who did this.”
Roark stood and walked to the window, holding the phone up to his ear in one hand, stuffing the other hand into the front pocket of his pants.
“I’ve got another member of my team working on this with me,” Cade continued. “Since it’s family and the FBI has no jurisdiction, I’m sort of operating under the radar for the time being. Anyway, Pierce splits his time between working with the Bureau and assisting Interpol on special cases, so he’s got a bead on the international side and he was in Paris when the fire happened. He’s got some vacation time so he’s offered to stick around to give us a hand. First, he’s gonna take a look at other shareholders and anyone who was maybe unhappy that you’d left the oilwell or that you and Dane started a new venture.”
“Competitors, both on the Donovan side and on the side of Dane’s other business, Imagine Energy,” Roark added.
The clouds seemed thicker, heavier than they had just moments ago when he’d first entered the room, but still, the view from the east side of the manor was breathtaking. Gabled rooftops and cobblestone streets blended into the rolling hillsides just miles away.
“Right. I’m taking a different approach. I’m focusing on the arson.” Cade spoke in the confident and succinct manner he always used when working.
“Because we know without a doubt that’s what it was.” Roark shook his head as the charred remains of the rooms on the second floor of the Hyde Park house flashed in his mind.
Cade continued. “We already know the type of accelerant used. The point of origin was at the nightstand on the left side of the bed.”
“The side of the bed she slept on.”
“McGee let that slip before he backtracked and clammed up with info. I’m gonna try and get into the Fire Brigade’s computer system to see if I can pull his notes. But the coroner’s report definitely states there was smoke in Aunt Max’s lungs, meaning she was alive when the fire started.”
“Alive but paralyzed so she couldn’t scream or get the hell out of that bed before being burned to death.” The words were like acid in his throat, and Roark closed his eyes to the incessant burn.
“Succinylcholine isn’t an over-the-counter medication. It’s only used by anesthesiologists in operating rooms. I’m going to start there and cross reference names of who made purchases in the last six months with the names of enemies on the list Pierce comes up with.”
All the words replayed over and over in Roark’s mind. Everything Cade was saying mixed with the coroner’s report Roark had read personally more than a dozen times. Suri’s sobs the night she and Ridge had come to his flat after the reading of their mother’s will and Roark had reluctantly let her read that same report
“Roark? You still there, man?”
“Yeah, I’m here. Sorry about that. Um, I’m gonna be here at the manor for a while. I can work from here and—” He couldn’t say he felt closer to his mother here than he had at the Hyde Park house.
“I get it. Look, Aunt Birdie’s staying in London for as long as it takes, or until Suri ships her back to Texas.” Cade chuckled. “Linc’s nearby for Ridge, and even though I’m back in the States, I’m just a phone call away.”
“I know.”
“We’re gonna find out who did this and why, Roark. Believe that.”
Roark did believe it. If there was one thing the Donovan family did, it was stick together. Now that they knew it was murder, none of them would stop until they found the person responsible and saw that justice was done. How justice would be meted out, well, that scenario could have a lot of variables.
After ending the call with Cade, Roark turned away from the window and its melancholy setting. He went back to the couch and dropped down heavily. There was just so much going on right now, so many unanswered questions.
He inhaled deeply and recalled a scent he knew was no longer near, but had remained embedded in his memory just the same.
Tamika Rayder.
She’d contacted him with questions of her own.
Roark could only sigh, because he didn’t have answers for anyone at this point.
