Loving Again(67)

                “Sorry to disappoint you, my dear, but involved I am. Now, down we go and let’s get this settled. Matthews tells me you can show us where the safe is.”

                “Matthews is wrong.”

                “But you told him … ”

                “I told him I’d give him what he wanted, which I thought was money. I arranged to take money out of my trust fund accounts to bribe him to leave me and Sam alone.”

                “The man is an idiot.” He waved her toward the kitchen. “However, that doesn’t change the fact that Webster put a safe someplace. In the restaurant I found a combination that doesn’t work anything there and Matthews had that letter. We’ve been through your studio, the restaurant, and most of your house. The basement is the most likely place. So, if you will accompany me … ”

                He motioned her to the door and, once again, reluctantly, she descended to the basement. When Matthews saw them, the anger on his face turned to a sneer.

                “So much for trying to outthink us, bitch. Now get over here and show me where the fucking safe is.”

                “She doesn’t know where it is,” Vos said.

                “Of course she does. She took the money and put it in her account. She told me.”

                “You fool,” Vos said. “She’s using money from her trust accounts to bribe you. We still don’t know where the safe is.”

                Matthews slapped Amanda. “You little bitch.” He raised his hand to hit her again.

                Vos intervened. “Enough. We’re going to be civilized about this. Amanda, sit on that chair over there. Matthews, watch her. I’m going to finish looking down here.”

                “She said she thought it was behind the furnace. I started back there but then she ran.”

                Vos looked at Amanda, now seated on an old plastic garden chair. “If you don’t know where it is, Amanda, why did you tell him that?”

                “I thought he’d be trapped back there and I could go get help.”

                Gesturing to the clutter around them, Vos said, “It’s obvious most of the place has been searched. Did anyone look behind the furnace?”

                Silence gave him the answer.

                “All right, then I’ll start there. If I come up empty, we can all resume the search elsewhere.” He squeezed behind the furnace and began to rap on the wallboard. As he continued along the wall, he seemed to get more interested. He’d apparently seen or heard something Amanda couldn’t figure out from where she was sitting.

                But as he moved back and forth from one panel to another, comparing sounds, inspecting the surfaces, Amanda began to hear the difference between most of the panels of drywall and one particular panel, a panel that wasn’t as dingy as the rest.

                “Your instincts were good after all, Amanda. I need a hammer.” Vos said. He nodded to Matthews to let her find one for him.

                She dug her toolbox out of the mess on the floor, found a hammer, and handed it to him. He began to rip at the panel of odd-looking wallboard.

                “I don’t believe it,” Amanda said when she saw the safe mounted between the studs he uncovered. She was sure the shock she felt showed on her face.