Stolen(40)

“But he can’t change the past.”

“No, but it gives him the power to control his future.”

“I guess.”

“It’s also a reflection of narcissism. The world revolves around him. Laura was taken because of him. It’s not about her—it’s about him.”

“A narcissistic politician. Go figure,” Spense said. “But do our theorists think it was a personal vendetta or something related to the business realm? A personal vendetta suggests our UNSUB would be someone with close ties to the family. A friend, a relative, or someone on their staff such as a housekeeper.”

“Seems like I remember Mrs. Chaucer telling a reporter she suspected a cook.” Caity looked to Hatcher for confirmation.

“Yes, the cook had prepared two separate meals for the Chaucers—fish sticks for Laura and chicken for her parents. Whit is allergic to fish, and apparently the chicken was prepared on the same cutting board. Following dinner he wound up in the emergency room. Cook had recently asked for a raise and been turned down. Tracy Chaucer was convinced the fish sticks incident was deliberate. She fired the cook the next morning. Cook had a key to the house and was quite familiar with the family’s comings and goings. She had motive, means, and opportunity.”

“And a violent streak?” Spense asked.

“Not that we know of. No criminal record. Cooperated fully with the inquiry. Nobody but Mrs. Chaucer liked her for it—crime was too vicious for a nice middle-age lady with no history of nothing.”

“Except nearly killing Whit Chaucer,” Caity said.

“Accident. Besides, her sister alibied her for the night of the kidnapping. If she had done it, and she had the ransom money, why stick around Denver and keep working as the hired help? But she’s still in the area if you want to talk to her.”

They wrote the cook’s information down, but in Spense’s mind she was low on the suspect list. “Okay, who else? Close friend? What about the Chaucers’ inner circle?”

“You want me to alibi every socialite in Denver?”

“I’m talking about really close friends,” Spense said. “What about Grady Webber?”

“Him, we talked to. He also had a key to the home, sometimes checked on things for the family while they were out of town—unless he was tagging along. He got along swimmingly with the entire family. Not so much as a ripple over a bad round of golf between Whit and him. And Tracy Chaucer is Webber’s biggest fan. A bachelor at the time, Dr. Webber claimed to be home sleeping that night—alone. So he had means and opportunity but zilch for motive.”

“What about on the business side?”

“Now there’s a long list, and that’s where Chaucer puts his money. Lots of people don’t like you when you’re rich and powerful—at least that’s what the senator tells me, because how else would a guy like me know? And some of his company policies were thought to be unfriendly to the environment.”

Caity frowned. “That would encompass a lot of people. Anyone overlooked for a promotion. Anyone in the Sierra Club.”

“And he had financial dealings abroad, too. Based on the business enemy theory, we were buried in suspects. We combed through long lists of names, but couldn’t connect anyone to the kidnapping. And that was still better than where the Greedy Bastard theory took us.

“In that scenario, someone without a personal vendetta, who was simply looking for financial gain, targeted the Chaucers for money. It’s a reasonable supposition, but without the personal connection, we didn’t know where to start. It could’ve been absolutely anyone who’d read about Whit Chaucer in the papers, and he’d been written up a lot in the months preceding the kidnapping.”

“Not absolutely anyone,” Spense offered. “There are plenty of Greedy Bastards around, but someone looking to cash out by targeting a wealthy businessman would have to be a thrill seeker, someone unafraid of risks and consequences. We’re talking about a con man, or woman, with personal access to the family. Might be an overlap between the Greedy Bastard category and the Vendetta category—that could narrow it down.”

“Maybe. Where were you thirteen years ago?”

“We’re here now.”

“Let’s not forget The Opportunist,” Caity said. “I’m guessing you’re thinking a vagrant or criminal. Someone who did yard work, or passed by the area and just what, happened to see a window open or an unlocked door, crawled through and grabbed Laura and Angelina?”

“Bingo. But it’s my least favored theory. We chased down a few sex offenders in the area and some parolees but came up empty.”