When All The Girls Have Gone(52)

"Imagine his surprise when he couldn't find it," Charlotte said. "And his panic. He actually broke into the carry-on Louise had used to store her copy of the file on him, but he obviously didn't bother to take a closer look."

"He was fixated on locating the contents of the evidence box," Max said. "He wasn't interested in a road map. He never even bothered to open the envelopes. He knew that as long as that old evidence box was out there, somewhere, it was a threat to him. He needed Madison's help to locate it."

"He assumed that I was the one person who might know what Louise had done with the box, but I had dropped off the grid," Jocelyn said. "They didn't know where I was. And then, before he could figure out his next move, I sent the code word that caused Victoria and Emily to go into hiding."   





 

"That must have made Madison really nervous," Charlotte said. "She wanted both of them dead because she wanted their shares of the Keyworth buyout. But she had to know that if they all died in suspicious accidents the police would start investigating, so she tried to make it appear that you and Emily were the ones with motive."

"How did she get to Victoria so quickly?" Jocelyn asked.

"Victoria woke up and started talking," Max said. "Turns out she actually told Madison Benson where she planned to hide-her aunt's old trailer on the coast. Madison probably intended to let a little more time elapse before she murdered one of the other club members, but after Charlotte and I talked to her, she realized she had to move fast. She got into her car and drove straight to the coast."

"Victoria let her in because she thought Benson was a friend who had brought some news," Charlotte said. "She served coffee. She doesn't remember anything at all after that. Obviously Benson drugged Victoria's coffee. Then she sabotaged the heater and left."

"Madison was raised in a trailer park," Jocelyn said. "She would have known how to rig the heater."

"She took a risk," Anson said. "The sabotaged heater might not have done the job, but she knew that if it worked no one would link her to the murder. She almost got lucky. If Max and Charlotte hadn't decided to make the drive to the coast early the next morning, Victoria Mathis would have died."

Daniel looked at Max. "Louise was like a big sister to me. She joined the investment club because she was trying to right some wrongs. I think she went to Loring that day because she wanted to get the evidence box before Roxanne Briggs changed her mind. I'm sure she planned to give it to Ms. Pruett."

"That's possible," Max said.

It was not his job to shred Daniel's memories of his cousin, he thought.

Jocelyn and Charlotte kept silent.

"Thank you, Mr. Cutler," Daniel said. He got to his feet. "You got answers for me. That's all I wanted. I promise you'll get your money after I sell Louise's condo. But it might take a while. The real estate agent warned me that a lot of people won't buy a place if they know someone died in it."

"I've heard that," Max said. "I can wait for my money."

"I'd better be on my way." Daniel glanced at his watch. "I'm due at my job in twenty minutes."

Max got to his feet, crossed the room and opened the door. He shook Daniel's hand and then closed the door and turned around to face Charlotte and Jocelyn.

"My client is satisfied," he said. "But we've still got a couple of unanswered questions."

"Right," Anson said. "For instance, what the heck did Louise Flint do with the evidence that she bought from Roxanne Briggs?"

"The Loring cops say that Trey Greenslade is going to live," Jocelyn said. "They assured me that he'll be going to jail for the murder of Louise Flint as well as other crimes. But I'd really like to get my hands on that old evidence. There must be something in it that proves he's the one who attacked me or else Briggs would never have been able to blackmail Gordon Greenslade all those years."

Max walked back across the room to stand behind his desk. He took out the Washington State road map that Louise had marked up and opened it.

"Here's what we know," he said. "Daniel Flint is quite certain that Louise Flint had no friends or relatives between Seattle and Loring. We know that between the time she met with Roxanne Briggs in or near Loring and the time she was murdered that night she managed to conceal a package containing what must have been a large quantity of crime scene evidence."

Charlotte studied the map and shook her head. "Nothing but small towns between Seattle and Loring. And you said that the GPS and odometer readings indicate she didn't make any big detours."

"According to the cameras in the condo garage, she did not take anything out of her car when she returned from Loring," Max said. "The trunk was empty. There was nothing hidden in her storage locker except her copy of the file that she and Jocelyn were building around Trey Greenslade."

Jocelyn looked up. "What are you saying?"

"I'm saying that obviously she did stop somewhere between Loring and Seattle. Maybe her intuition was warning her that she was involved in something very dangerous. Maybe she was afraid that Roxanne Briggs would lose her nerve or have regrets and tell someone what she had done."

"Someone like her husband," Charlotte suggested.   





 

Max looked at Jocelyn. "Maybe she just wanted to protect the evidence out of an abundance of caution. Whatever the case, she stopped long enough to ditch the package."

"But where?" Jocelyn demanded.

Max folded the map. "Got the keys to your office at the foundation, Jocelyn?"

"Yes, why?"

"Let's go take a look."




A short time later they stood around Jocelyn's desk and studied the contents of the package that had been waiting for her.

"She didn't hide the evidence somewhere between Loring and Seattle," Max said. "She entrusted it to the U.S. Postal Service."

"Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night . . . ,'" Charlotte quoted softly.

Jocelyn looked up, tears in her eyes. "She addressed it to me. Not herself. Me. She wanted to be sure I got it in case something happened to her."

"By then she knew that the situation was very dangerous," Charlotte said. "She also knew that I was collecting your mail and that you would not want me to be involved in whatever was going down."

"She mailed her condo keys to my place before she left town," Jocelyn said, "because at that point she was concerned but not really scared. She was just taking precautions. But after she picked up the evidence package, she knew it was very hot and that someone might come looking for it. She didn't trust the security at her building or mine. We're talking about condo towers, after all. It's not that hard to get past the door stations. But she knew that the security here at the foundation is very good. She had every reason to believe that evidence would be safe in my office until I returned."

Charlotte smiled. "You were right. Louise wasn't going to try to scam you or use the evidence for her own benefit. She was a good friend."

"Yes, she was," Jocelyn said. She smiled a watery smile. "But I meant what I said in that damn basement. You are my best friend."

"No more secrets, friend?" Charlotte said.

"No more secrets."





CHAPTER 67




Max opened a couple of beers and set them on the kitchen table. He sat down across from Anson.

Anson picked up one of the bottles and took a healthy swallow. Then he lowered the bottle and looked at Max.

"You said you had an update on the situation?"

"Emily Kelly reappeared today, safe and sound," Max said. "She was hiding out in eastern Washington and staying off her computer and her phone. But, like Jocelyn, she kept an eye on things using the resources of the local public library."

"Everyone's accounted for, then." Anson looked pleased. "Except for Roxanne Briggs, who is a woman on the run. Probably scared as hell."

"Trey Greenslade and Nolan Briggs are recovering. They've both lawyered up, but both are talking."

Anson nodded. "Trying to cut deals."

"Right. There are one or two loose ends to tidy up, but things are under control."

"Congratulations." Anson clinked his bottle against Max's. "Always said you had a talent for chasing down bad guys and finding people who don't want to be found."

"Thanks. Unfortunately, this particular case did not conclude with a big payday. I can't charge the client full freight for time and expenses, not only because he can't afford me, but also because I spent a good portion of the time working another angle."

"Searching for Jocelyn Pruett."

"Exactly. Here's the bottom line: I need more corporate business and consulting work."

Anson squinted a little over the top of the beer bottle. "You'll never attract that kind of work with that little rinky-dink office you're in now. Hell, son, you don't even have someone to answer the phone."

"I'm aware that I need a flashier office. I also need staff. But I can't afford both, not yet."

"I can help out a little."

Max smiled. "Thanks, that's exactly what I'm about to suggest."

"You want a loan? I can cash in a CD, no problem."