Chapter 41
CHAPTER FORTY-ONE
Sam stood at Jo’s door, tension settling in his shoulders.
She’d called, said she had something to show him, but hadn’t given any details.
Beside him, Lucy waited, alert, as if she could sense the unanswered questions hanging in the air.
Jo opened the door, her expression a mixture of excitement and worry.
But it wasn’t only Jo’s expression that caught him off guard—it was the presence of Kevin sitting on the couch, his posture rigid, with Bridget leaning forward beside him.
“Kevin,” Sam said, stepping into the warmth of the cottage and shutting the door behind him. “Didn’t expect to see you here.”
Kevin gave him a nod, his expression unreadable. Lucy trotted in and made a beeline for Kevin, her tail wagging.
“Lucy,” Jo said, scratching behind the dog’s ears briefly before motioning to the coffee table.
Sam’s gaze shifted to the stainless steel box sitting on the table. It looked ordinary enough, but the way everyone was looking at it told him it was anything but. He unbuttoned his coat and approached, his eyes darting between Jo and Bridget. “Is this what you called me about?”
Jo gestured for him to sit, her tone businesslike. “We dug it up at the coordinates linked to a thumb drive Kevin has. And before you ask—I didn’t call you before we went because I didn’t want you tied to it officially.”
Sam sank into the armchair, eyeing the box warily. “Thumb drive?”
They took turns explaining how Kevin had come into possession of the thumb drive and had figured out the code to get the coordinates.
Bridget leaned forward, her voice firm. “Kevin got a note on his car, same handwriting as the one left on Jo’s door. We think this box and the skeleton in the well are related to Garvin’s murder somehow.”
Kevin stood, grabbing the box and flipping the latch. “Inside is what changes everything.” He opened it, revealing its contents: an old leather wallet, a stack of grainy photographs, and some documents Sam couldn’t quite make out.
Jo picked up the wallet and handed it to him. “The skeleton in the well? This ID belonged to him. Tommy Callahan.”
Sam’s stomach tightened as he flipped the wallet open, his eyes scanning the faded license. “So Callahan was digging into something he wasn’t supposed to, and someone made sure he stayed quiet.”
“Exactly,” Jo said, her tone clipped. “And it all goes back to Convale somehow.”
Sam set the wallet down and sifted through the stack of photos, frowning as he flipped through them. One image froze him.
It was Beryl Thorne.
Younger, maybe in her late twenties, standing beside a man Sam didn’t recognize. She was at what looked like a construction site—wearing a sharp blazer and a hard expression that didn’t match the picture of an innocent housewife she’d painted.
“Is this…” Sam started, holding the photo up so the others could see.
“A young Beryl,” Jo confirmed, leaning in to study the photo again. “Looks like she was involved in something back then.”
Bridget frowned, her voice low and careful. “I thought Beryl took over Thorne Industries after her husband went to jail—just an innocent housewife stepping in to save the family name.”
Kevin snorted, crossing his arms. “Doesn’t look so innocent to me. She’s right in the thick of whatever this was.”
Jo’s eyes narrowed, her mind clearly running at full speed. “Someone put those photos in this box for a reason. They prove something. Beryl wasn’t just along for the ride—she was part of it. Maybe even the mastermind.”
“And someone knew it,” Jo added. “They buried the truth with Callahan, but they didn’t destroy it. They locked it away—like they were saving it as insurance.”
“We know Beryl Thorne is the key to Garvin’s murder, but she wouldn’t admit to anything when I talked to her earlier.
She’s in tight with Convale, and now, we know Convale is mixed up somewhere in all of this.
Callahan was onto something all those years ago.
This box could change the power dynamic with Beryl,” Sam said.
“What about Marnie Wilson?” Jo asked.
Sam nodded. “Yep, now that we have leverage over Beryl, we can use that to get Marnie talking.”
“Marnie’s the weaker link. This”—Jo tapped the box lightly—“could come in handy later to keep Beryl in line.”
“What about the person that left the notes?” Bridget chimed in, her voice steady but laced with concern. “They seem to know our moves. They might already know we have this.”
Sam exchanged a glance with Jo. “True,” he admitted. “But maybe that person wants us to have it. What if those notes weren’t threats? What if they were breadcrumbs? Whoever left them might be trying to help us.”
Jo frowned, leaning forward. “Or they could be playing us. Leading us right into a trap.”
Kevin cleared his throat. “Either way, we don’t have enough to figure out who they are yet, so I agree our next move is to see what we can get out of Marnie.”
Jo leaned forward, her tone skeptical. “Marnie’s shifty. She’s good at wriggling out of tight spots. All we’ve got is that envelope from Beryl and her visits to Parker Studies. It’s not enough to stick in court. We need something solid.”
Sam nodded, rubbing the back of his neck. “You’re not wrong. It’s thin. But if we push—”
“What’s this?” Bridget interrupted. She had been quietly petting Lucy, her fingers idly brushing through the German Shepherd’s thick fur. Now, her hand froze, her brow furrowing. “What’s this on your tail, girl?”
Sam turned as Bridget lifted Lucy’s tail, revealing a few stray hairs faintly tinged with blue underneath.
“Oh, I thought I cleaned all that off. Guess I’m not much of a cleaner,” Jo said.
“What is it?” Sam asked.
“Some kind of blue paint or something. She had it on her tail at the station, before I got relieved of duty.” Jo made a face.
Something clicked. “Was that right after we went to Marnie’s campaign headquarters? I remember they were working on a poster for the campaign. It was blue. And Griggs was standing next to it.”
Kevin’s head snapped up, his expression sharp. “Wait a minute. The blue liquid at Garvin’s cabin.” His voice dropped into a hard edge. “The lab said it was diluted paint.”
Jo’s eyes widened, her mind racing. “If that’s the same paint, then that ties her directly to Garvin’s cabin.”
Kevin grinned, the first real smile breaking across his face all night. “Now, that’s solid. She can’t explain her way out of that.”
Sam nodded, the weight of the discovery settling over him. “You’re right. But we need to test them to see if they are the same. Though Marnie doesn’t need to know we haven’t done that …”
“If we bluff and say they tested the same, she’ll fold. Unless she’s totally innocent.” Jo grabbed an evidence bag. She happened to keep a stash in the drawer under Finn’s tank. She carefully cut the hairs, bagged them, and handed them to Sam.
Sam stood, his decision made. “Okay, looks like we have some work to do. Including paying a little surprise visit to Beryl and Marnie. I don’t think any of this can wait until tomorrow.” He glanced toward Kevin. “You want to come?”
Kevin straightened, a flicker of surprise crossing his face before he nodded. “Yeah, I’m in.”
Lucy let out a soft woof from her spot by the door as if sensing the shift in energy. Sam reached down to give her a quick scratch behind the ears. “Let’s go.”