Chapter 14 June
JUNE
Their food arrived then, and the server set their plates down with practiced warmth. They both thanked her, then waited until she had gone before speaking again.
The food smelled wonderful. Rich, savory, comforting.
For a few minutes, they both tried it, complimented it, and then, without thinking, swapped bites off each other’s plates exactly as they used to.
June only realized what they had done after the second exchange.
By then, it was too late.
Neither of them commented on it.
She set down her fork and looked at him over the table. “Holt…”
“Yes?” He looked up.
“If that’s true, do you think it means Victoria or Tom, or someone in their family, was the cat burglar?” Her eyes narrowed thoughtfully. “Especially as the bracelet was seen on Sienna.”
“That was my first thought,” Holt admitted. Then his mouth tightened. “But there’s more.”
June was fully captivated now. The case had just stepped sideways into something that felt like a real detective novel, except that this was their town, their people, and entirely too many of the casualties had faces she loved.
“What?” Her eyes held his, and she could see he was battling with something.
“We can’t say anything publicly because Rad was sworn to secrecy,” Holt told her. “But he was called out to a break-in today.”
“Where?” She had a funny feeling she already knew the answer.
“The Morrisons’.” He swallowed and put down his own fork. Her breath caught. “Sienna Morrison, to be exact. Her safe, which was hidden in the pool house where she apparently lives, had been taken.”
“The entire safe?” June gasped.
“Yes.” Holt nodded and gave his head a shake. “The whole safe.”
“That’s not a subtle theft.” June stared.
“No.” Holt agreed. “It’s not. It would’ve also taken more than one person.”
“Or one person with a wheelbarrow,” June suggested.
“That’s possible,” Holt agreed. “But Rad said there were no tracks from the house to indicate how it was taken out of her room.”
“Did Rad call forensics?” June asked.
“No, he had to do it himself, so he did what he could. He’s sending me the list and photos of everything that was inside. But Sienna told him the entire jewelry set was in there.” Holt took another bite of his meal.
June sat back and took another sip of wine, though this time she barely tasted it.
“Was that before or after the fire at Teacups?” She wondered out loud.
“I think it was taken during the fire.” Holt put down his fork and wiped his mouth with the napkin.
She let that settle.
“Which begs the question, was the fire set as a distraction?” June’s mind ticked over the scene. “We would need to know where Sienna was at the time.”
“She could’ve been at the fire. I know a lot of the town had hurried down to see it while a lot of them had been rushed out of the place and were standing watching from a distance,” Holt said.
“We didn’t notice as we were too busy getting Margo and Rad out of Teacups to see exactly who else was or wasn’t around. ”
“True.” June considered it. “But there must be security cameras on the other businesses around the shop?”
“I’ve already requested the footage,” Holt told her. “I should get it tomorrow, and we'll go over them.” He glanced at her. “That’s if you can help me.”
“Of course,” June said, and frowned as she mulled the theft of the safe over in her mind. “So someone broke into Sienna’s pool house, stole an entire safe, and got it out through the house. How?” She bit her lip in contemplation. “That place is a fortress.”
“They must’ve gone through the glass doors in the main bedroom of the pool house.” Holt sat back. “Apparently, the pool house has direct access through a path in the back garden to the forest behind it.”
June frowned. Then understanding clicked as she remembered something Holt had put on one of the whiteboards at the meeting earlier.
“That’s how you know that the Morrison house leads right to the burnt-out cabin.” She glanced at him, amazed. “You mentioned that part at the meeting.”
Holt nodded.
A chill threaded down her spine.
They both ate in silence for a few moments after that, trying to make room for the new information, but the delicious food had dulled a little under the weight of it. June forced down a bite and then another before setting her fork aside.
“So that would mean either Victoria or Tom was the thief,” June said at last. “Although it’s hard to think of either Tom or Victoria, who both grew up in wealthy families, stealing anything like that.”
Holt’s jaw clenched. His shoulders stiffened, warning June he was not finished with his revelations yet and that June wasn’t going to like what came next.
“I have information about that, too.” Holt’s voice was soft, and he glanced around them.
“What is it?” June sat back and reached for her glass.
“Sienna was keeping everything in the safe, hidden,” Holt informed her.
“She’d apparently been keeping it for years.
One of her parents didn’t know it existed, and when the divorce started, she was told it was even more important that it not be found so it wouldn’t appear among the declared assets. ”
June’s stomach dropped. Because she could already see from his face that the worst part was still coming.
“Who was she keeping it for?” June asked quietly. “Which parent?”
“Tom.” Holt’s jaw clenched, and his eyes flashed.
June had just lifted her wine to her lips and taken a sip, which slid down her throat, making her choke.
“What?” June spluttered, coughing hard enough that she had to reach for water to stop it. Once she’d recovered enough to breathe properly again, she looked at him in disbelief. “Are you sure?”
“Yes.” Holt’s expression was grim. “Sienna told Rad. And this has to stay between us. She swore him to secrecy because she’s terrified of what her mother will do if she finds out that there was a safe full of valuables she knew nothing about.
And that Sienna had it when it was stolen.
” He took a sip of wine himself, then added, “And she’s also afraid of what her father will do if he finds out it’s gone. ”
“Tom?” June cleared her throat again. “No.” She shook her head and wiped her mouth on a napkin. “I don’t believe it.”
Her brows knit hard.
No, it just didn’t fit. June’s mind refused to comprehend that revelation. “Maybe Sienna was lying to try to protect her mother.” She shook her head again. “I don’t believe Tom would do that.”
“I can’t believe it either,” Holt agreed. “But that’s what Sienna told Rad. I still have to investigate it on the quiet.”
“No, I’m sorry.” June put the napkin on the table and held up her hand. “Tom wouldn’t even keep that dollar bill he found at the beach that summer when we were kids,” she said. “He turned it in at the station because he said it wasn’t his.”
“I know.” Holt let out a long breath.
“No.” June shook her head. “I’m not saying he’s perfect.
I’m not saying there couldn’t be things we don’t know about him.
” She swallowed, and guilt clutched at her stomach, thinking about her own secret.
“Everyone has secrets and parts of their life they don’t share.
” Her eyes met Holt’s again. “But hiding a safe full of jewels and cash during a divorce is one thing. Being some cat burglar who stole your family’s set years ago is another. ”
“I know,” Holt said again, quieter this time. “I’ve been turning it over in my head, and I feel exactly the same way you do.”
“I can’t see him as a cat burglar either,” June stated. “While he has an easy stride and I’ve no doubt he’s well trained, Tom was always more of a football player than a gymnast or stealth type person.”
“Some cat burglars steal things in plain sight,” Holt pointed out.
“You know, like magicians or pickpockets. They’re deft at lifting objects without anyone realizing.
It’s all an illusion, sleight of hand, and perplexing the audience with what’s happening in this hand while the other hand takes something. ”
“Maybe Sienna was lying,” June repeated.
“She’s covering for her mother. Let’s face it, Victoria would be able to point fingers at Tom and get even more from the divorce if she found out about a hidden fortune.
” She knew she was grasping at straws. Trying to make up a scenario as June couldn’t picture Tom stealing.
Not just that, this would absolutely destroy Lucy.
Her eyes widened. “I’d start looking into Victoria first.” Her eyes hardened with resolve.
“She’s jealous and angry that Lucy and Tom have finally found their way back together.
In fact, I heard her threaten Lucy just before Lacey’s accident.
This would be the perfect revenge for Victoria. ”
“June, I’ve been through all the excuses I can muster in my mind,” Holt assured her. “Trust me, I don’t want this to be Tom any more than you do. The man and I have been best friends since we learned to walk.”
“Then we need to prove Sienna is wrong!” June said stubbornly.
“Maybe she was given misinformation.” Her eyes widened.
“We need to bring her in and question her about it.” Her finger tapped the table.
“Questions like, when were you given this safe of treasures? Who exactly gave it to you? What were you told to do with it? Have items been added to it over the period of time you’ve been keeping it?
If so, who has been giving you the items to store in the safe?
Why on earth, if you were asked to hide the safe and its items, would you be wearing one of the items in it? ”
She sat back and once again locked eyes with Holt, whose brows had risen, and a soft smile curved his lips.
“I hope you can remember all those questions.” He teased lightly. “They’re good questions.”
June gave a soft snort at him, trying to temper down the steam that was starting to boil over inside her.
“I’ve got a good memory,” she reminded him while making a mental note to actually jot the questions down.