Cosmo eased the Trans Am slowly down the street. The vehicle’s tinted windows made night vision even more of a risk, but it helped ensure his anonymity. His buddy Bernie had smiled broadly when Cosmo asked to borrow a car for a little overnight reconnoitering.
“Got just the thing for you.” The smile, the words, the tone were nothing less than Cosmo had expected from a used car dealer.
“Nothing flashy,” Cosmo cautioned. “I need to blend in with the landscape.”
Bernie pointed him to the vintage red Trans Am with jacked-up oversized wheels. A giant phoenix painted in gold sprawled across the hood.
“I said blend in, not hold up a neon sign.”
Bernie stuffed his cigar between his teeth. Didn’t stop him from talking around it. “At this hour that will blend anywhere in Vegas. And if someone does make you, they ain’t never gonna catch you.”
Cosmo had eyed the car suspiciously, but now had to admit it did blend in. Souped-up rental cars were the rage nowadays amongst wealthy tourist gamblers. This car carried a hint of drug dealer or street gang, but with the dealer plates on it, the cops had left him alone. Even now, the officer standing by his squad car at the curb didn’t pay him any attention.
He’d stopped at Lying Eyes earlier, but the gems he’d stashed there were gone. Only Iris would have found and moved them. But where? And where had she disappeared to all day?
The engine purred as he pulled into the parking deck next to her building. Three o’clock in the morning, and here he was defying all common sense so he could see her. He’d had a ticklish feeling in his stomach all evening telling him something was wrong. It had gotten worse when he called Iris’s cell from a pay phone-she hadn’t picked up, and he hadn’t left a message. But that had spurred him to visit her store. It was a risk to keep letting himself in there, but he’d wanted to collect the gems. So much for that idea.
Now instead of tickled, his stomach felt like beavers were in there stripping the bark off trees. And the fact that Iris’s car wasn’t here didn’t help. His intestines cramped up-stress getting to him-so he parked the Trans Am and cut the engine. He’d never before thought he was getting too old for this kind of thing, but maybe he needed to reconsider. Sixty-five was still pretty spry, but now that the girls knew about each other, maybe he should stay home more. Reconnect. Be a better father.
He sure as hell hadn’t ever wanted to involve his daughters in his schemes. That had backfired, too, thanks to Mickey. That boy-
A shadow moving along the next row of cars caught Cosmo’s eye. Human, male, tall, and within another three strides, Cosmo had him pegged. “Turner.” He hit the automatic door locks just to be safe. The tinted windows would make it impossible for Turner to see him, but what was Donovan’s hired gun doing here, so close to Iris’s apartment?
Turner examined a rather nondescript dark hatchback. Giving the car a more thorough perusal, Cosmo gulped in a breath. What was Mickey Kincaid’s Prelude doing here at this hour?
He screwed his eyes shut against the obvious answer, then peeped one eyelid open. Cosmo had hoped Mickey and Iris would click, that the boy might show her a whole world existed out there beyond the safe environs of David-dom. Mickey always had been a hands-on sort of guy.
Cosmo pushed Iris and Mickey to the back of his mind. If she had Mickey with her, she was safe. But Turner wouldn’t be prowling around an upscale residential neighborhood unless he was on the hunt. Was he after Mickey? Or Iris? Or both? At the moment, it looked like Turner was trying to jimmy the trunk lock on Mickey’s car.
What Cosmo needed was a decoy. Something that would pull Turner off Mickey’s scent. Get him out of Iris’s neighborhood. Unfortunately, he didn’t have the gems, real or otherwise. All he had was a souped-up Trans Am.
And himself.
“Well, Bernie, let’s see what this mother will do.” Cosmo cranked the engine and revved it.
Turner hunkered down behind the Prelude.
Cosmo switched on the high beam headlights and rolled forward. He lowered the tinted window. “Hey, Turner! You looking for me?”
Turner recognized him immediately. Jumping to his feet, the man pulled out a gun with an obscenely long barrel length.
Silencer. Cosmo ducked and hit the gas. The back window exploded in a rain of glass as he popped the clutch and peeled around the corner out of the line of fire.
He slowed down as he left the parking deck, waiting to be sure Turner would follow him. By the time he saw headlights in his rearview mirror, he’d already mapped out his route.
And Bernie was right-in this car, Turner was never gonna catch him.
Iris woke to find sunlight infiltrating the plantation blinds to leave narrow slats of brightness striping the carpet. Pushing the hair from her eyes, she tried to roll over but hit a solid wall of muscle. She held her breath as memories of their night assaulted her.
Realizing her companion still snored softly, she dared to glance his way.
Mickey sprawled across her pink sheets with the sinewy allure of a sated jungle cat. With one arm flung above his head, the planes of his face now relaxed in slumber, he had the guileless quality of a small boy. This was his triumph, the ability to be strong yet ingenuous, to pull in someone’s emotions and gain confidence. He was a criminal who made you want to believe the best in him.
She must have been insane to make love with him.
A smile cracked her lips. Maybe, but insanity never felt that good.
She sobered. What she’d done was impulsive, selfish, potentially dangerous. God, she’d started telling lies, and now she’d cheated on her fiancé. Her warm glow cooled as she confronted the cold hard facts. She couldn’t trade away her future for a one-night stand-no matter how good it felt. With a final glance at Mickey’s profile, she slipped from the bed and stole to the bathroom for a bracing shower to wake herself.
Thirty minutes later, sensibly dressed in a yoga ensemble of light blue, Iris closed the bedroom door so the coffeemaker’s spitting wouldn’t disturb him. Jealously, she guarded his sleep, allowing him to prepare himself for whatever today held in store. She wasn’t sure what to say to him when he awoke. Of one thing she was certain-whatever the conversation, it was bound to end with Mickey saying goodbye as he walked out. Just like Cosmo always had.
And her standing here, wondering if and when she’d ever see him again. She’d always believed she deserved better than that.
A gentle knock upon her door surprised her, and she padded over to peer through the peephole.
David. All spit-shined for a Monday morning at the office. One look was enough to reel her back with guilt.
Iris drew a breath. She swore to pocket last night as a keepsake and live with the consequences. A single night of passion was one thing, but she needed stability in her future. Hoping to hell she could count on Mickey to lie low, she unbolted the door. “David, what are you-”
He hurried through the doorway, his briefcase clutched in his hands. “Thank heavens you’re safe. I couldn’t reach you at all yesterday, and then last night your phone didn’t seem to ring at all, it just sent me directly to your voice mail.” As an afterthought, he stopped to peck her on the cheek.
“I’m fine, really.”
“Yeah? Why is there a policeman at your door?”
“What?” Iris blinked at him. In the hopes of proving him wrong, she went back to the door and reopened it. Standing a few feet from the threshold was the officer she’d met the night before. “Are you still here?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“Why?”
“Detective Hunter’s orders.”
“Ah, right.” She started to close the door, then peeked back out. “Do you want some coffee or anything-” she squinted to read the name on his uniform, “-Officer Foote?”
“No, ma’am. Not while I’m on duty. But thank you.” More than a uniform, he was young and earnest.
“How long do you intend to stand there?”
“Detective Hunter said he’d be here by eight.”
Apparently she’d get a chance to ask Hunter all her burning questions in thirty minutes. She’d have to warn Mickey before Hunter arrived.
But first she had to deal with David. “Thank you,” she said to the officer before closing the door. Pushing a stray curl from her vision, she turned to David. “Apparently I’m being watched. When Hunter gets here, I’ll ask him why.”
“I’ll tell you why-they’re waiting for your father to turn up. If he contacts you, Iris, you need to turn him in.”
It occurred to her that in David’s mind, it was that simple. The police wanted her father, so she should turn him over. No questions asked. Taking a good hard look at David, she wondered if he ever questioned anything after he’d made up his mind.
Then she wondered why she was questioning it.
Her best rejoinder was a noncommittal grunt. “Would you like some coffee?” Not waiting for a response, she padded past him to the kitchen.
David followed, laying his briefcase on the counter while she poured his coffee into a mug.
She handed it to him without making eye contact. Would he know by looking at her that she’d-? Thank heavens she’d showered.
David was droning on about his golf game. “You should have been there to watch us. Hank got Cubbins to fill in as our fourth, and his handicap is a fifteen. He was all over the place. I haven’t laughed so hard in ages.”
She smiled in his general direction, but he picked up on her preoccupation.
“Are you sure everything is all right?” he asked in a quieter voice.
“Just tired, is all.”
He sipped his coffee, watching her. “Long day at the store yesterday?”
“No, as a matter of fact, I-”
“Good God, what’s that?” David set his coffee down so sharply it splattered over his cuff.
Iris looked wildly around for men with guns but then realized he was pointing at Edgar. The rabbit, all white and fluffy, hopped across her living room. He’d managed to lose his collar some time during the night.
“It’s a rabbit,” he said.
“That’s Edgar. He’s Cosmo’s rabbit from the magic act.”
“Oh, Iris. No.”
David was shaking his head at her as if she were a troublesome child who’d crayoned on the walls. She’d seen that expression before, though never directed at her. Right now, it was irritating as hell.
“Is that why the police officer is here?”
“What?” Now she was totally confused.
“Your father’s here, isn’t he? You promised me you wouldn’t get involved in his escapades. You know how detrimental any legal problems will be to my career, my future as a politician. How could you do to this to me?”
“To you? To you?” Iris had always been so careful to curb her temper around David, but this was too much. “Do you want to know what I did yesterday? I was abducted from my store. I was taken at gunpoint by two men and hidden in an apartment and tied to a chair. I was threatened with bodily harm if I didn’t hand over some mythical jewels. I escaped by sheer determination and with the help of a jewel thief who barely managed to get us out of the building before hired killers came for us.”
Dumbstruck, David stared at her uncharacteristic eruption. Finally, he said, “What are you talking about?”
“I’m talking about my day yesterday, David. But you’re not interested in me, are you? You’re too worried I might be hiding Cosmo somewhere in this apartment and that it will harm your career.” She drew a breath and recklessly jumped off a cliff. “Well, you can relax. I’m not hiding Cosmo. I’m hiding someone else entirely.”
David eyed her warily. “I think maybe you’ve had enough caffeine this morning.”
“Enough that I’m finally waking up.” She planted her hands on her hips. “Remember my cousin Mickey? Well, what if I told you he’s not my cousin. He’s my lover. And he spent last night here, with me. In bed. What do you say to that?”
“I’d say you’re being ridiculous.” He straightened his tie, letting her know he found her whole tirade distasteful.
Where the hell was Mickey? Him and his a-guy-that’ll-fight-for-you routine? Iris wasn’t sure which man she was angrier with, but it was time to drive her point home. Stalking past David, she marched to the bedroom and flung open the door.
To find an empty, pristine room. Her bed was made, the blinds were open to the rising sun, all clothing was picked up and put away. She darted for the bathroom, but it, too, was empty. She turned to find David standing in the bedroom doorway.
“Are you through with this little game, Iris? It’s most unbecoming.”
Mickey had vanished like a shadow before an oncoming storm. Well, what had she expected? She’d been the one to say no promises, no regrets. Thank God he’d missed her embarrassing tirade.
David straightened his cuffs with a hefty sigh. “I apologize for falsely accusing you of harboring your fugitive father, but I don’t see why you felt the need to go to such extremes to shame me. I’ve got to go to work now, but I’ll come by tonight. I think this bears more discussion.” He turned to leave.
“David, wait.” She hurried to him. “I’m sorry. The truth is, I’m not the woman you think I am, and I can’t go on pretending this will work.” She tugged the engagement ring from her left hand and pressed it into his. “I can’t marry you.”
He looked down at the diamond before his gaze returned to her. “We can talk about this tonight. You’re not yourself right now.”
Iris laughed. “That’s just it. I am myself, maybe for the first time in months-years!”
“But we had our future all mapped out. This was what we both wanted.”
She thought of Mickey. The closest they’d come to a future plan was promising not to keep secrets from each other in bed.
“No, it’s what you wanted, and God, how I tried to fit myself into your plan. But I won’t cut myself off from my family. And you know Cosmo-you can’t afford to have him be a part of your public life. Well, I won’t allow anyone to dictate to me and tell me my father can’t be a part of my life.”
His brow furrowed, David pocketed the ring. “I thought you were as fed up with his antics as anyone. You said you wanted to put distance between you and him.”
“I said it. I even believed it. But I never meant it.”
“Are you sure you’re all right?” He peered down at her with all that earnestness that was bound to get him elected. “Because you’re not making any sense this morning.”
“No, I suppose not.” She took his hand once more. “You’re a good person and, frankly, you deserve someone better than me. You’ve got an ideal partner all picked out, now you just have to go find her.”
David’s face flushed and he pulled away. “I’m sorry you feel this way, Iris. I’ll be at the office if you change your mind.”
She stifled the urge to beat her head against the nearest wall. But this, she realized, was David’s biggest flaw yet greatest virtue-he thought only with his practical mind and never his heart. “I wish you well, David.”
“Goodbye, then.” He stopped to retrieve his briefcase, then quietly let himself out the door, leaving Iris alone.
She hung her head, overwhelmed by this change of course she’d just made in her life. It frightened and exhilarated her. Slowly, she walked back to the bedroom. “Mickey?”
There was no answer.
Not that she’d expected him to be hiding in the closet or beneath her bed. She checked both places, just to be sure. He’d pulled a vanishing act, as simple and effective as any Cosmo had ever managed in his life.
David deserved a better woman than one who would cheat on him with a man she barely knew. And she’d gotten what she deserved-a guy who gave her the best sex she’d ever had, then disappeared without a word or a promise.
Traffic-if you could call three cars, a cab and a garbage truck that-was light. Cory fed the parking meter while she absorbed the near silence of a Monday morning in downtown. The strident beeping of a truck in reverse quickly shattered the moment, but that just reassured her that though the Fremont Street district might look like a ghost town at this hour, it just needed a few hours to refresh and rejuvenate.
Yesterday afternoon had been a total washout for her. Once Allie discovered she couldn’t find Iris, she’d convinced Hunter he should be worried. Cory got swept along with the two of them as they went to search Lying Eyes, but the only thing out of place there was what looked like a small cat litter box.
Man, the way Allie reacted to that, you’d think she could picture someone holding a gun to that rabbit’s head. It was bad enough she was spouting off that she feared Iris had been abducted, but the look on Hunter’s face was what had finally scared Cory.
He’d looked like he thought Allie might be right.
Cory had stuck with them until she had to leave for work. Around one in the morning, Allie had left a message on her cell that Iris and Edgar were both safe at home. While she was glad Iris was okay, Cory was still irritated that her own search had been delayed.
She entered the lobby of the Golden Gate Hotel, its small dark interior a throwback to an earlier era. The clerk nodded sleepily to her as she passed through into the casino area. Like many of the casinos up here, the low ceilings gave a sense of cavelike safety and tranquility. Fewer lights and bells, smaller spaces, darker colors than their Strip counterparts, these casinos tended to attract the locals.
Cory had met plenty of them during her two years working this area. Most new dealers took years to work their way into a job at the big casinos. She’d been lucky Papa had a few connections. That, and she was damn good at her job.
The Golden Gate’s casino was practically empty, so Cory passed on through to exit the Fremont Street entrance. From here, it was a short walk down to the Four Queens. This time, she’d run her quarry to ground.
She steeled herself. She’d avoided answers for so many years, she wasn’t sure she wanted them anymore.
Justin sipped his tea as he entered Iris Fortune’s apartment building on Monday morning. He was hoping today would hold fewer screwy surprises for him, but that hope got shot to hell when the elevator opened to reveal Mickey inside.
Cool as could be, Mickey walked past him without a glance.
Justin didn’t miss the telltale bruising on Mickey’s temple, or the grim cast to his unshaven jaw. He’d gotten into some sort of trouble last night. As much as Justin wanted to follow him and get answers, it was too public. If anyone recognized Mickey talking to a cop, both of them could be toast.
He breathed deeply and regularly while he rode up to the eighteenth floor. It wasn’t his place to judge, nor to control. Since Mickey was putting his life on the line for this case, who could blame him for grasping a little passion? If Justin were fifteen years younger, he might do the same thing.
The memory of Allie’s creamy skin and big tawny eyes made him curse under his breath. That was never going to happen-she probably thought of him as a kindly old uncle. She trusted him, for crying out loud.
The elevator doors opened and Justin found himself staring at a businessman who looked vaguely familiar.
“Excuse me,” the guy said.
They passed each other, but it wasn’t until after the elevator doors closed that Justin realized the man was David Grantham.
Well, well, well. Iris Fortune must have had an interesting morning.
Foote was still standing by her door.
“Any activity here last night?” Hunter sipped his tea.
“Kincaid spent the night with her.” Foote delivered the news deadpan, though questions hung all over the hallway. He was the only uniformed cop who knew Mickey’s true identity. They’d had to bring Foote in on the secret when the young cop hauled Mickey’s ass into jail one night.
Hunter continued to drink his tea, silence being a loud and clear order to drop the subject. Hooking a thumb toward the elevator, he asked, “What about the other guy I just saw?”
“He arrived maybe ten minutes ago. Wouldn’t give his name.”
“I know him. He find Kincaid with her?”
“Near as I can tell, Kincaid snuck out.” Foote struggled to dampen a smile.
“I’ll bet,” Hunter said drily. Obviously, Mickey was rubbing off on this kid, and not in a good way.
Foote cleared his throat. “I heard her voice raised, but not the businessman’s. He was dead quiet when he left.”
“Okay, you’ve got four hours, then I need you at her store at the Bellagio.”
“Yes, sir,” the kid said eagerly. “Do I need to file any kind of report?”
“No. In fact, forget everything you saw and heard.”
Cory strolled through the Four Queens’ equally empty casino. Papa wouldn’t be playing poker at this hour, but she checked the poker room anyway. A single dealer looking in need of a cup of coffee before he fell asleep from sheer boredom was the sole occupant of the playing area.
Knots formed in Cory’s stomach. Papa had never cut her off so completely before. He probably had no idea how this terrified her-or maybe he did. Maybe that’s why he’d sought her out on Saturday, so she could see for herself that he was safe. He wouldn’t just disappear without a word, not like-
Hell, she was avoiding the inevitable. Papa had one more woman besides his daughters in his life. A woman he loved and trusted. A woman who would help him, no matter the danger.
A woman only Cory knew about.
Not that she was supposed to know. Oh no, that was obvious.
Cory coursed the empty roulette wheels and craps tables, working her way deeper into the casino. Toward the back was a bar, also empty at this hour, save for some skinny girl wearing a UNLV hoodie. She was practically curled into a ball in her barstool, talking to the bartender. Poor girl had probably been here all night spilling her woes to whoever would listen.
But it was the bartender who held Cory’s attention. A woman in her early fifties, Latina, with dark hair pulled back and coiled into a bun. Few wrinkles marred her face, but her body had gotten heavier with years, giving her a matronly roundness. Her cheekbones were high and angular, her nose thin and straight. Her eyes were the color of roasted coffee beans, and she always smelled faintly of rosewater.
At least, that’s how Cory remembered her. But it had been a long time. Fifteen years. Only concern for Papa would drive Cory to speak to this woman now.
She approached the bar with the same confidence she’d face a firing squad. At her sides, her hands were tightened into fists.
The bartender looked up as she approached, and Cory watched the older woman’s eyes widen in disbelief, shock, horror.
Yeah, happy Monday morning to you, too.
“Cory,” the woman breathed.
Down the bar, the skinny woman’s head turned. “Cory? It is you. I didn’t expect to see you this morning.”
Shit, it was Allie again. “What the hell are you doing here?”
Like a turtle coming out of its shell, Allie pushed the hood back to reveal her blond hair pulled into a long braid. “I couldn’t sleep last night, so I drove up here to visit with Mrs. Livingston.”
Cory glanced at the bartender, who had the grace to blush.
“Pouring out your troubles to a barmaid, Allie?” On closer inspection, Allie’s face looked hollow and pale with fatigue, her eyes red-rimmed as if she’d been crying.
“Oh, it’s not like that. Mrs. Livingston was one of my sitters while I was growing up. I thought Daddy might have left a message with her.”
Cory looked from Allie to the bartender. “No luck, huh?”
With a swipe at the bar counter, Mrs. Livingston shook her head. “He left me a phone message Saturday afternoon. Told me he wasn’t dead yet. Haven’t heard from him since.” She licked her top lip. “Can I get you something?”
The fifteen years you owe me.
“Yeah, Cory.” Allie glanced at her watch. “Have some coffee.”
“I just got off work. I don’t want coffee.” She looked at the pink frothy beverage before Allie. “What are you having?”
“Virgin strawberry daiquiri. I’ve got class in two hours.”
“Sounds good. I’ll have one of those.”
Allie smiled. Clasping her drink, she shifted out of her barstool and came down to join Cory. They sat in silence while the blender whirred behind the bar.
When the drink arrived, complete with a tiny yellow parasol, Allie leaned forward. “Mrs. Livingston, this is one of my sisters, Corazon Fortune. Cory, this is-”
“You don’t need to introduce us,” Cory said flatly. “Mrs. Livingston there is my mother.”
Acknowledging Mickey’s disappearance and accepting it were two different things. Iris added more hot coffee to her cup while contemplating her next move. Cosmo had been at her store again last night. Had he taken something, or left something? She needed to find out.
Surely she’d be safe at her store? If she kept to the public areas of the hotel and casino and then locked herself inside, she should be fine. It would be a long time before she opened a door without being sure who was outside.
Realizing her sudden insecurity stemmed from the loss of Mickey’s comforting presence, she gave herself a good, hard mental shake. She was fine on her own. Always had been. Always would be. And she shouldn’t be standing around here doing nothing just because she’d flushed some vision of her future down the toilet.
Edgar hopped into the kitchen to eyeball her, his little pink nose twitching.
“Right. First thing, I should find your collar.” She didn’t know how, when or where Cosmo had gotten those gems, but at some point they were going to have to be returned. She could just picture it-armed guards showing up to demand the gems and there she’d be, stuck with a vacant look on her face. Well, I’m sure they’re here somewhere…
“Come on, Eddy, where’d you stash them?” Iris leaned down to rub Edgar’s silky haunches. He hopped from beneath her hand but sat up to nuzzle the pale blue cotton of her yoga pants, making her smile.
She moved slowly from room to room, scanning the floors for the collar. Part of her morning would have to be spent picking up bunny droppings and cleaning that spot near the corn plant where Edgar had peed. But that was a surface annoyance. Her deeper fears multiplied as she completed one circuit of the apartment.
The collar was nowhere in sight.
“Probably underneath something,” she muttered as she drew her hair into a ponytail and banded it. The words did little to reassure her. She lay down on her belly to look under the sofa. Nothing. Two chairs and a small ottoman later, same thing.
Her stomach tightened in knots as the obvious sank in. Pulling herself to her feet, she dashed into the bedroom to look under the bed. Flat carpet greeted her. “God, no.” Tears stung her eyes as she rolled around to sit with her back against the bed, her knees drawn up.
The collar wasn’t just missing. It was gone. And it sure as hell hadn’t walked out of here with David.
“But how could he have known?” she whispered. And then she saw the sunlight pouring in her window. Hell, Edgar must have hopped into a sunbeam-and Mickey had dressed and been out the door in ten seconds flat. He’d been playing her all night. She’d thrown herself at him, and he’d taken her to bed just to win her trust.
Her hands fisted as anger erupted. “That lying, thieving son of a bitch!” She smacked the floor, hoping to forestall the tears. Too late-a flood of them escaped on a sob.
Stupid, stupid, stupid. He’d only been after the gems. Well, what had ever made her think she could capture the attention of a man like Mickey? She hadn’t even been able to hold her own father’s attention for more than a few days at a time. That’s what had made David so appealing-his attentions weren’t overt, but they also never strayed. Well, not to other women anyway. Just to work, politics, golf…
God, she was such a loser. A ten-million-dollar loser.
A brisk knock at her front door drove her to her feet. The clock said just after eight, so that must be Hunter. Good. She strode to the door thinking she could use him and the whole LVMPD about now.
“I want you to hunt him down and arrest his ass,” she said as soon as she opened the door. The words came out louder than she intended, reverberating down the empty hallway.
Hunter froze, his cup of tea steaming just below his lip. “Would you care to clarify whose ass you mean?”
She swallowed her frustration-barely. “Get in here. It’s bad enough you’ve had me under surveillance. I don’t need all my neighbors learning about my life.”
He scanned her living room. “Pretty busy here this morning?”
Damn him.
“For the record, you weren’t under surveillance. I thought you might need protection.”
“How ironic. Apparently, I did.”
Hunter was immediately alert. “From whom? Grantham?”
“No. Michael Kincaid. Ever heard of him?”
He scratched the back of his head while he thought about it. “I think Allie mentioned he was your cousin.” For a cop, he sure sounded evasive, but then he probably didn’t want her prying into how much time he was spending with her sister.
“He says he’s my cousin, but he’s not.” She expelled a bitter laugh.
“What is he?” Hunter asked.
Iris tossed up her arms and took a turn around the living room. “He’s working with these people who’ve been looking for Cosmo. He’s a lying thief and con man and possibly a killer.”
“Friendly little guy, isn’t he?”
She spun around at Hunter’s glibness to find him hunkered down, letting Edgar sniff his tea. The rabbit reared up on his hind legs, his nose twitching like-
– like her body had under Mickey’s fingers last night. Iris buried her face in her hands.
“You were saying about Michael Kincaid?”
She started, afraid he’d somehow read her mind. When she looked over, Hunter had risen and was watching her.
He laid his tea on a side table and pulled a notepad from his jacket. “Why don’t you start at the beginning?”
Iris sighed. “Let me get some coffee.” Her pants swished around her ankles as she led him into the kitchen.
As succinctly as she could, she recapped her experiences with Mickey over the past few days. This included how he’d broken into her home, her store, how she’d been abducted by men claiming to be his friends, and how he’d rescued her-though she now suspected that might have been set up to earn her trust. She sidestepped mentioning any overt body contact between them.
“Did you sleep with him?” Hunter asked. She bet he’d use the same tone if he were asking whether she’d lost her wallet.
Iris unclenched her jaw. “Yes.” How much had Officer Foote heard from the hallway last night? If she’d known he was still there, she would have been quieter. Well, she would have tried anyway.
“And the other man who came here this morning?”
“David Grantham. He stopped by on his way to work this morning.”
“Your fiancé, right?”
She licked her lips. “Ah, no. Not anymore. My former fiancé.”
His eyes narrowed to scrutinize her. “He broke it off with you?”
“No, thank you very much, I broke it off with him.” She set her cup down with a clatter. “Not that I think it falls into your professional jurisdiction to ask.”
“Sorry, you’re right. It’s just that I know you’ve had an emotional weekend.”
“Hey, I’m down one crackpot father and up two pretty younger sisters. Most people would say I’ve been dealt a better hand.”
He adjusted his tie. “I’m sorry.”
She hated that she could see he was. Tears stung her eyes again. “Forget it. What else do you need to know?”
“I think that will do it.” Hunter scooted his chair back and rose. “You realize now you should have turned those gems in to the police as soon as you discovered them, right?”
“Thanks. Next time, you give me my father, and I’ll give you the gems.”
“I thought you didn’t refer to him as your father?”
Iris eyed Hunter, wondering if she could be arrested for telling a cop to go to hell. “Go to hell.” Testing the theory made her feel better.
Hunter cracked a smile. Oddly enough, it looked genuine and…nice. “We’ll do what we can to pick up this Jock and Pebbles and, er, Mickey Kincaid, of course. Meanwhile, I want you to be very aware of your surroundings. I’ve asked Officer Foote to be at your store by noon. I assume you’ll want to go there today.”
She hoped he had no knowledge of Cosmo’s visits to her store, but she had to admit Foote’s presence would be welcome. “Thanks.”
“No problem. I’ll wait downstairs until you’re ready to go over.”
“Oh, that’s not necessary.”
“You don’t have a car here, do you?” He raised a knowing brow at her, and all her good feeling toward him evaporated. “No rush. Take your time.”
After Hunter left, Iris leaned against the door, drained. At least she didn’t feel like crying anymore. That took too much energy.
Edgar hobbled over to sniff at her bare toes.
“You are a sweetie, aren’t you?” She kneeled down and gathered the monster rabbit into her arms. “What do you say, Edgar? How did we get into this big a mess?” His whiskers tickled as he nuzzled a tear from her cheek.
Iris wished Allie were here to interpret. That alone probably meant she was losing it.
An hour later she arrived at the store with Edgar loaded into a duffel bag. Ginny grinned and babbled about how scary it had been when Iris’s sister kept calling and then came to search for her. When Iris unveiled Edgar and set him loose in the back room, Ginny forgot all about yesterday in lieu of her delight over the furry bunny.
Iris left the two of them playing while she looked around her workbench, eager to search before Foote arrived. Nothing was out of place. Still, Cosmo had been here last night. Why? The stones.
Unerringly, she went to drawer thirty-three and unlocked it. Pulling out the tray of fake alexandrite, she rifled through the stones, but they all looked the same. The small box was still there, and she opened it to check inside.
A folded paper lay on the white foam. Perplexed, Iris unfolded the paper. It was blank but for a single oversized question mark.
Iris stared at it, her own question just as big. “Cosmo, where are you?”