by Ellery Adams
“How am I supposed to get out of here?”
“I’m sure someone will come looking for you eventually. Maybe it will be Lombardi. All you have to do is tell him Felix locked you in. Say he showed up, and got mad when he saw the egg was broken.”
“That doesn’t sound believable, plus Felix could deny it. Just let me go.”
“No. Felix is a loon. Tell them he’s lying.”
“But—”
“I don’t care, Molly. Just make something up.”
Hattie slammed the door in her face, and the chair went under the knob. As her footsteps receded down the hall, Molly tried the door, but it didn’t budge. She went over to the window and looked out at the parking area. Hattie’s Mercedes was parked next to her Audi. She heard the front door open and close, and Hattie came into view, walking to her car. She opened the trunk and stood behind her car, where Molly couldn’t see what she was doing. She wondered if she was putting the box with the egg into something more secure than her bag. Hattie closed the trunk and got in her car. She glanced up at the house and smiled as she drove away.
Molly swore under her breath. She was effectively cut off without her phone and car keys. Even if she could get out of the room, Hattie had snipped the cord on what was probably the only landline in the house. The only way out was through the window. Too bad she didn’t have a ladder. There was, however, a large oak tree next to the house. It was big and old, with solid branches. She unlatched the window, and a blast of cold air swirled into the room. She took a deep breath of it, and bracing her hands on the windowsill, leaned out. As a child, she’d often climbed the big willow oak on her grandmother’s property in North Carolina. Of course, she was a lot older now, but she thought she could do it. This was a good tree with sturdy, thick branches. Taking another deep breath, she pulled herself up and out the window, and grabbed hold of the nearest limb. It felt wet from all the rain, but she held on to it, swung herself out, and planted her feet on the branch below it.
Moving slowly, and carefully, she climbed down the tree, branch by branch. The leaves were wet from the rain, the water dripping onto her head and face. When she was near the ground and felt confident she wouldn’t be in danger of breaking any bones if she dropped down, she let go of the branch. Her feet hit the muddy dirt, her knees taking most of the impact. It was not a good feeling, but she was able to stand up and walk, and that’s all that mattered. She looked up at the tree, amazed that she’d actually climbed down it. For some reason, it seemed a lot taller from the ground than it had from the second-floor window. She realized she was lucky she hadn’t broken her neck.
Now all she had to do was figure out how she was going to let Lombardi know Hattie had taken the egg. She needed a phone. For the second time that day, she opened the back door and entered the cottage.
Back in the kitchen, she retrieved her coat and stuffed the contents of her purse back into her Chanel bag, which thankfully Hattie hadn’t damaged. She locked the door behind her and walked in the direction of the manor house. She could use Peggy’s phone and call Lombardi from there.
She soon realized that what was a relatively quick car ride was a very long walk, and by the time she reached the manor house, she was silently cursing Hattie for taking her car keys. Her hat and gloves were locked in her car, and without them her hands and ears were freezing. So was her nose, which had turned red and was running. She dug a tissue out of her purse and blew her nose before she went into the house.
Murmured voices floated down the hall from the kitchen. Female voices. Molly moved quietly, afraid for a moment that Hattie was there. She stopped just outside the door to listen and heard a woman’s voice, one she didn’t recognize, say, “I’ll have a double espresso.”
Peeking around the doorjamb, Molly saw Peggy walk over to the coffee machine. The other woman was seated at the kitchen table with her back to her. Molly waited for Peggy to finish making her an espresso before she walked into the room.
Peggy almost dropped the cup and saucer in her hand when she saw her. “Molly! What are you doing here?”
The woman turned around. She looked straight at Molly, whose mind raced to make sense of what she was seeing. There was no mistaking who the woman was. Twelve years younger than her sister, the family resemblance was too striking to be mistaken. She had the same high cheekbones, long nose, and green eyes. Only her hair wasn’t white like Natasha’s, it was dyed to match her natural dark brown color, and cut in a shaggy, layered style.
Galina Cobb was beautiful, and very much alive. “So,” she said, “you must be the famous Molly Appleby. You look half frozen. Peggy, make her something hot to drink.”
Chapter 27
Molly sat on the opposite side of the table from Galina. No one spoke as Peggy made her a cup of coffee. The silence stretched on until Peggy placed the mug in front of Molly, and it was Peggy who spoke first. “I didn’t hear your car. How did you get here?”
“On foot. I walked from the cottage.” All thoughts of calling Lombardi had been pushed aside for the moment. She wanted to talk to Galina and Peggy first. “I found the egg,” she said.
Galina was watching her with those steady cat eyes. She was calm, and cool, like her sister. They had that in common, too. “How did you know where to look?”
Molly took a sip of the hot brew. She was still wearing her coat because she felt chilled to the bone. “James Galloway told me.”
Galina pursed her lips. “That disloyal man. I told him—”
“Hey, don’t be mad at him,” Molly cut her off. “He only told me because I said I was looking for an item that might help the police solve Curtis’s murder. He thought he was doing the right thing. Remember, you’re supposed to be dead.”
Galina stretched out her hand, palm up. “Give me the egg.”
“Not so fast,” Molly said. “I want answers before I give you anything. Let’s start with you being alive. What happened in Florida?”
“I faked my death,” Galina said.
Molly stared at her. “I kinda figured that part out already. I want details.”
Peggy grabbed Galina’s arm. “Don’t say anything else. I told you she’s working with the police. She can’t be trusted.”
Galina gently pried her fingers off her arm. “It’s all right, Peggy.” She patted her hand. “From everything you’ve told me about her, and from what I’ve read, I think Molly will appreciate what I’ve done.”
“I’m sitting right here, so talk to me,” Molly said. She hated being talked about like she wasn’t in the room. “I know you met with a buyer for the Fabergé egg, and you supposedly died later that night. Why don’t you pick up the story from there.”
“All right, I will.” Galina sat back in her chair, looking smug. “When I got back to the rental house after the meeting, Curtis was in one of his foul moods. He told me we’d make a mistake, that we should have asked more for the egg. He ordered me to get back in touch with the buyer and tell him I wanted more money. I told him I wasn’t going to do that, because things were already set in motion, and we’d go through with the sale as planned. He fumed about it over the next few hours, drinking too much, telling me I was selfish, that I was making a big mistake. When I couldn’t take it anymore, I put on my swimsuit and told him I was going out for an evening swim. As I was about to walk out the door, he grabbed me, shoved me against the wall, and started to choke me. He’d always had a temper, but he’d never been physically violent before. I was shocked. I pushed him away, which wasn’t that hard to do, since he was drunk. He fell on the floor and passed out.” She paused. “I remember standing there, looking down at him, thinking how pathetic he was, and then I realized I was pathetic, too. I’d put up with his drinking and gambling, the constant putdowns, and the mood swings. And I was worn out, Molly. Attacking me physically was the last straw. I took some money from my wallet and went to the beach. But I didn’t go for a swim. The water was far too rough. I left my things there, to make it look like I had.”
/>
“You could have reported the assault to the police,” Molly said. “They would have arrested him for choking you.”
Galina gave her a small, wicked smile. “I could have, but that wouldn’t have been good enough. I wanted him to suffer. I wanted him arrested for murder. I wanted him to go to prison for a long, long time.”
Peggy said, “It’s too bad the police let him go. If they had arrested him, I wouldn’t have had to kill him.”
Molly looked at her. “You killed Curtis?”
“Yes,” Peggy said, nodding her head up and down. “I have no regrets. He deserved it.”
Galina sighed. “Peggy, dear, please don’t do this.”
“Do what? You know it’s the truth.”
“No, it isn’t,” Galina said. She turned to Molly. “Peggy is trying to protect me. The truth is, I killed Curtis.”
A gust of wind rattled the windows, and suddenly the sky opened and the rain returned, only it was more than rain this time, it was sleet, and it was hitting the window like someone was throwing tiny pebbles against the glass. Molly breathed a sigh of relief that she hadn’t been caught outside in it.
Galina went on. “I walked until I found a cheap motel, and in the morning I used the phone in the room to call Peggy. I wanted to let her know what Curtis had done, and why I’d faked my death.”
Peggy’s eyes filled with tears. Her voice was shaky when she spoke. “Curtis had already told Natasha she was missing and presumed dead. I’d cried all night, thinking she was lost to us forever. When I heard her voice over the phone, I thought I was hallucinating. She told me I couldn’t tell anyone, not even Felix.”
“Secrecy was of paramount importance if my plan was going to work,” Galina said. “Peggy was wonderful. She sent me money and promised to help in any way, as I knew she would.” She was relaxed in her chair, like she didn’t have a care in the world, catching Molly up on the latest gossipy news. “When the police didn’t arrest Curtis, I had to find another way to get back at him. I decided to wait until the funeral was over and things had settled down, then come home and take care of him myself. If he wasn’t going to jail for killing me, I was going to kill him.”
Galina’s eyes were round and bright. She’s proud of what she’s done, Molly thought. Peggy said, “I set her up in one of the old maid’s quarters next to mine. It’s the perfect hiding place. The house is so big, and Natasha never comes into this wing.”
Molly had to concentrate on what they were saying. It was almost hard to believe, and yet, she knew they were telling her the truth.
Galina said, “About a month ago, I took a bus from Florida and moved in, right under Natasha’s nose. I knew she was planning to host the gala ball on Saturday night. I figured it would be the perfect chance to get rid of Curtis. All those lovely guests roaming around the house. There would be plenty of suspects for the police to interview.”
“What about the Fabergé egg? Were you still going to try to sell it?”
“Of course,” Galina said. “I need money to start my new life. Too bad the buyer I met with wimped out. I’ve been trying to find another one. It’s taken me a while to figure out how to navigate the dark web. No luck so far on a buyer, but it’s just a matter of time.”
She doesn’t know about Noble Dyson, Molly thought. And I’m not going to tell her.
“You weren’t worried Curtis would find the egg and ruin your plan?”
“No, because thinking outside the box has never been Curtis’s strong suit. I knew he’d never find the egg where I’d hidden it.”
“What if he’d asked James?”
“He wouldn’t know who James was if he walked into him,” Galina said. “If anything needed to be done at the cottage, I was the one who worked with James, or his father, not Curtis. And I trusted James not to tell anyone.” Her mouth turned down. “He swore he wouldn’t.”
“Natasha told me she didn’t trust Curtis,” Molly said. “She was worried if he did find the egg, he’d sell it in a heartbeat, and she wanted it back.”
“She was right not to trust him,” Galina said. “Curtis was a greedy man.”
Molly couldn’t help it, she laughed. “And you aren’t?”
“What do you mean?”
“You just told me you plan to sell the egg. And since you’re playing dead, I assume that means you aren’t going to share any of the money with your sister, who it rightfully belongs to. So, who’s greedy now?”
Galina frowned. “It’s not my fault my sister made a mess of things,” she said. “It’s the whole reason we decided to sell the egg in the first place.”
“What do you mean ‘we’? And what mess did she make?”
“Natasha was running out of money,” Galina said. “The costs of operating the estate, from maintaining the buildings to land conservation, have risen over the years, and she wasn’t able to keep up with it. Worst of all, she’d begun to dip into Maxim’s inheritance, money she’d set aside for him.”
“How can she do that? Isn’t the money in a trust?”
“No. Our parents made a verbal agreement with Natasha, there’s nothing in writing. Natasha set the money aside for him, that’s all.”
How irresponsible, Molly thought. As her mother would have advised: always get everything in writing. “Did you know it was only a verbal arrangement?”
“I did not,” Galina said. “I assumed it was in a trust, too. She only told me about it a few months ago, when she came crying to me about the trouble she was in. It was the first time she’d ever talked to me about her finances. I had no idea things had gotten so bad. She always gave me money, and never complained. I thought the estate had plenty of money.” She picked up her espresso cup and took a sip. Molly had completely forgotten about her own coffee. She’d been holding the mug to warm her hands. When she took a drink of it, she found it had grown tepid. Probably because her frozen hands were like ice cubes. Galina went on. “I talked over options with Natasha. I suggested she sell some of the land. She’s had developers begging her to for years, but she refused to sell even an acre. I told her to sell some of the jewelry, paintings, or a piece of antique furniture, but she knocked those ideas down, too.” She shook her head. “God forbid she touch anything in the precious Gordon collection.”
“The egg was the last choice?”
“Yes. I told her it’s time to sell the egg. All it does is sit in the safe, she wouldn’t even notice it was gone. Auction it off, and the bidding would skyrocket. But, of course, Natasha refused, because she’d promised to never reveal the egg was in our family. And that’s when I came up with the idea of selling it on the dark web. No auction house need be involved, I told her. All we needed was a buyer as equally interested in remaining anonymous as we were. It took me two days to convince her, but with no other options to her liking, she had to agree.”
“How did Felix get involved?”
“We needed his help with the computer,” Galina said. “I’m no expert, and neither is my sister. Felix has always had the knack for it, and we trusted him explicitly. The only other person we told was Peggy.” Galina looked at the older woman, and for a brief moment her eyes filled with affection. Then she straightened her shoulders and her eyes hardened again.
“Who’s idea was it to hide the egg?” Molly asked.
Peggy said, “It was my idea. I knew Natasha was on the fence about selling it. I was worried she’d change her mind, and then what would happen to my girls, and Misty Vale? There was too much at stake.”
Molly was surprised. “You’ve known all along where the egg was hidden?”
Peggy shook her head. “No, I didn’t want to know. I told Galina to keep it safe and hide it well.” She turned to Galina. “Where was it?”
But Galina didn’t answer. She was looking at Molly, and her eyes were suspicious. “Why don’t you tell her,” she said.
She thinks I could be lying about finding it, Molly thought. “The kitchen pantry, behind a baseboard.”
Galina nodded slowly. “Very good. That’s the correct answer.” She stretched out her hand again, but this time she snapped her fingers. “Hand it over.”
“Not yet,” Molly said. “You haven’t told me how you killed Curtis.”
“Obviously, I pushed him out the window.”
“I want details. Tell me.”
“Now who’s being greedy?” Galina dropped her hand and sat back in her chair. “I had Peggy lure him upstairs on the night of the gala ball.”
“Lured him how?”
“With a big, fat lie. Peggy told him Natasha had found the egg but that she knew where she’d put it, and she could get it for him, as long as he agreed to give her two hundred thousand dollars when he sold it. As I knew he would, Curtis agreed to her terms. She told him to meet her at seven o’clock sharp. All he had to do was go up the servants’ stairs in the east wing, away from the prying eyes of guests. Third floor, fourth door on the left. Then all I had to do was wait for him. I opened the window, and for a while I listened to the band playing, the music drifting into the room.” She swayed a little in her chair, as if she was dancing to a tune only she could hear. “It was then I knew, in my heart, I was going to get away with it.” Galina’s face flushed pink, and her voice rose in excitement. “As seven o’clock neared, I stood on the dark side of the room, away from any moonlight coming in the window. When Curtis walked in, all he could see was my silhouette. He thought I was Peggy, and then I stepped out of the shadows and he stood there, shocked, his mouth opening and closing like a dying fish. I didn’t say a word to him. I could see he was drunk, no surprise. He was unsteady on his feet. It was so easy to push him out the window. Then I ran down the servants’ stairs to my room, and I stayed there until Peggy told me the police had gone.” She smiled. “I slept like a baby.”
