The Heiress of Covington Ranch (Samantha Wolf Mysteries Book 4)

by Tara Ellis

  “Then what were you doing with this?” Sam asks, holding out the black leather case. She doesn’t believe him, and hopes that Lisa isn’t falling for it.

  Lisa’s expression changes and she stares at her uncle accusingly. “You had my laptop?”

  “Don’t be ridiculous,” he states, his tone changing. “I was simply moving it from the desk, when Sam came in and surprised me. Now, can we go in and talk?”

  Lisa looks uncomfortable, and glances up at the house, at her uncle, and then the driveway. “We can’t,” she finally says, fidgeting nervously. “Aunt Clara could be here any minute. This isn’t my house, Uncle Peter, and we need to honor the fact that she doesn’t want you here. Maybe we can meet somewhere for coffee, and you can explain what you’re looking --”

  Before Lisa can finish the invitation, Peter cuts her off by throwing his arms up dramatically in the air. “Never mind!” he shouts, stomping towards his car. “I thought we could be civil with each other, but I see that isn’t going to work. So be it.”

  Lisa stands with her mouth open, unsure how to respond. Her eyes fill with tears as he slams his door and then drives recklessly around the fountain before speeding up the drive.

  “I’m sorry,” Sam says, feeling horrible for her.

  “It’s not your fault,” Lisa replies, wiping at her eyes. Straightening, she pushes the hair back from her face and takes a deep breath. “I’m sorry if he scared you. Did he bother you at all?”

  “No,” Sam tells her, not wanting to cause her any further grief. “I was just surprised, that’s all. But he was walking out of the office with the computer.”

  Laughing, Lisa takes the laptop in question. “Sam, my uncle is a lot of things, but he certainly isn’t a thief. He’s got millions. What would he want with this old thing?”

  “Maybe it wasn’t so much the computer, but what’s on it?” Cassy suggests. They all turn to look at Cassy, and the smile fades from Lisa’s face.

  “Do you think he’s serious about trying to blame me for stealing the gem? Maybe he thinks he can find something incriminating in my documents or emails.” Lisa looks pale and starts wringing her hands. “Of course, he wouldn’t find anything. But the thought is still unsettling.”

  Just then, the sound of another car reaches them, and they all jump, afraid that Peter Covington has returned.

  “It’s my Aunt Clara!” Lisa explains, breathing a sigh of relief. Running up to a large, red truck, she opens the door and then embraces a grey-haired woman after she climbs down. They stand talking quietly for a minute, heads close. The woman is shorter than Lisa is, hardly even five feet tall. Although thin, she has a strong presence about her and it’s clear to the girls that Lisa is relieved to have her there.

  Clara leads her niece up to the house, patting her comfortingly on the arm. “You’ve got to be Sam,” she says pleasantly, pausing in front of the girls. “Lisa has told me quite a bit about you. And you have to be Ally, the girl with red hair,” she continues lightly, before Sam has a chance to answer.

  “And this is their friend, Cassy,” Lisa explains. “They’ve all been a great help to me this past week.”

  “Let’s all go inside,” Clara suggests. “We can have some lunch and talk about … well, discuss what’s best in regards to Peter.

  They all gather in the den, which faces the front of the property. It’s a warm, comforting room with wood-paneled walls and a river rock fireplace. Taking a seat in between Cassy and Ally on a large, leather sofa, Sam finally starts to relax.

  “Aunt Clara, I know you’re upset that Uncle Peter was here, but I’d really rather not call the police. I don’t think they’d charge him with trespassing, since his last name is Covington.”

  Clara chooses to stand, running her hand along the edge of a built-in bookcase, and then wiping the dust off on her jeans. While her face is pleasant, her eyes are dark and piercing, and her back is rigid. “I agree that it’s best to keep this in the family.”

  Lisa appears surprised by this announcement, tilting hear head at her aunt. “Really, Aunt Clara? I thought you’d be more concerned about him being in the house.”

  Shaking her head, her shoulders sag a bit and she leans against a table. “Lisa, that man went through every inch of this house with me the week after your parents died. I can’t imagine what it is that he hopes to find.”

  “He said he wanted family photos,” Ally offers.

  Snorting now, Clara turns to Lisa. “Photos? Really? What is that man up to?”

  “He had my laptop, and I’m worried that he might be serious about implicating me in the Eye of Orion theft.” Lisa looks close to tears again, but Clara is non-pulsed.

  “That’s ridiculous! The police already cleared you, and what does he care? He got the insurance money. Granted, it was an outdated policy so not what the gem is worth today, but it was still an incredible sum.”

  “It’s been three years since the ruby was taken. Why harass me about it now?” Lisa wonders, plopping down in a chair.

  “The only thing that’s changed is that you’re back in the house,” Sam concludes. “You’ve caught him snooping around here twice now since then, going through your things. He’s got to be looking for something.”

  Clara turns to study Sam, who squirms a little under her scrutiny. Clara’s stare is intense, but after a moment, she slowly closes her eyes and takes a huge, raspy breath. When her eyes open again, they’ve changed, and it’s clear that she’s made up her mind about something. Going to the matching chair across from Lisa, she sits down, and then reaches out to grasp Lisa’s hands.

  “I think it’s time I told you what happened between Peter and me,” Clara says.

  16

  A FAMILY DIVIDED

  Pausing, Aunt Clara glances at the three young girls on the couch, and then back at Lisa.

  “Oh, they can stay,” Lisa tells her aunt. “Unless it’s something they shouldn’t hear.”

  Shaking her head, Clara waves a hand. “It’s nothing scandalous, just the age-old fight of money. When my sister first married your dad,” Clara tells Lisa, “I saw Peter quite often. He was at every major family gathering. While the brothers weren’t terribly close, they got along. That all changed after your grandfather died. It was dreadful. Peter at least went to the funeral, but stood at the fringes of the cemetery and didn’t bother to go support his mother at the reception afterward. He was rather absent from the whole process, and I don’t think your dad ever forgave him for that.”

  “What happened with The Eye of Orion?” Sam asks hesitantly. “Why did they fight over it?”

  “To explain, I need to give you the background on the ruby,” Clara says, more open about it than Sam had hoped she would be. “Samuel Covington, Lisa’s Grandpa, was an interesting man. He was a magnificent architect and traveled the world, designing homes and buildings. When he was in Burma, he bought The Eye of Orion for around twenty-five thousand dollars. He used his own inheritance from his father’s passing earlier that year. He apparently wanted to invest it in something beautiful to be handed down through the generations. That isn’t a huge sum of money, even back then, but enough to make it valuable. And it was magnificent! I saw it once, when I went to have Christmas supper at their home one year. Even though it was worth more than their whole estate by then, it was simply nestled in a wooden box, lined in silk. I’ll never forget how the ruby reflected the firelight back, so that it looked like a star was trapped inside it!

  “You see, Samuel didn’t care about how much it was worth. Actually, he was never impressed with money and wealth. His oldest son, Jack, felt the same way, but his youngest son, Peter, was much greedier. Jack, Lisa’s dad,” she directs to Sam, “went out of his way to avoid getting caught up in anything monetary. When he received his inheritance, he immediately invested it into the horses. He could have bought a much nicer house somewhere, but this ranch was his dream.

  “Peter put his share into the stock market, which helped launch his
career as an investor. In spite of that wealth, he was still unhappy, since the ruby was worth ten times as much, and he believed they should sell it.

  “Jack was very tight-lipped about it, but Samuel’s widow and I had a whispered conversation a couple of years later, right before her passing. Apparently, while on his deathbed, Samuel told his sons that his wish was for the ruby to be passed on to their own children, and not sold. It was never meant as a prize, but rather a rare charm, and to mark their unity as a family. When the brothers got into a heated argument, Samuel asked his wife to leave and closed the door behind her. When Peter and Jack emerged some time later, it was never spoken of out in the open again. The ruby was gone, and Samuel didn’t write its disposition into his will.”

  “When I was younger, I tried to get dad to talk to me about it,” Lisa remembers. “But he would just smile, rub the top of my head, and tell me that one day I would get to see it. I gave up asking when I was about twelve. The family ‘story’ was that Grandpa gave the ruby to Peter, and the authentication paperwork to Dad. This would prevent it from being sold, but still keep the brothers connected, whether they liked it or not.”

  “Yes, that’s what I always believed, too,” Clara confirms. “Peter was at their funeral, but we didn’t speak to one another. Of course, he was sure to be present at the reading of the will, hovering like a vulture. He was infuriated when the estate and bank holdings were given to me, even though the amount of cash was small in comparison to what he makes.

  “The money was all tied up in the horses, and since Jack and Melissa were unconcerned about extravagant wealth, they never kept much in the bank. They weren’t even on top of their will. It was years old, and quite inadequate. I didn’t even think to question why it didn’t mention the ruby, since I always assumed Peter already had it. The one thing they were careful about, though, was making sure Lisa was taken care of. That’s why they did invest in substantial life insurance, making her the beneficiary. While the estate was left to me, it was with clear instructions to be used for raising Lisa.”

  “The horses were worth more than the property,” Lisa breaks in, her eyes dreamy as she recalls the animals. “Some of the most sought after breeding horses in the country. We also had a top-notch trainer that people came from all over to work with.”

  “Yes,” Clara says, frowning. “Michael Stuart. He worked at Covington Ranch for nearly ten years, and was a trusted employee and friend. Jack left his prized horse to him. We all assumed Michael would take over managing the ranch after the accident. Instead, less than a month after he found out that the prized horse was his, the scoundrel left and took several of our other employees with him, to start his own business. I was at a total loss in the aftermath, without a clue of how to run things. A couple of the other ranch hands tried to help, but we were quickly in the red. By the end of the first year, I realized I had to sell the remaining horses and close it down, or risk losing everything.”

  Sam and Ally look at each other, saddened to hear the story behind the property they’ve enjoyed over the years.

  “After the will was read that day, Peter approached me,” Lisa continues. “He was upset, and asked what was to be done about the ruby. I had just buried my sister and her husband, and the only thing the man cared about was the ruby! I was angry. I told him I didn’t care what he did with it.

  “He seemed taken aback by this, and after a moment of confusion, his whole demeanor changed. I assumed at the time that it was because he realized how callous he was being. He asked if I needed any help in going through the estate, and settling things. To be honest with you, I was overwhelmed, consumed with grief, and terrified to raise a sixteen year old on my own. The thought of having help was a relief, and Peter was Jack’s only close remaining family, as I was Melissa’s. So I welcomed his assistance.

  “At first, he was like the answer to my prayers. He helped set up a way to organize, document, and fairly disperse anything of value. We spent a whole week going through each room methodically. On the sixth day, he came to me one evening with a picture frame in his hands. It was The Eye of Orion certification from the wall of Jack’s den. In order to have the ruby insured, it went through a very thorough inspection and appraisal process. It was nearly worthless without the document. He asked if he could take it, and I didn’t even hesitate to say yes. The family squabble over a ruby was the least of my worries. The papers meant nothing to me and held no value on their own. I had the estate and I still thought that Lisa had a fortune coming to her from the life insurance.

  “The next day, Peter didn’t show up to help. It also happened to be the day that I received notice from the insurance company that they were launching an investigation. They were questioning whether Lisa was a legal heir. After meeting with Jack and Melissa’s attorney, it turned out that he was never given Lisa’s birth certificate, or her adoption paperwork. It was a nightmare. I was the only person that knew of the adoption, Peter didn’t even know. That’s how little he saw his brother. It was a closed adoption and Lisa was three when they built the ranch, so no one else in the area ever questioned if she was their biological daughter.

  “I couldn’t believe they hadn’t shared this vital information with their attorney. I know that they couldn’t possibly have contemplated a future where they would both be taken from Lisa’s life at the same time. They must have relied on the surviving parent to bring forth the required paperwork … but,” Clara pauses, wiping at her eyes. “Anyway, we couldn’t find it. Not anywhere. No birth certificate, no adoption documents, no records of a safe deposit box somewhere. I was frantic. I hired a private investigator and spent countless sleepless nights pouring through every box in the attic and basement.”

  “That reminds me, Lisa,” Clara adds. “It’s your twenty-sixth birthday next Sunday!”

  “Yes, and if everything goes well,” Lisa tells her aunt, “I should have Orion delivered on Saturday. The perfect birthday gift!”

  “I’m so grateful that the Hartfords took Orion,” Clara answers, her smile fading. “At least he was spared the chaos in the end. When Michael left with our most famous horse, I knew we were in real trouble. I went to Peter and begged him to sell the ruby, and give half of the money to Lisa. While I knew it went against what Jack originally wanted, I felt sure that taking care of his daughter would be the most important thing to him. Peter actually laughed at me! He said that even if he did decide to sell, since Lisa couldn’t prove she was a Covington, he had no legal obligation to share any of the funds with her. He closed the door in my face.

  “My attorney regrettably agreed with the assessment. Since it wasn’t in the will, the ruby couldn’t be claimed by either of us. If it was already part of the estate, we could try and fight it that way, but since it was never in our possession, we have no right to it.”

  “What a horrible thing to do!” Ally gasps, totally caught up in the story.

  “He had the nerve to come to me three years later, offering to buy the house,” Clara says, nodding in agreement with Ally’s comment. “Even though it would have been a relief to not have the responsibility, I was too mad at the man to consider it. Three years after that, he made another bid that was twice as much as the house was worth. I have to admit I was tempted. By then, four years ago, I knew that I was eventually going to be forced to sell it. But I still refused. Lisa was just starting college then and doing well. My plan was always to turn the house over to her, once she was financially set and able to make her own decision as to whether to keep it or not.”

  “What if he never had the ruby?” Sam suddenly asks. Everyone looks surprised, except for Clara.

  “I suspected that,” Clara tells Sam, “After he made the first offer on the house. I never saw him with The Eye of Orion, and he didn’t sell it. But then why go through the whole charade to take the certification?”

  “So that he could sell the ruby if he managed to find it,” Lisa answers. “Or, use it to collect the insurance on the fake ruby he arranged
to have stolen!” Groaning, Lisa lowers her head and covers her face with her hands. “Not only was I set up by John Brown,” she murmurs in between her fingers, “But I was used by my own uncle!”

  “So you think that when he couldn’t find the real ruby, he had a fake made? Then he hired that guy to use Lisa as a way to make the insurance company believe it was the real one?” Cassy surmises, putting it all together.

  “Yes,” Sam confirms. “Lisa was the perfect witness.”

  “And it worked,” Lisa says sadly, looking up. “Now, he must be worried that I might find the real Eye of Orion here somewhere, and expose him for the fraud he really is. He’d go to jail for years.”

  “But it’s not here,” Clara says with confidence. “I’ve been through the whole house several times, looking for your birth certificate. He doesn’t have anything to worry about. Your grandpa could have even kept the darn thing, and had it buried with him, for all we know!”

  “Maybe,” Sam says slowly, looking at each of them in turn. “But if it’s here, we’ve got to find it!”

  17

  CHANGES

  Sunday morning begins like a postcard for early fall, with a bright blue sky lending little warmth to the ground, which is now becoming littered with dropped leaves.

  Sam’s tires crunch through them, and she turns her face up to the sunshine, closing her eyes briefly. She knows this road well enough to trust that her bike will stay on course. She’ll often glide down a hill with her eyes shut and arms spread out wide, pretending she’s flying.

  Ally and Cassy laugh about something behind her, and she looks back for a moment, to make sure she isn’t getting too far ahead. While she’d rather be up at Covington Ranch, searching out a possible location for The Eye of Orion, she’s happy to be with her friends.

  Not wanting to involve the girls any further in her family problems, Lisa had immediately shut down any chance of a treasure hunt. She had even called Sam’s mom, explaining the uncomfortable situation with her uncle. Kathy was understanding, and said she didn’t have a problem with Sam still helping out with yardwork. But she did warn Sam to keep her nose clean.