While Dani put the finishing touches on the meal, Ivy showed Henry to his place at the kitchen table and sat next to him. A few minutes later, Starr and Tippi came down for supper, and after introductions were made, they slid into their usual chairs.
Once everyone was seated, Dani served the first course. While they dug into their rocket salads, Henry charmed them with tales of his college days. He’d been quite a prankster and his fraternity was still trying to outdo some of his practical jokes.
The conversation stopped momentarily while Dani served the pumpkin risotto and fillets, but picked right back up as they sliced into their steaks. When the girls had first moved in with Dani, they would only eat well-done meat, but she had slowly trained them that expensive beef was best enjoyed at a perfect medium rare.
Now Dani glanced nervously at Henry, wondering if he would appreciate the correct temperature or if she should have asked his preference. She was relieved when he beamed at her as a he chewed a bite of the fillet.
“This is delicious,” Henry commented after tasting the pumpkin risotto. “I can’t quite put my finger on the spice you’ve used.”
“Sage and garlic,” Dani said. “I’m glad you like it. The trick to a good risotto is patience. You have to stir continuously until the rice fully absorbs the stock and is al dente.”
“Laz was certainly right about your talents as a chef.” Henry continued to eat, commenting between mouthfuls. “I was sorry we couldn’t hire you for the library opening, but my dad wanted to use the vendor he has always used. I am so sick of the same menu for every single event.”
“I understand his wanting to stick to the tried-and-true,” Dani said. “And it was your father’s big day, so it’s only right that he have who and what he wanted.”
“As usual,” Henry muttered, then returned his attention to the food.
When everyone was finished with the entrée, Ivy got up with Dani to help her serve the lemon tart. While Dani cut the pastry into six equal pieces, Ivy placed them on small plates, then adorned each slice with a dollop of homemade whip cream.
As they worked, Dani lowered her voice and asked, “When are you going to ask Henry about Laz? You know he might not stick around once we’re through eating.”
“I’ll do it right after dessert. I asked Tippi and Starr to make an excuse and leave the kitchen as soon as they’ve finished, but I want you to stay,” Ivy whispered and smiled when Dani nodded her agreement, then she raised her voice and said, “Would you like a cup of coffee or maybe some tea with your tart, Mr. Hunter?”
“Coffee, please. I take sugar and cream.” Henry gave Ivy a fond look. “And I’d really like it if you called me Henry. Mr. Hunter makes me look around for my father, and believe me, he wouldn’t be a welcome guest.”
Once they’d all had their dessert and Ivy had handed Henry his cup of French roast, Dani waited for them to take a bite and then said, “I’m anxious to hear everyone’s opinion of the crust. I used a new recipe from a magazine that substitutes oil and water for the usual butter.”
Henry immediately said, “I think it’s great. Really flaky and rich.”
The others agreed, and as promised, the minute they were done, Tippi and Starr made their apologies and went back upstairs.
Dani started to clean up, figuring she’d be near enough to support Ivy, but far enough away so Henry wouldn’t feel as if they were ganging up on him.
Ivy cleared her throat and said, “Mr. Hunter, I mean, Henry, I got a strange text from Laz on Sunday and I haven’t heard from him after that message.”
“Oh. He didn’t tell you.” Henry’s shoulders slumped and he closed his eyes. “Although rehab really helped Laz, since entering law school, he’s had a couple of slips in his recovery. He’d been doing so well. He’s been clean and sober for over three years. But the stress of maintaining his grades has just been too much.”
Ivy murmured something Dani didn’t catch, and Henry straightened his spine.
Taking a deep breath, Henry said, “After talking to his sponsor, Laz decided to attend a sort of refresher course at the rehab center. It’s an intensive weeklong program, away from any contact with the outside world.”
From her position behind the counter, Dani watched Ivy give Henry a hug and whisper something in his ear. He shot her a smile and nodded. Ivy and Henry chatted quietly for a while, then they got up from the table.
Henry looked at Dani, who was filling the sink with soapy water, and said, “Can I help you? I find it very soothing to wash dishes.”
“I’ll help too,” Ivy offered. “Since Mr…I mean, Henry, is my guest.”
“Nope. We’ve got this.” Henry herded Ivy out of the kitchen.
Dani blinked, but didn’t object. Clearly the man wanted to talk to her alone.
“I’m glad you were free to join us,” Dani said as Henry started in on the stack of dirty pans and mixing bowls she’d piled near the sink. The plates, glasses, and flatware could go in the dishwasher, but not this stuff. “I know the invitation was short notice and you probably have a very full social calendar.”
“Not really.” Henry smiled shyly. “Except for business events, I’m pretty much a homebody. I prefer sitting in front of my fire and reading.”
“Really?” Dani picked up a sheet pan and a towel. As she wiped away the water droplets, she asked, “What genre is your favorite?”
“Mostly thrillers.” Henry shook his head. “But after my experience Saturday night, I might have to read something milder for a while.”
Dani set the pan aside and grabbed a bowl. “I had a pretty scary Saturday night myself. I was catering an event when the wind collapsed the tent.”
“That was where I was too.” Henry paused, one hand holding a scrub brush and the other the pan Dani had used to make the risotto. “I didn’t realize you were the caterer for Franklin’s party. By the way, the appetizers were amazing. I ate a ton of them.”
“Thank you. I must not have noticed your name on the guest list.” Dani smiled, then wrinkled her brow. “It’s terrible what happened to Ms. Joubert. Did you know her very well?”
“Actually, I’d never met her before that night.” Henry continued to wash the dishes. “Franklin and I have some mutual business investments, and I was only at the party because of that.”
“So you’re not friends with Mr. Whittaker?” Dani’s mind raced. Maybe she could find out the inside scoop on the billionaire.
“No.” Henry shook his head. “At most we’re friendly acquaintances. Why?”
“Well…” Dani faltered. “You know Ms. Joubert’s death wasn’t an accident.”
“I read in the paper that the police have deemed it a murder.”
“I overheard someone say that Mr. Whittaker had paid her a million dollars just for accepting his ring and that after the formal announcement at the engagement party that amount doubled.”
“And you’re wondering if Franklin killed her to avoid paying up?” Henry chuckled. “You realize that he could have just called off the engagement.”
“True,” Dani conceded, then started putting away the dishes they’d washed and dried. While she considered what she knew, she continued to tidy up the kitchen so it would be ready for the next day’s lunch-to-go preparations in the morning. Finally, she said, “But the whole cash for her hand in marriage seems odd.”
“Franklin told me about that. Apparently, Yvette insisted he do that to prove he was serious about going through with the wedding because he’d been engaged a couple times before and never made it down the aisle.” Henry finished the dishes and dried his hands on a paper towel. “However, Franklin wasn’t a stupid man, so there was a catch.”
“That makes sense.” Dani had wondered about the weird arrangement, but written it off as an eccentricity of the very rich.
“Franklin had his attorneys put in a little gotcha
clause.” Henry shook his head. “If it were me, I just would have found another woman.”
“What was the catch?” Dani asked.
“If Yvette was caught cheating anytime after accepting Franklin’s ring, she had to return the entire million.” Henry smirked. “And if she had an affair after the engagement party, that million had to be returned. And if she was unfaithful after they were married, she got nothing when they divorced. No, wait.” He frowned. “I remember that Franklin said the prenup gave her two dollars if she had sex with another man. You know, because of that saying.”
“That saying?” Dani wrinkled her brow, then put her hand over her mouth to hide her grin. “Do you mean he was calling her a two-dollar wh—?”
“Exactly.” Henry made a face. “So Yvette had more of a reason to kill Franklin than he had to murder her.”
“Because of the insult?”
“No. Because a few seconds before the tent collapsed, I overheard the wedding planner tell Franklin that just before the party started, she’d caught Yvette with another man. Franklin was planning on calling off the engagement.”
Chapter 23
Spencer yawned and looked at his cell phone. It was almost 2:45. In a quarter hour, he could finally leave. It was mind-numbing to watch two pigs doing nothing but wallowing for so many hours. He’d played enough Free Cell and Spider Solitaire to qualify as expert on either game and had even browsed a few jewelry store websites looking for a Christmas gift for Dani.
Thank goodness his team only had to guard Hamlet and Oinkphelia for two more days, and those two shifts were assigned to Robert and Lavonia respectively. Sorority and fraternity pledging officially ended at midnight on Halloween, and the university administration had agreed that after the hell night ritual was over and the inductees became full-fledged members, the mascots would be safe enough with just the security cameras.
As Spencer watched the final minutes of his torture tick down, he tried to think of another way to find Brock. His ex–best friend had proven better at disappearing than Spencer had expected.
There was no activity on either Brock’s credit cards or bank accounts. He wasn’t staying at any of the local shelters or at any of the low-cost motels in the area. And he wasn’t in the homeless camp near the railroad tracks.
In the past six months, Brock hadn’t been in touch with any friends or family. At least none that Hiram had been able to track down. And if he couldn’t locate the disabled firefighter, Brock had to have truly crawled under a rock.
Spencer had arranged to take the day off from work tomorrow. After his pigsitting shift, he’d sack out until 6:00 a.m., then spend the day looking into every little hidey-hole that he might have missed on his first try.
When the alarm on Spencer’s phone beeped indicating that at last he could call it a night, he jumped off his camp chair as if he’d been zapped with a stun gun and quickly gathered his equipment. While he made his final patrol of the barn, he ran through his mental list, checking to see if there was anything he needed his security team to do the next day while he wasn’t on duty.
Nope. Nothing urgent.
The monkey business in Fox Hall seemed to have ended with the girl dressed as Pocahontas. There hadn’t been any other calls to Area 51 or any other students dressed as Native Americans pinned anywhere else.
Spencer could only pray that the stunt had run its course, and that the added security patrols had discouraged whoever was behind it. If he or she persisted in grabbing drunken students and staking them to the wall, at some point, one of the victims would end up hurt, if not dead. Odds were that someone would either fall down while they were unconscious or choke on their own vomit. Or any of a thousand possibilities that could result in a tragedy.
Spencer would like to know who was behind the prank, but he’d settle for that person, or group of people, just not doing it again. One thing he’d learned working at a university was to pick his battles.
Now as he jumped into his truck and drove back to his town house, Spencer thought of Dani. It was a shame that she’d been so tired last night. It was one of the few times that the girls weren’t only one story away from them. He’d been hoping that since they finally had some privacy, they could share more than a couple of passionate kisses.
They both agreed that weren’t ready to hop into bed together. However, there were other possibilities. Ones he’d been eager to explore.
But he understood Dani’s dedication to the food pantry. After all, it was her compassion and giving nature that had first attracted him to her. The fact that she used what little free time she had to cook for the poor said a lot about her character and moral compass. She could have easily just written a check.
Spencer continued to daydream about Dani as he parked in his garage, went inside, and got ready for bed. Sliding under the covers, he imagined her beside him, nestled in his arms.
He fell asleep with a goofy grin on his face. And when his alarm woke him up, he realized that he hadn’t had any of his usual nightmares.
While he was in the shower, Dani had texted a summary of her dinner with Henry Hunter, and Spencer quickly sent her a message advising her to update the police. He wasn’t thrilled telling her to have even more contact with the detective, but he also didn’t want Christensen thinking she was hiding anything. Bad enough that Spencer was holding off on informing him about Brock’s appearance in town and that he had no idea how he would handle that little detail if he did find his ex-friend. Sadly, hearing from Dani was the last good thing that happened to Spencer that Wednesday. After stopping at every flea trap and dive within fifty miles of Normalton, he hadn’t found a trace of Brock.
When Spencer finally got home around midnight, he sent Dani a text to say he was free, hoping that if she was finished with her personal chef job but still awake, she’d call him back. When there was no response, he fell into bed. Between the late night with the pigs on Tuesday and dragging his butt all over Central Illinois, he could barely keep his eyes open.
* * *
Thursday, while Spencer caught up on work at his office, he reached for the phone a dozen times to call Christensen and tell him about Brock being in Normalton. There was no use putting it off. He’d been everywhere he could think of and he wouldn’t have any time to come up with a new search plan before meeting Dani and that pesky reporter at the mansion.
Despite his good intentions to the contrary, as Spencer pulled into Dani’s driveway and walked up to the rear entrance, he still hadn’t contacted the detective. Vowing that he’d do it as soon as he finished doing the stupid interview with Frannie Ryan, Spencer peered through the glass door to see if the coast was clear of irritating journalists and/or nosy nieces, then went inside the kitchen.
Dani greeted him with a soft kiss on the cheek. And while it warmed his heart, she moved out of reach before he could take her in his arms.
She gestured to the table and said, “Have a seat. Would you like something to drink? Or a snack to tide you over before dinner?”
“I’ll take a water if you have it.” Spencer selected the chair that kept his back to a wall and sat down, then added, “Something to eat would be great. I missed lunch.”
Dani took a bottle of Dasani and a tray from the fridge. She placed them both in front of Spencer and his mouth watered at the sight of the slices of prosciutto, salami, turkey, various cheese, and gherkins on the platter. She returned with a little bowl of mustard and a basket of French bread rounds and crackers.
“Wow.” Spencer shook his head and smiled at the sweet woman gazing at him. “I hope you didn’t go to all this trouble just for me.”
“Why wouldn’t I?” Dani asked, wrinkling her forehead. “I figured you’d be hungry after work.” She shook her finger at him. “And that was without knowing you hadn’t eaten since breakfast. You need to stop skipping meals.”
Spencer had to swallow a lump in
his throat before he could answer. Even then, he wasn’t sure what to say so he settled on an inadequate thank-you. No one had cared about his needs in so long, he was almost speechless.
As he was trying to come up with more eloquent words, the back door rattled and Frannie yelled through the glass. “I’m here!”
Dani ushered the reporter inside and told her to take a seat. Once Frannie was settled, Dani asked if she wanted something to drink.
“A Diet Coke would be awesome.” Frannie took her tablet from its case.
Returning with the soda, Dani joined Frannie and Spencer at the table. Spencer noticed that she chose the chair between him and the reporter and cocked an eyebrow at her, but she just shrugged.
As soon as Dani was settled, Spencer speared Frannie with a hard look and said, “You have half an hour.”
“Okay.” Frannie pulled out her cell phone and said, “I’m recording this.”
“Fine.” Spencer wasn’t worried about being on the record. He’d been in law enforcement long enough to be able to control what came out of his mouth.
“Then let’s get started.” Frannie reached into her tote bag and plopped a thick sheaf of papers on the table. “I’ve managed to dig up quite a bit on the late Yvette Joubert, but I need you to put a human face to my research. What attracted you to her?”
Shit! He should have realized how awkward this might be with Dani sitting right there. He glanced at her. She had an interested express in her pretty eyes and was leaning forward.
“Uh…” Spencer thoughts raced. “She was very attractive and when she turned her attention on you, it was sort of hypnotizing.”
“Mmm.” Frannie checked something off her list and shuffled through several pages before she asked, “You got married less than a month after meeting Yvette. Why the rush? Was she pregnant or pretending to be pregnant?”
“No!” Spencer stole another peek at Dani whose fingers were tightly entwined together. Her knuckles were white and he cursed himself for making her go through this. “I was going to have to leave for an extended period of time due to a job assignment and Yvi had been staying with a friend, but needed to find somewhere else because that friend’s fiancé was coming back from his deployment. She told me that an ex-boyfriend was stalking her so she was afraid to live alone, and I suggested she move into my condo. She said she was uncomfortable living together unless we were married.”
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