Page 109 of Lost Cause
His suggestion sounded good, but her gaze shot in the direction of Shaw’s body as if a magnet drew her. A cardboard box sitting next to him captured her attention. “I didn’t see that box before.”
“It’s been there since I arrived,” Burke said.
Abby hurried to it.
“Careful.” Burke stepped over to her. “Could be a trap.”
“Not likely,” Abby said. “Killing me wasn’t part of Estelle’s plan. Honestly, she didn’t want anyone knowing she was even alive. When I showed up at the shop and called her out, she looked genuinely shocked that I recognized her.”
“Still,” Burke said. “Be careful.”
She knelt by the box and looked up at him. “Do you have gloves?”
He took out a pair from the pocket of his tailored suit.
“I’m beginning to understand the point of the suit now.” Gabe laughed.
“Has anyone mentioned you’re not quite as funny as you think?” Burke grinned good-naturedly. “You never said how you got here so fast.”
He shrugged. “I talked to Hayden after you said no one had heard from Abby in a while. He said he tried to call her too, but she didn’t answer, and I got a bad feeling. So I hit the road in case I was needed, keeping in touch with the team. Then he mentioned the lighthouse. I was closer to this place than they were, so I came straight here.”
“Always the hero,” Abby said with a grin, flipping open the box. “It’s the crown case.”
She pulled it out, tipped the box, and set the case on top. Inside, the crown nestled in velvet. “Looks legit, right? But Estelle told me it’s the fake one she commissioned. She stole the real one back in the eighties—Shaw sold it for her.”
“If she knew it was fake, then why steal it?” Gabe asked.
Abby told them about the Microsoft certificates. “Supposedly they’re in this case.”
She lifted out the crown and held it up to Burke. “Can you hold this?”
“You’re wearing my only gloves so give me a sec.” He peeled off his jacket and held it open so she could set the crown inside for protection.
She felt around the inside of the case. “No holes or tears in the velvet. The piece we found in the greenhouse must not be from this box. And I don’t feel any paper in the lining.”
She turned the case on its side and ran her fingers over the leather. “There’s a seam here. Looks like a hidden door.”
Using her fingernails, she carefully pried it open, revealing cream colored certificates with a forest green scrolling border. The name Microsoft appeared in bold black letters at the top. In the middle, a grayish green box held Valentino Lemoine’s name as the registered holder.
She counted the certificates. “Ten of them valued at one hundred dollars each just like Estelle said.”
Burke squatted by her. “I wonder if Victor knew about these. Could be the reason he said the crown isn’t the treasure.”
“Seems logical to me.” Abby put them in the box, then added the crown. She stood and looked at Burke. “You might not like this, but we’re in Sheriff Mina Park’s jurisdiction, and she’ll insist on taking over this scene.”
“I’m more than happy to let her take it off my hands,” he said, rising to his feet. His eyes lingered on Abby. “I’m far too invested in a certain someone to lead an objective investigation.”
A slow warmth bloomed up her neck, flooding her cheeks. She didn’t need to ask who he meant—his gaze had already answered that.
The case was closed, but new questions had taken its place.What happens now? What are we when the danger is gone?
With Gabe in the room, she couldn’t ask. But she silently promised herself.
We’ll talk soon. When it’s just the two of us.
27
Three weeks later.
