Page 23 of Blind Trust
Another brick?Lyla eyed the woman again. She easily could have a gun tucked into the back of her jeans.Leave, Lyla.
“My brother was guilty and deserved to be in jail.”
Genevieve’s words halted Lyla from speeding out of there. “What did you say?”
“I said that I know my brother was guilty of stealing money, and he deserved to be in jail.”
“Don’t come any closer,” Lyla said when the woman started to walk forward again. Her gaze drifted to the glove box, where she would’ve kept Cupcake if she’d been in her car and not a rental. She met Genevieve’s eyes. “You have something for me?”
“Yes.” Genevieve nodded and then started to reach for her pocket but paused. “It’s in my pocket. A flash drive.”
Lyla tipped her chin, holding her breath that she wasn’t aboutto get shot. Relief flooded through her when Genevieve held a tiny flash drive in her hand. “What’s on it?”
“My brother was in trouble.”
“That’s why he was in jail.”
Genevieve shook her head. “No. I mean, he had a gambling problem and made a deal with the wrong people. He was a smart man.”
Lyla blew out a breath. Where was this going? “Apparently not smart enough to not get caught.”
“That’s just it.” Genevieve’s shoulders rolled forward. “I think he was, but he was scared of something. Something outside of jail made going to jail safer. We hired the best attorneys, but he wouldn’t cooperate.”
Lyla thought she remembered Walsh saying something about that, but she’d assumed he wasn’t willing to accept a plea deal in the hope he could convince a jury he was innocent.
“He told me he had an insurance policy, but that it might run out.”
“What does that have to do with me?”
“Do you know what happened to my sister-in-law, Tiffany, four days ago?”
“I don’t make it a point to keep tabs on the families of criminals.”
Genevieve’s brows dipped, the edge of her lips drawing down. “She was in a car accident. Nearly killed her. And if my niece or nephew had been in the car, it would’ve killed them.”
Lyla regretted her insensitive words. No matter how she felt about Jerry, his wife and kids were secondary victims to his crimes. “I’m sorry to hear that.”
“There are two things I’d bet my life on, Miss Fox. My brother would protect his family over his own life.” Genevieve’s voice wavered. “And he would never kill himself.”
Lyla wasn’t sure she agreed. Jerry Miller committed crimes for criminals across the world, thus putting his family in danger.And according to the medical examiner’s report, he had hung himself.
Genevieve held up the flash drive, then tossed it so that it landed on Lyla’s passenger seat. Then she started to back away toward her own car.
“What’s on it?”
“I don’t know.” Genevieve shook her head. “Jerry asked me to visit and gave me that. Didn’t tell me anything else, but my gut tells me it’s safer that way. I’m not a conspiracy theorist, but the mechanic who looked over Tiffany’s car said it had a faulty brake line.” She opened her car door. “She bought the car, brand new, a week ago.”
With that, Jerry Miller’s sister got into her car and Lyla pulled out of the alley. She’d expected Genevieve to back out after her, but in her rearview mirror, she watched as the red car remained there. Not wasting another second, Lyla pressed heavy on the gas, anxious to get away from Genevieve—but more importantly, anxious to find out what was on the flash drive.
After thirteen minutes going fifteen over the speed limit and two double-back maneuvers to make sure she wasn’t being followed, Lyla pulled up in front of the stately home she’d grown up in, a beacon of comfort that would normally loosen the twist of knots filling her stomach.
Except now.
Sitting in her car, Lyla brushed her hair off her face as she stared at her laptop, which held the flash drive, feeling like she’d been duped.
Counterfeiting ring.
In Lebanon.
