Page 48 of Irish Fury
“Is something bothering you, Mir?”
Mirren massaged her temples and blew out an irritated sigh. “I hate to even tell you. It’s so crazy. Hell, I feel like a nutter even entertaining it, but I received a call that bothered me.”
“Jesus. What? Now you have to say.”
“I’ve already called Dad. MacGregor, not Morrow.”
She and Mirren had the same parents, but their Morrow father didn’t know about Mirren until she was around sixteen. Thomas MacGregor, Gray’s father, raised Mirren, and he would definitely be the father to turn to with things like weird phone calls.
Eze joined them once more. “Is it okay if Eze hears whatever you’re about to tell me?”
“Yes, and probably the more people that are aware, the better. When you were only a child, before I married Finn, even, I represented Finn and Fiona for the Smiths. At the time, the Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art was holding a competition across several mediums, with the winners having their art displayed for a year.
“Fiona won in oil, and Finn in metal work.”
“Of course they did,” Mags grinned, very proud of her brother-in-law and his twin sister.
Mirren grinned but quickly sank back into her story. “Unfortunately, the competition made national news, not for the work but because several horrible things kept happening to the artists.
“Private things were revealed to the media, breaking a marriage apart, a fire destroyed half of another artist’s collection, Fiona’s past was unearthed, a car’s brakes failed, injuring another. One artist was murdered,” Mirren finished with a grimace.
“Christ, Mirren, that’s frightening.”
“Yes. Well, the culprit was none other than one of the competitors. Hannah Todd. Her half-brother, Lance, made the connection between the crimes and Hannah. Her mother was found chained in a painting room where she was forced to paint for her daughter. She was barely alive when they found her.
“She was arrested during Finn and Fiona’s exhibit at the Smith Gallery in Edinburgh. She was deemed a schizophrenic and sent to a high-security mental institution.
“Julia Todd called me this morning. Hannah’s mother.”
Mags felt the hair on the back of her neck stand on end. Something felt off here. “That was so many years ago? Why would this woman contact you now?”
“Hannah was released. Her psychiatrist judged her redeemed and fit for society. She was released without a hearing. Her past crimes, including murder, were not revisited. Her mother is frantic.
“The hospital is being uncooperative. Julia contacted the police and filed a report. They’ve promised to make inquiries at the hospital and with her psychiatrist to ensure the law was followed in her release, but that might take ages.
“Julia doesn’t believe her daughter is reformed. She doesn’t trust that Hannah hasn’t worked the system. She even believes Hannah would have found a way to slip her medications.
“Julia believes it’s only a matter of time before Hannah strikes out, whether it’s her or me. I’m sick with worry. Hannah is a complete psychopath. She’s capable of anything. Dad and Uncle Coll are trying to find the woman’s trail once she was released. They told Julia to move away until her location is found, and they have a chance to speak to the police in Edinburgh.
“She plays with her victims. You have to be careful, Mags. She might try to strike at my family. Promise me,” Mirren demanded.
“Without question. Does Finn know?”
“I called him first. He’ll protect the kids, and between Finn and Fiona’s husband, they'll be safe.”
Mags suddenly gasped, her mind beginning to connect dots. She clasped Mirren’s hand. “Jina. Jina Turner, Anna’s girlfriend. She said an odd woman asked after you tonight. And me.”
“What? My God, surely it wasn’t.” Mirren thought for a moment. “This feels as crazy as it did all those years ago. If it's that woman, how in the hell would she know where to find you or me?”
Addressing Eze, Mirren said, “Margaret can’t be alone until this woman is found.”
“That is not a problem,” Eze nodded in understanding. “I can bring some of my parents’ security from Nigeria.”
“Thank you, I might have you do that, but let me speak with my father first and see how many security teams they have available. I’ll step into the back office and call him now. He and Coll will want access to the cameras here anyway.”
Mirren clasped Mags’ hand. “Prepare yourself, Mags. Dad might want you back in the townhouse where his own security system is already in place.”
“Whatever Margaret’s father prefers, however, I will be calling in enough men to shadow her until this situation is resolved.” Eze gave Mags a look that said, “Don’t argue.”
